2015 Reflections

Fiftieth post!!

Cannot believe that we’ve already reached the fifty post milestone on the blog. In celebration of that fact, and as it’s the end of the year here’s our first joint ThreeBB united post as we reflect back on 2015. It's been a great first year for the blog, though we're not even one years old yet! We've got over 200 followers on Instagram and have just started up our pinterest board. Find us below for the latest photos, mini reviews and inspiration boards!

https://www.instagram.com/threebb_/

https://www.pinterest.com/threebb_/

We've got readers all the way from the U.S.A to Singapore, Bangladesh to our home country of the UK. Thank you all for reading and following our blog this year. I hope you continue to read, follow and share in 2016!

Let us know what to see more of next year in our comments section J

Now onto our personal moments of 2015.

[Holika Holika] - Honey Sleeping Pack – Blueberry

Holika Holika Honey Sleeping Pack – Blueberry

It's winter and the most dangerous time of year for skin to get dry and flaky. Which is why I incorporate a sleeping pack into my routine to lock in moisture. While in summer my combo skin does a good enough job of keeping my skin hydrated, even I need a boosting hand in winter. 

I've been trying out different sleeping packs from different brands to try and find the best fit and this is my review of my latest one. The Holika Holika Honey Sleeping Pack!

*I received this for free from BitsandBobsofBeauty. The opinions in this review are my own and there are no sponsored links.

[Unboxing] Love Me Beauty - December 2015

Love Me Beauty – December Box Review 2015

Having gone cold Turkey on the subscription boxes for the last two months I caved in when I discovered “Love Me Beauty” and knew I had to try it out.

This box works rather differently from the boxes I’ve had in the past, in that you know exactly what you’re getting before it arrives! You get given 60 credits each month which you can spend in their online boutique.

So lets see what I chose this month!

First Look

Triple Chocolate Melting Snowman Cupcake Recipe

Triple Chocolate Marshmallow Snowman Cupcakes

After a confusing week I went back to where I feel most at home, with my baking. Seeing as how it’s Christmas time, the time of decadence I went all out with these triple chocolate marshmallow cupcakes!

Autumn Series #4 - Dream Coats

So sadly, this will be the last of my Autumn Series given that it turns December tomorrow (bring on Xmas!), and to end I thought the perfect transition post would be one on what I would say is the most important autumn/winter wardrobe piece - the coat. The high street has on offer a huge selection of different styles to fall in love with, but obviously the tricky bit is to get one which fits well, is stylish and works with your entire wardrobe. 

2015 brings us the fashion of the 40's which means bohemian-vibe chequered patterns and capes brought up to date with faux fur hoods and leather trims. Quilted, duvet-style linings, long leather designs and ribbed, zip-up jackets are also new, key pieces to add to the season. But there's no doubt traditional classics such as the camel coat, military style trenches and the ultimate parka are timeless pieces which look stunning no matter what. It's impossible to cover everything, so I've carefully whittled it down to a few of my all time favourite styles and summed them up below to help you make that all important purchase. Or, if you're a little crazy like me, you can buy 5 coats at once and return the ones which don't quite work (this is not advised for the sake of your bank account!)

Mask Review #1 - Holika Holika Baby Silky Foot

Holika Holika Baby Silky Foot!

One of my dreams in life is to be able to shed my skin like a snake, get rid of all the blemishes and scarring and be reborn. Sadly that’s not a realistic dream, and sounds more like the stuff of nightmares. What there is available in the Asian beauty stratosphere are foot sheet masks! These are little booties for your feet which promises renewal and shedding <3 I knew I had to get on board with this! It wasn’t until I received my product that I realised I had a super air head moment. These aren’t the one-shot peeling mask but the moisturising one T.T

What I bought....

What I wanted

Autumn Series #3 - Fall into Suede

Aren't we lucky that suede is back? This incredible fabric which has the ability to stand on its own and still manage to instill glamour is set to be fall's biggest trend. It's also got to be my favourite of the 70's throwback set purely because of its potential to create interesting, winning combinations with such simplicity. 

We are seeing suede in all forms: A-line mini's, midi's, trenches, knee highs and accessories, so there is plenty to work with. It's just a question of how to work it and hopefully this article will help you out in that area.

1. The mini A-line

I have to start with the A-line skirt because I am in love with all the shapes, lengths and shades of brown, nude and taupe they seem to come in. The one rule I would suggest to follow has to be that less is more. Black/white basics will do the trick and if you do want to dress it up it'll be all about the detailing and textures. Try mixing things up with chiffon, silks, frills, fringing and button down fronts.

newlook.com

Apples, Eggs & Snails? It’s not Breakfast it’s my November Empties Review!

Apples, Eggs & Snails? It’s not Breakfast it’s my November Empties Review!

So it’s been a few months since my last review in August (read here), and I’ve been steadily powering my way through my products! It’s a real mix of the good, the bad and the meh so read on ahead to find out which is which.

Also a note on the online store prices, these are correct as of publication.
Jolse includes shipping in their prices which other online stores may not.

As always YMMV and patch test everything!

[My Little Box] September Box - My Little Fashion Box

At the same time, I had subscribed to Birchbox, my subscription virginity was actually lost to My Little Box. To be honest, it was the cute drawings on the boxes that drew me in. It was an additional birthday gift to myself and if you use the code FIRSTBOX, the price is £10 including shipping (usual price is £13.95 including shipping).

My Little Box is originates from Paris and now ships all over the world, delivering fashion, beauty and lifestyle items to your door.

[Birchbox] November - Skinny Dip Collaboration!

This month’s Birchbox is a collaboration between Birchbox and Skinny Dip and the theme is SQUAD GOALS. Skinny Dip is a London based fashion accessory brand specialising in iPhone cases, bags and headphones, it’s a brand that’s growing in popularity and there’s a massive section going on in Topshop having been over there at the weekend myself. Here are my two favourite items!

http://www.skinnydiplondon.com/collections/all/products/iphone-6-silver-glitter-case - I probably spent a good ten minutes playing with this in Topshop and it would be so distracting yet cool to have as your phone case.

http://www.skinnydiplondon.com/collections/all/products/heart-macaroon-make-up-bag-1 - This also caught my eye because it’s so cute.

[Birchbox] October - Stylist Edition!

Sorry guys I know it’s a little late given that it’s now 10 days into November but I thought I’d share my thoughts on the October Birchbox. So this October subscribers may/may not have been given the choice to choose either the Stylist box or the Back to Basics box. There was a lot of bad press around subscribers being unable to choose and how terrible the Back to Basics box was. I was fortunate enough to choose the Stylist box, as I saw the preview of the content of the Back to Basics and it did not look good, even with the full sized product of eyeko fat liner, the rest of the items were not worth the subscription price.

Spot Treatment/Prevention Masterpost - Sophie

Combating Spots!

I, as most of you out there, unfortunately do not have perfect air brushed skin. Sadly I do suffer from spots, blackheads, whiteheads, closed comedones, demons from hell, however you like to name them they are a fact of life. So in this blog I’d like to go through the different tips and products that are out there to help!

*Disclaimer I am not a dermatologist so cannot help with your specific issues. All of the below are from my own experiences and reading.

All my favourite spot warriors!

Autumn Series #2 - Tartan

Tartan print is back, but not in its traditional Highland way. This fall be prepared to explore a modernised version of the classic pattern with the release of unconventional, abstract and grunge inspired colours and sizes. Masculine lines and tailored fits are the style agenda of the season with designers creating boyish combinations for the runway. This means endless fun coming up with both polished and bold looks to suit your own style.

In the second series of my Autumn themed blog I want to generate my own individual signature by mixing current trends with my own little additions. I love the warm, homely affiliations that the more traditional tartan patterns bring out, so you'll see that I prefer adding smaller tartan details to much softer outfits like the portrait below. 

wachabuy.com

Instagram Round Up! #1

We hit a momentous milestone today with 100 Instagram followers! Thank you all for your support. J

To celebrate I’ve round up the top 15 Instagram posts which you’ve liked!

Trio of Fish Cakes Recipe! - Sophie

Trio of Fish Cakes

Now one thing I love are batch recipes which mean I can cook once and be fed for the rest of the month! And of course they also have to be tasty and simple to whip up. Fortunately my trio of fish cake recipe hits all three criteria for me!

You can safely freeze these fish cakes for up to two months, and it’s a simple 15 minute bake at 220C or 2 minutes in the microwave once defrosted.

These fishcakes can also be eaten cold with a salad for an easy work lunch.

Autumn Series #1 - Cosy Knits

There's something so grand about Autumn - the golden, auburn, copper leaves which litter the floor, the crunch of gravel as we tread the Earth in our burly boots, the crisp, sharp air kissing our cheeks with colour as we snuggle up in our cosy, snug Autumn garments. Yep, this has to be my favourite season. I mean who can complain about no longer needing an excuse to lounge around in baggy, oversized sweaters, thick, woolly leggings and luxurious, cashmere scarves whilst still looking effortlessly fab!?

There's no doubt that knitted sweaters are the central piece of any autumn outfit. This year the style is all about the minimalistic, dainty look. This means neutral tones, pastels, classic shapes and subtle patterns which I am very pleased about. You can't get more elegance and finesse then this! 

So let's kick start the Autumn series with a whole blog on...you've guessed it...sweaters and how to wear them!

bloglovin.com

Lookbook - October Favourites - Halloween Edition

You all still have over a week left to get your Halloween costumes which means no excuses not to look superb this year. To give you all a helping hand, what better time then now to do a Halloween themed Lookbook post. Below are a number of carefully hand picked pieces to hopefully inspire your own Halloween look this year. For most of these ideas, you will probably already have most of the pieces in your wardrobe with only a few extra bits here and there which you will be able to resource and get delivered in time from places like Amazon or ASOS. 

1. Amy Roiland

[Birchbox] September 2015 Edition!

So I finally caved into subscription boxes – I got 50% off the full price of a Birchbox due to it being Birchbox’s 5^th anniversary and it also fell into my birthday month so it was a little treat to myself. Unfortunately, it was so popular this month that I missed the cooler Birchbox designs.

Happy belated birthday Birchbox!

Halloween 2015 - Sophie's Make Up

Halloween 2015 – Woodland Fairy

The nights are growing darker, the air is colder and the pumpkin spice lattes are out. That can only mean one thing…. Autumn is upon us and Halloween is here!

Halloween is the time of year when you can get creative with your make up and experiment with all the colours you’d never normally use.

This year I’ve gone with a woodland fairy, and used a mixture of Asian and Western beauty brands to fulfil the fantasy theme.

EOpenMarket - Lucky Box AKA Sample Heaven

EOpenMarket – Lucky Box!

One of my favourite things to do is to try new things. Whether it be the latest new staple ingredient, or some cute new hand cream I am addicted. Luckily for my wallet Asian Beauty brands are fantastic at providing samples of their products. And these are also great for overnight stays or trying to meet the stringent air codes.

Now one of the more difficult life decisions to make is what to invest in. And more importantly what skin care to invest in :P You can spend weeks on the internet reading all the reviews and still be none the wiser. And then I stumbled upon EOpenMarket and their Lucky Box. It promised more than 30 samples for $8.80. It was combining my love of surprise with my love of new things, I knew I had to get it!

So below is a peek of one of the two Lucky Boxes I received.

(Yes two, I couldn’t resist).

All the Samples

[MINI REVIEWS] Nature Republic Eyeliner, Mizon Perfume Mist & SkinFood Lip Balm

Dear all! My deepest apologies for not blogging in a very long time – in the meantime I’ve jetted off to both Austria and Denmark, and been slightly distracted by my adult colouring book, colouring pencils and paints. Clap clap to Sophie whose really carried the team and kept this blog going – LOVE YOU SOPHIE <3

Anyway to make up for my AFK, I’ve complied three short sweet mini reviews of some of the products of been using. Enjoy!

[Glossybox] - September Style Edition

Goodbye Summer and ice creams and hello Autumn and the pumpkin spiced latte!
September has arrived and with it the usual feeling of ‘where has all the time gone’…

Fortunately my Glossybox ‘Style Edition’ has also arrived, banishing the oncoming winter blues back into their corner.

Let’s find out what the September Style Edition had in store!

[Travel] - 8 Tips for Travelling and Taking Care of Your Skin ~ Sophie

8 Tips for Travelling and Taking Care of Your Skin

Sorry for the delayed absence, we've all been off travelling this month! So this is the perfect collection of my top tips on loving your skin while on Hols.
I went up North for the weekend with only a large shoulder bag, via the budget-friendly Easyjet. This raised the question, how do I pack my hoard of skincare/make up while keeping to the restrictions. And are there tips for looking after my skin during travel.

The collection

Feeling cold up North, but my skin feeling great!

[London Town] - Columbia Road Flower Market; My Happy Place ~ Sophie

One of my favourite places in the world is Columbia Road Flower Market.

Whenever I’m feeling down or have had a tough week this is the place which brings me serenity and happiness. I take the old cliché of ‘go to your happy place’ very literally.

What follows is a very pic heavy post which will show why this truly is a gem of London.

[Beauteque] - August 2015 Unbagging

It’s that time of the month again and my August Beauteque bag has arrived!

I unsubscribed from them last month, but couldn’t resist signing back up again. It’s the only Asian Skincare/Beauty subscription box, as far as I know, which ships to London and I love surprises so had to give it another go.

So let’s find out if I made the right decision.

[OOTD] Outfit of the day - Eastbourne Beach Trip

So we recently went back to Sophie’s hometown, Eastbourne, for their famous air show and I followed the girls around all day with my camera and captured their beachy ootd look which you can find more about below.  

Summer 2015 - Current Cleansing Routine - Linh

For all those with sensitive skins out there!

I am so thankful for the internet and international shipping today, as for a long time, I had been suffering with sensitive skin and using Western products like L’Oréal and Garnier, which didn’t really cater for my sensitive and little did I know, they were making my skin more irritated and red. Hence the complete transition into using Korean products which are much more mild and gentle to skin.

Anyone remember that cleansing brush hype? I believe L’Oréal was first to introduce the product. I was so desperate to get one, it was so cool, felt really nice to use on the skin and only one year later, I realised people with sensitive skin shouldn’t be exfoliating with these brushes! I really should have realised sooner – my skin turned awfully red and blotchy

I never wanted to go back to Western skin products ever again. That is until today, and the discovery of Nivea’s new upgraded sensitive skincare range (perhaps some of their dermatologists have been visiting South Korea!). Therefore, I would like to introduce to you all the current two products I’m using as part of my cleansing routine.

[SKINFOOD] Peach Sake Pore Serum

Price $10.90 ~ £7

45ml

“Containing rice sake, peach extract rich in vitamins A and C, and silica powder, this soft essence minimizes shine and the appearance of pores.”

This product is pretty much my staple – you can tell by how empty the bottle is now since I first bought the product back in May. I use it daily as part of my skincare routine – make up remover, cleansing foam, toner, SERUM, eye cream and finally moisturiser.

I say it’s a staple because it’s pretty much given me consistent results, it has helped me control and maintain my pores and I’ve definitely seen fewer break out of spots.

[Rose Rose Haul] - Mega Haul from the Rose Rose Sale

So Linh my fellow Kbeauty fan girl alerted me to the amazing sale that Rose Rose was having to celebrate their new website, and I inevitably crumbled to the temptation of doing a massive haul in the face of the low prices. I semi-justified this haul by saying it was for the health of my skin and would provide ample material for the blog. So here is the first haul post on Threebb! (probably not the last XD )

All the Masks :D

[Great British Bake Off] - Technical Challenge No. 1, Walnut Coffee Cake

The Great British Bake Off is back once more on television, and this year I’ve decided to take on the challenge of the technical bakes!

What that means is following a basic recipe and sticking to the strict time limit given to the contestants.

I am also probably going to end up altering the recipe/ingredients to my own tastes and by what I can easily get on hand. So it is probably more accurate to say that I am going to be inspired by these bakes. And the first week only proved this to be the case!

Artistic angle to hide the cracks...

[Empties] - Snails, Strawberries & Peaches! It's my empties for July.

One of my favourite blog posts to read are ‘Empties’ posts, as it usually means the blogger has been using the product for a while, and I’m curious about people’s routines!

I’m fairly new to the Korean Beauty scene, still learning about all the different nuances of snail versus starfish, and the truth about PH. But I’ve finally amassed an empties collection worth blogging about. 

In all their empty glory

LookBook - August Favorites - Who Am I Following?

So some of you may be wondering where you can get fashion inspiration from. My go to place is Lookbook - a social media platform where users are able to share their fashion ideas and style. 

For those of you who have never used it before, you can filter the looks by 'Hot', 'New' or 'Top' or by the type of style you are interested in (Street, Minimal, Preppy, Grunge etc).

If you have an account, you can 'Hype' the look to like it and even better, you can 'Add' it to your collection. This is somewhat similar to the concept of Pinterest in that it allows you to save photos to albums of your choice.  

I thought I would share some of my favourite Lookbook users with you so you can start to build up your own collections.

Jinjuu Take Two! - Sophie & Chief Review

Jinjuu

So having read Linh's review (here), Chief and I decided that we had make it our next dinner date! Finally, after what felt like forever, Chief emerged from her hermit study cave and we headed straight over there!

So here is the first joint post on the blog!
S = Sophie

C = Chiwei (Chief)

15 Kingly Street, London, W1B 5PS

Price: £40-£50 for two people (no alcohol)

Website: Jinjuu

JINJUU, meaning “PEARL”, is London’s premier modern Korean food restaurant with celebrity chef, Judy Joo, at the helm.

London Cocktail Club

"A Serious Drinkers Party Bar" 

So probably about a month ago, us girlies took a trip to the London Cocktail Club on Shaftesbury Avenue. I never got round to publishing this, so I thought it'd be fun to post this up now so we can look back and laugh at our drunken mess of a night which, as usual, ended with roast duck in Chinatown.

[Soap & Glory] Peaches and Clean 4-in-1 Cleansing Milk

Price £8
350ml

"Wash and glow", "Melts away make-up"

Matcha, Strawberries & Cream Swiss Roll

Matcha, Strawberries & Cream Swiss Roll 

So one of my lovely friends gave me an unopened jar of matcha powder, so I promised to bake something delicious in return for him and his gf in thanks. This is the result!

Now onto the recipe!

Shopping Spree - Forever21

Shopping Spree - Forever21

Okay, so I've been deprived of going shopping properly (and blogging) for way too long due to exams. So now that I'm finally free and have all this extra time, I can finally create my first blog post! Of course, the first thing I did was to trek down to Stratford Westfield's for a shopping spree.

I wore my vintage jumpsuit with a gold V shaped necklace and spruced it up by tying a grey textured cardigan around my waist. This is to add an extra layer and colour to an otherwise single print outfit and it's also pretty useful when it gets cold. I paired this with some timeless brown heeled ankle boots which I wore with some patterned socks as my ankles look too skinny otherwise. 

Jumpsuit - New Look, Boots - Office, Cardigan - H&M, 

Anyways onto the shopping....

[Innisfree] Canola Honey Jelly Mist - Product of the Week!

Price: $7.62 ~ £4.92

80ml

“A hydrating mist with Jeju canola honey extract, which creates a skin moisture barrier that keeps your skin supple.”

Jinjuu Restaurant Review

Jinjuu

15 Kingly Street, London, W1B 5PS

Price: £45 for two

Book in advance!

My first ever restaurant review! I never feel the need to leave a review after eating at restaurants but for the first time ever, I was so impressed by the food and service at JInjuu that they really do deserve a good review and everyone must go try it out!

Jinjuu is ran by celebrity chef, Judy Joo and is a premium and modern form of Korean dining.

The menu is split into mains and what they call Anju – food you eat while you drink – very much Korean tapas. The Anju selection looked amazing – it was a very creative and contemporary fusion of Korean ingredients into Mexican classic dishes.

Beauteque June Bag Unbagging!

Firstly apologies for the delayed blog, been completely swamped at work the last few weeks.
But the delay does mean that I've had the time to properly try out all the products, so expect a more in depth review than normal of the products!

Received my third and final Beauteque bag a few weeks ago, and also my favourite so far!
The theme this month was 'Sizzling Summer', suitably vague to suit almost anything :P
It had a combination of my two favourite things in K-Beauty, cute packaging as well as practicality.

So let's dive in and see what I got....

[Secret Key] Donkey Milk Whipping Hand Cream Review

Secret Key Donkey Milk Hand Cream

Price approx. £2.20

60ml

So I have the driest hands ever which makes them look really ugly and wrinkly (Chiwei would otherwise object and claim that she has grandma hands – I’ll let her upload a photo and you guys can be the judge). Thing is, for me, especially in winter, they get quite dry and itchy and I end up scratching the back of my hands, the only way to stop me is if I slab a chunk of moisturiser on them and keep them moisturised!

There are two key things that I look out for in hand cream – 1. The smell and 2. It does the job

Beef Teriyaki Noodles

Beef Teriyaki Noodles Recipe

For my second recipe post it's another quick, cheap but importantly tasty meal!