Haul from Japan!

Hey everyone, I'm back!

Japan was a blast, and I can't wait to go back. We'll probably target the Kansai region again, venturing outside of Osaka and Kyoto cities, to places like Kobe. Or, other parts of Japan. Whichever really, because Japan is such a nice place!

Today's post will focus on my haul from Japan. However, I was planning on writing a series of posts on my travels, and I hope nobody minds, since it wasn't my intentions to do travels posts at all. There will be tips on the transportation system there, places to visit, food, shopping etc, and I think some of it will come in useful if you're intending to travel there sometime soon!

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So, as mentioned, this post is about presenting to you my teeny weeny haul from Japan. It's honestly not a lot of things, but we were travelling on a fairly tight budget (and we kept to it really well!), and besides, I was determined not to haul too much makeup. Afterall, I can't say I'm a big fan of Japanese makeup. So, the focus was really on the drugstore skincare products from Japan, and some random stuff like bags. And oh, things aren't exactly that cheap in Japan either, hence the smaller haul.

Clockwise starting from top left corner: Brush Roll, Haba Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Lotion Refill (150ml), Biore Sunblock, Anessa Sunblock, pretty wallet, Charcott Loose Powder in Translucent, Rohto Lychee Eye Drops, Daiso's Eyeshadow Palette and Daiso Nail Polish.

The brush roll was too pretty not to purchase! I'm starting to like floral prints, and when I saw them, I knew I had to get them. And, I purchased an additional one for Frockandrolla, and I'm glad she liked it. =)

The Hada Labo toner was a little unexpected. I still have a mega huge bottle of it, and probably won't finish it anytime soon, However, it was so inexpensive (598 yen, or S$9.20, compared to $19.90 locally) that I bought it on impulse. The Biore sunblock was also cheap (also 598 yen, compared to S$14.90 locally), and would be good for days I can't bear to use more expensive sunblocks. The Anessa sunblock was the one item I HAD to get, since it's exclusive to the Japanese market. Granted you could buy anything off the Internet now, but it's obviously more economical to purchase it there. I got it at a steal for only 1970 yen, or SS$30.30 for the bigger bottle.

The wallet was a late find at Harajuku on our very last day in Japan. I fell in love with it at first sight, but didn't purchase it initially because of the cost. It was about 2600yen, or S$40+. In the end, it came home with me as a gift from the bf, because he could tell how much I love the wallet! :p

Charcott Loose Powder was another product I was interested in purchasing. I've tried their loose powder in another shade (764 I believe). It's no where near my HG Maybelline Dream Matte Powder, but it has a lovely texture which makes me feel happy wearing it. So, I purchased it in the translucent shade. This set me back by about 1200yen, or S$18.46. The Rohto Eyedrops was another one of those 'if-I-see-it-I-will-buy' items. I already own another Rohto eyedrop, but since this lychee one is so famous (and honestly, I'm sure you're just as curious as I am to know if you can 'taste' the lychee flavour!), so I grabbed it when purchasing the other items.

From Daiso, I bought myself aneyeshadow palette. Obviously, they had TONS of other palettes, but I couldn't grab all 5-6 neutral palettes, so I got the bf to select just one, and oh my, I AM ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH IT. The eyeshadows are surprisingly really nice, not at all sheer like I expected, and not as shimmery too. The shade on the bottom left is so absolutely pretty, I can actually see myself hitting pan on it. It's a nice purple-brown that really compliments my eye colour so well, and it's such a good shade to put all over the lid, blending well, and poof, nice eyes! =)=) I grabbed a pretty nail polish too, a dark green with really pretty shimmers. I haven't really tested it yet, so I'll blog about it when I've used it for a full manicure!

If you don't see a pricetag written for some of the products, it's because I purchased additional ones for friends (ahem, frockandrolla), so I rather not let her know just how much the items cost :p You could always PM me though!

I purchased 2 bags as well, both of which were on sale. This first bag would be so very good for working life, without sacrificing my preference for sling bags. There were 2 shades available, but I went with the less common (or so I think) colour. This costs me only 1000yen, or S$15.38

The second bag would join the ranks of casual outings out, and is roomy enough fro my liking. I honestly bring quite a bit of things out, since I have to bring an umbrella, a book, water bottle/cardigan etc. This costs me 1500yen, or S$23.00.

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And so that concludes my haul post. I purchased all these over 9 days, and they came from all 3 cities I visited (Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo). The shoes there are drop-dead gorgeous, but they were rather expensive, and I didn't have much time to shop, so I went along with things i could do research on (the drugstore cosmetics), and bags that I saw along the way. As usual, my boyfriend and I totally didn't give ourselves enough time to do shopping, and it didn't help that departmental stores close at 8pm. The only day spent shopping was our last day in Tokyo, where I spent the time looking for suitable gifts for all my friends! And, not everything was cheap, with brands like K-Palette as cheap/expensive as they are in Singapore.

Next up, I'll be blogging about my free-and-easy experience in Japan, and most importantly, how best to keep to a small budget for an expensive country like Japan!