For this installment of Nosy Beauty, I’m featuring one of my favorite local beauty bloggers, Krysty from Vain Jane Writes. She’s frakking hilarious and also shares my love for geekier pursuits such as literature, history, and Doctor Who.

(From Krysty’s email: I cannot tell you just how happy I am to be doing this 🙂 I’m a big fan of Into the Gloss and I’m naturally nosy so features like these really make me very happy.) Hee!

So let me introduce myself. My name is Krysty Choi and I’m a developer/ part-time lecturer/ freelance writer.

When I’m not working I tend to vegetate by reading books or doing Spongebob marathons in bed. I also play the guitar (averagely) and the ukulele (badly).

Now let me talk a bit about my makeup kit and its contents. Believe it or not, there’s logic to the stuff I lug around daily.

First of all, it’s a carefully selected skin refresher kit. Nine hours in an air conditioned office is horrible for the skin. Plus, since I stare at a computer screen all day, my eyes tend to get all puffy and tired by afternoon.

My makeup kit contains a lot of items that help my skin stay healthy (and wake me up when I feel like taking a nap).

Second, you’ll notice that I tend to focus on products that are travel-friendly and easy to use. I really like using my hands to apply things. I’m quite tactile where my skin is concerned. (Also I’m lazy with washing brushes.) Besides, I really love products that come in tubes and pots. They’re easy to throw into the bag and pots are just cute, in general.

Lastly, I think that the selection of products in my kit reflects my two obsessions: dewiness and lip color! I really cannot deal with skin that is too matte. Way too fake. Then there are the four lip pencils that I drag around with me everyday. I have no explanation for the crazy number of lip balms in my bag, though.

My makeup kit is from Muji. It’s completely utilitarian and can fit a lot of things. It doubles as my first aid kit. So many compartments.

Base: Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder; Zero Kuma Concealer (Type 1)

I am seriously loving the glowiness that my improved Kiehl’s routine has given me, so I don’t feel like using any base most of the time. The concealer is for very red blemishes. I don’t use it for my under eye area. I realized a long time ago that the more I try to camouflage my bags, the more obvious they get. Besides, I think my eyebags look nice (maybe that’s just me). The powder is to set my concealer and make me look slightly more polished.

Cheeks: Josie Maran Cheek Gelee (Poppy Paradise)

I am blush-illiterate. I love this tiny pot because it’s fool-proof. You can’t over-apply. It just gives my cheeks a nice pop of color for those dreary days. Plus for some reason it makes me look dewy 🙂

Lip balms: Nivea Lip Balm (Cherry); Chapstick (Cherry); Carmex; Venus & Mars Lip Detox; Korres Lip Butter (Wild Rose)

Okay. I have all these lip balms. I like them all. They’re nice. My favorite is still Carmex, though, because there’s something crazy appealing in dipping your finger in that pot and getting a hit of minty vanilla.

Lip Pencils: Nars Velvet Matte (Dragon Girl, Sex Machine, Never Say Never); Nars Velvet Satin (Yu)

The NARS pencils are my obsession right now. You know Dragon Girl is my favorite, but I also like having three other color options with me all the time. I’m waiting for Luxembourg to be available.

I know it’s weird. I like dewy everything but for a red lip I definitely stick to matte.

Perfumes: Marc Jacobs Daisy; Aromateria (Austen, Sherlock)

That’s Marc Jacobs Daisy in the Travalo. Perfect for summer. The Aromateria solid perfumes are excellent for travel and they smell incredible. Austen is my scent.

Refreshers: Kiehl’s Facial Fuel Eye De-puffer; Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream, Caudalie Beauty Elixir; Eye Mo; Gatsby Oil Blotting Sheets

My favorite is the Kiehl’s eye balm, of course. It really lessens the puffiness and relaxes my tired eyes in new seconds flat. I’m using the Caudalie spray now but usually I stick to Evian. Perfect for sleepy afternoons.

I also have this tub of Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream for dryness emergencies. I should hand in my Kiehl’s empties to get a travel size tube of the cleanser.

My beauty philosophy, I guess, can be boiled down to two words: screw perfection. There’s no need to fret over every blemish. Instead, I’m a firm believer in makeup as enhancement. If you’re using makeup because you can’t bear to show people your natural face, then you’re doing it wrong. Makeup can be really awesome. I like how different colors can create very different effects. Sweet pink blue versus red lipstick – I mean, you’re the same person but these two colors result in two very different (and fun) looks.

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Yay! Thanks, Krysty, for this week’s Nosy Beauty! If you wanted to read more of her non-beauty stuff, click here. Whose bag shall we peek into next week?

Any guesses? To catch up or get your Nosy Beauty fix, click here. See you next Saturday!