Health Diary // Week Zero

Health Diary // Week Zero

Sunday, 12 January 2020

Hello everyone! ♥

I'm finally back from my ridiculously long blog hiatus (it's been close to a year since I blogged properly on here!) and I'm here with more inspiration and more ideas to share with everyone. 

One of my plans for 2020, was to become healthier in every way I possibly can. My mental health took the biggest hit in 2019 and left me with a lot of struggles to deal with on a daily basis. I'm mentally feeling better now, but I want to make sure that I do the best I can to maintain that and improve it further. Over the last two and a half years, I have gained a lot of weight. That in itself isn't healthy and while all my doctor's tests and stuff may come back healthy and fine, I know in the long run I could end up causing detriment to my body when I get older if I keep going this way. Plus, I don't feel great at the weight I am and I know I don't do enough to prevent it.

For the first two weeks of the year, I have been trying to get myself into a routine and actually stick to the plans that I make but I haven't had much success and keep taking steps back more than anything. So, my mindset is if I start keeping a diary of sorts in regards to the progress I make, then it will be something to keep me accountable. I was going to start doing a vlog once a week of what I do in a day to get myself looking and feeling healthier, but at the moment I don't feel comfortable with myself enough to do that. I have a goal in mind first to meet before I do that!

So, what exactly will I be sharing on here with you guys?

• Some of my favourite healthy meals and snacks, along with the recipe if it's applicable. This may give you some ideas and will also remind me of the things I thought tasted really good. I won't be tracking and sharing every single meal I have as I don't think that's a healthy habit for me to get into. 
• I'll keep a log of what workouts I'll have done as well each day that I do them. 
• Any achievements I make along the way. 
• Progress photos of my body, I will be going by that more than the numbers on the scale, especially after I know I have gained an amount of muscle on my body.

What are my goals in the long term? 

• Lose the weight I had gained over the last two and half years, perhaps a little more after that. 
• Put a focus on building muscle in my body
• Run a 10k in May and run a half marathon (21.1km) in September with my friend
• Remember to take my vitamins and such on a daily basis
• Drink enough water each day
• Exercise 3-5 times a week, no less unless I am unwell
• Become happy and comfortable in my body
• Make sure to put myself and my mental health first over everything else 

Goals for Week One?

• Abstain from takeaways and fizzy drinks for the week
• Take my vitamins daily
• Workout my arms, legs, abs and butt each once this week
• Try and be asleep by about 1am (I work late) each night and up by about 8am
• Try some form of new fruit or vegetable! (this one will be hard as I've tried loads)

Hope you all have a fantastic week and I will see you all again next week! 

love, mina x

kkochsongi > mint blossoms

kkochsongi > mint blossoms

Wednesday, 17 April 2019

Hi everyone!

I hope you're all keeping yourself well! I thought I would do a small post to announce a little change here on the blog. You'll know this blog as kkochsongi, a name I've been using online since 2013, but recently I decided that I wanted to make a change. Have a simpler, easier to remember blog name. I'm frequently referred to as "k something" and that was getting a bit frustrating. I also wanted something a bit more personal to me and something that sounds pretty. 

So, on the 16th of April 2019, kkochsongi became mint blossoms.

A combination of my favourite colour and taken blossoms from the fact that I love cherry blossom trees so much not only in their full appearance but the flowers themselves are beautiful. 

I do have a new e-mail address to match with the new blog name: mintblossoms@outlook.com

I'm hoping with this change, I can start a new little adventure on here and share a lot more with you!

Mask Monday // Holika Holika Essence Jelly Mask - Sweet Peko Edition // Strawberry

Mask Monday // Holika Holika Essence Jelly Mask - Sweet Peko Edition // Strawberry

Monday, 25 February 2019

Mask Monday is back (finally)! 

My little weekly feature where I share with you all some of the masks I have tried whether it be sheet mask, was off mask, peel off, hair mask or whatever kind of mask I get my hands on! Though, let's be honest, 99% of them tend to be sheet masks! Today's one is a super cute one

The sheet mask featured in this post was gifted to me by Mask Time in one of the monthly boxes. 

Holika Holika Essence Jelly Mask - Sweet Peko Edition // Strawberry

I've yet to use a product from Holika Holika before but I've heard a mixture of opinions when it comes to both their skincare and makeup. So, a good place to start might be with their skincare and sheet masks are usually the most affordable aspect of a brand's skincare range. Last year, Holikax2 did a collaboration with Fujiya Milky Candy and their mascot Peko for a range of adorably packaged products. The brand itself is highly popular in Japan and I've actually tried the Matcha version of the sweets and loved them (thanks Ellis!!). So this collab appealed to both fans of the brand and those who enjoy collecting adorable packaging. I highly appreciate how the actual packet looks like the sweet bags!

Scent & Essence // THIS DID NOT SMELL LIKE STRAWBERRIES!!! Which disappointed me greatly. Being infused with strawberry extract, I was hoping for a strawberry scent, however, it ended up being more citrus/slightly herbal (?) which was a little disappointing. There is a TONNE of the essence in this package though, there's definitely enough to either keep the excess in a pot to use for a few days or apply on your body. It has a water jelly type texture, which is quite refreshing and gives the impression it's going to be very moisturising.

Fit & Material // As with a lot of novelty character masks, this mask has Peko-chan's face making up the design of the entire mask. A little creepy, sure. But cute all the same. Though my daughter ended up finding it a bit scary on me. It was a little big for my face particularly the bottom half of it, so I had to do a lot of pulling about to make it sit and fit onto my face properly. The actual mask itself is quite thick and sturdy and feels woven.

Overall // I used this for 20 minutes following a double cleanse and tone. 
Initially, my skin appeared brighter and thoroughly moisturised. It felt supple and overall just felt really soft. The mask left a lot of essence on my face so I had to massage it in for a little bit to make sure my skin just didn't have a thick layer sitting on the skin and so that it could be absorbed faster. There was a little stickiness left afterwards that took maybe half an hour or so to go away, but this isn't too much of a big issue because it wasn't dramatically sticky. This was generally a very well performing mask, doing as it says and doing it well.

Repurchase? Since this was limited edition, I know this won't be around for all too long, so I may buy one or two more but I'm probably going to go ahead and try some of Holika Holika's other sheet masks along with their make up.

Let me know your mask of the week!

A Mini Purito Wishlist

A Mini Purito Wishlist

Thursday, 24 January 2019

Purito started appearing all over K-beauty Instagram as soon as word got out about it and its popularity has continued to grow and grow. Being a brand that intends on having products that are honest and safe, containing naturally sourced ingredients. It's easy to see why this has made them popular, caring primarily about the actual quality and effects of the product rather than just the appearance of the packaging, though I do really enjoy the aesthetic of their packaging in all honesty!

I was recently contacted by Shikaglam (this site is in Spanish as they are based in Barcelona) who is the only current European distributor of the brand. They sent me a whole bunch of samples to try from Purito and to give my impressions on them. So I have decided to do this in the form of a wishlist of the products I liked the most from the selection given and give a little mini first impression on said products. 

Purito's products are generally quite inexpensive, with the most expensive products being about £18. So while maybe not ideal if you're on a very tight budget, but still affordable even if it's just to try one or two products from them. I've given all the samples I got a few uses to see how I found them and below I have listed the four products that I enjoyed the most and would like to continue using at a later point in time.

Defence Barrier PH Cleanser 

I've used this a couple of times in the morning as I enjoy using a light, gentle cleanser in the morning to just get rid of any dust and debris that has fallen onto my skin while I've been sleeping. I've found this to cleanse extremely well while not being harsh on the skin. Leaving it feeling clean but without that ~squeaky~ clean feel (which is what I look for). It does have quite a strong scent to it, however, this is natural due to the ingredients contained as they haven't added excess fragrance. I would like to see how this fares on my skin over prolonged usage and I've been looking for an ideal morning cleanser.

Centella Green Level All In One Mild Pad 

This was actually one of the products I had my eye on the most when it came to Purito. I've been so intrigued by the idea of these types of pads from various brands and I know Centella is an ingredient that is supposed to be amazing for acne scars. I usually used this after my double cleanse or in the morning when I wake up to get rid of dust and found it left my skin feeling smooth and hydrated at the same time and I hope that with regular use, they would help my scarring. This is definitely going to be one of the purchases I make from Purito in time and a lot of my K-beauty pals love them too.

Centella Green Level Eye Cream

Eye cream is something in my skincare routine and I know it's something that I should be using a lot more. This intends on restoring moisture to the undereye area and that's exactly what I need (though really I could do with tattooed concealer or something as I'm cursed with chronic eyebags). My trial of this product has left me with the skin around my eyes being thoroughly hydrated and I feel like this could be a great addition to my routine skin care.

Sea Buckthorn Vital 70 Cream

This is a cream I've actually seen doing the rounds and from my trials of it, I've found it to be very nourishing and moisturising without leaving any oiliness on the skin. The natural fruity scent that comes from the ingredients as well makes it even nicer to use. Buckthorn is an ingredient that is supposed to help with skin tissue regeneration, so I'm hoping if I was to begin using this regularly, it may help with some of my hyperpigmentation.



I will, at some point, get a hold of these products throughout the year and give my full and thorough opinion on the products I do pick up. I can highly appreciate the quality of the products and how they have behaved on my skin in the short trial time, however, I would like to be able to see a long term effect. So, be sure to keep an eye out for a haul of these products and my eventual views on them!

Have you tried Purito before? If so, which products of theirs would you recommend?
If not, are there any from them you're desperate to give a go?