Snake Venom, Bee Toxin, Horse Oil, Snail Slime: Saving Face in Japan →

Snake Venom, Bee Toxin, Horse Oil, Snail Slime: Saving Face in Japan 

PUBLISHED ON JAPAN SUBCULTURE BY MEISHA BROOKS ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2016 · 

The Face and Lip Mask Haul

Japan is a country where saving face is paramount—even if that means covering it with snake venom, bee toxin, horse oil, or snail slime. One company in Japan has been tremendously successful by catering to the Japanese love for looking good, thus saving face, and exotic ingredients. Their array of face masks, which are applied to the skin as shown in the photos, are almost all reasonably priced at 100 yen and are always exciting to find in the local pharmacy. Who wouldn’t want to enjoy the tingly sensation and fresh skin feeling you get from spreading cobra venom on your face?

How To Face Mask

Headquartered in central Tokyo’s glitzy Roppongi district, Sun Smile was founded in 1997. The company, which sells everything from cosmetics to bags, has seen their sales rise in the last 6 years. In 2009 they made 3 billion 997 million yen and in 2014 they posted sales of 8 billion 673 million yen. They produced over 100,000,000 masks since they went into business. Their biggest seller is the essence of pearl mask but it’s the other “natural” items that raise eyebrows (and lift lines).

They’re known best for their cosmetics line, Pure Smile. Pure Smile makes facial masks in every flavor imaginable—and some that are unimaginable. Their Essence Mask series features types as tame as lemon, rose, and pomegranate, but if you want something a bit more “wild” you can try their biodiversity series, which includes snake venom, snail slime, and sea cucumber. If you have no qualms, you can even lather your face with a horse oil mask, which, although smells slightly leathery, leaves your skin feeling as silky as a horse’s mane. (The horse is not as popular as the snail, according to the firm’s representatives). The popularity of these exotic ingredients started in South Korea and soon moved across the sea to Japan, where women have the image that Korean cosmetics are of good quality, in addition to being cheap, which has allowed Japanese women, who would tend to be grossed out by the idea of putting snake venom on their faces, to more easily accept these weird ingredients.

There are, however, some who even question the effectiveness of slathering exotic ingredients on your faces and whether it would have a noticeable, if any effect on your skin.

Wacky discount chain store, Don Quixote, even sold a special line of their facial masks that come in types such as blueberry cheesecake, cacao, and crème brûlée that smell good enough to eat.

There’s even an Amazonian series of facial masks made with the extracts of fruits only found in the rainforest such as guarana and camucamu.

The best are the Oedo Art Masks printed with the rosebud mouths, slanted eyes and pinched faces of ukioe paintings. The mask will most definitely make people think Halloween came early but the age-defying collagen, hyaluronic acid, and Vitamin-E in the mask will leave your face feeling smooth and supple.

The company also makes masks to hydrate your dry elbows, knees, and lips. The lip masks, make you look like a clown when you put them on, but leave your lips feeling moist.  According to the packaging, a suggested application (and definitely one of the strangest) is to put the lip masks on your nipples to remove any blackheads that may appear. It seems Pure Smile has literally thought of everything.

Most of the masks are made in South Korea, with the exception of the high-end whitening masks that bleach your skin. In Japan, where Snow White-like skin is favored over a glowing tan, there’s a huge market for creams and serums that bleach your skin white. Kanebo, one of Japan’s most well-known cosmetics companies, was forced to recall its skin whitening products in 2013 after several women were left with permanently unsightly white blotches on their skin. (http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/09/16/editorials/kanebos-costly-scandal/#.VNcguN7ufww)

I tried a few of the face packs myself and this is what I noticed.

Before The Mask Adventures

I decided to go down the line in descending order of scariness.  I wanted to get the snake venom one out of the way, deciding that nothing is as intimidating as cobra venom.

SNAKE VENOM

Snake Venom Essence Mask

First Impression:  As soon as I put the mask on I felt a strong cooling sensation.  The essence of the mask is fairly thick, but not sticky.  It definitely made me feel confident that the mask was doing something positive. This combined with the extreme moisture of the essence was pretty soothing.

What does snake venom essence smell like?  I can’t quite pinpoint the smell but it’s light, like cucumbers and water.

In 3 minutes, I started to feel a bit of stinging above my lips and more intense cooling sensation on my forehead and chin. I felt one with the snake who sacrificed their venom essence. Ssss. (Technically it’s just the amino acids found in the venom but you get the idea!). Towards the last five minutes I felt more of a slight stinging around the bottom half of my face.  The stinging was somewhat pleasant actually. I have high hopes for this venom.

During and After My Snake Venom Encounter

The majority of the cooling sensation was on my chin, T zone, maybe it’s doing its venomous magic?  After 15 min I peeled off the mask.  My skin felt very refreshed, moisturized, and dare I say plump!  I can see why this would be good to apply before makeup as my face felt pore-less and clean.

Verdict:  If the stinging wasn’t there I would buy again for daily use.  Overall it was relaxing so maybe those with less sensitive skin might have more luck. Still, this would be a great mask to wear before makeup on a shoot!

CHOOSY FRUIT

Next, I decided to pair my facial with a lip pack.  I was feeling adventurous and decided to go with the fruit type since it was daytime and NYC needs some happy color, to encourage spring weather to come.

CHOOSY Fruit

I’ve never heard of a lip spa and as someone who diligently moisturizes her lips, I never even thought that this existed or was necessary.  Well here we go.

How To CHOOSY – Fruit

First Impression: The mask has a very strange texture, like that of silly putty.  2 min in I started getting a burning sensation.

Also, the smell was a lot more subtle than I expected, like a fruity lipgloss.

It works as advertised since I definitely felt the needles on my lips.  Although very fun to touch, the pricking was too uncomfortable and I took off the mask the 8 min mark.

I guess they felt softer than before so it’s a nice addition if you have nothing on however, I will still probably reach for a chapstick over a Choosy pack. which I won’t need to leave on my face for so long.

Post CHOOSY Fruit

Verdict:  Skip. I wouldn’t purchase this.  I am still not sure of its effectiveness.  Looking forward to trying the honey and seeing if it has a more dramatic effect.

BEE VENOM

Bee Venom Essence Mask

What I love about these face masks in general is that the scents are always fairly subtle which in our world of extremes is very pleasant and relaxing.

I waited 2 hours to apply another mask just to give my skin a break.

My skin still felt refreshed after almost 2 hours. The snake venom is definitely great for  photoshoot prep!

I washed my face and was confronted with a lovely mix of honey flowers upon opening the Bee Toxin mask.  This had to be the most pleasant bee poison in the world.

Bee Venom smells so good!!!

First Impression: I immediately noticed that the essence consistency was more thin, watery, and sticky than the snake mask.

It wasn’t as prickly as the snake venom but had a much more greater cooling sensation, especially on my forehead.  It felt a lot like a gentle, lovely smelling version of Icy Hot.

Mask Struggles and Post Bee Essence

It’s very moisturizing but my skin didn’t feel as tight as it did with the previous mask.

Verdict:  It was very refreshing. Would definitely try again!

CHOOSY HONEY

The smell is similar to the bee toxin mask but stronger, a bit too strong.  My lips became very tingly 2 min in, like pins and needles.  Again, I’m not a huge fan of these.

CHOOSY Honey

After removing the mask, my lips felt sticky. The huge size of the mask is a little unsettling as the stickiness covered below my nose to my chin.

Post CHOOSY Honey

Verdict: Skip.  Yes, your lips are soft but there’s nothing drastic.

SNAIL

I took  a break from my all-day pampering to attend a friend’s birthday party.  I chose to end my late night with a nice snail essence mask since I figured it would be the most soothing of the exotic choices.

Snail Essence Mask

First Impression: When I opened the pack the comforting smell of dew entered the air.  In my exhausted state the cooling effects of the mask were incredibly relaxing.  The serum in this pack has a fairly thick consistency and I felt the majority of the cold on my chin.  I felt no stinging whatsoever which was a nice surprise.

Late Night Snail-ing

The mask left my face feeling moisturized but slightly tight.  I expected to feel a larger difference in my skin and the effect was less noticeable than the others.

Verdict: It’s a gentle soothing mask that is nice to wear after a long day. In terms of effectiveness for skin I’d say my favorite is still the Bee Venom.

ROYAL JELLY

Pre Royal Jelly

I decided to treat myself with Royal Jelly the following morning.   Royal jelly is a bee secretion used to nourish larvae and the Queen Bee in a hive.  This was a great name choice on Sun Smile’s part.  Here’s to hoping it will start the day off right!

It gave off a soft flowery smell. Upon application it felt warmer than the other masks,  and gave a nice calm sensation This was definitely a good choice for a chilly morning as it gently wakes you up.

Post Royal Jelly

Verdict: Would use again!  My face feels so nice!!

So there you have it.  The masks are definitely worth trying, they aren’t magical but they will give you a mini-spa experience in your home.  They are super affordable so really why wouldn’t you want to lather your face in the essences of snake and bee toxins? And even if you would rather not, they are great cheap gifts to bring back from Japan. Because if you know anything about Japan, going on a trip and not bringing back a souvenir might bring some shame. But spend a few hundred yen on these and everyone saves face—including you. (If you pack some for yourself, double face savings!)

The Tech in #Techstyle

As seen on Loomia's Medium here.

The Tech in #Techstyle

by Meisha Brooks, Product at The Crated

Fashion has always been intertwined with technology. From the loom to the Singer sewing machine, fashion has evolved with technology while paying homage to craftsmanship. It is in the duality of ready-to-wear and couture in which this idea manifests itself. Therefore, it is no surprise that new engineering processes have entered into fashion. Fashion is about re-invention and purposeful design whether literally like a space suit or as an expression of a designer’s view of how we should pass through this world.

Currently showing at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston is the relevantly named #techstyle exhibit. During my short trip back to my hometown of Boston, I was able to fit in the exhibit right before my return to NYC. The following pieces are a few that stood out and what they mean for the future of wearable tech.

Digital Printing

What I love most about the advancement of technology and what makes it forever exciting is that with every new development, every advancement, we are able to create one more object that previously could only possibly exist within the confines of our imagination. By combining new technologies and old techniques you can surprisingly create the unbelievable with relative ease. Literal drawings can be brought to life.

Victor & Rolf Haute Couture Wearable Art, Autumn/Winter 2015 “Poetry becomes reality, morphing back into fantasy”

Victor & Rolf’s AW 15 collection utilizes two developments, digital printing and laser cutting. The pictures dress consists of cotton and rayon plain weave (crepe) bonded to linen plain weave, “appliquéd” with laser-cut polyester weft-patterned jacquard and silk satin, embroidered with rayon; wood frame faced with digitally printed linen and silver-tone film; cotton and polyester twill (denim) underdress

The collection is transformative in that it moves from framed pieces for the wall into dresses. The layering of technologies is what enables the dresses to seamlessly blend in with the framed structures and have a realistic appearance, melding high-tech production with handcraft.

Quorum 54 dress by Tatiana Tejedor + Tal Danino, Cotton and linen plain weave, printed and painted.

The worlds of fashion and science are not mutually exclusive. Both center around the human experience and finding ways to enhance it.

The Quorum 54 dress, a collaboration between Colombian fashion designer Tatiana Tejedor and MIT biomedical engineering researcher Tal Danino, is exactly this. It is a marriage of science and beauty, functioning as a tool and object of admiration. The dress’ fabric was digitally printed with reactive dyes which when held under black light show a dress which under normal light depicts interactions of cancer cells and cancer-fighting synthetic bacteria, to be cancer free — a powerful statement on the vision of research and a hopeful future for the fight against cancer. The garment is elevated to communicate a message below the surface.

Digital printing has enabled unbelievably vibrant and intricate patterns to be laid on clothing. A pivotal collection in digital printing was Raf Simon’s Christian Dior Fall 2012 couture collection, printing the works of contemporary artist Sterling Ruby on gowns, creating a striking image.

Engineered Reptile Print dress 2015 Sally La Pointe digitally printed sequins polyester net embroidered with mylar sequins, silk satin underdress

In the Engineered Reptile Dress, Lapoint’s reptilian imagery is heat-transferred on sequence over a polyester net, a task which would be impossible by traditional dye application methods. Digital printing allowed expansion into unusual materials and textures.

Alexander McQueen, a genius of imagination with a remarkable ability to showcase it for an audience, is credited with pushing fashion into a new digital frontier live streaming his couture runway show making it an accessible piece of work. His digitally printed hybrid animal imagery enabled his pieces to evoke the futuristic environment that he wanted.

Dress, 2010 Alexander McQueen Silk plain weave, digitally printed, enamel paillettes

At The Crated, we’re working with companies likeArtifact Textiles to innovate with thoughtfulness.

What often accompanies technological advances is waste but being conscious of this reality leads to furthering the sustainability movement. Fashion like any industry can and does produce waste. From the discarded dyes and the chemicals to create them, to fabric patterns which waste material. All of this when you look at it in scale (consider the earth’s population of 7.125 billion clothed beings), the environmental impact of improper practices is undoubtedly significant.

Technology is not always used for negative ends. When in the right hands it can positively change an entire eco-system. Many designers are realizing this and choosing to use sustainable fabrics and dyes.

Six Laser Line 2D sample, 2016 — Kate Goldsworthy Recycled polyester, plain weave and non-woven polyester, laser patterned and bonded. Pictured are closeups of two of the samples.

Kate Goldsworthy created Six Laser 2D samples to show that sustainable processes can be done and with beautiful results.

Laser-welding (much like laser cutting) is used to create patterns, avoiding using chemicals used in industry traditional textile dyeing and finishing, which pollute the earth’s water supply through runoff (17–20% according to The World Bank). Implementing what Goldsworthy has developed throughout the industry would have an immense impact.

G-Star Raw for the Oceans ensemble 2015 Recycling vs Avoiding Waste Polyester (PET) yarn recycled from plastic and cotton; twill (denim)

As we develop our supply chain at The Crated, we are aiming to make our process as sustainable as possible by choosing sustainable fabrics such as hemp which use less water and don’t require such a high human labor cost like that of cotton — its production uses 2.6% of water supply), and non-toxic laminents.

To be able to mass recycle clothing would be incredible and allow even more freedom in terms of creativity for the environmentally-minded designer.

3D Steam Stretch Issey Miyake

Another designer who often breaks through construction boundaries challenging traditional methods of garment fabrication, is Japanese designer Issey Miyake. Using recycled PET polyester plain weave environmental with complex pleating cutting down on CO2 emissions his garments achieve a transformative nature like the technology trend of modularity.

Miyake’s garments are forward thinking in their construction, in their geometry, and modular quality.

Light + LEDs + Functional Hardware

Ralph Lauren Ricky bag with light 2015 leather and rose gold+ L.F.W. Straeter

LEDs are one of the most energy saving, cost effective, safe, ways to bring light into the world (and your apparel). Ralph Lauren’s bag although a prototype and show piece is a perfect example of how we can imagine a consumer utilizes technology daily. They are probably the most accessible of the hardware to be incorporated into clothing. Simple feedback loops and interactions can make dramatic entrances and impressions.

An example of a classic fashion company making attempts to enter the fashion tech space is Ralph Lauren. They have previously developed a biometric shirt for the 2014 US Open, as well as a holographic fashion show — another way in which technology is being incorporated.

Image : Bags by Sigrid Ivo

The first bag with lights was created by Amsterdam-based designer L.F.W Straeter in 1956 called the Lite-On. He thought why not create a purse equipped with an interior light so that women could more easily find what they were looking for in poor lighting. Like an inventor, fashion designer or engineer he saw a problem and decided to design a purse to fix it. He just so happened to be ahead of his time incorporating electrical technology directly into a portable form factor.

Solar Dress Pauline Van Dongen, Neoprene and leather with solar cells 2014

Function often comes before form but why not have both? Alternative sources of energy and kinetic clothing are a result of our lifestyles. We are in constant need of remaining plugged in. The most well-known implementations of electronics in apparel are often for beauty, but they can indeed serve a purpose.

I would dub Van Dongen a designer of the future in that her design philosophy from the very beginning encompasses technology. For the Solar dress she collaborated with Christiaan Holland and solar energy expert Gert Jan Jongerden. The dress uses 72 solar cells and can charge a phone in two hours.

Laser Cutting

Bodice by Indian designer Manish Arora laser-cut leather, embroidered with beads and sequins

Laser cutting allows for the most intricate patterns to be cut out of delicate fabrics such as lace to more robust items such as acrylic. This bodice is a wonderful example of the power of the laser with its scale-like layers

Ensemble from hard Copy Collection 2014 (Nylon net appliquéd with laser-cut polyester twill, with silk plain weave (organza), polyester satin, cotton braid, and glass beads) is a stunning example of laser cutting and its power to enable unique architecture in garments.

Ensemble Noa Raviv

The designer initially created her garment in a CAD program. This allowed her to create her full vision and work out kinks before execution of the garment even started. She was able to create her garment by breaking it down among three processes laser cutting, traditional dressmaking techniques, and 3D printing.

3D Printing

As 3D printing technology expands what people choose to create on them expands. When 3D printing first came out the idea of combining different materials and even different colors was unimaginable. Now, this is becoming more a norm where you have hard and soft barriers being printed. At The Crated we use additive manufacturing methods in our flexible circuit designs.

Going off of ensemble 3D printing with advancements such as Carbon3D moving into developing ways to make mass manufacturing, large scale, durable 3D printed parts possible, and at an accelerated rate which make it closer to the speed achieved in current traditional manufacturing methods for for instance an airplane’s wing. You are able to with a lot more accuracy design and replicate an object taking into account considering the settings on the printer are correct and the integrity of the material walls is intact.

3D printing although still greatly in the hobbyist’s realm is wonderful for prototyping and as advances come durability will accompany it.

The applications are vast, ranging from medical, manufacturing, and quick mold design, to prosthetics from computer generated imagery.

Molecule Shoes 2015 Francis Bitoni

Polyester filament 3D-printed with Stratasys Objet500 Connex3 multicolour. Additive manufacturing, method we use with some of our flexible circuit design.

Bitoni altered manufacturing in a unique way. While traditionally you want replication to occur in a production run with one object of the same type being identical to the other, Bitoni wanted variation in each of his shoes. IN a way installing the uniqueness from handcrafted work the beautiful imperfections and variations in a computer-created object. Running the prints off of an algorithm which would had “real-life” variation to each shoe. One of the arguments against mass manufacturing of objects in support of an artisan movement is the human touch and that you get an object completely identical to each other. We often attribute value to uniqueness and where is the uniqueness is identicalness?

Bitoni straddles these two worlds beautifully.

threeASFOUR Harmonograph dress — making the impossible possible

Another 3D printed wonder in the exhibit. Created the Biomimicry Collection Fall/Winter 2016 by the New York based design team was able to create a dress which required so much precession to execute that it would not have been possible being created by hand . The dress employs a very recently developed printing material nano-enhanced elastomeric material praised for its flexibility and durability. The dress replicates aspects of natural spatial geometries and cellular growth patterns.

Alien Shoe Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2010 Plato’s Atlantis

Alexander McQueen. The infamous Alien shoe made possible with 3D printed resin commentary on the earth’s reliance on oil the oil slick color of the shoe and dresses made of petrol-printed organza.

Reactive Dyes

The Bird and The Beatle (from THEUNSEEN Collection archive)

Leather with wind and heat reactive inks from the AIR Collection 2015 by THEUNSEEN

The Bird and The Beatle is the most exhilarating piece for me in its almost hauntingly life-giving way. The Bird and The Beatle gives off a magical other-worldly feel. The inks respond to touch, heat, light, air flow, and pressure reverting to black in the absence of a trigger. According to Bowker, “it’s about changing the way people see material and see product…We just want to show people date and the stuff going on around us that we don’t normally see”. It is as the curator says an amalgams of chemistry, artistry, and design, they are wearable technology’s magical side.

Reactive inks like our Photochromia collaboration with PAOM, a collection of garments which change with exposure to UV light, can help show that wearable technology is not just circuited but also material science is an integral part.

Robotics

Technology and apparel is a world stage. It is not simply powered by one country’s fashion industry. It is a movement that we are so excited to be a part of. The applications are so vast that we are getting closer and closer to the idea of imagination being the ceiling, that there is no limit for creation. It’s an exciting time and you never know what you can invent unless you try. It doesn’t matter if you’re a designer, an engineer or a combination of the two.

What does this all mean for the average consumer of quick fashion? You have events like the DeScien fashion show, hosted by MIT’s Media lab to foster collaboration between scientists and fashion designers, popping up in more and more places and it’s only a matter of time until collaborations like those in #techstyle are no longer novel. We should see wearable technology and circuited textiles more frequently. In the not so distant future enhanced clothing will be in every aspect of society. Everyone has a hand in this future. So go out there and create!

The #techstyle exhibit runs at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts until July 2016.