Inspire Me Korea is a relatively new UK based Korean Culture Box company, founded in September 2015 and launched in February 2016. From their website, their goal is to, ” provide fun items like food and beauty, but also provide a context to the products and an educational spin to subscription boxes, so each of you will receive a piece of South Korea’s vibrant and diverse culture based on a different theme each month!” 

Which is pretty cool, it’s not just beauty,  but about giving those who may not have the chance to visit so far away, the opportunity to experience just a taste of the culture. source.

Why I said YES!

For someone who is not a fan of beauty boxes, I’ve sure written a bunch of reviews about beauty boxes. I guess I need to revise that statement, it’s not that I dislike beauty boxes, I dislike buying sight unseen. Someone puts together a box and I know what’s going to be in it? I can get down with that. I’ll also have to admit that it is really nice to come home to a prettily packed box full of little goodies!

I will deny ever saying that if asked. 

I said yes specifically to this box because Whamisa is a brand that I’ve come to really enjoy using. I was very lucky to meet the two ladies spearheading their EU expansion earlier this year, try a few masks through them, and then again a month ago through another company. Each time I’ve tried a mask I’ve been really really impressed with the quality and results. But we’re not at that review section yet. Patience! 

 

What’s in the box?!

The box from the promotional picture looks full and pretty right? For £24.99, that’s an absolute bargain! But alas, the deal is entirely too good to be true, what you actually get is:

Although the box is significantly less full, you are still getting a pretty good deal. The mist alone is the cost of the box if you buy from Whamisa directly, so if you’re interested in Whamisa, I’d absolutely go for it! 

I struggle to count foil sachets in the costs of things, so in my mind, I’ve taken them out of the ‘value’ of the box. They are nice to have, as testers against reactions/allergies, but it’s very rare that you’ll be able to get benefit or understand how a product works from a single foil sample.

My Inspire Me Korea x Whamisa Box!

The box itself is very functional, a sturdy cardboard box with lots of stickers on it (huge huge fan of stickers), and inside, it’s beautifully packed, wrapped in ribbon and tissue paper. Two fliers were included, one (that I scanned above) which lets you know what should be in the box, and another which tells you more about their subscription model. 

This is what is inside my box. As it contains products I’ve already used before and single use items, this review will be more of a recap and a first impressions than an in depth what is what. Full ingredient lists for all products can be found on Whamisa’s UK website.

Full Size

 Whamisa Olive Leaf Mist

Mists are awesome. I admit, I was first a skeptic, I mean, canned water, canned liquid being sprayed on your face, how could that help? Erm, let me tell you friend, in the hot ass weather? LOTS. Which is why I’m so excited to get this mist just as I’m going on vacation, yyaaay! 

Pros: I like that it’s portable, it’s small enough that it doesn’t take up too much space in my handbag. It doesn’t leave a sticky residue when sprayed, and dries down leaving a silky touch. My skin feels instantly hydrated, but not weighed down like with most oils I’ve used. 

Cons: It smells like real olive oil, but then the alcohol kicks in and I don’t like it as much. The mist is not as fine as I would like, but thankfully it evaporates quickly (once you rub it in a little) and doesn’t leave a horrible lingering smell. 

Whamisa Organic Fruits Hydrogel Mask & Whamisa Organic Seeds Hydrogel Mask

Pro: I am such a huge fan Whamisa masks. HUGE FAN. They are on the pricer side, but there has yet to be a more accessible brand of hydrogels that produces the results of these masks. I do not have a favourite or a preference, I find they all do roughly the same thing for me, which is give me chok chok and bright skin for the next 24 hours.

Con: The ONE thing I will say with these masks is that while they give great results, you need to give them time to work. Do not morning mask, not let the serum dry down then apply expensive makeup on top. Your makeup will pill and you will have to wash the whole thing off or risk looking like the creature from the black lagoon.

That.. happened… to a friend of mine. *shifty eyes*

Samples

Whamisa Cleaning Oil

Heaven help me, I thought I was done with cleansers, but I have been slain for this cleanser is amazing. I’ve used it for seven days now and it’s a solid solid cleanser. It reminds me a little of the Innisfree Apple Cleansing Oil in consistency, as it is very very thin which a nice welcoming change to the more gloopier oil cleanser I use. I have to be very careful as it is easy to apply it, continue with the rest of my shower routine and forget to wash it off because it’s so light. IT doesn’t feel like I have oil on my skin which as an oily skin person, I love! It doesn’t run everywhere which I appreciate because as a glasses wearer there’s nothing worse than stinging your already blurry eyes. 

The other samples are nice.

They’re one use sample sachets so I can’t really speak to their efficacy. None of them really stood out to me as being so amazing or terrible. That’s not to say I wish they weren’t there, I do like that they were included, because now I’m curious about them, so I will seek them out to try in bigger sizes if the opportunity rises. Probably not the foam cleanser because I think I’ve tested more than enough cleansers! 

Would I buy.. ?

I already knew the masks were a winner, so so they made the repurchase list! The cleansing oil is the biggest surprise and now right at the top of my wishlist (as if I needed another cleanser). I want to use the mist more to get a better sense of it, but so far so good. Like I said with the foil sachets, nice but hardly enough for me to form any real opinion one way or another. 

And now you! 

At the time of writing, the Inspire Me Korea X Whamisa box is still available, so if you’re curious about any of the products I would say give it a go, and it’s free shipping in the UK so happy days!

Interested in shopping with Inspire Me? Here’s a coupon for you to use at checkout! Enter ’ADOREDEE’ at checkout and voila! Free shipping in the UK (and £1.50 off for all international customers)!

I get absolutely no financial benefit if you use the coupon, so shop easy 🙂