//Circle Lenses

What are "Circle Lenses"?
Circle lenses are cosmetic contact lenses that have a black ring meant to enlare the appearance of the iris. Originally from Korea, these lenses were made popular by ulzzangs ("best-face" celebrities) and pop stars. For example; Kim Namji is very famous for wearing circle lenses, as are most Chinese/Taiwanese "Pretty Girls" (Mei Nur). They give the appearance of clear, doll-like eyes and are available primarily to the Asian market.

Brands that cell circle lenses are Bescon (Tutti, Hypa, Freeteen), G&G (BT01, BT02, BT03, AIMEI/AMIE, I.Fax), Dueba (Barbie, Messish), Migwang (Aryan, Aines), Icon, Newvision/Neovision, Newbio, Acuvue (Acuvue Define), and FreshKon (FreshKon Alluring Eyes).

What is the difference between colored and circle lenses?
Both are available in a variety of colors and designs as cosmetic lenses, but regular colored lenses do not have a black ring around the outer edge of the iris. They are meant to change the color of your eyes. Circle lenses are means to make your eyes appear larger with their notable black ring.

Are circle lenses safe?
All contact lens (soft/hard/colored/circle/regular/perscription/nonprescription) are potentially damaging. In the United States, regular contacts need a prescription by a certified optometrist to be obtained because they need to be specially fit to your own eyeball. Cosmetic lenses that have 0.00 power (plano lenses) are legal to sell in the USA without prescription, but most stores require one anyways.

In Asia, contact lenses do not necessarily need to be given by a doctor nor is a prescription required to buy cosmetic lenses. Circle lenses are particularly seen as unsafe because they are said to be larger in diameter then normal lenses. This allows less oxygen to enter your eyes, often drying natural moisture out and putting strain on them. They also contain color pigment which can cloud vision when the contacts shift.

The "largeness" of the lenses are relative - brands in America sell contacts with 14.00-14.60 diameter. Circle lens brands are the same. If you wear contacts already, check the information on your own lenses to determine if the circle lenses you want are the proper fit for you.

Almost all circle lenses sold throughout Asia are imported from Korea. Big name brands are usually FDA and CE approved. There are some smaller, unknown companies that produce the lenses, but they are not approved. Most of those companies are non-Korean brands, though not all. Do not buy them if you are unwary of the brand or seller! Always ask the seller all questions before buying.

Note: Just because you buy circle lenses in a country like China, Taiwan, Malaysia etc. does not mean you are automatically buying imitation lenses. Just be smart and research before ordering!

Can circle lenses be prescribed?
Yes, they can. They are the same as regular contact lens. If you have 20/20 vision, you can buy non-prescripted/plano/0.00 lenses. If you wear glasses or are unsure of your vision stats, have an eye exam with your local optometrist.

Can people with astigmatism wear circle lenses?
This depends on the brand and seller. For example, G&G DOES make Circle Lenses for astigmitism BUT these are not the same as their Circle Lenses or Cosmetic Circle Lenses. Research the brand to find out the best choice so you don't order the wrong kind.

Can I wear my circle lenses with glasses?
Yes, you can. As long as you buy lenses in PLANO/0.00 (no power/prescription).

How do I take care of my circle lenses?
You take care of them like any other contact lenses. You should only wear them up to 6 hours at a time and always keep them in a contact lense case with solution when you aren't wearing them. It's very important to put your contact on and take them off with CLEAN HANDS! If your hands are dirty, you can get debris or harmful substances in your eyes which can lead to irritation and even blindness! Wash your hands before putting them in/taking them out and make sure to rub your fingers with contact solution after washing your hands.

Clean your lenses before and after you wear them. To clean your lenses, with clean hands, pour some solution onto the lens and rub between your thumb and other finger. When storing, always replace the solution and clean the case so your lenses can soak in fresh, clean solution.

Help! My contacts are hurting my eyes!
TAKE THEM OUT. Are they clean? Did you put them in on the right side? If your lenses are causing discomfort, do not wear them! Remember, they are cosmetic, just like eyeliner or foundation. If your foundation was giving you a rash, you shouldn't wear it anymore. Same as contacts!

Should I put in my contacts before or after applying makeup?
I recommend putting your lenses on before putting on your makeup. You fingers can easily catch makeup residue and washing them doesn't always get it off. However, if your hands are perfectly clean, it doesn't matter. However, it IS easier to put in your lenses after you've curled your lashes.

How long to these lenses last?
They all depend. You can get them as daily desposibles, weeklys, monthlys, 3-month, 6-month, or 1 year. Ask the seller and check the company website.

Do *insert circle lens* hurt? Are they comfy?
It is all based on personal preference. It can be very comfy on one person, or it could hurt like a mother trucker on another.

Can I buy multiple lenses and don’t open them, will they still expire??
Technically, most circle lenses last one year, so if you do open them then they last one year. But you can store them in the vial UNOPENED until it’s expiration date on the vial.

What is the average price for circle lenses?
Once again, it depends. For geo, the company is forcing sellers to sell geo circle lenses for $20.00. But you can still see it being sold for $10-$15. So $10-$20 is a good price. EOS, $20-$30 is good. For toric lenses, the most average price for EOS and Geo is $50-$55. Cheapest is $35-$37 for geo toric lenses.

Help! This is my first time putting on contacts, what do I do?!!
First off, have contact case and solution on hand. Second, WASH YOUR HANDS WITH WARM WATER AND SOAP. Place your contact on your index or middle finger of your left hand (let’s use our left hand for this example), and place your middle finger (if contact is on index finger) or ring finger (if contact is on middle finger) of your left hand and lightly pull the skin under your eye down. Bring your right hand and use either your middle or ring to gently pull the skin of your top eye up. Make sure your eyelashes are not in the way. Then slowly insert the contact in. Wait till you feel a cool sensation on your eye and gently take your finger off of your eye. And viola! Contact is in eye. If you’re still confused, when in doubt, either google/youtube.

I just received my lens, can I soak them in the same solution it came in?
No, that is not solution. So please buy a contact case and contact solution :]

Are these circle lenses fake?
If you have Geo circle lenses and were made after April of 2009, you can check online with the Anti-Fake code on the bottle to see if it’s a fake or not. This is the website http://geo.fw1860.com . Other circle lenses company do not have this system. We’re in the middle of creating a photobucket for real and fake vials. So please post here if you are in doubt and other soompiers can reassure you.

//Ulzzang

Today I will be posting a special article relating to beauty and the subculture known as "Ulzzang". This will be one of my running projects, this post may be updated as I am doing research on it; As I learn more about it, I will either edit or add more to this post. I might even add posts to the ulzzang tag.

짱 (jjang): Korean slang that means "best." Ulzzang means "best face" in Korean and the word is used both online and in real life. Basically, an ulzzang is someone who has a very attractive face, but most people use the term to describe people who have become popular for their looks.

The ulzzang craze started in South Korea but over the years it has spread to China, Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian countries. Many ulzzang want-to-bes (along with wannabes) post up their pictures on various websites, and voting and chatting can be done on many of them. Contests, both online and in real life, are often used to pick the best ulzzangs, but you do not necessarily need to enter or win. Some ulzzangs, however, have not relied solely on the internet. For example, some have gained popularity at school for being attractive. Most ulzzangs, however, use the internet to share their photos, and that is how many become popular.

Many ulzzangs use Haduri, which is a web camera program popular among teens in Korea. People also take normal or digicam pictures. Some even use Photoshop to edit themselves. Fakers don't make it far, and they usually get busted. With every widely spread trend, the ulzzang look comes with its own notoriety.

The most famous ulzzangs may earn celebrity status. Some may appear on shows, magazines, etc. Some ulzzangs may even become real celebrities by going into acting, singing, or modeling careers. A few examples of former ulzzangs are Goo Hye Sun, Park Han Byul, and Kim Hye Sung.

The two most known zzang categories:

Ulzzang/얼짱: Based on the face. 얼굴 (ŏlgul) means "face" in Korean.

Momzzang/몸짱: Based on the body. 몸 (mom) means "body" in Korean.

"Ulzzang" with "zz" is the most common way it's written out in English on ulzzang websites. Variations on romanization include eoljjang, uhljjang, uljjang, and so on.

// A Real Introduction...

This is my first real post about me..

My name is Henrietta Fall. I self proclaim myself as an Elysian. "What the hell is an Elysian!?", you might ask. My definition for it would simply be that I am similar to an endling in a sense. To my knowledge, I am probably the first, the only and last of my kind in the family. Not that I am implying an alienation of people like me. You must be wondering what I am talking about. Well, time to cut this introduction and get straight to the point.

I am a pansexual TG/TS person. I would like you to take the time to read the following in order to enlighten yourself on the subject of being a man or a woman. May I also point out that I am still doing my research; I do not have all the answers to my own questions but these are some of them:

Biological Sex/Anatomical Sex refers to a person's physical anatomy an is used to assign gender at birth. Although most people believe there are only two types - male and female - this is not true. There is a range of possible variations in human anatomy and chromosomal makeup.

Gender Identity refers to a person's internalized, deeply felt sense of being male, female, both, or neither. It is different from biological sex assigned at birth since gender identity is internal and personally defined. It is not visible to others since it can only be determined by the individual alone.

Gender Expression in contrast to gender identity, is how we externalize our gender. It encompasses everything that communicates our gender to others: clothing, hairstyles, mannerisms, how we speak, how we play, and our social interactions and roles.
Gender Variance/Gender Nonconformity refers to to behaviors and interests that fall outside what is considered "normal" for a person's assigned anatomical sex.

Transgender/Cross-Gender refers to an individual whose gender identity does not match their assigned birth gender. Being cross-gender or transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation. Therefore transgender or cross-gender people may additionally identify themselves as heterosexual, homosexual, pansexual, polysexual, or asexual.

Sexual Orientation refers to the gender of the persons one is attracted to romantically and/or sexually. Sexuality and and gender identity are seperate, distinct parts of a person's identity.

Affirmed Male/Transboy/Transman is a person who was born anatomically female but has a male gender identity.

Affirmed Female/Transgirl/Transwoman is a person who was born anatomically male but has a female gender identity.

Gender Fluidity conveys a wider , more flexible range of gender expression, with personal appearance and behaviors that may even change from day to day. For some, gender fluidity extends beyond behavior and interests, and actually serves to specifically define their gender. In other words, one may feel they are a girl on some days and a boy on others, or possibly feel that neither term describes them more accurately.

Genderqueer represents a blurring around the lines of both gender identity and sexual orientation. Genderqueer people embrace a fluidity of gender expression and sexual orientation.

-More to come...