Get cutting edge K-beauty - Korean beauty products - in the mail with Beauteque

Models, jet-setters and celebs have been coveting "K-beauty" -- Korean beauty products -- for years. It's not merely because they've got an exoticism from being made on the other side of the planet. After all, if they weren't unique and effective, we have tons of brands we could turn to made in the US.

But Korea has created cosmetics and skincare that go beyond -- for various reasons -- what we have. Beauteque now has a monthly subscription to bring these goodies right to your door! I was happy to be hosted to experience it.

Korean beauty products have some advantages above what's at your local store:

• They often incorporate new ingredients that may not have taken off yet on a big enough basis for mass marketers to use in US made products.
• They include colors that are flattering for ethnic complexions.
• They have a focus on attractive and cute packaging that makes using their products more fun.

Beauteque's BB subscription (their monthly mixed bag) costs anywhere from $22-24 a month, depending on how long you commit to. For that, your receive triple or more the value of what you pay for in the form of skincare, makeup, beauty tools, body care, hair care and lifestyle products. Even the cute products come packaged in their own attractive wrapping.

Here are some of the products I tried:

Scinic: "The Right Self Clinic". Their All Day Fine pore toner contains ingredients like ivy extract and grapefruit peel extract, which we normally might see on cellulite products in the US. It's ingenious to use them as pore tighteners! But, does it work safely? The toner was very fluid and mild, with no stinging at all. The tiniest residue remains: the tighteners. You can definitely apply cosmetics immediately afterwards.

You're likely to see TonyMoly products in magazine editorials about beauty, because they're that darned cute! But good luck finding them. Their Moist Mist is perfectly sized for 3-1-1 carry-on travel bags/TSA requirements. Shaped like a pink bunny, the mist smells like fruity candy. It's great for reviving your makeup, your moisturizer or even your hairdo -- if your style is not water-averse.

A'Pieu Color Longwear Shadow is a creamy shadow stick that comes in unusual colors like metallic orange. It smooths on pretty well and lasts by itself or serves as a good base for powdered eye shadow.

beautyblend Eyebrow Clip is a tweezers that has a good, sharp blade for getting at the tiny, ingrown hairs.

Nature Republic By Flower Lip Scrub is different than many of the lip exfoliators on the market. It comes in a tube and is primarily quite fluid in consistency, with a tiny bit of scrub. This might alleviate the fears of people who hesitate to use this type of skincare, since they're unlikely to tear your delicate lips.

Everybody's secretly curious (or repelled!) by snail slime in skincare! It's a mucus snails excrete and has been used in beauty products since the time of Ancient Greece. According to respected source The Dermatology Review, snail slime contains hyaluronic acid, glycoprotein enzymes, antimicrobial and copper peptides, and proteoglycans, all ingredients in high-end beauty creams.

Ladykin Affinitic Snail Cream also contains Vitamins A, C and E. It and the brand's Whitening Moisturizer both have gel consistencies that start out a bit sticky upon application, but quickly absorb and leave a dry finish.