♥ c o u t u r e c h i l d ♥

Chinese New Year Giveaway

2012-01-14T21:46:00.001+08:00

Giveaway closed! The winner is...

Little Asian Girl!

An email has been sent to you :) Thanks everyone for participating!

--------

Hey everyone! I'm really psyched up about Chinese New Year so I've come up with a Chinese New Year giveaway! It's open to everyone internationally.

I'm giving away:

1. Physician's Formula Mineral Wear blush in Rosy Glow (reviewed here)

2. Placenta Whitening Spa soap with Vitamin E

3. Vintage-y elasticated belt (free-size)

4. A bunch of random samples!

I purchased the Placenta Whitening Spa soap in Bali at the end of November, I've got another one myself but I haven't had the chance to try it yet, so I don't know how good it is. It has a Superbrands award ("Indonesia's favourite"), so I bought it! Ingredients: Aquadest (purified water), sodium stearate, propylene glycol, glycerin, arbutin, lanolin, olive oil, perfume, butylene glycol, soybean protein, tocopherol, Cl 19140.

Interested yet? To join, you must be a follower of my blog and leave a comment with your email address and beauty resolution(s) for 2012!

Giveaway ends 22 Jan 2012 (Chinese New Year's Eve). I'm looking forward to see what kind of beauty resolutions everyone has! ^_^

FOTD: Suzy (Miss A) from Love Again MV

2012-01-08T16:29:00.001+08:00

I happened to watch Miss A's music videos on Youtube and really loved Suzy's eyeliner in the Love Again MV. So I had some unexpected free time this weekend and tried to recreate it. It was really difficult because I hardly ever use liquid eyeliner.

Items used:

- Maybelline Hypersharp Liner

- L'oreal Infallible eyeshadow in Sahara Treasure

- Maybelline Lash Discovery Mascara in Very Black

- Rimmel Lasting Finish lipstick in Undressed

- Random loose powder

I used 2 new things I purchased from Malaysia - Maybelline Hypersharp liner and Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in Underdressed.

The Maybelline Hyperliner is really lovely with a really fine tip (0.05mm) and it's very easy to control, you can draw a really precise line with it. It is one of those liquid liners you have to shake to get better pigmentation, but you can't shake too hard or it'll cause leakage. This has better pigmentation (much darker) than K-Palette "1-day Tattoo" eyeliner which isn't black enough and probably won't work well for this FOTD with graphic eyeliner style. I like this liquid eyeliner a lot - it's very waterproof and budgeproof.

Rating: 9/10 (-1 for pigmentation)

I purchased the Rimmel Lasting Finish in Undressed in Malaysia for the equivalent of S$10 or ~US$7, it's super cheap, I'm not even sure if it's available in Singapore. I like it a lot, it's a matte finish, very natural and lasts a long time, but it emphasises lines a little, so a good lipbalm is a pre-requisite. It's not drying for a matte lipstick though, so it's good! I love the colour too.

Rating: 8/10

Oh and I forgot to mention... I won a contest at Jacqueline's blog and got this lovely pair of origami crane earrings from Tinkerbelle Creations! It's so pretty, I'm going to wear it for Chinese New Year.

Anyway, since this FOTD was inspired by Miss A, I'd just like to share my love of Korean Kpop for a while! Unlike most fangirls, I don't really like the Korean boybands (ok I'll ogle at some cute ones but I'm not like, totally crazy over them or anything, and I can't remember their names)... my favourite mainstream Kpop bands are actually Miss A and 2NE1, because they're all about girl power! Some of my favourites:

Bad Girl Good Girl (Miss A)

I'm the Best (2NE1)

Aren't they good? I like them way better than fluffy girl bands like Girl's Generation. They dance better and they have more individuality.

Anyway, I'll be doing a giveaway soon! Keep a look-out for it :)

Happy New Year~~ + Review: Maybelline Lash Discovery Mascara

2012-01-04T23:24:00.001+08:00

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a great start to the year! Isn't the Santa Claus above cute? It is a DIY paper doll my mum received with her Christmas card from a Japanese friend. I love Japanese cards, they're always so pretty.

I just returned from a family vacation to Malaysia. I went to Port Dickson, Seremban and Kuala Lumpur. It was fun but the schedule was pretty hectic because we only spent 3 days there, inclusive of 5 hours driving back and forth.

We bought 2 cloth kites at the beach, they were really cheap for cloth kites (which are better quality than plastic ones) and I hope we can fly them at Marina Barrage!

Look at the watermelon bouncy balls, so cute!

Krispy Kremes! Yummy, but nothing beats the Krispy Kremes in the US. They don't sell the doughnuts with whipped cream filling in Malaysia.

Ok, so now on to the review~ I recently opened a new mascara to use - Maybelline Lash Discovery in Very Black. (I change mascaras every 3 months even though I don't finish my mascaras - it's hygienic that way!)

I think this mascara has been around for what, almost a decade? I remember using it as a teenager. These days, it's not available in Singapore, so I get it from Drugstore.com. I love the tiny brush, it is so nifty and easy to use to get into my tiny lashes, and I don't have to worry about poking myself in the eye when using this brush.

One coat on the upper lashes, none on the lower lashes. Nice and natural, it holds a curl well and would make for a great everyday mascara. The mascara is soft and creamy and it dries to a soft finish (no crunchy, hard lashes like with most Japanese formulas). No clumps, very easily buildable.

This is with 3 coats (none on the lower lashes). No clumping, which is awesome. It does get a tendency to stick together after 3 coats but it's really good compared to other mascaras. It is so easy to manouvre the mascara wand to get into tiny corners.

This is to show how the lashes look from the side. Nice, long and curled! And very natural, with no clumps. I love it! This is the non-waterproof formula, so for me (with my oily skin) it does smudge under my eyes in hot weather, after about 4 hours of wear. However I still like this mascara a lot, it is so quick and easy, so when I use it, I will try to see if I get panda eyes after 3 or 4 hours and wipe it off. Usually after wiping off the initial panda eyes, it no longer smudges, but the curl still holds strong. I have another tube of Lash Discovery in the waterproof formula, so when I'm done with this tube, I'll try it out and see if the waterproof formula is more smudge-proof.

Rating: 9/10

-----

So it's a couple of days after the New Year and everyone's doing resolutions so here's mine...

1. Refrain from making skincare purchases for half a year until I finish using half my current back-up stash (humongous!)

2. Exercise once a week

3. Reset my body clock - try to sleep before midnight (if work permits... which it never does but hey I can dream), and go to work early even if nobody else does (because everyone at work has unhealthy living habits too)

The first resolution, I really need to keep because I've been springcleaning for the past 2 days and realised just how much stuff I have accumulated! And when I rest, I watch Clean House on TV and I feel like I really need to pare my belongings down to the essentials. (For me, it just means reducing my cosmetics and skincare from 3 drawers and 5 shelves to... 3 drawers and 1 shelf? Mmmm I'll try.)

Have a great year ahead everyone! After many days of leave... I'm looking forward to my first day of work in 2012 tomorrow. Really!

Review: Soap & Glory The Fab Pore Hot Cloth Cleanser

2011-12-27T23:47:00.000+08:00

Ok, I promise this is the last Soap & Glory product I'm reviewing for now! (I'm not buying any more of them right now only because I'm out of funds. Hehe.) It's the Fab Pore Hot Cloth Cleanser and I think it costs S$24 (~US$16) for 100ml. I've read reviews online and people say it's a more affordable alternative to Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish or even the scarily expensive Eve Lom Cleansing Cream. However, it's still kind of expensive to me. (Does that make me a cheapskate??) I will explain shortly after.

First let me describe the texture of the product... (Oh no I forgot to include a photo of it!) It's a lovely buttery cream, the texture is kind of like L'occitane's shea butter hand cream, but less "oily". It is not oily at all, it smells wonderfully of lavender and other essential oils. Some people might not like the scent (it is a very true, earthy, non-synthetic scent), but I love it because it is very natural. If you have used Dr Hauschka or Jurlique products, you will probably know what I am talking about. When I cleanse my face with this, I feel like I'm undergoing some form of aromatherapy session!

You can see it comes with a free muslin cloth, pretty thin and it doesn't have as much bite as the Body Shop ones I used previously (then again, the Body Shop no longer sells muslin cloths, they tell me). This makes it more gentle than regular muslin cloths, I'd imagine.

As you can see from the description of the cleanser, it's supposed to remove make-up as well. The recommended way of cleansing is just a one-step process. I apply a humongous splodge of cream cleanser to my dry face, rub it all in (somehow my skin will 'absorb' the cleanser like a cream, so I need a huge splodge), wait a minute, then wet the muslin cloth with super hot water, squeeze it till it's just the slightest bit damp, then put the huge square of hot muslin over my face to open up the pores. (Breathe deeply! Smell the lavender and relax...) I will repeat the hot muslin step a couple more times, then finally use the damp, warm muslin cloth to gently press away all my make-up, rinse the cloth, then use the cloth to exfoliate till my face is clean. The cloth will look really dirty from all the make-up but after rinsing and repeating, all the make-up will be gone.

As I am used to double-cleansing, sometimes when I have a full face of make-up, I'll cleanse my face per normal, then repeat by reapplying a fresh splodge of cleansing cream. It is very important that the face is dry when the cleansing cream is applied, because it will not remove dirt properly on wet skin. Is it as time-consuming as it sounds? Hell yea!

Now I will explain why this habit is expensive. I don't spend a lot on cleanser - the most expensive cleanser I purchase would probably be about the same price as this cream cleanser, but it would be for about twice the amount of product which would last me more than twice as long. Even if I factor in double-cleansing or the cost of a separate make-up remover, it would probably still be more economical than this cream cleanser. I think the 100ml tube of hot cloth cleanser will last me about 2 months. I've used it for 3 weeks now and I've got 2/3 of the tube left.

You might wonder if a cream cleanser can really leave skin clean? Well, I only use this in the evening (I use a regular foam cleanser in the morning) so it has worked pretty well this way. I definitely have to be careful about cleansing near the hairline with this cream cleanser, and I always follow with toner to remove any remnants of cream. (I use Simple toner, and with this cleanser, you need to use the cotton pad way of applying toner, to remove traces of cleanser. I wouldn't use a Japanese kind of softener or toner with the patting motion together with this cleanser.) Also - I have tried using this cleanser to remove waterproof, super budge-proof Majolica Majorca mascara and it did it easily! Impressive.

Ingredients:

How do I feel about this cleanser? Well, I really really really love the scent of it, it's so relaxing, and going through the tedious ritual every night (with lymphatic drainage massage when applying the cream on, if I'm diligent) is really soothing. However, it is just too time-consuming to do on a regular basis and while my skin does glow after use, sometimes I just feel like using a regular cleanser because it feels like it 'refreshes' my skin more. I would probably repurchase this, but I might use it only on the weekends.

Rating: 9/10

-----

I hope everyone had a great Christmas! I know I did! I'll be going on a mini family vacation early tomorrow morning and oops, I haven't started on packing yet. >_< I'll end with a funny photo:

Michael Jackson = Soy milk and grass jelly. Because it's black and it's white! Haha. Saw this at Holland Village food centre. The owner is kinda grumpy though and honestly, this stall's drinks don't taste so nice. :P

Till next time!

Review: Soap & Glory You Won't Believe Your Eyes Illuminating Under-eye Serum

2011-12-18T19:04:00.001+08:00

Recently I've been going crazy over Soap & Glory. You Won't Believe Your Eyes is an illuminating under-eye serum that I bought recently because my regular Simple eye cream was running low and I've used and repurchased it so many times, I got kinda bored of it even though it was working fine for me. (I'm so fickle, I know...) I get my Simple eye cream at S$13 for 15ml which is super cheap, but You Won't Believe Your Eyes costs about S$26 (~US$20) at Sephora which is twice the price for the same amount of 15ml. It is still pretty affordable though if you compare it with other drugstore eye creams, for example, from L'oreal.

What's unique about You Won't Believe Your Eyes is that it comes with a tri-roller ball applicator and it really is illuminating. The tri-roller applicator feels really cool to the touch and feels really good going on in the mornings, when I'm so sleepy. Still, after rolling it on in upward motions, you need to pat it in evenly in order to blend the illuminating sheen evenly.

As you can see, when I roll it out, the cream comes out streaky... so it needs blending and patting on just like any other eye cream.

This is after light blending. My camera doesn't really capture it that well, but you can see it really is illuminating and glowy and really helps to fake the awake look! It's like a glowy sheen, kind of like an understated MAC Strobe Liquid or Smashbox Artificial Light luminizing lotion. Using this before under-eye concealer does make a subtle difference. And while the texture of this under-eye serum may not seem as moisturizing as a regular cream-type under-eye cream, it actually does help moisturize, smooth and firm the under-eye area really well.

Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Glycerin, Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Mica, Propylene Glycol, Acrylates Copolymer, Polyacrylamide, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Juice, Polysilicone-11, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Phenoxyethanol, Nylon-12, Silica, Xanthan Gum, Methylparaben, Saccharomyces Lysate Extract, Laureth-7, Sodium PCA, Urea, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Citric Acid, Isohexadecane, Polysorbate 40, Allantoin, Disodium EDTA, Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polyquaternium-51, Sodium Hyaluronate, Trehalose, VP/Polycarbamyl Polyglycol Ester, Hydrolyzed Sesame Protein PG-Propyl Methylsilanediol, Tin Oxide, Phosphoric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Triacetin, Sodium Sulfite, Benzoic Acid.

Overall, I really love this under-eye serum, I love the glowy optical illusion of awakeness it gives. However, I only use this in the day (not night) because nobody's gonna see the glowiness at night anyway and I don't want the additional glowy stuff at night (it seems too make-up-ish, not like actual skincare). Plus, the instructions say you can reapply over make-up if you want something glowy under your eyes, but I wouldn't recommend it because it's unsanitary.

Rating: 10/10

-----

Out of all the GWPs this Christmas season, the most unique and useful would be the Fancl 2012 calendar! It is so useful for anyone who has a desk in the office.

It has nice big boxes for you to scribble appointments in... and you can put it on your office desk and flip it to get different "status updates" so your colleagues will know when you're "Out for Lunch" or "On Leave" or "In a Meeting". Cool, right? And it comes with a sheet of stickers too with "Payday" and "Facial" etc... so useful!

Anyway here are a few random photos to end the post...

I saw these cute little birds (they have mohawks and they look like ninjas because of the black eye mask thingy they have!) at my friend's place. We visited her palatial mansion (no understatement at all!) and played Just Dance 1/2/3 on her Wii for 4 hours... so many calories burnt... my arms and legs ached for days after.

And just last night, I hosted a barbeque at my place and took a photo of this cute cat... doesn't it look like Puss in Boots from Shrek?! It's so adorable... It stays around the barbeque pits and is really fat from all the barbeque leftovers people feed it.

Christmas week is here! I'm so excited! :)))

Review: Soap & Glory Scrub Your Nose In It

2011-12-13T22:50:00.001+08:00

My favourite brand at Sephora has got to be Soap & Glory. I absolutely love the cute pink retro packaging with the quirky wordings, plus the products are not too outrageously priced. This tube of Scrub Your Nose In It is about S$17 (~US$13) for 125ml which is more expensive than drugstore but more affordable than counter brands... a pretty good balance.

And every time I read the descriptions on Soap & Glory products... I'm sold! They have all these old-school designs where they display all their crazy outrageously amazing claims with lots! Of! Exclamation! Marks!!! (I love exclamation marks too!) And it helps that their products are pretty amazing really. Let's look at Scrub Your Nose in it... It's a lovely scrub with tiny micro particles (kind of like a microdermabrasion scrub), but you can leave it on your face too, as a deep-cleansing mask, because it contains clay to suck up all your impurities. So it's a multi-tasking marvel!

You can see the scrub particles are really fine, which is great because it is gentle... yet the particles are dense and plentiful enough to feel properly scrubby! The mask is green with a pleasant light tingly mint feeling. The instructions say to use a pea-size, but I use twice the amount for a good clean. After cleansing, I used this scrub on a damp face, concentrating on the T-zone and other problematic areas, then I leave it on for a few more minutes to let the clay do its work, and rinse it off.

It leaves my skin super smooth and feeling really clean. My pores definitely look smaller after, and I like how this scrub mask is like a microdermabrasion and a mask (fantastic multitasker) which deep-cleans, yet also maintains moisture. Also, I love the scent and how it feels more natural than other microdermabrasion masks I've used (Estee Lauder Micro-D deep thermal refinisher) which feel more... chemical, somehow.

Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Kaolin, Solum diatomeae (Diatomaceous earth), Glycerin, Sodium cocoamphoacetate, Montmorillonite, Stearic acid, Myristic acid, Palmitic acid, Lauric acid, Vaccinium myrtillus fruit/leaf extract, Sodium chloride, Potassium hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Saccharum officinarum (sugar cane) extract, Parfum (Fragrance), Salix nigra (Willow) bark extract, Xanthan gum, Methylparaben, Limonene, Ethylparaben, Citrus medica limonum (Lemon) peel extract, Citrus aurantium dulcis (Orange) flower extract, Tetrasodium EDTA, Tetrasodium pyrophosphate, Butylphenyl methylpropional, Acer saccharum (Sugar maple) extract, Dipropylene glycol, CI 42090 (Blue 1)

Rating: 10/10

This is one of those products which make me feel happy to use it every day, even just to look at the packaging, and I feel like I'll never tire of it! I've actually purchased a few more Soap & Glory products, I'm definitely doing more reviews... their products are truly outstanding in my opinion. The only thing I wouldn't try though, is the fragrance. Their perfume bottles look really pretty, like Juicy Couture knock-offs, but the scent... is not my type, unfortunately. >_<

It feels weird blogging on a weeknight, but I missed my regular weekend post so I decided to just post this. I have such a backlog of stuff to review cos my skin was bad the past few weeks and I was so depressed, I couldn't wear too much make-up cos it just makes bad skin looks worse. Then I tried some new product and it really improved my skin. :) Will do some review on it soon after I ascertain its efficacy! Christmas is coming, falalala~ I'm excited!

Review: Mentholatum Acnes Medicated Tea Tree Oil Clay Mask

2011-12-04T21:08:00.001+08:00

I purchased this Mentholatum Acnes medicated tea tree oil clay mask a while ago at the drugstore because it seemed really cheap (I think about S$6?), but as I used it I realised the tube is really light and only contains 50g which might last me at most 10 uses, so it's actually not as affordable as it seems.

The texture is really creamy, not like a true mud mask. This mask will not dry up on your face totally, it is more like a creamy clay mask that you wipe off after 10 minutes. It contains tea tree oil for anti-bacterial effects, kaolin clay for oil control and aloe vera for softness. It has a very strong scent of tea tree oil (which I like) and it spreads very easily. After 10 minutes, I wash it off with a damp washcloth and it leaves my skin smooth, moisturized and clean. It minimizes my pores somewhat and calms any zits down

While it provides a refreshing tingling mint feeling on my skin, it doesn't sting at all, so it's a relatively gentle mud mask, good for calming skin down on bad days. As it is not a drying kind of clay mask, it doesn't suck out all the oil and gunk in my pores, but that's ok. I like the balance between moisture and deep-cleansing that this mask provides.

Ingredients: Water, Butylene glycol, Bentonite, Kaolin, Glyerin, Triethylhexanoin, Titanium dioxide, Illite, Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil, Phenoxyethanol, Xantham gum, Disodium EDTA, Dipotassium glycyrrhizate, Water (and) butylene glycol (and) alcohol (and) aloe barbadensis leaf extract, Citric acid, Water (and) butylene glycol (and) PEG-60 almond glycerides (and) caprylyl glycol (and) glycerin (and) carbomer (and) nordihydroguaiaretic acid (and) oleanolic acid, Cl19140, Cl42090.

I have to note that I was quite surprised to enjoy this mask because I didn't really like using the Mentholatum Acnes creamy face wash (it seemed to leave a residue on my skin and didn't clean very well, plus I didn't like the scent.) I think this Tea Tree Oil Mud Mask is one of the stand-out products of the line.

Rating: 8/10

Review: The Body Shop Seaweed Ionic Clay Mask + Kite-flying at Marina Barrage

2011-11-20T21:48:00.001+08:00

I recently finished a tub of The Body Shop's Seaweed Ionic Clay Mask. My sister tried it out and thought it was good so she actually bought a second tub! For me, it wasn't especially fantastic and it costs S$32.90 (US$22) which is kinda pricy for a 100ml tub, so I wouldn't repurchase because there are many good clay masks out there and I'm always trying new stuff. (I only repurchase when the product is seriously seriously good - I should probably devote a post to the items which made it on my repurchase list.) But anyway, I'm pretty sure the 100ml mask can last up to half a year with weekly usage (I only used it up faster because my sister was using it as well), so I guess it's not that expensive.

The mask is really a mud mask (the texture is like mud, with tiny silt particles in it) and it has an oceany fragrance which... kinda smells like the sea. Honestly I don't really like the fragrance, I guess it's supposed to smell nice - to me, it smells like the sea (real seawater really doesn't smell that nice) and some sort of fresh fragrance which is trying to cover up the smell of the seawater. Fragrance doesn't bother me much though - the substance is more important!

The description on The Body Shop's website goes "100% natural clay complex cleanses and revitalizes skin; negatively charged ions act like magnets to draw out dirt and impurities from the pores." The instructions say to use weekly and it's best for oily combination skin, and that is totally true. I have oily but dehydrated skin, and it acts pretty well to draw out the gunk in my pores. The mask isn't the best at drawing out impurities, but it is 80% there in degunking my pores; at the very least, after I rinse the mask away, it is much easier to do extraction and my pores look smaller and cleaner. However, I find I can only use this weekly - any more frequently and it stings my skin slightly.

How I use it is that I'll slather it on, leave for 10 mins until it dries (this is the kind of mask that will dry), then lightly dampen my skin and rub it off my skin gradually, adding more water as necessary until it gets all rinsed away! This way, the tiny silt particles help provide extra exfoliating action. While the mask stings my skin if I use it too frequently, it is not drying.

Ingredients:

Overall, I'd have to say that this mask does what it claims to do (good for oily/combination skin) but if you have sensitive skin, skip it. Mainly I deducted points for the fragrance and the price, but it's still a good product.

Rating: 8/10

--------

A couple of weekends ago, I went to Marina Barrage for a picnic and some kite-flying! It's a really nice place to go to - it's all windy but it can get real chilly after 8pm.

2 little boys were flying Angry Birds kites - so cute!

Last Friday I had dinner at Watami with an old friend cos she just graduated. It's always great catching up with people especially to get the goss on new boyfriends, etc, haha! We had the Watami set dinner which consists of the following and made us really, really full. The milk custard was ala carte and seriously good! Really value-for-money.

And recently my friend WhatsApped me the following photo:

It's dress-up Rilakkuma stickers!!! So adorable OMG!!!!!! :D

Review: Neutrogena Hydroboost Water Gel and Hydroboost Essence

2011-11-12T23:53:00.001+08:00

My favourite kind of moisturizer contains hyaluronic acid and is gel-like in texture. So when I spotted the Neutrogena Hydroboost range at the drugstore, I had to try it. Usually hyaluronic gel moisturizers are made by Japanese brands, but this one is by Neutrogena! So I was really curious to see how it turns out. I'd previously tried and reviewed the Neutrogena Hydroboost Mousse Cleanser so I got the water gel and serum next. They contain olive extract and hyaluronic acid with a 'progressive release system' which progressively releases moisture throughout the day, which sounded so attractive because I work long hours in air-conditioned dryness and getting my moisturizer to last is a big priority!

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel

This comes in a delicious, thick gel-cream texture which feels hydrating on the skin, and smooth when gliding on (thanks to the dimethicone and other -cones in the formula which may not be universally appreciated). It sinks into skin very easily and I think this is meant to be used after the essence. However, it performs very well on its own too. It really works well to not only hydrate but deeply moisturize skin and yes, the progressive release system does work! At the end of the day, when I remove my make-up at 11pm (after about 16 hours since putting it on?), my skin doesn't feel dry or flaky, but smooth to the touch.

The scent is a lovely fresh, light and clean scent which is the same throughout the Hydroboost line. The slightly siliconey texture of the gel might feel slightly heavy at first if you have oily skin, but the trick is to use just enough of it! I always apply moisturizer in thin layers - if it sinks right in and my skin feels like it needs more, then apply a second layer. If you apply a thick layer at one go... that's just wrong and your skin will feel it.

Here's the ingredients list:

If I had to choose one item to purchase from the Hydroboost line, this would be the one. Also, it's pretty affordable - I purchased this 50g jar for S$14.90 at a Beaute Spring store (which sells products from Garnier, Neutrogena, Olay etc at cheaper prices than Watson's or Guardian drugstores, and guess what, the manufacturing dates are all recent).

The only thing I'm annoyed about is the jar packaging - not too sanitary! I don't understand why they don't sell the full-size in a tube instead because the gel-cream texture would totally work in a tube. In fact, I was introduced to this product by a sample I received, which was in a tiny tube. So it works! Please make this in tube form!

Overall - fantastic and affordable moisturizer for all skin types. Oily-yet-dehydrated skin will love this because it keeps the water-oil balance of your skin in check, and dry skins will benefit from using this over the essence. The progressive-release moisture system totally impresses me.

Rating: 10/10 (even if it's in a jar!)

Neutrogena Hydroboost Essence

I think this essence is meant to be used under the the water gel. I remember it cost me about S$12.90 for 30ml. The bottle looks huge but it really only contains 30ml, so the bulky packaging really wastes space.

So basically the essence is a milky lotion which also feels a little siliconey with a lot of glide. Because of the silicone, it also feels slightly heavy for an essence. It feels nothing as light as my other hyaluronic acid serums such as Juju Aquamoist or Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum. I would think that people with oily skin might be able to get away with using this on its own as a light moisturizer. However, for me, if I had to choose between the water gel and this, I would opt for the water gel as it hydrates much better. For me, the essence mainly aids in extending the moisturizing capabilities of the water gel.

Ingredients:

Don't write this off as an unnecessary complementary product - it really helps increase the moisture level when used in conjunction with the water gel, my skin feels much softer and smoother when I use them both together as opposed to the water gel alone. While people with oily skin might find it heavy to layer 2 products together, it is good for extra moisture after you've exfoliated, when you're experiencing abnormal flakiness, or for night use in an air-conditioned room.

Rating: 9/10

--------
Here's some photos from last weekend-

Photo at TWG tea with a friend, pardon the cheesy caption which she added with some iPhone app.

Scones and caneles - really lovely!

The black macaroons are caramel - nicer than the hot pink ones which have a tart blackcurrant filling.

I went for my company's dinner and dance, the theme was Back to School and I wore fishnets and Vans. I didn't spend money on a single thing - everything was already in my closet, and I wore my junior college tie. (I don't believe in spending money on things I only use for a night... though my friends would probably mention how I take less than a second to fork out $100+ for a bottle of SKII, lol)

We stayed at the Resorts World Sentosa's Festive Hotel... each room has a king-sized bed, a loft bed and a sofa bed which makes it good for families and cheapskates like us. I really liked the toiletries (shampoo and shower gel) in the bathroom, they smell really good like they're full of fragrant essential oils. Love it! Oh and can you see that I'm wearing the bedroom slippers which are neon orange... so weird! Why can't they stick to plain white. I felt like I couldn't sleep after looking at my neon slippers, they were so blinding.

I liked the orchid mural.

At work, my peak period is starting... I can't believe I have survived a year. I hope I can keep it up! I booked a bunch of massages and facials for the Nov/Dec season to relax and prepare for the Christmas season! ^_^ Christmas decorations are already up at the shopping malls and it's feeling festive. The crowds are annoying though! Has anyone gotten Christmas shopping done yet? :)

Comparison and review: Fancl Deluxe TenseUp vs TenseUp EX

2011-11-07T16:28:00.001+08:00

Recently Fancl Singapore introduced a new product called "Deluxe TenseUp" which sounds like an upgraded version of the regular TenseUp EX (which I try to drink once a week during peak period when I work late nights). The countergirl told me that Deluxe TenseUp is actually a Hong Kong version of TenseUp EX and there are no real differences in the ingredients... but there are! I took a photo of the ingredients list for both.

Ingredients for Deluxe TenseUp:
Xanthan gum, Gellan gum, Erythritol, Beta-cyclodextrine, Apple extract, Collagen Peptide, Sweetener, Mixed tocopherols, Rice extract, L-ascorbic acid, Citric acid, Flavor, Water.

Ingredients for TenseUp EX:
HTC Collagen Peptide, Apple extract, Rice extract, Coenzyme Q10, Citric acid, Sweetener, L-ascorbic acid, Hyaluronic acid, Vitamin E, Xanthan gum, Gellan gum, Erythritol, Beta-cyclodextrine, Yogurt essence, Yogurt flavor, Grapefruit flavor, Orange flavor, Water

I think the original pink TenseUp EX seems like it's more beneficial for the skin because there's coenzyme Q10 and hyaluronic acid as well! And the collagen peptide comes first for the regular TenseUp EX.

One thing though... I prefer the citrus flavour of the new Deluxe TenseUp to the yogurt-grapefruit flavour of the regular TenseUp EX (the yogurt flavour is a little too strong and artificial).

They both retail at the same price (S$61.50 for 10 bottles) but currently there's a promotion for Nov'11 where the new Deluxe TenseUp is retailing for S$43 for 10 bottles. I purchased both and I think the original TenseUp works better, it leaves my skin clearer and firmer when I drink it the night before. I always try to drink it on a Friday/Saturday/Sunday night when I can go to bed early at midnight (I usually turn in after midnight) so that it can be absorbed better during the hours of 11pm-2am. The Fancl people recommend it to be taken daily before bedtime, but I'm still pretty young so I take it once a week, or twice a week if I'm super exhausted and my skin is horrid and dull and no amount of exfoliation or masking helps.

Plus: Do you know? Lugging around a box of 10 bottles of TenseUp home from the Fancl counters can be tiring since they're so heavy! It's even worse if you want to purchase multiple boxes during your birthday month (because you get rebates then)! Don't fret! You can actually make the purchase during your birthday month and get the rebates, then just get a redemption card that records your purchase. Then as and when you like, you can go back to any Fancl counter to collect a new box of TenseUp! This also ensures that you always get a fresh box of TenseUp (since they have no preservatives and have short expiration dates). :D

Seriously I love Fancl. I do realise some of their supplements (such as the calcium or iron tablets) are not the best and most effective in the market as compared to say, Nature's Farm or GNC, but I like that they have chewables for calcium and iron, and the tablets that need to be swallowed are quite tiny in size (because I can't swallow tablets and pills well).

I'm going out for a picnic now, till next time ~~

Review and Comparison: Bio Oil vs Rosken Bio Serum

2011-11-06T00:12:00.003+08:00

I had previously done a review of Rosken Bio Serum and compared ingredients of Bio Serum and Bio Oil here, and I've since repurchased once. Recently Bio Oil has finally made it to Singapore and they keep advertising it on TV, so I decided to purchase it and make a comparison! Bio Oil is S$15.50 for 60ml while Rosken Bio Serum is S$15.90 for 50ml. As yet, they don't sell the big bottles in Singapore. They're so similar, they're both rose-coloured oils but when you use it, they're actually slightly different.

Left: Bio Oil; Right: Rosken Bio Serum.

Left: Bio Oil; Right: Rosken Bio Serum

1. Bio Oil

Scent: Floral, a little powdery, reminds me a little of Johnson's baby oil or baby shampoo. I don't really like this kind of scent in a body oil, but this is just a personal preference. It is a soothing scent, but a little too soapy for my liking.

Consistency: Kind of like baby oil too, except more fluid. It feels slightly oily to the touch and leaves my skin a little bit greasy/sticky upon application at night, but it's gone by morning. It's like a dry oil which rubs in easily into skin and is quickly absorbed.

Packaging: Bio Oil comes with a screw top cap which is slightly more fussy than a flip-top cap. Also, it comes one of those tops with a hole in the middle like some toners, so you have to shake the oil out with some patience because you can't squeeze the oil out easily.

Comments: Pretty good, equally moisturizing in feel as Bio Serum. Feels a teeny little bit greasy (like a dry oil) but is easily absorbed and leaves my skin very soft instantly, and smooth by morning. A good moisturizer/softener and has pretty good healing properties. It helped heal and lighten my moisquito bite scars quickly, and if you have a dry, rough, peeling scab, it will moisturize and heal it faster. (This is true of Bio Serum as well.)

It is claimed that Bio Oil can be used for the face as well, but I haven't tried it.
Price: S$15.50 for 60ml, slightly cheaper than Bio Serum.

Rating: 9/10

2. Rosken Bio Serum

Scent: Lovely soothing lavender scent. I love this.

Consistency: Like cleansing oil. Slightly more viscous than Bio Oil but somehow, Bio Serum applies much more smoothly, like a fluid serum, and it totally not greasy at all. Bio oil rubs in easily but Bio Serum applies smoothly like a layer on top of the skin, which is absorbed by morning.

Packaging: Bio Serum comes with a flip-top cap which I prefer, it's faster than opening a screw-top cap. I also prefer the raised nozzle for Bio Serum - the serum flows faster through the hole and it is easy to control the amount used. The Bio Serum bottle is also easier to squeeze than Bio Oil's bottle, so I can squeeze out the amount I want quickly and efficiently, while for Bio Oil, I have to shake patiently. The Bio Serum bottle is also more ergonomic than Bio Oil's bottle in the sense that it is slimmer and easier to grip, while Bio Oil's bottle is more stout.

Comments: Everything Bio Oil can do, Bio Serum can do too! Bio Serum feels slightly more moisturizing, maybe because of the thicker, more viscous texture. Results are fast - overnight I can see the difference in texture of my skin, especially on scars. I would choose Bio Serum because of easier application and the texture feels better on my skin. Bio Oil leaves my skin softer, while Bio Serum leaves my skin smoother.

Price: S$15.90 for 50ml, slightly more expensive than Bio Oil (which is surprising because I thought Bio Oil should be more expensive as it seems more 'famous'). However, it's worth every penny! I would definitely choose Bio Serum over Bio Oil. Rosken doesn't seem to advertise their Bio Serum much as compared to Bio Oil, but seriously, choose Bio Serum. I love it so much and the scent is heavenly. Also, I prefer a serum texture as compared to dry oil texture.
Rating: 10/10

Results: Bio Serum wins! But Bio Oil is a great option too. If you're ok with the scent, go for Bio Oil since it is a more economical option!

Note: Both can be used on the face, but very very sparingly. They claim to be non-comedogenic but do a patch test first, especially for oily skin. For acne-prone skin, best to skip using on the face!

Hope this is useful; I hope to try Palmer's Skin Therapy Oil soon and do a comparison too. I spied it at the drugstore and it seems like a good option as the price is about the same, but I think the colour of the oil is different and the ingredients might be different too. Till next time!

Bali Bali Bali; baci baci baci!

2011-10-30T19:20:00.000+08:00

Hi guys! I just returned from a week-long holiday in Bali, it was totally relaxing and I feel so refreshed and prepared right now to take on whatever challenges life throws me next. I didn't read or watch Eat Pray Love, but honestly I really loved Bali, everything was inexpensive (do try to bargain down the already-affordable prices) and if I ever get my own apartment in the future, I'd go back to Bali and ship back all the cool furniture/decor. They have awesome carved wood decorations, kitschy mosaic decorations, beautiful dollhouses and carved birdcages which I saw a Caucasian man carrying at the airport. Ok, enough words - deluge of photos!

My carry-on and my Rilakkuma! XD I brought just a tiny haversack and this Fila bag.

We stayed in this Green Garden Hotel in Kuta for 2 nights. I didn't really like Kuta - too frenetic and too close to the airport, and too commercialised.

Kuta beach - the black sand was so hot!

We got a 4 hour spa package at Febri's Spa which is at Febri's Hotel (still affordable but you could get cheaper options at non-hotel places) and got manicures and pedicures. Beware that couple's packages where you're in the same room means you'll be seeing each other naked and you'll be in the same bath or showering together, so don't opt for that if you're not comfy! Otherwise, you could request for a separate room (if they allow it). Service is really good, the manicurists were really eager to practise their nail art. They don't use salon-brand polishes (instead they use local brand or Revlon), but it's fine with me because it's pretty cheap.

Then we moved to Ubud (further away from the airport, less commercialised and more cultural area) and stayed at Tegal Sari for a night.

It's so cool they have an open-air gym area. All the hotels we stayed at had beautiful pools, but they're all too small for proper swimming. I swam every day though. Isn't that a beautiful lotus flower? It was open when I saw it at around 9 am in the morning and took this photo, but by the time we finished breakfast and went there for a swim at 10 am, it had closed!

Looking for Eat Pray Love-type inner peace? Look no further... (no I didn't do any of that energy psychology thing, too gimmicky).

We had lunch at a restaurant called The Pond. And it overlooks... a pond. If you notice, the fountain is made up of statues of little boys peeing into the pond. Disturbing much? :P

We passed by lots of pretty shops and an open field where kids were playing. I found it so interesting that stores for 'modern' brands like Billabong and Crocs had traditional rooftops. And everywhere, in front of stores, restaurants, hotels and even on the cruise ship we went on, there were offerings put out for the spirits. Apparently almost all Balinese are Hindu and they are obviously very religious.

We went to the Monkey Forest and visited the Temple of the Dead inside. The monkeys are kinda scary though. If you buy bananas and give them to the monkeys, they might follow you and lift up your clothes to look for more. We witnessed monkeys pouncing on tourists, and saw a little boy crying because he was bitten by a monkey. Poor thing, but a park ranger said there was a clinic at the forest for such cases. We also saw lots of mother monkeys with babies, like the second photo.

We made our way to the Ubud Palace where there is a Balinese dance performance every Monday at 7.30pm.

Don't you think it's interesting they don't allow women in temples if they're having their period?

We went to a compound overlooking a beautiful lotus pond which is shared by a Starbucks and a restaurant called Cafe Lotus. Cafe Lotus was very popular and fully booked, it really requires reservations for dinner because people dine and watch the Balinese dance at the stage in the middle of the pond. It costs US$10 to watch the dance in the middle of the pond so if you have dinner at Cafe Lotus or buy a drink at Starbucks, you can watch from afar and save some money.

Balinese dance is very interesting, it is very grounded and I noticed lots of the dancers have flat feet, I wonder if it's a consequence of the groundedness of the dancing. They also emphasise on facial expressions and eye movements which are honestly quite creepy, they could glare very pointedly in one direction and suddenly look elsewhere. The dance was accompanied by a gamelan (a mini-orchestra) with drums, bamboo xylophones and a bamboo flute. I found the pitch of the bamboo flute a little off compared to the xylophones, like they're not in tune, so it was a little jarring. I wonder if it's the nature of the instruments that causes it, maybe it's not possible to tune their instruments like Western musical instruments.

We spent 2 nights at a villa in Ubud called Agung Khalia. It's beautiful and right next to paddy fields. We had our own pool and napped at the platform next to the pool.

We saw an ox which was very reluctant to cross the ditch. Its owner whacked it noisily with a stick of leaves, poor thing! I like the sound of the bell tied around its neck, it's a dull sound with very little resonance and sounds very meditative, like a monk striking a wooden semantron.

We had drinks and played with pool toys. Pretty awesome.

This kitty is so cute!

We went white water rafting at Telaga Waja river (it's level 3/4 with a 4 metre drop - awesome!) and climbed up a million stairs after to get this scenery.

We stayed at Amadea Resort in Seminyak (near Kuta, but more expensive and upmarket) for 2 nights. It's pretty and all, but it seems all its rooms are designed for romantic getaways. My room had a glass window at the shower, while one of the other rooms had a bathroom door with a glass panel running vertically down, so you can see into the bathroom. Seriously. So you can see we got housekeeping to tape up a curtain to give us some privacy. The hilarious thing was, right after I finished showering and exited the bathroom, the curtain totally fell off because the tape wasn't sticky enough. Lol!

We visited Tanah Lot, a 'floating' temple because of the moat around it at high tide. It was low tide when we were there so we made a donation and got blessed with holy water.

We went on a cruise to the Nusa Lembongan island. It was pretty expensive to me, but we noticed Caucasians paid more than we Asians did, so you know, you gotta haggle a little. It was fun, we went snorkelling, banana boating, kayaking and snorkelling. Also went on water slides and got a ride on the glass bottomed boat (what a snooze). Then we went to the island and got a village tour where I bought a handmade shawl (we saw them making it using a loom and all) for US$6.50. One takes about 2 weeks or more to make, and the one I chose had quite intricate details (you can't tell from the photo, but there are faint floral designs on the pink part of the cloth, so it isn't just plain pink). So gorgeous.

I liked the village tour, it was quite informative. There are like 7,000 people on the island and they harvest seaweed for a living. We saw the village cemetery, the graves have umbrellas over them. Apparently they bury the dead, and when the family gets enough money, they'll dig up the bodies again and hold elaborate ceremonies before cremating them. One cremation costs about 100 million rupiah because they slaughter lots of animals, and as it's so expensive, families who can't afford it will wait and they'll gather about 20-30 bodies for cremation all at one go with the same ceremony.

One creepy thing though, they say black magic used to be performed on the island, but hey, Bali is full of such mysticism and that makes it all the more interesting.

All in all, a really enjoyable and relaxing trip! Everyone says 7 days is a lot for Bali, but it's really not. I had so much fun, and at night we drank and played Saboteur. (Oh and Bali peanuts are good, get the deshelled ones in the plastic packets. There are also those fried with garlic, look for 'bawang putih' in the ingredients.) I also bought some handmade soap and other interesting things in Bali. It was a super affordable journey, including airfare and hotel accommodation, I think I spent only about 700 USD? Awesome, right? And the people are so nice.

I'll be doing a mini-giveaway soon with some stuff I purchased from Bali! Stay tuned~

Review: Benefit Triple Performing Facial Emulsion SPF15 PA++ vs The Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion SPF15... and a song! ^^

2011-10-18T21:38:00.000+08:00

I got a little sample bottle of Benefit's new Triple Performing Facial Emulsion with a magazine I purchased in Hong Kong. Finally got around to trying it out! The glass bottle is really cute, but it's pretty difficult to pour the product out. The full-sized product comes with a pump though, so it's ok! You can see the ingredients list and a good review of the full-sized product over at Temptalia; I'm lazy to list it out. :P

The emulsion has a pretty light, lotiony texture. It has a light, fresh floral fragrance. It comes with SPF15, but it is a very typical 'Western' SPF lotion in the sense that it is a little greasy. I find this emulsion very similar to The Body Shop's Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion which also comes with SPF15, and is cheaper, but a little heavier and less runny. Even the scent is similar! I'm pretty surprised that this emulsion contains hyaluronic acid as an ingredient, but it's one of the last ingredients in the list, so I'm guessing it doesn't make too much of a difference, because I didn't feel too much moisturisation. This emulsion is a wee bit too greasy for me to layer another lotion over, yet it is not sufficiently moisturizing enough for me. Also, not much oil-control. All in all, I'm pretty disappointed in this product - the packaging is really pretty but it's too expensive. If you tried it and liked it, I'd recommend The Body Shop's Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion - it's similar but cheaper!

This is what Body Shop's Seaweed Mattifying Lotion looks like - less runny, more lotiony.

They both have an ocean-fresh floral scent.

Honestly, I don't really like any of these moisturizers. They're a little too greasy for my liking and SPF in a moisturizer doesn't really matter to me because SPF15 is too low, so I always use a separate sunscreen over my moisturizer. I guess if you're in the market for an SPF moisturizer, I'd rate the Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion 7/10 (it's not mattifying though) and Benefit's Triple Performing Facial Emulsion 6/10 (similar to Mattifying Moisture Lotion, but more expensive, so minus a point).

-----

By the way... I recently made a video of a little song I wrote. I randomly came up with it as I was scribbling stuff down because I was stressed out over something. I can't really sing well but I like music. I know there's problems with intonation, dynamics etc, so this is a rough recording for me to remember how it goes!

So I'd really appreciate it if you would take time to listen to it and give me your comments!

Thanks for reading! (:

Review: Ettusais BB Mineral Cream and Loose Powder

2011-10-16T15:41:00.000+08:00

I purchased these 2 weeks ago - the packaging was too cute and it promised baby-smooth skin. I'm such a sucker for stuff like that. The BB mineral cream is $38 for 40g while the BB mineral loose powder is $38 for 10g and doesn't come with a refill. (Ettusais' other loose powders are more expensive, but they have the option of refills.)

That's the swatch of the BB mineral powder in Natural Beige on top, and the BB mineral cream in 030-Natural Beige (darkest) at the bottom. The powder comes in 2 shades - Light Beige and Natural Beige, while the BB cream comes in 3 shades - 010, 020 and 030.

This is me with just the Ettusais BB mineral cream on - shade 030 (darkest). Coverage is light but I'm fine with that - apologies for dark eye circles. Haha!

And this is with both BB cream and the BB mineral powder (Natural Beige).

Ettusais BB Mineral Cream
I'm purchased this BB cream because I like how I can choose the shade I want. Previously I had so many tubes of BB creams but I was really annoyed that they all came in only one colour. They're all very fair and not suitable for anyone beyond NC25 skintone, and a lot of them are for super-pale people! I got shade 030 which is a good match for NC30 (030 is a little too dark for NC25). But as you can see from the swatch photo above, it runs a little orange. I'm really yellow-based, usually I get Ettusais foundations in the yellow-toned shades which suit me very well.

The BB cream comes with SPF30 PA++ and when I use it, I skip my regular sunscreen so it helps save time. The texture is very creamy and a little powdery and siliconey (but not overly so). It blends much more easily as compared to Korean BB creams, and I find the oil control is really awesome for a BB cream - I can go about 4 hours fresh-faced.

The ingredients list in English comes in a tiny, tiny silver sticker stuck to the side of the plastic packaging. I nearly went blind trying to read it!

Ettusais BB Mineral Cream ingredients:
Water, Dimethicone, Cyclomethicone, Alcohol, Nylon-12, Cyclopentasiloxane, Titanium Dioxide, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, CI 77891, Lauryl Peg-9, Polydimethylsiloxyethyl dimethicone, Glycerin, Zinc oxide, Disteardimonium hectorite, Diphenylsiloxy phenyl trimethicone, Erythritol, Xylitol, Dimethicone crosspolymer, Isostearic acid, Phenoxyethanol, Aluminium hydroxide, Alumina, Isostearyl alcohol, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Polysilicone-2, Tocopherol acetate, BHT, Calcium chloride, Magnesium chloride, Peg/Ppg-14/7 Dimethyl ether, Sodium hyaluronate, Sodium acetylated hyaluronate, Tocopherol, CI77491, CI77492, CI77499.

I'm a little freaked out by all the ingredients in the list, there's lots of -cones, but there is also hyaluronic acid which is moisturizing, and Vitamin E. I find this BB cream moisturizing, yet oil-controlling, which is really good for oily but dehydrated skin. Usually BB creams are heavy and people with acne-prone skin will break out easily from using them, but the Ettusais BB cream actually lets my skin breathe without clogging it up. I've tried Ettusais' other liquid and powder foundations and I have to say - they're really good for acne-prone skin. I've never had a clogging problem with their base products.

The only bad thing? The colour's not yellow enough for me (might be good for others), and it gives a white cast in flash photos because of the sunscreen. (Note: The white-cast-in-flash-photos problem seems to be a recurring one with all Ettusais products I've tried. Just remember not to use Ettusais on a night where you're gonna be taking lots of flash photographs.)

Rating: 8/10

Ettusais BB Mineral Powder
The powder is very finely milled and blurs pores very well. Plus, this is one of the few loose powders where I actually use the included puff! Usually some loose powders come with very pretty puffs which turn out to be useless, but the puff that comes with this one is actually very functional. It's soft and the powder goes on easily (no patchiness!) and blends well by patting and rolling. Oil control is pretty good, I'd give it a 7/10 for keeping the oilies away. I've tried better oil-control powders but they also tended to be drying, so I think this Ettusais BB mineral powder has a good balance between oil-control and moisture. It also has SPF16 (but honestly, SPF16 in a loose powder doesn't really protect well enough, so I always disregard such claims when I'm trying to decide whether to buy a powder).

Ettusais BB Mineral Powder ingredients:

Talc, CI77019, Titanium dioxide, CI77891, Calcium carbonate, Dimethicone/Vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, Methyl methacrylate crosspolymer, Zinc myristate, CI77947, CI77492, Aluminium hydroxide, Silica, Aluminium distearate, CI77491, Chlorphenesin, CI77499, Isostearyl alcohol.

Rating: 8/10

Hope this review is helpful! I really like Ettusais because their base products are really good for acne-prone skin and they offer a yellow-beige shade range for really yellow Asian skintones (sounds bad but that's me, hur hur).

However, their products are really quite expensive and while they give the impression of really good skin, the base products give a white cast in flash photography. So it's kind of like, even if I look like I have good skin, if I can't take a photo of it, I can't show other people that I have good skin, so what's the point, you know? I can only hear compliments from people who see me in real life, but hey that's good enough I guess. (Gosh that was a bimbotic comment, but I'm vain.)

Maybe when I have the time I'll review more of my Ettusais stash! :D

Exploring Chinatown and China Glaze Candie swatch

2011-10-09T17:13:00.002+08:00

On Monday I took leave but I still had to go to the office to drop off some documents, so after that I decided to pop by Chinatown which is near my workplace. There are actually some good places for beauty supplies, etc. I went to PNC which looks kind of like a Sally's Beauty Supply store in the US.

I got Northern Lights holographic nail polish in silver and gold glitter (S$12 each), and China Glaze Candie (S$9)! Hope to do reviews soon.

Also got myself some cut-outs in musical notes (S$3) and the Louis Vuitton logo (S$4). Apparently they also have the YSL logo, but when I was there it was all out. There was only Gucci and Cartier left and they didn't look very nice. Lol. And I got the tool for picking up the little cut-outs, I think it was S$2.50.

And I got a huge bottle of nail polish remover (non-acetone) for S$4. That's pretty cheap but it's just a very regular nail polish remover, it doesn't remove nail polish particularly fast or thoroughly. I definitely still prefer my Fancl nail polish remover, though it's so much more expensive!

The address for PNC Nail Supplies -
Blk 34 Upper Cross Street #02-150.

Please note that Blk 34 Upper Cross Street is totally different from #34 Upper Cross Street! Lol. That was a mistake I made and I think lots of people made too. I think the people at the Chinese medical store at #34 are very exasperated from having to redirect people to the correct place. Here's a photo of that Blk 34 looks like, it's across the street from #34.

Just a note - I think PNC is more of a wholesale store for nail salon owners or freelancers etc, so they're not particularly helpful to customers who buy just a couple of bottles, you know what I mean? I've read similar reviews online so it's not just an isolated case, but I've shopped at wholesalers in Hong Kong too and well, it's pretty common. Whatever. At least we get to save a little (at the expense of good service)!

Another store I went to was Dragon D'or Cosmetics. I bought a huge bottle of EO French Lavender Shower Gel for S$28. They sell lots of other stuff, like Burt's Bees, Queen Helene etc, at vastly inflated prices of course, but hey, they're pretty hard to find in Singapore.

Address: Dragon D'or Cosmetics
32 Market Street #03-1126, People's Park Complex

In addition to all the beauty hauling, I also bought lots of food! Tong Heng egg tarts at 285 South Bridge Road, diamond-shaped yumminess!

Barcook cream cheese and raisin buns at Hong Lim Complex, #01-54 Blk 531 Upper Cross Street. Theirs are the best - pillowy soft buns and the cream cheese is super smooth and lightly sweet.

I was going to purchase some satin at People's Park (to sew a pillowcase for myself because I like to sleep on my face and I get creases on my face argh) but they didn't have the really good quality ones, so I'm thinking one of these days I'll drop by Spotlight to get some, though it'll probably be pretty darn expensive. :(

Honestly I think Chinatown is an awesome place to hang out at. (I used to hate it because it's crowded with people from China and there are old uncles sitting around staring at you but just ignore them, I think they're just retired and have nothing to do, so.) There's so much good food, dimsum etc! Recently this yummy soy beancurd dessert stall, Lao Ban opened at Maxwell Food Centre which is at the far end of Chinatown and walkable from my office in the Central Business District and last week a bunch of us queued for it. There's like a huge long queue (about 20 mins long) and everyone buys like 20 tubs! :O But it's so smooth and deliciously creamy!!! Love it!!!

There's a bunch of other cheapy cosmetic places in Chinatown selling perfumes and cheap cosmetics (like LA Girl), cheaper than at the drugstore, but I'm trying to go for quality over quantity so I didn't check them out. Don't expect too much, they look as messy as a small Bonjour shop in Hong Kong. Addresses:

Ivy Cosmetics (no signboard)
People's Park Complex, #02-29, 101 Upper Cross Street

Ocean Cosmetics
People's Park Complex, 3rd floor (can't remember exact number!), 32 Market Street
(Same building as Dragon D'or Cosmetics)

Let me end off with a swatch of China Glaze Candie!

This is 2 coats without topcoat. It applies kinda streaky and the milky pink is noticeable but very very sheer. It dries real fast but the glitters are so, so gritty! But still pretty. Because of the milkiness, it's not very good for layering on top of bright or deep colours, but more suitable for layering on top of pastel nudes/pinks. I don't really like it by itself, it looks like someone puked glitter all over my nails. Plus there's visible nail line. Frustrating!

2 coats with topcoat. It takes 2 layers of topcoat to smoothen out the grittiness and give it some shine. Isn't the glitter pretty?!

From afar it looks bearable. I think it'd probably look better over pastel nude/pink shades or as part of some gradated glittery nail art.

Rating: 6/10

I'm trying to turn myself into a nail girl but I really don't have time for it. I don't understand people who can get manicures like every week. I guess I'm kinda jealous. Who has time for that?! I'm just a failed product junkie! I have a bajillion bottles of polish and no time to use it. Argh!!! :O

Anyway I just finished watching this movie called Bandage and it's so awesome I love it. -faints- It's about this band and this girl who becomes like their band manager and she's in this relationship/non-relationship with the lead singer who is kinda cute in a weird way and well it's totally cliched but the songs are awesome. There's this song called "War of the 20-year-olds" and it's so surreal. Ok I'm no longer 20 and it makes me feel old again, but whatever. I'll just quit rambling now. Till next time~

Review: Korean Dermal essence masks - White Collagen Essence Mask and Coenzyme Q10 Essence Mask

2011-10-05T23:25:00.000+08:00

Other than My Beauty Diary masks, the only other masks I use and repurchase regularly are Dermal masks (a Korean brand). They can be found at Watson's or Sasa, I think about S$2 a piece, but sometimes I get them cheaper on sales. I don't really like to spend a lot on sheet masks since they're single-use products. These are comparable to My Beauty Diary and almost as cheap! I actually prefer Dermal to My Beauty Diary because the Dermal masks come with eyeflaps which I can choose to cover my eyelids, or fold over my undereye for extra moisture, while My Beauty Diary masks don't have eyeflaps. Dermal masks come in lots of flavours too, but today I'll just review two.

Ingredients for Dermal White Collagen essence mask:

Ingredients for Dermal Coenzyme Q10 essence mask:

I find these two masks pretty similar, the ingredients are quite similar - they both contain vitamin E and hydrolyzed collagen. I do find the White Collagen one brightens up my skin a lot after use as compared to Coenzyme Q10. I like the essence - it's very generous (White Collagen has 23g essence compared to Coenzyme Q10 which has 20g) and the mask is very moist even after 20 minutes.

The mask is thick, better quality material than My Beauty Diary masks (but without the plastic sheet sticking to the mask, which is fine for me as I dislike the plastic sheets, they make it messy for me) and the serum is less watery than My Beauty Diary masks. The serum feels very moisturizing yet light enough to be absorbed easily by my skin - I feel like my skin is drinking it up and though it's so moisturizing, it doesn't break me out at all! (I have previously tried some masks with similar, slightly thick essence and got breakouts, but Dermal essence masks never break me out.) Plus, after I remove the mask and pat in the remaining essence... my skin looks brighter and pores look smaller, everything looks calmer in general. Really love it. It's better than My Beauty Diary! Honestly! I find My Beauty Diary masks over-fragranced in comparison.

I love Dermal essence masks! Honestly, I can't decide between the two flavours, so I always alternate between them. I try not to use the whitening one too often though, because there is a shade differential between my face and neck. :(

Rating: 10/10

I will repurchase over and over again! You can find all the flavours and other products made by Dermal here!

--------

Just to share a Korean meal with a friend the other day... Oden and korean fried chicken at Kko Kko Nara - the fried chicken is awesome. Portions way too big for 2 though.

Original crispy chicken, sweet and sour, and sweet and spicy! Awesome. They bring tears to my eyes.

Tomorrow will be the last day of my leave from work... I hope to enjoy it! I actually went out exploring to some hard-to-find beauty places on Monday, will blog about it soon! Till next time~

FOTD: Purple Line

2011-10-04T14:56:00.000+08:00

This is just a little FOTD I did a couple of weeks ago for a shopping spree with friends.

Items used:
- Bourjois Shimmering Shine liquid eyeshadow reviewed here
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencils
- Perversion (true black, tightlining upper outer 2/3)
- Rockstar (deep purple, outer waterline)
- Ransom (glittery light purple, inner waterline)

I purchased the Urban Decay 15th anniversary set with all the UD eyeliners last year, haven't reviewed them cos they're all over the place! I love eyeliner pencils, they're quick and easy and the Urban Decay ones are really good and creamy and last long. (Regular eyeliners never last long on me; the only other good ones I can recommend are MAC powerpoints.) I really like Ransom, it's more glittery than it looks! A very dimensional, multi-faceted colour as you can see below:

Full face:

I was using Lancome Macqui Blanc Miracle compact powder foundation, I purchased it at duty-free for much cheaper than regular retail price, a really good buy! I'll do a separate review one day, I love how it makes my skin look so much better and lit-from-within. Usually I'm really sallow and tired-looking. >_<

I took leave today so I'm rushing out for a massage now. :D Toodles!

Review: Juju Aquamoist Hyaluronic Acid Essence

2011-09-25T15:16:00.001+08:00

My sister gave me this bottle of Juju Aquamoist Hyaluronic Acid Essence about a month ago and since then I've been using it daily under my moisturizer. However I felt it didn't allow my make-up to adhere well because somehow the essence makes it a little difficult to layer products over it. For example, when I apply my sunscreen after the essence and moisturizer, it doesn't absorb as well as usual and kind of just sits on my skin instead, and when I try to pat it in, it comes off in little rubbery flakes. I have also experienced this (on a lesser scale) with the Bio Beauty Advanced Hydrating Serum which was lighter in texture than the Aquamoist. Hence I concluded this is probably a common problem with most hyaluronic acid serums, so I wouldn't discount the product's efficacy too much, and instead try to work around it.

Also, while doing this review, I came across this description of the essence from a Singapore distributor of Aquajuju products -

"It is up to the customers if they use it for “day use”, however the maker’s recommendation is for the “night use”, as the essence is rich, there might be a possibility of making your makeup difficult to stick on the face. But decision is solely up to the individuals!"

Right. So I guess I'll just stick to night use then!

Here's the texture of the Juju Aquamoist Hyaluronic Essence - it is thicker than Bio Beauty Advanced Hydrating Serum, but other than that, totally similar. It has a somewhat slimy texture typical of hyaluronic acid serums that seems sticky at first but dries to a powdery film. The 'powderiness' of the film it forms when it dries on the skin is probably what causes make-up to not adhere well to it and come off in little clumps.

The main thing that puts me off repurchase - the price! It costs about S$39 for a mere 30ml of essence. In contrast, a 30ml bottle of Bio Beauty Skincolody Advanced Hydrating Serum costs less than half of that, about S$17 only, and works almost just as well! I find the Aquamoist slightly more moisturizing than the Advanced Hydrating Serum, but because of its thicker texture, can only be used at night, while the Advanced Hydrating Serum is light enough to be layered in the day.

Here's a comparison of the ingredients:

Ingredients for Aquamoist (from Makeupalley): Water, Sodium Hyaluronate, Phenoxyethanol and Methylparaben.

Ingredients for Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum: Purified water, sodium hyaluronate, panthenol, sodium PCA, natto extract, cactus extract, butylene glycol, dmdm hydantoin, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate.

As for packaging, Aquamoist comes in a lovely heavy blue glass bottle with pump which will not leak when you travel with it. However the pump dispenser is not as easy to control as compared to the Advanced Hydrating Serum's dropper applicator. The Advanced Hydrating Serum comes in a simple clinical looking glass bottle too, but with a dropper which makes it easier to control how much product you use. The bad thing about droppers - you can't travel easily with droppers because the product tends to leak in the plane.

Take your pick! For me, the choice is obvious - I'd choose Advanced Hydrating Serum over the Juju Aquamoist Hyaluronic Acid Essence because I could buy 2 of them and still have change left, haha! It's also because I stay in a place with a humid climate and much prefer lighter-textured products. Still, Juju Aquamoist is a pretty good product and I have no regrets using it - the main issue is that I can get a comparable and affordable alternative, which makes it lose its competitive advantage.

Rating: 8/10

Review: The Body Shop Spa Wisdom™ Japan Adzuki Bean & Rice Washing Grains

2011-09-18T22:46:00.002+08:00

My sister got a tub of this recently. It retails for S$34.90, I'm not sure if it's available only in Asia? After using it a few times, I quite like it! I have the Spa Wisdom Japan Apricot and Rice Finishing Mist myself, and the washing grains smell just like it - a very comforting, powdery scent. (I usually hate powdery scents like Flower by Kenzo or Sarah Jessica Parker's Lovely, but the Spa Wisdom Japan scent smells good to me! Perhaps it's more of a powdery fruit scent as opposed to overwhelming powdery floral. Very comforting and familiar and safe.)
So anyway, this is a salt-based washing powder with finely grinded rice and adzuki beans. (I feel kinda hungry just thinking about it, heh!) You could use it on face or body, but I've only used it on my face. (Wee bit expensive to use as a body scrub, I think!) It comes with a plastic spoon for you to scoop it out. It comes in a lovely glass jar with metal hinges like a cookie jar, which looks very pretty but not very functional next to the sink - I always have to use both hands to hold it steady on the countertop. Plus I find it quite troublesome to avoid getting the washing grains wet - I splash my face with water first, then I have to dry my hands thoroughly before opening the jar to avoid my damp hands wetting plastic spoon and in turn, the washing grains. Quite annoying.

How I use it - it's salt-based and I want to enjoy the exfoliation without the scrubbiness melting away into nothingness too quickly, so I just splash my face with water first, then I put 1 teaspoon of washing grains into my dry hand, add maybe just the tiniest drop of water to make it slightly pastey, then work it into my damp face. This way I get the exfoliating benefits and the washing grains melt away gradually. One thing to note - since it's salt-based, it'll sting your eyes if you're not careful and any open wounds/zits you might have on your face. And yes it tastes salty, somehow I always inadvertently taste it in the shower. >_< I like the fact that it's salt-based though, since salt is a disinfectant, I feel like it is disinfecting my face.

I would categorise this as a mild exfoliating cleanser, not a facial scrub, which means I'd use this in place of cleanser maybe once or twice a week, whereas for regular facial scrubs, I use them after cleanser once a week. I usually use this on no-makeup days, because it is not a super deep cleansing kind of facial wash (which is what I prefer to use after removing make-up, personal preference).

Overall, this is quite a unique product and I would purchase it for my own use in the future. I really love the scent, it's very soothing and makes me look forward to using it. The main drawback - it's difficult keeping the washing grains dry and lid of the jar is annoying. Then again, you could reuse the jar when it's used up, since it looks so pretty.

Rating: 8/10
--------
Some photos to share... I've been having training the past week, so I could leave work on time, go out with friends, get my hair dyed. Oh, how nice to have a regular life.

Beef hotplate from Manna Story at Plaza Singapura basement.

Bario half ramen with egg at Ramen Champion. It's this mini-ramen-town at Bugis Iluma with 6 ramen stalls which will be around for a year (till next July), and we get to vote for our favourite ramen stall. The winner gets to set up a permanent ramen stall here! They all taste so good. The Bario half-ramen with egg is only S$7.50, and I couldn't really finish it. If I can't even finish a half bowl, I can't imagine how filling a regular bowl would be. >_<

Macha float at Shokudo.

Beef kebab roll from The Flyin' Bread - really good and filling! It's middle-eastern, but somehow reminds me of burritos filled with rice I had at Chipotle in Chicago, so yummy and huge.

No I will not climb the stairs to fitness, no matter how pretty the stairs look. :P

Have you guys seen the iphone whale? ^_^

What I wore out recently. The dress was elasticised and too short so I unpicked the elastic but it was still too short so I wore denim shorts underneath.

Hot pink blazer - I wonder what people would say if I wore this to the office hehe.

I saw this really cute pink leopard print bag at Forever21, I'm thinking of getting it but it seems pretty useless, I can't think of what to use it for. Any ideas? It's too cute!

Review: Laneige Water Sleeping Pack EX

2011-09-14T22:36:00.004+08:00

My friend helped me purchase a tub of Laneige Water Sleeping Pack EX from Korea. It's way cheaper there, about S$20 (~US$15) for an 80ml tub. And he got the one with the cute designs on the tub! I don't know if it's limited edition? Here's more photos of the design, it's really cute, much nicer than the plain-looking regular tub and makes me feel happy looking at it.

I like the way the tub is sealed to keep the contents fresh. Other similar sleeping masks I've used in the past don't come sealed; instead they have an additional plastic lid on top of the jar which I find kind of unnecessary but I guess it serves the same purpose?

The sleeping pack has a really nice gel texture that is readily absorbed - when I first apply it, it makes my face look very dewy (but not the kind I would want to go out in the day with, so this is strictly for night-time use). I use quite a generous amount of it, about a slightly heaped teaspoonful for the whole face. It comes with a plastic spatula (not pictured) so no problems with hygiene!

The way I apply it - don't just smooth it on and let it sit on your skin, you have to pat it in. It doesn't break me out at all this way and makes my skin super smooth and supple in the morning. I've been working late and feeling very stressed with a bout of gastritis the past week, so my skin has been horrid, dry with some zits. The Water Sleeping Pack has helped soothe and hydrate my skin really well and left it moisturized after just one use. It's a skin-rescue treatment for when your skin is dry yet still breakout-prone, and moisturizes my skin without causing breakouts (which is quite difficult as you can imagine).

This is a fragranced product, I've read it can be irritating to some people but I love the scent, it's very light and soothing. Apparently it contains hyaluronic acid (yay! no wonder it moisturizes well). I'm guessing the dewy look I get when I apply it is due to the cyclomethicone (third on the list). Doesn't break me out though!

Ingredients (from MakeupAlley so I'm not too sure how accurate it is since I can't read Korean): Water, Butylene Glycol, Cyclomethicone, Glycerin, Trehalose, Alcohol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Vaccinium Angustifolium (blueberry) Fruit Extract, Dimethiconol, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone, Ammonium, Acryloyldimethy Itaurate/Vp Copolymer, Polysorbate 20, Triethanolamine, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Carborner, Mannitol, Arginine, Serine, Sucrose, PCA, Citrulline, Glycogen, Histidine, HCL, Alanine, Threonine, Glutamic Acid, Lysine HCI, Magnesium Aspartate, Zinc Gluconate, Calcium Gluconate, Copper Gluconate, Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, Silica Dimethyl Silylate, Sodium Chondroitine Sulfate, Atelocollagen, Beta-Glucan, Disodium Edta, Imidazolidinyl, Urea, Methyl Paraben, Propyl Paraben, Fragrance, Blue 1 Yellow 5.

The recommendation is to use the sleeping pack a couple of times a week, but since it's not heavy at all and I don't really have a good moisturizer for night right now (I'm skipping the Vitacreme currently with my skin's condition), I use it once every 2 days (alternating with another gel hyaluronic acid moisturizer which I'll write about in a while) and it works pretty well like that. I even dab it on my eye area (after putting on eye cream). The only thing - it can be expensive if you don't get it directly from Korea.

Rating: 9/10

--------
Gosh I really feel like I'm aging much faster than other people my age (22). No thanks to my horrible job! While working late is the nature of my profession, there are many who have better lives than I do, who are better remunerated and it can get trying. I'm trying desperately to get my youth back. I feel so unnerved every time I'm in front of my miror applying products. I'll be thinking 'is that a wrinkle I see there?!'

I've got some horrible new addition to my portfolio in the coming year which I predict will accelerate my aging process. >_< I'm going shopping soon to buy more products to cheer myself up! :D Till next time ~

Review: Kose Softymo Airy Whip

2011-08-28T21:50:00.004+08:00

I purchased this can of Kose Softymo Airy Whip about a month ago from an online seller. I've been using it every morning since and I think it's gonna last me quite a long time! For each wash, I pump out an amount slightly larger than a golf ball in size. The foam is quite nice and dense:

My only gripe is the pump: it requires some strength to pump out the foam and so you can't really pump it out while holding it in the air; you need to have it stable on the sink/counter.

Lots of people have reviewed this wash before, I bought it cos it's quite novel and I've never used an aerosol wash, so I just wanted to try it out. Then again, aerosol cans aren't good for the environment so I will not repurchase (it's not great enough for me to have that on my conscience, y'know?).

The scent of the foam is a very generic Biore scent that I can't describe, but that I was pretty disappointed in. It's not offensive in any way, just that it's a typical Japanese drugstore scent and I kind of expected a more luxurious scent. Then again, Airy Whip is quite inexpensive so I shouldn't have had such high expectations. The foam is really nice and dense and I feel that my skin is really soft after using it. However, I only use this as a morning wash as it isn't very good at cleansing thoroughly. I'd use it in the evening only if I've worn very little make-up that day, and I'd use it with my 3M Nexcare facial cleansing cloth for better cleansing. I like that this cleanser is quite mild and gentle but it might not be suitable for really dry-skinned people as it might leave dry skin slightly tight. Personally, it leaves my skin really soft but I have oily-combination skin.

Ingredients list in Englishhere, I'm not too sure how accurate it is as the ingredients list on the can is in Japanese.

Overall, I think this is just a rather gimmicky facial foam - the aerosol can made me want to try it out cos it looks cool, but honestly this is just a very basic, generic drugstore cleanser.

Rating:7/10

Review: Vichy Essentielles Repairing Hand Cream, Malaysia day trip and food photos

2011-08-21T23:05:00.005+08:00

I'm crazy about hand cream - I have an obsession with washing my hands and thus they're always dry. My mum lent me this tube of Vichy Essentielles Repairing Hand Cream recently and I'm loving it! (Plus it has hot pink packaging, my favourite bimbotic colour! ^^)

I'm not sure how much it costs, but Vichy products are typically a wee bit on the expensive side. I like that this tube is small enough to bring with me everywhere. Plus, it's paraben free!

Ingredients:

It's a really rich and thick cream with a light, comforting and unobtrusive floral scent. (In comparison, Crabtree & Evelyn's Lavender and Rose hand creams are heavily scented.) The cream is not greasy at all and a little goes a long way! The texture of the cream is quite thick, kind of like Gold Bond hand cream (which also has a nice scent and is a more affordable alternative). I like how this cream is concentrated so I don't have to reapply too often (because some people comment about how vain I am when I reapply too frequently, lol), and while one 50ml tube seems quite tiny, it lasts me a long time as I don't use a lot as compared to other hand creams.

Rating: 9/10 (-1 cos it's pretty expensive)

--------A couple of weeks ago I went to Johor Bahru, Malaysia for a day trip. It's been so long since I've been there! I went to Aeon mall at Bukit Indah which is super near Singapore and very convenient (just across the border). I liked how the mall is very organised - they have one row for food, one row for shoes, one row for hairdressers and salons... There's Jusco (department store) which didn't impress me, and Tesco (supermarket) which is slightly better cos I found so many interesting and weird skincare brands, like Likas papaya soap (which I read about online)! And I had PappaRoti, the super yummy coffee buns which used to be available in Singapore but went bust. They have shops in places like Australia and Korea though! Let the pictures do the talking -

Tea, cheesecake and omelette for brekkie

Stonegrill steak for lunch - huge portion

Fruttare ice pops! Really yummy like sorbet with real frozen fruit inside - I do think the strawberry one tastes like Haagen Dazs strawberry sorbet. Good alternative and cheap too!

Dinner @ New Hong Kong Chinese restaurant - fried tofu, spinach with 3 eggs, butter prawns, yam paste pork ribs and kungfu tea

Shopping wasn't great cos I try not to buy poor quality things no matter how cheap they are, you know what I mean? I found nice, good quality shorts at Tesco for S$10 (~US$7) but the salesperson was seriously careless (and so were we) cos he charged us twice for the same pair of shorts, and he forgot to remove the plastic ink-filled anti-theft device. Tsk. I found a cute floral dress in the juniors section that looks like something I saw on Urban Outfitters, but it was quite lousy in quality with no lining so I didn't purchase it.

All in all, I think JB is an ok place to go shopping, I think I might consider going there once every 6 months to stock up on contact lens solution, eyedrops and some other beauty items which are slightly cheaper than in Singapore. The immigration officers in Malaysia were really friendly when we had to do our biometric records for the first time. (There was some fiasco over the immigration officers mistreating some Singaporeans the other time, but I think it was the Singaporeans' faults too cos they were kinda careless and just drove through immigration without stopping when they saw there wasn't an officer at their booth. -_-U) Quality of food and apparel is not that great though, that's why most of the stuff I buy are from the pharmacy from international brands, which are ok. They have great coffee buns and durian puffs though!! :D And some of Tesco's house-brand apparel items are quite nice, they remind me of Target's!

And here's some more food photos from the past month-
Yuan yang (coffee and milk tea mix) and yuzu tea

Cheese baked rice from Kim Gary (some Hong Kong cafe)

Chocolate cake from Cedele for tea break in office - not that great though it's pretty

Cheesecake from Starbucks for tea break in office
Let me end off with a card an intern gave me-

When I was in a bad mood, I thought the quote was so depressing - it's like no matter how hard you chase after it, happiness is unattainable. But when I was in a better mood, I looked at it from a different perspective - happiness is everywhere depending on how you look at it. Hmm. I am way too mood-swingy to be happy all the time though. Lol.

Review and swatches: Fancl Nail Color, Jelly Nail Coat and Nail Color Remover

2011-08-14T15:55:00.011+08:00

There was a Fancl anniversary sale (20% off) a couple of weeks ago and since I had the Isetan credit card which gives me 5% off, I bought a nail color, jelly nail coat and nail color remover, plus a bunch of other stuff. I saved so much!

I bought Fancl nail polish because I always had the impression that Fancl's products are 'safer' with ingredients that are free of preservatives. I've always hated the chemicals in nail polish (smells horrid and kills your brain cells) so I thought Fancl would be a good alternative.

With flash

After 5 days, slight tip wear, no chipping
Fancl Nail Color - Skinny Beige
This is a nice coral-nude color. In my swatches above I had 2 coats on, no top coat. Consistency is on the thicker side. Coverage is opaque from the first coat but looks neater with a second coat. I find this polish works best with a double coat; the thick consistency makes it difficult to build up a third coat as bubbles might appear and it'll be more difficult to dry. Drying time is average, about 10 minutes. The thing I really like about this nail polish is that the thick texture makes this super resistant to chipping (I think it's due to hydrolyzed silk), you can see from the photos above that I get slight tip wear after 5 days which is very even with no chipping, quite a feat as I do quite a bit of violent typing. ^_^

Ingredients:

Price is S$16 (about US$11) for a regular sized bottle that expires 1 year after opening and 3 years from manufacturing date. It comes in 5 colors: skinny beige, milky pink, ice rose, pink bronze and sparkling gold. Check it out here. I'd love to try milky pink next. I think the only thing bad about this polish range is the limited variety of colours! Pretty affordable for a counter brand, especially when I purchased it at 25% off. (:

Rating: 9/10

Fancl Jelly Nail Coat Base & Top
The jelly nail coat is supposed to give a jelly appearance, like Gelish nails, I suppose. The photos above are 2 coaters - I find 1 coat not shiny enough and 3 coats too difficult to dry and not worth the trouble. The jelly coat can be used as both base and top coat, but it's not a particularly great top coat because it's not as tough and chip-proof as Sally Hansen's Mega Shine top coat. Also, I'm not too satisfied with its 'jelly' claims because I would have preferred it to looks 'squishier' like real jelly nails. Also, drying time is a wee bit too long. I think it takes like 15 minutes to dry 2 coats properly.

Price is the same as the nail color. I don't think I'd repurchase again; I'd prefer to try other jelly nail coats, like Canmake's!

Ingredients:

Rating: 7/10

Fancl Nail Color Remover
This is a star find! It comes in a nice glass bottle, S$13 (about US$9) for 55ml It's alcohol free so it's non-drying, and it contains Nail Emollient Oil which help nourish your nails. I can feel the oiliness but I'm fine with it, it does feel like it's conditioning my nails. And the best thing is, this strips color really fast! Way better than other cheap nail polish removers which are drying and stink. The best part - this nail polish remover smells like artificial melon candy! (It's a kinda sickly sweet melon candy scent, but still better than the regular acetone fumes. Plus, a little goes a long way. I drip a little on a cotton pad and it's enough for one hand. A very worthy purchase!
Ingredients:

Rating: 10/10

I don't know if Fancl is easy to purchase in other non-Asian countries, but it's really a pretty good brand. I'm sure everyone knows it for its Mild Cleansing Oil (which I love as well), but it does have other really good products as well. The nail polish was a good find, I do think I'll repurchase the nail color and nail polish remover. I've also repurchased their powder foundation (hope to review soon) and drink Tense-up (their collagen supplement) when I'm on stressful engagements that wreck my skin. Overall I think Fancl is a pretty good brand (there were so many people swarming the counter during the anniversary sale) that's worth a try! I hope to review more products soon when I have the time. >_<

Review: PCA Skin pHaze 13 Pigment Bar, Nexcare Facial Cleansing Cloth

2011-08-01T12:40:00.007+08:00

PCA Skin pHaze 13 Pigment Bar
I bought the PCA Skin Pigment Bar about 3 years ago, used it on-and-off within the last 2 years and have been using it very conscientiously within the last 6 months. I don't think many people have heard of this brand because in Singapore it's only sold through dermatologists or skin clinics. I bought it online at Drugstore.com for US$30 for about 90g which is pricier than what I usually spend on a cleanser, but after trying it, I think it's money well spent because I think a jar can last me a year (or more!) when used once in the evening daily.

Here's what it looks like - an amber-coloured bar soap with little white bubbles in it that look quite creepy.

Ingredients: Water, Saponins, Glycerin, Vegetable Oil, Sorbitol, Lecithin, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Powder, Kojic Acid, Azelaic Acid, Maltose Monohydrate, Glucosamine HCl, Tannic Acid, Hamamelis Virginiana Water (Witch Hazel), Sodium Lactate, Niacinamide, Calcium Ascorbate, Aniba Rosaeodora (Rosewood) Oil (Rosewood)

The Pigment Bar is supposed to treat hyperpigmentation, so the kogic acid and azelaic acid work to exfoliate and make skin more even-toned. It comes with 3 flat little sponge discs - the sponges inflate after you wet them, really cool! You're supposed to use the soap with the sponge, leave the foam on your face for a few minutes, then rinse off. I find the included sponge way too rough for use on my face (and even my body) so I use my Nexcare facial cleansing cloth instead (which I shall review further on in the post). I have also tried using the soap with a muslin cloth or the Fancl facial sponge which works pretty well too. I've also heard of people using their Clarisonic with this. The main thing is, don't just use your hands, because it's difficult to get anything out with just your fingers because it's a hard bar soap. I usually moisten my cleansing cloth, use it to rub the surface of the soap which makes it easier to get product out since it's damp. While the instructions ask you to leave the foam on for a few minutes, I just cleanse and rinse, cos leaving the foam on too long makes my skin tingle.

I use the Pigment Bar daily in the evenings (it's a little harsh for morning use) and it really cleans out every pore really well. It can be drying for some, so you really need to moisturize well after use, and always use sunscreen because the acids will sensitize your skin. I do notice my skin becoming more even-toned, my pores becoming smaller and the great thing is, the Pigment Bar actually helps prevent breakouts! I find that if I use the Pigment Bar and my cleansing cloth every day, it actually exfoliates enough so that I don't have to use a face scrub or deep-cleansing mask so often, which saves time for lazy me.

There's an offer on Drugstore.com now, it's going for US$24 (instead of US$30) and I'm seriously thinking of getting a back-up if not for the fact that I have like 20 more cleansers waiting for some love. :(

Rating: 9/10

Nexcare Facial Cleansing Cloth
Speaking of my Nexcare cleansing cloth, I've been including it in my evening routine for quite a while now. I find it helps remove gunk from my face better, and I also think it is absolutely necessary when using a mild cleanser (which might not cleanse well enough). I only use it for evening though, I find I don't need such heavy duty cleansing in the mornings.

Here's how the cloth looks like up close - really soft (feels like a cloud when I use foamy cleansers) and the little loops help remove dirt and oils well. It's not harsh at all and it does not in any way replace my face scrubs/exfoliants. Comparing the cleansing cloth with a muslin cloth, I'd say the muslin cloth has more bite and a muslin cloth actually exfoliates while the cleansing cloth merely lifts dirt using the little loops. For foaming cleansers, using them with a muslin cloth might cause the foam to go flat, but Nexcare cleansing cloth doesn't do that. (Not as badly as the muslin cloth anyway). This Nexcare cleansing cloth is also gentler than the Fancl facial sponge and easier to dry.

Ok, here you have a seriously disgusting photo of my Nexcare cleansing cloth, before and after. :P The cleansing cloth, at first, feels like a cloud. I think after a couple months' uses, it'll start feeling less soft (but still does the job) and you can see the loops very clearly. I used the old Nexcare cloth to remove clay masks from my face, which is why its condition deteriorated quite rapidly (it's pretty difficult to remove clay from the cloth and I think the clay ruins it, so I'm not using it like that anymore).

It's a pretty cheap cleansing cloth, costs about S$4 or US$3 when I bought it in Hong Kong (but slightly more expensive in Singapore), and if you take care of it well and wash it regularly, I think it could last you a pretty long time. A cheaper alternative to the Clarisonic I think! (I'm still waiting for the Sephora Friends and Family sale to get the Clarisonic Mia)

Rating: 9/10

Review: B.Liv Got Me Covered sunscreen + foundation

2011-07-24T16:34:00.005+08:00

I've been using this tinted sunblock from B.Liv for 2 months and I really love it! I've been using tinted sunscreens since forever and I think this is a keeper. The B.Liv website describes it as a BB cream. It's a sunblock, SPF35 PA+++ which seems less than my regular SPF50 sunblocks; I suppose if I were on vacation at a sunny place I'd choose a sunblock with higher protection, but SPF35 is sufficient for me for daily use.

You can see it blended out a little on the left, and totally blended in on the right. It has a really creamy and moisturizing texture which is refreshing compared to my other Japanese sunscreen lotions with the shaker balls inside, which can be drying. Surprisingly, while it's creamy, it controls oil really well and gives me really nice looking semi-matte skin. Plus, it's not chalky at all and I love the yellow undertone which is really suitable for Asian skin. I've also gotten compliments that my skin is more radiant when I have this on. -flips hair- LOL. Love it.

Plus, while I've been using it for 2 months, I've barely gone through half the bottle! I'm not too sure about the regular retail price cos I got this in a value set, but I think it costs about SGD45/USD35 for a 45ml bottle. It might seem pricey but a bottle can last for a really long time! And I love the light coverage it gives me without making my face scary white.

Ingredients: Purified Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Iron Oxide, Cyclohexasiloxane, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Cyclomethicone, Titanium Dioxide, Silica, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Zinc Oxide, Roman Chamomile (Anthemis nobilis) Flower Extract, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Talc, Salicylic Acid (BHA), Diazolidinyl Urea, Sodium Citrate, Methicone, Methylparaben, Mica, Dimethicone, Vitamin C (Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate), Zinc Stearate, Propylparaben.

From the ingredients, I think this is mainly a physical sunblock which is good for sensitive skin, as opposed to chemical sunscreen which might cause irritations for some. Plus it contains vitamin C! And I guess the -cones are what make it give the illusion of smooth skin. It contains salicylic acid too, making it good for oily, acne-prone skin. I really do recommend this sunblock - it's a really great formulation, creamy and moisturizing while oil-controlling and the tinted colour works really well to even out skintone. While it's creamy, it feels light on my skin, not suffocating at all! I'm in love and have already purchased -cough- two back-ups though I'm barely halfway through my current bottle. Plus, did I mention, it smells great? It has a light fragrance that smells expensive. Can't really describe it, but expensive and luxurious is what it evokes for me. (The packaging isn't very luxurious though, but hey, functionality is good.)

Rating: 10/10.

Ultra-holy grail stuff.

Short entry this week; gotta rush to do some shopping and catch the last Harry Potter movie. Toodles!

Organization and Review: Kevin Beautymaker Skin Repair Awakening Gel

2011-07-17T16:29:00.006+08:00

Recently for day I've been using Kevin Beautymaker Skin Repair Awakening Gel. Just one of the many items in my stash I've resolved to use up before I go to Taiwan again next year to stock up!

It comes in a frosted glass jar, quite classy-looking, NT330 for 50g which is about S$16 or US$12 thereabouts. The description is pretty cute - "It has a tender, friendly texture. Only a pearl-size particle is enough to apply to your entire face." I think it does have a 'tender' texture - an easily absorbed gel-serum, but because it's quite light, I think I need to apply more - like, probably a really huge and expensive freshwater pearl-sized amount? Lol.

The description suggests 2 ways of using - as part of your regular morning routine as a massage gel, or as a sleeping pck at night -

Use before make-up:
Natural rose wter can calm the skin down; combining natural yeast extract with facial massage can remove the old corneum and brighten your skin.

Use before sleep:
Kinds of algae and the three-dimensional amino acid moisturizing membrane can retain all active cosmetic ingredients and accelerate the speed of absorption; like wearing a non-sticky mask while sleeping.

Ingredients:
Purified water, ethyl alcohol, cabbage rose water, butylene glycol, glycerin, pineapple extract, gama-polyglutamic acid, glycine, methylparaben, propylene glycol and yeast extract, codium tomentosum extract and propylene glycol, tocopheryl acetate, methylisothiazolinone, serine, hydrolyzed ulva lactuca extract, auqa and chrondus crispus, fragrance, squalane.

As I'm using Vitacreme B12 at night, I ony use this in the morning. I don't use it for facial massage though, because facial massages always go upwards and I don't like applying stuff other than toner upwards cos I'm afraid it'll clog my pores. So basically I can only comment on the moisturizing aspect.

Skin Repair Awakening Gel smells really really good, like rose water! Cos of the cabbage rose water. It also contains Vitamin E and hydrating stuff like glycerin and squalane. Also, yeast extract is a good humectant and apparently helps accelerate cell turnover. (Googled!) I like that this moisturizer is a light watery gel that doesn't make my skin more oily, just that it's kind of sticky. It absorbs quite well and the scent is very relaxing. I do find my skin clarity improved after using it, so it does "awaken" my skin somewhat. This gel should suit oily skin well but those with drier skin would do well to use another moisturizing serum underneath. That's cos I find if I'm in a room with strong air-conditioning for about 12+ hours, my skin can get slightly dry at the end of the day. For regular 10 hour days in places that aren't too cold and dry, it's quite sufficient. The only other thing I don't really like (other than the stickiness) is the fact that it comes in a jar - not too hygienic!

Rating: 9/10 (I'd prefer Kevin Beautymaker Aquamarine Hydrating Serum! It's more moisturizing and smells just as good.)

--------
In other news, The Body Shop's having a sale on organic cotton pads - each roll has 100 dual-sided pieces and 2 rolls are going for S$5.90. Pretty good deal I'd say! I put them in my Daiso glittery pink box, fits one roll perfectly. Love it. The cotton pads are very nice and thick and the textured side can be used for exfoliation. I know some people say toner is useless, but I find it very important because when you use cotton to apply it upwards, you're actually exfoliating your skin gently and hydrating your skin so that it's better primed for absorption of skincare. (From Saeki Chizu, my skincare guru. Lol.)

Recently I've been crazy about organizing. I went to Daiso to get my super cute glittery pink acrylic box series - they're so versatile. I hope they restock! I didn't manage to get enough. :( This is but about 50% of my stash; I didn't take photos of the other drawers which are still kind of messy. >_< I've already thrown away quite a bit of stuff. Must get rid of stuff so that I can go on more vacations and buy more stuff! :D

My current vanity area. Love the pink beaded mirror from IKEA. And I love the owl, it's an ocarina from Australia. I got the brush holders from Muji (so expensive; you can probably find good acrylic alternatives from Daiso) and all the glittery pink ones from Daiso. Love. Them. To. Bits.

Shelf for skincare/hair stuff/shower stuff. I have enough make-up removers for another year. Cleansers too I think. I have a list of them written down and filed and cancel them off neatly when I finish a bottle. I need to do stuff like that or I'd go crazy.

Some unopened boxes of masks, and discarded packaging for products I haven't gotten around to reviewing. Also, some empty used-up bottles for products which were bought overseas or are difficult to find, so that when I search for them in the shops I have something to refer to.

Foundation, loose powder, blush - stuff I don't use often.

Cheek and eye stuff.

Shelf of unused brushes, SPF sunscreen, my whole stash of eyeliners, BB creams (in box, hidden), stashes of foundation refills and boxes of eyedrops.

Not too organized yet but will be trying to clear! Hope to take a comparison photo in half a year's time to see how much I've used up. I'm definitely not adding to my stash right now, just trying to clear so that I can purchase more when I go on holiday in the future. (:

Review: Burt's Bees Beeswax Lipbalm

2011-07-10T21:42:00.003+08:00

These are my favourite lipbalms of the moment. Both the tin and tube cost USD$3 each, but the tube contains 4.25g while the tin contains 8.5g. They cost a lot more than this when shipped to Singapore or purchased from brick and mortar shops here, but I love these so much I believe I'd repurchase readily!

The ingredients differ slightly (taken from Burtsbees.com). As far as I can see, the tube contains sunflower seed oil while the tin contains sweet almond oil, and that's the only difference.

Tube: cera alba (beeswax, cire d'abeille), cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, mentha piperita (peppermint) oil, lanolin, tocopherol, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, glycine soja (soybean) oil, canola oil (huile de colza), limonene
Tin: cera alba (beeswax, cire d'abeille), cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, prunus amygdalus dulcis (sweet almond) oil, mentha piperita (peppermint) oil, lanolin, tocopherol, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, glycine soja (soybean) oil, canola oil (huile de colza), limonene

Honestly I can't tell the difference in formula between the tube and the tin. I would have expected the formula for the tin to be more creamy as you'll be using your fingers for application, but no - it feels totally solid, just like the lipbalm in the tube, which makes it difficult to get enough product out using my fingers. I find I have to keep swiping at the lipbalm in the tin to get enough product. However, the product itself (both tin and tube) is really awesome - there's enough natural tasting mintiness and moisturization and I can really feel it healing my lips when they're dry and chapped. The thing I love most is how everything is natural and tastes natural - I don't have to worry about ingesting weird chemicals. For me, Burt's Bees works a lot better than Carmex - the mintiness is not overwhelming unlike Carmex which can sting a little, and it also heals cracked lips faster than Carmex.

If you're deciding between tin or tube, well, the tin looks prettier and contains more product for the price, but it's kind of unhygienic to use your fingers and application is time-consuming. Plus if you bring it around, the tin will get banged up. For me, I'd prefer the tube for the ease of application even though it contains only half the amount of product for the price, also because I'm a hygiene freak and it's troublesome ensuring my fingers are clean before using the tin version. What I do right now is that I carry the tube with me all the time, while I keep the tin at home to use before bedtime, so the tin remains quite pristine.

Rating: 10/10

You know, lipbalms are the kind of cheap thing that you'll keep buying a lot of, from different brands, just because they're cheap and there's so much variety! But I can see that Burt's Bees will be something I'll go back to over and over again, and always keep a back-up tube of. Sometimes I find it annoying when I find a HG (holy grail) item like that though, because I feel like I won't be able to try other products. Is that weird? :P

Review: Carmex lipbalms!

2011-07-03T22:29:00.004+08:00

I bought a whole load of stuff from the US and haven't gotten around to reviewing all of them. I bought like 5 lipbalms? 3 from Carmex and 2 from Burt's Bees... I forgot where I put the photo of my Burt's Bees lipbalms so I guess I'll do a review next week.

I read this other beauty blogger Kimoko really likes Carmex so I bought these to try them out. Carmex comes in a jar too (it's the original form), followed by squeeze tubes then stick form.

I bought the cherry flavour in a squeeze tube, and cherry and strawberry in stick form. Between the squeeze tube and the sticks, I'd choose the lipbalm sticks because they're more convenient and I kind of like the texture better. One thing about the lipbalm sticks - I don't know if it's because Singapore is really humid, but the Carmex sticks have the most amazingly thick melting texture as compared to other solid lipbalm sticks. (However this may just be due to the weather; I remember bringing a pot of beeswax lipbalm to the US in spring and to my amazement it solidified in the spring weather; so different from its regular texture in Singapore which was creamy soft)

Both the squeeze tubes and the sticks have the same minty feel - it's a little too strong for my taste though. And yes I really really detest the taste of Carmex - minty and artificial cherry/strawberry tasting, very unnatural and chemically artificial, imho. The ingredients: menthol, camphor, phenol, lanolin, cocoa butter, salicylic acid, vitamin E, shea butter, and petroleum jelly. Salicylic acid? To exfoliate your lips? I don't know, man. I do find it quite moisturizing and I really like that this is one of the few lipbalms that contain SPF15, but the taste! Yuck.

In a nutshell - I'd choose the stick over the tube, and strawberry over cherry any time.

I'd choose Burt's Bees over Carmex though, because Burt's Bees is natural while Carmex makes me feel like I'm ingesting yucky chemically-flavoured stuff. Also, Burt's Bees is more moisturizing and heals my lips faster when they're dry and cracked from drinking too much green tea in a cold air-conditioned office.

Rating: 8/10

Some photos to share:

A mask set with a bowl, brush and measuring spoons for mixing your own masks - purchased at a small shop in ShenZhen, China. They sell this at Bonjour and Sasa as well. After opening it I realised the bowl was rubbery and smells like rubber too. Yucks. You know, the kind that gets sticky in the heat. Kinda regret it.

Rilakuma envirobags!

Cute Hello Kitty lipbalm!

My new white iphone! And Rilakuma case (ok I don't know what the white one is called, I like Rilakuma better but the white one matches my white iphone better, so...)

My current collection of Rilakuma plushies.

A photocard my interns gave me... sweet!

Have a great week ahead everyone!!! I'm praying my breakout subsides... Busy-ness ahead...

Review: Vitacreme B12 Regenerative Cream

2011-06-25T23:48:00.008+08:00

About a month ago, I purchased Vitacreme B12 and started using it when my Body Shop Vitamin E Serum was used up. I've used it every night for about a month, over Bliv's blackhead sebum gel, and I am definitely repurchasing, despite how expensive it is. I got this 50 ml tube online for about S$40, but I think the regular retail price at Isetan's Nishino Pharmacy is about $50.

Honestly, I only bought it because I heard of it and it seemed to famous but I actually had no idea what it was famous for. :P I went online and searched, and it's supposed to be good for skin reconditioning, reducing wrinkles, improving skin elasticity and correcting skin dryness. I don't have any wrinkles so I can't say anything about that aspect, but after just one night's usage, I could seriously feel that my skin was much much smoother. I can definitely feel the reconditioning and improvements in skin elasticity. Seriously amazing.

Vitacreme B12 comes in a 50ml metal tube which you have to pierce open with the cap. Reminds me of Dettol cream, or Burnol. :P It's a thick pink cream that feels a little greasy and adds a slight sheen (typical of anti-aging products) when applied to the skin. It feels like it's just sitting on my skin, but when I wake up the next morning, it's all absorbed. I apply a pea-sized amount and only in the evening (as advised in the instructions). The trick is to apply sparingly or it might be too rich/heavy. I let my mum try it and she loves it too. I think it helps my acne scars heal faster too! Every morning when I wash my face, it feels amazing cos I can feel how smooth my skin is.

Ingredients list:

If you notice, there's a 6 month use-by period, but I fully expect to use it up by then. After about a month's usage, my tube is still quite full! I think I can expect to last about 5 or 6 months, just nice. Also, you'll notice that one of the ingredients is salicylic acid which is good for oily/acne-prone skin cos it unclogs pores. That's why though the cream feels thick and rich, it doesn't break me out!

The company also makes a body milk, anti-ageing serum and lightening beauty cream. I want to try them all but I don't know if they're available in Singapore, must really go check it out one day!

Rating: 10/10

Review: Kose Seikisho/Sekkisei Mask White, Exfoliating Massage Gel, Lotion and Mist

2011-06-12T16:27:00.004+08:00

I thought I should do a review on this bunch of products from Kose. They confuse me though, you can see that the 2 tube masks are Seikisho while the lotion and mist are Sekkisei (the last character is different). Overall I think I'd only repurchase the Kose Seikisho Mask White (I've already repurchased once).

Kose Seikisho Mask White
This is one famous mask that has been reviewed by lots of people. It's about SGD$36 a tube (but you can get it for SGD$29.90 at the airport's duty-free shops and at Beaute Spring outlets), which seems quite affordable for a counter brand, but each tube lasts me about 10 applications tops, so it isn't as cheap if you calculate the cost per usage as compared to other peeling masks.

This is pretty much the only peel-off mask that peels off in a single piece, but you also have to slather quite a thick amount. Drying time is pretty long (about 20 mins to half an hour in humid Singapore) but if you apply it correctly (upwards into your pores), you can peel off some tiny clogs which is so satisfying! Of course, you have to be very patient with the long drying time, and it adheres so well to my skin that it stings a little when I peel it off, but wow! Love the pore-unclogging effect. I can see the little oil droplets sucked up on the mask from every pore. If you have sensitive skin, I suggest using it on oilier areas like the T-zone only. And avoid your eyebrows. :P

This mask will not improve your skin significantly, but it is good for those who already have pretty clear skin and just want to maintain their good skin. Also good for people with sensitive skin; it doesn't react to my skin (because it physically unclogs pores rather than chemically exfoliates), leaves it feeling quite moist and tight. Don't expect miracles like getting all your blackheads removed (this stuff is not a Biore pore pack), but it does shrink my pores and suck up oil. :D I loved it so much that even when I reached home at 2am after work, I'd use it and wait for it to dry while I napped.

Rating: 10/10

Kose Seikisho Exfoliating Massage Gel
This is a relatively new product that was released after the popularity of Mask White. Texture is pretty much the same, except this is a scrub. It is a warming scrub and the black gel will turn grey after a while which signals that exfoliation is complete, but I kind of doubt the self-timing effect, so I just continue exfoliating. :P Also, I find the scrubby bits a little too huge (but not harsh) and sparse for exfoliation as I prefer finer and more concentrated scrubs for microexfoliation. I like that this scrub is not harsh and the gel leaves my skin moist (unlike regular microexfoliants which can dry out skin). I wouldn't repurchase though. Price is the same as Kose Seikisho Mask White.

Rating: 6/10

Kose Sekkisei Lotion
This is what most people use for lotion masks. I honestly don't know how to use this (as a toner with a cotton square or just patting?) so I just use it occasionally as a lotion mask. Sometimes I use a paper mask pill and pop it into this lotion, or I also use cotton squares and saturate it with the lotion to leave on my face in the Saeki Chizu method. The Saeki Chizu method advocates saturating the cotton squares with plain water (tap is fine I suppose) first, then squeezing out excess water and putting lotion on it. I find I do have to follow this method, because the Kose Sekkisei Lotion has such a high concentration of alcohol that my eyes become red (with the alcohol fumes) if I don't saturate the cotton squares with water first.

Honestly, I can't see the hype about this product. It's not particularly moisturizing or whitening or pore-shrinking... Very average. And the high alcohol content just ruins it for me. :( You can probaby find a more gentle and effective product elsewhere. I did a lotion mask with Simple toner, and it worked even better than this. And my Simple toner only costs like SGD$7. I have no idea how much the Kose lotion costs, but it's definitely way more expensive.

Rating: Fail

Kose Sekkisei Lotion Mist
I couldn't find this product on the website, but I got it as a gift with purchase. I think it's pretty much the lotion in a mist bottle. Feels quite nice and lightly moisturizing when I spray it on my face on a hot day, but nothing amazing. I wouldn't repurchase this either.

Rating: 6/10

--------
I hate to be so negative about products, but well, some brands are just hit-and-miss I suppose! I especially hate it when I find some cult product (like the Kose lotion) that is so popular with others, doesn't work for me. :(

Anyway, here's a photo of the books I bought in China. They're between SGD$5-10 each, all in Chinese. So cheap! My Chinese is seriously improving when I read them. I find the skincare methods much better and relevant than Western methods. Moisture and lymphatic massage seems to be the hype - I'm just very lazy about lymphatic massage because I find it troublesome to look at the photos and I can't remember the steps. :(

The Abekawa mochi with kinako is awesome!!!!!!! LOVE IT. This is at Ministry of Food.

Mango pomelo sago at Honeymoon Desserts. It's a Hong Kong franchise that opened in Singapore. Not bad but the mango was a little sour.

Have a good week everyone (:

Review: Body Shop Vit E Moisture Serum, Philosophy Turbo Booster C Powder, B.Liv Off With Those Heads

2011-05-28T13:28:00.005+08:00

I've been sticking to this morning routine for about 2 months (and my Vit E Serum is almost gone) so I decided to do a post on it cos I'm quite happy with the condition of my skin right now. -prays skin remains obedient- I like to take macro shots of my skin to keep track of whether the condition of my skin is improving.

My skin right now is generally less clogged up and more hydrated. In the past, I had really oily skin but overexfoliated and ended up with dry, patchy cheeks but those dry patches are now gone. Hurray!

I bought lots of beauty and skincare books from China, one by Saeki Chizu, that famous Japanese woman with good skin, and I've been reading them religiously even though they're in Chinese. (So my Chinese is improving by leaps and bounds.) She advocates first softening skin with lots of toner to improve subsequent absorption of serums/emulsions/creams. It really works! My to-go toner (which I've repurchased countless times) is Simple's toner (in a green bottle).

Another important note is that we shouldn't 'overfeed' our skin with rich creams/treatments - instead, we should hydrate it fully with toner/lotion and use spot treatments and other creams sparingly. An example she gave was that for a plant to grow well, you need to water it frequently and just add fertilizer sparingly. If you don't water it frequently enough, no matter how much fertilizer you apply, your plant won't flourish. I used to be crazy about growing houseplants and what she said is really true. So I really do believe that we should focus on meeting our skin's basic needs (i.e. adequately hydrating it), then do spot treatment sparingly for zits, pigmentation, wrinkles etc.

I've been using this routine for about 2 months now - Simple toner, Simple eye cream, B.Liv Off With Those Heads gel and Body Shop Vit E Moisture Serum mixed with Philosophy Turbo Booster C Powder.

The Philosophy Turbo Booster C Powder comes in an amber glass bottle (to prevent Vit C from breaking down). They claim that powdered Vit C is more stable so your Vit C remains fresh every time you mix it in. It comes with a tiny scoop - the first few times you might experience a slight stinging sensation so just use about a quarter spoonful. I've since increased to half a spoonful per application.

I add one pump of Body Shop's Vitamin E Moisture Serum. One pump is enough for the whole face - sometimes I'll apply a little more serum afterwards (without mixing in the Vit C powder) to my cheeks which are dryer.

This is what it looks like after mixing.

I'll just do a short review of the products used -

B.Liv Off With Those Heads blackhead sebum gel
This one's quite famous! Lots of bloggers have reviewed it already so I won't really go into details. It's a transparent gel with minty feel on application and contains tea tree oil. Yet it's not drying at all (I believe it has glycerin for moisture) and I apply this to prevent clogging in general. Don't expect overnight results, but gradually you'll notice your skin improving loads as it prevents clogging and keeps skin clear. It doesn't remove blackheads but prevents them from occurring in the first place. It also softens your skin so it's easier to extract clogs (if you're into that kind of thing). However, it is insanely expensive - 30ml for about SGD$70. One bottle lasts me about 1.5 months at most when applied sparingly all over the face.

Rating: 10/10

The Body Shop Vitamin E Moisture Serum
Really nice serum, quite adequately moisturizing enough to be used on its own (for oily skin) but should be paired with the Vitamin E Moisture Cream for dry-skinned people. (I've used the Vit E Moisture Cream before but can't seem to find a review for it, it's really nice and absorbs well.) All the products in the Vit E range have the same comforting Vit E scent which I can't really describe, but it's a familiar kind of comforting, nostalgic scent. I also like that this serum comes in a transparent airless pump bottle so I can get to the very last bit of product and also see how much product is left. The 30ml bottle lasts me about 2 months with twice daily application. I love the plastic bottle with cap too, so convenient for travel and for bringing along when I go to the pool etc.

I get away with using this serum without moisturizer, mainly because I layer it over another serum (the B.Liv gel) which also moisturizes slightly. If you have oily skin, you can also layer it over a hyaluronic serum. I like to layer serums as they are lighter than regular moisturizers/emulsions yet provide ample hydration. I find layering serums works really well for my oily-yet-dry-underneath skin.

Ingredients list just for info.

Rating: 10/10

Philosophy Turbo C Booster Powder
This is one expensive purchase! I bought it in the US for USD35. It can get quite troublesome mixing a fresh batch of serum every morning but after incorporating it in my routine, I can really notice my skin getting softer and brighter. You do have to apply sunscreen after you've used this; I think Vit C products degrade when exposed to light and I'm not sure if it increases photosensitivity, but just layer on the sunscreen! :P Would I repurchase this? It's slightly too pricey for me (I know the B.Liv gel is pricier but it is something I can't live without; I think maybe I could live without this as there are quite a lot of other products in the market with Vit C and antioxidants that I could try). I would consider repurchasing but first I'd like to test out other Vit C products in the market.

Rating: 9/10

Today I was rummaging through my mom's stuff (because I've gifted her lotions, serums, masks, all kinds of cosmetics and somehow she can't remember where she put them and wants to buy more -_-U) and discovered some little vintage treasures!

A baby bottle of Chanel No. 5!

Dior Poison!

It kind of shocked me because these are slightly more assertive fragrances and my mom is not an alpha female type. They were probably gifts from others. She also uses other fragrances like Clinique Happy (which was a gift from my sister) that fits better with her image in my mind. It is times like this that I think my mum is kind of cool. HAHA.

P.S. I just received news that Skin MD Natural is having 15% off this weekend! Just enter code MEMORIAL during checkout. I've reviewed it here but I won't be using the code cos I can find it at a Guardian pharmacy just near my place. (:

FOTD: Lunasol Party Coffret 2010

2011-05-22T15:04:00.004+08:00

Gosh it's been almost half a year since the Lunasol Party Coffret 2010 was released in Winter 2010. I just received mine a couple of weeks ago from my friend who managed to snag the last set in Taiwan! (It was about $$10 cheaper than in Singapore where it was sold out as well). Really lovely basic set, but kinda boring if you're into more adventurous colours. The packaging is gorgeous as well but it's a fingerprint magnet and easily scratched.

Swatches of the blush - gradated into cheek colour and highlight for cheekbones.

Swatches of the eyeshadow - the bling bling one swatched on the right is a glitterbomb, fallout all over the place! It's the glittery colour right in the middle of the palette. Doesn't stay in one place at all. I don't use it. :P The other eyeshadow shades are quite glimmery and good for night but if you're in a conservative workplace then it's not that appropriate but you could probably make it work with a sheer dusting of the more muted mid-tone shades.

The eyeshadow is really nice and blendable and stayed on my lids all day even without primer. Very impressed! I'm totally lemming more Lunasol. Pity they're so expensive. Hope they come out with more lovely coffrets! Coffrets are such a great deal. I wore it out yesterday -

I went to Itacho yesterday for lunch. Super good place for sushi! They have this special where each person can order a maximum of 4 pieces of salmon with soy sauce sushi for just $0.40 apiece, but I went there twice last week and both times they were sold out. Grr!

Chili and cheese fries from Best Fries Forever - not bad but kind of expensive and greasy.

My mum's birthday cake from Swissbake, yums -

Other random stuff - Hello Kitty -ahems-. I love shopping at the supermarket. Haha!

Rilakuma coaster from my friend. Love! Pity if I put my cup on it, I won't be able to see the cuteness. Lol.

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Review: Hadalabo Gokujyun Hydrating Makeup Remover vs Fancl Mild Cleansing Oil

2011-05-08T14:51:00.001+08:00

Singapore's elections are over! Shan't say anything, elections always make certain people so riled up. :P My first time voting though, pretty exciting! (Apologies if I sound bimbotic, but do take note that appearing bimbotic is different from actually being a bimbo.) :P

On to the review! I picked up the Hada Labo makeup remover on a whim at the drugstore (it was on sale for SGD$10; usual price about SGD$18). I liked it so much, I have been neglecting my Fancl MCO! (Which is a bad thing as Fancl MCO has to be used up within 3 months after opening. Oops.)

Shall we do a comparison of their cleansing powers? From left to right, we have Urban Decay eyeliner, MAC matte lipstick (which is a more lasting formula than say, lustre), BB cream (usually thick and difficult to remove) and lastly, Fasio mascara (which is famed for being ridiculously difficult to remove even with waterproof eye makeup removers). I did allow the makeup to dry and set before attempting to remove it.

This is after Fancl Mild Cleansing Oil. The only thing left is the infamously indelible Fasio mascara. After a second try, the mascara can be removed cleanly.

This is after Hada Labo Gokujyun Hydrating Make-up Remover. There are traces of eyeliner left and the mascara is stubbornly refused to budge. However, the thick BB cream and lippie were removed very easily on the first try.

Thoughts on Fancl MCO:
It's a cleansing oil and really really awesome at removing every single trace of make-up at one go, even waterproof. The Fasio mascara is the exception (like seriously, it is super difficult to remove), but can be easily removed with a second try. Usually I use 2 pumps of Fancl MCO. Fancl MCO costs SGD$33 for 120ml, kinda pricey but it's Fancl and I love how it seems to remove oil clogs over time too. However, it seems a little heavy to be using every day. Also, if it gets into your eyes, it'll make your eyesight a little blurry for a moment. (I think the oil creates a film over your eyes until you blink it away, but this also occurs with many other cleansing oils like DHC Deep Cleansing Oil.) Lastly, it has to be used up within 120 days from the date of opening.

Thoughts on Hada Labo Makeup Remover:
It looks like a cleansing oil but it is not! It is a clear, slightly viscous (similar viscosity to cleansing oils) gel-type makeup remover, mineral oil free, fragrance free, ideal for sensitive skin (but not sensitive eyes; it stings!). It removes everyday makeup, foundation and sunscreen effortlessly, and when I wash it off with water, I can feel my skin becoming really smooth because of the hyaluronic acid. Like Fancl MCO, 2 pumps is sufficient, but Hada Labo is way more affordable at SGD$17.90 for 200ml. You'll need a separate makeup remover for waterproof eye makeup, but I don't wear eye makeup every day, so that's fine with me. I think it's excellent for everyday use.

Rating for Fancl MCO: 10/10
Rating for Hada Labo: 9/10

Both winners in my opinion!

--------
I'll be going to Hong Kong tomorrow! Will be there for a week, very excited about the shopping! Off to pack now. (:

Review: Fancl Facial Washing Powder

2011-04-24T13:49:00.003+08:00

I got a sample of Fancl's facial washing powder as a gift-with-purchase and just finished using it. The little sponge ball helps create foam and is an absolute necessity; I could never get the powder to foam up well enough without it, and without the foam, it doesn't cleanse properly.

It takes just 1 teaspoonful of powder, some water and the help of the foam ball to create dense fluffy foam.

Apparently the Facial Washing Powder comes with a 'perfect cleansing sensor' to remove dirt without leaving your skin dry. I do feel it cleanses thoroughly without stripping skin of moisture but for evening cleansing, it really needs to be used with a washcloth, muslin cloth or the Fancl facial washing puff to provide some physical exfoliation. I find it sufficient on its own in the mornings, but if you're always in a rush in the mornings, the additional few minutes it takes to create foam really wastes quite a bit of time.

Fancl Facial Washing Powder retails at $26 for a 50g bottle and $48.50 for 2 bottles. Slightly pricey for me but a full-size bottle lasts me almost 2 months. I might consider re-purchasing if not for all my other cleansers waiting to be used. :P A couple of years ago, I tried out the Facial Washing Powder (Light) which is supposed to be used for oily skin. I think the original version (the one I'm reviewing right now) is better though.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Skinfood Pineapple Peeling Gel

2011-04-10T16:10:00.004+08:00

I was going to go jogging but it started raining. :( So here I am with another review!

Skinfood Pineapple Peeling Gel - I think it cost me about S$25 in Taiwan, but it should be cheaper on Gmarket and way more expensive in Singapore stores. It's this light exfoliating gel, kinda comparable to Cure Aqua Gel/Ginvera Marvel Gel in the sense that it doesn't really come with uniform scrubby exfoliating grains, but with little pieces of cellulose that rub off in pieces.

Like Cure/Ginvera, it's best used after cleansing and drying. Using on a wet or damp face reduces the exfoliating effect. Similar to Cure/Ginvera, I find I have to use quite a larger amount (as compared to conventional scrubs/exfoliators) so it's kinda pricey in a way.

You can see the little cellulose bits in the gel.

And when you scrub it off, it rubs off in pieces.

I find it a pretty gentle and effective exfoliator which can be used every day if you have normal skin. However it's not as gentle as Cure/Ginvera because I think the Skinfood gel contains pineapple extract which can sting my skin sometimes if I have an open zit or something. I feel Cure/Ginvera work as physical exfoliators while this one is both physical and chemical. It can also be slightly drying so I really need to moisturize well after use.

Rating: 7/10

Let me end off with some photos of cookies I made with my new oven, like, 2 months ago, when I ended a long engagement. According to a friend, it raised a furore when I posted it on Facebook (2 months late) cos they thought that I had so much time to bake and were jealous. Lol. There's nothing in my life to be jealous about, really. I've been quite down lately, thank God for friends or I would have given up a long time ago.

I bought the packaging from Daiso, is it cute? I baked the white chocolate chewy cookies for a friend who'd broken up with her bf but she didn't appear heartbroken after all so I gave the rest to my colleagues, lol!

I had a good Friday night out with friends and later I'm going out for some emotional support... I'm quite thankful for everyone who's been there for me, even if we're just hanging out or sending random texts throughout the week, it really helps me cope with all that... stuff.

Here's to a good week ahead (:

Review: SKII facial treatment essence; Biobeauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Creme EX2

2011-04-06T22:11:00.005+08:00

After working for 6 months and having not too much time to spend too much $ (on busy periods I still sacrifice sleep to shop online though, to counter boredom ^^), I've graduated to experimenting with higher-end skincare/make-up products. Today I'll be reviewing SKII's infamous miracle water and another hyaluronic acid product - I've been using these 2 products together and find they work quite well on my super-breakout-prone skin - calming and non-irritating.

BioBeauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Creme EX2
This product can be purchased through Payeasy. It's the cream version of the BioBeauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum II that I've previously reviewed. It's slightly more expensive than the serum. The serum is NT350 for 30ml while the creme is NT380 for 30g. The ingredients are simple and soothing - hyaluronic acid, vitamin A, C, B5, B3, aloe vera and soy protein. It has a light and refreshing gel texture that totally doesn't clog pores at all (very gentle, soothing, non-reactive and friendly to sensitive skin) - a very safe product. The only thing that kind of freaks me out is how opaque it is. Like, unnaturally plasticky white, don't you think? Apart from that, everything is peachy!

Oh, and I do dislike how cheap the packaging looks with the blue sticker. However, it is easily removed - without the blue sticker, it looks quite elegant and almost matches my SKII bottle with its white plastic cap and frosted glass jar.

Because it has a pretty light texture, it may not be moisturizing enough for people with really dry skin. I guess it'd work better for people with slightly dry to super oily skin. It doesn't make my face oil up any more than it usually does. When I'm in air-conditioning, I layer this quite a bit, so one jar lasts me a month or thereabouts.

Rating: 9/10

SKII Facial Treatment Essence
Moving on to the star product - SKII! This is cheaper at dutyfree so I get my sis to buy it for me. I think of this as the La Mer of Asia. At first I got kind of confused - this totally looks like toner, but it'd be way too wasteful to use it as such! (Especially since I finish a bottle of toner a month!) This is supposed to be used after toner, before moisturizer. When I use this, I avoid using acne treatments or moisturizers with too fancy ingredients (like lactic acid, salicylic acid, etc) just in case it counteracts with the treatment essence. (No scientific proof on this, anyone knows? Cos SKII is way too expensive for me to use it anyhow. I usually layer a light hyaluronic acid cream/essence over it.) I shake out about 5-6 drops and lightly pat it on my face, wait for it to absorb and layer moisturizer.

The thing about SKII essence is... it stinks. Literally. It smells weird. But bearable. (The scent is quite light.) I also find it gives me a slight glow the next morning and calms my skin down when I'm very stressed. It is not meant to be used as a moisturizer so you definitely need to layer one over it. It didn't work wonders for me straightaway, but after 7 days, I noticed my skin getting calmer. You definitely need to use it long-term to experience the effects. For the exorbitant price though, I expected more than that. Like, faster and more dramatic effects. :P

Rating: 9/10

Today's post is about almost HGs, but not quite there yet!

Midweek - I'm just about surviving... Friday is coming and I cannot wait. I can't wait to meet people and rant. It's fun to rant with people who are experiencing bad luck as well, but sometimes I wonder if we should hang out so much cos maybe the bad karma is recirculating amongst us. :P

Review: Sanctuary Warming Charcoal Detox Mask

2011-03-27T22:36:00.003+08:00

Hi I'm back after a month again! Gosh, I've really been busy. Super stressed out. And I'm sick right now, the 4th time after 6 months of work. :( Anyway, today's review will be on this amazing mask I found, it's kinda pricy, either S$29.90 or S$39.90 I think. So worth it though! It's from The Sanctuary Day Spa in London and it contains charcoal and essential oils, it's one of those warming masks and I love how it heats up.

It comes in an elegant and slim little tube which makes it easier to squeeze out, cos it's more like a paste in consistency. I find I really need to shake the tube hard (which is kind of difficult) cos sometimes the essential oils settle at the bottom and you don't get a good mixture of charcoal and essential oil. Or if I store it upside down, the paste comes out really stiff cos all the essential oil is at the top.

It's a really lovely mask - I apply it and wash off after about 10 mins. It doesn't dry up - you can wash it off with warm water or with a washcloth as well. I love how sucks up the oil in my skin without drying it out. I kind of feel like the essential oils are conditioning my skin, which I love!

Rating: 8/10 (Love it except for priciness and consistency)

--------
That's all for today, I see I have some new followers and I'm kind of embarrassed cos I've been so busy. I haven't actually checked my personal email in 3 weeks, I have so many things to do, I work on weekends as well, even when I'm bored as hell and can't take it anymore, I'll go out and it makes me so tired. And if I have drinks, it really dehydrates and makes me feel so much worse. Once I almost fainted in the queue for a restaurant on Saturday night. So embarrassing!

I'll definitely continue blogging though... I don't want to lose whatever I enjoy doing. Till next time!

2011-03-14T22:36:00.003+08:00

Thoughts and prayers for the people in Japan.

I only saw the news of the tsunami on Google on Friday when I was googling a client's address. Didn't realise how horrible it was till I had time on Saturday night to read the papers. And they didn't come up with a death toll at first because it was too early to tell so I didn't realise the severity of the disaster.

God bless.

FOTD: Momobella and Undercurrent

2011-02-13T17:04:00.004+08:00

I've actually worn variations this look a couple of times, I like how beachy it looks because of turqoise-y eyeliner and coral blush. For this look, I'm using MAC Pearlglide in Undercurrent and Tokidoki blush in Momobella (from the Robbery palette).

Undercurrent is a seriously gorgeous seafoam-turqoise mix. Glittery and intense! Love it to pieces. It stays on my eyelid all day without a primer (which is quite a feat). But - it doesn't stay on my waterline at all. It's glittery which makes it unsafe for waterline use anyway, so. :(

And now, moving on to my absolute love - Momobella blush from Tokidoki's Robbery Palette. It's my ultimate favourite item of all time - I could repurchase the entire palette right now just to get a back-up of the blush. Seriously. It's one of those NARS-Orgasmism-ish colours, seriously gorgeous and natural and glowy! I can't capture the exact colour with my camera, so here you get 4 photos to judge. (First photo's most accurate, the others are more washed out but then you can see the peachy undertones and gold glitter.)

It's a mix of peachy and pinky, perfect natural colour with subtle gold glimmer that gives cheeks this super amazing glow. The glow is very natural, elegant and... expensive looking. You know some blushes look powdery and cheap? This one looks elegant, understated and expensive. It's not too pigmented and not too sheer - perfect with a regular blush brush. LOVE LOVE LOVE.

I use this blush every single day and it's crazy but it makes me feel so happy putting it on. Lol. Then again, I don't own NARS Orgasm so I can't compare. Do check out the Tokidoki Robbery palette though, it's further discounted to US$39 at Sephora!! (I bought it for $49, boo.)

Review: Eucerin DermoPurifyer

2011-02-09T00:31:00.005+08:00

Hi all! Happy Lunar New Year! Been away for a long time because I've been swamped in work. Usually I reach home after 2am in the morning and I had to work weekends too, I was so tired! I still don't get to go home for dinner these days but anything is better than still being in the client's office at 2am in the morning.

Anyway, I discovered this brand, Eucerin, in the drugstore. It's slightly more expensive than your average drugstore brand (these cost around SGD$20+ compared to SGD$10+ for brands like Clean&Clear) but it's pretty worth it! I've been having troubled skin because of the late nights and these help keep my skin from breaking out.

Eucerin DermoPurifyer Cleanser
It's a clear gel cleanser, foams quite easily and washes off cleanly without residue. It contains salicylic acid to unclog pores and it's one of the most gentle cleansers I've used! I'd say even people with dry skin can try this. Other cleansers which contain salicylic acid made my skin dry in the long run, but this cleanser doesn't. While it's gentle at cleansing, it cleanses thoroughly without stripping skin of moisture.

Rating: 10/10 (Yes I'd repurchase forever if only I weren't so fickle-minded)

Eucerin DermoPurifyer Creme-Gel
This is a moisturizer for blemished skin, it has a strange texture - creme-gel is a nice way to describe it. It is thick like a cream but not at all greasy, hence creme-gel. Here's a swatch to let you see the texture -

The instructions say to massage it into face. Usually when I spread stuff on my face, I spread downwards so as not to clog my pores, but for this one, I really do massage it into my pores so that the lactic acid can get into my pores to exfoliate and get the debris out.

I find this moisturizer has good oil control. Also, the really good thing about this moisturizer is that it really does moisturize - it's one of the rare moisturizers made for blemish-prone, oily skin that doesn't dry my skin out. However, the heavy texture can get a little annoying sometimes - it can make my skin feel sticky after a long day, and when I apply powder on my face using a fluffy brush, I feel like it's gunking up my brush with the stickiness. Still, while it feels heavy, it leaves a matte texture which I like because my skin tends to get oily. Also, it doesn't clog my pores. And I really like the compact tube it comes in - slightly flat and reminds me of some BB cream tubes!

Rating: 9/10

Hopefully I'll get to blog soon this weekend. See you (:

Review: Coffret D'or AQ Modelling Nuancer

2011-01-16T20:49:00.007+08:00

I won this at Makeup Stash's Christmas giveaway! It's a complexion enhancing cream colour which comes in 2 colours - white for highlighting and brown for contouring. Mine is the white one. I love the case it comes in - gold and pretty. I'd have liked it to be heavier though. I like compacts to feel heavy and expensive. The price of this is 5,000 yen which is pretty high-end, so I expect better.

The description:
"Face color with a silky cream texture that highlights and redefines facial contours to create an elegant, sculpted look."

- Spreads smoothly for a long-lasting, natural finish.
- Contains natural aromatic. Based on the idea of aromachology, they are extracted from fresh-picked plants.

Doesn't it sound amazing? It smells really nice, so I kind of buy into the aromachology thing, though I know fragrance doesn't really help in skincare; it just makes me feel happier.

The instructions say you're supposed to use it under powder foundation, over liquid foundation. It comes with a sponge applicator and you're supposed to blend it in using a light patting motion. I find it difficult to blend though, so after applying with the sponge, I use my fingers to blend it in properly.

The swatch, unblended and blended. Can you see it when it's blended in? It's a matte white cream, no sparkles or glimmer. That's the part I don't get.

When I use it under my powder foundation, it acts as a kind of primer - it keeps my foundation on longer, but the effect of the highlight isn't really apparent since it's matte and doesn't have glimmer or glow to give a 3D effect. When I use it over liquid foundation, it leaves a white cast on the areas I use it on, and it's even more difficult to blend over liquid foundation (since it's already quite difficult to blend on its own).

Overall, I'm quite glad to have been given the chance to try this since I've never tried Coffret D'or before (it smells really good!) but I don't think it works well as a highlighter.

Rating: fail

--------

Last week I went out with my old friend from high school and we went to explore the new mall, Serangoon NEX!

Dress - Taiwan, Jacket - Miley Cyrus for Walmart, Bag - Rebecca Taylor (free with mook)

I love the flats, the colour reminds me of Tiffany blue. And can you believe I got the Miley Cyrus jacket for only USD$1 at Walmart?! OMG. Best buy ever.

We had lunch at Freshness Burger, which is apparently from Japan. I had the Bacon Omelette Burger, not bad. And the fried Hokkaido potatoes were so good! They're very lightly salted and you can really taste the natural flavour of potato. And I had the Yuja Cha which is honey citrus tea with lots of candied citrus peel - it doesn't contain any tea, it's more of a very sweet drink.

And we had dessert at Lena's, which is opened by Lena Sim, the founder of the Ministry of Food chain. I read an interview of her before, she's quite an inspiration. They seem to have lots of desserts featuring fried bananas (or goreng pisang, a local fave) and you can choose to have it breaded or fried like a spring roll. I like the spring roll kind better, the breaded one made the banana inside a little too mushy.

Fried bananas and vanilla ice-cream

Breaded bananas and brownie on a hot plate

The hugest mint tea ever

The brownie on the hotplate was good, except the parts that are on the hotplate too long tend to get a bit hard. And the mint tea - I thought one jug was for both of us to share, but it ended up that we each got a jug to drink from. Like, omg! And we kind of forgot how filling bananas can be, and got super stuffed... Haha!

That's all for today, hope you enjoyed reading. I have finished one week of my peak period and it was like a really really long week. I hope leaving work at 12am will be the max for this week. -prays- Have a great week ahead everyone!

Review: Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum II and Beautymaker Aquamarine Hydrating Serum

2011-01-08T23:50:00.003+08:00

Happy New Year everyone! Apologies for lack of updates, life's been hectic. I'm gonna start the year off with a rave review for these 2 hyaluronic acid serums I bought in Taiwan last year and only got around to finishing recently.

Kevin Beautymaker Aquamarine Serum II and Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum.

Hyaluronic acid, I believe, is the best kind of moisturizer for people with oily, acne-prone or reactive skin that is prone to breakouts. A lot of people who have problems with oiliness actually have dehydrated skin as well. The oily-but-dehydrated skin thing, what an irony. :( But hyaluronic acid is good because it is light, but it's a great humectant as well, attracting more than a thousand times its own weight in water. Read this for more information! I like how hyaluronic acid leaves my skin plump - it's because it retains water in the skin and brings about plumpness of the skin due to retention of water.

L-R: Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum II, Beautymaker Aquamarine Hydrating Serum

Same, to show the texture.

Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Serum II
This is a lighter, more watery serum than the Beautymaker one. It plumps up my skin real good! It's very fluid and dries quickly, but once it dries it can give a tight feeling, and I find it can't be used on its own. Instead, I have to layer another lightweight moisturizer over it. While the serum's not too substantial by itself, I can definitely tell the difference when I use it - it really helps prevent my skin from drying out and extends the moisturizing capability of whatever I layer on top of it. I use this up very quickly - 30ml is gone in a month!

Plus - it's very cheap, I think about SGD$17 a bottle or around USD11 for 30 ml. I like the clean glass bottle with the dropper, very hygienic and practical. But the only way you can get it is through the Payeasy website which I don't think delivers outside of Taiwan. Thank God I have a Taiwanese friend, I'm thinking of getting her to CP me another 5 more bottles (there's a discount if you buy 5).

Ingredients: Purified water, sodium hyaluronate, panthenol, sodium PCA, natto extract, cactus extract, butylene glycol, dmdm hydantoin, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate.

Rating: 10/10

Kevin Beautymaker Aquamarine Hydrating Serum
This is a thicker, slightly sticky serum. It smells really good, like rosewater. It may be a serum, but I find it hydrating enough to be used on its own. In fact, my favourite way to use these 2 serums is to layer the Aquamarine Serum over the Advanced Hydrating Serum. This method really locks in the moisture the whole day. The Aquamarine Serum is slightly more expensive - about USD14 for 30ml if I remember correctly. I used this up in about 1.5 months.

Ingredients: Carbomer, deep sea water, hyaluronic acid, cucumber extract, butylene glycol, glycerin, ethyl alcohol, gamma-polyglutamic acid, triethanolamine, glycine, cyclomethicone, serine, auqa and chondrus crispus, hydrolyzed placental protein, methyl paraben, disodium EDTA, hydroxyproline, ethylisothiazolinone, mica & titanium dioxide, hydrolyzed ulva lactuca extract, algae extract, pelvetia canaliculata extract, codium tomentosum extract & propylene glycol, fragrance, acetyl hexapeptide-3.

Rating: 10/10

Another thing to note - I have been looking at other hyaluronic acid skincare brands like Aquajuju,Hada Labo and Shiseido Aqualabel (because my Taiwanese friend is kind of busy and I won't be getting my back-ups anytime soon and I need a replacement), and looking at the ingredients lists, I realised that for all of them, the hyaluronic acid (or sodium hyaluronate) component comes much later in the ingredients list. On the other hand, you can see from the ingredients lists above that for both the Bio Beauty and Beautymaker serums, hyaluronic acid (or sodium hyaluronate) is the first active ingredient. I'm not sure if this makes a difference, but I'll be trying the AquaJuju, Hada Labo and Aqualabel ones soon to see if I can find a suitable replacement.

However, if I had a choice, I think these 2 serums are the best because they're so pocket-friendly! (AquaJuju, Hada Labo and Aqualabel are about 50% more expensive I think.) I especially like the Bio Beauty Advanced Hydrating Serum II because the ingredients list is very simple and doesn't contain weird chemicals that may irritate skin.

If you haven't tried hyaluronic acid skincare yet, do give it a try! This miracle ingredient has really done wonders for my skin. However, just one thing to take note - hyaluronic acid works best in humid climates (like Singapore!) because it draws moisture from the air and retains it on your skin. If you live in a dry climate (like Australia), hyaluronic acid might actually leech moisture from your skin instead (because there is no moisture in the air). In that case, you can try taking hyaluronic acid supplements. Fancl makes a good one.

Have a good 2011 everyone!

Merry Xmas 2010

2010-12-26T16:20:00.003+08:00

Hope everyone had a happy Christmas!!! :D

My present to myself - a Kate Spade Jane Street wallet! I love it to pieces - it's huge and bulky but the chain strap is so versatile - I can wear it as a handbag, clutch or wristlet. And the leather is very durable.
A souvenir from Bangkok - it's so pretty. I want to go there because everyone's been there but they all tell me I won't like it. -_-U
A gift exchange present. Like, what? Lol.
Baylis & Harding bath stuff. Will be trying it out soon!

Have a happy New Year everyone! My New Year's resolution: To gain weight on my upper body (like around the shoulders and chest). I hate looking too skinny on top. I look like some half-starved orphan in some photos recently where I wore a scoop-neck top, and I hate that. Any advice? (Other than eating more, because any weight I gain goes straight to my hips.)

Regular posts to resume next week! I won a Cosme Decorte highlighting thingy from MakeupStash and I hope to review it soon. (: My first time winning something! Woohoo. :D

Review: Fasio Lash Style Perfector Mascara

2010-12-19T22:38:00.003+08:00

Recently I've been using Fasio Lash Style Perfector in Deep Brown. It comes in a sleek gold tube, really elegant! The most unique thing about it is its lack of bristles:

Instead it has coils! This makes the application technique very different from usual mascaras. For regular mascaras, I'd usually wiggle the brush in a zig zag motion through my lashes from base to tip to separate and add volume evenly throughout. But for this mascara, there are no bristles, so wiggling the brush doesn't work and instead makes my lashes clumpy. The best way to apply this mascara is very simple - just brush it up straight. It tends to clump with 2 coats or more though, so I use my Tweezerman brow brush to brush out the clumps.

Here's how it looks after just one coat (I like one-coaters) - curled and with just enough volume for everyday. It stays on very very well, no smudging at all (just a wee bit after 12 hours) and holds a curl all day long! I love this.

The only quibble I have is the tendency for clumpiness - I can't use this without a lash comb/brush. Then again, I hate clumps so much that every time I use mascara, I need to use a lash comb/brush so this mascara doesn't add much fuss to my routine.

Rating: 9/10

--------
I went for a session at my regular Chinese doctor this morning - it's like a chiropractic/massage/acupuncture place. I got this recurring injury and slumping over my laptop at work doesn't help much. I try to go once a month but this was my first visit in 2 months cos I was busy. Got myself a chiropractic alignment, massage and acupuncture. God, today's acupuncture session really hurt!!!!!!! Usually the doctor just pokes in, out, like ant bites, but today, he really drilled in the needles deep into my so very sore muscles. After that I had lunch, did some shopping and went home for a deep snooze till dinnertime. Acupuncture really gets my blood circulation going. Today's was so painful that I cried! But I will go back again after my busy period ends in May - I'll have some super sore muscles then, I'm sure.

Christmas week, I'm so happy! I still haven't sent my Xmas cards cos I've been too busy to get stamps (oops). I'm looking forward to partying!!!!!!!!!! Partayyyyy!!!!!

Happy holidays everyone!

Reverse Flower EOTD + Tokidoki Robbery Palette!

2010-12-12T22:32:00.004+08:00

This seems like a reverse of my Tibi Spring-wannabe EOTD. I used the lime green shade in my new Tokidoki Robbery Palette (Soya) on the lid and the white-gold (Candycane) on the inner rim, and hot pink Raspberry blush from my Bobbi Brown palette on the outer rim. Mascara - Fasio Lash Style Perfector which I will review in an upcoming entry! The colours always look washed out; I don't know, I need to get a new camera maybe.

See how washed out it is? (And don't say I'm not slapping on enough makeup >_<) I woke up bright and early for breakfast with my uni girls and I'm always rushing and FOTD photos take up so much time because my camera has a hard time capturing colours, and I have to find ways to face the sunlight etc etc. On to the make-up!!! Drumroll please... Presenting... the TokiDoki Robbery Palette!!!
It comes with this super cute magnet on the top!!

The cute tin box houses 3 portable palettes. There's a mirror on the lid but I never use it, cos I'll pop out whichever palette I'm using. So honestly I don't find much use for the tin box, especially since my desk is full of clutter as it is. But it's so cute!

I find the eyeshadows really pigmented and blendable, very easy to work with! I like the blush in the middle (Momobella) the best; it's kind of like my Urban Decay blush in Score, except less pigmented. It's quite glittery and peachy; I don't own NARS Orgasm, but I have a feeling it's similar, except Momobella's more pink. The other blush, Polpettina, is more pigmented and a deep pink with peach undertones. I really need to use a light hand with it, or use a skunk brush. The bronzer is slightly glittery, and I use it on my nosebridge. I don't use bronzer much and I don't do contouring since people usually contour to make their features sharper (nose, cheekbones...) and I don't exactly want to emphasize them. So I use it as an eyeshadow wash for work, which works out ok.

--------Last weekend I went to this Japanese restaurant called Irodori for dinner. It serves ala-carte buffet; you can order what you want from the menu and they'll serve it. The food's not bad, but I always believe you can tell the quality of Jap food from the tempura. The tempura they served was slightly better than in most Jap restaurants in Singapore I guess, I'd say it's 75% there. The batter and the crunch is not perfect. My recommendations for Irodori would be the pumpkin, sweet potato and lotus root tempura! Yum yum.

Irodori is indeed colourful.

The thing about buffets is that I hardly ever photograph everything; I photograph the 1st round and after that I don't bother because I'm too busy eating, lol!

This morning I had brunch at Hot Tomatoes at 313 Somerset.

Both the tomato and mushroom soups were really flavourful! Not runny like most set meals you get from other places.

I had the sirloin and lobster au gratin. It's quite perfect except the steak was a teeny bit tough even though it was medium rare and nicely pink in the middle. With lime juice, the entire set meal cost only about $20 inclusive of 17% tax and service charge. Really worth it in my opinion!

Yesterday I went to watch Walking with Dinosaurs. (Geeky, but I like it lol. The tickets I consider cheap as compared to going for an SSO concert or SDT ballet. This is how I enjoy spending my weekends - I don't club, I am a very very good girl. ^^)

It was only about 1.5 hours long excluding intermission, but quite fun cos we got to take this video where a fake digital dinosaur will appear on the screen behind you and you get to interact with it. LOL. I wasn't even tall enough to reach it though. :(

It has been a good week; I managed to watch Rapunzel after work and on Friday night I crashed a particular company's Christmas Party at Powerstation and had free-flow. :D I only had 3 drinks before they stopped though. Here's to work-life balance! Have a great week everyone (:

Fancl Voyager Christmas Collectibles and more food!

2010-12-05T12:21:00.004+08:00

Last weekend I stocked up on my base make-up from Fancl because they were 10% off, and I got their Voyager tumbler, lunch bag and calendar!

260ml capacity as compared to Starbucks

I like how the lunchbag has a holder to keep the tumbler upright because such tumblers always tumble over in my bag and leak.

The calendar has a weird format though. It's not tabled, instead it has lines for every day. Not very good for people who like to write lots of stuff or check their schedule quickly at a glance. And I hate how they have product pictures every month; it makes me wanna buy more stuff. ;_;

Dinner at the Handburger at 313 Somerset last week. It's not a very conducive place for a date so it's best to go with friends because it has canteen style benches and everyone's too close for comfort.

Chilled stuffed tomato. Looks crappy but delish!!!

The works burger - it has the crispiest bacon and onion rings I've ever had!!! Omg. And runny egg yolk. Yums!

Duck confit burger. Quite interesting. It has raw dou miao (pea shoots) which I don't quite appreciate. :P The mandarin orange sauce is nice though.

Oh God the Christmas sales are upon us and I hear Chrismassy songs everywhere!!! I don't feel like working and I feel like spending a hole in my wallet. ;_; Falalala! Which reminds me - I'd better start sending out Xmas cards soon especially to my friends overseas!!! Till next time ;)

FOTD and food~

2010-11-21T23:57:00.001+08:00

Teal and gold eyeliner, Bourjois
Fasio Lash Style Perfector mascara in brown
Stila blush from the Fall Fantasy Laguna agate palette
Sugarbaby lip & cheek tint

Last Sunday I met up with our buddies who came to visit us from Malaysia. We had a long chat at Coffee Club where I had the most amazing earl grey tea with vanilla ice cream! Omg it was really good.

The next day we had dinner at The Mussel Guys at Vivocity - they had lots of photos with celebrities who had been there and I had the mussel pasta thingy, but the mussels weren't that great. :x And omg, my friend found a baby crab in one of her mussels!!! :O The mussel's last dinner?

Can you see the baby crab at the bottom left?

Back to work tomorrow - have a good week everyone (:

FOTD and Review of Bourjois Shimmering Shine Liquid Eyeshadow and Maybelline Collagen Gloss

2010-11-14T12:58:00.007+08:00

Hi all, long time no see again. Work is killing me. I had my company dinner and dance on Friday though so I had a chance to paint my face and here is the result -

Argh I forgot to do a macro of the eye. You can't see anything in the photo here. I know my friend will say that's because I didn't put enough eye make-up but I don't enjoy looking like a bloody wayang (opera) troupe member. For my own reference-

Lower inner rims - VS chubby eyestick in glampagne
Lower outer rims + tightline upper lashline - Body Shop Eye Definer in Glowing Amethyst
All-over wash - Bourjois Shimmering Shine Liquid Eyeshadow in 32 Brun Magnetique
Eyeshadow - Brown shade in Lavshuca Dual Prism Eyes GN2
Blush - Bourjois blush in Rose Frisson
Lipgloss - Maybelline Watershine Collagen Gloss in BP21

Let me do a quick review of the 2 new items in the FOTD which I am totally loving at the moment -

Bourjois Shimmering Shine Liquid Eyeshadow
This is seriously good stuff! It's basically an eye gloss which you can use as an ultrapigmented shadow or a sheer overall wash of metallic colour. Brun Magnetique is that mushroomy-mink shade that everyone should have. I use it every day at work now as a sheer wash - it's so easy, just dab and spread and it dries so quickly, no fuss at all! It doesn't migrate or crease, though colour does fade a little without a base. But with primer/UDPP, it lasts forever!
Rating: 10/10

Maybelline Watershine Collagen Gloss
This is seriously good stuff too! It's not ultra-glossy, but it has that watery look that totally blurs liplines and it is the only lipgloss I have tried which I can honestly say is not sticky at all. It's even better than Sally Hansen's Lip Inflation (which is awesome). This colour (BP21) is one of the more pigmented and non-shimmery ones while other colours contain some shimmer and are more sheer. I would compare the look of this gloss to Covermark's lipgloss which is so much more expensive.
Rating: 10/10

--------
I hope to blog again soon - there's a public holiday this Wednesday so I think I might have time. Till then!

P.S. Food at Marina Bay Sand's Chinese banquets suck. The sharks' fin soup is a major waste of sharks' fin and the appetizers came out cold (and it wasn't a cold platter). If anyone is getting married soon, please avoid throwing your wedding dinner at MBS because in my opinion, it is overhyped. :P

Review: DHC Acne Care Base Makeup + Toxic Ingredients in Cosmetics!

2010-10-24T15:12:00.001+08:00

Omg it's been 2 weeks since I last blogged; I never imagined blogging would become a chore. It's kind of tiring when I get home from work, and weekends are for catching up with chores and exercise and music. My current record for leaving the office is at 1am. I hope it won't be broken.

Anyway, sometime last week I couldn't take it anymore and went out to Watson's to spend some $ and make myself happy again!!! Amongst other things, I bought UV Protection Milk and Powdery Foundation from DHC's latest Acne Care range!

DHC Acne Care UV Protection Milk
I had to go out and buy a new sunscreen because my beloved Sunkiller Kirei Hada is no longer sold in department stores in Singapore, and is only sold at Nishino Pharmacy (in Isetan) at a higher price of about $18! (It used to be sold at Robinson's or BHG for about $13, even cheaper if you get a 20% store discount.) But guess what? This new DHC UV Protection Milk costs about $31. -_-U Forgive my illogical reasoning... I just felt like trying something new.

It claims to protect and mattify, fight bacteria in pimples, minimise appearance of pimples and roughness, conceal pores, eliminate shininess on the forehead and of course protect skin from UV rays, while maintaining a smooth finish without a sticky feeling. Here's the ingredient list:

It is by far the lightest feeling sunscreen on my skin, and totally non-oily/greasy, unlike Sunkiller Kirei Hada, which feels a little slick (maybe because of the squalane it contains). The DHC UV Protection Milk leaves a totally matte finish, but although it is tinted, I can't wear it alone because it is a mainly physical sunblock with zinc and titanium dioxide, so it leaves a whitish cast on my face. Oil control is pretty good and it functions really well as a makeup base with its smooth finish. As for acne care, my skin seems to have become calmer and with less flare-ups. It won't make your zits miraculously disappear but it will help prevent breakouts from ocurring, when used in conjunction with other blemish-fighting treatments.

Rating: 10/10

Swatches: UV Protection Milk blended out and unblended, Powdery Foundation
DHC Acne Care Powdery Foundation SPF 26 PA++ - Natural Ochre
As you can see from the first photo, I only bought the foundation refill because the case and puff is sold separately and I wanted to try if I really liked it first before investing in the other unnecessary stuff. Lucky I did that, because I really wasn't impressed by this foundation. Here's all the things it claims to do, and the ingredient list:

As a foundation alone, this gives light-medium coverage which looks really powdery on my skin. You know how most powder foundations smooth over and blur your pores? This doesn't. And other foundations usually set into skin to give a natural finish over time, but this one just looks powdery all day. It is indeed a powdery foundation. -_-U I guess it can be used as a pressed powder for touch-ups (instead of as a foundation by itself), but it doesn't control oil well at all. And when I wear it all day, it makes my skin feel kinda dry.

I chose the darkest shade which is 02 Natural Ochre, but it still seems chalky on me. I think it suits NC25 skintones, which is rather light for what is supposed to be the darkest shade. All in all, I'm just really disappointed in this product. I think it cost me about $32 for the refill while the case costs about $18 and the puff around $3. Not worth the money!

Rating: Fail (I decided that for products that fall short of the 5/10 mark, I'm not even going to bother to give a rating. Lol.)

--------
Anyway I was sorting through my pile of Time magazines for recycling, and found this article on the toxic ingredients in cosmetics (click for larger image).
One of the things that freaked me out was the information about oxybenzone which is present in a lot of chemical sunscreens, including Neutrogena sunblocks! When I finish my back-ups (I bought lots of Neutrogena sunblocks in the US because they're almost $10 cheaper per tube) I'll definitely be looking for new body sunscreens.

Review: Physician's Formula Mineral Wear Talc-Free Mineral Blush and Face Powder

2010-10-03T23:21:00.001+08:00

I bought these in the US and I've been using them for 2 weeks ever since I started work. Physician's Formula has so many different pressed/loose powders that I don't really know the difference and which to choose, so I grabbed these 2 because they came as a set.

Face Powder:
I love how fine and pigmented the face powder is - it really gives a smooth canvas. It is not pigmented enough to cover scars of course, but it provides really good lightweight coverage that looks natural and minimizes pores. It's supposed to be a pressed powder I think, but the coverage is like that of a powder foundation.

The only negative is that it's not very good at oil control. For that, I use a separate oil control powder underneath it and it works quite well. At the very least, it doesn't make my face any oilier than it usually is. Another thing is that Physician's Formula's shades are kind of limited and don't match me perfectly - it's not yellow enough for my Asian skintone. The included brush is kind of useless as well.

Rating: 8/10 - I really love the flawless finish.

Blush:
The blush I got in the shade Rosy Glow. It has a matte finish and is extremely pigmented - the swatch above is just one swipe. It gives a natural rosy flush when stippled on with my MAC 187 duo-fibre brush. It might be too pigmented when used with a regular blush brush though. I really really love this - the matte finish is totally work-appropriate and it comes in 4 other colours which I'm really interested in trying - I think I might try to get them online. It's kind of expensive for a drugstore brand (USD10.95) but it's worth every penny because the powder is so fine and smooth and pigmented!

Rating: 10/10!

--------
I've officially been at my job for 2 weeks now - we're still doing training but my schedule has engagements packed till next May. ;_; Some other groups have easier schedules but apparently my group is pretty busy. And my company laptop is always giving me problems, plus at work, lots of websites are banned, like Facebook, MSN Messenger, Ebuddy and Livejournal. Oh well. I look forward to lunch every day though - it's fun exploring all the food places in the area.

Till next time - I need to go to bed now because I'm always late and someone important's gonna be there tomorrow and I need to be uber early. :(

Review: Springheart Long & Curl Mascara

2010-09-19T16:39:00.001+08:00

I came across Springheart at Japanese cosmetics sections in Watson's a while ago - they have a range of eyeliner pencils and 2 mascaras, one for volume and one for length, pretty standard stuff. They're also really affordable, at about $10 each. (Can't remember exactly) The packaging is also really cute and sparkly! See -

Pros: It has fibres for lengthening and squalane and panthenol to keep your lashes soft, so it's a rather moisturizing formula, unlike other mascaras which are kinda dry in consistency. And I love how the tube is wider at the top and bottom, which makes it more stable so I can put it standing up on my desk, and the wider top makes it effortless to unscrew the cap. (Physics!) It's a personal preference I guess. I like the brush - it's not too large and separates nicely. The formula is great at lengthening and very, very lasting.

Cons: While it does lengthen nicely, it doesn't hold a curl very well, so that my lashes go flat after a couple of hours and when I blink, the mascara smudges underneath my eyes. It's also pretty difficult to remove, even with my Fasio eye makeup remover (which is known to be good at removing seriously budge-proof Fasio mascaras). It is easily removed only with cleansing oil (I use Fancl).

Verdict: The price is right and it's a nice everyday mascara to have. Just keep an eyelash curler handy. (Though it's really not good to curl your lashes after they've been mascara-ed because your lashes may drop out) Oh, and a good cleansing oil.

Rating: 8/10

--------
So anyway, the other day I went to Square 2 at Novena and finally tried Gong Tea! It's really really good!!!!!! You have to try the House Specials - they're special because of the layer of milk foam on top. It tastes salty.

I had the Gong Cha Milk Alisan Tea with 80% sugar. (It's less sweet than Koi, so 80% sugar was good!) Gong Cha's Alisan Tea is seriously fragrant - good stuff. It reminds me of a green tea we have at home from Japan. I googled Alisan tea, and I think it's a green oolong.

Mix it up and you get frothy yummy goodness!!! It's really filling though, because of all the cream. I bet it's super fattening too.

You're supposed to first drink some of the frothy milk layer, then stick your straw in and drink the tea part only, then mix it all up and finish it!

Banchan and Dolsot Bibimbap from Seoul Yummy.

Clarke Quay at night with all the lanterns and stuff for Mid Autumn festival.

Review: Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Eye Serum

2010-09-08T12:22:00.002+08:00

I got a sample of this Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Eye Serum a while ago and have been using it twice daily for a month. It's only 5ml but it lasts a long time! The full size is 15ml, comes in a pump bottle and is really pricy at 45 USD.

Pros:
It's a lightweight fluid creamy serum which absorbs easily and is very moisturizing without the greasiness of some other eye creams. It does brighten and tighten, but doesn't do much for fine lines. It's pretty good if you're in the under-30 age group, but if you're older, you want stronger stuff.

Cons:
Really pricy, I wouldn't buy it if it was free. And it has come bad reviews online, mostly people who suffered sensitivity problems with symptoms like red itchy skin or watery eyes.

Verdict:
A good basic eye cream, but on the pricey side. Worth a try. Do get a sample before committing to avoid sensitivity issues.

Rating: 7/10

--------
Sorry I've been gone for weeks, I was repairing my laptop, etc etc. I hate doing tech stuff and I'd been procrastinating with backing up my hard drive and stuff.
Anyway here are some food pictures from Kuala Lumpur! The shopping was ok - you can find cheap, lower quality clothes for young people, but the high quality labels are more expensive than in Singapore or the US. The watch I bought for 100 bucks in the US, cost 200 bucks in KL. Crazy.

Secret Recipe white chocolate macademia cake

The indoor coaster at Times Square

Fish head noodle soup

Unagi with onsen tamago, matcha latte
I went to Chinatown's Tak Po for dimsum. My friend highly recommended it. It's affordable because the portions are huge. Not as great as I expected though. The yam puff isn't that great, but I like the egg tart. I want to try the mango thingy and congee next, they're supposed to be good, but I was stuffed and the mango thingy is only available on weekends.

Siew Mai

Prawn fritters? I forgot

Egg tarts!

Har Gow

Carrot Cake

Yam Puffs
This is lunch at Megabites at NUS and brownies from Munchy Monkey or something like that. The portions are huge and I was stuffed, and I found it so amusing that the brownie look the same as the photo on the menu, because usually the photos on menus look nicer. I have to say though, this is nothing compared to NTU food.

And lastly, Daim cake and a sparkling pear 'cider' from IKEA. The pear drink was good! And I like the Daim cake except I was too stuffed to enjoy it.

I'm so sad that the Youth Olympics are over. I wanted to watch the gymnastics live but obviously I didn't manage to. I did, however, go to a restaurant (which was presumably one of the sponsors) that gave away cute Merly and Lyo wet napkins!

Till next time!

Review: Vichy + Neutrogena cleansers + Marina Bay Sands Singapore!

2010-08-10T21:45:00.007+08:00

I decided to do some reviews of cleansers I used over in the US! Look at the photos and you can see the messy room. (Someone else's fault. Lol.)

Vichy Normaderm Deep Cleansing Gel
This contains salicylic acid, glycolic acid and witch hazel for problem skin. It's a rather thick gel which doesn't foam as easily as I would have liked. I find it pretty moisturizing, surprisingly. I don't like how it doesn't foam properly, so it doesn't make my skin feel clean and sometimes I have to cleanse twice. It leaves a slight filmy afterfeel on my skin, and it didn't really help to clear up existing blemishes, though it prevented new zits from appearing. Plus, it is expensive, as with all Vichy products!

However, it might be good for people with dry, acne-prone skin who might prefer a more gentle approach to clearing up their blemishes. I find this cleanser quite gentle for one that contains salicylic acid. (I personally don't find moisturizing important in cleansers, and I don't mind harsher cleansers as I feel I can always replenish it with a good moisturizer.)

Rating: 5/10

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Mousse Cleanser
This is supposed to be good for dry, sensitive skin. I remember it's slightly expensive, about S$20, but still cheaper than the Vichy. The scent is light and clean and quite pleasant to me. I love the mousse - it is dense and soft and cushiony. Cleansing power is average and therefore I used it as my morning cleanser. I doubt it'd work as well as an evening cleanser since it is mild and doesn't deep-cleanse. (I prefer deep cleansers to clear my skin of gunk in the evening.)

However, I loved using it in the US, when the air was very dry compare to humid Singapore - this cleanser really helped maintain the moisture in my skin. I would definitely recommend this.

Rating: 8/10

Vichy Purete Thermale One Step Cleanser
I bought this without checking reviews online first. BIG MISTAKE. The Vichy website has this categorized under "All Except Acne-Prone Skin", and boy, were they correct. This really gives me zits!!! The description is "This convenient 3 in 1 cleanser includes cleansing milk, toning lotion and eye make-up remover in a lightweight, non-greasy formula."

It's non-greasy, but it's still a heavy cream-gel that clogs my pores and leaves a film on my face. I practise double-cleansing with this cleanser as the first step, but this is so difficult to remove even using a deep-cleanser! I rub this all over my face, use cotton to remove it, follow with a deep cleanser, then toner, and I always find residue on the cotton when I'm swiping toner on my face. Horrible.

I seriously doubt this would be good for any other type of skin. Seriously, even if you have dry, non-acne-prone skin, this cleanser would still leave a film on your skin and clog your pores!!! I would never ever repurchase it.

Rating: 0/10

--------
Today I went to Marina Bay Sands after having lunch with my 2 friends who have already started work. Pretty boring, but I liked taking photos with Leo and Merly!

The Sampan ride, so much cheaper than the Venetian Gondola ride in Vegas.

Double-helix bridge

Leo and Merly!!!

Creepy huge puppets at the bayside

To end, a Thai lunch with my friends the other day after watching Inception. The best movie ever!!! (Super confusing though.) It's great going out with those people who are already working because I get to know what's going to happen when I start work... Not looking forward to it. :(

Review: Revlon Age Defying Moisturizing Concealer, Age Defying Spa Concealer

2010-08-05T09:18:00.002+08:00

In the US, I went crazy at Walmart and bought a whole tonne of stuff, mostly stuff I'd remembered reading good reviews about on MakeupAlley. But this one, I just picked up because it looked promising, and it apparently 'hydrates like an eye cream' (sounds amazing huh), plus it has SPF 25!!! It is so difficult finding eye products with SPF, and SPF 25 is really high (my Estee Lauder eye cream only has SPF 15). So I just grabbed it and put it in my trolley along with a whole bunch of other stuff.

I bought it in Medium (because I got a tan), and I just realized that I have the Age Defying Spa Concealer in Light-Medium I bought a couple of months ago, so I can do a comparison! Both of them come in 4 colours - from left: Light, Light-Medium, Medium and Medium-Deep.

The Light-Medium was pretty good for when I was NC25, except I wasn't thrilled with how it was slightly chalky. Now I'm about NC35, the Medium's good, especially since it has strong yellow undertones which is great for Asian skintones.

From left: Revlon Age Defying Spa Concealer (Light Medium), Revlon Age Defying Moisturizing Concealer (Medium)
As you can see, they don't look very different in texture or colour at first, but when blended out, the Spa Concealer is obviously much lighter.

Revlon Age Defying Spa Concealer
+ Illuminates and brightens
+ Not cakey, very subtle
- Brush is a little annoying sometimes when product doesn't dispense well, might be a little unsanitary
- Coverage isn't that great

Overall, good for slight brightening, not for people with serious dark circles. I would prefer L'oreal's Touche Eclat over this one, because it's cheaper and has slightly better coverage, and better shade options that suit me (more yellow undertones).

Rating: 8/10

Revlon Age Defying Moisturizing Concealer
+ Great coverage without being cakey
+ Lovely creamy consistency, moisturizing
+ SPF 25
+ Tube packaging is easy to use
+ Looks really natural

Bottom line: The best concealer I've ever tried!!! Other tube concealers I've tried are the really popular ZA Concealer Perfection (which is raved about for the great coverage), but this beats it hands down. ZA's has great pigmentation and a little goes a long way, but it has no SPF, is slightly cakey and can look powdery. This one, on the other hand, is a dream to blend, not cakey at all. Of course, it's more expensive, but it's so worth it!

Rating: 10/10

I am so happy I have found the perfect perfect concealer. I will never buy any other ever again! (I'm serious) I'm thinking that the only thing that can be improved would be to use them together. Like for Bobbi Brown, you have to use concealer first, then the tinted eye brightener over it. Perhaps I'll try using the Moisturizing Concealer first, and the Spa Concealer over it for more illumination.

One thing to note: As far as I know, there are only 2 shades of the Spa Concealer available in Singapore - Light and Light Medium. I don't know if the Moisturizing Concealer's out yet. I do hope they bring it in!

--------
I had dinner at Tajimaya at Vivocity the other night because my sister got promoted again! Ended with dessert at Bakerzin.

I loved the garlic rice, though it was a tad salty. I hate eggplant, but the eggplant here was great. And of course the wagyu karubi was yummy. I wasn't too crazy about barbecuing the stuff myself though. (And I never quite know how to take photos of food when we're barbequing, because plates of raw food look unappetizing, but when we're done barbecuing, the food looks weird too because we don't plate them) The warm chocolate cake at Bakerzin was awesome too, tasted like oranges.

The things that made me sure I was back in Singapore was all the Chinese waitresses who can't speak English, and the managers who say "Welcome" and "Thank you, have a good evening" looking really fierce with nary a smile on their faces. Can't blame them though, we don't practice tipping in Singapore, and I didn't really like smiling either. In the past.

I don't know, I do feel the US has changed me, if just a little bit. Yesterday I had lunch with a friend who's working 7 days a week (which is something I used to do), and suddenly I remembered something my friend Josh (who is American) said. One day when I was complaining about how much I wanted hours and how I needed money, he was like, "But you haven't done anything fun today!!!" I guess what I'm aiming for right now, is more of a work-life balance. Still slightly more skewed to work, but that's better than pure work, right? (:

Till next time!

Back to Singapore!!!

2010-07-31T21:45:00.002+08:00

Back from my hiatus (due to lack of access to the Internet). Apologies!

In the past 3 months, I've been to Chicago, Niagara Falls, Washington, New York, LA, Vegas, San Francisco. And I arrived home just in time for convocation!!! I've now officially graduated!!! Yay!

Still super jet-lagged and still in the midst of unpacking (so much stuff!) but I bought lots of wonderful stuff home, so look out for more of my regular posts! (:

Love, Fiona

USA 8th week

2010-06-28T21:55:00.003+08:00

I can't believe we're leaving Cedar Point in just 2 more weeks...
Saltwater taffy.
Lee's fried chicken.

No Hours, SADNESS

2010-06-08T04:38:00.002+08:00

So a bunch of us got transferred because the hours were so bad last week, I only made like 12 hours... Jia and DM got transferred to other food places, but JK and I are staying... JK will probably never be transferred cos they want guys... Moldovian girls are staying but 2 of them are bad in English so they will probably wanna get transferred... Don't know why I'm staying but I like the people, but today I got zero hours again, super sad, if it remains the same I might wanna change to sweeps, they have the cutest yellow overall shorts uniform.

Million dollar photo up there (((:

USA 5th week

2010-06-04T21:38:00.004+08:00

We got very few hours this week because of rain etc... I only worked 2 hours on Monday and none at all till now... No $... Sadness!!! :( So yesterday we went to ride rides, pretty fun! And we went back to Soak City to ride water rides, I love the one with the huge float where we go down together - no photos though cos it's troublesome to bring a camera.

The kids on the bus were waving, so cute!!! Blew them a kiss~

Millenium Park.

Love the giant bean.

All the buildings looked like they were on fire...

Sky Ledge... Have a bunch more photos on it, on my friends' cameras... It's really scary to me... The others weren't scared strangely, but I know JK was scared too hehe... but I was so freaked out omg. Sitting down is worse. Standing up is still ok. One guy lay down.

Fajita burrito... only 3 of us finished it at one go and I was one of them yay!

Popeye's chicken and biscuits, $2.99 on Tuesdays.

Navy Pier, Mr Traffic Man saw me taking a photo and did a wave and jump for me but I was too slow! Oops.

Strawberry Banana Split shake at Arby's again~

Jia stole N... so I'm hating her now... he gave her a hug and said love you... hehehe

The sun sets at 9pm at Cedar Point...

USA 4th week

2010-05-26T09:18:00.003+08:00

In front of our apartment...
I bought a used car for $128.99 + tax...
Nah just kidding.
Taco night on Friday... 50 cents tacos... the soft ones are like $1.79 though.

I like Arby's, they make good roast beef sandwiches plus the jamocha shakes rock.

I rode the Maverick on employee ride night...

Soup at Olive Garden...

Dollar Tree purchases...
Baskin Robbins, $1 per scoop on Tuesday nights! I had 2 scoops... this is caramel praline cheesecake.

Fudge brownie.

Anyway for some weird reason I keep looking at Miley Cyrus stuff at Walmart... it's Miley Cyrus for Max Azria and I'll be looking at something and then I'll look at the tag and it's Miley Cyrus... OMG.

And random guy from Dollar Tree thought I was from Japan. Yea I am. HAHA.

And random girl thought my tshirt was nice. And my cool umbrella's a little spoilt and my cool pink lunchbox got stuck together because I microwaved it with the lid on. Does anyone know how to get the lunchbox unstuck? It sucks. It was expensive.

Till next time,
XOXO

USA 3rd week

2010-05-22T07:09:00.002+08:00

I'm working at Cedar Point... go google it... the admission is crazy and the food is marked up like 500%...

Su and I
Jia and I
This is a dryer for you to blow yourself dry after taking wet rides... USD5 a go... crazy

Colourful drinks at TGIF
A darn good Paula Deen gooey butter cake from Walmart for USD3. Freaking sweet but so buttery and good! Some of the cookies I bought looked good but didn't taste that great.

My DKNY watch stopped even though I'd only recently gotten it repaired... I think someone dropped it. So I went to TJMaxx and got this Skagen for like USD53... it came with 3 interchangeable straps... one metal, one black, one white... I didn't wanna get a cheap watch just to throw away... My friends were appalled by the way I dropped the cash so quickly though... I do like it.

By the way, BIG NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I TOOK MY FIRST HUGE ROLLER COASTER RIDE at employee ride night yesterday!!! Free hotdogs and soda, and I rode the Maverick next to Jia!!! And we heard the Maverick is like 5/5 difficulty (but of course it can't compare to Dragster). Go google it. My eyes were like shut the whole way and I screamed so much I got a sore throat today, but I felt so high after that OMG. Woohoo!!!!!!!!

Ok ciao darlings. Till next time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

USA 2nd week

2010-05-15T08:47:00.004+08:00

The usual amount of clothes I wear at 5 degrees celcius. 4 layers on top. I have like 3 hoodies you can see behind me!
Free dinner at TGIF.
Spongebob and me.
Cedar Point! Power Tower.
And this is the bag I bought for Xin.
And this is the stuff I bought at Target!!! So many lipbalms, my friend thought I was crazy. Bought the Boots Botanics mask I heard much about from Yumeko's blog, will be back for more! I bought like 3 of the same grapefruit deodorant, now everyone knows my grapefruit obsession. See you next time when the Internet is less cranky!

US

2010-05-06T20:08:00.004+08:00

Dandelions are plentiful here! So preffy!
Blue skies...
Weird hanging traffic lights.
We bought loads of food! So cheap! Haagen Daaz, 4 tubs for USD10 which is so cheap!!! We eat one every day.

Our first pizza buffet - self serve, no tips. We were worried about tipping lol.

This is me in the restroom lol.
We cooked. I'm honestly still pissed off that DM put wine (that was too sweet) in the broccoli and made it taste like fizz pop broccoli
That;s me 2nd from left.
Regular beauty related posts coming up soon! The connection is bad, my apologies.

USA

2010-05-05T09:53:00.001+08:00

I'm not dead!

I'm currently in the US and the Internet connection sucks. Took lots of pictures so hear from me soon (:

Review + Swatches: Lip & Cheek Tints/Stains

2010-04-11T23:38:00.002+08:00

Gosh I've been so busy these days I've been neglecting this place! I managed to dig up some old photos of stuff I'd always been planning to review though. I'm a collector - I like to collect the same product from different brands, so there you go - my collection of tints from half a year ago. I've since added SugarBaby to the stash, but my camera batt's flat, so no pictures. :( Sugarbaby's Lip, Eye and Cheek Tint is really good - I love the one in Peachie Glow, the colour is awesome but unfortunately it has low staying power.

Bonnebelle Translucent Gel Blush, Bourjois Rouge Hi-tech, Benefit Benetint, The Body Shop Lip and Cheek Tint (in old packaging)

From left: Benetint, Bonnebelle Gel Blush, Body Shop Lip & Cheek Tint, Bourjois Rouge Hi-Tech
Benefit Benetint
We've all heard of this, so I'll be fast - I like the nice rose-syrup scent, and the natural rosey flush, but the fragile glass bottle is super inconvenient. I find the lasting power is also not that great. The brush applicator is ok.

Bonnebelle Translucent Gel Blush in Sheer Red
The colour is a straight bright red, and looks scary in the tube but it gives a lovely flush when blended out. It smells very artificial though, and I've actually tried it as a liptint though it isn't supposed to be one, and it tastes nasty. Works well though! Lasting power about the same as Benetint, but it is so much cheaper. I know it's available in peach as well.

The Body Shop Lip & Cheek Tint
This is the one in the old packaging - I've since repurchased the one in the new packaging and it's totally the same. You can see that the colour is quite different from all the others - it's very much a purplish fuschia, on the lips it makes me look like I'd been sucking on grape ice lollies. On the face it blends out very subtly into a nice wash of colour. This is really drying on the lips though. Can't do without a balm after that. Better lasting power than Benetint and only available in one colour. It has a doe-foot applicator.

Bourjois Rouge Hi-Tech in Rose Pixel
This is the most most most pigmented of the lot! Seriously! The others give sheer watery looking flushes, but this is almost opaque. It's still very light in texture since it is water-based, but the intensity of colour is amazing. Not for the faint-hearted. Staying power is awesome. But overall I find this is not the one for me - I prefer a more natural look. The good thing is, it's available in like 6 colours! All very pigmented. It has a doe-foot applicator.

--------
Anyway, The Body Shop's tint is actually pretty much the first make-up item I owned because I was broke and I needed make-up for a concert and it fulfilled 2 purposes so it was great value for money! I like to collect tints and stains because they're so easy to use, just smear it on, and you can't possible go wrong with it, it looks so natural.

The thing about tints and stains is that while it's so convenient to have a product for dual purposes, I'm a hygiene freak and it worries me to use the same brush/doe-foot applicator on my cheeks and lips. I actually repurchased the Body Shop's tint, to separate the usage. Then again, you could always dab it on a clean finger.

I've also tried Origin's Pinch Your Cheeks - it's a small metal paint-tube and super expensive, but very pigmented and I love it. It gives a sun-kissed look, like you've been a little sunburnt and it comes in a bunch of colours. As for Sugarbaby, they have a Lip, Eye and Cheek Tint (why eye, I have no idea) which is a gel in a tube and I love the Peachie Glow which is actually quite plummy, though lasting power isn't that great. They have other colours like Pink Ink as well.

I'm hoping to try out lots of other tints/stains as well - Tarte Cheek Stains, Suki Pure Natural Cream Stain, Stila's Cherry Crush Lip & Cheek Stain... But first I must finish up some of my existing stash. :P

--------
It's a pretty busy couple of weeks for me so I won't be updating much. I've been subsisting on coffee again but I really don't think it's weird? This 9-year-old kid at my workplace saw me having my coffee fix and she was like "You're drinking coffee at 2pm?! You won't be able to go to sleep at night!!!" (Then again, she has a 9pm bedtime, so...) -_-U I'm so tired I could sleep drinking coffee just before bed. But - 2 more weeks to the end of my exams and university life. ;) Fighting!

Review: Bourjois Mineral Matte Mousse Foundation

2010-04-02T22:24:00.006+08:00

I bought the Bourjois Mineral Matte mousse foundation on a whim and also because I read awesome reviews on MUA!

The saleswoman was one of those middle-aged women who spoke to me in Mandarin. I find saleswomen who speak to me in Mandarin are usually more pushy because they can get away with it, if you know what I mean. Speaking in Mandarin makes them seem more... 'friendly' and well-meaning instead of being 'hard-sell', so it's more difficult to reject them when they speak in Mandarin. Pfft.

Anyway the woman tried to recommend me shade 82 (Vanille delicate) but in the end I opted for shade 83 (Sable Fondu) because my face is paler than my neck and I hate the white-faced look. I guess shade 83 is good for people with MAC NC30 skintones. There are only 5 shades (81-85), so 83 is in the middle. I find the variety of shades sadly limited! Plus, in Singapore, the kabuki brush is sold separately, and it's not very cheap really, for Bourjois is essentially still a drugstore brand. I got them both for about S$40 in total (after a 20% discount).

Still, this foundation is seriously awesome if you manage to find your colour match. It is really really pigmented (like regular mineral foundation) so I find I only need to dip a super small amount onto my brush and buff buff buff (as with regular mineral foundation) and voila, veiled skin! It does contain silicones to give that smooth finish, but no mask effect (as advertised). And because I use so little of it, I really think it could last me an entire year (or even longer)!

Before I used it, I was apprehensive about how hygienic it would be to use the brush consecutively. (I wasn't looking forward to washing it every day). The photo above is the brush after I used it once. Surprisingly, after buffing the mousse in, few traces are left on the brush. After I got used to it, I can buff till the brush is pretty much free of foundation. So I have no qualms about using it every day, and washing once a week.

The best thing about this foundation - it's really light, with sheer coverage (if you use really little and buff it in) that is absolutely buildable (due to the awesome pigmentation). It does a pretty fantastic job of evening out skintone, and while it doesn't cover my acne scars completely, I think it does a commendable job on the under-eye circles! And I can get away without using loose powder on top of it because it's pretty good at controlling oil! The only con I can think of it the flowery scent which may scare some people off, and made me feel weird at first, but now I'm totally used to it.

Rating: 9/10 (-1 for poor colour selection)

--------
So I've almost come to the end of my busiest week for the semester! Yay! I went to collect my Gelato Pique mook at Kinokuniya today and passed by so many shopping temptations, you cannot imagine. But I remained strong. -cough cough- 1 more month to the end of my shopping ban! :P

Shopping Ban

2010-03-26T22:37:00.004+08:00

I bought 2 pairs of shoes at Mitju the other day! Their slip-on wedges are really nice - I don't recommend the kitten heels or any covered shoes from them though, because they hurt. :(

I have a huge zit on my cheek so now I'm using the highly-raved 3M Acne Patches! I find they work better on zits with an open wound where the patch can absorb the pus. Inflamed whiteheads or bumps that have no opening for the yucky insides to get sucked out don't fare so well with the acne patch. I find it really expensive though! S$8 for a box or 36 patches which vary in size - I find the tiniest patches not much use. :P

Rating: 8/10
--------
As you can tell from the title of my post, I'm officially on a shopping ban until the end of April. I'm the kind of person who buys loads of stuff when I'm stressed or annoyed, and recently I've been a little too much of both. I don't generally post haul photos because I like to post reviews systematically and I don't use the items from my hauls immediately, but seriously, way too much stuff. ;_; I'm definitely trying to finish up my current stash of stuff first - it annoys me when I can't throw away those bottles etc on my table when there's only a little bit of product left. :P Look forward to reviews of the stuff I used up! ^^

US Goodies + Nuteen Review

2010-03-22T01:08:00.001+08:00

My sister came back from the States and got me all this stuff! The pink and navy blue pouches, and the pink brush barrel (with 4 brushes) are GWPs from Estee Lauder - and she actually got 2 of them! (There's the eye cream, mascara and free lipsticks as well which aren't pictured.)

Apparently the minimum spend for GWPs is really low in the US (about 45USD or SGD according to my sis) and my sister gets multiple gifts all the time. The last time she bought Clinique (which is more budget and thus has a lower minimum spend), she got 5 huge sets of free gifts!! Haha, can you say awesome? It's so much better as compared to Singapore - I think Estee Lauder's minimum spend for the same GWP would be about SGD160! Crazy. So now I am totally saving up to spend in the US!

I'm really happy my sis got me a bundle of grapefruit and pomegranate soap - I freaking love grapefruit! And she must have noticed my incredible stash of soaps in the bathroom, hehe. When she took out my present (while I wasn't at home), my younger sister immediately knew it was for me. Lol.

I got this brush in the brush set - does anyone know what it is? My guess is either an eyeliner brush or a pencil brush for the outer V.

Moving on, my skin has been really horrible lately. It's deadline season and I have presentations with my violin exam next week on 3 consecutive days! Cue stress. :P Also I've been banging on the piano, practising violin and typing furiously on my laptop (bad ergonomics), which caused wrist tendonitis - I had to get this expensive wrist guard because I don't want to have a weak bowing wrist during my violin exam. So anyway the point is, my skin is horrible right now. Horrible. ;_;

Review: Nuteen Acne Away Gel
This is yet another one of the samples in my collection. (I have tonnes of sample satchets in a little pouch, hehe. Trying to use up my junk.) It contains Thanakha which is supposedly a popular skincare ingredient in Myanmar.
This is quite moisturizing, surprisingly! Good for dry-skinned peeps. It has a very strong fragrance which I don't really like - way too strong for me, though it smells quite pleasant. I don't understand why the fragrance is required. Anyway, I used it for a couple of days, but it doesn't give fast results on my zits. Plus I noticed that it contains mineral oil! (Of course, high-grade mineral oil is supposed to be fine for skin, but I'm still wary when it appears in the ingredients list.)

I will not give a rating for this because I don't think it is fair to rate sample products without a sufficient timeframe for testing, but overall, I didn't think it worked, though if you have dry skin and don't want acne treatments that cause peeling skin, you might want to give it a try!

Review: Taiwan Yes Deep Ocean Water Oil Cut Acne Free Essence

2010-03-18T21:28:00.002+08:00

Recently I've been having breakouts due to lack of sleep and stress. I used a heavy duty Pan Oxyl 10% Benzoyl Peroxide Gel on my bumps, but it ended up making my skin really really dry! It's not effective on inflamed whiteheads (which is what I have), instead it's more suitable for zits that hormonal teenagers get, but not for me because I've outgrown that stage. :P I remembered this sample I got from Taiwan and decided to use it since I doubt I will get zits often (hopefully not!)

It is a thick gel and you're supposed to put it on problem areas (not the whole face). I used this satchet for about 4 times only but it's enough for me to get a fantastic impression of the product! I like it because it heals my zits quickly without drying, and the non-greasy texture is a delight, as compared to other creamy (and to me, slightly greasy) acne treatments like Neutrogena On-the-Spot Acne Treatment or Oxy.

The gel also contains hyaluronic acid which, I think, makes a big difference! I feel that sometimes you have to use a gentle approach to stubborn zits, you know? Sometimes treatments that are too strong will aggravate your skin further, but I think this gel strikes a perfect balance.

I don't know what other ingredients are in it, but it really works! I have no idea how much it costs, or where it is stocked in Taiwan, but I have seen it advertised in Queen (Nu Ren Wo Zui Da) magazine. The interesting thing about it is the company - Taiwan Yes is a deep ocean water company and they really do draw water from the ocean and stuff like that. So they're not just some fluffy cosmetics company. They have other skincare products listed, and while the packaging looks a little dodgy, I would love to try them out if I ever visit Taiwan again in the future!

Potential HG. (:

2009 Raves and Regrets

2010-03-15T13:20:00.002+08:00

Haha, I know it's already March '10 but these are things I bought in '09 and I'm a little anal about the titles of my posts because I want them categorized neatly, so this is my tiny list of 2009 raves and regrets! It's a small list off the top of my head because I just recently finished using them.
Rave: The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil Blemish Fade Night Lotion
This is an awesome awesome moisturizer that really helps to calm my skin without any stinging whatsoever! It's a light green gel-lotion, kind of sticky and concentrated, so I find I need to use a lot of product. So it's kind of expensive because I use it up really quickly, but so worth it! I think it's really sad for dry-skinned girls who get blemishes because most anti-blemish products on the market are so drying, but the great thing about the night lotion is that it's quite moisturizing, doesn't dry out my skin at all and soothes my skin so that my pores are smaller, zits decreased, and I wake up with this smoothness which is quite amazing. HG!

It's a night lotion, so I usually use it at night, but I find it can be used in the day with no issues, however the stickiness might feel weird. It controls oil slightly, and sunscreen or foundation etc can be layered easily over it.
Rave: Fancl Cleartune Oil Control Powder
I use this every day with a big brush, over my t-zone before loose powder. It has the most amazing oil control ever. Comprehensive review here. Quite expensive since they don't sell refills, but still HG!

Regret: The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost
I read so many reviews on this so I was very excited about trying it, but unfortunately, after TWO expensive bottles of the stuff, there is no noticeable difference on my skin. :( The Skin Boost should be used like a serum because it has no moisturizing abilities whatsoever and makes my skin dry and itchy when used alone. It has a silicon-gel texture, kind of powdery which makes it slightly difficult to layer other products over it because it rubs off. The one good thing about it is that it smells divine!!! Like grapefruits, citrusy and refreshing.

I know the high silicone content in it will scare people off, but Vitamin C is very unstable and silicone is an excellent medium to keep it stable and active. Therefore I have no complaints about that aspect, but the fact remains that I didn't notice any improvements. :(

L-R: Vitamin C Eye Reviver, Vitamin C Skin Boost
Regret: The Body Shop Vitamin C Eye Reviver
The Vitamin C in this is supposed to lighten dark circles, but I didn't notice any effects. Plus, I found this insufficient in moisturizing and it did absolutely nothing for fine lines. The only thing going for it is the pump bottle which I like for the hygiene factor.

--------
I feel quite depressed writing bad reviews about products that didn't work for me, because I'll think of all that money that went down the drain! Then again, I hope it'll help others and prevent you guys from wasting $! Of course, it's just my opinion, there are probably many others who loved what I hated - the incredibly popular Skin Boost is an example.

In other news - I watched Nodame Cantabile the movie last week!!!!!!! LOVE IT!!!! I love movies/dramas about orchestras like Beethoven's Virus and Nodame because it makes me want to cry when I see them depict regular people with regular jobs who persist with practising late at night because they love music so much. ;_; I can't imagine how I'm going to continue practice when I'm working, but I will, I will!

Oh well, I'm off to school now... So many things to do - somehow I feel that my honours are unattainable because I can't seem to find the motivation and anyway I've already found a job, but that is a negative way of thinking and I need to get it going!

The Body Shop Warehouse Sale 2010

2010-03-10T14:03:00.005+08:00

I went to The Body Shop warehouse sale early this morning - a super good start to the day! ^^ There were tonnes of people even though the first hour in the morning was for card members only - craziness! Not many particularly good deals but I spotted people with so much stuff in their bags! I think they're buying gifts early for the office Christmas exchange which is crazy. :P I chatted with the woman in line before me, she bought this empty gift box for $2 only, it's really good for packaging gifts I think, but I have lots of wrapping paper and boxes at home already so I didn't get them.

This entire haul cost me $120+ only! I got a free gift (for first 500 customers who spend above $65) which was the Spa Wisdom Morocco Argan Oil and Orange Blossom Body Souffle (50ml), the scent is a little too heavy for me but I heard good things about argan oil so I'll be looking forward to trying it!

I bought the masks for $16.90 per tub, Nature's Minerals blotting tissues ($5 for 2), lip balms ($10 for 2), eye definers ($10 for 2, and the Hot Brights eyeliner is $9.90 each), Vit E lip balm stick for my mum ($5.90), grapefruit shower gels cos I love grapefruit scents ($14.90 for 2), a body butter trio set ($12.90) and lastly, the new (old) passionfruit facial cleansing gel which I've read so many reviews of ($12.90)!

I'm very excited about trying the passionfruit gel, and breaking in all the coloured eyeliners! The regular eye definers are a great deal - 2 for $10, imagine that!!! (: Available in crazy colours like auburn, emerald and bright blue, although there was steel grey as well - no browns or blacks. Other good deals - 2 types of palettes for $19.90 each, consisting of 1 blush and 4 eyeshadow colours. I was looking forward to shimmer cubes but there was only one shade (Palette 18).

Things I wanted to get but weren't on sale - tea tree blemish fade night lotion (amazing stuff) and chamomile makeup remover. :(

The sale is on till 13 March at Suntec Convention Centre, Gallery West Level 3!

Ed Pinaud Eyeshadow Palette!

2010-03-07T19:28:00.003+08:00

On Friday I had to pop to town to sign some papers for my trip, so after that I popped by Kinokuniya and got the L'officiel magazine that came with the free Ed Pinaud eyeshadow palette! The first palette I got was #02 Emerald... Then on my way home, I saw copies of L'officiel at the Buzz kiosk at the bus interchange so I got another copy and got #06 Violet, which is full of lavender-toned pinks which I'm not too crazy about. This morning I got another copy from the kiosk but I got #06 again. -_-U I feel like I'm gambling hahaha! I need to swap it with somebody!
This is what I bought from the drugstore on my way home - Nexcare facial cleansing cloth. I've been using it for a couple of days, hopefully it will save my skin which is really cranky right now due to tonnes of stress stress stress!!! I will be so incredibly busy from now till end of March. :(

Hope everyone had a great weekend. (:

Swatches: BB Creams!

2010-03-04T01:39:00.005+08:00

Finally, I got around to posting a photo of all the swatches of my entire BB cream collection - I'm posting this so that I might be motivated to do reviews on them. :P

Top Row, L-R:
Gowoonsesang Brightening Balm SPF30 PA++
Etude House Goodbye Trouble BB Magic Cream (Moist) SPF30 PA++
Etude House Goodbye Trouble BB Magic Cream (Refreshing)
Innisfree Trouble Care BB, SPF27 PA++
Coogi Flowertox 3 Action Super BB Cream, SPF 25 PA++
Missha Watery, SPF27 PA++
The Face Shop Quick and Clean

Bottom Row, L-R:
Skin Food Aloe Sun BB Cream SPF20 PA++, Shade #1 Light
Skin Food Aloe Sun BB Cream SPF20 PA++, Shade #2 Natural
Scandal Magic BB Cream
Dr Jart Black Label SPF25 PA++
Dr Jart Silver Label SPF35 PA++

According to my judgement, they can be categorized into peach/pink undertones, greyish undertones and yellow undertones. (I'm always looking for yellow undertones but they're quite rare - even if they're slightly yellow, they have the tendency to be orangey, like the Etude House BB Magic moist - you'll notice the base is orangey because it oxidized as it dried.)

Peach - Skinfood Aloe Sun #2, Innisfree Trouble Care, Coogi Flowertox, Missha Watery, Dr Jart Black Label
Grey - Gowoonsesang, The Face Shop Quick&Clean, Scandal Magic
Yellow - Etude House BB Magic (both), Skinfood Aloe Sun #1, Dr Jart Silver Label

I really like the undertone of Dr Jart Silver Label, I find it really suitable for yellow-toned Asian skin, but it's too light on me. :(

I'll be posting reviews of one tube every week - look out for them. ;)

--------
That aside, I really need to rant about something - I've been doing this online simulation game whereby we make decisions on our business strategy as a group, and get results every week. I was so confident of our decisions this week and was so excited about seeing profits profits profits, but when I looked at the results, I was shocked! It appears that one girl in our group changed the decisions at the very last minute without consulting any of us, and she was very ill-informed, hence the horrible results. I feel so... betrayed. Is that the correct word? Oh well. We'll see how it goes. :'(

Tibi Spring 2010 eyeshadow is amazing + Review of TBS Divide & Multiply Mascara

2010-03-01T00:50:00.000+08:00

Psst, my giveaway is still on, please join if you haven't!
I've been seeing this photo in almost all the recent issues of my magazines! I absolutely love the combination of hot pink and lime green - makes me think of a flower! I have always loved matte bold colours as well, they look a bit more unique and artsy than the usual glimmery, glittery or pearly colours. So I tried to recreate it... (was going to wear it out on Friday but it was cancelled due to a last-minute other commitment... oh well...)

I am mad proud of the liquid liner because I did it all in one stroke on my left eye with my right hand!!! And I've only ever used liquid liner a couple of times. Haha!

I used the hot pink raspberry blush as eyeshadow from Bobbi Brown Raspberry Face Palette and green shade from Silkygirl eyeshadow duo (slightly shimmery). I didn't do any yellow cos I don't own any, sadly. The look is supposed to be from the Bobbi Brown Brights collection, though the lime green and hot pink look like the ones from MAC Lillyland Pearlmatte eyeshadow! (They're not fully matte though.)

Other stuff used include K-palette eyeliner, Koji eyelash curler and Body Shop's Divide & Multiply Mascara. And since I have photos ready, let me do a review on the mascara. :P

The Body Shop Divide & Multiply Mascara
This mascara was another GWP - I never would have bought a TBS mascara since they're not known for making good mascaras. It's supposed to give defined lashes and it does! The brush is awesome - it separates lashes beautifully. It's such a great brush, I'll be washing it and using it as a lash comb when I finish the tube. Other than that, it was quite disappointing. It doesn't hold a curl and smudges on me - especially since my lashes will go flat which makes it smudge even more easily. :( A good everyday mascara for people with fine lashes that have natural curl - bad for people with thick, weighted lashes.

Rating: 6/10

--------
I've been mad busy even though this coming week is recess week - tonnes of projects, assignments, deadlines, plus ballet and violin exams all in March. :( I'm quite excited about a particular project I'm doing on Eu Yan Sang though, I do think I picked the right company - there's abundant information on it and prospects look good, the annual report etc are really easy to read as well! (Or maybe I've just grown a bit less clueless as compared to freshman year... haha...)

To end off, here's a picture of a birthday cake, I love birthday cake photos. (:

Giveaway: Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion

2010-02-24T00:24:00.005+08:00

After my great experience trying out the Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion, I decided to do a giveaway! Here's your chance to win a bottle of that lovely goodness! (Prize will be shipped directly from Skin MD Natural.)

All you have to do is go to the Skin MD Natural website and list one ingredient in the Shielding Lotion and tell me why you need to win!

This giveaway is open to international readers and everyone is entitled to 2 entries in the contest machine below consisting of

One mandatory entry where you list one ingredient and tell me why you need to win
A second optional, additional entry for followers of my blog (just write in the box - I'm a follower!)

Good luck everyone! (:

Contest ends 1st March!

Plus - get 20% off your order at the Skin MD Natural website with this code - CC10.

By the way, Tina is having a giveaway as well - hop over there!

Review: Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion

2010-02-22T10:54:00.004+08:00

Recently Skin MD Naturals sent me a bottle of their Shielding Lotion to try out. Apparently they have this massive online marketing blitz and lots of people have reviewed it but I must have been living underneath a rock because I never knew! Anyway, on to the review.

As you can see, Skin MD Naturals is a really light, watery gel-lotion with a nice neutral scent that reminds me of those simple, no-frills and fragrance-free products you might get from a dermatologist's. It's very easily absorbed and is totally non-greasy, which is a delight in Singapore's hot weather. The best thing is that it's a multi-purpose lotion for face, hands and body, which is such value and convenience in a bottle! (I can totally imagine packing a bottle in my luggage when I travel to save space.) Plus, it's paraben-free!

When I first received the lotion, I was having a really bad cold and so I had really dry hands from washing my hands all the time to prevent myself from infecting others. (I have really dry hands usually anyway, cos I'm a hygiene freak and wash my hands all the time. My sisters cannot stand it when I keep applying hand lotion, lol.) My entire stash of hand creams couldn't help, because the hand creams don't stay on my hands long enough to be of much help, since they get washed away once I wash my hands. So without hoping for much, I decided to try the Shielding Lotion.

The first thing I noticed was that it's totally non-greasy, yet really moisturizing, unlike many other handcreams. I need my handcream to be non-greasy especially since I'm a part-time pianist and can't be greasing up the piano keys. The Shielding Lotion absorbs like a dream and seems to form this protective layer which doesn't wash away as easily as my other handcreams. During the first couple of days, I had to reapply frequently as per my usual habit, but after that I seemed to regain the protective layer on my hands and didn't have to apply as frequently. Plus, my sisters are always complaining about the lavender fragrance of my favourite Crabtree & Evelyn handcream, but they seem fine about the neutral scent of Shielding Lotion.

I started reading the brochure they sent me, and I realised it could be used on the face, and some blogger actually tried it as an eye cream. It sounded so promising, I decided to try it as well! The texture of the lotion is so light, I have absolutely no qualms about using it on my face - it's lighter than Clinique's Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel, but just as or even more moisturizing. Seriously, any kind of skin, from dry to oily, will love it. It's totally oil free and absorbs like a dream, and is a great base for smoother make-up application. Non-comedogenic, so no worries about breaking out. I expect people who enjoy using the fragrance-free Simple Skincare products for sensitive skin would love this lotion as well.

I tried it under my eyes as well, it moisturizes so well and leaves my under-eye area smoother and my fine lines less noticeable. (Yes, I have fine lines - from rubbing my itchy eyes and tugging when putting on my contact lens and applying/removing concealer. Sigh.) Of course, it's not marketed as an eyecream so it doesn't help remove dark circles or anything, but for hydration, it's awesome. And for the price - so worth it!

10/10! (budget HG material)

I know this is a really long review but I am so impressed with it, it's really affordable and you can use it for so many different purposes, I'm definitely packing a bottle with me when I go to the US in May. According to the website, Skin MD Natural is available in Singapore as well, I think maybe in Guardian pharmacy, but I haven't had the time to check it out. I am definitely repurchasing if it can be found locally! There's a version with SPF15 as well for sun-protection, I expect it'd be great for lazy days when I don't feel like applying sunscreen.

Note: This is obviously not a paid advertisement. I was sent a bottle by the company to try out, and I personally didn't expect it to wow me this much, especially with the no-frills look. Seriously. :O I am utterly surprised I couldn't find reviews on Makeupalley.

Review: Clinique High Impact Mascara

2010-02-19T16:25:00.002+08:00

I went out for dinner 2 nights ago and this was done in like 5 minutes flat! (Cos I was running late again, hehe.) Used my Bourjois Effet Metallise metallic eyeliner in bleu cinquant and fil d'or, plus the Clinique High Impact mascara. My favourite eye colour is teal/turqoise/emerald, I find it really complements tanned skin. And recently I've been crazy about lining my lower rims in all sorts of colours, cos I find it's a subtle and quick way to show a flash of colour.

So anyway, I got this Clinique High Impact Mascara as a GWP and I do love it quite a lot! It gives really good volume in just a couple of quick swipes, absolutely no clumps, and can really hold a curl without weighing down. It's non-waterproof and does smudge a bit after a hot day outside, but if you're in air-conditioning mostly, it stays pretty well. I hear that the full-sized version isn't that great because of the larger brush size, but I've never tried it before and I think the sample size is great. (I still have another sample sized tube so I'm not in danger of running out!)

8/10!

--------

I had a great dinner (to celebrate my sis' birthday) at Tung Lok Signatures at Vivocity - we had this really amazing sharks' fin soup with double boiled chicken (or something like that), the waitress said you're not supposed to add vinegar and pepper in it like normal sharks' fin soup because it's been boiled for 5.5 hours and the broth is all milky goodness! To die for!!! My mum usually double-boils her chicken soup for just a few hours, so I told her to double-boil it to death the next time to see if her soup turns milky white and yummy as well, hehe.

And to top it all off, the service was impeccable and our waitress spoke Cantonese in a really adorable accent! (Cos my mum asked her something in Canto.) I love the sound of Cantonese. And the manager was wearing this amazing teal eyeshadow. We got 2 vouchers so I'll be back for a return visit! Must take photos of the amazing food then. Yay. :D