Review: Fancl Liquid Foundation in 03 Light Ochre

By now, Fancl has officially closed all its stores in Singapore. It's pretty sad because I've used quite a lot of their products - Mild Cleansing Oil, Facial Washing Powder, 2-way foundation, loose powder, and their collagen supplement, Tense-Up. During their closing sales, I got a bottle of their Liquid Foundation in 03 Light Ochre, which is yellow-based and matches my MAC NC25 skintone pretty well. It retails on the Fancl.com website at US$23 for 22ml. It can last for a year unopened, and for 3 months once opened. It comes in a total of 5 shades, and the darkest shade would be about a MAC NC35 in my opinion. 

It comes in a no-frills, compact plastic bottle with a nozzle tip - I love foundations packaged like that, it's so convenient. It reminds me a little of Covermark's Essence Foundation Liquid, which I reviewed years ago here. It has a fluid texture (a little thicker than Covermark) and provides light-medium coverage with a semi-matte finish. The finish gives my skin a bit of a sheen, so it doesn't look as 99% real-skin as Covermark. I can wear Covermark without loose powder because it blends well and gives me 99% real skin, but I have to use loose powder over Fancl's liquid foundation to mattify the slight sheen to give more real-looking skin (I have oily skin, so maybe girls with dry skin won't have that problem). Oil control is so-so, it doesn't make me oily but it doesn't help keep me matte either. 

I like this foundation because it feels quite comfortable on my skin and doesn't make my skin feel dry after long hours of use. Staying power is ok when I use loose powder over it - it fades a little after an 8-hour work day (well, I have super oily skin). I like how it has no preservatives so it's supposed to be better for your skin, but I wouldn't be able to finish using the 22ml bottle in the 3 month use-by period. And another thing - I don't think it contains SPF, so if I use it in the day I have to layer a SPF underneath it. 

Ingredients: cyclomethicone, water, butylene glycol, alcohol, isopropyl isosterate, peg-9 dimethicone, sorbeth-4 tetraoleate, polyglyceryl-2 triisosterate, panthenol, hydroxyproline, polyquaternium-61, sodium hyaluronate, hydroxyapatite, steraric acid, acrylates/dimethicone copolymer dimeticone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, trimethylsiloxysilicate, mica, alumina, silica, aluminum hydroxide, dimethicone, methicone, iron oxides, acrylates crosspolymer, methyi. methacrylate crosspolymer, dea-c8-18 perfluoroalkylethyl phosphate, talc, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide

Rating: 8/10

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

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

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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! :)))

Comparison and review: Fancl Deluxe Tense Up vs TenseUp EX

Recently Fancl Singapore introduced a new product called "Deluxe Tense Up" which sounds like an upgraded version of the regular Tense Up EX (which I try to drink once a week during peak period when I work late nights). The countergirl told me that Deluxe Tense Up is actually a Hong Kong version of Tense Up 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 Tense Up:
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 Tense Up 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 Tense Up 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 Tense Up 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 Tense Up 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 swatches: Fancl Nail Color, Jelly Nail Coat and Nail Color Remover

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: Fancl Facial Washing Powder

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

Fancl Voyager Christmas Collectibles and more food!

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 ;)

2009 Raves and Regrets

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.

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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!

Review: Fancl Cleartune Oil Control Powder and Body Shop Nature's Minerals

Last Thursday, I went out and bought this!
It has great reviews on MUA, and I decided to try it out on my oil slick of a face.
There's nothing special about the packaging, very no-frills. I hate that there's only a clear plastic sheet separating the sponge and the powder, it's so troublesome and unhygienic - they should have put in a hinged separator. But as for the product itself, it's seriously amazing at oil-control, plus it contains sulfur which prevents breakouts! It's a pastel blue-green translucent shade, goes on kind of chalky on medium-fair skin, but blends in after about an hour. I only use it on the t-zone but I really love this - it's my total HG now! 10/10!

The marshmallow puff is soft but generic, nothing special, so I use a brush to put it on! (I think puffs are unhygienic, I feel like I have to wash it all the time so I prefer brushes. Plus brushes give a lighter finish while a puff would pile it on.)
The Body Shop Nature's Minerals kabuki! It's made of synthetic hair but so amazingly soft and fluffy, I really really like it a lot. Plus the handle is like glittery graphite, so pretty! It comes with its own case, good for travelling (that's why I bought it to use in hall). And I like the sparkly pink sifter jar (which I got with a $3.50 voucher my friend gave me, lol).

So these are 2 things that greatly increased my utility recently. I'm off to my irritating risk module now, ta!