Review: Korean Dermal Masks - Charcoal, Red Ginseng, Royal Jelly Collagen Essence

Recently I tried out a few more 'flavours' of the Korean Dermal masks - Charcoal Collagen Essence, Red Ginseng Collagen Essence and Royal Jelly Collagen Essence.

Charcoal Collagen Essence Mask has a nice floral scent, and the sheet mask was very moist, it really hydrated and soothed my skin very well.

Ingredients:

Rating: 10/10

Red Ginseng Collagen Essence Mask has a bitter, herbal-medicinal scent, exactly like ginseng. Honestly I really hated the scent, so using this mask was totally not a relaxing experience for me. It was moisturizing and left my skin smooth and firm, so only the scent was off.

Ingredients:

Rating: 7/10

Royal Jelly Collagen Essence Mask has a weird, sweet scent which doesn't annoy me too much because the fragrance was light. It's very moisturizing and the essence is thicker than the others in the Dermal Collagen series. In fact, it's the most moisturizing out of the Dermal masks I've tried. My skin feels very supple and repaired after using this. It's probably good for very dry skin.

Ingredients:

Rating: 10/10

If you've been reading the ingredients' list carefully, you'll realize that all the ingredients are the same except for the differentiating ingredients - charcoal powder, or red ginseng extract, or royal jelly extract. So you can't go too wrong with whatever 'flavour' you choose.

My favourites so far?

- Dermal White Collagen (whitening and moisturizing)
- Charcoal Collagen (moisturizing and soothing)

After experimenting with all the flavours, I think I'll be sticking to these 2 when I repurchase in the future! Click here to view the entire series of reviews on Dermal masks.

Review: Burt's Bees Pore Refining Mask (discontinued)

I just renewed my love for Burt's Bees Pore Refining Mask this week, and while searching for the ingredients online (because I'm too lazy to type it out from the box), I just discovered it's been discontinued! :O Sadness! Because this is a truly fantastic mask. Thank God I purchased a back-up! The glass jar is so pretty too, with the metal lid.

It comes in a powder form which smells herbal in a nice way. It comes with a tiny scoop which I've lost, so I use a regular teaspoon to scoop the powder out.

Ingredients: French green clay, bentonite (natural clay), fragrance, mentha piperita (peppermint) leaf, shavegrass herb, calendula officinalis flower, rosemarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf, salvia officinalis (sage) leaf

I use a full teaspoonful of it. Then I measure out one and a half teaspoons of water, dribble it over the powder and mix well to form a nice paste as shown, not too runny or thick, just the nice consistency. It takes practice to get the right consistency though.

It feels nice and minty on my face and dries pretty quickly (within 10 minutes). When it dries on my face, it's slightly drying and makes my face feel itchy, but it's not painful or stinging, so I just bear with it, because the results are really worth it! When I wash it off, my skin looks fresh, clean, bright and soft. The morning after, I really do notice my skin becomes calmer and clearer and any existing zits are minimized and not so angry or painful. Truly an outstanding deep-cleansing mask.

While it is messy to mix the powder in my hand, it would be easier if you mixed it in a bowl, and not too troublesome either. The instructions state that you can mix it with other liquids such as carrot juice for mature skin, tomato juice for troubled skin, and green tea/grapefruit juice for oily skin.

I've tried green tea, but it's way too drying (green tea is naturally drying, I'm thinking because it's a diuretic, I like to drink a lot of green tea every day and it dries my lips out if I don't apply lipbalm). I've also tried it with a bit of honey (with water), and when it dries, it doesn't itch as much.

I think it's really fun to mix your own custom mask, and I love the fact that it is in powder form, which makes it easy to pack in luggage (and you don't have to worry about liquid restrictions or anything).

Rating: 10/10 (I hope they bring it back!)

Review: Dermal Green Tea Collagen and Lemon Collagen Essence Masks

Dermal is a Korean brand that manufactures affordable and good-quality sheet masks (usually S$2 per sheet mask, pretty good value!). I've previously reviewed the White Collagen and Coenzyme Q10 Essence Masks and now here's the review for another 2 flavours - Green Tea Collagen and Lemon Collagen Essence.

Green Tea Collagen is supposed to moisturizing and firming. It has a pleasant, light floral scent and the serum is light and runny. It is easily absorbed and feels hydrating, like most of the other Dermal masks. I like this one, but if you're looking for a multi-functional mask with whitening benefits as well as moisturizing benefits, I'd go for the White Collagen mask instead.

Rating: 9/10

Lemon Collagen is supposed to be brightening, firming and refining. (Apologies - I forgot to take a photo of the ingredients, but it contains lemon essence.) It smells like lemon-scented toilet freshener, which really turns me off. The mask essence is lighter and more watery than the other regular Dermal masks, and perhaps because of the lemon essence, it stings a little on places where I have zits. I also find it not as moisturizing as the other Dermal masks. The essence is easily absorbed and I do notice some slight brightening and refining effects, but the results pale in comparison to the White Collagen mask.

Rating: 6/10

Dermal really makes quite a lot of different flavours; I have a few more flavours in my stash I'll review soon. I like all the masks, but since they all perform pretty well in terms of basic functions like moisturizing, in my next blog post I'll focus on which ones are the most outstanding and multi-functional. Till next time! :)

Review: Red Heart Sweet Cherry Soap from Pelican

For a couple of years now I've been crazy about soap. I've stopped using regular shower gels and switched to a variety of scented bar soaps. The exception is EO shower gels which contain essential oils and smell divine. The latest soap bar I got my hands on is this cute soap from the Japanese soap brand Pelican. I love the packaging!

It costs about S$8 (or 294 yen), which is roughly the price of one bar of regular Crabtree & Evelyn soap. (I purchased it from the Japanese drugstore section of BHG Bugis.) It's a "rich moist whip soap" which means it lathers easily into a rich foam and is quite moisturizing, though not as moisturizing as Chagrin Valley soaps. It rinses cleanly with no tight feeling. The one thing I love is the amazing fragrance - lightly floral, fruity, fresh and sweet, like juicy cherries and honey. Apparently the fragrance was formulated in Grasse, France (which is famous for its perfumes) - it is indeed a very uplifting, happy, cheerful and luxurious fragrance. Definite plus!

I love the cute heart shape too. With the cute packaging, it would make a nice little gift for friends, along with the Red Heart Sweet Cherry hand cream from the same line. I didn't purchase the hand cream, but if it has the same amazing fragrance as the soap, I'm definitely getting it!

All in all... a lovely soap with outstanding fragrance. The fragrance doesn't linger though. I wish they would make a body mist using the same scent!

Rating: 10/10

Review: Organia Extra Virgin Olive Oil Water Drop Essence Hand Cream

Recently I ran out of my Crabtree & Evelyn Lavender Hand Therapy (my holy grail), so I decided to try out a tube of Organia Extra Virgin Olive Oil Water Drop Essence Hand Cream which I purchased at the drugstore a while ago, I think it was going for about S$2 in the bargain bin. I really love the design on the tube, don't you think it's so cute? One of those pretty Korean brands.

The cream feels water-based (I don't know how true it is since it supposedly contains extra virgin olive oil, but it sure feels like water to me) and looks like a frosted white, similar in texture to Bio Beauty Skincology Advanced Hydrating Creme.

When rubbed on, it forms tiny water droplets on the skin! Do you see? That's why they call it 'water drop essence' I suppose. It feels quite refreshing and absorbs well, it leaves my hands feeling moist immediately after use. Because it feels like water, it is very light. After the initial moistness though, I don't feel anything on my hands.

It is only very lightly moisturizing, I have to apply it much more frequently than other hand creams. While this may be good for people who don't really have very dry hands in the first place, or good if you stay in a country like Singapore with high humidity, I can't see it working in dry places. My ultimate hand cream test - whether it can smoothen my dry cuticles and make them look presentable in a jiffy. Sadly, this one doesn't quite cut it. I can't imagine it working in dry, temperate countries where my cuticles get so dry and ugly.

While the packaging is cute, handy and portable (50g tube), the screw top cap is also a little troublesome. I'd prefer a flip top cap for easier access. I do love the pretty design though, it is a hand cream I would happily whip out to apply because it is so pretty.

Rating: 6/10

Review: Avene Diacnéal (with photos omg)

Oops I've been gone for a couple of weeks. (I blame it all on The Job.) So my skin has been flaring up recently, the worst since I was 19? That's like 4 years ago. It pretty much came about due to the stress and late nights from The Job. I've read about Avene Diacnéal before but I had good skin so I never got the chance to try it. Now that my skin had become horrible, it was a good chance for me to try it out. (Always look on the bright side...)

I read on MUA that Diacnéal has been replaced by Triacnéal, but somehow Singapore's version is still called Diacnéal and there hasn't appeared to be any changes. (The expiry date on my tube is June 2013 so I don't think I purchased an old tube...) The active ingredients are 0.1% Retinaldehyde (prevents thickening of skin and formation of blackheads) and 6% Glycolic Acid (exfoliates and 'peels' skin to reduce blackheads and smoothen skin).

This is the first time I'm using a retinol and glycolic acid treatment... I applied a thin layer almost every night (only at night). I say almost every night because if my skin feels dry or tight or itchy, I listen to it and I skip treatment that night, substituting with a light moisturizing sheet mask. While on Diacnéal, I also skip exfoliation, scrubs and deep-cleansing masks. Usually I exfoliate/mud mask about once or twice a week. With Diacnéal, I do so only once or twice a fortnight, and on the day I do so, I skip Diacnéal and use a moisturizing sleeping mask after. So I believe you do have to listen to your skin and give it what it needs.

On to the pictures!

1. Before treatment

2. After 1.5 weeks of treatment.

3. After 4 weeks of treatment.

So the photos above are of my left cheek, the lighting conditions look different because #1 was taken in daylight, #2 was taken in the wee hours of the morning after work under my desk lamp, #3 was taken on a cloudy day under my desk lamp. I'm afraid I didn't have time to take many photos, but you can see how my skin has gradually improved!

I realise I haven't taken a photo of Diacnéal itself... it's a thick yellow cream, feels quite heavy so I only use a very thin layer of it, and only at night, followed by a moisturizer. You do have to let your skin adapt to it, and it might sting on areas where you have zits, but other than that, I haven't experienced any hyper sensitivity to it. Also, it is very important to put on sunscreen in the day, since Diacnéal increases your skin's sensitivity.

Ingredients: Water, Cetyl alcohol, Cyclomethicone, Polysorbate 60, Glycolic Acid, Avene Thermal Spring Water, Alcohol, Sodium Hydroxide, BHT, Dimethiconol, Fragrance, Polymethyl methacrylate, Potassium sorbate, Red 33, Retinal.

Rating: 9.5/10 (-0.5 because it is so bloody expensive!)

On a side note... my clear skin (in that last photo) isn't so clear anymore because of my recent lack of sleep, stress and the fact that I'm having a cold right now. :( So seriously... good health = good skin, so take care of yourself if you wanna be beautiful! :)

Till next time~

Review: Himalaya Herbals Under Eye Cream

I've had this eye cream for a while, I purchased it because apparently it has won awards from some magazine (Singapore Women's Weekly or Elle, I can't remember which). Also, I've always been crazy about 'natural' products, and this one claims to contain a mix of herbs (sounds natural huh) that help to lighten dark circles by 80% and fine lines by 28% in 4 weeks! -Insert bimbotic 'Omg!' here- I purchased this for about SGD19 for a 25ml tube, pretty reasonably priced for a drugstore eye cream.

What I found when I opened the box - a split nozzle. So it kind of irritated me and it all started going downhill from there. 

The cream has a thick, slightly sticky/tacky consistency. It is light beige in colour which, when blended into the eye area, helps to make the eye area appear just the slightest bit brighter. Honestly, I don't really like the consistency - it is too thick to blend and I feel like it sits on my skin, like it's not being absorbed. Plus, I have a feeling it contributed to milia seeds on my undereye area. Also, though it is thick and creamy, I don't think it feels moisturizing enough.

What good things do I have to say about it? It's fragrance free and safe for contact lens wearers. That's pretty much all. Let me continue pointing out the bad in the ingredients list - mineral oil might clog pores; petrolatum is occlusive, and while it creates a barrier to keep moisture in, it doesn't allow moisture to be absorbed from the atmosphere; cetearyl alcohol and paraffin are comedogenic, and imidazolidinyl urea irritates skin.

Ingredients: Bergenia ligulata, cipadessa baccifera, wheat germ oil, aqua, propylene glycol, mineral oil, caprylic/capric triglyceride, paraffin, cetyl alcohol, steareth 2, glyceryl stearate, steareth 21, petrolatum, cetearyl alcohol, carbomer, triethanolamine, xantham gum, tocopherol acetate, methylparaben, propyl paraben, disodium EDTA, imidazolidinyl urea

I have noticed Himalaya Herbals is a pretty affordable brand, but the 'Herbals' in its name does not make it a natural product. I will be staying away from this brand in the future, after this bad experience. :(

Rating: fail