Beijing: Snow!

I was away for quite a long while... because I was in Beijing! And the Great Firewall of China didn't allow me to view Blogspot sites. :( It was a fantastic trip though! I went there for work, but I managed to do quite some sightseeing on the weekends and it actually snowed, which is quite rare for early spring! 

Cars go around with piles of snow on them.

So pretty!

Review: Borghese Fango Active Mud for Face and Body

I started using this Borghese Fango Active Mud for Face and Body recently. It comes in both a tube version (mine) and in a glass jar, but I bought this 200ml tube version because it's more hygienic and easy to use. I can't remember how much I bought it for, but I know that it is expensive - while you can find it on Drugstore.com and in beauty stores like Sasa, I bought this at a Borghese beauty counter in a department store in Hong Kong, so it's priced like a beauty counter brand.

It's a typical dark green mud that smells very natural, like clay. I find that it dries very quickly. I use it once a week, but every time I open the cap, the clay in the opening has dried up, so I have to squeeze it out, which is a little annoying. The instructions specifically state that you should leave the mask on for 2-5 minutes (really short) and do not let it dry. The first time I tried it, I left it on for about 10 minutes (I was watching TV) and when it started drying up on my face, my face was really itchy! I rushed to the bathroom to wash it off, I felt like clawing it off my face. It was that unbearable!

I usually use a damp microfibre mitt to remove the mask, it washes off easily that way. It leaves my skin feeling cleaner and smoother - not too drying for a clay-type mask. I think the bentonite clay in it really helps to deep clean, while the hyaluronic acid prevents the mask from being too drying. It also contains Fuller's earth, which also helps to suck out impurities and brighten skin.

Ingredients:

I like this mask a lot. It gives a deep clean that is not drying. The only negative is that it's pretty pricey and sometimes if I forget and leave it on too long, the itchiness is terrible.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Eucerin DermatoClean Refreshing Cleansing Gel

I got this bottle of Eucerin DermatoClean Refreshing Cleansing Gel for free with a purchase of Aquaporin moisturizer. It was an absolute lifesaver when I was suffering from painful cystic acne, because this was so gentle on my skin, yet cleansed well. I've really fallen in love with this cleanser - even though it's simple and no-frills, I can't live without it!

Like most of my favourite gel cleansers, it uses less irritating surfactants/foaming agents like Cocomidopropyl Betaine and Decyl Glucoside, which means it foams less easily than conventional gel cleansers, but you can still foam it up nicely and the foam is very fine and moisturizing. And because this also contains Sodium Hyaluronic, it's moisturizing enough for sensitive acne-prone skin, yet feels light and cleanses well without stripping. And the squeeze bottle with the press-cap is so functional and easy to use.

Though it looks very plain, like a no-frills, simple cleanser, I feel like I'm pampering my skin when I use it. My skin feels instantly soothed and softened. An absolute joy!

Ingredients: Aqua, Glycerin, Cocomidopropyl Betaine, Decyl Glucoside, Glyceryl Glucoside, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate, Acrylates C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Sodium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben

Rating: 10/10

I totally recommend this!

Review and Comparison: Micellar/Cleansing Waters - Avene, Bioderma and Uriage

After skin started breaking out really badly due to stress, one of the major skincare changes I made was to switch my make-up remover from oil cleansers to cleansing water. They're really light and feel just like water, and they're very gentle on painful cystic acne bumps. Micellar solutions can be used as a toner as well, but I've only used them to remove make-up. So far I've tried 3 brands - Avene, Bioderma and Uriage.

Avene Micellar Lotion

This comes in a 200ml bottle (I believe it comes in 400ml as well, but I haven't seen it around), which I purchased for about S$26 after a 30% discount. It lasts me about a month with daily use. The fragrance is quite strong and smells like an expensive face cream. I find Avene's micellar lotion the most gentle of the three, and leaves my skin feeling the softest, I think because it's the only one of the three that contains sodium hyaluronate. If the lotion accidentally gets into my eyes, it doesn't sting too much.

Ingredients: Avene Thermal Spring Water, Cocamidopropyl Betainamide Mea Chloride, Poloxamer 188, Bisabolol, Fragrance, Peg/Ppg-14/14 Dimethicone, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hyaluronate, Trisodium Edta.

Rating: 9/10

Bioderma Sensibio H2O

This comes in various sizes. I bought the 500ml bottle in Taiwan for about S$40 on sale. It's fragrance free and smells like saline. I find the Bioderma is the best at removing makeup as compared to the others. However, it stings if it gets into my eyes.

Ingredients:  water (aqua), peg-6 caprylic/capric glycerides, propylene glycol, cucumis sativus (cucumber) fruit extract, mannitol, xylitol, rhamnose, fructooligosaccharides, disodium edta, cetrimonium bromide. 

Rating: 9/10

Uriage Tolederm Soothing Cleansing Water

This comes in a 250ml bottle, which I purchased for about S$30. This isn't actually a micellar cleanser, it's just a regular cleansing water. (The Beauty Brains explains what micellar water is. I think the difference between micellar water and regular cleansing water is that micellar water is more gentle while cleansing water might contain harsher surfactants.) Uriage does make a micellar solution too, but I bought this cleansing water accidentally instead. It smells a little yeasty, like beer. I find that this doesn't clean as well as Avene or Bioderma. This also stings if it gets into my eyes.

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Uriage Thermal Spring Water, Glycerin, Poloxamer 184, Phenoxyethanol, PEG-80 Glyceryl Cocoate, Cetrimonium Bromide, Citric Acid, Polyaminopropyl Biguanide

Rating: 8/10

I did a little experiment on the cleansing power - I swatched black pencil eyeliner (Urban Decay Perversion), Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus mascara and Ettusais BB cream on my arm and tried to remove them. I used just one cotton pad. (Usually for light base make-up and no mascara, I use 2 cotton pads for my whole face.)

From left: Avene Micellar Lotion, Bioderma Sensibio H2O, Uriage Tolederm

As you can see, Bioderma has the best cleansing power, followed by Avene, then Uriage. All three don't remove the Majolica Majorca mascara easily. (However, Majolica Majorca mascara is really tough to remove, even with regular make-up removers.) They're all quite comparable in price and effectiveness.

Personally I will stick with Bioderma because I'm more cost-conscious, but I would choose Avene if it was more affordable. Micellar waters are pretty expensive really, and are more expensive in Singapore. I think I will stock up when I go overseas - there are bundled promotions in Taiwan drugstores, especially in summer, when people want to use lighter cleansing waters in the hot weather.

Summary:

Most value-for-money: Bioderma

Best for sensitive skin: Avene

Best make-up remover: Bioderma

Review: SOFINA jenne Day Protector UV SPF 50+ PA+++

This is the sunscreen I've been using every day for the past month - Sofina Jenne UV Day Protector UV SPF+ PA+++. I bought it because it was just so pretty! I love the lace-embossed bottle and the frosted finish of the cap. I got it at a Taiwan drugstore. The Sofina brand is usually found at beauty counters in department stores, but the Sofina Jenne line is marketed to women in their 20s and is available in drugstores.

It's the typical Japanese sunscreen with a ball inside, so you can shake the bottle to mix the sunscreen better. It's a white liquid and the floral scent is a little strong but quite pleasant and luxurious. Because it's white, it leaves a little bit of a white cast in flash photos. However, I like it because it has a matte finish, is very fluid and hence spreads easily. Oil control is slightly above average.

Ingredients: Aqua, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Alcohol, Polymethylsilsequioxane, Talc, Glycerin, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Butylene Glycol, Styrene/Stearyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer, Polysilicone-9, Methicone, Triethoxycaprylsilane, Cetyl-PG Hydroxyethyl Palmitamide, Fragrance, Hydroxyundecanoic Acid, Rosmarinus Branch Extract, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Extract, Bis-Methoxypropylamido Isodocosane, Cl 77492

Like most Japanese sunscreens, it contains -cones and alcohol. However it's really difficult to find good natural suncreens that are effective and don't make me look like a greaseball, so I still rely on Japanese sunscreens.

I bought this 30ml for about S$30+, so it's a little pricey for a drugstore line. (Most Japanese drugstore sunscreens are around S$15 for 30ml.) I haven't tried Sofina's suncreens from the main beauty counter line, so I can't compare, but they're quite well-known for their sunscreens. I do like this Day Protector, it works and makes me feel happy every time I use it because it's so pretty. The design of the bottle is lovely too, compact and functional.

Rating: 9/10

Review: Leader's Insolution AC Dressing Mask

Well hello! Finally I blog again. Things have changed since my last post. My skin is terrible right now (acne flare-ups) so I'll be reviewing lots of acne products and I'm blogging to keep track of what works and what doesn't. I changed jobs a month ago (long working hours and stress at my previous job made my skin flare up) so I'm hoping my skin gets better! -crosses fingers-

So my sister introduced me to this Korean brand, Leader's Insolution. This is the AC Dressing mask, it's for acne-prone skin. I think it costs about S$3, which is more expensive than My Beauty Diary masks, but it's still really affordable and I think it's much better quality than My Beauty Diary!

The mask is made of silk cellulose, so it feels really soft and adheres perfectly to my skin (no weird folds), much better than MBD. The mask liquid feels slimey (perhaps because of the snail secretion filtrate?) but really moisturizing. And this mask really helps calm my zits down and makes my pores smaller, and moisturizes well at the same time. I do find a noticeable improvement in oil control the next day after I use this mask.

The ingredients:

I like the ingredients - the familiar ones that work for me are chamomile and arnica montana (really calms skin down). It contains lots of natural plant extracts, not like other masks with weird chemical ingredients. And while the snail secretion filtrate sounds gimmicky, I actually like the slimey feel of the liquid because it feels like it protects my skin.

Overall? A must-buy. I heard that stocks run low all the time and restocking of Leader's Insolution is really slow, so if you see it on the shelves, grab it!

Rating: 10/10

Happy Christmas 2012!

I had a happy Christmas, did you? I've been busy and gone for a while, but I'm back! :) Watch this space~