Tokyo Here I Come!!

I want to thank everyone who gave me tips on travelling to Europe. I'm saving them for end of the year, because I'm on my way to Tokyo next month. I've got my tickets reserved and possibly I'm heading to Seoul too. Even though I've been to Tokyo several times already, I welcome tips and etc. for food and shopping/makeup hauling especially for Seoul. I am angry with Skin Food Singapore for jacking up their prices here and I want to take revenge by buying dozens of their shampoos in Seoul. *maniacal laugh* Ok, I really have to stop hauling in Singapore for now. Except, I'm thinking I should go get the Lunasol Anniversary base makeup set. I think it works out cheaper in Singapore if I'm not wrong, because the prices here were not jacked up to match the rising yen. I resisted joining a guided tour group for Seoul, because I really hated the idea of being with a huge group of people everyday. I have been travelling free and easy for all my trips. I have only gone for 2 guided group tours and I've hated them both. Wonder if I should just spend some money and get me-self me most wanted lens the Canon 10-22mm!! OMG. I shouldn't. I know. Wish me luck! I'm so freaking nervous about travelling!! © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Simple Lunasol Anniversary Set EOTD

Yesterday, I was watching TV and movies, like K-drama Boys Before Flowers and Underworld, Rise of the Lycans. The latest Underworld is rather nice, although seems to lack something without the iconic Kate Beckinsale. So I started rewatching the first 2 Underworld shows. Some more questions to answer: Skin Food Singapore's website ships overseas, so those who would like to order can do so from there. I didn't want to write this but someone asked, the Oriental Shampoo cost $43SG (*shock*). It is more expensive than Fekkai! I haven't made any comparisons with prices in Korea, I hope it is not overly jacked up here in Singapore, or I'll be very upset with Skin Food! As per your requests, I tried to do an EOTD with the palette from Lunasol's Anniversary set. Colours didn't show up very much on the camera but you can see them, they are very natural. It's a very simple EOTD. The colours used numbered below. 2 & 3 are very close in shade and colour. (Oops if you look into my iris, you can see my camera and lampshade! haha!) Applied 1 all over the lid up to the brow, then 2 from lash line to brow bone, and 3 in the outer corner of the socket, below the brow bone. 4 was used over the liner. 2 was used to line below the eye. I also used the brown liner and the mascara from the set. I feel this is a very natural and easy to use set, which I could put in my luggage for travelling. I'm glad I got it. Not sure why browns and peaches from Japanese makeup suit me better than those from eg. Bobbi Brown. Here's how the peachy gloss from the set (at the bottom) looks like. I don't like the sponge applicator. The striped gloss on top is not from the Anniversary set, it is a gloss from the Spring 09 collection. I really ought to get a neutral lip liner. Beauty Anonymous posted about OPI Soft Shades 2009 Fairy Tale Bride Collection which are all very nice pinks and even though I'm no bride, I want them! Why didn't I pay attention when people were buying OPI in sprees? Now I'm not sure where to get them. I'm off to continue watching Underworld, Evolution, will be online later tonight. See you! © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Answering Some Questions and Shampoo Reviews

Answering Questions about Lunasol ning*star asked how much is the Lunasol Anniversary set. I'm having a hard time replying at ning*star's blog, it hangs on me, so, I'll post here, it is $155SG. Also there are other questions about Lunasol, so I thought maybe it might help others too, so I'm posting answers here. The palettes in the set are stuck to the tray, they don't look removable to me. And from what I know, Lunasol is available in Singapore only at the Takashimaya Kanebo counter. I'm so tempted to go back to Lunasol to get the anniversary base makeup set. I also want to get the Maquillage and P&J base makeup. But I've not even finished using my BB cream. Shampoo Reviews I've used several new shampoos recently after my old ones are finished. I'd like to tell you about them. My scalp is oily, my hair is limp and thin, so I always try to find shampoos that cleanse the scalp, is not too drying for the hair and can provide volume. I also shampoo daily because of the weather and I don't like having styling products in my hair when I sleep. Fekkai Protein Rx I used this shampoo for 4 days in a row and felt my scalp getting clogged. It was too rich for me for daily use. So, I decided to use it as a "treatment" shampoo and conditioner once a week instead, together with the conditioner. This is better for my hair. It prevents the hair from becoming dry but doesn't leave residue from overuse. Skin Food Oriental Shampoo Skin Food says this is a TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) line, that contains seven healing herb extracts known to be effective in hair loss prevention and hair growth facilitation. Provides moisture and nutrition to the scalp resulting in a more silky and voluminous hair. You're supposed to leave it on for more than three minutes after lathering so as to allow absorption of the healing herb into the scalp, but I don't do that. I just shampoo, leave it in while I wash my body then rinse off all together. It's quite expensive, but I'm happy it works. It's good because it cleanses the scalp but moisturises my hair and provides volume. It says it prevents hair loss and helps hair growth with the addition of Oriental herbs. I like the smell. Skin Food Salt Mineral Hair Wash According to Skin Food, this shampoo is for deep cleansing oily scalp. It contains salt and seaweed extract that purifies the scalp and controls excessive sebum and oil. This product has a lemony fragrance. I use this for deep cleansing when my scalp feels clogged and gunky. It has large grains of salt in it (I think that's the salt). It's good for scrubbing the scalp but I have a hard time getting all the grains directly onto the scalp and often find some grains on the bathroom floor - wasted! It's a bit strong so I wouldn't recommend it for daily use as I think it will strip the hair dry and make it brittle. Conclusion Overall, I'd say I was pleasantly pleased with the Skin Food shampoos. My hair didn't fall out alot, unlike times when I tried other shampoos, like, sadly, the Lush shampoos I used before. They made my hair fall out alot. I'd like to try another Skin Food shampoo I saw, Hop Beer Shampoo, that is supposed to be for preventing hair loss and greying. Wouldn't mind trying other Skin Food products too. So far I've not tried their products at all. I'm keen to try their body products. Now, this makes me want to go shopping in Seoul ... and eat eat eat ... © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Nail Polish Talk and Mini Purchase

This was what I bought yesterday ... the Lunasol Anniversary set and a Lunasol Spring 09 Lip Gloss. Very very nice gloss ... I had to get it! Also felt it was worth getting the Anniversary set, not just based on price alone but also on the colours and items. Oh, by the way, someone said she is glad to now know what I look like since I look like Narumi Yasuda, but I do not look like Narumi Yasuda. Only the MA thought I did. Honestly, when you see me, you'll know the MA was lying ... :p I did a face-to-face comparison with my pictures and hers, I think only the eyes shape is similar ... Haha. Repainted my nails today, in the other Eternal colour I bought (G-ENS-1101). More purplish but still qiute nude. Nice and understated. I spoil the nail polish so fast, as though I do manual labour everyday! And my cuticles etc are so rough. Right after I painted the nails, I was using the scizzors for something and it dented the surface of one of my fingernails . Grr. I don't paint my nails often. I used to paint my toe nails when I liked to wear open toe sandals. Thought I'd show you the nail polish I have, from The Face Shop, Beauty Credit, P&J and Eternal. And the nail polish from Lunasol Christmas Coffret 08, which hasn't been used at all. The only nice-smelling nail polish remover I use - from Beauty Credit. It is gentle, cheap and nice-smelling. The Face Shop Cuticle and Nail Balm isn't that great but it helps the dryness, if I remember to use it. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Crazy Stocking Up Habits

I'm hopeless! Today I went to a doctor's appointment and am now on some medication for some time hopefully I'll get better. So, I ended slightly early and I stopped over at Takashimaya on the way home. In the end, I resisted Hello Kitty powder, but bought something else instead. Bittenbefore reminded me of it ... I'll show you another day when I feel less guilty... ;p Ugh. I need to stop "stopping over" at shopping centres! Today's focus is on Crazy Stocking Up Habits. It's this "good buy" and "good deal" thing that gets me a little crazy. I don't "collect" makeup or skincare but when something good works for me and is cheap, I do tend to want to stock up to take advantage of a good deal. When Lavera was available at $7SG per item, I bought these toners to "stock up". I paid $35SG for 5 toners. The original price of each toner was somewhere between $33-35SG, I can't recall. Good huh? 5 for the price of one? I certainly hauled too much, but I'm glad I did. So worth it! These are great toners, but now that I'm using Blanchir, I wanted to keep the daily routine "pure" so that I can see better effects of Blanchir's brightening/whitening. So what am I going to do with so much haul? I should give up my crazy stocking up habits? Regrets? No! Haha.No way! I formulated a plan. I bought these compressed facemask sheets from Daiso and I'm going to soak these toners in the masksheets for face mask. Daiso sells so many varieties, I haven't tried all yet but this one is cheap in the sense that there are more pallets per pack. So my toners will not be wasted! Woot! Clever huh? Haha. Take pride in what I can. :p There are other things I got from Lavera too, sunscreen, body oils, moisturisers etc. This bag isn't the only one that went home with me filled with Lavera products. :p I went back several times to the shop over the week, because each time, I got a bottle of something to try and felt it was so good, I had to get more while the prices were good. But I'm too scared to show you everything. In case my friends in real life see them and come along to "scold" me for spending so much. Also, I feel guilty, especially knowing there is a friend who loves food but is starving herself of meals so that she can save money! (She says she's not starving, but she loves food so I feel kinda bad for her ... even though she says I shouldn't!) You just have to guess what I bought in total from Lavera. A story: On the last day of the sale, I was there picking up my toners and there were 2 women who were hauling so much that they paid a total of $600+SG and had many shopping bags lined up in the store! See, I'm not that bad! *snigger* By the way, I have been carrying this bag I bought recently from Charles and Keith. Very cheap, very roomy and matches alot of my clothes. It even has a zip, which is very important to me. Only thing I hate is the fake leather smell. :p Any tips for removing the smell? Otherwise, I hope it goes away after a few weeks' of use. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Eternal Nail Polish

I didn't get to the shops tonight to get the 2nd release of Hello Kitty Mac powder! I was working till 8plus. :( Who knows, maybe they're not sold out and I can find one tomorrow. I'm going to a doctor's appointment in the afternoon. If I finish early, maybe I can pop by the shops. Here's Eternal polish ENL-401 on my nails. I love the nude colour and the way it applies so easily. Tempted to go back and get more, but I shouldn't. I'm not sure even if the sale is still on. I don't manicure my fingernails at all, and just apply 1 coat of base, 1 coat of polish and 1 topcoat. Don't even shape my nails, I just cut them with my nail clippers. I don't like keeping long nails either. I used The Face Shop (TFS) Nail Strengthener as the base. TFS nail polishes work well and are cheap! Since Blanchir is working well for me, I don't think I'll be able to finish using all these toners that I bought previously. I don't feel comfortable selling, but if you'd like to swap for something equivalent, I could decant some for swap, or if anyone would still like to purchase, please email me/leave a comment? The Face Shop, Ecovert toner, (Glass bottle) Partially used, purchased recently. Has a layer of oil that you shake to mix in the toner before use. No alcohol and it's for sensitive skin. Hydrating function. It's very gentle, and hasn't caused any problems for me at all. It's a pump, so the contents are still clean. I just got tired of it, that's all. Renew, Rosehip Hydrating Mist Toner (Plastic bottle) Never used, purchased recently. Also good for sensitive skin and has hydrating function. Alcohol free. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Kanebo Makeup Event (Part 2)

This is a continuation of my Kanebo experience on Saturday. I forgot to post this freebie. Another bag. :D So, after the skin analysis, the Kanebo makeup artist (MA) from Japan, recommended me the Spring eye palette 01 as it's natural enough for work but also brighter than the other natural palette, 05. I also said I didn't want any pinks/purples as I already have too many such palettes. I eventually bought SA Eyes 01. One of the few orange/brown combinations that seem to work on me. Here are the colours seen on my eyes, done by the MA. Sorry for the surprised look. I was looking up and this is the best photo that shows the makeup. Shine Drape Rouge RS252 and Lip Essence Base. Lips Essence Base is slightly pinkish and moisturising. Here're the colours on my lips with lip pencil drawn by the MA. I seldom apply my lipstick so thick, but it looks kinda nice and plump, doesn't it? The Coffret D'or packagining is very sweet as usual.

The MA provided me many useful makeup tips which I would like to share with you.

1. She told me that since I have brown eyes, I should use brown mascara and brown liner, which she used in the above eye makeup. According to her, brown will emphasize and enlarge my brown eyes more than black. This surprised me and also the SAs. I've always been told I should use black everything since it's darker and will draw more attention to the eyes! I guess the SAs have been using themselves as the basis for recommendation and didn't notice my eye or skin colours at all.
2. The MA said to I should use a lipliner because my lips are thin and very pale. It would help to bring more emphasis to my lips. So those of you with pale and thin lips, would find this a useful tip. I didn't buy the Coffret Dor liner, it's too expensive, perhaps I'll find a cheaper substitute from Fasio or Majolica.
3. I was also told to use eyebrow powder at the start of the brow and only use a pencil to lengthen the end of the brow. This was because the MA felt I have strong upper features and the lighter touch of eyebrow powder is better. I think when she said strong, she probably meant prominent? I don't know.

Additional story, she kept saying I look like Narumi Yasuda, who is "a beautiful star" ... Erm??!!!??? Hahaha everyone there (ie. the SAs and me) didn't know who was Narumi Yasuda. I was in particular extremely incredulous and laughing so hard because I really doubted I looked like a beautiful actress. I think the MA felt she must convince me, so she wrote a note and told me to check it. Here's her note, she's so cute! Her handwriting is so cute too. Anyway I checked, there are very few photos of Narumi Yasuda online but from what I saw, Narumi Yasuda is muuuuch prettier than I can possibly be!! I am nowhere close to her! I don't have a narrow face like her nor is my nose as small and sharp. Maybe the MA thought my eyes were similar? But in any case I felt the MA's advice were all very useful and I took note of all of it. I hope you find these tips of some use, especially if you have brown eyes and "strong" cheeks/eyes/brows. I certainly felt I learnt something, especially how the MA madeup my eyes, even my son felt I looked really nice that day. Keke. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Kanebo Skin Analysis and Haul (Part 1)

Last month, I was told to book an appointment on 21-22 March, because the Kanebo counter at BHG was having a special makeup and facial event. A Japanese makeup artist would be flown in specially and the Coffret Dor Spring 09 range would also be available. I didn't book an appointment but decided to go look at the new makeup yesterday. By chance, the SA told me there's a makeup and consultation spot available at 6pm, so I said ok, since it's only an hour later, and went back to the counter after hauling at Muji and having dinner. The MA was very cheerful and energetic even after working the whole day! She set a very good example for all the local SAs, who were perkier and more enthusiastic than usual. The MA did a skin analysis for me with the skin analysis machine. Why don't the local SAs use that machine at all? It makes for very objective skin check. And eeps the close ups of pores and melanin were scary! Final verdict: I have dry skin, slightly oily t-zone, lots of melanin above & below the skin, firm skin but rough due to the dryness and good elasticity. Sounds ok for my age, I think! Especially comforted to know I still have firm skin and good elasticity. LOL. She said I should address the melanin but I said I have sensitive skin and experienced allergic reactions to most whitening skincare. So, the MA recommended Blanchir range, which she said is suitable for sensitive skin, targets dryness, and addresses melanin above and below the skin. She applied the whole range on my face, as part of the consultation. I didn't get any immediate allergic reactions, which was a good sign. Plus, the son, who was with me, said he could see an immediate brightening effect! So, I bought some of the Blanchir products, because I have alot of freckles, even though I use alot of sunscreen, so I really need some products that provide whitening/brightening care. I was hoping to eventually find good products to address that issue without giving allergic reactions. So far so good, after using the Blanchir products, I have no allergic reactions and found it has a good brightening effect but the test will be best when I have no allergic reactions later. I'll let you know the final score in a few weeks' time. I went online to check and it looks like Blanchir is mostly natural ingredients. *Cross fingers* After so many words, here's a photo of my haul. Including makeup, which I'll talk about in another post. After I decided to buy, I said, "Oh no, I am spending too much?!!" And the SA said, she'll give me whatever gifts she had, then took out almost every gift available and gave them to me! Nice small bag for me to put my lunchbox! Haha. So many freebies. WOot! Including 2 Blanchir trial sets & 2 bottles of oil-based makeup remover. Good for me to try! A scarf and umbrella even! Good timing. I need another umbrella, the one I have is on the verge of spoiling. We even got to eat some special limited sakura cookies. Hahaa. I'll talk about the makeup in another post. There are few tips that the MA gave me, I thought I could share with you too in the next post. I read that Blanchir is a drugstore range in Japan. For a drugstore range it is still quite pricey, but I found the prices are comparable here (ie. not jacked up). If it works, that's the important thing. It will be still be cheaper than buying most other Japanese skincare ranges anyway. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Of Random Purchases and Natural Bristle Brushes

Happened to see a sale at John Little Stardust while walking about to destress after work. The SA said these Fasio stuff are new, just came in recently, in March. I liked the blushes and the new mascara so I bought them at 20+10% discount. And the nail polish at 20% off. Then I got a voucher too. The Fasio stuff are: Gradation Mix Face Colour PK820 blush, SP120 highlighter and Hyper-stay Mascara Deep Trick (Curl Long) in black. I looked online and saw that they are the Spring 09 collection. Had the mood to just try painting my very short fingernails so I bought light coloured nail polish by a Japanese brand called Eternal - one beige (ENL-401) and another a lilac (G-ENS-1101) that says limited edition on the cover. Wow, I just realised my threshold for prices has changed ... these nail polish are quite expensive and yet I bought them! Previously I might not. The after-discount price is closer to the Yen+tax price of 893yen, so it's more worthwhile to buy it when there's a discount. In the past, these were the only 2 brushes I had, bought from The Body Shop, they are synthetic bristle. They were no good for applying powder eyeshadow or blush, but useful for applying liquid eyeshadow or blending cream blush. Recently I started buying some cheap natural bristle brushes from The Face Shop. Thought I'd try them out before splurging on something expensive like Shu Uemura or Bobbi Brown. The natural bristle brushes and the different shapes make a huge difference in ease and precision of eyeshadow and blush application. The brushes pick up more colour and spread them easily. Much better than using the synthetic bristle or the sponge applicators. It changed my mind about brushes, and now I want to get the Bobbi Brown brush set that comes with its own case. I don't have experience using the more expensive brushes, except when I tried Bobbi Brown's at the free makeup lessons I had. So I have no others for comparison. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Friday Fill-Ins

Wow it's Friday! Thank God! It's been a crazy week for me but I made it through. Thought I'd do a Friday Fill-in as a fun way to end the working week. Here it is and have a great weekend ahead!

1. Why do we have to wake up and go to work? Oh ya, to get $$$ to buy stuff hahaha. 2. Putting on makeup & hair products are now habits. 3. I have new natural bristle makeup brushes which have changed my opinion about using brushes for makeup. 4. I had never heard the phrase "there is no ugly woman only lazy ones" used often and it is possibly true to a large extent. 5. I am yearning for shopping therapy again, the way I always do. 6. How was I to know I'd hoard and haul so much makeup, so quickly ? 7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to laying in bed and watching k-dramas or tv drama series, tomorrow my plans include sleeping in and Sunday, I want to clear up my cupboards again!

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Mascaras and P&J Haul Swatches

Long lashes today! I used 3 products: Majomajo lash base, Majomajo mascara and finally Fiberwig. I thought they looked very thickly coated, but I'm very satisfied. What are those flakes near my bottom lash? I never see them in real life ... Could they be from the mascara? The latest P&J haul, swatches and photos: Lip crayon No.05. I regret getting this colour. It's darker than what I am used to. Hope I can make it work by using applying a small amount with a brush and layering with lipgloss. Lipstick N in No.02. Nice, light and shimmery. Face Color Powder in No.50. I was sure I picked a pink tone but this one looks different, brown in fact. Perhaps the SA made a mistake, but it's ok. I quite like this shade. Creamy Compact Foundation Refill. Shade no.03. Again it looks quite dark! I swatched a lighter colour at the store ... hmmmm .... Maybe I need to go talk to the SA again ... It doesn't have a case! I felt cheated when the SA told me so. But later decided I'm going to get a P&J powder to try later, so I'm good with it for now. Some close up pictures. OH! I forgot the Skunk blush! But nevermind, it's a new item that's seen on alot of the blogs. I like how it goes on the skin. Casing's art and little balls of colour are happiness inducing worth the money paid. ^_^ © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Lavera Compared With Sukin

Lavera and Sukin are 2 brands of gentle skincare that I have tried recently, for my temperamental skin. Both emphasise and take pride in their organic and natural ingredients. I have been using Sukin for some time and basically stuck to it, since my skin was behaving quite ok. I didn't try any new skincare (if I recall correctly, except for a new cleansing oil, which was fine for weeks and Fancl T-zone essence, which I applied to only my nose & forehead). But my skin turned nuts a week ago and dry-painful peeling occured on my cheeks and around my mouth, including my hands ... While I'm happy with Sukin's non-SLS gentle Foaming Cleanser and Mist Toner, their creams aren't as good as Lavera's. In my earlier review on Sukin, I said the creams didn't seem to absorb well. They didn't irritate my skin but didn't seem to improve it alot either. When my skin went crazy recently, applying Sukin's creams didn't help at all with hydration, even after I applied hydrocortisone to soothe. I must admit I wouldn't have tried Lavera if it weren't for the great sales that are going on for this brand recently. And the fact that my skin wasn't doing great even when I was using Sukin faithfully. Once I tried Lavera's creams on the other hand, I found they absorbed well, provided good hydration and also soothed my peeling cracking skin, (after the cortisone did its work) that was acting up for I don't know what reason. I'll be doing a review of the 2 creams I got, Neutral Face Fluid and Wild Rose Liposome Intensive Cream. Lavera Faces Wild Rose Liposome Intensive Cream

Claims "Wake up to softer, smoother skin! This intensive, overnight treatment for dry, lacklustre skin provides deep down nourishment and hydration. Shea butter, almond oil, blackcurrant seed oil and hyaluronic acid rapidly boost skin's moisture levels and provide long-lasting hydration. Plant based liposomes carry valuable extracts of organic wild rose, ginkgo and orange blossom deep into the skin. Vitamins C and E provide effective protection against environmental pollutants." Ingredients Water Palm Kernel Oil Tricaprylin Grain Alcohol Glycerin Shea Butter* Sweet Almond Oil*Jojoba Seed Oil Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Squalane Lanolin Passionflower Seed Oil Vitamin E Acetate Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride Xanthan Gum Glyceryl Oleate Citrate Black Current Seed Oil Lysolecithin Damask Rose Flower Water* Dog Rose Fruit Extract* Gingko Leaf Extract Rapeseed Sterols Hydrogenated Lecithin Vitamin E Hyaluronic Acid Myrtle Water* Bitter Orange Flower Water* Lecithin Vitamin C Ester Vitamin C Natural Oils: Citral*Geraniol*Citronellol*Limonene*Linalool* Information from the Lavera website.

My Experience This was the first Lavera face cream I tried, when my skin was dry, cracked and peeling badly and I had to use hydrocortisone to soothe it. I used hydrocortisone for a couple of days, and it cleared the skin mostly, but it was still feel taut and dry. So, I started applying this cream. The day after I used this cream, I didn't need to return to using the hydrocortisone. The taut dryness had gone away and my face was plump and hydrated. That was why I decided to go haul and stock up on Lavera face products. Lavera Neutral Face Fluid

Claims "Fragrance-free. Light, yet deeply hydrating and uniquely soothing formula for dry and extremely sensitive skin and eczema. Organic Evening Primrose, Sweet Almond Oil & Sea Buckthorn, which are rich in Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), provide anti-inflammatory soothing action. Antioxidant Jojoba seed oil effectively heals and calms dry and irritated skin. Shorea Butter restores elasticity to dry, stressed skin. Licorice Root extract, ideal for rosacea, is highly anti-inflammatory and lends brightening and clarifying benefits to tender tissues. " Ingredients Water Olive Oil* Grain Alcohol Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride Glycerin Tricaprylin Squalane Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Sweet Almond Oil* Shorea Butter Jojoba Oil* Evening Primrose Oil* Hydrogenated Lecithin Vitamin E Acetate Shea Butter Xanthan Gum Irish Moss Lysolecithin Sea Buckthorn Oil Licorice Root Extract Lecithin Sodium Hyaluronate Vitamin E Rapeseed Sterols Vitamin C Ester Vitamin C Information from the Lavera website.

My Experience When I was hauling Lavera products on Sunday, the SA recommended me this cream, especially for soothing my dryness, ezcema and allergies. I was recommended to buy 2 tubes, since she's sure it will work well for me. She told me it was just restocked after being sold out and she was worried it might not be available if I return a day or two later for more, since the Neutral range is very popular. When I applied this on Sunday night, my skin felt hydrated and comforted. The next morning, I found my skin looking rather translucent (with the exception of my pores, the cream didn't do anything for shrinking them to invisible). I rushed back on Monday to stock up on this cream but it's sold out! The SA said it won't be replenished in time for the sale period. *sad* Comparison What's the difference between Lavera and Sukin? I looked at the ingredients and found Lavera wasn't purely plant-based natural ie. it wasn't averse to using ingredients like Squalane, Sodium Hyaluronate and Hyaluronic Acid which probably increased Lavera creams' moisturisation or hydration factor. Also, the Neutral Face Fluid has alot of anti-inflamatory ingredients, which was probably why it helped to soothe my skin, giving it a clear and transluscent effect. Whereas for Sukin, their ingredients list is purely plant-based. On their website, Sukin is proud to state that they do not use animal derivatives and any chemicals. Good for vegans, though I'm not sure how they define "chemicals". Perhaps it's a very strict definition, which is why they don't use stuff that must be manufactured and is not naturally occuring in plants. Here's a look at the claims and ingredients for Sukin creams.

Information from the Sukin website.

Conclusion

Compared to commercial cosmetic formulations, I guess because Lavera avoids heavy use of other ingredients like fragrance, strong whitening ingredients and acids, it probably is less aggressive and aggravating, making it suitable for dry-sensitive-allergy-prone problematic skin like mine. Since I have 2 tubes each of Neutral Face Fluid and Wild Rose Liposome Intensive Cream, I shall use the cream at night and the lighter fluid formulation in the day. I regret not buying more hahaha. The day will come when I need to purchase more creams at the original prices of $30-40SG plus! It's quite expensive if you consider the small size. 1oz for the Rose cream and 1.6oz for the Neutral fluid. But still, it's less expensive than Jurlique and actually seems more effective than Fancl creams for me (but to be fair to Fancl, I haven't tried their dry skin line yet). So for me, it's worth considering repurchasing and sticking to this brand of creams in the future, unless my skin turns mad again and I need to find alternatives. © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Skin Care and Make Up Hauls

It's no good for me to be alone on weekends. The son was gone all weekend for sailing and I just had to entertain myself! Rather than stay home to clean the house, I went out and hauled. Prepared myself for the weekend crowds with my various tools such as my ipod with soothing music to block out the noise. It was madness at the train stations, but luckily I didn't get any problems. There was a huge crowd at City Hall interchange. It was so hot and I was stuck for about 5 minutes waiting together with many people trying to get up the escalators to exit the train station. So, at Raffles City Shopping Centre I hauled Lavera stuff, at $21SG for 3 items. I paid only $42 for these things plus 1 free gift (hair spray). Their original retail total was about almost $300SG? I need to go back to get some more to stock up. Maybe tomorrow, because alot of their stuff work well for me and it occured to me that I should just stock up some extras since the price is so good. Some of the Neutral stuff are really good for when my skin is acting up, so I'm thinking maybe I should just use these exclusively to prevent my skin from going nuts every so often. However, I still need to find a good whitening/brightening skincare item, which I haven't found yet because most will irritate my skin after some continuous usage. I'll try to do some reviews on Lavera stuff later. Yes to Carrots, Organic Surge and Mukti stuff were also on sale, but the SA was very nice and told me since I have very sensitive skin, I shouldn't try Organic Surge stuff because they are not really all-natural or all-organic. I didn't get any Mukti, since the discount wasn't as much as that for Lavera. Oh and I got some shampoo from Skin Food to try. My friends say Skin Food is much cheaper in Malaysia, but since I don't travel there much, it's ok to get from Singapore. One shampoo for hairloss, another one for cleansing the scalp (eg. for dandruff, sebum etc. - I bought it mainly for sebum cleansing). Also got some Paul & Joe stuff. This makeup set from Isetan for $80SG, with a choice of colours for all of them: 1 Face Powder, 1 lip crayon, 1 lipstick, and 1 single eyeshadow. I have some regrets about the colour I chose for the lip crayon. It's too dark! And I spoilt it while closing it! Booo! Anyway, I'll do a review of it all later. Since I also bought the Skunk blush, I had enough purchases to qualify for a gift, and I chose the wallet, even though I think the evening bag is quite popular. The SA said Bambi blush is sold out but I didn't intend to get it because I don't look good in orange, so it's not too bad for me. Though now I got it in my head to try to hunt it down elsewhere ... Over at Kose, I received a perfume candle, a member gift for submitting my old member card in exchange for a new one. Kose is switching over to a new type of member card. The perfume candle smells really good and is a hefty size. Very generous! I didn't buy anything from Kose. I didn't make it to Kinokuniya, which was having a 20% discount member weekend. Neither did I stop by at Sephora. I was running late and had to go over to get groceries, otherwise my husband wouldn't pick me up! LOL. Good thing though, because I think I hauled enough! © Copyright. All rights reserved.

Keeping Organised: Seeking an Organiser Phone & Beauty Diaries

Every so often, I'll feel disorganised and want to review my methods. Using notebooks for lists - so pretty - but quite useless to me. I'm in the market for a good organiser-camera-phone. There are so many out there! Anyone using one, any to recommend? Speaking of being organised, yesterday I threw out the nylon net shower scrubby that I've been using for months! Eww. I wonder how many germs and bacteria have grown there. I need to get down to Daiso or the supermarket to find some more cheap ones, so I can throw them out more often. I tend to forget how long I've been using one. So I was thinking I shall make it a habit to throw it out and change to a new one every first of the month. I also read that some people keep beauty diaries. That means, they write down when they did a particular mask or treatment and also keep their beauty appointments like facials etc in the diary. I was thinking it might be a good idea for me to keep track of what I use and when I use something. This is because just recently, my skin got up to it's usual allergy-sensitivity nonsense again. And I couldn't identify what caused it. Very extensive and bad peeling and tight, painful dryness around the mouth, nose and cheeks! And it happened in the fingers and web part of my fingers too. As usual it's the hydrocortisone that saved me but one shouldn't use it too often. If you've been diagnosed with ezcema or allergic skin reactions, you'll probably be prescribed this too. It is a steriod and should be used in a limited way, not regularly. But it is really "miraculous" in a way that no moisturiser or cream can be. Cleared up my allergic reaction within days. Here are some notebooks I found recently. Very pretty, made in Korea notebooks. I use these for journaling and noting ideas. The insides are filled with different types of paper like this. Very few repetitions. © Copyright. All rights reserved.