Review: shu uemura white efficient UV under base brightening mousse

I L.O.V.E fair and translucent skin. I love it when my skin looks crystal clear and rosy, and hate it when its dull and patchy. That is why I always include brightening products in my daily skincare regime, be it a serum or moisturiser. 

My latest attempt at whitening is shu uemura's new brightening UV under base mousse. It's a makeup base, to be applied before powder or liquid foundation.

shu uemura white efficient UV under base brightening mousse,  50g,  $80
Image from http://www.chicprofile.com

Unique features of this product:

1. Lightens existing spots and limit the formation of future spots.

2. Corrects yellowness of skin to give instant rosy complexion.

3. It's 20X lighter than any other makeup base, which makes the texture of the product light and suitable for humid weather like Singapore.

4. Pore tightening & line filling, to give skin flawless appearance before makeup application.

5. Comes with SPF30 PA++

Mousse is pink purple, which corrects yellowness of skin to translucent and rosy

Left: After, Right: Before

From above photo, the result after using the product is clear! My skin looks brighter, more rosy and more matte. It doesn't give coverage, but corrects my skin tone. I like the product for its lightness and non-greasiness. I feel like my skin can breath, with SPF protection. It's also nice to know that the product is somehow working hard to limit formation of pigmentation in the deeper layers of my skin. LOL. The only thing is that my t-tone is still shiny after the usual 2 hours. But well, this product doesn't really promise oil control effects. 

I apply a golf ball size of product with shu uemura's pentagon sponge every morning. The product should last me about 2 months. I am already halfway through the can and am going to purchase the pink one as soon as I finish this! 

Overall rating: 4/5. -1 point for the price and not so good oil control!

Review: Laneige 50+ Brightening Sun Powder, Water Bank Essence & Water Bank Eye Gel

In the recent months, I have become a fan of Laneige skin care. Most of their stuff really work for me. I am currently using their whitening range, which I have reviewed here before. My opinion of the range now and then remains more or less the same, just that I think I would rate it 4.5/5 instead of 4/5 now. Perhaps my skin has become more mature and love the richer texture of the products, especially the night cream. So, after falling in love with the range all over again (after trying many other products in between), I bought a few more products from Laneige to compliment the few I am using!

Laneige 50+ Brightening Sun Powder SPF50+++, 19g, $49

The powder comes with 2 puffs and a very modern holographic packaging. It's just like a compact powder and easy to apply on face. It can be used after foundation as sun protection. It also can be touched up over makeup multiple times. 

I was excited to try out this product, because I had the idea that I could use it as a touch up powder for my makeup. Kill 2 birds with 1 stone -- touch up my sun protection and matte-tify my face throughout the day! To my disappointment, the beauty advisor told me that no, I cannot use it as a compact powder, as it doesn't have coverage -- only as sun protection powder! Despite her advice, I decided to try using it as a compact powder anyway (ya I know, I am stubborn). OF COURSE, that didn't work out. The powder left whitish residue at the side of my nose, and my liquid foundation became blotchy after a while. So, clearly, this powder is only meant for protecting my skin from the sun! Silly me, but I just had to try.

As you can see, there is no coverage, except that the skin is slightly brighter after use. 

The product contains vitamin C that prevents sebum oxidation under UVrays. It also contains Comfrey extracts to sooth dulled skin reddened by sunlight. 

It is convenient to carry around and for application wherever you are!

Overall rating: 3/5. If only I can use it as compact powder. A bit troublesome for me to touch up my foundation, then touch up sunblock.

Laneige Water Bank Essence, 60ml, $62 or $68 (I forgot, sorry!)

I usually use a whitening essence as step 3 of my skincare routine every morning, then at night I would replace with another essence, anti-ageing or in this case, a hydration essence.

As I grow a bit older, I think my skin needs a bit more hydration, or else the aging process will become faster and i would get lines on my face! 

The texture is like most essence, light and easily absorbed. Skin feels hydrated without the sticky feeling. I can't say the texture of my skin has improved over a month of usage, but I am assuming the essence is doing its job deep within my skin. Usually I can tell whether an essence is effective if it is like a whitening one, as I can see actual improvement of skin tone; but honestly, since I don't have very dry skin to begin with, I can't really say I can see any change in my skin. I guess this is one of the products that I would use to put my heart at ease that I am giving my skin extra moisture!!

Overall rating: 4/5. Nice and light texture. Skin feels 'happy' after application. Assuming the essence is doing its work in my skin's deeper layers.

Laneige Water Banc Eye Gel, 25ml, $59 

Ok, like I always say before I review an eye cream, I am the type who don't expect too much from this kind of skincare as I have never seen one that can really reduce dark circles or eliminate puffiness. All I need is something non-sticky and be able to hydrate my skin. This gel does just that - hydrate my eye area!! I like it for it's fresh finish and light texture, and somehow my eyes look less tired after using it. 

I recently reviewed L'oreal's Youth Code Rejuvenating Anti-wrinkle Eye cream. If I were to compare these 2 eye products, I might choose to purchase the L'oreal one as it's slightly cheaper, and also has anti-aging properties!

Overall rating: 4/5. Good, but feels a bit 'boring' to repurchase.

Note: Other then swatch images, the rest of images are taken from http://www.laneige.com.sg/main.jsp

MISSHA Flower Bouquet Maylily Cleansing Cream and Cleansing Foam

This is my first time trying Missha skincare. I am really not very sure what to expect. I stepped into the shop looking for facial cleanser, and instantly I got attracted to these:

I bought these because I so LUVVV the lily scent of the products. So light and calming and floral. I simply love floral scents!

Maylily Cleansing Cream, 182ml, $19.90

I started using cleansing creams upon recommendation by the beautician who does maintenance facials for me every month. She once commented that I had too many white heads, and asked if I used cleansing oil. I told her positive, and she told me that cleansing oils are really bad because they clog my pores. At first, I did not believe her, as I only used the best cleansing oils out there.

Nevertheless, I started using cleansing cream about 1.5 months ago, and I have never been happier!! I didn't have pimples anymore, until 2 days ago when one popped out suddenly (grrrrrrrrrrrr). Really, 1.5 months and only 1 pimple - pretty impressive :) White heads on nose, forehead and side of cheeks are noticeably reduced, and I don't really need to use pore pack for my nose anymore. I am so glad I started using cleansing cream!

Anyway, the Maylily cleansing cream does deep cleansing for my skin. I use a cherry size amount each time, and I only use it at night. I massage the cream all over my dry face for about a minute to remove makeup (nothing waterproof), then rinse with water. I repeat the same process for a second time. If I do not put makeup on that day, I will just wash with the cream once instead of twice. 

I have used other creams before, long long time ago (like Kose and Kanebo), and I am glad to say that this one feels less greasy on the skin as compared to those I had used before. The result is fresh, not to mention the process absolutely pleasant because I love the lily scent. I like it!

Rating: 5/5. No reason not to give it full marks. It's reasonably priced, does its job, and smells great! For me, at least.

Maylily Cleansing Foam, 232ml, $19.90

This tube of stuff is HUGE. I have never seen such a large tube of foaming cleanser. I believe I will take many many months to finish it.

Texture is really stiff. Interesting~

Very foamy!! So fun to play with! HAHAHA

I bought this to use for mornings. It has the same awesome scent as the cleansing cream. It is a very normal tube of cleansing foam. After the wash, my face feels clean and refreshed, however slightly tight. I am not too bothered by it, as I always put toner, serum and moisturiser immediately after that. I think I will still be using this next year this time ^_________^, but I don't think I will repurchase after I am finally through with it!

Rating: 3/5. Great value for money, but slightly drying for skin. There are better cleansers around.

L'Oreal Youth Code Rejuvenating Anti-wrinkle EYE Cream

Thank you to all my readers, despite me taking an extended break from blogging! I really, really, really have not been buying much makeup, so I am back again with a skincare review :) 

Well, let's get down to business…

I practically sprinted down to Guardian to buy this after my beautician commented that my eyelids are showing signs of loosening. I mean, I can totally believe what she said, because I had been having some eyelid sensitivity problem with eyelash glue and eyeliner, thus they kept swelling (every night) and de-swelling (next morning). The skin there is bound to suffer the consequences after all the stretching activities *cringe*

So she told me I should start using firming eye cream, and off I went to get this:

I think the usual price of this is $40+, but I got this at a discount at Guardian at $34.90.
15ml each

I consider this expensive for drug-store skincare, retailing at $40+ for an eyecream. Thus, I expected results from it. However, understanding that I have seldom used an eyecream that really does much to dark circles, wrinkles etc, I have adjusted my expectations of eyecreams quite a bit.

To me, an eyecream must:

1. Moisturise

2. Absorb quickly and NOT feel greasy if i accidentally rubbed my eyes an hour later

3. Not cause eyeshadow to crease and eyeliner to smudge

This eyecream totally pass my requirements.

One jar should last for about 3 months

When I started using this about 1.5 months ago, I was still having my 'eyelids swelling and de-swelling' problem. It stung like hell when I applied this cream over my sensitive eyelids. I really must applaud my courage to continue using it despite the uncomfortable sensation. After 2 weeks, my sensitive lids condition improved, and now my eyes no longer swelled as much as a month ago. I attribute the change to 50% this cream, and 50% to the change of eyelash glue (I switched from some Taiwanese brand to DUO, which was less sticky but more gentle).

The cream does a good job in moisturising my eye area, as the fine lines go under control each night after application. I can see my eyes lifted, looking more awake after I used this. Of course, I didn't expect the effect to last the whole day, but I feel good every time I applied it, especially at night (after a tiring day, and I can see horrible lines when I smile). I use it twice a day, day and night.

The texture of the cream is not creamy, but reminds me of the mousse of mousse cakes LOL!! The cream feels kind of 'hard' like The Body Shop's body butters, but much much less creamy. It kind of has the texture of Hazeline Snow, that is, if Hazeline Snow is still like how it used to be 20 years ago (I used it as a kid when I was still in Hong Kong). I use about a pea size of product each time (quite a lot in my opinion), and after a little bit of massaging and tapping, the cream is absorbed. I like eyecreams that do not feel greasy, yet moisturising enough.

The only downside of this product for me is the packaging. It is really inconvenient and quite unhygienic to be digging my finger into the pot to scoop out the product everytime. A pump would be nice -_-

Overall rating: 4/5 (-1 for the packaging)

I will be trying Laneige Water Bank Eye Gel next!

NARUKO Narcissus Defense BB Sunscreen SPF50

First of all, many apologies to those who have been waiting for updates…

I promised a makeup tutorial… but I simply have no time to do it! Coming January, I would be rather free. I hope I will have time to do it then… sigh…

Anyway, recently I started using NARUKO's Narcissus Defense BB Sunscreen. I first noticed this brand after watching 女人我最大，a Taiwanese beauty variety show. NARUKO believes in delivering quality products at affordable prices. That explains why their packaging is rather simple, because the quality of their products lie within the bottle, not pretty packaging! LOL

I got the BB Sunscreen from Watson's. I think I got it at $25.90, which I think is quite reasonable!

SPF50, 30ml

The texture of the sunscreen is very light, totally not oily like a lot of other sunscreens with SPF50. 

I can't really tell how effective it is in blocking UV rays, but it definitely does not break me out, or make my skin oily. Since it is SPF50, I feel safe going out even when there's lots of sunlight.

There aren't much difference to the appearance of my skin before and after application in the photos below, but in real life my skin does look a little fairer and smoother after application.

Before

After

I really like this sunscreen, not because it works wonders for my skin. In fact, I don't think my skin has improved after using it for 3 weeks, but I do like its light texture and affordable price tag! I will repurchase :)

Ettusais Medicated Pre-acne Care Sheet

As I find that I tend to have quite some nasty pimples, during certain days every month >_<, I thought that it might be good if I try Ettusais' pre-acne care sheet. I can't really remember how much I got it for, but official site says it's $49, though I thought I paid $50+ for it… hmm…

The care sheet is designed to strengthen the skin that becomes prone to pimples before menstruation each month. About 1-2 weeks before menstruation, this can be used on areas where pimples usually appear. This is used as the last step of my skincare regime. After applying Ettusais Skin Version-up Extra, Dual Effect White-shooter and Whitening Essence, I put 1 sheet of the care sheet at area above my lips, and 1 sheet at my chin, the 2 areas on my face most prone to painful large pimples. I leave the sheets on for 5-10 minutes. After that, I massage the remaining essence into my skin and follow with Medicated Acne Defense Nighttime Powder.

I can see some immediate results after I remove the sheets, especially at the chin area, where the skin's texture is usually very rough, with those impossible-to-remove kind of white heads 'embedded' in the skin. After care sheet, the skin looks and feels smoother, and some of the white heads actually seem to have disappeared. Did the care sheet 'melt' them down? 

So after using 2 sheets every night for 2 weeks, only 1 pimple appeared, when usually I would get 3-4 every month before menstruation. In fact, I remember that last week, 2 red bumps appeared, one above lips, and 1 at the chin. After 2 days, the bump above lips did not develop into a pimple, but the one at chin did. I am pretty sure it was the care sheet that managed to calm the skin down. Too bad it couldn't get rid of the pimple at my chin, which I think was the more serious one. However, I think the result was  good enough for me! 

The care sheets sting a little upon application, but that kinds of make me feel that the care sheet is working...

Sealed with aluminum foil, so that the essence do not dry up

50 thin sheets, shaped like those black heads pore packs with slits for better fit

Comes with tweezers so that it is convenient to pick the care sheets up

A loop attached to the side of jar packaging to hold the tweezer

Though this product does not solve my pre-menstrual acne problem 100%, I find it effective enough and will definitely buy the refill once I am done with the 50 sheets in my jar. 

Hello Kitty x Sexylook Limited Edition Masks

This is number 1 of my Post-Taipei posts =D

Hello Kitty limited edition masks! Best thing is… it's made by one of my favourite brands of masks - Sexylook. Yup I know I know… the brand name sounds cheesy. In fact, most cosmetic products with the word 'sexy' in their brand name usually make me think twice before buying. To make things worse, 'sexy + look' just sound too literal! Haha! But I am glad I picked up their masks.

Sexylook is a Taiwanese brand founded in 2008. I have only tried their whitening mask before this, but I already think that they make one of the best masks I have ever used.

As the packaging has everything written in Chinese (including product name), I try my best to translate most product information and its uses to English =D

Each box contains 7 masks. I got 2 boxes with NT299 (approx SGD13). It was buy 1 get 1 free! Cheap, isn't it???

Ingredients

Product name: Brightening Firming White Rose Double Lifting Mask (literal translation…sorry! Please let me know if you know the product's English name. Many thanks! ^^)

Product use:

1. White rose extract helps to moisturise and brighten skin for a radiant, translucent effect. Together with skin lifting formula, skin becomes soft, smooth and firm.

2. Collagen and hyaluronic acid maintain skin's moisture level and elasticity.

My take on this:

Three words.

I LOVE IT!

This mask is great. Firstly, the mask feels great. It has a light floral scent, which is pleasant, which I love. I enjoy the scent the whole time I had the mask on. There is a refreshing sensation when I was doing the mask, not like some masks that just feel 'wet' on face, so that I want to tear the mask off already. After 20 minutes, my face is visibly brightened and smooth. Texture just look great, and I can feel that skin is 'bouncy' and moisturised. The essence of the mask left on the skin easily absorbs when I massage it in, and does not leave any greasy after feel. When I follow with my usual whitening essence, my skin does not feel extra oily, like some masks would.

Score: 5/5! Great results, best value, adorable packaging!

Ingredients

Product name: Ultra Moisturising Pink Sakura Double Lifting Mask

Product use:

1. Cherry (box says 'cherry', not 'sakura'. I am confused…) and strawberry polyphenol minimises large pores, smoothening and improving skin texture .

2. Collagen and hyaluronic acid moisturise skin from within

My take on this:

I haven't tried this yet. Will update once I have!

Anyway, these are called 'double lifting' masks because of their unique 'cheek and chin lift' mask design:

As I am not very sure how to describe how to put this on, I let the picture below do the job:

When I hook the 'ear holes' of the mask over my ears, I feel a tight pulling effect, so I guess that creates the lifting effect of the chin. When I remove the mask, I am not sure whether my face is lifted or not, but I guess the mask design makes me feel that it has, psychologically…? =p As the mask is pulled tightly across the face, the mask does not really fit the nose area well. But that can be easily fixed by making 2 cuts on either sides of the nose bridge of the mask with my scissors.

If you want to read more about these masks, pls click here (in Chinese).

Review: Neogence Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Mask

This is currently one of my favourite sheet masks. It mainly soothes and hydrates dry skin. The mask is made of thin fibre which ensures best penetration of essence into the skin; and the mask is cut precisely to ensure that it fits and covers the face well. It contains 30ml of product per mask.

This mask caught my attention when it was put as one of the best buys in Sasa. It was selling at only $1.95 per piece! The original prices is $20+ for 6 pieces. So $1.95 is indeed quite a good price. The promotion is currently still on at Sasa!! I am thinking of going back to get more (I only got 3 to try), but oh well... I still have a lot of other masks to use...

I really love this mask because of these reasons:

1. Affordable

2. Fast absorption

3. Fresh feel after use

4. My skin was smooth, hydrated and visibly brightened!

Now, how could anyone be not tempted to get this mask?? =D You could read up more about their products here.

Review: Chanel UV Essentiel Multi-Protection Daily Care SPF50/PA+++

30ml, SGD73

After reading lots of positive reviews from Makeup Alley, I decided to give this expensive sunblock a try, though I really have been using drugstore sunblock for a very long time, like my favorite from Kanebo.

I like the elegant, simple packaging of this Chanel UV protector. Though its just white and rectangular, you can tell that it's expensive stuff (I have no idea why my HTC Desire HD camera pics turned all blurry here).

This sunblock has a noticeable floral scent, typical in Chanel skincare (I must say I bought it partly because I was attracted to the scent). The texture is neither thick nor runny. When spread on face, it is slightly whitish; but when I let the stuff settle into my skin, I don't see the color anymore, though it does leave behind a slightly sticky feeling like most sunblocks do. I think it can be used as a sunblock + primer, as the chinese description says "多重防晒隔离乳", where the last 3 words means "primer". This is not really stated in the English description though.

I do not see any special improvement in my skin after using this for a week, and I do find foundation application slightly more difficult as it is "stickier" then the Kanebo one I was used to. Foundation is kind of harder to spread on face evenly, but not really so difficult that it becomes a problem.

I have mixed feelings for this product. Though I like the feeling of spreading it on my face because it feels like a nicely scented moisturiser, I find the price of it too high for me to repurchase.