Aromatherapy Associates Renewing Rose Cleanser review

I was introduced to Aromatherapy Associates by accident, and I bought a set of cleanser-toner-face-oil from Beautybay last year, and have recently opened them as cream cleansers have become my best friend now. My skin can no longer take heavy-foam cleansers since it's turning dry, and it took me a while to get used to cream cleansers, and this cleanser has really converted me into a cream cleanser fan.

Fresh Soy Face Cleanser Review

I fell in love with Fresh Soy Face Cleanser after trying out a deluxe sample a few years ago, in Sephora's last FF sale, I asked a friend of mine to pick it up (since the product is pretty marked up locally). I have been using it in rotation with other cleansers and it's time to properly review it.

Clarins White Plus Total Luminescent Pearl-to-Cream cleanser, Brightening Soft Aqua-Milk review

Clarins had been a keeper in my books ever since I tried their hero BB Cream. A while ago I've been given these two Clarins products to test, and today I'll be sharing my thoughts and verdicts with you: they are the Pearl-to-Cream Brightening Cleanser, and Brightening Soft Aqua-milk, both from the newly revamped White Plus Total Luminescent Line!

GLYCEL White Ice Sleeping Eye Mask, Whitening Toner and Whitening Cleansing Milk reviews

Today I'll be talking about whitening products from GLYCEL - a Swiss skincare brand. The brand had released the "White Ice Series" especially in Asia for women who are after white and radiant skin. I'm not big about whitening products but I admit I do have a few spots I like to "whiten", namely my under eyes and post-breakout dark spots (eeeek!).

Trilogy Balancing Gel Cleanser Review

I've been testing out this Gel Cleanser from Trilogy lately. Trilogy is a skincare brand based in New Zealand and their products are like the packaging, simple yet effective. You might have heard of the Rose Hip Oil released by Trilogy before, the oil was voted best in various women's magazines. Trilogy skincare is available on Boots.com, Lovelula.com, Zuneta.com (previously).

Attempting to curb my HAUL-iday madness - the very first Empties Post

Happy Holidays my lovlies! I was inspired the other day to do an Empties Post (after reading Beauty Reductionista's blog, Rouge Deluxe's, and many others), startled at the rate my beauty stash is growing, I decided a curb on the haul-iday madness (pardon me for the pun). Holiday is a a very good / bad time for good deals, depending on how you see it. Most brands would release value-saving makeup / skincare sets which entices you to buy because the sets are such a bargain. My soul fell weak in front of these holiday deals. That was when I embarked on keeping product empties on a monthly basis, and do a short review of each of them.

HG Cleanser: LUSH Angels on Bare Skin Review//LUSH 流星天使洗面膏

This post will introduce another item from my January favourites post, it's ice cream! LOL just kidding...it's Angels on Bare Skin Face Cleanser that comes in an ice cream pot. I bought this when meeting up with a fellow blogger Stellar in Hong Kong. It's the first LUSH skincare I bought and I am in love with it ever since!

今日同大家介紹近排非常非常之喜愛既洗面膏, 佢就係LUSH既流星天使洗面膏喇. 包裝好似雪糕咁, 好有新鮮感! 舊年俄同Stellar去街時買既, LUSH既香氛皂之前都有試過, 但佢地既護膚品就係第一次用, 用完就愛上了 .

Directions for use: Take a blob (I take the size of my thumb nail) from the pot and mix it with water. Add water bit by bit though... it's easy to go overboard with water and the texture will be very runny.

用法: 拎適量既洗面膏放手心 (個人會拎大約像姆指指甲大小份量), 加少量水. 不過水還是慢慢加, 太多的話便會令洗面膏質感水汪汪的了.

If you have sensitivity towards smell and scent, I encourage you to smell this before buying. This cleanser carries a strong herbal /lavender scent which can be soothing for some (or tormenting if you don't like it). I like the smell a lot though :3 As you can see in the photos, there are lavender (?) granules inside it. The product info says rose is for softening skin, ground almonds for exfoliating, and lavender is for controlling the skin's natural oils. This is another reason why I like this cleanser because it doubles as an exfoliator when you mix it with water, it becomes a 'paste' and the granules are not harsh to rub on skin. Since the formula is so gentle, LUSH website says this cleanser is suitable for all skin types.

流星天使洗面膏有好濃郁既薰衣草味, 聞落好舒服, 好relax. 個人非常喜歡它的味, 每朝起身洗完面成個人醒晒, 臨訓前洗完面之後塊面好滑. 洗面膏裡面有碎杏仁, 薰衣草同玫瑰香薰精華油, 拎黎洗面同時去角質好岩. 用黎做面部磨砂都唔洗驚會令毛孔變大, 因為D碎杏仁都好幼細, 好溫和 (見下圖).

Thoughts:

Ever since having this cleanser, it makes me look forward to the cleansing step each day and night, partly because the exfoliating bit is fun, seriously! I don't abject the herbal smell, I found the smell to be quite soothing on the senses, and this product definitely leaves my face feeling so fresh like it can finally breathes again, no products can do that so far.

As far as my wallet is concerned, I would gladly make a repurchase of this cleanser despite the price tag being a bit over my usual budget for a cleanser (I paid ~$130 HKD for this jar, $119HKD/120 grams). A jar of this would probably last you 1.5-2 months (buy it HERE). I think I'd try Dark Angels next!

呢隻洗面膏令我每日都好期待洗面既一刻, 我好鍾意佢既磨砂既效果, 香之餘, 洗完面令到個人好relaxed, 塊面又好滑. 雖然佢比我平時用開既洗面膏貴少少, 一jar可以用兩個月 (buy HERE), 但係好值得試試, 所以回購既機會都頗大, 但係我會想試下黑色天使洗面膏.

P.S. A guy friend of mine was complimenting on my skin the other day and said my skin has become smoother, I immediately thought of Angels on Bare Skin!! It might be the NARS Copacabana Multiple that I have been using, or worse, the powder foundation that I've been using is not good at controlling oil and making my skin look 'glowy'.But I'm pretty sure Angels on Bare Skin has its effects!

P.S. 前幾日有男友人讚皮膚滑了, 我第一時間就諗起Angels on Bare Skin!!

Monthly Favourites (Jan 2011) //每月至愛產品

I've been terribly sick for days, spent 3 whole days in bed and ate @#$%^&* kinds of medicine, am still recovering. I apologize for lagging behind the comments and stuff :( I realized that Chinese New Year is just around the corner, so I better get this post published, lol. I'll introduce these darlings which I have been using religiously in January.

大病了一場，在床上渡過三日三夜，嚴重跟不上blog同comments, 真的對不起. 我剛醒起還有數天便過農曆新年了, 都是趕快出埋post佢先 ^_^ 今次介紹既係本人今個月至愛用既產品 :D

1) DollyWink Pencil Liner in Brown:

Bought this at around $10 Euros. Application is effortless and smooth, high pigmentation and no serious smudging problem. I love the fact that it's deep brown so it looks very flattering on the eyes (versus the dramatic black...). Its quality is on par with Urban Decay 24/7 Liners! (full review to come later :))

DollyWink深啡色眼線鉛筆:

以$99左右購入. 劃得非常順暢, 我喜歡它深啡色, 比黑色自然很多. 上色度高, 沒有嚴重脫色問題. 個人覺得質量可以媲美Urban Decay 24/7 系列的眼線筆! (詳細評語容後再post :))

2) Chacott loose settling powder in #763 Translucent

I've seen this powder appearing over and over again in Japanese magazines, and was finally able to locate a shop that sells this in store. What should I say? After trying this, I don't want to look at any other loose powder (just kidding lol). Chacott is a company that makes stage cosmetics for ballet school and the quality of this loose powder is superb, the powder is finely milled. It controls oil decently and keeps my makeup fresh throughout the day. (full review to come later)

Chacott 定妝碎粉 (#763 透明色)

經常在日本雜誌看到的妝品, 終於比我找到在那裡有得買了. 只要試過之後, 其他碎粉都看不上眼了 (說笑). Chacott幫一間芭蕾舞學校設計的舞台化妝, 呢隻碎粉品質非常高, 質感細滑, 控油一流, 個妝真係可以保持到好耐. (詳細評語容後再post :))

3) LUSH Angels On Bare Skin Face Cleanser (潔面)

If you don't mind the herbal scent, this is a superb cleanser and exfoliator for face! I've been using it religiously ever since I bought it. It made my face feel so refreshing after I use it. There are lavender particles in it and it helps to exfoliate too! (full review here)

如果你不介意香草味的話 (註: 不是薄荷味), 呢隻洗面膏係好好既選擇. 裡面有薰衣草同玫瑰粒子, 洗面之餘可以做埋磨砂. 每次洗完面都覺得好fresh, 自從買了它回家便一直使用了. (詳細評語)

4) Essential Ultra Honey & Shea Butter Hair Mask (Nuance Airy)

This hair mask is the best buy of the month, lol. It's affordable and smells like honey. I've been using it for numerous times since I bought it 2 weeks ago, it makes my hair baby soft :) I've been doing lots of blow-drying to my hair recently and this is a perfect product to repair damaged bits. (full review HERE)

這瓶 hair mask超抵買, 平之餘好好用. 前排經常性吹頭, D頭髮好粗糙好乾. 買了這個 hair mask兩星期後我 keep 住用, 頭髮變返柔順, 軟滑, 聞落仲好香! (詳細評語)

5) Orbis Foam Esthe Pack (warm foam mask) 暖暖泡沫面膜

I got this when Stellar and I went to shopping in our last beauty blogger meetup in December. I have been a loyal user of Orbis skincare and I can't believe I discover this gem so late! The mask comes in a metal bottle, with an airtight pump on top. The foam is white and when applying it on your face you'll feel a tiny warming sensation. It's like mousse. This product leaves my face VELVETY SMOOTH!!! The best part? Only 5 minutes is needed, lol. (full review HERE)

去年十二月和Stellar的beauty blogger meetup時買的. 我用了 Orbis的Skincare已經三年有多, 很難相信現在才發現它!!! 嘎出黎既泡沫有點像mousse的質地, 上面後有暖暖的感覺, 用完皮膚好似絨布咁滑. 只需 5分鐘乍~ (詳細post請按此)

6) Shu Uemura Face Architect Smoothing Fluid Foundation//植川秀粉底液

This liquid foundation has medium coverage and is scented. It blends well and is perfect for winter.

這支粉底液遮瑕度OK, 容易推開, 冬天用至岩.

7) MAC Viva Glam x Lady Gaga lipstick // MAC Viva Glam x Lady Gaga唇膏

Gives my lips the perfect pink. I was worried that the nude and pale pink would wash me out, but I found it works eventually. I can't live without it now.

完美的粉紅色. 起初擔心會令我變得面無血色, 後來慢慢work了, 現在沒有了它便不行了.

What are your favourite products this month? Please share :)!

今個月你又愛用甚麼產品呢? :)