Monthly Archives: August 2011

Review: Biotherm Source Therapie 7 Perfection Catalyzing Serum

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My Mum always stresses on how important serums are and how they really ‘penetrate into your skin’. I used to hate using serums because in humid Malaysia it means:
One extra layer of gunk on your face = Added greasiness (on top of everything else)
However, coming to a cold, dry country has made me realize the importance of using serums! 
As I hate oil-based serums, I was on the lookout for a serum that wouldn’t leave my skin greasy and a ex-housemate introduced this to me.
The ‘Biotherm Biologists’ claim to have immersed 7 ionized minerals in an ultra-sensorial velvety-gel to catalyze skin perfection: cellular renewal increases, hydration flows within the skin’s surface layers, and skin is visibly revitalized.
Sounds impressive, doesn’t it? The serum comes in two sizes, 30ml and 50ml bottles and the one I have here is the 50ml one which lasts about 4 months (if the bf doesn’t nick it). I love how light this serum is! One pump is all you need for your face and it’s slightly runny:
Prior to using this, I had a few dry patches on my cheeks which I couldn’t seem to get rid of but this serum took all the dryness away within a week! I’ve been repurchasing this over the last two years now and this is definitely saying something seeing I love trying new products and I always have this ‘out with the old, in with the new’ theory. =p 
This definitely works for me as my skin has never reacted to this product! I wouldn’t say it’s a miracle product where the effects are immediate but with constant use this not only keeps your skin nicely hydrated but gives you a glowing complexion too!
Other than Biotherm’s  Aquasource Skin Perfection Moisturizer and Skin.Ergetic Serum (review to come soon), I have very high praise for some of their other skin care products such as their Aquasource Gel, Face Scrub and even Cleansers because my skin has never been better when using them! 
This is a HG product for me and I will keep repurchasing them in bulk (during Christmas sales when their gift sets come with generously sized freebies)!!
Do you have a favourite serum you can’t live without? ;)

O London, how I miss thee!

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I miss Piccadilly Circus,
Where I usually get my fix of Teriyaki Soba in Tsuyu stock at the Japan Centre.
I also miss
Butler’s Chocolate Cafe at Westfield shopping centre because you get a free chocolate with any hot drink purchased:
Since we’re talking about chocolates, I miss Rococo Chocolates! They do the best Rose chocolates EVER:

Inamo for its interactive order system that gets you giddy after a while (food’s not that great by the way but dining there itself is an eye-opener):

Monmouth Coffee Company for their incredibly aromatic and rich, full-bodied coffee:
Hummingbird Bakery’s Red Velvet cupcakes when you don’t feel like baking your own:
Or you could have some lobster noodles at Lido Restaurant, Leicester Square:
Then finish everything off with some Nitro ice-cream at Chin Chin Labs:
Oh dear, I really AM such a GLUTTON! +__+ Staying in sleepy Canterbury made me realise how much I miss vibrant London! =(

Review: M.A.C Dame Blush (Satin)

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My first of the two MAC blushes i purchased a good weekend ago! I wasn’t sure whether to purchase this or not as it had a cool pink tone (I prefer coral blushes) and I thought I saw some blueish sparkles / shimmer in it. I’m not too keen on cool blushes as I always think they make me look even more ghastly what more with blue sparkles in it! 
The SA insisted it looked good on pale skin tones and somehow persuaded me to try it on! I was pleasantly surprised after application as this gave me ‘naturally’ flushed pink cheeks! 
This blush isn’t as pigmented as some other blushes I swatched in store but I see it as a good thing for people like me who have to be very, very careful when applying pigmented blushes as I don’t want to end up looking like a clown. With Dame you can just dust it onto your cheeks and not worry about looking like one! 
Here’s a swatch (I had to swipe it about 4 times just to get the colour to show up):
Even after 4 swipes the colour’s still quite sheer! This is a Satin blush which I think is quite close to Matte blushes in terms of texture but it goes on less powdery (aiks if this makes any sense) and has a subtle shimmer to it. I tried a few Matte blushes but they were all too powdery for my liking. Then again, I may change my mind. =)
I’m pleased with my first MAC blush! I haven’t given Peachykeen a go yet as I’ve been happily dusting Dame onto my cheeks without looking at a mirror and so far I haven’t gone wrong with it yet! =p 
This is a lovely blush to have if you are quite pale as you don’t need very much to achieve that just-ran-through-the-fields-flushed-look without having to do any exercise =p Darker skin tones may like this too as the colour intensity is buildable. So what do you think of this blush? If you own one, are you enjoying it as much as I do? =)

Review: Chanel Aqualumiere Gloss (Canari)

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I was going home for CNY this year and I really wanted to… Look good. =p It’s my first time celebrating Chinese New Year in over 3 years now so I thought I’d splurge and get myself a nice lipgloss. 
Having being ignored after walking round and round the M.A.C counter at Heathrow Terminal 3′s Duty Free zone I decided to pop over to Chanel’s make-up counter where the lovely SA (they do a lot of damage to my wallet, these lovely SAs) proceeded to help me pick a colour! 
As I have mentioned many a time, I’m extremely new to make-up so I did need a lot of help choosing a colour! Back then I was really shy about wearing really bright colours on my lips so she suggested their Aqualumiere Glosses as they are sheer and moisturizing at the same time (I did tell her I wanted something sheer and that I’m a lip balm addict) =p 
Here’s the shade I (or rather, the SA) chose! It’s number 697 (Canari):
A close-up shot of the gloss:
It looks more pigmented in the tube than on the lips but it’s such a pretty peachy pink colour with gold shimmer swirled in it! 
I also like the small brush applicator as it allows more precise application:
What I like most about this gloss is that it isn’t sticky at all and glides on easily!
I swatched it on my arm just so you can see the pretty shimmer:
I had to apply about 3 layers to get the colour to show so if it’s only one swatch you will pretty much be seeing clear gloss!
Tried really hard to get a good lip swatch but this is the best I could do to get the gloss and shimmer to show up! Apologise for the blemishes as I’ve been having quite a bad breakout around my mouth area (yup I’m a glutton) =p
This retails at £20 but I think I paid something like £17 for it thanks to Duty Free! 
If you are looking for a pigmented gloss then this isn’t for you but this looks really really pretty when worn over lippies because the shimmer adds a new dimension to the look. I usually wear this by itself as I just want a little hint of glossiness / shimmer on my lips on days when I don’t feel like wearing stronger colours. 
Like all glosses, lasting power isn’t great but it doesn’t bother me!
£20 for a lipgloss is rather steep as I think you can get nice dupes from Bourjois (Chanel’s sister company) but I can see this lasting me quite a while and we do need a bit of luxury in our lives, don’t we all? ;)

My Current Lust List!

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I’m always lusting after make-up / skin care products so I’m going to try listing down only five products I really, really want! 
*takes a deep breath*
Here goes!
nicked from Chanel’s Website
Beautiful, beautiful colours, aren’t they? Not exactly cheap at £22.50 a pop and I hear these eyeshadows have a very unique texture! I’e got my eye on Emerveille which is the pinky / peachy shade (top row far right) as I’m not very adventurous with colours! =p What’s your favourite shade?
again, nicked from Chanel
It’s meant to be used as an iridescent eyeshadow but I will definitely use it as a highlighter / blush! Sigh if only I can afford it! =p So very pretty and limited edition too so grab this one before it sells out! 
photo nicked off SpaceNK
Terry de Gunzberg is the one who created Touche Eclat and he created this too! I’ve been reading rave reviews about this product but at £33 it’s a little steep! Then again you do get more product at 6.5ml as opposed to Touche Eclat’s 2.5ml (retails at £24.50)!! Good value for money if you’re asking me! Then money no enough…. *sighs*
photo nicked from Selfridges
A bit of a frivolous want, this! I saw it in person at Selfridges a few weeks back and I thought it looked quite pretty! Then again I wouldn’t be using it and at £61.50 it’s way too expensive and pretty to use! A girl can only wish, can’t she? ;)  
photo nicked from Diptyque
Aah….. Diptyque candles! Luxury candles I can only imagine smelling *sniffs air* =p I’m waiting for their sale but I can’t bring myself to buy something I’ll be burning away after and at £38 I don’t think my parents will be too happy =p 
So there you go! I managed to ‘shrink’ my extremely long lust list! Do you have any items (beauty or not) that you are currently lusting after? Do let me know! =p 
Happy Saturday everyone! xxx

Lo Mai Kai (Sticky Glutinous Rice) to warm the soul.

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I’m like a pregnant lady who craves food all the time. Sadly I never get what I crave when in the UK because I crave the most ridiculous items like:
1. Durian (Okay they sell this in London’s Chinatown but I live in Canterbury)
2. Char Koay Teow (the authentic one, fried over a charcoal stove with charred bits)
3. Roti Canai (none of that frozen Paratha bits you get in Asda)
4. Seafood. Fresh, cheap seafood. Sigh I miss crabs!
5. and the list goes on and on.
I had this really serious craving for sticky rice a few days ago which led me to check out Pig Pig’s Corner and the recipe didn’t look too difficult! This then led to a crazy impulse e-shopping trip at Starry Asian Market   where I picked up Glutinous rice, Shao Xing wine and what not!
The recipe belongs to Pig Pig’s Corner and you can see it here! 
First you will need to marinate the Chicken and Mushrooms overnight:
The marinade consists of dark and light soy sauce, some Shao Xing wine, oyster sauce, sesame oil, ground white pepper and some sugar. Please check out the original recipe  as the lazy me doesn’t want to retype the entire recipe out. =p 
Then you need to soak the glutinous rice overnight or else your rice will not cook! 
I don’t have a huge steamer so I DIYed one! It didn’t work very well as this method did not steam the rice evenly lol!
First, get the biggest pot in the house and fill it with some water:
Put the metal bowl / smaller pot on top of it:
Pop the pot’s lid on and you’re ready to go! Just remember to fluff the rice with a fork 15 minutes into steaming the rice!
Not ideal but I’ve got to make do with whatever I have! =p 
I like skinning my chinese sausages (because goodness knows if the ‘case’ is made out of plastic :s) 
Place the Chinese Sausages on top of the rice after you’ve fluffed it and let it cook for another 20 minutes (I let mine cook for an extra 40 minutes as the rice still wasn’t cook after 20 minutes hehe)
Then again, steaming the rice gives you ample time to stir-fry the chicken and mushrooms!
Once done, you can either arrange them in a large bowl or in small bowls like how I did it because I didn’t have a pot big enough to accommodate a big bowl! 
Fill the cooked glutinous rice to the brim! Make sure you press the rice down firmly or the shape wouldn’t hold! 
Then steam it again for a further 30 minutes and you’re ready to devour it! =p
The above photo was hastily taken because I couldn’t wait to tuck in! It’s delicious albeit slightly tedious due to the waiting time! 
Taste-wise, the bf commented it tastes just like the Lo Mai Kai we eat at home! So yummy and sticky! =p 
If you love cooking please check Pig Pig’s Corner out, she has lovely recipes!! =) 

What I do when my skin flares up!

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This, my dears was one of the few little things that came in June’s Glossybox. I’ve been using this for only 2 days when the bf realised the bumps on my arms were resurfacing and I was starting to get bumps near my elbow too! I suspect this is the culprit as my regular routine remains unchanged. 
It’s times like these I thank my hoarding genes =p Immediately, I whipped out my much-trusted duo: 
Cetaphil’s Gentle Skin Cleanser and Moisturizing Lotion! 
I’ve used Cetaphil’s Moisturizing Cream  for years and my dermatologist highly recommends it! You can actually use the Gentle Skin Cleanser on your face but I don’t as I have facial cleansers already so I save this bottle for when my KP acts up. 
Thing is, I never learn my lesson. I know I *must* be allergic to some ingredients in shower gels but I still use them because I like coming out of the shower smelling nice! As Cetaphil’s products have no perfume / fragrance in them, you come out of the shower smelling of…. Nothing. Sad, isn’t it? 
Anyway, in case any of you were wondering if the Abahna shower gel’s any good, the answer is NO. It smells funky. It’s a White Grapefruit and May Chang shower gel and it just smells really really strange. The bf commented it smells of bleach and Fairy liquid (dishwashing solution) mixed together. Eww. Then again, his skin did not react to the shower gel but he did mention the shower gel’s drying. 
Oh this also works really well during winter if your skin cracks… Mine does (especially the hands!) so I will usually use the Skin Cleanser for a couple of days until my chapped hands heal before going back to my  usual routine of nicely fragranced shower gels! I think having fragranced shower gels makes showers more fun, don’t you think? ;)
Here’s the ingredient list for the Gentle Skin Cleanser (a very short one!)
And the Moisturizing Lotion:

Review: Hada Labo BB Moist Cream SPF32 PA+++

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Before I start, here’s a little rant. I was chatting with Hanny last night on how I may never, ever find a BB cream that matches my shade. =( I must be one of the latest to jump on the whole BB cream hype but I can’t help myself! Who doesn’t like gimmicky products? ;) Okay maybe you practical lot wouldn’t but I sure do fall for marketing gimmicks! 
I can’t use Hada Labo’s skin care products but when I heard they released two different BB creams (no thanks to ParisB) I got really excited as she mentioned the Cream is at least one shade lighter than the Emulsion! 
I then hopped over to Kathi’s blog to get a second opinion on the cream and she did mention it’s a tad yellow for her. 
I thought:
‘Meh. I’m asian so my skin should be yellow.’
and off I went to purchase it. On my favourite Ebay Seller AlphabeautyUK. He ships really quickly, unlike my old favourite Adam Beauty who used to ship really quickly too. 
Digression here: I bought a few items off Adam Beauty some time last week and purchased Shiseido’s Tsubaki conditioner off AlphabeautyUK like 4 days ago and I received my Tsubaki conditioner today but my Adam Beauty parcel is no where to be seen! =( 
Then again it’s only one week and I shouldn’t complain! I’m one impatient + paranoid person where I used to fret so much about my friends not receiving my parcels… Lol I know some of you would know what I mean! ;)  
Digression end.
Back to the BB cream! Initially I was a bit worried the ingredients might break me out but oh what the heck I was desperate to find a BB cream that suits my skin tone! =p 
If I remember correctly I paid around £12 for this including shipping. The tube contains 45g which isn’t too bad considering Bourjois’ foundations cost between £10-£12 and do not have SPF in them! 
Since both Paris and Kathi mentioned the BB cream is rather yellow, I was prepared when I squeezed it out of the tube:
I’m more of an emulsion person as I hate having heavy creams sitting on my face as I always have the impression creams will leave me greasy and sticky. I only bought the cream because *ahem* ParisB mentioned the shade’s lighter than the emulsion! Don’t get me wrong though I’m not blaming her for anything it’s just I trust both her and Kathi’s reviews so much that I just took the plunge.
I also blame myself for being an impulse shopper. =p 
Then again, this cream feels really light upon application! This does not blend out as easily as the Dr. G bb cream  but this feels a lot lighter in texture. I would say it’s a perfect match for me if not for the yellowness of this cream:
I have a slight (very slight) pink undertone and this turned my face yellow. Not the Digiman Yellow but I looked… Different. If you look at my wrist in the above photo you will notice my natural skin tone’s not all that yelow!
In all honesty, I always saw myself as ‘yellow’ seeing I’m Asian. I wore this to work and my colleague went
‘Whoa did your self-tanning session go wrong? You look incredibly yellow!’
T___T
I haven’t worn this out since. But I might try wearing this with a dusting of Guerlain Meteorites… You never know what might happen! =p 
So BB Cream recommendations please! =p 
Update 28/8: I forgot to mention which shade I got this in! I got this in Natural Beige (the lighter shade) by the way =) Many thanks to Nic Nic for pointing this out! =)

Review: M.A.C Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Medium

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A good friend of mine gave this to me early last year saying something along the lines of….
‘Sukie I think it’s about time you actually started using make-up’

Me: O.o
Actually, I have her to thank for my addiction to make-up products as this is my first base make-up product ever. Prior to this I have always been a moisturizer / sunscreen girl with the occasional lipgloss (not lipstick but that has changed…. I have come a long way haha) so this introduced me to the world of make-up! =p
K says to use this as either a foundation or a setting powder but I obviously started out using this as my foundation because I don’t have one and it really made a difference! Although the shade’s a little dark for me I noticed how my complexion looked even and those pores on my nose were practically invisible! 
I apply this with an E.L.F  Kabuki Brush, also given to me by K who’s ever so lovely! <3 
I treasure this so much that I rarely use this because I consider this my first ever make-up product and everytime I use this it reminds me of her. =) Also, I can’t seem to make a dent in this product which is a bit strange seeing I’ve been using it nearly everyday when I go to uni! Either this product is bottomless or… the kabuki brush isn’t picking up any powder haha! 
I currently have quite a few powders to go through so I wouldn’t be repurchasing this until I’ve actually used up the rest of my stash because this never seems to hit pan! 
I think it costs £20.50 in stores but do let me know if I’m wrong!
Rating: 4.5/5

The Scrubbing Diaries: Lush Ocean Salt Facial Scrub

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This is the culprit I mentioned in last week’s Scrubbing Diary! Lush’s Ocean Salt Facial Scrub!
I have a soft spot for Lush as I have never, had an allergic reaction when using their products! If I’m in London, I’ll always drop by their Covent Garden’s branch to get at least something. I will never walk out of Lush empty handed because there’s always something I want / need from the shop! =D
I needed a facial scrub after finishing my Neutrogena pink grapefruit one so I hopped over to Lush one happy London-bound weekend to check this out! I was actually really shocked when I saw those HUGE LUMPS OF SEA SALT in the scrub:
The SA convinced me this was ‘gentle enough’ for my face and seeing it IS a facial scrub and I did want a ‘complexion that glows’…. I caved in. 
This is what it’s like after spreading it out. You can really see those lumps of salt peeking out at you!
Ugh. I have been using this as a body scrub and I have to say this is an extremely rough scrub, not at all like my favourite Weleda Birch Scrub! My skin hated this product as it was really scratchy and left me with little cuts all over!
I’ve tried emulsifying the scrub before but if your scrub has lumps this big you will never be able to melt the salt! 
Lumps of salt aside, I really like the texture of the scrub as it is mousse-like and I figured it may do as a rather nice facial scrub if I removed the bits of salt…. and it did! It works like any other gentle facial scrub and doesn’t break me out nor leave my skin dry after use!

In Lush’s defense, they are now using finer sea salt in their Ocean Scrubs after complaints from customers so this is worth giving a go as I love that it has vodka in it *alcoholic* and the exotic tropical scent (coconut and lime) reminds me of home… *sighs*

As always, here’s the ingredient list!
 I do like the scrub (minus the gritty bits) very much and I just might give their new formula a go when this runs out! I can’t see myself running out of this anytime soon seeing a little goes a very long way with those gritty bits! 
Ocean Salt comes in two sizes, £6.75 for 120g and £12.50 for 250g.

Rating: 2/5