Monthly Archives: February 2012

Review: Phyto Phytocitrus Restructuring Hair Mask for Colour-Treated Hair

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Who doesn’t suffer from the occasional bad hair day? Recently, my hair was in a tangly, frizzy mess as I decided to abandon my favourite L’occitane conditioner in favour of Kiehl’s Amino Acid Conditioner. Funnily enough, my hair adores Kiehl’s Amino Acid shampoo (really breaks down all the grease on your scalp and leaves it comfortably soft and nourished!) but it just decided to go all frizzy when I started using their conditioner!
As the saying ‘mothers know best’ goes, Mum magically dropped this product on the table when I bemoaned the condition of my hair and said ‘yeah I was about to say your hair looks really dry.’ 
+____+
#telepathy at work? ;)  

Here’s a quick description on what the product does for you:
Phytocitrus provides the energy and radiance necessary to restore the beauty of hair weakened by colouring or bleaching products.

This rich and creamy mask is enriched with plant butters of illipe and shea, to deeply nourish and regenerate hair. Naturally acidic, grapefruit extract smoothes the hair scales in order to set the colour, while castor plant oil imparts ultimate shine. 

The restructuring properties of sweet almond protein leaves hair silky soft and incomparably supple, even after one application. 


I have heard of Phyto while in the UK as a housemate of mine uses their hair thinning treatment which she swears by! Her hair started falling / thinning after a homemade bleaching session went terribly wrong so she’s tried so many treatments out there but only this one seemed to work for her! 
By the way, I am pleasantly surprised that this brand is available in Malaysia as Phyto hair products are quite difficult to come by in Kent and I have no idea on where to get them in London! My housemate normally purchases them online so I never thought of giving their products a go. (of course, the slightly steep price tag doesn’t help. ;)  
Before I get on with the review, I thought I’d share how I use hair masks / treatments at home. =) 
1. Shampoo and rinse hair. (no conditioning)
2. Apply half a palmful of product to the ends and lengths of towel-dried hair.
3. Gently rub and comb (with hands) product through hair.
4. Tie hair into a loose bun and wear a shower cap over hair.
5. Leave for 30 minutes before rinsing out.
I do this with all hair masks, regardless of the instructions on the box! 
I expected the Phytocitrus Restructuring Hair Mask to smell citrusy due to the term ‘Phytocitrus’ but the product took on quite a strong shea butter scent (think L’occitane shea butter hand cream scent) with a certain almond-y sweetness to it. All very pleasant and not overly cloying, I promise! 
Texture’s thick – something I appreciate when it comes to hair masks as the last thing you want is having excess hair mask dripping down your neck while you’ve got it on your hair! 
Thankfully, my tangled hair did not put up a vicious fight with the Restructuring Hair Mask as I managed to conquer the tanglies (a made up word, no need to look it up)! ;)  
Not many products live up to their much-exaggerated claims…. But this one does! Rinsing the product out of my hair was a breeze and I did not suffer from having the leftover-treatment-in-hair symptom which is fab! 
Shiny hair? check.
Silky soft and incomparably supple hair? *looks at the boyfriend’s dry, scratchy hair* CHECK.
I have highlights in my hair but I cannot vouch that this product has helped me preserve my hair colour but if soft, shiny, manageable hair is what you’re after, this hair treatment works. Beautifully. 
Having used this over a month, paired with my favourite L’occitane conditioner - Stephanie has reviewed it here  my hair’s condition has improved drastically! 
Am extremely thankful and happy this came into my life… Thanks Mum!

Here’s the ingredient list:

Review: Kose Softymo Deep Cleansing Oil

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Let’s talk about cleansing oils today! Cleansing oils have been around for ages but I’ve only discovered them two years ago. A kind friend pointed out that I need to double cleanse should I use sunscreen as sunscreen can clog pores up and using one cleanser is simply not enough. 
I remember starting off with Shu Uemura’s cleansing oil (the yellow / original? one) and I broke out so badly that I stopped using cleansing oils.
T___T
Since I need to double cleanse, I turned to Clinique’s Rinse-Off Foaming Cleanser as this cleanser removes make up (not eye make up, methinks) and sunscreen effectively.
Went through quite a few tubes of this until I discovered www.sasa.com .
Wanting to give cleansing oils another chance, I bit the bullet and bought two cleansing oils from Kose’s Softymo range and one of them was the Deep Cleansing Oil:
Actually, I started using Kose’s Speedy Cleansing Oil before turning to this and I was really impressed with how the oil melted all the grime + make up off my face and I did not suffer from any breakouts / clogged pores after using the Speedy Cleansing Oil for 2 months.

With newfound confidence in using cleansing oils, I decided to bring the Deep Cleansing Oil back to KL to use even though I haven’t tested this out yet and it was a risk well taken! =D

The texture is thicker than the Speedy Cleansing Oil (which is quite runny) and I usually use between one pump to one and a half pumps, depending on how much make up I’ve got on my face. After applying and massaging the oil onto my dry face, I wet my hands a little and start emulsifying the oil! The oil will turn into a milky liquid when it comes into contact with water. I usually repeat the previous step until I can’t feel any oil left before splashing water on my face.

This cleansing oil also removes light eye make up but I usually use a separate eye make up remover because it makes me feel cleaner that way. Haha!

I love Kose Softymo’s cleansing oils and I wish they were readily available in Malaysia instead of having to purchase them online. =(  The price is rather affordable too at about USD7 a bottle.

Do you use cleansing oils? =)

Trigger-Happy Thursdays: of a not-so Trigger-Happy week!

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Dear readers, I haven’t been whipping my camera out as much as I usually do over the last week so this week’s column will be really short! =D 
Today’s post will start on a slightly sad note, lamenting the loss of my beloved childhood clock….. 

This clock was a gift from my parents to me as a toddler. I learnt how to tell the time with the help of this beautiful (then-working) clock! It lasted a glorious 20 years before finally breathing its last tick one cold, dark, stormy evening….
I jest. It ‘just stopped working’ – wise Mum’s words. 
I never got to witness its last tick.
T___T
We have since sent it to a charity where they collect damaged items, repair them and then sell them / send them to people in need. 
Our Valentine’s Day meal. We initially made a reservation for dinner at TGIF but the bf wanted fish and chips. Back in the UK, we used to frequent Whitstable for their delicious fish and chips so we decided to re-enact that. =) Dome Cafe and Restaurant does the best fish and chips in KL (or so we reckon) =D I had the Junior Fish and Chips meal whereas the boyfriend enjoyed the adult’s meal. =D 
I caught the bubble tea bug! Been trying many tea houses out there and this serves one of the worse drinks I’ve had so far! Drinks tasted fake and extremely sugary. 
The Petronas Twin Towers at night. We were here last night, the boyfriend and I. I’ve been to KLCC countless times but never really took the effort to admire the Twin Towers. Yesterday, I did. And I’m really glad I did it with a dearly loved one. <3
I’ll end this post on a slightly higher note, shall I? ;)

The lovely SA at Dior gave me a makeover and here are the products she used! ;)  
I hope you had a lovely week! =) 

A Travel Essentials Post!

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Having gone on quite a few weekend getaways / short trips, one would probably think I am quite good at packing light…..
NOT!! 
But I am still trying to pack as light as possible. =D I’ll be going on another short trip this weekend so I thought I’d post what I’ll be taking with me!

Note: as the destination of this short getaway can be reached by car, I am not travelling light. #cheating lol!

Let’s start with skin care!

From left to right:

1. MAC Cleanse Off Oil 
  • I found this in Mum’s skin care cupboard and since Mum doesn’t use cleansing oils, I nicked it from her hehe! Am currently testing this out and will probably feature this in one of my Sampling Sundays column! =D 
2. Kose Softymo’s Deep Cleansing Oil
  • My HG cleansing oil brand!! I thought it would be safest for me to decant some of this into an empty bottle just in case the MAC one breaks me out… Better be safe than sorry, right? 
3. Shiseido Aqua Label White Clear Foam
  • This came with a travel-sized set which consists of the clear foam, lotion and moisturiser. I’ve used this on two of my trips and it seems to be working okay for me.. Only gripe is that this cleanser has fine scrubby bits in it that are somewhat similar to Kiehl’s Rare Earth Cleanser.
4. Shiseido Aqua Label White Up Lotion R
  • Watery, slightly viscous texture. I haven’t used this enough to say if my skin loves or hates it. 
5. Shiseido Aqua Label White Up Emulsion R
  • Light, watery and non sticky moisturiser my skin has taken a liking to! Been using this instead of my Clinique Moisture Surge Gel in the mornings and this is a product I may consider repurchasing!
6. Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Eye Cream
  • My staple eye cream over the last 4 months or so. Currently, this is my only eye cream as I left my day eye cream in the UK. :s 
7. Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Serum
  • A must have for my sensitive skin! This is one of my favourite serums as it has helped with reducing the severe redness I suffer from. Something I cannot live without! =)
8. Estee Lauder Advance Night Recovery Serum
  • I love this paired with Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Serum, a technique I learnt from the lovely ParisB! 
9. Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Serum
  • A lavender-scented oil that leaves me wanting more after applying it! A divine serum that leaves your skin looking rejuvenated the morning after. 
I have a feeling this is the lightest I’ve packed yet! I usually pack a tub of my Guerlain Issima Happylogy night moisturiser but I don’t think I’m going to do so this time seeing I’m only spending two nights away and I want to test the Aqua Label products properly before reviewing them. =) 
Because I’m travelling light skincare-wise…. I’m bringing a little more make up this time as I want to practise my eye shadow application skills!! =D
From left to right:
1. Shu Uemura UV Under Base Mousse SPF30 PA+++
  • Perfect make up base for humid weather as this product is rather drying! I make sure I use a slightly thicker moisturiser before using this product as it does leave my face feeling tight and uncomfortable. 
2. Kose Medicated Sekkisei Sun Protector SPF50 PA+++
  • As the Shu Uemura Base Mousse is too drying for me, I do not use a lot of product which makes me feel I’m not getting enough SPF for my face so I always use this underneath the Base Mousse. =p Love, love, love this moisturising sunscreen!
3. Topshop Cream Blush in Flush
  • Powdery finish that lasts all day. Easy to apply and such a joy to carry around!
  • My go-to foundation for travelling as this goes on like second skin! Will be really sad when this runs out but I’m looking forward to trying other foundations.. why hello, Dior and Shiseido! ;)  
  • I love using this as both a setting powder and a foundation when used by itself! Oil control is not very good but I’ll be okay since I’m using the Shu Uemura Base Mousse! 
6. Estee Lauder Pure Colour Illuminating Powder Gelee in 01 Modern Mercury
  • Bought this during Summer last year and have only just brought myself to use it! It’s a gorgeous highlighter that will be reviewed soon! 
7. Dior New Look Eye Palette in 254 Bleu de Paris
  • I never thought I could wear blue eyeshadow. Now I know I can…. or can’t I? =D 
8. Inglot 3 colour palette
  • Bought this with the lovely Hanny and nope, I haven’t gotten down to using it yet. That will change this weekend!! =p
9. Etude House Eyeshadow Primer
  • A product that rivals the oh-so-famous Urban Decay Primer Potion and this does such a good job at holding eyeshadows together! 
I do not usually bring this much make up (especially not eyeshadows) but we are thinking of attending lovely dinners together so I thought might as well pack my underused eyeshadow palettes and try to get some use out of them! Haha! 
Do you travel light? ;)  

Sampling Sundays: Daiso Natural Sea Sponge

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This blogger has been rather naughty lately with her going about town doing absolutely nothing other than spending (not very much, but enough) money on cute, but ‘rather useless items’ – a phrase that has been spewed at me by someone near and dear. =D

One of these ‘rather useless items’ would be a Natural Sea Sponge from Daiso – the famous 100 yen / RM5 shop!

We recently visited the Daiso outlet at The Curve, Mutiara Damansara and the Mother and I spent a whopping 2 hours in Daiso alone. I could spend all day going down every single aisle, ogling at every single product along every single row and go

‘Oh my goodness what a genius invention!’

OR

‘Oh my goodness are people that lazy? Why would people need something like that?’

O.o

Naturally, I spent quite a bit of time at the beauty aisle and I did spy quite a few unique products that I wanted to purchase eg. SILK COCOONS that supposedly remove your blackheads miraculously. Albeit sounding gimmicky, I am pretty sure you can’t help feeling amazed with what Daiso sells! Unfortunately, Mum succeeded in dissuading me from purchasing the aforementioned product by giving me a very

+_____+

look.

Anyway, this post is all about the product that I managed to persuade her into letting me buy it……

A Natural Sea Sponge!

So cute, isn’t it?  =D

The sponge is very hard (think rock hard) when it’s dry but the minute it comes in touch with water, the sponge puffs up and turns very soft and squishy! Yours truly spent a good 2-3 minutes playing with the sponge. How does one ‘play’ with a sponge, you wonder?

Easy!

1. Douse the sponge with a whole lot of water and watch it balloon up.

2. Evil smile in place, squeeze every drop of water out of the sponge and watch its colour change + shrink.

3. Let out a burst of evil laughter as you have ‘killed’ the sponge.

4. Repeat Steps 1-3 again until bored.

The end.

Pardon the lameless, my lovelies!! =p I found it rather theraputic doing the above, minus the evil smile / laugh of course!!

Back to the mini review!

Apparently this sea sponge can be used for make up eg. foundation but I find the ‘pores’ of the sponge a little too big for foundation application. Nevertheless, I tried using this as a cleansing sponge. Paired with Origins’ Checks and Balances cleanser, this sponge did a good job in cleansing my skin… However, as this is a natural sponge, I found it a little too scrubby for my liking which makes me wonder if this can actually used to apply base make up.

I am currently toying with the idea of adding this to my GIVEAWAY but I am not sure about gifting a product that doesn’t work very well to someone. I will test this out a couple more times before deciding whether this makes the cut or not!

What do you think? Would you like to see the Daiso Natural Sea Sponge in the Giveaway goodie bag? Do let me know in the comments! =)

Have a lovely Sunday, everyone and try to keep the Monday blues away! =)

Review: Kose Sekkisei Lotion and Lotion Mask

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My skin seems to react pretty well to Kose’s products, especially those of their Softymo range. =D Kose Softymo’s Cleansing Oils have kept me company since I started double cleansing and they are the best budget brand cleansing oils I’ve used this far as they work beautifully for me! Speaking of which, I have not reviewed them yet so you may see them in one of my future posts! ;)

I’ve always heard of this lotion mask thingy which seems to be very popular with the Japanese as they always soak this really cool pill-mask thingy with lotion / toner and the pill magically turns into a face mask so I was searching high and low for this until I discovered Kose makes pill masks and they recommended the Sekkisei lotion to go with it!

Here’s what Kose has to say about one of their best-selling products:

The Kose Medicated Sekkisei Lotion is a mild, refreshing tonic that penetrated instantly to get rid of dullness and promotes an even, refined skin tone. These herbal extracts provide brightening, anti-inflammatory, refining and moisturising benefits.


Use as a toner morning and evening after cleansing. Generously soak a cotton pad and pat gently over face. For incresed effectiveness use with Lotion Mask, 1-2 times a week.


The product includes herbal extracts such as Coix Seed Extract, Angelica Extract, Melothria and Licorice Extract.


taken from Kose




First impressions? This lotion smells refreshing and it’s incredibly cooling when I swipe it over my face with a cotton pad. This cooling sensation immediately triggered my ‘less alcohol is more’ policy when it comes to skin care products so I initially shelved the idea of using this as a lotion mask.

As time went by, I ran out of my Juju Aquamoist toner so I had to turn to this. I try not to use products ladened with alcohol as my skin as a tendency to grow little bumps when I use these products so I thought of a way to ‘dilute’ the lotion! =D

In comes my saviour: Vichy’s Thermal Water Spray!!!

After cleansing, I spray on slightly more Thermal Water than I normally would over my face until I feel my face is wet. (not the dripping wet kind!)

Then, I drip about 3 drops of Sekkisei Lotion onto my palm and gently put my palms together so both palms have some lotion on before patting it all over my already damp face!

I keep patting until the product is absorbed before applying serum / moisturizer etc.

Kose’s Sekkisei Lotion has kept me company for over 3 months now and my skin’s quite happy with this routine! =D

I have been using this technique when it comes to using Lotion masks too so I thought I’d take a few photos and share them with you… =)

Here’s a Lotion Mask! Amazingly tiny and compact:

I pop the mask into the lotion’s cap and give it a good spray with Vichy’s Thermal Water Spray before adding the Sekkisei Lotion into the cap:

Oops.. noob shot. I am sorry this photo turned out blurry! Both my hands (the one that held the bottle and the other that held the camera) were shaky when I attempted to photograph the pouring process which resulted in some spillage (yikes) and of course, blurry shots! This was the best I could manage!!

+___+

Let’s see how much the pill mask has expanded after adding the two liquids, shall we? =D

=) 
Here’s what the mask looks like:

Pretty big considering the original (dry) product’s so tiny!

One thing to note is that these pill masks are thin and quite fragile so you have to be careful when unravelling the soaked pill! Apart from that little gripe this is a quick pick-me-up that leaves my skin looking radiant!

I also soak a cotton pad with the lotion (concentrated, not diluted) and leave it on red, angry zits. I find the high alcohol content not only reduces that sore, throbbing sensation you sometimes get with these painful monsters but this also helps reduce the redness that comes with such zits.

Although this product works wonders for me, I have second thoughts about repurchasing as having so much alcohol in a lotion does put me off a little!

What are your thoughts about alcohol-loaded products? 

Trigger-Happy Thursdays: Of a very eventful + happy week!

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I’ve been so busy lately, which explains my absence on the blog.. :s Sorry my dears!

This week’s column is photo-heavy, as always! We headed to Fraser’s Hill over the weekend where we indulged in boating at Allan’s Water – RM6 for 15 minutes but I’m pretty sure the brother and I took a lot longer than 15 minutes:

I haven’t been to Fraser’s in about 7 years and I’m glad to report nothing much has changed! If nature trails are your kind of thing, Fraser’s Hill is definitely the place to be! Unfortunately for us, we only spent one night there and it rained throughout the night, which made it dangerous for us to hit the trails. =( 
Nevertheless, we had our fair share of fun!!

Meet Nana, Mum’s friend’s granddaughter who lives in Fraser’s Hill! =D
Annie made us lovely cupcakes for tea! The freshly made cupcakes went down very well with a steaming hot cup of tea in chilly Fraser’s Hill. =)

On top of cupcakes, Annie even made us a lovely Batik cake to bring home with us! Batik cake’s an East Malaysian delicacy (please correct me if I’m wrong) where Marie biscuits are layered and a chocolate sauce is drizzled over the biscuits and the ‘cake’ is then popped into the fridge to set!

This cake takes on a really delicate texture.. Chocolatey goodness paired with the softened Marie biscuits which tastes a little spongey yet has still has a bit of crunch in them. Very delicious!

We witnessed a pretty sight in the sky:

=)
This sign, spotted at the Smokehouse in Fraser’s Hill made me gasp:

Darn it!! =D

Fast forward to Monday’s Blogger Meet with Stephanie, Hanny and Hanny’s friend, Miaw! =)

Here’s Stephanie, Miaw and I before Miaw’s makeover!

Miaw has never used make up. Ever. So Hanny and I came up with this brilliant idea of getting her a free makeover from one of the beauty counters at Midvalley and we stumbled upon Dior in Isetan’s Beauty Hall. Very cheekily I asked if the SA would give Miaw a mini makeover and she kindly obliged and we got an appointment for 2pm! As you know it we ladies had quite a bit of catching up to do which resulted in us missing our appointment. We got to Dior at about 3.30pm and had to wait around a bit for the SA to help another customer with her make up. =D

Hanny and Miaw looking slightly nervous prior to her makeover!!

So while Miaw got her makeover….

Lovely Stephanie had a go at A-England’s Avalon! =p

This lovely lass came to our meet with generous goodies!!! Both Hanny and I received full-sized Origins’ products and we got Egyptian Cream and Marie Veronique’s tinted moisturizer samples!! The samples were overly generous too!!

+____+

Thank you so much, Stephanie!! <3

Dear lovely readers, please do check Stephanie’s blog out as she writes beautifully and takes impeccable photos! Her posts are precise and such a joy to read!! =)

We were a little shocked by Miaw’s transformation after the makeover!

Miaw’s eyes were done up prettily, so was her base make up and blush but we did feel that her eyebrows were arched a little too high and the nude lipgloss didn’t quite go well with the look. I felt really bad for putting Miaw through this as it was her first attempt at wearing make up!

Miaw, if you’re reading this I am really sorry and I hope you really didn’t get into too much trouble!!!

Being beauty bloggers, enabling each other is pretty much what we do. =D Here’s Hanny getting her skin analysed and she walked out of Kiehl’s with a serum in hand!

Stephanie, on the other hand did her fair bit of shopping too at MAC and L’occitane! =D As for me… I came home loaded with goodies from Stephanie and an incredibly happy heart! =)

It’s amazing how the four of us got on incredibly well and I’m looking forward to more meet ups like this!! <3

Thank you, Hanny for you-know-what ;) , Steph for the lovely goodies and Miaw for letting us turn you into our guinea pig of the day!!

*great group hug to these lovely ladies here*

Of course, we haven’t forgot about you, Lily darling!! You are included in that group hug! =D

That’s all for my Trigger-Happy Thursday this week! Did you do anything lovely over Valentine’s day? =) 

How I do my everyday make up!

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I’ve always toyed with the idea of showing you my ‘everyday make up look’ and have drafted this post eons ago but somehow…. My fingers seem to evade the ‘Publish’ button each time I edit this post and it chooses ‘Save’ instead.

=D

Unlike most beauty bloggers and ladies who do take pride in their appearance and make a lot of effort to look good before heading out of the house e.g. apply lashings of mascara, eye shadow, contour face, pencil in their brows etc….

This self-professed beauty blogger nearly always heads out of her home bare faced (well, nearly) so I’ve always been a little wary of what your response would be upon reading this post!

*takes deep breath*

I’ve never been good at art back in school, which explains the absence of colour on my eyelids. Having shaky hands, of course is yet another contributing factor to my naked lids but I’m still learning how to do my eye make up properly! =)

Most of the time, I usually do my make up in the morning and do not retouch until the evening so I like keeping my make up simple as:

simple make up = less risk of your make up turning you into a panda-eyed monster by the end of the evening. =D

That, my ladies is my somewhat fool proof make up mantra! for now until i perfect the art of make up, at least!








My daily make up routine consists of these steps:

1. Cleanse, tone, moisturize


2. Apply sunscreen


3. Apply primer (a newly acquired step that I find really helps hold everything together!)


4. A bit of foundation where my skin needs it (nose, mouth area and sometimes cheeks if they are red, blotchy and angry-looking)


*5. Apply highlighter (A recent addition since I discovered the amazing brush that is the Sigma E50. Thank you, Lily!)


6. Apply cream blush. Because it stays put for the rest of the day and goes on easily!


*7. Tightline eyes and get poked in the eye most of the time


*8. Fill in my brows (Thank you, Paris!)


9. Dust loose powder all over to set make up.


10. Apply Lipstick / Lipgloss / Lip Butter.


*Steps that are newly added into my routine and are considered as ‘Special Occasion Extras‘ but I am planning to incorporate them into my permanent Everyday Make Up routine! 

Ready to see the end result? ;)

=)
Pardon ‘em eye bags and blemishes that are peeking out! I am not a fan of concealing imperfections although I do use concealer for zits of epic proportions. 
Here are the products I used! 

1. Sunscreen – Kose Sun Protector SPF50 PA+++

2. Primer – MUFE HD Primer


4. Highlighter - Lancome’s Eclat Miracle

5. Cream Blush – Canmake’s Cream Cheek in #11 Heavenly Heart

6. Eye Liner – Canmake’s Lasting Creamy Liner in 01 Black

7. Eye Brow Pencil – Shu Uemura Hard Formula Brow Pencil

8. Powder - Guerlain Meteorites in Teint Rose

I hope you liked this post! What’s your everyday look like? Do tell!! =D

Pssstt!!! Have you joined my GIVEAWAY yet? ;)


Trigger-Happy Thursdays!

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As I compiled photos for this week’s column, my mind went ‘oh dear, not another food photo?’ =D 
I will fire off this week’s Trigger-Happy Thursdays by presenting the one of the two non food-related photos:
I was going through my phone photos when I noticed this photo hasn’t been featured in my previous Trigger-Happy Thursday posts! This was the plane that flew bro and I back to KL from Kelantan! 
This, my dear readers is the quintessential Malaysian Kopitiam cup and saucer. Traditional coffee shops around the country usually serve their hot drinks in such cups and saucers! I headed to PappaRich for supper with the boyfriend and I ordered ‘cham’, which is a mix of coffee and tea. 
I also ordered some toast with butter and Kaya (Malaysian custard spread that’s made out of eggs, sugar and coconut milk) but didn’t really enjoy it as the toast came cold. 
I found Choki Choki at the Kota Bharu airport!! =D I haven’t had this in years (probably since leaving primary school) and was really excited to eat this again! Choki Choki’s basically a chocolate paste-filled straw where you savour the paste bit by bit! It’s a very cheap and unhealthy snack I used to indulge in when Mum’s not looking. =p
This i where I get my facials done! =) 
Cool-looking sweet bro picked up at Boots in Hat Yai! Very minty but the gelatin casing tastes a little weird. 
Sigh, this is what happens when you can’t speak Mandarin properly. I can read and write the language fairly well but when it comes to speaking it… T___T Anyway, I tried to order a Brown Sugar Pearl Milk Tea from Par Tea Time at SS15, Subang Jaya and this is what I got:
Brown Sugar Pearl Milk. No tea in sight!! *sighs*
I am no fan of Chatime’s Pearl Milk Tea but I love Par Tea Time’s version of the drink as they use brown sugar and to me, they do the best milk tea I’ve tasted so far!
Japanese food!! The boyfriend and I love Jap food (remember my favourite Japanese Restaurant – Asa Kusa? ) and we had a pleasant meal at Rakuzen Empire Shopping Gallery which consisted of Salmon Sashimi and some Chicken dish whose name I forgot. =) 
That’s all for this week and I hope next week’s column wouldn’t be filled with food photos as all these photos are making me hungry already! =D 
Do you have any good Japanese restaurants to recommend? 

Review: Origins Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask

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My skin seems to have a mind of its own. One minute it’s Combination / Dry, the next it goes completely Dry and come another day – Oily. Because my cheeks are mostly dry and my T-zone’s slightly oily, I rarely use deep-cleansing masks as the ones I have tried in the past always made my skin peel. Even though I normally use such masks only on my T-zone, my skin just loves shedding its skin after use so I just stop using them completely! 
In comes my facial session with Cassie. (for the uninitiated, Cassie is my favourite facial therapist! I only go for facials when I’m in Malaysia and I do them with Origins at The Gardens, Midvalley) Cassie noted that my T-zone was slightly congested and recommended the Clear Improvement mask to me as it’s suitable for sensitive skin like mine! 
I went ahead and bought the Christmas gift set which comes with the Clear Improvement mask as well as the Drink Up Intensive Overnight mask for RM120!

I share a love-hate relationship with Origins as some of their products work for me and some just don’t. I was initially apprehensive about using a deep-cleansing mask but Cassie tried it on me during the facial and my skin didn’t react to it! I decided to bite the bullet and go with it as I know Mum will use it if it my skin doesn’t like the product! =D 
Here’s what Origins have to say about the product:
Active Charcoal acts like a magnet to draw out deep-dwelling pore-cloggers, White China Clay absorbs environmental toxins, Lecithin dissolves impurities. Without all that “stuff” down there, skin “breathes a sigh of relief”. 


Whatever magic ingredients this product’s jam packed with, it works wonders for me. =) I only use this mainly around my nose and mouth area (once a week) and for the entire face (once in a fortnight) just so I give my skin a good ‘detox’ once in a while! 
I’ve been using this for 2 months now and I see a Clear Improvement in my skin! =p My T-zone’s pretty much rid of its unsightly blackheads and overall my skin feels smoother. You do not need to pile a thick layer of mask onto your face as this is not only a waste of product but it will take ages to dry! I only apply a thin layer over my face every time and I find it works just as well. 
One thing I’ve noted when using this is I get a tingling sensation when the mask comes in contact with my skin (not the unpleasant sort) but disappears after a while. This tingling sensation occurs when I use masks of other brands and in such cases, I would rush to wash the mask off as this is always a warning sign saying ‘your skin is about to peel!’ 
With the Clear Improvement mask, however I do get a slight tingling sensation but thankfully my fussy skin does not react to this! After years of searching for a deep-cleansing mask that doesn’t irritate my skin, I can finally ‘breathe a sigh of relief’ and say
‘I’ve found the one!!’ =D 
By the way, Origins’ products are formulated without Parabens, Phthalates, Propylene Glycol, Mineral Oil, PABA, Petrolatum, Paraffin, DEA, Synthetic Colour, Synthetic Fragrance or Animal Ingredients which makes me love the brand even more! 
Have you tried deep-cleansing masks and do you have a favourite?