[Review] Laura Mercier: Flawless Skin Face Polish

Follow @charlotteg0h

Source: lauramercier.com

Before I started using Clarisonic (click here for the review), this face polish here was responsible for my facial exfoliation. I used up 1.5 tubes of it before writing this review. If you are wondering why 1.5 and not 2, that's because I left the remaining half tube in Malaysia, thanks to my forgetful-ness :(

Scent:

The first thing I noticed about this product is the scent! I love the smell, it reminds me of this:

Most Malaysians should be very familiar with this. Yes, it's the Vitamin C's we take when we were young! I remember how I always wanted more to the extent where my mom have to hide it. hahaha..

Texture:

It has a cream base with microbeads. The beads are not as rough as the normal facial scrubs. Whilst they're fine and mini, they do a great job.

How to use:

All you have to do is just gently scrub it against your face and you'll get a perfect result! Be careful not to scrub too hard, it might dry out your skin.

The amount needed for each application is fairly little. A little goes a long way. I used it once a week and the 3.5oz tube lasted for about 1.5 years.

The After Effect:

Immediately after using it, my skin looks more radiant and definitely brighter. It also leaves my face feeling soft and smooth. There's no greasiness after cleansing. My pores are free of blackheads as well. LOOOOVEEEE IT!

The Pros

• Nice Scent
• Really does a great job as an exfoliator
• Reasonable price (refer to below for further explanation :P)

The Cons

• Since it's a skincare product, do check the ingredients to make sure your skin is not allergic to any of them.
• Some people might think that it's quite pricey. But here's what I think. After doing the maths, I'm paying RM1++ for each application and since it is good stuff, I don't think RM1 is a lot. So, for me the price should be under pros instead of cons.
• I've heard people complaining that the beads are rough and they felt as though their skin has been rubbed by sandpaper! I strongly stronglyyyyyy disagree on that but again I think it varies according to individual. Get a sample from the SA before buying it!

Where to buy it

Any Laura Mercier Counter or Kens Apothecary

Price: MYR105

Love,

Charlotte

Tweet

[Tips] Getting Flawless............Almost!

Follow @charlotteg0h

If a genie were to grant me a wish, I would wish for world peace!

....................................................

..........................................

...........................

................

.......

...

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

HAHA! AS IF!

Being the selfish me, I would ask for unlimited wishes for as long as I'm alive!

*muahahaha*

And one of them will definitely be having flawless skin!

How often do you walk pass a poster hoping you have the skin like the model? Seriously, who doesn't want flawless skin? If I have flawless skin, I don't think I will be applying make up anymore!

Now, step back to reality, is it really possible to have such skin? Sadly, the answer is NO! BUT at least the closest you can get to is a smooth, glowy skin without blackheads or acnes!

Besides being blessed with good hormones and genes, and having a set of good skincare products that suits you, here are a few extra things that you can do:

ALWAYS remove your make up before you sleep! Even if the make up is very minimal, it is going to clog your pores overnight! I am very particular when it comes to removing make up, its a 3 steps process for me. First, I'll use a make up remover tissue to remove my make up. Next, I'll use my Clarisonic along with a pump of cleansing oil to clean my face. Lastly, I'll wash my face again with normal facial wash, making sure that there isn't any residual of anything on my face! Another reason why you should remove your make up before bed -- you don't want to wake up and find color patches on your pillow! ewwww..

Wash your face twice a day (with facial wash of course). Once in the morning after you wake up and once at night before you sleep. This is a must! Even if you're not wearing any make up during the day, the dirt and dust in the air can clog your pores. In my case, sometimes I'll wash 3 times a day, one more during shower or whenever I get irritated over my oily face. However, it is not advisable to wash too often, your skin might end up getting too dry.

Schedule yourself at least one make-up-free-day in a week. Your skin needs to breathe after having make up on for the entire week. Pick a day where you find comfortable without make up. For me, I'll pick the day when I don't have any classes to attend and no important events to go to.

Keep your hands off your face! Your hands pick up and drop off germs every time you touches something!



Drink a lot of WATER! not soda, not coffee, not tea! JUST PLAIN WATER! Water flushes out the bad stuff that causes bad skin. Add a slice of lemon to help rejuvenates your skin *ting!*a plus point!.

Clean your make up tools. Dirty brushes and sponges are the best place for germs and bacteria to breed and you definitely would not want to stick them onto your face! Spot clean them everyday and deep clean them every fortnight with either a brush cleanser or mild shampoo.

Scrub! Scrub! Scrub! Exfoliate your skin once a week. Say bye bye to dead skins! Besides leaving you a smooth face, it also provides better absorption for your skincare products, making them more effective!! Do not over do it, once a week is sufficient.

Sleep 8 hours a day. Do not stay up late as this will disturbs your body's detox system. *psst..this is the only step which I don't follow :P*

Sweat it out! Do whatever you want to get a good sweat as sweating is able to unclog your pores. But remember to WASH your sweat off! You don't want your hair products or whatever to mix with your sweat and slide down your face!

Put that cigarette stick away! Smoking restrict blood vessels, preventing oxygen and nutrients from getting to the skin, that is why most smokers look pale and we definitely do not want to look like that!

Treat your skin once a week. You can give your skin a treat such as applying face mask or steaming your skin. However, this must be done according to your skin type, or you might make it worse!

These are what I got so far, do you happen to come across any useful tips? Do share! :) The tips suggested above does not require any expensive investment, what is there to lose? Follow them and you are one step closer to the almost perfect skin!

Love,

Charlotte

Tweet

[Review] Clarisonic Plus: Sonic Skin Cleansing System

Follow @charlotteg0h

Clarisonic is a brand that uses Sonic Skincare System to cleanse the skin. Below are fractions of info shown on their website:

You can know more about the sonic technology and how it works its magic here!

Clarisonic also claims that Sonic Cleansing is able to:

There are 3 types of Clarisonic, namely Mia, Classic and Plus. However, my reviews are only applicable as far as Clarisonic Plus is concerned, since that is what I'm having right now.

Clarisonic Plus have 3 different speeds for the face and if you're going to use it for your body, there is a body mode available.

The kit comes with:

1. Cordless Clarisonic Plus
2. Charging Cradle
3. Sensitive Brush Head
4. Body Brush Head
5. 1oz. trial sizes of Refreshing Gel Cleanser, Gentle Hydro Cleanser and Nourishing Care Cleanser
6. 2oz. trial size Refining Skin Polish

I use my Clarisonic during the days when I have make up on (which is plus minus 5days/week) and I use it after removing my make up. The cleansing process takes only 1 minute/usage (this was the duration that the sales assistant in Sephora suggested) to complete. After using it for a good old 6 months:

The Pros

• It really does cleanse my skin thoroughly.
• Less acne problems for me.
• It leaves my skin feeling smooth.
• It is waterproof! Hence, you can use it even while bathing!
• Time saving! 1 minute is all you need to get a squeaky clean face!
• No irritations for me.
• Can be used for both body and face! There's no need to spend extra for body scrubs!

The Cons

• It doesn't reduce the appearance of my pore size.
• This baby here is not cheap, hence it might be a major concern for most people who are interested.
• The brush head must be changed every 3-5months depending on how often you use it, which means this is not a one-off spending.

Conclusion is, this is a great investment!

[APPROVED!]

Where to get it?

To my Malaysian readers, we're lucky that we finally have Sephora in town! I've got mine from Sephora for MYR849. Don't think you can find it anywhere else in Malaysia. To my Australian readers, you can get this from David Jones and MYER. But not sure on how much they are selling though. Another alternative will be getting it online.

xoxo,

Charlotte

Tweet

[Review] EOS Lip Balm: Smooth Sphere in Honeysuckle Honeydew

Follow @charlotteg0h

I get to know of this lip balm while browsing through makeup videos on Youtube a few years back in Malaysia. However, it is hard to find a lot of international brands when you're in a country which is kinda ulu (not up to date) when it comes to cosmetics. The fact that I'm in Aussie now makes things much easier! *muahahahah*

I'm a sucker for cute packaging and this egg-like lip balm definitely did catch my eyes! Besides that, this happens to be the favorite lip balm for a few of my favorite Youtube makeup gurus. It's sad to say that I am quite gullible when it comes to beauty slash skincare products. So after hearing so many great reviews, how can I resist such a cute thing right? *I WANTED IT! teehee!* and I BOUGHT it...

JUST LOOK AT THE SHAPE OF IT!! SHOOO CUTE!! ;)

Lets have a brief introduction for this lip balm. It is from a company called Evolution of Smooth (EOS). The range of their products is quite narrow; lip balm, hand lotion, body lotion, shaving cream. The following info was taken from their official website:

This lip balm was a love at first 'swipe' for me!!

The Pros

1. It has a really good smell! Trust me, it is addictive! (not literally of course)
2. The texture is not like other ordinary lip balm. It is not as sticky and gooey; it doesn't feel as though you have a layer of oil on your lips! Hence, you can definitely apply it when you're out on a date, if you know what I mean. *wink*
3. The packaging is so adorable! Some people might find it bulky, but for me it is good in a way where I don't have to rummage through my makeup bag 1234567 times before finding it!

The Cons

1. It does not work as a treatment lip balm, your lips will still feel dry when you don't apply it. But I don't mind applying and re-applying it again and again, just because I absolutely love the smell and texture of it!
2. As I've mentioned, the packaging might be bulky for some people. But worry not! EOS has another range of lip balms - the smooth stick, and it is shaped like any other ordinary lip balms, and I believe it is as good as the smooth sphere:

Source: evolutionofsmooth.com

Overall, this is a great product!

[APPROVED!! BUY BUY BUY!!]

Since we're here, I'll review and rant a bit about my online purchase experience for this product.

I was about to get this from EOS official website, they were selling it for USD3.29 and I thought it was a good buy. As I was about to check out, I realised that the international shipping fees is completely out of mind - USD 15! Whaaaaatttt..the shipping fees itself is 5 times more expensive than the price of the product!??! So I went to have a look at their shipping policy. It says that shipping for orders less than 6 or fewer individual lip balms is a flat rate of USD15! I was going to buy only ONE lip balm so I decided to search for another alternative and that is how I came across Addicted2LipBalm.

Addicted2LipBalm sells EOS smooth sphere for AUD6.35, which is almost twice the price of the official website. Before rejecting this site, I went to check on their shipping rate, it was a flat shipping rate of AUD4.95. Though it seemed to be pretty reasonable but being the greedy me, I googled and gotten myself a free shipping code! (*hooray* ALWAYS google for promo/discount codes before purchasing anything online, who knows you might get lucky. Like moi! I would love to share this code, but the code expired the day I made the purchase) So, without thinking twice, I bought it. Okay, back to reviewing this website, like the name suggests, they sell lip balms of course, besides that they also offer a wide range of lip products, from lip stain to lip gloss. They do ship internationally, the flat shipping rates varies according to which country you want your items to be shipped. I waited a week before receiving my parcel, which I find it to be very slow for local shipping. Apart from that, all new customers are entitled to get a 10% off for their first order, so don't forget to input the code: 1ST ORDER before checking out! :)

I'm not saying that it is not a good idea to buy from EOS official website. If you are going to buy in bulk or share the purchase with your friends and family and end up getting 6 lip balms or more, do the maths and it'll definitely be more worthy to buy from the official website than from Addicted2LipBalm.

I hope my review helps and have a great day! :)

Love,

Charlotte

Tweet