Beauty Talk | The Year of Dragon Limited Editions

It's the year of the Dragon and I'm a Dragon baby so I say (high-key) yes to these flagship products from three brands that I'm using in my skincare routine. 

Of course, I plan to get my absolute favourite first treatment serum from Sulwhasoo; the First Care Activating Serum VI and after using this serum for more than 5 years, I now noticed that my skincare products don't absorb well into my skin if I were to skip this step. The brand release limited edition every year for Lunar New Year and I just love getting them especially because they're in limited 120ml size.

Next is Shu Uemura Ultime8 Sublime Beauty Cleansing Oil which also a staple in my daily cleansing routine especially in the evening. This works so well in removing all kinds of makeup and sunscreen; even waterproof ones without having to double-cleanse with a foam facial cleanser afterwards. I've been using this oil-based cleanser for years and going to continue for more.

One of the most recent addition to my morning and afternoon skincare routines is a facial lotion from Kose but this is the Medicated Sekkisei; supposedly hydrates as well as their flagship Sekkisei lotion and it contains oriental herbal extracts that also help with moisturising the skin although I'm worried about the alcohol level in this product. I'm going to give this a try at the counter before buying for sure.

What do you think of these limited edition products? Worth the buy?

Beauty Talk | Round 15.0 of My Skincare Products

August marks the final month for my Round 12 of skincare products and as you can see from the above #shelfie,  I've got a cleanser from Round 11 (which ended in February) and this round's cleansing foams, waters and balms with new additions from Blogger Mails last month. 

For Round 12.0, I've managed to finish a toner, 2 bottles of first serums, 2 bottles of essences, and 3 tubs of sleeping masks along with almost 100 sheet masks. I'd definitely be posting an Empties post soon so do stay tuned for that, okay!

For this upcoming Round 13.0 which starting next month, I'll be introducing some new oil-based cleansers, water-based-cleansers, moisturisers, tone-up creams, lots of sunscreens, and the most that I've anticipated for 2018; new exfoliating and hydrating toners (you need both if you want to start incorporating acids in your skincare routine) which will be part of my 7-Skin Methods. I haven't decided whether it'll be seven different toners or maximum 4 toners, let's just wait and see for now. 

As for body care, I literally haven't shopped for anything for the past 3 months or so as I've bought so much back in May to June as there was the Harvest Festival Sale literally in every mall at that time so I'm going to shop my stash till I ran out of everything. 

So I guess that's a quick update on my current skincare stash! Do you use the same skincare products all year round or are you like me who change certain number of products on a 6-month cycle? Do let me know by leaving comments down below.

Until next post, annyeong~

Beauty Talks | Kick Off of My Round 13.0 Skincare Products

August marks the final month for my Round 12 of skincare products and as you can see from the above #shelfie,  I've got a cleanser from Round 11 (which ended in February) and this round's cleansing foams, waters and balms with new additions from Blogger Mails last month. 

For Round 12.0, I've managed to finish a toner, 2 bottles of first serums, 2 bottles of essences, and 3 tubs of sleeping masks along with almost 100 sheet masks. I'd definitely be posting an Empties post soon so do stay tuned for that, okay!

For this upcoming Round 13.0 which starting next month, I'll be introducing some new oil-based cleansers, water-based-cleansers, moisturisers, tone-up creams, lots of sunscreens, and the most that I've anticipated for 2018; new exfoliating and hydrating toners (you need both if you want to start incorporating acids in your skincare routine) which will be part of my 7-Skin Methods. I haven't decided whether it'll be seven different toners or maximum 4 toners, let's just wait and see for now. 

As for body care, I literally haven't shopped for anything for the past 3 months or so as I've bought so much back in May to June as there was the Harvest Festival Sale literally in every mall at that time so I'm going to shop my stash till I ran out of everything. 

So I guess that's a quick update on my current skincare stash! Do you use the same skincare products all year round or are you like me who change certain number of products on a 6-month cycle? Do let me know by leaving comments down below.

Until next post, annyeong~

P.S.: How are you liking my new blog header?

Beauty Talk | DIY Cleansing Pads

Few months ago, I've discovered this Japanese brand; Bifesta and I can't deny the fact that I'm obsessed especially with the cleansing water to the point I even bought other variants; Bright Up and Enrich as I do want to see the difference.

As with other cleansing waters, you can use this product to remove makeup but when it comes to this one from Bifesta, that's just the first cotton pad. Go ahead and use the second pad for a thorough cleansing and a third pad for toning your skin and you can just get right into your skincare routine or in my case for most nights these days; sleeping masks as I'm just too tired to do full routine.

As I'll be needing lots cotton pads per evening cleansing routine, I figured that I need to pre-soak them so it's easy for me to just take one out from a container and use one right away.

I use the Sebum Cleansing Lotion for this time around, Shiseido Facial Cotton that I bought at Sasa Malaysia here in Imago KK Times Square and a biscuit container with a lid that I found rolling around in the office recently. 

   

I usually just put in around 30 pads at one time i.e. for 8 to 10 days usage. One cotton pad usually need 1 to 2 pumps so I pumped about 25 pumps into the container and indeed all cotton pads are soaked with the lotion and ready to be used. I placed this on my bedside table so it's easy for me to just do the routine while laying on my bed. I know! It's only when I'm really tired. 

So I guess that's all from me! I'll see you guys on my next post! Annyeong~

Beauty Talk | Cleaning My Brushes

If there's one thing I could not give up when it comes to makeup that will be not washing my makeup brushes. I usually wash these babies like once a month as I have multiple brushes for similar function for example I can use one powder brush per week and use another in the next one. But washing all of them together is quite a task these days I rather wash one set of brush every week so it'll take like at least 15 minutes to go through all of them. 

Beauty Talk | Wash-Off Masks

Last night, I posted the above photo on my Instagram and I thought, why not make a post about it? :) So, if you're wondering, no... that's not all of my scrub and wash-off mask stash. Most of them either in packs or capsules that I placed in the fridge (I really love putting on cool cucumber or bamboo masks) but these are the ones that don't require me to keep them cool. 

If you didn't know, my skin is Normal to Combination so I require some clay mask to keep my sebum control at balance, mask to remove occasional blackheads, and scrub which is my favourite kind of wash-off mask.

Beauty Talk | I Heart Green Tea

Yes! Not only the regular green tea that you're usually served at Japanese restaurants but also my selection of beauty products that are based on green tea extracts. 

Beauty Talk | Makeup Brushes

First thing first, Salam Maal Hijrah 1437 to all Muslim readers!

Lovelies, annyeong~ it's been awhile since I last sit down in front of this computer and do a blogpost! I've been busy getting my hands on trying new products - skincare and makeup items, finding the ones that suit me the best and of course, when it comes to makeup, the ones that can suit me skin tone.

I've been experimenting with several makeup items that I never actually give much attention like eye shadows and I've been expanding my interest towards western brands like Urban Decay, M.A.C, Estée Lauder and Marc Jacobs. So far, I gotta say, I'm hooked, baby! Along with that, I also learn more about makeup brushes especially for eye shadows which lead to several number of purchases:

The ones on the left are quite new additions to my Real Techniques brushes for base makeup but the right ones - lip brush, blending brush, eye point brush and eyeliner brush are definitely the kinds I don't have before.

Beauty Talk | Sheet Masks

This is gonna be a quick post as I saw this question, one of the few that my readers typed into Google and found my posts (I got this by checking under my Keywords tab in my Nuffnang account).

Q: How many times do I use mask sheets in a week?

My answer would be, it depends on the type of mask sheet that you prefer. I usually use the typical Korean mask sheets from Etude House, Nature Republic, and Skinfood like 2 to 3 times a week as I also love using wash-off masks aside from those. These mask sheets usually offering simple yet important treatments like brightening, moisturizing, purifying, anti-aging, nourishing, etc. 

Range of price is between RM5 to RM12.

Beauty Talk | Cleaning My Air Puffs

I still got lots of drawings to be finished for this week's assignment but my room is in a total mess and there's not a cell in my body wanna get up from this bed and do some cleaning but as much as I want to ignore my room right now, I can't ignore my air puffs as I realized this morning it's too dirty to be used. I think I haven't washed them like 2 months! I know. I know. 

So yeah, dreading the fact that I need to wash them for like an hour and I used like 3 different facial cleansers like the last time I did, this time I found another way to wash them easier.

The other day I used my air puffs to apply my liquid foundation (just experimenting on different puffs) and there were some of it on my fingers, which resulted the mess on the white areas. As you can see above right, yes. It's been a while. 

Beauty Talk | Moisture, Moisturise and Moisturiser

Annyeong! How are you guys? It's been about few days since the haze here in KL just got crazier. Sigh. Make sure to wear face masks, okay! Deep cleansing is important as well!

Anyway, the last time I posted with this tag is Shea Butter which is in last December. So I guess it's been awhile hence today I'd like to talk about skin moisture, moisturising our skin and of course, moisturiser.

I read this topic on a magazine before so I'd like to express my thoughts on it.

With so many misconceptions and preconceived notions about the skin, it's only natural that there also be many myths about certain skin types, especially dry and oily skin.

Oily skin still needs to be moisturised.

A few years back, I thought having oily skin means I don't need to moisturise. Totally wrong on that! Having oily skin required you to deep cleanse your skin. But after the cleansing step, you still need to moisturise your skin to compensate  the stripped natural off on your skin or your skin will overcompensate the lack of moisture with a production of excess oil and sebum. Noooo!!

As much as you love the mud or clay-based masks, be moderate and stick to once or twice a week rule.

Beauty Talk | Shea Butter

Hello, lovelies! How's your Wednesday? I just had a quick hand spa and dear, as if I could hear the whisper of my hands how they're so relaxed and happy after all those days holding pastels and whatnot.

Anyway, it's been a while since I last post on Beauty Talk category so this week, I'd love to share with you guys on a topic that me and my girls talked about recently which is Shea butter. 

Current favourite product: White Musk Voluptuous Velvet Body Creme 50ml

Beauty Talk | Korean Beauty Secrets

As we all know, Korean women and men (no surprise!) are so conscious about their skin condition and hence spend a great deal of time and of course money to get the flawless skin that we all want.

Warning! Medium Song Hye Kyo photos. :D

Ain't that the ultimate praise of them all? Oh! Jo In Sung..~melting~

My favourite Korean actress, Song Hye Kyo is one of those who have admirable skin. I watched all her dramas ever since Autumn in My Heart back in 2002. I was only 12 and even until today, I’m still in love with her acting.

Then, in 2006, I started to join my friends in K-Pop fandom and discovered K-Pop boy bands like Big Bang, DBSK, Super Junior, and SS501. Then, I came to admire Kim Hyun Joong as singers and now actors. Now, you guys know why I’m into TheFaceShop products so much, huh?

Anyway, I just read an article on Korean Beauty Secrets today and would love to share my opinion about it with you guys.

Beauty Talk | What is CC Cream?

Okay, one of the things I also want to do in this new blog is to share beauty tips that I got from the internet.

Firstly, I don't wear make-up that much unless I have to go out for dinner with friends or attending weddings.

So my only option after skin care is to either use sunscreens or BB cream. But, due to the medium to full coverage of my current BB cream, I'm looking for a replacement. Something that is lighter and fit my 'barely-there' make-up concept.

CC cream, also known as Color Control cream, or Color Correcting cream, is a refined Blemish Balm cream or Beauty Balm created and developed in Korea.

BB (Blemish Balm) cream was originally formulated in Germany and has in recent years gained popularity in Asia, and is also gaining popularity Europe and North America. BB cream is a popular product in Asia, used to provide natural-looking skin coverage.

As a multitasking beauty product, CC cream was developed to retain all the benefits of BB cream with added nourishing ingredients whilst reducing the appearance of skin redness or sallowness (often with light-diffusing particles).

CC cream is reputed to include sun protection, along with better skincare properties (such as anti-aging, hydration, blemish prevention etc.) and treatment of uneven skin tones than BB creams. Some users find it to have a lighter texture than BB cream, which allows for smoother application with a less oily finish. Coverage can vary greatly among the different brands, and are more often than not minimal when compared to BB creams. Some tend to work better as primers rather than a replacement for foundation.

Source: here

So, the hunt for a perfect CC cream for my skin has begun.