Operation Use It Up

Over July and August, I managed to use up a large number of products, plus numerous sample sachets during my trip to London. With the last quarter of the year looming, I'm finally starting to see some space in my bathroom cabinets opening up!

1. Lush Almond & Coconut Smoothie: This creamy body cleanser is targeted at dry skin but it turned out to be not sufficiently hydrating for my skin as I still needed to use a body lotion especially on my legs which are prone to dryness. It works up to a gentle lather and rinses off easily without any greasy residue. The vanilla scent is not that memorable. One plus point is that Lush gives you a free Fresh Face Mask if you bring back five of these clean pots in the UK (but not in Switzerland).

2. Lush Ayesha Fresh Face Mask: This is a re-purchase. This mask feels therapeutic and deeply cleansing for my skin, which always looks more luminous and feels ultra soft and supple after using this. One pot has enough for at least 8 uses.

3. Sofina Jenne Lotion I: This is Sofina's skincare line for ladies in their 20s. Lotion I is the "sappari" (refreshing) type for oily skintypes while II is the more hydrating "shittori" type. This did a good job of leaving my skin feeling refreshed and clean, but other than that, I did not notice any special benefits. Love the lacey bottle design.

4. For Beloved One Polypeptide DNA Resilience Lift Toner: This was the most hydrating of the three toners that I used up recently but it also makes my skin oil up a bit faster than the others. It's supposed to be an anti-wrinkle toner but as I do not have any wrinkles yet, I can't say that I noticed any significant change.

5. H2O+ Aqualibrium Marine Toner: This contains provitamin B5, mineral-rich sea salt, sea weed, sea fennel and sea lettuce to nourish and hydrate the skin. It refreshes the skin well but can leave it feeling a tad dry, so if you have dry patches, I would not recommend this.

6. Addiction Eye Makeup Remover: This biphase remover does a good job of whisking off eyeshadows and waterproof mascara without irritating or drying the eyes. It is supposed to be fragrance-free and contains rosa centifolia extract. This was a gift with purchase. It normally retails at 2100yen for 100ml, which is a bit too expensive for me so I'll be sticking with my usual L'Oreal remover.

7. Daiso Puff & Sponge Detergent: For S$2, this is truly the most cost-effective product. I use it weekly to clean my foundation brushes and sponges. It's much more efficient at getting rid of any cream-based products than MAC Brush Cleanser. I stocked up 5 bottles before moving to Switzerland 20 months ago and this is only the second bottle that I've used up. Great stuff!

8. Biore Mild Cleansing Liquid: This removes makeup effectively without irritating the skin and is very affordable, but I find Bioderma's Sensibio to be even faster to use. I usually follow up with a face cleanser just to be thorough.

9. Shu Uemura Cleansing Beauty Oil Premium A/O: This green cleansing oil has the thickest texture in Shu's range and is really more for dry, mature skintypes. Although it works well in terms of removing makeup, I much prefer the lighter pink Fresh version. I wish Shu Uemura wouldn't keep offering only this in their limited edition seasonal collections like the upcoming Murakami Takashi holiday collection.

10. Cleansing Express Eye Makeup Remover: Aside from being very efficient and non-irritating on my eyes, it's also affordable. I would re-purchase this instead of L'Oreal except that it is not available in Switzerland.

11. Anna Sui Rose Hair Conditioner: This leaves my hair soft and untangled. I love the soft feminine rose scent but it doesn't linger strongly on my hair. I would definitely re-purchase this if it were more easily available.

12. Dove Dryness Care Conditioner: This was quite average. It left my hair untangled but not as hydrated as I would have liked.

13. Phyto Phytodefrisant Botanical Hair Relaxing Balm: Both tubes of this were received as part of sample goodie bags from my US online purchases. The clear gel helps to reduce frizz and make my hair more sleek. I don't like it enough to purchase it though.

14. L'Oreal Elseve Nutri-Gloss Crystal Shampoo: This did not make my hair any glossier or shinier but it's still good as an everyday shampoo that lathers up and rinses off easily without drying out my hair.

15. Kose Seikisho Mask White: This sticky thick black mask is not for wimps as peeling it off is invariably a rather painful experience and it takes off fine facial hair (not all but some) along with flakey skin bits and pore clogs. I find Biore strips to be more efficient at pulling out pore clogs but I like that I can use the Seikisho mask all over my face for a thorough de-clogging. I will probably re-purchase this at some point.

16. RMK Gel Scrub: This is gentle enough on the skin to be used daily but I don't find it to be particularly effective. This sample tube lasted just two uses.

17. African Botanics Marula Firming Botanical Body Oil: This is supposed to help firm, tone and nourish. I liked how it moisturised my skin and absorbed quickly without leaving an overly greasy residue but I didn't notice any firming effect (not that I really expected any).

18. Philosophy Peppermint Bark: I had high hopes of this but the mint chocolate candy scent was too heavy on the cloyingly sweet chocolate note and not minty enough for my liking. Like other Philosophy shower gels, it does not leave a strong fragrance on the skin although in the shower, it is rather strong.

19. Philosophy Gingerbread Man: This turned out to be much nicer than I had expected thanks to a refreshing fizzy top note. I would re-purchase this except that I still have more than a dozen Philosophy shower gels to get through.

20. Sally Hansen Fast & Gentle Polish Remover: I picked this mainly because it was one of the cheapest in the drugstore and by a reputable brand. It's alright for the price and still requires some elbow grease to remove glitter polishes.

21. Coast To Coast Rainforest Invigorating Body Exfoliant: This is my favourite product from this brand, due to the wonderful sweet citrusy scent. It gives good exfoliating action too.

22. Stila Lipglaze in Raisin: Very easy to wear berry shade with a bit of shimmer, this feels a bit sticky on the lips. The amount of product is miniscule and one could easily use this up in 1-2 weeks with daily use but at least they are a lot cheaper than they used to be (thanks to being made in China) when Stila was one of the hottest makeup artist-driven brands around.

23. K-Palette Lasting 2Way Eyebrow 02: A daily staple, I've re-purchased this countless times as it's still the most durable and easy to use brow liner for me.

Operation Use It Up

Just cleared out another bunch of empties from my stash!

1. Dove Damage Therapy Intense Repair Daily Treatment Conditioner: This helped to detangle my hair but I didn't find it as moisturising as Tsubaki's conditioners.


2. Biore UV Aqua Rich SPF30 PA+++: I love this sunscreen and will definitely re-purchase it as it is very affordable and feels completely non-greasy. I've been outdoors under strong sunshine frequently over the past few weeks and this helped to prevent my skin from burning (my skin gets burnt quite easily from just one to two hours' exposure).

3. Josie Maran Argan Oil Hair Serum: I've reviewed this here. This worked well for de-frizzing my hair but I didn't notice any significant long-term improvement in my hair.

4. Canmake Make Me Happy Fragrance Whip Wax: Formulated with camellia oil and rose water, this light whipped hair wax is supposed to help create and maintain an "airy style" with soft curls. It worked well for taming the flyaways without making the hair feel stiff. The fruity scent is quite light and I could not detect it after applying it.

5. Shu Uemura White Recovery EX+ Whitening Lotion: This refreshing lotion hydrates my skin without leaving it sticky, but I haven't seen any significant lightening of my skin pigmentation.

6. Shiseido Benefique NT Lotion: This was just an average toner.

7. Sample sizes of eye makeup removers from RMK, Ettusais, Etude House and Jill Stuart: These were all bi-phase removers that worked well for removing eyeshadow in a single swipe with eyeliners and waterproof mascaras requiring a bit more effort. The only one that stung my eyes a little was Ettusais Speedy Eye Make Off. I don't splurge on expensive eye makeup removers as Cleansing Express works well for me and is very affordable.

8. Fragrance samples of FlowerByKenzo Essentielle, Jimmy Choo, KenzoAmour and Flora by Gucci: I was surprised that I liked the Jimmy Choo fragrance, which is a modern fruity chypre fruity, with green top notes, tiger orchid, sweet toffee caramel and Indonesian patchouli. Flora didn't leave much of an impression on me while KenzoAmour garnered an unexpected compliment, which is always a pleasant surprise.

And finally, I also used up my L'Occitane Verbena Leaf Soap. I adore the refreshing scent and exfoliating effect but I noticed that it leaves the skin on my shins dry.

Operation Use It Up

Made some progress in de-cluttering my bathroom by finishing another batch of products!

Sally Hansen Extra Fast Polish Remover: This is fairly cheap at S$6 for 236.5ml. It removes non-glitter nail polishes quite quickly but with glitter polishes, it takes quite a bit of rubbing to get all the glitter off.

John Masters Organics Citrus & Neroli Detangler: This is a lightweight conditioner that can be rinsed off or left in. It wasn't moisturising enough for my coloured hair though, and was just not as effective as the Rosemary & Peppermint Detangler.

Biore Makeup Remover for Eye & Lip: This bi-phase eye makeup remover is quite effective at removing most of my eye makeup, but sometimes I need to follow up with a bit of cleansing oil to get off the last bits of my waterproof mascaras. When I first started using it, it stung my eyes slightly but I don't really notice any stinging sensation anymore. It's quite affordable at less than S$15 at Watsons, but I think I'll probably re-purchase Cleansing Express Eye Makeup Remover instead.



MAC Brush Cleanser: I've gone through countless bottles of this but I take much longer to use one bottle now after switching to using Daiso's Puff & Sponge Cleaner for cleaning my foundation brushes. The Daiso cleaner removes foundation and concealer much more quickly than MAC Brush Cleanser.

Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Cleansing Foam: I find most Japanese foaming cleansers tend to leave the skin feeling squeaky clean and this was no different. It doesn't dry out my skin to the point of flaking. I use this in the evenings with my Clarisonic Mia after using a cleansing oil to remove my makeup, to ensure that my skin is thoroughly cleansed. For the morning, I prefer to use a gentler cleanser like Jurlique. You can see the ingredients list and product description in this earlier post.

Penhaligon's Quercus Conditioner: Another conditioner that failed to impress me.

Biotherm White D-Tox Neo-clarifying Renovating Lotion: This left my skin feeling refreshed and hydrated but I haven't useed it for long enough to see any skin brightening effect.

Philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash: This is gentle enough to be used daily. When I use this, I skip the Clarisonic for the day so as not to over-exfoliate. The scrub particles are not too abrasive and help to make my skin feel very soft and smooth.

Oscar Blandi Olio de Jasmine Hair Serum: This didn't really do much for my hair. I still vastly prefer my Anna Sui Hair Treatment Oil.

Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Mousse

Biore recently sent me their two new water-based sunscreens for the face and body. The UV Aqua Rich Watery Mousse SPF50 PA+++ (S$18.90; 33g) is a very light textured cream sunscreen for the face. Infused with hyaluronic acid to help moisturise the skin plus grapefruit, lemon and orange extracts, the Watery Mousse has a light citrusy scent and applies with a slightly cooling sensation.

Unlike many other sunblock lotions that tend to leave a slight sheen on the skin, the Watery Mousse absorbs virtually instantly without any sheen or greasiness, just a smooth, silky feeling. I don't have the ingredients list in English but you can find it easily on other blogs. It does contain alcohol and silicones.

After trying it out for the past few days, I have to say that I love the texture and how nicely it absorbs. I haven't had any issues applying makeup on top of it but it does make my skin appear slightly fairer, so there is a subtle tone difference between my face and neck when wearing this.

In the photo above, I am wearing only the UV Aqua Rich Watery Mousse while in the photo below, I am wearing the Watery Mousse with Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation T51 dusted on top. The Bourjois foundation powder adds a little bit of coverage and a more matte finish. With this combination, it takes about 2-3 hours before my T-zone starts to see some shine, depending on how dry the weather is.

The products used for this look.

In the Japanese TV CM, they use an oil blotting sheet to show that after applying the Watery Mousse, there is absolutely zero oil absorbed by the blotting sheet, whereas the blotting sheet picked up oil from a previous Biore sunblock product.

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock and Biore UV Bright Face Milk

Before my Maldives trip, I stopped by Watsons to pick up a new tube of Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock SPF30 (88ml). This had worked very well for me during my honeymoon in Honolulu last March and my skin didn't tan at all. I briefly considered splurging on more expensive Japanese brand sunscreens like Allie which have a much lighter, watery texture but these were just too expensive at around 3000yen (S$45) for a 60ml bottle, whereas the Neutrogena sunblock was only about S$14.

The Neutrogena sunblock is supposed to be waterproof, sweatproof, non-comedogenic and non-oily with a light fresh scent. Parsol 1789 provides broad spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB rays. While the sunblock does live up to its Dry-Touch name, unfortunately it failed to adequately protect my skin against the blazing sun of the Maldives. We usually spent about one to two hours on the beach or swimming each day and I slapped on the sunblock liberally before going outdoors. By the second day, I had a burn on my arms and legs with a smattering of small red dots on my legs. Fortunately, my face and neck didn't burn thanks to the Body Shop Shiso BB Cream SPF25 that I was using.

Following the trip, my arms and legs are much more tanned than before and it will probably take a few months of minimising sun exposure to get my skintone back to its original state. The skin on my legs felt tight but at least there was no peeling and flaking. One week after the trip, most of the small red dots have faded but some still remain. A small section of the top of my scalp, near the hairline, also got burnt and I had to deal with pieces of it literally peeling off, like giant pieces of dandruff.

I suspect that the reason why the Neutrogena sunblock didn't work well for me this time was maybe because I went swimming, whereas I didn't in Honolulu. Even though I re-applied the sunscreen right after swimming, I still got sunburnt. By the end of our 3 day trip, we had almost finished the tube so it probably wasn't a case of not applying enough sunscreen. Next time, I'll probably choose a sunblock with a higher SPF.

For the face, I usually pick a sunblock that is a light lotion which is less likely to clog the pores than a creamy formula. On this trip, I used a sample tube of Biore UV Bright Face Milk SPF50 PA+++ on my husband and occasionally on myself. Below is the ingredients list.

As you can see in the pics below, the Biore UV Bright Face Milk has a more watery texture compared to the Neutrogena sunblock. The light pink lotion is a boon for oily skintypes like mine as it dries quickly to a slightly powdery finish and adds a very subtle glow to the skin. It also absorbs faster than the Neutrogena sunblock without any whitish cast.



As sun damage is a key cause of skin ageing, do remember to ensure that you have adequate sun protection before spending prolonged periods outdoors. For me, that will mean bringing a hat and a sunblock with higher SPF to the beach in future!