A year of lip products #8

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

LORAC Multiplex 3D Lip Gloss in 4D

Here's something slightly more showy for this festive season. I've not heard of LORAC until pretty recently, and I wish I'd known about them sooner! Because I absolutely love everything LORAC that I have so far! This here is a 3D lip gloss that delivers exactly what it promises and way more. First off, the applicator is a short bristled brush that is pretty stiff. I did find that I have to double dip to get enough product to cover my lips. I also noticed that with most brush applicators, I get a streaky application and often have to do some work to even it out. But aside from that, there's so many things to love in this tube of gloss! In the tube, you can clearly see that it's absolutely packed with glitter and this is one of those products that gives you exactly what you see, no swatches necessary. Depending on the lighting and angle, I get slightly different results due to the multi-dimensional glitter and holographic effect the gloss gives. At the core, this is a cool, blue-toned bubble gum sheer pink grapefruit scented gloss that you can use either on its own or to dress up a boring lipstick. It doesn't, in any way at all give me the feeling of having disco lips when I've got this on. It also fills out my lips nicely and makes them look full without being overdone. I end up with a gorgeous (albeit slightly frosty) shine that I really love. Although sticky, I don't mind it too much because my lips don't feel dry at all.

A year of lip products #7

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

NYX Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Orange Soda LSS588

One of those lipsticks where the color appears almost exactly the same as the tube and a hand swatch. On my hand, it looks a tad dry and highlights the lines of my skin. However, on my lips it seems to fill up my lines quite nicely. I don't often have dry lips so I didn't need a balm prior to putting this one. The color is quite a bit lighter than my original lip color and gives off a cross between the wrong shade of lip concealer and dead person on me, probably due to my Asian skin tone. Not a lip color that I would personally pick for myself, ever, as I don't see an occasion that requires me to look like a corpse. It isn't drying but not particularly moisturizing, either. When I smoosh my lips to even out the color, it slides around a little too much for my liking and results in a patchy finish. I find that if I keep my mouth closed even for just a few minutes, the color will settle and form a very obvious line on my lips.

No Buy Ban Rules Update

I've been doing really well on my No Buy Ban so far (nothing bought!) and I have to say that it isn't easy at all.

With all the time that I have to go online and watch Youtube videos and read beauty blogs, temptation is just everywhere. Even when I head out for groceries, I never fail to spend at least 10 minutes at the drugstore just swatching.

Of course, it's always somewhat (slightly) comforting in a strange way that I'm really a housewife and therefor have no money to spend on unnecessary things like, say, more makeup. But, come on. One can only lie to herself so so long, no? Women will always need unnecessary stuff like bronzers, nail polishes, lipglosses...you get the drift.

So I came up with a couple of new rules for my No Buy Ban. I figured that if I don't want to turn into one big pink sasquatch going on a rampage in drugstores after I'm off my ban I really should give myself some sort of allowance.

The original rules:

1. I'm not going to buy anything that I don't absolutely need, like, say, another pressed powder to add to my collection of 8 others.
2. I can only replenish what I've used up (eg. shampoo, conditioner, face moisturizer etc.)
3. The ban will last for a minimum of 30 days starting November 9 2012.

The additional rules:

1. An allowance of 3000yen will be allocated for each month to buy whatever I want. Should I spend more than 3000yen this month, the excess will be carried forward into the next month. If I spend less than my allocated amount, the balance can be added into the following month.
2. Birthday month and Christmas month would be my bonus months and I will be allowed to spend twice my allowance (yessssssss!). And yes, if I don't spend all that money, it will be added into the following month! Wheeeeee!
3. The ban will run for an entire year (and a little bit more), ending on 31 December 2013.

I know the new rules seem like I'm only making excuses to be able to spend, but I have a pretty good argument for them.

See, it helps me think and plan my purchases carefully so that I won't overspend. And at the end of the day, I'd really love to save up for one good quality product that may possibly be expensive instead of blindly buying 5 that end up as duds. Makes sense, no?

No. 3 took me a long time of thinking and reasoning. It's really hard when you're the only person in the argument and you have to look on both sides. But in the end, I think a year will fly by quickly when I have so many things products that I've only swatched but not put to use yet. Considering that when I first came to Japan I could fit all my makeup into a small pouch, I  have now accumulated more than enough items to take me through 13 months. It will definitely be a challenge to refrain from buying beauty products because I really love being a lab rat when it comes to new products, but I think I'll be able to come out of this one alive and well at the end of 2013.

Let the ban begin!

A year of lip products #6

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

Anna Sui Lip Gloss in #300

I have always had a love for Anna Sui everything for the goth loli packaging and their signature subtle rose scent. This was probably one of the very first Anna Sui products that I bought when I started wearing makeup. Back then, I had practically zero knowledge about war paint and with the few dollars that I had as a student, all I could rely on was the girl at the counter for advice. Granted, this is not the color that I would personally pick today as it's a little too pale for my liking, but this gloss here had gained me a few compliments here and there every time I wore it. The wand applicator is not your typical doe foot and I actually like that I can use any surface I want because it picks up just enough product for one application. It has the lovely signature Anna Sui rose scent, which I love but it's pretty much tasteless, which is slightly disappointing. In the tube, the shimmers can be a little daunting and it looked really opaque. The hand swatch says otherwise, though. The texture is a little jelly-like and the microscopic flecks of shimmer is almost unnoticeable. My one gripe is how the product highlights the lines in my lips instead of plumping them up. It could be because the color is paler than my lips but they seem to settle in pretty quickly. This is one of the stickier glosses that I own and it takes a little bit of work to get a nice finish. I do, however, get a pretty decent wear time out of it considering it's a gloss that I wear only on its own.

November '12 empties

I went through quite a few products in the month of November and honestly, I think I get a kick out of finishing stuff up. Just the sight of half empty stuff that's been sitting around forever finally finished gives me flutters in my stomach. True story.

On to the suspects.

Product #1:

L'occitane Aromachologie Repairing Shampoo

L'occitane Aromachologie Repairing Shampoo

From here:

Care and give radiance to your hair. This shampoo smoothes and softens capillary fibers. Your hair is left looking and feeling supple, shiny and silky. A natural complex of 5 essential oils - Angelica, Lavender, Geranium, Ylang-ylang and Patchouli - plus wheat proteins work together in synergy to help repair, strengthen, regenerate and soften dry and damaged hair. The perfect shampoo for those who color treat, permanent wave, blow dry, curling iron, or use drying styling products on hair.

What I think:

I love it! The smell is so wonderfully relaxing and shampooing my hair was one of the things I look forward to at the end of everyday (yes, I'm one of those people who has to shampoo everyday). It doesn't strip or leave my hair feeling squeaky after the suds are rinsed out. Lathers nicely and the scent lingers on forever! I get an oily scalp if I use creamy shampoos or stuff with silicones so this one is perfect for everyday use even if my hair isn't damaged.

Will I repurchase:

I have been repurchasing this for about 4 years (when I still had a job) and finally, this year, I realized that I had to give it up due to the price. No job, no nice expensive shampoo =( But having said that, I've always thought L'occitane products prices are a bit way out of my reach and yet, I've been stubbornly paying through my nose for years. Yay, me! I'm likely to come back to this as a treat for myself in the near future but I definitely won't be purchasing it on a regular basis. Not by choice, sadly =(

Product #2:

Hada Labo Gokujyun Face Wash

Hada Labo Gokujyun Face Wash

 From here:

Preserve your skin’s natural moisture as you wash. A small amount works up into a rich, foaming lather, then rinses clean—without drying out your skin. Used morning and night, this is the luxurious yet practical start to softer, more supple skin.

What I think:

It's free of fragrance and color. Boring. I got this in summer and had been using it regularly for my night time cleansing with my Clarisonic Mia to combat the oilies and for extra gentle exfoliation. Nothing exciting, but it didn't irritate my skin like my Biotherm cleanser did and my face wasn't left feeling tight and stretched after I dry it. I went through a crazy skin phase for a few months were my breakouts were deep under the skin and painful and they happen all the freaking time! At the same time, my face would be oily and I get so afraid to exfoliate in case I aggravate it further. My usually-normal skin became extra sensitive and rejected all my regular face products so this kinda saved the day at a highly affordable price. Overall, it's a simple cleanser that does its job. Great for sensitive skin types.

Will I repurchase:

Already did. I like that it keeps everything under control face-wise and no comings-out will be happening soon with the closet zits, but honestly, it's so boring! I like my products to be lightly fragranced so this one just really doesn't make the cut for me. Although, to be completely fair, I did get it because it's fragrance/color free to help with my crazy skin phase.

Product #3:

 Body Shop Satsuma Shower Gel

From here:

This soap-free shower gel contains zesty satsuma essential oil and has a refreshing citrus scent.

• Soap-free

• Lather-rich

• Refreshing citrus scent

What I think:

I like Body Shop shower gels in general. And when I say like, I really mean I've been using them regularly since I was about 13 years old or so. In recent years, however, I find that they can be a tad on the drying side if I don't follow up with a lotion or a body butter after. Not sure if the formula has changed over the years, or that my age is showing in my skin =( The citrus-y smell is a good wake-up scent and I love having it waft through the apartment when I decide to step out of the shower. I find that it's best used with the Bath Lily and I need only a small amount to lather up for my shower. I don't like using it for baths because, while the bubbles grow pretty quickly, I often have to squirt a lot of it for that effect. Wasteful, in my opinion. This jumbo size lasted the man and I a good few months and it seems to be pretty good value when there's discounts.

Will I repurchase:

Sure. I've gone through many of these over the years. It's one of my favorites from the Body Shop. We tend to rotate our shower gels with other scents so things doesn't get boring, but I'm pretty sure this one will make a repeat appearance.

Product #4:

Body Shop Born Lippy Pot Lip Balm - Passionberry

Body Shop Born Lippy Pot Lip Balm - Passionberry

  From here:

Our cult lip balm in a pot. Gives colour, flavour and moisture for more kissable lips.

• Purple tint

• Shine finish

• Fruity passionberry flavour

What I think:

Judging from the battered packaging I guess it's easy to come to the conclusion that it was well-loved. It wasn't. I've just had it around for a really long time and finally decided that enough is enough. I don't want to look at it for a second more (I did make a very conscious effort to finish it up, though). While it met my criteria of smelling good, I didn't feel that it made my lips any softer or more moisturized after repeated uses. The effects were instant, yes, but not long lasting. I also hate the way my hair always get stuck on my lips whenever I use this. Oh well, for something that I bought for an emergency on a beach getaway, it lasted me a good few years.

Will I repurchase:

Nah. I like that it reminds me of my childhood when The Body Shop products were a luxury and they always smelled and tasted so good. But now that I know better and my lips need the actual moisture from a good product, I'll look for something else.

Product #4:

Kneipp Bath Salts (Orange Linden Blossom, Rosemary, Eucalyptus, Lavender)

Orange Linden Blossom

Eucalyptus

Lavender

Rosemary

From here:

Kneipp Mineral Bath Salts contain salt crystals that are generated from salt water that is pumped up 460 meters from an underground sea in Germany. The water is boiled off using Europe’s last existing traditional pan method and the remaining salt is then infused with Essential oils. This process allows the Kneipp Mineral Bath Salts to be created without chemical additives, remain free of modern pollution and naturally rich in minerals.
The Bath Salts contain a much higher percentage of Calcium, Magnesium, Iron and Zinc than sea salts and industrial salts. The unique crystals naturally absorb the Essential oils until released into a warm steam bath.
The Kneipp Mineral Bath Salts are alkaline free, preservative free, dermatologist tested, bathtub friendly (leaves tub clean) and skin friendly. Activated by hot water, Bath Salts help build resistance to daily aggressions, exfoliate, tone and increase elasticity of the skin. Taking a Kneipp salt bath relieves the discomfort of minor aches and pains, relaxes tired muscles, refreshes the body and can promote a restful, sound sleep.
Kneipp Bath Salts are a great way to detoxify. The salts bind protein on the surface of the skin and form a layer that prevents the dissipation of heat from the body. The salt then promotes perspiration and the body’s toxins are eliminated in sweat. This opens the pores and allows the body to absorb minerals and trace elements (Rosemary and Juniper are specific herbs that promote the detoxification process).
Directions for a Jacuzzi/whirlpool bath: slowly add 1/4 capful of bath crystals. Turn on jets, turn off if they create too much foam. You may add up to 1 capful of salts as the foam subsides being careful to turn the jets off if it is too sudsy.
Directions for a regular bath tub: Add one capful of bath crystals to bathwater of approximately 97°- 100° F/ 36° - 38° C in temperature. Optimum bathing time is 10-20 minutes. You may choose to shower after your bath.
Kneipp Mineral Bath Salts boost the health-promoting benefits of the Essential oils. Oily skin may find that the salts are the best alternative.

What I think:

Love. My very kind (then) new neighbor Moriyama-san gave us some gifts as a greeting when she moved in next door and included 4 sachets of bath salts as it was still early Spring. They all smell wonderful and if I could sleep in the bath, I would! I've always had a problem with winter skin and sometimes it would get so bad that the rashes would bleed (TMI, I know!) so I've been avoiding having baths , because everyone says so. These leave my skin smooth and while not exactly moisturized, not dry at all! No itching, no tightness. I don't even have to follow up with my nightly regime of slathering myself in body butter before bed. My favorite of the 4 has to be eucalyptus, mostly because I like minty/herbal scents. It helps clear my sneezies and I always have it in my mind that anything that smells like eucalyptus has to be good for the body.

Will I repurchase:

Already did! I will, over and over again, every winter, as long as they keep stocking up the shelves.

A year of lip products #5

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

Clinique Sun Buffer lipstick SPF15 in Buff

One of the best nude colored lipsticks that I own, this one goes on slightly waxing with a little bit of tugging but once on, it doesn't feel drying at all. In fact, my lips still feel hydrated 3 hours in. I can slick this on my lips on its own without having the need to layer a balm underneath it. This leans a little on the yellow side and but it's a very close match to my natural lip color. It gives a slight sheen that isn't too glossy and makes my lips look a little fuller, perfect for the conservative environment that I work in. 

A year of lip products #4

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

Tokidoki at Sephora Prisma Gloss in Sandy

Something right up my street! I'm usually sold on packaging over quality and end up with some duds and fails over time. Tokidoki in Japanese means "sometimes" and I'm not too well versed with the history of the brand, but, whatever. The packaging itself is really quite something as it's slightly bulkier than your regular gloss and it's got a really cute charm on the cap. Sort of reminds me of snow balls (is that what they're called?) where you turn them upside down and watch the snow fall. So cute! The other thing that I love about it is how the applicator is spatula style and I can get a more precise application. Both sides are the same so I use one side for my bottom lip, and the other for my upper lip. The gloss itself may look pretty scary as it's in a toxic-looking green that doesn't seem too friendly for any time of the day. But have a look at the hand swatch where it's only very slightly tinged in green, which in my opinion makes a great neutralizing color. And on the lips, well, it looks just like a clear gloss except for the mirror-shine quality that most other glosses lack. Wear time isn't all that great because the glossiness kinda fades a little after an hour or so although it does keep my lips feeling moisturized enough. The scent isn't something that I can put a finger on; something that isn't yummy, that's all I can say. Most people would scoff at this glorified "clear" gloss and I totally understand. But how cool is it to just pull it out of your bag in public and make a show of touching up with a green tube?

A year of lip products #3

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

Revlon Moon Drops Lipstick in Peach Silk

One of the brightest lipsticks that I own, this one is incredibly hydrating and my lips never felt dry when I have this on. It does, however have a very grandma kind of smell which I'm not really sure whether I like or dislike. The color is a very vibrant peach coral and although it's supposed to be a creme finish, I find it slightly glossier than I'd like. I'm not sure if other people have the same experience, but I found that it stains my lips if I don't remove it with a cleanser.

A year of lip products #2

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.

Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

The Balm BalmShelter Tinted Lip Gloss SPF 17 in Valley Girl

My very first product from The Balm is...very disappointing. To be fair, this was sold as a tinted gloss so I shouldn't really expect anything more than a tint. The color looked perfectly safe for everyday wear and the added sun protection factor sounded promising. It comes in your standard spongy doe foot applicator that I honestly don't like at all because I get paranoid that it will harbor all sorts of nasty stuff in those little nooks and crannies. Not much product is picked up and it annoys the hell out of me to dip 3 more times to do my lips. From the tube itself, I gathered that there's some shimmer but what I didn't expect was that they were practically glitter when I swatched it. Thankfully, it doesn't translate to lips and I have to say (albeit grudgingly) that it left me with a nice soft shine. I didn't experience any stickiness that usually comes with glosses nor did I particularly feel that my lips were moisturized. If anything, I thought my lips felt drier after some time. I was also pretty disappointed that while it smelled pretty decent (some fruity indistinguishable scent), it had zero taste. Overall, this is so underwhelming and meh that I don't think I ever want to wear it again.

A year of lip products #1

I have recently discovered that I own an obscene amount of lip products. In an effort to downsize without having a blog sale or burning all the makeup in my possession in a bonfire, I thought it would be a neat little idea to take inventory of my lipsticks, glosses and stains.
Pictures are taken in natural daylight with no color correction or manipulation.

e.l.f Studio Matte Lip Color in Natural

As the name of the shade suggest, this is a very natural-looking color that beauty bloggers refer to as MYBB (my lips but better). It comes in a pen-like applicator that you can twist up just like a regular lipstick. The products itself glides on smooth and I like that it's skinny enough for me to line my lips before filling in the color. Although meant to be worn as a matte color as shown on the skin swatch, I prefer to layer a good lip balm under to minimize the appearance of fine lines and any possible dryness.

Buy it here.

No Buy Ban

Ever since I came to Japan about 8 months ago, I've mostly been a stay at home wife. I learned to cook, did housekeeping, familiarized my self with the neighborhood and mostly, enjoyed not having to wake up at insane hours for work and function on 40 hour days.

Unfortunately, the one thing that I didn't enjoy was not having an income. Before, I was making some decent money and ate out often (partly no time to cook, partly not really knowing how to cook). I could shop whenever I want and I didn't need to think twice when I saw something that I liked.

In the first few months of being here, I spent on the things that I couldn't bring along with me. I guess when you move to someplace new, you have to eventually build up your stash. 

I got bored of buying the needs, and I began making a mental list of wants. All of a sudden, cosmetic and skincare products became all kinds of interesting to me. I started watching Youtube videos. There was a day when I even devoted 3 hours of my time to researching "How to Make the Perfect Hair Bun" and tried it out on myself.

I have never been on such a vain roll in my life. Should you be someone who knew me in real life, you would know that I hardly wear makeup and I don't comb my hair. I may even be called a little boyish.

But here I am, all of 29 years old and learning beauty tricks from people far younger. I thought, hey, if I'm gonna be a stay at home wife, I wanna be an attractive one at that.

So I started buying.

It started with browsing at the ELF website. They had a great deal of stuff at dirt cheap prices. I saw the 100 color eyeshadow palette on sale so I bought it. The more I browsed, the more I bought.

In just 2 weeks, I bought about $100 worth of products from ELF. Now, they didn't ship to Japan, so I got myself a US address and had my stuff shipped there. I had then paid another $250 to have my stuff shipped to my apartment here.

And with that, I spent the first $350 from my Malaysian bank account. Of course, who would feel the pinch when you're not physically paying in cash, right?

I discovered the wonders that is Rakuten after the husband mentioned it. More buying ensued.

In 8 months, I had spent a lot of money on zero income. Sure, I use all of the stuff that I bought. But who could really finish using up a 100 color eyeshadow palette anyway? Why did I need that extra lipgloss when I always get hair stuck on my lips? And 5 foundations? Really?

My bank account balance was beginning to look like the way it had been in my early 20s. Miserable. I'm sure the husband would be really disappointed if he had known about my secret spending.

I needed to put a stop to my shopaholic ways.

Hence, the No Buy Ban.

The rules are simple:

1. I'm not going to buy anything that I don't absolutely need, like, say, another pressed powder to add to my collection of 8 others.
2. I can only replenish what I've used up (eg. shampoo, conditioner, face moisturizer etc.)
3. The ban will last for a minimum of 30 days starting November 9 2012.

I've been cutting down on waste in my life for what seems like forever, so I can't even begin to describe how ashamed I am right now to be surrounded by all the things that I had bought on impulse and possibly may not have a chance to use.

Let's see how this goes.

Introducing: My Suteki

It shouldn't be allowed, ever, but I'm going to do this anyway.

SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT!

A good friend in Malaysia and I had recently started venturing into opening a little blog shop of our own. We thought that with her still being in Malaysia, and I, now living in Japan, we could probably send each other parcels now and then to make ourselves feel loved (I know, I know).

Japanese cosmetics and skincare had long been known for their quality and performance and I figured there was no better was to prove the myth by trying them out for myself. Truth be told, I haven't had the chance to try out many things yet as I had brought along with me approximately 6 months worth of skincare when I came here. And the sheer volume of products here is really just mind blowing.

I love going to drugstores to browse and do swatches. It really surprised me that drugstore cosmetics here are of reasonably good quality and at highly affordable prices. They tend to wear very well, too. Though the colors may not be as daring and bold as, say, American brands, I have to commend the Japanese on mastering the nudes.

Without further ado, I present to you, My Suteki.

The site is still a work in progress as I'm still constantly sourcing products that I honestly think are good and well worth the buck.

If you want something but don't see it in the store, why not shoot me an email and I can hunt it down for you. I have access to pretty much anything when it comes to Japanese skincare and cosmetics so I could most likely do a CP for you.

Do take a look and please shoq us some love!

Purchase Mistake: ELF Studio Tinted Moisturizer SPF20

Product: 

ELF Studio Tinted Moisturizer SPF20

From here:

This lightweight and hydrating formula is breathable and provides anti-aging sun protection with UVA/UVB SPF 20. Achieve even skin tone and naturally radiant skin with this moisturizing sheer tint of color. The smooth formula enhances your complexion with the nourishing key ingredients Aloe, Cucumber and Vitamins A, C & E.

Why I bought it:

I developed an allergy to SPF products in my early 20s after a bad bout of sunburn. As a swimmer in my teens, I trained 7 days a week, rain or shine. I had a perpetual tan and my skin gladly welcomed sunblocks and creams of any kind. Somewhere between school and college, my body had started to reject sunscreen. Each time I applied it would result in breaking out in hives. One time, the allergic reaction was so bad that I had to be rushed to the hospital for treatment because my throat had started closing in. When I went to college, I stopped swimming and my lifestyle changed. Where I spent most of the day at the pool when I was a teen, I now spent my nights outdoors instead, going to clubs, working on college assignments and indulging in late night suppers. It was perhaps this change of lifestyle that threw my body off balance (I'm just assuming, really) and I was baffled when I had a bad burn after a weekend at the beach with friends. To say it was a bad sunburn was understatement; I had to get a jab on the drive back from the beach to the city. I was in so much pain and my body temperature was rising steadily. During the consultation, the doctor told me that I suffer from a condition called sun allergy. I know, right. What nonsense! But, yes, in addition to being allergic to sunblock, I also have sun allergy. Oh, joy. Needless to say, products that said "SPF" on their labels couldn't find a customer in me for years. Slow, though, I started experimenting with SPF products again. After all, the doctor did say that we develop and get rid of allergies in our lifetime. It started with a powder foundation with an SPF. My skin didn't react to it any more than when I didn't use it. Being in my late 20s now, I shudder at all the sun damage inflicted on my skin in all the years that I did away with sun protection. I thought it was safe to reintroduce it into my beauty regime.

Why I hate it:

It has practically zero moisturizing properties. The first time I tried it without my regular moisturizer, it just dragged across my poor face like a very dry expired moisturizer. It went on streaky and wouldn't spread properly. When I finally (and with much difficulty) managed to smooth it out as best as I can, it just sits on the surface on my skin like an orange mask. I looked like I had a very bad fake tan on my face. Being so dry, it was flaky on some parts, which is a huge surprise for me as I have always had a combination-oily skin type. Flakiness was unheard of until then. I gave it a second try the next day and applied it over my regular moisturizer. Nope, didn't work, too. While it went on streaky before, now it clumped up my moisturizer and I was left with little orange balls all over my face. So I spent another 5 minutes fixing my face. It worked badly with makeup, however minimal. My face was oilier than usual in less time, and blusher doesn't seem to sit well on it. The cherry on top, however, would be when I broke out so badly the next day. I had more than 10 pimples all over my face and rashes in certain areas. It took me 4 days with an antihistamine and 2 weeks for it to clear. Needless to say, there was no third try for this product. I gave it to a friend to try (hence no actual picture of the culprit) thinking that she might fare better than I did, given my history with sunscreen allergy and sensitive skin. She had the exact same reaction as I did. So, off to the bin it went.

Why I definitely won't repurchase:

Not only did it not work for me (and my friend), it caused so much damage to my skin that could possibly be irreversible. It has been 2 months since that incident and I still have some dry spots from when I had rashes. I had badly wanted to like this product after reading all the good reviews about it. Sadly, this falls far too short of my expectations, even with its $3 price tag. Also, not sure if this is a usual complaint, but the tube was only half full when I got it. Dud, much?

October '12 empties

Inspired by so many other beauty bloggers, I have decided to do my own "empties" posts.

When I came to Japan, I took as many skincare products along with me as possible. Now, I have a good reason.

I have this habit of buying 6 months worth of anything each time I go shopping for my toiletries. I can only blame it on my busy schedule as I hardly had time for sleep when I'm working. Last thing I really,  really need is facing a bad week with an empty tub of body butter.

So it was only natural that when I left Shanghai and came here, I have a mountain of stuff that I have either barely used, or a completely brand new. I couldn't ship them over here due to restrictions with shipping cosmetic items and liquids. I did the only thing I could.

I packed them all into my check-in luggage.

I was a mere 4kg overweight and it was nothing that an apologetic smile at an early check-in couldn't fix. While I'm definitely no stranger to luggage overweight, I was a little nervous about having the man lug my trolley case from the airport to my new apartment.

He did grumble, as I had expected, but I reminded him that I had spent quite a bit of money shipping the other 30kg of stuff over that he didn't have to drag around.

But, I digress from the original intent of this post.

On to the empties:

Product #1:

Biotherm Aquasource Oil Free Clarifying Hydrating Gel Lasting Fresh Matte Finish

From here:

Keeps skin ideally hydrated without a greasy after-feel. Also mattifies to keep skin moisturised and shine-free for long.

What I think:

This is a product that I had loved dearly for 3 or so years. I was so devoted that I would purchase at least 2 bottles from my local Biotherm counter in Malaysia each time I go on my skincare pilgrimage. It spreads so easily on my skin and doesn't sit on the surface leaving it sticky. The gel sinks right in and preps my face for makeup without needing a primer. I love, love, the smell of it because it always seems to wake me up a little and lift my senses in the morning. As I worked outdoors a lot and couldn't be bothered wearing makeup on the days I have 4.30am call times, all I have on my face for those 20-hour days is this baby right here. The pump dispenses just the right amount of product and a bottle could easily last me 3-4 months. I believed that this was my HG moisturizer, through and through. Imagine the devastation I faced when the Biotherm girl (we were already on a first name basis and buddy terms by then) said that the product had been discontinued and will no longer be sold at their counters in Malaysia. I was practically inconsolable. The bottle in the picture was in fact a tester product which the girl so kindly gave to me after I was told that it was discontinued. And this, too, will be the last bottle that I will ever use.

Will I repurchase:

No. As much as our love affair had lasted 3 years, I won't be repurchasing it. When I came to Japan, for some very strange (and very sudden) reason, it stopped working for me. In fact, it was like my skin had developed a total rejection to it. I was constantly pimply, and mind you, this was of the big and painful variety. The oil production factory floodgates broke and my makeup would be cakey within the first couple of hours. My self-esteem took a huge dip when my face was just greasy all the time. Who gets greasy in spring time anyway? Apparently I do. So with a really heavy heart I stopped using this and switch to a Japanese drugstore brand. The difference was immediate. I tried going back to it a couple of days (very bad mistake) and my skin took another hit which lasted weeks. I had to retired this to a dark corner in the closet for some months before I finally decided to finish up the remainder by using it as a hand lotion. Of course, it didn't fare well as a hand lotion, but I couldn't bear to see it go to waste.

Product #2: The Body Shop Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Butter

From here:

An intensive, rich and fragrant all-over body moisturiser with the decadent Japanese cherry blossom fragrance. Absorbs into the skin easily to condition and soften. 

• Lasting hydration 

• Leaves skin softer and smoother 

• Buttery texture 

• Cherry blossom scent 

What I think:

Absolute winter essential! I bought this tub in Hong Kong when I lived in Shanghai solely because The Body Shop is not available in China. I've always had a huge crush on anything cherry blossom so this was the first (and only) tub I reached for when I stepped into the store in Wan Chai. The scent, while is nothing like other cherry blossom products (not necessarily body stuff) I had, was something that till now I'm not too sure that I really like. It was a tad too strong and I felt like my senses were under siege whenever I smooth this onto my skin. However, it does seem to be bearable once I crawl into bed. It may even have helped to lull me to sleep. The texture seems to be a little smoother than the other body butters from the same brand that I've used before and spreads on easily. I find that because it's slightly fluffier than the others, I tend to use a little less. Typically, I apply this on my body after my nightly shower before bed as I think this is the best time to do it. My skin gets really dry in winter to the point where my eczema flares up and I get rashes so bad that they bleed so this is a really good alternative to treating my predicament with medication and other creams. They go on my arms, legs, torso, shoulders, back, bottom...everywhere! As a body butter, I didn't expect it to sink into my skin completely and leave it feeling grease-free. When you've got 2 blankets and duvets, a pair of thick socks and pajamas, and an electric blanket plugged in during winter, that little bit of tacky feeling will make you thankful it's there. I'm a two-showers-a-day but I use shower gel only at night (refer to the dry skin point). I find that when I take a warm shower in the morning, I still have a slight protective layer of body butter on me so my skin isn't completely naked. This helps to make my skin feel moisturized throughout the day with no dryness-itching.

Will I repurchase:

Definitely. As a matter of fact, the man is also using it, albeit in a more manly scent which is Olive. I've always used these when the weather's cold and they've yet to fail me. However, this falls into my winter-only buy as I prefer lighter lotions in summer.

So that sums up my two(!) empties from the last month. I should really learn to write real summaries instead of being so wordy.

As a hoarder in general, I'm looking forward to finishing up my old/existing products because I'm pretty convinced that the guy who predicted Doom's Day is wrong and I have no need to prepare for the apocalypse.

How the homebody came to be

At almost-8 months of living in the same country as my not-so-new husband, I've finally decided to get moving on starting a new blog to chronicle my misadventures of adapting to life as a homebody.

About 8 months ago I had packed my bags and shipped off the obscene amount of belongings that I had accumulated during the time I lived and worked in Shanghai. From a decent wage earning studio producer who worked with international photographers and directors, I was all set to leave that behind to move to Japan to be with my man.

Of course, this is not all just in the name of love. I had realized that for 8 years, I worked my dream job. But in hindsight, I had also foregone building and maintaining strong and lasting relationships with people. My job took up pretty much 90% of my time, and when I wasn't working, I was going on holidays. Friends eventually stopped calling altogether when they realized that I will never make it to their meet ups and events. Most of the time, I can't even pencil in coffee time.

So when I moved to Shanghai in the summer of '11, I thought it would be a good opportunity to settle down in a new country and make myself some new friends, you know, to compensate for the loss of ones that had phased out when I started working. Through the move, the changing jobs and the settling in, I was pretty stoked to be only 2 hours away from my man, as compared to the previous 7.5 hours from Malaysia.

We had been going out for 4.5 years and we'd spent that time traveling, sometimes he to Malaysia, sometimes I to Japan, sometimes meeting halfway in another country. We registered our marriage 3 days after Christmas '11. Up till then, we'd always talked about him moving to Shanghai to be with me. We spent 4 days as man and wife together before he was due to return to Japan, and I, to Shanghai.

To cut a really long story short, Shanghai didn't work out for me. Or, some people would say, I'm not cut out for Shanghai. So I left and finally worked on the one relationship that was good, constant.

I came to Japan, and the rest, is the future of a homebody.