SKIN

Review: Ardell Lash & Brow Growth Accelerator, My Trusted Weapon For Longer Lashes

March 27, 2014 2 Comments

We got to admit some Asians don’t grow enough hair. Please, I definitely do not intend to discriminate but speaking the truth. One of them is me, I have fine hairs on my scalp, face and body which I’m actually thankful for because I save a lot on waxing. My problem would be, I don’t grow enough hair on my brows and lashes. Therefore, Ardell Lash & Brow Growth Accelerator is something to look upon.

I remembered when I first spotted this growth accelerator is when I was in Melbourne (precisely in Priceline), more than 5 years ago. I thought it was affordable, only AUD7.90 then and no harm on giving it a try. Upon using this, I do realize that my lashes became stronger, longer and more brow hairs were growing. Before returning to Malaysia, I have had stocked up half a dozen just to ensure that I won’t be missing it. One tube could last for a couple of months. When I ran out of stock, I didn’t purchase any and it is not available in Malaysia.

Luckily, they can be found now at Supermodels Secret and this would be an ease for me than searching high and low. I’m on the parole to get my brow hair and lashes all growing again. They usually come in blister package. The tube looks like your typical mascara and the gel can be seen right from it’s outside. I would say the packaging is just as handy to travel around.

On the back of the blister package, it describes how this growth accelerator works. Basically, it helps to strengthen and stimulates hair growth for brow hair and lashes. It is advice to use it daily, only at night which I did and will share with you how well this work for me.

Bonus points is that it doesn’t contain alcohol or paraben in this serum. As much as I read about castor oil, they are said to be very good for hair growth and this is included in the gel. The brand Ardell is from US and they also have a wide variety of false lashes sitting in our Sephora stores.

The brush wand looks just like your ordinary mascara and I do find that it’s a little stiff. It felt a little harsh when I applied over my brows. The gel doesn’t have any scent to it but it does turn bad after a month and a half or more from the numerous pumping and mixture of our skin care product that the brush picked up. I didn’t mind the ‘bad’ scent because it was meant to be applied at night before bed and it doesn’t stay long. Although the scent has gone bad, it is still working it’s charm.

I have started using this gel again a month ago and this gel never disappoint me. With the arrows pointing, those are the spots where I could tell there’s difference. I do have very sparse brows, notice that some part of it is now filled with hair? I do have medium length lashes that was grown from the previous usage but I have not use the gel for more than a year. I do notice some lashes starts to growth, became thicker and longer.

Above all…

When people ask me how did I get such lashes, I always recommend this gel to them. I used to have really short and stubby lashes and they were never flattering. I never thought of reviewing this gel previously especially it isn’t available in Malaysia and it will be difficult for those who is interested. With only a month use, I could get results but it all depends on individual, some could be faster or slower.

There is one effectiveness of this gel that I have yet to tell you on the earlier years of usage. You know how sometimes such products could get into our eyes? Yup, it did happen to me, no tingles, no irritation and little did I know, there’s fine hair growing on the lacrimal caruncle (the tiny nodule flesh at the inner corner of the eye). I thought my eyes were messing up with my vision and attempted to carefully tweeze it. No accident happened (thank God!) and I managed to tweeze those fine hairs (there was two). They were really tiny and it happened a couple of times before, therefore I didn’t tweeze only once. Apparently, I’m getting used to it.

If you are a first time user, you need to be dedicated to use this gel religiously to achieve results and this has to be use on long term. You can’t be expecting va-va-voom lashes within a month. It takes time to nurture your brows and lashes. Good news for Malaysians that you can find this at Supermodels Secret now! They ship internationally too.

Price: MYR39.00

Weight: 7.3ml

Availability: Supermodel2u.com

Web: Supermodel2u.com

PROs:

Effectively grows brow hair and lashes
Strengthen lashes
Longer lashes
Affordable

CONs:

Bad scent after long term use

My Rating: 4.9/5

~ ♦ ~

This lash and brow growth gel was provided by Supermodels Secret for review purposes, kindly refer disclaimer.

xoxo,
Traclyn Yeoh

Review: O’slee Pore Medi Perfect Pore Refine Serum. 15 Seconds to Invisible Pores and 20 Days To Minimize All Troubled Pores, Did It Work?

March 26, 2014 2 Comments

What tempted me to purchase O’slee Pore Medi Perfect Pore Refine Serum is what it claims. I have been eyeing on this serum quite a while and because it does goes on sale at times, I waited patiently when this goes on promo and grabbed it for only MYR39.90 at Guardian Pharmacy. It’s a good grab, considering that the marked down price is as much as approximately 70%. Let’s see what actually attracted me to set my eyes on this serum.

’15 Seconds
Pores Invisible. New Advanced Pore Refining Technology!

20 Days
Specific Active Ingredients To Minimize 4 Specific Types of Pores.’ – Oslee

For a person like me who has dilated pores, this definitely sounded promising. Within 15 seconds for pores to be invisible and 20 days to minimize all the troubled pores? I’m sold. Made in Hong Kong, I have tried before some skin care from O’slee and they are quite effective.

‘Soft-Focus Particles instantly hide pores and fine lines within 15 seconds. Make them invisible. Use before makeup, provides easy coverage for your pores.’ – O’slee

According to O’slee, there are four different types of troubled pores and their active ingredients will be able to counter these troubles.

Pores Caused By Oily Skin

Ingredients: Zinc Lactate
Increase and retain skin moisture. Regulate the balance of moisture and oil level of skin, minimize the oily pores.

Pores Caused By Dead Skin Cells

Ingredients: Mushroom Extract
Promote skin metabolism, decompose dead skin cells and refine the pores.

Pores Caused By Skin With Loosing Elasticity

Ingredients: Pisum Sativum (PEA) Extract
Increase skin elasticity, restructure and refine pores.

Pores Caused By Melanin

Ingredients: Vitamin B3
Inhibit melanin buildup and make pores invisible

This is advice to be use daily day and night after cleansing and toning face. Avoid eye area and followed with moisturizer right after.

I was expecting silicon as their ingredient since their claims on 15 seconds invisible pores but I was wrong. However, this serum does contain alcohol and paraben.

If you have followed many of my post, you’ll notice how much I love pumps since their much hygienic and reduces oxidation of the product. As much as I love pumps, this gives me a little trouble. When it is newly opened, it took more than 10 pumps just to dispense the serum and in the mid of using, the pump happened not to dispense the serum.

Firstly, I thought maybe the residue at the opening of the pump could have been the reason but after cleaning it, it took me quite a while to get the serum on the line again. Yup, another 10 pumps or more. This did not happen only once but thrice, resulting me in pumping this serum vigorously whenever it happened. I lost my patience when such thing happened more than twice, it’s just frustrating but I didn’t want to give up on it.

The serum has gel-like texture, easily spread over the skin without feeling oily. It leaves the skin feeling hydrated and it has light floral scent to it.

The strong claim of 15 seconds to invisible pores had made me felt skeptical over the effectiveness. Therefore, I put the test on my first use. Before is where my skin is untreated and has been cleansed and toned. On the after is 2 minutes after applying the serum. I had high hopes on the serum but it didn’t impress me. My dilated pores looks the same though I had it longer than 15 seconds.

I give this serum a chance to use it for a month, hoping for the effectiveness as it claims for 20 days. Honestly, I could hardly spot the difference over my dilated pores. They look pretty much the same to me, can you tell? The only difference I could tell is the redness at the sides of my nose reduced gradually.

Here is a comparison on before using the serum and after a month. Again to make things clear, the before is my untreated skin where I have not used the serum at all, in fact this is the same photo of the before on the 15 seconds test. After is after the course of a month using this serum. Yet again to see any difference on my pores.

Above all…

I had high hopes from this serum but it doesn’t seem to work well for me. Of course, I do understand that I cannot expect miracles to happen but I do expect for what it claims. The 15 seconds and 20 days to invisible pores just didn’t happened to me. The most frustrating point of using this serum is the pump where it didn’t function very well in the course of usage. There are times, the serum doesn’t dispense gently and it literally flew across my vanity. Now I’m taking this serum as my skin hydrator but it’s not very helpful in controlling my skin oiliness nor helping in reducing blackheads. I have got two major blackhead on my forehead while using this. For anyone who tried this serum and worked effectively, do let me know!

Retail Price: MYR 129.90

Weight: 40ml

Availability: Guardian Pharmacy or Oslee.com.my

Web: Oslee.com.my

PROs:

Mark down price is very affordable
Hydrates skin

CONs:

Failed on 15 seconds to invisible pores test
No signs of minimized pores
Malfunction pump
Does not control skin oil
Retail price is too heavy

My Rating: 2/5

xoxo,
Traclyn Yeoh

Review: Evolu DE-STRESS Soothing Eye Gel, Refreshes Tired Eyes

March 24, 2014 Leave a Comment

Stress is something we face almost everyday, well it also depends on your stress level. As many people said, our eyes are the window of our soul and we might be aware of it but we often stressing them by the hours we spent looking to the computer monitor or squinting our eyes while watching TV or over the bright sun. This stresses also contribute to poor blood circulation to our eyes which result in tired, puffy and dark eye circles. Let’s hear it for Evolu DE-STRESS Soothing Eye Gel to find out how effective this product went for me.

‘Perfect for stressed and hypersensitive skin, this cooling botanical concentrate calms, soothes and visibly refreshes tired appearance around the eyes. The synergistic blend of aloe vera, eyebright extract and arnica combine to reduce skin discomfort and puffiness, whilst mamaku fern extract enriches and stimulates cell renewal. A non-oily gel for daily use, it soaks in quickly to leave the eye area freshened, toned and revitalised.’ – Evolu

This is suitable for all skin types especially for those who are not fond with rich creams around their eye area. Combining with a few natural ingredients, this eye gel comes in a handy tube which able to stand on its own.

Though it comes in a tube form, it dispenses the gel from a pump which is very hygienic and avoids the oxidization of the gel. For the entire time that I use this eye gel, I didn’t face much problems with the pump at all. In fact, it was quite easy to use and the amount of gel that was dispense is always consistent.

I find that the design on the pump cover was interesting. It’s similar to any Celtic designs which in my opinion, something different from their usual packaging and it’s beautiful. It’s actually Evolu’s symbol.

The gel is transparent clear without any scent, the texture is thick but once blended it absorbs easily. I use about half a pump during the day and a full pump at night before bed daily. Just dab gently around the eye area until it’s fully absorbed. I tend to apply above of my eyelid crease to ensure that area gets to enjoy the benefits of the eye gel too. Because of it’s gel texture, it felt cooling and refreshing right after the application.

I have been using it for a month now and been trying to regulate my sleeping hours appropriately. In the course of 4 weeks, I do find that my eye area does look less tired gradually. The redness has also lessen periodically.

Here is the side view to show you the hollows of my dark circle. They are slightly less visible by week 4. I love how hydrated my under eye felt. Not that my under eye area is dry to begin with but somehow it felt like the eye gel did plumped that area.

Here is a comparison of before using and after a month of using. This shows a much greater difference that my eyes look less tired. Very much refreshed too.

Here’s the comparison on the side and I do notice that the redness faded slight bit.

Above all…

As it claims that it helps to refresh tired eyes, I’d like to think it did helped although the results wasn’t drastic. We can’t expect drastic results on the dark circles because it has work with the harmony of our skin. In a way, it also helps to maintain the condition of my eye area. It doesn’t irritate my eye area at all, in fact it felt refreshing and hydrated. I also liked the packaging itself that it is very hygienic and easy to use. Even so, I do think that it is quite pricey for an eye gel with such functionality.

Price: MYR232.00

Weight: 25ml/ 0.85fl.oz

Availability: theSkintopic Outlet

Web: theSkintopic.com.my

PROs:

Unscented
Absorbs easily
Keeps eye area hydrated
Proven less tired looking eyes after a month
Reduces redness

CONs:

Pricey

My Rating: 4/5

~ ♦ ~

This eye gel was provided by theSkintopic for review purposes, kindly refer disclaimer.

xoxo,
Traclyn Yeoh

Review: Evolu Purifying Mask Leaves Skin Acne Free, Radiant & Healthy But Not Strong Enough To Absorb My Skin Excess Oil

March 20, 2014 Leave a Comment

The adventure of finding the right product to get rid of my skin oiliness is endless. As we might already know, clay is very good for combination to oily skin. Here I was introduced to try Evolu Purifying Mask and in fact, I’m having it on while writing this.

‘Perfect for a weekly deep cleanse or when skin needs extra help, this mask suits all skin types, especially sensitive or oily. The active botanicals work in combination with kaolin clay to gently exfoliate, detoxify and thoroughly remove damaging impurities. The mask dries quickly, absorbing make-up, excess oil and grime. Gentle wiping with a warm, wet face cloth removes the mask and thoroughly purifies without the need for harsh scrubbing.’ – theSkintopic

This mask is recommended for all skin types despite of having kaolin clay as part of their ingredient. It definitely sounds promising as it even absorbs make-up residue, excess oil and impurities. I would say this would be suitable for my skin especially I have very oily t-zone and wears make-up daily. Well, at least foundation, brows and blusher. ^_^

It comes in a squeeze tube form, which prevents the product from oxidizing, stay hygienic and easy to control on dispensing the product. There’s a seal by the opening of the tube which indicates that it is new and has not been used. Simply remove the seal, place the cap back and it’s ready to use.

The creamy texture is very thick and it is so thick that there are times I find it difficult to squeeze the tube to dispense the product with one hand. The product tend to get to the end of the tube quickly even though I have squeezed it towards the tip much earlier. It has a very delicious sweet orange scent that I almost wanted to eat it or almost tempted to squeeze the mask straight into my mouth. LOL just kidding!

Since the texture is thick, it was very difficult to spread the mask across my face using a brush. I’m just using a plain old synthetic foundation brush to apply. I then switch to use my fingers to apply which is much better and I think the reason behind it is because the warmth of the fingers tend to ‘melt’ the mask. Also, I would apply toner or any soothing water prior to the mask as it also helps to make the mask spread easily.

I used it once or twice a week, depending on my skin condition. The mask does dries very quickly (at about less than a minute) and with the toner/soothing water trick, it does take slightly longer which I would prefer. There are times I would also use just on the oily areas of my face such as t-zone, inner cheek and chin. There are also times, I would just slap on the mask on my entire face. I remove the mask by washing it off.

I have used this product on my BF and he felt slight tingling sensation. At first, I thought it was because his skin is much more on the dryer side which made his skin sensitive towards the mask but on my first time of using this mask, I felt the tingling sensation too. I would like to take the tingling sensation positively as it is still bearable and as though the mask is doing it’s magic on my skin to lift and absorb all the gunk away.

Here is my weekly progress and I love how my skin is acne free for the entire progress. The redness at the sides of my nose seems soothed as it is less red gradually. I do notice that the blackheads are slightly reduced throughout using this mask.

Before using the mask, my skin look slightly dull and uneven and on the after, it looked much more radiant and seems even more healthy.

This mask contains no paraben. Most of the ingredients is natural, either from flower or fruit.

Above all…

The mask kept my skin at bay, acne free for a month which I love the most, BUT it didn’t do very well in absorbing excess oil. My skin is still as oily as before and I frequently blot it as usual. Therefore, I believe it explains why my blackheads are only slightly reduced. I wasn’t very comfortable with the quick dry formula as it was a little too fast especially in an air-condition room. I almost thought it could take up the skin moisture but it didn’t. The BF likes it that it leaves his skin smooth and soft right after. I do think that the price for this mask is quite pricey, especially looking it at how well it has done for me. I would recommend this for those who have normal to combination skin.

Price: MYR 189.00

Weight: 75ml/2.6fl.oz

Availability: theSkintopic Outlets

Web: theSkintopic.com.my

PROs: