Best of 2012 Roundup - Skincare

Hello, Happy Holidays!  Hope you all have some time to relax after Christmas.  

This post will wrap up the year combining November, December, and 2012 Best of Roundup.  I have mentioned some of the products in the past and some will be shown for the first time.  Let's get started...

Skincare - Sulwhasoo, Sunday Riley, L'Occitane, Fresh

Sulwhasoo Deep Cleansing Oil was new to me this year and I LOVE it!  It is one of the best cleansing oils I have ever tried.  It not only takes off heavy eye and face makeup, but my skin feels extra supple without being greasy after each use.  It has a herbal scent that is not very common, but I do not mind it since I am used to oriental herbal and medicinal scents.  I sampled other skincare items in this brand, but this to me is their stand out product.  I high recommend it. 

Sunday Riley Modern Skincare was a line that I thoroughly enjoyed using over the warmer months.  The products contain active ingredients and are very effective.  My favorites are Juno, Good Genes, and Start Over.

L'Occitane Angelica Eye Roll-On was one of my favorite eye rollers this year.  I mainly like the gel like texture as it refreshes the eye area and wears well under makeup.  The Angelica grassy scent is amazing!

I have seen mixed reviews on Fresh Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask.  For me, I see results after continuous use.  As I said before, this is one of my all time favorite masks especially before events and on special occasions.  Read more about it in my previous post here.

I will be back to talk about makeup next, but let's start with this video on some new Dolce & Gabbana makeup.  Don't you love the glowy and luminous look?  Great techniques to create that winter glow.




Until next post......

Best of October Roundup - Cellbone Technology, Sunday Riley, Natura Bisse, Lush, Caudalie

Hello, Every year in October, I find myself switching skincare and makeup in time for the new season and in hopes to improve my skin and overall appearance before my birthday.  I admit vanity gets the best of me as my birthday approaches each year.

Let's get started with what I have been loving lately...

Skincare - Cellbone Technology, Sunday Riley, Natura Bisse

Left to right:

Cellbone Technology is a lesser known skincare line from the US.  I buy their products directly from their website.  Cellbone offers pharmaceutical quality products using pure ingredients.  Some of the core ingredients in their products include Hyaluronic Acid, Collagen, Acetyl Hexapeptide 3, Idebenone, L-Ascorbic Acid, and vital nutritive botanicals.

I first learned about Cellbone from a Hong Kong blogger, BeautyQQ aka Queenie Chan, about two years ago (see one of her videos below, it is in English and Chinese with caption in English).  This line is apparently very popular in Hong Kong, a very beauty conscious country.  

I have been using various Cellbone products over the past two years and these are some products that I have been using over the past two months:

C23 High Potency C-Serum (Day)

Hydra Repair Skin Repair Gel (Day)

Super AOX Antioxidant Firm Moisturizer Cream - (Day and Night) a Must Have antiaging treatment!

Sunday Riley Start Over Active Eye Cream - (Day and Night) also mentioned here

Natura Bisse Diamond Mist - (Day and Night)

Natura Bisse Diamond Extreme - (Day and Night)

Natura Bisse Diamond Drops - (Day) 

Both Sunday Riley and Natura Bisse products are expensive, but these products are worth every penny and they do last for many months.  I have tried both lines in the past and saw changes in my skin, therefore I am not opposed to repurchasing these brands from time to time.

Makeup - Lush Emotional Brilliance in Intuitive and Perspective

I want to finish where I left off last time when I talked about Lush Emotional Brilliance.  Today I will share with you the other two colors that I acquired, Intuitive and Perspective.

Intuitive comes off as an electric neon green color for the eyes, it is surprisingly wearable and fun.  I use it all over the lid alone or sometime with a darker green color on the outer corners for depth.

Perspective is a mauve pink. It is not the most flattering pink for my lips, but it is a good one if you prefer pinks with mauve undertones.  It is a nice color for Fall if you are not into reds or the darker colors and prefer something more subtle.  I love using it as a cream blusher, it is so easy to blend out and it lasts all day.  

As I mentioned before, I like these bottles of cream colors from Lush.  They are fabulous to play with and they are available at Lush and Lushusa.com.

Body Care - Caudalie Divine Oil

What can I say?  Housed in an elegant amber colored glass bottle, Caudalie Divine Oil is simply Divine!  I use it all over from head to toe.  The main ingredients include the oils from argan, sesame, hibiscus, grape seed, and shea butter.  It is a dry oil, but it is slightly heavier than other dry oils that I have tried.  It is not greasy by any means and it is easily absorbed into the skin.  The scent is a wonderful warm floral, a perfect treat for Fall!

Thanks for reading!  Have a good weekend!  Until next post......

Best of March Roundup - Sunday Riley, The Face Shop, Burt's Bees

Hello, The month of March flew by so quickly, I hope you are all doing well!  Busy season has begun at work, it is the reason why I have not been blogging very much recently.  But I am still here, I still managed to find time to try some new products to pamper myself with and to relieve the daily stresses in my life.


Skin Care - Sunday Riley Charisma Creme Cleanser 

As I have mentioned in a prior post, I have been using and loving Sunday Riley Modern Skincare.  I have used Charisma Creme Cleanser for more than two weeks now and it is amazing!  When I think of cream cleanser, I think greasy and heavy.  The consistency of this cleanser is quite the opposite, it is a very light cream cleanser for dry to normal skin.  I would think oily skin can benefit from this cleanser too because it is so light and calming.  The ingredients are super natural and very gentle on the skin.  Some key ingredients include milk, aloe, multi-fruit acids, acai, chamomile, lavender, and green tea.  You would massage this cleanser on dry skin, then rinse with water.  I sometimes use the Clarisonic to remove the cleanser and it works very well to remove makeup and dirt.  It has a light milky scent that is very pleasant.  It is housed in a plastic bottle with a lockable pump.  Sunday Riley Modern Skincare is available at Barneys New York.

A closer look at the ingredients

Makeup - The Face Shop HD-Perfect BB Cream SPF30 PA++ in 02 Natural Beige

I found this BB cream at The Face Shop located on Korean Way in New York City last year.  I happened to be staying at a hotel very close to the shop.  My husband was the one who pointed out the store to me as we were passing by.  It was my first time visiting The Face Shop, so I only picked up this BB cream as I was not too familiar with their products at that time and I was getting ready to travel overseas.

Its claim:  "Contains HD Skin Complex to meticulously conceal skin flaws and blemishes while covering widened pores and uneven skin surface to provide a fair and smooth HD skin appearance...making actresses radiate confidently even in front of HD cameras..."  For the most part, it covers minor flaws and blemishes.  It does a good job minimizing the appearance of large pores.  I cannot speak to how it looks in front of HD cameras and I have not been photographed with this BB cream on. 

It is made for normal to dry skin that gives a semi-matte to natural finish on my skin.  The coverage is very good for a BB cream, similar to that of a light foundation.  It is easy to blend and goes on semi-matte at first.  After the product mixes with the natural oils from your skin, it morphs from semi-matte to a nice sheen on the skin.  It looks very natural and does not look flat on the skin.  It comes in two shades, 01 Light Beige and 02 Natural Beige.  01 Light Beige is for NC15 skin tone or fairer while 02 Natural Beige is for NC20 to 25 skin tones .   I have been looking for a BB cream that does not have a gray tint and this one is perfect. 02 Natural Beige is a light beige tone. 

I highly recommend this BB cream for those with normal to dry skin and prefer good light to medium coverage.


Body Care - Burt's Bees Honey & Shea Sugar Scrub

Via Google Images

I continue to find amazing products from Burt's Bees.  I truly have not met a Burt's Bees product that I do not like.  Burt's Bees Honey & Shea Sugar Scrub is 100% natural and full of goodness.  The combination of key ingredients of sugar, ground almonds, and honey is so luxurious and will give you a spa experience in the shower.  The sweet scent is heavenly and addicting.  The scrub leaves your skin moisturized, nourished, and supple.  Scrub is one body product that I go through the fastest, I will definitely repurchase this scrub in the future.  It is available at most drugstores.


I will be back with more new discoveries that I got to try and experience in March.  My posts will be sporadic due to my busy schedule at work for the next two weeks, so please bear with me and check back!


Until next post......

Sunday Riley Modern Skincare

Hello and Happy Sunday!  I have been incorporating Sunday Riley Modern Skincare to my daytime skincare routine for over one month.  I am happy to report that I am adding Sunday Riley Modern Skincare to my list of HG skincare lines that already includes Acure, Arcona, Aveda, and Melvita.

Sunday Riley Modern Skincare is all about using Green Technology and incorporating their own NV-5 Ageless Complex in the products.  You can read more about Green Technology and NV-5 Ageless Complex on their website here.  I have done a lot of research online before investing in the products.  During my research, I discovered lola's secret beauty blog and Lola's blog contains a wealth of information on Sunday Riley's products.  Lola has been an avid user of the line for many years.  Her posts are well written, insightful, and informative.  Go check out her blog.  

To give you a quick overview of the Sunday Riley products, I have been layering or mixing the first three products in the daytime after cleansing and followed by sunscreen:


 - Juno Transformative Lipid Serum - It is a facial oil and it is the star product in my opinion.  This product gives your skin a luminous glow like no other
- Skin Adrenaline Anti-Aging Concentrate - Light moisturizer for all skin types including oily skin
- Good Genes Treatment - This is a brightening treatment that I use five days in a row as a treatment once a month.  I would layer or mix it with Juno and Skin Adrenaline
- Start Over Active Eye Cream - I have not started to use this product yet.  It was a gift with Sunday Riley purchase at the Barneys New York Beauty Event in February.  I wanted to finish up my Origin Eye Treatments before opening this one
- Charisma Creme Cleanser - I picked up this cleanser last weekend after trying the sample I received in February. It is a good cleanser for normal to dry skin and it will remove eye and face makeup while it softens the skin


All products are available at Barneys New York.


In the evening after cleansing, I am still using and rotating between Acure Radical Age Reversal Treatment and Sponge Ladi Avokanto. I reserve these treatments for bedtime because I find both textures to be too heavy for daytime.


Thanks for reading.  Until next post......