Shiseido Maquillage White Lucent 3-Step Skincare

Whenever I travel, I tend to bring along sample size beauty products, to lighten the luggage + try new stuff at the same time! But as I learned from my painful HK trip, it's best to just try ONE product at a time, not 10! Hahhaa. For this trip, I took along my Shiseido White Lucent skincare set that I got from my church last time. :) Apparently someone in the church works for Shiseido and sponsored this 3-step skincare set for all those that attended

The Shiseido Maquillage 3-step skin care set consists of :
a. Brightening Cleansing Foam
b. Brightening Balancing Softener
c. Brightening Protective Emulsion

That big black packet -- I'm not sure what it is because I didn't use it. :P

Brightening Cleansing Foam
A pretty decent cleansing foam, that smells a bit TOO clinical for me. I like how you only need to use a little bit to get it all nicely foaming. This is also one of those RARE cleansers that REALLY make your face feel SQUEAKY clean after washing it off. Usually, magazines advise against cleansers like this because they said if it's SQUEAKY CLEAN, most likely it stripped off all your skin's natural oils. However, I didn't feel like my skin was TOO tight, so I quite like it. Also manages to take off all my make-up in one wash, so I think this is a really super cleanser. Pity about the scent though...

Brightening Balancing Softener
Notice that it's called a SOFTENER and not a TONER. I have no idea what this is used for, and although this is cooling on my skin, I didn't feel any significant difference after using it. I don't think it contains any alcohol, because I didn't feel the usual "stinging" feeling of using toner.

Based on Shiseido's website : "This softening step is what makes Shiseido's beauty regimen so original. Unlike toners which can strip skin of vital moisture, Shiseido softeners quickly and effectively replenish generous moisture. Skin with sufficient moisture becomes more receptive to the next skincare step and fully absorbs the benefits."

Brightening Protective Emulsion
Comes with SPF15, and again, a very little bit goes a long way. The cream feels thick and heavy on my skin, and although I feel that it was a bit hard to absorb, it didn't leave TOO greasy or oily a feeling, though it didn't feel exactly comfortable. I am not really a fan of heavy moisturisers, and my skin doesn't need such moisturisation either as it is not terribly dry. I only used it once during the trip, and didn't bother with it anymore.

In conclusion : love the cleanser, I like the idea of the softener (based on Shiseido's spiel) and I guess I need more frequent usage before I can say whether it works or not, and I don't like the moisturiser.

Price-wise, the full-size skin care set apparently costs between USD$50 - USD$70. Definitely out of my budget beauty range, but thankful that I managed to try it out in mini-size. :P