Cussons Imperial Leather Softly Softly Nourishing Shower Cream

I've always stressed about how I *really* need to test out a product before I write a review for it. A new shower gel takes at least 2 weeks to test out before I decide whether I should muster up enough energy to write a review. Well, with this 220ml bottle of Cussons Imperial Leather Softly Softly Nourishing Shower Cream, this means that by the time I photograph the bottle, this is what it looks like :

Yup, check out how little product is left, hahaha. Well, at least the bottle is kinda see-through, so you can tell that the "nourishing shower cream" is a milky white cream in color. It's also definitely very nice, which explains why I've used up so much of it within 2+ weeks. Well, a normal-size 500ml shower gel lasts me about a month, so I guess it's pretty fair. I'm quite sad that this is finishing actually, it's a very nostalgic-smelling item and I love Cussons Imperial Leather for coming up with this shower cream. I don't know if I'm just old or odd, but didn't your parents used to use those bars of Cussons Imperial Leather soap? This smells exactly like it, but now comes in the convenience of a bottle, since I rarely hear people buying soaps nowadays!

If you've never smelled how this soap is like, er.... it's very classic, old-timey stuff. A little bit of a lingering floral scent, which isn't overwhelming. A very relaxing and comfortable feeling when using this soap. I just Googled and found out that the "classic" Imperial Leather scent is made of Turkish Rose, lavender, cumin and Precious Amber. This is the signature scent in their products, and I have to say that it's a really good signature scent! :)

The shower cream lathers up well (but not thickly), and immediately your entire shower will be filled with the scent from the shower cream. You don't have to use a lot to get your entire body all soaped up, and after rinsing off, you will still detect the scent lingering on your skin. I guess you have to be a huge fan of the smell (like me!) to really adore this product. If you hate the smell or am just a plain anti-fragrance person, then this is definitely not for you.

As for the "nourishing" part in this shower cream, I personally find that it *does* leave my skin feeling softer than with normal shower gels. So much so that I kinda forget to apply any more moisturisers (forgoing my skincare regiment again!!). -___-" However, I do admit that it's not the only product on the market that now combines shower cream + moisturising effects together!

Price wise, I can't comment because this was actually a gift from my buddy Pauline when she went to Bangkok. :) Yup, you can't find this shower cream in Malaysia also, so do try and find it if you ever head up North. I might be on the lookout for it the next time I'm there, cos I really do consider this a repurchase! She told me that there are a few varieties, so I'm looking forward to trying 'em all out!

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In Defense of the Dispensable

Have slipped in the blogging department, but mainly because I'm still in the "testing" phase for a lot of items, as a lot of the things I'm currently using are either new or have already been reviewed. Also, I'm compiling MORE make-up pictures instead, and it's so hard to find good lighting sometimes. Hence, today will be a NO PICTURE post, but it's gonna be a lengthy one because I just encountered something so amazing that I feel like angels are singing behind me, hahaha.

What happened? Well, I made the switch from permanent lens to disposable lenses. *hallelujah*

"Permanent lens? What is that anyway?" I hear the younger generation ask. Honestly, most optical stores that you see in shopping malls will 95% not make permanent lens. The only reason why I use it is because... I grew up with it. I started wearing contact lens at a very young age (still in primary school, if you must know), and I stuck with permanent lens because that is what my mother, father and sister wear as well. My parents like permanent lenses because they think that permanent = lasts foreverly forever, unless you drop it into the toilet bowl / down the sink.

IN FACT, IT IS NOT MEANT TO LAST FOREVER. Sure, you can still use it, but it's not hygienic and there could be microscopic tears and scratches that will only further worsen the condition of your eyes. In fact, I had multiple "bad" experiences wearing my permanent lenses for so long, and each time, they are solved by changing the lenses. And it still didn't hit me that duh, stop using the lenses for so long then. I was so stingy that if my left eye was having problems, then I would just change the lens for the left eye.

Things got so bad that sometimes I don't know whether there's permanent damage (prayfully, not!) or whether it is the cosmetics that I am using that is aggravating the condition. Of course, there are some eyeshadows / eyeliners that have more fall out or can cause you to tear more easily. To me, I would just avoid that brand, but miraculously, when I wear spectacles + make-up, I don't encounter such a bad reaction?

Finally, after wearing my spectacles for a few weeks, I got tired and honestly, afraid of wearing my permanent lens. There was one time that it was itching and tearing up so bad and nothing I did was helping. No eye drops, no amount of washing, etc, could help me. I spent a week wearing spectacles because that is about the amount of time you require to "rest" your eyes before doing an eye exam if you're a contact lens wearer. I told my husband to fetch me to Malaya Optical during the weekend because that is the only optician I know that still does permanent lens (aka RGP lenses - Rigid Gas Permeable). Actually, the pricing there is quite fair... I believe they quoted me around RM600-RM700 for a pair, which is lower than the private clinic optician that quotes nearly a thousand for it. This would explain why my parents are VERY VERY reluctant to change their lenses frequently. Guess what? In fact, even though it's "permanent", the MAX amount of time you are supposed to use it for is ONE YEAR. So don't think you are "saving money" by going permanent... it could even be more expensive in the long run.

Why didn't I try disposable lenses way earlier? Well, other than "being afraid of the unknown", it was also the fact that I have pretty bad eyesight and the "power" required is high. The last time I checked, disposable lenses only went up to around 500+. To be honest, I'm not sure whether this is for normal lenses or colored lenses, it could be only colored lenses goes up to 500+. Regardless, it was a good excuse for me to not use disposable lenses (using the unknown). It is also the reason why I don't wear colored contact lenses like other beauty bloggers, and why I don't wear iris enlarging lenses (aside from the fact that I have small eyes and this will make me look like Ju-On).

My husband was lazy to drive me to that particular optician branch, so he said, why don't we just go to the shopping center within walking distance from our house, and ask around. I was sooooo sure that they won't have it because the shopping center is not that big, plus, like I said, RGP is becoming rare! But since he is lazy to drive me, but hardworking to walk around the shopping complex, I said ok.

The first store I went to in the shopping center just bluntly told me no they don't do permanent lenses. The highest they go to for disposable lenses (I was just asking for the sake of asking, I wasn't really interested) was around 600. Well, that's definitely too low, I told them. Thanked them and left. There was just one more optical store in the shopping center, and it was more tucked away. If the large one on the ground floor didn't have it, it was doubtful this one would. My husband insisted anyway, so I trudged along. When I arrived, the shop displayed mostly sunglasses and glasses frames. There were no boxes of disposable lenses, so I was already realllllly sure he would have to drive me to make RGP lenses after all. :)

The lady at the counter said they don't make RGP lenses.... well, no surprise there. I was ready to leave, but unlike the blur guys in the shop downstairs, she was more persistent. Why don't I try disposable? Power don't go up high enough? How bad was my eyesight? Disposable lenses now go up to power 1200! I was like whaaaaat? Really? How much is it? She recommended me AirOptix and it costs RM50 for a box of 3 lenses (note: 3 lenses, not 3 pairs!) and it will last me for a month. They even have a promotion of buy 3 boxes and get 1 free, so RM150 for 12 lenses (6 pairs). If you really do change your permanent lenses every year, then it's definitely cheaper to go for disposables! Plus, it's not as heart-breaking if you lose one side of your lenses, because you have a spare one (or you can just buy another box! Not breaking the bank!), unlike when you lose a permanent lens. Nobody knows the panic of losing one side of your contact lens as much as your perma lens wearer, hehe!

Since this lady was soooo nice, and she taught me for soooo long how to care for my disposable lenses... I thought why not. It's just RM50. If it doesn't work out, I will just make my husband drive me to get my RGP lenses after all. So I bought it, and of course, I didn't wear it straight away. It was night time. Decided to test it out the next day, when I worked from home. I can still remember, it was 11th June. :P

The moment I tore open the packaging, I was already aghast. A total WTF moment for me, this silicon hydrogel lens looks to be DOUBLE the size of my permanent lens!! Plus plus plus... my eye is small!! How the heck is it going to go in!! I was very doubtful, and I'm not lying when I say that it took me 30 minutes to put on my contact lenses. Really thankful that I was working from home that day, else I will be super duper late to work!! I don't really have tips on how to make it work but:
a. your eye is big enough, it will go in. Tell yourself that and stay positive.
b. if it helps, push your lashes UPWARDS and AWAY from your eye so that it doesn't block the lenses from going in
c. favorite position is to slide the lens from bottom to top so that it bypasses the eyelash barrier. Do not blink until you are really sure it is inside!
[do not read the above with any double entendre. This is a clean post! -___-]

After the first time, it just got faster and faster. I try to rush myself, and to stay positive. Of course, it would still be easier with my RGP lenses, but I'm never going back. There's just way too many good reasons to stay with disposable lenses. My eyes do NOT encounter any bad reaction with the cosmetic products, so I'm free to wear as much make-up as I like. It really feels SO comfortable, really like I'm not wearing any lenses at all. Sometimes with RGP, I blink and I'm aware that there's a hard little thing covering my eyeballs. With disposable lenses, I literally feel nothing! The only thing is that now it's easier for people to tell that I wear lenses because the lenses are so big. =p

In short, here is my pro & cons list, though I doubt there would be many people who actually are still using RGP lenses for me to convince. =p

Permanent Lenses	Disposable Lenses
About RM600-RM700 per pair. For one year, will be RM600-RM700 if you don't lose any lenses!	About RM50 for a box of 3. For one year (with no promotions), will be RM600. Could be cheaper with promotions and such!
Caring for your lens: Change solution for soaking once a week, and once a month, have to do some special cleansing wash. This was taught to me when I was younger, not sure if it has since changed?	Caring for your lens: Change solution for soaking DAILY, no other special cleansing wash needed. Just throw away after one month.
Expensive if you're unlucky enough to lose a lens. If you try to use longer than 1 year, discomfort may occur.	Spare lens given with the box, and if you NEVER lose a lens, you can stretch your cost to RM400 a year instead of RM600. If you try to use longer than a month, discomfort may occur.
Easy to put in the lens because lens is small. However, because it's HARD lens, some people might feel it sitting uncomfortably on their eyeball.	For small eyed folk like myself, hard to put in because it has a bigger diameter. However, because made of silicon hydrogel, very comfortable and molds to the eyeball easily. More comfortable as well because the material is more "breathable"
Personally, less hygienic because it's easier to take it for granted.	Forces you to be more hygienic, in a way
Prone to irritants because it doesn't mold to the eyeball. Sand, wind, dust, etc can cause tearing	So far, no tearing at all!!

In conclusion, safe to say that I'm not going back to hard lenses after more than a decade of using it. I'm also very excited to see whether there are disposable COLORED lenses with power that can match mine. :) Would be interesting to change my "look", though not drastically. Thinking of a soft brown color lens or something, hehehe. I'm very happy with how my trial run with disposable lenses have been!

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Recap : What I'm Using Now! :)

Decided that every now and then, I would write a post about all the stuff that I'm using at the moment. It helps remind me what my daily beauty regime should be AND also keep track of whether I've done the proper reviews for each item. =) With no further ado:

Face wash : Pure Beauty Antioxidant 2-In-1 Foam Cleanser (cannot tell if finishing already or not due to packaging, but I personally feel that there's at least 50% left)
Body wash : Dial Ultra Hydrating Body Wash with Cherry Seed Oil (down to my last 10% already. You'll probably get a new review in 2-3 weeks time!)
Day toner : not really consistent, sometimes I use Cellnique Soothing & Hydrating Lotion, and sometimes I use Neutrogena's Blackhead Eliminating Cooling Toner. Both are like 85% full! Takes forever to finish!
Day moisturiser (face): Still using my Hada Labo Whitening Lotion from almost 1 year ago! It's so damn hard to finish, especially when you use a few drops only each time! Crazy, I wonder what's the expiry on this? And I still have another 35-40% left over, so I don't think I will be using a new day moisturiser anytime soon. :S
Day moisturiser (body): Body America's Body Butter in Vermont Va-Va-Voom... I finally managed to make the middle of the tub hit bottom, which means probably another 1 month more before this finishes!
Night toner : Pure Beauty Antioxidant Pomegranate Toner
Night moisturiser (face) : Not consistent, mostly I don't bother coz the antioxidant pomegranate toner is already so moisturising. But sometimes I still put on some Naruko Rose & Snow Fungus Hydrating Night Gelly. It's almost finishing though, what a pity. It smells soooooo good!
Night moisturiser (body) : Still using Johnson & Johnson Oxygen Fresh Gel Lotion. Unlike during the review, I started being more liberal in the application because I finally got used to the "slimy" texture of the moisturiser and can do with my usual one-full-pump-per-limb. :P However, it is definitely still some time more before I finish this!
Shampoo & Conditioner :  Palmer's Olive Oil Formula Shampoo & Conditioner... still pretty full, long time more before it's time to change.
Masks & such : Aside from a variety of sheet masks, I try to incorporate my Pores Be Pure and Hello Kitty Gommage slotted in randomly throughout the week.
Blackhead softener : Cellnique's Skin Action Sebum Gel, but this one coming to an end already coz I'm quite liberal with it. Not only on the nose, but on the T-zone as well!
Hair Care & Such : Still using Kerastase Nutritive Oleo Relax Serum, but the reason why it lasted so long (uhhh, the review was written at end 2011!!) is because I had started using a new bottle of Free & Free Damage Aid halfway thru. I never wrote a review about it, but dropped comments about it here and there. It's a really good item, but only available in Thailand, so a bit sien. Always have to wait for my friend Pauline to help me buy it when she goes on her regular jaunts there. :) The last time I went to Bangkok, I couldn't even find it. :( Anyway, I've only like 2% of the Oleo Relax Serum left, so going to start on a new hair care spray! :D
Eye gel : I stopped using this because it tends to make my eyes itchy! However, I found out that it could be due to the way I'm applying it. I'm trying a different method and still in the early stages, so I'll review it after 2-3 weeks when I've seen positive (?? if any ??) results in the end! So far, with the different method of application, I've not gotten any itchy eyes, so that's good! :)

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Monday Masks : Watsons Revitalising Facial Mask with Rose Water

I have a confession to make --- all the previous Monday Masks entries were really backdated from yonks ago when I was diligently applying masks. :) Nowadays, it's becoming a bit of a luxury to sit around with a dripping mask on my face and just relax. I try to get by with my Pores Be Pure and Hello Kitty Gommage, but those are really specific (one for pore sanctifying, one for exfoliation), sometimes a girl wants other things. Like a super dosage of moisturisation, evening out your skin tone, or oil control. In retrospect, I should've chosen something for evening out my skin tone because I've gotten a few pimple scars.. :( Instead, I used the Watsons Revitalising Facial Mask with Rose Water.

This mask is enriched with natural plant extracts and premium rose water to help revitalise, rehydrate and moisturise your face. After opening the packaging, you're greeted with the sweetest, rose smell. Ok, it may not smell very authentic, but it's really pleasant and nice. Guaranteed to not bug you when you have it on your face for the next 15-30 minutes.

As before, the mask is very thick and not a very good fit. However, it did leave my skin feeling rather moisturised, although not baby soft. I suppose this is better as a "aromatherapy" kind of session. Also, don't know how they do it, but the mask felt REALLY cold against my skin, and I didn't need to put it in the fridge for the added kick. I didn't even have the air-conditioning on! It felt really nice since it's been so hot for the last coupla days (weeks? months?).

Not a repurchase for me because I didn't find it helpful. Liked the scent though, and will definitely check out what other masks Watsons has to offer. :)

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Lipstick Sundays : Life On The A List

Before I start off my usual Lipstick Sundays post, I just want to say that... Benefit Cosmetics is having a sale at the moment, and if you key in SNEAKPEEK during the checkout, you only need USD$90 to qualify for free international shipping instead of the usual $125 limit. =) I didn't really have much intentions to splurge... initially. But nowadays I feel so un-motivated to online shop for clothes (cos out of shape), so I usually end up browsing the beauty selections. I finally got my "lust list" Thrrrob blusher during the sale, and when I was browsing around, I found that they also have "last chance" offers for sets that they won't produce anymore. One thing that I noticed about most of their make-up sets is that the lipgloss that they bung in is "Life On The A List".

A LOT of people rave about this ultra shine from Benefit, saying that it's such a perfect color, such a go-to shade, etc etc etc. In the end, I didn't want to spring for a full-size ultra shine, so I was glad that a set that I picked out in the last chance page had a mini sample of it. Score! Or so I thought... til I checked my Ticket to Glossytown set and I already have it. Doh!

I really should keep a better inventory of my stuff. I never really noticed it before because I had automatically classified it as an "unwearable" shade because it's really more towards a nude lippie than a "bubblegum pink" (that's what Benefit calls it!). I really dislike nude lippies because I feel like it makes me look so pale, it can't hide my chapped lips well (er... cos it's so see-thru, lol) and it just doesn't suit my skin color.

So here is how it looks like :

It looks like such a sweet, pink color, doesn't it? But super, super light. I think it would look nice on Caucasian ladies. But since I'm more olive-beige than white, I really think it makes me look like I'm on a sick bed. It completely washes out my entire face and makesme look sooooo.... un-made up. Sorry for the depressed looking faces, I guess I wasn't in the mood after putting it on, hahaha.

Some might even think that I have no lippie on... I assure you that the condition of my lips are terrible, so I'm thankful for that bit of glossiness and moisturising effect. No complaints on the brush (a silky, brush -fibrous- tip) and it goes on smoothly, like my other ultra shines. Only the shade! And I can't believe another one is coming my way. Thank goodness I really didn't spring for the full-size. Probably going to give away the new one!

For previous Ultra Shine reviews, check out:
So Frisk Me
Kiss You

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The Great Battle of My Eyeliners

You know those questions about "what is the one beauty product you would take with you to a desert island?" you see in beauty mags? Despite how ridiculous it is (WHY would you need a beauty product when deserted?), I often NEVER understood how any celebrity would answer anything but "eyeliner". It is SUCH an essential beauty product, and to me, really changes one's whole look.

I probably started wearing eyeliner when I was in college, and multiple eyeliners have been ground to a stub. I've tried pencil liners, gel liners, liquid liners... but I keep going back to pencil liners. I do like the precision of liquid liners, but I need more practice and I'm usually in a rush. *bad excuse* Also, I don't really need a dramatic winged look most of the time as I'm a busy office gal who doesn't go out much during the weekends anyway. I've given up on gel liners cos they dry up too quickly and I find it annoying to keep using a brush to line my eyes.

So I keep on picking up eyeliner after eyeliner cos I'm "so sure" that I'll definitely use it. At the moment, I actually have 5 opened eyeliners in my beauty drawer! 5!!! Ok, I mainly go to 2 or 3 of them, but I decided to do a blogpost about all of them in one go. Easier to compare, right?

Today, we will be comparing :
a. Clio Gelpresso Waterproof Pencil Gel Liner in Golden Black #7 (forgot the price because I bought it in a Clio set which cost me nearly SGD50 already)
b. Cherimoya waterproof eye pencil (free with purchase from online site, now it's not even being sold on the site anymore, lol)
c. Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Coffee (Forgot the price! But about RM15-RM20)
d. Maybelline Masterliner in Black (RM15.90)
e. NYX Super FAT eye marker in Carbon Black (about RM30)

Erm.. as you can see, most of my eyeliners are black in color, barring the Sephora one! I decided to use brown cos people keep saying that brown is more natural and more suitable for the office. However, I have so little (eyes! lol!) to work with that I might as well make it as OBVIOUS as possible (without making Amy Winehouse-ish style eyes).

Here's how they look like, drawn on paper. You can already kinda guess the quality of each item from the paper... :( Which would explain why I choose certain pencils as my faves and the rest remain not-as-loved.

So, first off, we have the Clio Gelpresso Waterproof Pencil Gel Liner in Golden Black. I really, really like this one! It glides on so smoothly, so easy to wear. Also very dramatic and long lasting. The "golden" bits are not that obvious, so I find it suitable to wear to work as well. It's an autoliner, so I don't have to sharpen it, just a twist and keep on using. Pretty good quality pencil liner as well, has never broken on me, unlike some RM80 MAC autoliner that I bought before. It goes on quite thick as well, which is ok with me. The only drawback would probably be the price -- but then again, it's still considered drugstore lah.

I like how controlled and neat the lines are when I wear it. Definitely on heavy rotation on my make-up table. :)

Next is the Cherimoya waterproof eye pencil. Honestly, I don't use it much because it's truly awful. =p I only opened it and started using immediately because it was a free gift (as I mentioned) and I wanted to test it out. If it was good, I would've wanted to purchase a new one, cos the Cherimoya brand is really cheap. Cheaper than discounted Nyx items, that's what I always say. It also looked pretty impressive because it comes with its own sharpener... too bad it is not big, so I can't use it for ALL my pencil liners, it is special, custom-made, Cherimoya sized. :P

Why I dislike it? Doesn't go on smoothly and mutha hurts my eyes as well because the pencil graphite (??) scrapes along my lid. Yes, even when it's not super sharpened or whatever. It's as if there is micro-thorns inside the pencil. -___-" You can see in the picture below that it is not so evenly drawn, and I couldn't taper off a nice line to "elongate" the eye like with the Clio pencil. *grr*

I bought the Sephora Nano Eyeliner because a blogger said that it was her go-to liner. She looked quite pretty, so I decided to follow suit even though she's not known for beauty blogging. :P It is also reasonably cheap, so if it was good, I could buy another one. Straight off the bat, the nano eyeliner is really not for me! The pencil is so small and hard to grip... I guess I can tell from the name "nano", huh? My gorilla hands are unable to hold the pencil confidently. I really don't see the point of making eyeliner in nano sizes. It's not like it helps you save more space in your handbag...

Also, from the test swatches in the second picture, you can see that the Sephora liner is one of the most "rough" liners. It doesn't go on smoothly, and the more I try to "correct" crooked lines, it ends up looking worse and worse. Definitely not a repurchase for me. Plus, the pencil gets blunt soooooo fast, I kinda ditched this to the side since I don't have an eyeliner sharpener on hand (too pampered by autoliners). Again, you can see from the picture below that I can't do a nice "taper" off at the end.

I bought the Maybelline Masterliner even when I had so many eyeliners rolling around because the price is SO WORTH IT! Come on, it's the chapest one in my drawer right now, and I think this is the umpteenth Maybelline liner that I've ever bought. The quality is always standard, so I know I won't be disappointed. I was also afraid that the RM15.90 price was actually a printing error and later it goes to beyond RM20. :Pp So fasterly took out my wallet and paid for this.

No regrets, for the price, I get an autoliner that lasts pretty long (I yawn a lot and "tear" a bit at the office, so it does wash off a bit towards the end of the day) and is an AUTOLINER!! No need to look for sharpener, and again, quite a good quality pencil (for me). Has not broken off and is quite easy to glide on. Not as smooth as Clio, but can't complain since it's probably a third of the price. Cannot do sharp taper, but can taper further than liners #2 and #3. Can see it's a bit rough, but at least pencil doesn't feel rough on my lids, and probably also caused by me rushing to go to work. =p

Finally, NYX Super FAT eye marker was something that I got during my last Nyx haul. I actually have the skinny marker as well, but I'm not sure where I dumped it, so it got left out from my eyeliner battle post. :( Anyway, as you can see from the earlier swatch, this one is the thickest and BLACKEST eyeliner that I have, and no doubt that it deserves the title of being an "eye marker". My goodness, I do believe that I could actually use this as a whiteboard marker as well!! If you like drawing THICK dramatic liners, this is definitely the one for you! And I hope you have steady hands coz this is going to be super unforgiving if you screw up halfway. :)

Having said that, pros would adore the smoothness and precision. The main peeve I have with this is actually the smell. It really smells like marker... the xylene fumes just hit you right between the eyes. =p I actually prefer the super fat marker to the skinny marker. The skinny marker is just way too skinny. You can see from the picture below that the line isn't THAT "fat" anyway...

Well, that's all I have to say about my eyeliners. They come and they go... right now loving the Clio, Maybelline and Nyx fat marker. I think I'm going to stop using eye pencils that require me to buy a sharpener. Autoliners all the way for me from now on. Oh yeah, I also really loved the Maybelline Hypersharp that I got last time. It took me a while to get used to because I had to be very careful in order to draw a proper line, but it is definitely SUPER precise + long lasting + DRAMATIC. I remember that it was pretty pricey, but a lot of bloggers hyped it up, saying you could even draw flowers or hearts and stars on your face.

Ok, not like I'm going to do that, but it really looks nice! See:

Maybe I'll repurchase it ... after I finish all my other liners.... :)

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Monday Masks : Dermal Royal Jelly Collagen Sheet Mask

This is the last of my Dermal collection in my stash, but due to the attractive promotions that they usually have for this brand in Watsons Singapore, I might get them again IF I visit the neighbouring country again. =) Out of the 5 masks that I've used, I've liked MOST of them, especially the apricot and apple one. This royal jelly one that I used wasn't as memorable (maybe because it has not much of a scent), but as always, I always feel my skin is more moisturised and pampered after a session with the mask. ^^

The function for this royal jelly mask is for feeding nutrition to the skin, moisturising and refining. You often hear about people eating royal jelly for beautiful skin, but I really wonder how good is it just applied directly to the skin? Royal jelly has strong antibacterial properties that is used in a multitude of beauty products. Royal jelly has strong healing properties that is thought to help reverse the process of aging by improving the texture and tone of the skin. Royal jelly also has highly moisturising properties that help tighten fine lines and wrinkles, leaving skin feeling soft and supple.

Sounds exciting, doesn't it? Apparently the Egyptians have been in on the secrets of royal jelly for a very long time. Using this secret product to protect their skin against the harsh desert conditions. Well, Malaysia isn't really a desert, but it's still very hot here, and anything to reverse time and get back younger-looking skin, right?

 The mask is really thick and is not a super good fit, but with just RM3 per mask, I am more than pleased with the results. Looking forward to a new haul from Dermal next round! ^^

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Palmer's Olive Oil Formula with Vitamin E Smoothing Shampoo & Conditioner

Palmer's is frequently known for their skincare products, so I was really surprised when I saw them venturing into haircare as well! I got this in a set which came with some free samples of their shampoo in other ranges as well as some skin care products. The pharmacy doesn't sell this set anymore, but a search online shows that you can get a similar set here for RM43.80. I think the shampoo would be about RM20++ individually? The shampoo comes in a 400ml bottle while the tube of conditioner is 250ml.


So this is what the Palmer's Olive Oil Formula range looks like :

Both products contain extra virgin olive oil for shiny hair (shampoo) and  soft, silky hair (conditioner). Extra virgin olive oil helps give hair strength & shine, and was in use since ancient times as a beauty product. Yup, use it on your hair, not just your salads! Both products are also further enriched with vitamin E, which is said to help hair growth. Of course I had my doubts using shampoo from a company known more for moisturising skin, but I have to say, I am blown away! I love this shampoo & conditioner set!!

First of all, it smells really nice and comforting. It doesn't smell chemical-ly or harsh... it really does smell like olives! The shampoo is creamy and a cute, light green in color. Lathers up really well and leaves hair feeling really cleansed and refreshed. I also like the fact that when I use Palmer's , I can go back to washing my hair only once every two days and I don't get "the itch". I hated using some shampoos in the past because build-up happened so fast and even not washing for a day will cause your scalp to start itching and flaking. Horrible! Now my scalp feels really cleansed and refreshed.

The scent of the conditioner isn't as strong as the shampoo, but it still does it's duty to help my hair feel even MORE soft and manageable. It complements the shampoo really well! Hmm... nothing much to talk about the conditioner...

Conclusion is that this is a really good product from Palmer's and I'm seriously considering repurchasing next time when I run out of shampoos! Hair is softer and silkier, but I don't think particularly shinier, but I really like the cleansed feeling + the lack of product build-up. Thumbs way up in my books already. :)

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