Friday Cheapies : Comedone Extractor

To be honest, I've bought this stuff before, but I've never ever *really* found out how to use it. My college buddy said that you just have to put your face over some hot water to "steam open" your pores, and then you go to town with the comedone extractor. When I tried that method, it was just too painful to be true. Surely *that* is not how you use it?

Then I found out, yep, scraping your nose with that sharp little hoop really *is* how you use it. This is the most disgustingly fascinating video I've ever seen on Youtube:

Seriously, though it looks creepy, you end up watching it all the way to the end. ^^ So, after watching that, I just HAD to buy my own comedone extractor. Well, I thought it would be perfect for hard-to-reach places that my pore strips just can't seem to extract. Mainly, the sides of my nose! I could actually see little black dots, but no matter what, just can't seem to reach it!

You can see the "strawberry-ish" texture at the side.... Ugh! Although no actual BLACK spots, I find it disturbing enough. Countless of pore strips and face washes and masks later, I decided to use the comedone extractor on my nose. Sorry, no video like the fascinating one above, especially with my one hand holding a mirror and the other, the extractor ... even snapping a photo of an oil seed coming out would be an imposibility for me. :) 

On the left is the comedone extractor, on the right, a handheld mirror with a magnifying effect. The hoop (upper) end is what I use to prod at the problem area til it yields some results. The other end is supposedly a "gentle" way to "focus" on the problem area and gently keep prodding til SOMETHING pops up.

To be honest, I'm not really sure, I only use the hooped end! Can't find a proper explanation online also (it's quite similar to what I wrote above), so it remains rather unused.

I tried to find a black piece of paper to further enable me to take proper contrast between what was extracted out... but all I had on hand was an angpow packet. =p Hence, the red background. All the white bits you see are what was extracted out. I'm especially proud of the large oil seed on the far left.... Have not been getting something so juicy with pore strips in a long while. All hail the comedone extractor! You can get a cheapie one from your local drugstore for something like RM8. Pretty worth it as you can use it for a good long time, at least ... until it rusts. Otherwise, I don't see why there should even be an expiry date on this thing!

Pro tip! Try to use a softener on the areas you want to attack with the comedone extractor. I've been using the Cellnique Skin Action Sebum Gel for some time now, so it may be why I don't feel it's so difficult to extract black/white heads compared to when I was younger. The bad part (for me) is that though I'm able to extract the sides of my nose pretty effectively, I am not able to do a thorough job on other areas (which is why I still depend on masks, pore strips, etc etc) because I have a sensitive nose + sinus problem. If I pinch away too adamantly, I will inevitably start sneezing! If you have the same problem, you might want to give this a pass too. When I still went for facials, the facial consultant ALWAYS asks whether I have a sinus problem. They don't want to get sneezed on too! :P

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War on Blackheads!! With Daiso Pore Care Pack

Hello! I'm always on the lookout on how to get rid of blackheads, and what more - it'll be awesome if there were cheaper alternatives out there. When I was at Daiso, I found out that they have pore strips! At RM5 for a pack of 4 strips, it is actually not that much cheaper than Biore pore strips. Then again, I've always been buying the more expensive "limited edition" scents from Biore which could be double the price of a Daiso pore pack.

 

I was initally encouraged by the natural charcoal because charcoal has been known to help absorb toxins on the skin. Plus, check out the image on the packaging.... from some black spotty thing to something totally clean and poreless!!

Here's a close-up of my nose before putting on the pore pack. You might think that this is super clean looking, but I only use pore strips once a week, sometimes less than that because I forget. >_<

 

 Pictures not photoshopped, but in case you feel that it's the flash, check out the picture below. 

 Looks a bit oily, but generally not many blackheads (disappointingly). Still, you never know what you may be able to yank out!

The pore strip was quite tough to tear off from the plastic sheet, so that was a pain in the bum. Truly, my benchmark will always be Biore... there's like no effort required to peel off the pore strip! And when sticking it onto my face... gosh. Really bad fit! It's also very thick and unwieldy, so it's doesn't follow the contours of your face easily. Hence, see the disaster that it looks like below:

I think the fit plays an important role - if the pore strip can't adhere properly to my skin, there could be some area that can't make contact with the pore strip! And in that case... what if it SO happens that spot is the one with one giant blackhead just waiting to be yanked out? *paranoid* Another peeved off moment - the smell!! This pore strip smells terrible. Super herbal in a bad way. Think of some horrible chinese herbal medicine drink.... this is what it smells like. And it has to be SOOOOOO near the nose, like a purposeful torture. -__-

After the pore strip had dried off, it was easy to pull off (maybe cos it's not sticking so closely to my skin anyway), and you can see the results below. SOME small whiteheads got yanked out, but no fat, juicy pieces. So thin and mini. Sigh....  Oh well, at least with a black color pore strip, the whiteheads look more apparent in pictures. =P That's the one and only pro about this, I guess.

The aftermath.... not a big difference compared to earlier pictures, but at least this was gentle enough that it didn't leave my nose horribly red.

What I'm really looking forward to is a product / pore strip / whatever that can really help reduce the redness around the edges of my nose. Like below. I've found something recently that I'm trying out. I find that this area is more problematic than the center of my nose, that is generally smooth and shiny already. :)

In conclusion? Definitely not a repurchase for me. I cannot even imagine how I'm going to use the remaining 3 pieces of pore strips... that's how much I abhor the scent!

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Formula 10.0.6 Down To The Pore Blackhead Banishing Pore Strips

So at the same time that I bought my Formula 10.0.6 Pores Be Pure mask, I also bought myself a packet of Formula 10.0.6's Down To The Pore Blackhead Banishing Pore Strips. Needless to say, I am very, very concerned about blackheads. I remember that Ben peeked into my shopping basket and he was going, "No no no, that's not the one Abby recommended. She recommended the Pores Be Pure mask! Not the pore strips! For the whole face wan!!"  And I was saying, yeah, I already bought that. AND I want this as well. He shrugged, but had this whole "if it doesn't work, don't blame me. She only reviewed the mask..." vibe going on...

As usual, very eye-catching packaging , even though the design is so simple. I love how they write out the benefits of each ingredient that goes into the pore strip. It makes my work so much easier. A packet contains 6 individual pore strips, each injected with the goodness of tea tree and  kaolin. You needn't me to do the Google-ing for you - the benefits are right there on the box. Kaolin absorbs impurities, dirt and oil that plague pores, while antioxidant tea tree detoxifies. Together, this leaves your nose visibly soothed and smoothed.

 

Each individually wrapped pore strip looks similar to the box, but with slightly different shade of purple for the font! Upon opening the packet, you can get a whiff of something that smells really medicinal! It's not a turn off, but it's not exactly soothing. It reminds me a bit of the minyak cap kapak that people apply when they have headaches. The shape of the pore strip is also slightly different from Biore's / Healpharm's standard shape. The sides are more rounded, so it doesn't really extend out onto your cheeks like other pore strips do. 

Andddddd... this is how it looks on my face. You see, how "rounded" the sides are? Basically, I would say that it is a pretty okay fit, and it was easy to peel off from the plastic sheet. Seriously, nothing beats the horrid-ness of Healpharm's one, and nothing matches the ease of use from Biore. Hahaha.

And this part here, is where I got it wrong. At first, I was sorely disappointed because after every session with the pore strip, I would analyse the pore strip after and discover that zilch to a very small amount got removed with each strip. I thought that it was really substandard, and not worth the price (it is quite expensive, but I forgot the actual $$. Definitely more expensive than Biore's one, and that is like RM13 for a box). After re-reading the instructions, it's more like a preventive exercise than a cure. By removing the dirt inside pores, blackheads won't be able to form, and thus, there's no blackhead to rip out with your pore strip.

Maybe I'm mistaken (again) and you actually tried this before and removed hundreds of dem little buggers? Or maybe it's a dual thing, just that I keep my nose soooo clean of blackheads (lol) that nothing comes out? I really doubt that cos I used a Biore pore strip recently and there was a few removed... This is like at most, ONE blackhead coming out on the pore strip...

If it's really just for a preventive exercise, then I think it's too expensive to give my nose a mask every week. If it's really to remove blackheads like the Biore pore strips, then this does a very bad job, so stick to Biore instead. Or the Pores Be Pure mask from Formula 10.0.6. ;) Definitely not a repurchase for me.

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Neutrogena Deep Clean Blackhead Eliminating Warming Treatment

So I bought the Neutrogena Deep Clean Blackhead Eliminating Warming Treatment as part of my mission to eliminate all blackheads from my nose. I remember buying the face wash (finished ages ago) and toner (still using now) and this warming treatment at the same time. All in all, it cost me about RM70+ for the whole set. And this warming treatment is supposed to be an additional step in your skincare routine. You only get 6 pieces of 5g tubes of warming treatment, so you don't have to use it everyday! You might think it's very little, but you don't use much each time, and honestly, it's kinda crap in my opinion so I forget to use it. Which explains why I currently have so much on hand.

You might be asking .... why did you even buy it in the first place? Well, I have to say it's because I will try anything once you say it will get rid of blackheads. Secondly, because it seems so cool! This warming treatment is pretty unique. It says that once you put it on your skin, it will warm up to 40 degrees celcius. However, they are kinda vague as to how this will help? The instructions basically say, "Use the gentle power of  warming sensation to help eliminate blackheads." Er... yeah, very helpful. So how would that differ from say, using a warm washcloth? Perhaps one would say, it's less troublesome... but let's see if really does help, aye? FYI, I had a facial session with Cellnique again recently, and they told me they REALLY advise against customers pinching out their own blackheads as we are usually "rougher". I don't know if they're just sayin', cos I don't feel her being any more gentle on my blackheads than I am...

The tube is REALLY small, and it can be easily hidden inside my fist. ;)

 

Unhelpful suggestions / instructions, in my humble opinion. 

Clear liquid that really does warm up really quickly once it reaches human contact. Hence I was very, very "stingy" when taking this photo. I didn't want to pool out too much and let it go to waste! The "warm sensation" fades off really quickly. Although you can't see it in this picture, I do feel that the liquid is a little bit grainy. Exfoliating properties? 

This is a picture of my nose BEFORE the blackhead treatment:

 And this is a picture after :

Personally, I don't feel like it made an amazing difference. If there's any difference, it's probably just how it looks like after a normal cleansing. Plus,  the more I look at this enlarged picture, the more I feel that there's still dirt trapped there! And yes, my nose is a little red because I couldn't resist pinching out some dirt.

After all, warming sensation could be based on the idea that our pores open up when it is warm and pores shrink when it is cold. Technically, the warm sensation should be to open up the pores so we could clean out the dirt better? So should this treatment be used before "operating" on one's nose? To me, it didn't make a damn difference how much easier it is to squeeze out dirt before or after... it's my nose, man. It's gonna hurt if I pinch parts of it.

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Biore Pore Strips In Tropical Resort Scent

After finishing my Healpharm pore strips, I went back to Biore... but this will probably be the last Biore pore strips that I purchase... unless they come up with more interesting scents. I like their Limited Edition Fragrance Series - it's pretty interesting! I like the fruity scented one, although I did think the floral one was kind of a miss. The Tropical Resort one brings back the loving feeling for me...

Each biore pore pack comes with 10 pore strips... and is scented with either the relaxing hibiscus scent or the plumeria scent.

The plumeria scented one is awesome! It smells like peaches! It is a sweet, fruity scent and I totally would not have thought it was a floral scent at all!

The hibiscus one packs less oomph though. :( It has a more generic floral scent, kinda generic sweet and very unmemorable. Sigh...

You can tell which scent you will be getting based on the flower shown in front of each individually packed pore strip!

Having used the rougher feeling Healpharm pore strips, the silky-smooth Biore pore strips felt very comfortable against my nose. I had forgotten how AWESOME each strip is. It's easy to peel off, and it just seems to fit your nose so perfectly. There's no stubborn edges that refuse to adhere to some funny bump on your face. :P

However, I really do not like the black colored pore strips in general (cos I find it leaves more marks against my face? Maybe this is just psychological since it's a bigger contrast?) and Biore just doesn't seem to yank as many blackheads / whiteheads out for me anymore. Sigh.. either I'm doing a real good job of taking care of my nose, or I'm not doing it right or Biore is not doing it right. I'm thinking the last one, of course.

If they could package a limited edition pack with ONLY the plumeria scent, I just might repurchase this. Then again, I don't see this in Malaysia. I bought the pack in Singapore's Sasa for SGD$4.95...

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Cellnique Skin Action Sebum Gel

The Cellnique Skin Action Sebum Gel was recommended to me by my facial therapist because she knows about my war on blackheads. Yes, I am quite a fan of Cellnique products, so I bought this even though it's on the pricier end. I think around RM200+? But I had an RM30 discount coupon as well, so some small consolation for myself lah.

What is the function of the sebum gel? To be honest, my expectations were that it either scrubs off all blackheads foreverly forever (like when I rub it in, I can rub out blackheads... lololol) or that it can stop blackheads from even APPEARING. Of course, I was disappointed when it did not happen. I wanted to blog a hate entry about it, but then I went for my 2nd facial...

When I complained to the facial therapist that the product not really working for me, she said that it's not supposed to stop blackheads from appearing... it makes blackheads EASIER to remove. It "softens" the stubborn blackheads that are "stuck" there, and next time it can be washed off or squeezed out easier. She said sometimes some blackheads are so stubborn that even when you squeeze and squeeze, it won't come out, and it just causes you a lot of unnecessary pain. However, as with all products, you have to use this CONSTANTLY, and really make it part of your skincare regime. After she told me that, I decided to take on the challenge and include it in. I usually apply the sebum gel to my nose (most of the gel winds up here), a little on the T-zone and the rest on my chin. I don't usually squeeze or even notice blackheads on my forehead and chin, but the facial therapist often squeezes those areas also, so ... just in case lah.

The gel is actually quite fun to use. The first time I applied it, it was soooo cooling and tingly. I really thought it was activating something magnificent and I could see bits of blackheads coming out. Lol! However, subsequent reactions using the gel not as tingly as before. Wonder why! It is still cooling and smells minty though.

Personally, after using it for a few months, I think there is slight improvement. Warning : disturbing pictures to come.

Previously, even after applying the pore strip, my nose still looks like this :

Now, after applying the pore strip, my nose looks much cleaner :

I will definitely continue using this... cos it's showing better results than the blackhead cleaning series I bought from Neutrogena!

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Heal Pharm Nose Pore Cleaning Sheets

I decided to pick up a pack of Healpharm nose pore strips recently instead of my usual Biore pore strips because of the cute packaging! Also because after using Biore for so long, I was really wondering --- is there really no other alternative? Lastly --- Watsons was having a 20% discount on selected products, and this was one of them! I don't remember the exact price, but it was cheaper than the Biore one for sure!

The product claims that it can be used for pore cleaning around the nose area, especially when it's blocked up with oil or dead cells. Enjoy the refreshing menthol smell while Hamamelis extract helps tighten up the open pores. Wondering what is Hamamelis? It's the Chinese witchhazel! It is used to care for cracked / sensitive skin and has anti-inflammatory and astringent effects. Interesting... don't usually see this ingredient being listed in cosmetics, though.

As mentioned on the packaging, each box contains 10 pieces of pore strips, in cute, individual packets :

The pore strips are kinda hit / miss for me. I hate how hard it is to be peeled off from the plastic sheet. Sometimes it makes me wonder if it can even be torn off! And other times it comes off as easily as a normal Biore pore strip. ~_~" I've never had this problem with Biore before.

However, I like how quick-drying this pore strip is... I find that it gets the job done faster than Biore does! Though I did not smell any menthol scent as advertised, there was nothing unpleasant about the pore-strip, odour-wise.

I also have an inclination to think that it is better at ripping them blackheads out more than Biore pore strips does. Then again, this is just my THOUGHTS which could actually be affected by this new product I've been using that is supposed to "soften" the stubborn blackheads and make them easier to remove. Will be reviewing that after I have "tested" the removal part with various pore strips and such!

Meanwhile, this is not the "dirtiest" pore strip I've ever gotten, but the contrast on Healpharm pore strips are more apparent, so you can see the nasty little buggers better.

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Stuff I'm Using Now ( My first beauty blog entry!)

Ok, I decided to create a separate blog for my posts about drug store products that I'm using right now, and also for erm... contests, swag grabbing and such. What better place to place ads than at a place where I'm talking about brand names for free... Hmm... ;)

Anyway, a little background about moi... I was introduced to the world of drugstore beauty by my colleague Pauline. It's been about 4 years + of checking out what goodies places like Guardian, Watsons, Boots (in Thailand) and even places like Carrefour can reveal to drugstore addicts like us. My love with make-up goes a bit further back though --- been dabbling since I was in high school, though I'm definitely no expert. In fact, I've been a bit lazy nowadays and just going to work with moisturiser and lipgloss. *gasp* Sacre bleu!

I digressed... back to the topic. Stuff I'm using right now :


1. Clairol Herbal Essences None of Your Frizzness Shampoo & Conditioner at the gym for my hair. This is my go-to shampoo since I go to the gym about 4x a week and I ALWAYS shampoo and condition after every workout. It's just gross not to. I love this shampoo for its fruity smell and to me, you can't go wrong with Clairol Herbal Essences. All the shampoos just smell so awesome. :) However, in terms of whether this ACTUALLY works out all the frizziness... well, I was hoping for miracles, so I guess it's a no for me. I'm about to finish both bottles soon, so I'm looking forward to trying something new and reporting it back here. ;)


2. Schwarzkopf Asia Glatt shampoo & conditioner for home use. Yup, I hate repacking my gym bag and stuff I use at home, and this way, I get to try out more stuff! :D I'm also going to finish this pretty soon, and I say, I CAN'T WAIT. This shampoo is awful... it smells really weird when lathering up, and it smells even worse after the hair has dried. :( My friend Sidney quipped, "With a shampoo name like Asia GLATT how did you expect it to even smell nice?" I guess I was drawn in by the fact that it's supposedly formulated for Asian hair, but it does squat for me. Not interested, nuh-uh...


3. Original Source Lemon Tea Tree Shower Gel for the gym. I love Original Source, and was first introduced to this brand by my buddy Ben when I was in London. And was so glad to see that Singapore has it too, so at least I will be able to stock up MUCH easier. Sucks when Malaysia doesn't have awesome products like this. ;) It's awesome for use after a workout, cos the lemon really invigorates your tired muscles.. and tea tree has some healing properties as well right? Plus you feel really, really CLEAN after showering with this. I just love citrus fragrances for shower gels, so this shower gel is pretty much THE BOMB for me. I've tried about 90% of the whole Original Source range, and I loved every single one. If not for the fact that I'm really in love with trying out more stuff, I would be 100% loyal to this brand. Lol... in fact, I have a bit of a problem with shower gels cos I have sensitive skin... I cannot use stuff from Fruiser and from Palmolive (this includes Lux), cos I'll get rashy after that. Blehk. So hard to find cheap stuff that won't irritate me... My boyfriend is recommending that I stick to solely Eucerin or Dettol, but ... I like variety. :) And yummy smells. :)

4. Johnson & Johnson's Peach Baby Bath for morning showers at home and when I don't go to the gym. I have a LOT of Johnson & Johnson's stuff to try out, cos I've been entering one of those "Buy & Win" contests. -___- I first tried J&J baby bath's when my skin was getting rashy - no thanks to crappy brands - and I thought --- they won't try to break out a baby's skin right? It was cheaper than brands like Sebamed and Eucerin, so I thought it won't hurt to try. After finishing an entire 1l of J&J baby bath with no untoward results, I'm sold. :) This works for me too and I'm happy. The peach baby bath has a very mild smell, and because it's soooo gentle, I don't really recommend using this if you've been rolling around in mud or something. However, for showers in the morning, and especially before bedtime ... this is perfect. =) Really makes you feel like a baby.

5. Peaches & Clean Shower gel from Soap & Glory for body scrub --- every now and then. You'll need a body scrub every now and then, especially if you're like me and you don't use one of those bath mitt thingys... I got scared of them ever since my dad had one and it never really dried out properly and fungus grew all over the dang thing. *shivers* I bought my shower gel some time back in Thailand's Boots. Soap & Glory is pretty pricey, but the packaging is soooo witty and cute and dang, the stuff works! Peaches & Clean has a strong (but lovely) peach smell with bits of what feels like smashed peach pit (it's really just exfoliating beads) to really scrub off your dead skin. I'm loving it! And I heard that the new Sephora that opened opposite Pavilion stocks up on Soap & Glory stuff, so that's good news for all Malaysians! :)

6. Simple Refreshing face wash gel for the gym. This facial wash really lives up to the name of being GENTLE on the skin... you can't really feel it cleaning your skin up, but the results show. I have this bad habit of not removing my make-up with a make-up remover.. but I head straight for the face wash. Note : I don't wear really thick make-up, so I think it's ok?

There's no fragrance, no exfoliating beads... so although this is a product that works for me, it's not 100% me... in the sense that I like fragrances, and I like squeaky clean feeling after washing my face. I know, I know.. that's supposed to be really bad for you because that would mean the face wash is too harsh. It never did anything bad to my face before this... *sulks* I guess what I'm trying to say is that this face wash is just too boring for me... but it works! However, I've been getting really horrible pimples recently, and I don't know whether it's because this product is too gentle or because of the other face stuff I've been using...

7. Garnier Light Fairness face wash for home use is a lemon-y facial wash, also without exfoliating beads and is also awesome for me because it removes my make-up without need for make-up remover. I quite liked it when I first started using it, but now feels that it leaves a rather oily feeling residue on my face after I'm done. I also don't feel the squeaky clean feeling of a fresh face after finishing with it, so I'm disappointed. Also have a feeling that this facial wash could've contributed to the sudden emergence of pimples. Hmmm... and the bad news is that I bought two of these face wash because there was a 2 for 1 deal in Watsons... hahaha. -__-

Oh and I don't think I got any fairer after using this... but I don't really mind because I think it's odd if my face ends up fairer than my body.... =p

8. The Neutrogena Deep Clean Blackhead removal range was a total disappointment! Also bought it because of the Johnson's & Johnson's contest, and also because I was wondering if there WAS another way to get rid of blackheads. I've always heard good stuff about Neutrogena, although I personally did not like the smell of their face wash (the deep yellow in color one... I forgot if it's supposed to be fragrance-free or not, but it had a weird smell! Since I said it had a weird smell, you'd think that it must NOT be fragrance free... but you never know! I just remember it as being weird!). Anyway, the Deep Clean Blackhead range consists of a face wash, these weird "heating" cream things which is supposed to open up your pores and make it easier for the blackheads to be removed, and finally, a cooling toner. The whole set set me back about RM75... so you could say I'm SERIOUSBUSINESS about removing blackheads.


However, I was very disappointed with the whole thing. I did like the face wash because it had exfoliating beads, and you definitely get a very clean, very fresh feeling after washing your face. Did it eliminate blackheads? No. So I proceeded with the warming treatment. The warming treatment was interesting... it really does heat up in your hands very quickly... but did it magically make all my blackheads dropped out or easier to be squeezed? Another resounding no. Finally the cooling toner was... like what a toner should be. Nothing extra special that made it ought to belong on a blackhead removal range. Very sad.

I guess the warming treatment was nice to play with... but will it be worth your money? It's expensive lor... and so far I've only used one tube. And somehow or other, it seems like it's not heating up so fast or so much anymore. Disappointment. And I have been getting those pimples (this is the third time I'm repeating this...) is this the cause!?!?!

If you've read til this point, yes I'm using 3 different facial cleansers at the moment, no wonder I can't figure out what's the root cause of any skin problems that I face. Tsk! And if you're really wondering what you can do about those dang blackheads, instead of using the deep clean range, may I just recommend to you the cheap & lovely Biore pore strips?! They now come in orange & pineapple fragrance which I love. I also have the regular and the black colored strips (I don't even know why I bought the black color one... just fatt hao I guess...). If you're not one for the pain, you could always remove it slowly, but I just love ripping out the dang thing and then studying the massive whiteheads and blackheads stuck. Gives me so much pleasure. At least there's a difference after using the Biore pore strips. I study myself after using the deep clean range and more often than not, you're back to squeezing out your whiteheads and blackheads, as if you didn't even use the range at all. Why spend the money then?

Ewww... I just Googled for the pore strips, and check out what some people managed to yank out on their pore strips... I'm glad that I don't have such severe problems! Lol!

9. Phytodefrisant Anti-frizz Balm for the hair... yes, I'm facing frizzy hair as evident from the shampoo I use, and the hair care products I use. I bought this when I was in France, so I don't think you can get it here... Pretty pricey (it is about RM80+!!), and the only reason I bought this was because I Google-d for "good pharmaceutical buys in France".. what a freak! ;) Ben bought something from Phyto as well, and he said it was shite (don't remember what he got). So how goes this balm? Well, I have to say that I must be quite insane to buy something where the directions are all in French, so I had to guess what I was supposed to do with it. In the end, I reckoned that it is a leave-in type of balm, and I have to say... this works. It really makes your hair more manageable and less frizzy. However, I have to use a LOT of it and I hate the texture of this anti-frizz product. It's very watery and slimey and reminds me of erm... baby juice. It also has a rather unpleasant smell about it, so I'm very careful not to use this before I meet my boyfriend, haha! For something nicer smelling, and rather effective (though not as POWERFUL as Phyto..), may I recommend...

10. Free&Free Damage Aid Serum that I got from Carrefour Thailand! Hahaha... actually, the current bottle that I have is given to me from Pauline (the one who introduced me to all this madness) as she knows how much I love this green bottle. This smells AWESOME.. very fresh and fruity, and really tames your hair. For the price you pay, this is more bang for your buck than Phyto is. Sadly, can't find this brand in Malaysia!

I guess it's unfair to compare Phyto and my favorite Free&Free because one is for damaged hair and the other one is just to control frizzy hair... but the outcome from both products are smoother hair ends and generally more manageability... so that's why I'm pitting them against each other. :) Free&Free, I would continue to buy, but Phyto is definitely a one-off. :)

11. My Beauty Diary masks... got a pack of 16 masks for about RM65 from Guardian... in fact, I'm currently using one (which I may review separately after this). When I first started using these masks, I loved it... the smell, the shape of the masks (there are some brands that get the anatomy of the face so, so wrong.. with bits and pieces of the mask hanging out every which way) and it's like... such a nice indulgence to have a mask once a week, am I right ladies? After the pimple fiasco (which now I'm wondering whether it's hormonal...), I'm also a little bit wary of the masks. I have about 8 more masks to go though, so I really hope it isn't! Anyway, the packaging for MBD masks are really cute, and the name of the masks are all so yummy sounding. Like, right now I'm using an apple one and it makes me think as if I'm putting real mushed up green apples all over my face. Haha, I'm not sure what good THAT would do, but generally after a MBD mask, my face feels softer and smoother. =) Because of the Guardian deal, I got MBD mask cheaper per mask (usual price is about RM6+ per mask), but if you want to try cheaper alternatives, I super recommend Purederm (any mask is good, but I like the aloe one), MJ (usually they have the type of gooey mask that you spread on your face and then peel off when it dries) and even the in-house brands of Watsons and Guardian have good masks for a little less than RM5. Watsons bird nest mask is super good, but that one is considered "premium" and is way more than RM5. I only got to use it because it was given to me as a free gift. =)

12. Vaseline Aloe Cool & Fresh light moisturising lotion for my day moisturiser... just broke in a brand new bottle! Previously was using Palmer's Cocoa Butter and that is one helluva good moisturiser! Palmer's Cocoa Butter has a distinctive smell... for me, I didn't like it at first, but since I just finished a big bottle... obviously I got used to it in the end. :) The cream is a bit thick and you really have to rub yourself (sounds dirty!) to get it all smoothened out. However, the moisturising effects are really just ooh-la-la~! I find myself constantly in wonder that my skin is soooo smooth and soooooo nice to touch. My boyfriend agrees with me. ;) I bought the Cocoa Butter in London for about 2 pounds, and when it first came to Malaysia, the Cocoa Butter was being sold so ridiculously expensive.. now it's ok-ly priced, so I might buy again... though I have a LOT of other moisturisers to try out.

Well look at me go on and on about Palmer's and not talk about Vaseline.. tsk tsk. Well, I really like the smell of the aloe body moisturiser.. and it's really cooling, which is good for the recent hot weather. However, in terms of moist-ness, I would say that it is left farrrrr behind compared to Palmers. Coincidentally, my boyfriend just bought a bottle of the exact same moisturiser today, and he randomly uses it to cool himself down! Hahaha! I guess I can't expect so much from this moisturiser anyway because it clearly states on the bottle that it is a "LIGHT" moisturising lotion. I must look out for the "HEAVY" one then. ;)

13. Nivea Extra Whitening Inner Cell Repair Body Milk for my night time moisturiser... why do I use it at night? Cos it's for whitening purpose, and I reckon it'll be better to use it when there isn't any sun rays combatting with it's whitening mission. ^^ (I just feel dumb now cos I'm studying the bottle now and I see that it has some advanced UV protection, so this IS for usage in the daytime!). I've loved Nivea body lotion for a really long time. I like the comforting fragrance, which makes it all the more apt for me to use it for night. For WHITENING... I don't think it works on me, because I don't see myself getting any fairer. My skin is more evenly-toned, I guess... but I can't comment on becoming FAIRER. I also can't comment on the inner cell repair thingy that they are promoting as I don't know the mechanics of how something that is applied externally can get absorbed into my inner cells... that kinda sounds scary.

But in terms of having softer, more I~wanna~touch~you~ooh~yeah~baby skin... then yes! A million times over that this works. =) I also like the face absorption rate, which is definitely a must for body moisturisers. The Vaseline one is also quickly absorbed... I suppose it's only the Palmer's one which takes quite a while, but since it is so awesome, it's forgiven. =p

Well, I guess that's lucky 13 items that I use rather frequently. My next entry will be on not-used-so-frequently stuff and on my daily make-up! Stay tuned, I guess!

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