MOE stands for My October Empties!

It strikes me that I have never done a post with products I've recently finished! So for that, here's this month's throwouts~

From L - R: Sleek Makeup Luminaire Highlighting Concealer, Cyber Colors Cell Recharge Snail Serum,
Lovemore Acnes All Out Purifying Mask and DHC Salicylic Acne Toner

It's taken me quite awhile to finish up some of these products like the Sleek Highlighting Concealer because I don't use much each time so I guess they've been really value for money in the price vs length of use department!

I STILL can't decide whether I want to repurchase the Sleek Luminaire Highlighting Concealer... Sometimes it works great, concealing the little blemishes like dark eye rings and light pigmentation so I can head out without foundation but sometimes I have to layer like crazy >_< The good thing is that at S$17, it's pretty cheap~ (Original review HERE.)

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Ah yes~ The snail serum. I really didn't think much about the whole snail mucus fad until I got this little gem from Cyber Colors at Sasa! And 30ml lasted me pretty long!

I'll never get over how quickly this serum healed a badly popped zit (*_*) 90% Snail mucus ftw! I usually apply it when I have an emerging or busted zit so it's just 1 pump each time and that 1 pump brings up enough product to spread thinly over the rest of my face as well if I want to. I already have a 2nd bottle on standby and will definitely keep repurchasing! (Original review HERE)

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The Lovemore Acnes All Out is a blackhead removal mask set that comes with 3 items, a sebum softener, a purifying mask and an astringent essence. Unfortunately I have abandoned the first and last steps due to laziness personal reasons.

 

These days, I use The Face Shop Volcanic Clay Mask to open up the pores before using the Lovemore Step 2 purifying mask. Been using it on and off for about 2 years now and I still find the peel off results pretty awesome! (Original review HERE)

 

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Lastly, my latest favorite =D The DHC Salicylic Acne Toner. This toner still does a good job of regulating sebum production and keeping those pesky clogs away from my jawline so I am really pleased! If there was one thing to gripe about, it would be that this range is rarely on sale at Watsons! The other DHC products would be on 20% promo and the Acne range would be sitting pretty with their original prices >_< (Original review HERE)

But at the end of the day, the results matter most and it's still a drugstore brand so it isn't that pricey. It's really cheap in Japan though (half the price!) so check it out if you have a trip planned!
 

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So that's it for October~ =)

Oh yeah! In other news, I've received my first sponsored review invite! Pretty excited for my appointment this weekend ^_^ Stay tuned ok?

Dipping into DHC - Salicylic Acne Toner

If you've been reading Cottonball Crusade for awhile, you'll realize that I've been using the L'egere ice toner (Initial + followup review HERE) for quite long now and am quite a fan. However I've become increasingly irritated at the lack of stock in shops here! John Little and BHG don't seem to be restocking the Ice toners at all~~~~ ( T_T ) I stocked up a few bottles whenever there was a sale but because 1 bottle only lasts me about 1 1/2 mths, I felt it best to find an alternative.

After some misses with other brands like Suisai (Tightening Lotion) and Bioessence (Tanaka White) I decided to give DHC a whirl.

Retails for S$32 exclusively @ Watsons

This is my first product from DHC by the way, never really knew what to make of their products before ^_^;;

Back of the box info:

Overall, I don't really have acne prone skin but the DHC Salicylic Acne Toner, like the L'egere Ice Toner, contains Salicylic acid so I thought that might be the active ingredient for controlling my clog/spot-prone jawline. Also, it states that it'd suit combination, normal or oily skin types so I reckoned it wouldn't be too harsh.

Here's a look at the ingredients:

 I am slightly comforted by the various natural extracts towards the end of the list. Just slightly. =P

It's your basic twist off cap with a nozzle dispenser:

The nozzle controls product quite well so you don't need to be worried about product spillage as long as you're not swinging the bottle around =P

Even though it's the same product weight as L'egere, the DHC toner definitely lasts longer because of it's liquid form~ Because of that, the slightly higher price doesn't bother me much.

I've been using the DHC toner for almost a month now so the effect has stabilized enough for me to review it properly =)

1st week
I felt my skin become a lot softer. And I mean ALOT. Since stopping the L'egere toner, several (but not many) clogs reappeared along my jawline plus ONE zit. I suppose the fact that it was that time of the month for me played a part?

2nd week
Clogs start to fade away SLOWLY. Skin feels super smooth and soft *hearts* Oil control, whilst not as immediate or mattifying as L'egere, is effective. Skin has a healthy sheen without looking or feeling oily.

4th week
Still experience the occasional clog or 2 but very rare. Skin remains super smooth and soft to the touch *omg love* My complexion has also developed a sort of radiant sheen!

In short, the DHC Salicylic Acne Toner:

• is quite affordable and easily available at Watsons, occasional sales on DHC items will get you 20 - 25% discount
• 160ml of product should last abt 2 to 3 months by my current estimation
• suitable for combination, normal and oily skin types - I have combination skin (oily base, slightly dehydrated surface) with no adverse reactions ^_^
• Leaves a very very slight tacky feel that fades quickly (this doesn't really matter cos moisturiser's going over it anyway)
• Doesn't have the mattifying effect of L'egere but nevertheless has good oil and sebum control
• Has a slightly antiseptic & leafy smell, not unpleasant really and it dissipates in seconds
• Produced the promised softening and smoothening effect within 2 weeks of regular twice a day usage, effect is lasting and very very nice!

Basically, I'm SOLD. Bye bye L'egere, Hello DHC~

Tokyo Beauty Loot (Image Intensive!)

Today, I thought I might share some of the beauty items I bought from *ahem* multiple trips to Matsumoto Kiyoshi (aka MatsuKiyo), one of the biggest and my favourite drugstore in Tokyo!

These are mostly items that I haven't gotten round to using yet. Emptied higgledy piggledy on the living room floor, this it what it looks like:

Ahhh....makes my heart flutter~ =P

First up, the weather in Singapore has been simply horrible recently, muggy with a capital M-U-G-G-Y. So of course, I remembered to pick up some refreshing powder sheets! You remember my previous review on the Biore Powder Sheets? Well I thought I'd try out other brands this time. Rose-scented, I couldn't resist! Plus, the formulas include Persimmon, Aloe Vera and Raspberry essences for that added skincare element!

Top L - R : French Bath Soap and English Garden Rose powder sheets / price forgotten >_<
Bottom L - R : Morning Facial Masks from Mandom / 399yen each

Morning facial masks from Mandom! The pink is for Moisturising and the blue, Tightening. Each mask contains 7 times the usual amount of facial toning lotion and contains ingredients like Coenzyme Q10 in the moisturizing mask, Yukinoshita (I think this is geranium, good for toxin draining and depigmentation) and Hamamelis (witch hazel) in the tightening mask.

Watsons has recently started selling these jelly strip beauty supplements from Otsuka Group and they are disgustingly overpriced at S$16 a box. I bought these for 399yen at MatsuKiyo which is only about S$5!! Each box only contains 7 strips so S$16 is really quite pricey imo... I shall buy more next time!

Available in Placenta C (orange), Collagen C (pink) and Hyaluronic Acid (green, not pictured), these are basically beauty supplements to consume on the go. I ate the Placenta C jelly strips while I was in Japan and they tasted like mango~ Yum! I think these are good for when you're having a hectic work week or haven't gotten enough rest and don't want it to show on your face~

Next up, my favourite beauty product: mascara!!

Beauty/Skincare shopping in Japan, it's easy to spot top sellers because they always have these proud stickers on them!

 

These stickers tell you about the product's sales ranking on platforms like Yahoo shopping, Rakuten, Amazon Bestsellers etc.

Click and read on! =D

Revisiting: L'egere Pure Aqua Pore Tightening Ice Toner

You might recall that I purchased this sherbet-y toner from L'egere during the BHG sale awhile back:

S$27.90 from BHG

( You can read my initial review HERE )

I didn't really think much of it initially and even ventured as far as to say that it might not be worth a repeat purchase especially since it didn't seem to be doing anything for my pores. But I did enjoy the cooling feeling and the fun of spraying this sherbet-y substance into a cotton pad everyday so I bought a 2nd bottle.

2 months on, I'm close to finishing the 2nd bottle (with 2 more bottles in my drawer) and feel that my initial assessment needs some tweaking.

The L'egere Pure Aqua Pore Tightening Ice Toner:

• still has not done much for my pores, though they have not worsened either =( I am resigned to my crater face fate.
• BUT has (after its addition to my daily routine) helped to COMPLETELY eradicate the irritating clogs along my jawline! Yes the very ones that have been terrorising me for a good 8 months! And this is why I've continued purchasing~
• mattifying effect remains the same i.e decent enough for my combination skin
• product near the spray nozzle turns yellowish if left unused for more than a day or 2 (you'll see it when you spray it), but seems harmless. No side effects on me.
• unfortunately 1 bottle doesn't last very long, only about a 1 1/2 months? So keep a look out for sales if you intend to stockpile this! =)

I have to say, I'm elated that my cloggy jawline is now cleared T_T You have no idea how much I've anguished over it~ If anyone is interested, my current skincare product lineup is:

• Konjac sponge for cleansing (cleansing foam used only if I've had makeup on)
• L'egere Pure Aqua Pore Tightening Ice Toner
• Laneige Light Balancing Emulsion

These 3 are the basis of my routine these days, with a serum or eye cream here and there plus my beauty supplements, it seems to be working out pretty well~ Yayyyy~~~ =D

The down side is, after finding products that have worked so well for me, it's hard to justify trying/buying other brands or products out of curiousity... >_<

Do you continue trying/purchasing other brands or products after you've found your HG product? Does the search ever really end? (._.)

A quick look @ L'egere Pure Aqua Pore Tightening Ice Toner~

As you've probably seen from the BHG sale loot some posts back, I bought the L'egere Pure Aqua Pore Tightening Ice Toner (what a mouthful, try saying that 10 times quickly =P) after some raving from a girlfriend. As I've only just started using it for about a week, it hasn't yielded the desired results (i.e small small smallerrrrr pores, which is quickly becoming something of an urban legend to me) yet but it's enjoyable enough for me to want to share a quick peek!

Product in question:

S$27.90 from BHG's aLT beauty corner

Labelled 'Suitable for all skin types', this product is designed to:

• sooth, heal and hydrate tired skin with the rich mineral and vitamin content of pure Alaskan glacial water
• tighten pores and control sebum secretion with the patented P-Refinyl Pore Tightening formula 
• reduce redness & swelling, unblock clogged pores and kill acne-causing bacteria with salicylic acid

Used before makeup, it's supposed to keep the shinies in check and help your makeup stay put. For me, the shine control and cooling effect was very attractive given the hot weather in Singapore~

As you'll see in abit, Legere's not kidding about the 'ice cooling' bit.