Best After-sun Soothing Products

Have you been enjoying the sun on the beach? Every time after sun-bathing, you should use after-sun products to cool and refresh your skin. Here are some good after-sun care products.

Personally, I really love gel type after-sun products, I normally store them inside the fridge to maximise the cooling effect:

Clarins After Sun Gel Ultra Soothing can be used on face and body.

If you don't like gel, here are two lotion which are good too:

Dermalogica After Sun Repair uses its very own reparative complex together with seaweed extracts and soothing botanicals, protecting your skin cells while restoring the skin's condition.

L'Occitane After Sun Balm formulated with organic vegetable butter of Cupuaçu, it's the  the ideal ingrdient to intensely hydrate and regenerate the skin after sun exposure.

Remember to protect your skin both before and after sun-bathing.

Imju Dejavu: Bigger and brighter eyes

Last night, I tried out the new Imju Dejavu Fiberwig Lash Knockout Mascara, the result is soooo good that I decided to make a video of it to show you how good it is. But first of all, some photos:

The mascara is incredibly light, it feels like there nothing inside, so just want to let you know when you receive it, don't think that it's a defect product with nothing inside, it's just the material of the container which is light.

The applicator is straight, just like a normal mascara, it doesn't have the curl shape or anything fancy with the design, which I think is good, because I'd rather the brand focus on the function and quality rather than the design of the applicator.

And finally, how does it perform?

It's easy to apply, and it doesn't produce clumps like many other mascaras, so you won't feel that your eyelids are "heavier". And see...my left eye is bigger and sharper! (And I haven't applied eyeliner yet! So I am sure it would be even better with eyeliner)


Don't you wanna buy one and try it yourself?

LANCOME Sunblock + BB Base??

This is the first time I heard that a sunblock has BB base (BB cream), attention, it’s not BB cream with SPF, it’s the other way round.

The launch of Lancôme UV Expert Active Protection BB Base SPF 50 PA+++ proves that Korean BB cream trend is hotter than ever. The texture is quite soft and light, easy to apply, and just a small dot (see picture and video below) is enough for the whole face because this small dot I took, it's too much for the hand. It covers up fine lines and it suits Asian’s skin colour because the yellowy colour is gone after applying, making you look bright and nice. And it’s also good for other skin colours, because its BB cream base can adapt to the skin colour and balance it, so it never gets too dark or too pale.

It’s still a bit sticky as other sunblocks, but at least the smell is nice and flowery, not too strong though. A sunblock which can be used as foundation, sounds good, right?

Have a look at the Sun Protection blog post

Getting ready for the SUMMER!

I love summer and I love getting tanned, but in order to prevent premature aging, wrinkles, skin discoloration, and skin cancer, one must use sun protection lotion to protect yourself, so that you can get a healthy nice tan. All sun care products contain SPF, but do you know what is it and is it the higher the better?

SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor

• It only measures the protection from UVB (which causes burning), not UVA rays (which causes tanning).
• Sunscreen must contain avobenzone (also known as Parsol® 1789), titanium dioxide, or zinc oxide to protect from both UVB and UVA rays.
• A sunscreen with SPF 15 blocks nearly 95% of UVB, while SPF 30 blocks about 97% of UVB.

How to measure what SPF do I need?

• If your skin normally turns red after 10 mins of sun exposure, a SPF 15 can let you stay out at the sun for 150 minutes without getting burnt.

Tips:

• No matter what SPF you use, be sure to reapply every two hours because they do get rubbed off, even the waterproof ones!
• Don't forget to apply to ears and lips.
• Everyone should use at least a SPF 15 sunscreen.

Some recommended sunscreen products:

Face

(left to right)

Clarins Sun Wrinkle Control Cream High Protection SPF 30 (Sun-Sensitive Skin)
An ideal protection for sun-sensitive skin or skin exposed to intense sunlight. It provides reinforced sun protection (heat-resistant UVB-UVA filters) and against dehydration. Helps prevent visible signs of premature skin aging.

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Sun Defense for Face SPF 50 High Protection
A high performance lightweight and oil-free suncare lotion which helps shield skin against harmful UVA/UVB rays that can cause sunburn, surface skin cell damage and premature signs of aging.

The Organic Pharmacy Cellular Protection Sun Cream SPF 25 (Face and Body)
This product uses three novel natural ingredients to promote safe, golden tanning. Anti-ageing extracts and nourishing plant oils leave skin soft smooth and protected. The non-whitening formula means you can use it anywhere on the face and body with ease.

Lips

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Lip Protectant Stick SPF 15
An all weather treatment stick for softer, smoother lips. Sunscreen ingredients (SPF 15) guard against the damaging effects of sun exposure.

Kiehl's Lip Balm SPF 15
Kiehl's Lip Balm is designed for irritated lips, effectively relieves any dryness of lips and protects them from sunburn with SPF 15, leaving your lips soft and supple.

Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Lip Moisturizer SPF 15
This moisture-enriched formula soothes and conditions your lips, keeping them healthy looking and soft in all weather. Contains a PABA-free SPF 15 sunblock for added protection from the sun. Leaves lips soft, smooth and moisturized.

Are you now ready to enjoy nice sunny summer?

Coming up next time: After sun soothing products, and make-up products for you to get the most attention on the beach!

Sephora Eyeliner

As promised (a while ago :P) that I would write about the Sephora Eyeliner, and here you go!

I have used it about 4 times, the first time I used it, I really liked it because the lines are pretty obvious and the texture is soft. It's only after a couple hours that I saw the negative side of it.

I guess since the colour is easy to get on the eyes, it's easy to come off as well. Towards the end of the night, when I looked into the mirror, I saw my lower eyelines towards the outer corners are blackened. I found myself like a panda...

After the 4 times usage, I need to sharpen it already, since it's quite a short eyeliner to begin with, I don't think it could last for long.

So to conclude, I like the colour and texture of it, but not that when it comes off to the lower eyelines.

Recommended eyeliners: