SK-II

This product has gotten a lot of praises over the years by my friends and family. Although SK-II is actually a sub-brand of Max Factor, there are few who knows of it or at least, most people that I know doesn't know about it. I find that to be quite a smart marketing strategy, because SK-II successfully became a high-end skincare product using a different brand and image. The main ingredient for SK-II is Pitera and it's interesting how they found this ingredient. It was actually found by studying and researching the cause of extremely soft hands for Japanese women who worked in sake brewery.

Unfortunately, It's hard for me to give SK-II a terrific review due to a couple of reasons. Although I do find it to be a fairly well balanced product, which hydrate my skin quite nicely. It's very difficult for me to tolerate the smell. I find myself applying another layer of lotion immediately on top of this product so I don't have to smell it on my face. For me, it sort of smells like saliva and that really bothers me. Secondly, the cost is definitely high in comparison to a lot of other toner/lotion and although I can tolerate expensive items, I need to find it worthy. For me, this particular product from SK-II was only ok and not great for the price.

For 7.3 oz. bottle, it's retailed for 195.00 USD, but you can find it for 140.00 USD online.

Because You're Worth it- La Prairie Cellular Hand Cream

My hands get so dry during the winter that they feel like sandpapers and that's extremely unattractive. With all the cooking and scrubbing at home to typing and shuffling papers for work, I think that my hands deserve some quality care. I tried Aveeno, Avon, Neutrogena, L'Occitane, Eucerin, Kiehl, just to name a few, but none of them work as well as this product.

My biggest surprise of all was the wonder it did for my hubby's hands. My hands can get dry but they are still relatively soft, which was definitely not the case for my hubby after he spent days working on his lovely cars. His hands get so rough and dry that they simply didn't absorb the other hand lotions or they did, but the lotions were just not moisturizing enough. This lotion was such a miracle worker for his hands. Although it works like a charm, some might be turned off by the hefty price tag. I personally think that our hands work so hard every day that they deserve to be treated well and a tube lasts for quite a while, because it actually works so you are not constantly reapplying.

A pair of dry and scaly hands simply doesn’t match a well maintained face or figure. It's the first thing that people see and feel when they shake your hands and we all know how important first impressions are.

Retail: 95.00 USD, but can be found online for about 83.00 USD

Beautifully Smooth Hair

I'm very fortunate to be blessed with naturally soft hair and when I was younger, I didn't need to apply anything for it to look shiny and smooth. However, my hair along with the rest of me tends to need a bit more attention as I get older. Maintenance is key to keeping your youthful appearance and that applies to every part of you, which includes your hair. Weather and external surroundings also play a vital role in how our hair or skin will look and feel throughout the day. I'm sure some of you noticed how your hair looks extremely flat or frizzy depending on environmental changes. These days I turn to these two products when my hair decides to go haywire on me.

John Frida's Frizz Ease (Original Serum) works well when your hair is very frizzy but I don't recommend this if you are looking for an overall leave on conditioner unless you have natural frizzy curls. If not, it gets to be too thick and oily. However, a few dabs of this work wonders on those frizzy ends.

Biosilk's Silk Therapy is less dense in consistency and works better if you are thinking of applying it to your whole head. However, too much of this can still leave your hair feeling greasy.

Although you can apply these two products before or after blow drying your hair, I find it to work best when I apply a thin layer of Silk before blow drying and use Frizz Ease on those ends which needs a bit more work after blow drying. By combining the two, I get a whole head of super silky hair that I can run my fingers through without over conditioning some part and under conditioning the end.

John Frida's Frizz Ease, Original Serum 1.69oz: Retail for 9.99 USD, but you can find it for 7.00 USD online.
Biosilk's Silk Therapy 2.26oz: Retail for 13.99 USD, but you can find it for around 9.00 USD online. It comes in a lot of different sizes.

Love At First Try Lip Balm

At first, Fresh only carries the "sugar", non-tinted version, which I already absolutely love. After they came out with their "rose" tinted version, I switched over and haven't been able to quit my addiction to this product ever since. Although I am never the kind to retouch my makeup every chance I get, I am often seen reapplying my lip balm periodically throughout the day. The reasons are probably because I am often dehydrated from not drinking enough water even though I drink water diligently and/or humidity in the air is close to non-existent and when that happens, I have a terrible habit of biting on my lips when it starts getting chappy!

For those of you who have the same problem as me, you know that it's not a great habit and your face looks distorted when trying to chew your own lips. I am happy to say that I got rid of that nasty habit after using this product and no other lip balm is as moisturizing or long lasting. With most other lip balms, it lasts me probably less than an hour before I have to reapply, this lasts me closer to half a day before I need to reapply. Some people may not like it at first, because it's thicker and creamier in texture. However, it really works and your lips look less wrinkly and much softer after a few try.

I tried looking for a possible replacement for this item, because it does seem a bit pricey as a lip balm. However, I have yet to find one. The good thing is that since they came out with "rose", I use it as a lip balm and lip color so it's a much better deal and more convenient for on the go purpose.

They now have several shades:
Sugar-Original
Rose-Pink
Passion-Red
Honey-Carmel

Unlike most lip balm with colors, their colors are quite vivid for Passion and Honey. Rose is a bit subtler.

Retail: 22.50 USD

My Cheap & Broad Spectrum Sunscreen!

I use this product by itself and/or under my foundations. When by itself, it serves as a light sunscreen that helps even out slight facial discolorations. When I'm out running errands or grocery shopping, I use this product with a few dabs of Benetint on my cheeks to create a natural, makeup free look as my base.

A lot of sunscreens are too sticky, too heavy or it makes me breakout. This product is extremely light so I don't have a problem wearing it under foundation as well. I don't like how layers of products on my face make me feel and this one doesn't make me feel greased out.

The package may look different from picture shown and there are a few different colors for the actual product. The lavender color helps cover dark circles better under foundation, but by itself, I prefer the transparent and/or beige. Moreover, the lavender one doesn't work as well for tanned skin since it makes your face looks a bit too pale in comparison to your neck.

Retail: 22.50 USD, but you can find online for close to 15.00 USD.

I like a couple other sunscreens as well, but I find this to be the best choice in this price range and my favorite for sunscreen with teint.

Tip: PA measures UVA while SPF measures UVB

Misconception: Higher SPF doesn't mean it's necessarily better; the SPF number is an indicator of how long a person can stay in the sun before experiencing sunburn. (SPF 30= 30 times longer, which means a person who was going to burn in 10 min without SPF 30 sunscreen will experience burn after 300 min when it's applied.)

You want to look 20s or 40s in your 30s?

Have you ever turned on the TV and wondered how come this person looks older than they actually are? When we are in our 20s or younger, we can get away with wearing heavy makeup incorrectly, because it may make us look older, but not old. However, makeup skills and styles will need to evolve as we age. Using the same techniques and products without adapting to current trend may result in looking outdated, unattractive, and older than how you feel and want to look.

Our skin in the 30s has a bit more wrinkles, feels a bit drier and collagen seems to be slipping away slowly. If applying foundations without properly moisturizing your skin, it's likely that your foundation will feel more like a mask floating on your skin instead of blending smoothly onto your face. Moreover, your concealers and foundations are likely to get caught in between your faint lines creating noticeable wrinkles, especially around your eyes. For those with more trouble with eye wrinkles and frown lines even after applying moisturizers, you can consider using one of the following products.

1. Dr. Feel Good from Benefit-

Although the instruction on the package says smooth over makeup, I find it to work better before putting on your makeup. It will make your pores smaller and faint lines disappear. It sort of serves as a filler so once you apply your foundations and concealers, the surface of your skin looks smooth and feels silky. When applied after, it's easy to ruin your makeup from smudging even when careful.

Retail for 29.00 USD, but can find closer to 20.00 USD online.

2. Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch from Clarins-

It's a bit lighter than Dr. Feel Good and it serves as a great primer and base for your makeup. Like Dr. Feel Good, it minimizes your pores if not erases them completely and fill up your lines quite nicely. Simply, smooth it lightly around your problem areas and wait for a few seconds to dry before applying your makeup.

Retail for 32.50 USD

Dr. Feel Good is a bit more greasy than Instant Smooth yet it leaves your skin feeling extremely smooth. There is a possibility of breakouts if your skin is more oily or sensitive. For those with more sensitive skin, I would suggest Instant Smooth although is a bit more expensive. Both products last for a long time since not much is needed per usage.

3-in-1, Beauty on the Go!

Benetint is a very natural looking blush. All it takes is a few dabs on your cheek and a little smudge with your fingers then Perfect! Don't let the blood red color scare you off, because it looks much better on your face than in the tube. It even has a sweet rose scent to it which was a pleasant surprise.

It also serves as a liptint and you can control how red by dabbing a little for a subtle pretty style or more for a sexier look. I would suggest putting on lip balm before applying any color products onto your lips to reduce the appearance of dried skins and lines since colors tend to be unevenly distributed when lips are not nicely hydrated. After dabbing and smudging , use the gloss to make your lips shiny and juicy. Unfortunately, the gloss is a bit thick, so it is a bit hard to apply and the applicator could be better. You won't need to bring an extra gloss when out, but you might want to.

Although it's not really meant to be an eye shadow, I have used it during emergency. Dab a drop on your finger and pat it onto your eyelids for a rosy pink shade.

Retail: 20.00 USD