LUSH Sweet Lips Scrub

Guest writer G

LUSH usually places their lip products on the cashier counter. I suppose it’s a marketing gimmick to tempt you to just pick one up and include in with your other LUSH goodies. Well, it worked because that was exactly what I did! I was just looking at the lip scrub and smelling it while the LUSH assistant was processing my goodies.

The one I picked up was the vanilla & chocolate one and it smells heavenly! I was busy weighing out the option of putting it back or picking one up for myself, when the sales assistant said “You can just scrub your lips and then lick it up because it’s edible!”. That was the tipping point for me because, (1) that sounded so cool/easy and (2) this would be fun to show the bf that my lips are irresistible! (haha). So I bought it and was happy.

Right: LUSH Sweet Lips Scrub
""Our fabulous lip scrubs are here to keep your kissers sweet. Sweet Lips is the lip scrub for chocolate fanatics. It smells like a bar of creamy milk chocolate. Vanilla extract keeps your lips moist, castor sugar gently exfoliates, and the rich, deep fragrance of cocoa absolute gives this an irresistible touch. Rub it over your lips when they're feeling the need for some sugar."

The scrub: It does scrub and exfoliate the lips well I must say and the sugar melts a little into your lips as you’re scrubbing it in a circular motion. I licked it a little and well it tastes like sugary chocolate. But after I licked it, it dawned on me that I could be eating up my dead skin / lip bits if I licked my lips after using the scrub! (Eek!). So no more licking my lips after using the scrub = totally defeated the whole purpose of me getting excited about this product!

Pro: Nice smelling and nice tasting; does what it is supposed to

Cons: Not worth the cash; when you put it on, you must do it over a sink because it gets all over the place once you start scrubbing

Overall, it’s just a sugar scrub that tastes and smells like chocolate and vanilla. There is nothing much to shout about this product. Infact, I think it would be cheaper for you to DIY at home with sugar and honey OR just by using a soft toothbrush and rub your lips in a soft circular motion. Judging by the length of this post, it is apparent that I will not repurchase ever again. Infact, I have only used it once and now its stashed somewhere.

It is priced at GBP4.75/0.25g (now I am wondering how did I buy this thing when I could have gotten a tub of Magnaminty for the same price!! ARGH) available at LUSH's website.

Or one of the Lowyat.net LUSH / USA sprees.

LUSH Mask of Magnaminty!

Guest writer: G

LUSH’s Magnaminty is my HG (holy – grail) for facial masks for my skin type. Frankly, my skin can be quite problematic. Besides the combination (oily on the T –zone and dry on the cheeks) & sensitive skin type, I always get pimples when it’s my time of the month. Let’s not forget blackhead and whiteheads on the T – zone!

Obviously for me, it is very hard for me to find a brand / mask that will not make my sensitive skin react. I have tried the Dermatologica skincare range and although it is supposed to be suitable for sensitive skin ( hypo allergenic etc etc), my skin had a reaction towards it. From then on, I usually do not take risks and stick to whatever works with my skin (which also means I am usually scared to take chances in terms of trying new products / brands).

I decided to try LUSH because they use natural ingredients and it just smells and feels so yummy! Plus the sales assistants are very helpful and if you ask, you can get free samples of their products!

Anyway, I have tried the Cupcake facial mask(review coming soon) before and found that nice but this one is stupendous. The sales assistant recommended this because I told her I needed something for my blackheads & whiteheads. LUSH does not sell those sticky peel off strips or anything similar to that, for blackheads/whiteheads because doing that will strip the moisture and healthy oils off your face making it create more oil. So they believe in nipping things in the bud and using this facemask regularly will(supposedly) help with the blackheads/whiteheads.

The mask is a "deeply cleansing, detoxifying & exfoliating pepperminty mask. Refreshes and brightens everything it touches."

It feels minty and cooling. The texture’s quite thick yet you can choose to put on a thin layer or a thick layer. It is specifically for detoxifying, toning and helps with blemishes. You just slather it on, leave it to dry and scrub it off in a circular motion with warm water.

Why do I like it?

1. You don’t have to keep it in the fridge

2. It lasts long because of the reason above

3. You can use it for “bacne”( back acne ), I don’t have bacne but I use it when I have dry patches of skin sometimes and it helps soothes the skin. I have also used this when I had an allergic reaction to seafood where I got bumpy skin around my neck and it helped soothe the bumps with regular use.

4. It’s the best for my skin type and really does detoxify tone and cleanse my skin. I can feel my skin feeling better internally and externally.

I keep going back to LUSH for this mask and I honestly swear by it. It actually reminds me of the Himalaya Herbals Neem Face Pack (check out So Loverly's great review here) which I have used before. If you have used the Himalaya Neem mask before, you would know that it helps detoxify and cleanse the face properly and after using it you’ll feel like your face is so clean internally and externally. This LUSH mask works quite similar to the Himalaya Neem mask BUT it is minty & cooling, smells so so much better and the texture is thicker.

Don’t get me wrong I love the Himalaya Neem mask but the LUSH Magnaminty is just so much better, in my opinion.

It is priced at GBP4.75/125g (this is the size I bought) OR GBP8.25/315g at www.lush.co.uk

You can get it on Lowyat.net LUSH or USA sprees ( please correct me if I'm wrong)

*p/s: I found that So Loverly also blogs about LUSH's Magnaminty here

Benefit Warehouse Sale June/ July 2011 Haul

Found out a couple of days ago that there’s a Benefit Warehouse sale in Menara Milenium. At first we thought it started yesterday, 29 June, so we went but apparently its 30 June – 1 July.
People close to me know I have a lot of makeup but dont really use them. So, to be safe, i only brought RM200 cash as I wanted to buy lemon aid and perhaps some other stuff to try.

So I bought the following. Original prices in USD frm website. Malaysia’s prices at the counter should be more expensive

• Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in Stiletto (left) & Flatter Me = 1 for RM 35, 2 for RM 55 (NP: $19 each)
• Lemon Aid, color correcting eyelid primer – RM45 ($20)
• BADgal Plum Mascara = RM28 ($19)

*note : Please check the mascara before buying. I'm a bit skeptical about the “newness” of the mascara I bought. As is the case with most warehouse sales, all sales are final and there are no refunds.
Other things I noticed but didn’t buy

• High Beam = RM 55 ($24)
• Velvet eyeshadow (powder?) = 1 for RM 35, 2 for RM 55 (NP: $19)
• "honey... snap out of it" face scrub = Under 100 bucks. sorry cant rmbr exactly how much
• some brightening eye cream, some moisturizers = under 100 bucks
• Lipsticks/lipglosses = RM45 each
• 6 in 1 lip gloss ( 3 sticks of dual ended lipgloss) = RM90 (or 70..cant rmbr)
• Brow Zings = Sorry didnt check price ($30)
• There’s NO Benetint or Posietint (boo)

I think the sale ends tomorrow, so head down to Starlight Cosmetics, Level 13, Menara Millenium.

Soap & Glory Girligo Body Moisturizing Mist

I read about this on a beauty blog and I was curious to find out how it smells but unfortunately, the only place I can get it (besides online) is in Sephora and the nearest ones are in KL. But seriously with results like “Sensible men have been driven to dizziness by this moisturizing mist”, how could I resist?

I got my dad to pick it up from Sephora KLCC and it was surprisingly cheaper than I thought. On the website its GDP 6.38 for 250ml and in Sephora its RM 32.00. Not too bad considering the exchange rate is about 4.8 or so.

I believe you can also get it at Boots (nearest is in Thailand) and in Malaysia, there are two Sephora outlets in Kuala Lumpur – namely Pavilion & KLCC.

A description from the site :

A fragranced spray-on body moisturizing mist. Do your own flirty work: Spritz Girligo™ on all-over post shower for temptingly fragrant, softer, smoother, more supple skin.

Scented with a tempting blend of bergamot, peach, strawberry, jasmine, mandarin and musk.

  

My verdict: It’s a sweet but musky scent. Well basically its like spraying a light lotion on your body. Its quite moisturizing but I have quite okay skin anyway so I can’t say if it’ll work for dry skin. But I really really like the scent!

How to use : I’ve read some blogs/forums saying that it drips when they spray it but it didn’t for me. spray it some distance away from your body and well distributed. At first I tried to rub it in but realized that it made my fingers overly scented. SO right after I come out of the shower, I spray it on and let it dry naturally before putting on clothes.

At this price and such a huge bottle, I think I will definitely buy this again after this one finishes. This is my first Soap & Glory purchase. I’ve tried the hand cream before so I might want to try out more stuff. Anything to recommend?

SILKYGIRL Double Intense Waterproof Mascara

I recently threw all my  mascara away when cleaning up some makeup because it already started to smell funky so was in the market for a new (and inexpensive) mascara. I actually don’t really use mascara that often because I sometimes have flu and when I sneeze, my eyes become very watery. I also have a tendency to rub my eyes when I’m tired (which is quite often) thus smearing everything – eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara - everywhere.

So I read a review about this in So Loverly (one of my fav beauty blogs btw) about this SILKYGIRL (yes its one word and all CAPS) and picked it up the “Bonus Pack” next time I was at Guardian. For some reason the price tag was RM 24.88 but I actually got it for RM18+. It came with a mini Gentle Eye Makeup Remover (55ml) which is worth RM9.90 so I guess the mascara ended up to be about RM10.

 

The Body Shop Sale 2011

So I went to The Body Shop. Until 29 May 2011, all purchases with Maybankard Debit/Credit card get an additional 10% discount on top of the current discounts. I didn’t really get a lot of stuff because honestly, it wasn’t so interesting. I did, however, buy a few bottles of shower gels and a pressed powder. Prices below

Invitation to Acca Kappa Skincare Launch (OneCard)

Hey Ladies,
Below is an invite for the latest skincare launch from Acca Kappa
Date : 7 May 2011 (Saturday)
Time : 10.30am – 12.30pm
Venue : Acca Kappa 1 Utama
2X UPoints & Exclusive Offer for ONECARD Members Only
Fees : RM50 (entitles 2 pax)
* Fully redeemable against Acca Kappa products
* Includes goodie bag worth over RM100
I’m not sure if its only for ONECARD members but you can try and call Sook Mei or Winnie at 0377264788 or contact them via email in the mailer below.

Review : Watsons Deep Cleansing Nose Pore Tape

I must admit that I’m blessed with pretty blemish free skin but my worst beauty woe are blackheads. I have tons on my nose, I’m not too sure if its because I don’t “take care” of my face or its just genetic – because my mom & siblings have the same problems. According to my dad, he remembers seeing my mom steam her face and sit in front of the magnifying mirror to tweeze out those black/white heads.

According to Wikipedia : A blackhead (medically known as an open comedo, plural comedones) is a yellow or blackish bump or plug on the skin. A blackhead is a type of acne vulgaris. Contrary to the common belief that it is caused by poor hygiene, blackheads are caused by excess oils that have accumulated in the sebaceous gland's duct. The substance found in these bumps mostly consists of keratin and modified sebum (an oily secretion of the sebaceous gland), which darkens as it oxidizes.


As I’m lazy, I don’t do the tweezing thing. Neither do I use those metal sticks with the metal loop. (1) coz its painful (2) and its tedious. I have tried a number of things to get rid of the blackheads – masks, pore strips, etc. I have even bought expensive (more than RM100) serums and creams to get rid of the blackheads. The serum works to reduce em (more on this on another post) but nothing can beat the squeaky clean feeling after getting the blackheads all off. And I don’t' quite fancy those peel off masks as they take a while to dry and a bit tedious and messy.

So I stick to pore strips. My current favourite brand of pore pack/strips/tape is Watsons Deep Cleansing Nose Pore Tape. It’s a made in Korea product and the best part is, each box of 10 strips are only RM9.90 and sometimes even cheaper during sales! Look out for a pink and purple box, as below:

Amante Nail Spa & Body Care opens in Kota Damansara

So I saw from Tammy (plussizekitten) Facebook post where her friend Yvonne commented that Amante had a special opening promotion with free, yes FREE! Manicure and Massage. Tammy highly recommended it as well so I decided to check it out earlier today.

So anyway, they just opened on the 15th of April so they are having an Open House Promotion from 15-24 April 2011, 10am – 7 pm where they are offering:

Bedak Sejuk Muntah Belut or Miracle of Clay NNMK

Haha weird name I know. The literal translation is Eel’s Vomit Cold Powder. But don’t worry, there’s no actual eel’s vomit in it. According to some Googling, its 100% made of clay. It is touted as a natural, traditional treatment/remedy from the East Coast especially Terengganu and Kelantan.

Its in the form of small discs slightly over 4.00pm in diameter. And comes in packs of two in a plastic bag. If I recall correctly it was RM5 per pack. As you can see in the pic below mine shattered during shipping but its ok because you want to make a paste out of it anyway.

Bedak Sejuk Muntah Belut

Cara Penggunaan : Campurkan sedikit bedak sejuk dengan sedikit air. Sapukan ke seluruh muka. Biarkan selama semalaman, kemudian cuci muka seperti biasa di sebelah pagi. Untuk hasil yang lebih memuaskan, campurkan dengan air gamat.

Untuk kulit berminyak/bermasalah : Gunakan bedak sejuk setiap malam sebelum tidur.

Untuk jerawat batu : Sapukan lebih bedak sejuk di kawasan yang bermasalah.

Untuk kulit normal/kering : Gunakan bedak sejuk selama 2 hingga 3 hari berturut-turut. Penggunaan berselang hari memberi hasil lebih memuaskan

 

Basically you take less than a quarter of a disc and dilute it with water. As the instructions above, its best if you can use air gamat (sea cucumber water/juice?) but you can just use plain water. Make a paste by mixing in a bit of water at a time. And I do mean a bit. The first time I did this, I ended up putting too much water. haha.

I’ve seen blogs where they make the paste a bit runny, like pancake batter but personally I make mine a bit thicker because I want to put a thicker layer. Leave it on overnight and wash your face in the morning. You can also use it for a few hours then wash off.

Results :  I must admit that I’m a bit lazy and have not been using it constantly but I’m quite happy with the results even after 1 use. The skin on my face feels softer, smoother and a little less oily.

Repurchase? Yes I might buy this again. Its cheap at only RM5 for two discs which can be used for about 8 applications. Also its all-natural and I think can be kept (in its dry form) for quite a while.

I got it from NNMK - Beauty Remedies Facebook Group. Just leave a message and someone will get in touch with you. I bought 2 packs and paid RM10 inclusive of postage (standard envelope).

A Shower Gel Obsession

Some people have a makeup obsession, some people have a lotion obsession. Well, not to say that its really an  obsession but I do like to buy different types of shower gels/creams.

*looks at pic below* Ok well, perhaps just a little obsessed? Hehe!

Here’s a breakdown of what I have (for now):

• Ginvera Green Tea Spa Shower Crème – I got this cheap during a warehouse sale. I think it was like RM9?
• Guardian Sherbertz Yogurt Bath (pomegranate, Passionfruit & pear) – These were Buy 1 Free 1 some time ago. Probably less than RM20 for 2.
• Lush Shower Jelly (Calacas, Iced Wine, Sweetie Pie) – These are all the smallest sizes one, costs about RM17+ after conversion.  Got this from my sister in the UK. Sadly they’re not available here. I really like these!
• The Body Shop Shower Gel (Raspberry) – this is a new bottle. I really like the scent of this. RM24.90 I think.
• The Body Shop Bath & Shower Gel – limited editions (Fuzzy Peach & Dewberry) – these are actually scents that were discontinued that they brought back. Costs slightly more than the standard shower gel range if im not mistaken. Love the peach one.
• The Body Shop Body Polish (Pomegranate) – This is actually not a shower gel but I use it when I shower, so just included it in. This has the exact texture and colour as strawberry jam. Very yummy (but not for eating!)

So that’s my shower gel collection (not including the soaps I have). As you can see, I very much favour fruity, sweet smells. Also I don’t quite believe in buying really expensive shower gels as it’ll get washed away.

So what do you have in your shower/bathtub? And most importantly, do you have any favourite shower gels to recommend?

The Face Shop Brightening Rice Water Cleansing Foam (Migamsu)

I got a free sample of TFS Migamsu Brightening Rice Water Cleansing Foam



Like
- not tight
- feel clean
- smell fresh
- lathers nicely
- not drying

Concept
A moisturizing and brightening cleansing line with rice water and Moringa oil. Moringa oil known as ‘purifying tree’ in India has very strong detoxifying quality. People used to put grinded Moringa plant in the polluted river water to detoxify.
Description
Contains rice water(10%) Fit Protein orchid extract Vitamin B5 complex. Its creamy and cushiony texture eases handling and moisturizing ingredients leave skin feeling hydrated after cleansing by minimizing moisture loss.

RP: RM40 (I think)

Review : Logic BigEyes Series

To be honest, I’ve not heard of this brand of contact lenses before. Then again, I haven’t really been wearing/buying coloured contact lenses. These lenses are worth RM90 but I got em slightly cheaper at a promotional price.

I took the Monthly COLORVIEW in Irradiance (Black) and Brown Irradiance. The lenses have a base curve of 8.60mm and have a dark ring around the edge with spike-like designs pointing towards the inside. The pic below shows how it looks like.

The lenses are comfortable and easy to wear. I have a problem of lenses that are too big sometimes with certain brands but this is not too big (base curve & diameter) that the lenses move around in the eye.

The effect of these lenses are subtle as you can see from the photo above. The photos below show a comparison of how my eyes look with and without the lenses. Not too sure why it looks darker in the above photo but in this picture you can see that my eye with the lenses look bigger.

Would I buy this again? Yes, if the price is right. This is because I seldom wear coloured contact lenses. However, if you are looking for the big-eyed look without looking to obviously barbie-doll and fake, this contact lenses are recommended.

*Disclaimer* This pair of contact lenses were given to me for review purposes by Malaya Optical. I liked the contact lenses so I bought some pairs for  myself. Read my experience at their outlet – http://me.zestful.org*