Wednesday 28 October 2015

CURRENT NIGHT TIME SKINCARE ROUTINE - MOISTURISING STEPS




If you have missed my morning skincare routine, you can click here to have a quick look.

Not only do I keep my morning skincare routine simple, I also keep my night time skincare routine as efficient as possible.  I believe that as long as the products work to what you want to target your skin to improve the conditions, there isn't the need to use tons and tons of products.

The thing that troubles me the most in terms of my skin is the darkening of my freckles on my cheeks.  Having been through the summer in Hong Kong - the extreme heat and sunlight are the worst combo ever for skins.  No matter how much SPFs I have used, or how much I tried to avoid the sun, it doesn't seem to have worked.  So I needed something that can help those freckles to fade its colour a bit - I love my freckles but when the colours are getting darker, it's not a good look.

The Estee Lauder Enlighten Dark Spot Correcting Night Serum (strongly recommended by my sister @forksandbrushes, if you want to see a review by her, please click here.) has become my recent skincare favourite.  I am starting to notice a difference about a month into using this and I only use this at night time, as I use another dark spot correcting product by Nivea in the morning.  I noticed that the dark spots on my face is definitely fading.  It's a light weight milky-gel texture cream which is so easily absorbed by my skin and doesn't leave any greasy feeling to my skin which is so important to me when it comes to a good skincare product.  I only apply this in the area that I want to target at.

Then I would just finish off my routine by applying a thin layer of Bio-essence Radiant Youth Essence.  It's a serum oil and I found it rich but light weight, which is why I actually don't bother putting any other products on afterwards.  I find that by reducing the number of products used on my face, my skin is not overwhelmed or overloaded and they feel much more refreshed the next day.

Are you a lazy kind of gal whom like to keep your skincare routine nice and simple?

Monday 26 October 2015

CURRENT MORNING SKINCARE ROUTINE - MOISTURISING STEPS




It's not often I write about skincare, reason being generally it takes a lot longer to form a genuine opinion on skincare than makeup products. But these days, it dawned on me that I'm quite happy with the stash that is in my vanity cupboard so I thought why not dedicate a couple of posts about them.

I am still enjoying using my Kanebo Cleansing Cream which is so effective in using it as a deep cleanse and a quick cleanse together with a flannel.

I would normally spray a quick sprit of the Caudal Beauty Elixir which is my absolute all time favourite beauty product, I have lost count in how many bottles I have already gone through.  I wasn't aware this can be used as a makeup setting spray so this is what I have been using it lately (the result is still yet to observe).  I love the scent of this product, it's strong and I have to say it's not everyone's taste but it is my go-to pick-me-up essential.

Then I would apply the Bio-essence Birds Nest Bio-Energy Firm and Brighten Eye Cream to tackle those puffiness and dark circle in that under eye areas.  It's a light gel formulation which is so easily absorbed by those delicate undereye areas.  I wouldn't go as far as saying they have successfully gotten rid of the puffiness and dark circles but I noticed that these two annoying problems of my eyes have not gone worse since using it.  As I still remained skeptical about eye creams, I would say this eye cream is not a bad option.

I am currently testing out two products by Nivea - Vital Soja Anti-age spot concentrate and Vital Extra Nourishing Day Cream.  Both of which are quite a rich product, especially the day cream so I would only use this during Autumn/ Winter.  But having said that, it is still relatively warm in Hong Kong, I don't find the cream leaving a too heavy feeling on my skin and is rather easily absorbed by my skin.  As there are some freckles on my cheekbone areas and there are more of them and the colouration is certainly getting darker over the summer - the uber strong sun in HK is so damaging to the skin.  I have been using this anti-age spot concentrate for roughly around a month of time and I do notice a gradual difference - those freckle marks are fading gently - although I am not sure if it's due to the sun is playing a hide-and-seek game recently or due to this product - could be a bit of both but I'm definitely happy with the result I have seen so far.

What skincare héros are you relying on in the morning?  Have you used any of these products before?

Tuesday 20 October 2015

THE PRIMER GAME





I'm never quite a face primer wearer, I just never really needed it because I used to be one of those fortunate people that my makeup stay put quite well throughout the day.

Now, things have changed since I now live in Hong Kong.  We have just been through the hottest summer in beautyorbread's history.  I'm sure there had been at least a whole month, if not for longer; that the temperature shot up to 35c everyday and stayed that hot.

I was still wearing makeup but it took me a whole summer to realise that, apart from not wearing makeup (because I love doing so), I could actually wear something called a 'face primer' to help those beauty products stay put a bit better on my face.

As the sun is still relatively visible, and at times it can still feel a bit warm (believe it or not it's already mid-October but temperature can still get up to 30c), so a primer with SPF is a must for me; to give my face that bit of protection.

I first looked at the brand Kate, it has a mineral UV gel base primer.  It comes in a squeezy tube so it's perfect for travelling.  It has SPF32 PA ++ so it also ticks my box of a combo of SPF and primer.  The texture of the product feels quite silicone but blends and applies easily on the face.  I feel that it is not too 'siliconey' that my makeup can't sit on top of it well.  It does help my face products last a bit longer.  It is absorbed by the skin quite quickly and doesn't dry out my skin.

Obviously, I wouldn't just stop trying out one product.  I then saw the Max Factor Face Finity Primer with SPF 20, and said to myself, 'oh yes of course there's a face primer by Max Factor and why didn't I think of that!'.  The texture of this primer is a lot more liquidy than the Kate's one.  It feels more like a face lotion than a conventional face primer would feel.  This then makes the application even more easier and feels more hydrating on the skin.  Although I wouldn't necessarily say that the Kate's one is less hydrating as both products are absorbed by the skin equally well and fast.  Again, this also helps my makeup to stay put fairly well.  The glass bottle makes the product looks really nice but not a travel friendly product I don't think.

I would recommend both products as they both perform equally well - it just depends on if you prefer a thicker textured primer or something similar to a face lotion.

Do you wear a primer?  Is it a step that you swear by it or 'nah it's not for me'?

Tuesday 13 October 2015

LIFE UPDATE


It's been a rather long while since I wrote anything (nothing) on my blog here. 

There's no excuse to be made, busy is not a reason. Makeup and beauty still play such a massive role in my life so I haven't forgotten about you.

Just wanted to take this opportunity to share the joy that we had last week in celebrating my little one's 1st birthday.

Yes, Lear has turned 1! How did that happen I had no idea, but he did. The most exciting is that he's taken his first steps just before his 1st birthday. Mr Holiday and I are so excited about him walking properly!





I look forward to myself writing more beauty posts soon!

Meanwhile, I hope you have enjoyed reading this little post.

Xxx