Review: NeoStrata Moisture Infusion Cream

I don’t think I have written any skincare product review before this one, except the GlamGlow Super-Mud Mask. I don’t usually write skincare review because I think they are very personal in terms of whether it works or not, and quite frankly I don’t really know how to write reviews about them. But if there’s one product that I will write about, it will have to be the NeoStrata Moisture Infusion Cream.

This moisturizer and I went waaayyyyy back. I remember 3 years ago the skin on my cheeks decided that it will pretend to be a snake and start shedding, it was disgusting (imagine just rubbing your hands on your cheeks and have skin flaking off – actually, it’s probably a better idea not to). I tried a ton of moisturizers and none worked – they just burned my skin and irritated it even more. Finally I had to resort to steroids to fix the problem, and with the help of the NeoStrata Moisture Infusion Cream, that horrible skin flakiness finally subsided.

This moisturizer is quite thick, and extremely moisturizing. In the winter I would use it in the morning and night, but in spring/summer I find it to be too heavy to use during the day. It has quite a heavy, but fresh scent that goes away after a while. Although it’s thick, it gets absorbed pretty fast, which is a huge bonus for me because I hate the feeling of having skincare product lingering on my face. I have tried many moisturizers since my horrid experience with flaky skin, and during spring/summer time most other moisturizers suffice, but when winter came, the skin between my brows, around my nose, above my lips, just start flaking and no other moisturizer can tame it except this one.

Oh, on a side note, I have combination skin, but this moisturizer has never broken me out – score!

I believe I got it for $27 (50ml) at Shoppers Drug Mart, which is not a bad price at all, since you only need a small amount for the whole face. I highly recommend this for anyone looking for a rich, effective, but reasonably priced night time moisturizer.

Review: GLAMGLOW Super-Mud Clearing Treatment

I have heard a lot about the GlamGlow treatments, but I finally caved in when I saw this set on Sephora. At $69 for 34ml, this jar of gold mud definitely put a dent in my bank account, but is it worth the price tag?

I definitely think it is worth the money. The Super-Mud Clearing Treatment comes with a whole list of benefits ranging from pore minimizing, razor bumps, skin tone evening to narsty ingrown hair. The mask is a dark grey paste that has some small chunks (I believe charcoal) in it. I just apply a thin layer evenly on clean face and wait for it to dry. When it dries, it turns into a a light grey color, but the cool part is that you can see where the masks extracted crap from your pores! The mask gets tight and dry within minutes, and the packaging suggest that you leave it on anywhere from 5-20 minutes. At this price, of course I’m going to leave it on my face for as long as possible, so I left it on for 20 minutes. I felt a tingling, almost burning sensation after around 5 minutes, but it subsided eventually. My face was a bit red after the mask, but it was gone really quickly.

The result? The blackheads around my nose are almost non-existent, and the pores on my cheeks are minimized. I only used this mask twice, so I can’t comment on any long-term results, but I have high hopes for this. I read somewhere that a jar lasts ~17 treatments, so we will see how it goes after I finish this jar!

What’s in My Makeup Bag?

I am currently out of town but wanted to type a blogpost… and all I have with me is my makeup bag so I decided to do a quick post about what’s in my makeup bag! Also, I just got a new makeup bag and I am completely in love with it, so I just wanted to show you guys.

Deal: $10 Gift Card at Kiehl’s Canada

I just got this email today, and I decided to share this great deal with you all! Unfortunately it’s only for Canada only (but hey, US residents get way more amazing deals than we do here!)

From now until August 9th, print this invitation and bring it to any free-standing Kiehl’s stores in Canada to receive a $10 gift card and a free skin consultation! I am not sure if the gift card can be used another time, or has to be used the same day… I will be heading to a Kiehl’s in a couple days so I will ask them that! Too bad I’m on project pan though! What great timing!

 

Sephora Haul with NARS Foreplay

Disclaimer: I did this haul online way BEFORE I started my Project Pan, but I just got it when I flew home yesterday! Anyways, words cannot describe how excited I was about getting the NARS Foreplay Cheek Palette in my hands!

Project Pan – The Beginning

As you all know, I have had quite a number of huge hauls (what I posted is a only the tip of the iceberg) these past few weeks I’m in Korea and Hong Kong. Both in terms of skincare and make up. So I have decided to start my Project Pan now that I’m heading back to Canada tomorrow!

For those of you who are not familiar with Project Pan, it’s basically a project where you go on a beauty product shopping ban until you have used up or hit pan on X number of products. I think it’s a great way to save money and downsize my collection at the same time. I first heard about Project Pan from Amarixe (click here for her blogpost). “Project Pan” was first coined by lollipop26, who was a youtube guru, but she stopped making videos a while ago (but she is still blogging here).

I am the kind of person that cannot pass on a great deal, and over time I have accumulated a bunch of products even before my trip. After my trip, I have an absolutely ridiculous amount of products, and I feel terrible about buying all these things and not using them up. So here I am, starting my own Project Pan!

I originally wanted to do a Project 20 Pan, but I want to use up as many products as I can endure doing this (for at least 20 products), so I am just leaving it as project pan. The general rule is to finish x number of products before buying any new ones, but I have a few of my own additional “rule” to make this fit myself better.

1. I will be including hair care, skin care and beauty products. If I only do beauty products, I will NEVER (and I mean it) finish it.
2. I will include travel size items, but not samples or deluxe samples (Makes sense right? Plus I am thinking of doing one for samples later anyways.)
3. There are some types of products that I only have one of (eg setting powder), so if I finish that, I will allow myself to buy a replacement.
4. If a product (eg. gel liner, mascara) dries up, I will not count that product as being “used up”.
5. I will not even allow myself to buy limited edition products, no matter how tempting it is! (I will regret this soon enough I’m sure)

Hopefully I will finish it before the end of the year, because I know I will want to get some beauty products for my holiday shopping! I will be doing updates as I use up products, and maybe with mini reviews too! Have any of you tried Project Pan? I would love to hear/read about your experience!

Last MAC Haul in Hong Kong + 1st Brow Shaping Experience

Okay. So I have 2 more days in Hong Kong, and I am NOT planning on doing more hauls. (We will see how that goes). Here’s my one last MAC haul in Hong Kong, and probably my last haul for a long time, since I will be embarking my Project x Pan journey when I get back to Canada. I also wanted to talk about my first time getting my eyebrows fixed, and my very first “make up class”, all at MAC!

Skincare, Make up, Nail Polish Haul

Okay. One last haul (for a couple days)! I left the housing thinking I won’t buy anything… and yet here we are. Such bad self discipline. tsktsk. I blame my friend for showing me this amazing “up stairs store”… and it all started there.

Collective Drugstore Haul

I think I have frequented Mannings so much that I should become a VIP there. I went there twice in the past couple days and picked up a few things (again).

Korea Trip Part 2: Missha Haul

The store where I purchased the most expensive skin care product during my trip in Korea was Missha. So I didn’t end up buying many things from there, since I already got a big ticket item. I am extremely excited about trying what I got at Missha though!