Product Review: Smooth E Extra Sensitive Cleansing Gel for Sensitive and Acne-Prone Skin

I received this from Chiharu, courtesy of Confirm Trading. For those unfamiliar with the name, Confirm Trading is a Singapore-based company specializing in importing Health and Beauty products, such as Dr Jart+ and the Kinohimitsu beauty and health drinks. They also have a facebook page as well, located here, where they update on product launches, promotions, and giveaways!

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The brand in particular is well-known throughout Thailand, especially for their whitening series. Smooth E Babyface gel is a gentle cleanser for extra sensitive and acne-prone skin. It's hypoallergenic formula claims to reduce acne and fine lines, leaving the skin baby soft.

More notably, it's a formulation that is bubble-free, meaning it doesn't produce as much suds as your conventional foam cleanser. Hopefully, this means it's low in SLS, but I couldn't find a proper ingredients list on this thing.

Smooth E Babyface Gel is available exclusively in Guardian at $16.90.

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The ingredients list (a departure from your usual list of chemicals) include NIS, OMC, Hypoallergenic Formula and Natural Vitamin E. Although descriptive, I still have no particular idea what NIS and OMC are. Putting aside my initial apprehension, I decided to give it a try anyway.

The gel is a viscous colorless liquid that smelled faintly of baby powder. It doesn't foam much at all, much as I tried.

Most of the suds disappear almost immediately after they form, as above. Lathering aside, it actually cleanses quite efficiently. It left my face feeling clean and tight, but not overly dry. It doesn't irritate my face either, and my face was slower in becoming oily afterwards (though not by much). Sustained usage seemed to leave my face drier than before though, as opposed to my regular facial wash.

It's certainly more gentle than some of the cleansers I've tried (Scrubs and oil-rich facial cleansers are for me a huge no-no), but at $16.90 and with no ingredients list, I'm not so sure if it's worth the investment. If you have sensitive and acne-prone skin which has thus far not responded well to other facial washes, perhaps you could give this a try.

Ratings:
Effectiveness: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (doesn't irritate skin, but i'd say there's not much improvement on skin condition either)
Texture: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (doesn't foam much if any at all, kinda different to get used to.)
Cleansing-ness: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (cleanses effectively, but may be a little drying on drier skin.)
Scent: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (smells like baby powder. kinda weird but not off-putting)
Overall: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (overall i'm pretty ambivalent about this product. it's not a bad product per se but not an amazing one. average, i'd say.)


Disclaimer: Product was given courtesy of Confirm Trading, and does not affect the validity of the review in any way.

Product Review : Bioré Marshmallow Whip Facial Wash

I was mega excited about this! I've always loved my Bioré Make up remover so you can imagine my excitement when they brought this Bioré Marshmallow Whip Facial Wash to Singapore's Watsons! I'm a marshmallow lover so you can always spot me roasting them at a BBQ / in my oven! So yea, I quite like their concept of a marshmallow like foam just because I am in love with marshmallow.

Cute foam with wings is always appreciated. Okay honestly, the packaging is clean, simple and cute. However, it's a little too fat for my preference. I'd prefer something I can hold with one hand to pump the foam out instead of resting it on a flat surface. If it has to be placed on a flat surface before we can pump it, I would say that they should extend the neck of the product a bit so I can actually slot my hand in. I'm just anal about getting foam onto my product, if you have this product along with fat hands, you should get what I mean.

The foam is supposed to be ultra fine and enriched with collagen to give you the baby smooth skin we all desire. You can also get 150 pumps out of this bottle but I can't confirm that because ya don't expect me to count do ya xD

A small description!

Let's not forget the how-to-use and the ingredients list!

This is the foam that everyone sees on the advert...

This is the closest I could get. And this is THREE pumps already :/ Let's face it, you're not going to get that perfect fluff of foam unless someone pumps it for you / you use 10 pumps / photoshop it or something.

This is the normal foam you'd get from a regular facial wash. Not that it doesn't foam well, it's just not as soft and air whipped as the Bioré one!

Once again, the advert's take of the foam upside down.

Here's my little lump! But anyway, I've gotten my point over. Remember my post on a certain BB mousse super long ago? Good foam / mousse isn't supposed to just plop off when you turn your hand upside down! What does this mean? SCORE!

See how beautiful she is and how that lovely dense foam is cushioning her skin!

Of course, I can't take a picture if both my hands are occupied with using the foam. So I came up with another idea to show you how bouncy the foam is!

Can you tell? If your foam isn't dense and cushiony like this one is, your fingers will probably just sink in. Look at this :D It has the boing boing kinda feel, like a really soft sponge and you can feel it ever so slightly resisting the pressure from your fingers~

It's not flattened even after my fingers exert pressure on it. SCORE 2!

So. The big question, is this Bioré Marshmallow Whip Facial Wash a yay or a nay?

In thorough cleansing, it's definitely awesome. The creamy foam you see is made out of TONS of bubbles that are even SMALLER than your pores! Because it is that tiny, it can get in all the tiny areas and flush out those dirts. The plus factor is that this foam is collagen enriched so it'll moisturize your skin. It's true for me, my skin doesn't feel tight or dry after using this but I still proceed with my regular skincare after this. Texture wise, this is definitely awesome. As mentioned above, the foam is bouncy and smooth, really feels so luxurious when you slather it all over your face. I like to use two pumps, I know it sounds like it's a lot but since you're already pampering your skin, why not be generous with it? I dot the foam on my cheeks, forehead, chin and nose before spreading it out evenly. Sometimes I let it sit for 5 seconds simply waiting for the bubbles to fizz away!

If you've been reading Domokie, you'll know I'm very sensitive towards the scent of a product. I did not like the scent of this at all. Reminded me of something somewhat unpleasant. That is not a big issue as I can stop breathing while I'm using this and resume after I wash it off. The scent doesn't linger so it's alright. I've also talked about packaging at the beginning of the post.

This product is available from major supermarkets and medical stores, Watsons included, for just $13.90 and this has a refill pack too. So my verdict? Definitely  a YAY because it's affordable and efficient. I love products like that. I don't need a branded facial foam that costs $50 or so, if it works, it's good, it's cheap, I'll use it.

Scent : ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ (Not a fan of the scent)
Texture : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (It's really lovely to use, rich dense foam is <3!)

Cleansing effect : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Clean, moisturized, smooth and plump~)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (It's quite a lovely product minus the scent!)

P.S. Remember Ringo mentioned about H&M being in Singapore? You can now win $300 worth of H&M vouchers by playing a game on www.marshmallow.com.sg!

Love,
Chiharu ❤

Disclaimer : This product was sent to me for reviewing purpose by TSS. The review is based on my personal experience with it and is 101% honest.

Product Review : AFC Japan CoQ10 Nano Facial Foam & Lifestream Yamamoto Konjac Beauty Sponge

If you all read "Bits of Chiharu", you'll realize that I've been facing some problems recently. Nonetheless, I should be professional and not let my personal life interfere with my blog's reviews. So here's a two in one post for all my readers!

I'll be reviewing two products that Lifestream Group sent me! Grab a drink and have a seat, this post is longer than my usual ones because it's 2-in-1!

There's the Lifestream Yamamoto Konjac Beauty Sponge & AFC Japan CoQ10 Nano Facial Foam!

First let us know a little more about this facial foam!

That's what the product looks like.

That's the front and the back of the product!

Comes with a pump!

Here's the ingredients list :

"Ion-exchange water, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Cocoyl Alaninate, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Glycerin, Diglycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Cocamide DEA, Ubiquinone, Lecithin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Tocopheryl Acetate, Diisopropyl Adipate, Citric Acid, Sodium PCA, Betaine, Sorbitol, Serine, Glycine, Glutamic Acid, Alanine, Lysine, Arginine, Threonine, Proline, Laminaria Japonica Extract, Citrus Junos Fruit Extract, Etidronic Acid, Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil" - Extracted from Lifestream group's website.

How to use :

"Wet face. Pump to dispense mousse-like foam onto palm. Gently massage all over face in circular movements, avoiding areas close to the eyes. Rinse thoroughly. Can be used in the morning and night." - Extracted from Lifestream group's website.

Take a look at what AFC Japan has to say about this CoQ10 Nano Facial Foam!

The picture provides a brief summary only, their website is so detailed that you can find everything about the facial foam there! Of course you have to know that the picture's description is extremely accurate. This facial foam is extremely gentle on the skin because you don't have to keep rubbing your face too hard to produce facial foam. It's also thick and dense enough to remove those stubborn dirt and oil from your face. Yes, TWOOS told me before too that it's actually the foam that cleanses your face.

This is how Nanotechnology works. For even more information, you can head over to their website!

What I think?

This facial foam smells great. Wait, wasn't it fragrance free?! Yes it is! It only smells so good because of all the citrus fruit extracts and the orange oil~ It's very invigorating to use and the scent just lifts your spirit. The foam really is thick and creamy, and it just feels so luxurious to spread it all over your face and gently massage it in.

It doesn't dry out my face and strange enough, my face is a lot softer and smoother after using this facial foam! Of course, I'm not saying that you don't need your skincare just because this facial foam is good. It's a lot less drying than other facial foams so you won't feel tightness or discomfort. It's made in Japan and Japan doesn't joke, they always come up with high quality products!

Read on further and I'll show you what the foam looks like! This product is available HERE for $26.17 excluding GST. There's also a promo that I'll show you all later!

Here's my ratings for this product!

Scent : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (I love fruity scents and this one is just refreshing!)

Cleansing effect : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Clean but not dry, perfect for every skin type~)

Effectiveness : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (It really does what it says, no joke.)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (One star off because it can do better. I'll show you how later too!)

I sincerely think this is worth purchasing, especially for those with sensitive or dry skin. It's gentle and the ingredients are catered towards sensitive skint too because there's no colorants or fragrance that'll irritate your skin. Do consider!

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Now onto the second product, the Lifestream Yamamoto Konjac Beauty Sponge!

That's the front and the back of the sponge.

The picture's just telling you to air-dry it after every use!

Here's what it looks like, a strange little hard sponge.

A close up at the sponge, not your usual pore-y sponge!

NO INGREDIENTS LIST THIS TIME, it's made from 100% natural konjac!

Here's a little history on Konjac sponge!

The Original Japanese Konjac Sponge was first developed as a needed product for babies to care for their skin during the dry season, and it grew to a beauty product now used by millions of Japanese. This is due to the pure natural goodness of the Konjac Sponge.

Like I've said, this isn't your regular sponge. According to Lifestream group's website, "Different materials have different cleansing abilities and effects on our skin. Due to the shape and structure of some materials, they are less effective in cleansing our skin and/or too harsh to be used daily on delicate skin. Konjac Sponge with its natural unique net-like-structure offers the most natural skin benefits to give your skin the most delicate care it needs." Click HERE to read more and see pictures of different kinds of sponge compared to this one!

This sponge...

• Cleanse thoroughly, eliminates excess sebum and impurities, and prevents the formation of blackheads and acne
• Gently exfoliates skin, removes dead cells that cause dull and rough skin for cell renewal and natural glow
• Highly hydrates skin due to its natural moisture-trapping ability
• Balances skin pH level naturally
• Detoxifies skin and kills acne-causing bacteria naturally
• Promotes micro-circulation
• Enhances effectiveness of regular cleansing and beauty regime
• All natural and eco-friendly
• Beneficial for all skin types and conditions, including babies, sensitive skin, eczema

MY SAY?

Also, I believe this sponge lightly exfoliates the skin as well so I prefer to use this once a day, preferably at night! You shouldn't exfoliate more than once per 24 hours~ Once again, even sensitive or dry skin babes can use this! Now aren't you falling in love with Japanese products too?

Before using, please do this!

Soak it in warm water and wait for it to become soft and bouncy! It takes a little time for the dried sponge to completely softens so you may want to do that during your shower?

This can't really be used alone, so I used this with my regular cleanser. It foamed a lot more than usual and yes, made my face smoother too. You can use this with any cleanser you like and purchase only the sponge HERE for $10.90 exclusive of GST. It works well with your own cleanser, but I believe that our skin only deserves the best.

SO, you can listen to Lifestream Group's recommendation and mine!

Use the AFC Japan CoQ10 Nano Facial Foam &  the Lifestream Yamamoto Konjac Beauty Sponge TOGETHER!

See that thick foam? It goes along very well with the sponge and using them together equates to a 5 star rating throughout!!! You have to try it to believe it and I promise you, you'll see the difference! The blackheads on my nose are reduced with regular usage of these two products combined.

Everything : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★!!!

You can get these two products from their Happy Face Cleansing Set for only $32.16! Anything is worth for good skin, or at least that's what I believe in.

THANK YOU LIFESTREAM GROUP for giving me the opportunity to review these wonderful products!

Cheers,
Chiharu ❤

Disclaimer : These products were sent to me by Lifestream group for reviewing purposes. It does not in any way affect the honesty of my reviews. Results vary with individuals and it's best recommended to do a patch test should have have really sensitive skin!