Product Review : Grace Plateau Salvia-Root Illuminating Facial Mask

Hello my Domokies! Once again it's been awhile since my last review~ I still have a peach range review coming up and I've yet to do the Nishino Kana inspired look! All in due time :D

And as all of you know, I have an obsession with masks. They make your skin look and feel good. Simply adore them, just that they're a bit of a hassle to do at night! Despite that, I still try to mask twice a week. Today, the mask I'm sharing is the...

Doesn't the summarized points sound good?

Okay seriously, if I read this mask description, I'd be really tempted to purchase it just to test how good it truly is. Plus, take a look at the ingredients list.

It's as though the mask is packed with a whole lot of awesomeness and it's just not possible for it to fail.

For me, I did not soak it in warm water because the weather wasn't very cold that night. I did not wipe off the excess liquid after using too. Instead, I massaged it into my face and let it absorb.

Here's what it looks like, pardon the messy hair, I just took a shower. This is the second time I'm using a mask with the eye flap thingy.Probably, all of you should lie down, chill and take a short nap with this mask. If you need to do some work, you can choose not to cover your eyes.

In terms of fitness, this is the FIRST mask that really covers my entire bulbous nose. Yet at the same time, it's slightly too big at the mouth area for me. Other than that, this is a pretty big mask and it's pretty safe to say that it'll completely cover everyone's face? UNLESS yours is the extra huge kind?

The essence of this mask is thicker than usual, more viscous than that of other masks I've tried. It feels almost jelly like and initially I was afraid of it being too "heavy" for my face to take in. It makes the mask slightly more slippery than others too.

L - Before / R - After

I have to say, the difference is not so obvious in the pictures because sometimes my wonky camera just does that. In reality, my complexion was really brightened. In my own mirror, I could see a smooth radiant complexion even though I was about to go to bed. My face still looked radiant when I woke up in the morning. The best part of this mask is that it really makes my face so moisturized and soft! The downside for me is the ginseng like smell, not a fan of TCM scents! But then again the main ingredient of this mask IS the TCM so you don't have a choice if you want the good stuff~

Strangely, despite the thicker essence, this absorbed well into my face. I personally wouldn't recommend wiping the essence off because... Why remove the goodies from your face?! Of course, this is up to your individual preference.

This mask is available in a pack of 10 pieces for $29 at Guardians ONLY. I'm prolly going to get it once I finish my tons of mask because, I like it. Simple as that! They have other variations too, I wish I had the sheep placenta one =/ Gonna check check check it out!

Texture : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Absorbs strangely quickly despite its jelly like texture.)

Effectiveness : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Loving it~)

Scent : ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ (Me no likey TCM > o <)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (One star off for the scent and one off for the slightly more expensive pricing. Other than that it's all good!)

Also, remember to like their Facebook Page for more updates AND promotions!

Love,
Chiharu ❤

Disclaimer : This mask was sent to me for reviewing purposes by Confirm Trading (S) Pte Ltd but it does not affect the honesty of my reviews in any way. Do note that results may vary with individuals.

Product Review: Shills Moisturing & Whitening Cold Gel Mask

It's a lovely lazy Sunday~ And I'm back with another review! It's another one of Shills product that were given to us at the Shills event with Judy Lin. I've previously reviewed their Pore Minimizer Clarifying Toner here, and now it's time for the cold gel mask!

The product size is surprisingly generous -- 150ml in a huge tub. I recommend putting it in your refrigerator for maximum comfort when applying.

And of course, not forgetting the information and ingredients list:

And that means, google time! (Skip the next section if you want~ It's my personal hobby to google everything~)

The top three ingredients should be familiar to most people. Glycerine softens your skin and is also highly hygroscopic (meaning it absorbs moisture from air), whereas Sodium Hyaluronate, when applied topically, reaches deep into your dermis to combine with and maintain moisture. Quick fact: Sodium Hyaluronate (which has a smaller molecular size than Hyaluronic acid) can hold up to 1000 times its own weight in water.

Most of the other ingredients are stabilizers, preservatives, etc (carbopol is a carbomer and it acts as a thickener; triethanolamine is a emulsifier and pH balancer; etc). But I found an interesting ingredient! Trehalose is a naturally occurring saccharides present in a wide variety of plant-life. In nature, the presence of trehalose is one of the reasons why plants and animals 'revive' even after entering cryptobiosis. (Water bears and sea monkeys, for example.) 

The last ingredient, which is really a mouthful, is actually licorice root extract (yeah, licorice as in that medicinal tasting candy nobody touches during Christmas). It's an excellent skin lightener and brightener though~

The product itself is a thick, clear gel that is cooling to the touch and feels very hydrating. I reckon it'd feel better to the touch if you put it in the fridge. Perfect for a hot day like today.

The excess gel on the tab. The gel is quite thick actually, so a little goes a long way. I put slightly too much for one hand unfortunately.

Application is easy: just slather on a thick layer and leave the mask on for fifteen to twenty minutes. Compared to the Skinfood's Cucumber Mask it's not as soothing and doesn't smell as nice (this doesn't have much of a scent at all), but it retains coolness better and is just as hydrating. Skin feels softer and more hydrated after application, though the whitening effect isn't as obvious.

Overall I think it's a good buy, especially at $28.50 for a huge tub (BeautyBistro's prices). And Singapore's weather is so hot nowadays, there can never be too many cold gel masks!

Texture : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Cooling to touch, smooth & thick consistency)
Fragrance: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Not much smell at all, which can be a good thing)
Hydration: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Not as rich as the cucumber mask, but pretty good)
Whitening: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ (Didn't really see much of an effect for this)
Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (It's a pretty good buy~)

Signing off,
Ringo

Event x Review : Bio Essence "The Biggest Loser in 7 Days!" Slimming Challenge Results x Product Reviews !

So you've all seen the first post, are you ready for the revelation of the results? I have to warn you first, this is one of the lengthiest post you'll EVER see because it includes the products, the event and what happened after the event!

Let's recap a little bit... If you all remember, on 30th April, Ringo and I attended a workshop held by Bio essence at California Fitness... If you need a little more visual, refer to the post here. Each blogger went home with a set of products from the Celebrity's Choice series that included the newest member of the Celebrity's Choice series.

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I present to you from the Celebrity's Choice series, the Inch Loss Shower Scrub and the Inch Loss Body Cream EXTRA Strength!

The two goodies given to us by Bio-essence!

Here are the instructions on how you should use it. Let's move on!

As always, we start from the beginning, in the shower! Which means we will be talking about the shower scrub first.

Here's what Bio-essence says about their scrub :

"A revolutionary product that promotes blood and oxygen circulation while showering for a smoother, firmer and slimmer looking body. It contains Bio Energy Fluid, Bio Mineral Amino Acid Essence, Capsicum, Ginger, Ginseng and Pineapple Essence to stimulate the slimming and firming process while encouraging rapid cell renewal. It also deeply cleanses & exfoliates to remove dead skin cells during shower."

The star ingredients are as seen above in the picture along with their description.

They also have a rating system for the heat level and the firming speed. For the shower scrub, its heat level is rated as 2/5 and the firming speed is at 1/5. It's not a whole lot but then again, how many scrubs out there have this effect?

Moving on, we have the body cream which is to be used after the shower.

 

Once again the star ingredients are as shown in the picture along with the descriptions. For the sake of all our poor eyes, here's what Bio-essence says about their newest member!

"This body cream is power packed with unique and natural bio-heat active ingredients such as Bio Mineral Amino Acid Essence & Bio Energy Fluid to greatly enhance the absorption and effectiveness of the active ingredients. It also helps speed up the reduction of stubborn fatty deposits under the skin to achieve amazing slimming results of ½ inch off arms, tummy, thighs and legs in just 7 days! Feel the tingling heat sensation immediately after application, helping to promote body shaping, contouring and firming of skin instantly for a slimmer silhouette. What’s more, it also works to help reduce the appearance of stretch marks, moisturize and smoothen skin while promoting digestion and relieving bowel problems. Experience the pleasant fragrance with new increased heat sensation every time you massage the cream. It is the sign of the process to a slender you."

As you've noticed, the ingredients are somewhat the same because this series targets the same thing except for their bust cream, and that is to burn the flabs and firm our skin! So then you'll wonder, really? Can this product really give me a slimmer silhouette? I'm sure all of you want a yes. And it is a yes, only if you do have a proper diet and maybe an exercise routine?

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Let me share my experience with all of you! I'm a really lazy person. I am seriously like a couch potato because I really can just sit and rot at home the whole day just by watching TV or gaming. Then a miracle happened! This product came into my life. Of course at this point of time, I am a healthier person, I don't gobble down all my food and I refrain from snacking on fatty/junk food. I still didn't exercise though.

I did however use the products diligently day and night. Before I continue with chunks of words, here's what the products look like.

The cream is on the left and the scrub on the right

This is the scrub, can you see the tiny beads? It didn't foam a lot in this picture but let me assure you that it foams well in the shower!

My say on the scrub is that, despite all the scary and spicy ingredients, it smells good. It doesn't smell like anything spicy but do be warned that if you have a sensitive nose, you might catch a whiff of the spiciness that isn't very apparent. I don't mean the smell but it's like when you get pepper in your nose, you just sneeze.

I would have to say that the scrub doesn't burn at all? I'm quite thick skin IMHO and I didn't feel any burning despite massaging the product on my body and letting it sit for awhile. I did hear that some other bloggers felt the burning though! Be careful with this product because you don't want this to get into your eyes! Also do note that this is quite liquid-ish in texture so you want to be careful with how much you pour out.

As for the cream, it's to be applied after the shower scrub because if you have dead skin all over, the product wouldn't be able to penetrate as well and it might not be as effective.Similarly, I apply this cream on the areas I want to slim and firm and massage it in. This cream smells lovely, like apples and raspberries! Absorbs really easily for a cream and leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth. Great multi-tasking product isn't it?

How to massage? After you spread the cream all over, massage in circular motions but focus on moving upwards, or more towards the heart. Why? I don't really know why towards the heart, it's just a tip from the famous Taiwan beauty show "女人我最大". As for the upwards motion, it's because we want it to "defy" gravity! You don't want saggy skin so you have to defy gravity :/ Do take note not to scratch your nose/lips or rub your eyes after applying this cream because trust me, it burns. I was one of the clumsy ones who did that!!! Also, you can put this on your booties like I did but never your boobies!

FYI, this product is rated 5/5 for both heat level and firming speed! This is one hot mama so don't apply too much at one go! Slowly build the layers like you would with a foundation xD For me it usually burns for around 1 hour before subsiding. However it's meant to have a 24hour burning effect. It could be me being thick skin though.

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If you all remembered, the product claims that you will lose 1/2 inch in 7 days. And after 7 days, you'll be amazed at how many inches I lost. I'm not going to put my stats up here because I am a fatty and I don't need anyone else to know o(╥﹏╥)o

Basically, I lost about 1/2 an inch for each of my limbs except my right thigh which only lost about 0.2 inch. My tummy however lost about 3 inches!!! Sum them up and I'll have lost about 5 inches within only 7 days! Needless to say, I won! ＼（＾ ＾）／ Personally I really feel that the reason I lost was because I'm the fattest blogger. More fats = more flabs = more inches to lose!

Summary for each product before I reveal the generous prizes given to me by Bio-essence!

The Inch Loss Shower Scrub :

Scent : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (It's not my favorite scent but I'm pretty impressed with how it doesn't smell spicy!)

Burning sensation : ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ (I honestly didn't feel anything but this is just me~)

Effectiveness : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Removes my dead skin and preps it for better absorption!)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Buy it!!! Worth it!!!)

The Inch Loss Body Cream EXTRA Strength :

Scent : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (I love fruity scents and how this scent lingers on me like perfume!)

Burning sensation : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Like I said, one hot mama!)

Effectiveness : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (The results are the best evidence you can find)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (Love it, hearts it, repurchase it for sure!)

I super hearts these products and I believe they can be found at Watsons/Guardians/(maybe) NTUC? If you only want to invest in one, GRAB THE CREAM!!!

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GOODIES GALORE NOW!!! Enough of the words, on with the pictures!

Omg look at how generous they are! A total of 10 retail sized products!!! Are you drooling yet..?

LOOK. The entire range of the bird nest series! I kept scratching my itchy heart ever since the day it proved to be more effective than my Hada Labo but I kept hesitating. So glad I get to try these!

The Bio-essence 24K Bio-Gold Eye Contour Lifting Serum with Bird's Nest Essence. My mom has been using this since forever and I received this on Mother's Day... So yea, you guessed it, it's now officially hers!

We have... MORE BB CREAMS YAY! I can never get enough of BB creams. Bio-essence BB all smell exceptionally good! Have you tried them yet? ;)

Deep Cleansing Milk with ATP

Tanaka White Ultimate Whitening & All Spots Fading Cream. This is also claimed by my mom because she has spots and I don't!

Yay for sleeping mask! These are superb for lazy bums like me~

Deep Exfoliating Gel with ATP. We all need to exfoliate no matter what skin types!

THANK YOU BIO-ESSENCE!!!

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This next part is optional. We bloggers went out and had lunch together (＾∇＾) Clara and Elfaine didn't join in though but they will next time!!!

All the below pictures koped from Yijing's FB! Hungry = never take pictures .__.

We went to...

RamenPlay!

Choose food must camwhore! xD

From L-R, Ringo/Chiharu/Tsuriki/Himeko/Yijing

Two is never too much!

From L-R, Ringo/Chiharu/Tsuriki/Himeko/Yijing

This is my spicy ramen that isn't kidding at all. Me and Tsuriki ordered this and nearly burst into flames! She didn't finish hers but me trying to act hero and burn my tummy finished the entire bowl!

I think this is Yijing's ramen. I was so hungry and obsessed with my own bowl of food that I totally did not see other's food ( > . < )

I believe this is either Ringo's ramen or Himeko's. Cannot blame me that I forgot which is which, I am a PIG.

Himeko and Tsuriki wanted to eat Cold Stone's Ice cream afterwards so the rest of us stood outside and camwhore in natural lighting! Ringo looks blur!

I am attempting to be cute but I think I totally failed.

Attempt 2, still fail because of crooked finger T___T

This is my personal favorite. I never expected myself to look decent *ahem cute* in specs because I've always hated them since young~ So in this pic I koped Ringo's specs and thus she isn't looking in the right direction!!! I think.

There are more pictures but they're with Tsuriki! Wait for her to post then I go and kop also LOL. It was a damn good outing man, we all got along so well and chat non-stop you'd be terrified if you weren't one of us! One outing is not enough, we're all going to Kbox/KTV soon! All together!

Super looking forward to it~

Love,

Chiharu ❤

Disclaimer : Products mentioned in this post are sponsored/given to me by Bio-essence. That does not in any way affect my opinion on these products. I only review products after using them for at least a week.