Product Review: Living Nature Balancing Night Gel

Hey lovelies, apparently the first H&M in Singapore is opening today, at Orchard Building (1 Grange Road). I don't really shop for clothes in stores much these days, preferring to shop online in the languor of my home, but I've heard that people have queued overnight since Friday, 7.30pm! (The store opens today, 11am.)

Such dedication!

It seems queuing is something of a culture here in Singapore. (refer to: the McDonald's Hello Kitty craze)

But I digress. I'm here to review another Living Nature product! I bought this along with their popular Living Nature Rescue Gel in July, which Chiharu has already reviewed here.

It's the ubiquitous semi-cylindrical packaging again! My opinion on the Rescue Gel is much the same as Chiharu's so I won't be reviewing it again (lest I bore you). But I do want to nitpick on the packaging! Since the Rescue Gel's main active ingredient is Manuka Honey, it tends to coagulate and clogs the dispenser.

And, the packaging is exactly the same as the rest of their bottled products, except for the different words and flower motif. Inevitably I get them mixed up, since I chuck most of my skincare and cosmetics into a box.

I do have to admit I like the simplicity of the design though. I'm a sucker for elegant packaging (and the occasional kitschy cute ones).

The dispenser is the same as usual - a squeeze-type dispenser at the bottom of the bottle (is it considered a bottle at all?). Unlike the Rescue Gel, the Balancing Night Gel is a smooth, milky cream that doesn't coagulate, so no problems with clogging there.

I don't have the outer packaging anymore because it's been months since I bought this product, but fortunately Living Nature has the ingredients list on its website:

Ingredients INCI:

Aqua (water), Mel (manuka honey), Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil**, Sclerotium gum, Glucose (plant sugar), Squalane (vegetable squalane), Triticum vulgare (wheat) germ oil, Butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter**, Phormium tenax leaf juice (NZ flax gel), Parfum (natural fragrance)*, Bisabolol (from chamomile), Zingiber officinale (ginger) root extract, Olea europaea (olive) leaf extract, Glucose oxidase (from milk), Lactoperoxidase (from milk), Oenothera biennis (evening primrose) oil, Tocopherol (vitamin E), Leptospermum scoparium (manuka) oil, Limonene*, Linalool*

* From natural essential oils ** Certified organic

And quite evidently, all the ingredients are natural! They even include the common names for those ingredients with confounding scientific names. *double-likes*

It's quite pricey though. The website lists it as S$99.00 for 50ml, but I don't remember how much I paid for mine. I vaguely recall that it was cheaper because Living Nature (at East Point Mall) had a 20% discount for quite a lot of their products at that time.

But is it worth the price?

Overall, my conclusion is YES.

If you have problem skin like mine (acne-prone, oily and sensitive), then this is a good night gel that calms and rejuvenates your skin. I've tried a few night creams here and there, and most of them tend to be too heavy or too oily for me. Living Nature Balancing Night Gel is more soothing on my skin. The dry patch on my right cheek is a lot better nowadays - not as itchy or cracked. (I had some sort of allergic (?) reaction to Benzoyl Peroxide lotion a few years back.)

One bottle, despite its relatively small size, can last for quite long. I've used mine for two months at least and there's still more than half a bottle left, and I use it religiously.

I still think it is rather expensive though, especially if you're a student or not currently employed. So if you have no particular reason to purchase this, perhaps a similar product would serve you better.

Application is simple. Simply massage it into your face with the pads of your fingers slowly. It gets absorbed quite quickly and doesn't leave your face oily/ shiny at all. Fragrance-wise, it smells of milk and flowers and honey. Much more pleasant than the Rescue Gel, definitely.

Living Nature doesn't test their products on animals, and is certified 100% natural (look out for the logos to ensure if a product is certified). A lot of products may claim that they are natural, but may only be perhaps 70% natural, or not certified at all, so Living Nature has an edge over them.

The texture is kind of milky-creamy, and it makes me hungry for no particular reason.

And of course, to end this off, a pointless shot of my fingernails. It's a somewhat messy attempt on a french manicure, following the tutorial of thebeautydepartment.com. Enjoy~!

Ratings

Scent : ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (Pleasant. A floral-milky scent with a hint of honey. Floral ain't really my thing though, but it's non-offensive.)

Texture : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Creamy, milky, absorbs fast. A bit runny though.)

Effectiveness : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Definitely effective! But results tend to bottom out after a while, though at least it is maintained~)

Overall : ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (Try it if you have the money! I think it's definitely worth the price, and if in doubt, they have testers as well.)

Thanks for reading~

Love,
Ringo

Product Review: AquaJuju Aquamoist Hyaluronic Acid Essence

Sorry I have't been posting much. Work has been hectic and my computer is down (using my dad's netbook now). But since I have a few free hours today, I'll be reviewing on a product that I've been using for quite a long time (second bottle down, third one to go!). 

The product I'm talking about is the Juju's Aquamoist Hyaluronic Acid Essence. I bought both bottles (at separate instances) from Watsons during their sales period, at about $30+ each. This is the best-selling item of the Juju's Aquamoist range, and for good reason.

Here's the product description on BeautyCarousel's website:

JUJU AQUAMOIST PURE HYALURONIC 100% ESSENCE uses GEN-EKI (pure essence) of Hyaluronic Acid that can provide ultimate moisture to your skin. Bio-Hyaluronic Acid captures moisture and improves elasticity of your skin greatly. 

Natural Hyaluronic Acid levels in the body decrease with time, so good hydration with Aquajaja 100% Hyaluronic Acid essence is the key to keeping your skin young and healthy. Hyaluronic acid essence seals moisture in your skin and your skin is deeply nourished for all night long. 

While asleep, the pure Hyaluronan works like a facial mask that creates a thin moisturizing layer to your skin to prevent from the dehydration and helps your skin’s healthy turnover. A little goes long way! 

Low acidity, Fragrance free, Color free, Mineral Oil free, animal ingredients free.  

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Here's my bottle (sans cap because I dropped it behind my dresser and never found it). I love the simplicity of the packaging design, though the tinted glass bottle makes it difficult to estimate how much essence is left in the bottle. 

I didn't keep the exterior blister pack that the product came in, so I don't have a photo of the ingredients in English, but a quick google search revealed that the ingredients were simply: Water, Sodium Hyaluronate, Phenoxyethanol, and Methylparaben. The good thing about products with lesser ingredients is that there's a significantly lesser chance of you having an allergic reaction to the product. I have sensitive skin, so that's good news for me.

I'm no chemist, but sometimes (when I'm not too lazy), I like to research about the various ingredients in the products I use.

Sodium Hyaluronate for instance, the key active ingredient in this essence, has a smaller molecule size than HA, making it especially penetrative when applied topically. It's also able to hold more water than other natural substances (up to 1000 times its own weight in water). Due to this particular attribute, it is often used as a wrinkle filler (in injections) as well as in formulations of skincare and cosmetics products. Sodium Hyaluronate molecules reach deep down into the dermis to combine with, maintain and attract water, as well as to promote skin/blood microcirculation and nutrient absorption and maintain normal metabolism. All in all, this results in super-hydrated skin that is smoother and softer to the touch and minimize the appearance of wrinkles as well.

Phenoxyethanol and Methylparaben act as a fixing agent and preservative to keep the product stable for longer shelf-life. Though I would prefer products that are paraben-free, just to be on the safe side, sometimes they're necessary evils. Methlyparaben in particular (as well as propylparabens) are considered Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) by the US FDA for food and cosmetic antibacterial preservation, and acute toxicity studies have shown it to be non-toxic by oral and parenteral (ie: injection) administration.

But enough of the pseudo-scientific babble and on to the actual review!

How to apply: After your cleanser and toner, apply 1-2 pumps of the Hyaluronic Acid Essence on your face and massage it in gently.

It has a rich gel-like texture that readily turns into a watery state when applied, and is absorbed into your skin very fast.

And by fast I do mean fast. After the essence gets absorbed into your skin sufficiently, you may want to lightly cover your face with both palms to better facilitate fuller absorption. After that, your face feels light and smooth, without any oily or sticky residue at all. The product description recommended this for night usage, but as the essence is super-hydrating without being too rich, I use this in the daytime as well. 

So far it's one of the best moisturizers I have tried. Suitable for all skin-types, but I highly recommend this to people with sensitive, dry skin especially. 

Texture:  (Applies quickly and effectively, non-oily, non-sticky)

Fragrance:  (There's not much of a scent at all, so this is a bonus to me.)
Hydrating Effect:  (Skin really feels softer and smoother after application.)
Overall:  (I keep restocking them, what do you think?)