I use either face mask or face scrub every 2-3 days. Only because I love pampering my skin, and another reason is that I've got too many products that I have to use up. Today I'm sharing my favourite items for pampering my skin.
Life-Flo Warming Pore Cleansing Scrub is another great product I discovered on Vitacost. It warms up on the skin which softens the dirt in the pores and makes it easier to remove it. This charcoal mask has small jojoba beans that gently exfoliates the skin, and it works wonders! It makes my skin so soft and smooth like nobody's business. I just cannot stop touching my face after use. It also smells divine, the blend of rosemary, grapefruits, sage, lemon, juniper and so on. Definitely one of the best face scrub ever!
I rely on Queen Helene Masque Mint Julep when I have pimples or enlarged pores on my cheeks. Especially when I have an occasional painful pimple, I remove makeup and apply a thick layer of this clay based face mask, and wait for 15 minutes. It smells literally like a toothpaste, very minty and fresh, which makes me feel like it's working. Once I rinse it off, my skin feels fresher and cleaner, and it definitely shrinks a pimple. I didn't feel like it was working when I first tried on my healthy skin, but once I used it on my pimple, it showed what it was capable of.
Pangea Organics Facial Mask is
definitely one of the best face masks I have ever tried. It's a little
pricey in Japan but it's not too bad on Vitacost. It has unique and
effective ingredients such as green clay, white clay,wildcrafted
seaweed,organic green tea powder, organic matcha tea powder, wildcrafted
Irish moss, acai extract, organic goji berry extract and some other
plants extracts and essential oils. It's got gritty bits in it which
gently exfoliates the skin, while nourishing and replenishing the skin.
It leaves my skin like a baby's butt, and I know many fellow bloggers
that are in love with this mask. The only downside is that it stinks,
which is bearable for me.
I think I don't even need to say anything about Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask as everyone and their dogs know about it. It's kind of itching on my skin but I cannot stop using it as I can visibly see the result on my skin on the next morning. It moisturises my skin perfectly, getting rid of all the dry patches I had the night before. It smells like peaches to me which smells delicious enough to eat....which I don't. I'm sure it would taste disgusting. It's like a thick cream so I replace my night time moisturiser with it maybe once every 10 days or so. It is a little pricey but it lasts for ages and I will definitely repurchase it once I've run out with the current tube.
The last but not least, I like using Japanese sheet masks like Lululun. Mine is the one I got in Okinawa last year, it's got the Citrus depressa extract, the special lemon that's native to Okinawa. They have some different varieties you can choose depending on your skin type or a desired effect. The sheet is pretty thick that doesn't break easily, and contains effective ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and vitamins. Thought it's very affordable, the effect it gives to the skin is pretty impressive. Also the packaging is super cute.
What's your facvourite pamper item? Let me know!
EOS Ultra Moisturizing Shave Cream $4.89
I'm not going to lie, I had never used any shaving cream until I got this one a few weeks ago. I always used normal shower gel (terrible, I know) to shave, and it irritated my skin sometimes. I didn't pay attention to the process of shaving to begin with, and I didn't even think there was shaving cream specially made for women out there. But once I am educated that there were many kinds that smell and feel good, I was dying to try some out. I got this EOS one because it was on Vitacost, and the scent Pomegranate Raspberry sounded very appealing to me.
Look how cute the pump is!!
The cream contains shea butter, oat and aloe which are known for their soothing effects. It's creamy and thick enough to sit on the wet skin. It smells like raspberry candies that I instantly fell in love with, it's a fresh scent with a little bit of sweetness.
It makes it a lot easier to shave. It prevents my skin to get irritated with a razor. It helps it to shave deeper I guess, which extend the length of time between shaving. It leaves my skin silky smooth that I feel like I don't even need to apply body cream afterwords, which I do anyway, and most importantly (for me) it leaves the subtle sweet scent on my skin.
Do you use shaving cream? What's your favourite?
Aquaphor Lip Repair Immediate Relief $3.86
My lips tend to get chapped all year round. Of course I have to keep moisturising them every 30 minutes during winter, and even in summer I cannot live without a lip balm. Not only are they dry but also they are surprisingly sensitive. When I use a product that my lips don't like, the skin starts peeling off and they become super dry. I tried so many lip balm in my life but nothing worked better that the one from Uriage. I repurchased their lip balm literally more than 20 times, and each one costs 1,040yen. But finally I found a lip balm that works better than Uriage on my stubborn lips. And this is only $3.86.
I love the packaging as you don't have to dip your finger into a jar every time you use it. I am not sensitive about hygiene and stuff but I just don't know what to do with a finger with greasy lip balm after applying it on my lips. Either I wipe it on a towel, or if I don't have one, I just rub it in on the back of my hands...do you have a problem?
It's like Vaseline but it does not contain petroleum jelly. It doesn't contain fragrance but it has this smell of ingredients which I don't mind. It makes my lips soft and smooth even when the skin is about to peel off. It doesn't sting, it doesn't make my lips too greasy that I can apply a lipstick on top.
This is as effective as Uriage yet much cheaper. I repurchased two more tubes before I used up the first one. I carry one in my bag, and keep one on my table at home. I strongly recommend this lip balm to anyone who's suffering from dry lips.
What's your favourite lip balm?
Organic Fiji Nourishing Lotion Pineapple Coconut $12.69
I am aware that the summer is almost over. Even in Tokyo it's been pretty cool lately which makes it hard to deny that the autumn is around the corner. I love spring and summer, and HATE winter so much, so it's really hard for me to face the reality.....well, that sounds really dramatic doesn't it? Anyway, I know the summer is gone but it's OK to enjoy the summery scent all the year around, right? This body lotion smells just like Piña Colada which reminds me of a beach.
I got it in the beginning of summer to use throughout the season but unfortunately it was too greasy for the humid weather in Tokyo. It sinks in quickly but leaves the skin surface pretty "moisturised". When the humidity is like 80% outside, you don't even want to moisturise your skin. It was too sticky for me and I stopped using it during the summer.
But now the air is less hot and humid, I am able to wear this body lotion...finally! Who cares it smells summery? Who said that coconut and pineapple are just for summer? I'm loving it!
The only concern I have is that because it's organic and contains oils, it might get oxidised after a few months. I opened this bottle in June or July I can't remember, and now it smells a little bit oily. I hate this oily smell which reminds me of crayons so I'm kind of rushing to finish the bottle before it gets completely oxidised!
They have sugar scrub for your body in the same scent which I'm having my eyes on. It must smell divine, and it won't leave the skin greasy even in summer.
Have you heard of this brand Organic Fiji before?
Alba Botanica Hawaiian Facial Mask $8.69
Recently I hear a lot of YouTubers / Beauty Bloggers talking about chemical exfoliation. It sounds pretty scary but it can be less harsh than a physical exfoliation because it doesn't physically scratches the skin surface. What it does is to dissolve dead skin cells sitting on the skin surface with the result of brightens up your skin tone.
This particular facial mask is from a brand called Alba Botanica, and it doesn't contain any harsh ingredients to irritate your skin. This mask has "Papaya and pineapple enzymes gently loosen and dissolve dull skin cells and impurities to reveal fresh, vibrant skin", how yummy does it sound? :)
It looks yummy like jelly, doesn't it? It sits on the skin without sliding off if you know what I mean....and the scent of tropical fruits is pretty soothing and relaxing. It does have a tingly feeling which I don't like, but it doesn't irritate your skin so don't worry. I heard some people like the feeling but I personally do not like it at all because it makes me feel like it's burning my skin!
I usually wait for 5-10 minutes before rinsing it off. It makes my skin soft and smooth like any other face masks do, but the most amazing thing is the skin on the next morning. When I looked into the mirror I noticed that my skin looked not only softer and smoother, but brighter and in a much better condition. I was like "Wow my skin looks nice today, what did I do...?" and then remembered that I used this face mask the night before.
Even though it's such an effective and addictive face mask, I only use it once in 10 days - 2 weeks just because I don't want to overdo it to mess up my turn-over cycle. When you exfoliate your skin too much, the skin underneath does not have enough time to structure and it causes many troubles.
But it does make a huge difference on my skin and I just cannot wait to use it next time! My mum uses it with me and she likes it too. If you are looking for an effective yet mild chemical exfoliation, you should definitely try this one out. Or if you have a favourite, please let me know!! :)
It's been quite a long time since I wrote my last blog post here. If you speak a second language, you may know that sometimes you speak the language fluently and sometimes your brain completely stops when you try to say a word in the language. I'd been (or let's say I HAVE been) having a difficulty in speaking English that I found it difficult to talk to my husband even. But I decided to stop running away from it and face the reality -I'm not a native English speaker and I've never learnt English properly. I make mistakes and I'm not perfect. Who cares if my English doesn't make sense?
Maybelline Baby Lips in Peach Kiss $3.79
Now, let's talk about beauty stuff. This is my new favourite tinted lipbalm that I've been using none-stop recently. I knew that many youtubers and bloggers were raving about this product but I'd never been interested in it to be honest. It was when I was browsing Vitacost.com last month that it caught my eyes suddenly. I wanted some natural lipsticks or lipgloss and just thought it was perfect.
This shade is called Peach Kiss, and I assume it's the lightest shade in the collection.
It looks much more subtle and natural that I expected, which is a good thing. It has silver shimmer in it but it doesn't look glittery. It goes on really smoothly and feels very moisturising.
It looks so pretty, doesn't it? It's a perfect peachy beige that I would wear every single day! It makes me look healthy while being subtle. I also love how moisturising it feels on my lips. It feels like butter and goes on really smoothly without being patchy.
The peachy scent is another reason why I love this product. It makes me want to lick my lips all the time -which I try not to- as it smells so good. I keep reapplying it just to enjoy the scent! I usually apply another lipbalm underneath just because my lips are sensitive and get dry easily, but you can wear it on its own if you don't have dry lips particularly.
I'm thinking of getting other shades as well, which one is your favourite?
I've been surrounded by beauty products especially since I started my Japanese blog a few years ago. I've tried more than 200 products sent from PR companies, and of course I've bought many products myself too. But there are not so many products I have repurchased. Or that I'm sure I will repurchase. Today I'm going to talk about the products I really really love.
Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micelle Solution
I had a small travel-size bottle which I took about 6 months to use up. I wrote my thoughts about the product HERE before so I'm not going to ramble about it here but there is nothing like this product. It never burns my eyes or irritates my skin. I didn't like the smell at the beginning but now I'm completely used to it and don't notice any smell even. It's such a gentle makeup remover!
Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser
You can read my detailed review about this amazing cleanser HERE. When I used up the first bottle, I was so sad and decided to buy as many bottles as I can next time I would go to the U.K.. And I did. I bought two of the 200ml tubes with two of their toner and one jar of their cream. Also my sister in law gave me the tiny tube of the cleanser and recently she's sent me 100ml bottle as well. I don't know how and when I would be able to finish them all but now I feel secure. Their cleanser is not something I use every single day but I use it at least 2-3 times a week. It makes my skin feel so soft and smooth that nothing else does. I also love the herbal scent.
Pangea Organics Facial Mask
I wrote a full review of this product HERE last year, I apologise for the blurry photos. Apparently you cannot buy it from Vitacost anymore which sucks because it was much cheaper on Vitacost. Hopefully it will be back in stock someday soon. This face mask is just amazing. It doesn't have a pleasant scent but it does its job. This mask was the first one I'd felt a huge difference on my skin immediately. If you haven't tried it before, try it. Buy it. You won't regret.
It's a 10 Miracle Leave In Conditioner plus Keratin
This is what I'm going to repurchase once I've finished the current bottle. As I mentioned HERE before, this is such a great leave-in conditioner which makes my hair soft and silky. Although my hair is now much healthier as I chopped 20cm of it last month, still my hair tends to get tangled easily. I spray this leave-in conditioner focusing on the ends before blow-drying. It doesn't weigh down my hair at all but definitely makes them much more manageable and less frizzy. Also it smells heavenly.
Caudalie Divine Oil
This oil is just Divine as it claims. It's such a beautiful product that I don't want to live without. First of all it smells so good. I cannot describe how good it smells but it's one of the best smelling products I've ever used. Secondly it's such a light oil which doesn't make my skin greasy or oily at all, even in summer. It sinks into my skin quickly while leaving this heavenly scent like perfume. Now they've come out with the body scrub and tanning-lotion, and I'm dying to try them out. Let me know how they are if you've tried them!
Alterna Bamboo Translucent Dry Shampoo $14.70
I hadn't been using dry shampoo at all as I was washing my hair every single day which is normal in Japan. And I was told that I needed to blow dry my hair every time I wash my hair otherwise my scalp would get itchy and releases unpleasant smell. Yuck. Of course it encouraged damage on my hair and I wanted to change the habit.
I asked my hairdresser whom I totally respect and have known for more than 10 years that if I should stop washing my hair every single day. He said "You don't necessarily have to wash your hair every day, you can wash it every other day. But your hair could get greasy after 2 days especially in summer time in Japan it's pretty humid and that would make your scalp gets greasier". So I decided not to wash my hair when I'm off from work and do not meet anybody.
I really wanted to try Batiste Dry Shampoo but they didn't ship to Japan unfortunately and I decided to purchase this Alterna Bamboo Dry Shampoo from Vitacost.com as dry shampoo is not sold in Japan.
Alterna recently welcomed Katie Holms as a brand spokesperson and business associate. They don't use harsh ingredients in their products and mainly use naturally-derived ingredients.
This dry shampoo doesn't contain Talc, Sulfates, Parabens, Gluten, Phthalates, Sodium Chloride, Synthetic Color, DEA, TEA, Paraffin, Mineral Oil, Petrolatum and PABA.
I love this dry shampoo because it really is translucent and doesn't leave the white residue on my hair. You might be able to find a bit of the powder in your hair if you look into it carefully, but nobody would do that so don't worry! It does freshen my scalp and hair with a very fresh scent of watermelon or cucumber.
And it's so true that people say dry shampoos give volume in your hair!! I was impressed that it gave me such beautiful volume and it made my hair so easy to manage. What's your favourite dry shampoo?
Not Your Mother's
Knotty To Nice Conditioning Detangler $5.99
I know I talked about a similar product which was "It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Conditioner with Keratin" HERE, but I actually purchased this product at the same time as I purchased the one from It's a 10. At that point my hair was super damaged because of a weird hair treatment I had at my hair salon before going to London, then my hair was exposed in cold dry air for 2 weeks there, and it was completely dried out and damaged when I came back to Japan. So I was desperate to find a perfect hair treatment as you can imagine.
I heard some American YouTubers raving about this particular product and I thought I wanted to try. It's not a pricey product but you can get 15% off on Vitacost which makes it even cheaper. This hair treatment has keratin which repairs your hair. I use it on my wet hair and blow dry as usual.
You can see the difference in this photo, can't you? On the left hand side is my hair without this product and the right is my hair with this product. It looks more shiny and smooth. The one from It's a 10 is more effective but this one does a good job especially considering the price.
But the only downside of this product is the smell. It smells like a bathroom deodorant or something, which I mean is a very artificial and cheap smell. I really don't like it and I was very disappointed when I found that out because I liked the scent of their Salt Spray! It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Conditioner smells 10 times better and works slightly more effectively so I don't think I would repurchase this product.
Have you used anything from Not Your Mother's?
Beauty Without Cruelty Eye Make-Up Remover $6.29
I have been looking for an alternative to Bioderma since I used up the tiny travel-size bottle. Bioderma is sold in Japan but it's quite expensive so I decided to try this product I found on Vitacost.com. This product is from this American brand called Beauty Without Cruelty and as the name suggests they don't use ingredients which could be harsh on your skin.
The ingredients in this makeup remover is : Botanical infusion of calendula, chamomile, and witch hazel, vegetable glycerin, glyceryl cocoate and cocamidopropyl betaine (gentle cleansers from coconut).
It doesn't contain oil or strong surfactants. I wondered if it would remove makeup completely with this formula.
I'm going to show you how it works. The formula is clear and doesn't have a scent. I wish it had a mild scent of essential oils or something because it would be much relaxing and soothing that way.
These are the products I use daily: eyeliner, lipstick and eyeshadow. I swiped the area once, and it didn't come out. So I kept doing it for like 5 times, and eyeshadow started coming off but not the other two. So I started rubbing it pretty hard, then it finally came off...
You still can see the colours left of each products on the right half. It doesn't work like Bioderma (or maybe nothing works like Bioderma) even when I rub it so hard which obviously what I want to avoid doing around my eye area.
I still use it every time I remove makeup but I try not to rub it too much and use a cotton bud to remove eyeliner left after wiping off with a cotton pad. That way it removes 80% of my eye makeup, then I move on to cleansing.
I can say that it's not an alternative to Bioderma in any way but it doesn't have any harsh ingredients and is suitable for sensitive skin. Which makeup remover do you use? Any recommendations?
It's a 10 Miracle Leave In Conditioner plus Keratin $20.99
I think it was about 6 months ago when I found out that everyone was raving about the leave-in conditioner from this brand It's a 10. Although the one which seems to be the most popular one comes with a pink lid, I ordered this one with an orange lid from Vitacost because they didn't have the pink one.
This spray works as a heat protectant as well as a deep conditioning treatment. It has keratin which smooths hair, eliminates frizz and restores shine. Apparently this leave-in conditioner makes your hair soft and bouncy.
I dried my hair without this conditioner which is shown left. (It's wavy because I have been having my hair permed for more than 10 years, not because it's damaged...) You can see how frizzy the ends are and it obviously looks really dry. On the other hand, my hair looks much smoother and more hydrated in right with this conditioner on.
It really does make my hair soft and bouncy as it claims and I'm totally in love with this product. I don't even want to dry my hair without it! Another thing I love about it is the scent. It has this floral yet fruity, sophisticated scent. It doesn't smell like a cheap drugstore product (though I love drugstore products most of the time) and it smells a bit more like a high-end product if that makes sense. I don't have enough vocabulary to describe the scent but it smells gorgeous.
It's not the cheapest leave-in conditioner in the world but definitely the most effective that I've ever tried. I'll repurchase it again when it's ran out. Have you tried anything from It's a 10?
I used to love coffee much more than tea. I drunk at least two cups of coffee a day and I only drunk iced tea with syrup in summer mainly. Also I hated herbal tea because I thought it taste disgusting but from God knows when I became a tea junkie and now I have more than 10 tea boxes sitting in my kitchen cupboard. I picked some of my favourite teas here to talk about, to share my obsession with you all!
When I am tired and stressed, I drink these relaxation type of teas. Celestial Sleepytime
is my favoruite tea to drink before bed. More than a year ago, there was time I was anxious about everything and couldn't sleep well. But every time I had a cup of Sleepytime before bed, it made it much easier to fall asleep and I even had really nice dreams. It makes me relaxed and feel secure somehow.
Yogi Organic Herbal Tea Comforting Chamomile
is also very soothing and relaxing. It's pure chamomile tea which I drink whenever I have a stomachache that is caused by stress. It doesn't have a strong taste but it's definitely soothing.
Pukka Relax Tea Organic Chamomile Fennel & Marshmallow Root
has a little bit of a unique flavour that people who don't usually drink herbal tea might dislike. It tastes pretty herbal but again it contains chamomile which is my favourite. I also love the packaging, the logo is one of the prettiest logos in the world!
BOH Lychee with Rose tea is my favourite tea for Sunday afternoon. It has this fantastic aroma of the mixture of luxurious rose and fruity lychee. The base is black tea I assume but the aroma is pretty strong so I don't usually add sugar or milk. I love how sweet it smells but doesn't have any sweetener such as stevia. And look at the packaging! It looks so pretty!
I picked up AHMAD TEA Apple Refresh in The Tea House in Covent Garden. I picked up some nice teas for my mum and her friend so I thought I should buy something for myself too without spending a lot of money. This one was only about 2 pound or something and also I love apple tea so I thought it was perfect! It has this amazing aroma of fresh apples which I am totally in love with. I recently found out I can buy their teas in Japan although they're much more expensive here, so I might purchase some other fruit tea from the brand as well as this apple tea. Do you have any recommendations?
Last but not least, Twinings Apple and Pear Green Tea is just brilliant. I had a very similar one last year at my husband's sister's house and I looked for it everywhere as I loved it so much, but I never found it. It was black tea with apple and pear flavours, and I asked her to find it for me this year but she said she couldn't. They might have discontinued and instead they made this green tea version. She kindly got this one for me instead and I ended up buying 2 boxes of this amazing tea to bring back to Japan. I love anything with pear! I thought it was really weird paring apple and pear with green tea because for us Japanese, green tea is supposed to be plain. But this green tea is totally different from the one we drink in Japan and actually it tastes really nice with fruity flavour.
What's your favourite tea girls? And what do you drink when you want to relax?
Today's post is going to be all about "How I'm preparing my skin and hair for summer". I feel like we skipped spring this year because it was kind of chilly in April and then suddenly it got pretty hot and humid. I started wearing sunglasses lately after having my eyes sunburned. I started wearing my favourite shoes I only wear in summer. I definitely feel like summer is just around the corner!
Not Your Mother's Texturizing Sea Salt Spray
This is my essential to create the beachy loose waves. I spray it on my hair when it's still wet and dry it with hairdryer like I always do. It definitely gives texture on my hair without making it crunchy. It does dry my hair a little bit so I usually try to put some leave-in conditioner or hair oil at the end. I'm thinking that I might try not to use hairdryer in the summer and instead I put my hair in a bun after spraying it and leave it dry for stronger waves. I love the scent of coconut which isn't overpowering at all. Love love love this product!
Parasola Sunscreen Spray
I picked it up in a drugstore just because it looked pretty. I was looking for a sunscreen spray because it's easy and none-greasy, but they all looked so boring except this one. It can be used on your face, body and hair -literally from head to toe- and also it smells nice. It doesn't have the sunscreen smell and instead smells floral like a perfume without being overpowering. Once you start using a sunscreen spray, you cannot go back using a sunscreen lotion. It's super easy to use, you can reach your back easily and it doesn't feel sticky on your skin even in hot weather!
Nourish Golden Glow Toning Soufflé
I received this product in winter. Although I was very impressed with the product I couldn't use it because obviously my skin wasn't showing much at all. It's got light golden particles
which evens skin tone while giving it a sun-kissed glow. It smells so good of frankincense and myrrh which I love.
Just as the name "Soufflé" indicates, it has got this light moussey texture which is very unique. It's not sticky or greasy on my skin at all but it does feel hydrating.
I hope you can see the golden shimmer in this photo. It's absolutely gorgeous, isn't it? It never makes you look like you're wearing obvious glitters all over your body. I am so looking forward to wearing it on my arms and decollete in the summer!
Weleda Deodorant Spray Small Citrus
You don't necessarily have to use it on your armpits just because it's called "deodorant spray". This refreshing citrus-scented spray can be used all over your body! It smells citrussy and herbal which is perfect for summer! It contains alcohol which feels chilly and refreshing on your skin.
Vera Wang Princess foamy body polish
Because it's super humid in summer in Tokyo, walking outside for 3 minutes would make me sweat a lot although I don't sweat too much generally. But I don't have to worry when the all parts of my body smell good, and to make it happen, using the good-smelling body wash is the easiest way! It smells AMAZING and leaves my skin smooth. It smells a bit lighter and fresher than the actual perfume which is ideal in hot weather!
Devita Solar Protective Moisturizer
This SPF30 moisturiser is perfect underneath makeup. It doesn't leave my skin greasy or sticky at all as it sinks in quickly. Another good thing is that it doesn't contain paraben and is 100% vegan, no wonder why it's so popular on Vitacost!
Etvos Mineral UV Powder SPF40
Etvos
is a Japanese beauty brand specialised in making "mineral" makeup
products. This mineral UV powder is very handy as it has a mirror on top
and you don't have to carry your brush or puff around as it's got this puff
on top of the lid inside. It's so easy to reapply sunblock on top of makeup with this product. It's kind of impossible to reapply normal sunscreen lotion on top of makeup during the day but with this product, you don't have to worry about melting your makeup with sunscreen. It's such a smart idea isn't it!
So these are my summer essential products! What are yours?
