Current Favourites/Obsessions- Skincare, Nails, Haircare, Make Up

Feeling kinda restless so I decided to just sit here and talk about some products I've been loving recently! :)

Skincare

Please keep in mind that whatever works for me may not work for everyone and likewise, whatever may work for majority might not work for me :)

#1 St Ive's Facial Scrub-  Blemish Prone Skin 

My wall is not dirty okay that's just the design of the tile hahaha

I've always been a fan of the St Ive's apricot scrubs. They are a little harsher than some other physical scrubs but I feel like they're still gentle enough to be used everyday. This is the first time I've tried the one for blemish prone skin and omg I seriously love this scrub. I don't think I'll go back to using the other scrubs anymore. This product contains salicylic acid, which is good for acne, and I think that's why I love it so much. Flo told me that she read somewhere that this can be used as a mask as well because of the SA. What I usually do is use it when I feel like I've got a lot of dead skin or when my skin is super dry (this doesn't dry out your skin AT ALL) I will use it then leave it on my face and wash my body or whatever then come back and rinse it off. I've seen an improvement in my skin ever since I've used this product and maybe also because I haven't been eating so much junk food la but I'm sure this product played a part too. My skin just feel so soft after using this and I will usually use this at night then use my Laneige water pack before bed or I use this in the morning when my skin is looking dull or I haven't had much sleep or was having an emotional night. This scrub really makes my skin look a lot fresher and clearer :)

LAAAAV IT!

Really recommend this product to everyone!! 

#2 Oxy10

My mum cut it cause it was running low HAHAHA

I've never really liked this product because I feel like it dries my skin but omg I've been using this for any spots because it's in my bathroom cause my mum uses it and I'm too lazy to go to my room to get my spot treatments. This really dries out a pimple and it's really damn good (Y) But it's super drying so try not to use it so often! 

What I do is put this on any spots before I sleep and use it for a few days consecutively then when the spot start to clear I stop because it can really make my skin feel tight and dry. 

#3 Boscia Make-Up Break Up Cool Cleansing Oil

This make up remover is really bomb.com. I use like one pump every time to remove my make up unless I'm using a super stay foundation like the Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous foundation. Then I might use 1.5/2 pumps depending on my mood HAHA This oil feels damn damn damn nice on the skin like seriously. It's not like the Shu Uemura dry oils, this is more like an oil-gel formula to me and it just feels damn soft and nice on the skin and I usually get carried away and end up massaging my face for like 2 minutes just cause. HAHA but I don't think it does anything bad to my skin so it's fine :p

Anyways, this feels really nice on the skin and like it has this slight cooling sensation. I don't use this for my eye make up tho because the cooling sensation is a bit too much for my sensitive eyes! 

#4 Garnier Clean Sensitive Eye & Face Make Up Remover full review here

I've talked about this before and this is truly my HG eye make up remover. This seriously removes ALL WATERPROOF MASCARA okay. Like the next morning I won't have the residue kind. This is really ddaaaammmnnnnn good and everyone should try it and it's for sensitive eyes some more. This doesn't sting my eyes at all!!! Actually it does la sometimes when I'm like damn careless and anyhow just rub my eyes and a lot of product enters my eyes HAHA but it doesn't burn or what it's just a little uncomfortable but when I wipe my eye it's okay alr. This is really damn good I can't even say anymore about it you just need to try it for yourself. 

What I do shake it really violently to mix the oil and water thing and then quickly squirt it on a cotton pad cause it separates quite fast. Then I just hold the pad on my eye for like a few seconds and just wipe the make up off. I don't even need rub unless like I said I'm just careless and anyhow removing cause I'm damn over it but if I do it normally it removes easily :) This is the only thing which can take of the super stay mascara (I'll talk about this later) and omg it's really damn good la I don't know what else to say hahahah

Nails 

#1 O.P.I Nail Envy

Recommended by Flo who uses the original formula most of the time. I use the one for thin nails (pink words) and this is really damn good and my nails hard ever chip or tear anymore!!! Amazeballs. 

#2 Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

BEST.TOP.COAT.EVER. 

No streak, no dents, no bed sheet prints.

Dries so so so fast ( realistically fast la like maybe 3 minutes max)

Gives your nails this gel like look. Will never use any other top coat and I have used bottleS already.

#3 Innisfree Pro Nail Colours

Cheap and Good. Wide brush. Lasts relatively long. Only 4SGD.

Super love

#4 Etude House Nail Polish

Just like the Innisfree ones. I prefer the brush of this a little more tho. 3.90SGD. Seriously nothing to hate :D

Hair

#1 Herbal Essence Shampoo & Conditioner

my HG. I must always have this shampoo in my bathroom cause it just works well for me and it doesn't give me any scalp problems. If I do try out other shampoos and they cause like itching or dry scalp, I always go back to this and my scalp will be okay. So cheap some more. And it smells amazing. If you like coconuts hehe been using this for years and I don't think I'll ever stop. OH OH OH BUT you must make sure it's not made in China cause the one that's made in China made my scalp super itchy. I don't know why~ the one I use is from Thailand :) 

#2 L'Oreal Extraordinary Oil

This is just a good oil. It doesn't leave your hair sticky, oily or anything and it just makes my hair so soft I lav it. I usually use it on like towel dried hair and then after I blow dry I will use a bit more. I always go crazy and pump a lot when I use it just cause and it doesn't make my hair oily or whatever :)

This post is really long so I'll just do my make up favorites in the next post!! :)

Have a good mid week!!! 

Lots of love,

Alexandria ♡

 

Products I can't live without

Posting now cause I really don't wanna study :'( These are the 5 products I can't live without and will definitely repurchase if I run out. Like I MUST MUST have them at ALL TIMES. :]

1) PIMPLE CREAM/SPOT TREATMENT

I'm currently using the spot treatments that my dermatologist gave me. I must say that I hardly have any break outs nowadays except when I'm like super stressed ( like now :( ) or when the time of the month is coming. I don't have like cystic acne or anything so it's not that like stressful finding a pimple cream. Please know that different people react differently to the different ingredients. Some spot treatments have Salicylic Acid some have Benzoyl Peroxide and other stuff so you have to see which ingredient your skin best reacts to! :) 

The spot treatments I'm using now are:

Differin

Clindagel

2) Hair Mask/ Treatment

I always always have a hair mask/treatment in my bathroom. I don't know why but I really like using hair masks and treatments cause I dye my hair like a lot.. like really a lot and I don't want my hair to get too crazy~ 

Current hair masks:

Essentials ( the pink one) It smells super sweet I love it!!

Tsubaki hair treatment ( new favourite) 

3) Scrub

I have this obsession with exfoliating and it's really crazy. I exfoliate like my face and body way too often. Note: Over exfoliating your face too often can cause break outs!

Anyways, I really really love this St Ive's scrub and I use it for both my face and body. But sometimes when my face is too dry I'll use like a tiny bit just to get the dry flakes off then spam moisturizer when I sleep. 

Favourite scrub:

St Ives Scrub ( bright skin/ whitening)

4) Bioderma

BEST.MAKEUP.REMOVER.EVER. 

I love this. I'm running out and I'm so scared to use it cause I haven't bought a new bottle… It's quite expensive though :( This is also good for days when I don't wear make up (quite often) and just wear sunblock. Sometimes sun block can leave this like film over your face and I use a bit of Bioderma on a cotton pad and just wipe it off :)

5) Sunblock

Sunblock is super super important! I didn't know this till recently and I regret not using it when I was younger. I used to walk to and from school everyday and I would be under the sun, especially in the afternoon. This is really really bad for the skin and the sun can actually cause your scars to darken which will make it harder for them to fade. So please please use sunblock okay!

Favourite sunblock:

Biore Perfect Face Sun Milk ( the white one)

Lots of love,

Alexandria ♡

ACNE

I shall share some information that I have learnt from my dermatologist. I am not saying it's 100% true and you must listen to me but I'm just sharing what my derm told me~

#1) Acne is an entity. If you have it, you have it. If you don't, you don't.

#2) If you have skin that CAN break out or have any pimples, you most likely have it. Acne does not mean a massive break out or a face full of red pimples. It is just a skin condition. It is caused by:

- The way your skin reacts to bacteria.
- The amount of oil your skin produces
- The way your skin reacts to the environment.

If you have any 2 of these you probably have acne. IT ISNT A BAD THING :)
When I say if you have 2 I mean like if your skin clogs bacteria and your skin produces a lot of oil. Or if your skin is sensitive to the environment like you break out when they place is dusty or has a pollution in the air or something and your skin produces a lot of oil. I hope you understand what I mean :/

#3) There are different types of acne. Youth and Adult. Youth Acne will probably occur during your teenage years and Adult Acne will start to 'kick in' when you reach 20 or so.

#4) You CANNOT get rid of acne completely but you can break the cycle or control it. You can do these by taking oral pills and doing various treatments etc.

#5) Acne is not uncommon and it's not a very big deal.


My derm told me that I have Adult Acne. I went to a dermatologist last year (can't remember exactly when) because I was wondering what these spots on my face were. They weren't like the normal looking pimples it was just like red spots. So my dad said 'better go check' and my mother (for once) agreed. I felt quite bad cause I knew it was gonna be extra expenses but I was scared the spots would get worse. So anyways, I went to the derm and he told me that I have adult acne. He then explained to me all the 5 facts I said above. Probably more but I can't remember already. I'm not gonna lie, when I first heard that I have acne I broke down. Dramatic right. But in my mind acne was like a face full of red pimples with pus and all. I was scared my face would become like that. Then he told me that that's not what acne is HAHA he explained to me what could be done and blah blah blah and he said because it was just starting, I could take oral pills to try and break the cycle. This meant that I wouldn't break out so much. BUT he also said that we wouldn't be able to get rid of it completely and I would still get a few pimples every now and then. Eg, time of the month, when i'm stressed and not eating well or drinking enough water etc

He also told me that sugar in food actually stays in your body for quite long. I'm not saying that sugar causes pimples but that it is one of the things that, if taken too much, will lead to it. I can't remember the exact process and all cause it's some scientific thing. HAHA but yeah so like try to cut down on sweets and chocolate etc if you're prone to getting pimples. I don't want anyone to tell me I'm wrong but it DOES NOT CAUSE ACNE, it's just one of the factors that play a role in it.

After telling me all this he went ahead and did like a mini facial. It was more of extraction and it hurt like crazy. If you go for facials you know what I mean. I was dying hahaha then he put some chemical on it to help it dry out from the inside.

So yeah, he prescribed me some pills to take for 1 month and I went back and he said my spots were slowly clearing. One of my problem areas is my chin. The pores are large there so it's always clogged. So he gave me this facial wash to use which has Silver in it. It helps with acne and all and it doesn't irritate the skin. He also gave me topical gels to put on the spots whenever they were inflamed or forming.

So I went to the derm 1 month after that and then again 2 months after the second visit. The Doctor said  my skin was doing well so I didn't need to see him that regularly and I could just go to him if I felt like my skin was clogging or I wanted to do a chemical peel.

I have only been to the derm 4 times I think. The last time I went was just to check on my skin and chemical peel. It's not like a plastic surgery or what it's just spot treatment which they call chemical peel HAHA make it sound so serious. It just a chemical that dries out the pimple from the inside and it helps to fade acne scars.

My skin is looking a lot clearer now according to my friends and maybe it's because I don't munch so much and I'm actually taking care of my skin.
I don't use toner and all that stuff cause I think it's a waste of time HAHAHA but I think I should but I don't like the feeling of so much stuff on my face. I use moisturizer and masks occasionally.

I am not saying that if you get pimples you must go to the dermatoligst. I'm just sharing my experience because I know how it feels like to always break out or have horrible skin. I just wanted to find out what was wrong and it's also because I'm very vain. HAHAHA

I hope this has helped whoever has read this :)

Lots of love,

Alexandria ♡