~*Giveaway*~ SkinCareRx Personal Microderm Set

Edit: Giveaway closed, prize sent. A huge thank you to my sponsor for making this giveaway possible.

Comments are hidden to protect the e-mail addresses of individuals that entered this giveaway.

SkinCareRx has kindly sponsored this giveaway - a Personal Microderm Set valued at US$ 179 will given to one lucky follower!

(Source: skincarerx.com/)

Personal Microderm is an at-home microdermabrasion system that reveals younger looking skin by the same aluminum oxide crystals found in the equipment at your doctor's office.

Microdermabrasion is cosmetic procedure in which the dead topmost layer of the skin is partially or completely removed by light abrasion. The top layer of the epidermis, called the stratum corneum, is home to many minor skin imperfections e.g. age spots, skin discolorations, fine wrinkle lines, sun damage and blemishes.

This will be a fabulous chance for you to attain smooth, even-toned skin!

How to win:
1. Be a public follower of my blog. Blogger friends on livejournal and wordpress are exempt from this rule.
2. Do at least one of five options below to qualify for this giveaway. A valid e-mail address as well as links to Twitter and blog post MUST be provided accordingly:
a. Become a fan of SkinCareRx on Facebook [+1]
b. Retweet @skincarerx1's tweet about my giveaway [+1]
c. Leave a comment on this post about one of SkinCareRx's products [+2]
d. Sign up to receive SkinCareRx's newsletter, which can be found at the bottom of SkinCareRx's website. Remember to save SkinCareRx as a contact to ensure their e-mails aren't accidentally routed to your spam folder [+2]
e. Write a post on your blog, using the word “home microdermabrasion” as anchor text and link it to the Personal Microderm page on SkinCareRx. Minimum 100 words [+9]

This giveaway is open to everyone and a winner will be randomly selected. It will end on July 12th 11:59 pm MST (GMT+8:00).

Good luck! ^^

Disclosure: Sponsored giveaway.

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FritoLay Doritos & Cheetos

I can’t stop snacking, more than ever these days because it’s the World Cup season (if you follow me on Twitter you already know that I am devastated by a certain team's exit)! In the beginning I ate whatever snacks that were sold over here, but I got bored of them quickly. We have such a limited range -.-

In comes J-List to the rescue! This Japan based limited corporation has a whole bunch of Japanese snacks (obviously haha!) and this includes my much-loved limited edition Kit Kats. In this entry I will be focusing on FritoLay Doritos and Cheetos.

Name: FritoLay Doritos Featuring Antonio Inoki German Potato Flavour
Price: US$ 2 for 70 g
Release date: 19.4.2010

In case you’re wondering, Antonio Inoki is a professional wrestler and a mixed martial artist.

Upon opening the packet I was faced with a peppery bacon scent and it certainly woke my appetite. It tastes like its scent, bacon and potato with a dash of black pepper.

This isn't my favourite flavour amongst the four that is reviewed here. It's slightly more salty than the rest =[

Name: FritoLay Cheetos Featuring Antonio Inoki Sweet Chilli Prawn Flavour
Price: US$ 2 for 70 g
Release date: 19.4.2010

I couldn't get enough of this one's sweet and sour notes. They smell and taste remarkably like a typical Chinese dish, the sweet and sour chilli prawns.

My only whiny moment with this is that it isn’t spicy enough for my liking. Keep in mind though, FritoLay has to cater to a large consumer base and this is probably good news to all of you who can’t stand spiciness.

Name: FritoLay Thai Cuisine Cheetos Gapao
Price: US$ 2 for 70 g
Release date: 26.4.2010

Japan FritoLay takes a trip to Thailand for a new flavor – Gapao! Gapao means basil in Thai and is a staple in Thai cuisine.

I wasn’t sure whether I liked this flavour at first, basil isn’t a condiment that I eat often. But I found myself reaching for this more and more as it is strangely addictive. This version tastes strongly of chicken and spicy basil. I fully understand why basil chicken is one of the most popular Thai dishes because the spicy flavour mingles so beautifully with the taste of savoury basil.

I ended up liking this flavour so much that I googled for a basil chicken recipe =D

Name: FritoLay Thai Cuisine Cheetos Tom Yum Goong
Price: US$ 2 for 70 g
Release date: 26.4.2010

I usually devour three bowls of rice when tom yum is in the equation. Therefore, it isn’t surprising this flavour is equally scrumptious.

I definitely looove this since it tastes just like spicy tom yum goong and that the flavours were in good balance with each other. It’s perfectly authentic and even has a hint of lime, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaf and cilantro leaf.

I have no idea how FritoLay managed to reproduce the taste of tom yum goong so perfectly!

Shipping via regular airmail was astonishingly fast! It only took my package six days to reach me and this includes the weekend. The nice people at J-List mailed my package quickly and more importantly, packed my items nicely and carefully, thus no jostling about in the box, which resulted in no crumbled snacks.

Have you tried any of these flavours? What did you think of them and which one is your favourite?

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I ♥ Sonia Rykiel

Sonia Rykiel is a French fashion brand with a Japanese beauty line. The products from the beauty line are manufactured in Japan for Asian consumers.

I have been coveting them for a year now, but I have always hesitated due to the fact that the price tag was too much for my weak heart to handle haha -.- Not anymore.. I present to you my first ever Sonia Rykiel cosmetics!

Name: Sonia Rykiel ソニア リキエル Palette Yeux Colores パレット ユー コロール 02
Price: ¥ 5,250 for 6.7 g
@cosme rating: 4.5 ★
Release date: 1.11.2009

I looove her packaging, it’s so appealing ♥

Normally, I wouldn’t go for this combo - warm shades are so not me. But I couldn’t resist when I found out that it is LE!

I'll review this trio soon =] Reviewed here.

Name: Sonia Rykiel ソニア リキエル Gloss Trio グロス トリオ 02
Price: ¥ 2,940 for 9 g
@cosme rating: 4.6 ★
Release date: 15.5.2009

This lip gloss is also LE. Surprisingly, 02 is a popular shade amongst @cosme reviewers. I doubt that I can discover what shade it'll turn once mixed, because I'm not going to use it haha!

There are two other shades from this range, pink and peach:

Name: Sonia Rykiel ソニア リキエル L'Atout Eclat Sublime ラトゥー エクラ シュブリム S SPF15 PA+
Price: ¥ 4,200 for 30 ml
@cosme rating: 4.7 ★
Release date: 14.9.2007

This makeup base has an elegant and luxurious packaging.

Hygienic pump bottle~

Creamy texture~

I noticed that it gives out a subtle bright glowy sheen once blended ← specially formulated with lavender pearl

It spreads and blends like a dream, doesn’t clog my pores and is just wonderful! But then again, I love this brand so I’m a tad bit biased ;D

My love of everything Sonia Rykiel doesn't end in this entry...

See the stripey lipstick tube? ^_~

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Suqqu Blend Eyeshadow 07 爽青 Review, Swatches, EOTD

07 爽青 (Sousei) was released in 2008 as part of Suqqu’s S/S 綺羅裡 (Kirari) collection.

(Source: suqqu.com/)

The theme of this collection is about the sparkle of water over colours - all the colours were designed as if they were being viewed through a layer of clear crystalline water. (Souce: londonmakeupgirl.com/)

There are a total of three quads in this collection – 06 透緑, 07 爽青 and 08 煌茶 - and all three are permanent.

(Source: web.hankyu-dept.co.jp/)

Name: Suqqu スック Blend Eyeshadow ブレンド アイシャドウ 07 爽青 (Sousei)
Price: ¥ 7,140 for 8 g
@cosme rating: 5.1 ★
Release date: 15.2.2008

The compact comes in a velvet pouch. Theoretically, I can keep my compact fingerprint and scratch free with this, but I’m sure my velvet pouch will go missing sooner or later haha!

The deep burgundy compact is so elegant and refined~

Even the brush applicator is well made and has super soft bristles~

These shadows are finely milled and super silky. Fortunately for me, a beginner in blue eye makeup, they are all sheer except for the liner shade, which makes Sousei very wearable.

Direct natural light

Muted flash

Swatches~
Clockwise from bottom left: navy with blue shimmers, sparkly white, sky blue, super pale blue

Direct natural light

Natural light

Muted flash

My EOTD:

I have such droopy lashes.. curling with a normal curler AND heated curler has no effect at all!

Proof that I have lashes and yes, my first time wearing falsies ;]

Like anything from Suqqu?

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My Scheming Beauty: Bacillus Ferment, Arbutin, Caviar, Red Wine Polyphenols, Sake Kojic Extract, Collagen+Menthol

My Scheming Beauty (我的心橶) is one of my favourite sheet mask brands ♥♥♥ It’s not as well known as its Taiwanese cousin - My Beauty Diary :[ I prefer this brand a lot more because it’s cheaper, has many different flavours, absorbs very quickly and has a lot of leftover essence~

Packaging: They have recently revamped and now the foil sachets have cute packaging ala MBD.

However, the ones that I’ll be reviewing are in the old school style.

Texture: Soft fabric with medium thickness. The proportion of this brand is better than the MBD ones as the mouth cut suits me perfectly. As usual, I would prefer a mask with a longer forehead area and shorter jaw area. It also has eye flaps which are very ideal for me as I’m too lazy to use a separate eye mask =P

Volume: 30 ml.

Bacillus Ferment (clarifying and purifying)

It indeed purified, a couple of little bumps appeared the next day. I bet these bumps were already fostering for a quite some time, just biding their time to mar my complexion!

The one thing that I can commend about the MBD masks is the strong but divine scent. In this case, MSB masks lose ground as they tend to have a generic chemical scent. I can’t identify the scent in the Bacillus Ferment mask, but it’s tolerable.

It also has superb whitening effect and it gives me soft skin.

The full ingredient list for Bacillus Ferment:

Arbutin (whitening)

Good temporary whitening effect which is typical of all whitening sheet masks regardless of brand XD

It doesn’t have much of a scent. It did leave my skin feeling tight though :[

The full ingredient list for Arbutin:

Caviar (moisturizing)

I’m very pleased that my face felt more plump and moist after my masking session. My face also looked less oily the next day.

As with all MSB masks, it whitens very well and the most impressive part was the effect lasted for a few hours!

The full ingredient list for Caviar:

Red Wine Polyphenols (anti ageing)

My least favourite flavour besides Arbutin. Surprisingly, the leftover essence didn't absorb into my skin! It also gave me a sub-par temporary whitening effect. I wouldn't recommend this flavour at all :[

The full ingredient list for Red Wine Polyphenols:

Sake Kojic Extract (anti ageing)

My face looks bright and firm after my masking session. The whitening effect is superb plus it makes my face less oily the next day. I’m reminded why I adore this flavour everytime I use it.

The full ingredient list for Sake Kojic Extract:

Collagen+Menthol (anti ageing)

Collagen+Menthol doesn't have much of a scent. It refreshes my face so well - my face feels super hydrated and cool to the touch after my masking session. It whitens well too. Definitely my favourite MSB flavour.

The full ingredient list for Collagen+Menthol:

I’ve also tried the Hydrolyzed Silk Protein, Q10 Collagen and Deep Ocean Water flavours even though they are not reviewed in this entry. MSB has some duds but most of them are superb.

Have you tried MSB masks? Would love to know what you think about them!

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Nestlé Kit Kats: Sports Drink, Kinako Ohagi, Ginger Ale, Royal Milk Tea

Sports Drink

Name: Nestlé Kit Kat Sports Drink
Price: ¥ 126
Contents: 18 g ×2
Release date: 22.6.2009

It smells like fizzy grapefruit! Tastes like a combination of grapefruit with white chocolate, this may sound like a weird mishmash but it is delightful =D

Grapefruit!

Kinako Ohagi

Name: Nestlé Kit Kat Kinako Ohagi
Price: ¥ 126
Contents: 18 g ×2
Release date: 7.9.2009

It contains brown rice and sweet soy cream in a classic milk chocolate wafer but to me it felt just like eating peanut butter with chocolate.

Looks just like any normal Kit Kat =P

Ginger Ale

Name: Nestlé Kit Kat Ginger Ale
Price: ¥ 126
Contents: 18 g ×2
Release date: 12.10.2009

It smells strongly like lemon, I thought it’d have a robust ginger ale whiff haha~ The tartness of the lemon flavour doesn’t overwhelm the ginger ale zest though =D

White chocolate, my favourite!

Royal Milk Tea

Name: Nestlé Kit Kat Royal Milk Tea
Price: ¥ 126
Contents: 18 g ×2
Release date: 9.11.2009

This bar has a milk tea aroma. The flavour itself is sweet with a soft hint of milk and tea. Delicious!

Yay, another white chocolate bar!

I want to try more flavours haha!

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