Review: Hada Labo Gokujyun (Red) Lotion

Happy Hearts Day! ~

Today I will be reviewing the Hada Labo Gokujyun Lotion. Gokujyun is their red line (lifting + firming) which contains retinol as an active anti-aging ingredient. I have been using this 2x a day since the first week of December and I believe I have tested it enough to give a review.

*Lotion - this is the term used for a facial toner that have a gel texture instead of the usual liquid form.

That being said, having a flip cap is the best way to dispense the product because it gave me control on how much to use every time. Also, this very hygienic :)

This product also came with a free face mask from the same line. I haven't used the mask yet so I don't know how it fares.

HADA LABO is a Japanese brand of skin care that is very famous for being mild, simple and yet very effective. The active ingredient in all of their lines is the Super Hyaluronic Acid which is meant to hydrate the skin better than regular hyaluronic acid.


MY THOUGHTS:

YAY!!!

- This did not broke me out like other anti aging products that I have tried.

- No allergic reactions too.

- Very gentle on the skin. No stinging feeling when applied and I can use this around the eyes too. 

- No strong scent. Hada Labo is very famous for having no irritants on their products.

- This tones and moisturizes my skin at the same time.

- Not sticky at all which I am very happy with.

- Dries quickly so I can apply my moisturizer after a minute or so.


NAY!!!

- Not available locally. Buying from local resellers is quite expensive.

- I did not see any anti aging benefits yet even after 3 months. I guess, I should have bought the serum version too so it's more effective since toners are not meant to be treatments.


TIPS:

- Apply 2-3 drops on your hand, warm the product first and then apply it on the skin with patting motion for faster absorption.

- Can be stored inside the refrigerator for a more refreshing feel. 

- Best to be used with other moisturizer as this is not enough even for oily skin.


OVER-ALL RATING: 5/5

I love this toner! This did not irritate my skin and it helps my moisturizer get absorb better. I just hope I can buy it easily since this is quite affordable if bought in Japan.


WILL I REPURCHASE? Definitely! I will probably get the serum too so that it is more effective :)


Have you tried any Hada Labo products? Which one is your favorite? I am intrigued with the shiroyjun (whitening/blue) line and will probably get those next to test out.


Thanks for dropping by!

Review: Heliocare Oral Sunblock

I can't believe summer is coming so fast. It is getting hotter and hotter everyday and the sun is also getting stronger too. I am already experiencing skin asthma every now and then because of the hot weather and I can also feel the burning feeling on my skin whenever I stay out under the sun. So this review is triggered by summer.

We all know that it is a must to wear sunblock of at least SPF 30 PA++ when you know you'll be exposed under the sun for a long time. We need to prevent our skin from being damaged by the harmful UVA/UVB rays because it can not only lead to sunburn but also to skin cancer.

Now, if you love outdoor activities like me, you know that if you sweat a lot, the topical sunblock you applied on your skin will be gone and you must reapply again. And it is so hard to reapply so frequently right? SO here's my solution to that problem. I wanted a guarantee that even though I failed to reapply my topical sunblock, I still have protection against the sun. I'm talking about Heliocare oral sunblock.

Heliocare is a brand from Spain that has a wide variety of different sun protective skincare product. They have topical sunscreen lotions, compact powders and oral capsules.

What it is according to the box:

"Heliocare oral capsules support a diet rich in antioxidants. They contain natural antioxidants which fight excess free radicals formed as a resultof internal metabolic processes and environmental aggression. Excessive sun exposure is a direct cause of photo and premature skin aging."

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT IT

- I love the idea that I have extra protection on top of my topical sunblock whenever I need to spend a lot of time outdoors.

- The size of the capsule is perfect so it is easy to swallow.

- I rarely get sunburned even though I engage in swimming, hiking or any kind of activities involving too much sun exposure.

- On top of the sun protective properties, it also has antioxidants to fight off free radicals in the body.

- No allergic reactions experienced by my whole family.

THE CONS OF THE PRODUCT

- Quite expensive. I think I paid around Php3,000 for a bottle (60 capsules).

- Can only be found in a dermatologist clinic.

- You need to take one capsule every 3-4 hours between 8am to 3pm because one capsule is only effective for 3 hours.

OVER-ALL RATING: 4.5/5. I can't use this everyday because I'm afraid of what it will do to my liver so I just use it occassionally. But this stuff works great!

WILL I REPURCHASE? Definitely! It is summer again and my family needs this product again because of the number of outdoor activities we'll be having :)

TIPS:

- Take one capsule 30 minutes before going out.

- I would suggest to still use topical sunscreens in conjunction with this product to maximize the protection.

- Keep in a cool dry place to prevent melting.

I love this product and I recommend this to anyone who enjoys outdoor activities or has a job wherein you need to be exposed to prolonged sun exposure.

DO ask your dermatologist about it. Thank you for dropping by! ^_^

Review: MBM Stemcell Eye Cream

Hello everyone! First of all, I would like to thank y'all for participating in my little survey. I hope all of you will enjoy in getting to know me (a lot) better through my different hobbies that I will be posting here in my blog. Did you guys noticed my new header? I think it fits me perfectly...I love to read books, I have pets and I love kikay stuff too ^_^

Remember my post about doing a Skin Diary about MBM Stemcell Eye Cream (click here)? Well, I was unable to monitor it because my digicam broke so that's sad....this experiment is doomed :(

Anyway, since I've used the product for at least 2 months, I still think that I can give my honest review about this eye cream if it works or not.

MBM Skin Bar says:

It's unique stem cell components are in the form of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and fibroblast growth factor (FGF). They are both integral to tissue formation. Another componetn is polyglutamic acid (PGA). It is 50 times more hydrating and 100 times more effective in collagen tissue formation than hyaluronic acid. The most active ingredient in gently lightening the dark rings around the eyes is the uniquely formulated vitamin C and Chamomile extract.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT:

- It's available locally and very affordable (8g for Php150 only!)

- Moisturizes my eye area effectively

- Consistency is very light so it gets absorbed by the skin very easily. I don't need to wait for a long time before I apply my concealer.

- It spreads easily. No dragging of the skin.

- Perfect under eye makeup. It doesn't make my eyes oilier.

- No adverse reactions. I didn't even get millia under my eyes like with other eye creams I tried.

- Smells good. No strong chemical scent.

- I love the fact that the ingredients are from Korea (they are known for their great technologies) and Philippines.

- Perfect for all ages. This is very mild and can be used by anyone IMO.

WHAT I DON'T LIKE

- It did nothing on my wrinkles and dark undereye circles. I thought stemcell technologies are used for anti-aging purposes so I expected that I will at least get lightened lines on my eye area but it did nothing. Maybe because it's too mild or I just had a very high expectation for it? :(

OVER-ALL RATING: 4/5 - I still love this product because it did not gave me allergic reactions and it keeps my eye area very moisturized. I just hope that it has better anti-aging properties so I can use this to prevent more wrinkles to appear.

WILL I REPURCHASE? Yes. This is a good day eye cream. But I will still look for a night eye cream that has great anti-aging properties.

What about you guys? What's your favorite eye cream? I really wanted to know so I can check them out too :)

Review: Green Barley...All-in-one solution!

Hello guys! As promised, here's another review.

I have not seen any blog post or review about this product as a beauty item so I decided to make one. I'm talking about Green Barley. This is an organic food drink that came directly from Utah and repackaged here in the Philippines so they can add flavorings (This tastes like fruit juice) to make the taste more palatable to consumers. This is advertised as a health drink because barley has a very high antioxidant content. I will try to enumerate some of the health benefits of this plant for you all.

Here's what the description in the bottle says...

Here's the ingredients list and also the approval seal of different organizations.

About the green barley plant....

Green barley is recognized by science as being the most nutritious of all plant foods, containing a broad spectrum of essential vitamins, minerals and amino acids in high concentrations. It also contain enzymes especially the superoxide dismutase, a very powerful antioxidant.

It's calcium content is 11 times higher than cow's milk, iron is 5 times higher than in spinach, 7 times higher in vitamin C compared to oranges and has 2x the amount of beta carotene than carrots.

According to history, the Roman gladiators eat barley as a source of energy and strength. It was also stated in the Bible 37 times for medicinal and food purposes.

Green Barley is not considered as a food supplement like liver-aid or something because this is under “real food” category that is why it was BFAD approved. 

And since this is a real food this won't harm your liver and kidneys, unlike other supplements around the market which need to pass these organs for elimination purposes.

Drinking Green Barley can help in a lot of illnesses like cancer, high blood pressure, goiters, burns, low immune system, etc to name a few. You can search Google to find out more about the benefits and contents of green barley.

Now, after reading all that facts, you might be wondering why I said that this is also a beauty product. Right? Well, I thought, since this has antitoxin properties, why won't I try applying it on my skin to heal my acne? And there are some people who have tried using it as a toner and it worked for their acne too. So I did an experiment when I had broken out from a product I was testing. I got 3 huge zits at that time and what I did was I applied barley juice twice a day. 

I drink 30-50ml of barley juice first thing in the morning before eating anything (Green Barley is my family's source of vitamins), so I use the left over drops from my barley juice to apply on my skin. I let it dry before I wash my face and put my regular skincare regimen like moisturizer and sunblock. At night, I remove my makeup and wash my face then apply barley juice again on my clean skin and let it dry before sleeping.

After using this for 3 days, I noticed that my inflamed acne started subsiding already, yay! It's not as painful too so I continued using it. I don't apply other anti acne medicine on the acne because I want to test the power of Green Barley fully. And I'm so happy that it worked great on my skin. Now, whenever I feel like I'm gonna break out, I do this regimen and it instantly halts the eruption of acne on my skin ^_^

WHY I LOVE GREEN BARLEY...

– a good source of vitamins and antioxidants for the whole family. Even babies and pregnant women can drink this, it's just the dosage that will vary. Oh, this can be used on animals too!

– It taste good. If you love the flavor of tropical fruits, then you'll love Green Barley juice.

– It really helps in healing the body. My mom's myoma decreased in size after drinking one bottle a day for 2 months. She will have another ultrasound to check if it's gone now. My granpa who have colon cancer drank this for a month and his rectal bleeding stopped too. We easily recovers from flu too, so we don't take antibiotics anymore ^_^

– This is multipurpose because you can apply it topically on wounds too. Faster healing for mouth sores (singaw) that usually last for more than a week heals within 2 days according to my brother.

– Keeps my skin clear from painful acne. I think it works on pimples too coz whenever I apply this all over my skin, even my pimples disappear. And this is minus the burning and darkening that happens when you apply benzoyl peroxide as spot treatment.

– Helps in my digestive tract. I always have a problem with constipation since I was a baby and I can now eliminate daily (after I started taking this) which is a miracle for me ^_^

WHAT I DON'T LIKE...

– A little expensive... a bottle which can make 250ml of barley juice costs Php275. It's pricey if you will drink a bottle of this everyday but if you just plan to take this as a supplement, you just need 50ml a day and a bottle will last you almost a week. What more if you just use this as a skin care product which you only need half a teaspoon to cover your whole face? It might take you more than a month to consume this hehe

– If you don't like having sweet fruit juice on your face and sometimes feels a little sticky, then it's not for you.

So there, I hope I have given you all an organic alternative for all your health and beauty concerns. If you wanted to try this, I can help you get one. Just send me an email at galebart_15@yahoo.com and I'll be very much willing to sell you a bottle. My family always buy it by box coz it's cheaper that way since all of us at home drink this and we usually consume 1 bottle a day (there are 5 people in my family and each of us drink 50ml) so we always have stock at home.

Until next time! Hopefully I can make another post tomorrow. It's the last quarter of the year and our schedule at the office is quite hectic hehe. Bye!

NOTE: Please don't forget to participate in my survey...I will really appreciate your inputs. ^_^

--Gale--

Review: Mandom Cleansing Express Age Care + Update

Hi everyone! We've been having bad weather here in the country lately and while many are getting sick because it changes so frequently, it will get hot then later will rain very hard, I'm experiencing the effect of these sudden changes on my skin. I'm experiencing dry skin! Yeah, my oil mine face turned into a peeling, dry skin which rarely happens to me. It was pointed out to me by my dermatologist when I visited her late last week for a checkup. She then gave me a thick moisturizer to be used instead of my usual Celeteque moisturizer. I also try to help my skin by not using oil controlling products such as my silica finishing powders and primers and my cleansers and makeup removers. This lead me to use my Mandom Cleansing Express in Age Care. I believe that anti-aging products have moisturizing properties because they are meant for mature skin that usually have dry skin. I've been using this product for a couple of days now and this is my review of it :)
PROS
- has anti-aging properties
- not drying to the skin
- removes dirt and makeup well
- comes in a big 300ml pump bottle (very hygienic)
- affordable (if you buy from Japan)

CONS
- not available locally
- the pump sometimes expel a large amount of product

Over-all Rating: 4/5. I'll give this a 5 if only it is available locally and the pump can be controlled better.

Will I buy this again? Definitely! I will ask my brother or my friend to get me this again hehe I love this way way better than the Sebum one (because it was too drying for me now).


oOo

Just an update about what I've been doing lately. I'm currently reviewing for my IELTS and I'm having a difficult time with it because my vocabulary and pronounciation is not that good (too much watching Asian dramas) huhu so wish me luck and please pray for me. I'm aiming for very high scores in this exam (around 8.5-9.0) so that I can work as an instructor there while I'm still waiting for a better opportunity for me as a nurse. Thank you! ^_^