Fancl Moisture Rouge Stick Skinny Beige (Lipstick) 2012 review/ swatch

Here's one of the limited edition Fancl Moisture Rouge Sticks released in late 2011/ early 2012. 

Fancl lipsticks are sold separately between cases and refills (which I honestly think is incredibly silly). The case I got along with Skinny Beige was also limited edition casing I think.

The product code for the "Skinny Beige" shade refill lipstick is 3595-14.

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Fancl boxes are designed to be able to be opened completely to reveal more product information inside, including how to put the refill into the empty case. The refill lipstick is sealed in a plastic shrinkwrap packaging to minimise contamination.

Here's what you get after all the excessive packaging lol 

The limited edition case is a pale champagne gold, it's a light metal casing which is probably quite prone to scratches. In the middle there's a small pink jewel studded rim.

You keep the plastic cap on the lipstick on, then push the refill into the case.

The limited edition design is some sort of moon motif. The lipstick is quite standard sized like most Japanese lipsticks.

Close up- I thought "oh meh ! I bought  a blah looking shade", almost a bit boring mid-tone nude browny pink

Swatches reflect a creamy lipstick , it doesn't exactly glide on wonderfully and go on buttery smooth etc like I'd typically expect a good quality lipstick to do, so I didn't have high hopes. (but it's not thick and dry either)

But behold, I was really pleasantly surprised- it turns into a moist, creamy soft lipstick on application. It is reasonably pigmented so two swipes give wonderful coverage without having that oh-so-creamy-and-unnatural looking pigmentation going on, I didn't need to use a lipbrush either. It turns into a really pretty and super natural my-lips-but-better shade. It's not quite mid-tone, but not pale either, sort of inbetween. It's a gorgeous pinky nude, at some lights it will have a slightly more nude brown tone showing through but which is not undesirable, but simply makes the shade rather understated. Very office friendly shade. 

The finish is also slightly glossy- it blurs any lip lines quite well. 

This swatch below shows more brown hue under different lights.

Overall it was a really lovely purchase, they retail about 20USD in HK. Grab this limited edition shade while it's still in store =)

Dr Hauschka Rhythmic Night Conditioner review

I'm reviewing the original version of Dr Hauschka rhythmic night conditioner (there's also a sensitive version now).

These are sold as boxes of 10 ampules for around 50AUD in Australia  (and probably way cheaper overseas). I think they also come in 30 ampules sizes and cost per ampule would be cheaper obviously. It is recommended to be used as 28 day cycles (i.e. 1 per night for 28 days)- seems awfully expensive doesn't it.

They are little glass ampules like this , with clear liquids inside.

Before I break the ampules I like to tap it so the liquid in the narrow end flows to the bottom. You can see it's actually not a whole lot once the liquid all flows to the bottom.

INGREDIENTS : Water/Aqua, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil (Rose Essential Oil), Althaea Officinalis (Marsh Mallow) Leaf Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Extract, Kalanchoe Daigremontiana Extract,Anthyllis Vulneraria Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Extract, Lilium Candidum (White Lily) Bulb Extract, Rosa Damascena (Rose) Extract, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Extract, Mica, Royal Jelly, Honey/Mel (Spring Blossom Honey), Silver, Sodium Chloride
I usually put the glass ampule between a towel or at least 2 layers of tissue, then break off the top. Please ALWAYS use some sort of barrier between your skin and the ampule, I used to break it with bare hand and then finally went wrong once and ended up with glass shards everywhere and a bit of blood! Not the best design. However if you pay attention with breaking this (just hold the thick end and thin end under tissue, apply slight pressure and it should snap off easily).

Here's the size of the ampule compared to my hand

Here's the liquid tipped out- due to the nature of the ampule some liquid always gets trapped inside so I lightly tap it on my palm, however again, becareful not to injure yourself since the snapped opening is still sharp. You can see it's actually a decent amount of liquid. Not enough to wet a cotton pad and apply to your face sort of quantity when compared to normal toners, but very plenty when you apply the liquid directly to your face like a serum.

 The liquid smells like rosewater, it's very light, and absorbs into face super quickly. Face is left very very slightly moisturised, no oily residue and no stickyness.

Dr Hauschka's regime does not believe in use of a night cream and believes your skin should be allowed to breathe during the night, and this is the only thing to be applied to the face to regulate the skin after cleansing. I'm a pretty big sceptic with such claims, but I followed the instruction anyway and applied this and went to bed.

(I've used about 15 ampules on and off , never tried the full 28 day cycle but use it when I dont feel like using any night cream or other moisturisers). I usually only use on normal skin days, or summer nights where it's hot but my skin would still like some hydration. (and no it doesn't feel like just applying toner on the skin and nothing else either. so I do believe it's sort of in the category of an extremely fluid and light serum type of product).

The next morning I wake up with calmed skin, less red in general, it does not cure clogged pores or acne or any active peeling, but it is rather calming. (in fact I put this in the same category of Chantecaille Jasmine & Lily healing mask I just reviewed previously, they are both in the 'nice to have, but ok to be without' type of skincare category.)

Overall 4/5. I'd still keep a few ampules around for the days I don't like applying moisturiser or my usual brightening serum type of items and want to give my skin a minimal regime.

Chantecaille Jasmine and Lily Healing Mask review

I actually have quite a few non-sheet masks, as I find them actually easier to use than sheet masks (often I actually leave them on over-night, apart from the cleansing type of clay masks or masks with enzymes etc exfoliating type), and often more value for money since you get a whole tube or tub instead of use-once sheets.

Chantecaille jasmine & lily healing mask retails for $79USD for a 1.7oz (50ml) glass jar. It is a pretty heavy glass jar with screw top cap.

The website says the following about the mask:

-		A cooling, hydrating mask that doubles as a calming night cream
-		Ideal first aid for irritated, sunburned, wind-chapped or jet-lagged skin
-		Revives and brightens dull complexions
-		Extremely effective as a daily treatment for rosacea
-		91% botanicals including a healing base of Pure Rosewater; Vegan-friendly Instructions for use: How to use it : Apply a generous layer twice a week over clean skin. Leave on from 10 to 20 minutes. Gently sponge off with lukewarm water. May be left on overnight.

Plastic separator on top

Otherwise it looks like an ordinary moisturising cream sort of consistency, it's not super heavy or thick (e.g. Nivea cream or creme de la mer consistency), more like a whipped moisturising cream type of lightness.

Expiry is 12 months from opening

Here it is on my skin after application- not all that pleasant- it really does feel like a moisturising cream, it turns translucent and shiny and ever slightly sticky. It does dry-down a bit but never completely absorb. If by bed time it still feels sticky, I use a damp cotton pad and just press lightly on face to take away that greasy feeling (and make sure it doesn't transfer all over my pillow). I use one and half pea sized amounts all over cleansed face.

The point of this mask is probably soothing sensitive skin, reduce some redness and some moisturisation, plus some brightening effect. (All pretty vague and generic outcomes to me). I've used this for several months and tried various ways- leave on for 20min then tissue off, leave on during shower then massage in then wipe off after shower, leave on overnight. The better outcomes were from leaving it on overnight, and only seemed to do my skin some good when it's a bit sensitive and red (you can see I have some brokoen capillaries which become quite obvious when it's cold or wind chapped). The next morning my skin is less dull looking and redness definitely goes down by half.

It does "heal" slightly dehydrated skin but I have tried using this when my skin is actually irritated (e.g. congestion or skin irritation just short of eczema outbreak). It hasn't worked in either scenario. Therefore I wouldn't actually recommend this to anyone with congested skin or active eczema. Best suited for those with slightly drier skin and sensitive/red cheeks.

I sometimes skip applying this on my nose altogether as anything too thick often just worsens my blackheads.

Overall a nice soothing mask , unfortunately only works when your skin is certain conditions, (it doesn't really "brighten" like many other Japanese whitening sheet masks etc), on normal skin days I feel not much difference following using this mask. I usually only use it when my skin is visible red or I didn't have much sleep the night before. Including the hefty pricetag I would only give it a 3.5 out of 5. Maybe if it was around $40USD mark it would seem more reasonable.

p.s. it has a light plesant scent of jasmine and lily, not cloying to the extent of smelling like fragrance on your face, but just the right dose. (in fact we have lilies in our backyard and real flowers smells stronger than this). Overall scent is rather soothing and comforting for my personal liking.

Liese Hair Bubble Color Dye Dark Chocolat (Chocolate) review/ swatch

(I feel I should bump this post up with updated hair color pictures as it has certainly changed!). Scroll to bottom for updated pics.

Here's another bubble hair dye review- this time it's Liese's "Dark Chocolat". Liese is very similar to Prettia- I suspect it's just marked under a different name for HK and Taiwan.  (Both Prettia and Liese belongs to the Kao group, both are made in Japan).

(This one was purchased from HK).

Personally I wasn't a real fan of the model's hair color on the box as she clearly has streaks through it- hardly accurate representation of "Dark chocolate".

Here's the top of box which indicates what the dyed hair color should look like.

Other bits of the box (click to enlarge).

Contents- pretty much exactly the same as the Prettia line.

Application instructions- basically just add the small bottle into the big bottle, then gently shake (without foaming it up) like 5 times, then put the pink nozzle head on. Squeeze bottle to apply foam to dry hair.

Leave for 30 min. Then rinse thoroughly and shampoo. Then follow with the leave-in conditioner sachet in the box.

Here's my BEFORE hair- I took a photo next to the color chart, the finishing color depends on your hair color before the dye. 

Here are more BEFORE hair shots, my original color was the Loreal Sublime Mousse in 41 Bitter dark chocolate, dyed about 8-10 weeks ago, however it's not really accurate representation or Loreal's color since I have since touched up my roots with Salon de Pro root touch up dye in shade 3. So it's a bit more brown that what Loreal alone would be.

Here is the Liese hair bubble dye on application- it produced a nice even foam. It does stink though (just typical hair dye smell). I got an excellent foam finish today which I would probably attribute to the right temperature (mildly warm here like 25 degrees) rather than the product, as I have used Liese and Prettia before and each time the condition of the foam always varied. I find it's best to use these bubble hair dye when it's slightly warmer (but not too hot). 

 Here's my hair AFTER, this lighting/ angle is as dark as it can look.

Here it picks up more dark dark chocolate tone.

Here is as light as it can look under different lights. This is probably what the box color looks like.

Top of my head- I still got a healthy shine. It looks like a good dark chocolate brown I wanted.

Another one under different light.

In summary, under indoor lights it look very darkish brown black, (mostly due to my previous hair color and my natural hair color being dark anyway). However under the sun and other lighting it gives a nice choocolate brown. It's not an "ash" based color but there is no visible red tone or yellow tone either, it's staying a true chocolate brown at least for the first week. The overall finish was rather even, not perfectly even but I didn't mind because it looked more natural and not as flat. (I would mind if it looked "blotchy" uneven but the root coverage is quite even at least on top of the head, along the front hairline and crown of the head).

As with most Liese and Prettia bubble dye, they are not designed to mask grey hair- in fact while they might mask your grey hair initially, as it fades the grey hair coverage actually decreases so after 4 weeks you might often find "what how did my grey hair grow so quickly again", when it is just caused by a bit of new growth plus the hair dye having worn off.

I got decent grey coverage out of this at least for the first week so far. I shall report back if it disappoints otherwise.

Overall it is 4/5 for the product and finish. After the hair dye I didn't feel much deterioration in my hair condition, however as usual with post hair dye I always use hair masques (Kerastase) a lot more frequently to repair any potential damage.


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Updated after about two and half weeks after initial dye:

I forgot how fast the Liese hair color fades. Here's the color after two and half weeks- I took the pics under similar light conditions as previously but it is a lot harder to get the "dark hair" shots like before and most pictures turn out with the following shade.

It's still a dark chocolate but not as blackened. I still like the color although it is definitely more obvious when regrowths come out, I can see a clear distinction on where I part my hair on the regrowth black hair vs the dyed brown hair part. Liese and Prettia hair color does fade rather fast!

Stash visit- Guerlain Rouge G/ Serie Noire/ Kiss Kiss Lipsticks reviews

A quick stash visit again to various Guerlain lipsticks.

Guerlain Rouge Serie Noire #70 Fuschia 

It's a medium brightened pink (without being full fuschia, but it is still bright), it's creamy and glossy and applies like a dream. There's a slight shimmer in the same color base. Comes in a black tube packaging (not sure if it's limited edition to this collection only).  2011 as well.

Rouge G B64 Bee below- this was limited edition from 2011 with the Bee collection.

It's a medium plum (buildable to full coverage) with slightly golden shimmers. It's really creamy but still retains a light shine.

 You can see the golden bit on the handle is actually a bee design. 

Guerlain Rouge G #25 Garconne- a true creamy neutral/ cool toned red. It's creamy and glossy and shiny and without shimmers.

Guerlain Kiss Kiss Strass Brilliance Crystal #323 Rouge Imperial

Ruby scarlet red, deep jewel toned, buildable to quite a dark shade. This is the kiss kiss strass series which has more "sparkly" finish, richer shimmers, but not metallic.

Guerlain Kiss Kiss 520 Red Booster- it's a bit flatter than Kiss Kiss strass and while it is satiny finish, definitely not as shiny as all the other Guerlain lipsticks.  A red with slightly golden pearly sheen. I found this to be a bit drier.

Guerlain Kiss Kiss Strass #363 Rose de Larine

Again the Kiss Kiss Strass series are very sparkly and shimmery - it's a beautiful beiged medium pink base with silver shimmers. Unfortunately the silver shimmers just doesn't work on my skintone and end up looking a bit ghastly on me.

Overall thoughts are the Guerlain Rouge G series are a lot better than the normal Kiss Kiss lipsticks (other than the Kiss Kiss balms which I haven't linked any above, they are really lovely as a daily light lip tint that is rather moisturising). However I still don't feel Rouge G are worth the pricetags- they are just way too steep for a lipstick.

The kiss kiss lipisticks are usually a little bit drier, and some shades can be a bit too shimmery or sparkly and looks gritty on the lips (while they feel fine on the lips in reality, just look a bit too shimmery).