Eat me, I smell yummy! --The Body Shop Satsuma Body Lotion

It’s time for Friday’s Beauty products review again. Seriously, I think this is my most bimbotic column of the week, but then again, the beauty industry is a thriving one. And since I personally test all the products I put up, a little sharing with the ladies and metrosexuals who read my blog should hurt, right?

Satsuma Body Lotion 250ml @ $15.90 SGD and
Perfume Oil 15ml @ $24.90 SGD
Note: 10% discount for members. Good to stock up over the Christmas season when there is a sale.
Available: All Body Shop outlets worldwide.
Website: http://www.thebodyshop.com.sg/

This is one of the lotions that I like to slather onto my skin after an evening shower.
It is lightweight, unlike the Body Butters series and it smells HEAVENLY!

When I use it, I am perked up almost instantly. The zesty fragrance of oranges refreshes tired and unhappy souls. Which is why, whenever you are feeling slightly depressed, you should go smell the oranges or any kind of citrus fruits. Better still, eat them!

In tropical Singapore, we don’t really need heavy duty moisturizers, unlike in temperate countries. So, this body lotion hydrates the skin well enough. It also contains Community Trade organic soya oil that softens the skin.

Unless I want to sleep immediately, I will switch to using my Lavender Body Lotion. If not, this yummy lotion is absolutely great to enliven my senses!
After application, I will dab the Satsuma perfume oil (from the same range—and it’s alcohol-free) to my pulses and leave my room smelling like a fruit.

Ah…the affordable little pleasures of life.

Daily Trivia:

Satsuma is commonly called mikan in Japan. Satsuma is the word used the United Kingdom (Body Shop is of UK origin), and clementine or tangerine in Canada. In the United States, satsumas are most frequently marketed as tangerines. Ah, a fruit by any other name will smell as sweet!

Beauty product of the week: Meiji Amino Collagen

Truth be told, consuming collagen on its own for beauty purposes sounds like fishy business. For one, collagen molecules are large and they do not readily reach the dermis layer of our skin. So, it’s tough to apply ‘collagen enriched’ creams topically. What about eating it?

I think that’s a better option. Eat juicy pork bellies, chomp down fish cartilage and slurp up all the shark fin’s soup your money can buy. That’s one way to obtain a good supply of collagen. But then again, it doesn’t sound feasible, unless one is on a massive weight gain plan or is filthy rich.
Well, we can opt for cheaper and more convenient alternatives.

This product is an oral supplement containing fish-derived collagen peptides which are lower in molecular weight form (1/60th the size of original collagen molecules).

1 spoonful contains:

450 mg of amino acid, arginine, that revitalizes bare skin
5000 mg of collagen peptides
60 mg of glucosamine
50 mg of Vitamin C

1 tin: 28 days supply. 1 spoonful per day.
Price: $58 SGD
Available at :Watsons, Guardian and other leading pharmacies.

How to consume:
Mix powder with any beverage or yoghurt. I would recommend that you do not take it together with caffeinated drinks as it would interfere with the absorption of Vitamin C.

My method:

Step 1: Have orange juice ready

Step 2: Scoop out 1 level spoonful of collagen

Step 3: Pour the powder into the juice

Step 4: Stir quickly and try to mix it well

You can mash the clumps against the cup and stir the mixture more thoroughly.

The collagen is virtually tasteless, so you feel like you are simply drinking orange juice.

Does it really work?

Results to date:

Well, 2 tins and counting, I would say, my skin is more well-balanced. That means, less oily, more hydrated.

Visible results include: Less acne outbreaks, no peeling corners of the mouth anymore (happens very often to me) and wrinkles?

I scrutinized. Originally, there was a small line below my right eye. And it has faded considerably. Now, don’t you roll your eyeballs. Eyes are the windows to our souls. You don’t want to have a crummy window frame, do you?

As for suppleness, I have yet to register any real results. My cheeks are no longer sunken in, but I suspect that’s a sign of putting on weight instead of being firm and supple. Hm…

Other benefits: Because it contains glucosamine, I do not have the occasional pain in my knee cap anymore. (Yea, I am an old lady).

Still, nothing in this world is a miracle product, save for surgical procedures. So, there’s a need to possess patience when trying out non-invasive beauty methods.

Verdict:

Healthy eating makes up healthy living. Since we are what we eat, sometimes there is indeed a need to include supplements to make up for certain foods that we cannot cover in our 3 daily meals.

So yea, hopefully, this product will reap me long term benefits and that’s when I can proudly say, “The secret to my beauty? I swallow.”

Low-maintenance Beauty Tips

This bottle of Vaseline 100% Pure Petroleum Jelly is indeed a multi-purpose hardworking formula that every dressing table should never lack.

It’s going for $1.95 for a 49g bottle. Definitely a value-for-money buy and it lasts!

Apart using it on minor cuts, scrapes and burns as prescribed on the bottle, there are several ways to use this really effective skincare product.

Ways to use:

1. Method: Dab a little (size of 2 rice grains) onto a stick of cotton bud and apply it over your lips before you sleep.
Results: Wake up to petal soft lips the next morning! No more dry chapped lips and you have officially prepped your puckers for your lippies and glosses!

2. Method: Apply the product (size of a five-cent coin) onto your pair of dry hands. Spread evenly and massage the product in. Leave to absorb, or even better, put on a pair of cotton gloves after application and retire to bed.
Results: Smooth soft hands that are lovely to hold.

3. Method: Apply the product (size of a ten-cent coin) to each foot. Rub it all over (foot and sole) paying special attention to the heels. Take this as an opportunity to give your feet a massage—a great form of DIY reflexology! I prefer to wear a pair of cotton socks over my feet immediately after. After around 15 minutes, the greasiness is gone and you can take the socks off.
Results: No more cracked heels. And, of cos, pretty shoes should be worn on pretty feet! Without the latter, it wouldn’t be wise to draw undue attention to them.

4. Method: Apply a little (size of half a rice grain) onto a stick of cotton bud and apply it onto your top and lower lashes.
Results: Lashes grow longer and thicker. Cheap alternative to Lipocils (recommended last Friday). And it works! Highly recommended by celebrities and those who have tried it.

Since this is a multi-purpose product, I strongly advise users to practice good hygiene habits. Try to scoop out the required amount and do not dip the same end of the used cotton bud or unclean fingers into the bottle for second helpings. This will prevent contamination and extend the shelf life of the petroleum jelly.

Wonder Lashes

The 'miracle' lash growing serum

There is much talk among people in the know about this ‘miracle’ eyelash gel. We’ve heard Christy Chung, beauty editors of countless magazines and aestheticians singing its praises and giving it free advertising via word-of-mouth.

So, it is really THAT fantastic?

I think some people who have seen me in person would keel over if they know I am trying out this product. After all, I have on several occasions invited comments like, “Wah, your eyelashes very long leh” from people who looked at me from close range.

Still, since I am not into gluing falsies (fake eyelashes) on my peepers, but aspire to attain lashes the length and volume of Indian beauty, Aishwarya Rai. Guess I will have to seek more natural alternatives of achieving that, right? No? (*lowers head guiltily*)


The beautiful Aishwarya Rai


I want these lashes--but natural ones please!

Anyway, some celebrities have recommended another lash treatment called “Mavala Eye-lite Double Lash” from Switzerland. It costs $16.50 a bottle. Metro and Sasa Cosmetics carries this product.


Mavala Eye-Lite Double Lash Serum

My personal user review: NO DIFFERENCE! Really. And it’s after 10 months of dutiful nightly application. They look the same to me. And I am rather perceptive.

So, it was with much resignation that I turn to Talika Lipocils Eyelash Treatment Gel to increase the length of my lashes. I half suspect that they have already grown to their full length and can extend no longer. =(

I had to visit the salon twice to obtain it. The first time, a guy before me bought the remaining 3 tubes and it was officially declared “OUT OF STOCK”. 3 tubes at 1 go?!! For his wife and 2 mistresses, is it? SIGH…Ok, fine.

When I returned to buy it the following week, the lady took a look at me and asked, “Wah, got effect hor! You use how many tubes already?” I can feel my heart sinking. I hemmed and hawed and circumvented answering.


Lipocils is for lengthening and the cream is for volumizing

The Product:
Name: Talika LIPOCILS Eyelash Treatment Gel
Size: 4.2 ml or 10ml
Price: SGD $40.95 for the 4.2 ml tube and $59.85 for the 10 ml (currently out of stock)
[bloody expensive]
Origin: France
Place to buy: Any Spa-Lon salon in Singapore: www.thespa-lon.com
Or ONLINE at www.talika.com

My Verdict:
Just after 2 weeks, my lashes are really longer and more tiny lashes are growing out! How can I be certain? I took my lower lashes as a gauge. They can be monitored for growth more easily. WOW! So, it’s worth its heart attack inducing price tag? Hm…What price beauty? The problem is: Now, my lengthened lashes are pricking my eyes! YIKES!

P/S I shall make Fridays the day for beauty products entries/ reviews. Cos, apart from many other things, I am fascinated with the science that goes into this billion dollar industry.