Can you believe it is coming towards the end of June already? This year has completely flown by and I cannot believe we have hit mid 2016 already. This year has been a huge year for me so far, with leaving friends and family to move overseas, wedding planning, adjusting to a new country and a fair amount of travelling, its no, wonder that time has just flown by. I am however, forever grateful for the new adventures and new set of challenges that 2016 has provided me thus far and can’t wait to see what the second half of the year will bring!
Mid year has also been a time of travel for both myself and some of my family and friends. This month, I have been very fortunate receive some of my online shopping over the past few months. As most of you would have seen from my Instagram, I have recently been very lucky to have caught up with a friend from home and my mother both here in China and overseas. Both visitors have been kind enough to haul some of my online shopping purchases made over the past few months over to me in China and Vietnam. It was like Christmas and I now have more fun and exciting new products to play with. Here are some of my favourites which I have been loving this month!
May Lindstrom Skin – The Honey Mud
I have been dying to try some May Lindstrom goodness for some time now and after seeing repeated posts from fellow Instagrammers morethanjustskin and skintertainingbeauty and I just knew I had to get my hands on something. After much help/enabling (whichever you would like to call it) from the Instagram community, one of my first purchases from the brand was The Honey Mud. I do not regret buying this for a second and I can’t believe I didn’t get on to this sooner!
What I love about this, is that the formulation is just so unique – I can quite happily use this as a second cleanser as it contains so many skin loving ingredients such as honey and clay but also I can leave this on to use as a wonderfully purifying and moisturising mask. Did I mention that this smells lovely as well? It smells a little bit like a sticky date pudding with the addition of chocolate ice cream to me. The Honey Mud is a beautifully luxe addition to any skincare junkie’s regime and is best used on those days/evenings when you have some time to actually enjoy the whole skincare experience.
You can purchase this from May Lindstrom directly (USD $80.00), cultbeauty.com (GBP £64.00) and iamnaturalstore.com.au (AUD $102.00)
OSKIA Skincare Restoration Oil
After purchasing the OSKIA Renaissance Cleansing Gel a few months back and being so happy with the cleanser, I wanted to explore what the brand had to offer some more. I received a recommendation from another fellow Instagrammer to look into the Restoration Oil and I am so happy that I took the plunge and bought it. This is stuff is amazing! My skin was a little worse for wear last week when I flew back to Shanghai from Vietnam (think dehydrated from recycled plane air, constant temperature changes, no sleep and a 3 hour flight delay) so I decided to pop this open and give it a go. After about 2 evenings from using this, my skin has come back to a more acceptable state.
It truly is a beautiful oil, with a lovely feel on the skin as it feels hydrating and nourishing (as I expect an oil would) but it also sinks in nicely into the skin. It is like Luna Oil, whereby the product doesn’t leave a greasy or heavy residue on the skin. Due to it being summer and being hot and humid, I will be using this in the evenings for the time being, but come winter time, I will definitely be using this more in the day time as well!
This can be purchased from www.oskiaskincare.com or cultbeauty.com for GBP £62.00
Indeed Labs Hydraluron
Okay, so this isn’t a ‘new’ product for me, but I am just so happy to be reunited with this product again. After giving Hylamide’s Low Molecular HA a good chance, it just didn’t love my skin the way Hydraluron does. Whilst the ingredients and technology behind Hydraluron is somewhat a bit more simpler than that of Low Molecular HA, I found that Hydraluron suits my skin so much more. It really does hydrate and keep my skin soft and bouncy. I don’t get too many dry patches any more since being reunited with this and I don’t think I will stray from it ever again. If I do, I’ll make sure I do have it on back up.
I purchase Indeed Labs Hydraluron from Priceline Pharmacy for AUD $34.99 (wait for a sale to stock up) but you can also get this from Indeed Labs directly for USD $24.95 or at boots.com for £24.99
Grown Alchemist Detox Antioxidant 3+ Serum
I spoke about wanting to try this product in my Anti-Pollution Skincare post last month and when Grown Alchemist posted a 20% off sale two weeks later, I purchased this straight away! I have been using everyday for almost a month now and whilst there was no instant change to how my skin looked, I can say that I am starting to notice that my skin does looks healthier and more radiant. Whilst, many might not even notice a change in their skin, what this serum offers that many other serums on the market do not or cannot offer is protection from the three different forms of pollution or free radical activity. I purchased this serum not as a treatment for a particular cause but as a general preventative from pollution in a somewhat smoggy and polluted China.
What I love about this serum is actually its consistency. It’s like a light weight liquidy gel that sinks into the skin seamlessly and effortlessly without the use of alcohols and nasty chemicals. It blends with what Grown Alchemist does well – science and nature together for something that generally works wonders for the skin.
This serum can be found on the Grown Alchemist website for AUD $59.95 or from cultbeauty.com for GBP £39.00
Watson’s Skin Advanced Platinum and Diamond Cleansing Cream
This was something I purchased locally at my local Watson’s store (an Asian drugstore, much like Priceline Pharmacy in Australia that sells a plethora of skincare and cosmetics). The Skin Advanced Line is Watson’s premium skincare line and the cleansing cream was on sale for RMB ¥119.00 (about AUD $25). What attracted to me to this line of skincare was the fact that it is quite affordable (even at full price) and the range boasts to be free from alcohol, mineral oil, chemical preservatives, UV absorbers, artificial pigments and fragrance.
To be honest, I didn’t really expect much from the cleansing cream but I was pleasantly blown away as the cream works very well as a first cleanser as well as a second cleanser. It has a lightweight feel to it, so it is a nice alternative to my usual balm or oil, extremely cooling on the skin (perfect after a hot day) and it really does clean the skin well without stripping the skin of its natural oils. I find that when I use this as a second cleanser, my skin feels hydrated, soft, bouncy and extremely refreshed. I have been really enjoying using this so far and the product really has taken me by surprise.
I purchased this directly from Watsons in China for RMB ¥119.00 but I believe this range can also be found in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysia.
I will write a detailed review of some of the products in this post soon but in the meantime, what have you tried recently that you have been loving? Have you tried any of the above products? What did you think of them? Let me know in the comments section below!
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