Review: Elizabeth Arden Hydrating Mask

It is finally Sunday tomorrow and also a fully packed day, at least till afternoon. I am meeting up with San Diann and Clara tomorrow morning for breakfast at BREW Cafe & Bakery. Lunch will be at a Thai restaurant located in Wisma Jaya with the both of them and Shew Hiang. High tea will be at Flour & Butter Cafe with Jennifer after lunch.

Anyways, I will be reviewing on Elizabeth Arden Hydrating Mask today. I have got two of this at the moment and they were both free gift samples from my Elizabeth Arden hauls some time ago. My colleagues had been raving about this product and they were telling me that I should be using it rather than let them sit in my skincare drawer stash. So, I had been using this like once in a week or more when I feel like it.

Elizabeth Arden Hydrating Mask 

This is a sample tester because I remembered that the actual product does not come with this kind of plastic cap. The actual product has a fancier product cap as I had previously used another range of their facial clay mask.

So, what is this product about? This is a leave-on clay mask which claimed to provide hydration to the skin. And how do you use it? Squeeze the required amount of paste depending on your face mass onto your palm. Gently apply the paste evenly on the face and leave them on for like 5 to 10 minutes before rinsing them off with lukewarm water.

The texture is like a clay mask but it neither hardens or stiffens like usual clay masks do. It has a unique scent but not heavily perfumed. It somehow smelled rather herbal to me. You will get an icy and cooling feeling when you have the mask on your face. I take that the mask is also tightening up my pores at the same time.

Does this product lives up to my expectations? Hmm … I would say I like the cooling effect that it leaves on my skin even after rinsing the clay mask off with water. And I also like that the mask does not harden or stiffen like usual clay masks do. But I did not see much significant result on my skin in terms of hydration.

This product did leave my skin soft and smooth to the touch after rinsing off with water. But that’s it and nothing more.

So, here’s what I think of Elizabeth Arden Hydrating Mask in a nutshell:

Pros:
1. Does not harden or stiffen like usual clay masks do.
2. Icy and cooling effect on the skin.
3. Does not cause skin breakout.
4. Soft and smooth skin to the touch.

Cons:
1. No significant result in terms of hydrating the skin.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

Price: Free (I got mine for free but it was previously retailed for B$19.90 at Hua Ho Yayasan)

Repurchase? Maybe not

Review: Pelicana Chicken, Brunei

As mentioned in my previous blog entry, Jennifer and I went to try out the newly established franchise Pelicana Chicken located at Setia Kenangan 2. To be honest, I had never heard of Pelicana Chicken until Jia sent me a Whatsapp message about the launching of this franchise in Brunei.

Did a little bit of background check to find that Pelicana Chicken was featured in My Love From The Star. So, is it worth the hype? Let’s find out, shall we?

Pelicana Chicken is located at Setia Kenangan 2, in between The Library Cafe and L’orient. The place was not as crowded as I expected it to be. There were still tables vacant. There are two dining floors – ground and first floor.

Pelicana Chicken operates like fast food chain whereby you order over the counter and pay for them. The Cashier will then give you a waiting number which you will bring with you to the dining table and the server will bring food based on the waiting number.

I liked the design of their waiting numbers thingy. The holders were designed in the shape of a tree bark but they were surprisingly lightweight.

Bori-Cha, Korean Barley Tea | B$3.00

Pelicana Chicken offers quite a variety of beverages but nothing caught my fancy. So, I decided to order the same thing like Jennifer. This is the Korean version of barley tea. It had a very nice roasted smell but very unlike the usual barley drink we always have.

Dumali Half Chicken | B$16.90 & Korean Fragrant Rice | B$1.90

To be honest, I think the menu was rather deceiving. It mentioned on the menu that you choose the portion size you want, either half or whole chicken and choose any two flavors. But when we were placing our orders, we were being informed that we could only choose one flavor as Peli Crunchy is compulsory as part of the deal.

We had Peli Crunchy and Original Yangnyeom. Peli Crunchy was like the deep fried chickens from KFC whereas Original Yangnyeom was mildly spicy and yet sweet at the same time. Both were good but Jennifer and I preferred Original Yangnyeom over Peli Crunchy.

Our Dumali Half Chicken came with fries and side dish of the day. Side dish of today was preserved radish and the portion was pathetically tiny. Fries were not that well done and they could be more crunchier.

The Korean Fragrant Rice was good but tad bit dry. The taste was similar to our local version of chicken rice but tossed with shredded seaweed and black sesame seeds.

Verdict: Both food and customer service were okay in my opinion. But waiting time was horrendously long. Drinks came shortly after ordering but main course took 40 minutes to arrive after ordering.

Is it worth the hype? Not exactly, I would say. I do not suggest going if you are starving unless it is during non-peak hours. I don’t think I will be returning any time soon as I do not like the idea of having to wait 40 minutes for my food to arrive after ordering. Perhaps when the crowd had slowed down?

Pelicana Chicken
C7, Block C, Ground Floor,
Setia Kenangan 2,
Simpang: 150-5-13-18,
Kampung Kiulap, BE1518,
Negara Brunei Darussalam
Tel: +673-2239933

Review: Bioderma Sebium Foaming Gel

As you can see, I had changed the template of my blog again. I did not really like the old one but I liked that it did not blur out my pictures. Some of the templates which I had used previously blurred out my pictures albeit they were taken nicely in the first place.

They just blurred out on their own once the blog entry was published. To be honest, that really bugged me for quite some time until I found out that I could just solve the problem by changing the blog template. LOL!

And I have another problem now! My memory card reader could not read my memory card and I have no idea why. I will just leave it for the time being and fix it later on. Anyways, Jennifer and I will be trying out a new eatery in town tonight – Pelicana Chicken! Stay tune for review if you are interested.

Bioderma Sebium Foaming Gel

I got this facial cleanser from Guardian on my Singapore visit approximately two to three years ago. Not to freak you out here but this facial cleanser had expired since last October 2015 but remained sealed since I bought it.

I was once being told that a skincare product can last for another year or two after expiration as long as it remained sealed. I guess it is sort of true as my skin is still in good condition having used it for a week or so?

If you are interested on how this product works, here it is. The product gently cleanses, limits the secretion of sebum and purifies and epidermis. If you are no Bioderma user, you may not be familiar with their ranges of products.

They have variety of ranges and I have only used two – Sensibio and Sebium. Sensibio focuses on sensitive skin while Sebium focuses on oily skin. I had been using this with my Biore Cleansing Milk lately and it did wonders to my skin. I can see that my skin is not that oily compared to before. It controlled the sebum excretion of my skin well.

All you need to do is take a pump or two with a small amount of lukewarm water and work up a foam. Gently massage the foam onto your skin for a good few minutes and rinse them off with lukewarm water. The product may not lather as much as some others do but it works just good enough.

I like that the cleanser does not leave your skin feeling all tight after rinsing but soft, smooth and slippery. My skin condition is mildly sensitive but no sign of breakout since I started using it. It is not heavily scented as well but it smelled a little bit alike anti-bacterial hand soap. Albeit so, it still smelled refreshing.

So, here’s what I think of Bioderma Sebium Foaming Gel in a nutshell:

Pros:
1. Liked the pump dispenser for equal dispensing.
2. Not heavily scented.
3. Cleanses the skin well enough, leaving a soft, smooth and slippery to the touch.
4. No sign of breakout.
5. Controlled sebum excretion well.

Cons:
1. Not available in Brunei.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5

Price: S$30.50 (Guardian Singapore)

Repurchase? Definitely!

24072016 / Cake Rush, Miri

On my day trip to Miri last Sunday, I got to try Cake Rush which was established by the nephew and his partner of my colleague. They used to be home based bakers but they now have their own cafe to cater a bigger demand.

I did not stay long at the cafe because I was rushing to another venue for another errand running but I managed to try two items which I had wanted to since they opened up the place – Fruit Tart and Green Tea Latte.

Green Tea Latte | RM10

This Green Tea Latte may look different compared to the usual one we have at Starbucks Coffee. They used good quality imported Japanese matcha powder. The color may be lighter but rest assured that this is one good cup of Green Tea Latte.

It tasted neither sweet nor bitter but it did have a distinctive taste of matcha. What I liked about their coffee is that they used quality Australian milk instead of those cheaper brands.

Fruit Tart | RM7.80

Before they opened up this cafe, I had once tried their mini Fruit Tart and it was good. This Fruit Tart was topped with fresh fruits. The tart ring has the right texture which I liked. It was crunchy and not at all buttery. The custard filling was not sweet. This Fruit Tart makes a good dessert choice if you are watching your sugar intake.

Cake Rush
Lot 862, Ground Floor,
Jalan Helenium,
Miri, Sarawak,
East Malaysia

Review: Biore Cleansing Milk

After the continuous food review blog entries, it is time for a skincare product review blog entry! Coming up today is Biore Cleansing Milk which I bought in Shanghai around September 2014.

Yes, that was nearly two years ago. Well, I bought some new skincare products along the way and I tried them out first before this. So, that explained why I am only using this like two years later?

Without further ado, let’s get started!

I had been using this for more than two weeks after I had used up my Lancome Galateis Douceur Gentle Softening Cleansing Fluid Face & Eyes. I am also using another makeup remover from Artistry alternatively with this makeup remover from Biore.

I was looking for Biore Cleansing Milk last Sunday when I was in Miri but it was unavailable. I think both Watsons and Guardian in Malaysia do not carry this product. They do have Biore Perfect Cleansing Water but not this.

I got this from Watsons in Shanghai at Buy 1 Free 1. That was a good deal, wasn’t it? I gave the other bottle to Sister since I do not need two to begin with. LOL!

This product was manufactured in China. Hence, all the Chinese wordings for product information and specification. But I think this product can be easily found in both Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Texture wise, the product has a gel alike consistency. I was expecting a creamy and milky kind of consistency but I was wrong. All I got was gel alike consistency in opaque color. In terms of fragrance, the product was pleasantly scented of floral.

So, how do you use this product? It is easy and you use it like any other makeup removers. Remember to use it on a dry face though. I took two pumps for my face and gently massage them across the face to dissolve the sunscreen and dirt my skin picked up during the day. Take a little bit of lukewarm water to further dissolve the makeup remover.

You can either use lukewarm water to remove the remaining makeup remover from your face or take a piece of cotton pad to wipe off the excess. I took up the latter method and splash some more water onto my face to make sure that all traces of sunscreen and dirt are gone. It is important to incorporate double cleansing into your skincare regime albeit you use a makeup remover as your first step of facial cleansing.

The product works well on my skin as I can see that my skin is all soft, smooth and clean after each usage. It didn’t cause my skin any breakout. I have a slightly sensitive skin. When a makeup remover doesn’t work on my skin, I will get that stinging/burning feeling during application. So, this product is all good for me.

So, here’s what I think of Biore Cleansing Milk in a nutshell:

Pros:
1. Inexpensive.
2. Pleasantly scented.
3. Remove sunscreen and dirt well enough.
4. Not harsh on the skin.

Cons:
1. Not available nearby.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5

Price: RMB58

Repurchase? Definitely!