Four Summer Skincare Must-haves

I’ve had a very busy summer travelling here and there, especially to tropical, beachy destinations. To save my skin from the piercing sun, I’ve used these products religiously and I’m happy to say that I came back with better, healthier-looking skin. So this is what saved my skin:

ANESSA Perfect UV Sunscreen Skincare Milk

A holy grail item right here! I cannot recommend this sunscreen enough, I’ve recommended this to my girlfriends with passion (cut to me shouting at the drug store with excitement). This sunscreen is great for beach and outdoor holidays. It's very water resistant (I could still feel it after swimming) yet feels so light on the skin. Contrary to common belief, it doesn't have that powdery feel (most water proof sunscreens do) when applied, it felt like applying a light gel and very quickly absorbs into the skin. They called this product ‘skincare milk’ because they claim that it contains 50% skincare ingredients to calm, moisturise and repair the skin. Personally, I didn’t see any visible different before and after using the sunscreen, but it does feel moisturising when applied and I never felt gross at the end of the day. Another great feature is their ‘Aqua Booster’ technology, claiming that when in contact with sweat and water, the product provides stronger protection (kinda gross if you think about it, but if it enhances the strength, it’s fine by me). Again, I wasn’t able to test this out with controls but despite being under the 35 degree sun at noon on the beach, I didn't get sunburnt or horribly tanned.

Click here to find out more! (YOU NEED TO GET THIS!)

La Roche Posay Serozinc Spray

I have already used La Roche Posay products for years now, particularly their line targeted for acne-prone skin. This was a wonderful discovery. Like most thermal water sprays, it soothes and calms the skin. It feels great to mist over your face after a full day under the sun. Also, it contains an active ingredient: Zinc sulfate, which helps with skin repair and renewal and also modulates inflammation. This product really does calm my active acne. After using this as a toner, my skin feels less inflamed, the number of blackheads and pumps also decrease after a week of consistent use.

You'll be able to buy it here. 

Be Jolie series Vol. 1 || General Favourites

Happy 2k16, Everyone!! New year, new beginning. It's that time of the year where we all have the excuse to start fresh again. New year's resolutions always give us some hope and aspiration to improve from the previous year. As a person that LOVES to make fresh starts, I've made some goals for the new year to keep me motivated.

With that being said, I'm starting a new series called Be Jolie! The word 'jolie/jolly' has two meanings: one, (the obvious) to be happy, and two, to be pretty (in french). I relate closely to the idea that beauty and happiness come hand in hand, and it is bidirectional. 

As means to be happy, feeling pretty and confident. This series will include different elements/or things I do to invigorate happiness and beauty, like mental wellness, fitness, beauty, makeup etc. I'm really excited for this series, so please stay tuned for it. 

To kick start my new series, I thought I would share with you some recent favourites I had discovered/rediscovered lately.

Skin Detox:: "Calm the eff down..."

I've been back in Hong Kong for almost a month now and, I've got to say, my skin had been freaking out ever since. It's probably the pollution, constructions and the humidity all combined into a cocktail aggravation to my skin. My skin is acne-prone to begin with, so breaking out is nothing new. I started to have these weird goosebumps on my forearm and joints. I feel like they might be due all these environmental allergens.

To combat these my aggravated skin condition, I decided to let my skin rest and to return to its natural form. I wanted my skin to be protected naturally from allergens without all the fragrances, parabens, and minerals. I really did not want to do too much to my skin at the moment.

I am strictly sticking to the following products as they are mostly organic or considerably more natural than others (fragrance free, paraben free etc...). Some of these products are quite new to me, so I will get back to you on my review on them.

So, after a long rant about my skin, here are the products I'm currently using to detoxify my skin:

Current Favourites (slash) Life Update

Okay, this is it!
So I know I have kind of left this blog in the back burner for the past 2 months. I know, I know, I always say that I will be back regularly and disappear again.
WELL BELIEVE IT OR NOT, today is the day I am formally announcing that...

GRATITUDE MINTS IS BACK!!

Before anything though, I thought I should give a bit of a life update. 

So for the past 2 months, I have been through major life transitions (and A LOT of travelling). In a nut shell, my student life in London has come to an end and I'm back in Hong Kong now. And now that I have sort of settled down, I thought I should get back onto my blog. 

To be very honest with you, I slacked quite a bit the past 2 month (I could've posted something), I wanted to first make the blog look pretty before I post anything. S. Anyway, I beat myself up after being back and started learning how to switch up the 'look'. What you're seeing now isn't the end product, I'm slowing googling tutorials and youtube videos on how to reformat the layout (so stay tuned for that).

Okay, back to blogging. I actually have a lot of blogging ideas and series already planned (and maybe some travel videos here and there) and I am HOPING they will come soon. But without giving myself too big a mouth-full, I am excited to announce my posting schedule: new posts will be up every Thursday at 10pm (hong kong time), the equivalent of 3pm GMT (this post doesn't count, haha). I am really hoping that having a schedule would be easier for you guys (and for me too). 

And now, onto my current faves....

Skincare Routine || AM Edition

Happy New Year, Everyone!! It's been a while since I've updated anything on the blog. I am so sorry. I'm in my final year of uni, and have been very busy lately. However, we have moved into 2015, and so I feel like a new beginning to everything (including this blog).

I'm going to share my morning skincare routine during the colder months. I have sensitive, acne-prone, combination skin (quite complicated, I know), and so I have gone a long way to find products that are suitable for me. I wouldn't say that these are 'the products' for my skin, as I'm still trying out products. But these are the products I'm currently using every morning.

It's summer, Beaches!! || The SPF and PA+

Sun protection is SO important especially during summer when the sun rays are elevated. I cannot emphasise enough the importance of sunscreen. It prevents dark spots, sun burn and most importantly skin cancer.

As a typical asian girl, I don't really like getting tanned and embrace looking white. I have been searching for the best products that are suitable for my acne-prone, combination skin. That said, I have comprised 5 products that I think works wonders for me.

Emergency Kit for Acne-prone Skin || Daily Edition

I believe all girls had suffered from disastrous breakouts at some point of their life, no matter during puberty or every single month. I have highly acne-prone skin and so it is VITAL(yes, I have to put them in caps) to have an emergency kit, a set of acne-fighting products, that act as safety net for the difficult times. 

These four product are part of my daily skincare routine, which I cannot live without if I am breaking out. I will have to justify why my daily skincare is an 'emergency kit', these products are my must-use products when my skin starts to go downhill. If I have fairly good skin, I would try out other products. 

First up, I use the Bioderma Sébium H20 Micellar Solution (similar here.) to take off the residue makeup on my face after using a cleansing oil. I feel like this does wonders at taking all the gunk out of my pores after a long day. I used to use the Crealine Micellar Solution (the pink top), that kind is a bit more moisturising than this green top kind. I found that this type better for summer. My skin feels fresh and clean after using this. I wouldn't say that it is moisturising at all. I usually go into the shower right after I swab it onto my face, otherwise it makes my skin feel tight. 

Next, is the La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo anti-blemish cream. I must say, this product is a saviour for my skin. I can't be 100% sure, but I think my breakdown issue had died down since I've used this. When ever feel the devil floating up on the surface of my face, I put on the cream and take some time to massage the product into the spot. I found that the spot would die down the next day (AMAZING, right?). I must be honest, I was quite skeptical about this product at first as I've seen reviews about the purging period when you first use the product. Having 'okay' skin at the time made me hesitant to purposefully 'make my skin breakout again'. However, I decided to go with it anyway (I have nothing to lose, right?). I have to say, after a months' use, I did experience a purging period, there were a few spots that surfaced. The magic about this product is that kills the spot really quickly, so essentially I wasn't in breakout war zone for too long. After the purging period, it worked wonders on my skin, it prevented any breakouts, my skin would not have massive breakouts anymore. It is just a miracle product. 

Extreme circumstances calls for extreme precautions, the Thursday Plantation Tea Tree Medicated Gel for Acne is the spot treatment go-to for me. Thursday Plantation is an Australian brand, with there signature tea tree range. As you may know, tee tree oil/ products are great at battling acne and antibacterial. I used to use tee tree oil from The Body Shop, but after I tried the oil from Thursday Plantation, I don't think it can be compared. I feel like The Body Shop one is a diluted version of the Thursday Plantation one. If you are desperate for a strong effective zit-buzzing acne treatment, here it is. Unlike an oil that you will have to dab onto your zit and IT MIGHT slip off the zit, the oil would just drip off with gravity (This sounds so dramatic but it's true). I was so happy to find the gel as it would latch onto the zit and STAYS THERE, so the product maximises its effect on the zit.

Last but not least, I feel the importance of a whitening serum that removes the hyperpigmentations from acne. I feel like as much as it is important to prevent and treat active acne, getting it 'physically' off the face is vital for me. A holy grail product is the Kiehl's Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution. It is an magnificent product at minimising the appearance of acne scars, freckles, just all kinds of dark spots. I must say, this is more of a pricey product (36 pounds) but as it does its job well, I can't stop repurchasing it. Kiehl's claims that dark spot reduces visibly in 8 weeks which I believe is true, my freckles DID fade after using the product on a daily basis for 2 months (thumbs up for that).

So this is it for the daily edition of the emergency kit. I hope this information was useful for those who are also suffering from the acne problem. I know it may be frustrating at dealing with this problem, but stay positive as it is only temporary, it will eventually pass. :)

Hope you are well.

Love,            

Vivien