Tag: photos

FIRST CLEANSER FOR FUNGAL ACNE

Lately I’ve been asked about this matter, as a lot of you suffered worsen fungal acne after cleansing with oils.

Been there, done that, folks! Apparently, my fungal acne prone skin hates olive oil, pronto! So, if I use cleansing oil as the first cleanser with olive oil as one of their main 5 ingredients, that will do bad things. Unfortunately my dear, lots of cleansing oil used olive oil as their main ingredients. And not only most oil is bad news for fungal acne, some ingredients mainly found in cleansing oil like Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Isopropyl Myristate are also a big no no for fungal acne dearest.

 

How about cleansing balm, some of you asked me. Same thing, lots of cleansing balms, whatever they named them, also contain ingredients that are not safe for fungal acne prone skin.

So, obviously I tried to stay clear of oils and balms, but lots of people still got confused of this first cleanser dilemma. I used to think that nothing could dissolve my oily based makeup and sunscreen except oil-based cleanser. Until I read labmuffinscience post. Yes darlings, we don’t need oil to dissolve oil, but look for surfactant in your cleanser.

Unfortunately, after some trial & error, there are not much first cleanser products that worked best on my fungal acne (in the meaning of they didn’t trigger them to be worse). But, I recommend you to check skincarisma.com if you want to know does your first cleanser safe for your fungal acne.

Personally, I’ve been using these two religiously, as they didn’t trigger my fungal acne.

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BIODERMA SENSIBIO H2O: Trust me, I’ve tried many brands but always going back to this. It’s not cheap, yes. But, every single time I bought expensive skincare products, I will keep on telling myself “this Is an investment, I only have one face and I will take care of it the best way I can”. Believe it or not, I’d rather spent my money on expensive skincare products that really worked, rather than buying designer shoes nowadays.

LANEIGE LIP & EYE REMOVER WATERPROOF_EX: No wonder this costs a lot for a bottle of lip and eye makeup remover. It didn’t blur and sting my eyes. It removed matte lip color, waterproof mascara and eyeliner well. And tada!!! It’s safe for fungal acne according to skincarisma.com. If you’re also prone to milia under the eyes, don’t worry, this won’t make them bigger.

TIPS: immediately wash with second cleanser aka your facial wash after using first cleanser. Personally, I love using round cotton pads, so I can detect how clean I cleansed.

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA

REVIEW: PATYKA HUILE ABSOLUE

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Thanks C&F Indonesia for sending me this skin booster serum for face, body and hair as PR gift.

First of all, I like the chic and luxurious packaging. Comes in a 50ml glass pump bottle, it is expensive for a serum (current price IDR 980K). But, it was made in France, and well-known as the ultimate French beauty secret, so yes darling, everything come with a price.

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Check out the origami-style box.

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That apothecary feeling comes with 12 (yes, twelve!) essential oils and plant extracts. It claimed to do these 7 remarkable benefits: Glow Enhancer, Anti Oxidant, Protecting, Nourishing, Regenerating, Toning and Stimulating. On face, this will act as a serum to regenerate and soothe the skin. On body, this will also regenerate dry areas. On hair, this will act as a repairing mask on dry and damaged ends before the shampoo. It smells like a combination of musk and rose, quite a strong scent (for sensitive skin, please do patch test first).

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Apologies for not trying this on my face, since my skin react badly to essential oils (after a few trials and errors). But, no worries, I did try this on my body and hair, and here are my thoughts:

I mixed several drops of this with my body lotion. And it gives the effect of that J.Lo’s glow, even though I am not a tan-skinned girl. Check out that glow!

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This also works wonder for dry cuticles (see the difference below). Imagine what it can do for dry skin face. I am positively sure, this oil will work best on dry skin type.

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This serum can also be used for hair, usually I applied several drops on my dry and frizzy end before shampooing. It made my hair feel smoother and easier to comb afterwards.

You can buy this, here

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA

MINIMAL SKINCARE ROUTINE FOR FUNGAL ACNE PRONE SKIN

As much as I’d love to do 10 steps of skincare routine, I realized that sticking to just the essentials is key.

Especially for those who can’t be bothered with so many steps, and don’t know what the heck is the difference between serum and ampoule, read on….

Actually, the must do for our skincare routine is simply cleanse, tone, moisturize and slather some SPF in the AM routine. That’s it.

And after all that searching online plus self-experience, I can say these products did help my fungal acne prone skin.

Let’s start with AM routine, shall we?

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CLEANSE: since I believe that my face is not that dirty, I use mild facial cleanser in the morning.

TONE: in toner I trust. This is one of the mildest daily exfoliating toner that I’ve tried.

MOISTURIZE: with minimal ingredients, this is my go-to moisturizer. And I love to mix my moisturizer with face oil in the morning, just to amp up that glow from within look. Don’t forget eye cream.

SPF: please don’t skip this step. You know, sun is responsible for up to 90% of age signs. Reapply if you are spending most of your time outside.

PM routine be like….

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DOUBLE CLEANSE: if you are a heavy makeup wearer like me, this step is super important. I use micellar water to remove makeup, then continue with facial cleanser.

TONE: I only use stronger exfoliating toner once a week. Meanwhile, I use my daily exfoliating toner.

SERUM: additional step which I believe is super important if we have troubled skin. Currently, I am into Niacinamide and Zinc.

MOISTURIZE: I don’t do night cream, but I do believe in sleeping pack. Add eye cream, and I am done for the night.

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA

 

 

REVIEW: GOODAL GREEN TANGERINE VITA C DARK SPOT SERUM

This is my second attempt on vitamin C, as in the first attempt using other brand got my skin irritated. Let’s see if this works, shall we?

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What made me purchase this vitamin C serum? Unlike others, this contains 70% green tangerine extract, nature-derived vitamin C. It claims to be minimally irritant, even thought green tangerine known to have natural vitamin C ten times more than regular tangerines. I bought this online in a set for IDR425K, with a 30ml and bonus 10ml serum, plus the 10ml cream.

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Got hooked on their claims (obviously!). What??? It can lighten blemishes, too???

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So I’ve checked on the ingredients, as they claimed to be free of 20 harmful ingredients (such as mineral oil, parabens, PEG, SLS etc). Surprise…surprise, this serum contains ARBUTIN as one of their main ingredients, which is well-known to fade brown spots. And it also contains Niacinamide (my favorite ever). Unfortunately, there’s one of the ingredients that should be watch out: Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil aka Bergamot Fruit Oil. Yes, it is essential oil. I dislike essential oils on my skincare ingredients (as they’re bad for fungal acne), but what the heck, let’s give it a try for two weeks.

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Texture: transparent gel. When applied, it’s not sticky, and it gives cooling effect on skin (super perfect for such a cruel summer in my home town, Jakarta). It didn’t sting at all, good sign for me.

Here’s the result!

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After only a week, (mind the different lighting) I can see huge improvement on my acne scars. This serum definitely fades new formed acne scars aka PIE (Post Inflammatory Erythema). As for my PIH (Post Inflammatory Hyperpigmentation) on the upper cheek area, I can see it lightens them a bit to a pinkish instead of dark brown spots.

No wonder this serum has won many awards in Korea. It is that good for newly formed acne scars. However, for those who are sensitive to vitamin C, I recommend to apply this serum on dark spots only. Give it a test first, if it’s good to go, then apply on whole face if needed.

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA

SKIN CARE: TEAM JAPAN OR TEAM KOREA?

I know I’ve been posting a lot about makeup products review, but lately I am so into skin care.

Usually my skin care routine is just too darn simple. Morning: facial cleanser, hydrating mist (like Avene) and sunscreen (Biore). Night: micellar water (Bioderma), cleansing oil (Biore), facial cleanser, hydrating mist, acne cream and eye cream.

After my last trip to Seoul and Tokyo, I was inspired by the whole skin care products that they have there. Yes, I believe they are blessed with better water and weather, therefore they have better skin. But their skin care regimen that went viral globally, had me at hello!

So, am I a team J (Japanese) Beauty or K (Korean) Beauty?

Obviously, I’ve tried both, and mixed them in my skincare routine (day and night). What I’ve noticed about Korean brands, they put more thoughts on packaging and regime steps (hello 7 toner method and 10 steps). Not to mention, they’re also the fastest to pick up new natural ingredients. Meanwhile, Japanese brands are more straightforward in regime and packaging. Even though, sometime they will collaborate with Disney to make their packaging more princessy. I do believe in both of them, in terms of quality.

Here are my current K-skincare products I’m using.DSCF6097 copy

NATURE REPUBLIC SOOTHING & MOISTURE ALOE VERA 92% SOOTHING GEL: I purchased this online, because of their hype. I think I’m allergic to the alcohol inside the ingredient, because my forehead seems to have more whiteheads after I use this. Fortunately, this is good to tone down skin redness for my kids. So I’m using it for them now.

NEOGEN CANADIAN CLAY PORE CLEANSER: very innovative product, I purchased this when I went to Seoul. It’s actually a mask/soft scrub/cleanser. When applied, they will form foam. Massage and rinse, my face feel so clean and bright afterwards.

NATURAL PACIFIC CALENDULA TONER: Seriously looking beautiful on my vanity with fresh calendula leaves floating around inside a clear bottle. No scent, this toner is so refreshing.

WHAMISA ORGANIC FLOWERS REFRESH TONER: I heard about this brand from a friend who has skin like the Koreans. Because I have oily skin, I choose to purchase the green bottle over the famous pink ones. This is my second toner to be use for 7 steps of toner (yes, I do that!)

INNISFREE IT’S REAL SQUEEZE ALOE MASK: A sheet mask is a winner for me if it’s not dripping. I like how this mask contains serum that is light. Great to use for long haul flight to feel refresh and moisturized.

These are the J-skincare products I currently use.

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HADALABO ULTIMATEMOISTURIZING LIGHT LOTION: very cheap first toner, yet very effective. I love how the stickiness suddenly disappeared when tapped well.

ROSETTE CLEANSING PASTE: facial foam to use for double cleanse purpose. Love the soft scent and the super clean feeling after wash.

DHC DEEP CLEANSING OIL: I was super shocked when I read somewhere that ordinary micellar water couldn’t remove sunscreen from our face. After that, I quickly switched to cleansing oil to remove my makeup in the end of my day. And I am glad I made the right choice. Maybe after this, I will try cleansing balm.

KANEBO SUISAI BEAUTY CLEAR POWDER: Such a practical product for traveling. This is a cleansing powder, individually package in petite hexagon shape plastic container. One is meant for a single use, just add water. It contains no fragrance, and unlike any face wash plus exfoliator out there in the market, this has the most fine beads. Super gentle on skin.

HATOMUGI MIST THERMAL WATER: I purchased this in one of Tokyo’s drugstore. I didn’t use Hatomugi Skin Conditioner for my face because it gave me bumps, but I use it to spray my hair. So yes, I use this to spray my hair too. It brings my curls back, that out of the bed look achieved!

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA