Product Review: Clinique Repairwear Intensive Eye Cream

In conjunction with previous tips I have recently accumulated on how to camouflage under eye circles, I'm trying to revive my de-constructed eyes brought about by my careless youth and constant eye rubbing. Lines had started to accumulate under my eyes and a bit of sagging is noticeable (for me it is actually a lot of sagging cause I tend to magnify things to enormous proportions! :D). So, however which way I try to conceal them, I'm always bothered by the fact that I look older because of these imperfections. So, right now, I'm trying to repair the damage I had caused and hoping for a miracle haha! I'm trying out Clinique's Repairwear Intensive Eye Cream ever since I received a sample of it from Liz's Clinique Party. I intend to document my experience with this cream and like all eye creams, you need to give it time to deliver what it promises to do. First time I used this was last April 16, 2011 and have been using it religiously as part of my night time regimen.

According to Clinique's website: 

Photo Credits to www.clinique.com

Repairwear Intensive Eye Cream
Potent anti-aging eye cream focuses skin's energies on repair. Targets the appearance of eye-area lines and wrinkles. Replenishes antioxidants. Strengthens vulnerable skin for a brighter, vibrant, refreshed look. Ophthalmologist Tested. For all skin types.

• Use morning and night after 3-Step Skin Care System.
• With ring finger, apply sparingly to entire eye area using a gentle patting motion

They recommend it to be used both day and night but I somewhat prefer to use it only at night due to the fact that I prefer to put on something with SPF during the day and this one has none. Although, Clinique carries other eye creams that has Sun Protecting Factor.

The 7ml sample jar will probably last me 3 months since you only need to apply a little at a time. The consistency is creamy enough to keep my eyes moisturized as I sleep and gets easily absorbed by the skin upon application.

just this little is enough for one eye. Make sure to use your ring finger when applying eye creams because it applies the littlest amount of pressure among 5 fingers. :D

Here's a picture of my left eye before I started using Repairwear. (Taken from an old blog post. Please forgive me, as my sister had accidentally deleted my initial "before" picture and had to scour for a new one. This will explain the white eyeliner :D).

Here's after 21 days of using it. I don't know if you've noticed, but there have been very subtle changes to areas indicated by the arrows. Fine lines have been somewhat less visible and the tail end of that prominent line is no longer noticeable. My under eye area have also become brighter than before.

And as you can see, there's a lot more product left so I'll be updating this blog post until this sampler jar runs out. :D

The Clinique Repairwear Intensive Eye Cream 15ml jar Retails for $40 at the Clinique website. Locally, I'd have to get back on you with this one as I have mine as sample only.

How about you? Which eye cream works best for you? :D

Cat on the Loose: Bobbi Brown Bye Bye, Dark Circles Event

"Good night, good night! parting is such sweet sorrow, That I shall say good night till it be morrow." Hmmm...could Juliet be addressing something else other than Romeo? Could be. All those sleepless nights worrying about their feuding families and their forbidden romance could already have been evident on her precious peepers. Same problem we all ladies (and some men too!) share fast forwarding to the 21st century. Yup, parting is such sweet sorrow but parting with your under eye dark circles is even sweeter! :D So when I heard about the Bobbi Brown Bye Bye Dark Circles Event happening May 18, 2011 at the Rustan's Makati Grand Mall area, I immediately signed up!

Meet Bobbi Brown! :D

For some of you who's not aware who Bobbi Brown is, she is a New York-bred MUA, and mother of three, who started developing her own cosmetics line some ten years ago, following her own vision of what the beauty industry should be like. Her first product was an unperfumed nude lipstick, the first ever Bobbi Brown Lip Color. It was a massive success and the Bobbi Brown revolution went from strength to strength, becoming a watchword for natural beauty. She believes in the philosophy "Looking like yourself, only better.". Now, isn't that reason enough for us ladies to have faith in this brand? :D Amongst others, Bobbi's specialty is the skin. That's why she puts more attention on her foundations. According to her, Foundation is the basis for all make-up, only once you've got the skin perfect, can you start applying colour. Makes perfect sense. Bobbi Brown is also one of the first few to use yellow as base for her foundation formulations, something we, Asians, could very well benefit from since most of us have yellow undertones.

This event served as a re-launch for Bobbi Brown's newly formulated concealer and corrector. It has now a lighter consistency and longer staying power perfect for warm and humid countries like the Philippines. Also, New York based Bobbi Brown Beauty Team artist, Kai Vinson flew in to help us with our dark circles dilemma.

Bobbi Brown makeup artists helped us find the perfect shade of color corrector and concealer. Noel was the one who assisted me that day. He is based in Singapore and is super nice to answer all of our beauty questions.

with Noel after I said bye bye to my dark circles :D

Before applying the corrector and camouflaging the under eye circles, Noel applied eye cream under my eyes with a cotton swab to provide moisture and minimize the appearance of lines and wrinkles. My model for these steps is Eenah as I was not able to take pictures of my own transformation. :D



Then, they will determine which is your foundations shade by swatching along your jawline. Concealer shade should be the same color as your foundation.

Based on your concealer shade, the MUA will determine which shade of corrector to use. The corrector plays an important role in hiding those pesky dark circles. He then applies it using a concealer brush. I asked Noel if there is a rule as to which point below the eyes should we apply concealer and he told me up until where the dark circles are.

Major Transformation! Eenah's left eye compared to her bare right one. Photo Credits to Lori (http://lorenarevilla.blogspot.com/).

Then, after the consultation, Noel helped me fill out a form indicating my shades for the corrector and concealer so it'll be easier for me next time I visit the Bobbi Brown counter for purchases. Can you see it?

I've taken loads of pictures during the event so get ready for more cam whoring after the jump!

A never-to-miss photo op beside the bye bye dark circles back drop ha ha!

with Kath of http://kathpterrado.blogspot.com and Trina of thebestsoylatteandme YouTube Channel

Photo Booth courtesy of Super Photos and More

The Bobbi Brown beauty arsenal to help you achieve that Bobbi Brown Philosophy

Kai Vinson in Action!

Charles (http://geishcharles.blogspot.com) and Eenah

with Lori whom I've gotten to meet before at another event.

Check out Lori's blog too! http://lorenarevilla.blogspot.com

Lovely Kath after her consultation

Trina about to get her transformation! :D

Bye Bye Dark Circles!

Food! Yum!

A more refreshed Lori! "Purfect!" hehehe...

The bloggers who attended the event. Thanks Charles for the invite! (even though, technically, we invited ourselves haha!)

First time meeting Sugar! Next time I'll make sure to wear heels. This girl is super tall! :D

Tadaaah!!! Charles after her makeover. Even prettier!

Also, thanks to Bobbi Brown Philippines' manager Mona Borromeo for inviting us bloggers to this wonderful and "eye-opening" event. :D

Kai Vinson answering all the bloggers' beauty questions. This was also the first time I found out Bobbi Brown also carry BB creams! I so want to try that soon! And him giving us a very special sneak peek of future innovations from Bobbi Brown which I was pretty excited about.

I would not dare pass this opportunity to take a picture with Kai! :D

After our consultation, we received a special gift from Bobbi Brown - a very compact Classic Day palette which reminds me very much of the pretty powerful palette. It has all the basic color a girl needs for everyday use. I love it! Thanks Bobbie Brown!

Make sure to visit Bobbi Brown counters located at Rustan's Makati (813-3739 loc. 225) and Rustan's Shangri-La Mall (633-4636) so you too could say Bye Bye, Dark Circles! :D

Product Review: Celeteque Advanced Anti-Aging Power Serum break off capsules

Photo courtesy of Celeteque's facebook page

The first time that I have gotten to try this was when I won Project Vanity's giveaway and this was included in my prize (check it out here). It hasn't been formally launched yet at that time and I'd have to admit that I wasn't really expecting much from this product. I tried Celeteque's gentle cleanser back when I was in highschool but was not too happy about it which explains my skepticism with this one. Since I'm no longer in my teens and nearing close to my 30's, I need all the anti-aging products I could get my hands on so I decided to give this one a try. According to Celeteque:

This is what the capsule looks like up close.

Just puncture a small hole at the top so the serum could ooze out.

The consistency is similar to a silicon-based primer only a little runnier. Apply just a tiny amount to your problem areas and blend it right in.

This is the back of my hand before blending in the serum.

And this is after. As you can see, it does not take much time for your skin to absorb the product. It does have a bit of a sheen afterwards but will completely disappear in a couple of seconds.

Since it is concentrated, I am assuming it is a very potent anti-aging product. After washing my face and before going to bed, I break off a capsule and apply the serum on my problem areas namely: laugh lines, the space between my both my brows, and under my eyes. My skin absorbs the serum right away and feel those parts of my face where I applied it, instantly become smoother and softer to the touch (sort of like the feeling after you've applied a makeup primer and also after applying powder onto your skin). I think it is because aside from this having ingredients that helps stimulate collagen and elastin production, I've read from the box that it also includes some forms of silicon.
As of all anti-aging products, you need to religiously use them to see actual results. My existing wrinkles are still there and I think it might take me a longer period of time to reverse the signs of aging. I had finished all 21 capsules from the one I won and is now on my second jar ( from when I bought it I got the Anti-wrinkle facial moisturizer for free :D). I love the "primed" feeling this product gives me and see the anti-aging factor sort of like an added bonus. One thing about this though, that troubled me the most is the price. It retails for about P619 (approx. $14) for only 21 capsules per pack which costs almost P30 (approx. $0.68)per capsule! And if you'll be applying this both day and night, one jar will only last you for about 10 days (considering the fact that if you break open a capsule you have to use it all at once). Wish it could have included more capsules inside to last for a whole month of usage. With that in mind, I think for mothers on a tight budget, buying this every after 10 days would be tough.
All-in-all, the product itself is worth giving a try, but having to maintain it might become a problem for some. How about you? What's your favorite Celeteque product? Write about it and get the chance to win full-sized product samples from Celeteque plus Forever21 GC's worth P2000! Check the mechanics here http://fashioneggplant.blogspot.com/2011/05/celeteque-event-win-forever21-gcs.html

Contest will run from May 12 to June 12. Winners will be announced on June 15 so start writing guys! :D

Rave Worthy: Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel

Hello kittens! So sorry for not having to write about anything here for a long time. I think the unbelievable heat outside fried my brains a bit that I could not think of anything great to blabber about :D. Anyways, I would like to share with you guys my favorite moisturizer at the moment ( I think I'm not alone on this :D).

I always have had oily skin ever since I hit puberty. My oil glands are working overtime 24/7. Back in highschool I had this misconception that my face is oily enough to not need to put on moisturizer. Boy, was I so wrong! Only later on I found out that on the contrary, my face is producing so much oil to compensate for the lack of moisture. Nobody told me this!(tsk!). So, since then, I have been scouting around for the best moisturizer suited for my skin type. Most of which I find too thick and heavy for our humid weather that after I put it on, my face instantly start to sweat. Having to live through a student budget, I shied away from high end brands, knowing I could not maintain it. So I was in the search for a more affordable alternative. Not until, I was exposed to the Clinique 3-step system. I must say I was intimidated of this brand at first but gotten the chance to try their skincare line, I completely changed my mind. The biggest revelation for me though, was the Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel.

Photo courtesy of www.clinique.com

 The first time I tried it, I loved how my face doesn't feel heavy but felt moisturize. After a couple of days of using it , I've found favorable changes with my skin. I felt my cheeks were a bit more plump than usual and I don't oil out as much. I also loved how some of the scars on my cheek (brought about by teen stupidity :D) were a little bit less noticeable. I think I have fallen in love! This is oozing with HG material for me. Initially I thought that buying this in it's full sized glory would be impractical because it costs over P2000, but weighing it out more, a full bottle with pump would already last you a couple months so it's not that bad! So, far, I would consider this one of the biggest surprises for me this year and I'm greatful that I have been introduced to this Brand's skin care line. Love, Love, Love my Clinique DDMG, how about you? What's your Holy Grail moisturizer?

Stylin' with Benefits

It's summer and the extreme heat ain't doing anything good for my hair. The ends are starting to dry out and it is in desperate need for some TLC. Then I remembered the Hair Keratin Treatment voucher I availed through Ensogo a while back will be expiring soon so I went ahead and called Benefit Style Salon to book for an appointment.

The voucher's last day of eligibility was April 30, 2011 so I called in April 28 to schedule a 2pm slot but was told that was already booked and she suggested the 12:30pm slot instead so I agreed. Benefit Style Salon is located at the 2nd Floor of Eastwood Citywalk, Fashion Square Building across from Gloss Nails and Sambokojin Restaurant. I'm from Cavite and I don't exactly go to Eastwood quite often. In fact, I've only been there once for a night out with my girlfriends so, I'm basically going there blindfolded hoping to find the salon's location. I also did not anticipate the traffic going there from Cubao so when my appointment time was drawing near, I got antsy and texted them I'll be running late and inquired if there's still another slot for the day I can book. I then found out I was not listed for the 12:30pm appointment after all so I was pretty bummed out. But then, I got a call from Sam Escalante herself informing me that they would still be open to accommodate me even if I did not get an appointment but had to be on the waiting list. So, I thank her and began contemplating whether to push through with it or not due to the fact that I have been roaming around Eastwood for a couple of hours already and was getting lost by the minute. At around 3pm (and a couple of maps and mall directories later) I was able to finally arrive at my destination. I had my camera with me and was meaning to get some pictures for this post but I decided to make this sort of an undercover review to test Benefit Style Salon's customer service. It started off a bit shaky at first when they missed to book me for 12:30pm but when the owner herself called me up to ensure me I'm still welcome to drop by, it showed that they really value their clients and an indication of a great customer service! :D The Salon's interiors were fun and colorful not intimidating like that of other high-end salons. I really liked how they would go to great lengths to make their waiting customers feel at home and comfortable by offering them something to drink or something to snack on while waiting for their turn. They also have free wi-fi and loads of magazines to browse through so you don't get anxious. Considering I did not have an appointment, I was accommodated in just a couple of minutes (to be exact, after I finished reading a whole MEG Magazine issue). :D
Shampoo was first on the list. Usually I find those chairs with sinks uncomfortable and I would get stiff neck while getting my hair shampooed but Benefit's was a little different. They did not have chairs with sinks but beds with sinks! :D You no longer have to tilt your head back on a chair. You just have to lie there with your back fully supported. I seriously wanted to doze off while having my hair cleaned! It was that comfortable. 

Since I also availed of the hair cut voucher, that was next on the agenda. My hairdresser for the day was Mr. Rusty (I'm not sure if I got the spelling right please do inform me :D). He made sure to ask me how I wanted my new hair cut to look like and so I rambled on and on how I wanted to hide my big square face. Then he proceeded with the cut. Next up was the Keratin Treatment. It was done with the same guy who shampooed my hair (sorry If I did not get his name). One thing I loved was how light his hands were in treating my hair. No painful tugs. :D Another real treat was from Mona's healing hands. The free neck and back massage was awesome I wanted more! (I so want to get a massage with my sister soon!).

All-in-all I had to say, I was happy to have come after all. Sam, together with team benefits were extremely nice and accommodating and I liked how they gave me a Good GREAT customer service all the way through. I finally had my sister take a picture of my new hair cut a couple of hours after I left the salon:

If you would like to see how cozy and cute Benefit Salon is, you could take a look at another blogger's experience right here: http://iaadamlim.blogspot.com/2011/03/getting-discounted-hair-pampering-at.html

Till next time! :D

Product Review: Cutex Caring Nail Polish Remover

I've been into nail polishes and nail art this year just because I only started growing my nails this year (that and also I am a certified late bloomer! :D). I know that using acetone alone could be harmful to my nails. But the rate I'm going changing nail polish colors, acetone would be a much affordable choice, or so I thought. It dawned onto me that in the long run, I'm not doing my nails any favor. If I continue hurting them, I might only end up buying more nail repair products in the future. So, out with acetone and in with this product (I guess it still has acetone but only a minimal amount :D).

Cutex Caring Nail Polish Remover 59ml(2 Fl oz)

Price: P59.75 (approx. $1.36)

Place bought: Watson's SM Bacoor

When I first saw this brand I thought it was a Filipino brand mainly because of  how we always pertain to nail polishes as "kutiks" hehehe...But actually, Cutex is owned by Prestige Brands, an American company that manufactures personal care and home cleaning products. It was formed by the merger of Medtech Products, Inc., Prestige Brands International, and The Spic and Span Company.

The bottle is sealed shut to prevent the product from evaporating.

I personally preferred to just punch a small hole through the seal and not take it all off altogether.

Then I took a piece of cotton pad and put in a tad amount of nail polish remover.

let it sit over your nail for a few seconds

in a single swipe, almost all trace of the nail polish was completely gone!

The initial amount I've put on the cotton pad effectively removed the color from 3 of the fingers and I had to replenish to clean off the remaining two from one hand. Also, this product smells citrusy mainly because it has orange oil listed as one of the ingredients, not the usual chemical smell of acetone (but for some, it could still be a little overpowering). It also did not leave a white film on my nails which is a good thing. Given the price tag, I'd say it's a great buy and it does the job effectively so no moolah ( a slang word for "money") was wasted :D. There are still some other brands I'd like to try after I finish this off and the one from Orly is next on my list. How about you, what's your favorite Nail polish remover?