Diane Hair Oil Moroccan Argan Extra Damage Care review

Quantity: 100 ml
Made in Japan
Price: ¥1814 (tax included)

I have been dying to try this hair oil... so I was so happy when my friend gave it to me! Diane is known for its quality in hair products in Japan and they tend to be slightly pricey. e.g. A 500 ml bottle of shampoo can cost ¥700 - ¥900

Claims:

• Preventing split ends and hair breakage 
• Fixing unmanageable, unruly hair 
• Taking care of dyed hair

first impressions:

• very oily
• light scent
• works
• a little (literally one pump) is all you need for all of your hair...

one pump... it was extremely hard to capture this clear oil on camera

All you need is one pump, I keep saying this because it is true... the first time I used this, I thought it was like most hair oils and started using 3-4 pumps, that was WAY too much! After trial and error I came to realize that one pump is more than enough. This oil is heavily concentrated so by using more it would make your hair all oily and gross.

I have long hair and all I need is one pump

This hair oil did wonders to my hair, because of the pollution in Tokyo, I constantly have to wash my hair... this causes split ends and my hair is fragile. After combing my hair, my sink would look as if some hairy monster decided to settle there...

yes... all you need is one pump!

After using this hair oil for about 3 days, I started noticing a significant difference to the health of my hair. My hair felt much stronger and didn't snap easily. It also had a natural shine and became more manageable.

I highly recommend this hair oil! Remember... one pump!


Score: 9.5/10
Website: http://www.moist-diane.jp/en/product/hair_item04.html

Hada Labo 5 in 1 Skin whitening Cream review

Hada Labo's 5 in 1 Whitening

So the name might be slightly confusing, this is actually an all in one cream that you can use after you wash/cleanse your face. You just need to put this on your face and that will be equivalent to putting on toner/moisturizing lotion, moisturizer/emulsion, Serum (美容液), cream (クリームバック),

information on how the products absorb

This was very affordable only ¥1350. It lasted 1.5 months for me (I use it every night and day).

caution and ingredients

• Do not use this on eczema or broken skin,
• Do not store in cold or hot places
• It also lists all the ingredients

how to use this product

Translation (based on my limited Japanese) :

• Night time, after washing your face, apply an appropriate amount to face
• It is not necessary to wash it off
• They recommend... (cannot translate this... have no idea what they are trying to say)
• You can use this with other skin care items (products)

pros:

• time efficient
• my blackheads and whiteheads started to pop and disappear (just 3 days of using this product)
• can be used as an overnight mask

cons:

• stings open pores and wounds A LOT
• moisturizing effects are not long lasting
• cannot separate the different products
• some times it will leave a dry crusty residue on your skin

This was a decent product. It really helped me save a lot of time and made my skin feel very moisturized but did not last the whole day... I had to reapply to maintain the moisture. Sometimes it had weird residue too. It made by pores a lot smaller. There are many advantages as well as disadvantages to this product but I really liked the idea that it was all in one (saving a lot of time and space on my desk). I will definitely be repurchasing this product.

Score: 7.8/10
Website: http://jp.rohto.com/category/skincare/face/

ROHTO C3 Softone Moist review

Softone Moist

I am always willing to try new products (which is why I have started this blog). While shopping at Watson's I came across this contact lenses solution. I made sure it was compatible with my contact lenses before making a purchase.

what is inside the box.

According to the box, this is suitable for all Silicon Hydrogel Lens (however, NOT SUITABLE for Hard or O2 Lens). Since I use Johnson and Johnson's Acuvue Oasys lenses (which are made out of Silicon Hydrogel), I was able to use this solution.

One Touch

so... embarrassingly enough, it took me much longer than it should for me to figure out what does "One Touch" mean. My imagination caused me to think that it was a much greater feature than it really is (e.g. my imagination lead me to think that: 1. if I pressed a certain area of the contact lenses case once, it will caused both sides to open or close; 2. if I put the lenses cases on the container it will dispense or drain all the liquid out... also wrong).

After reading the instructions, I realized that the only purpose of this "One Touch" feature, is so that I could allow the contact lenses case to dry after washing it... seriously? ok... I think they should hire me to come up with better features.

the "One Touch" feature... drying out the case

Made in Japan

Ingredients:

Polyhexamethylene Biguanide, Poloxamer 407 Sodium Borate, Boric Acid, HPMC, EDTA

impressions:

• easy to use
• dispenser made it easy to aim product and not make a mess
• dispenser hole was too small
• does not moisturize as well as Sensitive Eyes (by Johnson and Johnson)
• contact lenses suck up this stuff like crazy

This product was easy to use, the "mouth" was small making it easy to aim the product without leaving any product on the cap however, at the same time, I thought the hole was too small, I constantly wasted time having to squeeze the bottle several times to get enough product out.

I couldn't help but notice that my contact lenses either sucks up a lot of this product OR the product just mysteriously disappears... evaporates? The first few times I used this product I couldn't help but notice (the next morning) that my contact lenses case had little of this product remaining. I thought it was weird... so if you are using this remember to fill up your contact lenses case almost to the top to avoid not having enough product to moisturize your contact lenses.

I also noticed that this product does not moisturize my contact lenses as well as Johnson and Johnson's Sensitive eyes Plus contact lenses solution. I'm not sure whether or not it was because I use Johnson and Johnson's contact lenses... or whether they were a slightly better solution than this one.

Score: 8.0/10
Website: http://www.mentholatum.com.hk/detail.jsp?catid=11%7C19%7C30%7C159&id=340

Essential CC Oil (for hair) review

actual product

My new hair cut has enabled me to constantly blow dry my hair, it just somehow ends up looking hideous if I don't, as a result, (you guessed it) my hair is terribly damaged. Split ends and dry ends (are they the same thing?) have developed and my hair looks dead.

While shopping at Watsons the other day, I saw a display promoting this hair oil from Essential, I was contemplating on getting it, I looked over and L'oreal (or some American brand) was selling their hair oil (in larger amounts) for $165 HKD... and while Essential's was only $65 HKD, so... you guessed it... I got this!...

product with Chinese translation

What it claims:

Non-greasy and invisibly light, the Essential CC Oil coats each strand of hair with a cuticle coat protection to fight the 5 most common forms of hair stresses. The cuticle coat protection leaves hair smooth and tangle-free all day!

• Unprotected hair is prone to friction damage caused by daily external stress factors 
• Essential CC Oil protects hair from the 5 hair stresses 
• Light, non-greasy oil is instantly absorbed by hair 
• Leaves hair smooth & manageable all day

more info

If you can't read Chinese or Japanese the 5 hair stresses include: 

tangling, broken pieces of hair, dried hair, split ends and static

I love Essential products, I have been using their Shampoo for a few months now and their hair mask for a few years... and so far, their products have not disappointed me. I had high hopes for this oil... but I knew that just like their hair mask, this oil won't produce immediate noticeable results.

actual product lasts about a month

impressions:

• a soft fruity scent
• very oily
• my hair absorbed every bit of it
• do not over use
• a little goes a long way 
• does what it says BUT not get rid of tangles
• after using it for 2 weeks, I noticed my hair to be more shinier and stronger

container was made out of strong plastic

How to use:

After you have washed your hair, let it be half dry (usually dry enough, after you towel dry your hair), then you apply the oil.

For long hair, they recommended 5 pumps. I tried that the first time but I did not feel that my whole head was properly coated so after trial and error, for my long hair, I do 3 pumps on each side. I would put 3 pumps onto one hand and smooth it out with my other hand than apply the oil to my hair. Concentrate on "greasing" your roots and for the leftovers gently massage to your scalp and roots.

this is all I needed for my long hair (5 pumps)

Score: 9/10

Website: no website

please check out my personal blog and follow me around Tokyo :)

KOSE Sekkisui Skin Care Set (trial) review

Sekkisui Skin Care Set

Hey everyone!!

I'm in Tokyo!! Konnichiwa!! :D

I'm in the land of great cosmetics and skincare products so the next thing I will review will be, of course, a skin care product!

I have heard of this brand so many times, I have seen them on tv ads, subway ads but I find that it is quite hard to buy... Most drug stores and department stores do not carry this brand... They either carry brands that are much cheaper/affordable (e.g. Naive, HadaLabo) or much more high end (e.g. Shiseido, SK-II).

info all in Japanese

To my surprise, I found this set at a 7-eleven right beside my house! It's a mystery how you can find almost anything you want at 7-eleven.

products and their consistency

random thoughts on these three products:

White Washing Cream

thick, but not as thick as other foam washes... compared to other foam washes, it is considered very watery, easy to foam up, cleans face well... but does not have that squeaky clean feeling.

Pure Whitening Lotion

very watery and barely visible (can you even see the product in the image?), it looks like water with a drop of milk, it is easily absorbed, it feels almost like water... ALMOST... I noticed there's a slight alcohol smell to it when I first apply this to my face (don't overuse!)... I didn't really like this because it did dry out my skin during the second week of using it.

in Asia countries, they call their toners lotions (quite confusing... huh?)

Pure Emulsion

this acts like a moisturizer (for those who are not familiar with Asian skin care products)
the consistency is similar to the Lotion (above) but it is thicker and stickier.
this is fully absorbed into the skin, my skin drinks this up like it is milk... literally :P (Don't overuse!)

impressions:

• my skin loves this set
• results are visible after 3 days of using this product
• my skin feels so soft and smooth (sometimes I can't help but touch it and touch it... *awkward)
• a little goes a long way (they claim you can use it for 15 times (1 week), I managed to use it for 30 times (almost 2 weeks))
• don't use too much product, not only will it not get absorbed, it will also give you pimples/acne
• I didn't like the "PURE WHITENING LOTION" it wasn't doing any good to my skin... 
• for short term use... it somehow starts drying out your skin slightly after 3 weeks (of using)

So now my next question is... after I have finished this trial... where do I find the full sized product? I went on their website, but they did not have these exact products... they were all a variation of it but not these exact ones...

However, that being said, please use this set with caution... after using this set for 3 weeks... I noticed that certain areas of my skin were getting dry... I'm not sure if it was a climate or other factors... but I suggest not using this product consecutively... one kit is good for once... when it's done... let your skin use other products before going back to this kit again.

Score: 7/10
Website: http://www.kose.co.jp/jp/ja/product/brand/38

also... if you are interested, please check out my personal blog and follow me around Tokyo :)