I have tried out more skincare and I have found some major hits. Here's some of my new found loves.

Recherché Cell Repair Lift Serum and Amino Acid Cleansing Mousse*

Recherché skincare (a homegrown company with its products made locally in Singapore!) recently reached out to me to try out some of their skincare and while I haven't managed to try out all of the products that they have sent me, I really do enjoy the two that I have opened so far.

The first item is the Cell Repair Lift Serum. This serum incorporates advanced oligopeptide technology and claims to help repair and brighten the skin, combat fine lines and wrinkles and re-plump the skin. It also contains many nutrients to help the skin cells protect against external aggressors in the environment. This serum comes with a pump for easy dispensing and the serum is really watery, thus absorbs into the skin in a matter of seconds. It's extremely lightweight and non-greasy, making it a great layering serum in a any skincare routine. 

Here's the ingredients list if you're interested: Aqua/Water, Glycerin, Methylsilanol Mannuronate, Dimethyl lsosorbide, Avena Sativa (Oat) Protein Extract, Methylglucoside Phosphate, Copper Lysinate/Prolinate, Propanediol, Anogeissus Leiocarpus Extract, Sodium PCA, Sodium Lactate, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, PCA, Glycine, Alanine, Serine, Valine, Praline, Threonine, lsoleucine, Histidine, Phenylalanine, Pentapeptide, Gluconolactone, Sodium Benzoate, Cyamopsis Tetragonoloba (Guar) Gum, Xanthan Gum. You can find out more details about their choice of ingredients on their website here. 

The next item I tried was their Amino Acid Cleansing Mousse, which uses special nano-cleansing molecules to wash away all traces of dirt, grime, pollutants and makeup thoroughly in one step. I've tested it with my regular undereye concealer and mascara get up and am glad to report that it removes it all easily.  I love that this is a mousse, which means that I don't have to foam up the cleanser as it already all foamy when dispensed (cheap thrills, really). I love anything that's foamy so this is right up my alley. My ultimate favourite part is its scent. This contains sweet orange and lavender essential oils, so it is extremely calming yet rejuvenating. As I use this in the mornings, I look forward to washing my face as the scent is just too lovely. However, I do know that essential oils can cause skin irritation to some, so that's something to take note of. Personally, I do have sensitive skin but I'm glad that this cleanser has not caused any skin irritation or mini bumps. The oils are also pretty low on the ingredients list so it should generally be alright. This cleanser leaves my skin feeling fresh and clean, without the tight sensation that could arise with harsher cleansers. I do thoroughly enjoy this one. 

Canmake Stay-On Balm Rouge in T01

I love a good throw-on product and this one is perfect. My lips get dry really easily and I do have a habit to always apply lip balm. In terms of texture and moisturising ability, this product feels and works exactly like a lip balm but with the added benefit of tinting the lips for a natural flush of colour. My lips tend to be a pretty pale and without any added colour, I personally feel like I'm not part of the living. There isn't too much pigmentation in this too, making it really easy to just throw onto the lips without a mirror as you can't really go wrong. It feels very comfortable and it is one of my current staples.

Now Foods Orange Essential Oil

I love my aroma diffuser and recently, I've been thoroughly loving the scent of my orange essential oil. When used in the day, I find the scent extremely invigorating and rejuvenating. I love adding a few drops in the moment I wake up so that the room smells absolutely lovely by the time I wash up and ate my breakfast. Scents are such a great way to lift my spirits and vibrations and currently, orange is on top of my list. I get all of my essential oils from iHerb and they are really affordable.

Crabtree and Evelyn Seaside Vibes Lifestyle Mist

Keeping with the scent train, I recently picked up this lifestyle mist from Crabtree and Evelyn. It was an extremely impromptu purchase as I was just walking by and my friend wanted to go in for a sniff. After smelling Seaside Vibes, I immediately fell in love and bought it. I keep this by my bed and whenever I remember, I would give it a spritz or two over the pillow and sheets before tucking into bed. Despite the label stating bathroom, I can't get over how the scent makes my sheets feel clean, comfy and cozy. Do note that the mist isn't very fine, so the sheets can get a little damp if you got overboard (which I sometimes do). It works well in getting me to settle into bed. The scent doesn't last very long, about a few minutes or so, but I do love including this as part of my bed time routine.

Tiger Stainless Steel Vacuum Insulated Thermal Bottle Cup Flask

My student gave this to me for teacher's day and I have been using it ever since. I try my utmost best to not use disposable water bottles any more and I love how small this is (it fits into every bag that I have!). 300ml isn't enough to last me a day but it's a great throw in for to quench any thirst that may arise. As this is stainless steel, it works really well in keeping my coffee hot for hours. I was really surprised the first time I used it as I made my coffee in the morning, volunteered at the dog shelter for a few hours and when I left to head for boxing, my coffee was still deliciously hot. I have tried it for iced coffee too, and it worked perfectly well in keeping it cold for about 4 hours. Yes, I know what you're thinking; I drink my coffee really slowly, and this is why this cup flask is absolutely perfect for me. I managed to find the exact one on Lazada and while it is quite pricey in my opinion, I do think that it is extremely worth it.

Norel Renew Extreme Multi Vitamin Brightening Treatment*

Recently I dropped by Annabelle Skin (you can read about my previous experience here) to try out the new brightening treatment using Norel products, which is an award winning Polish skincare brand, to brighten and add radiance to the skin. This Renew Extreme Multi Vitamin Brightening Treatment comprises of 25% Phytic Acid, Vitamin C and Retinol to help reduce the signs of photo-ageing such as hyperpigmentation and saggy skin (which coincidentally, happens to me).

After cleansing the skin, phytic acid of 25% concentration is applied to the skin, followed by cling wrap to help with its penetration and efficacy. I have not heard of phytic acid before, but I did some research and turns out, this is one of the gentlest acids out there and helps to restore the natural radiance of the skin. Despite its 25% concentration, I did find the acid to be really gentle as it didn’t sting at all nor did I feel uncomfortable. After removing the cling wrap, we proceeded to a facial massage using the 10% Vitamin C brightening serum, 5% Retional H10 rejuvenating serum and face rejuve massage serum. This felt amazing and extremely soothing! The next step comprised of adding the nourishing vitamin mask (this smelt really amazing) and peel off algae mask. While the mask sets, I greatly enjoyed the shoulder and neck massage, before falling asleep.

After the entire treatment which was about an hour, I did notice a difference in how my skin looked. There was a glow (especially noticeable around the cheekbone area) and my skin looked less tired. To maintain the effects, I am using the Retinol and Vitamin C Rejuvenating Serum twice daily and Retinol H10 Triple Active Rejuvenating Cream at night. After using it for about a week now, I can say that I am a fan of the rejuvenating serum. It is a concentrated serum based on light oils such as Plantasens mink oil and grapeseed oil and while I am generally quite nervous to use serums that are oil based, this serum still feels lightweight on the skin and doesn’t cause any clogged pores around my cheek area (which happens often with oil based serums). As it does contain a high percentage of retinol and vitamin C, I do feel like it is especially effective in brightening up the skin. My skin is susceptible to looking dull and tired, and the olive undertone of mine only exacerbates the dullness in my opinion. As I have been using this serum religiously every night, I do think that the combination of retinol and vitamin C is extremely effective in adding radiance to my skin, more so than my previous combination of using a separate vitamin C serum and retinol serum.

The Triple Active Rejuvenating Cream is lovely too. It is a night cream that is formulated with retinol H10, vitamin C and phytic acid and is said to help moisturise, soothe and increase the skin’s firmness. As I read the description of the cream, I thought that it would be quite heavy in texture, but it gets absorbed into the skin really easily without leaving it overly tacky.

The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down by Haemin Sunim

Busy is such a buzz word these days, and some people even tout it as an honorary badge of hard work. I used to act and think like such, where if I pack my days to the brim, it means I am working really hard and being super productive. Let's just say after reading quite a few books about the brain and the need for a recharge, I'm glad that my perspective has changed. This book is an extremely digestible read, with some poems and quotes that really made me think about how I viewed the world and all of my external circumstances. There's this part in the book which states that the world has never complained about how busy it is and that's because it isn't the outside world that is a whirlwind but our own minds. I had to ponder over that for a while but it really makes so much sense. I highly recommend this book, and if your first thought is I ain't got no time to read that, then well, all the more I think you should pick it up!


What are some of your recent favourites?

I can't wait to share my Australia trip with you soon. Till then,





**PR gifts/treatment. Thoughts are my own. 

2. Age-Defying & Skin Clearing Vitamin C Facial Serum with Retinol + Salicylic Acid
3. Eyelash Enhancing Growth Serum
4. Niacinamide Vitamin B3 Serum, Dark Spot Serum



Active Ingredients: Zinc Oxide (5%), Titanium Dioxide (3%) and Octisalate (5%)
Inactive Ingredients: Water (aqua), aloe barbadensis leaf juice, caprylica/capric triglyceride*, caprylyl ether*, carthamus tinctorius (safflower) seed oil, sorbitan monostearate, triethoxycaprylylsilane, cety alchol*, glycerin*, isostearic acid*, polyglyceryl-6 distearate*, jojoba esters*, polyglyceryl-3 beeswax*, polyglyceryl-10 laurate*, tapioca starch, polymethylsilsesquixoane, sodium hyaluronate, limnanthes alba (meadowfoam) seed oil, sodium ascorbyl phosphate, niacinamide, helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, rosa canina fruit oil, argania spinosa kernel oil, hesperidin, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, centella asiatic extract, hibiscus rosa-sinensis flower extract, dipotassium glycyrrhizinate, dehydroxanthan gum*, pentylene glycol*, caprylyl glycol, ethylhexylglycerin. (*Naturally Derived)

It's time for an empties post again! Quite a bit of skincare items this time round as honestly, makeup products are extremely difficult for me to finish. I usually am light handed with my makeup products and considering now that I go makeup free on most days, it's going to be a while till I get to the bottom of one. Till then, skincare products are the focus for now, especially since I am starting to notice the slight changes to my skin now that I am getting older. Prevention is always better than cure, I say and some of these products are definitely ones that I would repurchase. In fact, some of these items have been featured in my favourites so you'd probably seen me talk about them before!

Lierac Lumilogie Double Concentrate Day and Night Dark Spot Correction Treatment*

The name is definitely a mouthful, but I love this idea of having two serums in one packaging. One side is for the day and the other is for the night. These serums come out opaque (day serum is orange and the night one is white in colour) and the consistency resembles a non-viscous cream. As it is slightly thicker than my other serums, I like to use this last right before my moisturiser and I find that it works well. I usually one pump per application and it is sufficient to spread across the entire face. After using this up in combination with other whitening and lightening serums, I have to say I do see a difference in terms of radiant and glow of my skin. My dark spots around my cheek area are also a less intense. It is very difficult to pin point which product plays the biggest role as I use about 3 serums in both my day and night routine. Lierac is quite a pricey brand and I’m not sure if I would repurchase. However, if you consider the idea of getting two different serums, the price is justifiable. 

Kew Organics Apple Stem Vita Glow Serum* 

I mentioned this serum in my favourites and for good reason. It is made with organic products and the scent is something I enjoy as I apply it daily. I love how lightweight this serum is and how quickly it gets absorbed into the skin. I found that it also helps to hydrate my skin too, as I noticed less dry patches around my nose and in between my eyebrows. I would considering repurchasing this when I’m done with my serum stash.

Labiotte UV Veil Moisture Sun Essence

You'd see this mentioned multiple times on my blog as I love it so much. I am putting it out there - this is probably my favourite sunscreen ever. I’ve tried quite a few and I’m picky as thick and sticky ones gets thrown out immediately. This sunscreen is so lightweight, it resembles a light moisturiser. It packs a punch too, at SPF 50+ PA +++.  I used this for my Phuket trip and it prevented my face from getting burnt. This is truly tried and tested and I would definitely repurchase this without blinking an eye. However, I bought mine from Seoul and can’t seem to find this in Singapore. Time to plan a trip back to Korea I suppose!

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer 

One of my favourite concealers as it works so well in covering up my dark circles without settling into my fine lines. I love it whenever I’m rushing out of the house as it blends so easily and I find myself rarely requiring to apply another layer. As a liquid concealer, it lasts for a shorter period of time on the skin as compared to cream concealers if you don’t set it like I do. However, the packaging is so compact and thin that I find carrying it around for touch ups easy peasy. I'm heading to Australia next month and I do plan to stock up on a few! 

Kiko Extra Sculpt Volume Mascara 

When I used to watch tons of youtube beauty videos, I always notice that Kathleen lights loved this mascara so much so I couldn’t help but get it myself. Personally, this mascara did not wow me in any way and it kept smudging on me. In terms of lengthening the lashes, I’d say this mascara does a good job. However, it does add minimal volume to the lashes in my opinion which is odd considering its name. The brush is a little big for my Asian eyes, but with some proper manoeuvring, I find that the brush works well in separating the lashes and making the individual lashes really defined. It was quite pricey when compared to other mascaras which I feel give a similar effect, so I doubt I would repurchase this. 

Vichy Mineral 89 Skin Fortifying Daily Booster* 

I still remember the hype when this was launched and I was extremely pumped to try this out. While I do enjoy a few Vichy skincare products, I have to admit this serum took me forever to finish as I wasn’t really excited to use it. Despite it containing up to 89% of Vichy mineralising water, I found that the texture of this serum to be a tad heavy and sticky on my skin so instead of following their instructions to use this as the first step, I’d usually use this as my last step before moisturiser. If I used this first, my skin just felt sticky after and I did not feel like the other serums I applied after would get absorbed. This serums claims to help reinforces skin barrier function and make the skin stronger against aggressors like pollution, stress and fatigue. It is difficult for me to attest to these claims from my use. Thus, I will not be repurchasing it.

La Prairie Platinum Rare Cellular Eye Serum

This is probably the fanciest item that I've ever used and that's honestly because it was a gift. This eye serum contains anti-wrinkle firming peptides which is said to give the skin an immediate lifting effect. The serum itself is a slightly viscous iridescent liquid that blends nicely under the eyes and gets absorbed in seconds. I'm not sure if it is any placebo effect of some sort, but I honestly do notice a difference in my under eye area about 3 days into using this. My skin felt firmer and my undereye creases looked less pronounced. In terms of dark circles, not much effect was seen but that is understandable since these pesky circles have been with me pretty much my whole life. I rarely do see a pronounced effect in an eye care product and this truly impressed me. That being said, I will not be repurchasing this as I'm not loaded with tons of cash. yet. 

Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire Eau Fraise EDT

It takes me forever to finish a fragrance so I'm proud that I finally finished this La Petite Robe Noire Eau De Toilette from Guerlain. This is from the La Petite Robe Noire Ma Robe Petales release under the La Petite Robe collection.  This was my first ever Guerlain fragrance and I have to say my experience was pleasant. Despite this being an EDT, I do find that it lasted a really long time on my skin and the scent doesn't change throughout the day. This contains a mix of mandarin, lemon, bergamot and orange blossom among other accords with a hint of pistachio. The scent is quite unique to me as I rarely see pistachio in the mix and I can actually smell it in this. It isn't overpowering and I do think the scent is elegantly fresh (obviously, I lack the appropriate vocabulary to describe fragrances!). I might repurchase this again some day when my perfumes are done.

Loreal Revitalift Micronised Centella Micro-Essence Water*

I have to say this has become one of my favourite essences so far (it was featured in my current favourites a while back), and yes even over the SK-II facial essence. This is extremely light and gets absorbed in a matter of seconds. It is a great throw on before any other skincare product and I like how the fragrance is very subtle. This essence contains 92% micronised pure centella essence which is said to have extraordinary healing power to repair aging marks and help the skin regain firmness and elasticity. The droplets are also 5 times smaller, enabling it to penetrate the skin much further. After using up this bottle, I noticed that my skin does emit a slight natural glow right after applying this and I do think that the ingredient list has a great potential. Considering it’s affordable price (I got mine for SGD 35.90 for a local Watsons), I’ll definitely repurchase again. In fact, I’m already on my second bottle and foresee myself buying another when this runs out.

That's it for a pretty lengthy empties post! I have started on a few new skincare products and I am excited to share them with you, so do look out for them in an upcoming post!

Till then,




**PR/Gifted items

Day One

Upon arriving and checking in, we just decided to walk around the area near Ao Nang Beach. There are many stores selling tourist souvenirs along the way. I kept getting myself a fresh coconut to quench my thirst as it was only 50 baht! I am not sure if this is a seasonal thing, but if you keep walking and past Ao Nang Beach to the area near the hotel near Wake Up Aonang, they have this durian cart where you can get three mini durians for 100 baht! That’s about two bowls full of creamy goodness, if durians are your thing.


After relishing up the durian and a delish and crispy banana Nutella pancake (store is really close to the durian one/Wakeup Aonang), we headed to body surf in the Ao Nang Beach. It is free and fun!

For dinner, I would recommend checking out E San’s Seafood (it’s near the hotel I stayed in, about 3 minute walk from the edge of the beach). The Tom Kha Kai was so good and it was only 150 baht I believe. The dishes were delicious and had that home cooked vibe. It was affordable and satisfying.

There are a myriad of massage parlours to choose from, so you will be spoilt for choice. Personally, I do not recommend Alley (I believe it is a chain) as it was probably one of the worst Thai massages I’ve ever had. The lady kept pressing on the wrong points and it just felt lazy and uncomfortable.

Day Two

You have to check out Railay islands and their beaches. It’s stunning. There are tons of shops offering ferries/long tail boats that can bring you there. For me, I booked a rock climbing tour that includes a hotel pick up and a long tail boat ride. We decided to take the first ferry in the morning and the last ferry back. This gave us time to explore the island after our rock climbing adventure.


Rock climbing was fun, even if you’re a beginner. Trust me, I was pretty bad at it and kept slipping (the rain didn’t help!) but my guide kept me safe. It is definitely worth a try. If rock climbing isn’t up your alley, you can venture around Railay island to visit the gorgeous Phra Nang Cave beach.


The view here is stunning and you will also chance upon the Princess Cave that contains tons of wooden male parts. We also visited the Diamond Cave (there is an admission fee of 100 baht) and its worth checking out.


With the ferry back to Ao Nang, we simply walked around and ate tons of snacks. We decided to try Feel Good Massage this time and it was fantastic. However, it does depend on the masseuse as we went back again for our last night, and it wasn’t as great.

Day Three

We booked a 4 island tour and it was definitely worth it. Many shops along the street do offer these tours too, but they are way more expensive. In the morning, we had the hotel pickup which brought us to the pier. There, we embarked on our journey.


The first island we visited again was Railay, which I had no complains about as I love that place. I went to swim in the water till time was up and we headed to chicken island for some snorkeling. The gear was provided so I had really no excuse to not try it out.


As a first timer to snorkeling, I was quite afraid but I gotta say, it was really cool. There were tons of sea urchins on the ground and some corals. There were some colourful fishes too.

Right after, we headed to Koh Tub and Koh Mor which are connected by a narrow strap of sand when it is low tide. Here, the water was crystal clear! Do be careful though, there were tons of rocks on the sand floor as we waded into the water.

Last island was Koh Poda with its famous tall rock (as seen in my very first photo!). This was where most tours have their lunch too. Water was pretty clear as well and the view was once again, stunning. Then, we had the journey back.

Since it was our last night, we just wanted to relax and chill. We had the option of taking a taxi to Krabi Town to visit the night markets, but we were exhausted. We also did not feel like spending the money to go there and back. Thus, more durians and pancakes for us and I could not be happier.

There are so many other things in beautiful Krabi that we couldn’t do, such as hiking up Dragon Crest Mountain (also known as Khao Ngon Nak) and visiting Koh Phi Phi. There are so many islands out there to visit! I would say 3 days is sufficient if you’re mostly interested in the Ao Nang/town area with some day trips to some surrounding islands. But if you really want to explore Krabi’s surroundings (like Khao Sok and the Cheow Lan Lake, which I highly highly recommend, then a few more days would be required). You can check out some pictures from my trip to Phuket and Cheow Lan Lake here.


Thailand will always be a lovely getaway and cheap air tickets always make it much easier to get a short taste of paradise. Personally, I prefer settling my tours before I fly so booking online works well for me. There are a myriad of websites to book tours so you can simply google and find some good deals. I hope this itinerary and mini guide was useful in some way of planning your future getaway!


Till next time, Thailand. For now, I’ll be counting down to my trip to Melbourne, Sydney and Cairns where I’ll be snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef. I can’t wait!

Till then,

Side note, you would read over and over again how a skincare product has great absorption without leaving a tacky film on the skin. I apologise for repeating it so much but that really is one of my main criteria when it comes to me enjoying a skincare product. I hate the feeling of a heavy layer on my skin and especially with our humid climate, a lightweight skincare product is crucial for me to feel comfortable. 

Perricone MD Firming Eye Cream* 

Esqido X&O Unisyn lashes*

Despite my love for eyeshadow, I find myself skipping them quite often lately as I am just feeling pretty uninspired and am in the phase of simplifying my makeup routine. Thus, instead of reaching for my bolder palettes to jazz up the eyes, I simply put on some false lashes to take the look up another level. This is especially useful for occasions like attending a wedding after work where touching up is not the top of my list. This X&O Unisyn Lashes from Esquido Lashes are working really well for me. I got their Unisyn synthetic lashes (they are well known for their mink lashes but I am not really a fan of the idea of mink hairs) and despite it being synthetic, this lash is extremely comfortable to wear. I tend to not wear lashes as I hate the feeling of the band on my lids but this lash stakes almost no time to get used to. The cotton band is thin and flexible, so it moulds nicely to the shape of my asian eye well. The lashes are 8 - 13 mm long, and while that length is quite long for me personally, I don't find it too dramatic as the lashes are thin and nicely tapered. This style adds just the right touch of length and volume to my lashes to give added definition without going over the top. This is USD 22, which can be quite pricey for some, but I have to say, I've used this about 4 times now and the lash is still going strong. The craftsmanship is good as well, so I do think that this lash can be reused multiple times. 

September is going to be pretty hectic for me so please don't mind the lack of posts that I foresee will happen. My P6 students are going to be taking their PSLE and my goodness, why am I so nervous for them. That said, I hope your September has been fantastic so far! 

What were some of your favourites for August? 

Till then, 

**PR/ gifted items. I'm not compensated to talk about these items and only my honest opinions are expressed.