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. 

Loreal True Match Concealer

I had such a tough time choosing a concealer but ultimately, I do think this is my favourite out of the huge bunch that I've tried. There were many close favourites like the Maybelline Fit Me and Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer but ultimately, the Loreal True Match Concealer just tops the cake. This concealer's formulation is very fluid and it feels extremely lightweight on the skin. It blends so well (and I simply just use my finger!) and I find that I can layer it to add more coverage if needed. This makes it great as a concealer for both natural and light makeup days to the glam nights. I throughly enjoy this concealer and another plus point is that is it so affordable since it can be found at the drugstore.

Maybelline Brow Fibre Mascara

As I've had my eyebrows embroidered recently, I rarely do find the need to fill them in. However, I do like to add a little more volume and depth sometimes and this Maybelline Brow Fibre Mascara works great for that. Many call this a dupe for the Benefit Gimme Brow which I can't attest to as I've not tried the latter, but this does contain mini fibres as well. A little swipe of this adds some colour and fluff, if you will, to the brow hairs and make them look full yet natural.

Too Faced Born This Way Foundation

Foundation hasn't been on my vanity much lately but one is always good to have. If I think about all the foundations I've tried, the YSL Fusion Ink foundation always crosses my mind as being a top notch favourite. Sadly, that is pricey and discontinued so I have to move to my second best, which is the Born This Way from Too Faced. This foundation gives me a medium coverage with a thin layer and can be built up to a medium full. This foundation dries a natural satin finish on my skin and despite its claims, I do think that with this, it is pretty obvious that I am wearing a foundation but in no way does it look cakey or heavy on the skin. Sometimes, to make it a little more sheer and dewy, I'll mix in a little facial oil to give it a little more slip and sheen. This foundation blends like a dream with both a brush and a beauty sponge and a good one to begin my collection with.

Morphe Brushes 25A Copper Spice Eyeshadow Palette

Something that was tough for me to decide on as well, but this Morphe palette really does satisfy my need and love for warm toned oranges and browns. With 25 shades, this palette alone can create tons of warm toned looks (which I always do) that range from natural to bold. The only thing missing for me is a matte bone shade but I can always substitute it with some face powder so I can definitely make this palette work for me. It also does not contain any purple shades, which saddens me a little as I try to add a little purple here and there some times as it is my favourite colour, but like the name suggests, it will satisfy any need for warm coppers and oranges.The shadows have great pigmentation and blendabilty, making them a joy to use. They have since repackaged this eyeshadow palette and it now comes in the typical black Morphe packaging. For the price and for the quality of these 25 eyeshadows, I would gladly repurchase again. However, if you're from Singapore like I am, do note that sadly, Morphe charges a bomb for international shipping so I usually get my orders from Beautybay as they do ship to Singapore for free with minimum spending and I do not find the price to be too big of a difference.

Amrezy Highlight   

I know this is limited edition and it's a little unfair to put it in this list but my goodness, this has been the only highlighter I've been using everyday since I received it about 2 months ago. All my other highlighters seem to fade in the background. I love how a applying a sheer layer can result in a natural glow and layering it gives a gorgeous and intense luminosity. This champagne looks so flattering on my skin as it isn't too warm and cool and I just love how there isn't any large chunks of glitter in it. The formulation is unique and enables me to use both brushes and damp sponges to work it onto the skin. So let's pretend it's going to be around should the unfortunate incident of a need to repurchase it arise.

             

Covergirl Supersizer Mascara

This mascara can do me no wrong. I love it and I'm pretty sure that if you read this blog quite a bit, you'd know as I've had numerous praises for this gorgeous tube of wonder. It holds my curl, lengthens the lashes and adds a good amount of volume and definition. It does not flake on me (which quite a few mascaras do on me) and I can laugh and squint my eyes all I want and there will still be no black smudges under the eye. The formulation isn't too wet or dry either, giving me enough time to coat and separate the lashes while drying in a decently short time.

Innisfree No Sebum Powder

I'm generally not too picky about my face powders as I mostly use them to set any base makeup, if any, or to mattify the skin after application of sunscreen. That being said, I particularly love a good powder that is finely milled. I find that this makes the skin look smoother and it does not look heavy. One of the best that I've found so far would be the Innisfree No Sebum Powder. I have gone through about 2 tubs of the original (in the green tub) and the one featured in the pictures is the blur version (which honestly, I don't find to be much of a difference). Regardless, this is an affordable powder that really works well in controlling shine throughout the day. I also like that it is translucent and doesn't alter the shade of my foundations or concealers. If all my powders were gone, this is probably the first I would repurchase. 

Labiotte Wine Lip Tint

This was a tough category to choose too, but I figured that I would go with something that I could use comfortably on a daily basis and that would be my Labiotte Wine Lip Tints. These are great for a simple throw-onto-the-lips and as they are pretty sheer. They can be built up for a more intense colour payoff as well, but generally I'm good with just one layer as it gives my lips enough colour. The lightweight formulation makes it extremely comfortable to wear as I barely feel like there's any product on my lips after it sets! My favourite shade is CR02 Riesling Coral and it is a lovely light coral shade that adds life back to the face. I did a review and a full swatch of some that I have in the post here for your reference too!

As my makeup routine has been tremendously simplified recently, I do think that these 10 items would definitely fulfil my needs on a daily basis. These truly are the ones I go to as well, when I'm in a time crunch or just out of any creativity.

What are some of your makeup must-haves? 

Till then,

I'm definitely not one to go to for advice on fitness but my sister loves to work out and she got me to purchase a protein powder recently. I have looked around, both online and in stores, and I realised that protein powders do cost quite a bit! After reading tons of reviews and research, we decided to get the Nitrotech Whey Gold from Muscletech. We got it during a promotion (which happens quite often), and the 1kg container only cost about SGD 40. That was a good deal and we quite like it so far. It isn't overly sweet and mixes easily without many clumps. I also realised that other well-known protein powders like the Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey is also cheaper than most sites I've seen. If you're a regular protein shake drinker or know someone who is, I do think iHerb's protein powders are worth checking out. You might save some money!

Lastly, I'll just list some of my favourite items to get from this site.

Stridex Single Step Acne Control Maximum Pads - If you have acne or would like to give chemical exfoliant a shot, these facial sheets are one to try! I've mentioned my love for these here as it helped to clear up my acne on my cheeks significantly. P.s. I also love using this on my legs to help prevent any ingrown hair after using the epilate machine! It really helps to smooth out the skin.

My favourite brand of tea available on site would be Stash Tea and as mentioned before (here), their Camomile Nights Bedtime Blend is my absolute must have for stressful periods as sipping on it immediately calms me down and preps me for a good night sleep. A box of 20 costs about SGD 4.40 which I think is a pretty good deal.


iHerb does provide free shipping if you spend above SGD 55 (I think) which honestly, isn't hard to do for me personally. They also have shipper saver items that once added to cart, the shipping costs decrease! Generally for me, my shipments take about a week to get to my doorstep and that's pretty decent considering that it is free and there's tracking.

Overall, I do love this site and forsee myself using it to supplement my life for a long time to come. I hope that you would check it out if this site is new to you. There are so many things available and I do find the prices pretty competitive. Now, if you're a new customer and if you would like, you can use my code QFR109 to receive 5% off your cart (do note, I also would get 5% reward credits if you do use it and I really appreciate it!).

If you're an iHerb regular, what else do you like to get? Sometimes there are so many items available than I don't know what else to try! Please do share them with me as I always love to try new things out.

What else do you like to buy off iHerb? Do share as I would like to check them out!

Till then,