Skincare || Sunscreen 101

Assalamualaikum.

Hello there!

You would probably know what I wanted to review based on the title. So, I am gonna talk about sun screen or some might call it sun block. I am applying sunscreen as day routine for almost a year now. And I do have my favourite sunscreen. *of course*. I will be telling you guys all about this amazing product. And sunscreen will help you to prevent wrinkles and ageing skin.

Image by Mr. Google

First thing first, Why do you need sunscreen as your daily skincare?

This days, our skin is exposed to direct sun as the ozone layer is thinning. The sun have two types of ray which are UVA - Ultra Violet Alpha ray and UVB - Ultra Violet Beta ray. 


What do UVA and UVB do to our skin??

UVA will penetrate deep into the skin although you stay in your house because it can pass through everything including walls and windows. *that is scary!* UVA will activate a type of hormone that will cause skin cancer. You can only get the effect after 20 - 30 years from now. *that is scarier!!* 

Whereas UVB will cause you getting sunburn, redness, or even darkening. *depends on your skin type*.

Here is a simple diagram for you to understand better. *please ignore my ugly sketching. I do not know how to draw. -,- *

How to choose the ideal sunscreen??

There are three factors that you have to consider before you buy a sunscreen. Let me guide you through it.


a) SPF

Here is the thing, SPF will only protect you with UVB rays. It will help you to not get sunburn and redness.

How to do choose which SPF suits you?

1 SPF = 10 minutes of protection from the rays

this means that you have to re-apply your sunscreen every 10 minutes. I know we are all lazy in reapplying anything on our face except make-up. HAHA

so, 15 SPF = 150 minutes / 2 hours and 30 minutes of protection

30 SPF = 300 minutes o/ 5 hours of protection

and, 60 SPF = 600 minutes / 10 hours of protection

Thus, calculate your estimate hours of exposing your skin to the sun babe!



b) Broad-spectrum

Broad-spectrum is basically a sunscreen that protects both UVA and UVB. Some sunscreen write 'Broad-spectrum' on the packaging and some writes 'protection from UVA and UVB'. Some others only protects your skin from UVB.

Hence, you might want to look at the descriptions on the box and read carefully. You do want a full protection from the rays right?



c) PA

PA gives you protections from UVA ray. *the one that will cause you skin cancer*

How do you define the PA system?

PA + = the lowest protection
PA++ = the medium protection
PA+++ = The highest protection

Did you know that there are 2 types of sunscreen? We have chemical sunscreen and physical sunscreen. Chemical sunscreen will absorb the rays *act like a sponge* while physical sunscreen will reflect / block the rays.



These are the common ingredients in the sunscreen:

Physical sunscreen - titanium dioxide, zinc oxide. ( Physical sunscreen will leave you a white cast and normally only protect UVB. Nomally physical sunscreen have a creamy texture)

Chemical sunscreen - octylcylene, avobenzone, octinonate, octisalate, oxybenzone, homosalate, helioplex, 4-MBC, mexoryl SX & XL, tinosorb S & M, uvinul T - 150, uvinul A plus. ( Chemical sunscreen blend in your skin. It is great to be apply on face and normally have a watery texture)



In a nutshell, I would say the fairer your skin tone / the easier you get burn, 
the higher SPF and PA you need.



Thanks for reading.
Good luck.




Find me on Instagram @alyarazali

Skin Care || Make-up Remover or Cleansing Oil?

Assalamualaikum.

Hi there!

Do you loves applying make up? I believe every women would like to wear make up and doll up for special occasion or even some for daily routine e.g. going to class, work, shopping, etc. I noticed most of Malaysian would like to apply eyeliner as a simple and wearable make up look for everyday activities. So, have you ever had a hard time to remove your eyeliner? You might have to scrub your eye lid real hard and end up, having irritated eyes. Here is when you have to have a make up remover or cleansing oil. But which one to choose? I will guide you on your ideal type of make up remover that suits your needs.

1. Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Make-up Remover

Retail Price : RM45.90

I would suggest this make up remover for girls with light make up application. It is a water-based remover. It can remove only light make up. By mean, no foundation, and no water-proof make up products. It can remove the water proof make up but not completely clean. It does leave a layer of product that you need to scrub later on. And normally the layer is real hard to remove even if you wash it with facial cleanser. It goes deep into the pores/fine line on your face. 

I used to use this remover because I have the thought of cleansing oil will clog my pores and I will get terrible break out. I avoid any oil cleanser and grab this instead. And I used to apply simple make up which are powder, blusher and lip colour. I will only apply eyeliner for special occasion. Thus, this make up remover work best for me for my simple everyday make up look.

Test:

2 layers of Maybelline Hyper Sharp eyeliner. *I normally apply two layers for intense black.

Thick texture

Lightly massage with circular motion for 25 seconds

Rinse with water without adding any scrubbing

2. Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Cleansing Oil

Retail price : RM49.90

There are two types of girl that are suitable with this remover.

a) Girl who wore any water-proof, heavy make up

b) Girl who sometimes applies heavy makeup and sometimes applies simple make up look.

Why did I say that? I don't think you need to have both of the remover so that you can alternate between water-based remover and oil cleansing. You can save your money by buying this cleansing oil only. You can use for any make up look either light or heavy. This cleansing oil can take away any water-proof products and your foundation too. It is also gentle to your skin and you don't need to scrub hard to remove all the water-proof make up.

Test:

2 layers of Maybelline Hyper Sharp eyeliner. *I normally apply two layers for intense black.

The texture is light and it can be runny

Lightly massage with circular motion for 25 seconds

Rinse with water without adding any scrubbing

And surprisingly, this cleansing oil does not leave your skin oily and will not cause you breakout. It is a water soluble oil cleanser and the oil used in this cleanser is a high purity olive oil. Okay, truth to be told, I don't really know what is a high purity olive oil. I'm just a normal lady. But what I know, olive oil does help in removing make up. If you prefer to use the normal olive oil to remove your make up, sure you can. But you will feel that the oil is hard to get off your skin. I personally don't like that feeling. Thus, this remover is really helpful in removing all the make up without rough scrubs and irritates your skin. 

In a nut shell, I really think any girl who like to apply make up should own a makeup remover. Please do not depend solely on your facial cleanser. It will not remove the makeup completely. And don't blame anyone if you start getting breakout later. I hope this may guide you in choosing the best make-up remover.

Thank you. Good luck.

*Do follow me on Instagram  @alyarazali

**Disclaimer: I bought these with my own money and reviewed it according to my liking and suitability of my skin.

Skin Care || Night Routine - L'occitane Immortelle Series

Assalamualaikum.

Hi there!

Did you ever know that night regime is the most crucial part in repairing your skin? Most of us would neglect the night regime because we prefer to have clean face without any products on when we go to sleep. Yeah, I used to have that feeling. Until one day, I heard one of my friend said night cream would help a lot in repairing the skin. That time, I apply Olay Night Cream. But I still don't like the feeling of applying products at night. I felt my skin very oily. *I'm sorry Olay. You're just not suitable for my skin. :/ So, I skip one day, two days, three days, and it happened that I skip it forever. *forever here means it is a very longggg time.

Recently, *not really very recent but yeah, I won a contest on Facebook organized by L'occitane en Provence. My family and my best friend know that I really love to apply for free samples. HAHA. So, I redeem the free sample at the nearest L'occitane en Provence outlet and try their new Brightening Essence. After a few weeks of redeeming the freebies, I got a message to write a review on their Facebook page and I might be winning the grand prize. So, I reviewed their Brightening Essence and I didn't hope for anything at all. Suddenly I got a notification saying I am one of the five grand prize winners of the contest after a month of silence. I really didn't expecting anything. And of course I went all crazy and tell my family and friend about it. Hence, I decided to use these products as my night regime. Why I only wear it at night? I will tell you further below.

I won three essential products from them. A bottle toner, a jar of essence, and a jar of cream. I am writing according to the sequence of applying the products on the skin.

1) L'occitane Immortelle Brightening Water. (50 ml)

This Brightening Water is a toner. They called it 'water' due to the consistency. It is very similar to water. Unlike Hada Labo Lotion that is a bit thicker than this Water. 

It is easily absorb and the texture is very light. It can be runny. I need to work with this ASAP. By the way, I don't like using cotton pad to apply toner. I pat it directly on my skin with bare hand until everything gone/absorbed. Maybe if you use cotton pad, you can get better control of the toner. By the way, I only apply the toner after I wash my face.

2) L'occitane Immortelle Brightening Essence (30 ml)

Second is the essence. I really like this Brightening Essence. The texture is light and it came in a jar with dropper attached to the lead. This is a great hygiene solution. I only use half pump *should I call it pump?? I don't know. I don't count the drops. I just squeeze the dropper head quickly till it is half of the rod. Half pump is sufficient for the whole face. Sometimes I do get tingling feeling but it doesn't irritate my skin. And, I do have sensitive skin. So, as long as it doesn't give redness and irritation to my skin, I'm fine with it. The product absorbs into the skin as quickly as the toner. And the consistency is easy to control. It is not too thin or too thick. Just nice.

3) L'occitane Immortelle Brightening Moisture Cream (50 ml)

Last but not least, I apply cream before I go to bed. L'occitane Immortelle Brightening Moisture Cream is thick in consistency. This is the main reason why I only apply it at night. I don't fancy any thick cream during day time because I don't like to apply make up after it. I personally will feel that my make up would smudge and run all over the place. Yeah, I am exaggerating. I felt that this cream leave a layer on my skin. But, once I woke up in the morning, I can feel my baby smooth skin. How can I resist that feeling? I think I have a love-hate relationship with this product. Still, I use it everyday though. 

These Immortelle series have the same Immortelle flower fragrance and vitamin C in it. They claim that Immortelle flower have a very special characteristic which the flower never fade even after being picked. Awesome right? And vitamin C also helps in brighten and give radiant to the skin. 

All in all, I would recommend Immortelle series to who ever wanted to maintain their skin radiant. It does not help in fighting acne/blemishes. I am also thankful that I get the chance to try this expensive products. I would consider purchasing this in future. You would like to hit "Like" button on L'occitane en Provence Facebook page and get informed of any freebies or contest. You might be lucky enough to win the prizes too.

*Do follow me on instagram @alyarazali

**Disclaimer. Eventhough I didn't bought these, I am not obligate to write a review on the products. I reviewed it based on my liking and my skin suitability.