Kiehl’s Calendula & Aloe Soothing Hydration Masque Review and Ingredients Analysis

Kiehl's Calendula and Aloe Soothing Hydration Masque was just launched earlier in April, and I fully expect this mask to be popular for one big reason - calendula. If you're familiar with the Kiehl's brand, then you'll know that one of the bestselling flagship products is the Kiehl's Calendula Toner, as a gentle and hydrating toner (which I'm also using right now - I need to get around to reviewing this one day!). Of course, the product line also includes a Calendula Foaming Face Wash. Now, the Calendula line of products has been extended further with the introduction of the Calendula & Aloe Masque, which is a pretty smart move given the popularity of the Calendula range.

Kiehl’s Calendula & Aloe Soothing Hydration Masque: The latest addition to the calendula range of products

According to Kiehl's, the Calendula & Aloe Soothing Hydration Masque has "hand-picked Calendula flower petals and Aloe Vera, [and] bursts into a refreshing surge of cooling hydration upon application to instantly achieve hydrated and soothed skin". Kiehl's also claims that you only need to leave this mask on for 5 minutes to get the hydrating and soothing effects, although you can leave it on longer if you wish. The product is suitable for both day and night use, but night use is preferable.


Kiehl’s Calendula & Aloe Soothing Hydration Masque: Kiehl's claims a 5 minute application is sufficient
So, does the Calendula & Aloe Masque live up to its claims? Can it really soothe the skin? Well, we'll find out by looking at the ingredients inside the mask!

Skinceuticals H.A. (Hyaluronic Acid) Intensifier Review and Ingredients Analysis

Skinceuticals recently launched their HA Intensifier, or Hyaluronic Acid Intensifier. As the name suggests, it's a serum/booster product with hyaluronic acid - but more than that, Skinceuticals also claims that the HA Intensifier will also help to boost your skin's ability to make its own hyaluronic acid, beyond just replenishing it. Application-wise, Skinceuticals recommends this go after your toner, but before your other skincare products.

Skinceuticals HA Intensifier - in case you didn't know the HA stands for Hyaluronic Acid

Skinceuticals is one of those brands that's a little niche, but has quite the following among skincare devotees, particularly for its CE Ferulic (which is sometimes considered the gold standard in Vitamin C serums). So I was pretty excited about the HA Intensifier, and was hoping that it would also live up to the brand's reputation for good skincare.


Skinceuticals HA Intensifier: A key claim is that the product helps to boost skin's own hyaluronic acid production
I'm sure at this stage, you're curious about so many things - does this serum live up to Skinceuticals' brand reputation? How exactly does a serum boost your skin's own ability to make its own hyaouronic acid, and does the Skinceuticals product do so? So, let's start our review - at the ingredients list!

Marc Jacobs Highliner Matte Gel Eye Crayon Swatches, Review, Ingredients Analysis

Marc Jacobs' Highliner Matte Gel Eye Crayon is the brand's new eyeliner product, and an extension of the existing Highliner eyeliner range. As the name suggests, the main difference is that the new Highliner Matte Crayons are, well, matte, as opposed to the original Highliner eyeliners which had a bit more of a sheen. And as with the original Highliner eyeliners, these are also advertised as being akin to having a pot gel eyeliner, but in pencil form. They're also advertised as having "15 seconds of play time" before they set, so you can smudge out, soften, or otherwise adjust your eyeliner before it sets.

Marc Jacobs Highliner Matte Gel Eye Crayon: 12 shades of matte eyeliner

I've never tried the original Highliners before, but they seemed to have really good reviews, so I was hoping the new Matte Highliners would be equally great. And I'm glad to say that after testing out all 12 shades - yes there are 12 shades of Matte Highliner - I think these are actually of really good quality! And as always, this review will look at what makes this product so great - the formula, the colour payoff, as well as the weartime are some of the critical factors here.


Marc Jacobs Highliner Matte Gel Eye Crayon: An addition to the existing non-matte Highliner eyeliner range
So, without further ado, let's begin the review. Of course I've got a lot of swatches and photos for you, but let's start off with something a little bit more mundane - the ingredients list!

Fancl Moisturizing Lotion I Review and Ingredients Analysis

Fancl re-launched its skincare line in Singapore last year, and since then, I've had the opportunity to try quite a few products from the brand, and I'm slowly getting around to reviewing them! One I thought I'd start off with is the Moisturizing Lotion I - because it's one of the foundation products of any skincare routine.

Fancl Moisturizing Lotion I: A basic hydrating lotion to be used under other skincare

Fancl is known for its simplistic, no-frills approach to skincare, and the brand claims to be free of fragrance, as well as free of preservatives. As you can imagine, a key target of Fancl's audience is also people with sensitive skin, as the brand also claims to avoid ingredients that could irritate skin. Now, that sounds pretty cool, but I'm sure some of you are wondering - is this really all too good to be true? I mean, no preservatives? Wouldn't a product go bad without preservatives, and how does Fancl do that?


Fancl Moisturizing Lotion I: The brand sells its products in small sizes, with the claim that the products are preservative free
Well, we're about to answer some of these questions (and more) in the review, but I gotta caution you, it's going to be a long one. So strap in, and let's start at an obvious place to get some clues - the ingredients list!

L'Oreal Youth Code Skin Activating Ferment Pre-Essence Review and Ingredients Analysis

The L'Oreal Youth Code Skin Activating Ferment Pre-Essence just launched earlier this month, and already it's making quite a splash here. Firstly, this is supposed to be an upgrade of the original L'Oreal Youth Code, which was already a pretty popular product in its own right. But beyond just "sequel syndrome", the marketing is pretty eye-catching, too. The product claims to have "98% Ferment Essence (extracted at 98% purity) to stimulate skin metabolism and accelerate cell renewal". So the Ferment Essence is really a huge draw here, too.

L'Oreal Youth Code Skin Activating Ferment Pre-Essence: With claims of 98% Ferment Essence, this product has been making a splash

For those with some familiarity with the original L'Oreal Youth Code (as well as a similar product from L'Oreal's sister brand, Lancome's Genifique Youth Activator), you might recall that the "ferment essence" used in those products was Bifida Ferment Lysate. And indeed, it seems that L'Oreal has increased the concentration of Bifida Ferment Lysate in the updated Youth Code. Beyond the increased use of Bifida Ferment Lysate, L'Oreal also claims that the Pre-Essence will "boost skin recovery ability against fatigue and aging signs".


L'Oreal Youth Code Skin Activating Ferment Pre-Essence: An updated version of the L'Oreal Youth Code
That sounds pretty cool, but how does the Pre-Essence work? What ingredients are in there to help in skin renewal, or in anti-aging? And how different is the new product from its old formulation? Well, we'll find out!