Updated Skincare Routine | Lush, Hadalabo, Origins, Aveeno, Estee Lauder, Josie Maran & Olay

It took me almost 2 years to finalize a skincare routine to showcare.
Well, you know the drill. Don't you say you haven't gone through this routine -

1) Find the products that work

2) Test out new products

3) Realize some don't work in conjunction with the ones that are working

4) Test out some other products in hopes that they work 

5) Some do work, but you realize that the products you were using had been used up
6) You scream WTF

So again, you are back to square one and are always on the hunt to find the next products that work. In order to not overwhelm you I am only listing the post-cleanser products today, of which toners, serums and moisturizers are listed, segmented by day and night.

For day

Toner | Lush Eau Roma Water
a mild toner that contains lavender and rose water to calm the skin from overreactions. It also hydrates and preps the skin to be a canvas for other products.

Toner | Breath of Fresh Air

smells refreshing. It can be used as a mid-day pick-me-up or toner esp great for after lack-of-sleep kinda night. Spray it on, pad it down. Next.

Moisturizer | Origins VitaZing SPF 15

a thick energy-boosting moisturizing with mangosteen and a sheer tint. In the mornings I often shoot for all-on-one time saving products. Stands alone it is not enough coverage, but it lays on perfectly as moisturizer, sunscreen and primer all in one. 

Moisturizer | Aveeno Positivey Radiant Daily Moisturizer SPF 15

is a light moisturizer with sunscreen yet works with other primer/foundation/bb creams I put on after without giving me a crazy whitecast. 

For night

Toner | HadaLabo Gokujyun-a

a thick opaque white serumy toner that is filled with retinol (vitamin A) and collagen. it is targeted for the anti-aging crowd (me!) with properties especially aim to lifting and firming. I find my skin very plumb and soft the next morning, fine lines are reduced over time.

Serum | Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair

an all-in one serum -- this is my 4th bottle also the biggest 100ml. it overal refines my pores, brightens, hydrates and overall improves the quality of my skin. It is worth every penny (especially if you buy it in the States for cheap!).

Serum | Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil
my life-saver when I went to Israel with this little bottle. it keeps my skin so hydrated during the 12 hours of in-flight time. heal and moisturize. I am testing it out to see whether it can replace the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair.

Moisturizer | Olay Regenerist 

it is claimed to be a drugstore product that out-performs many high-end moisturizers. It hydrates, firms and lifts the faceline. One thing that I don't like about this product is that it seems like much 'preservatives' are packed in this little bottle but overal a great moisturizer to get the anti-aging job done.

So here is it finally! I will go ahead and update the 'updated skincare list' on the right.
If you have any skincare recommendations, please tell me! I'd love to branch out and continue to try out new products that work. You can always hide your imperfections with makeup but honestly, with better skin, less time (and makeup) is needed!

xoxo Winnie

a week in hong kong (fast-forward)

About a year ago I moved back to Hong Kong. Time then seemed to just fly by every week. While being so busy at work, I try to squeeze as much as exploring and fun activities in the meantime. A week of time usually leaves me with a few night outs with friends and some free time on weekends. This week was fun, especially with many good friends by chance visiting!

Tea at the W Hotel, a Symphony of Lights over the Victoria Harbour, night view up on the Peak, Affordable Art Fair during my day off on Friday, Tsuen Wan museum 5 mins from my apt, wandering around Tsim Sha Tsui and night out with my lovely friends. 

I hope this kind of post doesn't bore you. Sometimes I just want to keep some variaties on my blog so my life doesn't seem so freaking dull. JK! #yolo right? 

Top 10 Favorite Pink Lipsticks / Lippies

It seems like you guys really like my Current Favorite Drugstore Coral / Orange Lipsticks post so I decided to do a similar one for pink toned lipsticks. Though I call it lipsticks, there are some that serve just as a gloss.

From 9:00 clock wise |
RMK 01 Peach
Maybelline BabyLips in 025 Pink Punch*
Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in 090 Sweet Tart*
Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in 025 Peach Parfait*
Mentholatum 01 Vintage Pink*
Estee Lauder Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick Rouge 53 Wildly Pink (Shimmer)
Lancome Color Design in Pink Preview (Matte)
Lancome Color Design in Stylista (Matte)
Shiseido Perfect Rouge Rouge Parfait in RS 701
Shiseido Perfect Rouge Rouge Parfait in PK 303

Above - natural light
Bottom - direct light

Top 4 right lipglosses are pretty much my everyday easy gloss colors. Revlon Lipbutter Peach Parfait is my ultimate to-go color ever. If I want to go bold (which is rarely) for a night out I'd pick Estee Lauder Wildly Pink for a shocking pink lip. Lancome Stylista is my favourite retro my-lips-but-better color which looks crazy in a swatch but very wearable with smooth application. To top with smokey eyes, both Shiseido Perfect Rouge Rouge Parfait colors, Lancome Pink Preview or even RMK 01 would look amazing.

There are just way too many pink colors out there but hunting around to find good formula and colors that work for you is so fun! Let me know what are your favorites!

Israel Trip Part 2 | Tiberias, Sea of Galilee, Tabgha, The Mt of Beatitudes, Capernaum

Another gorgeous day spent with the family in Israel. We sailed down the Sea of Galilee - where a lot of biblical things happened such as Tabgha - Church of the Multiplication, the Mount of Beatitudes - where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount, Capernaum - fishing village said to be the home of Saint Peter.

For me, it was a blissful day touring with the family while enjoying the beautiful scenery. The sail boat we went on blasted the Chinese National song for us thus my dad and I felt obligated to be patriotic jk. We tried Israeli cuisine for the first time unfortunately that particular fish was a tad cooked too dry. We joked around and said that no wonder St Peter left his job being a fisherman to follow Jesus #holyjokes #doublepuns

Overall it almost completely blew my mind how western / European Israel is as I had never been to that part of the world. OK Shalom til next time :)