Jack Black Face Buff Energizing Scrub

For some reasons, I was always under this (perhaps incorrect?) impression that skincare for men are somehow not quite as "advanced" as skincare for women. The reason being most skincare for men are pretty much straight forward, nothing as intricate and complex and sometimes way too convoluted as skincare for women. This trickles right down to the packaging and in my opinion, the majority of the packaging for men's skincare leaves something to be desired. I am guessing most cosmetic companies are under the assumption that most men are not as picky as women? This is why I am always happy to see new skincare products cropping up for men.

When I spotted this Jack Black Face Buff Energizing Scrub, I grabbed it for hubby to try out. He liked it a lot, and I ended up borrowing a lot of it too :P And I must say this Energizing Scrub gives me some hope for the future of skincare for men - it's really damn nice!

***Picture from Jack Black.

First of all, the scent is an exhilarating and crisp but not overpowering menthol. It definitely lives up to its name, especially when used in the morning in the shower. Wake up call, anyone? Another thing they did right with this scrub is that the exfoliating particles are fine enough to not be abrasive (who says men don't have supple and fragile skin?) but still do an excellent job exfoliating. In fact, I like this much much better than Clinique 7 Day Scrub Cream! The 7 Day Scrub Cream had fine exfoliating particles too, but it didn't rinse well and always left behind a greasy film. This Energizing Scrub not only rinses clean, it left my skin super smooth and tingly with menthol afterwards. Love it!

Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Glossy Shine Stick Part II

I finally tried the other 3 colors of Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Glossy Shine Stick and..., let's just say I immediately went out to buy more backups of these too :D In my first post I said Lemon Twist was too violet, Citrus Sorbet too beigey, and Colada Love too mauvey, but boy do they look different on my lips! I am so glad I gave these a chance instead of writing them off after swatching them on the back of my hand!

Lemon Twist

Colada Love

Citrus Sorbet

Softymo Speedy Cleansing Oil

I am half way through this Softymo Speedy Cleansing Oil bottle right now and it's okay. The texture is much thinner than most other cleansing oils I've used such as DHC Deep Cleansing Oil, its sister Softymo Deep Cleansing Oil, and even the thinner Naive Olive Deep Cleansing Oil. In fact, its thin texture, the silicon-y feel, and the very slight film it left behind all remind me of the Shiseido Ultimate Cleansing Oil, minus the heavy perfume.

I think this Speedy Cleansing Oil is unscented, although the first time I used it I did notice a strange rubbery smell that went away quickly and I never smelled it again. May be it just smelled like that coming out of the bottle. Also, the main ingredient in this cleansing oil is mineral oil, so if you are sensitive to that you should stay away from this one. Other than that, it's a decent cleansing oil and does not dry out my skin like DHC. All that said though I still like the Softymo Deep Cleansing Oil better due to the thicker texture and the clean rinsing.

This cleansing oil is also the cheapest one out of all the cleansing oils I've used as a 230mL bottle usually goes for $8-10 at the local Asian grocery store. It is even cheaper online and Sasa.com is selling the 230mL bottle for $7.60 and a pack of 230mL plus 170mL refill for $12.70 :)

Estee Lauder Pure Color Gloss Stick

I have mixed feelings over my Estee Lauder Pure Color Gloss Stick in Cherry Ice, which was a limited edition color that has now sold out on the Estee Lauder website.

First off, I really feel that calling this a Gloss Stick in Cherry Ice is kind of a misnomer, because when I think of a gloss stick I think of a somewhat sheer or simply sheer and glossy finish (yes, I do distinguish between pigmented lip gloss and liquid lip color). This Cherry Ice Gloss Stick is not really a gloss stick but a lipstick with some, though not as much as they tout it to be, glossy shine to it.

Yes, I am saying it is extremely pigmented and it scares the becheeses out of me! I think I would need to grow some [huge] balls first if I want to step out with it on, so for now I apply it over a layer of chapstick or sheer lip gloss to buffer some colors off. Now on that red, although it looks like a yellow based red in the picture, it is actually blue based, so it doesn't quite match my skin tone, even a bit jarring I would say. However, if I dab it on lightly enough, it doesn't look too bad. It's okay, definitely not my ideal red lipstick. I kind of regret getting it, but I don't hate it. It is scented with the same fragrance as all Estee Lauder lipsticks.

Caudalie Travel Set

I brought this Caudalie Travel Set with me on my road trip. It came in a cute tin box, which was what caught my eyes to begin with :)

This travel set includes:

- 30mL/1 fl oz. Cleansing Water

- 30 mL/1 fl oz. Fleur de Vigne Shower Gel

- 30 mL/1 fl oz. Gentle Conditioning Shampoo

- 30 mL/1 fl oz. Nourishing Body Lotion

They also included a small zip-lock bag inside so you can put everything in and take with you on the plane, I guess. But I was going on a road trip and so that bag didn't interest me much, plus it was too small and there was not room to include any other things. Now that we only get 1 ziplock bag for toiletries per person, even if I were to fly I still wouldn't use it.

- Cleansing Water: I haven't tried this yet, but according to the Caudalie USA website, it can be used as a cleanser or toner with no rinse necessary. They claim it can remove face and eye makeup but I am not sure I am convinced. I do think it would make a great cleanser to take on a long flight though since you don't have to rinse. We'll see.

- Nourishing Body Lotion: I wasn't too impressed with this lotion because, of course, I have had much much better. After Lost River Rags Goats Milk Hand & Body Lotion, it will probably take a whole lot to get my attention. And the Caudalie lotion wasn't that great to begin with. It even felt a tiny bit sticky until it was completely dry. Hubby did not like the scent, and it did smell a bit strange on my skin when it was damp, but after drying it had a better, powdery scent. I would never shell out $36 for the 250 mL/8.45 fl oz., or $40 for the large limited edition of the 400 mL/13.5 fl oz. bottle. On the other hand, an 8 oz. bottle of Lost River Rags Goats Milk Hand & Body Lotion sells for $7, so if you do the math, $35 = 40 oz. and $42 = 48 oz. of near perfect, all natural goats milk lotion. I don't know about you, but the choice is pretty obvious for me.

- Gentle Conditioning Shampoo: this shampoo smells nice, I have to admit, like a grape-y cologne :) It was conditioning, but in the end it was too conditioning as it turned my hair really greasy the next morning, just like Asience Shampoo. Hubby liked it though, and his hair remained nice and soft the next day. I guess this shampoo is better for some more than others. Too bad it wasn't for me.

- Fleur de Vigne Shower Gel: this smelled good, same scent as the shampoo above, but it pretty much bombed as a shower gel. It barely foamed, which can be a good thing for someone else but for me a shower gel has got to foam, so that tanked. Oh, but I have to give it props for being non-drying yet rinsed clean without leaving a film on my skin.


For the summer, Caudalie also has a Beauty On Board Pouch that includes the same 4 items above, with the bonus of a 0.13 fl oz. Pulpe Vitaminee Anti-Wrinkle Fluid. This ended up being a Thank-you gift to our lovely neighbors.

Clinique Rinse-Off Foaming Cleanser

I went on a road trip a couple of weeks ago and didn't want to drag along the bit pump bottle that is Softymo Collagen Moisture Cleansing Wash so I grabbed this decently sized deluxe sample tube of Clinique Rinse-Off Foaming Cleanser instead. Let's just say that after just the first use, I wondered out loud, now why didn't I use this earlier?!?

***Picture from Clinique USA.

No, no, I'm not going to toss the Collagen Moisture Cleansing Wash and buy the Clinique full size (yet!!!), but if I hadn't started the Collagen stuff, I would have bought the Clinique full size. Damn! The Clinique Rinse-Off Foaming Cleanser is an unscented soft mousse that foams decently but not too much. And while being quite mild it was a very effective cleanser! It didn't leave my face feeling any tightness afterwards and when I was in a very high and dry area, my skin didn't flake or feel at all! I was really impressed as I expected the same old harsh stuff but nope, this one pleasantly surprised me. I will save the rest of the tube for yet another upcoming road trip and will probably buy a full size when I finish the Collagen stuff.

Softymo Collagen Moisture Cleansing Wash

After delegating Softymo Speedy Cleansing Milk to only morning use, I turned to Softymo Collagen Moisture Cleansing Wash for my nightly use instead. It was cheap and came in a good size bottle so why not? I love trying new stuff, especially when I have an excuse :)

This is pretty much your average liquid facial cleanser, although in my opinion it is quite above average. It is scented, although very lightly with a citrusy fragrance that reminds me of the scent from the Softymo Deep Cleansing Oil. The only somewhat oddity I found is that every once in a blue moon, I will smell a bit of sulfur amidst the citrusy scent, which kind of weirds me out. But hey, onsens smell like that too and people do skinny dipping it and the sulfur makes their skin soft, so why should I let this bother me when a tiny bit of sulfur will make my face soft?

Anyway, this Collagen Moisture Cleansing Wash doesn't create mad foam the way Naive Facial Cleansing Foams do, but it also didn't disappoint me the way Softymo Airy Whip did, not to mention it is a lot more gentle and much less drying! I think I will actually stick with this one for a while, at least until I use it up, which will probably take a long time since I only use half a pump each time.