Ibyang
Ibyang

Charmed Life of a Mrs

Beauty Stash: Moisturising’s My Skin Care Advocacy

If there is one thing that I’d be an advocate of when it comes to skin care, it would be on the importance of moisturising.

There’s always a story behind everyone’s advocacy and here’s mine:


I grew up in a tropical country and have always had oily skin. When I was in my early 20’s I thought that I won’t ever need to use moisturisers on my face. I only wear sunblock when I go to the beach. I put lotion on days when I feel like it. I gave more importance to cleansing and keeping oil controlled and pimples at bay. 

I moved here when I turned 28 and I had to change my skincare routine as my skin is  exposed to four seasons in a year. On the first year I experienced winter, I saw a skincare specialist because my skin was so dry. I learned a lot of things from the skincare specialist I met: 
(1) That even if I had oily skin, moisturising and using sunblock is as important as cleansing.
(2) People with oily skin can find suitable moisturisers (i.e. water-based moisturisers).
(3) You can use oil to moisturise and it won’t clog your pores and add oiliness to your skin. 
(4) Different seasons calls for different moisturisers. I was advised to have a richer moisturiser during cold season and a lighter one during warm season.
(5) The earlier you start putting moisturisers, the better. 
(6) Drink lots of water. 

The sun is harsh these days that it leads to premature wrinkles and sunspots and worse, skin cancer, hence, I have realised the importance of wearing sunblock too.

I’ve seen men and women who look too wrinkly and “sun-spotty” for their age who love the outdoors and bask in the glory of the sun without wearing moisturisers with sunblock. It’s not about vanity really but more about taking care of the only skin we have. It is inevitable for all of us to have wrinkles and sunspots–all of us will have them as we grow older.  However, seeing people who take care of their skin well, a part of how they take care of their well-being, is always admirable.

Since I’ve met a skincare specialist, I’ve given more attention to keeping my skin hydrated. Below are a few items I trust which works well for me:

Petroleum Jelly. I use this for moisturising the lips at nightime. I also use this to moisturise the hands and feet during winter time (after putting on hands and feet, wear gloves and socks overnight).

Carmex Lip Balm. They’re the best thing that ever happened to my lips! I hoard them when they go on sale. I love that they have a variant that has SPF.

Tip when moisturising lips at night: Moisturise the edge of your lips as this will help prevent pre-wrinkles.


Daytime Moisturising with Sunblock:

BB Cream. This serves as a foundation, moisturiser and sunblock. I use them when I go out. If you want to know about BB Creams, please read my article here. I’m currently using Skinfood’s Good Afternoon Peach Green Tea and once I’m finished with this tube, I’ll be using Missha’s M Signature Real Complete BB Cream.

Sunscreen Lotion. I use this during the day to protect the other parts of my body, particularly the arms and legs. I look for a sunscreen that moisturises, doesn’t feel sticky and cause blemishes. 

Night Time Moisturising:

Sorbolene Cream. Other than moisturising with oil after bath, this works in keeping my skin hydrated during cold season.

J&J Bedtime Lotion. I prefer this during warm season as it’s light and mild. Smells great too.

Paw Paw Balm. After putting lotion on my hands, I follow it up with a little Paw Paw Balm to soothe it some more. I take particular care of my hands as it’s the most used part of my body (cooking, washing dishes etc).

Eye Moisturiser. Since it’s summer time now, I use Garnier’s Eye Roll On as it’s lighter but during winter, I prefer using Clinique’s All About Eyes.

Rosehip Oil. I used this to moisturise my face. Three drops of this and it goes a long way. If you want to know more about my Top 5 favourite oils, please click here.
As we grow older, our skin loses the ability to retain water as it once did so a little help from moisturisers and sunblocks will be beneficial to us. And please, always drink lots of water as it hydrates from the inside and has other health benefits too.

Happy Friday!
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Life After “Eat Pray Love”: Elizabeth Gilbert in Sydney

After reading Eat Pray Love, I instantly became a fan of Elizabeth “Liz” Gilbert. Finding her book was a journey and weaving thru its pages was a learning experience to me. Her next book, “Committed” was another insightful book that related how someone like her made peace with marriage. 

Sometime last year, Liz Gilbert started tweeting and it was thru her that I learned that she will have a talk at Sydney Opera House. Her talk will be about Life after “Eat Pray Love” and how she has managed success and pressure when she became one of America’s famous authors.

I tweeted about her show and surprise, surprise…she favorited my tweet! 🙂
Elizabeth Gilbert is the author of the multi-million-copy-selling book Eat Pray Love, which spawned the Julia Roberts starred blockbuster film of the same name.  Gilbert has also written several other critically acclaimed books and was a writer-at-large for American GQ where she has received two National Magazine Award nominations. 
Eat Pray Love, published in 2006, chronicles Gilbert’s trip around the world after her divorce and what she discovered during her travels.  It remained on The New York Times Best Seller list for 187 weeks. 
In this talk Gilbert will discuss her life after Eat Pray Love and how she’s dealt with the pressures and expectations of commercial success, the trappings of fame and the inevitable question – ‘after such a huge success, what do you do next?’ 

I bought tickets as early as November 2012. I feel blessed that I will get to see her and listen to her inspiring story three days before my birthday. I consider this happenstance as one of the universe’ gifts to me this year.

As I write this, I’m suddenly reminded how blessed I am too last year when on my birthday, I watched my tennis idol Roger Federer at Rod Laver Arena. While I enjoy the bonuses that life gives me, I am most thankful whenever fate surprises me with once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

If you would like to see Elizabeth Gilbert on 19th January (4:15pm), you can buy tickets via the Sydney Opera House website.

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Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney

Sydney starts the year with a festival. Every January, Sydney Festival lightens up the city with cultural celebrations based on art, music and ideas. For three weeks, the city is treated to around 80 events which involves a thousand artists from here and abroad in the field of visual arts, dance, music, theatre, cross media and forums.

This year’s major attraction is the Rubber Duck, a gigantic inflatable duck created by Florentijn Hofman. The giant rubber duck’s purpose is to relieve everyday tensions, as well as define them. The rubber duck is there to create a new perspective in a public place and simply amaze people. It will continue to fascinate at Darling Harbour until 23rd January.
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
It’s HUGE!!! But it’s one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen in my entire life. I’ve seen photos of it a few days before we went to Darling Harbour but when I saw it in person, I was shocked at the enormity of it. I was in awe and can’t get over how something as huge as this Rubber Duck can be as cute! I wanted to hug it!!!
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
Giant Rubber Duck in Sydney
Shared some of photos of this Rubber Duck in twitter, FB and instagram and I’m glad it made our family friends from around the world smile too. They were even reminded of Ernie and Bert’s (of Sesame Street) Rubber Duckie song:
Rubber Duckie, you’re the one, 
You make bathtime lots of fun,

Rubber Duckie, I’m awfully fond of you…

It’s amazing how an experience such as seeing a giant rubber duck will bring cheer to anyone and even remind them of their childhood. To the organisers of Sydney Festival, thank you for bringing the Rubber Duck to our city.

-oOo-

It was fortunate that we got to meet up a few friends after work on Friday. They too wanted to see and have a photo with the Rubber Duck so we met up at Lindt Cafe (located at Cockle Bay Wharf) for afternoon tea. It was a hot day so we all had a Iced Chocolates and a few pieces of Salted Caramel macarons. It was the perfect way to say hello to our weekend.

Lindt Cafe with friends
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Happiness is Indulging in a Cup of Salted Caramel Yogurt!

Due to the heatwave last Tuesday, the Husband and I decided to meet up at Westfield Sydney after work. The temperatures went up to 42 degrees Celsius, it hurt the skin even if we’re not directly under the sun. There’s no way we’re going to brave riding the train and sitting out the heat at home. I didn’t want to cook anything at home too as it will add up to the heat. Our best solution would be to hang out at an airconditioned mall and wait out the sunset there and that’s what we did.

As per usual, I had some time to myself. I window shopped and had a looked at sales to entertain myself. When I learned that the Husband’s about to arrive, I walked up to Westfield’s Level 5 Food Court where we’re supposed to meet. I plan to reward myself a large cup of Brown Rice Milk Tea at Chatime but my attention diverted to a newly-opened restaurant nearby. It was a yogurt place called Yogurt World.  The place was nicely-lit as the dining area faced the windows. Love their concept of bar stools.  

Yogurt World has 16 flavours and about 101 toppings available in store. That’s a lot!
By this time, I’ve forgotten about having milk tea. I had a quick look at their yogurt flavours and found SALTED CARAMEL! They have a salted caramel yogurt! That is sooooo brilliant!

With that, I quickly grabbed a cup and poured some yogurt and toppings. 

Based on my previous yogurt experiences, I’m not very much on toppings. I think I get overwhelmed with all the choices before me that I can’t really think. But what I always choose are the marshmallows and blueberries. With chocolates, it varies. This time, I put two sticks of Kit Kat, one for me and one for the Hubby.


I love their coloured spoons! It had Yogurt World etched at the end. It’s very personal. 

This is now my favourite yogurt! It’s not as sour that even the Husband can tolerate it and it tastes so much like ice cream. It’s so good I regretted not getting more.

I realized now how fixated I am with Salted Caramel. You can easily tempt me with almost anything that has Salted Caramel in it. To begin with, I really love Caramel-inspired food like the Philippines’ Yema. And I love cakes and ice creams that has Caramel in it. 

Last year, Salted Caramel Macarons became one of my food favourites. Now I add Salted Caramel Yogurt to my list.

Level 5, Westfield Sydney
Pitt Street, Sydney NSW
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