PR/Gifted by Picky x The Potions in exchange for my honest review. 😊

On first impression, the packaging reminded me of a Korean version of “The Ordinary”! I love brands who stick to simple, fuss-free packaging and focus on the product efficacy. I also like that the brand offers different kinds of ‘potions’ that you can mix and match to your needs!

To explain my routine, I applied the Peptide > HA > Jojoba oil for almost 4 days on cleansed & toned skin. My skin type is Dry and it’s been flaking due to my recent use of retinol. 

𝗣𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗔𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝗺𝗹
This is usually the 1st product I put as a base. So far, it has helped me reduce a bit of redness and irritation. I love peptides - they are amino acids that build up proteins in the skin like collagen, elastin and keratin. All of which helps to soothe the skin barrier and repair any damage cells. I did some research and this bottle contains 8 different kinds of peptides!

𝗛𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗰𝗶𝗱 𝗔𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝗺𝗹
I really like the consistency of this one! It’s viscose but not too thick and my retinol aggravated skin loved when I applied this. 

𝗝𝗼𝗷𝗼𝗯𝗮 𝗢𝗶𝗹 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘂𝗺 𝟮𝟬𝗺𝗹
I have to admit I was initially skeptical about this product as I don’t like using facial oils. I tried the Marula Oil from DE and unfortunately it was way too oily even for my dry skin and it gave me comedones. However, this truly worked so well! When I layered it on top of the Peptide + HA I felt that it formed a film and locked in all of the goodness + didn’t allow any moisture to evaporate.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟱:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5
To be honest I was so shocked at what this trio did to my skin. I started out with inflamed and red skin but just after 4 days of use, my skin’s flaking has reduced significantly. I’m still flaking a little around my nose area but overall it’s sincerely a HUGE improvement from my retinol-damaged skin barrier. Will continue to use this and update again! 😊

*PR 🧪⚗️👩🏻‍🔬 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗛𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗼 🥼

After some consideration, I finally broke the bank and splurged on 𝗢𝗹𝗮𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅 𝗛𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗼.𝟯 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗕𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗡𝗼.𝟬!!! 💸 It’s my first hair review so perhaps I should start with my hair story.

My hair has always been my crowning glory. Since I was a kid, my relatives would run their fingers through my tresses and praise my thick hair and because it was so silky. 👸🏻 But silly old teenage me decided that I wanted to be ✨special✨ and ⚡️electric⚡️and I grew tired of my thick black hair. So I begun to experiment with it and I tried many colours from Blonde to Purple to Red to Green. 🌈 I was like an ever changing chameleon. 🦎

On top of that I subjected my hair to a ton of chemical and heat treatments. When I hit my early twenties and joined the workforce, I was bored again so I decided to go to a well-known salon to get it permed.

Who’d knew that the day would finally come, where my hair ended up in shambles - the perm left it super broken, split ends aplenty, frizzy, kinky and tangled all the time. It was so time consuming to manage. It’s a shame that it took me so long to embrace my natural hair and realised that I looked the best in black.

Over the past 6 months, I used a ton of products + trimmed my hair every 2 months and actually managed to save it. During this process I found some of my holy grails that I would like to share for people just like me who did too many chemical treatments or just have dry, damaged hair.

1. Tsubaki’s Hair Mask: Amazing post-shower results. My hair was always super silky, hydrated and manageable after use. I noticed a difference in elasticity of my hair, it stopped breaking so much and stopped having kinks. Not to mention the fragrance was divine. I think I went through more than 5 tubs of this and I’ve stocked up! 

2. But… *drum rolls* nothing fixed my hair like Olaplex’s No.3 + Olaplex No.0, used together. I saw instant results in just 2 uses. I’m so glad that I found this perfect combination. Why didn’t I realized this sooner? It’s true that I find using No.0 alone did nothing and No.3 alone did not work as well as the both combined. 

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝘀𝗲:
Apply No.0 as a “primer” to dry hair followed by No.3 to wet hair. Olaplex states that it is not an after shampoo conditioner. It is actually a pre-shampoo treatment so you gotta rinse it off, shampoo and condition as per usual after. The instructions says to leave it for 10mins or more. I find that the best results happen when I leave it on for more than 2 hours (while watching netflix and whatnot) to allow the product to really get in their and repair those broken hair bonds. 

𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
The No.0 pointed applicator is really convenient to use. It dispenses a small amount at a time so you don’t waste any but still manage to saturate your hair. No.0 made my hair feel crunchy and then afterwards No.3 made my hair soft. I felt the products really changing the structure of my hair.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁: 
I blow dry my hair with a Dyson hair wrap on the low setting. Usually it ends up frizzy and a little bit like Hermione from Harry Potter. But this time it was like a SLEEEEEK salon finish. I felt as if my hair was freshy cut, my hair ends were moisturized fully. The most impressive thing was that I slept with semi wet hair and my morning bed head had NO KINKS or BENT HAIRS whatsoever. I was truly amazed.

𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟱:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5
(See after images)

Will be continuing to use them and now i’m tempted to try the whole Olaplex set! What about you guys? Would love to hear about your hair story and your favourite hair products. 😊

My hair story - Olaplex review

Hi guys, my skin is super sensitive to retinol and keeps experiencing a bad reaction whenever I put it on. I.e. Peeling the next day, redness and raw skin. It’s been 1 year and it’s still behaving like that even on low concentration retinol. Should I still continue? Or stay away from this ingredient?

I first used a derm prescribed tretinol at 0.03%, quite minimal concentration but it made my skin peel after 5 uses.

I have since tried Drunk Elephant’s A-Passioni Retinol cream (1%) and L’ORÉAL Paris retinol serum (1%) occasionally but both still made my skin peel and raw the next day even though they were diluted greatly and mixed with a lot of moisturizer. Maybe they are too high concentration but I can’t figure out why Tretinol at 0.03% also doesn’t work.

Keep at it or stay away? Hope you guys could give some advice! 🙏🏻

Hypersensitivity to Retinol

I’ve always had dark spots and post acne brown marks especially on my forehead 😩 I have been using Melano CC’s Vit C Essence for 1 year and saw great results - it even lightened the tiny mole on my face! 😂 I love that it’s so affordable and does not oxidize fast like normal Vitamin C serums. As I just finished this tube, am wondering if there are any other holy grail lightening spot treatments that you recommend? ✨✨✨ Would love to give them a try

Holy grail dark spot lightener?

𝗦𝗞𝗜𝗡𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟰 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗴𝗮𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗿 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮 𝗛𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘂-𝗖𝗶𝗰𝗮 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘂𝗺
I have to say that this is such an underrated product! Out of the three products I was sent, this was by far my favourite. I have been seeing the ampoule dominate my feed but there is so little attention to this guy here! When it comes to locking in moisture and transforming dull skin, this product really performed so well in a matter of just 2 weeks! (I religiously applied it day and night) It really made my skin look visibly lustrous and gave me that chok-chok korean glass skin look!

I attached a video of how much I put on my face. I usually apply it this way: After a cleansed face + toner, 2 hours before bed time, to allow the product to fully absorb before putting on other skincare products. It’s such a light and non-sticky texture, almost like a light version of laneige’s water sleeping pack. ☁️ I am absolutely in love with the texture and product application.

Not to mention it also has an impressive ingredient list, free from nasties and with super powerful actives below:

🍀Hyalu-Cica: The SKIN1004 blend of Centella Asiatica extract and Hyaluronic Acid (in the ‘perfected ratio’) to calm, strengthen and rebalance water-oil levels in skin.

🧴Ceramide Biom: Nano-sized molecules of Ceramide which absorb deeply into your skin to improve elasticity, strengthen your skin barrier and aid moisture retention.

⚗️5 layers of Hyaluronic Acid: With 3 different sizes of HA molecules for optimum absorption and long-lasting, hydrating effect.

🧫Niacinamide and Adenosine: Has whitening (i.e. brightening) and anti-wrinkle benefits.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟱:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5
The best PR product I’ve rated so far. I am in love with this and would definitely incoporate it permanently in my skincare routine

I did not see any visible improvements in my wrinkles though, but with skin care y'know you need true commitment and hard work to achieve good results. So I will keep at it!

This product has snail mucin, collagen and black beans in the formula and it promises to deeply nourish your skin and remove wrinkles! The product does have a more viscose texture compared to other toners [see video] but yet its super lightweight and not sticky at all! Which is quite revolutionary. In the short 1 week of testing, I did though see an increase in luminance of my skin, I apply this before make up and I received some compliments on my glowy skin afterwards which was a pleasant surprise. This product is great for layering below foundation or even sunscreen! Overall super happy with it.

I bought this product bc Hyram had raved about it. I had this product for 6 months and after awhile, the berries&#47;pulp inside started to disintegrate and discolour into a brownish liquid…

The pump also malfunctioned and hence I had to unscrew each time before I used it.

I had to use tons of water to wash away the sliminess&#47;soapiness of this product hence I didn’t quite find it water efficient.

I did not see any significant improvement to my skin unfortunately. Felt that the formulation wasn’t that clean. Personally, I would not repurchase.

Feels extremely natural and fresh. There were fresh berries at the bottom of this facial wash. The after effect was clean and removed all traces of dirt and make up well.

It smells quite medicinal which might not be everyone’s cup of tea. But the scent to me is herbal-like and it makes me feel that it contains even more nutrients for my skin.

🥬 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝘆 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗳 🥬
This serum completely changed my skin. It is extremely soothing, calming and relieves any redness or tightness. I intended this to be a spot treatment to calm sudden pimples or bumps but I would always end up spreading it on my whole face because it repairs all irritation and hydrates so well, it makes my skin look flawless!
The INCI list is also pretty impressive containing only goodies and no nasties! Emptied this bottle and achieved the best skin I ever had in my life! Definitely my holy grail product. As I’m now living in France I was unable to repurchase this ☹️ Do let me know if you guys know a site that ships to the EU! 💓

𝗧𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲:
☁️ Cream-serum hybrid

𝗦𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿:
💧Sensitive, acne-prone, dull and irritated skin with a damaged skin barrier. 

𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵:
✔️ Repairing skin’s moisture barrier
✔️ Soothing irritated, red, acne-prone skin
✔️ Hydrating skin and giving it a healthy glow

𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀:
10% Tamanu Oil
2% Niacinamide
Safflower Oil
Rose Hip Oil
Vitamin B3, E
Ceramide
Squalane

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟱:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5

☘️ 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝗥𝘅 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮 𝗕𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 ☘️
The dreamiest pimple fixer around 🙌🏻 It’s my favourite spot treatment for blemishes and it works extremely well on acne, inflamed and irritated skin. My brother suffered from serious acne and this product was the one that saved and healed his skin over time. Be diligent with this and it will pay off! ✨

𝗧𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲:
☁️ Opaque thick cream

𝗦𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿:
🧴Acne-prone skin

𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵:
✔️ Alleviating redness and irritation
✔️ Calming acne
✔️ Treating blemishes

𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀:
Centella Asiatica
Sunflower Oil
Glycerin
Tea Tree Oil

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟱:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5

skinbeige