Sana Tonyu skin care

Before my trip to Japan I. December I did some research on affordable skincare. Came across the Sana Tonyu (soy) line and have been pleasantly surprised. The line I bought is the original one - a soy toner and a cream (a decent sample of cleanser came with it). Both the toner and the cream were about 1000 yen each, approximately $12 CAD.

This line doesn't seem to contain any fragrance which I really enjoy. The cleanser produces thick foam that cleanses the face without drying it. The toner is light milk color and leaves the skin feeling hydrated. The cream is what I enjoy the most. It is more like a thick gel-cream hybrid that blends into skin rather quickly. I can feel that my skin is moisturized and feels plump in the morning. I have not had any issues with this line at all such as break outs or rashes.

This line is called Nameraka Honpo on Sasa.com and the whole range is available.

PS. Sasa is a large cosmetic retailer in Hong Kong that sells many Asian lines, especially Japanese brands at affordable prices. They ship all over the world and offer free shipping with certain purchase amount.

New reviews to come

I won a $250 gift card to Sephora!  I entered their monthly survey sweepstakes in early January and was so happy to hear I won.
Went to look for a new long lasting foundation as the ones I have were too dark for the paler me in the winter.
The sales girl suggested Lorac performance foundation. Also picked up Kat Von D setting spray to try.
Will update in a couple of weeks!

Hair care routine

As a true beauty junky, my love for products is not just limited to make up but goes to skincare, body and hair products.
I have a very thick, resilient hair and I don't recall its natural colour or state as have been colouring and perming/straightening it since I was 15. Currently it is coloured and straightened (ionic straightening, aka. Magic perm). It is very processed and thus dry and brittle.

My goal is to make my hair as soft as possible. Initially I thought I need to use reconstructive shampoo and conditioners. The products I was trying were from Dove Nourishing oil line and Garnier Fructis. 

 The Dove shampoo and conditioner seemed to be working as it had heavier conditioning agents. However after a few weeks I noticed my hair seemed more brittle than before. From my research I see that any shampoo/conditioner with protein should not be used for a long time as it adds to the brittleness (amino acid build up?).
Garnier shampoo I used for a week and a half and threw away - it was stripping my hair and have to say was one of the worst shampoos I have tried.

I went on another quest to look for shampoos and found L'oreal Evercreme intense nourishing sulfate free shampoo. I had read that sulfate is a culprit in drying out the hair and was excited to find this. Even though it is sulfate free, it lathers wonderfully with thick foam (which I enjoy). The smell is of vanilla scent which doesn't linger too long. I do notice that my hair is feeling softer and tad more moisturized.

The game changer for me was the L'oreal Vitamino color conditioner, which I mentioned my my 2012 hits post. With the first use, I saw a huge difference. The conditioner is not as thick as some other moisturizing products yet hydrates wonderfully. My hair is so much softer.I plan to use this as long as I can.

Another line that I found that is good is Clear (same maker as Dove line - Unilever). I first heard about this though YouTube where people rave about it. These shampoos and conditioners are supposed treat your scalp as well as the hair. They are usually about $7 per bottle but I saw them on sale for $4 (and -$2 coupon) at Superstore so I had to buy them.
Just used it once and I am impressed! It made my hair super soft and almost fluffy (sign of my hair when it is hydrated). I kept on touching my hair all day long as it was noticeably different.
The shampoo I bought is Total Care and the conditioner is Damage & Colour repair. I am planning to alternate these with the L'oreal shampoo and conditioner.