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iHerb Beauty Haul
It’s been quite a while ever since I bought stuff on iHerb. Recently, I found my beauty supplies on low so I headed over to iHerb to do some online beauty shopping.
My skin type has changed over the years and previously, I had trouble maintaining an acne-free skin. But now, I think I am able to prevent my skin breakouts from worsening through the daily oil facial massages and weekly facial mask. On top of that, I’ve been doing monthly facials at Indulgence Skin just to ensure that my clogged pores are thoroughly cleansed.
As for my skincare routine, I try to do more exfoliation and masking. Hence, I have recently started to build up a stash of facial mask products. I visited my favourite go-to beauty site, iHerb, and purchases some skincare products. This is one of my best hauls as I picked up some really good products that worked for me.
1. NOW Solutions European Clay Powder
Clay masks are perfect for those with oily skin type. I’ve oily skin as my skin is usually very dry. In response to my dry skin, the sebaceous oil glands tend to get stimulated to produce more oil just to moisturize my skin. However, this results in oily skin. Clay masks work by absorbing the excess oil and cleaning out any impurities in the pores.
I am glad that I bought this tub of clay powder to try because the ready-mixed clay masks stored in tubes or tubs often dry out very easily after some time. With the clay powder, I could probably keep for a longer period of time and used it only when necessary.
Benefits of Clay Powder
The European clay mask is suitable for normal, oily and combination skins. It consists of only Montmorillonite (a natural mineral silicate) which helps to draw out impurities and unwanted debris from the skin, thus decreasing pore size over some time. It is like giving your skin a facial detox.
How to Prepare Your Own Clay Mask
The suggested use is to mix 1 tablespoon of the clay powder to 1 tablespoon of cold water. If you have dry skin, you can add a few drops of facial oil into the mixture so that the mask is less drying on your skin.
For me, I would mix it in a bowl with a spoon. I normally use about 2 tablespoons of clay powder mixed with Aloe Vera juice as I would also apply it across my neck area. Then, I would add in 3 drops of Vitamin E gel and 3 drops of facial oil. After mixing, you can use a brush or your fingers to apply the mask all over your face and neck area.
You should only leave the mask on for about 15 to 20 minutes – no longer than that. Otherwise, your skin will be dehydrated.
I would remove the mask with the help of the Mask Remover Sponges by EcoTools which I had also purchased in this iHerb beauty haul. My skin felt so smooth and squeaky clean after masking.
Here’s my Facial Clay Mask recipe:
European Clay Mask (2 tablespoons)
Cold Aloe Vera Juice (2 tablespoons)
Vitamin E gel (3 drops)
Facial oil (3 drops)
2. Stridex Single-step Acne Control (55 Soft-touch Pads)
Beauty pads are really trendy right now because it is easy to use and very travel-friendly. It was my first time coming across these acne pads which are ranked as one of the best-selling products on iHerb. Many of the reviewers quipped that it was very effective in clearing some of their acne while a handful said that it didn’t work. Like any other skin product, there isn’t a perfect one that works for all skin types.
I was a little apprehensive at first about using these acne pads which contains salicylic acid because such acne-controlling ingredients can be very drying on the skin. But not for these acne pads. After swiping my skin with these soft-touch pads, I did not feel any dryness in my skin at all. I guess that’s because the 2% of salicylic acid isn’t that strong and drying on the skin.
Overall, I really love using these acne pads because it really helped me to clear and control the breakouts. It is really a hidden beauty find as I have not really heard about this product until I browse through the list of acne-fighting products on iHerb. It is also very affordable too.
How to use it?
I would use this pads after cleansing my skin as a toner. The pads are very moist so I would swipe my skin a few times until the pads are partially dry. I read somewhere that you should not leave the pads on your skin for too long but I did it anyway, especially on those pimply areas. It did not dry out my skin at all.
3. EOS Essential Hand Lotion (Berry Blossom)
Since EOS lip balms are a bomb, I thought maybe their hand creams would be magical too. But I ended up disliking it because the berry blossom scent smelled too artificial. Also, the hand cream felt more watery than buttery. It absorbs easily into the skin but it doesn’t exactly moisturize my hands. My palms still felt dry after applying.
In essence, I still prefer hand creams which are more buttery in texture so that it moisturizes my hands for a longer period of time. This is still one of my favourite hand creams of all time.
4. Alba Botanica Un-petroleum Plant Powered Lip Care (Tangerine)
I like lip balms are not too oily and have a lower melting point. Due to our warm and humid climate here in Singapore, the lip balms tend to melt very easily and it causes a mess in my beauty pouch. Thank goodness, this lip balm by Alba Botanica can withstand Singapore’s heat. It coats the lip smoothly with a thin layer of the balm which is just enough to prevent my lips from chapping.
It might not be moisturizing enough if you live in super cold and harsh weather conditions. But it works for those living in areas with a tropical climate.
I like that it has SPF 15 which protects the lips from the harmful UV rays.
5. EcoTools Mask Remover Sponges
This is definitely a life saver. The messy part about applying facial masks which required rinsing is the removal of the mask. I find it difficult to just rinse out the mask using your fingers because your fingers do not exactly scrape the mask off the skin. Previously, I would use tissue paper to wipe off the mask and it did not exactly work that effectively. However, with the cellulose sponge, I could easily remove the mask in less than a minute. It worked like an eraser, gently scraping off the mask with the natural cellulose fibres.
How to Use it?
When dried, the sponge is hard. Upon contact with water, it softens and becomes flexible. Apparently, you can reuse the sponges and it could also be used with your cleanser to remove any oil, dirt or makeup.
This is one of the best beauty buys ever! Each pack comes with 2 sponges and I believe that you can use both sponges, one in each hand, to wipe away the mask.
These sponges also helped me to save water. Instead of using running water to wash off the mask, I simply wipe it away with these sponges. In a way, these sponges are water-saving too.
Other Products
Besides these products, I also bought Aura Cacia Castor oil and Queen Helene’s Olive Masque and Oatmeal ‘n’ Honey scrub. I purchased the castor oil as I thought I could apply it to my lashes so that it could lengthen my lashes but I didn’t use it long enough to see if it works. As for Queen Helene’s products, I’ve yet to try them out as I still have tubes of facial scrubs and mask to clear before opening the new ones. If they are really awesome, I will update this post again with my reviews on the other products.
Special Discount
For all New or current iHerb customers, you can enjoy an instant 5% discount off your current order when you use my promo code [RBS682] at iHerb checkout page. Enjoy 10% discount when you purchase iHerb house brands using the same promo code!
