Curl up and DIY
Let’s be honest: vanity can be consuming. If you have a certain standard for how you should look, your willingness to expend time, effort and money should match that standard. This is probably why some people would just rather do away with “looking their best.” Compared to trekking all the way to a spa to have a bevy of strangers prick, poke and peel your skin to perfection, sleeping sometimes seems to be a better way to spend time.
Lazy people need not despair though, as trusted beauty brands introduce the latest products that can bring the effectiveness of a good salon treatment straight to your home. Indulge your stay-at-home tendencies while soaking up the transformative powers of great skincare.
Face time
The French brand known for specializing in aroma-skincare, Decléor, has perfected the craft of extracting the essence of plants to create all-natural products for over 25 years. To update the trinity of skincare — cleanse, tone and moisturize — the brand introduces products that are packed with healing and nourishing properties of plants. Combining skin cleansing and makeup removal into one easy step is the Decléor Lait Démaquillant, a light-as-a-feather cleansing milk made with the essential oils of lavender and pettigrain and with the essential waters of orange, kiwi and mallow (essential waters are the result of the distillation of the essential oils, containing trace properties of the plants). Easily absorbed by the skin, this cleanser has a soft pleasant scent and is effective in removing make-up even from the delicate area around the eyes. A plus factor is its no-rinse formula: Just wipe off any excess cleanser with a soft tissue and you are left with skin that is so fresh and so clean.
Follow it up with the Decléor Lotion Tonifiante, a gentle alcohol-free toner that decongests, rebalances and soothes the skin through the essential oils of lavender and the essential waters of kiwi, orange, mallow and lime. Unlike some toners that strip off the skin’s natural moisture, the Lotion Tonifiante actually preps the skin for other skincare products.
For optimum moisturization, Decléor brings your skin closer to nature with Aromessence, an exclusive line of true concentrates of 100-percent pure, natural and active essential oils and balms that work overtime to purify and hydrate the skin for a more luminous complexion. With just two to three drops of oil massaged into the face during the day and a small amount of balm applied at night, you get the full purifying and hydrating powers of aromatic herbs while having your senses stimulated. Different Aromessence oils and balms are formulated to address the needs of each skin type: for normal skin, the Aromessence Néroli brightens the complexion and triples the hydration levels of even the most sensitive skin. Complementing its effects at night is the Aromessence Baume Essentiel Radiance Balm, a multi-purpose balm that dissolves and eliminates skin impurities and calms the skin. For combination and oily skin, the Aromessence Ylang Ylang is a purifying concentrate that rebalances sebaceous secretions, deep-cleanses and clears clogged pores. Keep excess oil at bay at night with the Aromessence Baume de Nuit Ylang Ylang that gently reduces blemishes and calms irritations and inflammations. For dry skin, the Aromessence Angélique nourishes by compensating for lipid deficiencies. Breathing life back into parched skin at night is the Aromessence Baume de Nuit Angélique, a hydrating balm that works all through the night. For sensitive and reactive skin, relief comes in the form of the Aromessence Rose D’Orient, a concentrate that soothes the skin while improving its tolerance level. Complement it at night with a small amount of Aromessence Baume de Nuit Rose D’Orient and give your skin a break from the sensation of tightness and irritation.
Bright vs. white
But what is a great face without a body to match it? Step out of the two-tone shadow and brighten your skin all over with a lotion that has been specially formulated to cater to Asian skin. Clarins Paris introduces its White Plus High Performance Brightening Body Veil with SPF 20 ++, a light body lotion that leaves the skin velvet-soft even in the driest or most humid of weathers. The White Plus HP Brightening Body Veil is a part of Clarins’ White Plus High Performance range that provides the skin double protection against factors that cause hyperpigmentation.
The White Plus HP Brightening Body Veil instantly refreshes the skin upon contact and leaves no icky damp sensation, thanks to the presence of Laponite powder that absorbs humidity. Aside from moisturizing the skin and leaving it refreshed and supple, it also brightens and evens your complexion through its Lock-Around System that slows down the excessive transfer of melanin pigments to cells in the epidermis. Combining the plant extracts of alchemilla and raspberry with a highly stable vitamin C derivative, the Brightening Body Veil also blocks all factors that contribute to the excessive production of melanin, including sun exposure with the lotion’s SPF 20. The draining action of the Lock-Around System gives the skin a delicate and rosy glow and with daily application, you can observe your skin becoming more luminous and glowing. Compared to run-of-the-mill whitening products, the White Plus Brightening Body Veil does not simply lighten the skin tone; rather, it evens out the skin tone by working from within, resulting in a brighter and healthier complexion all over.
Lavish yourself with spa-worthy skincare products and luxuriate in having soft, supple and bright skin from head to toe. This is the easiest that vanity can get.
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Decléor and Clarins products are available at Rustan’s Essenses.
