Valen’s Vanity Square

Back from my island holiday! And I’m now one tone darker.

Well, it’s impossible not to get tanned after spending a few days in Langkawi Island. Wherever you go, the sun is always up there in the sky, smiling to you and kissing your skin. I’m lucky that I am only just one tone darker, considering that we did quite some outdoor activities, e.g. trekking up to the Seven Wells, Cable Car, Crocodile Farm, from the parking lot to the shopping mall… There’s just no way you can escape from the sun!

Good for me that I bought Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF50 (PA+++). Although it’s considered expensive for a sun protection lotion (RM160), it’s a really great product for it can be used on both face and body parts, and it doesn’t leave a sticky or filmy feeling on the skin (e.g. arms and legs). Instead, it leaves a smooth, powdery feeling on the skin, and keeps the skin hydrated. It also has a very nice fragrance unlike normal sun protection lotions or creams.

The Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF50 is very water resistant and perspiration resistant. That’s both good and bad. Good because it makes perfect for outdoor activities, as you don’t have to reapply often due to sweating. Bad because you need to soap and wash yourself thoroughly to ensure no residue of the lotion is left on your skin at the end of the day. In fact, according to the leaflet in the product packaging, the use of a special Shiseido suncare cleanser is recommended.

There is still a lot of the lotion left in the bottle, so I will be using this Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF50 often whenever I go for my weekly outdoor walking sessions.

What do you wish to receive as Christmas gift this year?

If you are a fan of playing online games, perhaps your biggest dream come true this Christmas will be a brand new, redesigned PS2 system to play your favorite games such as NCAA Football ‘08, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80’s, Guitar Hero III, WWE Smackdown vs.

I probably would have get addicted to these games too, hehe, IF I was given a PS2. However, the only gift I hope Santa would give me this year is a bottle of Cellnique Pro Sebum Gel. Hahaha!

That gel helped me solve whitehead problem last year. And now, I really need it to stop the whiteheads that went rampant on my forehead! But I don’t think I can afford to wait till Christmas for my bottle of Cellnique Pro Sebum Gel to be delivered through the chimney. I’d better get one myself as soon as possible before the problem gets worse!

Bought another magazine and got another free sachet sample of Lancome’s UV Expert Neuroshield sun protection lotion for face, hehe. And, I’ve bought a bottle of Garnier’s UV Protect Advanced Daily UV blocking Lotion.

(Just a note here before I forget: both the lotions are UV protection lotion, not moisturizer. They are applied on top of your daily moisturizers, and before make-up.)

I wrote about my trial with the Lancome’s sample a couple of weeks ago. Now it’s Garnier’s turn, of course.

Once again, I’m very happy that there is another lotion with a high SPF but is surprisingly lightweight, not at all greasy, and alcohol- and fragrance-free (i.e. suitable for sensitive skin). Although it gives my face some extra shine, my face is actually not oily when I touched it, just slightly sticky. Well, that’s normal. And most importantly, it doesn’t hurt my pocket.

So, let’s make a general comparison between these two and you decide yourself which is your cup of tea, errrr, bottle of lotion, I mean.

Lancome UV Expert Neuroshield, SPF50/PF+++

• Uses the Memoryl filtering system to protect skin against UV rays for 12 hours and offers a reinforced action against UVA, which is the main cause for dark stubborn spots.
• Enriched with Neuroshield System (don’t know what’s inside this secret formula though), which forms an invisible shield to help protect skin from damage by pollution and other environmental stress.
• Price: RM160 (30 ml)

Garnier UV Protect Advanced Daily UV Blocking Lotion, SPF50/PF+++

• Uses Memoryl SX/XL UV filtering system, a Garnier-patented UV filter system (hmm, is that the same with the one in Lancome’s Neuroshield?)
• Contains vitamin E, the anti-oxidant that fights free radicals, helps prevent skin darkening and premature aging.
• Contains hydra-active complex to help nourish and moisturize skin for 12 hours.
• Fragrance-free, alcohol-free
• Price: RM26.90 (30 ml) – The biggest plus point I would say!

To me, I like both of them. I bought Garnier UV Protect because, I’m saying it again, it’s very wallet friendly. And I believe it’s just as good as Lancome’s version. So, for thrift spenders, if you wanna get something that gives you long-hours of sun protection, Garnier is your good bet.

Bought a magazine the other day and was happy to find a sample sachet of Lancome’s UV Expert Neuroshield High Potency Active Protection 12H UV-Pollution SPF50 PA+++. I tried it on the next day before I left for my morning exercise session in the park.

I expected the moisturizer to be really creamy and heavy since it has SPF50. But to my surprise, it is rather light-weight, easily blended over the face, and it smells good too. I basically finished up the whole sachet, applying it generously on my face and neck, haha! For a lotion with SPF50, Lancome UV Expert Neuroshield does not leave a feeling greasiness on the skin. I like it very much!

Lancome UV Expert Neuroshield High Potency Active Protection12H UV-Pollution SPF50 PA+++

I don’t know its price, but my guess is it should be around RM200. Nope, I won’t be buying it this time around, as I still have lots of other bottles of lotion and cream to finish up, hehe. If I were to buy every skincare product I like, then hubby probably would need to buy drive one of those travel trailers, so that I could carry all my one hundred and one skincare items whenever we travel to KL.

Anyway, if you are looking for something with equivalent SPF but comes with a cheaper tag, check out Garnier UV Protect Advanced Daily UV Blocking Lotion SPF50/PA+++.

Garnier UV Protect Advanced Daily UV Blocking Lotion SPF50/PA+++

I haven’t gotten any sample to try on this one yet. If I remember correctly, its price is less than RM40 in the pharmacies. Hmmm, wonder where I could get free samples of this to try…