SK-II Cellumination Deep Surge and Day Surge Review

I’ve been on and off deep surge over the years trying new products but I’ve now decided to stick to it. It works best for my skin. It’s ridiculously expensive and sometimes I think there probably is another product that’s cheaper and works as well but I have yet to come across one.

Source: sk-ii.com.sg

I’ve been struggling with keeping my skin hydrated, even when I used something that was heavier it was never hydrating enough. It never gets oily and the rose scent is really calming. I’d rate this a lot higher than stem power which is so-so.

I’ve also decided to start using sunscreen so in my attempt to do so I decided to try something with SPF included. The deep surge I use at night, during the day I use day surge. Deep surge is a gel / jelly texture and day surge is a thicker gel texture. Can’t say which one is better, day surge doesn’t make me break out either, goes on and absorbs into my skin pretty quickly so I would say they are both great with different functions.

Source: sk-ii.com.sg

Definitely give this range ago, so much better than the stempower range.

SK-II Stempower Essence review

It took less than a week of being in Melbourne till my skin started to flake. The hydraquench serum from Clarins just wasn’t sitting well with my skin so one fine day with plans to buy an eye cream, I came home with SK-II’s Stempower essence instead.

It sunk in really quickly and well when the SA tried it on my skin as compared to Facial Treatment C which was always gooey and smelly so I thought, why not?

The essence (I consider it a serum) is to be used after applying Facial Treatment Essence and before your daily moisturizer. I was told that it’s to help regenerate skin and reduce pores. I’m half way through my 30ml bottle and I still feel it’s not hydrating enough nor does my skin look any better. It hasn’t affected my skin adversely and is quite matte, you won’t have to worry about oiliness when it comes to this serum.

They had this amazing deal at Myer and you only had to spend AUD$99 to get the bag, your choice of 15g moisturizer, mask, cleanser, essence and clear lotion. This is a SK-II GWP opportunity that does not happen often or ever with a spend as small as $99.

30ml – AUD$120  / RM395 in Malaysia

I was really shocked how this was actually cheaper to buy in Australia, that again almost never happens as this is the land where everything is more expensive than most of the world.

I’m slowly falling into my bad ways, splurging on beauty products again 😦 I’ve got a whole bunch of stuff from an assortment of brands (Ren, Estee Lauder, Jurlique, Fresh, NARS) coming my way yet I’m still itching to try more. OH yes and a huge candle. It’s never ending eh? I already know carrying all of this home with me to Malaysia is going to be a bit of a nuisance.

SK-II Facial Treatment Cream Foundation

This makes my skin look so dewy and supple. I never thought my oily combination skin would be able to withhold a cream foundation, but it did.

It does get a bit oily during the day but nothing some blotting can’t fix.

This would be my go to foundation for full coverage without looking cakey. While a little goes a long way, application is slightly annoying seeing I’ve tried applying this with many brushes and the only one that works is Shiseido’s flat head foundation brush which in itself is a lot of work to use too.

For those of you looking for something matte but with full coverage, Estée Lauder’s double wear foundation does a good job but its hard to get a good colour match.

Price is RM200+

I don’t know if I need you

A few products currently on my list that I’m unsure about

1. SK-II Facial treatment foundation. I’ve been trying for 3 weeks to make this work, it’s hard I have to admit. The formula is thick and streaks with most brushes. I’ve tried MAC 188, 187 and Sephora Airbrush foundation. I’ve now gotten it to work with Sephora Mineral Powder brush BUT it still doesn’t look as great unless I use my fingers. I have N amount of brushes just so I don’t have to get my hands dirty so I’m feeling a bit disappointed. I’m going to give it one last go with sponges.
2. SK-II cellumination mask-in lotion. What’s the point? First use this then the essence. I find it to be a nice to have over a must have.
3. SK-II facial treatment C. My skin doesn’t feel especially hydrated nor are my pores more refined.

What a chore

My skincare routine is starting to feel like a chore. I’ve always said I wanted to keep it simple which is what I liked about SK-II but it’s just too lengthy now and my sudden determination to introduce sunscreen into my life doesn’t help (unfortunately I never used to use sunscreen).

Morning Routine

1. Cleanse
2. Cellumination mask in lotion
3. Facial treatment essence
4. Facial treatment repair C
5. Skin Signature
6. Eye cream
7. Sun screen
8. Make up Base
9. Concealer
10. Foundation

I’ve decided to clear out my makeup. I haven’t bought any makeup for a whole year and suddenly I don’t seem to have a need for X amount of blushers and X amount of eyeshadows.

I’m also using less of MAC brushes and more of Sephora brushes. Who would’ve guessed? They are pretty pricey and not too far off from the cost of MAC brushes, not to mention they are synthetic too so I suppose they need to be of a certain quality. Not saying all their brushes are great because I have a set from them that I don’t even use but the air brush range is good stuff! The following brushes by Sephora are my daily staples:

Sephora Airbrush Concealer #57

Sephora Airbrush Foundation #56

Sephora classic mineral foundation brush

My sister is coming back to Malaysia next month and I’m going to get her to bring back as much stuff as possible 😀

Question is, what should I get? Hmmmmm

SK-II Facial Treatment Gentle Cleansing Cream Review

My skin gets congested very easily so it’s important that I double cleanse after using cleansing oil / milk / cream to remove my makeup. This is the only exception.

I was intrigued when I first saw this released but couldn’t get a sample to try and during my trip to Hong Kong I bought in on blind faith that it’s SK-II, how bad can it get?

Not only was it not a disappointment, it’s everything I’ve been looking for!

I spread a dollop of this onto my dry face, massage it a little to get the make up off and then first wipe it with my 3M exfoliating cloth (damp) before rinsing it off with water. I find it more effective and quick using a wash cloth over cotton pads. What impressed me most was how it was emollient enough on the face yet so easy to rinse off afterwards with no yucky oily residue which is why I have never been a fan off cleansing milk and oil.

I’ve tried this on light and heavy makeup, it’s performed well on both with the exception of waterproof mascaras. I suggest you pre-remove eye makeup with something more suitable prior to using this. I’ve also gotten this in my eyes several times and it does sting a bit.

The scent itself is light rose, nothing too strong or worth shouting about.

It’s been almost 7 weeks and I have a little over half a tub left meaning a full tub would last me about 3 months plus which makes this a hefty investment as a tub should set you back around rm210 at least if my memory serves me correct but I paid HKD410 which makes it cheaper by RM50.

A cheaper and similar alternative is ultimation cleansing cream by Kose which is cheaper but richer and more emollient so I would have to double cleanse.

A recap of Hong Kong

I was in Hong Kong for 4 short days at the start of December only 4 short weeks ago but it feels like it’s been 3 months. It’s my 3rd time to the city and I still love it. I think it has the right balance of having ‘everything’ shopping wise without being too packed or crazy. If you’ve been to Orchard Road on a rainy day or Harajuku/Shibuya on any weekend, you would get what I mean about a city being too packed.

As I wasn’t that interested in shopping this time around I spent most of my time catching up with friends. I was a good girl this time, I used to come back with 2 luggages and it would usually be packed with new clothing. This time I had list of things I wanted to get and I mostly stuck to it.

Quick Summary:

1. Blythe Foam Hair Dye. I usually use Liese but have read great reviews about this. As far as I know it is still unavailable in Malaysia.
2. FANCL Face Puff. This is one puff I can’t leave out of my cleansing routine. I have not stopped buying this for at least 7 years. It helps exfoliate and remove grime a bit better. I was quite embarrassed walking into the store and only picking this up when the mainland chinese were buying things in the truckload.
3. 3M Nexcare Facial Cleansing Cloth, this could replace the face puff. I bought a tub of Cleansing Cream from SK-II and this has been working very well in helping me wipe the residue off.
4. LILYBELL Cotton Pads are unlike your normal cotton pads.They are thinner and look like soft bandages and gives a mild exfoliation effect. They remove cleansing milk/cream better and don’t absorb as much product when it comes to toners/lotions so you waste less. I bought 4 boxes, they aren’t easy to find and I had lots of luggage space.
5. MyBeautyDiary Bird’s Nest Mask. Wasn’t on my list but was persuaded by a friend that it’s a cheap thrill. It was cheap for HKD58/10pcs. I’ve tried it once so far, not too bad and apparently bird’s nest one of their best masks.
6. Diptyque L’ombre Dans L’eau. I spent the year regretting not picking this up when I was in New York and after learning that the cost was similar to the retail in the US, I just had to get it. It’s at least RM50-60 cheaper than the Malaysian retail price for the 50ml.
7. Jo Malone English Pear & Freesia cologne. The list of things I want from Jo Malone gets shorter by the year. My lust for this was certainly not as strong as my lust was for item 6 above but I really like this scent and this was almost on of those ‘pat on your back’ for working so damn hard. It was between this and the Xmas Coffret by L’artisan Parfumeur which had 3 x 15ml fragrances but it cost USD60 more so budget wins this time.
8. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence, Skin Signature, Cellumination Deep Surge, Gentle Cleansing Cream, Facial Treatment C, Signs Eye Cream, Cellumination Mask-in Lotion, 3-D Defining Mask, Skin Signature Melting Rich Cream. I’m glad to be back on SK-II. I ran out about 2 months ago and was convinced to purchase Sothys by my beautician. MY SKIN NO LIKEY at all.
9. Dove Purifying Cleasing Foam (not pictured). Some of you might’ve heard of Dove’s Cleansing Oil Foam makeup remover (gold bottle). Well I’ve tried a few bottles of those and yeah, pretty decent for the price and when I saw that this was a stronger version I thought I’d give it a go except the purifying version that I got isn’t an oil-foam cleanser. It’s just a purifying foam cleanser however, I kinda like it. It cleanses really well without the tight feeling on my skin.
10. Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Oil Free Cleanser (not pictured). What was I thinking? I don’t like Japanese cleansers because they always leave some kind of weird residue on your face, as if it’s thoroughly clean but it’s not. This is what it feels like. I should’ve stuck to the non oil-free version which I used to use, it was a much more superior product. This just feels CHEAP. REGRET REGRET REGRET.

One brand that’s missing from this whole list is L’occitane, even my boyfriend was surprised. WHAT? NO L’OCCITANE? *scratches head*