Too Cute, So Asian & Such Good Quality: Tony Moly Product Reviews Part I

Tony Moly – I’m addicted to all quirky products of this super cool Korean Brand. Wherever in Asia I find a Tony Moly store -there’s only one in Singapore at Bugis Junction- I stock up seriously on all kinds of their products. With an ever growing collection of Tony Moly makeup and skincare at home that I haven’t tried yet and a trip to Seoul (Korean Cosmetics Heaven – Tony Moly here I come!!!) ahead of me in September it’s time to finally put some products to the test, so that I have a good excuse to double my luggage weight with new stuff when I’ll be visiting Seoul. 

The Korean brand was launched in 2006. According to one source (Tony Moly US website), Korean brand “Tony Moly” translates to “nice and trendy”, whereas Wikipedia says it means "putting style into packaging”. Regardless of the meaning, cult beauty fans all over the world can’t get enough of the too-cute-for-words products.

The only Tony Moly store in Singapore, Bugis Junction, is a treat to visit - big assortment and lovely sales girls that patiently explain everything you want to know about the products

How can anyone resist this level of cuteness and quirkyness?!

The brand has an outstanding ability to blend innovation and must-have cosmetics with brightly coloured, playfully adorable packaging (shaped like bunnies, fruits and vegetables for example). These products add nothing but fun to your daily beauty routine.

Apart from the witty packaging, I find the quality of the products fantastic. Because of the good prices it is very easy to become addicted to this brand. The first three products (many more to come) that anxiously want to come out of my beauty drawer, waiting to be tried and loved, are the following:

PRODUCT 1: Tony Moly – “Petite Bunny” Gloss Bar

This is possibly the cutest product I have ever seen. I love bunnies, I love pink and I love cosmetics, so even if this product doesn’t do anything for me I will just keep looking at it for hours enjoying its cuteness.

There are 9 different bunny varieties, that each have a different colour, facial expression (on the cap) and scent. I’m trying a pink smiling bunny, “#05 Juicy Peach”, that smells sweet and fruity. The Petite Bunny Gloss Bar contains skin-conditioning ingredients (berry complex and Vitamin E) and promises to enhance the moisture levels of your lips, leaving them super-soft with a subtle, non-sticky sheen.  

The bottom of the plastic pencil-like packaging needs to be twisted in order for the actual gloss to emerge. Don’t twist the bar too far up, as it will get stuck and you will not be able to push it back.

I apply the gloss to bare lips for optimal coverage since the colour is very sheen. Texture wise, it feels like a lip balm upon application but once on the lips it feels more like a gloss. Either way, it’s easy to use and comfortable to wear.

I really like the result - very natural, hardly there. Just a hint of a light sweet pink. Only downside is that the product doesn't last long, i.e. after 45 minutes no trace of the product is visible anymore. Doesn't matter though, as it's an absolute pleasure getting the Bunny Gloss Bar out of your purse every hour to reaply!

Tony Moly – Petite Bunny Gloss Bar #05 Juicy Peach

Price: 12,90 SGD

PRODUCT 2: Tony Moly – “Egg Pore” Tightening Cooling Pack

Eggs as an ingredient to tighten pores and smooth out skin are very popular in Korean skincare products. Tony Moly has an entire “Egg Pore” range, with a.o. this Tightening Cooling Pack. On the packaging of the product itself it says: “The enhanced ice corset pore pack tightens open and loose pores seamlessly with a cooling effect that covers the pore”. Sounds somewhat lost in translation to me; I understand the cooling and tightening that the product promises me, but have missed anything about an “enhanced ice corset” (?) so far. 

Also in the Egg Pore series: Blackhead Steam Balm (white) and Silky Smooth Balm (golden)

The product contains egg shell powder, which should help to tighten, clarify and soothe skin. It is further enriched with camellia flower extract, bentonite and kaolin clay to soothe, smoothen, remove dead skin and control sebum. According to the ingredient list it should be perfumed, but it hasn’t got a very distinctive scent. Packaging wise, it’s a bit of a freaky product, this large plastic egg. The beige plastic shell looks like a real (big) egg, and inside egg there’s an extra yellow lid that resembles the egg yolk. The texture of the white product inside the egg turns me off somewhat. I expected to find a smooth emulsion inside the egg, but instead a find a substance that looks like something in between white cement and a foamy dessert that has gone bad. I googled the product to see whether it might have stayed to long in my drawer, but find that it should actually look like this. Yikes. 

I follow the (sparse) directions: “apply an appropriate amount (?) and spread onto loose pores”.  I have no clue where to find my loose pores? I probably have some but it’s a mystery where on my face they might reside. I opt for the area around my nose, as pores are most visible here. 

The application of the product on my face is initially a but messy, because the texture of the pack isn’t smooth and does not really stick to my skin but falls in the sink instead. I learn that I really need to rub it in, and the texture becomes somewhat smoother and easier to apply. Upon application I immediately feel a slight cooling effect. I then need to leave it on for 10-15 minutes till the face pack is completely dry. It dries quickly, which causes a tightening effect in the area where I applied the product. Washing off with luke warm water proofs to be a bit tough but with a towel I am able to get it off my face. And…see no change.  Not my kind of product. 

Tony Moly – “Egg Pore” Tightening Cooling Pack, 30g

Price: 24,90 SGD

PRODUCT 3: Tony Moly - Pure Bamboo Cool Water Soothing Gel

This soothing, watery gel is made of fresh Damyang bamboo, which consist for 99% of moisture. In addition, the product contains 18 minerals and amino acid, that promises to calm down the skin and supply moisture. What I love about this product (apart from the cool packaging obviously) is that a) it can be used for both your face and body and b) the texture of the product is very light weight and is absorbed by the skin immediately.

I use this soothing gel a lot on my shoulders and chest area, as these sensitive areas capture quite some sun during the day and need some serious soothing regularly. I love that it makes my skin feel soft and doesn’t leave me with a greasy chest like many regular body lotions do, especially when I sweat. The gel is transparent and is slightly perfumed with a very soft and fresh scent that reminds me of dewy drops of water on bamboo leaves.

Tony Moly – Pure Bamboo Cool Water Soothing Gel, 300ml
Price: 11,90 SGD

Where to buy?

Tony Moly products are available in Singapore at the following locations:
- Official Tony Moly Store, Bugis Junction
- The Shilla Duty Free Cosmetics, Changi Airport

And online (limited assortment) through:
- Althea

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, there's several Tony Moly stands and shop-in-shops, find them here

Boost the "welcome (back) home in Singapore" feeling with these amazing scented candles

Welcome home in Singapore! Whether you have returned to Singapore from a long summer with friends and family at home in Europe/The US/Australia or whether you just arrived to start a new adventure in Singapore (judging from the amount of containers that I recently spotted in the suburban streets, there’s a lot of new expats arriving!), these amazing scented candles will definitely help you feel home (again) in lovely South East Asia. 

As I wrote last month, living in Asia I love scents that emphasize my surroundings and make me aware of the extraordinary lush and colourful Asian tropics that form the decor of my daily life even more. This applies to no matter what product, from shower gels (read my post here) to perfumes and scented candles.

Scented candles influence our emotions, thoughts, joyful memories and immediate state of mind like no other sensory stimulation. They can provide you with whatever you need, from an uplifting mood to a relaxing moment of peace and calmness. Try below candles to speed up the process of feeling at home in your Asian surroundings. It always takes some time to adjust again (Bad: The blistering heat that I finally got used to before I went back to Europe this summer! Good: The view on my swimming pool surrounded by palm trees that I missed so much while away!) but this will definitely help you speed up the process.

ToBeCalm - "Singapore Journey" Scented Candle with Frangipani & Ginger

Smells like...Singapore! Characterized by the sweet fragrance of Frangipani and ginger, the robust and floral aroma "releases heavy burdens while stimulating your thoughts on pleasant and beautiful visions of the Lion City". Also makes a great gift to sneak into the moving containers of your sweet friends that are leaving!

To Be Calm - "Singapore Journey" Scented Candle with Frangipani & Ginger
Price: 35 SGD
Available at a.o. Sephora Online (find link here) and ToBeCalm's webshop (find link here)

Ba Yan Ka La - Shangri La Handmade Yak Milk scented candle

Ba Yan Ka La is a pioneering skincare and body care concept from Shanghai, inspired by thousand years old Oriental wisdom of herbal science. The company’s products are ethical, natural and clean, using organic and plant ingredients. Ba Yan Ka La's products are a favourite brand for a selected number of leading boutiques, resorts and prominent global five star hotel names. And one of my favourite brands, I love their shower gel - read more here. 

For candles too, Ba Yan Ka La found the perfect combination of the finest ingredients to create outstanding premium quality candles. This scented candle (they also have one with Lotus Seed) with Tibetan Yak Butter is handmade - the cup is created by craftsmen who perpetuate millenia old traditions by hand and in fair trade. The video below gives an impression of this process!

The candles themselves are filled with Yak butter, in the same way yak butter candles light up temples and places of worship in China, Tibet and further in Asia. The scent adds a lovely touch of spirituality in your home, thanks to the exclusive blend of natural essential oils of Geranium, Eucalyptus and Peppermint. 

Ba Yan Ka La - "Tibetan Yak Butter" Handmade Candle, 150g

Price: 60 SGD

Available at Tang's (Tang Plaza, 310 Orchard Road, Level 4, Singapore 238864) and in Tangs Webshop (find link here)

Jeunesse Product Presentation & My Husband as a Home Lab Guinea Pig (ssst don't tell!)

I was invited to a product presentation hosted by Jeunesse in the Fairmont Hotel, because now available in Singapore: AM PM Essentials, dietary supplements designed for your well-being -maintaining strong nails and healthy hair among the benefits- and Be the Envy Perfecting BB Mist Foundation, for a professional airbrushed look in seconds.

I'm particularly keen to try out the AM & PM Essentials™, a two-part dietary supplement loaded with 70+ key vitamins, minerals, nutrients and botanicals that specifically targets your body’s morning and nighttime needs. Problem is however that I'm already quite happy with my current mix of supplements, carefully tailored to my diet and needs, as I have been a vegetarian for more than 18 years now. Over the years, it took quite some trying and adjusting, hence I don't want to switch to any other supplements than the ones I'm taking.

Luckily, I do have the perfect guinea pig at hand in my home lab: my husband. If someone could feel and look better, "begin the day with health in mind" and "end the day with peace of mind", it's my typical SEA Expat, workaholic, always travelling, always jetlagged, living-on-airplane-food and late-night-hotel-room-service-junkfood hubbie.

The perfect guinea pig: my always travelling, workaholic, airplane-junkfood-munching hubbie.

He'll be home from yet another trip to Jakarta tonight, and I came up with the greatest test design: not telling him what supplements I'll be feeding him from now on, and will just observe whether these dietary supplements, designed to achieve optimal health and slow the symptoms of premature aging, will root some notable differences. Like most men, he shares every single pain and itch with me, loudly, extensively and not to be missed, so I trust I WILL know if AM & PM Essentials will prove to be his holy grail in "improving his quality of life from the inside out".

To be continued...

Out of the Office until Fall: busy being mommy to the most beautiful creature in the world!

Home Sweet Home Fragrances

Last month we moved places within Singapore, and a new home always means new smells – the one more pleasant than the other. Great: the exotically sweet frangipane plants in the new garden. Not so great: continuous fried garlic fumes from the masterchef aspiring neighbor, and somewhat odd smelling closets. Luckily there are products called Home Fragrances, from scented candles to sachets and diffusers. Although this isn’t a beauty topic by definition, I didn’t want to keep my finds on home fragrances in Singapore to myself and therefore justify this topic as, well, beauty for your home.

So I’m a known fool for smells and fragrances. Not just perfumes, the industry I worked in for several years, but any distinctive, interesting smell. Especially when it's related to people, the pleasant smelling ones, obviously, and places - again, agreeable smells only and definitely not the smell of durians in Chinatown or the sewers of Jakarta. I must confess that I regularly though discreetly stick my nose in a lovely smelling neck while waiting for a traffic light. And my heart always jumps when I set foot on Changi Airport again, because I absolutely love the fresh, peachy smell of this place – most likely caused by a very good home errrr… airport fragrance. I would love to have that job, “Airport Fragrance Manager”. Anyway.

I don’t quite like the smell of one of the bathrooms in our new place and while I’m at it, the semi open walk-in closet could use a subtle fragrance as well. So off I went, on the hunt for some home fragrances. Of course there are Yankee Candle and Bath & Body Works in Singapore, but for me personally, their scents are way too artificial; the pungent synthetic notes of Bath & Body works’ aromas even give me headaches. A thorough round of research taught me that Tangs on Orchard Road is the place to be for home fragrances.

A selection of brands and products available at Tangs: B1 at Orchard Road 

is Home Fragrance Heaven!

To start with, Tang's has Diptyque scented candles in the niche fragrance corner on the 1st floor. I absolutely adore Diptyque, but their pricey products do hurt your wallet and my inner-Dutchie refuses to pay 100 SGD or more for a candle. Luckily in B1, alongside the pots, pans and chinaware, Tangs has lots of other home fragrance brands, that are (mostly) less expensive and at least as good, if not better. The blissful brands available are mostly luxurious, boutique style brands that are brought in from all over the world: Singaporean brand To Be Calm (of which I tried the “Singapore Journey” scented candle before), Australian borne Glasshouse Fragrances, Irish-owned Max Benjamin, obviously Italian Culti Milano, essentially English Royal Doulton Home Fragrances and another Ozzy brand named iKOU.

Most brands have both candles and diffusers, and some even stock sachets, scented cards and body products, like hand wash, body lotion, bath salts, essential oils etc. I got 3 different types of products from 3 different brands and put them to the test at home:

1. GLASSHOUSE FRAGRANCES: "Kyoto" Fragrance Diffuser

This is by far my favorite pick, and I already had trouble in store deciding on what fragrance to choose, as I actually wanted all of them. The names of the fragrances alone had me carried away on luxurious trips to dreamy places such as Bora Bora (Cilantro & Orange Zest), Oahu (Ilima Milk & Honey), Monte Carlo (Fig & Guava), Rio de Janeiro (Passion Fruit & Lime) and Beverly Hills (Pink Lemonade), just to name a few out of the large selection.

I chose Kyoto (Camelia & Lotus), as it really did remind me of what Japan smells like; softly sweet and sensually mysterious. Like a calm Zen temple surrounded by tantalizing Cherry Blossoms and Lotus flowers, something like that. The 250ml diffuser comes with about 12 wooden reeds, but using 5 proved to be enough to diffuse a very generous trail of fragrance throughout my bathroom, where I now try to spend as much time as possible. Can't wait to try out more of their products. And to book a trip to Oahu or The Hamptons.

Glasshouse Fragrances - “Kyoto” Triple Strength Fragrance Diffuser, 250ml
Price: 75 SGD
Available at Tangs, but also at Robinsons and other stores (find them here)

2. MAX BENJAMIN: “French Linen Water” Scented Card

Like fragrance diffusers, I like how carefree a sachet or scented card is. You just place it somewhere and don't have to think about it anymore, which is not the case when you burn a scented candle, that requires to be kept an eye on. Problem with most sachet type of product however is that the fragrance weakens so quickly, at least from my own experience. Fortunately this is not the case with Max Benjamin's Scented Cards, soft rubber plaques about the size of a (large) business card.

Max Benjamin has quite some appealing scents available, like Lemongrass & Ginger and Mimosa & Sweet Amber. I chose the clean and soft floral French Linen Water, that reminds me of a lavish bubble bath in a French mansion in the Provence, enveloping myself in fluffy, freshly washed towels afterwards. Indulgent, to say the least. So far, my walk-in closet has been smelling like the boudoir of a French countryside chateau for over a month now with the same two scented cards - magnifique!

Max Benjamin - “French Linen Water” Scented Card, for bag, wardrobe, drawers or car
Price: 13 SGD
Available at Tangs, Robinsons and Takashimaya

3. TO BE CALM: “Travelers Journey” Scented Candle

As said before, scented candles are more high maintenance than diffusers or scented cards and sachets - you do not want to leave a burning candle unattended. Singaporean brand To Be Calm does offer fragrance diffusers as well, but I couldn't resist to pick one of the cute candles that just look so nice on display in one of our bathrooms, especially the medium and mini sized candles.

Travelers Journey, with White Tea and Ginger, is a soothing as well as a reviving scent, fresh and clean with a subtle spiciness. Reminds me of...a much needed spa treatment in a 5-star resort, after a long and scorching hot day at an exotic South East Asian destination. I imagine a soothing and cooling body wrap, a fresh breeze rustling through the palm leafs outside and a last glimpse of glistering sun through the dark wooden shutters. Ahhh to be calm...

To Be Calm - “Travelers Journey” White Tea & Ginger Luxurious Scented Candle, Medium Size
Price: 37 SGD
Available at a.o. Tangs, at Pasarbella, through Sephora’s Webshop and even through Redmart.