Review: Hada Labo Perfect Gel

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As everyone knows, I've been really doing all sorts of things that can be done for nicer skin. When I was younger, all I knew was make up will make me prettier. So I just cake on make up thinking that's gonna make me prettier. I guess as we grow older, we realise that nothing looks better than really nice smooth healthy skin and a smile. :D Unfortunately, younger (past tense) me did a real, for a lack of a better word, shitty job of taking care of my skin. Late nights, sleeping with my make up on, insufficient water intake, the list goes on! Needless to say, my skin suffered the full brunt of my laziness :(

Well, better late than never, at least now I have learnt the errors of my ways! BUT, say so much, do so much, my skin is still dehydrated :( Thankfully, we have Hada Labo! 

The very nice people of Hada Labo (SG) sent over a sample of one of their many star products, the Perfect Gel! :D:D:D:D:D YAYYYYYY!

It's so cute, they sent it along with this panda eyemask that feels really soft and comfy when put on!

DID YOU KNOW that sleep is the time when the body repairs itself. During these optimal seven to nine hours of sleep, the body is rested both physically and mentally from a day’s activities. As such, many hair, face and body products are most effective overnight as the body absorbs it better. Hada Labo introduces the new Hada Labo Perfect Gel to replenish the skin’s moisture while you sleep.
Being all essence, cream and mask at once (3-in-1), the Hada Labo Perfect Gel is also suitable for daily use with the ability to provide 24 hours deep moisturizing effect. 

The Perfect Gel feels very similar to Laneige's water sleeping pack EX; one touch and you know it's jam packed with tons of water molecules inside! 

When applied, it feels extremely lightweight for something that can be utilised as a sleeping mask! +++ points for that! 

So with all skin care products, you've got to utilise it for a few days before you can assess if it's any good. I used it for 3 days straight and !!!

Absolutely nothing on my skin, not even any toner or whatsoever. Visibly clearer and more hydrated skin, I love it!! It doesn't hurt that the price of this Perfect Gel is cheaper than Laneige! To be able to achieve good skin without breaking the bank, what's not to love about that!

Why does it work?

I am sure most of you have heard of Hyaluronic Acid by now, yes? The Perfect Gel has not 1, not 2, but 3 (!!!) types of Hyaluronic Acid for deep and long-lasting moisturisation! 

1. Hyaluronic Acid is able to hold 1000 times it's weight in water, providing intense moisturisation to the skin when applied.
2. Super Hyaluronic Acid holds 2 times as much water than Hyaluronic Acid, providing maximum hydration.
3. Nano Hyaluronic Acid is able to penetrate deep into the skin, providing long-lasting moisture to the skin.
4. Other than the above, the Perfect Gel also has COLLAGEN in it. EVERYBODY LOVES collagen for it's anti-aging properties. 
5. It also has Ceramide, which helps to hold and repair the surface skin cells for healthy, smooth skin.

For just SGD$35.90, you get a serum, moisturiser and sleeping mask all rolled into one. My review on this; ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! 

With a good base, anything else you put on your skin just glides on like a dream. You don't have to worry about flaky dull skin. So if you're a lazy bum like me, try the Perfect Gel and let me know what you think! ;)

Day 8: Three turn-ons

Yipee yayy! We're halfway through the week! Hang in there folks! It'll be the weekends before you know it! Lez get down to today's installment of the Tumblr Challenge! Can't believe I've been so diligent on this /patsback.

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Day 8: Three turn-ons.

1. Please refer to the self-explanatory screenshots from my Twitter. LOL I kid you not. And it is in one package. I just naturally gravitate towards such guys. He must be tall, it's not really hard to fullfil this criteria since I'm not very tall myself. But he must be lanky too. Skinny tall guys, /swoons. Must have a sense of style. I've got something against ill-fitting outfits, I mean come on! Invest in a good pair of skinnies! And there's something about cute guys who aren't aware that they're cute that's extremely cute. If you get my drift. When a cute guy knows that  he's cute, the confidence is sometimes a little off-putting I guess? With the right amount of awkwardness, ahhhhh so effing cute (I'm grinning at the thought of this LOL). First language; definitely English. If you listen to indie bands, 'nuff said.
2. Twinkly smiling eyes. I could gaze in them forever. /sigh. 
3. Cool-ass tattoos. I am so superficial. Everything I mention is something that you can physically see. But you know what they say about first impressions, it really does matter to me. Just imagine the above mentioned guy; tall and lanky, quiet, collected, well-dressed, listens to Saosin or something, he rolls up the sleeve of his shirt and BAM, some fcking bad-ass tattoo appears! (OvO) Sooooo coooooooooool! HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAA! 

Aiya, but I am well aware it's so hard to find such guys. So they shall just remain as eyecandies. /shrugs. 

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2 more installments till we come to the end. I have no idea what to write about for the next 2 days, wehhhhhhhhhh. How ah.

Day 7: Four turn-offs

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Day 7: Four turn-offs.

1. Talking non-stop about yourself. Nothing screams arrogance like going on and on and on relentlessly about yourself. How I deal with it? Usually I will try to be calm and just slowly try to interject in between if we're conversing. However, if you don't get the hint, usually I'll just give up, shut up and roll my eyes until you're done boosting your own ego. Piss off. 
2. Over-friendliness. When I am first introduced to a foreign environment, I am one who keeps to myself; I would assess the said environment first and then evaluate my next step. If someone approaches me, I would be polite of course, and engage in friendly random chit chat, just for courtesy sake. Body language, baby. If I am keen to engage in further conversation, I would. If I'm not, please stop trying your luck. For the next few occasions of chatter, it would be a social obligation for me to reply you. Afterwards, you're just being plain annoying. 
3. Fickle-minded. MAKE UP YOUR FREAKING MIND. I am the kind of person who, 90% of the time, likes to plan my schedule. I like to stick to a routine of sorts. If we're heading out for a night out, I like a rough blue print of where exactly we're going, what time and what's the 411. I am not being anal retentive to the extent of needing to know the plans of something that's not going to materialise months later. But seriously, if we're going out in 5 hours time and you're still telling me, "eh I don't know eh, let you know later?" DRIVES ME NUTS. Indecisiveness for me doesn't just entails the above example, but also the general character of the person. 
4. Stupidity (from laziness and ignorance). I always believe there is no such thing as a stupid person, an ugly person or a fat person. Everything you want to be in life, is a choice. I am not talking about people who are genetically born handicapped in the above areas but those who are too ignorant to do something about their situation. If you think you're not good looking enough, take extra care of your skin or learn to apply make up to make yourself look better. If you think you're obese, stop eating so much junk food and exercise! If you realise you don't understand half the things people around you say, take the initiative to GO READ UP. If it's something selective like music or sports, I can understand if you don't know (and not keen to know), but things like current affairs.. ARGH. I absolutely hate it when people go, "Ohhhh why am I so fatttttttt" and there they go stuffing their face silly with food; or "Ohhhhhhh why my face like this why my pores so big blahblah" but they go about without taking care of their skin even when they're advised to. Basically, I just abhor people who keep making the same mistakes despite being told the correct way to do certain things. 

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Well, hopefully I didn't offend anyone with this post. If you feel like I'm talking about you, maybe you're thinking too much (or are you really?) LOL. Whatever the case, perhaps from time to time I do commit the above points too, and I apologise sincerely for making you want to pull all your hair out :D

Have an awesome Tuesday! :D

Day 6: Five people who mean a lot (in no order whatsoever)

How was your weekends? Hope they've been nothing short of awesome (: I had a very nice, relaxing, productive weekend. Ran, cooked and even uploaded a video! For your convenience, you can either click on the link provided or just simply scroll down :D Now jumping straight to my sixth installment;

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Day 6: Five people who mean a lot (in no order whatsoever).

1. Siew Shu Pig. Hehehehee, my dearest BFF. She has been there for me all the way. We were broke together, we went through all our break ups together, we went through thick and thin together. We are the kind of best friends who don't hold back anything; when we see each other doing something wrong, we are each other's wake up call. When I am feeling down, she is always the first person I look for. How is it possible that we're not blood related? Anyways, shu shu, if you're reading this, I miss you! I know you're damn busy with your work right now but meet up soonish okay? Love you!
2. Mommy Quek. Duh. Even though we always quarrel and our fights are reminiscent of clash of the Titans, I love that woman. Her words are sometimes filled with sarcasm, but I know I'm a very stubborn person, and she needs to do that to kind of, wake me up. But she's still the one who comes into my room every night, making sure that I'm properly tucked in and my feet aren't cold. She's the one who took the public transport system everyday when I was in secondary school to fetch me home after school. She's the one who always has me in her heart, wherever and whenever. I think I'm in denial that my parents are aging; I really can't fathom the day I would lose them. I just can't.
3. Daddy Quek. The man who fetches me everywhere and anywhere without hesitation. The man who makes me my cup of awesome coffee every morning before I go to work. The man who shares his food with me even though it's his dinner/lunch and he's probably really hungry but because I wanted to eat it so he shares it. He's a man of few serious words; but when he does say it, it really means so much more. He's the man, who I picture my future husband to be like (if I am ever getting hitched), the kind of father I want my kids to have. Daddy, it has been hard on you, and I love you for everything you did.
4. Korkor Quek. My korkor. I fcking love my korkor. I am always telling the people around me; if ever anything untoward ever happens to my korkor, I will be like 
   
   . Saying that I am fiercely protective of my brother is an understatement. Growing up, my korkor has been an exemplary role model to me. He doesn't bully me. And he really dotes on me a lot. I can't ever thank my lucky stars enough for giving me this korkor. :') Hello korkor, I really appreciate everything you do for me; from lending money to me when I'm broke to not being a tattletale to mommy; everything. 

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You must be wondering why there's only four people mentioned. /shrugs. You know, I know. If you don't know, then it's alright too. /weaksmile.

So here's a mini update on last week:

Finally tried Nam Nam with my colleague :D I would say it's worth queuing during lunch hour because there is a fantastic lunch set meal promotion going on; a bowl of Sliced Beef Pho, Iced Coffee and Vietnamese Spring Rolls at only $9.90 nett! The beef slices were really really good, they were tender and juicy and the soup was really tasty yet light at the same time (Y).

Wednesday saw me in town after work with Minzies and Johanna. Initially we wanted to go for some Sushi Bar lovin', but the shop was too packed with reservations we had to give it a miss :( Damn sad, I'm still looking forward to trying it one day, any takers?

BUT, I don't regret going to Wasabi Tei in replacement. I mean, just look at the salmon sashimi. This plate costs $12, for 6 slices. If you think $2 a slice is expensive, think again..

I MEAN JUST LOOK AT THE THICKNESS OF THEM SLICES?! They were the perfect temperature, perfect thickness, perfect taste. I had one of those "life is good" moments while nomming on these babies. ^^ 

And my dinner at Wasabi Tei. Grilled Salmon set. The whole meal (inclusive of rice, soup, appetiser, hot green tea, watermelon slices plus half the additional order of sashimi) set me back about $23. Which I would say is a very value for money meal since I get really good quality food in return! The salmon was grilled to perfection, not too flaky and the sauce? Oh god. (OvO)

Wasabi Tei
14 Scotts Road
#05-70 Far East Plaza
Tel: 62388216

Have no idea why my hair was incredibly pong that day. Really don't understand why some people dig thick hair so much..

Found out the Smoothie King at Suntec City opened on Thursday, I was SOOOO ELATED!! As you all know, I ABSOLUTELY ADOREEEE THE FOOD AT SMOOTHIE KING. Yummy, and healthy, what's not to love??? 

Had my favourite combination, Hot & Grill Teriyaki Chicken wrap with a regular Angel Food. A typical combo like this would costs you around $12.80. I know, not exactly cheap, BUT YOU HAVE TO TRY IT. SOOOOO SO SO GOOD.

Have been going bare skin (other than untinted sunblock and concealor as my base) lately. Funny how when we were younger, all we wanted to do was to cake our face with all sorts of make up, but now that we're older, all we want to do is slap on as little as possible. Pfft, girls.

The aftermath of trudging forth in my Jeffrey Campbell clinic :( Cray cray painful abrasion. HAISH.

AND FRYDAY FINALLY!!! Going bare face again :D Really like the whole mascara look, but its a pity my face is too darn huge and my eyes too darn small pfft why can't they switch adjectives???

DAZ RIGHT ITS SMOOTHIE KING FOR LUNCH AGAIN WOOHOOO~

Mood picking up as the day progressed because I was gonna watch Pacific Rim with A at night! :D And YES PACIFIC RIM WAS AMAZE-BALLS :O II'm a sucker for anything that has fight scenes and robots. What a bummer Singapore doesn't have Comic Con :(

And because A only knocked off at 9ish that day, I had tons of time to kill. So I bought Angel Food (again yes) for dinner and walked all the way from Suntec to Yangtze cinema to board the first 190 HAHHAAHHAAHAHAHHA. I mean, I had to finish that cup of smoothie anyways so just walk uh, can burn some fats also. Doesn't hurt that Smoothie King had a 50% off from 18-20 July :D

#OOTD for Fryday, entirely decked in Topshop and TOMs on ma feet.

Yummy yummy Angel Food, why you so yummy?!?!?!?!

So I reached home at 8ish, washed my face and realised at the last minute whilst primping that I LEFT MY MAKE UP POUCH IN OFFICE!!!!! :'( BOOHOOOOOOOOO all my make up essentials stuck in office zzz. Seriously a mood downer. So here's a picture of my mehhhh lashes. So myth busted, YSL and Shu Uemura are like O.O WHOA TOO GOOD TO LEAVE IN OFFICE.

Saturday, basically just nuaing like a boss at home and editing video and more nuaing. I managed to peel myself from my bed in the evening to go for a run :D So proud of myself; probably should make this a weekly thing and slowly up the frequency.

Sunday, my korkor's shoes and mine. My korkor so sweet lehh, the other time we were at Royal Sporting House and he was telling me he wanted to buy Sperry and I was just trying them on and casually commented, "waaa likka nice ah, I also want leh korkor." 

Next thing I know, he sent me this on whatsapp on Tuesday:

and he replied with a "I left the place already" because I was tuitioning and replied him late. So I didn't think much of it. On Saturday, he came home and went "Oh I got something to show you." And he brought out the shoes. TvT KORKORRRRRRRRRRRRR SANKS YOU SO MUCHHHHH /HEARTSHAPETIMESINFINITY.

Sunday family lunch at Mei Chin Food Centre. Some duck noodles loving. The soup was very delicious, not too herbal yet aromatic ;D

Accidental photo while getting in the car LOL. But nice uh the weather on Sunday HAHAHHAA.

Really naked face before my facial :/ 

And I went home after to cook dinner!! :D Hehehehe, mommy said, "okay laaaa thank you ahhh not bad" LOLOLOL. Thanks thanks /pageantwave 

Gordon Ramsay's Miso Salmon :D Very yummy and costs only $9.55 in all. His recipe didn't call for soba noodles but, I need some carbohydrates to fill my stomach so I added soba into the recipe. And if you're wondering if its good..

of course it is :3

June/July Favourites

SURPRISEEE!! I actually managed to edit, export and upload a video! After so effing long, finally I have a new vlog.

Products mentioned in video:

- Tony Moly Petite Bunny Gloss Bar

- Jane Iredale Lip/Cheek Stain in Forever Pink

- YSL Volume Effect Faux Cils mascara

- Shu Uemura eyelash curler

- Marc Jacobs, Lola

- Supreme X New Era cap

- Faux spectacles from Grandchild

- Pandora charm bracelet

- Laduree macarons

- Stroop wafels / Caramel waffles

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Hope you guys enjoy my first attempt at a Favourites video! It's the last day of this weekend, what's up on this glorious Sunday for y'all!? In any case, I hope your weekend has been nothing short of AH-MAY-ZENG and see y'all tomorrow for my sixth installment of the Tumblr Challenge! 

Stay safe kitties, x!

Day 5: Six things I wish I had never done

TGIF guys! The day we've been waiting for has finally arrived (and in 2 days time, the countdown resets zzz)! This is a tough one, I started thinking what are the six things I wish I had never done so far and my mind started wandering off~~~ Honestly, I always believed in "Never regret what you did, because at a point in time, it was everything you wanted". Soooo I am going to change it to...

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Day 5: Six things I wish I had done.

1. I wish I studied harder in Secondary School. I wish I didn't slack off so much in secondary school. I was super playful, and complacent. Not to mention I had really smart classmates/schoolmates who could afford to play all day and still score amaze-balls grades. Sigh. I was super hardworking in primary school, scored 245, got into Tanjong Katong Girls', slacked to the extent of getting an appalling score of 36 for my Prelims in Secondary 4. Thankfully I managed to buck up to L1R5 of 17. Its damn bad I swear, tell me who in TKGS gets 17? :( So yes, I wish I studied harder and fulfilled my fullest potential.
2. I wish I had paid more attention during Art class. HAHAHAHAHAHA. My teacher was the weirdest ever, and my friends and I used to think her classes were a total waste of time. But now I realised I am such an art noob. Nobody likes being noob.
3. I wish I had known the importance of skin care earlier. I used to sleep with all my make up on, every fcking day. Can you imagine how bad that is? And if you know me personally, I used to do outdoor water sports in Poly and I NEVER BOTHERED WITH SUNBLOCK. All the sun damage that has already been done to my skin, I can't even... So girls, skin care is so damn important. If you have good skin, you don't even need make up. Now I am on a fervent scurry to repair my skin and maintain it. 
4. I wish I had stayed on my Gymnastic CCA in primary school. You know, young and clueless. I was hand picked to join Gymnastics back then but due to my eczema, my mommy pulled me out. Now I am some inflexible, clumsy fool. LOL.
5. I wish I had plucked up the courage to tell _ how I felt. No, it's not who you guys think it is. He will always be one of my biggest "what-ifs". Because if that happened, everything now would be different. Maybe I'll never meet R and most likely J. But then again, who knows right? Ohwells.
6. I wish I knew what I know now. This is such an understatement. And a redundant one too because I guess this is Life? All the mistakes and lost opportunities are what makes us grow to be who we are. We are defined by our choices and our mistakes. But, it's inevitable that from time to time, you'd wonder how different things would be, if you knew what you know now.

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Undoubtedly one of the toughest list to come up with, but I did it. #successkid Do you guys have anything that you wish you did/did not do? I would loveeee to hear about it, so I know I am not talking to myself here zzz. 

In any case, wishing y'all a haps weekend! :)

Day 4: Seven things that cross my mind a lot.

Back for the fourth installment? (: Overachieving Asian in me shall do it! I am still bummed over the fact that I didn't get to eat my Sushi Bar yesterday. We were there at 7 and they were totally full house and under reservation till 730pm. We couldn't wait any longer because we were all so famished by then so we headed to Wasabi Tei instead. Which was good too! Reminded me a lot of Chikuwa Tei; the salmon slices there were crazy thick and super fresh! Will blog about that next week :D Let's get down to business then! 

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Day 4: Seven things that cross my mind a lot.

1. My flaws. I'd like to think of myself as somewhat of a perfectionist. Be it my face, my body, my life choices, everything. When I look into the mirror, there are always flaws that I see that I wish I could change. When I think of my life thus far, there will always be a decision that I had made in the past, that I wish I had done differently. Sometimes I would tell myself, "the flaws are the things that make me who I am"; but sometimes I feel like I can be better than what I am now.
2. The 'What ifs' and 'If onlys". Unfortunately, that also brings me to this. I wouldn't recommend you to think along this line, but I know how hard it is not to. It is akin to putting yourself through mental torture, every f*cking day. 
3. Death and loss. If you had seen my twitter (@jolenequek), you would have already seen this. I used to not think so much about this, but this year, it's pretty hard not to. It's hard to remain optimistic when you experience too much of a bad thing within a short span of time. I could attend a funeral of someone I barely know (but I do know him personally) and get so affected that I can't even bring myself to see the coffin. Perhaps it's nothing unusual for some people out there but I used to be so much more detached from such emotions. Everything has changed. It's a haywire in my mind right now. I am constantly praying to whoever is up there, to please not take anyone else I love anymore; because honestly I don't think I'll make it if that happens. 
4. My future. What am I going to do about the near future? I have been working for the past 3 years, ever since I graduated from my Diploma. I have been putting off studying for the longest time because I have no idea what I want to study. I don't intend to do anything related to my Diploma for my career as it's most definitely not within my interest (spare me your "then why you study that in the first place lecture" because I can't give you a reasonable answer). Let's just say I didn't really consider meticulously enough what exactly I wanted to do when I graduated from my secondary school and I don't intend to commit the same mistake again for the next phase of my academia. And come on, be honest to blog, I don't think you are that sure what you really want to do as a career for the rest of your life right now right?
5. What the eff happened? I'm not gonna lie, this still crosses my mind a lot. It's okay if you don't understand this point, you're not supposed to anyways and it doesn't matter too.
6. Am I good enough/Will I ever be fully satisfied with myself? And it's a "no". And I don't think I'll ever be. It could be a good thing, it could be a bad thing; it could motivate me to always be better than what I already am, but it could also suck me into a never-ending cesspool of self-reproach.
7. Cursing and swearing about how f*cked up this world truly is. I am someone who is extremely inquisitive. I love watching documentaries that showcase the other side of the world; a world that most of us are not aware of. Perhaps we are, but we choose to look away or we are just not that well-informed about the real situation. I love this channel on Youtube, Vice. Go check it out if you can. When I learn of all the atrocities being committed in the world, I suddenly feel like my problems are in comparison, trivial and insignificant. Who am I to complain about not being able to eat one of my cravings with my $2,000 odd salary when someone, somewhere can't even afford to eat anything at all TODAY because all they earn in a month is what, $200? It's a very sad world; and to think we are supposedly the more advanced species on this planet. Irony of life. We think of solutions to solve the problems that we created in the first place.

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Hope you enjoyed reading today's installment (: Have a great Thursday! We're less than 24 hours away from TGIF! 

X.