Review: Flawless ISkin Balancing Toner

"I don't care whether I have savings or not so long as I look beautiful," said the really absurd mom of two.

I have a list of my go to salons: Azta Urban for my Ombre needs, Blooming Touch or Tip.Top.Toes for my Nail care/Spa Indulgence, and Flawless for my Face.

Back then, I was a sucker for beauty products and services. I was constantly availing services from Flawless. Hence, my acne free skin. Hence, the now irregular visits for my dose of Nano Powerpeel. Although that's not a really good move, I now prioritize my kids' indulgence. Congratulations, I'm now a selfless mom.

Well anyway, I'm copy-pasting my old post/review on their ISkin Balancing Toner from my old blog. I believe that this is a really good review, and might still be helpful for some. Besides, I kind of use the Balancing Toner once in a while, like a face mist especially when I'm having "hormonal imbalances."

Ahhh. The good it brings. The instant moisture. The relaxation.

And nope, no further ISkin Products because I had to cut down my personal expenses. Such is the life of being a mom.

Post pregnancy and Flawless ISkin Balancing Toner Experience

07/17/13 2:35PM

It's too obvious that after the well coveted cheap stem cell kit, Flawless has focused on advertising its ISkin product lines.

Flawless has been my trusted clinic when it comes to facial cares for years now. Thanks to their powerpeel services, acne problems never took place in my life again - literally.

My only problem now are my persistently open pores. It has been reduced with the use of their oil control kit - a cheaper alternative to the "imported" product that they have. Yes, that was how the ISkin was coined before it was the well-advertised skin care product now. My aesthesiologist back then explained that this imported pore refining toner is a bit expensive -- around Php 3,000.00, 100ml, but is really effective. Then all I said was, "ay. ang mahal!" -- and she never pushed through.

After consistent powerpeel sessions though, she said the pores are actually improving so most probably, with continued availment of their service, I may not need  this imported product. Then I got pregnant the second time around; so they advised me to stop using and availing everything just to ensure the safety of my baby; instead, they suggested that I use water and mild soap to wash my face, and petroleum jelly to moisturize it. True enough. I had good skin during my pregnancy.

After I gave birth though, my face went from oily to dry and then I had patches of wind burn! Not only that! I also had really rough skin despite the oiliness! CA N YOU IMAGINE HOW BAD THAT WAS??

Maarte as I am, I decided to avail my all-time favorite powerpeel service from Flawless. One session -- and then my skin improved a bit but wasn't really back to what it was before. My new aesthesiologist from Flawless SM Bacoor said that not all steps are safe for lactating moms so I guess they had to skip a few steps, and, instead, offered me a balancing toner to help restore my skin's pH balance, and maybe because that is the only recommended toner for moms like me. Despite the explanation, I was still dismayed -- I wanted the oil control kit that I've come to live with, and I wanted to go through a thorough powerpeel session, but my baby's needs need to come first so I had no choice but to listen to experts.

Now that I've been using ISkin Balancing Toner for more or less two months now, my skin is better. Way better than it was after I gave birth -- but oily; since that's my normal skin, okay lang sakin yung oily kesa naman yung patches of wind burns and dark spots plus some dry parts then some super oily parts. Aside from that, I read that the ISkin transformation starts by using the balancing toner to (I reiterate) restore the skin's pH balance then Flawless will recommend the next ISkin product/s to be used. The logic behind this is to show what your natural skin is so that Flawless can just go directly to the problem and fix it! Di ba? Mas okay compared to trial and errors or pachamba na lang based on what your skin looks like now. YAY! I am just so excited I want to visit them soon! Perhaps this time, they could let me expand my ISkin experience.

My say about ISkin Balancing Toner

1. It is refreshing
2. It is cool to the skin
3. It has a unique, relaxing smell. Perhaps because it contains a mixture of pure aloe vera and natural herbs.
4. It is effective! Given that I just gave birth and my hormones are overshooting from Apari to Jolo, it still managed to restore my natural skin!
5, There's no stinging sensation -- not even from day one.
6. The 200 ml bottle can last for may be 5-6 months! Imagine? That costs around Php450-600 per month.
7. Have I said it is EFFECTIVE?
8. It is a sign that something better is coming your way! Since it's the first step of your ISkin Transformation, expect a better looking skin in the future! Ho ray!

Author Review: John Green

Initially, I planned on writing a review on his famous The Fault in Our Stars. Apparently, it was a lame attempt because 1. it was a nice, feel good book, but 2. it was just that, and 3. I don't even remember how to write a book review. 

It is a really nice read, though. But, you know, just nice. No extra spice.

Okay. So back to Mr. Green. Aside from the fault in our stars, I also had the chance to finish Looking for Alaska. Now I'm thinking of reading his Paper Towns. But, I don't know, he's like a philosopher. Well. he is a philosopher. He has that tendency of going beyond what the book is supposed to be. Like, his books are under teen fiction, but then it ends up talking about oblivion, and infinities, and labyrinths, and afterlife, and death.

"Our kids are weird." 

My favorite line, indeed.

Although Mr. Green's kind of weird, deep-ish thoughts got mixed up with my supposedly feel-good-book, he is (or his editors are) awesome. Imagine that weirdness going on in your head translated into this bestselling book-turned-movie with a lot of awesome reviews. When in fact, some (if not most) merely absorbed a few fine lines such as:

"some infinities are bigger than other infinities"

or

"the world is not a wish-granting factory"

or

"my thoughts are stars i cannot fathom into constellations"

or... what was that about fearing oblivion? And the part where Augustus Waters said that he wants his life to be meaningful -- to live with a purpose, and die with, uh, legacy or some sort. I don't remember his exact words but basically that.

Despite that, Mr. Green actually expands his philosophies. like explaining how infinities are bigger than other infinities. and how you get out of the labyrinth of suffering, and how to change your views about it.

He is good. Really good when you think about it. 

Although, sometimes, I'd rather stick with my feel-good mood. Heh.

Review: Coloud Headphones

Phones, either smartphones or not, usually come with the manual, unit, charger, and earphones. Ironically, my husband and I do not use the free earphones because (1) we enjoy listening to music on the go, so we don't want to use and tear the original earphones; (2) we still have working earphones, which are relatively cheaper, and; (3) in case those get busted, we are not willing to shed out funds for a new pair of original earphones, because; (4) they are pricey.

So, the moment my cheap OEM earpods failed me, husband bought me new earphones - the COLOUD POP HEADPHONES. Quite expensive, I must say, but relatively cheaper than the original earpods. Well, I can't say no because it is purple - the apple of my eye. Besides, it seems really promising.

My previous set of earphones usually get busted on this part, like it was a curse.

Photo grabbed from Google

Hence, the saleslady suggested the COLOUD POP HEADPHONES because of this:

THE ZOUND LASSO
Photo grabbed from Google, again.

Which is intended to do this.
Photo grabbed from Google.
Again.

It seemed to me that coloud's zound lasso would finally break the curse.

So we bought it, for P895 at Astroplus, South Mall, with a one year warranty. Sale price, I think.

The packaging. Inside includes a manual, and sets of earplugs
in Small, Medium, and Large (I think).
Photo grabbed from Google.

Yes, the Zound Lasso is actually intended to do that.Photo grabbed from Google.

AFTER SIX MONTHS, the curse has returned.

But thank you for the warranty, I had no problem with the return and exchange. Astroplus actually changed the item anew without further ado. Same color! And the warranty is extended. So my new item is under warranty for another year! That's nice, isn't it? PLUS, should this new earphone get busted within the warranty period, Astroplus would still be replacing them for the last time.

Okay. I am happy with the warranty because this item is sweet! True to its word, it has a powerful bass and eliminates sound pollution. That said, I would like to share a short story:

My office station has a typical office table where I have my monitor in front and a landline on the side. I do research, make recommendations, and other stuff. So when working on a very important paper, I tend to listen to music with my Coloud Headphones, so I could concentrate on my readings and recommendations. Not sure if the volume was to high that time, but my officemate had to come to my area just because no one was picking up my phone. SEE! I totally heard nothing aside from the music from my headphones! HA! TELL ME ABOUT ELIMINATING SOUND POLLUTION (smirk).

Moving on, the Coloud Headphones come in different colors, choose your favorite!

So what's bad about this Headphones?

Well, Philips' headphones also come with that Zound Lasso looking plug. I don't know what that's called, but I could say that Philips has been around the market for so long, so the quality is undoubtedly better. Although it is relatively more expensive than Coloud, like, almost as expensive as the original earpods.

But that's not really something bad about the Coloud, right? It's basically just the truth -- that Philips is better; hence, more expensive.

Besides, I'm recommending this brand -- quality and price wise. :)

  

Review: Bavin Stone 12000mAh

Because I do not really charge my phone unless it's drained, I often find myself holding on to it while I'm on my way home since that''s pretty much the time when you actually need your phone for emergencies - literally.

Besides, I go out and meet my cousins and friends sometimes. By sometimes, I mean a time when I tend to use up my phone's battery in an hour or two. I have to call my family, talk with my kids, text my husband, take photos, browse the net and whatever. So I think it's time I buy myself a power bank (PB).

With a friend's recommendation, I willingly checked an online shop. Luckily, it was on sale! So I browsed the products -- and saw that cute Bavin power bank. I didn't just jump into it, though.  I did a little more browsing and had my choices. The Jingnoo 16000mAh, the Jingnoo 28000 mAh, and the Bavin 12000 mAh, which was priced P1600, P1700, and P1900, respectively -- sale prices, actually. As all buyers do, I inquired. And the seller amiably answered all my questions.

First, she recommends Bavin. Although it is relatively pricey, she swears on the quality and the accuracy of the mAh. While it can only fully charge an iPad mini once, it can fully charge an iPhone 4 to 5 times (I think). The Jingnoo, on the other hand, is cheaper but trusted as well. Probably not as good as the Bavin, but it's high mAh is sweet! Especially for someone whose bag is actually a pack of gadgets <cough>. But, of course I'm going after quality.

So here goes the Bavin, photo courtesy of the seller. I bought mine in blue, and my brother's in black.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to take pictures of it when the items arrived. But the items came pretty much just like that in a hard plastic shell, with the manual, a USB with 4 connector tips (30-pin, lightning, micro USB, nokia) and the unit, of course.

So when the package came, we had to drain our phones, and try out this PB. I tried to read the manual but it was all Chinese and all I was able to read says: BAVIN.

Technically, I did it the hard way - trial and error.

The PB was able to fully charge my phone in more or less two hours - not as fast as expected, unfortunately. Could be because I connected it to the 1A USB port. There are two ports, by the way, 1A and 2.1A which I think refers to the "flow" of current from the power bank. Like 1A has a slower flow than the 2.1A. Not sure, it's just a wild guess. 

Two outputs: 1A and 2.1A

Here's the deal, though, I have tried the Jingnoo 16000mAh power bank, courtesy of a friend, and it charged FAST! FAST as in an additional 50% in 30 minutes. But her PB kind of heated up, unlike the Bavin. That, I guess, is a good thing for me.

Moving on, the Bavin, without having it charged initially, was able to charge my iPhone 1.5 times, and my iPad mini once. Impressive. 

When the PB's battery is running low, it's last indicator (the closest to the power switch) kept blinking until it goes off. The fun part, of course, is learning how long it charges, which was about seventeen (17) hours without heating up!

Twelve hours of charging is long. Seventeen hours is longer. And heating up is possible. But it didn't. WOW.

You'll know the PB's charging because of the blinking indicator. It goes from the first, second, third, and the fourth, one at a time. These are obviously the power levels. Once full, the blinking stops and four lights go steady for a few minutes then it goes off. Although I'm not sure if the lights actually went off, it could be because I accidentally moved the charger. Let's play safe and just say that when the blinking stops, the PB is fully charged. But of course, if you have used the Bavin PB for quite some time now, please comment below on how you actually figure out it is fully charged.

The power switch, the indicators and the outputs.

Now let's talk about its physical appearance. As I've said, it is cute - same size as an iPhone 5 only thicker and heavier. It has a matte-finish, the kind where you wouldn't worry it would slip off the table! Plus points for me considering that I often, accidentally, swipe stuff from my table. LOL! It seems dust proof, but not dirt proof. Perhaps I should've bought myself black, instead of blue. That said, it comes in four different colors! Black, gray, blue, and pink! I wanted pink just because I'm a girl. But I chose blue, because I'm not that girly anyway.

Photo grabbed from Google Images. Hello Seller Olinad29!

Here are additional photos of my PB. Its sides are lime green. Cute combination, actually. But the black-orange combination, the one my brother got, is fierce!

 

By the way, I actually bought it from another seller! Her Bavin's on sale, too, at P1,650.
Fast transaction! :)

UPDATE AS OF JULY 7, 2014:

I charged it last week - a month after it's initial charging. The charging time is actually shorter. Perhaps 12 hours, and the indicators didn't go off. The USB adapters (the thing with four (4) different charging pins) is now extra sensitive after my kid played with it.

I actually lost count of how many times I've charged my phone. Maybe three times for my iphone 5 then my blackberry 82-something twice. Also, as I've said earlier, it isn't dirt proof so the corners are going black now.