Miine Silicone Brush Cleaner

I've always wanted to try the Sigma Glove but found it too expensive. I'm so happy to discover this silicone brush cleaner at Watsons. I got this in June and I'm satisfied. It costs more or less P200. 

It has a dotted part and a ridged part. I use the dotted part for cleaning smaller brushes like eye shadow, lip, eyebrow and concealer brushes. For the bigger ridged part, I use the foundation brush, powder brush and other big brushes. 

There's a hole in the bottom where you can insert your fingers to hold the cleaner properly. 

What I do is sometimes I put shampoo directly on the cleaner and just scrub, scrub, scrub my brushes. Sometimes, I put shampoo in a small bowl, dip my brush and run it on the cleaner. Either way works but the first method is a bit wasteful on shampoo. 

This comes in pink and purple and I think there's also a blue one. By the way, Miine is a Korean brand. Let me know if you've tried this product. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

READ THIS IF YOUR KIDS GO TO KIDZOONA

I am sharing this to all parents, guardians and carers of kids who go to Kidzoona. This incident happened today at the newly opened Century City Mall branch.

We are regulars at the Waltermart branch and have also tried the branch at Shangri-La.

We were excited to try out the Century City Mall branch. My 3-year old son played with the usual food stations and when he got bored, he asked me to go with him to the slides.

I already knew that this was a steep slide. As usual, I went up with my son. He is still scared of going down slides on his own but there are times when he goes down alone and I wait to catch him at the bottom.

I put him on my lap and down we went. I was scared midway because we were going down too fast and knew we were losing control. I ended up lying flat on my back with my head hitting the balls. It was painful. I was thankful that I went down with my son or he could have gotten seriously hurt. I decided that this was too dangerous for my son. My nape was painful as well as the bottom of my head. Although the Shangri-La slide was steep, I did not end up flat on my back when we went down.

We went to the green spiral slide next as I thought that it would be safer. I was wrong! It was also very, very slippery! So slippery, that we lost control again and my body twisted to my side and again, fell flat on the balls. This was another painful fall and I'm glad that I was there to cushion my son's fall.

I also ended up getting burns on my elbow.

I went to the girl on the counter and asked for some medicine. She applied some burn ointment and told me to be careful next time. I told her the slides were too slippery and we weren't used to them being that slippery in other branches. 

I then talked to the Manager on duty about the slides. I asked if they put wax on it. He said that they put some silicone on it once a week only because if they applied more frequently, the slides would be very, very slippery. I told him they already were! I also told him that I hurt my head and showed him my elbow. 

I asked another mom present, who also went down the slide but on her own, if she found it too be too slippery. She said yes and that she was surprised that she zoomed down too fast. I watched her daughter go down and she too fell flat on her back. I told her about what happened to us and about the green spiral slide. She said that she found the placement of that particular slide to be very dangerous as it was too slippery and it was very near the walls. The momentum would cause a serious accident that's why she didn't let her kids play there. 

I also warned another mom with a little girl (about a year and a half old) to not let her child go down the banana slide. As you can see, all the slides were very shiny, probably from the product they use. 

The manager proceeded to get a rag and a spray bottle and started wiping the slides. He said that he will remove the silicone as he was worried that someone else might get an accident. I already wrote to the Aeon Fantasy Group, the company who owns Kidzoona and I am awaiting their reply. My neck hurts (it feels like I have stiff neck), my shoulder hurts and a part of my chest hurts. I can feel it especially when I lift things such as a pitcher to pour water. The manager told me to get a checkup and I asked if they will shoulder bill to which he replied, "he will consider it". 

Please be careful when you use the slides at Kidzoona, no matter what branch. Supervise your children, especially the small ones. 

I will be publishing my story in all my blogs so as to inform parents and carers about our experience so they can take extra caution when playing at Kidzoona. 

You Need This Product in Your Vanity, Bag and Table!

My beauty routine was simplified down to just the bare basics when my urticaria came out. I've always had sensitive skin but this chronic urticaria was a new thing in my system. It only started about two years after I gave birth. I didn't have these allergies before so I had a hard time adjusting. I had to be careful with heat, food and my beauty products and toiletries.

It was really hard during those active months. I hated the wheals that came out. I hated how they itched and sometimes burned. I hated the fact that I had to give away most of my products.

I've been using the Vichy spray to cool down my skin and it was running out so I needed to find a replacement. I got my bottle in Singapore and Vichy is not available here yet so I needed an alternative. Avene has already caught my eye before but I didn't really pay any attention to the brand. I just know they have this spray and a bunch of moisturizers and other face products.

I asked the SA at Mercury Drug if I could take a look at the bottle of this Thermal Spring Water spray. I read the label and was convinced and bought the medium bottle.

This product has been an absolute relief to my urticaria! I would spray it over a wheal and the redness, itching and size would diminish immediately or in just a few minutes.

Don't get me wrong. This isn't just for people with allergies. It's a great beauty product too! It has soothing, softening and calming benefits. It's a one-of-a-kind product. Avene preserves the thermal spring water under sterile conditions so you get to experience it's soothing anti-irritating properties.

When I spray it, the water is released completely intact. It is pure, clear and cool. As the brand says, it's like you were drawing it directly from the spring. The spray bottles are covered with a hermetic, tamper-evident seal after packaging to provide more protection for sensitive skin.

I think they have also made a study using Avene spray on Asian skin and the results were pretty amazing.

How I use Avene

Aside from allergies, I also use it before and after applying makeup. I use it to freshen up when I'm outside and it's too hot. If something is itchy, I spray it on. My son also likes using it. We spray it on insect bites. If he has some wounds, we spray on them too. It's also a great after sun product. 

You can also use Avene for diaper rashes. I used Avene to replace my son's diaper rash cream. It's pretty effective. 

This product is not cheap but it is worth every penny. Just like what my title says, I keep a bottle in my vanity, bag and even my son's study table!

Avene is available in Mercury Drug, Greenbelt 3 and I think it's also available now in Watsons. 

Oh, and speaking of Watsons, have you seen these in your local Watsons yet?

These are Hello Kitty feminine pads. I saw them in Singapore and brought home two of those black boxes. I'd say they're okay for normal to light days but I wouldn't recommend them for heavy days, even the ones made for heavy days and nights. I haven't used the other variants though. The box came with two kinds - day and night pads.

My Mumuso Korea Haul

I discovered Mumuso Kr in Lucky Chinatown Mall over the weekend. I was smitten at first glance. It looked like a mash up of Muji and The Face Shop so in my mom and I went. Goodness! Don't go into this store if you have a tight budget. The items are very affordable, starting at only 99 pesos, but you will want to buy almost everything! I know I did! If only my skin were not too sensitive, I would have bought all those shower gels and toiletries. I think next time I'll start with the hand washes. I wasn't able to take a photo of the store but it is pretty organized.

Aside from toiletries, they have makeup, beauty items, a ton of masks (of course, a Korean store won't be complete without them), some fashion and home items and even toys! Crazy, I know! They have a limited range of lipstick shades in this branch. I'm not sure about the Farmer's branch. I think all the makeup items are limited in Lucky Chinatown.

I'm pretty excited about these nail polish remover pads. I have high hopes for them as The Face Shop and Etude House have great nail polish removers. I hope this will not disappoint. 

I also love this lavender nail polish with glitter and confetti. It was the last bottle. 

These perfumes smell really good. I bought one for my bestie too. 

I got a few essentials like these cotton pads and cotton buds. How fun is that container? I also got a set of eyebrow razors. 

And, they put all your purchases inside this cute eco bag!

I can't wait to go back with my mom! Maybe I'll try the toiletries next. What's your favorite Mumuso item so far?

My Allergy-Friendly Lotion

Having chronic urticaria is very hard. I used to regard allergies as something trivial, something that one shouldn't worry about. It was only after I went through a horrible life-threatening experience with this condition that I understood the magnitude of it. I didn't realize how hard it is for people who have allergies to look for allergy-friendly food and toiletries until my doctor told me to change my lifestyle and use only allergy-friendly products. I am so glad I found most of them in Healthy Options. I already told you about the shampoo and conditioner I got. Today, let's talk about this wonderful lotion that has helped me through that ordeal.

This is the Alba Botanica Very Emollient Body Lotion. This is the original variant and is unscented, perfect for anyone with allergies. It has no harsh chemicals. I have very dry skin to start with and with the addition of steroids, my skin turned flaky. Even my hands were so rough and dry because of the steroids. I badly needed moisture.

I'm not going to lie. This lotion helped me a lot but it didn't stop the steroids from wreaking havoc on my skin. It did calm my skin down for a a few hours. I didn't want to reapply as it has a thick consistency. Would I buy this lotion again? Definitely. I am currently using the Cetaphil lotion as prescribed by my doctor but I think I will go back to this lotion once I finish up the Cetaphil. I want to see how good it is without the steroids competing against it.

My Health and Beauty Finds at Landers

We were finally able to visit Landers over the weekend. It's soooo far from us so I don't think we will be able to go there as often as we'd like. If you're near the store, you are so lucky!

I took a lot of photos and so I am spreading them over my three blogs. I'll put the links after this post so you can see all of them.

Check out my health and beauty finds.

This is a brand of makeup remover that I'm not familiar with. If I remember correctly, this is an organic product. 

They have Biore there as well. I think these are cheaper here than at Watsons or PCX. I stopped using Biore because my skin was reacting to it but if you have normal skin, this is a good makeup remover.

These Swisspers cotton rounds look pretty on the outside. The actual cotton rounds look thick but they are more expensive than what I usually buy at S&R so I passed.

For those who have a tub, this will make for a luxurious bath. 

No more dirty hands with Softsoap! Love this brand. 

I so wanted to get this set but I'm not sure if my skin can handle it. I'm only allowed to use Oilatum or Dove Sensitive. 

Finally, these non-slip hangers will make your closet look soo purty. Don't you just love a uniformed look to your closet?

Have you been to Landers? What did you get?

Check out my kitchen finds in my food blog. 

Check out my home, kids and lifestyle finds in my mommy and homeschool blog. 

Made the Change

As many of you may very well know, I suffered from depression for a while when my urticaria was active. That's why I didn't blog for a long time.  I couldn't eat well and I certainly couldn't use my regular products. I flared up with every little thing. One of the dermatologists I saw told me to change all my toiletries. So I did. Starting with these three.

I tried organic shampoos before but they made my hair stiff and gave me dandruff so I stopped using them. I was really hesitant to use these products from Jason but I had no choice. 

First time I used them, I was, wow! It's as if I was still using my regular shampoo and conditioner but without the rashes and itchiness after getting out of the shower. These are fragrance free and gluten free, perfect for someone who suffers from chronic allergies. 

I've also made a discovery. I never thought that I was allergic to regular hair care products until I used these two. As far as I can remember, I would always get small, itchy bumps on my neck, back and chest after I took a bath. I didn't give it too much thought as it would eventually go away. When I used the Jason products, it hit me. I was really getting allergic reactions to my usual products. All these years they've gone undetected. 

If you have specific concerns about your hair, these will probably won't do the job. They're just for normal hair. I have to admit that when I was on steroids, these two couldn't keep my hair in place. They just couldn't defeat the mighty steroids. But, I was alright with that for I know this too shall pass. 

I've been using these for months now and I'm pretty happy. I'll talk about the lotion next. 

If you're experiencing some itching after taking a bath, you might want to try going organic or changing your products. You won't lose anything and you'd be doing your body some good.