Skincare Review : Obagi Professional-C Serum 10% & Hydrate Luxe Moisture-Rich Cream

Obagi.

Is it Oh-bag-ee or O-ba-zhee?

Anyhoo, let me profess my undying love for both of these products that entered my life thanks to the Obagi PR.

Obagi Professional-C Serum is indeed a potent miracle serum!

Let me tell you why...

As you know, I was pregnant over a year ago and since then, my facial skin has changed.  For the worse!

It had gone really dry, dull and lacklustre { from severe sleep deprivation } and don't even get me started on the post-pregnancy pigmentation!  Just EW!

At the end of last year, I went CRAZY using retinols, brightening serums, scar fading potions and it broke me out into this horrible, itchy, red, sandpaper rash.  It took a while for me to nurse my sandpaper skin back to its usual normal/dry skin condition but I finally got there.

However, the pigmentation and dullness still remained so I was in desperate need of some miracle skincare product to address that.

Luckily, the skincare gods answered my prayers in the form of Obagi Professional-C Serum.

Obagi Professional-C Serums come in 3 concentrations of L-Ascorbic Acid : -

• 20% for normal-to-oily skin
• 15% for most skin types
• 10% for dry, sensitive or reactive skin

And luckily, I was sent the 10% to use which suited my skin to a tee.

I use 7 drops every morning before sunscreen.

For the first few days, it stung a little bit when I applied the serum and it went flaky for a day or two until I exfoliated away the dead skin.

After 10 days of usage, I started noticing the AMAZING results.

I kid you not.

My skin looked brighter and I noticed that my pigmentation was starting to fade.

And then a few more days later, I felt that my skin was that much softer and it looked more plump too.

Obagi Professional-C Serum has seriously been a lifechanger!  It's one of those skincare products that has delivered fantastic results in a short period of time.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!  As much as I love Netflix!

As for Obagi Hydrate Luxe Moisture-Rich Cream, I save this for my evening skincare routine where I need full-on, no-holds-barred hydration for my uber dry skin and this thick luscious cream totally delivers!  It is SOOO good that I don't actually have to use a hydrating serum under it.  MAJOR LOVE!

Disclosure :  I was sent these Obagi products and I am SO GRATEFUL.  Highly recommended indeed!

Bargain Beauty Buys : MUD Matte Lip Creams

If you're needing a little pick-me-up to brighten your day, allow me to point you in the direction of these MUD Matte Lip Creams at only $5 a pop.  Bargain, right?

There are a range of colours so buy one first and if you like the matte texture, go back and buy more.

If you want to know how the MUD Matte Lip Creams look like on lips, I wore the Light Pink shade in the video above.

$5 at Woolworths.  You're welcome!

#prsamples
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Tried & Tested Trio : Crop Natural Skincare Oils

I've been PMS-ing this week, suffered extreme backache plus a mother of all migraines and you will get a moody bi-atchy me.

I hate taking so many painkillers because I feel that they make my head cloudy and I can't articulate my thoughts properly.

Luckily, I prepared this post earlier thanks to the "schedule" button.

Some time last year, I received a lovely care package from Crop Natural Skincare.  In amongst the goodies were these trio of oils :-

• Pure Rosehip Oil
• Pure Macadamia Oil
• Pure Argan Oil

I've finally decided whether I like them or not so here are my thoughts...

Crop Pure Rosehip Oil :  I have dry/sensitive skin so you would totally assume that my skin would drink this up right?  WRONG.  My skin didn't take to it at all.  But then again, it was going through a crazy irritated rashy phase when I trialled it.  However, it was great for cuticles and helped strengthen my nails too.

Crop Pure Macadamia Oil :  I used this as a cleansing oil to remove stubborn lipstick and it worked like a dream.

Crop Pure Argan Oil :  This is a multi-purpose oil with "all around care" but seeing as I was already treating my hands and face with the other 2 oils, I used this on my hair tips to see if it would help bring life back to my frazzled ends.  Sadly, no, it didn't repair those darned split ends but it gave my hair a shiny but not oily boost.

Now the best thing about these oils is that they only cost $18 each and they are available at Coles supermarkets { sorry non-Aussie ladies } so pop them into your trolley the next time you're there and report back on whether you liked them or not.

Thanks for reading and I shall hopefully have another blog post up soon once I chase away this damn headache/backache which won't stop plaguing me! xxx
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How To Make The Best Chinese Roast Duck Ever

I love me some duck, I do!

{ FUN FACT : "Duck" in Cantonese - pronounced as "ngap" - also means gigolo }

Anyway, my dear Mum taught me how to make the best Chinese roast duck ever!

Crispy skin on the outside and juicy meat on the inside!

It's so DUCKING delicious!!!

And luckily for you, I made a video of the recipe and method of how to make it so you can make this delicious roast duck too!  { SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE HERE }

Maybe you can make this for your special someone for Valentines Day next week...?  Or Chinese New Year is coming up so why not pretend you're Chinese { if you're not already, that is! } and make this.

Just remember, it is NOT one of those recipes which you can make on the same day.  You actually need to prep the duck and wait { patiently } for 3-4 days for it to be ready to be roasted!

If you aren't a fan of videos, I've got the written version right here too :)  Don't say I'm not good to you!

Enjoy!

The Best Chinese Roast Duck Ever!

An original recipe by Ling's Mama

(Serves 2-4 people depending on how you serve it)

Ingredients

1 x duck (around 2kg+, thawed if frozen)

[A]
Half onion (sliced)
Knob of ginger (sliced)
4 cloves garlic (roughly chopped)
White bulb of spring onion (chopped)
1 x star anise
1 x cinnamon stick
2 x bay leaf

[B]
2 tbsp hoi sin sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp five spice powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp sesame oil

[C]
3 bowls of water
3 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp maltose { sticky syrup }

Method


1.  Remove duck innards and rinse duck with cold water

2.  Dry roast [A] in a pan until fragrant.  Allow to cool.

3.  Mix [B] together

4.  Combine [A] and [B] together and stuff everything into the duck cavity

5.  Use a skewer to sew the cavity together by threading in and out

6.  Boil [C] in a large pan or wok.

7.  With the mixture boiling, carefully lift up the duck by it's neck and use a ladle to bathe the duck all over.  Repeat 10 times.  At this stage, the duck's skin will be looking plump and shiny.  If not, repeat till it is.

8.  Allow to cool before placing it in the fridge uncovered to dry out for 3-4 days.  The longer you leave it to dry out, the crispier the skin!

9.  On the day you are going to roast the duck, remove from the fridge and place on top of roasting rack with the back side up, breast side down.  Wait 30 minutes if you have time to allow the duck to come to room temperature.

10.  Preheat oven to 190 degrees fan forced.  Place the tray in the oven on the middle shelf.

11.  Let it roast for 15 minutes back side down and then flip the duck over to breast side up and continue to roast for 45 minutes.  Open the door to have a look.  If the colour is not that roast duck red colour, put it back in for another 5 minutes and check again. 

12.  Remove from oven and let the duck rest for 15 minutes to allow the juices to settle. 

13.  Drain sauce from duck before chopping.  Save the sauce for noodles or make a gravy if you want.

14.  Chop it up and serve.

Personally, I love my roast duck with hoi sin sauce on dry noodles.  YUM!!!

#thebestchineseroastduckever - yep, it's so good that it deserves its own hashtag! :P  If you do happen to make it and you're an Instagram user, tag me @lingoutloud and use the hashtag #lingoutloudrecipes please so I can see and drooooool!!!

Keep Calm & Relax with L'Occitane

It has been quiet on the blog this week because :-

a)  I am extremely tired
b)  I have been super busy
c)  I am enjoying as much freedom* as I can before my in-laws arrive tomorrow to stay with us for God knows how long (kill me now!!)
d)  All of the above

And the answer is... d) All of the above... BUT especially c)

*By "freedom", what I mean is - prancing around in the comfort of my own home with no bra on!!!  Ladies, you all know what I mean, right?

Anywaaaaay, I've been doing a lot of breathing exercises lately to help me relax and wind down.  I am usually an extremely patient, mild-mannered, non-confrontational person but I am preparing myself in case I need to "have it out" with my MIL.

Luckily for me, to help me relax, L'Occitane sent me a lovely package of their soon-to-be released Aromachologie Relaxing range - Perfumed Sachets, Pillow Mist and Massage Body Oil.

Three words - TO. DIE. FOR.

As you already know, I'm a big fan of lavender pillow sprays from This Works so I was SUPER eager to test out L'Occitane's version.

The Relaxing Pillow Mist contains essential oils from lavender, bergamot, mandarin, sweet orange and geranium.  It is BEAUTIFUL!

It comes in a generous 100ml bottle which is a good thing because I spray this liberally all over my 3 pillows, my side of the duvet { Aussies say 'doona' } and even on my wrists because I love the smell that much.  It is definitely not one of those old-lady-overpowering-lavender scents but just to be on the safe side, have a sniff in store before you purchase it.

As for the Relaxing Perfumed Sachets, they give the extra oomph!  Because I am an insomniac, I struggle to fall asleep and I'm always tempted to turn on my phone and go on Facebook or something until it bores me to sleep.  But now, instead of doing that, I take a DEEP SNIFF of the Perfumed Sachet { which I conveniently place under my main pillow } and do a few deep breathing exercises and that gets my sleepy senses going.

There are 2 sachets in a box but the other one is currently sitting in my work locker as I'm saving it for the uber stressful days at work, i.e. every Monday to combat Monday-itis!

I have relaxed so much more since using both of these L'Occitane products.  They are already on my Regular Repurchases List.

The Relaxing Body Massage Oil has sadly not been put to use yet.  My husband is always asleep by the time I jump into bed.  I shall have to test it tonight { Fifty Shades of Grey style! TMI?!! LOL! } before the in-laws get here.  I'm very hopeful since the other products have been awesome.

Anyway, if you're a fan of lavender scents and/or you're looking for some relaxation, do check these out when they hit L'Occitane stores in March.

Disclosure - thanks again to L'Occitane for providing these products to help me relax!

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