D'skin, one of the leading skin treatment centres in Singapore, has brought in Soft Plus, a standalone PC-powered skin assessment system. They are one of the first skin treatment centres to offer a pH level assessment. 

Why should you care about your skin's pH level, you ask?

Well, a balanced pH level can eliminate usual skin woes such as acne, wrinkles and inflammation. I didn't know that! My usual facial place does not offer this service for sure. 

At D'skin, the therapist will conduct a series of "tests" on my face and explain the results to me. I will get to know about my hydration, sebum, elasticity and melanin levels and how I can improve my skin conditions.

Note that Soft Plus is endorsed and used by medical clinics and doctors, for skin diagnosis and reports, to track skin age and progress following every treatment. 

They offer a variety of treatments to suit each skin type and requirements. 

I also learnt why my skin is constantly oily. Turns out I have combination skin: dry skin underneath and oily skin on the surface. This is because the inner layers of my skin produce oil to counter my dry skin and so my skin is sometimes oily. I always thought I just had pure oily skin and as such, I didn't like to use any oil or gel based products because they made my face shine even more.

In actual fact, for people with skin like mine, we should use more hydration-based products so as to moisturise the skin so that there will not be excess of oil or sebum produced. Now I know!

I am pleased to say I was offered the Oxygenating Treatment (O2) worth $198, perfect for my combination skin. For me, I am usually busy every day and my skin gets tired and dehydrated from running around. With this treatment, D'skin aims to strengthen my skin elasticity, reduce fine lines and wrinkles, diminish pores, and increase my hydration level up to 40%. That was quite a mouthful. 

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My review of the facial:

I thoroughly enjoyed it! Besides the usual cleansing, extraction and mask, the oxygen machine was employed to - how do I put it - "oxygenise" my face. A small pen-like object (I think, that was how I felt it was, since my eyes were closed) went over my face several times at strategic spots like forehead, cheekbones and chin, and was pressed down. I could feel the oxygen entering my face, if you know what I mean? My skin felt cool and relaxed, and after the facial it was obvious that it looked more hydrated, plump and renewed. 

I also liked how they included a neck and shoulder massage, which was very comfortable and good for de-stressing. There was oil applied, which smelled good and helped me relax my tense muscles further. I felt that this is a service that is generously given by D'skin, because it is not usual at facial salons.

I am speaking from a person who has done facials at numerous places and signed countless facial packages over the years. And this one has an "APPROVED" stamp all over it. 

Sure, it might be a little steep in pricing, but honestly, you only have one skin, one face. Choose the best. They offer facial packages that are super flexible, for e.g: 

$2,000 for 2500 credits, at $1 = 1 credit

So this means, they give you 500 free credits (essentially $500) upon signing up of the package, and you can choose from any of their treatments every time you visit them for a facial, and they will deduct the credits (according to the treatment price) accordingly. Some days you just want a basic facial, some days you want a pampering one. Our skin has its up and down days too, so this package is specially tailored to suit every customer's needs.

Other treatments they have (but not tried by me):

- Soft Light / Cold Light Therapy ($498): light of specific wavelengths delivered to the skin to stimulate and activate cellular processes deep within the skin layers. Triggers the production of collagen and elastin, to combat visible signs of ageing.

- Photo Rejuvenation ($348): non-evasive treatment that uses different wavelengths of light to penetrate and treat different layers of skin. Helps in treating acne, skin damage from sun, visible broken capillaries, hyper pigmentation and enlarged pores.

- Supreme CO2 Phototherapy ($468): Treats dark circles and visibly minimise eye bags. Helps to refresh skin tone and restore youthful skin, with no downtime. Cell-detox and also increases blood circulation. 

If you don't take care of your skin, who will?

D'skin is located at:

Kovan

Heartland Mall

205 Hougang St 21

#02-133/135 Singapore 530205

Tel: 62827388

Novena

Velocity (branded under the name "Su Beau Derma Clinik")

238 Thomson Road

#03-03/13/14/15 Singapore 307683

Tel: 62525822

Toa Payoh

TPY Central (branded under the name "D'Faceworks")

520 Toa Payoh Central

#01-54 Singapore 310520

Tel: 62589388

Thank you Brand Cellar and D'skin for this collaboration! Pictures by Jem.

xoxo,

G.

The latest addition to the "Korean Street" in RWS has arrived! 

Presenting to you the arrival of Insadong Korea Town, a Korean-themed restaurant set to mimic the "Insadong" streets of Korea, selling an assortment of authentic Korean and Korean-fused-with-Chinese-Japanese-Western cuisine.

RWS calls it the "Korean Street" because Trick Eye Museum (hailing from Kimchi land) and Missha (a Korean cosmetic brand) also recently opened their doors to visitors.

It comes as no surprise that this will officially be my favourite street in RWS.

Naturally, I am as hyped as the next Korean-food lover, so let's check them out shall we? :)

Ordering kiosks at the entrance. Typical Korean self-service style.

When Oppa and I tried the machine out for ourselves, we found it pretty laggy and not as "touch-sensitive" as I'll like it to be. Also, the menu seems pretty messy and if the restaurant is crowded, the line will be hogged up with people trying to make their orders and decide. I think there needs to be a more efficient system for this!

How the menu looks like ^

Signs around to direct ^

As you can see, the whole place is bustling with workers (some authentic Koreans so you can go ahead and converse with your oppas and unnies)

There are also "street stalls" around selling Korean snacks - namely fried tempura, spicy rice cakes and fish cakes in soup!

Now, on to the food!!

Korean side dishes - Kimchi is ON POINT. One of the very rare times in Singapore that I find good kimchi.

Kimchi Pancake - YES! Tastes exactly like the Korean ones. You can trust me, I ate god knows how many kimchi pancakes during my exchange in Korea.

Toppoki - These are the Korean rice cakes I was talking about just now. Very spicy, very Korean. It burned my mouth and lips but I just kept going back for more.

Ginseng Chicken Soup - There was no ginseng taste at all for this, sad to say. The broth was bland and unsavoury. But it was slightly better after we spliced the chicken open and mixed the broth again. I would say this dish leaves much to be desired.

Bossam - sliced cold pork to be wrapped with kimchi, green chills and korean thick paste inside the veggies. The pork was not as tasty as it should be, and was a bit tough.

Xiao Long Bao in Kimchi Soup - Ah this one is good. Tangy kimchi soup with piping hot xiao long baos. Very unique pairing but I daresay it sat well with all.

Pumpkin Spaghetti - It tastes a lot like salted egg actually. The paste/sauce is thick and creamy. But I still feel something's off. You definitely have to eat it hot, because it tastes quite bad when it turns cold and the spaghetti clumps together.

Beef Bulgogi Baked Rice - Stay away from this.

Mushroom Beef Bulgogi Hotpot...

... cooked by the head chef!

Tadah! Final product!

Tastes as good as it looks. The vermicelli is springy and the beef is perfectly bite-sized. The only bad thing is that I think the hotpot is too small...? Everything was just flying about while cooking.

Mixed Fruits Shaved Ice - Korean bingsoo. I was sorely disappointed about this because it looked so good? But tasted so bad :( 

The ice cream was not creamy (how can it right??) and everything else was just wrong. How can shaved ice go wrong?

Red Bean Pancake - On the other dessert hand, this was superb. Very crispy exterior and the red bean was warm in my mouth.

First star of the night: Watermelon soju!

Oppa has been dying to try this out for the longest time, but couldn't really go with me because well, I don't really like soju. Though I think he actually can finish the whole thing by himself la, lol.

I still tried this though, and surprisingly it was good (by my low alcohol standards). Very mild! Good for non-lovers of alcohol.

Second star of the night: J-cone!

This is hugely popular in Korea, and I had it in Sokcho while on exchange. In Korea, the J-cone is one side vanilla, one side chocolate. That was good! For Insadong, they only have one option of vanilla. Still good.

With the pretty Kaiting who sat with Oppa and I the whole night, together with her boyfriend Ken! Fantastic company :)

Overall, I would say this place is worth a visit if you're in Sentosa, simply because most of the food is good! There is authenticity, and quality is also up there. My rating: 8/10.

Insadong Korea Town

26 Sentosa Gateway #01-30/31/32/33

Singapore (098138)

Tel: 62388221

Web: http://insadong.sg

Operating hours: 11am - 10pm (daily)

Remember to hashtag #insadongsg and tag them @insadongsg when you're dining there!

xoxo,

G.

Wondering which restaurant to visit this Christmas with your loved ones?

Look no further, because SYNC has done it again. What is Christmas without citrus, turkey and chestnuts? They've got it all covered.

And all at affordable prices too!

Christmas Citrus Salad ($9.90)

A very happy (and healthy)-looking salad that is made with pomegranate, mandarin slices and mesclun, topped with citrus dressing. Highly delectable and refreshing, it really clears my palette (开味) <--- I think that is how it is written in Mandarin.

Clay Duck Ssam ($10.90)

Slightly pricey for this dish, because I think I can eat four slices of duck in one mouthful lol. It is served with Korean daikon and a perilla leaf. No thanks to the leaf though, I think it tastes pretty weird.

Sweet Potato Croquettes ($10.90)

Every bite was heaven. I can't explain the yummy-ness of this dish. Must try! Cheese will burst out when you bite into it, and it goes really well with mayo. It's apple salsa on top for a festive touch.

Kalbi Jim ($26.90)

Braised short ribs with Korean sauce. The meat was succulent and juicy, with just the right amount of tanginess. The sauce is savoury, I couldn't help licking my spoon after the dish finished. The bed of mashed potatoes was a wonderful sidekick. The garnishing was unique, with red dates. I think that is a Singaporean touch la. Not too bad an attempt at fusion.

Turkey Risotto ($26.90)

Never was a fan of risotto, and this wasn't any different. The Korean barley risotto was pretty tasteless to me. Turkey was a tad dry and I didn't like the cranberries sprinkled around the dish. Your $26.90 will be better spent on the above kalbi jim dish.

Chestnut Crunchy Bar ($10.90)

For the sweet-toothed, here is chestnut mousse in a chocolate tart shell, with crunchy pearls and orange gel to end off the meal. Loved the crunchy chestnuts hidden inside the mousse; it was like playing hide-and-seek finding the gems in this dessert! Pearls could be crunchier though. 

So.... wait no longer la! This special menu is only valid till 2 Jan 2015, so grab your families and friends and head to 12 Maju Ave now.

If you miss this Christmas promo, fret not. You can try other mouth-watering dishes from their usual menus. You can read my previous review here.

Wishing every single one of my readers a very Merry Christmas <3

All photo credits to Oppa. Big thanks to Brand Cellar for the invite. x

Thank you all for sticking with me for yet another year. 

Cheers to.. more years ahead...?

xoxo, 

G.

Dominos, Dominos, fifty percent off.

All pizzas, all pizzas, fifteen minutes out, hey!

Dominos, Dominos, fifty percent off.

Oh what fun, we have fun, thank you from our hearts!

**to be sung to "jingle bells" tune.

Merry Christmas from Dominos!

Last Monday evening, Jem and I were very graciously invited to Dominos' Christmas gathering for bloggers, organised by The Influencer Network.

Our take on "couple christmas wear". LOL

The song you saw above? Yup, we created it. Those were the sort of "games" that we had to play at the party. The cringing feeling where you feel "crap, do I have to do this" and still do it anyway sort of feeling. But those awkward feelings only last a while. Upon afterthought you'll find that it's actually quite fulfilling and heartwarming.

& y'know, the more awkward you feel the more awkward you'll look to others!

Was really snorting with laughter for this one: Jem had to dress up as a Christmas tree. Or rather, we had to dress him up. He was not pleased. Hahahaha.

The two "Christmas trees" of the night.

Party in full swing! 

You can read about my post on the pizzas here.

Thank you TIN for the photo printout!

Make merry with these exciting deals Dominos have to offer:

50% off all pizzas is valid from now till 11 January 2015.

- valid for dine-in or takeaway only

- all pizzas to be delivered (free!) in 15 mins, or receive a free personal pizza voucher to be redeemed in the next order

Thank you #dominossg for the love! xxx

Pictures credits to Jem, The Influencer Network and myself.

xoxo,

G.