I unfortunately only have one face. Even though I want to review everything I get personally, I just can't, at the risk of breaking out continuously! Besides, it'd be great to hear from other skin types. This time, Nikki, a good friend, reviews the Nivea Visage Sparkling White Day Care and UV Blocker.

Say hello to Nikki!

I think we all know that sun protection is key to beautiful skin and living in this awesome tropical country, the sun is both a blessing and a curse! So when asked me to try Nivea's Sparkling White line, particularly the Day Cream and the UV Blocker variants, I was ready and willing!

Now, I just have to give you a background on my skin type. It sits in the very delicate balance between oiliness and dryness. You see, my skin is super oily. After putting on makeup, I oil up like a middle eastern country by two hours! But I can't skip moisturizer either because I have seborrhoeic dermatitis which means that my face gets flaky when not hydrated properly. So, you can see my dilemma: I need something that isn't heavy which may cause oiliness while at the same time, something that effectively hydrates my skin! Enter Nivea's day cream! 

The Nivea Visage Sparkling White Day Cream (P315) promises to whiten and control shine, bringing out your inner glow.

Last Thursday I had the pleasure of going on a conference call with Anthony Gonzalez, the Senior Manager of the global research and development center of Avon skincare products. He's based in New York and wanted to share the latest Anew line called Reversalist to the Asian press. The talk happened at the Avon Philippines headquarters in Makati Avenue.

ANEW Reversalist's Activinol technology boosts Activin, to reactivate skin’s repair process and help recreate fresh new skin and dramatically reverse the look of wrinkles. Avon’s patent-pending Activinol Technology is shown to increase the production of Activin to help boost skin’s ability to repair itself and recreate fresh, new skin.

Anthony Gonzalez

Now I know a lot of you are jaded about anti-aging products since so many of them come out with claims of miraculously solving skin issues, so I cut straight to the chase and asked Mr. Gonzalez The Question: what makes the Anew Reversalist unique? He answered quickly and confidently, "Other anti-aging products focus on stimulating collagen and elastin. But we approach aging differently. We go to the cellular level and look at aging as a result of tiny wounds to the skin."

It's hard to keep track of all the latest skincare products, at the rate and speed they're being released! It's all for the better, don't you think? More choices means more potential solutions to our beauty problems and better prices. Anyway, L'Oreal Paris is one brand that just came out with three products that targets major market concerns: cleansing (for men), whitening (for women), and smoothing/priming for makeup users out there.

The Pure & Matte Charcoal Black Foam (195) is designed to cleanse and mattify skin. It's for men who are concerned with oily skin that's exposed to a lot of pollution and stress. I think it's a pretty basic cleanser, as male skincare products go! This might not be for us girls, but there's no reason to NOT give this to our guy friends. It will benefit us in the long run, dare I say!

The White Perfect Day Cream SPF17/PA++ (P595) offers UV protection and promises whitening using melanin-blocking ingredients. It's light and non-greasy as promised - heaven sent in a world of uncomfortable day creams with SPF - but use it sparingly if you have oily skin!