Mia's Review: Luxe Herbal Scalp Treatment [Sponsored]

Ever since I entered teenage years, I've been battling an issue of greying hair. It seems like my only ally is my trusty hairdresser, who periodically slathers hair dyeing cream onto my hair. 

And all thanks for Street Directory and Luxe Scalp Specialist, I was able to try out a session of scalp therapy catered for grey hair!

I was first ushered into a pretty small consultation room, for my pre-treatment consultation.

Luxe Scalp Specialist the 1st Asian herbs scalp care specialist centre validated by certified Trichologist to combat scalp problems, and uses only premium Chinese and Ayurvedic herbs. Certifications were also displayed on the wall to certify their professionalism and safety of their products, with Arsenic, Lead and Mercury being not detectable.

And using this mouse-like scanner, the consultant took a few shots of my scalp at different area to show me what are my current issues, apart from grey hair.

I was really glad to hear that my hair and hair growth is healthy, albeit with some minor issues of oily scalp (very obvious), and some dandruff, which I never knew I have them till date.

And so I was whisked off to their treatment area, which resembles a very chic, black-themed hairdressing salon. There's also privacy curtains put up between every seat to give their patron a "private cubicle". Thoughtful!

And by the time I was seated, my tea and biscuit were already served. My favourite Lotus caramelised biscuit! Nom nom nom...

The therapist first started with a thorough brushing of my hair with a big comfy hair brush to get my blood circulation going in my scalp. After which, she started spraying ginger wine onto my scalp, to help open up my hair follicles for better absorption of the treatment herbs. The therapist also applied lemongrass serum to the ends of my hair to protect my dry ends and to give my scratchy hair some nutrients.

Hahaha, everything is just flat black you can hardly see me. 

But anyway, after application of ginger wine and lemongrass serum, the therapist started slathering the mixture of Chinese herbs onto my scalp and roots of my hair. The smell is pretty strong, and it resembles the he shou wu tea my dad used to be drinking frequently a while back. 

After every inch of my scalp is covered with the herbs mixture, the therapist then wrapped up my hair in layers of cling wrap and then set the steamer to steam my hair for 30 minutes. 

The heat from the steam will help speed up the rate at which my hair and scalp absorb the nutrients from the herbs mixture. 

And after 30 minutes is up, I was led to their hair washing area to wash off all the herbs.

The therapist used their clarifying shampoo on my hair, which felt so good! It was minty and very refreshing on my scalp. 

The therapist then put a hot herbal (bean?) bag on my shoulders to help relieve my tensed muscles. After which, she started applying hair tonic on my hair roots again, which will help with preventing hair fall. She then proceeded with a really comfortable scalp massage, to help the hair tonic get absorbed fully. 

Coincidentally, the scalp massage also helped relieve much of the tension I've always been having in my head and temples. I'm always suffering from either migraine or cluster headaches, and my head is always tensed up. 

And after blow-drying my hair, the therapist started to set up this artsy looking lamp behind me...

Using this Infra Heat Therapy, it further enhance the absorption of all the nutrients into the hair and scalp to boost the effectiveness of the treatment. 

Haha, and I looked like a took a selfie while clubbing. 

And let's take a look at how my scans will look after my treatment. The oily sheen obviously has been eliminated, and as you can see at the middle and bottom right corner, my hair follicles/pores have opened up, and was probably still absorbing all the nutrients. Heh! 

And after a few hair washes (3 to 5 days after the treatment), there's still this he shou wu smell that lingers in my hair. And on top of that, I actually realised that my hair roots (newly grown hair from my previous hair colouring) seemed to have grown darker (more intense black)! 

Are you suffering from grey hair problems too, and is always mourning the 'death' of your hair after every hair colour session? Why not give Luxe a try and see if you can bid your treatment-thirty post-coloured hair goodbye forever! 

Luxe Scalp Specialist is located at Tampines One #04-29 or Chinatown Point #02-28.

For more information for their contact details and treatment services, visit their website HERE

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Tooth Angels & Co Dental Surgeons [Sponsored]

It's been a while since my root canal treatment for my horribly decayed (beyond hope) tooth during June/July this year at NDCS and I finally got my crowning completed! It has been quite a draggy process, but I'll cut to the chase and save you all the hassle of reading my nonsensical rants. 

Through fellow blogger Vivien Goh, I was introduced to Dr. Melvin Chia of Tooth Angels & Co Dental Surgeons and was offered both a sponsored session of scaling & polishing, and a discounted price for the crown I desperately needed for my RC treated tooth. 

Located conveniently at The Central @ Clarke Quay, Tooth Angels is the very first place you'll see once you come out of exit F via Clarke Quay MRT station.

This isn't the first time I visited a slightly more up-class dental clinic, but Tooth Angels is definitely the cheeriest looking one I've ever been to. Even their lightings are so unique. Really helps to lighten the dreary mood of visiting a dentist.

On my first appointment, I had a scaling and polishing session with Joel, their dental hygienist. And before that, I had a full set of x-ray done to show all my existing filled teeth (yes, teeth) and underlying issues. The x-ray was a little uncomfortable for me as the mouth piece was really stretching my limits and I had to bite on it for 3 times to get 3 shots (frontal and sides). But I guess the slight discomfort was worthwhile, for we found out that I actually have 3 decaying teeth, to which Joel left it to Dr Peter's discretion, who will be the dentist in charge for my crowning. I vaguely remembered doing scaling and polishing once, or twice, and the memory of the violent-sandpapering feeling on my teeth still send chills to my bones. It's those kind of discomfort that isn't really hurting badly (though I know with some even rougher dentists it will, together with loads of blood that will probably resembles a crime scene) but an extreme form of uneasy discomfort that makes you shudder with chills down your back, and your toes curl.
It was like hearing a piece of dry chalk screeching against the chalkboard in a dead silent night.

But with Joel, it was nothing less of an easy, comfortable session. He was really light-handed yet thorough, and patiently talked me through the entire session, telling me what is he going to do next and to expect what kind of pressure on my teeth. And of course, I left the clinic feeling cheery with a set of whiter, cleaner looking teeth.

On my 2nd visit to Tooth Angels, Dr Peter advised that I should get my teeth decay issue out of the way first before proceeding with my crowning and so I did. It was a pretty intense 1.5 hours session for me, wholly self-paid, for I always have a big problem with keeping my jaws wide open. But Dr Peter was still very patient and understanding and my 3 fillings turned out pretty well. 2 have pretty much settled down and the remaining, deepest one, which I've been experiencing acute sensitivity for the first week, has started to feel better on the third week, with very minimal sensitivity, just before my crowning appointment.

And I went home with an extremely numb jaw that day, but all is fine. :)

And finally, I returned to Tooth Angels for my 3rd appointment and got my crowning done! In case you're wondering what a crown is, it's a dental restorative procedure, which completely caps around a tooth, bonded using a dental cement. Crowning is usually recommended when there is a large cavity, and for my case, it was due to my root canal treatment, which took out quite a large amount of my natural tooth. And to minimise the possibility of damage due to complete breakage of my natural tooth at the weakest point of bondage, I was advised to go for a composite crown, which is less brittle and hence transfer less pressure to my natural tooth.
And of course, it was yet another 1.5 hours, from taking a mould of my upper set of teeth in order to create the crown, to drilling down my tooth, rebuilding the core of my tooth, shaping down the crown for a perfect fit, the attachment of the crown, and some final touching up for a perfect bite. Dr. Peter has been extremely patient and meticulous with every single detail, right down to setting the colour of my crown a shade lighter to set the 'allowance' in case I decided to have my teeth whiten some day.

And now, I can finally start chewing actively on my left jaw!
Well, or maybe in another few weeks time. :)

Tooth Angels is located at The Central, #B1-04 or at Coronation Plaza, #02-34.
For more information on their services and contact details, visit their website HERE

Till then,
Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Smith's Authentic British Fish & Chips

credits to TripAdvisor

Yet another long overdue food review, this time on Smith's authentic British fisn and chips! 

credits to CityNomads

I remember walking by this humble looking eatery and peering sideways at the patrons' open packages of fish and chips lying on the tables. And I thought to myself, "The fish and chips I've eaten at Ballarat!"

And so, some time later, I dropped by alone on a weekend evening to have some alone time and also, dinner! 

Love all the comic strips and drawings hung up on the wall, some are actually pretty hilarious. 

And yes, there's HP sauce for all of you HP lovers out there! I'm not one though. 

Never a fan of root beer in general except for the scoop of ice cream on it as a float. But somehow I just decided to pick one up while I was there. 

Haddock Standard & Chips - $19.50

And yes, be it dine in or takeaway, you'll get your fish and chips in a paper wrapped up packet like so. 

And yes, this is the servings of a standard fish and chips. And no, that pair of plastic utensils aren't mini sized. A word of advice, unless you're a huge eater, go for small!

If you're a fan of soggy chips (yes, as weird as that sounds, some do love soggy chips), especially FAT soggy chips then Smith's is the place for you. These chips doesn't taste processed at all, and totally looked like pieces chipped off a potato and fried as it is. The only disappointing thing was that Smith's do not have the yummy chicken salt I've had at Ballarat. It'll be good if they bring in flavoured salt to go with the chips. 

As for the fish, I didn't quite like it as it was a little too moist and bland for my liking. On my second visit, I went for Cod small and it tasted way better in terms of the fish texture and taste of freshness. 

And if you're the kind of person who cannot eat fried stuff without some dips and gravy, I highly recommend that you get their curry sauce at $2. It's a little pricey for a pretty small tub, but it tasted so good, even just on its own. The savoury fragrance of curry actually goes pretty well with both the soggy chips and mildly flavoured fish. 

All in all, soggy fat chips with mildly flavoured fish. But somehow, Smith's is still a fish and chips place I will keep on visiting (I've visited thrice so far) because it really tasted (and felt) like the affordable, takeaway fish and chips I've tasted in Ballarat and fell in love with. 

Smith's @ Katong is located at 230 Tanjong Katong Road, and they're closed on Mondays. 

For more information on Smith's visit their website HERE

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia's Sponsored Review: Reduze Pro

Thanks to Sample Store and Reduze Pro, I got to try out one month's supply of their new, extra strength formula. This came like an advance Christmas gift for me, as I've recently put on almost 3kg after eating like a pig for 1 week straight during my China trip and skipping gym classes. 

Reduze Pro works on a triple action detox formula that help us cleanse, burn fats and lose weight effectively. Yes, you got it. It's both a fat burning and detoxing product in one! How convenient! 

Many ladies on a weight loss regime tend to focus mainly on increasing exercises and decreasing calories intake, forgetting about detox totally. Based on the International Journal of Obesity published in 2010, weight loss releases excess toxins into the body. Therefore, it is important to start detoxify your body at the same time when you start a weight loss regime.

Apart from helping us to detox, burn fat and lose weight, Reduze Pro also boasts of the following efficacies:

1. Triple action detox formula, which rebalance gut flora, improve digestive system, and give sustainable weight loss

2. Eliminate toxins and waste

3. Flatten tummy

4. Improve bowel regularity

5. Increase satiety

6. Enhanced weight loss

7. Clearer complexion

With Reduze Pro, we can also expect to have up to 8X MORE weight loss, +52% of bowel frequency, -29% of calorie intake, and 20 billion live probiotics per dose. 

Directions for use is really simple. We just need to consume 2 capsules once a day before food. Or, for quicker results, start with 3 capsules daily and gradually decrease dosage back to 2 after desired effect is achieved. 

And after consuming Reduze Pro with 2 to 3 (I alternate the daily dosage depending on my lunch) capsules daily for almost 2 weeks and keeping my diet and gym classes constant, I realised that I've dropped about 1.5 kg! 

Throughout the 2 weeks, I did not feel any form of discomfort at all. However, I did experience some flatulence initially but it went away after I stopped take my daily dosage of probiotics supplements. Yes, probably an overdose there, for there's also probiotics blend in Reduze Pro. Yikes! 

As for increased bowel regularity, I was pretty disappointed that I didn't experience any, for I have a bad case of constipation since forever. However, I did feel that my stools were somewhat, softer, and visits to the loo generally felt easier and quicker. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that the regularity will pick up eventually. 

And best thing of all, Reduze Pro has no adverse side effects found so far. And since it's made from all natural ingredients, it is suitable for long term consumption! 

Reduze Pro now retails in store for $128 per box of 60 capsules (one month's supply) and it can be found at the following locations:

Guardian

John Little

Metro

NTUC Fairprice

Robinson

Sasa

Unity

Watsons

&

Rakuten

From 17 Nov till 31 Dec, there will be a $10 off promotion with minimum purchase of $128 (1 box of Reduze Pro). Simply use the promo code REDUZEPRO10 upon making payment. Limited to only 1 time usage per Rakuten member. 

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Cake Spade

credits to Cake Spade

Yes, I know I'm supposed to be on a eat healthy diet (with the B12+Folate deficiency anemia going on) but I cannot do without cakes! T.T 

I first stumbled onto Cake Spade after a google search of "cake cafes near tanjong pagar" due to a pretty sudden cake craving while waiting for T at the mrt station. And subsequently, I returned with A recently for a quick cake fix. 

Located around Orchid Hotel, I have to be honest to say that Cake Spade is a cafe so small and humble looking, with just 6 seatings in the interior and a couple more humbly plain looking tables and chairs laid out on the outside, that you probably will just walk right past it without a second look or the slightly recognition that that's a friggin awesome cake cafe right there. 

Chinese Apple Pomegranate Green Tea

I first saw this selling at Cedele and instantly got attracted to the pretty bottles! But due to the price (it was about $4.50 or so), I didn't want to buy it then for I tend to spend less on a pick-and-go as compared to a cafe-hopping trip. So yup, tried it at Cake Spade instead. :)
But frankly speaking, judging from the fact that you probably will not be keeping the bottle after consuming the beverage, the price tag does not justify the purchase at all.

Nutella Fudge Crumble - $4.50

A layer of fudge and nutella sandwiched between a buttery short crust pastry and a layer of crumbs! Sounds yummy, eh?

And to show how runny the fudge-nutella layer is.

First bite, heavenly! The bottom crust tasted like an exceptionally short (buttery and crumbly) shortbread and the top layer of crumbs added just the right amount of crunchiness oomph up the overall texture of this decadent treat!
But as you slowly polish the entire bar off the plate, things might get a little difficult as the taste is way too rich, both the chocolate-nutty richness of the filling and the buttery fragrance of the bottom and top layers just made it too jerlat (strong, overpowering) for me.
Best to visit with a friend (or two) and share a few other choices of goodies together so as to not experience a sweet-richness overkill.

Oreo Cookie Brownie - $3.20

Come on, oreo cookies, brownie, and a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. What more can you ask for?
The brownie was rich, chocolatey and very dense. I remembered it was a little too dry and dense for my liking and the oreo cookie were somehow, too soft and soggy. Would have been a perfect match made in heaven, but oh well, it somehow fell short of my expectation, which I have to admit that I might have unknowingly set them a little too high?

Red Velvet Cake - $5.90

Of course, with T around how can we not have red velvet cake? Look at the moist layer of red sponge cake and pretty swirls of cream cheese icing on top!
But I didn't really try out the taste, for I'm really not a fan of red velvet (mostly due to the cream cheese icing).

And on my 2nd visit with A, I got myself a cup of Iced Latte due to the hot weather.
The coffee was just so-so, and quickly got washed down when the ice started to melt.

Chocolate Blackout Cake - $5.90

A classic chocolate cake with moist chocolate sponge cake and iced with rich and smooth chocolate ganache.
This cake is truly decadent and is a must try for all chocolate-addicts out there. The sponge layer is (obviously) moist and soft, and the ganache velvety smooth and rich. But once again, the taste can be pretty jerlat even for a chocolate-lover like me, so sharing with fellow chocoholic friends is highly recommended.

Lastly, Strawberry Tofu Cheesecake - $5.90

Yeah of course, how can we miss out their signature cake?
And with just one bite, both A and I nodded our heads and said, "Yummy!" Worthy of the signature tag indeed! The cheesecake was truly of an almost tofu-like consistency, super smooth and finely textured, which literally melts away in your mouth. Topped with quite a generous chunk of fresh strawberries encased in sweetened jelly, this is a remarkably light and refreshing cheesecake. A pleasant surprise indeed, for I've always feel that cheesecakes are the most jerlat cake of all.

Cake Spade is located at 1 Tras Link, #01-06, Orchid Hotel
For more information, visit their website HERE

Till then
Mia Foo

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Mia's Sponsored Review: Meditrina Ageless Herbal Cream and Soothing Moxa Essence

So, roughly about 1 month plus ago, I tried out the MTM Therapy at Indulge Skin & Body Lab and was also given a complimentary set of Meditrina Ageless Herbal Cream with Chasteberry Extract and Soothing Moxa Essence to try out. So after emptying out the entire tub of the herbal cream, I feel that it's high time I give my honest comments about it.

First up, the Soothing Moxa Essence, which adopts nanotechnology to allow the ingredients to penetrate into the skin. This product works like a 30 seconds DIY acupuncture session, minus off the pain of needles, to give immediate and quick relief of pain.
Usage is extremely easy too. We just need to drop 1 to 2 drops of the essence onto our palm, press the palm over the area in pain until heating sensation is felt, and quickly remove palm (else the heat may get unbearable) and pat lightly.

In my opinion, this essence basically has delivered what it promised as a pain relief essence, for the alleviation of aches is really pretty quick and significant. However, this product does not serve as a form of medicinal cure for whichever health issues that is causing the symptoms of pain, for the pain relief is temporary and will come back pretty fast if you leave your underlying health issues unchecked.

Next, the Ageless Herbal Cream with Chasteberry Extract, which uses a unique transdermal phyto-nutrient therapy to transport nutrients faster than other delivery systems.
To fully optimise the benefits of this cream, we should apply an adequate amount of cream on the following 6 key areas and massage till absorbed:

1. Lower back
2. Inner arm
3. Breasts
4. Inner thigh
5. Neck
6. Abdomen

In addition, we can also put emphasis on certain areas to target specific problems. For irregularities in monthly cycle, we can emphasize application on our lower back and abdomen. For disturbed sleep, emphasize on neck. And for unexplained weight gain on lower body, emphasize on thighs and gently pound on outer thighs after application.

The cream feel rich and smooth, but doesn't leave your skin greasy after application and absorption. The scent, however, is more of an acquired smell. I wouldn't call this unpleasant at all, but it definitely doesn't smell like those yummy body lotion you pick off the shelves at Victoria Secrets or Sephora. In fact, the smell somehow reminded me of my grandmother. Yes, it's a kind of elderly, herbal scent that is still considered pleasant to my senses.
And of course, over the course of about one month, I apply the cream diligently every night before I sleep, emphasizing on my lower back and abdomen for my recently turned irregular period cycle.

I used to be on a fixed timetable for my period until about 4 cycles back, it started delaying 5 to 7 days per cycle. So by doing simple Maths, you can deduce that after the 4 cycles, I've effectively lost 1 cycle, and that's not good. Not literally about losing 1 period cycle, but the irregularity.
And guess what, after using this cream, my very next period came exactly on the date it was supposed to start!
Miracle or what?!

And of course, I also feel a slight different at my neck (even though it's hardly captured in the photo). I find that the skin of my neck has brightened up and the slight patchiness of uneven skin tone has somehow even out slightly, as seen in the picture on the right. It occurred to me that my neck lines have also lighten ever so lightly, though hardly noticeable.

For more information on Meditrina's products and services, visit their website HERE.

Till then,
Mia Foo

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