Thrifting in KL: #wearlikenew with ReFash

You have probably read my post on Jalan Jalan Japan and Kedai Bless. Here is yet another thrift store which I found, also recently and come to love! Probably my favorite of them all for reasons they have prettier and well-maintain selections. Founded in Singapore, ReFash is the brainchild of Aloysius Sgn and first established ReFash in 2016 before bringing the idea to Malaysia. I can vouch that you will not disappoint on the choices available here because so far, I like them!

ReFash is a place you can do to donate your pre-loved items in return for either Lot 10, KL Gateway Mall or Quill City Mall cash vouchers.  From my recent experiences recycling my clothes with ReFash, I was informed you could either choose to donate and instantly paid OR be an partner and only get paid when your things are sold. I am not entirely sure about how the latter works. I chose the former, an easier option but found there are several disadvantages:-

1) All your pre-loved are quoted very low, even for branded and unworn pre-loved. But then they don't earn much so I guess cannot complain much on this

2) While they accept branded (as in MGP, DoubleWoot, etc.) or non-branded (Taobao-ish, etc.), they don't accept clothes with fuzz balls or pills. Tip: Shave your clothes to remove these annoying fuzz balls or pills! Beware when shaving close to sewn edges to prevent accidentally cutting the thread off.

3) They do not accept handbags, unfortunately.

4) The outlets do not have a universal system to log in customers' details so if you visit both the outlets, you have to register twice if you visit the different ReFash outlets.

Aside from donating your stuff, you can also shop at ReFash. Members are entitled for 10% off your second and subsequent purchases from the branch. The other thing is you cannot try on the clothes prior to purchasing.

~♡~

ReFash at Sungai Wang Plaza

Finding this place was a total exercise for me considering I do not usually shop at Sungei Wang Plaza. In case you need help locating the store, it is on the first floor at the end of the aisle leading from Watsons. 

During my first visit to ReFash at Sungei Wang Plaza, I find the level of customer service meh. Like did the store assistants got an attitude issue or just a bad day? I was also not acknowledge by neither the two sales girls at the counter even though only one of them was busy dealing with another customer. On the other hand, the girls at KL Gateway Mall were very friendly and patiently explained to me some stuff, so kudos to them! Just saying 'cause I know as much as we have all the right to openly complain when things go wrong, we should openly express out appreciation when things are done right. When I went yesterday to Sungei Wang Plaza, the other store assistants were much professional and patient, so thumbs up on that too!

Aside from pre-loved, it appears this branch also sell new accessories. I even spotted several brand new Zalora collection dresses and wondered if ReFash is somehow collaborating with Zalora or someone donated them.

So many clothes! I really wanna check each and every bag out!!!!

Two of the prettiest pieces which caught my attention when I was there about two months' ago. The first is a plain blush-salmon color dress which would definitely look amazing paired with a belt. The second dress is a dinner/date made out of satin-like material with two straps on each sides, very sexyleh! Too bad can't try them on! I didn't buy them because I especially do not have an excuse to wear the sexy black dress and there were not other dresses to choose from *sigh*

I did however bought two pieces, a blue boho printed, off-shoulder top which I need to suck my tummy to fit in it and a plain G2000 blue skirt. It was totally not my plan to get everything in blue but blue is my favorite and my 'safe' color, so whatever LOL. Problem is, I do not think I have many tops in my current wardrobe that goes together with this. I don't mind wearing both the top and dress together but it's just a bit over-ly blue for my liking. Maybe with this I can give myself excuse to shop WTF

On the same day I was there (two months' ago), the staff informed me that they are having a separate pop-up store in the concourse floor, so off I went to check it out. Again, that took me awhile to find the place FML... When I do find the place, I find it is odd that the quality of most stuff looked like they are from Berjaya Times Square or Taobao but they refused to accept my better quality pre-loved apparels. Perhaps by then they were much more selective IDK. Left after checking out all the racks because I did not see anything I fancy.

ReFash at KL Gateway Mall

This is a place I rarely step foot in but may do now that I discover ReFash, I may actually have a reason to. It is much easier to spot the branch in this mall since there are few stores here.

Some of the pretty pieces, two printed dresses and one romper with ruched, tie detail on the front which I spotted early last month.

The next two dresses that I kinda love is something more on the muted color _ white and grey-ish lavendar. I think the second one is really cute and sexy, perfect for date night or as bridemaids dress.

Despite the shortcomings, ReFash do have nice selection of clothings. I think ReFash still is a great go-to option to trade off your pre-loved apparels for cash vouchers and at the same time not go through the hassle of personally having to sell off your pre-loved items online.

By the way, I thought I should let you know that ReFash is temporarily putting a hold on the distribution of vouchers. I only found out yesterday (1st December 2018) when I dropped by to donate several more pieces. They do still accept drop off items and will keep customers informed when they could go continue to distribute the vouchers. You can follow them on their FB page to get further updates on this.

The Blackheads Series: Biore Cleansing Strips, Innisfree Blackhead Goodbye Finger Tip Silicon & Toothpaste

Yes, you read that right. I experimented with toothpaste to try to get rid of my blackheads, whether it works or not I will get to that real soon. Of late, I find myself with more stubborn blackheads which I resorted to just using my fingers to squeeze them out but they leave scars and I have to remind myself to keep my itchy fingers off my face! For that, I decide to share with y'all on the 3 methods I tried in getting my blackheads off.

The first method is using the Biore Cleansing Strips with bamboo charcoal, something I already own but have not been religiously using. To use, you would need to damp your face prior to sticking the strips. This helps secure the strips better on your face and getting all the whiteheads and blackheads and impurities off your pores. 

On the day, I was simply targeting the pores on my nose but other times I cut the strip to several pieces and stick them on troubled areas.

The strips are easy to use and they do remove whiteheads, sebum and impurities. Occasionally they work in getting my most stubborn blackheads out, unfortunately not all the time. I noticed that once you pull out the strips, it leaves a mint-y feel for a while, possibly due to the menthol present as part of the ingredients. 

~♡~

I have been visiting Innisfree stores a lot to get my cleansers and usually when I am around, I'll browse through their other stuff and happened to come across the Innisfree Blackhead Goodbye Finger Tip Silicon at just RM10. It took me awhile before deciding to purchase it together with Innisfree's eco facial blotter.

These silicon tips are a no brainer to use, you just slip it into your fingers and massage your skin with it. According to the instruction, the soft, rounded projection is to rub across your face. I read up while you're at it, you can use skin exfoliator or facial cleanser while massaging. On the other hand, the striped projection works to remove whiteheads or impurities, think of it as 'pinching' the heads from the pores except that this is gentler than your fingernails. 

I like how the silicon fits nicely, stay on your fingers without slipping and they are gentle to your skin. While I can see some white impurities remained on the silicon tips after massaging and the silicons felt oilier (from my facial oil), it took a whole lot of effort to remove stubborn blackheads! One way that worked for me is to 'pinch' the troubled area with the striped projection and alternating the angles to force the blackheads out.

Icky things including the stubborn large blackhead I managed to remove! Yuck, ikr.

I have been using the softer side with my cleanser and found that it works amazing. My face feels cleaner after washing! I can assume, these fingers silicon tips are just the smaller version of the now trendy silicon facial cleanser you can find from Sephora or in Malaysia pharmacies.

~♡~

Moving on to the third method, the toothpaste experiment which I came across in one of a beauty hacks video on Facebook. For this, I simply use some toothpaste together with Innisfree Blackhead Goodbye Finger Tip Silicon all over my nose. The article I came across recommends using a new toothbrush but since I had the silicon tips, might as well put them to good use.

With a bit more online reading, I found toothpaste works to remove blackheads because it contains ingredients which can dry out the skin. "Triclosan, an active ingredient found in many bathroom products, is an antibacterial agent that is particularly effective at drying out excess oil trapped in pores." One article warned that, "this might be a quick fix but in the long run it will cause your skin to produce more sebum because it is being dried out." So be warned and test the it out a bit before converting to toothpaste for solutions, especially more if you already have dry skin type!

Not much luck that day. Mostly the toothpaste residues and some whiteheads.

Be warn the toothpaste is so-o gonna sting your eyes. Why didn't the internet mention about this?! Surprisingly, it actually worked! Once I got off the bath (there is no mirror in the bathroom) and checked, I noticed one of my stubborn blackhead were gone. Maybe it is the silicone tip. Maybe, the toothpaste, I cannot be entirely sure. 

In conclusion, I think all these products do work in getting rid of both whiteheads and blackheads but only to some extend. While not exactly the best solution, I am starting to love Innisfree's Blackhead Goodbye Finger Tip Silicon mostly because they're definitely the gentler option compare to my fingernails. I definitely advice you to keep your fingers away from your face no matter how tempting it is to get the blackheads off lest you want scars. And if none of the products you use work, simply book an appointment with your dermatologist!