Kevin 老师 from Queen/女人我最大 (Nu Ren Wo Zui Da/NRWZD) in Singapore + Kevin’s Beauty Tips

When  Sesame told me that Taiwanese beauty maestro Kevin would be in town, I didn’t expect the flurry of interest that would ensue.

Together with a few local journalists and beauty editors, Chantana and I were fortunate to attend an intimate media session with him at Starbucks Marina Square. However, I saw hordes of women – including one with a bouquet of flowers – trailing him and even crowding around our open area where he held beauty court!

His eloquence and extensive knowledge, so evident in the popular Taiwanese beauty program, Queen/女人我最大 (Nǚ Rén Wǒ Zuì Dà), came out in full force upon meeting us.

I wouldn’t peg him as effervescent – his manner is more refined – but there was a passionate energy that marked his speech during his interaction with us. He not only inundated the small captive audience with his beauty know-how, his personable nature also made the tête-à-tête at once illuminating and entertaining.

He was obviously enamoured of the L’egere products he endorses. As soon as he sat down and lay eyes on the L’egere array on the table, he grabbed one and sprang up, exclaiming, “我超喜欢这个产品!” (“I absolutely love this product!”).

The product in question? L’egere 3°C Pure Aqua Ice Toner. According to him, our sebum production increases 10% with every 1° increase in body temperature and this product is excellent for cooling the skin to control oil production.

To prove his point, he immediately sprayed some onto a Starbucks serviette (an excellent oil blotter, by the way) and demonstrated its low temperature. True to his word, the product felt icy and soothing. He did warn us to use a towel or cotton pad – a direct spritz might prove too cold for the skin.

Here are some of the other beauty observations and tidbits he shared with us:

• To a question about Japanese versus Korean products, he said that the two have their merits but they are not the same, thanks to their cultural differences. The Japanese are meticulous and patient, hence their skincare take time to show their effect. The Koreans, on the other hand, are more aggressive in nature – his actual words were ‘野心’ (wild at heart/ambitious) – so they hanker for products that are ‘强烈’ (strong) and ‘快速性’ (fast in nature). Thus from them we see BB creams and the like, with their multi-functional properties.

• To combat eye circles, use warm green tea bags.

• To combat eye bags, massage the eye area.

• L’egere BB creams have a dewiness that is apparent once you blend it out. This is proof of its moisture-giving properties. It becomes powdery smooth thereafter, imparting a velvety finish. Its nourishing ingredients are also the reason for Kevin endorsing their BB creams.

• BB creams for men are different from regular BB creams in that they tend to have more sebum control properties. They are also less nourishing because of the thickness of men’s skin impedes absorption of ingredients (women’s skin absorbs ingredients more readily). I also believe this is because men in general have better skin than women. In addition, L’egere’s BB cream for men employs colour-changing technology that helps it adjust with facial temperature changes. In fact, it acts very much like a makeup base and it’s something women might use too.

• When he has to do makeup on men, he only uses a makeup base (or a BB cream), concealer and loose powder. This is what I do too because when men have too much makeup makeup, they look less masculine.

• Drink a lot of water (bear in mind that coffee, tea and juice ≠ water; the body will only absorb the sugars in these drinks) but because women have thinner cell walls, we should sip our water.

• Moisturise often because it makes us radiate from within.

• Exercise and massage are necessary for circulation and to cut down water retention. Very often, women who look fat suffer from water retention that can be rectified with massage.

• For facial massage, start at the centre and slowly knead sideways.

• Do not neglect the chin and jawline because a sagging  jawline ages us.

• Sleep is the absolute key to beauty. Without rest, nothing will function well and very often, despite not going out in the sun, our skin becomes dull due to the lack of rest.

• He emphasised the necessity of thoroughly removing our makeup at the end of the day. For him, the amount of time spent removing makeup should be the same as the amount of time spent putting it on. (!)

• He is not a fan of oil cleansers not because they are no good but because most people do not clean it off properly, giving rise to skin impurities, blemishes and bumps. However, he says that they are especially suitable for people with extremely dry skin as they can be particularly nourishing for such individuals.

• He recommended placing our heads upside down to for 10 to 15 minutes to reverse our blood flow. This amps up the circulation to our faces and will maximise our skincare benefits if we apply the products to our faces then. This has to be the most intriguing tip of the day!

All that in under 30 minutes! He proceeded to conduct a makeup demonstration for the public, which I wasn’t able to stay for. According to a friend who attended his demo yesterday, the entire session lasted three (!) hours, including photo-taking with his fans and an autograph session for his beauty books (see below).

Here‘s the complete range of L’egere products available at John Little Star Dust.

Hailed as ‘彩妆天王’ (The Heavenly King of Cosmetics), he has written two beauty books that were recently published in April 2010.

<美彩妆全攻略> (Complete Strategies for Beauty) focuses on techniques and product recommendations.

<妆魔法书> (Makeup Magic Book) focuses on makeover magic and makeup correction, as well as step-by-step techniques.

Here is his promo video for his beauty tomes.

I was gifted with the books but the organisers gave me two copies of the same book. Luckily, Chantana had two copies of the other book and so we did a fortuitous exchange! ;)

We were also given a L’egere set comprising L’egere White Blemish Balm Cream SPF34 (10 g) and L’egere Aqua & Shiny Pearl Blemish Balm Powder (9 g). I’ve never tried this brand before so I look forward to using these products! :D

Image source: John Little and Kevin @ PayEasy TW