Crazy Foot Peels: Baby Foot v. Shiny Foot by Tony Moly

Have you heard about the new trendy foot peel products that promise insanely smooth feet? Baby Foot is a Japanese product that costs about $20, and Shiny Foot by Tony Moly is a similar Korean product that costs about $10. Both promise to use fruit acids to make all the rough dead skin peel off your feet, leaving fresh beautiful skin behind.

Two friends and I were very curious about these products so, we gave them a try at the beginning of summer. I've been meaning to write a review for ages, but honestly I'm glad it's taken so long because our opinions have shifted as time went on.

Overview and Product Differences

Both Baby Foot and Shiny Foot have plastic booties that you wear for 60-90 minutes while the peeling liquid soaks into your feet. Baby Foot booties have a squishy lining inside that already contains the peeling liquid. Shiny Foot is more like a plastic bag that you pour a small pouch of liquid into. Because of this difference in design Baby Foot exposes the top and bottom of your feet as well as ankles to the liquid, while Shiny Foot only submerges the bottoms of your feet and in between your toes.

This means that with Baby Foot you'll have more exfoliation, but you'll also have fewer shoes that will hide the peeling. For example, Tom's shoes hid all peeling from Shiny Feet, but not Baby Foot. You should consider where you want to exfoliate, and how important hiding the peeling is to you, when you select a product.

After the 60-90 minutes, you wash your feet thoroughly and then wait several days for the peeling to begin. Both products took about the same amount of time to begin peeling, and while the peeling patterns on our feet were somewhat different, the end results were similar.

With both products your feet will peel for about a week, and eventually you will be left with smoother, softer, pinker skin. 

Results

Underwhelming, sums up our experiences. While our feet did look nicer, the results were very brief, and two of the three of us didn't think the change was very significant. One of us has dry feet in general, and she was very pleased with her results. The other two of us have more calluses but not dryness, and we were the two unimpressed. If you have dry feet with white flakiness, you will probably be more likely to enjoy your results.

But the medium and longer term results are less impressive no matter what. All three of us soon realized that we have calluses for a reason (I can hear my mother's voice inside my head saying that now) and we all started developing blisters and rubbing from our shoes after using this product  - Baby Foot was worse than Shiny Foot in this respect.

Within two or three weeks I felt like all evidence of the peel was gone, and as the summer has progressed I feel like my feet have become rougher and more callused than normal. I should point out that all three of us live in a city and walk A LOT everyday, so it's possible that had some impact. 

All three of us admitted that the actual peeling process was really fun and satisfying, but none of us thought we would use the products again. If we did, it would be for the fun/social aspect of doing it with a group of friend, rather than actually wanting the results.

Tips for Use

If you decide to use one of these products here are some tips we learned along the way:

1. Soak your feet in warm water for at least 15 minutes before using the products to make them more effective.

2. The instructions will say that the liquid should absorb, but this is a mistranslation. It won't, but that's nothing to worry about.

3. Remove all toenail polish before using! The liquid will eat the polish off leaving a faded, dusty matte color, but it will also cause the pigment to soak into and stain your toenails. Nail polish remover will not be able to remove the staining - you'll have to wait for them to grow out.

4. Once your feet begin peeling, wear socks at all times or else you will have to do a lot of vacuuming/sweeping. (I wore flip flops after showering to give my feet a chance to dry first)

5. I preferred to gently massage the peeling skin off under running water at the end of my showers rather than flaking it off when it was dry. That said, never use a lot of pressure to peel or scrape skin off - be gentle.

Pictures below. Warning - if peeling feet gross you out, don't scroll further.

Baby Foot

Shiny Foot

Before

After

Soaking

Early peeling

Middle stage peeling

Late stage peeling

Korean Beauty Products (and food) in Shinokubo

Korean beauty seems to be blowing up, both in Japan and in the US right now. Have you heard about it? A few months ago I jumped on the bandwagon, and I've been absolutely loving it. (And I'm super low maintenance) Korean beauty dictates a ten-step skin care process (and I'll be honest, I'm doing about half that) and involves all sorts of fun and interesting products that are usually packaged very adorably.

Raku and I decided to try this out together, so a couple of months ago, we did some research, made our shopping lists, and headed out to Shinokubo, the biggest Korean neighborhood in Tokyo, to do some shopping. 

The two big stores we hit were Skinholic and Skin Garden which carry a wide variety of brands but there are tons and tons of cosmetic stores that you can wander into. If you make the trip to Shinokubo, it's not complete without some delicious Korean food. We highly recommend Ondoru. Even on a rainy weekday we had to wait twenty minutes to get in, but it's always worth the wait. Later, for dessert we bought cinnamon honey hotcakes at a stall across the street from Skinholic.

Ultimately, we didn't end up buying that much that day because we couldn't find some of the products we were looking for, and prices in the shops were generally higher than we found on Amazon or Iherb (but the shipping from Korea took close to two weeks, so it's a trade off). But it's still fun to walk around the neighborhood, enjoy the food, and check out the latest products. If you're looking to do your own research SoKo Glam has a wealth of reviews and information. And wherever you are, have an idea of what the prices should be before you walk into a store.

We've been going for a couple months now with our products, and really enjoying it. I've noticed a lot of improvement in my complexion, and hoping that continues.

My photography skills don't do this deliciousness justice

Ondoru - always worth the wait

Skinholic, a little smaller but a little nicer than Skin Garden

Hotteok (Hotcake) Stand

Honey Flavored Hotteok - there are lots of sweet and savory options

My Korean Products

Skinholic
Hours: 10:00-8:00
Phone: 03-5272-0909
Location: 1-12-15 Okubo, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Map

Skin Garden
Hours: 10:00-10:00
Phone: 03-5291-1808
Location: 212 Kyakunincho, Shinkuku-ku, Tokyo
Map

Ondoru
Hours: 11:00 am-1:00 am
Phone: 03-3205-5679
Location: 1-3-20 Hyakunincho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Map

Fiberwig Mascara

I'm pretty low maintenance. I don't wear very much make-up, so I'm not able to blog about cosmetics very often. More's the pity, because my understanding is that Japanese cosmetics are really great quality and very popular.

I do have one Japanese product that I love however: Fiberwig Mascara by deJavu. Isn't that an amazing name? I never would have picked it up on my own, but Raku recommended it to me. You can find it at any drug store, and it is the best mascara I've ever used.

As funny as the name is, it actually makes sense. Fiberwig creates long thin fibers that extend past the ends of your eyelashes. When you wash it off, it actually comes off as little strings, not just dissolving color. This is a major bonus if you, like me, are a crier - no fear of streaky raccoon eyes or waterproof mascara that is really hard to get off. 

If you're looking for a good mascara, or a good souvenir for a make-up lover I highly recommend it!

Before: no mascara

After: fiberwig mascara

Seriously, it's the best!

Shinka Hair Salon Update: New Stylists and Locations

Shinka Hair Salon is one of the biggest google searches that brings traffic to my blog. I really hope it's English speakers in Japan looking for information and not Australians annoyed to be reading something about Tokyo.

It's been a few years since I wrote that post, so I thought it was time for an update. The Roppongi location is still going strong, though Miyuki hasmoved on. But since then they've opened a new location in Azabu Juban. My stylist Naomi, who I highly recommend, has recently started working at the new branch so I went there for the first time yesterday.

The Azabu Juban branch is smaller, and feels more intimate. It also has a cute, rustic vibe instead of the shiny look of the Roppongi branch. I'd happily recommend either branch. Everyone is really friendly, they speak english, and they know how to cut and dye foreigner hair. If you're going to Roppongi I think Sachi is especially sweet, and in Azabu Juban I really recommend Naomi.

The foils always make me feel like I have a lion's mane

Shinka Hair Salon

Roppongi Branch
Hours: M-F 11:00-8:30, Sat 10:30-6:30, Closed Sundays and 2nd & 4th Mondays
Phone: 03-5575-6768
Address: 2nd floor 2-18-20 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Map

Azabu Juban Branch
Hours: M-F 11:00-8:30, Sat 10:30-6:30, Closed Sundays and 2nd & 4th Mondays
Phone: 03-3455-6622
Address: 3-14-2 Azabu Juban, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Map

Laser Hair Removal in Tokyo at Musee Platinum

Have you ever seen the Musee Platinum advertisements on the subway and wondered if their laser hair removal offers are too good to be true? Over a year ago I mentioned that Raku and I were going to try laser hair removal, and I'm only now getting around to writing up the experience. It was really hard to find any information at all in English, and when I searched on line, so much of what I found was for Singapore, not Japan so I hope this will be helpful to other people.

We made our first appointment at a salon called Vitule that was having some enticing special and had high hopes that were quickly dashed. Although Raku had given them advanced warning when she made our appointments they were deeply flustered when we arrived unable to read Japanese and refused to help us with the paper work. After a few awkward moments we were asked to leave pretty rudely. So, don't go there. We did more online research, and finally decided to try again at Musee Platinum - the most common hair removal salon in Japan - this time taking an extra Japanese friend to help with the reading, even though Raku speaks Japanese. At the time they were having a special for unlimited sessions of underarm treatments for 500 yen. Even if it didn't work, what was there to lose?

The initial appointment is simply to do the paperwork, and from there they will schedule the first treatment for a few days later. We were told the sign-up would take about an hour, which we thought was an overestimation, but with all the translation it actually took a little over two hours! Make sure you've got plenty of time when you schedule an appointment. We were given a little orientation and explanation of different packages we could get for different body parts. They use an IPL (intense pulsed light) method that they estimate takes about four full years to fully remove hair. After one year they say the hair will be much thinner and straighter, and after two less than half of the original hair will remain. They schedule treatments three months apart, so you can expect four treatments a year. We were disappointed to hear that it would take so long, but for so little money we decided to try anyways.

When we signed up they were concerned about my hair color and if the treatments would work on me. IPL works by targeting hair follicles that are a different color than the surrounding skin. I assured them that although I dye my hair blonde the natural color is a medium ash brown, and agreed to take the risk. They allow you to cancel at any point and will refund all of your money minus the cost for the sessions you've already received, which seems very fair.

Once we had selected the treatments we wanted to sign up for we were given tablets and left to do the paperwork on our own. You don't have to speak Japanese yourself for the treatments, but it really is essential to have someone come to help if you won't be able to speak and do the paperwork for the initial appointment.

After the sign up we were excited to come back for our first appointments a few days later. When you arrive they'll take you to a little cubicle where you put your belongings in a cabinet and change into their outfits (a tank top for armpits, or a towel wrap thing for legs or bikini treatments). Once you're all done you lie down on the table and they cover your eyes first with a tissue, then a pair of plastic sunglasses, and finally a towel to protect them from the light. It's funny to lie there unable to see anything, and sometimes I couldn't help giggling, which the technicians found hilarious. First they spread an icy cold gel onto your skin (this is where the giggles usually happened) and then they have a device that looks sort of like the handheld scanner at a checkout line, and they zap you about twelve times in each armpit. It's the weirdest feeling, I had worried it would hurt, but it just felt like tiny (cold!) pricks, and I could still see brightness flashing through my very protected eyelids. Even though I couldn't always tell what they were saying the technicians were very helpful getting me to position my arms in the right way or turn slightly if necessary. Afterwards they scrape off the gel and put icepacks on your skin and let you rest for a few minutes to cool the skin further. All in all it's a very quick procedure. They tell you that showers are fine, but no baths for 24 hours and not to visit an onsen for seven days afterwards.

Between one and two weeks after the procedure your hairs are supposed to fall out, and then regrow slightly thinner. The reason the treatments are scheduled so far apart is to allow all the hairs to grow back in. Well, I'm sad to report that after two treatments none of my hair fell out at all.  It seems that my hair is just too light for IPL. Raku on the other hand is having great results. Not every single hair fell out each time, but a lot of them did, and she's noticing a thinning of the hair. I've canceled my contract, and everyone was very understanding and helpful when I did. I was worried they might try to pressure me to stick with it longer, but although they were sad the treatments weren't working they were very supportive of my decision. As a note, if you've signed up for a more expensive contract and you'll be getting a refund they don't give cash, they'll need your bank account info to do a bank transfer.

So, in summary, IPL can work if your hair is dark enough for the treatments, but you'll need to be willing to commit at least a couple of years - possibly more - for major results, and you'll need to have Japanese reading and speaking abilities or assistance to sign up.

I thought I took more pictures, but I just looked through my phone, and I've only got one from the sign up session. These are the tablets we did the paperwork on.

Musee Platinum

Treatment Menu

Locations (I used the Omotesando location)

The Return of Rainy Season

We've been getting away with some really mild weather this rainy season. Right at the beginning there were a bunch of rainy days but then it was sunny and warm but not too hot, but today the rain is back. Raku and I have staked out the only covered seats on the terrace at Starbucks in Azabu Juban and are enjoying our work while we listen to the thunder and watch the rain drip down on all the other tables around us.

In preparation for all the heat and humidity I cut my hair even shorter, and Miyuki at Shinka did a really wonderful job this time. Speaking of coping with the weather, Raku also showed me a Japanese moisturizer that is perfect for rainy season and summer. I never would have bought it in a million years if she hadn't told me what it was because Biore "Watery Mousse Water Base" doesn't make any sense or sound the least bit appealing. But it's actually a very nice water based moisturizer that doesn't feel heavy or sticky the way the Khiel's I like to use in the winter does around this time of year. The finish is dry and powdery which is such a relief in this weather and as a bonus it's SPF 50. I've been using it for over a week now and haven't had any breakouts from it so I'd definitely recommend it as a great Japanese summer skincare product.

Rainy Writing Terrace

Summer Haircut

Biore Watery Mousse Water Base Moisturizer.  Use it!

Pretty Fingernails

Japanese girls have the fanciest fingernails I have ever seen.  I'm always checking out other peoples hands on the subway to see what the latest looks are.  Gel manicures have been popular for a while, but they don't stop at fun colors, it's pretty common to see nails that have been bedazzled with little gems or pearls (fake, obviously) or charms even.  Sometimes I wonder how ladies are even able to use their phones with such blinged out nails.

With all the fanciness going on around me I've been keeping my nails painted most of the time, but I only recently ventured into territory any more exciting than that.  My nails are pretty weak so I haven't wanted to try a gel manicure, I'm pretty sure my nails would be destroyed!  Plus it's a lot more money than painting them myself.  But I recently found a really beautiful set of sparkly blue nail polish stickers.  You know, those strips that you peel off and stick onto your nails?  I'd heard good things, but never tried them.  So I bought these stickers, but before using them I thought I'd do a trail run with a set I'd gotten for free in a magazine.  If I was going to ruin them, I wanted to do it with a set I didn't care so much about.

The way it works is you peel off the polish and apply it to the bare nail, starting from the cuticle and smoothing it down the nail.  At the end you fold the strip down and file it away.  I read online that to smooth out any air bubbles and to help them stick you can blast them with a hair dryer for a few seconds afterwards. Easy, right?  Sort of.  They actually go onto the nail pretty easily.  I thought it would be more difficult, but that wasn't the problem at all.  Filing them off was. It was hard to get the file to tear through the sticker, and then it left the end a little ragged.  The first set I did  evened out a lot during the first day, but the second set is still pretty rough.  I found the hair dryer helped a lot with air bubbles on the first round, but on the second I didn't really have any to worry about.   After I put them on I was worried they would immediately peel off, but the first set held really well!  Eventually the pattern started to flake off but the white layer stayed attached to my nails.  The problem was taking them off.  Maybe the Japanese ones are different, but polish remover didn't dissolve them, and eventually I had to peel them off.  The only problem was they tore off the top layer of my nails!  Ick!  I did a lot of googling and can't find any other accounts of this.  I do have really weak nails - maybe they're the weakest in the world.  Or maybe the hair dryer made them stick too well?  I don't know.  I was hesitant to do the second set after that, so after giving my nails a couple weeks to recover I did the second set with Raku.  She did hers on bare nails, but I put on a base coat of polish first to make removal easier.  Now I'm having the complete opposite problem.  They're trying to peel off all the time, but Raku reports the same problem so I don't think it's the nail polish.  Either way, they're cute but I don't think these will last more than a few days.  They're a fun idea, but maybe more trouble than they're worth.

In other news, Strawberry Sandwiches are back at 7-Eleven!  It seems they have a blueberry sandwich this year as well, which I haven't tried yet but appears to be blueberry jam and cream cheese.

Spa EAS in Yokohama

I mentioned the other day that John and I were going to the spa in Yokohama. I was sure that I'd written about it before, but I can't find anything about it on my blog, so let me correct that! Sadly I couldn't take any pictures there (get ready for a text heavy post). But their floor guide has lots of great pictures. 

Spa EAS is a really fantastic spa in Yokohama that I've been to three times now. They have a number of saunas and steam rooms including one really amazing room where a person pours a bunch of herbs and water over the hot rocks and then beats the air with a towel to raise the temperature and humidity. You're only allowed to be in for 8 minutes because they raise the temperature to 70 c (that's 158 f!) I never knew I could sweat so much, but it feels amazing! Once you've enjoyed all the saunas on the top two floors there are a bunch of different baths including salty mineral water, sparkling water, several temperatures of hot water, and ice water accessible through the locker rooms. There are a couple of steam rooms inside the bathing area, but the other saunas are co-ed, except for a small ladies area on the 7th floor. I've been twice with a group of female friends and once with John, and I really enjoyed both experiences.

Reading katakana is helpful, and kanji would be even more helpful, but even if you can't read or speak that doesn't mean a visit would be out of the question, it will just take a little preparation beforehand. I've never heard anyone speak English there, and there are only a few English signs (and I've actually never seen another foreigner there) but this place is too great to miss!  The spa is a quick walk from the West Exit of JR Yokohama Station or Exit 9 of the Metro, on the 4th floor of a big complex that also has a bowling alley and a Pasela karaoke.  You'll need to take off your shoes at the entrance and put them in a locker before going to the front desk. At the front desk they will give you a wrist band that opens your locker and can charge any purchases for the rest of the day, including the drink machines. After getting your wrist band walk up the stairs to the 5th floor. At the desk you can pick your spa clothes (there are two choices for ladies and one for men) and a get floor guide brochure. Just point to the color and tell them what size (I was comfortable in an M). They'll give you a bag with your outfit, a big towel, and a small towel. Once you've got your bag you can go in the locker rooms to get changed. The wrist band you got on the 4th floor has a number on it - that's your assigned locker, and it's magnetic - just push it against the little gray button and your locker should pop right open. (That took me waaaaay too long to figure out). Once you've changed you're ready to go enjoy yourself on the sixth and seventh floors. The floor guide will show pictures of the different steam rooms, relaxation rooms, and other services so you should be able to find your way around even if you can't read. I like to bring a kindle or my phone inside my bag to read in the relaxation rooms. A lot of people bring their towels to lie on in the saunas too.

The really hot sauna on the 6th floor happens on the hour, usually at 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, and 4:00. It's important to get in line about 20 minutes beforehand because it's really popular and it fills up super fast. People will just sit on the floor waiting until they let you in. If you can read Japanese you can check out the schedule to pick which hour sounds best (they have different essential oils like herbs, orange, bergamot etc.) but if you can't, don't worry. Just pick a time and be sure to get in line early.

There are a number of restaurants that serve noodles and curries as well as a juice and smoothie bar, and also places that do massages, facials, acupuncture, and aromatherapy. Obviously you have to pay for all of that, but you can just charge it to your wristband. There are also lots of drink machines and an ice cream vending machine. I've never tried any of the extra services, but John got a massage and he was really happy with it. All the signs are in Japanese, but if you look at their website with google translate ahead of time you should be able to figure out what you want.

Once you're done with the saunas you can enjoy all the different baths. The first time I went I was really nervous about the whole naked thing, but everyone else acts like it's completely normal, and I promise that after a minute or two you'll adjust. If you've never been to an onsen before you leave your big towel in the cubbies just before the baths and bring your little towel with you. You can hold it in front of you to cover up the most important bits if you want. It's important to shower (thoroughly) at the little booths before getting in the water. If your hair is long you can get a hair tie at the same place you get your spa clothes. Most people keep their little towels folded up on the top of their heads while they're soaking in the water.  They have lots of hairdryers and fun face products you can try, so you leave looking at least as nice as you did when you arrived. At the end turn your clothes and towels back in where you got them, and then take your wristband down to the 4th floor to pay.

The normal price is 2600 yen (200 yen upcharge on holidays) but every Tuesday is Ladies Day, and then it's only 1600 yen as long as you're in a group. If you go by yourself they only give you 500 yen off. Friday is men's day, but as far as I can tell it's just a free drink, not reduced admission. 

Whew!  If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking with me. I realize I wrote a ton and went really in depth with the details. It's the sort of place that might be intimidating without knowing what to expect ahead of time or being able to communicate very well, but I've just had such a great experience here, and I hope other people can too.

Spa EAS
Hours:10:30 am - 9:00 am
Phone: 04-5290-2080
Address: 2-2-1 Kitasaiwai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa
Map

Looking for Other Onsen?
Utsukushi no Yu in Takaido

Visiting a Japanese Dermatologist

Since coming to Japan John and I have both had some flare-ups with our complexions. I don't know if it's from stress, or differences in the water, or adjusting to a climate that swings from incredibly humid to incredibly dry. I've spent a lot of time trying to find good face wash that would help, which I've detailed here, but I recently read a little about dermatologists here and was really excited by what I found. I told John about it, and we went to one today.  He did the test run, but I may go myself in a few weeks.

In the US I have always thought of going to the dermatologist mostly as a luxury, though they do treat a lot of real conditions too. I certainly never wanted to spend the money just to go for acne. But here it was supposed to be very common to go for acne treatment and very easy, affordable, and covered by national health insurance. I talked to John about it and he found a place in Hiroo, The Hiroo Garden Clinic, that took national health insurance and spoke English.

We were surprised to learn that we could just walk in rather than needing an appointment. When we got there it was pretty crowded, but they saw people very quickly. Both the receptionists and the doctor spoke English and John was also able to fill out all the paperwork in English. The actually appointment probably took less than 5 minutes, which startled John, but it was very efficient. He was given a prescription for an oral antibiotic as well as a topical antibiotic and an acne cream and asked to come back in a week to see how it was working. The total for the visit was 1020 yen (about $10).  We then went to the pharmacy which was just downstair and next door where John was also able to fill out his paperwork in English. It took about 10 minutes for them to be filled, and each one was labeled with dosage instructions in English.  The total for the two creams and a week's worth of oral antibiotics was 1500 yen (about $15).

The clinic is about a 10 minute walk from Hiroo station. It was very clean and pleasant inside and I would definitely recommend it. While we waited we got to watch Toy Story dubbed in Japanese.  Neither of us has spent much time in Hiroo, but the walk to the clinic was very pleasant and the neighborhood seemed really nice. There were lots of cafes and shops that would be nice to visit before or after a doctor's appointment.

Hiroo Garden Clinic
Hours: M-W, F 10:00-1:00 & 3:00-6:00, Sat 10:00-1:00, Closed Thurs, Sun, and holidays
Phone: 03-6427-9198
Address: 7-14-7 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Map

Spicy Sausage Doritos and Laser Hair Removal

Raku and I found these at the grocery store, and they were too funny not to try.  They're not bad, though they didn't really taste like sausage.  John thought they were cool ranch - when I showed him the bag his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Weird!

Other than the funny snacks, life has been good here. It's rained for the past three days, and is supposed to keep going until Sunday, but we're having a brief (though cloudy) break from the rain.

This afternoon Raku and I have scheduled a consultation for laser hair removal. Apparently it's very common in Japan, and clinics are constantly having crazy specials to lure clients in. We found a package that costs just under $20 and covers 8 sessions (2 years worth) for underarm hair removal. How great would it be to never shave your armpits again? If all goes well I'll report on the process soon.

If you're in Tokyo and sick of shaving, but looking for something a little less permanent than laser hair removal I would recommend Elena Jade salon for waxing.  Elena is Australian, and always fun to chat with while she does her work.  She's licensed in Australia and even trains other estheticians here in Tokyo.  She imports organic products from Australia, and I've always been very pleased with her work.

Elena Jade

Hours: Mon-Tues 11:00-9:00, Wed-Fri 10:00-9:00, Sat-Sun 10:00-7:00

Phone: 03-6438-9895

Address: 1-5-19 Azabujuban, Minato-ku, Tokyo

Map

Japanese Wedding Pictures

A few weeks ago I had the amazing opportunity to attend a friend's wedding photo shoot! It was on a wonderful sunny morning in a beautiful park, and Yoshimi looked gorgeous. I'll miss her when she moves to Italy with her husband in a few months, but I'm so excited for her!

In Japan, weddings are often simple civil ceremonies that are little more than filing paperwork. Couples will often have parties later to celebrate and take traditional photos on a separate date.

We met them at Kiyosumi Teien, a beautiful garden in Kiyosumi Shirokawa.

So peaceful!

Beautifully colored leaves

In order to take these photos couples rent the wedding kimono, and they provide staff that help dress you and then make sure the kimono are perfectly adjusted in every photo.   I was amazed by their attention to detail.  They make sure that everything is perfect from the alignment of the collar to the fall of the hem.

Making adjustments

The lovely couple

This park must be a popular place for wedding photos because we saw another couple doing their photos there also.

We even got to be have our pictures taken with them!

This is my favorite!

Walking around in the female kimono is no easy task!  Just to sit down on this rock two people had to help Yoshimi.  The inner white kimono is wrapped very tightly so that very small steps must be taken, and the red outer coat is so heavy!  After she took it off, Yoshimi let us hold it, and it was like a futon mattress!

The white kimono

Many thanks to Yoshimi for inviting us to her photos, letting us take pictures of our own, and giving me permission to blog about them!

Japanese Face Wash

Since we got here I've been testing out different face washes, trying to find one I really like.  John gave up on this after about 3 weeks, and decided he was just sticking to his US face wash even though he has to bring it in with him.  Here are my reviews of all the products I've tried so far.

Biore Acne Care アクネケア

This is the first face wash that I tried, and the only one targeted directly at acne.  It did a good job, but it was very drying to my face, though that may be partly because I was using it in winter when the humidity was very low.  The face wash had a slightly medicinal scent, and the texture of it was very slippery.  It left my face feeling squeaky clean.  I would definitely use it again, but it wasn't my favorite.

 Perfect Whip

This face wash foams up nicely, but I think it may be a moisturizing face wash, because it feels a little oily on my fingers, and I quit using it because my skin is pretty oily on its own and quickly started breaking out.  This might be a good choice if you have dry skin.

 Dove Men+ Care

I originally bought this for John, but he didn't like it, so I thought I'd finish it for him. It has a nice botanical but masculine scent, and the texture is slippery - much like the Biore Acne Care. Unfortunately my face broke out like crazy with this, just like John's, so I didn't finish it. Of everything I've tried this is probably my least favorite (to be fair I'm obviously not the target audience,  but John didn't like it either).

Dove Deep Pure

This face wash was one of my favorites.  It comes in a smaller tube (for the same price) than other face washes, but it lathers up into a really nice foam.  I thought it did a good job with my oily skin without over drying, and John says he's used it before and also liked it.  It also has a slightly medicinal smell like the Biore Acne Care, which was the only thing I didn't care for.

Men's Biore Double Scrub ダブルスクラブ

I wouldn't have picked this out myself, but my friend Hunter loves it and introduced me to it.  This was the only exfoliating face wash that I tried, and according to the website it has two different exfoliants: black beads that target black heads and oil and white beads that exfoliate dead skin.  I don't know if that's really true, but this was my other favorite face wash.  My face felt great after the exfoliation, and it has a wonderful grapefruit scent (which you know I love).  Hunter likes to mix it with a little of the Dove Deep Pure for a combination of exfoliation and lather, but I think they both work well on their own.

Shinka Hair Salon

Getting my hair dyed takes twice as long here as it did at home.  I used to think of this as a colossal inconvenience - I mean, who wants to spend 3 hours getting their hair colored?  But, I've decided it's time to adjust my attitude.  For all the time it takes (and all the money I'm spending) I might as well enjoy the experience.  So I've decided to think of it as an extravagant indulgence instead.  I'm guessing that's how the salons want me to feel (and probably how most girls here do feel) because it is much more of an event than it ever was at home.

I've tried out a few places here in Tokyo, but I've been to Shinka Salon twice and I'm really happy with their services.  I'm always greeted at the door and my coat and bags are quickly whisked away. Then I'm offered teas and other beverages and given lots of English magazines (imported from Australia).  They even give you a lap blanket and a pillow so it's more comfortable to rest the magazine in your lap.  Then my stylist (Miyuki) figures out what I want done with my hair.  The dyeing does take absolutely forever, but my understanding is that it's because Japan doesn't allow chemicals as strong as the US uses - and it's taken a million years everywhere I've ever gone, even in Hong Kong.  Then for the hair washing the chairs lift up and flatten out so you're lying down very comfortably while they shampoo your hair (and at least in the winter they cover you with an electric blanket too!)  After the wash comes a shoulder massage.

Yesterday I got my first haircut here.  I've dyed my hair while we've been here over the past several summers, but I've never gotten a haircut in Japan.  I showed Miyuki a picture of what I wanted, and we talked about it for a couple minutes, but then I buried myself in a magazine so I didn't get super nervous watching the hair come off.

It was perfect!

She even gave me some tips on how to style it, and demonstrated for me.  I came home raving about the experience, and I'm sure John thinks I'm turning into a ridiculous spoiled housewife, but I'm just happy to have a place I'm comfortable getting my hair done.

2016 Update: New Location and New Stylists

Shinka

Hours: M-F 11:00-8:30. Sat and Holidays 10:30-6:30, Closed Sundays and 2nd & 4th Mondays

Phone: 03-5575-6767 for English, 03-5575-6768 for Japanese

Address: 5-18-20 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo

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