About a week ago, I was invited to experience a facial at CRES (Confidence, Relaxation, Elegance, and Sophistication) Wellness, a beauty spa chain with outlets all over Malaysia. I was particularly excited because they had an outlet not 5 minutes away from where I stay :)

So the afternoon of my facial, I walked into CRES and was immediately greeted with a warm cup of tea and a facial consultation. The centre is really warm and welcoming, with a luxe feel because of the open space, mood lighting and the cute little bridge installed over a water feature built into the floor, separating the treatment rooms from the reception area.

During the consultarion, they were careful to find out if I had any allergies, what my current skincare routine consisted of, and what my major concerns were. Once the consultation was completed, I was whisked away into a facial room for my Ultra Rejuvenation Crystallinear Therapy facial, performed with the company's affiliate skincare brand, Cellnique Paramedical.

The Crystallinear facial is a facial that utilises radiotherapy to treat the layers of skin. It helps to firm the skin, refine pores and create radiance.

During the facial, I was taken through each step before it started, so I felt at ease knowing what would come next. All the products felt and smelled wonderful, and I particularly like the fact that they used warm water to cleanse the products off the skin, because of the fact that the air-conditioning is always on in all Malaysian buildings, and I hate it when cold water touches my skin for prolonged periods of time.

The Crystallinear facial utilises a radiotherapy machine, and I will admit, I was a little worried that it might hurt or sting at first. But when my facialist started using the machine on my skin, I hardly felt anything. It just felt like smooth batons massaging my face.

The rest of the facial was pleasant and relaxing (minus the extractions of course - those really hurt!).

My facialist was a little bit straightforward, telling me immediately that I have really dehydrated skin, and telling me that this was the cause of the congestion in my skin. She said this repeatedly during the facial, but I am glad that she did mention it and offer advice on how to treat it, because for some reason my previous facialists had all never brought it up even though they had mentioned that my skin was congested.

After the facial, I was given some final bits of advice, a couple of samples, and then sent on my way. If like most people out there, you hate hard sells, you will be glad to know that they were perfectly nice and didn't try to force me into making any decisions or buying their packages. Thank you for that CRES!

It's now been about a week since the facial, and here are the changes I've noticed in my skin.

Picture of my skin a week after the facial with only a light layer of BB cream applied.

1. My pores are more refined - this actually worked! My skin peeled for a couple of days, and once the peeling stopped, the pores around my nose (which are usually the most prominent) looked less obvious.

2. My skin is more radiant. My skin is more luminous and shines through my makeup.

3. Makeup looks better. My makeup now sits better on my face, and looks better in photographs.

4. My skin feels firmer. The skin around my mouth particularly, now feels more 'lifted'.

If you want to find out more about CRES and their Crystallinear facial, check out their website here, and their Facebook page here.

GIVEAWAY: If you've never tried a CRES facial before, here's your chance! The first 50 to comment underneath my comment on CRES's Facebook page will be given a FREE facial as well as RM20 x 2 product vouchers! Head there now to find my post!