Vitasence

What is it?

A new skincare range by Corenna Ong, a Singaporean who founded the company in 1998 after experimenting with herbs. She suffered from acne as a teenager and concocted her own brews after modern medicine failed to help. She says it's the first Singapore-grown skincare brand to go this big.

How did she know what to put in the brews?

'As a child, I was very skinny, so my mother made things to enhance my appetite and put on weight. When I was 16, I had serious acne. I tried everything, but they didn't work. So I concocted something based on what I knew about herbs from my mother's tonics.'

At first, it was guesswork. 'I used mostly Chinese herbs, put them in a pot with water and glycerin and brewed it like you would with an herbal soup. I'd apply it twice a day, and at night, leave it on and go to sleep. After about five to seven days, I started to see great improvements in my skin and the inflammation was gone. It was much better than the other treatments.'

She no longer has acne.