Review: Lumene Vitamin C + Energy Cocktail - Serum

My review today is for a product that saved my skin last winter when we were using the heater. Even the humidifier alone couldn't save me...This product came in a much better size back then (the bottle was fatter) and it was discounted at around $12 so I bought it just to check it out. Turned out to be pure bliss on my skin.

It's a weird oil combination that requires some shaking before use. The top part is orange and the bottom part magenta pink, when mixed the solution turns orange (such critical information, eh?).  The price is around...$20-30 ish and it can be purchased at CVS. If you use it day and night it lasts about two months (one squirt at a time), but if your skin is not dry (mine gets dry) I recommend only using it at night in which case it lasts 3-4 months. My calculation is always a little skewed because yobo sometimes squirts a little too.

The basics:

+ nice scent
+ doesn't make you break out even though it's "oily"
+ moisturizes well
+ good packaging (one squirt is perfect for your whole face!)
+ has anti-aging effects (cloudberry and Vitamin C)
+ prevents dry, flaky skin (a problem I sometimes have)

- new packaging not as nice as old packaging
- price (it's pretty decent if you take advantage of their Buy 1 Get 1 50% Off deal)

Overall I think this product is awesome for the winter months if you live in a dry climate and tend to have dry skin. When I stopped using this in the daytime I noticed my foundation did not go on as smoothly (and I do use a primer but it's kind of dry since it has SPF)....So I do recommend this to anyone who has similar skin to mine!

Review: Lumene Vitamin C+ Radiant Day Cream

As you may have noticed (and if you haven't, you will!) I have a special preference for Lumene products because it is a Finnish brand, which means I trust the brand (more) and everything smells refreshingly like Finland (and it's not just me! yobo says so too!).  If you have ever used The Body Shop's Vitamin E Moisture cream you will find that Lumene's Vitamin C cream is superior because it is not as greasy (when applying or after) but it has the same effects and can still protect you from the cold dry winter. I know, because back when I was in Finland the Vitamin E Moisture Cream was a recommended moisturizer/primer for winter months. Now I find that with the heater on California is not that far from Finland when it comes to lack of humidity so making winter arrangements is definitely necessary.

For the winter months I have been using these tiny little bottles of day cream that I found at CVS. The entire collection has been on some kind of BUY 1 GET 1 FREE sale so maybe by the time I go through all my reviews you'll be rushing over to buy some too!

This product is said to contain Arctic Cloudberry, and thereby has anti-aging effects. I don't know about cloudberries but I know what Vitamin C does and I think this cream is perfect in brightening one's complexion!

This is actually the third one I'm on...I used the first one months ago, then I bought two and just recently I got two more. What happened was that yobo tested it out one day and discovered he quite likes Vitamin C creams...so now we go through these like crazy....

The Summary:

+ nice refreshing scent
+ moisturizes well (dry skin/dry weather/both)
+ good price (~$4 for 15 ml before discount)
+ well sealed (you know no one stuck their finger in there at the store...hate that)
+ anti-aging effects
+ vitamin C brightens skin
+ vitamin C prevents aging
+ non greasy
+ perfect size for travel or keeping in your purse as back up

- can't find larger equivalent...there is something similar at CVS but it's not clear to me whether it is exactly the same or just...similar

I recommend!

Post-Christmas Shopping---anyone?

I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays, wonderful Christmas and all, and hopefully unlike me you don't have to go back to work tomorrow >D Haha...anyway, regardless of whether you got your wishes for Christmas (did you? What did you get?) I'm sure you're all just as excited about the after-Christmas sale as I am! Most years I'm gone for the holidays so by the time I come back in January I missed out on most of the sales (boo~~), but this year I told yobo early on that Sunday the 26th is OUTLET SHOPPING DAY. :D:D:D

So today we went a little further down (to the border) to Las Americas Premium Outlets....just because we haven't been there before and we figured there would be less traffic from SD/Mexico than from SF/NorCal. It's like going to Tijuana but not quite, lol. One of these days I'll make it all the way there...

But meanwhile I did buy a couple of items that I will show you later when I have daylight to take pictures of them :) Victoria's Secret had 75% off and their xmas hats and tutus were only 99 cents each! Needless to say I was very tempted, but yobo said no ._.

I just wanted to show you that I do actually still use the ELF palette that I reviewed in this post, because I don't want to waste and it's decent if you really pack it on, don't touch the cream shadows, and don't dare to sweat.  Just a survival tip ;D

I'm wearing Gold and the Bronze next to gold on the top right of the palette

I'm wearing the ELF eyeliner that came with the package. The "lead" keeps breaking on me. I barely got my other eye before it needed sharpening (again). It's not very "soft" either but it still rubs off easily. Ugh. Never again.

So the key to using these colors is to use one of those flat sponge applicators instead of brushes. You know how some people say you should use brushes with powder eyeshadow and applicators with cream ones? Or your fingers? Well this color palette works way better with applicators and fingers, most likely because it needs to be packed on and the applicators work very well at that. I found a pack of H&M applicators that I must have purchased a while back and I have been using them with this palette to make it work for me.

What tricks have you got?

Review: Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Serum

I mentioned a few times that I would be writing a review on this highly esteemed Estee Lauder product. When I went to Macy's to pick up this sample (we bought a full bottle for my aunt) there were so many people there for the sample that I felt claustrophobic and incredibly lucky to get any at all. I even purchased a few of these tiny samples on Ebay for about $7-12/each, which is not at all a good price given that you can get the full size for about $85 at their website (but if you shop around you can get it for less).

The summary:

+ simple scent
+ goes on like...water
+ blends into skin well (really sinks in)
+ lessened discoloration (I think my skintone is more balanced now)
+ my skin is smoother (I think)

- a little pricey, but then again if I hunt long enough I shouldn't have to spend more than $40 on it (also Macys always has good gift sets)
- very small bottles (comes in 1 oz and 1.7 oz, 0.24 ml samples)
- suspicious color (yellowish clear?)
- scent is an acquired taste

Overall I am planning on buying it  :)

Have you tried this product?
Makeup Alley reviews 4.1/5

Review: Vichy Aqua Thermal Light 24 Hour Hydrating Care

I don't know why, but I am under the impression that I have already blogged a review on this moisturizer about two months ago, but going through my posts I see that I haven't....I must have planned on doing so and then not written it...?

Anyway, since I've been finishing up this moisturizer and am about to begin using a new one I really should get this review going. I purchased this product about two and a half months ago for about $20 at the outlets and it's lasted me this long as my evening moisturizer.

On the website, this lotion retails for $27, and is supposedly for "dry sensitive skin", but using it I feel that it's more suitable for combination or even oily skin.

The summary:
+ light
+ hydrating
+ nice minimal scent
+ price is decent
+ packaging is easy to use. squeezed out most of it already and it's easier than squeezing toothpaste
+ I tend to have dry skin and I didn't end up with dry patches

- maybe too light? as I mentioned, perhaps better for combination skin rather than dry skin
- maybe seasonal? better for summer than winter?
- chemical feel (not used to it anymore)

Would I buy it again? Not for myself, maybe for yobo who has combination skin. I think I prefer a "heavier" moisturizer, like creams instead of "lotion".

Do you find my reviews useful at all?

Review: ELF Eyeshadow Palette in Basic

A while back I decided to try the "new" ELF (I tried purchasing a ton of ELF products about two years ago, some I liked, some I didn't) by purchasing a $5 dollar palette from Ross ($4.49 + tax). Normally I think it retails for about $8, so it's not a big difference. I've been testing it out for at least a month now, usually by using it for work in the morning.

This palette is supposed to have 12 powder eye shadows and 2 creme eye shadows, but I didn't realize this until a week ago! I swear I thought those two big ones were lip gloss...as they often are in these palettes...XD

The first two colors are the cream shadows, which I personally thinks has no lasting power. I tried it on one morning in a hurry and I swear it was gone in just a few hours. I saw a hint of shine after that but I was not impressed. Plus it feels very...greasy? More so than others, and I have used Maybelline cool shadows, Clinique, as well as Victoria's Secret cream shadows...It's also impossible to layer any of the powder colors on top of the cream.

The second color from the left is actually the deep purple that you can see from the palette. However note that once it goes on my (yellowish) skin it turns into this weird grayish color. Now you might think it is my skin tone, but I swear that it looks the same on my (non-yellowish) eye lids. Except under the sun, in which case it looks purple again.

The color underneath the purple is actually a different purple. It's the shimmery one that you see in the palette above the dark purple. It's good for using it alongside the dark purple, but as you can see from the big blob of mess I made; it is not very pigmented. I think this is one of those eyeshadows that need a lot of "packing on", meaning you actually have to be careful not to blend too much as the color will fade. That blob of purple in the middle was just packed on as it is (the cream required a lot of cream to be that visible too).

So in a nut shell:

+ colors are nice and match each other well for everyday use

+ instructions on how to get the "perfect eye make up"

+ good price for the number of colors

+ I like how it came with a small brush & eye liner, both of which I think were decent

+ I think you can take the colors out of the box it came in and put it in your own palette. I might try it one day and let you know...

- not enough pigment

- not long lasting, MUST use primer if you want it to last more than 2 hours

- cream eye shadow was kind of...non eye shadow looking. Could have sworn it was lip gloss. Or even cream blush (had they been lighter colors)

- cheap packaging

Overall...I would not buy their eye shadows any more. The only eye shadow product that I have ever liked from ELF was their mineral eye shadow, which came in pots. I haven't checked on their recent selections but I love the ones I bought maybe a year ago and I still use them! A lot more color in those...

What are your recommended ELF products?

Review: Lumene Double Stay Mineral Makeup Foundation

I promised a review on this ever since I bought it, but really it hasn't been two months since I started actually using it. I bought a darker tone so it's only for the summer when my arms and neck are so dark that I can't possibly wear my normal foundation or BB cream.  And now that I've been working i find myself wearing it every single day.

Lumene is a Finnish brand, which adds arctic ingredients found in Northern Finland to boost their products. You can view more of their products at their website

This tone is 4 Peach Beige/Persikkatee if you wonder, but even I don't know why my skin is dry enough to have those bumps...

So here's a breakdown:

+ lightweight
+ blends easily (even to my super light concealer)
+ mineral based
+ has "protective arctic Amethyst"
+ unscented
+ didn't dry my face (no flaking!)
+ cheap price

- low coverage (sounds like a wireless provider...)
- makes me break out (not everyone has the same skin)
- disappears quickly (melts?)
- discontinued in the US

So I will not  be buying this anymore because it can no longer be purchased here, but also because I want a better foundation. XD

Have you tried Lumene make up products? I quite like their skincare...

Review: Calvin Klein Endless Creme Liquid Concealer

I mentioned a while back in this post that I purchased Calvin Klein sets on sale for my mother-in-law and kept a few things to myself.  This foundation stick ended up being the only item I kept because everything else I just added to yobo's luggage when he went back home earlier this month.

So this is 204 Cream, which is lighter than my skin tone even when I am not tanned.  I still use it with my darker foundation and haven't had a problem with it as it does blend it pretty well. I think I mentioned a few days ago that it's beginning to get difficult to leave the house without concealer (unless I forget) because this does a good job at hiding my hideous dark eye circles.

In a nut shell:
+ liquid blends well
+ good color match
+ no flaking or creasing
+ easy application (it's a wand)

- expensive (normally concealers are under $10, this one's about double)
- the cover cracked after a few uses even though I haven't carried it around me (it's stayed put)

I think this stick will last me a long time, and I'm pretty satisfied with my purchase.  I think I would like to try another type of concealer by Calvin Klein, or their other products (I bought powder and eyeshadow for my mother-in-law), but I wouldn't buy this exact same product again because of it's poor packaging.

Have you tried Calvin Klein cosmetics?

Review: 3Lab Perfect Cleansing Foam

With my Beautyfix purchase I received a face wash that I completely forgot about as I was even asking you for suggestions for a new face wash. I got this face wash from Beautyfix because I haven't found the perfect cleanser yet and 3Lab looked promising.  3Lab is a skincare company that focuses on anti-aging products, and their specialty lays in using "Nano-Claire GY™, the world’s first bio-engineered growth hormone and apple stem cell technology." If interested, why not check out blogger blog?

I've used this face wash to remove make up because...I forgot to get a make up remover.  I think I should buy one, actually, my skin has turned horrendous over the past three weeks.  Then again I googled make up remover and this video on how to use olive oil as a make up remover, so I think I will try it and share my results with all of you!

 I am much too lazy to list all the ingredients, which I'm sure you'll be able to find at their website by the way.  And if you wondered, this tends to retail for $40.00.

The summary:
+ creamy texture
+ foams well, but not excessively (means less chemicals, no?)
+ cleans well without drying
+ unscented
+ washes off make up

- high price ($40)
- not sure if it really removes make up as well as it should

Well this is the first of a series of reviews I'll hopefully finish posting by the end of the week.  I do have some news for you as well as a few items I've purchased throughout the week that will probably be worn this coming week.  They're mostly work appropriate, dark, black, and boring (? is black boring? not to me?), but I did buy a new pair of leather shoes for fall that I'm pretty excited about! :)

Have you tried any 3Lab products? Would you be interested in?

Review: Lavera Organic Calendula Balancing Face Cream

Lavera is a great natural cosmetics brand that makes vegan and certified organic products.  I've mentioned that I'm very interested in organic or natural products because I think I'm too young to be slathering chemicals on my face. Because for me it's cheaper to use organic skincare than to change my entire diet to organic, I'm starting with organic skincare.  I've followed organic diets before and it's easy to get used to, but pricey to maintain, so my goal is to eventually be in the habit of using organic and eco-friendly everything.  Maybe I will achieve such status by the end of my life. Haha.

I think I mentioned that when I purchased this online I was running out of night moisturizer...? Well I used this as both for a while and it made me break out.  I don't know why, but it does not have SPF so I didn't see the harm in it but clearly we should all just follow directions, eh?  Since then I have been using a different evening moisturizer but I can't say I'm too pleased with Lavera.

Why?

• Because it doesn't do anything special. It's not terribly moisturizing (though I don't feel dry either) because it's for Normal to Combination skin. 
• Does not smell good. I'm big on this, I don't like skincare products that smell like nothing.  But maybe this is the cost of organic? I don't know, it's the same reason why I don't like Clinique.
• The product claims it will give you "radiant complexion" which I have not noticed.
• It is not "refreshing", nor does it provide "intensive moisture"

I just feel that I could have a much better moisturizer that will actually help me improve my complexion rather than a product that only offers the bare minimum moisture. So no, I will not buy this product again.

Review: Zoya Nail Polish

I was pretty excited to try out my new polishes! I have brittle nails (probably lacking calcium) so it's very important for me to wear nail polish and protect my nails. Unfortunately this time I was in a hurry and didn't apply base (-.-) so on my index and ring finger I only have a single layer of Zoya's "Lyric", on the remaining three fingers I have double layers. I did this to show you how much color a single layer has already, and because I wanted to try on having some variety on my fingers without being daring (my interview style can be a little bland, but I like to think of myself as a blank slate).

Zoya's "Penny" I specifically purchased to use on my toe nails and I think it's a great color for summer, in the sense that it matches with my tanned feet (from wearing sandals to walk the dog). I'm a big fan of bronze too but I think this color, which is much more golden than an actual penny, is more summery.

The application of Zoya nail polish was smooth. It is quite watery, but as you can see there is still a lot of color on a single layer (versus some other brands that I won't mention now).  It didn't dry fast enough for it to look weird and not slow enough for me to mess up any nails (I have little patience...) so I definitely think I would buy Zoya again if I felt the need for more nail polish!

Have any of you tried the brand?

How to Look Good Naked (TV show review)

How many of you have watched this show on Lifetime? It features Carson from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (if you recall ;D) instead of Gok Wan from the original British version (channel 4).  From the few episodes I have watched online (free full episodes on lifetime!) I've noticed that the show is primarily in Santa Monica, CA (close to me), and each episode has the same structure and fashion tips.

Basically, in each episode they do the following:

1. Question the woman's self-esteem by having her dress down to her underwear and point out what she doesn't like about her body.

2. Do a test in which a woman compares herself to other women of similar size and then show her that her perception is distorted (she is actually not that fat, or she is actually not that wide, etc.)

3. Show her the results of putting a (really large) picture of her half-naked body in public (usually video interviews) wherein someone always compliments her body.

4. Prove how dressing differently can make a woman look more confident, more "fit", etc.

5. Shop for new lingerie, highlighting how "good bras" don't create "rolls" on your back (true).

6. Shop for new clothes that emphasize curves.

7. Pampering, usually a facial or microdermabrasion for the skin.

8. Hair and makeup makover.

9. Posing naked in front of camera as proof of newly developed confidence.

10. Posting nude picture in public for everyone to see and have the woman interview people to see what they think of her.

Now, I think the only useful advice in this show is the "what type of bra you should buy" section, which really is only a few minutes long and gets repeated in every episode (you only need to see a couple to have it memorized).  The rest depends entirely on your body type (if you have the same body "problem areas" as the woman featured then you would be more interested than if you didn't), and of course how you relate to the woman with low self-esteem.  In other words it's more of a "makeover" show than a "how to look good naked" show. What do you think of it? Do you watch it?


**Note: Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think in the UK version focuses more on problem areas of the person such as too much hair, getting rid of scars, etc. I haven't noticed the US version to have this.

Amarte Aqua Veil Pure Hydration Serum Review

Another product I received in my Beautyfix order that I have been wanting to rave about.  Since yobo started using it a few weeks ago when he ran out of his own product, it's been going fast and I suspect that in a week or two I will have a new serum to test out.  This serum is by Amarte, which is evidently a brand that uses the "Korean Sulfur Medicine System", and while it is not organic, it feels very natural.

This product retails for about $45.00 on their website and has the following ingredients:

hexagonal water, cyclomethicone, dimethicone copolyol crosspolymer/dimethicone, glycerin, propylene glycol, dimethicone, betaine, cucumis sativus (cucumber) fruit extract, malva sylvestris (mallow) flower extract, sambucus migra flower extract, arnica montana extract, parietaria officinalis extract, hedera helix extract, sodium hyaluronate, dimethicone, biosaccharide gum-1, lilium candidum flower extract, orchis mascula flower extract, phenoxyethanol, cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1, sodium chloride, fragrance, FD&C blue #1, FD&C yellow #5

 Wherein the key ingredients are:  Natural Betaine, Extracts of Cucumber, Mallow Flower, Sambucus Nigra Flower, Arnica Montana, Parietaria Officinalis, Hedera Helix

...When using this product all I could tell was that it definitely had a lot of cucumber, as it only has a cucumber scent to it, and gives a refreshing "cool" feeling when applied to your skin. So refreshing, in fact, that yobo insisted on using it for his sunburn because we couldn't find our after sun lotion (misplaced, I'm good at that). 

Overall this has been very moisturizing, great buy for summer, and I would definitely buy it again as I find it so much better than the others I've used so far. I'm also interested in trying out their other products, specifically facial moisturizers! I noted that they have UV creams and "natural" BBs as well! 

If you've ever tried any of their other products please let me know!

Review: RAW Skincare Ambiaty Facial Cream

 I got this RAW Skincare organic face cream from BeautyFix (if you remember my post) and "loved it the moment it touched my face". It's supposed to be 100% organic, admittedly their website is not that convincing (it looks like a scam, quite honestly), but their product certainly has been good for me so I'll ignore it for now.  I wouldn't say that it does much anti-aging, although it reads "revitalizing". Rather, it feels cool on your skin, very "moist", and the first week or two I used it I was completely amazed  by how smooth my skin became. It was almost as if someone just put silicon on my face (like a primer)!

 

The box has a good organic feel to it. It is 30ml and I have been using it for about a month now, with no complaints. I use it day and night (with a separate SPF for daytime) and even though I tend to get dry skin at night I have had no such problems with this product. 

 I'm about half way through, so we'll see in another month if my skin will "deteriorate" and "miss" the product (which is the claim with brands like La Mer, that claim to revitalize and moisturize at the same time).  This product evidently uses Ambiaty, acai extract, myrtle extract, hibiscus extract, brassicaceae extract, and andiroba oil. The company that produces this product seems to be from the Netherlands. 

I found from The Best Wrinkle Creams a review on this product that had more details such as the price ($130!) and a complete list of ingredients! There is a free 30 day trial available, but it is for the serum and the eye cream, neither of which is the product that I am using.  If I ever manage to find this product on the market, I will let you know, meanwhile Beautyfix is sure to have it.

Sex and the City 2 (movie) SPOILERS

 Notice that Sex and the City 2 came out end of May, which was when all the fashionistas rushed to the theaters (some of my friends included), and I just watched it yesterday.  If you wonder why, it's because I wasn't too thrilled about the first movie, especially the ending, and I wasn't too clear on why there is a second movie (except that Kim Cattrall is so old that the only part she can get is in another Sex and the City production, can't bash her when she looked the best out of the four in the movie though). Just beware of my attitude.

First of all, any of you who have seen the first movie will know that it ended in disaster, so the first thing the second movie did was establish that the disaster was not the end, but rather life went on afterward and now everyone's happy again. The wedding scene at the beginning did nothing else to  the movie (in terms of plot) except create this happy feeling in the audience, while introducing the characters after a few year break from the previous movie (Carrie and Mr. Big have now been married for two years).  Basically characters are coupled up, Carrie and Big are shown to not want children, and Samantha remains single and horny even at age 53.  In other words, not much has changed since movie 1.

The actual plot of the movie was rather...bland. First of all I've heard that there has been a lot of negative publicity regarding its Islam provocation. I didn't understand it at first, I mean really the movie was a promotional video for Morocco, specifically the hotel they went to ($22,000 a night!) in Abu Dhabi (I spent the whole movie trying to remember that name but I still had to google it). Even I wanted to go when I saw the hotel and the camels and the beautiful exotic decorations--and I hate sand. I watched this with yobo thinking, wow this must've been the most expensive tourist promotional video ever! There really was not much plot in Morocco except a) Samantha's provocative nature and b) Aden appearing out of nowhere for no other reason than to piss off Big and make Carrie feel guilty (it really did not make sense for him to be there --'). 

My biggest qualm with this movie is the karaoke scene in the nightclub (aside from all the completely unnecessary jabs at Muslim culture), where the guy on stage was so terrible I can't imagine anyone would let him sing in nightclubs (they usually test you first to see if you'll make customer's swoon or run away), and then the stars of the movie went on and sang a completely off song. "I am Woman" is not only old (as in I have never heard it before in my life), but it also doesn't fit the theme of the movie (the lyrics, yes, but the melody?!). They would've been better off singing Aretha Franklin or something.

Lastly, I do want to comment on the stereotyping in this movie. While I think it's great that they managed to show how Muslim women care about fashion and beauty underneath their veils (amongst themselves), I think that everything before that was a little unnecessary.  The fact that everyone else managed to respect the culture (to an extent, admittedly they didn't always cover their busts or shoulders) except Samantha shows that she really deserved what she got, and from a world perspective only serves as an example of what poor tourists Americans make (hence why they're unwelcome in so many countries).  Wonderful way to portray a PR person, eh?

Recommended: Face masks from China

I thought I had taken these pictures before but I can't find them anywhere, I'm actually missing a few "colors" and masks as we're slowly running out (waiting for a package from my mother-in-law XD). Besides these I also have a "box" of Japanese face masks (in blue):

Over the years I have used the individual packs by Kose as well, but they are overpriced and not that great. I really prefer Korean masks, my aunt had given me bird's nest masks three years ago that I still find far superior to anything I use today, but when I went to China in 2008 I picked out a lot of different types of masks in the supermarket and having tested them decided on these:

The big ones (silver) are my favorite as they're not "too big" (like some Korean ones are on my face) but not too small (I find some Japanese brands too small for my face).  There's a lot of extra "juice", which already makes it better than Kose's masks. Normally we have this brand in 3-4 types (everything except anti-aging), but now we evidently only have Rose and Lemon left. I tried looking online but didn't find them anywhere, so if you ever see these--try them!

The second brand I think I've only used once, it was not as good and has a medicinal smell to it.  Yobo always gets these "Chinese herbal" masks for eye and face because they come highly recommended, but I like to leave my masks on for as long as I can tolerate them (or until they dry) and I don't want to have to smell like Salompas for half an hour or more.

Near the 99 Ranch market there's a really big cosmetic store (I should show you?) with Korean masks that I sometimes get. I think I'll get them next time and show you. They come in big packs and individual packs, but with ziplock so they remain fresh and juicy! What type of mask do you use?

Mario Badescu Skincare Review

I think I mentioned a while back that I received this set after seeing Jenny review it on her blog ("The Skinnies").  After the last review I needed to take a break and sink back to my old stuff so I actually used this set when we first moved and I couldn't find all my cosmetics.  Some of these I'm still using, like the mask, but I think I've had them in use long enough to do a review.

 I thought it was cute that they had instructions on how to use their products XD

Enzyme Cleansing Gel - This ran out in like three days because yobo used it too. He said it's very good by which he means that he feels "clean" afterwards (this is prerequisite for cleansers, that he feels squeaky clean and non-oily afterward). I think it was good because it wasn't too "strong" but I wasn't too fond of the air freshner scent.

Special Cucumber Lotion - I love this. I think I may buy this next (when I finally run out of toner, that is) as even though I didn't use a cotton piece with it (first I couldn't find them, and then I realized that yobo used them up while I was wondering) I felt really refreshed. It's a similar feeling to the Cucumber toner by Kiehls--except maybe better? I've used up a few bottles of the one by Kiehls and it doesn't compare to this tiny bottle of yellow stuff! It's alcohol-free too :D

Hyarulonic Eye Cream - Not sure what to say about this, not finished with it yet and even though I've pushed it for yobo to use he can't say he feels any different with it. I think it's quite average...

Cucumber Tonic Mask - This was not bad.  I don't usually feel much with cucumber masks (in general) but I do realize that they're supposed to be hydrating and refreshing. Not sure if this is either so I wouldn't recommend it.

Collagen Moisturizer (SPF 15) - I had yobo try this for me since I didn't want to use anything with "collagen". He said the sample was too small for him to tell the difference. I sneaked some on me once but it wasn't extraordinary so I can't say either.

Kiwi Face Scrub - I still have this left, so I'm still using it as my "light" scrub (I alternate between "heavy" scrubs and "light" scrubs so that each gets used only once a week).  It's quite mild, a little goes a long way, and it doesn't hurt much. I do feel "cleaner" than if I had just used face wash so it does work, I think maybe I just prefer having more "seeds" to scrub my face. 

So overall I recommend the toner & the gel cleanser! To get your own sample, head over to Mario Badescu's Website and complete their skin survey. You'll then receive an email asking you if you want to try their samples (mine went into SPAM so you might want to check your spam folder). They also have this brand in stores like Nordstrom so maybe I'll head over there for their acne scar stuff (samples!).

Review: Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Mascara in Blacktastic

I showed you in this post that I had purchased two VS mascaras (2 for $12) and promised a review. Now my go-to mascara is Benefit's BadGal Lash, which promises to make your lashes look like fake ones. I personally like this mascara because first of all, the mini version has been $10 at Sephora for half a year or something, and second of all it makes my lashes look super thick! I'm going to show what the results of this mascara in my very amateurish review, and if you like it you can purchase your own here.

First of all, a picture of my naked lashes (no curling):

No curler and about three layers of product:

 

As you can see, my lashes are not very curly, but rather gets weighed down by product so curlers are my best friend. I tried applying "upwards" but this is the only result I could get.

Oh and if you wonder why I have two different eye make up on it's because I was testing a few looks.

And ignore my terrible skin and unruly eyebrows. My eyebrows are precisely why I don't like taking make up pics...x.x

I did not use any eyelash brush and I had one clump, which made it's mark if you look closely, so I am relatively satisfied with the brush. I did stain my upper lid two or three times but it wiped away easily (some are so hard to get off!!) which is good for inexperienced mascara users like myself.

Please let me know what you think based on this review or if you have used it before!
I would also appreciate any tips you have for writing better reviews!

PAI Organic Skincare Review

Recently I purchased a lot of "organic" (or close to) products...

I recently ran out of my L'occitane day moisturizer so I decided to try out those little PAI samples I bought. The other skincare brand I've only recently begun using so I will wait a week or two before reviewing.

So I ordered a sample set for my skin type (combination) from Pai Organics, which is a UK based business. You can order one too, basically you get one small cleanser and one small moisturizer for free, but then you pay for international shipping (to California), which was about $9.70 for me. The samples would last about two weeks, I think.

Pai Organics does not contain any of the following: artifical colors/fragrances, formaldehyde, mineral oils (is this a bad ingredient?), parabens and other synthetic preservatives, petrochemicals, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulphates, which makes them a truly organic brand compared to other brands that might be lacking parabens but contain other non-organic ingredients.

Now, I normally use a Clarisonic brush for my skincare routine so in order to try the cleanser I actually had to stop using the brush. The reason for this is that the cleanser does not foam (which is normal for organic cleansers, if you try the shampoo you'll know what I mean) so the brush would not glide well on my skin.  I'm not sure if the cleanser did much on its own since I didn't get a "clean" feeling afterwards. I'm guessing this was just a very "mild" cleanser, which is good for those of you with sensitive skin, but I have large pores that I need cleaned out so I want real action done.

The moisturizer was the creamy sort and made for combination skin but I found that it dried my skin within two days to a point where I was flaky and I had more than five dry patches on my face. It was too scary for me to continue using so I ended up stopping. I then gave it to yobo to try, since he has oily skin and he prefers "dry" moisturizers (oil-free) but even he said it was too dry. I don't know if it's that our skin type is different than the developers, or that it's just a lot dryer here in California than it is in the UK, but the moisturizer was far too dry for my combination skin and yobo's oily skin. It basically feels like a sunblock, if you know what I mean, in that it feels creamy on your hands or when it first comes out of the tube but as soon as you lather it on your skin it starts to dry and even your hands feel dry...This is certainly how Neutrogena's UV block makes me feel (I use SPF50).

Both were white, they had very strong scents, where the moisturizer smelled like thyme and the cleanser like camellia. I preferred the smell of camellia to thyme, but I admit that tea tree oil is worse. I would not recommend this brand to anyone living in a dry climate, and maybe if someone tried the jojoba oil one and reviewed it (if someone has already, please let me know) I would consider giving Pai Organics another shot, but for now I'm convinced that I need to move on.

No worries though, I switched two nights ago and have been using Nature's Garden (in picture) along with my Origins so my skin has been slowly rejuvenated. Prior to applying make up on Saturday I even did a 20 min. face mask, which really helped. Trying this product has made me realize though that I would not want to review a lot of non-organic "regular" products, because the consequences of a bad product, or one that does not suit me, could be much worse. At least now I'm trying out organic products so I'm dealing with low damage.

[PS. Participate in my Giveaway! The rules have changed since!]