Masks -Pro Activ - Refining Mask
layzeex 12/4/2010 11:26:00 AM
I've tried this on and off for a few years. Here's the good and bad: CONS: - It smells horrid. It stinks so badly (i guess that's just how sulfur smells like...) and I'd have to disagree with some reviewers that it does not 'wear off' when it dries or even when you wash your face. When I use it as a spot treatment I actually put a bandage over it to cover up the smell and make it more bearable. - It's a PITA to wash off. I wash it with another cleanser/scrub afterwards and even then, when I run my nails over my skin there is a THICK layer of this stuff under my nail! Yeck. PROS: It helps in drying out pimples. It isn't anything miraculous and it does not give me a new complexion overnight, but it helps somewhat - *enough* for me to keep using it. I wouldn't put 'drying' as one of the cons because of course it's drying - It's sulfur. So if you have dry skin avoid using it as a mask and only as a spot treatment, and be sure to use a good moisturizer afterward. I don't think I'll be repurchasing simply because I can't stand the smell (and having to use a perfume-y moisturizer afterward) and I don't think the results are amazing enough for me not to branch off and try other products.
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Eye Shadow -Wet 'n' Wild - ColorIcon Palette in Lust [DISCONTINUED]
layzeex 12/2/2010 3:20:00 PM
LOVE this palette. Even my sister went out and bought this palette after seeing mines, and she's a brand snob, lol. I honestly can't wrap my head around the bad reviews and why some people don't like it?! I mean, for 5-6 dollars and you get 6 pigmented, NON chalky, matte + shimmer shades. I mean, you rarely find drugstores with matte shades, but these are pigmented AND creamy-smooth. I think some of these bad reviews are because people aren't using quality brushes, using too much shadow thus the fallout, or it's because the colors simply don't work for your skintone but I don't think it's fair to fault the palette for that! These are pigmented, so you should never have to swipe your brush back and forth to get any color, you would do fine with just *dipping* it in 1-3 times depending on the intensity you want. I've never experienced fallout with any of these colors. I was really surprised by the light matte shade in this - I even decided on not buying a MAC one because of the one included in this palette! It's not chalky at all - but for some people who don't know how to use mattes (or blend them) I could see this being a problem (ie: my younger sister). Even if you can't make 2..3..or even 4 of the shades work for you, there's still the other two and that makes it only paying 2.50 or 3.00 per shadow. STILL worth it if you ask me!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Scrubs -Dermalogica - Daily Microfoliant
layzeex 11/29/2010 7:01:00 PM
I'm lucky to have gotten the travel sized bottle of this as an extra from a generous MUAer. After reading the reviews for some time I was really excited to try it out. After just one use I noticed how smooth my skin felt - it was so soft! However, the goods simply ends there. Sometimes I don't feel that it *thoroughly* cleans enough. Sometimes I don't feel that it exfoliates enough and use an additional scrub during the week. And last, I don't feel like it does a thing for my blemishes whether in treating or preventing them (though it's not advertised for doing that, but I expected it to help somewhat?! My other scrubs do!). The powder formula IS interesting, though. And although the price seems expensive, it really isn't considering how long it lasts. The travel sized bottle lasted me a LONG time - can't imagine how long the full sized one will, but way over a year or two. My travel sized one lasted me 5 months so far and there's still much more in there.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Estee Lauder - Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex
layzeex 11/8/2010 5:02:00 PM
I first started using this around 2 years ago after the lawsuit and Macy's were handing out mini lotions, perfumes, serums, ect. I got the older version of the Advanced Night Repair. When I used it, I instantly fell in love. I always switch up products, so I eventually put this in the back burner, but I tried it again recently after I found out they had changed the formula. A little about myself: I just turned 19, I have normal - dry skin (during winter months). Skin concerns: I have *very* fair skin, so I get a little pink on my cheeks. No bad acne, but I always have a little blemish or two somewhere on my face. Sometimes I'll develop dry spots on my cheeks. I'm still very young, but I think it's best to start anti-aging products early, and even I experienced noticeable results from this! After trying out the new formula, I fell in love (again). When I woke up, my face was definitely smoother. After a week, my skin looked more even (I had some slight discoloration from blemishes). It's been a few weeks of continued use, and my skin looks *much* better overall. Skin is smooth, even, and a little plump. When I touch my face it doesn't feel extra moisturized, but it is plumped up for sure. I get fewer blemishes, but I wont advertise this as an acne-fighting serum (because it isn't), but it has worked for me on my blemishes. I don't find myself reaching for my foundation anymore and when I do, I only need to use VERY little of it. I feel so much more confident going out with no makeup on lately, all because of this! I find this works best and you'll see results quicker if you put this on RIGHT before bed. I know the instructions tell you to do so, but I got over-excited and even tried using it during the daytime - nothing bad happened, but I didn't really notice anything "extra" from it. Just stick to using it at night like they advise. I think the price is just right - after all, this is one of the MANY products I've used where I've actually seen quick, real, and long lasting results from. A 1oz bottle will last me about a month & a half. I highly recommend this serum - if you can, get a little sample bottle. You owe it to yourself! Even 'till this day, I still get a little surprised when I wake up and look at the mirror in the mornings (:
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Primer/ Corrector -Tarina Tarantino - pearl glow primer
layzeex 9/28/2010 4:55:00 PM
The rating is more of a 3.5 than a 4, but oh well. I'll try it for a little longer and will see if it gets lowered to a 3 or stays a 4. Anywho- I got a sample of this primer to try on my Sephora purchase. It provides a nice glow to the skin, no noticeable shimmer or glitter at all, so it can definitely be used all over the face with no problem. I like the effect it gives but there's two problems I have with this primer. 1] The smell. Reminds me of nail polish. 2] It PILLS! I applied the primer all over my face but I suppose it pilled most on my left cheek and near my mouth. My boyfriend said "Aww, were you drooling? You forgot to wipe it." I looked where he pointed and it was the primer. Overall, it's nice but I don't like the price and the other two reasons stated above. However, I like the effect it gives on my cheeks. I'll continue to play around and see if it's here to stay or not.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Hard Candy - Kaleyedescope in High Maintenance
layzeex 5/13/2010 5:39:00 PM
This product is AWESOME. I collect mineralized products from higher end brands like MAC, Laura Geller, ect. and I can say that this definitely is comparable. I actually find myself reaching for this much more often than other brands. Compared to MAC's Family Silver this is much more pigmented. These aren't exact dupes, but very close. It's a shame, because I love Family Silver, but it's just so freaking sheer! The only difference? The texture is hard, but I actually like that since I don't have powder flying all over the place. Second, it's the shimmer particles. They are noticeably bigger. From smallest to biggest it'd be: Sheen, Shimmer, Frost, Sparkle, and then Glitter. Out of the 4 this is in the Sparkle and Frost category whereas higher end brands would be in Shimmer (more finely milled). It still gets it's 5 stars for being affordable, pigmented, and for having a nice selection of colors. Honestly, I don't understand when people say this isn't pigmented. I never use mines wet and I get great color payoff when using a brush. Overall, I highly recommend. I especially like this duo the most in the collection - a great neutral pair. The taupe side is unique, as it has a purple/mauve undertone to it which becomes more apparent when compared to a true grey or brown. The beige color is one of my favorites - I love it for it's high frost finish (which some others may or may not like). Two thumbs up! (:
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Highlighters -BeneFit Cosmetics - High Brow
layzeex 4/20/2010 6:33:00 PM
I'm surprised by the 'not-so-high' reviews on this. I absolutely *love* this little crayon! Yes, you have to blend it in, but it instantly lifts your brows and gives you such a natural and polished look. This is also incredibly pigmented, so I need just a very light swipe on my finger and blend it in. The color for this is a pale pink and is completely matte. I personally prefer this to a matte beige eyeshadow, since matte's tend to look chalky. I also prefer this to a shimmery eyeshadow, since I use shimmery eyeshadows for my eyes already, when I apply a beige shimmery shadow under my brows it just looks too frosty overall- whereas Benefit High Brow is matte, a light enough color where it is noticeable but natural, and is creamy enough to where it isn't dry or chalky. I highly recommend this to others and have already gotten my sisters hooked! It wouldn't hurt to at least give this baby a try. (: Another great use is for under my eyes. It brightens them up wonderfully! However, you have to be careful and blend blend blend- I also think this would only work for those who are fair skinned (unless you cover up with concealer afterwards). And lastly - I've had this pencil for over half a year already and I haven't even sharpened it yet (you only need a tiny bit for each application!) and I have a full pencil left. It may seem expensive at first but you'll see that it pays itself with time.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Highlighters -BeneFit Cosmetics - High Brow
layzeex 4/20/2010 6:32:00 PM
I'm surprised by the 'not-so-high' reviews on this. I absolutely *love* this little crayon! Yes, you have to blend it in, but it instantly lifts your brows and gives you such a natural and polished look. This is also incredibly pigmented, so I need just a very light swipe on my finger and blend it in. The color for this is a pale pink and is completely matte. I personally prefer this to a matte beige eyeshadow, since matte's tend to look chalky. I also prefer this to a shimmery eyeshadow, since I use shimmery eyeshadows for my eyes already, when I apply a beige shimmery shadow under my eyes it just looks too frosty overall- whereas Benefit High Brow is matte, a light enough color where it is noticeable but natural, and is creamy enough to where it isn't dry or chalky. I highly recommend this to others and have already gotten my sisters hooked! It wouldn't hurt to at least give this baby a try. (: Another great use is for under my eyes. It brightens them up wonderfully! However, you have to be careful and blend blend blend- I also think this would only work for those who are fair skinned (unless you cover up with concealer afterwards). And lastly - I've had this pencil for over half a year already and I haven't even sharpened it yet (you only need a tiny bit for each application!) and I have a full pencil left. It may seem expensive at first but you'll see that it pays itself with time.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Makeup Brushes -MAC - 224 Tapered Blending (Windshield Wiper) Brush
layzeex 4/19/2010 4:59:00 PM
I'm surprised when I read others who say that this brush is soft. It is *not* soft at all. It's prickly and feels like it's made of cheap fibers. It's far too fluffy for blending - I actually prefer my no-name brand blending brush to this one. MAC-wise, I prefer the 222 and 217. Way over-priced and over-hyped. :( I now use this to lightly fluff on powder over my BB cream. Even though I've found a way to put this to use, I still don't like it very much and wouldn't recommend it. Go to your MAC counter and touch the sample bristles - you'll notice right away the prickly & un-eveness compared to MAC's other brushes.
3 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Copperplate
layzeex 4/14/2010 9:26:00 PM
I absolutely *love* this eyeshadow. It is a definite staple and must have. It looks boring and dull in the pan but transforms into a beautiful shade on the lid. I was afraid this might be too warm (warm colors look drab and tiring on my eyes) but it isn't - it's a perfect neutral, with the just right amount of cool/warm undertones. I regret it has taken me this long to purchase this! Everybody here has pin-pointed all of the pro's of this eyeshadow. It's the perfect transition color or base crease color to blend out a darker color on the outer V. I love to use this for my 'base-crease/V' color for my shimmery shadows. Sometimes when my your highlight color is shimmery, eyeshadow shades are shimmery, lip and cheek colors are shimmery, it could look a bit too frosty in broad daylight. Since this is matte, it create a nice balance. I usually apply some shimmery beige color on my tear-ducts, apply Copperplate on my crease, then a darker shimmering gray defining the crease (Benefit Where There's Smoke or a comparable MAC shade would be Smoke & Diamonds), and then a little black to define the crease even more. You could also use this for your brows - it looks very natural!
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Eyes -MAC - Dirty Greasepaint stick
layzeex 4/12/2010 8:21:00 PM
Since I missed out on the earlier release of the greasepaint stick, I immediately went out and purchased one in Dirty. The application was very, very smooth (definitely will be no tugging with these!) and the color was absolutely breath-taking. Right after I bought one, all the way riding home, playing with it for awhile, and even taking my evening nap, I kept thinking about how I should've bought another 2 in this color, 3 in Black, and 2 in Zinc Zone. However, when I woke up I noticed a whole ton of flaking! I thought maybe it's because I slept and tried the application again, but within a few hours it flaked again! It migrated into my eyes and irritated it slightly. I mean... usually an eyeliner will smudge or flake (or be perfect, lol I wish!), and between the two I prefer one that will smudge. I'd hate to have 'spots' where my liner should be and the irritation was annoying. I'm afraid of using it as a base because of the flaking issue, but I will try it as a base and update. I bought this mainly for lining the bottom of my eyes, but when I use a smudger brush it just didn't look as pretty anymore. I don't know? It's weird. The color only looks nice when you apply it straight from the stick - not when you use a brush and then apply. That's also a problem for me because I don't want a full-on black look, and when I saw the color for this I thought it'd be perfect. Applying it straight from the stick also turns out uneven for me and would be a problem when the tip wears out. I really, really wanted to like this! Unfortunately, it just doesn't live up to the hype and I don't know if I can even use this up if I wanted to. The Good: Beautiful color, buttery-creamy smooth application, built in sharpener (though I wouldn't use it just to save product!) The Bad: FLAKES! Doesn't look as nice when smudged out.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Makeup Brushes -NARS - 27 - Yachiyo
layzeex 4/7/2010 11:39:00 AM
This brush is fantastic and has now become my HG blush brush. I was suckered into swapping for this brush because of all of the great reviews. I admit, when I first received the brush I was kind of disappointed... It didn't seem like anything special, to be honest. I thought it was just another hyped-up product and I just tucked it away in my brush belt, without any thought of it ever being used. Then one day when I was applying makeup, I forgot to wash my other blush/powder brushes and decided to just use this one real quick to brush on my highlighter. It worked wonderful, so then I tried it again with my blush - and PERFECT! It picked up just the right amount of product and made my blush look so, so natural. Now, this is the only brush I use to apply my blushes and highlighters. I'd *highly* recommend this for just about anyone & everyone. The reason why this gets a 4 stars is because the bristles aren't the softest. It definitely feels like animal hair. I know it's goat hair, but I mean it *feels* like it's goat (I've tried other animal hair brushes that didn't *feel* like animal hair before, soo..). The other thing is that this thing sheds a hair here and there. I usually only have shedding problems with animal hair, so I guess that's nothing new (even my 7$ synthetic hair brush never shed on me!). Still, I would've hoped that a brush this expensive wouldn't shed & would be just a bit softer.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Alima - Satin Matte Blush in Mimosa
layzeex 4/6/2010 11:15:00 AM
I received this blush as a sample and I absolutely *loved* it so much I purchased the full size just a few days after. Surprisingly, the wear for this is fairly well. I wore it in the morning and 6-7 hours, it's still on (and it was a hot HOT day!). The color is so perfect for my PPP skin. I've been on the hunt for the perfect peachy-pink cheeks and this is it. Before this I was mixing 2-3 different blushes together to achieve a similar look (MAC Tahitian Sand + MAC Coygirl or Blush Of Youth BP). I was even about to purchase NARS Deep Throat and NARS Penny Lane and try some mix there. But this... this gives a gorgeous glowing peach/pink cheeks with hardly any effort at all! This is so natural you wouldn't be able to tell I was wearing anything, but yet noticeable enough where it brightens your face and brings a fresh, youthful appearance. It goes well with a smokey eye or bright lip, to a more toned-down and natural look - very versatile! The finish is matte, which is different for me because I'm a shimmer girl (I collect MSF). Usually matte's are chalky in appearance and texture, but this is far from it. It almost borderlines a satin finish, but I don't detect any shine or sheen from this. It just literally melts into your skin and becomes your own. My first matte blush & I absolutely love it. I haven't been this excited about a blush for a long, long time. If you have a fair complexion, I highly suggest you trying this out! HG material for sure - I second the reviewer below, as this is currently my favorite blush in my huge stash of blushers. (:
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Hard Candy - Living Doll
layzeex 3/24/2010 7:37:00 PM
I saw Hard Candy at my local Walmart and was instantly drawn to it. I'm a collector of MAC's MSF & MES, and Mineralized blushes. I didn't have much luck with Revlon's new baked products, but I decided to try this anyway. First off, the pigment is there. It doesn't matter what brush I'll use, it picks up pigment. I do notice the hard texture, but I actually like it like that. Sometimes when a product is too soft it gets used up quickly. I've used this a handful of times and there's still a bunch left! Now, the reason why it only gets 3 stars (and I was being generous here - It's more towards 2.5) is because of the finish it gives. This isn't meant to be used as a blush in my opinion, because it's just so metallic. It isn't a soft shimmer, but it's a noticeable frost. I put this on in broad daylight and saw the little sparkles all over my face and I was actually trying to rub it off with my hands, as I was kind of embarrassed. I suppose it could look nice if you lightly 'dust' it over your blush, but I don't recommend packing this on. And this is coming from a girl who loves anything shimmer! It gets the stars for the amount of product you get and is an alternative to a MSF or Mineralized blush if you're on a budget. However, I just don't think they compare in quality. I've tried Pin Up and I prefer that one better as it's less metallic-y. And unlike Living Doll, I think you could use Pin Up on it's own.
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Pressed Powders -MAC - Tahitian Sand Hello Kitty
layzeex 3/21/2010 12:03:00 PM
I actually decided to get this in a swap just out of curiosity. I wasn't expecting much since most of the positive reviews were because of the packaging. I applied this with a thicker, denser brush and I actually got some color payoff! I wasn't expecting it because of the reviews and when I swatched it, it just felt like a finishing powder. Using this by itself gives a great glow. It isn't metallic, sparkly, or even shimmery. It's a very understated but noticeable glow. No product has EVER given me a 'glow', but a sheen or a shimmer (MSF, Mineralized blushes, NARS blushes, Dior highlighters, ect). All of those products have a shimmer to them - some are just more finely milled than others, but nonetheless, it is still obvious (I have to admit, I do like that look sometimes). But with this, no matter how much I pack on it will never be too much shimmer OR powdery. I *really* enjoy the finish of this product. What I like to do most, is apply this first and then apply a matte/satin pink blush. It gives me such a great peachy-pink color to my cheeks! Although I'm fair skinned, peach blushes have never looked good on my complexion. That is... not until I've found this little gem. This is the only peach I could wear on my cheeks. I'm never to be without it! I'm swapping for a back up immediately. And yes, the packaging is cute/adorable/"so kawaii!!" and enough to buy it all on it's own, but the 5 stars is for the top-notch quality powder that lies inside.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No