Moisturizers -Neutrogena - Healthy Skin Facial Lotion
toyarosie 5/20/2010 8:23:00 AM
So far, I'm highly impressed with both this product and the Anti-Wrinkle day lotion with SPF (has retinol). Both have made my skin look awesome! I have pretty good skin as is, but there can always be some improvement :) The night moisturizer I find works better than the day. The glycolic acid tingles in a serious way for about 30 seconds. Then it goes away completely and all is well (I suspect after regular use - I'm on week two - the tingle will dissipate completely). The next morning my skin looks damn near perfect; since I started using it I haven't worn foundation once. Sweet! It quickly cleared up two tiny pimples I had on my forehead and any clogged pores on my cheeks. We'll see how it does with the blackheads on my nose. For the price vs results, you just can't beat this product! And it doesn't leave my oily skin shiny at all, and in the AM no greasy feeling, so that is a plus too :)
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Bourjois - Gris Delicat 14
toyarosie 5/17/2010 7:13:00 PM
Just received this as an extra in a swap and already I'm in love. I am surprized to realize I do not own any shimmery grey shadows - only matte ones, and a MAC pigment that is more charcoal than grey. This is a fabulous gunmetal color that looks excellent with my caramel coloring. It brings out the color of my eyes (brown) and is much more flattering than many other grey's I've tried that have too much silver in them. I could easily wear this to work as is, but with the addition of liner and a deeper crease color it would be dramatic enough for evening as well. I agree with the other reviewer that it isn't as pigmented as it appears, but in my case I am totally ok with that. Its smoky without being over-the-top, a quality I find I am looking for more and more in makeup since I work more and party less lol. The texture FYI is really soft and smooth - this is my first Boujois item and while I do hate their cheap-looking packaging, I am pleased with the quality of the makeup!
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Brows -Wet 'n' Wild - kohl/ eyeliner/ brow
toyarosie 5/7/2010 12:50:00 PM
Brows are not an area where I have a huge concern, and certainly not something I think to spend a ton of money on! So imagine my pleasure at discovering a very inexpensive brow pencil that gets high ratings! Sweet :) I ran out of my last brow pencil (which actually was a regular old eyeliner) and had to pick up something, so on to MUA I went in search of suggestions. Went right out to WALMART and grabbed this in Mink Brown (which has no red at all, more of a dusky dark grey brown) and its done the trick! Its super long so for $1.99 or whatever I paid for it, it's a great value. Sold!
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Styling Products -Unlisted Brand - La Coupe Sleek Finish Cream Serum
toyarosie 5/3/2010 8:09:00 PM
Wow, this was one of those products that totally surprized me! I grabbed it on sale ($4.99 CDN), simply because it was the right price and fit the need I had for a product with UV protection. I was headed down South and wanted something to protect my hair. I figured it would do the trick but wasn't expecting any miracles. However, it stood up fairly well to Cuba's heat and humidity, and has since continued to work well back here in Halifax's wet Spring weather. It makes my hair feel so soft and smooth! I actually would choose this over just a serum, which I often find makes my hair tangly. You only need a small amount - I usually have to use quite a bit of product on my fine, crazy curly hair, but with this I don't need much at all to make my hair feel fabulous. For someone with thinner, finer hair I would suggest only using the tiniest bit. A+!
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Gels/Soaps -C.O. Bigelow - Lemon & Pomegranate Body Wash
toyarosie 4/23/2010 2:49:00 PM
Ohhh this is one of those products I have a love/hate relationship with. It smells absolutely divine, one of my favorite scented body washes ever...however, fragrance is one of the first ingredients listed, and as such, it nearly burns my skin right off! Granted, I have eczema so I should probably use all unscented products anyway, but sometimes you just wanna buy pretty-smelling products! If I'm careful and don't use scented products everyday I'm general ok - however, this one is just crazy. The trick I've found is to choose products in which fragrance is listed as one of the last ingredients - then it hardly affects my skin at all. But this one - yowza. For those of you with hardcore, tough skin, by all means, check this out - it really does smell beautiful. But for anyone with sensitive skin at all, run the other way!! Or at least, smell from afar ;)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Torrid
toyarosie 4/23/2010 2:44:00 PM
Best blush I own, hands down. Bought it just before I went to Cuba and it looked beautiful on my caramel colored complexion...and still looked AWESOME when I got uber-tanned while there! Great pigment, and imparts such a natural flush to my cheeks - I wear it almost every single day now, it goes with almost every makeup look! I doubt I'll run out of it anytime soon because you only need a little, but if I did I would repurchase - and that's rare for me :)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lotions/ Creams -The Body Shop - Body Butter - Brazil Nut
toyarosie 4/13/2010 9:55:00 AM
Mmmm, I bought this just before I went to Cuba last week - I wanted some serious hydration for the punishment I was going to put my skin through, and also love the smell :) I haven't had a BS Body Butter in ages, and I was pleasantly reminded that I love them! It made my skin ridiculously soft and smooth, more so than I can remember it being in a long, long time. I far prefer this smell to the others, in particular the coconut one is somewhat fake and cloying, and the cocoa butter just didn't sit as well with me (although it is similar to the brazil nut). I have eczema and have started paying serious attention to how much fragrance is in a product - I can't give it up completely but I find if I'm careful and choose products that don't list fragrance high on the list (best if it's one of the last ingredients), then I don't have a problem. Even though this has a definite smell, I was pleased to see its one of the last listed! So it didn't cause any irritation to my skin at all. Definitely am going to repurchase! *The only reason I didn't rate it a 5 was because 1) I'm very picky rating anything as 'perfect', and 2) while hydrating, it doesn't last as long as some other creams I've used.
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Lipstick -Revlon - Super Lustrous Lipstick in Berry Haute
toyarosie 3/19/2010 8:30:00 PM
I can't believe no one has reviewed this yet!! Almost exact dupe for MAC's 'Up the Amp' So excited! I was just about to go buy 'Amp' when I happened to have the brain wave to google 'Up the Amp dupe' and found this baby. It is damn near a perfect match. Long wearing, creamy goodness, for a third of the price. Really can't go wrong on this one! Gorgeous :)
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -MAC - Gleam Lipstick
toyarosie 3/12/2010 2:10:00 PM
This is one of the few MAC products that just sits in my makeup case and never gets used or even considered. I should put it up for swap. I'm not even sure what I was thinking when I got this, I can't imagine that I tried it on at the store and thought it looked nice...it's far too light for my complexion (neutral-toned light caramel :). It's not extremely pigmented but is enough so that it gives a dead look to my face. I can imagine it would look great one someone much much fairer and cool-toned, but for me - no dice!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Milani - Smooth Finish - Sunset Beach
toyarosie 2/17/2010 4:40:00 PM
I bought this blush/bronzer by mistake - I was actually looking for the straight-up blush called Sunset Beach that Milani has, that has also gotten great reviews. However, I am not disappointed ONE BIT that I made that error. This cheek combo is by far one of the nicest I own - and definitely the cheapest! It looks so great on my caramel complexion; perfect for any season, and wears ALL DAY. Truly, it wears better than any blush I've ever had. It boggles my mind. And as an aside, sometimes I find certain blushes will break my cheeks out (I'm oily), but this doesn't at all. Try this and you'll be hooked!
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Mascara -Clinique - High Lengths Mascara
toyarosie 2/17/2010 12:09:00 PM
Wow! This mascara is pretty great. I do generally like Clinique mascaras as they don't dry out too quickly, and generally are easy to apply (few clumps) and remove, and this one really performs. I am an associate consultant and received this as a gift from a Clinique school a couple weeks ago. It's claim to fame is that it dramatically lengthens lashes - and it really does! It has the strangest looking brush - neon green rubber that leans to one side (half curves, half tilted). It has soft rubber bristles only on one side. It's extremely easy to apply and I hardly get any clumps. It takes a bit of working with to get some serious length, just because the mascara applies so evenly. But it really makes my lashes look longer than any other mascara I have used, ever. It's not particularly made for DRAMA - it separates lashes (not particularly volumizing) so I use it for day wear. But I'm OK with that because it makes me look like I was born with much longer lashes than the reality :)
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Aussie - catch the wave mouse+leave-in conditioner
toyarosie 2/17/2010 12:02:00 PM
Love this product! I have tried the Paul Mitchell conditioning foam and hated it, so I was a bit skeptical that a drugstore brand conditioning mousse would be any different. Surprize, it totally is! While I found PM made my hair tangled and sticky, this simply glides through my hair and provides some hold without drying my hair at all, or being stiff. I find it so hard to find products that help make the ends of my super curly/fine hair feel nice, but this totally does the trick. I think I've found my HG combo - this plus the Aveeno Nourish + Conditioner leave-in treatment. My hair feels soo much better! :) Already have repurchased.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Aveeno - Nourish + Condition Leave-In Treatment
toyarosie 2/17/2010 11:59:00 AM
Great stuff. The behentrimonium methosulfate (2nd ingredient) I've discovered is a non-irritating detangling agent, and boy does it work! My hair is ridiculously curly and fine, and it makes it feel like completely different hair - manageable, without my normally tangled, dry ends. There are hardly any 'cones, to my surprize - just one (amodimethicone) which is one of the last ingredients listed. So that's a plus :) I can't say anything bad about this product. I'm pretty picky with hair products because of my challenging hair, but this one truly works. I can actually use this alone and my hair looks shiny and controlled (although in extreme weather conditions I'd need to use a styling aid as well). The only thing is that if I don't use it for a day, my hair goes back to feeling rough at the ends, so I don't think this is entirely 'treating' my hair - although I guess nothing will cure that problem but a good trim! Also, due to it being a spray, and with the type of hair I have, I went through an entire bottle in about 2 months. But I will gladly pay the $10CDN - in fact I have already purchased again :)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -Jamieson - Vitamin A Night Renewal Treatment
toyarosie 2/8/2010 9:06:00 AM
I feel sort of bad giving this a poor rating, as there isn't anything WRONG with this product. I just feel I could be using something better. There are both pros and cons: It smells great, and hydrates my oily skin really well without leaving me greasy in the AM. However, I just don't find this product does much else. My skin is soft but I feel like it doesn't make it as smooth as I'd like. I can't put my finger on exactly what disappoints...However, I will say that for $11 CDN for that HUGE jar, I might consider buying it again if money was especially tight. I do like that I don't feel bad putting the cream all over my face, neck and down my decolletage for once (rather than hating to use too much due to a pricey product). But it's mostly just 'meh' for me.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -Neutrogena - Healthy Skin Anti Wrinkle SPF 15
toyarosie 2/8/2010 9:00:00 AM
I am joining the status quo in giving due props to this product! It doesn't make my oily skin greasy at all, while still providing enough hydration in the bitter winter months. My skin has never looked better - very soft and smooth and clear. I admit my skin is pretty good anyway - I don't break out often - but this has just made my life that much easier! It feels so nice going on too. It's 40mL, not the usual 50mL of a face cream/lotion, and so it only lasts me just over two months...but at the decent price, I don't mind. I can't comment on it's ability to diminish age spots or smooth wrinkles, but in terms of creating 'healthy skin' I can attest to it's power!
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