Mascara -Clinique - Lash Doubling Mascara
floofinator 10/1/2007 7:39:00 PM
Great product! I wouldn't call it the best mascara ever since it does clump if you coat your lashes too many times, but it does its job and darkens/thickens/lengthens my lashes. It has great staying power and doesn't give me raccoon eyes even after 18 hours. Will definitely buy again!
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Eyeliner -Tarte - Indelible Wink Liquid Liner and Shadow Set
floofinator 10/1/2007 7:38:00 PM
This is a great concept--liquid liner and then a powdered liner to cover mistakes/set in the liquid liner. The powdered liner tip works well and I now use it with another liquid liner, however, the liquid liner itself is a horrible product. Within a week of usage, it started clumping in the packaging and it's almost IMPOSSIBLE to make a nice, thin line without coating all of my lashes with the product. Also, it skips like crazy and I always have to go over the line over and over again. The applicator is horrible, even Maybelline's liquid liner that costs 1/4 the price of this one applies way better. The powdered liner tip is a little awkward and it took awhile for it to start working for me but that is probably the only reason why I gave this a 2/5 instead of 1/5. I will continue to use the powdered liner part, but most likely won't use the liquid part again. As for the product, it was expensive and definitely not worth the price. I now use an Almay liquid liner, which makes a nice thin line in one stroke...never buying this again.
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Cleansers -LUSH - coal face soap
floofinator 10/1/2007 7:34:00 PM
I've tried many face cleansers in the past...Clinique, Lancome, Garnier, Biore, etc but nothing has worked as wonderfully as Coal Face has!! The smell is a little odd and will take a bit to get used to but now I don't even notice it.The little coal pieces in the soap is for purifying and provides gentle exfoliation. This leaves my face feeling super clean without drying it at all!! This is my new HG facial soap...I refuse to buy another cleanser/soap. I'm on my second bar and I've been using it for 6 months...one bar lasts forever!! My boyfriend has mild acne and he uses this too and it works great for his sensitive skin. I have normal/combination skin and have never had problems with this product. I get breakouts maybe once a month now, and they clear up totally within a week. I highly recommend this product!
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Treatments -The Body Shop - Moisture White Brightening Serum
floofinator 6/27/2006 12:32:00 PM
I've used this serum along with the cleansing powder and toner for just about 5 days now and I've already seen some improvement on my scars and my skin. I bought this in hopes to get rid of some bright, red acne scars and also to brighten my skin, since I was looking in the mirror last week and my skin looked kind of...dull. The whole set (starter kit) costs about $75 CAD and this product alone costs $42, which is probably the most expensive product I've bought from The Body Shop. (It's even more expensive than Vitamin C Skin Boost, which is $32 CAD) I use this right after I use the toner, and two pumps is more than enough product to moisturize the whole face. Although there is only 45 mL of product, I'm pretty sure that the bottle will last me about half a year or more. The product consistency is actually quite runny compared to my idea of what most serum consistencies are. About the review below, I have no problems getting the product onto my palm, I just push down on the pump quickly to get the product out. My skin usually feels very soft and smooth the next morning, and my scars are a lighter colour now. I don't really like the scent, however, it's not as subtle as the toner and the cleanser, but since it's not too strong, I can live with it. Hopefully within the next month or so they'll fade a little more, because when I first bought this product, I had high expectations for it, and so far it's met most of my expectations!
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Cleansers -The Body Shop - Moisture White Cleansing Powder
floofinator 6/27/2006 12:25:00 PM
I bought this along with the toner and the serum in hopes of getting rid of my acne scars on my chin and so far it's done a pretty good job of making them somewhat lighter, keeping in mind though I've only used these products for a little less than a week. I love how this cleanser is a powder; they have a lot of cleansers like this in Hong Kong and a little bit of product lathers up quite nicely. I usually only use a very, very small pile of powder. There is only 50g of product in the bottle, which fills up half the bottle, but I think if you're careful to not use too much powder each time, one bottle should last quite awhile. As I said, the product lathers very nicely and the scent is very, very subtle. After cleansing my face feels very clean and not tight at all...I could probably skip toning and moisturizing if I had to. I'm not surprised that this works so well, since it's made in Japan, and Japanese products have always done a good job of brightening/whitening skin. The bottle does look very sleek, and I will definitely buy this product again once I run out. It's a little expensive; $28 CAD for a bottle and $75 CAD for the whole set, but if it successfully lightens all of my scars, it's definitely worth it.
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Toners -The Body Shop - Moisture White Toning Essence
floofinator 6/27/2006 12:20:00 PM
I bought this toner along with the serum and the cleansing powder. The whole set (starter kit) was $75 CAD but if you buy separately I believe it comes to around $90. I agree with one of the reviewers below; I don't really know if this toner is necessary, since my skin doesn't feel tight or dry after using the cleansing powder, but it's a good product to use with other cleansers too. The scent is very, very subtle, and my face does feel more refreshed after using this. My only complaint is the small hole on the top makes it kind of hard to get the product onto a cotton ball; I think a larger hole would be better. However, this comes in a pretty frosted glass bottle and I will definitely buy the whole set again once I run out.
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Hair -John Frieda - Luminous Color Glaze for Chestnut to Espresso Brunettes
floofinator 5/31/2006 12:11:00 AM
I'm really surprised that this product didn't get many great reviews. Despite reading all the negative reviews on this board, I was still attracted to the product's claim of glossier hair. I bought this for $14.99 CDN, which is kind of expensive for a drug store product, considering it comes in a relatively small bottle. I was afraid to use this since I've read about the staining of hands and the shower. The first time I used it, I left the stuff on my palm for too long and it actually did stain my palm brown...oops! It also did stain my shower tiles, but over time, the stains are becoming lighter and lighter now...
I use this after using Brillian Brunette Shine Release Moisturising Shampoo and Light Reflecting Moisturising Conditioner. With my long hair, I use quite a bit of product, and I do my best to distribute it evenly. Then, I leave it on until I finish using body wash, exfoliating in the shower, and using in-shower body lotion...which is probably, 5 minutes. Then I wash it off.
My hair feels rough and weird after washing this stuff out and at first I was a bit skeptical about what the outcome would be. I usually wrap a towel around my hair for another 30 minutes after I come out of the shower while I do makeup, etc. After blow-drying my hair, I was pretty happy with the results! My hair really did look glossy and had the shine that I haven't had for years. My hair also felt really soft and smooth, and there was less tangling and knots. I didn't even have to put in any styling product before blow-drying to control frizz and to add shine.
I am extremely happy with this product. I use this every other day and have been using it for two weeks now and the bottle is about 40% finished. I haven't used it for long enough so I can't comment on the hair colouring ability. (I have coloured dark brown hair anyways...so I don't think it would make a difference). I have to agree with others that the screw on cap is a pain in the butt because sometimes I tend to forget to screw the cap back on after I'm done, and it's just messier that way. Overall, I think that this is a great product and I definitely will continue to use it until I find something better.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -John Frieda - Brilliant Brunette Shine Release Moisturizing Shampoo
floofinator 5/31/2006
I have coloured, coarse Asian hair that, upon my immigration to the country many many years ago, has become extremely dry due to the weather here (I think I'm made for a humid environment). My hair, coloured or natural, has always lacked the shine that most healthy hair has. A few years ago, I tried using Pantene Pro-V and it made my hair extremely smooth and silky soft, but there still was little shine. Recently, in preparation for my graduation, I decided to try John Frieda products and although they ARE a little expensive for a drug store product, I'm really glad that I tried this shampoo! Even after only using shampoo, my hair already feels soft and smooth in the shower, unlike the rough feeling I get when I use other shampoos. I use this before using the Light Reflecting Moisturising Conditioner and when used together, my hair is silky, soft and shiny. I really, really love the packaging for some reason...it's different than what most shampoo bottles look like, I guess. I couldn't really stand the smell of the shampoo at first but now it's grown on me and I'm beginning to really like it.
Overall, this shampoo is a really good product. Of course, it doesn't work miracles, but no hair product has made my hair as silky as this one has.
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Lip Gloss -Clinique - Glosswear For Lips in Whisper
floofinator 5/28/2006 3:52:00 PM
I got this as a sample in a GWP set a little while ago and started using it when I ran out of my JT Simmer. First, the colour appears to be a milky white with lots of glitter in the tube. When applied, it looks like I applied a very, very sheer pink sparkle gloss. The lasting power is pretty decent, I usually only reapply after eating lunch, but when this gloss does wear off, it leaves all the sparkles on my lips, making them feel dry. As time passed, the gloss started to become thicker and thicker and more yellow looking in the tube. I stopped using it for a week or so and when I did open the tube to use it again, the gloss smelled like vinegar! It was pretty disgusting...of course, I just threw it out. I don't know what was wrong with it; maybe it was just the tube I got, or it's something in the gloss' formula...but I don't think I'd buy again.
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Pressed Powders -Cover Girl - TruBlend Pressed Powder
floofinator 5/15/2006 7:49:00 PM
I was a little hesitant about using powder at first just because I've always had this fear of the more makeup I have on my face = the more pores get clogged = the more breakouts I have. It's just that I have relatively nice skin already (minus a few bumps on my inner cheek and the faint scars from past breakouts) so I don't want to wear more makeup to mess my face up.
My skin is usually not too oily, and if it does get oily, it's usually just my nose. One day I just decided to buy some powder (my graduation is getting up so I'm buying new makeup) and so I looked on MUA and found that this is one of the better-rated drugstore powders. I bought this in Translucent Medium, which matches my light/med Asian skintone perfectly and I must say that I'm very happy with this product! It takes away some shine and does even out my skin tone, and gives my face that "flawless" look ie. in the magazines. I never expected powder to really make a difference...but when I look at myself in the mirror after applying this powder, my pores somehow seem smaller and my nose less oily. I usually reapply 1-2 times per day, but for the most part it does a good job of keeping my nose matte. This product hasn't caused any breakouts or new bumps on my face, which is a great relief for me.
I have no problem with using the included puff, and the packaging is very sleek (I wish I had a chance to buy the LE edition, but the original packaging is great too). The price is very reasonable; I got it for about $9 CDN. I think I'll stick with this powder from now on...I don't really like experimenting with things like foundation, concealer, etc, so I'll definitely buy this product again!
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Mascara -Maybelline - Volum' Express Turbo Boost Waterproof
floofinator 5/15/2006 7:37:00 PM
I'm halfway through my second bottle of this mascara, and I think so far it's one of my favourites.
It takes a bit of practice to make sure that lashes don't clump together, but this mascara does a great job of separating, defining and lengthening lashes. I don't think it helps with volume that much, but this mascara definitely lengthens my lashes. I use this in black, and I usually do 2-3 coats, so I can get either a natural or a dramatic look from this.
My only complaint is that although it is waterproof, it does give me racoon eyes sometimes...but I also blame that on the dry weather here, making my contact-wearing eyes very dry throughout the day, and making me blink all the time. The consistency of this mascara is perfect; when you first open the bottle it's a little more watery than other mascaras but that ensures that later on, it won't dry out as much as other mascars do.
Overall, this is a pretty good drugstore mascara. I don't usually buy a specific product more than once (I like to try many different products) so using this twice says a lot about this mascara! Will definitely buy again.
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Mascara -Cover Girl - Professional Super Thick Lash Mascara 
floofinator 5/15/2006 7:30:00 PM
Maybe I was lucky enough to get a faulty bottle of this mascara...but it was HORRIBLE! After reading all the positive reviews here, and with a 4.0 rating, I had very high expectations for this mascara. I bought it on sale for just around $4 CDN so definitely the price was great. However, this mascara did NOTHING for my lashes except making them clump together and weighing them down! I've never really had a problem with mascaras weighing down my lashes, but this mascara simply turned my curled lashes into straight lashes sticking out...they looked horrible.
Judging from all the great reviews here, maybe I bought my bottle from a bad batch, but I would never, ever buy again.
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Polishes -Sally Hansen - Beyond Perfect Protein Nail Color - Sheer Lotus Petal
floofinator 5/10/2006 11:53:00 PM
This is a nail polish that I would definitely buy again and again.
I generally like my nails to be pale pink or pale, pale purple...but most sheer/pale pink nail polishes that I've used in the past were really streaky. It was difficult finding a pale pink polish that would go on smooth and give my nails a uniform pink colour, instead of streaky lines of pink.
I love this nail polish! It does actually give my nails a uniform, light pink colour. Plus, it dries really fast, and I probably wouldn't even have to wear a top coat since the polish is so glossy after it dries.
Due to previous nail biting (now a past habit) and manual work @ my part time job, my nails are very, very rough and have a lot of ridges...with this polish, you barely notice any bumps or ridges on my nails.
The price, like most Sally Hansen polishes, are, in my opinion, a little too much for nail polish. But for the quality and the lasting power (usually a week before chipping...which is not to bad since I get bored do my nails usually once a week) this product is definitely worth the price!
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Blush -Maybelline - Dream Mousse Blush in Peach Satin ] ] [DISCONTINUED]
floofinator 5/10/2006 11:26:00 PM
When I first bought this product and took it home to try it for the first time, I thought it was a terrible mistake. The colour is a peachy, shimmery pink, and when I first applied it, it looked wayyy too light on my medium-light asian skintone. I was trying very hard to decide whether to buy pink frosting or this at the drug store, and decided to buy this one since it looked better in the pot.
I was going to return it, but after a few more applications later, I found that the trick to applying this blush so that the colour is noticeable but not too overpowering is to use a soft powder/blush brush to apply. I use a powder brush to apply this nowadays and it looks great! It gives that natural glow, and the blush stays on all day. I used soft plum previously and although it should be a nice colour for asian skintones, I found that it was a little too dark for me.
My skin is generally pretty nice, I have a few bumps on my cheeks but they aren't very noticeable unless you're playing the staring game with me... so this blush looks great. I think I will buy again, maybe not in this colour, but I could see this as being my HG blush eventually.
...added: I think if I could blush, I'd blush in this colour (I don't blush...never, for some reason =S) I do have a picture in my pic gallery of me wearing this blush, if you want to see what the blush looks like on my skintone. Go look at the pic titled "Formal Wear Fashion Show".
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -L'Oreal - Cashmere Perfect Foundation [DISCONTINUED]
floofinator 5/10/2006 7:16:00 PM
Blah, when I first received a sample of this foundation in Sand Beige, I loved it. I was using Maybelline's Wonder Finish before and I started to notice that the foundation was turning flakey and yellow on me. When I used Cashmere Perfect, my skin looked really, really good and so I went out to buy a bottle of it in Creamy Natural, since Sand Beige was a little too dark for my skin tone.
The application was easy, the foundation itself goes on smooth and everything (I love how it's so creamy), but the downside is that this doesn't do a very good job of covering things like scars or undereye circles, even when I use concealer with it. I don't know how this would look on other parts of the face, since I only use concealer/foundation under my eyes and on my chin. I think the colour of the foundation started...changing...too, because at first, Creamy Natural matched my light-med Asian skintone perfectly, but nowadays, where I applied foundation, those areas seem to turn more yellowish throughout the day. Also, under fluorescent lighting, you can DEFINITELY see that I have foundation on, because those areas are a powdery-whitish colour. No matter how much I blend with a sponge or a brush, it just doesn't look natural anymore.
Oh, it also doesn't last 12 hours. I come home from school 8 hours later and you can already see my undereye circles and my scars again. It's not my mascara, I don't rub my eyes, my skin is perfectly normal and not oily, and my eyes don't water...but this foundation still runs off for some reason.
So recently, I've switched back to my old bottle of Wonder Finish and it works great now...it does a much better job of covering dark circles, and stays put all day. Although Wonder Finish's Sandy Beige and Cashmere Perfect's Creamy Natural are pretty close shades, I don't have the powdery white colour on my face where I applied foundation and Wonder Finish is overall a more natural colour on me.
Cashmere perfect was an overall all right foundation...but I'm sure there are better drugstore brand foundations out there for a fraction of the price. It wasn't particularly cheap compared to CG or Maybelline, so I probably won't buy again.
Edit: I forgot to mention that I looked HORRIBLE in some of the pictures taken of me wearing this foundation! Even after extreme effort in blending the foundation in, I had WHITE CIRCLES under my eyes in pictures, especially those taken in the dark with flash! I looked like I used CONCEALER underneath my eyes and forgot to blend it in! Horrible, horrible. I think seeing those pictures was when I realized it was time to change foundations.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No