Treatments -Elizabeth Arden - Eight Hour Cream
kmichael 1/21/2012 8:33:00 PM
Bought this on a whim and now I don't know how I ever lived without it. It completely healed the horribly painful cracks I get at the corners of my mouth in winter, and soothes eczema like a dream. The ingredient list freaked me out at first but hey, if it works, it works. Soothes, protects, and looks great a cheekbone highlight, too! Plus, it smells like a spring garden. Absolutely indispensable.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Murad - Active Radiance Serum
kmichael 1/21/2012 8:20:00 PM
Boy, am I sure upset that this stuff works - 80USD a bottle isn't that good to get hooked on. Very nice and gentle on my sensitive skin, but holy skincare gods, can it clean out pores. I'm not acne-prone but I do get congested skin pretty easily, and putting this on in the morning will guarantee one or two pores cleaned out by the time I wash my face at night. Not to mention the redness-relieving properties of this stuff. The product does not contain straight menthol, but menthyl lactate, which provides a cooling sensation. While it's gentler than straight menthol and did not irritate my skin in the slightest, this might not be the product for you if you're allergic. However, it's definitely a lot gentler than other C serums I've tried, even those for sensitive skin. I only use it once a day instead of twice (as instructed by the SA who gave me the sample), just to be on the safe side. Can't comment on the spot-lightening properties, as I've only used the serum for a week, but it definitely gives the immediate illusion that I've had a full night's sleep and provides a decent amount of relief from the flakies. Will purchase the full bottle, darn it.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Gels/Soaps -LUSH - Snow Fairy Shower Gel
kmichael 1/14/2012 2:36:00 PM
This smells like a wonderful, delicious Christmastime candy dish! Sooooo sweet and fruity and sugary. I like how the scent smells up the bathroom and smells nice when you lather, but leaves only a tiny subtle fragrance on the skin that doesn't conflict with other lotion or perfume.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Maybelline - Dream Bouncy Blush
kmichael 1/10/2012 10:42:00 AM
Fabulous for fair skin. I wasn't really sold on the gimmick until I read the reviews on here, but I'm glad I bought into it. ;) The Hot Tamale color is my favorite, I think, and I also love the lightest pink one for just a teeny tiny natural flush. Texture is nice, too - kinda slippery compared to other creams I've tried.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Chanel - Vitalumiere
kmichael 1/8/2012 9:06:00 AM
Have bought this over and over - every time I think of straying to another foundation, someone tells me that my skin looks great when I'm wearing this one. It's perfect for me as far as consistency goes: light coverage, super dewy, really moisturizing for my dry skin. It feels absolutely disgusting when you first put it on, but after a couple of minutes it melds perfectly to natural skin texture and is so soft and soothing. Sometimes it sticks a little to extremely dry/peeling skin, so exfoliate first and then let it do the job of moisturizing for you. :) I just slap it on with my hands over moisturizer (right now it's Hope in a Jar, which I thought might be too heavy but actually works well with Vitalumiere) and then lightly add concealer (MAC Moisturecover or that Olay+Covergirl swirly one) if I want to cover my freckles or if I have dark circles. I powder through the center of my face, SUPER lightly, with Chanel loose powder to cut the nose shine and set my concealer. I find that letting the foundation sink in a bit before adding more stuff on top of it is the key to its looking flawless. If you have breakouts/oily skin/want lots of coverage, though, you'd be better off applying straight Crisco to your face - there's no way this stuff provides any kind of oil relief and will probably only last like an hour. :( Even with my really dry skin, it can feel like too much "dew" if I overdo it on the moisturizer. However, if it works for you, you'll definitely get some compliments on your skin!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -Cover Girl - Simply Powder Foundation
kmichael 1/5/2012 4:25:00 PM
This is...magic. I swear they use unicorn tears in this stuff or something, because I switched from Chanel to EL to Shiseido to, since my mom has used it since high school, this CG powder and it absolutely beats the pants off any of the others. Looks a little too dark in the pan but goes on perfectly, light and not cakey. Sets my liquid foundation or provides a soft airbrushed look on its own without looking funky on my dry skin. HG, easily.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Infusium 23 - Moisturizing Leave-in Treatment
kmichael 1/5/2012 4:13:00 PM
Just re-discovered this after about 10 years. When I was a kid, I had super long hair and my mom used to use it as a detangler. Well, I recently picked it up again for nostalgia and whoa! My hair is very coarse and straight, and super-thick, with crispy gross ends from years of heat styling and bleaching it from its natural black (yeah, I'm dumb). It's hard to find something that's light and doesn't feel gunky but also adds conditioning - believe me, I don't need any more weight on this ridiculous mess. The trick is to just use a little so it doesn't build up; if you have fine hair and you're putting more than half a squirt it's gonna look gross. I just dump some into my palms and rub them together before applying it to the ends of my hair, and I usually don't reapply. Soft and silky!
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Ponds - Deep Cleanser Cold Cream
kmichael 11/17/2011 5:51:00 PM
I figure I use enough cold cream that it's about time I write a review. If you don't mind the mineral oil, this is HG - when my usual MAC cleansing oil is too drying for me in the winter, or if I'm wearing a lot of eye makeup, it just doesn't get any better than this. I use it as part of a two-step routine: first I slap on a layer to take off makeup and tissue it all off, then I either use another round of this or a soapy cleanser if it's hot out. My skin loves it and it even helps to "loosen" blackheads, I've found, when used on its own and steamed off with a warm washcloth.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Hair Styling Tools -Goody - Spin Pin
kmichael 11/5/2011 5:02:00 PM
My hair was too thick for these. It's very coarse, straight and slick, too, so I'm definitely not in the target demographic for these things. However, my friend with finer hair wears them all the time and they look great, so if you've got a different hair type they might work for you.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Prada - Candy EDP
kmichael 10/28/2011 2:12:00 AM
I'm surprised how much I've been wearing this! It's a soft amber scent, with kind of a powdery vanilla note in there somewhere. Smelled blah in the bottle but it's way better on!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lotions/ Creams -Carmex - Healing Cream
kmichael 10/28/2011 2:05:00 AM
Oh, my goodness. This stuff is magic. I'm surprised that people didn't find it moisturizing enough - I have eczema and this cream feels great. Menthol and camphor help to dry out any oozy flaky bits (sorry, that's gross) and the lanolin and other stuff soothe really well. While I do use this on my legs after shaving to cut down on the razorbump/eczema combo that I tend to get, my favorite way to use this is on my feet. I walk a lot in heels, and there's something about this cream that just instantly makes my chapped, blistered, tired sore old feet feel like a million bucks. I feel like the menthol and camphor kind of cool them off and make them less swollen without smelling like a tub of Tiger Balm, and the cream is thick and rich enough to make my calluses almost nonexistent in just a few weeks. I just put it on before bed, wear socks and voila! I wake up to prettier feet. A few people have asked me lately if I'd gotten a pedicure, so I figured I had to write a review because it's all just polish and Carmex healing cream. HG foot cream, for sure - gonna pick up another tube or seven on my way home tomorrow. Also, the smell is the most scrumptious thing. It's a little like Carmex lip balm, but lighter and softer.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eyeliner -Milani - Liquif'eye Metallic eye liner pencil -black
kmichael 10/23/2011 9:10:00 PM
The pigmentation in this pencil is great, but that just means it gets all over my face when it slides off my waterline. Unless you set this with a lot of black eyeshadow, it's gonna get messy. However, the pigmentation alone makes it a much better product than UD 24/7, and at a fraction of the price.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Estee Lauder - Double Wear
kmichael 10/21/2011 10:06:00 PM
UPDATE: this foundation just really doesn't work for me anymore. Way too drying in winter and there's no way I'd go anywhere with this heavy stuff on my face in the summer. I guess it works if you're oily but lately I have to dilute it with so much moisturizer to look human that there's no "long-wearing" to be had. It's a shame, because it photographs well if you can stand to have it on your face.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Bronzers -New York Color - Smooth Skin Bronzing Face Powder in Sunny 720
kmichael 10/21/2011 10:04:00 PM
Love this - it's the only bronzer I've ever hit pan on. I'm quite fair, but I like that this gives me a little glow without looking fake. I swipe it on with a nice soft brush and am able to blend and build it. It is virtually impossible to get that trademark Orange Bronzer Stripe with this, especially if you layer it over powder (I use a tiny, tiny swipe of MUFE HD under most of my powder blushes, and it seems to work fine with this, too). UPDATE: Okay, I recently realized that this is the powder analogue to Chanel Soleil de Tan cream bronzer. They look almost identical on my NC20 skin, despite the formulation differences. And...this one's about 30 bucks cheaper! Doesn't last as long but since I'm dry they both stay pretty well unless it's 100 degrees outside.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eyeliner -MAC - LiquidLast Liner - Inky
kmichael 10/21/2011 3:52:00 PM
I can't really complain about the look of this eyeliner, once you get it on, because it does look really lovely and shiny and stays forever. That said, I absolutely refuse to purchase this again because of the terrible packaging. It's hard to use with a brush, because the product goops up and dries around the edge of the tube to a disgusting messy paste, and as for using the applicator it comes with...forget it. One of the cheapest, hardest, pokiest little stingy brushes I've ever had the gall to put near my eye. Dipping a normal fine-line brush into the tube just makes your brush coated in product and a pain to clean afterward. It's not often that packaging will totally turn me off a product, but this stuff could just be so good if the tube and brush weren't so terrible. :(
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No