Moisturizers -Neal's Yard - Yarrow and Comfrey Moisturizer
Luda_Parker 5/12/2007 2:22:00 PM
I am a real fan. I like the Neal's Yard philosophy so went into the shop and let myself be guided by the guy working there. He recommended this as a moisturiser and I am very pleased with it. For someone with occasionally badly behaved skin, this looked a bit worryingly thick and rich but my skin seems to be loving it. The smell is a little odd..but not enough to put me off. I'll be sticking to this from now on
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Foundations -Yves Saint Laurent - Perfect Touch Radiant Brush Foundation
Luda_Parker 5/12/2007 2:15:00 PM
I really love this stuff! I was browsing Sephora looking for a new foundation as my current MAC one was really too orangey and found this one. I found a colour that matched my skintone pretty well and so decided to give it a go. I am pleased with the results, though it seems to get a touch darker during the day, and the texture doesn't settle completely perfectly on my combination skin. I can see the whole integrated brush applicator is a bit of a love it/hate it thing. I like to apply my foundation with a brush anyway so have one already and would prefer it if it just came in a jar so as to minimise waste as it's hard to squeeze out just the right amount, but if you want to travel light it's quite good having the brush right there. It gives almost as good a finish as if I use my Body Shop brush to apply it. The scent is a little too strong for my liking but pleasant enough, and my skin seems to like it (well, it hasn't screamed Stop! yet) so overall a fairly big thumbs up.
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Liquid -MAC - Select Tint SPF 15 ] [DISCONTINUED]
Luda_Parker 5/12/2007 2:11:00 PM
I quite liked the first bottle of this that I had, but having bought a second in exactly the same shade....it turns out the colou's very different and very organge. I don't know which of the 2 was the 'true' colour, but I'm not going to use the rest of the new bottle. As far as the first (better coloured) bottle went it was quite good. Bit flakey on any dry skin, but looked quite good when applied with a brush. In the meantime though, I started using YSL's Perfect Touch Radiant Brush foundation which I think could be my HG, so I shan't be buying MAC again
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Mascara -Maybelline - Great Lash Mascara
Luda_Parker 4/29/2007 3:51:00 PM
Average. It does the job - nothing special though.
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Fragrances -Diptyque - Opone
Luda_Parker 2/12/2007 2:43:00 AM
I should first confess I love all things Diptyque - the packaging, the gorgeous shop on the Blvd St Germain an of course the scents. I've bought many candles from them before but finally decided to try one of their perfumes (though annoyingly my Dad got in there first and is now loyal to Tam Dao!) Anyway - as with all their perfumes this has a beautifully over the top description:"Saffron roses, spices and wood : rouding the cape where spices are grown, under full sail, bound for the fragrant gardens of roses and saffron"... ...and it doesn't disappoint. You can definitely smell the rose in it, but it's a very unusual smell - like no other perfume I've ever smellt. I am now a huge convert and will definitely buy this again when I run out. Love it love it love it!
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Hair -Modern Organic Products (MOP) - Lemongrass Shampoo
Luda_Parker 2/12/2007 2:34:00 AM
I really wanted to like this as I like to use natural products, and it smells divine, but it's just not worth the price. it's fine, ok, adequate but just really nothing special and I don't think it really does much for the volume of my hair.
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Gels/Soaps -Ren - Moroccan Rose Otto Shower Wash
Luda_Parker 2/12/2007 2:26:00 AM
I keep on hearing such good things about this shower gel that I finally bought some when Ren offered me a bottle of it half price. I was very disappointedby the smell however. I don't know whether I've got one of of a dodgy batch, as everyone else seems to love the smell but I find it very unpleasant and chemical smelling (ironic really, when you consider their ant-chemical, all natural ethos). It just doesn't smell very rose-like to me either. It says it also contains palmrosa and geranium oils, so I actually like the smell of all three contributors, but the overall effect of this is just something not nice (to my nose!) I persisted for a few days, but I really find it so horrible that I've given it away to somebody who does like the smell. Urgh!
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Fragrances -Guerlain - Apres l'Ondee
Luda_Parker 7/7/2006 3:57:00 AM
I bought this from "Guerlain HQ" on the Champs Elysees having gone in determined to find a new fragrance. After lots of sampling this one was the clear winner for me. It's an interesting smell - if I say 'powdery' that doesn't sound very appealing, but it's gorgeous. Very unusual and a little complicated - I'm so sick of all the sweet/fruity/bland perfumes out there at the moment. It does smell quite flowery but not in too girly a way. This isn't the most helpful description of it, so all I can say is go try it.
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Highlighters -BeneFit Cosmetics - High Beam
Luda_Parker 5/9/2006 8:30:00 AM
This is now an essential in my make up bag and when my everlasting bottle eventually runs out I'll have to buy more. It's the perfect highlighter. As other people have remarked, it seems to "create" cheekbones - my face is seriously lacking in Garbo-esque angles, but this seems to give the impression of them somehow. A little under your eyebrows too works wonders for opening up the eyes. Great stuff.
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Lip Gloss -Yves Saint Laurent - Touche Brillance Spakling Touch
Luda_Parker 5/9/2006 8:25:00 AM
I bought it in colour no. 7 and I love it. It is quite sparkly, but in this shade still manages to look quite subtle yet flattering. The packaging is like Touche Eclat, only pink rather than gold and so like Touche Eclat it has a 'pen' applicator which I find is economical and very unmessy. I also find that unlike most lip glosses this actually lasts pretty well too. I'll be definitely be buying it again (and probably when I'm mext in France so I can save a few pennies)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Styling Products -Charles Worthington - Big Hair Volumising Mousse
Luda_Parker 12/7/2005 4:52:00 AM
The best volumising product I've found - it actually delivers on what it promises to do. My one caveat - you do have to blow dry your hair very thoroughly with a brush otherwise you get strange crunchy bits in your hair, but this genuinely makes your hair BIG and it stays big the next day too. I would be lost without this product. Fab!
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Styling Products -Garnier - Fructis XXL Volume Thickening Mousse Extreme
Luda_Parker 12/7/2005 4:45:00 AM
Volumising? Absolutely not. It had no volumising effect at all on my hair. I tried it mainly out of curiosity due to the rave reviews it's had from other people. If you want something that actually works - use Charles Worthington Big Hair mousse -you can't beat it. I'll be sticking with that and throwing away this can.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Skincare - Face -Liz Earle - Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish
Luda_Parker 10/17/2005 8:44:00 AM
I am really surprised to see a couple of bad reviews for this, as my skin is incredibly sensitive and touchy and I'd almost given up on finding a cleanser that would be nice to it. However, this is wonderful. It's very gentle but very thorough and removes all makeup and my skin feels lovely and soft (not tight and dry and irritated as so many others do). Make sure you buy extra muslin cloths though, as you really need to put them in the wash frequently to avoid build up of bacteria so you need quite a few 'in rotation'. Thank you Liz Earle!
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Scrubs -L'Oreal - Exfotonic
Luda_Parker 10/17/2005 8:39:00 AM
This stuff is phenomenal and I've been hooked since I first tried it. It's a proper TOUGH exfoliant - there are too many airy-fairy ones that don't do a thing. The smell is divine too. Can't praise it enough.
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