Moisturizers -Unlisted Brand - Culpeper Camellia Sinensis Oil
nailbunny 8/13/2008 4:39:00 PM
UPDATE Dec 2009: Have switched to just Macadamia Nut Oil as cleanser and moisturiser. It's my HG, now. UPDATE (21/8): I found Safflower oil in a health food store, so I've switched to Safflower+Camellia+Jojoba. 8 weeks and still going strong. Safflower has a higher percentage of linoleic to balance the oleic acid content of Jojoba and of Camellia oil. UPDATE (16/7/2009): It's been 3 weeks of using my mix of Sunflower+Camellia+Jojoba oils in equal parts as cleanser, moisturiser, leave-in hair lotion & eye makeup remover. It has cleared up my blackheads, whiteheads, dry patches and most importantly MY ROSACEA. I cannot stress enough that alone I didn't like CO after using it for about a month, but balancing its fatty acid profile with the other 2 oils has made all the difference. I'm cross-reviewing the other two oils. How I use this mix is in my notepad. I use this as a facial massage oil, lip balm, under eye treatment. It is cold-pressed and instantly absorbs into dry skin. It doesn't cause me to break-out and everything does. I have the most impossible skin (see my notepad). I've replaced the 'curly hair products' with this. Just 6 drops in the palm of my hand worked through very damp hair makes soft, curly hair. It's kind of bizarre how well it works!
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Toners -Unlisted Brand - Culpeper Orange Flower Water
nailbunny 8/13/2008 4:30:00 PM
This is perfect for sensitive, reactive skin prone to breakouts. It calms instantly. I use it on my moisturiser with Witch Hazel. This is an actual floral water, not just neroli oil in an emulsifier like polysorbate 20 in water. This makes a big difference to those of us that are sensitive to products with a long list of ingredients! It even smells pretty =)
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Moisturizers -Unlisted Brand - Culpeper Cream Base Formulation
nailbunny 8/13/2008 4:25:00 PM
I have sensitive/combo/acne-prone skin that is also prone to redness. I've tried using just oil as a moisturiser, just glycerin and water, and every single moisturiser in creation sparing no expense (see my notepad). This is the one. Basic, simple moisturiser perfect for people that are sensitive to everything. You're supposed to add essential oils of your choice but I don't bother. I massage Camellia oil into clean dry skin and then apply this base cream. I follow with a spritz of a 1:1 mix of pure Witch Hazel and Orange Flower Water. Ingredients; Water. Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Sweet Almond Oil, Glycerin, Vitamin E, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Lactate, Carbomer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Panthenol, Triethanolamine. UPDATE: This isn't moisturising enough for me anymore. Switched to Avalon Organics Lavender Daily Moisturiser and am very happy with it.
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Treatments -Avene - Cleanance K
nailbunny 8/13/2008 4:13:00 PM
I think this probably fine for someone who doesn't have very sensitive skin. This isn't a moisturiser! It's very intense and it felt like it was burning my skin. I've used the Cleanance Emulsion and it is far gentler and a moisturiser. If you're sensitive give this a miss and go for the 'no K' version instead
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Styling Products -The Body Shop - Brazil Nut Define and No Frizz Styling Cream
nailbunny 8/13/2008 4:03:00 PM
I have curly Carrie Bradshaw hair in red. I use the Honey Moisturising Shampoo and Conditioner. Often I put a shot of Almond Oil in the shampoo right before applying. I run this through my hair when it's still got a lot of moisture in it - I gently squeeze my hair with a towel, add this and then dry with a diffuser. I follow with a light hold hair spray (Paul Mitchell 'Worked Up') I don't have to do any twisting or twirling to get my hair to go into Shirley Temple ringlets. Sometimes my boyfriend finds my airs and plays with them saying 'Boing! Boing!' so I must be doing something right! I love this stuff because it's really kind to my hair and nourishing.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -The Body Shop - Honey moisturizing conditioner [DISCONTINUED]
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:57:00 PM
UPDATE Dec 2009: Have switched to using Ghassoul Red Morroccan clay as cleanser & conditioner. I have curly Carrie Bradshaw hair in red. It is very dry by nature. I use this with the shampoo (shampoo alone or with a shot of Almond Oil). It is a great daily conditioner. My hair goes into ringlets without much cajoling.
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Shampoo -The Body Shop - Honey Moisturizing Shampoo [DISCONTINUED]
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:54:00 PM
UPDATE Dec 2009: Have switched to Ghassoul Red Morroccan clay as cleanser & conditioner. Extremely gentle shampoo that really works. I have curly Carrie Bradshaw hair in red so it's very dry. I use this shampoo alone or with a shot of Almond oil mixed in right before applying to my hair. My hair is nice and clean but moisturised so it curls right up into ringlets without much cajoling. My boyfriend finds my hairs sometimes and plays with them saying 'Boing! Boing!' so I must be doing something right!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Clinique - Long Last Soft Shine Lipstick
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:49:00 PM
UPDATE Dec 2009: As a sensitive skinned person, I've had to throw away any products with petrochemicals in them I'm a fair-skinned redhead so I can wear yellow-reds not blue-reds. This is a perfect bright red for daytime or nighttime. It's long wearing and looks great with the quickliner in deep red. Redheads should have this in their arsenal at all times IMHO
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Cleansers -Mario Badescu - Enzyme Cleansing Gel
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:30:00 PM
This is a nice cleanser to have around. It's my number 2 to Philosophy Purity Made Simple. For my extremely sensitive skin, it isn't an every day cleanser. More like once or twice a week. I can't get this easily in the UK but I can get Purity at John Lewis, so I can live without it. If you're in the States, I would recommend this and Purity because they are the only two cleansers I've ever been able to use. UPDATE: I don't use this anymore because I realised that the fruit acids were giving me red patches (I also don't use Purity anymore because it's too harsh for me)
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Cleansers -Dermalogica - PreCleanse
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:24:00 PM
I used this for awhile and liked it, but over time it dried out my skin. I have hellishly sensitive skin, though so take that to heart. It definitely got my skin clean, of that I have no doubt. I think it was just too harsh in the end. (I use Philosophy Purity Made Simple now and love it.)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -MAC - Cleanse Off Oil
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:20:00 PM
I'm trying to be fair about this product because I'm sure plenty of people can use it. My skin hated this stuff instantly. Instant inflammation. I have never been more sure of the cause of a reaction. It is evil in a bottle. To be fair, I have incredibly sensitive skin, so be warned sensitive gals STAY AWAY. (I use Philosophy Purity Made Simple which is wonderful and gorgeous and I want to buy presents for the person that invented it.)
5 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Philosophy - Purity Made Simple (Real Purity Cleanser)
nailbunny 8/13/2008 3:08:00 PM
I'm on my third giant bottle of this, so I figured it was time to give it a review. I have described my skin as all of the following: sensitive, combo/oily, very dry, prone to redness, prone to acne, reactive, congested. I used to have skin that had dry flakies in the midst of pimples. NIGHTMARE SKIN. SKIN I WOULDN'T WISH ON MY ENEMY. So when I say this is my HG, take it to heart. This cleanser works. For those that have tried OCM and found that they hate it, this cleanser is for you. It has all the oils in it but it's formulated so that it washes away cleanly without the irritation of scrubbing and rubbing. UPDATE: I've found that I can't use tap water, so I can't use this anymore. Now, I'm using Avalon Organics Lavender Cleansing Milk, which I can rinse off when the tap water isn't giving me trouble (summer) and wipe off with a microfibre cloth in times when tap water is hurting my skin. It's a lot cheaper, too.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Toners -Unlisted Brand - Drugstore Witch hazel
nailbunny 6/8/2008 4:41:00 PM
The drawback of WH at the store in liquid form is that there is 15% ethanol present as part of the extraction process and as a preservative. This lowers the tannin efficacy. I spray it on cuts and scratches and it stops the bleeding, but only use Drugstore WH for this because it is sterile. Spray it on bug bites and it stops the itching. I think everyone should have some. If I could give it 15 lippies, I would!
5 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Neal's Yard - 100% Rosehip Oil
nailbunny 12/7/2007 7:31:00 PM
I have combination/sensitive/acne-prone/prone-to-redness skin. In other words, I have the most impossible skin and I'm allergic to quite a few things, too. When I'm just hanging around the house, I'll put it under my eyes or any areas that I worry about developing lines. It has A, C & E which are fantastic for skin. I make a stretchmark mix out of it by adding Lavender, Rosemary & Chamomile. I made this for a friend of mine who has a scar on his face from a car accident to replace the Bio-Oil he was using which was making him breakout. Bio-Oil contains mineral oil (paraffinum liquidum) which is extremely harmful to skin health. A friend of mine is pregnant and she was complaining about Bio-Oil. I did some Internet research and found it isn't recommended that pregnant women use essential oils with the exception of lavender, neroli and mandarin. I lent her some of my RHO, because it is proven to actually grow new skin and reduce scarring, and she made an oil for her belly to prevent stretch marks: 75% Sweet Almond Oil, 25% RHO, and lavender oil (1 drop to 10mL). She's reported that it feels lovely going on, soaks in beautifully and we'll see how it works with the stretch marks (baby is due in a few weeks!). Neal's Yard has it the cheapest, too. Loads cheaper than the one at the Health Food Store. It even looks beautiful on the shelf in its pretty blue bottle and easy to use pump. I think everyone should have some.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Neal's Yard - Chamomile Cleanser
nailbunny 12/7/2007 7:19:00 PM
I initially didn't like this cleanser. I have combination/sensitive/acne-prone/prone-to-redness skin. If I buy a cleanser for sensitive skin, it doesn't get my skin clean because it's too busy being gentle. This one fell under the 'too gentle' category. If I buy a cleanser for oily/acne-prone skin then it gets my skin clean...and red and stripped. To get this off, I found I needed a muslin cloth which is too abrasive for my ridiculously sensitve skin. I've scrapped it completely for Avalon Organics Lavender Cleansing Milk, which is my HG.
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