Polishes -OPI - So Many Clowns...So Little Time
MissJulie89 9/25/2011 11:34:00 AM
I finally found this at Imagebeauty and snagged it remembering I wanted a good nude color to add to my ever-growing, massive polish collection. I just did my at-home mani with this last night and I must say, it's beautiful! This beige-y, pink-y, milky nude looks incredibly classy. My only issue with this polish is, of course, the amount of coats it takes for it to be opaque- three. I don't mind, though, considering it doesn't take too long to dry, the color payoff is amazing, and I just enjoy painting my nails in general. If you have patience, So Many Clowns might be the nude for you!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Primer -E.L.F. - Eyelid Primer
MissJulie89 9/24/2011 3:42:00 PM
Absolutely wonderful! I NEEDED a primer, and wasn't ready to commit myself to an expensive one since I never used one before. I finally found this in the sheer... nude... whatever color, and was relieved to find it comes with a wand applicator instead of a squeeze tube or something. Applying it is easy, it dries relatively quickly, and it helps my eyeshadows glide on easily, resist flaking, and helps their pigmentations pop with color and last all day. I never have a problem with eyelid oiliness or creasing or anything. I'll probably never use another primer other than this one. <3 E.L.F.!
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Blush -New York Color - Cheek Glow Powder Blush- Hello Lover! Pink
MissJulie89 9/20/2011 8:50:00 PM
*Attention! This blush might be LE or discontinued!* This was my second (successful) foray into blush. I saw this at Rite Aid and thought, "$2.99? I think I'll try it!" The color looked pretty and appropriate for my skintone, so I bought it and gave it a whirl. I must say, I was right! The light, warmish, non-shimmery pink color definitely suits my warm-neutral, fair skintone. The blush itself isn't too pigmented, which I actually find to be a bit of a relief, but it only takes a few applications to get it down right. I do have a couple of qualms, however. One, the packaging. I feel like I'm going to break it every time I open it. Two, the brush. It's just... not that great. Not horrible, but it could be better. Like geez, could ya angle it or something? Anywho, it's a decent product for three bucks. Try it!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Maybelline - Volum' Express The Colossal
MissJulie89 9/20/2011 8:26:00 AM
Not a bad mascara! I picked this up since my Rimmel mascara was getting old and boring and I kind of wanted something a bit more dramatic for a change. First things first, I LOVE the packaging. Yellow is my favorite color, and the bottle has splashes of purple, which is even better. The actual bottle is a bit on the big side, but it's not awkward or anything to me. It's just cool and edgy-looking. Alright. Now onto the actual mascara. I was a bit worried that the big ol' brush would make the product messy and difficult to apply, but I found it quite easy. I wiggle the brush from the base of my lashes and roll and flare them outward, which does create quite the dramatic effect. This mascara makes my lashes much more "colossal" than I'm used to, but nothing ridiulously over-the-top. No clumping, either. Oh, and there's a fragrance that smells, to me, like hyacinth flowers. Oddly strong for a mascara, but nothing bad. I actually quite like it. Overall, I love the fullness and length this mascara gives me lashes. I'll definitely be repurchasing until I inevitably get bored. ^^
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Blush -Milani - Smooth Finish Blush - Luminous
MissJulie89 9/17/2011 1:27:00 PM
Milani Luminous is my first venture into blush, and I must say... I LOVE IT! I'm not 100% sure what my skin type is. I know it's not cool, but it's not totally warm, either, so it might be warm-neutral, if that makes any sense. Either way, I'm pretty fair. Because of that, I was scared that this blush, and blush in general, would make me look like a four year-old who got into her mommy's makeup kit. Instead, I found that when applied with a relatively light hand, it's incredibly gorgeous. The peachy-pinkiness just lights up my face and makes me look fresh and awake. I adore the gold shimmer, which I find neither too heavy nor completely unnoticeable. In terms of the packaging, since this is my first real blush, I don't really know what good blush packaging is supposed to be like. It comes packaged with a compact mirror and a decent brush, and it's small and portable, so it's all good enough for me. The only qualm I have with this blush is its staying power. I find that I need to re-apply it a couple times throughout the day, but it's nothing to get upset about. It takes five seconds to put blush on my face. No biggie. ^^ All in all, I love the crap out of this blush, and I hope it never gets discontinued, because I don't feel like hunting down another peach-pink blush with gold shimmer that isn't thirty dollars. It's cheap, decent quality, convenient and portable. <3 you, Milani!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Trader Joe's - Tea Tree Oil soap
MissJulie89 9/11/2011 12:36:00 PM
This... this might be the one. I know I keep saying these things. Maybe I'm too wishful. But this facewash... is the NADS. Why? Here's why. Be prepared to get real mad and wish you had a Trader Joe's near you, if you don't. 1. The size of the bottle for the price: You get a good amount of product for between $5-6. Like nearly everything in the Trader Joe's beauty section, it's a steal. 2. It's au-naturale: Well, to my knowledge, at least 90% or so. Can't beat that. You know you're not putting yucky chemicals on your skin, which is a good feeling. 3. It NEVER DRIES SKIN OUT: This is probably my favorite feature. My skin is oily and acne-prone, so lord knows I don't need any extra oil production from a facewash that's sucked all the life out of my skin. Trader Joe's facewash does NOT do that. You'll still want to apply moisturizer afterwards, since most facewashes dry your skin in some way or another anyway, but this one keeps that whole Sahara Desert thing at bay. 4. It helps with acne without a drop of medicine in its composition: No salicylic. No benzoyl peroxide. No nonsense. Just some tea tree oil to wash away bacteria, and the rest just cleanses and soothes. 5. Keeps skin happy looking and feeling: Every time I've used this, my skin looks and feels fresh, bright, supple, and just plain happy. No dryness. No tightness. No redness. Just thoroughly clean, healthy-looking skin. Umad yet? Hehe. I'd say the only problem I have with this product is the pump. If I'm not initially gentle when trying to dispense the product, it can jettison from the pump and go in some random direction. But that's it. That's my only gripe with this stuff. It's STAYING in my routine. I look forward to using my BFF facewash every time.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Wet 'n' Wild - Color Icon Trio - All
MissJulie89 9/10/2011 2:04:00 PM
Let me start by saying I'm a makeup skeptic, especially since I know very little about it. I wear it as minimally as possible, and mainly focus on my eyes, because I find it kind of, well... fun to play with. I'm one of those people who tells herself she'll never spend an absurd amount of money on makeup, especially on brands that are higher-end, because something that trivial isn't worth the money, and there HAS to be something out there that's more affordable and more readily available. With Wet 'n' Wild, my assumptions are absolutely true. I KNEW there was a better alternative to the more pricey makeup brands. Not just that, but these eye shadows are TOP NOTCH. Like I said, I don't know much about makeup, but I know a creasy, flaky, overly-glittery, crappily pigmented eyeshadow when I see/use it. These eyeshadows are the exact opposite. They're gloriously pigmented, non-creasy, non-messy, glide on with ease, and easily blendable. I bought a few WnW trios- Walking on Eggshells, Knock on Wood, Spoiled Brat. I also bought some other palettes- Lust and Vanity, and a single- Nutty. All of these are wonderful. I'd have to say my favorite shade is the brownish taupe in the Knock on Wood palette. It's light enough for everyday, dark enough to be sexy, and quite versatile. I'm incredibly impressed with the turnaround Wet 'n' Wild has made. Their products that I've tried are wonderful in terms of quality, and are even better when you take a look at the price tag. These shadows are worth so much more than $2-3, but those price points only add to their value. These shadows will be a staple in my arsenal for as long as WnW keeps up this amazing steal of a product line.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Unlisted Brand - Naturelle Hemp Hydrating Conditioner
MissJulie89 9/4/2011 3:28:00 PM
Price: I got the 8.45 fl. oz. tube for about $6-$7. Not too bad. Pretty accurately priced for the size. Packaging: I have the tube, not the giant bottle. The tube itself is pretty sturdy- not flimsy at all. It's kind of a pain to squeeze the thick conditioner out of it, but any other container type would make it even more difficult to dispense the product. In terms of the design, I LOVE the pale and dark earthy green color scheme, font type and placement, and the single hemp leaf graphic. Very simplistic, and definitely classy as opposed to stoner-rific. Consistency: SO THICK. Rich, creamy and thick. Almost annoyingly so. It's butts to get the product out of the bottle. Also, thick conditioners usually give me great slip, but this one didn't so much. More on that later. Scent: Wanna smell like a giant hippie for a couple of hours? Slather a bunch of this in your hair. It's not unpleasant, though. It's a blast of fresh, spicy, herbally goodness that DOES linger for a while. It's not exactly the kind of fragrance that your boyfriend would catch a whiff of your hair for, or that strangers would compliment, but it certainly is unique and definitely pleasant. If you like earthy, herbal fragrances, this is heaven for you. Ingredients: This ingredients list is chock full of proteins. Not the keratin or silk kind, but the wheat, hemp and soy kind. It has your typical conditioners, fatty acids and whatnot, but this dish is all about the proteins. Thus, this makes it a once-in-a-while treatment. Performance: Like I said before, squeezing this out of the tube and applying it to my hair is a pain in the tush. The absurd thickness of this dish doesn't give me very good slip and doesn't detangle very well unless I apply a ridiculous amount of it, which I do. I wind up using up alot of the tube. Also, I need to use alot of leave-in dish/detangler after this. All that aside, the end results are quite pleasing. When my hair is fully air-dried, it's left soft, supple, sleek, strong and shiny. My curls are defined pretty well and don't look or feel dry at all. Overall: I gave this 3 lippies since the application of this dish is irritating. However, since the end results are great, this is remaining in my stash as a once-in-a-while protein treatment. This dish is definitely not a daily one, especially for curly, thick, or easily tangled heads of hair. It's a wonderful treat for your hair, if you're willing to struggle a bit.
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Fragrances -Parfums de Coeur - Love Struck
MissJulie89 9/3/2011 4:21:00 PM
This is virtually the same thing as Love Spell. However, I noticed a few differences that make this a thousand times more worth purchasing than Love Spell: 1. The price. This one sells for around $6, while VS sells theirs for about $12. 2. The lasting power. The bottle doesn't lie- this body spray lingers for a LONG time. That alone makes it more worth the money. 3. The packaging. I like the spray nozzle better on this one than on VS's fragrances. Plus, purple and black is sexy, and the heart shape is mega cute. 4. The fragrance itself. It's pretty much identical to Love Spell, but without that strange, sharp, sickening, skanky effect that alot of VS fragrances have. The only thing that sucks about this fragrance is its scarceness in stores. It's really difficult to find this one at times. But if you like Love Spell, and you can get your hands on Love Struck, I highly suggest picking it up. So much more worth it.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Bath and Body Works - Forever Sunshine
MissJulie89 8/28/2011 8:07:00 PM
I. Love. This. Fragrance. I only wish I had bought it earlier in the summer. It's absolutely perfect for warmer months. Initially, it goes on fruity, juicy, and a little citrusy. Once it dries down, it's a pleasant, unobtrusive, flirty, mild, fruity vanilla. I think it complements my personality a bit, which is a plus for me. The staying power is okay for the body spray, but it doesn't linger as long as I'd like considering how much I spent on it. I'm assuming the actual perfume has better staying power. I tried so many other fragrances this summer (all body mists) and none of them compared to Forever Sunshine. I think I'll be keeping this handy every spring and summer.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Clean & Clear - Persagel 10
MissJulie89 8/27/2011 7:50:00 PM
Lord. This stuff is amazing. I can't sing its praises enough. I dab it on existing and emerging pimples, and by the next day they're definitely smaller, but within 2-3 days they're basically flat. No bumps whatsoever. Some of my skin peeled on a few pimples, but it was nothing bad at all, especially since I know it's doing its job and I don't use it as anything but a spot treatment. I can see this bottle lasting me a long time since I only use a tiny bit every night. Other tidbits: No offensive smell, the product is easily dispensed, and this stuff is decently priced (around $7). Highly recommended for those who get annoying cystic breakouts. It SO works.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -St. Ives - Naturally Clear Green Tea Cleanser
MissJulie89 8/27/2011 7:10:00 PM
I bought this since I LOVE the St. Ives green tea scrub, and I didn't have a face wash besides Cetaphil (which is okay) and this awful green tea junk by Sudden Change (which made my skin freak out). It's exactly what I wanted in a cleanser- one with a little bit of salicylic acid to fight and prevent pimples, no "foaming" or "mousse" effect (my face HATES those), and with, well, green tea. The packaging is perfect. A decently-sized, clear bottle with a sturdy, non-faulty pump. The product dispenses easily, lathers up very well, and feels extremely refreshing on my face. It rinses clean and doesn't strip my face to the point where my skin feels tight. I mean, I still use a little moisturizer on my face to keep the SA from drying out my skin too much, but other than that, I really don't have to worry about over-drying (my skin is oily to begin with anyway). Ever since I started using this cleanser, my face has had no more breakouts, and my existing pimples have gotten smaller, with the help of my beloved Clean & Clear Persa-gel. The only thing that annoys me a liiiitle bit with this cleanser is the fragrance. It's the same candy-like, Nerd Rope smell that the scrub has. It seems a little unnecessary to me, but what the heck. It's no big.
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Conditioner -Suave - Professionals Captivating Curls
MissJulie89 8/27/2011 6:17:00 PM
Price: A modest $2-something for some awesome, awesome stuff, and a decent amount of it. Gimmegimmegimme. Packaging: I love the Suave professionals bottle styles, and I especially love this one. Light silver/gray and green contrast so well, and the design, font type and placement are actually kinda classy and chic. The bottles themselves are sturdy and handily-shaped with easy-to-open flip top caps. The product is quite easy to dispense. Love. <3 Consistency: I was initially wary of the slight thinness of this conditioner. It's VERY creamy, but not too thick. I thought it wouldn't detangle my thick, curly hair well enough, but I was happily proven wrong. Scent: Yummy yummy. Light, sweet, creamy and dreamy. It doesn't really linger too long, but it's delightful and never cloying. Ingredients: There's some surprisingly good stuff in this dish, which is what prompted me to try it in the first place. Behentrimonium and Centrimonium chlorides aid in detangling, and there's some silk, vitamin E, and lactic acid in there. (My hair LOVES lactic acid.) The ingredients list isn't absurdly long, either. Performance: Like I said, I wasn't expecting much. At all. I was VERY pleasantly surprised. This dish has that immediate hair-turns-to-silk feel the moment I put it in my hair. That said, it detangles WONDERFULLY. After my hair air-dries, my curls are very soft. However, in terms of curl definition and frizz, it's not the best, but it's still better than alot of condtioners I've tried. My hair remains relatively moisturized throughout the day even in the face of weather effects such as wind, which is a plus. Overall: This conditioner is amazing, especially for its price. That alone is a defining factor. On the bottle, it says it compares to Redken Fresh Curls. Now, I tried that conditioner in the past, and let me say, that nonsense has NOTHING on this dish. In terms of performance, price and fragrance, Suave takes the cake here. A THREE DOLLAR conditioner BEAT OUT a FIFTEEN DOLLAR conditioner. You go, Suave. I'll definitely be repurchasing this one. Fantastic.
6 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Polishes -China Glaze - Liquid Leather
MissJulie89 8/24/2011 11:48:00 AM
Stupid... streaky... sassafrassin'... ugly brown base... three-four coats? Terrible... Chips... easily... Grr... ... As you can see, I can't formulate full sentences when attempting to describe how much I despise this polish. The second lippie is for the nice packaging. Shame on you, China Glaze. I expect so much more from you. BAH!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Unlisted Brand - Miracle 7 Leave-In Hair Mist
MissJulie89 8/22/2011 11:31:00 AM
Dear It's a 10, I have to talk to you about something. No, no, don't cry, I still like you. It's just that, well... I've found another leave-in. It's called Miracle 7. It's made of almost the same exact stuff. It can do all of the same things you do, but... better. It makes my hair softer, shinier, healthier... Oh, and the slip and detangling... *sigh* It's more low maintenance, too. I don't have to spend so much on it. Granted, its fragrance can be a bit overwhelming at times, but its nothing I can't handle. Oh, and I know this is gonna sting even more, but its cuter than you. I mean, who doesn't like a sky blue and silver bottle with a big, cute cap sitting on their dresser? I'm sure you understand. Well, It's a 10, I guess this is goodbye. I think we should stay in touch though, you know, just in case. Love, A Very Picky Curly Girl.
35 out of 36 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No