Skincare - Face -Unlisted Brand - Huggies Gentle Care Sensitive Wipes
jmp24 11/23/2010 8:56:00 AM
I can't imagine why anyone would spend extra money on facial cleansing clothes when they can use these. They are the best. Of course, there is the price, which is lower than dirt cheap...but they do the job too. I originally had them around because I'm an artist, and they are good for quick hand cleanups when using pastel sticks. Even with heavy mascara on, I can get my face clean and residue free in no time at all. My skin is left feeling soft and refreshed, same as if I just washed it the way I normally do. I also feel you get a little extra exfoliation using these, so, depending on your skin type, you may not want to use them every night. I use them mostly when I am really tired or away from home and my cleansing "supplies". Hypoallergenic and fragrance free. Lately I have been thinking about trying a more "green" brand, so plan on seeing what they have at my local Whole Foods. If anyone uses any more natural baby wipes, I'd love to hear about it.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Masks -Unlisted Brand - Yogurt Mask
jmp24 11/21/2010 5:12:00 PM
I understand the rationale behind putting yogurt on your face. I like the idea of a no chemical, natural beauty treatment. I love the price, the fact that it is right there in the fridge whenever I am ready. What I could NOT stand was the smell. I don't eat yogurt, it sort of gags me, and the smell is not very pleasant to me either. Having it spread all over my face was not a nice experience. After about two minutes I had had enough and ran to wash it off before it made me throw up. I think I will stick to the organic honey mask.
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Eye Shadow -Urban Decay - Toasted
jmp24 11/21/2010 5:07:00 PM
Oh how I love urban decay's shimmer shadows - not the metallic or glitter ones, they are too messy, too sparkly, and often the base color is not very pigmented....but the shimmers!! They are one of the best eyeshadows for a decent price, I like them even more than most of the high end brands. Toasted is a warm rich golden brown that really emphasizes my brown eyes, and somehow brings out the flecks of green in them. I would imagine this shadow would work with any eyecolor. For day, I use it a little more lightly, like a liner with a little extra smudged up into a lighter color on my lids. At night I can go a little heavier. The best thing about the UD shadows, besides the rich and interesting colors, is their texture...for a powder shadow, they are somehow smooth and creamy too. Very decadent to use. Even the highly frosty colors go on this way, they never look chalky or emphasize every little line. With a good base, like most shadows, they stay on all day. I think this color is a new favorite, though I also love Baked and Half Baked, Roach, YDK, and that bronzey one with the green duo-chrome effect. If you have never tried UD shadows, they are worth your time.
9 out of 9 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Maybelline - Define A Lash Volume Mascara
jmp24 11/21/2010 11:57:00 AM
Not bad, but I have naturally long lashes that are not totally lacking in volume. The package said to not let dry between coats, but I think if you keep the coats thin, you can do at least two. I don't love it because I don't think it adds that much to volume, but it definitely separated and gave my lashes some good definition. Probably a great mascara for someone who has good lashes to begin with. Wears well too, all day with no smudging or flaking...but if you really want volume from a DS mascara, go with Lash Blast or Loreal Volumous. I probably won't purchase again, unless it was on sale. Edited to add: I've been using for a few weeks now, and this mascara has grown on me...I now love it. Nice long long lashes that look just as great at the end of the day as they did right after you applied. As I said above, not so much a volume mascara, but if you don't need or want extra volume, this is great. I am changing my rating to Yes, I would buy again. This and LashBlast are my favorites.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments (Eye) -Unlisted Brand - Hickory Ridge Organics Pure Shea Moisturizer
jmp24 11/20/2010 6:17:00 PM
I can't say enough nice things about this product! I've been using this company's natural olive oil based soaps for several years, it is no doubt one of the best soaps and comes in so many yummy choices... but their other stuff is great too. The Pure Shea Moisturizer is just what it says it is. No fragrance, no chemicals. I generally feel that eye creams are a waste of money, and usually contain the same stuff you find in facial moisturizers, that basically they are just a gimmick, a way to get us to spend extra money. I also feel that the sensitive skin of the eye area, more even than other parts of the face, should not be slathered with irritating chemical-laden creams. I bought this shea butter as a general moisturizer, and have found it to be great for hands, for lips, as a cuticle cream, for dry patches of skin, elbows, even as a sort of hair wax/texturizer. But as an eye cream, it is the BEST! I use it on my upper lids only and rub some into my lashes. It is very thick, sort of like the texture of stick cocoa butter but a little softer. You get a little on the tips of the ring fingers and then rub them together to warm it up, and it turns into this nice soft semi liquid balm that you can then tap onto you lids. It isn't too greasy, soaks in well, and you are not all oily in the morning from it. I do not believe that anything other than retin a products and surgery will remove wrinkles...but some things DO smooth them out and make your skin look better - and this is one of them. I love that it is a natural product as well. A small 2 oz tin is around $8, but will last a long time as a little goes a long way. Definitely highly recommended, especially if you are a lover of good quality natural ingredients. HickoryRidgeOrganics.com
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Eye Shadow -Jane - Eye Zings
jmp24 11/19/2010 9:34:00 PM
I see by the reviews that some swear by these as one of the best DS shadows...I don't. Sometimes it is just better to bite the bullet and splurge - I mean, you can get pretty decent eyeshadow from Urban Decay or Bare Escentuals for just a little over $10 these days, and worth every penny. I have a whole drawer full of cheaper eyeshadows from the drugstore, of every brand, all disappointing for some reason. There is only one that I can say that I have loved, and repurchased, over the past 10 or 15 years, and that is the Loreal Wear Infinite Berry Pinks Duo (now discontinued, naturally)....and of course, some of the old Milani singles were decent, but I discovered them too late, they were already discontinued by then. This time I was looking for a deep blue shadow to use more for lining than as a lid color, and I wanted a color that was not too vibrant and more matte than shimmer. I was really looking for a navy color, but didn't see any with the exception of in a Loreal quad with three other colors that I wasn't interested in. The Jane Eye Zing I finally picked is called Midnight, and it is a pretty darker medium blue with a slight shimmer. It seemed to have a decent pigmentation when I swiped it on my fingertip, but when layered on the lids, it is very sheer and I can tell that without primer, it would probably not last an hour. It also doesn't seem to blend very nicely - goes on patchy and uneven, streaky looking. As a liner, which is what I wanted it for, it fares a little better, though I really have to pack it on with smudge brush to get decent coverage. With primer, it looks good for most of the day - but, I doubt it would hold up as well in more humid weather. All in all, smudged along the upper and lower lashline, it gives a sort of a nice semi-smoky look for daytime. But, not exciting or quality enough to buy again, even at a low price. Too bad. I really need to drive the extra half mile to Ulta...
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Mascara -Maybelline - Volum' Express The Colossal
jmp24 11/10/2010 9:49:00 AM
I just can't think of enough bad things to say about this. A $1.99 tube of NYC mascara is far superior. First, it seems when you first pull out the wand, that it has very little product on it, which kind of tells me that there ain't very much INSIDE the tube. Second, it goes on very thinly and you are in big trouble if you try to build it up with second or third coats. It just does not layer well, lots of "drag" and spidery results - and it does not matter if you layer while the first layer is still wet, or if you wait and do your second/third coats after the first coat dries. You get bad results with both times. Then, at the end of the night when I tried to wash it off, even soap and water wouldn't do the job. I don't have time for makeup remover or messing around with baby oil - I want my mascara to come off with the rest of my makeup when I wash my face. Then, to make matters even worse, after I finally got it off, my lashes feel weird, gummy, and a few actually fell out from all the rough treatment. I thought maybe since the skimpy first coat wasn't a total disaster, that I would keep it for "light makeup" days...however, even on light makeup days, I like to pile on the mascara. So, it wouldn't work for that either. If I were the type to make the drugstores honor their money-back-return policies, I would march this right back to Rite Aid. But, I'm not. Now, most products that I don't feel live up to par go in the "lost" makeup drawer....this one? Right in the TRASH.
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Bronzers -Wet 'n' Wild - Ultimate Minerals Bronzer in Amber Glow
jmp24 11/7/2010 1:14:00 PM
I don't know what it is with me and cheap bronzers - just one of those things I hate to spend a lot of money on. One of my favorite cheap ones is the now DC'd WnW Acapulco Glow...a highlighter really, with a warm toastly barely there sheen. Perfect. I can't find it anywhere now, and my last one is down to about a quarter teaspoon of little crumbs. Anyway, I decided to try the Ultimate Minerals bronzer, which has been out for a while. There was only one color at the store I went to, Amber Glow. I love it. It has much more color than Acapulco, and is a more bronzy peach, with just a slight, very slight, suggestion of shimmer. One dusting gives a light, soft, sunkissed effect. You can build it up a little more with additional applications, but you are never going to get a really obvious look, unless maybe you are extremely pale. Comes in the typical mineral jar with sifter lid, and the sifter lid inside has it's own little lid, which makes it much less messy. It only "sifts" out when you want it to. No brush comes with it, which is fine, you will probably want to use your own better quality one anyway. I like it a lot. It looks very natural, which is something you want with bronzer. Staying power is ok, the same as most mineral products on me. Definitely recommended if you don't want to spend too much and if the look you are going for is subtle. WnW is hit or miss for me, for the most part I don't care for the line, but this mineral bronzer (and the mineral blushes) are pretty decent. I would buy again for sure.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -New York Color - Lengthening Mascara - Black
jmp24 11/3/2010 11:38:00 AM
This is a cheap, non clumping mascara with a thin formula that actually does lengthen lashes. However, it does not have enough "oomph" for me to use alone, so I have been using it as a first coat sort of primer before putting on other mascaras. It seems to work great for that!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Styling Products -Aveeno - Active Naturals Nourish + Style Smoothing Shine Creme
jmp24 11/3/2010 11:32:00 AM
I like this a lot. It was inexpensive ($6.49 at CVS) and seems to do what it says. I have medium thick but fine textured hair that tends not so much to frizz, but to just do it's own thing in more humid weather, and not look very smooth. I usually use the Neutrogena leave in styling conditioning creme, and think this is very comparable. It leaves my hair smooth and soft, with a nice shine and light body. The effect seems to last all day. It comes in a nice pump bottle. Not a strong scent. This is the first Aveeno hair product I have tried, and since I am happy with the results, I will have to try more! EDITED TO ADD I must have just been having really good hair days when I first used this, because now it ain't doing a dang thing. In fact, I think it is making my hair look flat and frizzy at the ends. Blahh.
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Eye Primer -Mary Kay - Eye Primer
jmp24 10/31/2010 12:04:00 PM
Awful. One hour after applying my mineral shadow on top of this primer, I have creasing and whole areas of disappeared shadow. And my eyes are watering and burning slightly. I didn't use too much, and I have nothing else new on that could be causing the watering, and after reading that other reviewers have the same problem with it, I have to say that it must be the primer. Not good. It comes in a .3oz tube. The formula looks like a lotion. It goes on nice, even, but seems to dry fast and doesn't have that slightly tacky finish that grabs onto the shadow, which made me skeptical at first. I could live with it not being the best primer, but I can't live with the burning and watery eyes. I do believe I will be letting Mary Kay know about this....it wasn't exactly cheap, I think it was between $10 and $14. Off to wash this crap off and start over....
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Lipstick -Mary Kay - Signature Lipstick Whipped Berries
jmp24 10/23/2010 11:30:00 AM
The color is a pretty, not-too-cool deep pink, slight shimmer. A very light touch is just enuff to darken the lips and still look natural. A little on the dry side, which is good because that means better staying power for me. I use it like a stain, apply with my fingers, and if I need to glam it up a little, add some lipgloss on top. It's a nice lipstick, but overpriced. Many others can be found for a lot less money at any drugstore. Lipstick is just one of those things that I have a hard time justifying spending a lot of money on. Of course I want something that has a nice formula and color and staying power, but like I said, I can find that for half of what this costs. The only products I will splurge on are face stuff - foundation, highlighters, sometimes blush, and sometimes eyeshadow. For everything else, and especially for lipstick, there are just too many acceptable and low cost alternatives to justify spending $14 that this MK lipstick costs. My sister in law had a party, and because I wanted her to get whatever bonus she had coming, I picked up a few things. And I don't necessarily dislike Mary Kay- like most lines it has it's good and it's bad. But I would not buy this again, the only reason being the cost.
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Powder -Mary Kay - Mineral Powder Foundation
jmp24 10/18/2010 9:16:00 AM
This is just so so. Like most MK stuff, it is overpriced. The texture of the powder is ok, the staying power is ok, but it has no pizazz. The color is boring, flat looking, a tad chalky. I find the only way to liven it up a little is to either apply it over top of something like a BE Clear Radiance, or any other fine milled shimmer powder, or apply a very light dusting of same shimmer over top of the foundation. Another thing I am going to try is mixing it with a little Clear Radiance before applying....but all this stuff is too much work, when I can buy mineral foundation ready made with more of a glow than this gives. I only just started using it, and it isn't so bad that I will give it away or negate it to the "bad" makeup drawer...so if anything changes, I will be sure to edit. Edited to add that nothing has changed...I still don't like this, it still looks chalky, and I just wanted to say, after reading the review above this one, that I have been wearing mineral makeup for years, have tried every price range, and that I DO know how to prep my skin (wash and moisturize) before applying. I would suggest that anyone who wants to try this sample it first. Most sellers of MK should either have or be able to get you a sample.
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Blush -Mary Kay - Shy Blush
jmp24 10/17/2010 11:45:00 AM
Ok, aside from the fact that they make you buy the compact separately, and that the size of the blush is about the size of an eyeshadow, I like this. Even though i am older and my skin is not as smooth as it used to be, I still think a little dewy sheen looks nice, as long as the color is subtle and you don't over do it. I love some of the BE radiances for this look, and also Nars Orgasm, The Balm's Hot Mama, and even Cover Girl Cheekers Snow Plum. This blush, Shy Blush, is up there with the best. The particles are very small, so the effect is very sheer. The sheen is on the gold side, and it can be used as a blush or highlighter, I have even put a little on my eyelids on lighter makeup days. I love to dust it over my face right after foundation, and it also looks great with no makeup underneath. Of course at night one can use a heavier hand with this. A little goes a long way, which is great because they really give you a little pan full for your 10 bucks.
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Cleansers -Mary Kay - TimeWise 3-in-1 cleanser N/D
jmp24 10/17/2010 11:29:00 AM
I love this cleanser, though I think it's overpriced. There are 2 versions, one for more oily skin, one for dry. The dry skin one is the one I use, though I have used the other one too. The one for oily skin is a gel cleanser and I found it a bit drying. The formula for dry skin is a creamy cleanser. It contains little beads, which are not abrasive at all, though they could be if you scrubbed hard. I treat my face very gently, so I don't know. The cleanser feels good on the skin, has a nice creamy lather, and rinses clean without leaving you feeling tight or stripped. A little goes a long way. I'd probably have it on hand all the time if it were a little less expensive, gone are the days when i would spend more than $10 for a cleanser. Besides, I mostly use natural bar soap as a facial cleanser now, and if I feel I need more abrasiveness, I add a quarter teaspoon full of baking soda to my hands after I have lathered them up. (actually, baking soda can be added to any basic low-ingredient cleanser for extra scrubbing effects) Anyway, I find this MK Timewise cleanser to be very nice, not overly fragranced, non-irritating or pore clogging, and even luxurious to use. If only it were just a little less expensive, but I guess those MK ladies gotta make their commission too. If anyone knows of a dupe for this cleanser, I'd love to hear about it.
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