Treatments -Paula's Choice - RESIST Weekly Resurfacing Treatment
HWL 4/23/2013 5:48:00 PM
I am on the fence with this one, because it's a bit strong for me. I am better with the 5%, which really so well or me. If I use this and go right back to the daily the next day, I end up irritated. But if I take a brief AHA break, it works better. It does help with breakouts. It goes on like liquid and you can leave it on for 10 minutes or longer and wash it off. It will soak in and continue to work. Others, will leave it on overnight. All depends on what your skin tolerates. The 2 product Resist AHA combo are expensive, as you still need a moisturizer. Most will like one better than the other (probably most this), but it is worth trying both. I am glad I got this. PC seems to be about layering many products, which all come in endless formulations, your way. That lets you adjust things. It can also be confusing, as some of PC's products break me out or are too strong, but they do give refunds or store credit and send samples. I said I would rebuy most likely. But I do need something stronger sometimes and this fits that bill.
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Sunscreen -Cerave - Body Lotion SPF 50
HWL 4/20/2013 11:15:00 AM
I like this so for for body use. It's goes on not too greasy for a mineral sunscreen. You do have to rum it in, but it turns matte, but is not drying. I can't use this on my face. I prefer the Cerave AM for that. Others I have tried were greasier and had less SPF. So this is nice.
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Eye Shadow -Clinique - Chubby Stick Shadow Tint for eyes
HWL 4/19/2013 3:16:00 PM
I got Lilac and Willow and they are a little light, esp. the Lilac, but they go on so easy. The colors are nice. I have problems getting eye shadow on the right place and say put. So few shadows do that. I prefer mat , but these do not accent creases. Both work with blue eyes. The green was a surprise. I want to try other colors. I was looking for light colors when I got these. So easy to apply. Love them.
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Treatments -Paula's Choice - RESIST Daily Smoothing Treatment with 5% AHA
HWL 4/18/2013 4:46:00 PM
Have tried many AHAs and BHAs and this works the best for me, because it is so gentle. I thought I might tolerate it better, but didn't expect it to do much, but it is quite powerful. I have a lot of dead skin in my pores and I flake out and break out. I have dry red patches on the nose and near it. Exfoliating is the only thing that helps, but overdoing it can send me into a tailspin and make it worse. This has reduced the redness and fast, with no tailspin. The weekly is needed deal with buildup and breakout attacks that I still get. It's a drag it takes 2 products and expensive, but you can fine tune how much you use of each. I use this with the Barrier Repair Moisturizer for the retinol, to even out skin tone and attack dark spots. I have many more good days with these products. Overall PC products are hit or miss for me and some too drying and some break me out, but this is great. CS is helpful about refunds and store credit and sending samples. Glad I finally tried this.
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Liquid -Almay - Wake-up liquid foundation
HWL 4/14/2013 5:41:00 PM
I bought it because they were out of my shade of Neutrogena Healthy Skins and I wanted something with SPF. This is not amazing, but it is not bad either. Nice match on the skin color and not too pink. I do need concealer, but that is a given. It's not heavy coverage and no wakeup effect. I do notice a shimmer in some lights. Other than that I haven't had any problems. Goes on easy with a brush or with hands and I don't use nearly as much, as I was with Neutrogena or have problems getting it out of the bottle. It's not for days I need heavy coverage.
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Sunscreen -Paula's Choice - RESIST Ultimate Anti-Aging Hand Cream SPF 30 + Antioxidants
HWL 4/6/2013 2:40:00 PM
This alas did not work as a face SS, but works nicely as a hand cream, which is what it is. It is very light and thin, so I can see why people are using it on their face. Minerals break me out alas! This has a lovely texture and goes in very quickly. I'd say it's pretty sheer. Rubs on like thin slightly oily lotion, but dries very fast. I wish I could use it on my face!I t has a much nicer texture than the Resist SPF face moisturizer, which was very thick yet left me dry. Also broke me out. I like a fair amount of moisturizer on my face, so this was less hydrating than I'd want ideally. Still, were it not for the breakouts that I get from minerals, I use it in a heart beat on my face. I sill like it on my hands and chest. I think for this be something to consider if you tolerate mineral ss for your face.
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Treatments -Paula's Choice - Resist Ultra-Light Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum
HWL 3/6/2013 8:56:00 PM
It's a bit early to review this, as I have not used it long enough to say it's changed my skin. I will say the texture really is different then her other serums and I think this will make people happy. Feels like it absorbs completely and leaves no shine. It is not, however, silicone free. It is geared towards people with oily skin, but is not drying. It is said to help clear pores. It is described as having a watery texture, but is thicker than water and opaque. It does drip out of the tube faster, so I store it upright. This is more expensive than her other serums, but with all of them you only need a drop. So I think the serums are a pretty good deal. Texture is a nice change. The regular resist could be used as non tinted primer, if you like that shiny, silky texture. As many of her toners and BHA gels leave a shine, it's nice to have this non-shiny option. The Earth Source Toner is nice for that reason as well.
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Moisturizers -Cerave - Renewing Lotion
HWL 3/3/2013 8:16:00 PM
I was looking for a gentle exfoliant that was very hydrating. Exfoliants dry me out, but I did need them. This is very hydrating so that helps. It comes in a very thick base, that is much thicker than the PM or AM even. I got it mainly for my face, which has some breakouts and redness, as I am very dehydrated and for KP on arms and dry elbows and feet. It is $17, you but get a lot more than the PM or AM, but less than the regular lotion. I think many would find this too thick.. But if you have dry rough skin, that can be a plus. It does feel a bit greasy. I'd say it has a consistency of one of the heavier Eucerine lotions. It does have mineral oil, which might make some break out. I think it has both a PHA and a BHA, but with a high PH level that would make it less effective. Update: Did exfoliate, but I think also clogged t-zone. Tricky for face. But seems good for KP.
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Masks -Paula's Choice - skin recovery hydrating treatment mask
HWL 2/22/2013 6:04:00 PM
This product broke me out. But then I went crazy with AHAs and pro-retinol (not from PC), but I don't really tolerate them as well as I'd like. So I ended up very red and sore and this is the only thing that helped ease the pain and I have been slobbering it on with neosporine as night cream and it's been a Godsend. So I think I will keep some sample packs or a tube of of this around for emergencies. I am avoiding my forehead where I break out the most though. I think I am more sensitive and dehydrated than dry skin. I might even be combo skin (the combo being dry/oilier not oily/normal). Still, I can get quite dry.. This also terrific for really chapped hands, as I had the dumb idea of exfoliating my cracked fingers tips. Some of the products in this line are too hydrating for me, which was something I did not think was possible. I am checking out some of the other lines. Anyway I found a use for this.
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Crème -Laura Mercier - Silk Creme Foundation
HWL 2/19/2013 2:42:00 PM
This is disappointing. Beautypedia gives a good review, but I am wondering if they test mu by actually wearing for some time, not just looking at the ingredients and trying a swatch on the back of the hand. I thought it would coverage and have staying power for bad days. Well, it has coverage at first and goes on pretty nicely. You don't really need concealer. It's fairly thick so is doesn't spread far and you have to work fast. Fine. But, it fades and settles into the cracks and looks caked on and dried out as the day wears on. Also some of it fades. The undertones are cool, which is nice, but the lightest wasn't quite light enough. I could have lived with that, as if it's really light enough it wouldn't have enough coverage. Maybe it could be mixed with a foundation that has too little coverage to good effect and find some use for it. Worked better one day when my skin was in great shape, but what doesn't? Hardly a reason to spend $$$.
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Treatments -Clinique - Repairwear Lift Firming Day Cream SPF 15--Dry to Very Dry Skin
HWL 2/12/2013 2:53:00 PM
They changed it. It wasn't great, but it din't break me out and was fine, though not wonderful. As everything was breaking me out, I decided to try it again. It was crazy thick, even by spf standards. So it's very greasy and I usually tolerate a lot of grease. They added retinol, which might be good, but is very drying. So I ened up with a greasy, heavy, drying cream with a cloying smell (like roses but is not fragrance). My faced really started to burn.
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Treatments -Unlisted Brand - Cure - Natural Aqua Gel
HWL 2/4/2013 10:02:00 AM
This is great stuff, but it was a bit scary to try. I have very delicate, but dry skin, though not flakey. I think I was a bit tepid at first and used to little, did not let it sit long enough and massaged in circles. What came off was very granular or sandlike and felt like I was using a scrub. If you go half way, you can cause breakouts and make your skin look scary and dry and red. I wasn't sure if it was too strong for me. But I kept using it that way every 3 days and more kept coming off. Last night, after doing that, I did a test on my chin with more and left it longer and realized I had not been doing it right. So I slathered on enough gel for my face to look good and wet and waited about a minute and rubbed slowly upward or sideways with the whole hand. FInally the dead skin rolled off gently in bigger white balls like the videos. I felt like a snake that shed it's skin. Amazing. I had no idea I had that much dead skin. The breakouts are gone and my skin looks really great. I am still getting figuring out how often to use this product. It is expensive, but it is really gentle and effective on my skin, which is quite sensitive. I could never get this effect with AHAs without damaging my skin. I am not throwing out those products yet, but have found the HG of exfoliators. It is pretty much perfect and very simple. Only cons, are it's expensive and not sold in the US. I got mine on Amazon. UPDATE: I just couldn't make it work. I have so much flakes and couldn't get a schedule right for me. Gone back to AHAs but use it for dead skin patches around ingrown nails and foot calluses.
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Concealers -Sonia Kashuk - All Covered Up Concealer
HWL 2/2/2013 7:28:00 PM
I tried in on over the Sonia Kashuk luminous foundation and it really was a bit dark against the lightest shade and did not blend well. It is very thick and hard to put on. So it looked blotchy. Then I read that the company recommends that you use it underneath the foundation. Under foundation, it is still a bit hard to blend, but worked well on the red blotches on my nose and cheeks. I wasn't so worried about blending it into the foundation. It looked great under the foundation, and helped dampen my red splotches and dark under eye circles. I can still use a lighter more spreadable concealer on top if needed. I don't love this concealer, but I did find a very good use for it. I see someone else talking about base concealers. Still, it is not a buy again for me.
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Liquid -Sonia Kashuk - Perfecting Liquid Foundation
HWL 2/2/2013 6:31:00 PM
So far I love this foundation which is light but looks natural and doesn't stick to creases. Love the yellow undertones as I am very pink. I am dry too and this looks luminous. It is quite heavy and doesn't spread far. So I like to use the duo multipurpose brush to almost stipple it on a little bit at a time. It really doesn't take to long and gives you a nice sheer finish. It won't cover everything, but the shades have lovely yellow undertones that balance out the redness. More might look too heavy or oily even, as it is very moisturizing. I got bisque, which is the lightest. There are not too many shades, but they are forgiving if applied with a light touch. I have very dry skin and applied it over moisturizer and clear primer. The All Covered Up cream concealer was awful on top of it, but worked well underneath, as suggested. I did need a bit of concealer after and used L'Oreal True Match Foundation for that. The L'Oreal is too matte and too light a shade for me to use as foundation . It is quite pigmented, it makes a very smooth concealer or lightener for other foundations. UPDATE: the pump is not working well, but. Target did let me replace it. Not a great pump though. There is smell that I don't like and it is not a long lasting, foundation but I was out in the wind with a scarf. All in all, for $9 is really is a lovely foundation. I am in love with the color.
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Makeup Brushes -Sonia Kashuk - Small Duo Fibre Multipurpose Brush
HWL 2/2/2013 6:12:00 PM
I think this is a great brush to use with the Sonia Kashuk Perfection Foundation. The foundation is quite heavy and does not blend far. They say the brush is meant to provide the sheerest application of foundation and it does. As the foundation is thick, I just pump a drop onto the brush (or on the back of my hand first) and then dab it lightly over a small area, stippling it almost. This works well for this foundation. I have not tired it on other foundations yet. I have tried my CVS foundation brush with this foundation for a heavier application and that worked too, but this is better. Although it is quite pigmented and thick foundation, less is more. The brush is helpful in achieving the proper application. It is a moisturizing, luminous foundation with yellow undertones. It won't cover everything but gives a very natural, slightly dewy, flattering look. You could go heavier, but it might look too oily or the color might be off as there only a few shades to choose from. I am very happy with the brush and the foundation. Update: One hair did fall out. I would try one of her larger higher end brushes and still like this.
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