Lipstick -L'Oreal - Colour Riche in Fairest Nude
Susan2148A 6/5/2013 12:29:00 PM
Not for me. Made my lips pale and pasty, and I didn't care for the fragrance. I thought it might be a cheaper alternative to my MAC Viva Glam V, but it's nowhere close.
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Primer/ Corrector -Laura Mercier - Foundation Primer Radiance
Susan2148A 5/20/2013 12:59:00 PM
I have been using a sample of this and just ordered a full-size tube yesterday. I have super oily, scarred and pitted skin, and this is the best primer I have ever used. (I have tried many primers, from Monistat anti-chafing gel to HE products and all did little to improve my skin's appearance or make my makeup last longer). I apply Radiance over my Neutrogena UltraSheer Dry-touch Sunblock. I let the SS set for a few minutes before applying the primer. After the primer I'm applying either ColorStay, CG Outlast or L'Oreal True Match, and all stay on longer and wear better than with any other primer I've tried. I had stopped using CG Outlast because it would turn orange-y toward the end of the day, but the color stays true on Radiance. My face doesn't get nearly as oily through the day and my foundation looks as good near the end of the day as when I applied it. I've been touching up with powder only once during the day. That's huge for me. So, I wouldn't discourage oily-skinned women from trying this. It might not work for everyone, but for me, Queen of the Oilies, it has been a real find. One slight negative, though -- when I apply my Bare Minerals over Radiance, it goes on splotchy and looks muddy. So, for me, Radiance words best under liquid foundations.
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Fragrances -Lancome - La Vie Est Belle
Susan2148A 5/8/2013 1:43:00 PM
I received a sample from Sephora, sprayed it on, and I wish I hadn't. It's just another sweet, sugary, vanilla-y fragrance that stops short of giving me a headache. I'm glad I didn't buy it. As the sweetness fades, an old-fashioned powdery scent emerges, which reminds me of inexpensive DS fragrances of long ago. I expected more from Lancome.
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Blush -Cover Girl - Cheekers Blush in Brick Rose
Susan2148A 5/6/2013 2:59:00 PM
I bought this after reading reviews because I was looking for something peach-ish. I normally wear blue-based pinks, mauves, etc., and I wanted something natural-looking and easy to apply. I'm NW 20-25 and this works well on me because it doesn't accentuate the pink/blue in my cheeks. I have tried many HE blushes through the years and have a few in my stash, but I keep coming back to my CG Plumberry Glow and now Brick Rose. If you're sensitive to smell, then don't buy it. It has that CG smell we're all familiar with. It lasts on my oily face as long as any other blush I've worn (including each and every HE blush) and it's was around 4 bucks.
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Treatments (Eye) -Clinique - All About Eyes
Susan2148A 4/12/2013 8:50:00 AM
I'm 53 and I have been using this product since I was in my mid 40's or so. I don't have problems with dark circles or lots of wrinkles, but my lids are crepey and I sometimes have some under eye puffiness due to allergies, drinking, daily life, etc. If I wake up puffy, I put this under my eyes first thing then have my coffee, read email, etc. until I'm ready to shower. I don't put it on again before makeup because I use a SPF product on my face and under my eyes. At night, I apply it on my lids and under my eyes. I think it helps keep the skin moisturized, it does help with puffiness, but if you're looking for a product to fix the under eye circles you've been fighting for years, this might not be your product. I think it's especially good for women with oily skin and those who like gel products more than thick, heavy creamy products.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powders -Johnson & Johnson - Baby Powder
Susan2148A 4/2/2013 4:34:00 PM
I'm 52 and this has been, for the most part, my go-to setting powder since I was in my 20's. I've tried mattifying powders, rice powders, HE loose and pressed powders, DS loose and pressed powders, and for my extremely oily skin, this works best for me. I have a plastic container with a screw-on lid that I squeeze powder into. Not a sifter, but what is basically a Rubbermaid-type container in which you'd carry salad dressing for lunch. I apply the powder with an Eco Tools retractable kabuki. I dip the edges of the bristles into the powder, then press and swirl the brush in the container's lid to work the powder into the brush. Those of you who use BM know what I'm talking about. My skin coloring is NW 20-25 and I'm fair with lots of pink in my skin. After applying my foundation (or TM or BB cream), I set it with baby powder, and I make sure to include my eyelids. After applying my blush, I blend it with a bit of powder, swirling the brush. I end up with a matte face without added coverage or color. I'm too old for colored face powders that do nothing but sink into lines and highlight everything that needs to be hidden. Baby powder does the trick. I use regular baby powder - not cornstarch baby powder. I learned the hard way that once I sweat and/or my face gets oily, the cornstarch version collects in squint/smile lines and wrinkles and creates silvery lines on my face. THAT I do not need!
7 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
BB Cream -Garnier - BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector for Combination to Oily Skin
Susan2148A 4/2/2013 4:24:00 PM
I've been using this for about a week, and I'm liking it. I won't be able to use it for long because warm weather is on the way, and this will just slide off my face in the heat. However, I can see me applying this in the morning when I'm in a hurry, versus Colorstay which takes a bit more time. The color appeared to be too yellow (I'm NW 20-25, and I bought Fair/Medium) for me, but it works fine when I apply it. It evens out my skintone, hides some flaws and makes my skin look good. I still have to touch up with concealer, but I have to do that with just about any product. I have to apply powder to set it (I use J&J baby powder) and I have to re-powder a couple of times during the day. Again, that's a given with my oily skin regardless of my foundation/TM/BB cream. What I hate about this product is the packaging. It's a tube that stands on its lid. The product is runny, so you're in for a flood of excess product once you remove the lid, if you're storing it on its lid. It's especially aggravating when applying product. I wedge the tube between foundation bottles in my makeup box so I don't have to keep putting the cap back on while I'm working on different parts of my face. If I lay the tube on its side, product runs out. Other than that, I'l pleased. Will I buy it again? I said yes, but I'm fickle and if something better comes along later, maybe not.
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Liquid -Cover Girl - Outlast Stay Fabulous 3 in 1 Foundation
Susan2148A 3/9/2013 2:24:00 PM
I wore this foundation for about two weeks and had to stop because it turns orange on me by the end of the day. It doesn't "set" as well as Colorstay and doesn't last throughout the day like Colorstay. By late afternoon I'm looking orange-y, splotchy and greasy. However, I love the pump and I love how the foundation goes on and how it looks immediately after application; it just doesn't stay that way.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Burt's Bees - Doctor Burt's Res-Q Ointment
Susan2148A 2/22/2013 4:31:00 PM
I've had a tin of this for a few months and forget to use it, and it settles to the bottom of a drawer. Well, my dishwasher has been broken for days, and it won't be fixed for more than a week. I forget to wear gloves when washing dishes and I developed a deep crack on my right thumb -- it looks as if someone took a very sharp knife and make a vertical slit at the corner of the nail. Extremely painful. I found my tin of ointment, and (forgive me if this is TMI), raked my sore thumb across the top of the ointment so the crack was filled with the ointment. I also rubbed it in around all my cuticles. The split that was sore this morning? NOT SORE NOW - about five hours later. Seriously, the smallest thing hurt, like zipping my jeans, unscrewing lids, hitting the space bar on my computer, all kinds of every day things you don't think about until they cause pain. I'm going to keep the tin out on my bathroom counter so I'll use it more often.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Wet 'n' Wild - Color Icon Single in Brulee
Susan2148A 2/7/2013 10:00:00 AM
This has replaced MAC Brule and Bobbi Brown Bone for me. I have to correct something said by another reviewer -- WNW Brule is not $13 cheaper than Bobbi Brown -- it's $19 cheaper. WNW Brule goes on smooth and creamy -- for me MAC Brule went on almost as well as the WNW and BB Bone went on almost chalky. I wear this as my everyday eye color, along with some liner and mascara. I use this all over my lid up to my brow, my inner eye and below my eye right under the lash line. It lasts all day on me, but I'm applying it on top of MAC Paint Pot in Painterly. It doesn't make my eyes look crepey and doesn't fade or get shiny through the day. It brightens my eye area and tones down some of the blueness in my lids. This, for me, works better than any HE shadow I've used.
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Paint Pot in Painterly
Susan2148A 2/5/2013 9:42:00 PM
I've had my pot for over a year and I'm about to hit the bottom. This is one product I use pretty much everyday. My shadows, blushes, lipsticks vary from day to day, but Painterly is my go-to everyday shadow primer. I also use it to conceal blemishes and some discolorations. I've tried UD primers (all of them) and not one comes close to this paint pot. I will use it as long as MAC makes it. My lids are super oily, and this is the only product I've ever used that makes it possible to keep shadow from sliding off my lids.
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Bronzers -Wet 'n' Wild - Reserve Your Cabana
Susan2148A 2/4/2013 1:18:00 PM
I bought this based on another reviewer's comments -- that this isn't sparkly but more like a glow. I have oily skin, I'm 52, and most highlighters do nothing but highlight everything I'm trying to hide, along with making me look greasy. This is a great product. As a brow highlighter, it lightens my brow bone without being silver, sparkly, glittery or even shimmery. It's glow-y. Same for using on the tops of my cheeks. I have large pores and acne scars and other highlighters just grab onto and accentuate the problems. This product is a perfect of example that just because a product costs more doesn't make it better.
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -L'Oreal - True Match Super-Blendable Makeup SPF 17
Susan2148A 1/23/2013 12:36:00 PM
I have one huge point to make about this foundation, but let me get this out of the way -- packaging stinks, like how it feels, goes on a bit sheer for me so I have to build coverage in a couple of areas, and it lasts mosts of the day on my oily skin. The best thing about this product for me is that I found the closest color match I've ever found with any foundation. Bear with me here... I have pink skin. Pink face, pink hands, pink, pink, pink. Years ago I would have my loose powder and foundation custom blended at the Prescriptives counter and would usually get comments about my pinkness. I tried True Match a few years back and thinking I needed to match my pinkness, I tried C2 and C3 and ended up with a fairly decent match to my face but my neck looked white and rashy. I decided to try True Match again (partly due to product boredom, mostly due to my skin is reacting badly to winter and I wanted something less matte than BM yet quicker to apply than Colorstay). I got on the lorealparisusa.com site and took the quiz to find my color match. It chose W3 for me. I took it two more times, changed some answers (not sure if my natural hair is light or dark brown, are my eyes honey brown or hazel), and still ended up with either W2 or W3. The quiz asks you to look at the veins on the insides of your wrists and choose whether they're more green, more blue or a bit of both. I'm blue all the way around. So, I go to my Walgreen's and there's a L'Oreal foundation card -- the clear card you hold above yet not touching the inside of your wrist, and the foundation shade that "disappears" is your color. I tried the card, and the color that disappeared was W3. I bought W3, and even as I was applying it, I'm thinking, "This is way too yellow." I applied with a damp sponge and had to add another layer on my cheeks and by my nose to cover redness (my redness is actually purpleness). When I was finished, it looked great. I went outside with a mirror and I could not tell the difference between the color of my face and the color of my neck. I could not be more pleased with the color match. I'm aging, I have discolorations and imperfections, and this is a lighter-weight foundation that won't scream, "I have stuff to hide." I'm happy.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -L'Oreal - True Match Minerals
Susan2148A 1/7/2013 11:37:00 AM
There are two foundations I always use and always will: Bare Minerals and Revlon Colorstay; but the BM is lousy for travel, so I decided to give this a try, and I am very pleased. The packaging stinks, the product is too expensive, but I'll buy it because it goes on easy, fast and looks great. Plus, you can just toss the whole thing in your bag and not worry about having the correct brush for application. I also use the mattifying powder in the same type of packaging, and I love it as well. There are some days when I want something that goes on fast without a lot of fuss, and this does it for me. I just wish there was a better way to package it and still include a brush that doesn't have to be carried separately from the product. I am NW 20-25, and I use Natural Ivory, 461 C1/2 and it works beautifully.
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Candles -Bath and Body Works - in general
Susan2148A 12/6/2012 1:11:00 PM
I love BBW candles. They burn evenly, cleanly and they burn completely up. I've never had a problem with uneven burning which can leave unused wax on one side of the jar. The one thing I do not like about them is having to go into BBW to get them. I appreciate their SAs' product knowledge and eagerness to help, but it can be over the top and annoying. I was in the store about 15 minutes yesterday to purchase a candle as a gift and one for myself, and I was approached seven times while I was in there. You can't look at something without an SA stopping to give you the low-down. Sometimes I just want to be left alone. But I love their candles and they're worth the annoyance.
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