Moisturizers -LUSH - Vanishing Cream
amberflash 4/4/2010 7:59:00 AM
As a night cream this stuff made all of the blackheads on my nose completely disappear!! As a day cream, it keeps my skin soft all day without being greasy -- it sinks right in. And I kind of feel better knowing it's because of roses and witch hazel. Plus, the smell is heavenly. My favourite LUSH moisturiser by far!
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Mascara -Collection 2000 - Magi-Length Mascara
amberflash 4/3/2010 7:37:00 PM
Amazing, super-long, separated lashes that don't clump or shed!! YAY! How is it possible that this is less than £5?
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Masks -LUSH - Santa Rice Porridge
amberflash 3/30/2010 5:22:00 PM
Leaves my skin smooth, calm and hydrated - check! Gorgeous marzipan-like smell - check! Knocks those zits outta the park -- check check check! This is a fantastic face mask. It *is* a teeny bit difficult to spread as it's made with real oats and they are a bit thick (like porridge, hence the name!). However, if you add a fre drops of water to the clump on your fingers and then spread it between your hands, it smooths to a nicer consistency that sticks more easily on your face for a really wonderful cake-smelling treat! Thanks LUSH! I only wish this were more than a Christmas special. :-(
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Fragrances -Unlisted Brand - Nez a Nez - Ambre e Sade
amberflash 9/19/2009 11:32:00 AM
HEAVEN IN A BOTTLE!!!! Sweet, juicy strawberries on a bed of caramel with the slightest touch of leather, vanilla, and patchouli to lend sophistication. The caramel scent is very true and the strawberries top notes are ripe and sweet. The base, however, is complex enough to push this firmly away from the cheap "birthday cake" smells you get in deparment stores and safely into "gourmand art" territory. Men will stop you on the streets to get a sniff. The only downside is the price, sadly.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Unlisted Brand - Nez a Nez - Marron Chic
amberflash 9/19/2009 11:22:00 AM
Gorgeous stuff. The iris and benzoin highlight the particular flavour of the cocoa bean that is NOT sweet -- if you erased the sugar from chocolate, you might be left with this incredibly sophisticated, deep, warm mahogany-coloured scent, slightly earthy but refined, like an antique mink coat on a polished wood floor. There's nothing else like it.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Dolce & Gabbana - Fragrance Anthology L'Imperatrice
amberflash 8/5/2009 7:13:00 PM
Glorious, glorious watermelon!! I sprayed this in Selfridges the other day, expecting it to be another boring fruity floral. NO. This is mostly fruit - in that lovely, tangy way of Byredo Pulp -- except instead of apples and plums, this is a blast of perfect , distinct watermelon nestled in a bowl of fresh cut kiwi and orange. None of that horrible straight chemically-synthetic flowers smell you usually get mixed in with designer label fragrances. I've been looking for a while for a nice, straight melon scent that isn't too cloying or bland, and this is it for me! It's sweet, but not at all boring, and fruity fruity fruity!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Scrubs -Origins - Modern Friction
amberflash 6/27/2009 6:57:00 PM
A little pricey, but definitely worth it! The scrub is gentle, but blimey - I'm not sure if it's the rice powder or lemon juice or what, but after using this once my skin feels the way it does after a 30 minute peel - soft, radiant, and brand spanking new. After using it and rinsing in the show, I went out today without makeup, and you know what - my face looked great! My pores had shrunken up, my skin was soft and glowing, and all of my red patches were gone. Miracle stuff. I'll be buying more when this jar runs out.
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Toners -Thayers - Rose Petal Alcohol Free Witch Hazel
amberflash 5/1/2009 7:51:00 PM
Best toner ever in the whole wide world... yadda yadda. You've heard it before and although I am Thayer's Rose Petal Witch Hazel's most stalwart disciple, I don't have anything new to add to its prowess as a toner. HOWEVER - why has no one mentioned that this stuff doubles as *the best* cure for an eye infection I have ever come across. I get these "colds" in my eyes (the doctor calls them "colds" but if unchecked my eyes get sealed up with disgusting crusty stuff and I'm basically rendered blind - not fun). The doc usually prescribes these horrible eye drops which DON'T really work and I end up having to suffer for two or three weeks with gunky eyes, dropping horrible liquid onto my sensitive eyeballs and basically feeling miserable. But Thayer's Rose Petal Witch Hazel cures my eye infections in an hour or less! I just soak a cotton ball in the stuff until it's dripping, then squeeze the excess liquid onto my open eye, then blink, then repeat every 10-15 minutes or so. Like magic, my eye infection disappears!! I've read that witch hazel is good for eye infections because of its qualities as an antiseptic and astringent. But when I use "straight" witch hazel, or even the normal Thayer's blend of witch hazel and aloe, it stings like all heck. But something about the precise formula of this stuff is pain-free, fast acting, and of course lovely smelling. So, in short: 1) most perfect toner ever invented. And it's cheap! 2) gets rid of the red spots on my skin and evens out the sebum production 3) doubles as an awesome cure for horrible eye infections! If this product were a man, I would have married it already. :-)
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Unlisted Brand - Angela Flanders - Coramandel
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:31:00 PM
My literature calls this one "Coromandel" (with an "o") and says, "a gentle oriental. Ylang ylang, Jasmin, Roses, and Lemon leaves float on a Cedarwood heart, with hints of Incense, Sandalwood, and Exotic spices." I had a sniff in the shop and that about sums it up - a warm citrus with a floral air and a woody/spiced base. A pleasant autumn-type scent. But there are better ones in this line for sure! Angela Flanders has earmarked this one as a unisex scent.
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Fragrances -Demeter - Ocean Pick Me Up Spray
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:29:00 PM
Tanning skin, salt, ozone, wet sand, marine water... and just a touch of driftwood? A highly wonderful marine/beach scent that is most likely highly underrated because it's a Demeter. But surprise! The longevity is GREAT. The smell, while simple and without much evolution, lasts in its entireity for hours and hours. Not as amazing as Laura Tonatto's Oltre as far as matching the smell of the sea and I'm not sure it's art, but for the price it's pretty fantastic.
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Fragrances -Demeter - Pruning Shears Pick me up spray
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:27:00 PM
Green grass, green leaves, metal, and a hint of roses. A friend of mind gave it a try and loved it so much she went out and bought a bottle! I don't love it as much as Demeter's Ocean, Holy Smoke, or Stable... but it's up there. The longevity, however, is the pits. It only lasts about 20 minutes on me.
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Fragrances -Balmain - Pierre Balmain Vent Vert
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:25:00 PM
Listed notes for the new version are: greens, orange blossom, lemon, lime, basil, rose, galbanum, lily of the valley, freesia, hyacinth, tagetes, ylang-ylang, violet, oakmoss, sandalwood, sage, iris, amber, and musk. I've been on a green kick lately, and have read several articles about this one so I finally broke down and bought a 50ml on ebay. And, wow! I think I may have to get a 100ml! The opening notes are a burst of fresh greens - crushed stems, leaves, cut grass, sage. Once the dry-down begins, however, the scent settles into something like powdery limes -- sweet in a lovely and a perfect background for the musk and florals as they develop, at last the perfume taking on the quality of its name, "green wind". As we hit the base notes, and the musk and florals interweave with the sugared limes and greens, the perfume can indeed feel like a soft, gentle spring breeze, carrying on it the floral notes of fruit trees in flower, twigs, sap and all. It's a scent I'll never be ashamed to have trailing after me. :-) Sillage is good and longevity is excellent.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Guerlain - Aqua Allegoria Mentafollia
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:21:00 PM
I know this AA has been discontinued, but as its only been recently so I was able to purchase a large bottle fairly cheaply on ebay. I'm a big fan of Herba Fresca, another minty AA, so I was eager to compare the two. Why is HF still around and Mentafollia discontinued? So here I sit with HF sprayed on my left hand and Mentafolia on my right. They are both minty, minty, minty! But whereas HF has the crisp grass and basil notes that give it a (no surprise!) herbaceous, fragrant salad-y smell, Mentafollia's mint seems very intertwined with its tea notes. In fact, on my skin this perfume might better be called Mentafollia The' (mint leaf tea) as the mint notes seem to be on equal turf with the tea notes in this composition. Like most AAs, there isn't much evolution from top notes to dry down. The cedar is light and barely detectable (definitely not the woody presence in a composition like, say, Philosykos). Beneath the tea and mint there is the sweetness of the florals and orange but they never leap to the forefront. This is a cooling, refreshing perfume. Like a tall, cool glass of ice tea with mint leaves on a hot summer day. It's my post-bathing perfume of choice, perfect for cooling me down after some time in a hot steamy bath or shower. I also sometimes sneak some after a workout if I'm feeling icky. Pure minty bliss! (And OK, I still love HF, but my boyfriend gets that "soapy" note in it that I've never smelled so he far prefers this one, likening it to his all-time fave cologne, Creed's Selection Vert. And maybe it is, a little...)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Unlisted Brand - Angela Flanders - Josephine
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:18:00 PM
Lovely, sweet, powdery violets with a hint of green and cedar. My literature says, "A soft powdery violet scent with a heart of roses, resting on a suble Cedarwood and Oak Moss base". True enough, but you'll hardly smell anything but sweet violets here. It was my first violet scent and still my favourite. The sillage and longevity are fantastic and I feel wreathed in a halo of violets all day long. Apparently named for Napoleon's lover, who adored violets over all other scents.
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Fragrances -Christian Dior - j'adore
amberflash 4/4/2009 7:17:00 PM
smells pretty.... but it's the poster child I'd say for boring, run-of-the-mill fruity florals. Doesn't smell cheap and has a pleasant composition, so it's a safe one to wear to the office or an interview, maybe, or anywhere you want to appear sophisticated without appearing altogether original.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No