Cleansers -Cerave - Hydrating Cleanser
betteefelon 5/8/2013 3:38:00 AM
Bought this after switching to a higher percentage retinoid and experiencing too much sensitivity to use my old face washes for oily skin. My face was dry and peeling, and burned when I put on most products. This stuff hasn't irritated it (even Cetaphil bothers my skin sometimes) and leaves my skin feeling neither greasy nor parched, just clean. I like that it has some nice ingredients (hyaluronic acid, ceramides, niacinamide), but not sure how much they do since it's only on my face for a minute at a time. Still, a gentle, effective product. If I notice a rise in breakouts after using this for a longer period, I'll update. For now, though, I'm adding this to the rotation, along with my arsenal of CeraVe products, which are all pretty amazing as far as I can tell.
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Eye Makeup Remover -Unlisted Brand - Target Eye Makeup Remover
betteefelon 5/6/2013 9:23:00 PM
I'm reviewing Target's "up & up" brand eye makeup remover. IT'S USELESS. It couldn't even take off regular eye makeup, let alone waterproof mascara. It did pretty much nothing... And yet it was irritating to my skin! The skin around my eyes would get red, dry and scaly afterward. Horrible. Why are they selling something of such low quality? Usually I think Target's store brand products are pretty good, but this was probably the worst eye makeup remover I've ever used. DON'T BUY!
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Moisturizers -Cerave - Facial Moisturizing Lotion - PM
betteefelon 4/28/2013 5:01:00 PM
Cerave body lotion was a game changer for me, and this has been no different. I bought a bottle in hopes that it could replace a more expensive product (La Roche Posay Toleriane Facial Fluid) that I'd been using for times when my skin was seriously dry and irritated and so many other lotions burned. THIS STUFF IS GREAT! It didn't burn at all and sinks in nicely. It's not greasy. I put on a thick coating, because my skin was pretty raw (red and peeling), and I woke up to significantly "repaired" skin. Amazing. The ingredients in it (ceramides and niacinamide) are supposed to help with barrier repair, and they did! My skin isn't 100%, but it's as much as I could possibly hope in a day, I think. Niacinamide also helps with redness, and hyaluronic acid helps draw moisture to the skin... It's such a good product for the price. It's a new staple -- and half the price of Toleriane for more product. Fantastic. My parents' dermatologist told them about the body lotion, which is what started me using this line. I also use the face wash, which beats the pants off of Cetaphil. Everything I've tried by this company is great -- so simple, but wonderful on the skin. Love that their stuff is so affordable and available at Target, drugstores, etc.
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Treatments (Eye) -Jack Black - Protein Booster Eye Rescue
betteefelon 4/21/2013 6:16:00 AM
Who cares if it's marketed to men? Skin is skin, and I really like this product. It has Matrixyl 3000 in it, which is a blend of peptides that research shows fights wrinkles. It's affordable as far as eye treatments go, especially since it has ingredients that seem like they might actually DO something. I do think it helped my fine lines once I started using it. I ran out recently and, sure enough, after a few months I started to miss it. The fine lines under my eyes started to seem more pronounced. I think it was helping. So I just bought another tube. :) The texture is pretty light, not really a cream as much as a thin lotion consistency. I use it at night, since it doesn't have SPF in it. Anyway, it's a keeper!
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Treatments -Kate Somerville - Exfolikate
betteefelon 1/25/2013 7:24:00 PM
Mixed feelings on this one. It is aggressive, which is good and bad. If you have ANY acne at all, be careful. I had one closed (seemingly under-the-skin) blemish on my cheek and thought it wouldn't be a problem, but the Exfolikate somehow got into the pore and burned like heck. Even though the rest of my face was fine afterward, that spot is still really sore. So, the Exfolikate was great for the rest of my face, but I think it actually made the blemish worse. When/if you have clear skin, I think this would be great for dealing with fine lines, discoloration, dullness, etc. I think it is strong enough to make a real difference. But if you have any active issues, I'd steer clear. Despite the problem with the pimple, I'd buy it again and just save it for times when my skin has no breakouts.
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Treatments -RoC - Retinol Correxion Sensitive Night Cream
betteefelon 11/4/2012 5:44:00 AM
Ugh, NO. I received a free sample of this and thought I'd give it a shot. It left my skin so slimy... It never soaked in. I put it on about an hour before I planned to go to bed, and I ended up deciding I couldn't deal with the feeling of it on my face. It was so oily and slick that I worried that I'd wake up with monstrous zits. I washed it off. But I think the damage was done -- today I have a bunch of little zits (in fairness, very small) where I NEVER have them (on my cheeks). No thanks! If you have acne-prone skin at all, skip it.
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Conditioner -TRESemme - Climate Control Conditioner
betteefelon 8/10/2012 11:12:00 PM
I have a love-hate relationship with this product. Here's what I love: it really works at controlling frizz. It kept my hair smooth even on a humid trip to Hawaii. It smells good and leaves my hair feeling smooth and not sticky or anything off-putting like that. I was deeply in love for several months. Then.... Here's what I didn't love: it did such a good job blocking out moisture and humidity that my hair ended up dried out. This has never been a problem for me before with any other conditioner. But I have to say that this (and the matching shampoo) ended up causing damage to my hair -- I noticed that my hair started to feel like straw, and the color started to get lighter and orangey. My hair isn't dyed, I don't flat-iron, and I only shampoo a few times a week -- this was the only significant change I had made. I had been using it regularly, so I stopped, and sure enough, the new growth since switching to something else is back to my regular (natural) color. I'm not going to totally swear it off. But I'll only use it for special occasions when I'm worried about lots of frizz. It really is good at what it is supposed to do, but it can't be my everyday conditioner.
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Shampoo -L'Oreal - EverCreme Cleansing Conditioner
betteefelon 8/10/2012 2:31:00 AM
This is an OK product. It gets my hair clean and fairly moisturized, with okay body. But it's hard to know how much to use or how long to rinse. One time I used a lot and rinsed so long (after hearing about people with bad residue) that I think I actually p*ssed off my hair -- it ended up roughed up and frizzy. Another time I didn't use as much, and rinsed well but not as much, and my hair turned out okay but the results were nothing great. It doesn't deliver anything special in terms of smoothness, moisture, shine or sheen. I prefer Devacare No-poo, which is a similar (though admittedly more expensive) type of product (a non-lathering lotion hair cleanser). Devacare No-poo doesn't claim to be a conditioner, but it leaves my hair feeling better nonetheless. I follow that with a conditioner on the ends. I should say, I think the Nourishing Conditioner in the Evercreme line is very good for the price.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -Unlisted Brand - DevaCare No Poo No fade Zero Lather Cleanser
betteefelon 8/6/2012 11:15:00 PM
I like this a lot. For reference, I have fine, thin, fragile hair -- it's wavy/ loosely curly. Because my hair is so wimpy, I liked the idea of minimizing the damage that happens from washing. My mom laughs at me for using this, but I really think it has improved the condition of my hair. I used it pretty consistently for a year or two, and my hair never looked better, so glossy and healthy. Then I got the "grass is greener" bug and started messing with a bunch of other shampoos -- after 6 months of that, my hair was a dehydrated disaster. I was visiting my parents' house for the past few weeks and found a half-empty bottle I'd left under the sink in the guest bathroom, and started using it again. My hair was grateful -- it already seems much less dry. The smell of the color care line (Devacare) is better, in my opinion, than that of the regular line (Devacurl) -- the Devacare No-poo smells like citrus and mint. I'm not currently coloring my hair, but I see no reason not to use this one. One bit of advice -- get your hair super wet, then apply this to the scalp and around, let it sit for a minute so that the water kinda melds with the no-poo, then scrub around. Otherwise, it can be hard to work it around without pulling a lot on the scalp, and who wants to pull their hair out when they're trying so hard not to damage their hair? It is pretty pricey (which is why I started shopping around for something else), but it is a good product that is kind to your hair.
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Conditioner -Terax - Crema
betteefelon 8/1/2012 8:12:00 PM
Left my fine, wavy hair with a residue despite serious rinsing, and didn't seem to have done anything noteworthy in the moisturizing department. Maybe this is more suitable for coarse hair? Totally unimpressed for myself, though. Smell is fine -- kinda like a Strawberry Shortcake doll or something similar, kiddy perfumey but not offensive. Didn't do anything for frizz. Will not repurchase.
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Moisturizers -Desert Essence - Jojoba Oil - 100% pure
betteefelon 1/10/2012 4:47:00 AM
I've been using this for maybe a week (I know, the worst way to start a review, heh), and so far I really like it. I tried it a while ago for my hair and that was just a no-go for me -- it was somehow greasy AND drying to my skimpy dry ends. Then, I worked up the guts to try it on my face, and so far I really like it! I don't use it as a moisturizer on my face... I'm not sure I have the courage for that, given my track record with acne. I started out using it to take off eye makeup, and it just dissolved the stuff like nothing I've used before... It even takes off waterproof stuff. It was fantastic. So then I decided I was going to use it to take off all my face makeup... And I'm loving how CLEAN my face gets! I get my face wet, rub a small amount (maybe a half teaspoon?) all over my face and work it around for a few seconds until I'm satisfied that it's dissolved all of my foundation. Then I follow by adding my regular (Cerave) facial cleanser for oily skin and rubbing it all together, then I rinse. Poof -- the cleanest darned skin I can imagine at the end of the day, and somehow still soft and moisturized but not greasy at all. It's definitely softer and more "balanced" feeling than if I used a cleanser alone, and I swear it takes off EVERYTHING. Magic.
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Foundations -Josie Maran Cosmetics - Matchmaker
betteefelon 1/9/2012 12:11:00 AM
I received a sample of this, so I can't really comment on the packaging quality... But I felt compelled to write a review all the same, since this foundation did something really strange.... I never even wore it, mind you. I received it as a sample along with an order I placed while visiting family over the holiday. The sample included two different shades, in a cardboard folder with little see-through plastic windows. When the samples arrived, they looked like normal skin tone foundations. After I flew home with them, though, they turned a weird greyish white color, still in the packaging... Not sure how that happened. When I opened one, and stirred it around with my finger, it started to turn back into a skin tone, but now it was very orange.... I don't know what the heck happened, but I'm glad I didn't shell out money for the stuff! Also, not sure what it smelled like before I flew (obviously, since it wasn't open), but it had a bit of a smell when I opened it, too. Baffling.
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BB Cream -Smashbox - Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35
betteefelon 1/8/2012 2:18:00 AM
I am in head-over-heels LOVE. I have combination, light-medium skin, with a good amount of discoloration and unevenness. I am also obsessed with having a high SPF in my face products. I love the way this looks and feels on my skin -- practically like I'm not wearing anything. Whoever said this felt greasy is bonkers. It feels like nothing at all, in a good way. It has a pretty natural-looking finish (not dewy, not chalky). It has moderate coverage -- better than a tinted moisturizer, but not full coverage. I'll still spot-conceal in a few spots. I am so happy about the high SPF 35. Being able to go from a separate primer, moisturizer, sunscreen, and foundation to a single step has me SOLD.
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Treatments -Aussie - 3 Minute Miracle Deeeeep
betteefelon 1/6/2012 8:58:00 PM
I don't think that this product does the best job "deep conditioning," whatever that really means. But it does make my hair LOOK a lot healthier after I use it. I think it's the silicones in the product that really do the trick -- they seal down the frizz and smooth out dry ends. So, it's an external, not "deep," fix, I'd guess... But you know, I don't care. When I want my hair to look glossy, I'll use it. It costs like $3, which is a steal for anything that leaves my hair looking great. Do I think it repairs? No. It might help ward off damage by smoothing straggly hair (and thereby avoiding snags and more heat damage from using tools to smooth).... I really think it is more of a cosmetic product than a fix. But I like it. It left my hair looking so smooth, when I used it on a recent trip home, that my mom asked what I had done. In photos from a family event on that trip, my hair looked like I'd had a salon glossing treatment. Sold.
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Eyeliner -LORAC - 3-in-1 Waterproof Eyeliner Pencil
betteefelon 12/30/2011 6:08:00 PM
I bought this pencil in "Ultra Black." It has good color payoff, and is smudgeable without getting too diffuse. I like that it has a built-in sharpener and smudger, but the smudger is slightly too hard for my liking -- it has a firm pointy tip that kinda irritates my skin when I use it. Still I use it, though, because it is handy. The liner lasts and doesn't transfer. I'll buy again in other colors.
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