Liquid -Almay - Smart Shade Makeup SPF 15
briannedahlin 10/7/2011 8:06:00 PM
Sure, this finds your "perfect shade" as it claims. IF your perfect shade is dark orange. This might work on the cast of The Jersey Shore, but I can't see how it would work on anyone else. I am NC15 and my sister-in-law is about an NC25 for reference. We both tried this - she went first. At first, when we saw the liquid change shade we were all 'oohs and ahhs". It seemed like it was going to match her because as far as darkness goes, this was matching about how dark she was. But after about 10 seconds, it was clear that it was also VERY orange. Then it was my turn, and the moment it started to change shades on me, it was clear that it was the exact same shade it had just turned on her. Which was - of course - far too dark on me. And again, very orange. The texture is nice enough and the price is decent. But, when you can buy a foundation for the same price with the same qualities that will DEFINITELY match your skintone, I don't see why anyone would bother with this product.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lotions/ Creams -LUSH - Dream Cream
briannedahlin 6/5/2011 12:37:00 AM
Add me to the list of people with eczema and keratosis pilaris who have found this cream helpful. It doesn't make those problems disappear, but it sure helps alleviate any discomfort and get problem skin back under control. I love the formula on this - it's not greasy, my skin absorbs it quickly and on top of it being soothing and calming to my skin, it's also very moisturizing. My only real problems with this product are: 1. The smell - it's not a bad smell, but it's a bit floral/herbal and as someone who is not into that sort of thing, it's just not my fave smell. Certainly not off-putting enough though for me to stop using it! 2. It's in a pot. Like many others, I hate having to dip my fingers into the tub to get the product. I understand their reasons for not putting their lotions in pump bottles, but it sure would make this product better in my eyes. Even with those minor flaws, this is a 4 lippie product. If you have eczema, please give this a try. It even works wonders on my 3 year old niece who has eczema, it soothed her skin like a miracle product!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Hair -Wen by Chaz Dean - Pomegranate Cleansing Conditioner
briannedahlin 6/5/2011 12:33:00 AM
I have moderately thick, wavy, very long hair which is also color treated. Since my hair is an intense red, I am always on the hunt for products that will clean my hair without stripping my color. I thought I'd try WEN because of all of the hype. I got a 6 oz bottle of the Fig Cleansing Conditioner and I was floored when I saw how many pumps of the product they wanted you to use per wash (16-20!!). I sniffed it and I do not think it smells at all like Fig. In fact, my first reaction was that it smells like cherry cough syrup. When I went to use it, I only took 15 pumps as that seemed a bit excessive, even with my thick, long hair. Even at 15 pumps of product (less than they tell you to use) it was at least 1/5th of the bottle. At about $20 a bottle, I can't really justify this product based on that alone. That's an extraordinary expense for shampoo. If I only washed my hair every third day, I'd spend about $40 on this shampoo a month, which is just terrible. Back to my experience using it though - applying it to my hair, I felt it smelled distinctly medicinal. Very cherry and mint. I checked the label and found that both cherry extract and menthol are in the shampoo, so that explains that. The menthol gave my scalp a pleasant tingly sensation that I enjoyed, though I wasn't expecting that from this product. I was also worried that not using a conditioner was going to be a problem, as my hair is tough to comb through if I don't condition. I shouldn't have worried though, without using any additional product, I was able to comb through my hair just fine. My hair feels and looks a bit cleaner than it did before I cleansed it with WEN, but it does not look or feel as clean as it does after I wash with normal shampoo. In fact, I think they probably put menthol in this product so that you have the false feeling of cleanliness that menthol brings, because without it I think you would immediately notice that your hair is definitely not clean. It's a bit flat and lifeless looking and does not feel quite clean enough to me. Frankly, I would not recommend this product for any reason. With it's incredible cost and the recommendations on how to use it making it more difficult/time consuming than normal shampooing, I don't see why anyone would use this. Add to that the fact that my hair doesn't seem very clean, and this is a terrible product in my eyes. Save yourself the trouble and money and spend a fraction of the money on a sulfate free shampoo instead.
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Mascara -Cover Girl - Lash Blast Length
briannedahlin 5/10/2010 11:56:00 PM
I have used many many mascaras, and while Lash Blast Length isn't my HG, it's a pretty darn good mascara. I've used (and still have) the original Lash Blast, which I like alright for it's ability to give you some fairly dramatic lashes with careful application and combing of lashes. My problem with the original Lash Blast is that a) it clumps easily, b) it's extremely difficult to remove even with the best eye makeup remover and c) it flakes badly. I love Lash Blast Length so much because it performs much better in those areas. No, it doesn't thicken like the original does. But it DOES lengthen very well but without the clumping, without the flaking and it's about 5 times easier to remove. If you're looking for thickening, this isn't the one for you. If you need to accentuate your lash length though and want something a little more natural looking than the original Lash Blast, please give this a try, I love it so far!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Skincare - Face -Evian - le Brumisateur
briannedahlin 6/8/2009 7:17:00 PM
I hope that I might save people some money by writing this review. Yes, Evian will give your face a dewy look and smooth out that cakey powder foundation appearance that some of us get. But, so will regular water. MAC Fix+ at least has the additional ingredient of glycerin but Evian is literally just mineral water you spray on your face. It hardly makes it worth the price and there are no magical ingredients to make your makeup last longer, your skin look better or your complexion to look more glowy. It's just mineral water in a spray can, plain and simple. Here's a cheap - and equally as effective - way to get the same results without buying the Evian OR the MAC Fix+. Buy an atomizer - there are lots of places online to purchase one rather inexpensively (you can even get them on Ebay!). Buy a jug of mineral water or purified water at the grocery store (about $1 a gallon). Fill up the atomizer, and spray away. This is another one of those instances where you are really paying for the brand name more than the product itself. I assure you that doing the "make your own" will work just as well (I use that method all the time, especially in the summer!). For an added boost of summery keep-coolness, keep your atomizer in the fridge! Pull it out after doing your makeup, before bed and anytime you feel like you just need a refresher!
18 out of 18 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Treatments -Burt's Bees - Beeswax Lip Balm
briannedahlin 5/30/2009 5:59:00 AM
Count me on the "THIS IS MY HG" band wagon! I could not do without this lip balm. If you have super chapped lips, use a balm designed to handle that, as this is just a regular lip balm. It will make your lips soft and smooth and it smells and feels great, but if you've got bleeding or super flakey lips, you'd be better off using something like carmex. But, for what this IS, it is perfect. The application is super smooth and it glides right on. It has no waxy feel or waxy "tug" as you glide it over your lips like some balms. The smell is lovely and it has a great "tingle" once you put it on, but nothing painful or over the top. It does not have a medicinal smell (as some natural balms do). It is a little pricey for a lip balm (almost 3 bucks), but I typically wait to see it on sale and you can usually get it half price at your local drugstore every few weeks. To me, it's a perfect lip balm as far as product goes though!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Stila - Rouge Pot in Sweet Pea
briannedahlin 5/3/2009 1:45:00 AM
This gets a rating of 3 from me despite the fact that I think it's a beautiful color. The application is fine and the color is extremely flattering to my fair skin. The issue is their choice to package it in a rather narrow pot. Like many other people, I prefer using my fingertips to apply mousse or cream blush. Putting your finger in this though will result in product under your nails due to the angle at which you have to get to the product (because of the narrow jar top). With a wider and flatter jar, this would be a better product. Decent price, about what you'd expect from Stila I'd say.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Vex
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:51:00 PM
Vex is such a beautiful highlighter and a must have for my smokey eye look. It looks very boring in the pan - you think it's going to go on grey, but it goes on very shimmery with pink tones. For this reason, I like to use it with Pink Opal and Carbon to create a black/smokey eye. It works well with other colors also and looks great on fair skin. Wonderful texture!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Pigment in Frost
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:47:00 PM
I dislike Frost so much. There are not many pigments I don't like from MAC (scratch that, this is the only one I've encountered so far that I didn't like) but Frost just isn't worth anything in my opinion. Looks so wintery and gorgeous in the jar, but try to apply it and what you get is a big fallout mess of glitter. There is almost no pay off for this pigment. For a beautiful white and frosty pigment, I think Frozen White is a much better choice.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Club Eye Shadow
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:37:00 PM
Club is a great color - it never ends up as duochrome on me as it seems like it should, but it's nice nonetheless. My issue with Club is the texture - it's hard to blend and when blended out too much, it takes on a reddish brown tone and loses the green accent. I find that it's best used as an accent color (under the eye or a touch in the outer "v") rather than an all over color (which would probably make you look like you have a black eye).
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Satin Taupe
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:35:00 PM
There's not much I can say that others haven't already. MAC's Satin Taupe is a "must have" MAC shade in my opinion. No matter your coloring, I think Satin Taupe is the kind of shade that should be found in most collections. It's incredibly versatile and flattering on anyone. Wonderful texture and color payoff.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Idol Eyes
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:34:00 PM
Idol Eyes is a lovely color - depending on what you wear it with it can look silver or lavender. It is a slightly difficult texture to work with, but I find that can be avoided by applying it wet or putting it over Mauvism paint. A very flattering shade that compliments many other shades (I like to wear it with purples myself). It only gets a 3 due to the difficult texture however.
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Paints - Chartru
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:31:00 PM
This gets a full 5 rating from me because MAC paints are beautiful and easy to work with and make great bases. Chartru itself is a beautiful green - another paint that makes a great wash to be worn all by itself but is also great as a base for green shadows.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Stilife Paint
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:28:00 PM
As I have said before with the paint tubes - it leaves a lot to be desired for packaging. But for a product - it's one of my favorite MAC products. Stilife is my "every day" product. It makes a great base for a range of shades but as with other MAC paints, I prefer to wear it alone. It's a beautiful shimmery neutral that is flattering and easy to work with. If I am not wearing it by itself, I wear it with a little chocolate brown pigment in the crease. Beautiful and versatile!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Mauvism Paint
briannedahlin 4/10/2009 10:26:00 PM
Though the packing on the paints leave a lot to be desired, I absolutely love them. Mauvism is a shimmery lilac color which I think would be flattering on most everyone. It makes a great base for purple colors but I personally prefer to use it as a wash on my lid to give me a subtle but beautiful pop of color. Looks great with black liner too!
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