Moisturizers -Clarins - Vital Light Night Cream
catlover9_9 2/26/2013 6:16:00 PM
For years I've been looking for a night cream that won't make my sensitive (I have rosacea), combination, breakout-prone skin either break out in cystic acne or dry up in creases and lines. This fits the bill. It's light enough to ward off pimples and acne, yet creamy enough to make my face feel wonderfully soft in the morning. To top it all off, it doesn't aggravate the rosacea. I love this. Thank you, Clarins!
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Foundations -Giorgio Armani - Face Fabric Second Skin Nude Makeup
catlover9_9 8/7/2012 4:43:00 PM
HG foundation! I tried it a couple of years ago when the GA makeup artist did a makeup application for me at Saks, and I've never looked back. Usually I try different foundations when I use one up, but FF has my loyalty now. It's lightweight, doesn't smell horrible (Bobbi Brown Oil-Free TM, anyone?), has the perfect matte finish that requires no powder, lasts all day, covers just enough... I could go on all day. I use the #1 shade and it's perfect. Apply it over my moisturizer that has a #30 titanium-zinc-based sunblock and I'm good to go all day. Very good stuff.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Hard Candy - Fox in a Box - Truth or Dare
catlover9_9 7/6/2012 4:49:00 PM
I bought this on a whim, dropped it into my stash, and forgot about it. I admit I purchased it because it looked like Benefit's 10, which I'd wanted to try, but was much, much cheaper (seems as if a lot of you had that same thought)! Anyhow, the other night I was making a quick grocery run and decided to try it. Instead of using the crappy little brush that it comes with, I got out one of my own brushes. It seemed as if I had to sweep the brush a lot to get any of the color to show up. I tried to keep the two colors in separate "stripes", and not swirl them together, if that makes sense. Sort of a contouring effect, if you will. Finally, color showed up and off I went. Then, when I got home, I was disappointed to see that the pretty pink was almost non-existent, but the brown (that had seemed fairly matte) was dirty and sparkly. Looked like every other bronzer I've ever tried: as if I'd smeared dirt on my face. Oh, well. At least it wasn't as expensive as Benefit's 10!
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Lotions/ Creams -Suave - Natural Oatmeal Lotion
catlover9_9 10/25/2011 11:49:00 PM
I use this in place of Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion (I think that's the name) when I'm feeling low on cash. It works just fine, as well if not better than Aveeno. It's a little hard to find, though, as the Target near me stopped carrying it for some reason. I'm only taking lippies off because it's in a pump bottle. I prefer lotions in a flip-cap bottle that can stand upside down on the counter or my dresser so I can get the last bit.
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Hair -Sacha Cosmetics - Sally - Hair One Hair Cleanser and Conditioner
catlover9_9 10/3/2011 12:14:00 AM
I guess you have to have very dry hair for Hair One to work. I bought the cucumber version on a whim, because I've heard how bad sulfates are for the hair. Note: My hair is NOT color-treated or permed. It's normal, with more of a tendency towards oiliness than dryness. Anyway, I bought the cucumber version and tried it out. It takes a LOT of time, much more time than a regular shampoo-conditioner routine. I found it extremely difficult to rinse it all out of my hair. Afterwards, my hair, which is wavy and usually has quite a bit of body, was very limp and felt greasy. It was very, very greasy by the next day and completely flat to my scalp. I tried the Hair One again, with the same results. After that, I decided there wasn't any point in a shampoo that left my hair, in effect, dirtier than when I started. I'll stick to regular shampoos and conditioners.
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Eyeliner -Chanel - Stylo yeux waterproof 70 black shimmer
catlover9_9 9/29/2011 8:12:00 PM
This is a great liner! The color is softer than a true black, so it's subtle enough for day, yet can be built up for night. The shimmer isn't garish or harsh; you're not going to notice it unless you look really hard. The only thing I don't like is that the point can be a little hard during the winter, so you need to rub it on the back of your hand.
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Makeup Brushes -E.L.F. - Eyeshadow Brush
catlover9_9 9/13/2011 7:33:00 PM
I heard so much about E.L.F. on the boards that I was super excited when the brand arrived at the Target right by my house. This brush was one of the first purchases I made. It's not a bad little brush. Not a spectacular brush, but for $1, what do you expect? It's better than some DS brushes that cost more! I like it-- it's a good size, not too bristly feeling, and definitely soft enough to work with. I actually use it for blending GA Eyes to Kill Intense, and this little inexpensive brush is great for the purpose! The only reason I'm not giving it a 5 is that it does shed. The price offsets it, though. *hems and haws*
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Purpose - Gentle Cleansing Wash
catlover9_9 8/28/2011
I bought this because of good reviews on MUA. I was desperate for something to calm down my rosacea, and since this is mild I thought it would fill the bill. However, it turned out to be incredibly irritating to my skin for some reason. Even though I rinsed my face off very throughly, my skin started stinging and burning almost immediately afterward, so badly I felt like scratching myself raw. I used the same moisturizer I always do, so I can only think it was a reaction to the cleanser. I know a lot of people use Purpose cleanser with great success, but I'm just that one person in a thousand who has a sensitivity to it. I'm currently using it up as a hand wash, but even that burns if my skin is at all dry or chapped. Weird.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Gels/Soaps -Bath and Body Works - Anti-Bacterial Moisturizing Hand Soap in Sweet Pea
catlover9_9 4/13/2011 11:31:00 PM
This is my favorite antibacterial hand soap of all. It's less drying than Dial or Softsoap, and the scent is nice and light and doesn't give me a migraine. It's more expensive, and the container has a slight tendency to tip, but I can live with those things. I also wish that I could buy refills of just the soap-- I used to be able to buy them in-store, but I haven't seen them in my area in a very long time. Has BBW discontinued the refill pouches? I hate just throwing the empty bottles away!
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Blush -E.L.F. - Fuchsia Fusion
catlover9_9 4/3/2011 10:28:00 PM
The Target near my house finally got E.L.F. cosmetics. I don't think they have the full line, but it seems to be a nice sampling of the regular and studio items. Anyhow, I was delighted and went on a spending spree-- with the prices, how could i go wrong? Fuschia Fusion was one of my purchases. I really, really like this blush! I'm extremely pale (Alabaster in BB Skin, #! in GA Face Fabric, 10 Watts in Stila Illuminating Powder Foundation), and this worked very well with the cool undertones in my skin. The excessive sparkles some reviewers have mentioned seemed to drop off my brush when I gave it a good tap to remove excess blush. Everyone says this is a dupe for NARS Angelika, which I haven't tried. To me, it's a lot like Chanel's Pink Explosion, which makes me happy as that was LE. All in all, I like this blush, and you can't beat the price!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Cetaphil - Cetaphil Gentle Cleansing Bar
catlover9_9 3/10/2011 1:07:00 AM
My dermatologist advised me to give this soap a try. Being the way I am, I also researched it here on MUA. Since it got good reviews, and is inexpensive, I thought why not (although I admit I was a bit leery having had trouble with other brands of soap). I bought a bar at Wal-Mart, thinking I'd soon be repurposing it for bath use, but was surprised that the Cetaphil Gentle bar did NOT irritate my face, cause breakouts, hives, rashes, dry patches, or any of the other nasty little things that have happened with other soaps or cleansing bars. I'm only taking off a couple of lippies because ANY sort of bar cleanser is messy to keep around. I'm spoiled, I like cleansers in bottles and jars. I now keep a bar around all the time. It's fantastic to find an inexpensive product that really delivers-- thank you, MUA!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Highlighters -Tarte - Amazonian Clay Shimmering Powder Rose
catlover9_9 2/28/2011 9:02:00 PM
I got the Sephora email featuring this and the Amazonian clay blushes and I ran over immediately because both looked so cute! I was so early "my" Sephora hadn't even set up the display yet, but the ladies very kindly brought out the blushes and highlighters and let me play with the testers. I ultimately bought the Rose highlighter and the Dollface blush. First off, let me say I'm not a person who buys highlighters unless they're pink. My first highlighter was BB Platinum Pink and my second, BB Rose (which I use as a blush). But the Tarte Rose is such a nice, soft sheer soft, pale champagne rose color that I can use it without feeling I'm horribly glittery or shiny-- with other highlighters, I'm sometimes afraid to stand under a strong light! This is completely different and just gorgeous. I recommend it. Two thumbs up.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Stila - Illuminating Liquid Foundation
catlover9_9 2/28/2011 8:39:00 PM
Oh, Stila, how I wanted to love this foundation! I love the powder formulation for travel, so I thought this would be a great liquid! But no, it was a huge disappointment. The sheerness was fine, but the texture was just too oily. By midday, even though I set it with powder and touched up midmorning, the Illuminating Liquid was just plain shiny--and migrating, which is something I've never had a problem with before. The only good thing I can say is that the color (10 watts) was perfect, as always with Stila foundations.
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Masks -Queen Helene - Mint Julep Masque
catlover9_9 2/28/2011 8:32:00 PM
This is OK for what it is-- an inexpensive clay masque. The trouble for me is that it burns and stings, so I can only use it once every week or so; thus it dries out before I can use the entire tube or jar. I've tried using it over a light coat of plain (no sunblock) moisturizer, but it still burns. My skin can't tolerate oil, such as grapeseed oil, even if it's organic, so that's a no-go as an underlayer. I LOVE the smell-- I've always liked minty, rather than fruity, scents-- so what I did with the last tube was use it as a foot masque! It was great on a hot, humid day. Very refreshing and fun and even removed a few bits of dry skin on my heels!
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Cleansers -Chantecaille - Flower Infused Cleansing Milk
catlover9_9 2/28/2011 8:24:00 PM
I bought this on a trip to NYC when my skin became very, very raw and irritated due to a reaction to a Neutrogena cleanser-- the orange-colored acne one. Odd, because I can use the green, "soothing" one with no trouble! Anyway, a M/U artist at Fekkai Atelier used this cleanser on me, and my skin was instantly calmed, so I bought a bottle. It's been my winter skin cleanser ever since. My skin is very sensitive, with rosacea, and this has never once caused me to break out or become over-reactive, so that's an enormous plus. I use a soft, soft washcloth with it to remove makeup, so that's never been a problem for me. It's expensive, but it lasts a long time, so cost is offset a bit.
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