Conditioner -Pantene - Brunette Expressions Conditioner
dawnimitsu 8/19/2009 2:01:00 PM
for reference, i have very dark brown hair with no red undertones. I dye my hair to cover a smattering of grays with a semi permanent dye that is also very dark brown (the darkest brown that is not black) with no red undertones. my hair is heavy, thick but not coarse and mostly straight when left to its own devices. i use this in conjunction with the matching shampoo. i like the texture and color of this conditioner very much. the conditioner feels slick and substantial when you work it into your hair. it smells like conditioner, nothing special or offensive and does not linger. i don't particularly think the conditioner does anything for my hair color. and i don't think it does anything to make my dye last longer. i do like that this conditioner makes me hair sleek and smooth without weighing it down too much. yes, definitely this conditioner adds some weight to my hair but it is just enough to weigh down the slight waves that occur due to humidity. my hair is also super shiny and soft. if i had fine, limp hair, i'd stay away from all pantene products since they are loaded with ingredients that coat your hair. and if you want color extension from a conditioner, try something that has dye in it. edit: while to me this is conditioner could be any conditioner from the pantene collection with bit of brown coloring added, all the different pantene conditioners have different ingredients and/or amounts of common ingredients. i can't just blithely say there isn't something to the formulation.
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Shampoo -Pantene - Brunette Expressions Shampoo
dawnimitsu 8/19/2009 1:45:00 PM
for reference, i have very dark brown hair with no red undertones. I dye my hair to cover a smattering of grays with a semi permanent dye that is also very dark brown (the darkest brown that is not black) with no red undertones. my hair is heavy, thick but not coarse and mostly straight when left to its own devices. i remember when pantene was a new shampoo and had that unmistakeable pantene smell that you could smell for hours later. this particular incarnation of pantene simply smells like shampoo. the smell doesn't linger long. i like how the shampoo looks, feels and lathers. the so called "color enhancing crystals" or what not are pretty but i highly doubt they do anything for my color since the bottle patently says that the shampoo does not contain dye. i use this with the matching conditioner and i do find that the combination weighs my hair down in a good, sleek way. my hair is also very glossy and soft. but not browner. i don't feel pantene washes the dye out of my hair any faster than any other shampoo. if you have fine hair, i'd avoid pantene all together. but if you have thick hair and are looking for gloss and a little extra weight to minimize a slight wave, i'd recommend this. if you are looking for color enhancement, go try something with actual dye in it. this is just brown pantene. its not extraordinary -no shampoo is going to transform hair- but its good quality at a decent price. edit: while to me this is could be any shampoo from the pantene collection with some brown sparkle added, all the different pantene formulations contain different ingredients and/or amounts of said ingredients. there might be something to this particular version of pantene.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Treatments -Fresh - Sugar Rose Lip Treatment SPF 15
dawnimitsu 7/22/2009 2:22:00 PM
i must admit that i have loved the untinted version of this lip balm for years. my, at-the-time. frivolous younger sister introduced me to original, outrageously expensive product and its been an obsession of mine ever since. and i am also obsessed with red tinted lips. not lipsticky red lips but nicely flushed red lips. your lips but better with a twist of cherry. so obviously i just had to buy this product! the texture, smell and moisturizing effects are the same as the original formula. the tint is light but noticeable. it deepens my lip color slightly, though not to the red flush i crave. the color makes my blush, nars orgasm, pop. there is a slight bit of shimmer which accentuates the fullness of my lips. the tint is subtle, subtle, subtle but its polished enough that i don't feel like i need additional color on my lips. in short, i love this stuff even at its ridiculous price point. for me, there is something about the smell, texture and luxe packaging of this product that takes applying lip balm from an ordinary experience to a deeply satisfying beauty ritual. i will probably never be without this.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Foundations -Sally Hansen - Inspired By Carmindy Natural Beauty Your Skin Makeup ] [DISCONTINUED]
dawnimitsu 7/22/2009 1:51:00 PM
when i hear sally hansen, i think nail polish. so it's odd to me that my current favorite foundation would be a sally hansen product. i absolutely love that the ecru beige is a good match for my neutral, ultra pale skin. I generally find most foundations too dark or too yellow or too pink but this color suits me. again, i am beyond pale with no strong undertones. the coverage is on the medium to heavy side. i dab a little extra on blemishes and what nots after applying a base coat to the rest of my face and that pretty much takes care of things. i think the thing i like most about this product is how it enhances the texture of my skin. this foundation makes my skin look flawless-pores, bumps and bits of uneven texture completely smoothed out. (i don't have terrible skin but its certainly not perfect) even in natural light, my skin texture looks even. this foundation gives a polished, semi matte finish. to me, its almost too finished to be natural but perhaps that's because i know what my skin looks like naturally. but its a really beautiful finish. and this foundation is a steal for the quality!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -Weleda - Skin Food
dawnimitsu 5/6/2009 3:02:00 PM
yay for skin food! i am never without a tube. its a nice all purpose heavy duty moisturizer. i like skin food because it doesn't contain a petroleum humectant. i definitely categorize skin food as a humectant- it feels like it is sitting on your skin as opposed to sinking in. i use it as a nighttime facial moisturizer if i think my skin looks dull. i think i would use it every night but it always ends up on my daughter's changing table. it's great for patchy infant dry skin. it's great on patchy adult dry skin too. i use it as an overnight chapped lip remedy. i also use it on blemishes which seems counterinuitive since it is a very heavy moisturizer but it just seems to balance my skin. again, i feel safe using this product on my infant daughter because it doesn't contain petroleum and that's important to me. i'm not a 'its safe cause its all natural' type person. use your own judgement here as individuals have allergies to even the most natural ingredients.
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Lipstick -L'Oreal - Colour Juice Stick in Cherry Freeze
dawnimitsu 5/6/2009 12:49:00 PM
i'm not a fan of drug store lipsticks but i make an exception for this one. the color is a soft blue based red. its not exactly a natural look but its not a 'i'm wearing red lipstick' red. a nice everyday approachable red that doesn't require precise application or lip liner. its pretty sheer and doesn't have discernible glitter. i particularly like that this color doesn't turn magenta when it fades. texture wise, its not overly glossy, sticky or dense and lipsticky. its more like heavy balm creamy. to me, it smells/tastes like those swedish fish candies. a bonus imo!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -NYX - Twin Cake
dawnimitsu 4/24/2009 8:10:00 AM
sigh....i wanted to love this product after discovering that its a non mineral foundation available in very pale colors. (i'm not a fan of the mineral mess but i like that many lines offer very fair shades.) but nyx twin cake didn't do it for me. i purchased pale which is the very lightest of shade available. and it is a good match for my super palor. unfortunately, this powder foundation just sits on top of my skin and accentuates my pores. and worse, it breaks me out in places i haven't broken out in twenty years... the powder is creamy in consistency, courtesy of dimethicone and mineral oil. but it just doesn't sit right on my skin. it looks really flat and reminds me of the finish i got using cover girl clean skin powder back in the early 90's. the finish is unrefined and powdery, despite the dimethicone and mineral oil. perhaps its because nyx twin cake has no shimmer and i've grown accustomed to using foundations with a slight sheen to them? coverage is decent but not good enough to cover all the zits that popped up on my cheeks and nose within 2 hours of using this product. and the flat finish really accentuated the mess! yuck! >.< to the deep, dark recesses of the make up bag this goes!
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Orgasm Blush
dawnimitsu 4/23/2009 10:41:00 AM
orgasm is part of my holy trinity of nars blushes - deep throat, crazed and orgasm. when i reach for blush, 95% of the time, its one of these. i started my trinity with orgasm because it was so hyped. its pinky peach, showing much more pink than peach on me. I wore orgasm almost everyday for 2 years. I liked its glowiness even if i felt it might be a tad too pink, even when applied with a very light hand. eventually i decided that orgasm is a wash of pink with no depth on me. and i experimented with various highlighters and contours, trying to make the apples of my cheeks look like something more than flushed pink rounds- i still loved the glow! then i discovered deep throat which gives me glowiness, depth and contour. and orgasm took a back seat to deep throat. i still consider orgasm a main stay of my blush wardrobe; its just that it takes more effort to work in than deep throat. for reference, i am the palest of the pale and have great difficulties finding foundations to suit my palor. i have a very neutral cast with no pink, yellow or olive undertones. i hate the rubber nars packaging. it hate that it gets full of glitter and powder and just looks icky after a week or so. but the quality of nars blushes, including orgasm, overshadows the gross packaging and cost.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Deep Throat
dawnimitsu 4/23/2009 9:47:00 AM
deep throat is part of my holy trinity of nars blushes - orgasm, crazed and deep throat. when i reach for a blush, 95% of the time, its one of these three. deep throat is a lovely peachy pink, leaning more towards peach than pink on me, with a warm wash of shimmer. deep throat always makes me look healthy, like i spent time in the sun, with a good application of sunscreen so i didn't get too much color. it also adds some depth and contour to my face without looking like i painted a brown stripe under my cheekbone. i am not sure how deep throat manages to do this (i am guessing its the shimmer) but i love that it does! there are alot of peachy-pink blushes out there very similar to deep throat. but for some reason, they look like i applied blush. deep throat doesn't look like applied blush; it looks like a color that might occur naturally on my face. <3 for reference, i am the palest of the pale. i have difficulty finding foundations to match my palor. i am also very neutral, having no real yellow, pink or olive undertones. i apply deep throat with a light hand and tone it down some using it with a highlighting powder. i hate nars packaging. black rubber inevitablely covered in glitter and foundation fingerpints is unsightly and almost unsanitary! but the overall quality of nars blushes, including deep throat, make me overlook the icky packaging and high cost.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Crazed
dawnimitsu 4/23/2009 9:13:00 AM
crazed is scary in the pan as its a heavily pigmented, raspberry color with gold shimmer. and it can be scary on the cheeks if applied with a heavy hand. however, applied ever so lightly to the apples of my cheeks, followed by a light dusting of a silver white highlighting powder, i can achieve the ultimate snow white flush. pair with black mascara and sheer red gloss and you have my snow princess look- you know the radiant flush you get when you spend time just enough time in the cold but you go inside before your eyes start to water. oh i have spent a few afternoons at home looking like bozo the clown, due to an overzealous application of crazed. practice your crazed look before you to wear it out. crazed doesn't rub down easily. i find i look kinda bacony if i try to work down the color by applying foundation or powder over it. for reference, i am so pale that i have difficulty finding any foundation to match my palor. i am a very neutral pale, having no real pink, yellow or olive undertones. i have very dark hair and eyes. so crazed can work for the palest ppp. though i would sample first if you have pink undertones because i think this might make you look very ruddy. i dislike the rubber casing on all nars products because it becomes ensconced in glitter and foundation fingerprints rather quickly. but the overall quality of nars blushes, including crazed, makes me overlook the unsightly packaging.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No