Mascara -Lancome - Oscillation Vibrating Infinite Mascara 
girlinto 1/17/2009 5:15:00 PM
This was part of a Christmas gift to me because I know that I would not have fallen for the marketing ploy at all. I didn't expect much from it .and I was quite right That being said, the actual oscillation is so minuscule that I find I still need to wiggle my wand a bit to distribute the product well. I didn't expect a large oscillation/vibration because that would just be dangerously scary. The coats go on very thinly and I'm used to more dramatic mascara: Lancome Hypnose, Dior Show, L'oreal Voluminous/Volume shocking..etc.. I would recommend any of those mascaras over this anyday. Plus, this was very pricey for a mascara - more than any other mascara I have paid for (with the exception of Enormous Lash and Lilash, however those are growth products and cannot be compared to Lancome Oscillation). I definitely will not buy this for myself or for anyone as a gift (unless a friend/family member really loves it).
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Eye Makeup Remover -Marcelle - Oil-Free Eye Make-up Remover Lotion
girlinto 1/15/2009 8:58:00 PM
Oh gosh, the first mistake was buying a cosmetic without bothering to check the reviews first on MUA. Well, it was the first time I had false eyelashes on and I had previously read that I should be using an oil-free make up remover to take them off. Since I usually used coconut oil or baby oil to remove all my heavy eye make up, I dropped in to Shoppers Drug Mart to quickly pick up something. There weren't many brands that carried an oil-free eye make up remover and since I like Marcelle's Lux gloss, I thought I would give this a shot. Okay, yes it does remove the false eyelashes just fine when you dip a q-tip into the bottle and gently run the q-tip along the strip of the false lashes...however, as many ladies on here noted, it did burn my eyes! Yikes. Good thing I took out my contacts before using this!!! Also, it did NOT remove my prestige waterproof eyeliner really well and I was also using some L'oreal HIP cream eyeliner. I still had some waterproof Lancome mascara on my eyelashes....so I had to use baby oil and take off the make up too. Please don't buy this.
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Treatments -Unlisted Brand - Dabur Amla Oil
girlinto 12/20/2008 4:42:00 AM
Great oil treatment. I use the Dabur Amla Oil Gold (I'm sure the Gold version is pretty much the same as the regular version...it's just a dollar or two more where I buy it). I coat my hair with amla oil, throw on a shower cap and sleep with it overnight about once a week. I wash the oil out really well with shampoo (any clarifying shampoo should do...I find that if I'm using a moisturizing shampoo sometimes I have to repeat the shampoo process twice to get all the oil out) and finish off with a bit of conditioner. I end up with really shiny, healthy looking hair that feels smooth. I get the same results with coconut oil which I also use as an overnight oil treatment; I just alternate between amla and coconut oil. Yes, the smell of this product is rather strong. It smells like really cheap Dollar Store old lady perfume. I find that when I put my shower cap on, it helps to seal the smell in...but I figure it's a small price to pay for nice hair. Also, if you really soak your hair up with amla oil and sleep with it overnight, use two towels (or one really thick fluffy absorbent one) on top of your pillow so that if any oil leaks out of your shower cap/head wrap, it won't stain your pillow. I learned the hard way....and had to do two rounds of laundry the next day! I took off a couple of points for packaging quality because there is no spout or spray nozzle of some sort, which makes it more difficult to control the amount you pour out....if you're careful pouring the oil it'll be fine but I always end up spilling a little bit too much.
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Skincare - Body -Johnson & Johnson - Baby Oil with Aloe Vera & Vitamin E
girlinto 12/10/2008 3:22:00 AM
I love this product and I like how the tip/nozzle part has an indentation around it so that if pour extra oil, the excess oil seeps into the indentation rather than down the side of the bottle. Great design. It works perfect for makeup removal. It has always removed all my eye makeup no matter how much makeup I was wearing (and I often wear a lot of eye makeup which includes waterproof cream liners, waterproof eyeliners, and waterproof mascara). I just put a bit on my fingers (at most, a quarter sized amount) and apply it on top of my eye makeup while closing my eye. I gently rub the oil on my eyelid and after like 5-10 seconds, I take a tissue and gently swipe it off. I finish by washing the eye area with Cetaphil cleanser which is very gentle too. I have also used this on my skin after showers when my skin is still damp. I pat my skin dry with the towel after application and it makes my skin smooth. Mind you, it does not cure severe dry flaking skin (not for me at least). I have done this before when I had a problem with severe dryness. The oil did not help, neither did Aveeno, Curel, Jergens, Dove...you name it. I saw a dermatologist and he recommended Cetaphil lotion twice a day - within three days it worked like a charm (I have reviewed Cetaphil lotion). So if baby oil is not working for your severe dry flaking skin, buy Cetaphil lotion. Another trick I like is putting some regular sugar in a container. Squeeze some of the baby oil and mix it with the sugar until the sugar is dampened with baby oil. I use this as a body exfoliator and it works so good.
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Tools -Smashbox - Brush Cleaner
girlinto 12/10/2008 3:04:00 AM
This worked great. It cleaned off all the make up on my brushes and I usually use only waterproof cream liners and colourstay foundations too. The only reason I said I would not buy this product again is that I have since discovered Clinique's Makeup Brush Cleanser. I find that the Clinique one is just as good as the Smashbox one (the formula, the spray bottle itself) except the Clinique one is cheaper AND you get a lot more formula. The clinique makeup brush cleanser is highly rated on this site. I highly recommend that if you like the spray bottle design, try out the Clinique one. I'm sticking with Clinique.
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Eye Shadow -Prestige - Let Loose Shimmering Shadow Dust
girlinto 12/4/2008 12:35:00 PM
I really envy the ladies in the US who can get great deals on make up that we don't seem to get in Canada. I pay $6.99 for these and while I don't think it's expensive, it seems pricey when I see other reviewers buying it for $4 or less! In any case, I have only purchased it in the dark purple shade called Release. It's not that dark and it's more of a dark lilac and a bit smokey. I absolutely love it and I must be on my third tube already. The applicator is great. I was a bit worried that the shadow would be messy since I'm not a fan of loose powder especially after having used Cargo's loose eyeshadow from the Cargo Eye Shimmer collection (terribly messy). However, this Prestige eyeshadow is not messy at all and it goes on very well. If I ever use just one eyeshadow colour on my whole eye, it's definitely this colour (usually I wear two or three eyeshadow colours combined). It's extremely flaterring on my brown eyes with dark hair. The only problem I ever had was when I was in Florida three months ago. The eyeshadow creased like crazy by the end of the day. But then again I thought Florida was too hot for me (I had a heat rash too!) and I was out literally all day (including the freakin hot afternoons). Then I tried using a light beige eyeshadow as a primer for the Prestige colour and it helped a lot (much less creasing in Florida). It hasn't creased up here in Toronto yet.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Joico - K-Pak Reconstruct Daily Conditioner
girlinto 12/3/2008 5:49:00 PM
I bought this because my hair dresser recommended it. At the time, I was highlighting my hair very regularly (every 4-6 weeks) and lifting the colour by about 3 levels. So my hair was dry and damaged. Unfortunately the Joico K-PAK did little for my hair. It's not even a great conditioner to begin with - I still had tangles in my hair which I needed to comb out with a leave in conditioner (I was using Revlon Equave conditioner - also a salon recommended product). Plus, my hair didn't feel soft and smooth at all. Over time, the product didn't improve either so I did not repurchase. I currently use Dabur Vatika hair conditioner which you can get at your local Indian grocer and it's terrific. I found it when I was looking for Coconut oil for my hair (another miracle).
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Cleansers -Cetaphil - Gentle Skin Cleanser
girlinto 12/2/2008 10:53:00 PM
I've been a huge fan of Cetaphil products after my Dermatologist had recommended it to me while I was having a severe onset bout of dry skin. My dermatologist had suggested the lotion to me and because that proved to be so effective in treating my severly dry flaking skin, I turned to the other Cetaphil products and at that time, they only had the gentle skin cleanser. I have sensitive skin and have had many skin allergic reactions to various body washes, cleansers, or creams...however Cetaphil cleanser is very moisturizing and extremely gentle (I don't think many, if anyone, will have a reaction to this product). If you're use to foaming cleansers that leave your skin taut, this won't be for you. The cleanser does not foam up, nor is it really good at taking off make up. I use Cetaphil cleanser to remove the oil from my eye make up remover. It's effective at doing that and it's so gentle that you can even open your eyes with the cleanser on your eyelids, and it won't irritate your eyes or hurt your eyes. I find Cetaphil Cleanser to be more of a "tear-free" wash than some of those Johnson and Johnson baby products that say they are "tear-free". If I happen to be wearing foundation, concealer, bronzer, blush, then I will either use an Oxy Medicated Pad to clean off some of it first before washing my face with Cetaphil Cleanser, or I will use my Ponds cold cream to remove some of the make up first. Another thing I wanted to point out is that I was reading an article on how some dermatologists feel that using water to wash product off your face can be very drying, especially if your water quality is poor. The article is here: http://www.mdskincare.com/pressimages/NYTimesMag_hi%20res.pdf It's an article from the New York Times Feb 6 2006. I'm not a strong advocate of this article because I feel the need to have some water to wash my face....but if you feel swayed after reading this article, keep in mind that you don't need water to wash off Cetaphil cleanser - you can just wipe it off with a tissue or a warm damp cloth. You can do the same with Ponds Cold Cream to moisturize after using Cetaphil Cleanser - you don't have to wash off the cold cream with water although some women might find that they will break out with acne if they don't use a damp wash cloth after. It's best to figure out what's good for your own unique skin.
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Moisturizers -Olay - Moisturizing Lotion in Classic Scent
girlinto 12/1/2008 12:40:00 PM
I started using this probably even before my teenage years and I got an early start on it because my Mom and Dad were both using it. They're in their early 60s now and a lot of people think they look more in their 40s. Nobody suspects they are beyond 60 years of age. It has a very lovely scent that is light and the scent will fade within 10-15 minutes. The consistency is thin and more watery rather than thick and creamy. I use it twice a day - once in the morning and before bedtime. The lotion is thin enough that it absorbs well into your skin and you can put foundation on after and it won't be greasy. Sometimes in the winter or more drying times, I layer on my Olay Anti-Wrinkle Night Renewal Cream on top of this Olay Classic Lotion and it works just fine. I have ventured and tried a number of the different/new Olay moisturizers in the past few years that they have been launched, but I haven't consistently stuck to one other than this Classic lotion. I truly believe if you only want one moisturizer to moisturize, prevent wrinkles and signs of aging, to stick to this twice a day. My boyfriend now uses it too.
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Moisturizers -Cetaphil - Moisturizing Lotion
girlinto 11/29/2008 11:26:00 PM
I was recommended this product by a dermatologist years ago when I suddenly had a break out of excessive flaky skin. Before I got recommended to even see the dermatologist, I had to see a regular physician first. I first tried Aveeno bath products and body lotion because my regular family physician had told me to do this and to stop using my Irish Spring soap which I had been using for years. My doctor figured that my skin finally gave out on the Irish Spring and as a result, had excessively dry, flaky skin. The Aveeno did not help. I used the body lotion two or three times a day and it did nothing after a week. I even used their bath treatment to no avail. A second family doctor told me to use Dove soap which I did. That didn't work either. I even tried household things I could find like baby oil, Keri lotion, Vaseline and none of those could stop the flaking of my skin. As soon as I saw the dermatologist, he took a quick look at me and told me to buy Cetaphil lotion, use it twice a day. I swear, within 3 days the flaking had dissappeared and I was so relieved because the flaking skin was making me very self conscious. I continued to use it religiously for probably a couple of years before I finally decided to slowly use other lotions that had a nice scent to it. But to this day, I have cetaphil lotion and cream in my bathroom. I guess to an average person that does not have dry skin, Cetaphil might feel like a regular cream/lotion. But it works wonders if you have dry skin - I've seen what it did to my terrible dry skin phase and that's why 8 years later I am still a devoted fan.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -L'Oreal - Telescopic Waterproof
girlinto 11/29/2008 4:45:00 AM
My sister had bought this for me from Singapore because here in Canada, we don't have the Telescopic in Waterproof. It was never released and it probably will never be released here since it's been over a year and a half since the regular/non-waterproof Telescopic was first out. I have to say that this is one of the poorest if not the worst of L'oreal mascaras I have tried. I'm a huge fan of L'oreal Voluminous, L'oreal Lash Out, L'oreal Double Extend and L'oreal Volume Shocking; so this was a let down from L'oreal. The brush is probably the worst thing about this product. It is really flimsy - I have no other way of explaining it. When I try to brush the wand through my lashes, the wand bends too much and it makes it difficult to use. I know a flexible brush can be great, but this was much more flimsy in a bad way rather than flexible in a good way. I'm so use to putting mascara on (have been wearing it for years now on a daily basis) and I don't recall ever having a problem with a mascara wand. The formula for this mascara was nothing special - it held a curl, it gave me more of a natural look than a dramatic look (unless you put like more than 3 coats on) but that's it. I would stick to buying one of the four L'oreal mascaras I mentioned above.
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Lip Gloss -L'Oreal - Glam Shine Crystals in Coral Strass
girlinto 11/28/2008 11:24:00 PM
I actually love this lipgloss because it's what I want: a nudish pink peach colour (although it's more clear than colour) and lots of small gold/pink specks in it to provide a nice sparkly effect. The sparkles don't make it feel gritty at all on your lips and I like the heart shaped application brush which deposits quite a bit of colour the first time. I know the other lady who reviewed this found it quite difficult for the gloss to stay in the lipline. I find that with all glosses, I do usually use a lipliner or I have to wipe off a bit of excess lipgloss that has spread out of my lipline after application. But it's nothing out of the ordinary - it's not like it melted on my lips and went all over my mouth uncontrollably. You just have to wipe it a bit once if you spread too much on your lips and then you're good to go. As for kissing someone, of course the glitter will transfer to them and spread over your mouth area but then again, what glittery lipstick or lipgloss can you use while making out and not expecting it to budge even a bit? Are you kidding- you must be using some excessively drying glitter paint if you expect that it'll stay put. This lipgloss is perfect on its own or, if you layer it on top of any lipstick, it'll give a really nice shiny, shimmery, 3D effect to your lips and make them look more luscious. People will just stare at your lips and I've gotten many ladies asking me what I was using! I didn't find the taste nauseating at all. It has a bit of a berry flavour to it. I don't love the taste but it's not strong enough for me to notice much.
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Lipstick -L'Oreal - Endless Lipstick - in the buff
girlinto 11/28/2008 11:05:00 PM
This is one of my favourite lip colours. I must say that I am biased towards very nude, light coloured lipsticks/glosses because I usually apply quite a bit of eye make up and this reduces the harsheness of looking overly made up. I don't think too many women would like this colour because there is no redish, pinkish or brownish tone to this colour. It is a pure nude colour that does not make my naturally red lips show through. It's true that you could use this as a base colour for your other lipsticks if you buy this and don't end up liking it; but a cheaper scenerio to that is just using a thin film of concealer or foundation on your lips prior to lipstick/lipgloss.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -Burt's Bees - Rosemary Mint Shampoo Bar
girlinto 11/15/2008 11:31:00 PM
I don't think I have ever thrown out an unused portion of shampoo - but I did throw out over half the bar of this shampoo. I tried on three ocassions to use this. I'm the type of person that likes to have a lot of lather with my shampoo and this shampoo bar just doesn't foam up well. Worst of all, this shampoo leaves a waxy feel to my hair. It's terrible. I just couldn't get it out even with rinsing with a lot of water after and then completing with a conditioner. On the second and third attempts with this shampoo, I tried to use less but it still left that same waxy feel. I gave up and threw it out. I definitely won't be buying this again.
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Lip Treatments -Burt's Bees - Lifeguard's Choice Weatherproofing Lip Balm
girlinto 11/15/2008 11:26:00 PM
I probably wouldn't buy this product again because I haven't ever had a problem with getting a sunburn or severe dryness of my lips from doing outdoor activities. I also don't do a whole lot of outdoor activities (ocassional skiing in the winter, tan in the summer...etc). Yes, this product will make your lips white and it won't apply evenly white across your lips. You won't really want to walk out of your house with this stuff on your lips because it's very cakey. As some reviewers pointed out, I guess you could mix it with lipstick - I have not tried this so I'm not sure if your lipstick would still apply smoothly when mixed with this stuff. I only used this when I was at home before bedtime and it actually came in one of my Burt's Bees kits. Currently I use the Blistex Mint SPF 15 lipbalm and that works just great. If for some reason my Blistex is not living up to it's expectations while I do outdoor activities, I might repurchase this Burt's Bees product then...but not any time soon.
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