Misc Beauty Tools -Clarisonic - Mia
justwishin 4/11/2013 1:52:00 AM
I don't have sensitive or acne-prone skin, and can use almost any kind of scrub, acid or retinol. After using this very gently (almost no pressure) with the delicate head and only once a week and EXACTLY as directed, I broke out in very bad cystic acne all along the jawline. This was after 1 month of weekly use. Nothing else with my skincare had changed, and I never break out, so I know it was this brush. It wasn't a "purge" because I have very clear pores and exfoliate frequently. I cleaned it after each use as directed. The worst part was the pores in my t-zone, which are normally tiny, appear larger. Not "cleaned out", but larger and longer...vertically from top to bottom, as if they have been slightly stretched out. I don't claim to know how that is possible, but that's truly how it looks and I'm not happy. Also, I saw no major skin benefits from using this, other than the rosy glow I get anyway from a normal scrub. This brush is not for everyone and I wish I hadn't splurged on it. I think the vibrations "activate" the skin too much for some of us (and pull on it too) regardless of how properly/gently it is used. If you get it, keep your receipt in case. :/
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Shampoo -Carol's Daughter - Monoi Shampoo
justwishin 11/1/2012 2:18:00 PM
Don't you love how new products always have amazing reviews...and then the sad truth slowly creeps out? :P Here's the truth: This shampoo is gentle on color, gives light to medium-level moisture, and leaves the hair in decent but not amazing condition. BUT, it is SOOOOOO heavily fragranced! Like, probably double the level of fragrance of other shampoos...almost like you poured half your perfume bottle into it before washing. It is a pretty scent and I like fragranced products, but it is just overwhelming, to the point that I had a sneezing attack in the shower and I have never in my life had that happen with any shampoo. Also, I had a lot of fallout with this. If the fragrance were cut to maybe half, this would probably be a decent shampoo. But since fragrance (along with alcohol) is one of the most drying ingredients for hair, I truly don't 'know why they added so much to a product meant for dry hair. Oh well. Ladies, if you have brittle hair and want a truly gentle/hydrating shampoo, try Terax Miele. Hard to find, but worth it! I have zero fallout with the Terax, too, and the scent is nice but not complete overload.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Concealers -Maybelline - Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles
justwishin 10/4/2012 2:14:00 AM
This BURNED...ever so badly. Not allergic, just instant burning on contact. There are a few versions of this concealer and I have the one that stats it's for dark circles. Maybe there's an ingredient that's irritating--I don't know what but it's worse than any other product I've put near my eyes. Smells toxic, like burning plastic or gasoline or something, and there are actually kind of fumes that go into my eyes when I use it. Uuughhh...so awful. And under my eyes it felt sore at the end of the day when I washed my face. What the hell are they putting in this stuff...?
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Thierry Mugler - Alien
justwishin 7/26/2012 2:07:00 AM
Welch's Grape Juice + Toxic Synthetic Jasmine = THIS. And if you want it off, you may just have to get it surgically removed. Best of luck! :)
6 out of 9 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
BB Cream -Maybelline - Dream Fresh 8-in-1 BB Cream
justwishin 7/25/2012 12:47:00 PM
First of all, I'm a little skeptical of the 30 SPF rating. It has a teensy-weensy percentage of titanium dioxide (one percent) as the only SPF. My Shiseido foundation with SPF 42 has like 13%. So, hmmm...I wouldn't rely on this for real protection. Also, this IS a BB cream in one sense. It has definitely lightened my skin overall, which I wasn't hoping for. After just a few days, I looked a lot more pale with bare skin. So this does lighten somewhat, as many BB creams claim to do. However, it doesn't have any light-reflecting properties when applied (no sheen or sparkle). It goes on very light and fresh-feeling, but beware! That's just the application. Hours later, it feels heavy, almost waxy, and looks very greasy. I have normal skin but if my skin was oily, this stuff would probably be a nightmare. Even powder doesn't help... I got the lightest color and it does match my pale, neutral undertone skin pretty well, though it's a bit "peachy". I would recommend this for someone with DRY skin who seeks minimal sheer coverage and a "lightening" effect. I won't buy it again, though.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Tinted Moisturizer -Smashbox - Sheer Focus Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15
justwishin 6/20/2012 2:18:00 AM
I am not sure what to think about this product. I woke up last Tuesday, thought "I'll go to Sephora and look at makeup" and got up and brushed my teeth and put on some clothes and drove to Sephora, stopping for gas along the way. It was a sunny day, a little hot but not too bad, and my skin had a "dewy" look to it already due to humidity. The freeway looked a little backed up so I took the long way to get there, which possibly added more of a dewy glow since it took so long and I was a little hot in the car. Once arriving at Sephora, I asked an SA who was really nice and about 30 years old with red hair for samples of tinted moisturizers. I got one from Laura Mercier, one from Urban Decay, one from Stila, one from Clinique, one from Lancome, one from Josie Maran, one from Boscia, one from Sephora Brand, one from Philosophy, one from Tarte, one from DuWop, one from Clarins and this one from Smashbox. There was one other one too but I forgot it. When I remember, I will update. The one from Smashbox is kinda sheer. Not super-sheer, but I would have to say pretty sheer. It has some light-reflecting properties to it that some might think looks too shiny. I don't really think it is too shiny, but I have to say it is a little bit shiny. There is an SPF in it of 15. I like an SPF, I guess a 15 is okay, but of course a higher one is better. But then I think maybe I don't really need a higher one, since I'm not out in the sun all that often. The last time I was really out in the sun long-term it was on a tropical vacation. I don't know when I'll be on a tropical vacation again so I don't want to worry too much about SPF I guess. If you have any good ideas for my next vacation please send me a message. I liked the feeling of this going on, it's nice and smooth. It has almost a watery gel consistency. But not toooooo watery. Some people like creamier textures but I also sometimes like just a gel feeling to makeup. The gel makes it have some staying power. I guess it stayed on okay for about 7 hours or so I didn't really keep track because I had a doctor's appointment at 2, and also had to do some grocery shopping. I bought bread there because I was out of it. Also I bought milk. I didn't break out bad from this TM, but it's hard to really say because I was close to my period the day I started using it. So I did get one or two small zits, but I'm not sure it was the TM. My periods lately have been kind of irregular. I'm not sure how this should affect my choice of a good TM but I am working on it. I applied this TM with a brush, but you could probably use your hands or a sponge or some other kind of makeup applicator. I used about a nickel-sized amount and I would say it covered pretty well. You may need more than that if you have a big face, or less if you have a really small one. I also used some concealer, some powder and then a face mist to set it all. After that, I went and did some laundry consisting mostly of darks and brights. I used Tide followed with a lavender-scented fabric softener. Two loads took about an hour and a half. I was wearing the TM the whole time. That night I almost forgot to take the TM off. I'm not sure how my skin would have reacted if I'd slept in it, but no worries because I removed it with a foaming cleanser and a washcloth. I don't use toner so I can't tell you if the cotton ball would have been clean or not. But chances are, it probably would have. I followed the cleanser with a little bit of oil-free lotion and went to bed, where I slept for around 8 hours. I don't remember what dreams I had, if any. But they were probably really, really really long dreams about makeup. They were probably dreams that went on and on and on for what seems like almost forever about makeup. THIS REVIEW IS DEDICATED to all the people who are writing entire novels to review a product. Please for the love of all that's holy, please please learn to EDIT. :)
16 out of 23 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments (Eye) -Algenist - Complete Eye Renewal Balm
justwishin 6/18/2012 10:19:00 PM
No, I would not buy this again. I have one almost unused for swap if you want to contact me... For me, this is one of those super-rich eye creams that "puffs" up my under eye area. It puts in so much moisture that it gives me sort of little heavy bags under my eyes where I normally have none. ;( I don't over-apply either--I use avery thin layer and I keep it toward the outside corner of my under eye area where the crow's feet are. It makes me look much more tired but the fine lines are not diminished at all. A waste of $65 for me personally... I would recommend this for nighttime use only, and for women who want a very rich cream that will plump the under eye area. Just not for me. I do however really love the Algenist serum, which I use under my eyes for a nice firming and anti-wrinkle effect.
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Treatments -Unlisted Brand - Retin A Micro
justwishin 6/6/2012 11:19:00 AM
QUESTION: Has this caused hair loss for anyone here? I found a lot of bad stories about that online...apparently this stuff gets absorbed into your system and the Vit. A can cause issues. Anyway, for skin it's great. I use it for anti-aging only. Because it is in a gel base that is very astringent (alcohol I think) I mix it 50/50 with Cerave moisturizing cream and it works very well. Using just once a week, it has smoothed the appearance of my pores and seems to firm, plump and tighten the skin (slightly). Lines decrease somewhat, but crow's feet actually get a lil' worse so don't use around the eyes. Overall though, I prefer the regular Retin-A cream to this. This one is definitely more for the acne crowd. I use the .025%
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Concealers -Garnier - Anti-Dark-Circle Eye Roller
justwishin 6/3/2012 12:44:00 PM
Looooooooooove this! Great texture, medium coverage, brightening. BUT, after a couple months I finally realized it's this that is giving me the milia around my eyes. Probably because it's mineral-based. So upset, because I love it otherwise! :/
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Lip Gloss -Bare Escentuals - buxom lipgloss in Kanani
justwishin 5/15/2012 9:16:00 PM
I've seen this described below as a coral pink, but no, this is a VERY blue-based pink. It is more of a sheer fuschia, really. I'm fair with neutral undertones, and this pulled fairly purple on me...too cool-toned for me to wear and I can usually wear cool shades. I prefer the color Candi from this line, which is a slightly warmer pink. FYI, on the Sephora website, it looks like they got the swatches for these two colors mixed up. Candi is definitely the more "coral" of the two colors in real life, though on Sephora's site it looks like a cool fuschia pink.
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Conditioner -Mastey - Mastey Moisturee
justwishin 3/9/2012 1:16:00 PM
Really amazing conditioner! I have mid-length, dry and wavy/slightly frizzy hair. I do color it (deposit only). My hairdressers often comment on how dry my hair gets, like they are really surprised by it. :/ I think it's because under the color it's mostly grey, and I have over-used protein treatments. Anyway, this makes my hair so healthy, shiny and silky and TRULY moisturized. Not just coated like with most products. While it's a great softener and detangler, there is NO feeling of silicones, oils or waxes or anything greasy or heavy. It just magically creates truly moisturized hair seemingly from the inside out, The BEST moisturizing conditioner I've ever used (I've used many from all different price-points). Better than any conditioner I've tried from Phyto, Redken, Biolage, Aveda, Fekkai, etc. Try it--you'll be amazed. And though it is very effective, it is so weightless you can use it daily. (I don't really feel it's a mask-type treatment--for that, I think Phyto has the best). I think this would not work only for EXTREMELY dry hair (like the kind that even needs to be oiled frequently for moisture). Lotsa love!!!
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -L'Oreal - EverCreme Nourishing Leave In Spray
justwishin 3/9/2012 1:05:00 AM
Wow, I'm impressed! I've tried SOOOO many different leave-ins over the years, trying desperately to replace my 100% perfect Phytomist from Phyto (I go through a lot and can't justify $26 per bottle anymore). My hair is mid-length, fine but thick, slightly wavy/frizzy, and kinda dry. This product makes it look great! Shiny, strong, moisturized, easy to style, lots of body. It just feels healthy, and not coated or weighed down. Also, application is key with this one--DON'T spray it in! It won't disperse well and will make greasy areas. Spray a few sprays into your palms, and finger-comb it through avoiding your roots. Voila! Great-looking hair! I'm so happy--at about $9 a bottle, it won't break the bank like the high-end products. But the quality is just as good! PS--This product is NOT free of "cones". Amodimethicone is about in the middle of the ingredients.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Maybelline - Color Sensational Lipstick - Pink Peony
justwishin 3/4/2012 2:31:00 AM
Just read online that this lipstick has the highest amount of LEAD of 400 lipsticks the FDA tested (you can check the FDA website). I think I'll opt for a similar color in a different brand... :( Why eat extra lead?
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Aveda - Shampure
justwishin 2/5/2012 2:46:00 PM
Wow, this stuff made my hair into straw. I have colored (deposit-only), slightly wavy and relatively dry hair prone to a little frizz. I wanted a lightweight conditioner for every day that wouldn't weigh my hair down. I wasn't looking for any major repair or hydrating or detangling, BUT... This left a strange coating that I couldn't rinse out completely, but then during blow-dry (and I used a leave-in as well) my hair was tangled, frizzy, and felt totally brittle. It felt in worse condition than if I hadn't even used a conditioner at all. It felt as if I'd used some kind of clarifier that stripped my hair completely...weird! This "conditioner" does no such thing. Unless you have oily, totally virgin hair, or hair that is very short--RUN AWAY.
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Lipstick -Revlon - Colorburst Lip Butter
justwishin 11/5/2011 1:55:00 AM
Wow...this stuff is WAY overrated. I bought it thinking it would be rich and buttery. But it's kinda thin and Vasiline-y, like a cheap liquid lipbalm (think Blistex in the squeeze tube). I've noticed that some lip products, due to formula alone, make my lips look either fuller or (ugh) smaller. It has to do with whatever emollients are used. Some formulas just kind of plump your lips. But this formula makes my lips look SMALLER. It's like the outline of my lips actually seems to shrink in a little. I've had it happen with a few other products and I'm sad it happened with this. To get a good look, I'd need a lipliner and gloss and that kind of defeats the purpose of this product. Since this made my lips look worse, I can't really recommend it.
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