Pressed Powders -Almay - TLC Truly Lasting Color Pressed Powder
kissjacksparrow 12/11/2012 9:24:00 PM
This is a recent discovery for me, but I fear I may have discovered it too late because I hit pan on it and went to buy a new one today and Walgreens doesn't carry it! A friend of mine really liked this powder. She's a minimalist when it comes to makeup and she said she likes it because she can get good coverage using this alone. I still need a little under eye concealer, but I agree, it does function like a light to medium coverage powder foundation, granted, my skin is usually pretty clear and I don't need much coverage. And I really like how nice it makes my skin look - it really hides my pores and help even out my red patches without being too heavy or obvious. As for wear, my skin has been really oily lately (new BC) son I do need to blot midday, so it falls short on its claim of 16hour wear by a lot, but almost nothing can last on me that long anyways. Also, I hate the puff and always apply with a kabuki. A few times using the included puff and it got nasty and just cakes the powder on and looks terrible.
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Eyeliner -Jordana - Easyliner in Lavish Brown
kissjacksparrow 11/28/2012 7:34:00 PM
The quality of this product is average at best, which is disappointing because as others have said, its a great color that is kinda hard to find. Its a black brown that is neutral. It is dark without being harsh and it doesn't have any red/orange like some other brown pencils out there. I just had issues with it running and smudging a lot and it wears off after a few hours and needs to be reapplied. Is rather spend a little more on something more reliable.
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Conditioner -Organix - Macadamia Oil Conditioner
kissjacksparrow 11/3/2012 2:22:00 AM
My BF bought this S&C set to use when I stay there. I asked for the awauphi ginger one I'd been hears so much about but it was OOS. I just finished the conditioner and I'm impressed. The shampoo was gentle and didn't dry out my dry, curly, color treated hair. It really feels like it needs conditioning after using the shampoo, but this replenishes it well. Its not super thick do was skeptical, but as long as I use my leave in conditioner before styling its all good. My fair feels so soft and light but still manageable. My only gripe, I tend to get build up after a few uses and need to clarify, not sure if its the oils or if its because the shampoo is so gentle that it doesn't remove all my styling products, but that's not a big deal. I would repurchase. Still kinda think its expensive....but not gonna kill your wallet.
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Brows -Jordana - Fabubrow Taupe
kissjacksparrow 11/3/2012 2:10:00 AM
I'm really excited about this brow product!! I'm always trying new brow products in hopes of finding that one perfect product. I have very light and thin eyebrows that, while naturally well shaped, get lost. It looks like I have none from afar/in pictures and I hate it! But because I'm do fair its easy for them to look harsh and over drawn. Color is difficult, too. Mist colors are too dark, too warm or look grey. This is such a nice neutral color that blends nicely. Its also a nice consistency- not too hard or too creamy. Only thing is, while I like that it doesn't smear, it seems to face throughout the day. I've beensetting it with Milani powder to help. Also, I'd prefer a retractable pencil because I'm lazy. For the price, I'm impressed, because I've tried some HE brow products that aren't this nice!!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Shea Moisture - Organic Raw Shea Butter Restorative Condition
kissjacksparrow 7/1/2012 5:58:00 PM
This is a really spectacular product! Not only does it work great, it is natural, affordable, easily accessible & fair trade/good cause! What's not to like is really the question in this case. I have very curly 3b hair that is color treated, heat styled a few fines a week on top of it already being prone to dryness, frizzy and breakage. I bought this because it had sine really nice hydrating ingredients that I've has good luck with in the past. I use it as a leave in and it really does make my hair feel softer and smoother and seals in moisture. Typically I use this under gel because I need some extra help with hold. After using it consistently I noticed the overall health of my hair improving. I didn't much care for it as a regular rinse out conditioner. It didn't detangle enough and I felt like I had to keep adding more and more and I would've used up a whole bottle by the time I was detangled. I used the matching shampoo.which was only 'ok' imo. This is a great product if you do-wash/no-poor etc because it doesn't build up - at least not for me, but my hair loves oil & shea; it just soaks it.right up! Maybe of you have fine, limp or thin hair this might be too much, it better as a rinse out only. I do agree the smell us a bit too strong though. Otherwise, I really like & recommend for anyone with dry/frizzy hair. It's really nice at repairing damages hair as well. I just finished the bottle and will buy a replacement (but I am waiting fit walgreens to do another bogo!) I used the one for curly hair as well and also really liked it!
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Mascara -MAC - Zoom lash
kissjacksparrow 5/15/2012 3:13:00 AM
Im not at all surprised this has a pretty low rating, it basically sucks! It's way below average and price is ridiculous considering there are so many really nice DS mascaras. Thr brush is neat and seems to separate, but it goes on chunky & uneven and gives me creepy-spider leg lashes. It flakes too, and after a few hours it was like it disappeared! It makes lashes heavy so it won't hold a curl. I can't wait to toss this!
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Styling Products -Unlisted Brand - Eco Styler Moroccan Argan Oil Styling Gel
kissjacksparrow 5/7/2012 2:14:00 AM
I saw this on sale at Sally's and couldn't believe how cheap it is for this HUGE tub. I know have read a lot about Eco Styler crystal gel on various websites/curly hair communities, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. the first few times I used it I had a really hard time with application because it is SO THICK and at the time my hair was about halfway down my back. I recently cut off more then a foot of hair and was struggling on how to style it with this new cut, which motivated me to experiment with some of the much neglected products in my stash. (I am a huge product junkie, as many curlies can relate to - always on the look out for that prefect product) and I found myself really loving it, though there is a learning curve to it. To get this to work, my hair must be really wet still, and It need to be sectioned out and really worked through the hair or I will end up with sections w/o product, and you can totally tell because those patched looks frizzy and dull. Because it is so thick, working it though the hair can tend to straighten pieces, so once I have it distributed I reshape those sections with by wrapping them around my fingers and then scrunching with my 'curls like us' towel to bring back the volume. I 'plop' my hair while I do my makeup, then either let it air dry or use a diffuser if I dont have time (my hair takes literally hours to dry, even when it's this short!) When used correctly, I get amazing results. It gives my hair a lot of hold w/o being too crunchy (any crunch is easily scrunched out) and I've never had issues with flaking or white residue. It give my hair insane shine (I think that may be because of the oils, but Im not sure as I have never used the other eco styler gels to compare) it makes my hair look so healthy and the volume I can get with this is great! I love how it give me big hair AND defined curls; I dont have to settle for one or the other. The hold is great! It lasts all day; provided that I done mess with it too much. Even though it has some oil in it, it is not enough for my dry hair, so I always use this with a leave in for the best results. I took away one lippie because it is sort of hard to apply and takes a lot of working with it, but the results make it totally worth it for me!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eyeliner -Clinique - Brush-On Cream Liner in Black Honey
kissjacksparrow 5/7/2012 1:51:00 AM
I am not a huge cream/gel liner person, but I have used a few different brands and this is my favorite. It is more gel like then some others I have used, and so it glides on really easily. I do like the color; it is very nice if you want something subtle and natural looking. It's a warm brown with shimmer, but it is not super glittery or anything. lately I have been doing minimal makeup look; just some powder, bronzer, matte e/s and this liner + mascara. It's perfect for that 'no makeup' look. The brush it comes with is nice, but so small it gets lost in my stuff so easily, so I usually use a small angled brush or my SK bent eye liner brush. It glides on so effortlessly, no skipping like some of the drier ones Ive tried (Loreal, maybelline, etc) and I never have issues with it smearing or migrating. I really want to try more now. Before this one I was not so into using gel/cream liners, but this one is so easy to use that I think I could see myself getting a lot of use out of them. Before cream liners seemed to be harder to master application and was too time consuming for daily use compared to a pencil. The jar is a little smaller then other brands, but I use it a lot and have barely made a dent in it; you need so little! The only down side is that it is sort of red, and if I am really tired or have redness (crying, allergies) it will only excentuate them; it def. looks best on me when I am more tan for that reason as well. Also, it is not the most strongly pigmented, but it's ok for the look I am going for - sometimes really pigmented liners are just too much for me for everyday/minimal makeup looks.
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Nails -Unlisted Brand - Broadway Nails Real Life Brush On Gel Kit
kissjacksparrow 4/2/2012 1:19:00 AM
I picked this up at Walmart today. I stopped getting my nails done years ago to save money, and embraced my natural nails for a long time. For a long time I had no problem doing my nails every few days. I became quite the polish collector and it was fun, but life has gotten so busy. I cannot spend the time I used to on my nails, and I just cannot tolerate shabby looking nails, yet, I also cannot afford to back to getting gels or acrylics done. This weekend, while doing my weekly grocery shopping I decided to see what kinda of kits Walmart had. i was trying to decide between press on nails or an at home acrylic kit. I have done my own acrylics at home, but they are very time consuming and take a lot of practice. So when I saw this gel kit I was intrigued, it looked much easier and the promise that it dries in under 5 minuets sealed the deal. I had remembered seeing a youtuber I follow had used a kit like this, so I bought with optimism. This set comes with 2 sets of nail tips; one natural set and one french set. I decided to to the natural set since I assumed I might not have flawless application and would likely need to paint over them anyways. the tips are not overly long, but still longer then I would normally choose. The tabs make them easy to apply. however, I did not find that they fit my nails beds well, and since they only had 2 of each size, I needed up having to settle. It does not come with glue. the instructions say to use the gel to apply the tips, but I did not think that was good advice, so I used some brush on nail glue I already had on hand. They are soft of thick, and even with filing t was hard to blend the tip to the nail. Then to applying the gel. It come with a brush on gel and an activator and a brush cleanser. I did 2 nails at a time. I did have some issues with bubbling and it did not level as well as implied. I ended up going over them 3 times to get them thick enough to conceal the lines from the tips, and even then there was still a slight bump. It seemed like they did dry fast for the first coat, but not so much by the last coat. It felt sticky still an hour later, and keeps collecting dust. and looking nasty. I tried running my hand under both hot and cold water. washed my hands several times, I even tried to whipe away the stickiness with alcohol and it still didnt ever seem to harden. I thought I would just seal it with a top coat, but even then it still seemed sticky and never fully dry. I havent applied color yet because I want it to be dry all the way, but it's been a few hours. I have decided to wait until the morning and hope for the best. They look bubbly and have some dents and marks. not terrible, but they sure done look smooth or professional.While waiting for them to dry I looked up other reviews elsewhere, and others have reported the same issue of them seeming sticky. However, some people also seemed to love them, so maybe it is because I used so many layers, or maybe I skipped a step. After all this irritation, I decided to bite the bullet and ordered a UV lamp off ebay to do real gel nails at home. Its sort of expensive, but at least I know they will actually cure within a few minuets. I will reprt back in the morning .
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Hair -Unlisted Brand - CURLS curl creme brule / cream brulee
kissjacksparrow 3/15/2012 2:59:00 AM
My hair: I have very curly mostly 3b curls that is color treated. It tends to be very fragile, breakage prone and frizzy, but currently my hair is in really good condition after chopping off about 12inches of it. (yikes, I know... I wouldn't advise it.) I bought this in an 8oz size bottle at Target for around $11, but lately this brand has expanded and Ive seen it's starting to pop up at more drugstores and even Sally's. I was intrigued after seeing this brand all over naturallycurly.com. I am all about trying all natural products and "Curly Girl friendly" products when I can. I should've been wary of this product when it states that it will"define and moisturize curls without hold" because my curls need hold. But I thought I would give it a go - since my hair can be dry and frizzy, creams usually are what a lean towards. The ingredients looked like some things my hair as responded to well in the past, so i decided I would see what it could do on it's own... turns out that it does nothing. My hair looked awful. It smelled good and felt soft, but it was a major uncontrolled fuzz ball with NO definition what so ever. I tried it again using 2x the amount of product, same results. Then I tried it how I originally thought I would want to use it; and that is more as a leave in under a gel to give more hold. Normally this works really well for me, but even with gel my hair still turned out frizzy and with no curl definition. wow. I think I would've been better off without this and just gel alone... The only thing I have found it useful for is touching up my hair and using a small amount in the palms of my hands to smooth over frizzies mid-day - but really I could use any other styling cream for this. It's kind of a dud. It seems to do nothing. only reason Im giving is a 2 is because it smells good, has good looking ingredients, and doesn't do anything bad to my hair.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Stila - Sun Eyeshadow
kissjacksparrow 3/8/2012 3:09:00 AM
I am a fan of Stila eye shadows. I prefer them to most other 'prestige' brand eye shadows. I find them to be of superior quality and generously sized. That being said, Sun turned out to be an unexpected surprise. In the pan, sun does not wow me much. If it wasn't for the fact that I got this in a combo set, I probably would have passed it over. I think the set it came with was called smokey browns - or something of the like? It came in on of the older, generic silver refillable compacts without a label. It came with 3 other neutral shades. For reference, I am fairly light (between NC15-20, 25 when I tan) with yellow /neutral undertones, brown hair and hazel/green eyes. This color goes great with my coloring. It is not too orange, but not muddy or boring either. It has just a small amount of shimmer, no where near the shimmer of the infamous kitten. The shimmer is just enough to give a glow about you, but it does not come off as frosty/glitter/pearly/etc. It's a true bronze, not an orangy or coppery bronze. It has quite a bit of gold to it, and a slight bit of a pink/peach sheen when blended. It's just warm enough to make my eyes look super green, and just shimmery enough to 'light up' my eyes. For me, this is a perfect shade for that 'barely there' type look. It's so simple, yet dimensional enough that I can use it as the only eye shadow. I like just pack it on the lid, and blend into the crease so it fades away very subtly. Sometimes I will wear black or brown liner, but often I just put on mascara and I am done. It looks so clean and pretty. To me this really is that perfect beachy-bronzed goddess look. I love it in summer, when I usually sport a more natural/minimalist look anyways. It not often I come across shades that make such great stand alone eye shadows. I often pair it with Java, a stila matte shade, softly smudged into the lash line. For darker, or more involved makeup looks, this also makes a good blending shade in the crease, or would make a find lid shade for a smokey bronze eye. The texture of this is good. It might not be as buttery to the touch as some other shades, but it applies and blend effortlessly. Very high quality, still, and does not crease or fade, even when I am too lazy to use a primer. It goes on smoothly, and is nicely pigmented. It can still be applied sheer or built up, making it very versatile and easy to work with.
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Conditioner -Suave - everlasting sunshine conditioner
kissjacksparrow 3/4/2012 5:21:00 PM
I was so excited when I heard about this new line from Suave. I love the suave conditioners. I use them to CO wash with, or as a regular conditioner/detangler. For some reason this one didn't work so well as a leave in for me, but that's fine. It smells amazing; Its a fusion of tropical, fruity and floral. It's pretty strong, but once it's rinsed out it's not so intense. I adore this fragrance and will for sure purchase it again. I rotate through several of the scents of the suave naturals like, but this is up there on my list. Amazing value for the price. I love that it is silicone free, yet still hydrating and really does well on my 3b hair.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -Suave - Professionals Almond & Shea Butter
kissjacksparrow 1/7/2012 3:49:00 AM
I was very optimistic when I bought this because it gets a lot of love on the hair board, but I was also a bit worried because I tried their Sleek line and hated it! My hair: curly, 3b, a tendency to be dry, fragile and breakage prone (thought I have made great strides to combat these) that is color treated and heat styled about 1-3x a week. Because my hair is dry and frizz prone, I typically shampoo my hair 1-2x per week (more in the summer b/c I get oily) and then cowash in between. When it comes to shampoo I am very picky because most shampoos make my hair feel dry and stipped and squeeky clean, which then usually makes my hair tangley. So for this reason, there are very few shampoos I like. This shampoo, suprisingly, does not leave my hair feeling dry, stripped or tangled. Yet, it also makes my hair feel CLEAN! I have had a hard time finding this - and I have been using both salon and drugstore products. My hair looks so healthy, shiny and manageable when I use this! Its up there on the list of best shampoos for my hair! 2nd to my kirkland moisture shampoo (which I liked way more then my expensive purology!) I just can't believe how good AND cheap this is! I bought the large size with the salon pump and and loving it! It has SLES rather then SLS so it is gentler if you have color treated hair. The she I think really does help it moisturize. It is not silicone free, but I do not feel like it is heavy or coating at all. I do still clarify once in a while thought. It's Great stuff!
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Mascara -L'Oreal - Voluminous False Fiber Lashes
kissjacksparrow 12/24/2011 12:39:00 AM
I hated this. I cannot think of one redeeming quality. The only nice thing about it is the fancy-smancy gold tube & that it's super dark black, but neither of those make a difference when everything about it sucks. Thankfully I got this for free from a giveaway, so it was no loss. I am just so disappointed - I really wanted it to work. I had no delusions that this was going to be anything like it said, but I still thought it would work for me, as I like mascara formulas with fibers in the past. So, this is supposed to give you the look of flase lashes -- Yeah, I'm all for that. I love the heavy lash look. Supposedly this is supposed to be so amazing that you'll never wear false lashes, except that on the commercials, Gwen is clearly wearing falsies - at least that what it looks like on my HD big screen TV. And except for the fact that the adverts look very obviously photo shopped. Didn't somebody already get sued for false advertising for this exact thing? Anyways, so I have really wimpy lashes, they are short, sparse, just sad sad sad. I doubt even the best mascara in the world could ever make it look like THESE could be false, but ok. I curl my lashes and apply this, and it's just a mess. The fibers do not go on evenly, and I get the weirdest clumps ever, because they aren't your usual clumps - they are fiber-filled clumps. They do not coat or wrap my lashes like the adverts imply. They don't do much to add length. I guess it does volumize, but not in a very flattering way. And how does it wear you ask? Just awful. It flakes so much! And it flakes pretty much as soon as it dries. I tried laying it over other mascaras, under other maracas, using a lash comb before and after... everything I could think of - nothing ever yielded even "ok" results. After 2 weeks of trying everything I could think of, I have given up. Its finally going in the trash. I hate it. hate it. hate it.
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Lotions/ Creams -Nivea - Nivea Body Skin Firming Moisturizer Q10 Plus with Advanced Q10 Complex
kissjacksparrow 12/18/2011 7:22:00 PM
I'm surprised I couldn't find an entry for this body lotion already. Nivea has a lot of "Q10" products, so maybe thing are being reviewed in different places. I don't think this is a new product, I am pretty sure I've used it in the past. Actually, it has to have been around a while because the bottle I just finished said "not with more Q10." Anyways, on to my review. I am always jumping around when it comes to body lotions, so I guess I have never found "the one" yet. I usually am not too picky and can make do with whatever, but in general the largest concern I have with body lotion is that I need something that actually helps moisturize because my legs can get really ashy and itchy if I don't use lotion enough. But I also need something light enough that I can put it on in the morning after I get out of the shower and not have to worry about it sticking to my clothes, making my jeans chaiff, and feel like I am slimy or coated. I need a lotion that absorbs quickly because I just don't have the time in the morning to wait 20minuets before I put my clothes on. I honestly only picked this up because I got it for a steal with a couple coupons & sale, and so I figured it was worth trying Otherwise, I think it's retail price is a bit high for the small amount of product you get. I guess it's more expensive because of the Q10 or whatever, but I dont know how much that really can do in terms ob "building collagen" or firming. This bottle lasted me about 1 month, and while my skin felt soft, supple, healthy, I didn't really notice any kind of really dramatic difference compared to any other moisturizer. I like the consistency of this moisturizer. I like how Nivea has grading system in terms of richness, and this is rated a two, so it;s on the lighter side. It has a gel like feeling and it glides on with ease. It feel thin, but not watery and still feels very moisturizing. It absorbs quickly, so I can put this on and get dressed a few minuets after without problems. It has fragrance, so if you are sensitive to that, you might not like this. It's sort of perfume-y, but I find that is is light/clean smelling and doesn't seem to clash with any other scented products I use. But it is strong enough that my boyfriend won't use it. The pump is very nice, and I prefer pump packaging for lotions. This one pumps until the end and that makes me happy. I hate how sometime the pumps stop working when there is still a ton of product, but after the pump stopped working there was only a day or two's worth of product I had to dig out. I was impressed by that. In all, I liked this, but I wont be repurchasing right away. It wasn't anything extraordinary and I think it's kind of pricey. When I used this up I both a larger sized bottle of Vaseline coco butter for half the price and like it very well, but I would consider it an option in the future. I have nothing bad to say about it other then I am not to excited to see alcohol in the ingredients. Water, Glycerin, Mineral Oil (Paraffinum Liquidum), Glyceryl Stearate SE, Octyldodecanol, Alcohol Denatured, Stearic Acid, Dicaprylyl Ether, Dimethicone, Myristyl Alcohol, Creatine, Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q10), Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, Carbomer, Sodium Hydroxide, 1 Methylhydantoin 2 Imide, Methylparaben, Propylparaben
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