Skincare - Face -Unlisted Brand - Tazorac
kjmakeupaddict 5/5/2012 2:22:00 PM
So, let me start by explaining my skin type: I am 15 with light/medium skin, yellow undertones. My problem is not inflamed acne such as pustules etc., but comedones. Not the average blackheads one has in the creases of the nose but TONS of them all over cheeks/nose/chin. I do have some pimples here and there but nothing major. I also get milia sometimes. My skin is combination to oily but that might be due to puberty. So, I started with the 0.05 percent gel for 2 months and it worked to some extent, but it removed only about 50% of the blackheads. Then I was moved up to 0.1 percent and have been using it for about 1.5 months now. All I can say is WOW. My skin is nearly blackhead free (except for ones in the creases of my nose) and I barely get pimples. It even helps to make my big pores (due to the blackheads) a lot less visible! Yes, it does make your skin red and flaky at first and I know this time sucks because you won't be able to look extremely weird with makeup on because it will all flake off but it's SO worth it in the end! My friends all envy me because of my skin! I do still have big pores but that is partly heredity and also too much sun exposure. ALWAYS WEAR SUNSCREEN WITH THIS!!! I wear SPF 30 everyday (Peter Thomas Roth's btw). Another thing that has greatly improved the appearance of my skin is Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Line + CeraVe's Moisturizing Lotion (basic one). Ladies, please give this a try. It is awesome. And also check out Paula's Choice - the best skin care line on the market IMO. No fragrance, harmful ingredients or colorants. Sorry for the long text but I hope I could help someone :)
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -Alterna - Bamboo smooth anti frizz
kjmakeupaddict 4/14/2012 1:36:00 PM
OHMYGOD I looove this so much! I have wavy, long and really fine hair that's prone to frizz, split ends and DULLNESS. Oh yes, my hair is never shiny. Never. I have tried so many produtcts to tame frizz and make my hair look shiny and healthy. Error. Nothing has worked so far. I first used the Bamboo Luminous Shine collection and it worked really well!! My hair looked a bit shiny and was soft but it was somehow undernourished... So when my friend offered me some samples I took them. I used the shampoo&conditioner without anything else as I wanted to see how it performed without added products (I normally use leave in-conditioner, a hair oil and a split end serum)..and WOW! my hair was oh so soft, really shiny (I couldn't stop checking if it was actually MY hair!) and my split ends (I get them all the time, even 1 week after a trim!) were much less noticeable. I am more than happy with this and will definitely buy the full size once the Luminous Shine stuff is empty! Try it, you won't be disappointed! Also love the bottle design and the twist/squeeze bottles! Oh and btw, if you add the Kendi Oil Treatment your hair will look EVEN shinier and healthier! :)
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Concealers -Make Up For Ever - Full Cover Concealer
kjmakeupaddict 3/23/2012 12:22:00 PM
Ohmygod, I love this stuff so much! I have extremely dark, purplish under eye circles due to genetics. I tried every single concealer and always end up buying super thick pigmented ones that cake like no other! Normal concealers such as Maybelline's don't do a single thing for me btw... So here comes this baby: I discovered whilst being in Sephora and was shocked at how well it covered. So I took it home. I have never looked back since!! It covers SO well!!! I still have to touch up once a day but that's such an improvement from approx. 5 times a day!! Looks natural and blends really nicely (just be quick!). For a super bright look I put the lightest shade of the HD Concealer on top! GREAT stuff for dark circles!!! Love!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments -Ojon - Restorative Hair Treatment
kjmakeupaddict 3/23/2012 12:14:00 PM
Wowza! This product is the bomb! For the record, my hair is: wavy, slightly frizzy, long, brunette with highlights FROM THE SUN, extremely split-end prone and really dull (it never shines!). I tried the mini version of this because I wanted to see if it was worth the splurge. Oh boy, it is!!! I applied the treatment as directed, rubbing it in my palms until it transformed into an oil and distributed through my hair (but leave out the roots, can get oily!). It looks really greasy when it's in your hair (before shampooing) and doesn't smell really nice but I really don't care... I shower at night so I went to bed with wet hair. In the morning I was shocked: my hair was so soft and SHINY AS HECK, which never happens!!! I couldn't stop touching my hair!! This is exactly what I wanted the Macadamia Natural Oil Mask to be like!! I will try the entire damage reverse line ! Just be sure not to use too much as you'll end up looking greasy.
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Cleansers -Paula's Choice - Skin Balancing Oil-Reducing Cleanser
kjmakeupaddict 3/23/2012 11:06:00 AM
This cleanser is the best I have ever tried and I'm a complete skin care junkie, so I tried basically everything from the drugstore and high end store before trying out this. A little history: I am 16 years old now and have started with skin care way too early when my skin was still perfect but I thought it was cool to scrub your face with some fancy looking scrub from the drugstore with mainly alcohol, menthol and fragrance in it (but I didn't know it was bad at all - I was 12!). However, I kept using those products (Clerasil) every morning and night (Cleanser, Scrub, Toner, Pads, Treatment!!) until I was 13 and then I got interested in higher end skin care and bought all kinds of stuff claiming to reduce pores and acne (as you can imagine, my skin by then was irritated, sensitive and my pores have gotten bigger due to all the irritation), as well as other drugstore and so called "natural products". This continued until I stumbled across Paula Begoun at 15. First I thought she was just trying to make money but I read one of her books and quickly noticed that she was giving great advice! I bought the entire Skin Balancing System (Cleanser, Toner, Moisturizer, Serum) and the Acne Relief Toner (Regular). I also use Tazorac gel 0.05 which I got from my derm. Before my skin was: pretty sensitive, large pores, blackheads, some pimples Now my skin is: 100% clear, even toned but a few enlarged pores (nose area) remain AND IT HAS ONLY BEEN 3 MONTHS! WOW!!! This system is the bomb and I am so happy! All of my friends are so jealous of my skin and always want to know my secret and I keep telling them to stop using all that harsh stuff and try Paula's Choice!! If you want to have beautiful skin, try it out, you will not be sorry. And always wear sunscreen!!! I love it so much! The cleanser is a pearlescent foam that rinses away all of my make up (Revlon Photoready and MUFE HD Concealer, Neutrogena Blush) and DOES NOT MAKE MY SKIN TIGHT! This is a great plus because the Taz tends to dry out my combo skin a bit. The toner has awesome ingredients such as ceramides to soften and refresh skin and the exfoliant is so great to remove blackheads. The moisturizer is really light and refreshing but also makes your skin so smooth! I'm sorry for this long text but please take your time to read it - I'm so happy :) <3
5 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Lancome - Hypnose Drama
kjmakeupaddict 1/6/2011 9:59:00 AM
First, my lash type: I have naturally really long, somewhat thick and curly lashes and I am always on the hunt for my HG mascara. I have more than 20 high end mascaras and 10 drugstore ones lying around and I keep buying new ones... So when I wanted a new mascara, I went to my local department beauty store and asked the sales lady for recommendations. (I want voluminous and long BUT perfectly seperated lashes!) She recommended this. I was shocked by the wand as it has this S - Shaped wand which looks really scary but she told me to use it with the "spoon" side first and then the other way round to get curl; and she promised me there wouldn't be any clumps whatsovever. I was hooked and took this baby home. Once there, I took off my old mascara and carefully applied this the way she told me to. BAH! It did give incredible volume and a good curl, but it was a clumpy mess! It looked like I had 7 lashes, so badly they clumped together! However, the next morning I gave it another try but it ended the same. Throughout the day it also smudged and left my lashes feeling super dry and brittle. Don't likey :( For me this was a waste of money and I won't buy it again. 3 lippies though because it gave volume and the idea behind it and the tube are nice.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Maybelline - Volum' Express The Colossal
kjmakeupaddict 1/6/2011 9:53:00 AM
First, my lash type: I have really long, somewhat thick and curly lashes and I'm always on the hunt for my HG mascara and I've tried them ALL. I have more than 20 high end mascaras lying around and 10 drugstore ones and I'm still buying every new one. So, after I bought Lancome's Definicils and was hugely disappointed I went to the drugstore and picked up this and The Falsies mascara because I thought "I haven't tried drugstore ones in a while, maybe they aren't as bad". When I got home I took off my old mascara and applied this to clean and seperated lashes and wiggled it from root to tip - WOW! I love volume, curl and length BUT they have to be perfectly seperated otherwise I'll hate it. And wow, this mascara delivered it all! Whilst it didn't give the crazy amount of volume it was claiming to (I didn't expect that), it gave me crazy long and curled lashes and each lash was individually seperated. Perfect! And my lashes felt soft and flexible all day long and it did not flake or smudge a bit! Even through 12 hours of wear! It is easily removed with water though. Until now, this is one of the best mascaras I have ever tried and I am still super satisfied with it. It reached HG status for me :)
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Mascara -Lancome - Definicils - Black
kjmakeupaddict 1/6/2011 9:44:00 AM
First my lash type: I have really long, average thick and curly lashes. I bought this mascara at the airport for 24 € which is an okay price and I really wanted to love it. I had seen all the positive reviews about it and the claims of this mascara are exactly what I want - super long and seperated lashes without clumps. However, when I applied it at home I was really disappointed. It lengthened my lashes, yes, but it didn't seperate at all! Maybellines Lash Stiletto does a much better job at that! But that said, it left my lashes soft, not brittle or dry and it didn't smudge or flake at all, even after 12 hours of wear and it was easily removed by an average eye makeup remover. Additionally it has a pretty luxurious looking tube. For me this was rather a waste of money because I can get better results for 14 € less from my Lash Stiletto.
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Mascara -Helena Rubinstein - Lash Queen Feline Blacks Waterproof
kjmakeupaddict 11/24/2010 1:33:00 PM
Thanks Helena Rubinstein! I finally found THE perfect mascara for me! ( I'm a mascara junkie..from L'oreal, Maybelline, Covergirl, Almay, Lancome, YSL, Dior to Estee Lauder, Chanel and Shiseido I've tried them all.) My best friend uses it but I never was crazy about how it looked on her because she's the "au naturale" type and just applies some teeny tiny bit; but because I was bored I browsed through her make up bag and just tried it out and WHAM! - the most seperated, longest, most voluminous, and most curled lashes I have ever seen! The next day I browsed the whole internet to read reviews etc., because 31€ is quite expensive compared to drugstore mascaras, and I wanted to be sure. When I ordered it online and the package with it arrived one day later I immediately tried it out again - and there still was the same result. And after 1 month now there still is... And it is super black! (although I have black and relatively long lashes, to have these super black lashes is still nice :) To anyone who can afford the 31€ - please give it a try! It is soo gorgeous! EDIT: after a while, it stopped working for me and didn't give the volume and length I wanted. Now using Benefit's They're Real! - perfect, perfect mascara !!!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Concealers -MAC - Studio Finish Concealer
kjmakeupaddict 11/24/2010 1:24:00 PM
I bought this concealer due to its high ratings and it's thick coverage which I need because of my hereditaty caused super dark under eye circles. (Honestly, they're the darkest violet you could imagine!) However, when I tried it out at the counter(shade NW20)I was delighted with what I saw: NO dark circles! But you know how store lighting works...when I tried it out the next morning in natural lighting I was horrified. Cakey, cakey, cakey! And it didnt cover as well as I thought it would. But I gave it a try and used it for about a week and noticed that my under eye area got extremely dry - which kinda makes circles even darker.. So, to sum it up: Nice coverage, but way too cakey and dry! .Another concealer added to my huge collection..and still searching for THAT concealer...;)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No