Fragrances -Christian Dior - Escale Aux Marquises
lingonberry 6/15/2011 3:34:00 AM
I went through the entire Heathrow T5 dutyfree perfume shop looking for something new and different, nose first and a toddler in tow (some innocent tester bottles were distroyed in process). Having already tried Pondichery and Portofino (and Hermes En Meditarranee, Sur le Nil, etc) and found them not my cup of tea, I almost overlooked this one. The spicyness somehow reminds me of Omnia but I don't see how as all the notes except cardamom in the two perfumes are supposed to be different. Somehow I smell the spices more than the topnote, tiare flower. Whereas Omnia drydown turned sharp and nasty on me, this goes 180 degrees the other way and into a normal and kinda boring floweriness. The bottle design is a bit too simple for the price. It'd look classier if the lines on the bottle were cut like expensive glassware.
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Polishes -Unlisted Brand - Sula - Paint & Peel
lingonberry 6/15/2011 2:22:00 AM
Got it dirt cheap at Ulta clearance so at least I didn't spend a fortune an a polish that literally lasts like an hour on my flimsy nails. Maybe the only time I could see using this if I was on my way to a job interview in public transportation and suddenly decided I must have polished nails (I got it in a totally work appropriate pale nude) . It smells like Elmers glue so other people would probably think I'm glueing something. I could not tell if it improved my nails condition in the very brief time it stayed on. Trying to pander it off to my mom, she sounded a little horrified when I described it as glowingly as I could on the phone. I'd probably starve trying to make a living as a used car salesman. Ahem..pre-owned certified vehicle sales consultant.
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Sunscreen -Neutrogena - Pure & Free Liquid Daily Sunblock, SPF 50
lingonberry 6/15/2011 1:26:00 AM
It is the best Neutrogena facial sunscreen I've tried to date. Most others I've tried have been chemical (except for the baby one), and made my skin sting/itch. It is not as mattifying or powdery as my previous fave, DHC White but otherwise works quite well for half the price. Leaves a very slight white cast, which is slightly annoying on those days I don't want to wear foundation, but after reading some scary stuff about micronized zinc and nanoparticles, maybe it's a good thing after all... I did not reapply on my nose for all-day ski trip and did end up with pink tip.
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Toners -Garden Botanika - Balancing Facial Tonic
lingonberry 5/26/2011 10:03:00 PM
Perhaps the best toner I've ever used. No alcohol+no irritation. Smells pretty decent too. Leaves no greasy residue. Plastic bottle is break-resistant, which is a very good thing in my opinion for bathroom use. Why do some brands use glass bottles? The flip-top opening could be a little smaller.
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Liquid -Lumene - Double Stay Mineral Matt Makeup
lingonberry 12/4/2010 9:54:00 PM
It is not too matte for my oily skin and offers light-medium coverage. I just need a little more to cover up redness, but I am not able to layer it to get rid of all redness, so only 3 lippies. It does not irritate my skin, nice plastic bottle&cap. OK scent. This is what they say: "Mineral makeup that covers flaws perfectly[umm...as if]. Long-lasting formula for an immaculate look that lasts all day. This very high-standard formula looks natural on all skin types - never too made-up or powdery. Arctic Amethyst-Minerals protect your skin against external stress factors. Ideal for oily and combination skin. Paraben-free. 30 ml."
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Deodorants -Aquolina - Pink Sugar Natural Deodorant Spray
lingonberry 12/4/2010 9:43:00 PM
I wear this like perfume--everywhere else EXCEPT my armpits. It would not work as deo in Arizona summer heat longer than a snowball in hell. I actually like it better than the regular Aquolina perfume. I was going to buy a 3rd bottle when I went to visit Rome last summer, but I could not find it anywhere. Odd, since it is an Italian made product. At the same time it was temporarily out of stock at Sephora US website so I started getting a little nervous about the future of this product. Fortunately, I found a bottle at Kicks, which is like Swedish version of Sephora, I guess. Sephora better watch out, IKEA and H&M chains haven't done bad globally... I'm a little ashamed to admit I like Aquolina so much, but I'm a sugar addict, that's my excuse and I'll stick by it. Caramel, cotton candy, eat it, wear it,love it ...
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Shampoo -SAMY - Dry Spray Shampoo
lingonberry 10/24/2009 9:58:00 PM
I loved this and thought I'd finally found my HG dry shampoo. Good texture, color, and fragrance. $6 at Ulta, who can beat that, cheaper than Psst. Of course, now they have decided to sell it at HSN only and together with some hair spray I don't need in $20 package "deal". Plus s+h. Goodbye Samy, I loved you as long as it lasted. Please, please somebody tell me their customer service is wrong and there is some other store that sells it (other than HSN) I think it's time e.l.f. rolls out their version of dry shampoo.
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Mascara -Kanebo - Sensai Mascara 38 C (Volumising)
lingonberry 10/23/2009 2:11:00 PM
I loved the original 38C mascara and just found out there is a new volumising formula available. It is a little steep at 32 dollars at Bergdorf but if it lasts as long as the original, I hope it is worth it. And I found a coupon code for free shipping at retailmenot website. I've had a lot of eye irritation lately due to allergies and switching to Kanebo from drugstore brands (L'Oreal, Rimmel, Maybelline) has made a difference. I love that it makes my lashes a bit more pronounced than the original formula. I still need to apply two coats though. The curved brush did not help curl lashes, I had to use a curler. It is only available in black (MV-1).
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Eyeliner -Lancome - Artliner - Ice Black
lingonberry 10/8/2009 7:27:00 PM
I love this. I was looking for the perfect daytime eye liner for light eyes and this is it. So many brands only offer black and dark brown. MAC Brassbeat is just a touch too dark and many cheap brands (elf, palladio) the quality of product and stiff brushes are below even my low standards. My only gripe is: Like another reviewer pointed out, the name ice BLACK is inappropriate for a product that is not black.
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Makeup Brushes -Garden Botanika - Eye Definer Brush
lingonberry 3/27/2009 2:25:00 AM
I've been looking for a domed eye shadow brush for a while that is not too small or too large. This is just the right size and shape. And it was on sale at Ulta for $5-6 so I had to get it. I have not washed it yet so i can't comment on durability yet. You never know, some really cheap brushes have lasted me like 10 years and some brand name (for example, Vincent Longo foundation) fell apart pretty quickly. It is synthetic so washing with soap and warm water should not effect it as much as natural hair ones.
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Gels/Soaps -Boscia - Jujube Rejuvenist Amino Body Wash
lingonberry 2/15/2009 9:59:00 PM
POSITIVE: Nice lather, very creamy. Big bottle offsets some of sting of $22 price. NEGATIVE: Price-I don't usually pay $22 for soap. It's not as moisturizing as some other stuff I've tried. It smells a little bit stronger than I expected, and a bit odd. Like another reviewer pointed out, a large bottle is not good for travel.
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Treatments -Rusk - Sensories Calm Treatment
lingonberry 8/10/2008 1:17:00 PM
I bought this at Marshall because of price ($5), fragrance, and stament on tube: "intense therapy for battered, abused hair" and "features CFT (compressed formula technology) to enhance and expand the user's sensory experience. Use 30-50% less product to achieve twice the performance". It is not very moisturizing, actually I feel like my hair is getting more easily tangled now after switching from drugstore John Frieda "brilliant brunette" conditioner to this. Top five ingredients are water, cetearyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, and peg-100 stearate.
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Lip Treatments -Burt's Bees - Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil
lingonberry 8/10/2008 12:59:00 PM
Pluses: texture, color, fragrance Minuses: price, carmine="Carmine may be prepared from cochineal, by boiling dried insects in water to extract the carminic acid and then treating the clear solution with alum, cream of tartar, stannous chloride, or potassium hydrogen oxalate." (wikipedia definition) Yuck. It's all natural, and beetles are natural, I guess...
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Lipstick -Revlon - Colorstay Lipstick--Sheer Plum
lingonberry 8/10/2008 12:50:00 PM
Love the color, love the texture that is somewhere between lipstick and lipbalm, but the smell..it's very odd, something I'd describe as fake chemical butterscotch chips with side of plastic fruit. Ugh. No other Revlon product I've encountered has the same fragrance.
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Treatments -Unlisted Brand - BORBA - Skin Balance Aqua-less Crystalline Replenishing Lychee
lingonberry 8/10/2008 12:45:00 PM
I love the flavor, it's the main reason I repurchase when I can find it on sale at TJ Maxx, Ulta, etc. I hated all Crystal light, green tea, "greens in a bottle" type of powdered drinks I've tried so far. I can't really say it has done anything for my skin. I have no problems with Splenda in cold drinks but in baked goods and hot coffee I can sense a weird metallic aftertaste. UPDATE: I bought this again at Ulta and the new product has a lot stronger taste. I think they added more citric acid or something like it.
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