Sunscreen -Unlisted Brand - Topix - Replenix Ultra Sheer Physical Sunscreen Spray SPF 50
liteenie 1/29/2013 9:24:00 AM
This sunscreen is wonderful! It's my favorite physical sunscreen that I've tried so far. There is absolutely no white cast (I'm about SFF NC20-25) and it dries down matte without being drying at all. I can't stress enough how pleased I am about those two things. It feels so nice and smooth, especially when I rub the leftovers on the back of my hands. In theory, the ingredients are great- vitamin C, green tea and CoQ10, resveratrol, Emblica (don't know what this is). I still use a vitamin c and green tea serum underneath. While I rely on euro chemical ss for high ppd protection when I'm partaking in outdoor activities, this is fine for me on a daily basis because I mostly work in an office. I measured about 5-6 pumps to be a 1/4 teaspoon. $38 for 4 oz is a really great value! Plus, dermstore (n/a) offers 10% off if it's in your list of favorites.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Jordana - Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara
liteenie 1/17/2013 9:57:00 AM
I love this mascara layered over Maybelline Full n soft waterproof. The maybelline keeps my curl (asian lashes here) and Jordana gives me the volume I'm looking for plus a little extra length. I don't get any flakes and hardly any smudging unless I work out hard but that's in combo with my eyeliner.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Earth Science - A-D-E Creamy Cleanser
liteenie 1/17/2013 9:46:00 AM
I used this for a couple of months, really liking it because it didn't dry out my skin. I needed a non-drying cleanser because my skin was getting dry from RAM and other acne medication. I love the smell and texture. It helped get off all traces of the baby oil I used to pre-cleanse with. However, I decided to stop using this because I've been noticing that sometimes my cheeks would start stinging when I would wash my face with this. While I need confirmation from a derm, I'm suspecting I have mild rosacea. The main reason I suspect rosacea is because my cheeks are so red after washing my face, which started in the past year or two. But lately, I felt like the redness would not go away. While researching ingredients to avoid for rosacea, I realized this face wash had many of them - fragrance, "citrus-y" ingredients. Since quitting this for a few days, my cheeks are not as bright red as they used to be after washing my face. I've also cut out other products that have fragrance and other potential rosacea-aggravating ingredients so take that however you want. I do recommend this face wash if you have dry to normal skin (I don't know about oily) and you don't have sensitive skin. If you have really sensitive skin, I would err on the side of caution or maybe patch test. I purchased this for $9.99 at Sprouts.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Sunscreen -Kanebo - Allie extra UV gel mineral moist SPF 50 PA+++
liteenie 1/10/2013 10:11:00 AM
This is my favorite sunscreen right now in terms of cosmetic elegance and decent protection. According to ratzillacosme, this has a minimum PPD of 16 because it will be repackaged to PA++++ later this year. While that's only half or less of Euro sunscreens, I just can't make any euro sunscreen work for me aesthetically. It's very easy to apply, it doesn't dry out my skin which is pretty dehydrated right now, doesn't give me a white cast, and doesn't ball up or pill like many other sunscreens do. I bought my first one from Adambeauty, a 25 g mini tube, and it was really expensive (like $30 or so?). I'm going to try and find another retailer to see if there's anything cheaper. For everyday normal wear, I definitely recommend this SS.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -MAC - Face and Body Foundation
liteenie 12/27/2012 10:14:00 AM
I used to love MUFE F&B, well I still do, except for the fact that I can't find a good shade match because the undertones aren't yellow enough. I've since turned to MAC F&B and I'm really happy with it! My skin has been dry lately and when my NARS Sheer Glow picked up all the flakes, I removed it and applied MAC F&B and I didn't have that problem at all. This photographs so beautifully, it gives an amazing glow without looking oily. I do lightly dust my T-zone and where I apply powder blush. The coverage is really light, I haven't tried to build it up yet. I don't like this applied with a brush, I realized that's why I didn't like it when I tried it before. It looked streaky. But now, when I just use my hands/fingers, it's absolutely perfect.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Lancome - Cils Booster
liteenie 12/27/2012 10:09:00 AM
I've been using a sample of this but I will probably not purchase the full-sized one until I've exhausted other options. It gives me good volume and extra length, which helps my little Asian eyelashes a lot but it straightens out my lashes after I curled them. The good thing is that my lashes are still lifted but the bad thing is it doesn't keep the curl that I like when I just use a WP mascara like CG Lash Blast or Maybelline F&S. I also like that it looks like I have a bunch of extra lashes, but not in a clumpy way.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Primer/ Corrector -Giorgio Armani - Master Corrector
liteenie 10/2/2012 9:22:00 AM
Of all the concealers I have tried, this is the only one that doesn't crease and that corrects my dark circles nicely. By "nicely", I mean correct the color so that it complements my skintone and not turn it ashy looking. I use #2 by itself, without concealer over it. I probably could use a regular concealer to really cover everything but on normal days, the corrector is sufficient. Bobbi Brown and Eve Pearl's correctors both creased on me and I find Giorgio Armani's a million times better than those two and all the other ones I've tried.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -Cargo - Cargo Blu-Ray High Definition Powder Makeup
liteenie 10/2/2012 9:13:00 AM
This is my favorite powder, especially if I want to wear powder alone. I love it because after a little bit of time has passed, the powder seems to "melt" into my skin in a way that gives my skin a healthy glow, without looking oily. It does photograph really well, I used it when taking head shots for work. I like to stipple it on my face with elf's flat top powder brush or lightly dust it on with MAC's large powder brush.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -NARS - Sheer Glow Foundation
liteenie 10/2/2012 9:10:00 AM
Even though I told myself I wasn't going to buy any more foundations (I have just way too many), I just had to because every time I hang out with a friend who wears this foundation, I always am in awe of her skin finish. This foundation is so beautiful on the skin. I finally figured out how to describe it - it just softens the look of your skin and blurs it, almost like photoshopping :P. Some foundations really accentuate every hair, pore, etc.but this one truly makes my skin and my friend's skin (I don't know anyone else who wears it) look pretty. The coverage is light-medium, not too little, not too much (for me). The finish is glow-y and luminous so I don't set with powder. I rated the packaging as a 5 because I ordered the pump from Nordies. I don't know what MAC shade I am anymore, I would guess NC20 and after several samples, I settled with Ceylan, which has a yellow undertone. The coverage is light enough where I think you can get away with being a shade or two off since it blends really well. And a big plus - this doesn't oxidize on me. *update* - this doesn't work for me when my skin is dry, regardless of how I apply it or what I do underneath it. Twice now, I've had to remove it right away because it just made my flakies worse. I'll save it for after winter.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Sunscreen -Unlisted Brand - BurnOut - Clean and Clear Zinc Oxide Sunblock
liteenie 10/2/2012 9:01:00 AM
This sunscreen is highly recommended but I don't like it much, especially for my face. Pros: goes on clear effective against sunburn biodegradable relatively affordable Cons: stays sticky all day There are more pros than cons but the one con far outweighs all the pros. I try to use 1/4 teaspoon but that is just too much and it won't dry down the entire day. I've tried putting powder on it but it feels gross and my brushes and powder become gross. It is sticky on my body but I'll endure it for the excellent sun protection. **update 1/2013** I used this again the other day just for the hell of it and my experience with this was opposite of how it was when I first used it. This time, it was a little whitening (I'm NC25ish) and very drying. It wasn't sticky at all but I think I applied it differently this time. I took a little bit at a time and gently patted it onto my skin. This made the finish completely matte, but too matte. I didn't go all the way to 1/4 teaspoon because by the time I was like 75% there, it was way too white for my taste and I didn't want to make myself whiter. I put powder over it to get some color back and it helped color-wise, but still very dry looking.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Skincare - Body -Unlisted Brand - CVS Advanced Healing Ointment (Aquaphor knockoff)
liteenie 10/2/2012 8:55:00 AM
Aquaphor is my holy grail of all holy grails but I was tempted by the generic CVS version of Aquaphor because they had the exact same ingredients. I told myself to get over the brand name thing and just try out the CVS version. They're not the same and I will never stray from Aquaphor again. The CVS is a little more watery, for lack of a better description, which is not what I want. Aquaphor is very thick, which I love. I would use up the CVS version for my cuticles or something but I wouldn't use it for my lips again.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -Jane Iredale - Pure Pressed Base
liteenie 2/17/2012 5:50:00 PM
At first, I couldn't figure out how to get better coverage so I wasn't liking this powder very much. I was using synthetic flat top brushes. Then I switched to Physician's Formula Bambuki Brush and like magic, I found the finish and coverage I was looking for. I don't recommend that brush because it sheds like crazy and leaves bristles on my face but I definitely know what type of brush to use from now on. I rely on this for an extra boost of SPF over my sunscreen, especially if I need to powder down a greasy sunscreen like Vanicream. I have this in Golden Glow, which I purchased when my skin was a few shades darker. However, the color is still working for my okay on my winter shade (I would guess MAC NC20/25). So it's nice that it blends well with my skintone as it fluctuates a few shades. If I repurchase (I would repurchase if I run out but I never run out of products haha), I'll probably go for a lighter warm shade. If you can, find a local salon that carries this line and match your color. The packaging is luxurious but I'm so afraid to drop it, it's rather heavy.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Makeup Brushes -Physicians Formula - Bamboo Wear - Bambuki Brush
liteenie 2/17/2012 5:47:00 PM
I purchased this on a whim because it was on clearance at CVS. I like it because it gives me great coverage and finish when applying Jane Iredale Pure Pressed Base but I hate because it sheds like no other brush! It leaves hair on my face, blech. I'll continue to use it until I get a similar brush from a different brand.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Sunscreen -Unlisted Brand - Vanicream SPF 60 Sensitive Skin Sunscreen
liteenie 2/17/2012 5:39:00 PM
This is not the most cosmetically elegant sunscreen out there but considering the fact that it doesn't leave a white cast on me, I like it a lot. I use this for the back of my hands, my body and occasionally my face when I'm snowboarding. It's great for dry skin whereas Neutrogena's sensitive skin (all physical) sunscreen was so drying on my (body) skin. With that being said, using this on my face definitely leaves a shine. I sacrifice however and I put on mineral powder over it and that solves the problem. I keep this in my purse in case I find myself in the sun and I want to protect various exposed parts of my body.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Acne.org - Cleanser
liteenie 2/17/2012 5:28:00 PM
I love this cleanser, mostly for the fact that it's simple, cheap, gets the job done and doesn't break me out. Gone are the days that I buy high-end skincare because I don't see any special results from them. I precleanse with baby oil to take off my sunscreen and makeup then use this cleanser. The Daniel Kern website from which you buy the Acne.org products has excellent customer service. On my next order, I plan to purchase multiple large cleansers to save on shipping.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No