Self Tanners -St.Tropez - Tinted Self-Tanning Lotion
rangerhollywood 2/29/2012 2:21:00 PM
While this stuff is definitely expensive, it is truly liquid gold for me. I've only used it once (yesterday) so maybe I should have waited because I can't really comment in how long it lasts and how it fades, but I just have to review it now! Because I am a very pale olive tone right now and it's winter I was afraid of going too dark so I did about a 60/40 split of the St. Tropez and lotion. When I first saw the color I was like "WHOA! What am I getting myself into?". It is a very dark color, but that makes it so much easier to see where it's going, and the color itself is nice (brown, not at all orange) and didn't make me feel like I was going to end up orange. I was really worried as I put it on and rubbed (you're not really supposed to rub, but I'm paranoid about streaks) it was looking very streaky. I ended up getting it to the point where it was mostly non-streaky, but I assumed I'd wake up with a number of areas I'd need to fix in the morning. I was also pretty worried that my hands would be bright orange because no matter how much i scrubbed, I could still see it in the tiny crevices all over my palms. I scrubbed and scrubbed and used alcohol and it was still there. Oh well. I just prepared to regret this in the morning. When I showered in the morning I was a bit confused, because there were no streaks. None. I was thinking that it just didn't work at all! When I got into better light I realized how amaaaaazing it looked. You cannot tell this is fake, because there is truly no evidence to suggest so. I have a great bronze tan right now that look completely natural, even in winter. I love this stuff! Pros: -Dark tint, easy to control -Almost completely lacking that self-tanner funk smell -Natural color -No orange palms -No staining on clothes -No streaks! Cons: -Hard to apply evenly -Price: a 4oz bottle is $30, 8oz is $40. Obviously may as well double up for +$10. -Takes a long time (15 min+) to be dry enough to dress.
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Lip Treatments -Maybelline - Baby Lips lip balm
rangerhollywood 11/23/2011 2:45:00 PM
I'm a little torn on this product... I should base it mostly off this though: Maybelline does not deliver on their promise of softer lips. Quite the opposite for me, actually. What I love about these (I have the grape & cherry) is the color and sheen. This is such a perfect sheer but still fairly pigmented balm- the grape one comes out to a nice sheer fuchsia (very sheer, actually) and the cherry one has a rather bright, bright sheer red-pink tint. The cherry one is a bit less wearable for all instances I suppose. But I love that with this level of pigmentation I don't even need a mirror to apply because it is even every time! The problem is that they require frequent reapplication, and although I don't find them particularly drying, they are also not moisturizing. Although they don't makes my lips any drier, this makes them peel! It's pretty gnarly sometimes because after a day of multiple applications I can pick at my lips and with no effort pull of little sheets of skin- gross. This isn't something I can usually do... I do not tend to have dry or peeling/cracking lips. TL;DR - pick these up for the cute, juicy sheer color, but do not expect that they will perform like a moisturizing balm. I will probably repurchase though because of the great easy to wear tints with no shimmer.
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Lip Gloss -Rimmel - Stay Glossy - all
rangerhollywood 9/14/2011 3:07:00 PM
I have some mixed feelings about this product, but overall I do really like it. I think the one I got is "Captivate Me", looks like a pinky-mauve shimmer. The smell is just.. yucky. It's this terrible artificial waxy, perfumy scent that I can smell on my lips for at like 20 minutes after I apply (which is really odd, I just can't get used to it). I usually don't care at all about the scent of lip products, but this actually does really bother me. Other than the nasty scent, I love this gloss. It's a great consistency, not too thick or thin and a good level of stickiness (I like some). I wouldn't say it could under any realistic circumstances last 6 hours, but I can get a full 3 hours drinking coffee but not eating and it'll still show up. The color is quite sheer, which seems to be the case with all of them. It's too bad, because they had 20-24 colors and all of them looked so pretty. I absolutely adore the packaging and especially the applicator! It's been a long time since I've found such a great applicator. I think I may be purchasing another because of the formula and the packaging, but I will be seeking out a more pigmented color.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Wet 'n' Wild - Color Icon #252B Nutty
rangerhollywood 4/9/2011 8:56:00 PM
40% off at Rite Aid :) Wow, I am impressed! Aside from the struggle to open the thing without chipping my nail polish (that sucks.. maybe it will loosen up) I was kinda shocked by this. It's very pigmented and the texture is velvety and smooth. It is not at all chalky, quite pigmented, very high quality feel to it. Makes me want to swatch it over and over, it's just that nice feeling and pretty. The color is a great neutral-cool taupe. Could be easily wearable with most warm/cool colors. Reminds me of Clinique Color Surge Lucky Penny, but much better quality of application. Blends very well, but with primer had long lasting wearability. I'm very happy with this purchase, in fact I'm really excited to us this instead of the Clinque shade because it's just better.
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Blush -Wet 'n' Wild - Silk Finish Blush 831D Pearlescent Pink
rangerhollywood 4/9/2011 8:47:00 PM
40% All Wet 'n' Wild products at Rite Aid! Heck yeah! I admit, I haven't used much WNW since using my sister's teen makeup when I was little, mostly because I guess I thought I was moving on to bigger and better things by paying more and shopping at Sephora- lol. This is very pretty! I was actually quite surprised when I first tried this on (no foundation). It is really pigmented... so much so I had to back off with my brush, but it's fantastic because you could load this on (like if you have to use the included brush, it's actually not that bad) and still easily blend it out. I can't say much for the wear as it hasn't been long, but when I try to wipe it off my cheek it tends to only sheer out, still leaving color. It is similar in some ways to Deep Throat, but not Orgasm. I think there are some differences in quality, but what could you expect? Best part? I paid only $1.79!
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Misc Beauty Tools -E.L.F. - Mechanical Eyelash Curler
rangerhollywood 8/5/2010 2:35:00 AM
Okay, okay.. so this curler has some faults. The pad falls off all the time, it pinches if you're not extra super careful and leaves a funny indentation on you eyelid for a min. But my oh my! My eyelashes stick out straight like awnings. Curl from every other curler is lost withing -5- min MAX for me. Even with waterproof or curling mascara. But I've been using this for a few weeks now, usually with mascara and I've been very impressed. But today was the point I had to write a review. Today was a no makeup day, but I still curled my lashes without using and mascara. 15 hours later and through a face wash my lashes are curly, girly, fabulous! Makes my small eyes and fine lashes look wide eyed and awake. For $1.00 and some minor inconveniences it is so worth it for the final result. Shu Uemura is great, but this is much more practical.
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Blush -Hard Candy - Living Doll
rangerhollywood 8/5/2010 2:08:00 AM
Gahh... I wanted to love this one so bad! Don't get me wrong, the color and shimmer is to die for on my pale olive skin. The problems? Without good primer/foundation/setting powder this will make your pores scream "Mommy, look how big I am!". I don't even have huge pores, only slightly enlarged. The color is beautiful and although the shimmer highlights pores, it's glowing and not crazy otherwise. Fast forward to primer/foundation/powder, the pore effect is lessened to the point where I could still wear it and the color is still awesome. The problem? Layer upon layer it took forever over just foundation or after powder. The real issue? What is with the crappy packaging? I dropped it literally 6 inches onto the counter flat on the bottom and the whole thing cracked to hell. What do I do with it now? The packaging is not forgiving when it comes to cracks because of the raised shape of the blush. Would I buy this again... probably not. The risk of it breaking so easily and the pore thing would outweigh the amazing color.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Self Tanners -L'Oreal - Sublime Bronze Airbrush-Effect Dry Mist BODY
rangerhollywood 5/14/2010 2:17:00 AM
This wasn't the worst self tanner I've ever tried, but it certainly was not the best either. I had good luck with L'Oreal Sublime Bronze Gelee (not perfect, but still better) but the spray is quite different. I used medium bronze. Application can be tricky if you don't pay attention. Since you can't see it at all on your skin you have to keep track of where you've sprayed. It helps to keep it to a few smooth motions by spraying lightly on your leg while turning it. The spray is actually very nice. The packaging is easy to hold and is a great mist (not like a 'spray') and doesn't smell terrible. I've used this for 3 applications... each application being a good exfoliation, Aquaphor on knees, ankles, elbows, then a careful even spray over my entire body, let is dry about 1 min, rub lotion over all areas, and finally I'll touch up the next day. I do this in the shower otherwise I'll be so worried about what else I might be spraying I wouldn't be able to focus. All in all, the application gets a B+, I like it better than the gelee. Now when it comes to the color I'm quite unimpressed. I am light olive skinned, dark hair, with many colored tattoos. Aside from making my tattoos look a bit odd, I usually expect that self tanner will work well with my skin as I bronze like crazy in the summer. Not the case... although I don't look like a carrot, I clearly have indulged in self tanner. It does not look 'natural' by any means. I'm pretty sure any beauty savvy female would detect it a mile away, but essentially, you who is self tanning is going to look infinitely better than tanners in 20 years. So suck it, skin cancer, wrinkles, moles, freckles! Color gets a C. I would not recommend this to any pale person unless I was seeking revenge on them or something. I think a 4 rating is a bit high but 3 is low. This is a 3.5 product for sure.
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Top/Base Coats -Unlisted Brand - Beauty Secrets - Nail Hardener & Thickener
rangerhollywood 11/11/2009 5:28:00 PM
I was skeptical about this top coat at first as the packaging isn't spectacular and the formula looks runny and thin; the price also seemed suspicious at just $5.99 for 2.5oz! I'm always on the lookout for the best manicure products on my tight budget, so I thought I'd give it a try. First time I used it, I applied it to acrylics that looked nice enough- but the drill and file marks showed through and really took away any wow factor. I applied two coats, 15 minutes apart and let them dry completely for 25 minutes (just in case). Once dry, they were still so shiny I thought they may still be wet, but they dry very hard to the touch. My job is very demanding of my manicures and after 10 days they are still shiny with no bubbles, dents, or chips. It's definitely not fast-dry, but it lasts so much longer than any fast dry you'll be happy to wait an extra 15 minutes.
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