Palettes -Laura Mercier - Artist's Palette For Eyes
rheaZ 1/5/2013 2:44:00 PM
I own both naked 1 and 2, but wanted something with more matte options and that I could travel with. The African violet really appealed to me so I decided I'd give it a shot. When i received it i immediately fell in love with the packaging. Unfortunately half the shades didn't even show up on me, no matter how much color I packed on. Ended up returning it.
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Sunscreen -Josie Maran Cosmetics - Argan Protect SPF 40+ Natural Daily Sun Protection 
rheaZ 8/21/2012 4:35:00 PM
I picked this up from Sephora a year ago, tried it once and hated it. I thought it was too greasy for me. It's been sitting on my shelf unused since. Fast forward a year. I was recently prescribed retin-A, and my skin went berserk. It's been dry, flakey and I recently started purging. I am determined to stick with the regimen though, so I armed myself with gentler skincare products. However, I couldn't settle on a sunscreen, and I cycled through a whole bunch that worked for me before the prescription. Biore perfect face UV milk made my skin feel like it was burning and was too drying. I was covered in flakes within a couple of hours. Shiseido's oil-free SPF 55 SS didn't cause me pain but left me with flakes too. Mychelle's sun shield was still too oily and just sat on my skin and somehow still managed to leave me greasy and flaky. Finally, broke and desperate, I reached for this old bottle of Josie Maran SS I had lying around a couple days ago and suddenly it loves my skin and my skin loves it. I had been dealing with some serious dry patches around my mouth, and those have smoothed out since I started using this SS. I haven't experienced any flaking or excess greasiness and it's been pretty humid here. I hate the smell, but some might like it. It's fruity. I've been avoiding makeup while I'm purging so I don't yet know how it works under a layer of primer and foundation.
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BB Cream -MISSHA - M Perfect Cover BB Cream
rheaZ 4/14/2012 9:15:00 PM
If you have oily/combination skin and you're a POC who wants to get in on the BB trend, you can wear this but you NEED primer. This will not give you a matte finish but rather a more natural dewy look. I bought this off ebay in shade #31. It's a perfect match for my NC 40/42 skin. This is the only matching BB I've found other than Smashbox's BB in medium. I got 50 ml for around $25 (usd), however the lighter shades cost less. I like the pump dispenser on the tube, it works as it should and a single pump is enough to cover my whole face. At first, despite being thrilled because I found my perfect shade, I was in two minds about this product. I have combination skin with dry patches around my nose and an oily t-zone, and within a couple of hours of application I felt like I was coated in grease. I was in the habit of adding a couple of drops of jojoba oil to my morning moisturizer but I leave it out now whenever I wear this. I now use an oil-free moisturizer followed by hourglass' primer and then the Missha bb. I use my Sigma f80 brush. The finish I end up with is a sort of air-brushed dewy look, which I greatly prefer to an all-matte look.
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Moisturizers -Vaseline - Petroleum Jelly
rheaZ 4/9/2012 6:53:00 PM
Would I buy this product again? YES YES A THOUSAND TIMES YES. Now that the shouting portion of this review is over, let's start with the reviewing. I've never really used vaseline outside of a last-resort lip balm until about a month ago. I was dealing with dry patches in spite of applying tons of moisturizer, and I wanted something that wouldn't let my face feel all drawn and stretched in the morning. I use my neutrogena rapid wrinkle repair night lotion shortly before going to bed as always, and apply a thin layer of vaseline over it. While the neutrogena lotion was doing an impressive job on my fine forehead and smile lines already, the vaseline seems to just turbocharge the effect, and I am sold. It's been a month of daily use and I haven't broken out yet. No big pimples, no tiny bumps that linger under the skin- nothing. I also found that my skin seems more supple, and somehow thicker- like when I was a teenager. The stickiness took some getting used to, and I have to make sure I keep my hair away from my face but it comes automatically now. I loves it.
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BB Cream -Smashbox - Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35
rheaZ 4/1/2012 3:06:00 PM
I'm a MUFE 153 (somewhere between nc40/42) and I picked up this product in the medium shade to see what all the bb hype was about. I felt it was overpriced at $39, but I had a coupon and some stuff to return at Sephora so I ended up paying $24 which wasn't too bad. I have combination skin with oily and dry patches, and I found the texture of this BB to be a bit too dry out the tube. If I want to be able to blend it at all, I need to mix in some jojoba oil or a bit of moisturizer. Once I do that, it blends beautifully, but for the cost I'd expect this product to carry it's own weight and work alone. The shade is a little dark for me, but will probably be perfect for the summer months. I doubt I'll be repurchasing because I've found a better color match in Missha's #31. In Smashbox's defense, this stuff sits quite lightly on the skin and it's easy to forget you're wearing it. However that might be because at 40 bucks an ounce, I'm quite reluctant to use a large amount in one sitting and tend to spread it thin.
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Lipstick -Kat Von D - Everlasting liquid love - Lolita
rheaZ 2/11/2012 9:46:00 PM
Glide it on, let it dry for a few minutes and then lightly blot, and you're left with creamy matte lips with color that refuses to budge. I'm not a fan of the doe-foot applicator because it dispenses a lot more product than I need in one application, but refuse to take off any lippies for it because this stuff looks and wears great. It's creamy and rich. I usually buy much darker, brighter colors. I have lips with very dark natural pigmentation that shows through a lot of lighter shades, especially around the corners of my mouth so it's nice to have a nude shade that applies evenly and stays on.
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Blush -Maybelline - Fit Me/Deep Rose
rheaZ 6/18/2011 2:49:00 AM
The color is gorgeous, and very matte. The price, at $4.99 from Target is ultra reasonable It would be nice if I could actually get a bit of it to get on to my brush- or even my finger. When I ran my finger over it, once gently, and then with a little more force, I couldn't get even a little color off the pan. I am very disappointed with this product.
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Moisturizers -Desert Essence - Jojoba Oil - 100% pure
rheaZ 6/16/2011 6:05:00 AM
There are very few moisturizers that I can use daily without breaking out, and they're all oil free. Heavier night creams simply do not agree with me. Unfortunately, I also suffer from dry patches, and that's where the Jojoba oil comes in. I use it with my regular Neutrogena Oil-free Moisturizer for Comination skin every evening after I shower. About 4-5 drops of Jojoba oil mixed into my moisturizer every night with a dab of aloe balances my skin out beautifully. It prevents the moisturizer from drying up right away and leaving me with that tight-skinned feeling. Every now and then I'd go out and splurge on a high end night cream, but nothing works better for me than the above combination. I've added a retinol cream to my regimen, which I apply a couple hours later. During the day, I use just a drop or two (again with aloe and Neutrogena Oil-Free). I wait for a couple minutes and then apply my makeup, and the jojoba once again helps prevent dry patches while giving me a subtle glow without an oily feeling- like I'm wearing a luminizer. It prevents my makeup from caking and flaking and collecting in the fine lines around my mouth or eyes. I do plan to buy a dropper bottle to use this stuff, because I am not a fan of the packaging, even though they just recently changed it. I often end up spilling or over-pouring and end up having to discard the extra oil. Still, one bottle lasts forever. I opened my latest 4 oz bottle about 3-4 months ago and I am about a third into it.
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Masks -Dermalogica - MultiVitamin Power Recovery Masque
rheaZ 6/9/2011 7:30:00 AM
My daily clarisonic use, combined with the fact that I have started using retinol-based products had left me with some very dry patches. I decided to give this mask a shot, and have not been disappointed yet. I've been using it once a week for 3 weeks now, and I am very pleased with the results. My skin feels and looks very dewy in the days after application, although there is some oiliness immediately after use. That's to be expected, though, given how rich the mask is. I usually leave it on for about half an hour after I wash my face with my Mia, and then rinse it off with warm water. I haven't used it as an overnight treatment yet, but I might during the winter. Since this line is quite pricey, I decided to first buy a handful of samples off ebay for a few bucks before splurging on the whole tube. I plan on buying the full-sized product once I run out.
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Misc Beauty Tools -Clarisonic - Deep Pore brush head
rheaZ 6/9/2011 7:13:00 AM
I had just started using a brand new sensitive brush-head when I came across the the deep pore version. I bought it on a whim, because my skin has never behaved well during summer, and I figured it couldn't hurt to try. Once I started using this version, I just couldn't go back to the sensitive. I found this one to be easier on my skin, the bristles feel a lot softer and it just works better for me. I have very combination skin with extremely oily and dry patches, and this brush-head is perfect for me.
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Treatments -Neutrogena - Rapid Wrinkle Repair night moisturizer
rheaZ 5/17/2011 4:20:00 AM
I started using this exactly 17 days ago. I am in my late-twenties and I apply it under my eyes, around my mouth and over the middle part of my forehead where I'd started seeing mild frown lines. Today I looked in a 15x mirror at my forehead and I was just blown away. The middle of my forehead looks so beautifully smooth that the skin immediately around it (where I don't use this product) looks older by comparison. I'm a believer. I haven't noticed any sensitivity with this stuff after the first couple days- when I felt a slight tingle at use. I generally apply it right after I shower at night. After 5-10 minutes I follow-up with my usual moisturizer. I haven't had any breakouts or adverse reaction to it so far.
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Lips -Palladio - Lip Ink Extra Long Wearing Lip Stain
rheaZ 5/15/2011 11:56:00 PM
This review is for the nude shade. I have highly pigmented lips, and this makes for a great natural look for me when I want to go without a heavier lipstick/gloss. I simply use some of this, top it off with Palmer's cocoa butter and I have natural, even-toned lips for the rest of the day. There is a plum fragrance to it which I find pleasing, and the you need to be sure you hear a "click" from the lid so it doesn't dry out.
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Blush -Tarte - Amazonian 12-Hour Clay Blush In Glisten
rheaZ 5/1/2011 3:59:00 AM
I got this in the QVC TSV, and it is my everyday go-to blush. It looks great on my golden-toned NC40 complexion and gives me a healthy, natural glow like I've just been making out! It looks shimmery in the pan, but I haven't noticed a lot of shimmer when it actually goes on, even in sunlight. It hasn't irritated my skin one bit, and stays put all day.
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Concealers -Palladio - Stick Concealer
rheaZ 4/17/2011 4:12:00 AM
I think this shade was a great match for me. I wanted to use it under my eyes. The effect was really disappointing. This stuff didn't blend well at all. It just sort of slid around my skin and seemed like it was just sitting there on top of it. Do not want.
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Bronzers -Rock & Republic - Trickery Tinted Illuminizer
rheaZ 4/2/2011 2:23:00 AM
This review is for Roxanne, one of the darker shades. It's great for medium-dark skin tones with neutral or yellow/gold undertones- I'm a MUFE 153/NC40 and this is a perfect fit for me. Other luminizers on the market (like Benefit's High Beam) make me look ashen and are too pink for me. Doesn't leave me looking like a disco ball and has a very subtle, dewy finish. A little dab is all it takes. I used it to highlight my cheekbones and cupids bow. My only problem with this is that Rock and Republic charges $48 for this and the other dark shade (Cleopatra) while the lighter shades are around $29.
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