Masks -Unlisted Brand - Hesh Amla Powder
similittleone 12/23/2008 12:46:00 PM
Ok, so I raved about Shikakai, another Indian herb that is good for hair, but this stuff did nothing for me. It did not condition my hair at all. I read on an Ayurvedic website how Amla, which is an Indian gooseberry, is very rich in vitamin C and great for hair, skin and your inside, but however true that may be, I think this powdered stuff is dead and useless. I am going to look for the actual fresh Amla fruit when I am next in London just to see if the real McCoy is better than the dead McCoy.
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Shampoo -Unlisted Brand - Hesh Shikakai Powder
similittleone 12/23/2008 12:41:00 PM
I had been using shampoo and conditioners with silicones forever and my hair and become coated and stiff. I tried clarifying shampoos to get rid of the coatings and they over-stripped my hair and left it dry and coarse so I ended up using more conditioner. That was a vicious and expensive cycle of abuse! Anyway, I was looking for a natural hair and scalp detox product. I tries rhassoul clay, then I tried dead sea mud and then castile soap. All stripped my hair to pieces. Then I decided to try a different strategy which was to use oil to break up the silicones and then shampoo off the oil. So I went to my local Indian shop to see if they has some cheap coconut oil. They did, and on a nearby shelf they had all these little cardboard packs of stuff I'd never heard of with pics of Indian women with gorgeous long hair on them. Curiosity stimulated, I picked up one of the packs and read the back. Really great sales spiel about how you mix this stuff into a paste, apply it to your scalp and hair and it will clean your hair and give you long and lustrous locks all for £1. Yeah, ok, sure. But what did I have to lose except a buck and 20 minutes? Well it was the best buck and 20 minutes I spent. Shikakai has saved not only my hair but my wallet! Yes it is an awful pain to apply (like henna in fact) and it stinks funny and it stings like a good 'un if it gets in your eye, but this stuff works. My hair is better, longer, thicker and happier than ever before. I don't look like the girl on the packet yet but give me a couple more years and I'll give her a run for her money.
7 out of 7 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Neutrogena - Oil-Free Acne Wash
similittleone 4/28/2008 5:42:00 PM
I have combination skin with blackheads, pimples, rosacea, dark marks and sun spots. This cleanser, which has 2% salicylic acid (BHA) works simply and effectively to remove dirt, grime, make-up and sunscreen. It leaves my skin deep down clean and exfoliated without any harshness whatsoever. It is easy to use: Just put half a squirt of the pump bottle in your palm, mix with water and apply to your wet skin. Massage gently and rinse well. The BHA has refined my pores and reduced my blackhead formation considerably. I also feel that the BHA improves the penetration of active ingredients that I apply afterwards (such as arbutin and kojic acid to fade dark marks). I highly recommended this product for sensitive and problematic skin conditions like my own. I intend to buy this product for the foreseeable future.
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Sunscreen -La Roche Posay - Anthelios XL SPF 60 Fluide Extreme 
similittleone 4/26/2008 4:43:00 AM
I have used this for 2 years now having purchased it from an ebay seller in Ireland (for some reason you cannot get it in the U.K). It cost me £18 per bottle. My skin problem is that although I have an olive complexion, my skin is thin/translucent. You can see veins, but more important in relation to this review, I have a smattering of sun spots (solar lentigines) that look like freckles all over the tops of my cheeks and across my nose. I also have sun and heat sensitivity and get very irritated by both and my facial skin burns, even with recent application of sunscreen, if I do not also wear a hat. Positives: This is a lotion contains what is claimed to be the most advanced UVA and UVB chemical sunscreen ingredient that does not breakdown as readily as others. Application is easy and with SPF 60 you can be assured of the highest level of sun protection. No white cast, but that is because this is a chemical, not a mineral screen. However, this was a big plus point as I have an olive complexion. It did stop me getting tanned over the summer. I spend a lot of time outdoors. Negatives: On my skin it leaves a film of oil that takes an hour to sink in and does not disperse fully. It is a strong chemical which is obvious once you apply it from the smell and the way skin responds. It caused me more blackheads then ever before (I'm 43 so they are not the result of teenage hormones!) and constant irritation of the eyes even though I never apply it, or any other sun protection, beyond my cheekbones. The irritation increased after exposure to the sun and I had no eye irritation on days I did not used this (I was sick, in bed, in a dark room), so it is definitely this product that caused it. Also, it did not stop new sunspots appearing. I noticed a particularly clownish one appearing on the very tip of my nose despite frequent daily application of this product. I am now in the process of testing other sunscreens on my face, both mineral and chemical as well as trying out mineral make-up.
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