Sunscreen -Fancl - Fancl Sunguard spf 30
sunflower77 5/22/2008 6:10:00 PM
Fancl has recently changed their formula of this product. The new active ingredients are 12% Zinc Oxide and 6% Titanium Dioxide. So 2% less Zinc Oxide and 1% more titanium dioxide. According to Fancl, the new improved Sunguard 30 "spreads better than ever leaving no streaks on your skin". I have not used the old version so I cannot compare the new with the old. But I have to say the new formula indeed spreads well. It leaves a slightly white cast but not quite noticeable. I also did not see any white accumulations around my nose as pointed out by some previous reviewers (I don't know whether they have used the old version or the new version). It is a little more greasy than I expected but it is much much better than Blue Lizard, which was another all physical sunscreen I recently bought. Fancl's Sunguard SPF 30 did not burn my skin or irritate my eyes. It contains moist keep oil hence pretty moisturizing. Definitely a keeper. My only complaint is that it comes in such a small package. It won't last long if you use it on both your face and your body.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lotions/ Creams -Lac Hydrin - Lac Hydrin 12 Cream
sunflower77 5/16/2008 8:40:00 PM
The five percent lactic acid lotion feels much better than the 12% lactic acid lotion such as Amlactin 12%. The 12% is very, very sticky. Although I only unsed Amlactin 12%, I believe LacHydrin 12% is the same from what I read in the forum. I cannot stand the 12% as it feels like I have soaked myself in glue. So I tried this five percent version and I like it very much. Although still more sticky than non-AHA body lotion, the discomfort is only minimal. I think the reason is that lactic acid is very water bonding. For that reason, I prefer lactic acid over glycolic acid, which is another popular AHA.
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Moisturizers -Cetaphil - Moisturizing Cream
sunflower77 5/16/2008 8:30:00 PM
A simple and excellent body cream. It will be too thick for my face. But it is great for my body and hands. It is fragrance free and colorant free and my skin loves it. I use this cream in combination with LacHydrin Five lotion. The LacHydrin lotion contains AHA which is a good exfoliator. But LacHydrin is not moisturizing enough. Cetaphil fills the gap. Will keep buying. BTW, if you are a costco member, you will be able to get this cream at Costco a lot cheaper. Of course, it is cheap to begin with, but it never hurts to save.
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Lip Treatments -Burt's Bees - Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil
sunflower77 5/15/2008 7:25:00 PM
This is my HG lip balm. I also like Dr Hauschka's Lip Care stick. But that one costs $13.95. The Burt's Bees' Pomegranate Lip balm works just as well (maybe just a little less moisturzing), but it is so much cheaper. I can affort to use three of them at the same time: one in my car, one in my vanity desk at home, and one in my purse. There is no artificial fragrance in the lip balm. The fruity smell actually comes from the fruit oil in its ingredients. And it is very subtle. The balm itself looks red, but it is actually colorless upon application. Since the ingredients are most natural, it does not irritate my sensitive lips. My lips cannot tolerate petroleum based lip care products such as chap stick and Khiel's lip balm. But they love this one!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Sunscreen -Shiseido - Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF 55 PA+++ [DISCONTINUED]
sunflower77 5/13/2008 10:25:00 PM
This sunscreen is not greasy at all and is also very easy to spread. It also provides excellent protection against UVB and moderate protection against UVA. Although it is rated PA+++, it is only equivalent to a PPD level of 8. I am not sure why another user commented that the zinc oxide level is very low in this sunscreen. It actually has high level of Zinc Oxide (13.9%). My concern is that the chemical ingredient Octinoxate has been shown to have some weak hormonal effects. Active Ingredients:Octinoxate 7.4%, Zinc Oxide 13.9%. Inactive Ingredients: water, cyclomethicone, butylene glycol, dimethicone, polymethyl methacrylate, trimethylsiloxysilicate, polybutylene glycol/ppg-9/1 copolymer, dimethicone copolyol, dextrin palmitate, xylitol, methyl gluceth-10, glutathione, zinc myristate, dipotassium glycyrrhizate, thiotaurine, scutellaria baicalensis extract, ectoin, cyclopentasiloxane, glycerin, acrylates/dimethicone copolymer, aluminum hydroxide, isostearic acid, stearic acid, disteardimonium hectorite, silica, alcohol, trisodium edta, bht, phenoxyethanol, methylparaben, ethylparaben, fragrance, titanium dioxide
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Earth Science - A-D-E Creamy Cleanser
sunflower77 5/13/2008 9:30:00 PM
I bought this product mainly because it has a PH level of 5.5 (the same as human skin). To prepare my skin for Skinceuticals' CE ferulic acid treatment, I need a PH neutral cleanser (regular soap will simply neutralize Vitamin C serum if applied immediately after face cleansing). I don't have sensitive or dry skin. My skin is mostly combination. PRO: fragrance free (but still smells great due to the fruit oil it contains); PH neutral; does not leave a greasy film on skin as some other cleansers do CON: I got a slight burning, warm sensation on my skin (not painful or anything like that). This is strange because my skin is not sensitive and can tolerate 15% AHA or 15% Vitamin C serum with no problems. I can also relate to another user who said this cleanser caused some flaking on her skin because even my combination skin feels slight tightness after one wash. I am not sure how people with truly sensitive skin or very dry skin will fare with this cleanser. I think for very sensitive skin, Estee Lauder's Verity cleanser will be much more gentle. 10 years ago, I had an episode of skin sensitivity due to over treament with enzymes. Anything except water would hurt by skin until I found Estee Lauder's Verite. Overall, I think if your skin is not super sensitive or very dry, this cream cleanser will be a good choice as it is fragrance free and PH neutral. The price is also very reasonable. Update: I used this cleanser one more time the next morning. This time, I did not experience the warm sensation. However, my face feel pretty dry after the wash. I will return this product to Whole Foods.
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Sunscreen -Unlisted Brand - Blue Lizard Australian Sunscreen SPF 30 Sensitive
sunflower77 5/11/2008 7:46:00 PM
Upon first application on my body, this sunscreen feels heavy and greasy. It is difficult to spread and leaves a white cast. However, after several minutes, it dries to a matte finish. It is sort of weird, from greasy to a matte finish. On my face, the sunscreen somehow irritated my eyes after five to six hours. The good thing about this sunscreen is that it does not contain fragrance and chemical sunscreen ingredients. It is a physical sunscreen, which contains Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide. Chemical sunscreens have their own problems. Some active chemical sunscreen ingredients (for example, oxybenzone) are easily absorbed into the skin; others (such as octinoxate) may even have some weak hormonal effects, and some seem to be accumulating in the environment (for example, in water supplies). At this point, it is impossible to determine whether some of these ingredients will turn out to have long-term effects. I will not repurchase this sunscreen for two reasons: it is too difficult to spread it on my skin and the irritation it caused on my eyes.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lotions/ Creams -Unlisted Brand - AmLactin 12%
sunflower77 5/10/2008 12:00:00 PM
I bought this from Costco (I love Costco! You can get this lotion at $17 for almost 17 oz. Drugstore.com sells the 8 oz bottle at $15). I have been using it on my body for a week. As a frequent purchaser of AHA body lotion, I noticed that this one is made of lactic acid instead of glycolic acid (which is far more common). Lactic acid is supposed to be milder, more moisturzing than the more popular glycolic acid. Indeed, I found this lotion more hydrating than my 15% glycolic lotion. On the other hand, it is also more sticky and I have to get used to this sticky feeling on my skin. At 12%, it is not the highest concentration of AHA body lotion you can buy. However, it does the trick -- smoothing out your skin -- just a little bit slower than the more aggressive formula. The good thing is that you have less chances of getting an allergic reaction. So far, I found this lotion as effective as many other AHA products five to ten times more expensive. Update: As summer approaches, I cannot stand the sticky tacky feeling on my skin. It feels like glue. I will try Lac Hydrin's Five Moisturizing lotion since that one is less sticky.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Treatments (Eye) -Vichy - Reti C Eyes Intensive Eye Care
sunflower77 5/10/2008 11:49:00 AM
This is my HG eye cream. I got a recommendation from Washington Post's dermatologist online. I tried it and love it greatly. I don't have deep wrinkles but I do have some fine lines under my eyes. After using this cream for about a week, the fine lines have been lightened dramatically. I was so excited last night that I insisted my husband try it too. This morning, both he and I were amazed to notice that the lines around his eyes were less obvious when he smiled. This eye cream contains both retinol and vitamin C. So if you have very sensitive skin or are allergic to retinol, you should try a sample first. For people with normal reactions to retinol and vitamin C, this is trully a good eye treatment.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -St. Ives - Collagen-Elastin Essential Moisturizer
sunflower77 5/4/2008 11:04:00 PM
This is one of the best moisturizers I have ever used. I pretty much used all the expensive brands such as La Mer, La Prairie, Sisley, Guerlain, etc. and St Ives' Collagen Elastin Essential Moisturizer easily beats those products twenty times more expensive. This moisturizer keeps my face hydrated without shine or clogged pores. The fragrance is very subtle and refreshing, although I still prefer fragrance free products. I use this cream on top of other treatment such as SkinCeuticals' serum in the morning and retinol at night. Serum is usually not hydrating enough, so this cream finishes my daily regimen beautifully. My skin absorbes the cream easily and feels very comfortable. In my opinion, St Ives produces very good quality products with extremely reasonable price. I love their apricot scrub and their body lotions as well.
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Moisturizers -Shiseido - White Lucent Brightening Moisturizing Cream
sunflower77 3/15/2007 4:05:00 PM
There are three moisturizers in the White Lucent collection, the gel (for normal to oily skin. The gel is white, looks more like a cream but is not), the emulsion (for normal to dry skin), and the cream (for dry skin). Make sure you get the right one in the store, especially the gel and the cream look almost the same from packaging to texture. I have normal skin. Somehow I don't like emulsion so I bought the cream version. The cream is pretty thick and emollient. It is a bit heavy for me since I don't have true dry skin. On the other hand, it smoothens my skin and moisturizes very well. I asked my hubby to touch my face after using this product several times, the response was 'Wow.". I am not sure about the whitening effect or the claim to lighten the spots yet. But as a moisturizer, it does the job pretty well.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -Shiseido - White Lucent Brightening Cleansing Foam
sunflower77 3/15/2007 3:53:00 PM
This is a very typical Shiseido cleansing foam. But all shiseido cleansing foams are good. The foam it generates is very soft and silky. After rinsing, I found no residue and my face feels squeaky clean. Best of all, it does not dry out my skin at all.
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Foundations -Guerlain - Issima Anti-Ageing Silky-Smooth Fluid Foundation
sunflower77 1/7/2007 12:01:00 PM
This is my HG Foundation. It is silky smooth, provides just perfect coverage for me. It is not too thick or too thin. My face looks radiant but not greasy. I like the skin care ingredients in it too. I took some photos with this foundation on, my skin looks so good that as picky as I am, I have to say I am quite satisfied. Other foundations used-- Awake: Skin Renovation Power Foundation; Chanel: PRO LUMIÈRE, TEINT NATUREL; Chantecaille: Real Skin; Clarins: Color Tint; Cle De Peau: Crème Foundation; Dior: Diorskin Pure Light Foundation; Estee Lauder: Enlighten, Double Wear, Lucidity, Ideal Matte; Georgia Armani: Silk Luminous; La Mer: The Fluid Foundation; La Prairie: Skin Caviar Concealer Foundation SPF 15; Laura Mercier: Oil Free Foundation; MAC: Studio Fix; Prescriptives: Liquid Touch, Virtual Skin; Sisley: Oil-Free Foundation; Vincent Longo: Water Canvas.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Shampoo -Back to Basics - Green Tea 
sunflower77 1/1/2007 12:57:00 PM
This is a very good shampoo. According to B2B, it is designed for people with healthy hair to begin with (the name normalizing is sort of misleading). The texture is quite thick and not as watery as most shampoos I used. It lathers well and does not dry my hair out.Update: after using this shampoo and its matching conditioner for about two weeks, I noticed the buildup dulled my hair. What's more, I developed some bumps in my scalp like another user of their Mango shampoo did. I stopped using this duo and went back to my Redken All Soft. The bumps cleared up within two days.
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Scrubs -St. Ives - St. Ives Gentle Apricot Scrub
sunflower77 1/1/2007 12:47:00 PM
This is a scrub designed for people with sensitive skin. That's why there aren't a lot of scrubbing beads in it. But for sensitive skin, it is very gentle and the scrubbing effect is moderately effective. I would like it to be less creamy because the scrub does leave a slightly greasy film on your face.
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