Makeup
- BeautyJunkieAmber » See my profile
- Points: 11770
- Reviews: 231
Here are all my reviews:
-
This dry shampoo gives my hair incredible volume and gets rid of 2nd-day oil, but it takes the shine of my hair with it and sometimes leaves a baby pink-cast on my dark locks. This is a GREAT dry shampoo as far as doing what it's supposed to do, I just wish they would improve the scent and the color of the powder.
December 6, 2008
-
The Philosophy MicroDelivery Peel is one of my weapons of choice in my skincare arsenal. In 2 easy steps, all my dead skin is sloughed off, my skin is smooth, glowing and happy again. When I say smooth, I mean smooth to the touch to the point of not being able to keep my hands off of it. Try telling my husband to keep his hands to himself! First, I take the crystals and gently manually exfoliate my face for about a minute. Then I take the activator gel and massage it over the top of the crystals. In about 3 minutes… wah-lah! Shiny happy skin! It’s really easy to do.
December 6, 2008
-
I am very fond of tinted moisturizers. So fond of them, that I own several. The newest one I’ve tried is Smashbox Sheer Focus Tinted Moisturizer. This one, in my opinion is in a league of it’s own. First of all it gives better coverage than other tinted moisturizers I’ve tried without being full coverage foundation. A super bonus is that it dries down a matte finish which is welcome in my casa anytime because I look like I stuck my face in a vat of oil 30 minutes after I leave my house. I love that it comes in several shades but the one thing that bums me out is the fact that it’s only an SPF 15. I would never rely solely on my make-up for sun protection but let’s face it, A TON of people do and I sometimes find that to be a little misleading. I do wear a higher SPF underneath all of my cosmetic products. I have worn this 4 times and I have been very happy with it and have been complimented on my skin 2 of those times. I’d like to think it was the other hard work I was doing but I credit the nice coverage of the Smashbox. I rate it high on the list of awesome tinted moisturizers, but low on protection for those who will rely on it for their only source of SPF so it’s a Catch 22!
December 6, 2008
-
I believe that one of the biggest struggles we have with our skin is how unhappy we are with the visibility of our pores. Thanks to my fine genetics, I was unfortunate to inherit what I perceive are enlarged pores. It’s a constant fight to keep them clean and unclogged but that’s only one step of the battle. Try as we might to use ice cubes, astringents, and some other things that aren’t solving the real problem– I’ve read and been told by professionals that without radical treatment it’s highly unlikely to shrink the pore itself. I’ve accepted it, and now I’m topically trying to conceal the issue at hand. Even I believe I’m a little hyper-vigilant. I’ve tried so many topical cosmetic products for this that I can’t tell you the exact number, for I don’t even know. I’ve never been really happy with one until I found the Clinique Pore Minimizer Instant Skin Perfector. It’s kindly priced at $16.50 and comes in two colors. I use Invisible Light but it doesn’t leave color on my skin. It smooths over the pore, feels like baby skin, and forms an invisible force field! While not 100%, I think it works pretty darn well– in fact very darn well. I really like this product.
December 6, 2008
-
SkinPrep FX Treatment and Priming Serum by CoverFX is just that. It’s treatment AND a make-up primer. I’m on a bit of a primer kick lately because I want to help everyone find the right one for their skin woes. I love, love, love how much they focused on the skincare aspect in this product. I think it’s absolutely amazing how much good stuff they were able to pack into such a small bottle. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever tried anything with Vitamin F in it before. I tried this and I was really impressed with it overall but I’m afraid it will do nothing to absorb any excess oil on your skin. It held up well under warm conditions, my make-up was still “on†yet I got pretty greased up after a few hours. Thank God for blotting papers! I think it would be wonderful for a more mature, dryer skin type or for anyone who wants an extra kick in their regime to give aging a kick in the butt. I am interested in trying more products in their line though, it looks like they do their research and search for the best ingredients.
December 6, 2008
-
Earlier this morning I was making a return at the mall. (No, I swear it was just a return!) I walked past the Benefit counter and spied the new fragrance by Benefit, called Benefit B Spot. This is the second time I’ve come into contact with it, earlier this month I tried it on one of those fancy little paper strips they provide and I thought “That would be something different for me to wear. I don’t have anything like that.†It’s always better to actually wear it before you buy it. It’s gonna change and it smells different on everyone once it blends with our pheromones. Check out these notes: mango, peony, freesia, amber, sandalwood and more. Like watermelon and all that good stuff. As I initially put it on I found it really floral. When I smell mainly floral scents all I can think of is when I asked for a bottle of tea rose perfume in the 80’s. I wore that stuff proudly without realizing I smelled like a funeral parlor. I’m glad that was just a phase and let’s blame it on youth. Oh! Back to the B Spot. I almost regretted spraying it on my wrist. I waited a few minutes and held my arm up to my nose on the escalator to the parking lot and I’m sure the people going in the opposite direction thought I was just in love with myself with the amount of smelling that was going on. I swear on the back end of it I can smell some black licorice but maybe that’s just the mixture of the musks. It’s a few hours later now and it’s just okay. There’s nothing super special about it. I’m going back to wearing my usual soapy scents tomorrow. This one just has too much freesia and peony for me personally. That’s okay though because if you like those scents this may be the fragrance for you. The bottle is super cute and it retails for $38. I wish it worked out for me because that’s a great price and a cute new bottle for my vanity would be a welcome addition to what’s there. Your nose will know.
December 6, 2008
-
I’m the friend that everyone tells to shut-up because I am so passionate about sunscreen. I cannot emphasize how important it is to wear SPF daily. Peter Thomas Roth Instant Mineral SPF 30 is sheer PERFECTION! You can wear it alone, or even use it to set your make-up. It’s translucent matte finish also helps control shine throughout the day. And since you need to reapply your sunscreen during the day anyway, I can’t think of any easier way than when I pull this out of my purse and just dust it on all over my face. This is actually with me in my handbag, EVERY SINGLE DAY.
December 6, 2008
-
Remember that show on A&E called “Blow Out†from a few years ago? I quickly adored Jonathan Antin’s quirky and egotistical ways. Mainly, I sympathized with him because I was doing hair at the time and I looked to him for inspiration. Did it work? I dunno, I don’t do hair anymore… but who knows what the future holds? He came out with some great styling products like Dirt and his shampoos are awesome. What I fell in love with most… Jonathan Product Beauty Water. That’s right. I fell in love with a shower filter. City water is so craptacular it was irritating my skin, making my back scaly, drying out my hair, and breaking me out. In the hopes of this filter making a difference in at least ONE of those things, I shelled out the cash for it. Another thing I love about it is that’s it’s a California water conservation shower head, so you aren’t wasting precious resources while feeling luxurious. The pressure isn’t compromised in any way. This is a must buy. It did all of the things I wanted it to. Filter replacements are also available.
December 6, 2008
-
I’m pretty tired of using hand creams that temporarily coat my hands in mineral oil and alcohol. They do absolutely nothing for me and disappear in minutes. What I love is using a hand cream, feeling it sink in and actually making a difference in the stripped feeling my fingertips usually feel. So I’ve found one! Caudalie Hand and Nail Cream is nourishing and luxurious. Loaded in shea butter, grape-seed extract, and avocado oil, I feel like it makes a dent. Upon application, I think it smells like Fruit Loops cereal! Caudalie is a line out of France that specializes in using grape-seed polyphenols for a therapeutic effect on the skin. They have a whole line of luxurious and delicious facial and bath and body products to treat you to the spa experience. It all is just really lovely. (They don’t use parabens as a side note.)
December 6, 2008
-
As a former hairstylist back in the day... this was the first flat iron I ever owned to use on my clients. I remember it was a really expensive tool at that time and I had to have it. This little baby did it all for me and made my work SO much easier and look so polished. It got industrial-strength use at the salon and worked for me for several years. I cherished it and took good care of it! I imagine the gal who inherited it is still using it because it was awesome. It worked well for straightening and curling with no snags or damage that I knew of!
December 4, 2008
