Makeup
- GigiSD » See my profile
- Points: 438580
- Reviews: 1103
Here are all my reviews:
-
ColorWow is an answer to prayer. I've seen makeup artists use a brush and eye shadow to cover gray roots. This powder makes it very easy, as opposed to Rita Hazan's spray with which you have little control. You can use the large end of the brush to cover extensive areas. The small end fine-tunes where you want precise coverage. The best thing besides being extremely easy to use it that Color WOW is a water-resistant formula (yes!). The price of $35.00 seems a lot, except when you figure how much salon visits cost. This is a must-have for any woman who covers her hair!
February 4, 2014
-
I tend to return to Lancôme when I want a truly reliable mascara. Unfortunately, I haven't had great results with "Doll Lash." The Christmas-tree shaped brush is meant to catch and tint every single eyelash, ala Zoe Deschanel. I didn't find that it worked as well for me. It is a decent mascara, not great. Despite my use of Shu Uemura's and Sennna's eyelash curlers, I never found the "lift" nor curl this mascara is supposed to impart. I do like the fact that it is easy to reach every lash, but to no great effect. I'll take "Definicils" or one of the others any day over this mascara (but kudos to Lancôme for amazing mascaras!).
February 4, 2014
-
At twenty-five, I would have accepted any product which made my skin feel like satin and didn't leave a heavy residue behind because breakouts were still a problem. Years later, I find myself checking the label first and deciding on whether or not to purchase according to it. I had a deluxe sample of Lancôme's "Absolue Night Premium Bx Replenishing and Rejuvenating Night Cream." Like Absolue's serum, the cream itself is just gorgeous, with an orange-gold color and rose-scented fragrance that makes it seems like it justifies the $190.00 price tag for a little more than two and a half ounces. It applies like a dream, leaving skin instantly and thoroughly hydrated and refined. Here's where my doubt applies: Lancôme, primarily a house of skin care, claims that Pro-Xylane™, a patented scientific "breakthrough," is an "essential and precise molecule which restores essential moisture deep in the surface." Skin is to be visibly repaired from previous damage by this. Further, it contains N-Stumuline™, which is key to the skin's recovery process so that you wake with a more beautiful complexion daily. A Bio-Network™ composed of wild yam, soy, sea algae, and barley--helps provide visible repair and restoration. It is true that signs of stressed are quickly repaired and restored by the sheer moisture itself. But I'm looking for a system which gives long-term, true results. A closer look at ingredients reveals that there is no radical substance which will produce long-term results, especially at this price. Waxes (carnauba wax, paraffin) and silicones go a long way in making you feel as if your skin is being restored to its former youthful condition. Shea butter and soy bean oil, along with others, assure that it will stay moisturized. And a very small amount of salicylic acid helps in speeding cell turnover, allowing new, fresh cells to come to the surface. I didn't find sodium hyaluronate or glycolic acids to ensure that old skin cells are sloughed away while new ones come to the surface. In short, this is a luxurious, pleasurable moisturizer, but it will not change the overall way your skin functions. In that case, I have to (sadly) remove stars. Lancôme, you are charging far more than your product is worth--do you expect us to accept this? Do not spend a fortune on this. Your skin deserves better.
February 4, 2014
-
I agree with the reviewer who says this can't be used continually. It is a potent, sensuous, chic scent, one to be reserved for special occasions like romantic evenings. It is not so heavy that it is overwhelming, however. Notes of pomegranate, persimmon, green, black orchid, lotus blossom, champaca flower, liquid amber, black violet, and cream accord mix to lend a clean floral aroma, with a decided lush, mysterious, sultry quality. My husband loves this as much as I do!
February 3, 2014
-
In the early 2000's, I shelled out quite a lot of money for Hard Candy eye shadow quads. The colors were unique, beautifully complementary, and lasted a long time. Last week while shopping I picked up a few baked shadows. In general, I like baked eye shadows. When used dry, the powder is light on the eye but it has a flattering glow which no other formula replicates. I found the same to be true of Hard Candy's version. I swipe them on dry for a subtle but wide-awake look; for a more bold, vivacious look, I love to play with them wet. These are high-quality shadows at a very reasonable price.
February 3, 2014
-
Folklore has it that Paul Bunyan once said, "Give me enough Badger, and I can heal the cracks in the Grand Canyon." This should be mandatory for everyone's medicine cabinet. It works on the worst winter-whipped hands you can imagine. I love the little tin. The formula is comprised of organic extra-virgin olive oil, beeswax, castor seed oil, soothing aloe vera, and essential oil of sweet birch. I use it on my hands, especially where they become very rough and red (the small tin is great for travel) and slip some on my lips. This is enormously comforting. It's helpful for softening tough cuticles. Put a little on dry elbows and heels. There's no limit to what this balm can heal!
February 2, 2014
-
Lancôme's "Absolue Oléo-Sérum Sublime" benefits from a great marketing campaign by the company. Just the name--with the word "sublime" included, specifically--makes you believe that this is a product worth every bit its $185.00 price tag for one ounce. The container is svelte, sleek, seductive. With a golden finish and black writing, it nearly has you convinced before you ever use it that it will restore your complexion to the firmness and radiance you had in your late teens or early twenties (the main claims). The serum ITSELF is beautiful, unlike most others. The peach-gold cream has an opalescent quality to it and a slight citrus smell. It is oil-based, but it does absorb well into skin, leaving behind a refreshed, velvety finish. This is a great moisturizer, but I can do as well for about $20.00 or under in the drugstore. Ingredients include glycerin, hydrogenated lecithin, and soy protein. Probably the most potent ingredient is sodium hyaluronate, but it is toward the end of the list. I had a hard time finding substances which restore firmness, unless you look toward the citrus medica limonum peel oil at the very bottom (lemon is helpful in making skin more taut, but the amount here is quite limited). This is a good moisturizer, albeit not one which delivers incredible results, as the name, container, and company allege.
February 2, 2014
-
I no longer have this (I have run out), but there was a time when I gladly gave it to several women who would comment on the cosmetic sites for which I wrote. I'm NOT wealthy, to be sure, but this was one of the first unisex primer which incredibly disguised tiny lines, furrows, and pores and didn't leave a slick or heavy feeling on your face. My husband went to work for years never leaving home without it. It made an enormous difference in the appearance and staying power of my foundation. My skin was close to flawless with this. Too Faced, bring it back!
February 1, 2014
-
I wonder if there will ever be a mascara I won't try. Too Faced wowed me with their "LashGASM" but let me down with "Better Than You-Know-What" and "Better Than False Eyelashes--Nylon Lash Extension System." This is not superb, but it's pretty good. The large brush is a little unwieldy, unlike It Cosmetic's large brush, but it did give good volume, length, and definition. It hasn't my ended my search for the perfect mascara, but it is better than many.
February 1, 2014
-
Sometimes I am slow on the draw. My friends sang the benefits of Too Faced's "Leopard Love" collection for ages, but I hesitated because of the plethora of blushes I alreadyown. I finally saw a friend absolutely glowing in a natural way--she had used this trio, and so I caved and bought it on Amazon. I had never seen her so radiant nor so lovely. This trio is definitely worth the higher price that I paid than if I had gotten it sooner at Sephora or Ulta. There are two gentle bronzers--"Peach Leopard" and "Pink Leopard." These are absolutely charming in their rosy and apricot hues with hints of gold. Too Faced suggests that "Pink Leopard" be used all over to brighten and highlight, while "Peach Leopard," with its slightly darker hues, is best used on upper cheekbones, neck, and décolletage to impart a healthy coral flush. "Candy Leopard" is the most luminous, but can be worn by women of all ages. Use this to finish cheeks, applying to the apples. The gold in the colors adds to the radiance of all. If you want to look and feel sixteen again in a sublte way, these shades are for you!
February 1, 2014
