Makeup
- LipglossandSpandex » See my profile
- Points: 116980
- Reviews: 521
Here are all my reviews:
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About this product and what it claims to do: “This invigorating, aromatic coffee scrub made with fresh Indonesian coffee beans awakens the senses as it exfoliates and cleanses. Because it contains gentle, sulfate-free cleansing agents so no other soap or shower gel is necessary. Used in Indonesian treatments to stimulate circulation in the skin, coffee has been clinically proven to provide powerful antioxidant and tightening benefits when applied to the skin. Sulfate-free. Paraben-free.” In my opinion, it doesn't really meet any of its claims. PROS: It's sulfate-free and paraben-free. The scent is really strong. It smells pretty good... like coffee and dark chocolate. After awhile I realized that it smells a little bit like those calcium chews, which grossed me out and now I can't stop associating the two. Leaves your hands with a faint coffee scent, even after you wash and dry them. CONS: The texture is REALLY thick. It's pretty much solid. You have to add some water to get it to move around. This made me a little worried that it will clog my drain. It's also somewhat scratchy. I like things that thoroughly exfoliate my skin, and definitely like a good scrub, but this feels like the particles are sharp and jagged—a little bit like rubbing sandpaper onto your skin. I would NOT suggest using this on your face. I used it on my hands, and found the texture to be quite rough (although it did smooth my hands out very well). It dried out my hands a LOT, which I don't like. I'd consider it a very harsh cleanser because of that. They claim it “tightens” the skin, and I guess technically it does, but my hands feel so dry that it's uncomfortable, so I wouldn't consider that a benefit. Also, the price is ridiculous--$37 for 8 oz?! Even if it were a good, moisturizing and gently exfoliating scrub, I wouldn't repurchase this.
July 15, 2011
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I have acne prone oily skin, and I'm 25 years old. However, because of the cleansing products I use, sometimes my face can get a little dry in spots, so I thought maybe Juara's Tamarind Tea Hydrating Toner could help, without causing more breakouts. The product's website also claims that all skin types can benefit from using it. My favorite thing about this product is the packaging. The translucent brown bottle with the Indonensian-inspired font and pattern are just really pretty, like something you'd see in a spa. However, that's just about the only thing about this toner that really does anything for me. Here's what the product claims to do: “Tamarind works to increase the skin’s hydration level and enhance skin smoothness and suppleness. Moisture-binding hyaluronic acid makes skin feel instantly soft and supple. A calming infusion of white, green, and black teas comforts and delivers healthful antioxidants to the skin. Vitamin-rich rice bran extract provides calming benefits, minimizing redness and other signs of stress.” These claims sound really great, but I personally found that this product only slightly increased my skin's hydration level. It didn't cause breakouts, which was a plus. However, it didn't smooth my skin, or make it look more supple. It didn't really seem any softer, and it definitely didn't seem less red or “less stressed.” I do have to admit that it is nice that you don't have to use a cotton ball with this product. It's watery but you can put some directly onto your hands and smooth it onto your face without wasting any product. Lastly, this product is dermatologist tested, paraben-free, alcohol-free, unfragranced, and oil-free. I really don't think it did anything for my skin (although it didn't make it worse), so I wouldn't repurchase it. A good friend of mine with dry, older skin really loves this product though.
July 15, 2011
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I love the nice and clean look of a french manicure, but I don't like getting fake nails (getting them removed tore my real nails up badly, and they were thin and ugly for a loooong time), and getting a french mani at the nail salon seemed like a waste of money (especially since I always manage to smudge my nails, whether I do them myself or have someone do them for me)! I've tried doing a freehand french manicure, using a regular bottle of white polish—it ends up a little messy and hard to perfect, but once you get the hang of it, not so bad. I've also tried using those nail stickers that make the perfect little curve, but sometimes the stickers pull off the base coat or the polish seeps underneath, or the white polish dries too much and pulling off the sticker pulled off some of the white polish as well. Both of those ways are fine, and I don't mind doing them, but finding an even easier way to do an at home French mani would be ideal. So I was really excited when I saw Sally Hansen's French Manicure White Tip Pen. The product is only couple of bucks, and makes it look like I'll be done in no time, with great nails. However, that is not the case. You're supposed to shake the pen for awhile to make sure all of the product is thoroughly mixed, and then press the tip onto some scrap paper for awhile to get it flowing (like a paint pen/marker). Sometimes the product came out fine, sometimes it was really thin. The marker design itself was fine—the chisel tip did make it fairly easy to apply the product and to get a nice line. However, the liquid polish didn't seem to be opaque enough. Going over the same area resulted in really lumpy looking polish. Applying it over a basecoat also frequently resulted in lumps. The best results were using the manicure pen, then basecoat, then topcoat. Honestly, the mess around my nails from this product (because it's so watery) and actual white polish is fairly comparable. And the length of wear once dry was quite short—I had a significant amount of tipwear within 2-3 days. I want to like it, and will probably try to get some more use out of this pen, but I probably won't repurchase.
July 14, 2011
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I have a MAC pigment in “Milk,” which is a shimmery very pale lilac with a hint of pink. The texture seems to be a little bit less smooth (maybe even a touch gritty) compared to other pigments. It is VERY VERY shimmery. Applied dry, it looks like it does in the jar. Applied wet, it becomes really intense—the finish looks a bit metallic. These are a little messy to use, as there is usually a bit of fallout (that seems to be the nature of most loose powders though). One of the major selling points of this product is its versatility. You can add it to nail polish (clear or colored polish), or lip gloss, to create new shades (I personally haven't tried these options myself, I've only used it as a loose shadow). Some colors can be used as blush or bronzer or as a contour shade. You can apply it dry or wet, which enhances the color (apply wet with a brush using water, MAC Fix+ or a mixing medium—MAC Pro makes one but you can find recipes to make homemade mixing medium online). The product is very pigmented. The packaging is a plastic container with a screw top lid and a plastic cover inside. Every time I open it I tend to get pigment on my fingers... putting it into a sifter container might help. OR, find a tutorial on how to press pigments so that they're like pressed shadows (it's a little messy, and you'll have to get the materials, but it's not too difficult). There is way more product than I will ever use. If you're going to buy this, you should probably get a shade you'll wear almost daily—one jar of pigment is three times the amount of one shadow (I have yet to totally use up a shadow, but that's because I wear different colors almost every day). If it's something that you'll actually use, then it's a great value since one jar of pigment costs roughly the same as one single pressed eyeshadow. If I found a HG color, I'd probably buy it and press it into pans. Until then, I'm a little underwhelmed by these.
July 14, 2011
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I generally love Urban Decay products, but this one is absolute garbage. Yes, the packaging looks awesome—the peacock design on the front is cool and kind of funky (as with most of Urban Decay's designs), it has space for a handy dual ended sponge applicator and an angled eyeliner brush (a pretty useful tool of decent quality), and even has a mirror in it! However, the mirror is long and slender, which means you have to hold the compact sideways to really see your whole eye closely. I didn't end up using the mirror for this reason. Onto the color: I owned Ink for Eyes in “Empire,” which is a blue-based shade of purple. The texture of this is awful. I had a supposedly brand new package that I received in a giveaway, but it seemed really really dry. I went to my local Sephora to see their tester, and it was exactly the same way. I had seen online swatches of “Empire” that looked creamy, and had assumed that I'd gotten a bad batch, but it seems that that's just how the product is. I swatched all of the other colors as well, and only found one or two of them to be even half decent. It's difficult to get the product onto the brush because it's so hard and balls up whether I use the angled brush or the sponge applicator (I even scraped off the surface of the product, hoping it was softer and creamier underneath—it wasn't). The color balls up when you try to apply it. It is very difficult to get a decent amount of color onto your lids. It also smudges easily and transfers onto my upper lid. Finally, it's SPENDIER than other high end gel/cream liners like MAC, Stila, and Bobbi Brown—but the product is WORSE than anything you'll find at the drugstore! (but in cuter packaging). If you want a purple gel or cream liner, get one of Physicians Formula Creamliner trios (it even comes with a brush), or MAC's Fluidline in Macroviolet.
July 14, 2011
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I have MAC Paint Pots in Rubenesque (warm shimmer/frosty gold with slight peach tones), Delft (shimmery deep blue/green), and Greenstroke (discontinued, a shimmery silvery light mint green). The texture on these is just great--so incredibly smooth. The colors can be worn sheered out, or built up for more intense color. These are great worn alone, or with powder eyeshadow on top. Worn alone, they still have great length of wear. I can go pretty much a whole workday without creasing, and I have really oily lids. To get even greater length of wear, I like to put some eyeshadow primer underneath the Paint Pot. My favorite way to wear these is with shadow on top—they seem to feel a little sticky without powder to “set” them, and sometimes pick up my eyeliner (I have “hooded” eyelids). Because I end up putting shadow over them, I personally use these more as tinted eye primers than as cream shadows. I don't have any problems blending powder eyeshadow over Paint Pots. The packaging is great—sturdy glass, with a plastic lid. I store mine with the lid on tight, upside down in my makeup drawer, and haven't had any problems with them drying out at all! Not a single paint pot has pulled away from the edges of the glass even a little, and I've owned my three Paint Pots for at least a year and a half. The price is definitely right. You get a LOT of good quality product, and it lasts a long time. Compared to the price of other eyeshadow primers, it's very reasonable. To be honest, I don't use mine that often because I hate sticking my fingers in the pot to apply them. Yes, you can apply them with brushes, but I think fingers are better for application. Overall, I'd say that these are great products, whether you're looking for a cream eyeshadow or an eye primer.
July 14, 2011
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I have this in Soft and Gentle, which is probably best used as a highlighter. It is quite sparkly and frosty, and I try to use it sparingly. There's quite a bit of product, and I do like that it's baked, but it's not something I ever really reach for. Maybe another shade would change my mind about this product, but as for now, I'm not really in love with this product. UPDATE: I also have this in "Crystal Pink" from MAC's recent Semi Precious collection. I received it to test out for We Heart This. "Crystal Pink" is a sheer, light pink shimmer. It adds quite a bit of sparkle to my face. I tried to use just a small amount over my matte blush, and the look was nice. It adds a healthy glow to your face. However, I had to be very careful not to pick up too much product. There is a generous amount of product in each compact, especially given how little I use per application, so the $28 price tag isn't too bad, if you like using highlighters. I personally don't use highlighters often, and definitely not super shimmery ones. The wear time is so-so--it seems that the shimmer comes off rather easily/there's a bit of fall out. To be honest, I don't understand the draw of MAC MSF's. They do look pretty, all swirled and domed in the compact. But I don't feel that they're a particularly useful product. I have large pores, and this much shimmer tends to accentuate it. The amount of sparkle also seems a little bit much, even for me (I'm 25 years old).
July 14, 2011
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I sold mark and Avon products for a brief period of time, and tried out many, many of their products. I really wanted to like their products, especially their foundations, because they were inexpensive to purchase as an “Avon lady”, but I can't say that they're better than drugstore foundations. First of all, there's the inconvenience of having to order them, and not being able to see the foundation in real life and swatch it, which I personally find to be a major draw back—you can't just run to the store or mall and pick some up! But even putting that concern aside, I still can't justify repurchasing this product. THE PACKAGING: It looks cool, and it's VERY sturdy on the outside. However, it's incredibly bulky. The cap takes up over half of the packaging, which is a huge waste. I don't like the applicator, because using it directly on your skin potentially contaminates the liquid foundation, and could make it go bad faster than a pump applicator would, or a squeeze tube. The sponge doesn't seem to be of very good quality, and not attached very well. On top of that, the round spongey applicator doesn't do a very good job of actually applying product to your skin. After you dab some onto your face, I needed to use a foundation brush or a standard makeup sponge to actually spread the foundation evenly. THE COLORS: The colors all tend to run a bit orange. It was hard to match my skin color to the swatches in the catalogue—it seems like they ran a bit dark. THE WEAR: This foundation just has an average length of wear. I have very oily skin, and this foundation didn't do much to help control oil, so I ended up looking shiny after a few hours. THE COVERAGE: I would say this foundation has light-medium coverage. OVERALL: To be honest, I threw away this foundation before I'd even used a quarter of it. It just wasn't worth it.
July 14, 2011
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PROS: Smells delicious, like brownie batter. The texture is unusual for a scrub--it feels kind of gel-like, with the scrubby particles suspended in it. The little bits are just the right size, and not too scratchy. The packaging looks nice, and it's fairly affordable. Most importantly, it leaves my skin SO INCREDIBLY SOFT. Even my boyfriend likes it! CONS: The jar is hollow, so it takes up more space than it would if it were just a regular jar.
July 12, 2011
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This kit is amazing, and super inexpensive! It has a great mirror, the tweezers are actually very useful, the two shades of brow powder are great, as is the wax, and the little slanted brush is very good at applying powder (although it is VERY small). I've switched from more expensive brow powders to this one because it's just better. The only thing I don't like is that the plastic clasp closure broke and so it won't stay closed. But I will absolutely repurchase this!
July 7, 2011
