I was just checking Lululemon’s website for new arrivals, since the Autumn season is upon us, and Lululemon will be coming out with all my favorites that I’m sure I will “need,” and I noticed a few new arrivals that aren’t branded or co-branded with Lululemon! I can’t remember the last time I saw items on Lululemon website that weren’t at least co-branded, for example the recent Barry’s gym and Soul Cycle collections. Perhaps those necklaces from last year? Were those co-branded or not? – Of course, I had to check! They were co-branded, here is an article about them.
The bad news is that I don’t think they should be branching out this way. I think Lululemon should sell Lululemon and branching out and selling other brands opens them up to some risks. For example, if the quality doesn’t hold up, or if the clientele doesn’t like these products or if they’re simply not seeking to purchase them from Lululemon. I, for one, prefer to purchase my Coola products from Ulta to get those sweet, sweet points!
It was only just recently that Lululemon started selling their own branded Self Care items, which I reviewed, and this branching out into self care can work for Lululemon, but now selling other brands of self care in addition to their own seems like they’re moving too quickly and branching out too far from their core capacities as a brand.
The good news is that these are, in my experience, good products. I’ve tried the Coola setting spray and the Sunscreen Lotion and I think they’re both quality products. The lotion is my go-to and it’s what I’ve been using for about 3 years now. The Setting Spray, I believe came in one of my subscription boxes and I do like it, but it’s not going to be replacing my MAC Fix+ anytime soon. I haven’t yet tried the Sunscreen Spray, also newly available on Lululemon.com.
There are also some Davines products available for sale. Again, a great brand. I’ve tried many Davines hair products and absolutely adore the scents they use and the way they make my coarse (ugh :-/ ) hair feel after I use them. It looks like the full size is available at Walmart for a lot cheaper than at Lululemon, but at the same time, it is being sold through a third party vendor, so it was probably purchased on clearout as overstock and is being re-resold, so it’s a personal choice whether you want to save the money or buy from Lululemon directly. – That is, if you’re even interested in trying it at all. My opinion on Davines products is that they work great, they smell divine, but boy are they expensive and because they’re not sold at Ulta (or even Sephora) where I get rewarded for shopping, I’d rather buy Living Proof or S Factor hair care products if I’m wanting to go high end. Links are to my number one favorite from each brand.
Curious as to what y’all think about the new self care options at Lululemon. They also had an anti-chafe balm and some shower sheets, but I’ve never tried these specific products, anything like them or anything from their brands, so I don’t have much to say. I might try to shower wipes, but I don’t personally have much use for an anti chafe balm, maybe I’ll make my husband try it, lol.
Until then, Thanks for reading and let me know in the comments or on Twitter (@lululemonexpert) what you think about Lululemon branching out!
To you early birds who visit my blog the day I publish a new article: Thank you for coming to visit my blog- I apologize if any of the links above are wonky- I am writing and editing this entirely on mobile to see if it’s possible to make a completely seamless blogpost on the go. I’ll fix anything that doesn’t work when I get home!
Hello everyone! I just want to document my experience with SkinMedica’s Vitalize peels. This is my first peel ever, so I don’t have anything to compare it to, but I wanted to share my experience anyways. Don’t forget to shop around- I’ve heard of these costing over $150/ application! I paid less than half that! Of course, it does depend on where you live, but don’t forget to ask about specials!
About a week after my initial consultation in which I expressed my concerns about my skin including clogged pores and age prevention, I got my first ever peel. The first thing the dermatologist did was clean my skin, then she used an alcohol swab on my face. Warning: it’s super stinky. I was nearly choking on it, so I turned on the tiny fan they gave me. It helped a lot.
Then came the “fun” part. The application of two layers of the peel solution plus one layer of sunscreen and one layer of Retinol. The two layers of the peel hurt a little, but honestly I have Salicylic acid solutions that I use that hurt more. Barely a “1” on my pain scale out of “10.”
The sunscreen and the Retinol don’t hurt at all, thus the “pain” part of the procedure is over. I left the office and drove home.
Later that day I noticed a bit of peeling on my nose and my skin still felt very tight. I had hidden indoors all day and applied plenty of moisturizer. I used this Acure sample I received in my BirchBox. It worked well to keep my skin hydrated. Just FYI, if you get one of these peels you’ll have a yellow hue for the day from the Retinol.
I washed my face in the evening, as per the nice lady’s instructions. It’s worth noting that my skin felt tight and a little sunburned but not too bad.
The following day, I just kept reapplying my sunscreen throughout the day, using Shiseido’s 50 SPF Broad Spectrum Sunscreen. I tried my very best to keep out of the sun and even used a parasol! I felt like a princess 🙂 That day, I noticed a little peeling on my nose.
The next day, I still only had very little peeling on my nose and on my chin. I kept my sunscreen game strong.
Over the next few days I looked pretty bad, with plenty of peeling that even the most vigorous moisturizer application couldn’t hide. So, I hid instead- venturing out only twice the entire weekend.
By Monday, however, the bulk of the peeling was over. I can’t tell if anything has changed yet, but I will keep you posted.
Since it is recommended that you receive multiple (between 3 and 6) sessions before expecting results, I decided to go ahead and get a few more peels done to reap the full benefits.
Peel Number Two:
About 5 weeks after my first peel, I went for my second. This one felt pretty much the same, a little burning but really quite tolerable. My skin also did not feel tight or sunburned this time. The peeling wasn’t as bad this time, and I was able to hide it a lot more easily than the first time. I haven’t seen any drastic changes yet, but I think my pores are getting tighter, as I’ve seen fewer clogged pores lately. In addition, and more importantly, I noticed that my acne scars are gone. They were mild scars, but they’re completely gone. I’m a fan of that. I had two. One was near my jawline and one was on my forehead. Yay!
Peel Number 3:
About 4 weeks after the second, I received my third. It actually hurt more this time, but I suspect that it was due to the batteries in the mini fan they gave me being low. Always ask for the fan. It makes it much more bearable. This one also did not make my skin tight or feel sunburned afterwards at all. But again, I did experience peeling, at about the same rate as the second peel.
Conclusion & Final Results
These peels were pretty effective at eliminating my acne scars, particularly the fresh one on my forehead! BUT I probably wouldn’t recommend them to anyone seeking wrinkle relief. They’ve done nothing for my fine lines. Next time, I will try the more aggressive form of this peel, the Rejuvenize Peel!
Hello everyone! I am so excited to be reviewing some of my favorite products that The Body Shop makes today. It’s no secret that I love The Body Shop’s Body Butters. I have been buying them for years. My first one was Satsuma, and it’s still one of my favorite scents. If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know that about once a month The Body Shop sends me some products to review. I think this will be the last product they’ll send me this year- so I’ll post links to all my previous reviews.
As you can see, the first review I did was of the Argan Oil Body Butter. I was so ecstatic about it. I absolutely love the scent. On top of that I already thought The Body Shop’s Body Butters are amazing. So that one was an easy 5 stars. As for this one, it’s much the same. All the things I typically love about Body Butters are present in this one. It’s very long-lasting, soft, creamy, actually pretty to look at too! It smells like sweetened cranberry. There’s a certain tartness to it, but it’s not overwhelming. I really like the scent, but it’s not my favorite. The body butters really are just amazing on their own. Receiving this as a gift, whether from The Body Shop or someone else, would make me very happy. And I am. 🙂
I can’t tell you how excited I was when I received the UPS package and felt how heavy it was. I thought to myself “Gosh that’s heavy! I wonder what they put in there!” So, I’m so happy to tell you that not only did they send me a full-size Body Butter, they also sent me a full size Shower Gel in the same scent! I tried it today. It has the exact same scent, so if you buy one, you won’t be surprised if you choose to get the other as well. It lathers great, works well, and is comparable to their other shower gels, performance wise. I think that the shower gels and the Body Butters are just some of the best products that The Body Shop makes. Pair them with the Tea Tree Oil products for skin care and you basically have my favorite products in your collection.
If you’re interested, the Shower Gel retails for $8, and the Body Butter retails for $20, but there’s a sale going on right now, plus the Frosted Cranberry line is limited edition, so pick these up while you can! I’m very interested in trying the Frosted Cranberry Body Scrub, what would you like to try? What do you think about the Body Butters? Love ’em or hate ’em I’d love to hear from you!
Hello again! Like I said in my first ’empties’ post, this series is designed to mimic my favorite YouTube videos where Beaty Gurus show off the products they’ve gone through and describe their experiences of what they liked and what they didn’t like. Like I said before: since this is a blog, I may re-organize these at a later date to create categories, but for now, I’ll just be posting a few items at a time until I think I have enough to create “collections” of comparisons.
I got a sample of this in one of my makeup subscription box services. I believe it was BirchBox. The sample size is 20mL, and I got about 10 uses out of it, if not more. As with most of my products, I tend to be very sparing with my usage. Some might even call me stingy in that regard. But I would rather be regarded as miserly than wasteful. This product reminds me of other mid-range basic cleansers. The cleanser that comes with the Clarisonic when you buy it comes to mind. I would characterize this cleanser as relatively boring, but effective. My face felt clean after using it, but it wasn’t exciting or anything. I might actually buy this if it were cheaper, but $24 for the full-size of 150mL is too much when there are many other alternatives for basically the same price.
I really enjoyed this product. As I recall, I got it as a sample with purchase when I was buying my favorite mask: Clear Improvement. This sample size was only 15mL, but I got several uses out of it. Over 10 for sure. I really liked this product because even though it is abrasive, I really felt like it was exfoliating my skin. I felt as though I was able to get the rice starch particles all over my face, unlike other products which can be hard to maneuver. I would probably not recommend this to someone with especially sensitive skin, but I think this would work for most people. I’m not normally a fan of things that boast peppermint as an ingredient, but this exfoliator performs so well I can’t complain. I will definitely be considering this next time I need a new exfoliating cleanser. It’s $20 for 1.7 ounces on Origins.com, click on the title to buy. 🙂
I got 3 samples of this from Ulta for free with purchase. I got 2-3 uses out of each sample, so I feel like I got to try this stuff out enough to have a fairly accurate opinion. I really loved the way this stuff smells. It’s divine. It works well; I find that most shampoos, so long as they contain SLSs (sodium laur* sulfates) work well. Right now this is available on Amazon for $12. I thought this would cost more since it’s a salon quality product, however I find $12 to be very reasonable for 500mL (or 16.9 oz). I might get this in the future, but I have a ton of shampoos and conditioners left to try out and go through, so I have no plans to buy anything for now.
These samples came with the Shampoo ones and I got about the same number of uses. Again, this stuff smells amazing. However, I did not find that the smell was especially persistent after I got out of the shower. This works well, but not amazing, and I often found myself using another conditioner- either a hair mask or extra leave-in treatment in addition to this stuff in order to get my hair to be as soft as I would like. I would describe this as quite average and I would not buy it at any price. Yawn.
I got a free sample of this and got two uses out of it. I liked that this stuff isn’t greasy at all, but I loathed the smell. Again, if you read my blog, you’ll know that I do not like strongly scented products on my face, especially at night when I will have to live with it while I sleep, and this was no exception. I though the cream performed OK overall, but I would not be tempted to buy, especially for $50. There are much better products out there.
** 2 Stars
Repurchase: No.
So, overall, this time had a couple resounding “no”s, but that’s just the learning process, and I’m glad I’ve had the opportunity to try out so many new products thanks to companies like BirchBox and Ulta. I hope my next post has some more “yes”s and valuable information for you all. Thanks for reading! 🙂
Hello Everyone! My FAVORITE YouTube videos are called “Empties” videos. Usually some Beauty Guru will go through a month’s worth of empty products that she’s used up and tell you all about why she did or did not like them plus whether or not she intends to repurchase. Because this is a blog I will try to eventually organize certain products by brand or category, but for now, I’m just going to go through some of my “empties,” and put them in this post. The titles will be links to where you can purchase 🙂
Here’s a picture of my empties box:
Let’s try to get through these one at a time, shall we?
I got this on sale half-price at my local Walgreens. I loved it after using it a couple of times so I already have a back up. It makes my hair very manageable and completely removes tangles. I usually put it on in the shower and keep it on for 5 minutes while I do other things. After rinsing, my hair is soft and silky. Love this product!
I got this as a gift from my mother-in-law. I really don’t like it. I am pretty allergic to it and every time I use it I can’t help but to sneeze. I used it all, but I am glad I’m done with it. Yes, she reads this blog. Yes, I told her I wasn’t a fan. It’s fine, as soap, and it lathers well and everything, but the smell gets to me. There are too many good hand soaps out there to settle for this one. Also: I just learned, it has been discontinued. Fantastic 🙂 But hey, if you really want it- you can get it on eBay. You can always get whatever you want on eBay.
I couldn’t find a good link to these exact wipes anywhere. I have a feeling Pond’s has changed the packaging, but hey, you can buy them at Future Shop! LOL! I also think they’re available at Pharmaprix and Shopper’s Drug Mart. I really liked these wipes. I really didn’t know how good I had it with these until I got some bad ones- we’ll get to those in a minute! These smell very pretty. They have a clean/ moisturizer scent. I found them to be moisturizing and the soap on them was not harsh on my skin. They were adequately moist when I opened the package and didn’t dry out too much. Also: they work! They remove makeup very effectively. I would use them on my face, and (in order to avoid getting soap in my eyes) I would switch to an eye makeup remover and cotton pads for the rest. I really enjoyed these and if they were still available, I would repurchase. Unfortunately, I can’t, but I will be very open to trying other Pond’s makeup removing products in the future.
4 Stars ****
Repurchase: No
UPDATE!!! While rifling through my beauty supplies I found TWO MORE packs of these! So happy! They must have been on sale so I bought three. Yea! Now to find a replacement for when I run out of these…
First off let me say that I am happy that I did not have to pay for these. I got them in an Ipsy bag. These were absolutely horrific. And I don’t believe I’m exaggerating. First: They were relatively dry when I opened the package. That was fine, I thought, so I just moistened them before use. The “use” part really got to me though. They were rough- I think they are made from unprocessed bark, or maybe sandpaper. I don’t have sensitive skin, but these were just way too rough. They didn’t remove my makeup either. They just don’t work. Anyways, I can say one good thing: they smelled pleasant. I’ve read other reviews, however, that said that they found the scent too strong. I thought it was bearable. I used them to remove makeup on my hand after swatching things and playing with my makeup, but they were useless otherwise.
Let me just say that this is not a true solid deodorant, and the “smooth” part of it makes it almost a thick lotion consistency. I tried this because it was on sale and I needed deodorant. One good thing about it is that it smells nice, but I won’t be buying more for two reasons. The first being that I now believe that the ‘moisturizer’ in this is gimmicky, and secondly, I feel like I use way more because the moisturizer causes it to be thinner in application overall. So, personally, I suppose I just prefer the solid, and after I go through this last one, I’ll be sticking to the plain boring “baby powder” scent original secret, unless y’all have any suggestions. Yes, I just asked the internet for deodorant suggestions.
3 Stars ***
Repurchase: No
That’s it for this round. I think I’ll try to do one of these posts with 5 items per week, eventually I’ll organize these by product category and it’ll be a little review showdown post for each category.
Hello everyone! I’ve been on vacation, but I’m back now and I have another review for you. The Body Shop has kindly chosen to gift me some of their products, and as I mentioned last time- I am excited to be able to review some products from one of my favorite companies. This month they gave me their new “Instablur” primer to try. I’ve used it a few times. Immediately, I noticed that it reminded me of Smashbox’s Photo Finish primer. Upon inspection, they both have similar application. The Body Shop one is slightly more robust (thicker) and has a light scent. While the Smashbox one is thinner, with no scent.
I had a lot of fun comparing this to other primers I own. I went through my makeup drawers and grabbed every primer I could find. This primer bears little similarity to Boscia’s Skin Perfecting primer, Sephora’s Anti-Shine Foundation Primer, or Laura Mercier’s Foundation Primer. These all apply “wetter,” and as more of a moisturizer than the Body Shop’s Instablur and the primers I will be comparing to it.
I also found that Ulta’s Professional Matte Prime applied similarly. It has the most shine to it, but the ingredients are very similar to those in the Smashbox Primer. (The first three ingredients are exactly the same, and there are other ingredients listed that are also the same further into the lists) I didn’t find that it had much of a scent either. For reference, the ingredients and other information about the Ulta primer and the Smashbox primer can be found by clicking the links in this sentence.
The Body Shop’s Instablur is an effective primer. It applies a little thicker than other primers, but reduces to a thin, matte finish. You don’t need a lot, just put a little on your finger and keep rubbing it in until it goes smooth. It’s thick at first, but it will blend into your skin for that matte finish we all love. I used it a few times under my makeup, and I can definitively say that it did not break me out. I’ve had issues with liquid makeup items causing breakouts in the past and that didn’t happen with Instablur. (Thank Goodness!) On The Body Shop’s website it says that this primer is supposed to do 5 things:
Shine Controlling 12h
Reduces appearance of pores
Blemish Hiding
Complexion Unifying
Make-up Extending
Let’s tackle the list, shall we? I don’t have issues with shine or sweating, so I really can’t say whether this was effective at controlling shine. I can say that it applies matte, but I can’t speak to its shine-controlling abilities. It definitely reduced the appearance of my pores. I would say that this one performs the best at that and at complexion “unifying.” I think “complexion unifying” is a silly thing to call evening out your skin tone, but nevertheless this did accomplish that. I think that reducing the appearance of pores, and evening out your skin tone begets the fact that it will also hide blemishes. So check “yes” on that one as well. I have some issues with white heads and other smaller blemishes, I think that a concealer would work best to hide larger flaws, but this works well for small inconsistencies in the skin. As far as “Make-up extending” goes, I just can’t be 100% sure. I wear good quality makeup that is designed to last and I also use Urban Decay’s Makeup Setting Spray to keep my makeup from moving. I’ve had exceptional experiences with that stuff. So, I can’t say it necessarily helped my makeup stay longer, but I can say that I did not experience any straying or moving of makeup I did apply after using this product.
I have yet to be “wowed” by any primer but so far my favorite things about this one are the scent, the non-greasy application, the matte finish, the fact that it doesn’t break me out (seriously- I’ve had issues!), and the pore/ blemish/ complexion awesome-ifying.
This retails for $22 and goes on sale in Monday, August 25. In the meantime, I found this cute promotional video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejk5uCb3TmI and here’s a picture of the product itself:
I’m super excited to tell y’all about a couple of new things I got the opportunity to try recently. First, I think you know how much I love The Body Shop’s products, as I have discussed their products in past posts. In the new year I decided I wanted to develop a steady skin care routine, and I’ve been a fan of The Body Shop and in particular their Tea Tree Oil line (it has acne prevention/ treatment properties!) for a long time. I’ve branched out and tried other products by them and I guess they noticed that I’m a fan, so they sent me some brand new stuff to review!
Both things they sent me are from their new Wild Argan Oil line. It will be released on their website on Monday, July 28, 2014. Here’s the information that came in my package:
Front page of pamphlet
Inside you can see it’s a 3-step skin care system.
The Wild Argan Oil Information’s back page tells us about the fair trade practices The Body Shop engages in with the Targanine Cooperative. To learn more, watch their YouTube Video about this!
The Body Shop sent me the travel sized Wild Argan Oil Body Butter, and it comes in a package like this:
Wild Argan Oil Body Butter
And it looks like this on the inside:
I took this photo to show texture.
Review on the Body Shop’s Wild Argan Oil Body Butter:
I wanted to give y’all a good, solid full review, so I tried this stuff out for a week, to make sure I like it and to let you know how it affects my skin.
Let’s start with first impressions: First off, the packaging is typical, if you’re familiar with the way The Body Shop packages their travel sized Body Butters, it’s the same exact packaging, twist off cap. Once the cap was off, the smell hits you. It’s absolutely divine. I can’t tell you how wonderful this stuff smells, but I honestly wanted to eat it. Thankfully, there’s a little disclaimer on the package that says “unfit for consumption.” I’m glad that was there, otherwise I would have tried to taste it. (Just kidding, but it seriously smells delicious.)
The texture seems a little thicker than my normal Body Butter, Satsuma (Orange)- but like all Body Butters, a little bit goes a long way. I used a dollop about the size of two quarters on both of my lower legs each time I used this. It’s very moisturizing initially and holds well. I used it over night each time and when I woke up in the morning it was apparent that I had used a moisturizing product the night before and had not 100% rubbed off on my sheets like many other moisturizers. Although, that is typical of the Body Butters, as they tend to have more staying powder, than let’s say a Body Milk, of which I had been working through two before being sent these products to try.
Since my favorite videos on YouTube are actually “Empties” videos where the girls post videos reviewing products they’ve used up and say whether or not they will be repurchasing them, I’ll be posting reviews on products that I’ve used up in future posts- they will include one or two Body Milks, and I hope to do a better job of describing the difference.
So, so far it smells amazing, is nice & thick and long lasting. I’ve noticed that my skin is so much softer throughout the day- this is for sure on my “repurchase” list. However, I still have some other Body Butters I want to finish up first, so it may have to wait until I finish a few of them… Not that I’ve run out of this one yet- either, not at all. It’s only been a week 🙂 If you’re curious, I’m a little over a third the way through my sample.
As shown above in the product information, this IS a 3-step system. Since I’m 100% out of my last Body Scrub- which I loved and plan to do a review on in my post about “Empties,”- I will be buying the “Rough Scrub” from this Argan Oil line. It costs $5 less than the one I’m currently using; I hope it smells like the Body Butter.
The second thing The Body Shop sent me was the Wild Argan Oil Radiant Oil for Body and Hair. I’ve mostly been testing this out on my hair as a replacement for the oil I’ve been using normally. So far, I have found that I like the smell, but it’s very faint, so if you prefer products that have a light scent, you may prefer this to a more heavily scented hair oil. I flip flop- sometimes I like things to be heavily fragranced, sometimes I don’t. It sometimes changes with my mood, but usually depends on the type of product. For example, I prefer that my night cream be lightly fragranced, if it smells like anything at all. Meanwhile, I love a heavily fragranced body lotion.
Here is what they sent me:
Radiant Oil
The consistency is exactly what you might expect. It’s simply the consistency of a natural, nut oil. It’s also quite light, and not nearly as thick as other hair oils I’ve tried. This worked great on my ends, it kept the frizzies at bay and I was able to obtain really pretty curls, which was a surprise, since my hair is typically unmanageable. I wouldn’t say it’s a miracle treatment, but my hair looked MUCH healthier than normal and I was able to wear it naturally without using heat products each time I used this product. You know, in public and everything. The only thing I don’t love about this product is the dispensing mechanism. Most of my other oils have flip caps, making it easy to get a lot of product (I have a lot of hair!) and this one is a spray. I think I’ll be removing the cap, to ease application for next time. However unique the spray mechanism, I can’t deny the results. And they are impressive- at least for me. I can’t get over how I can actually wear my hair down without heat styling after using this product and I was able to do it with a little dry shampoo on second day hair as well.
This line will be released on Monday July 28, 2014
I just want to provide a list, with links of all the products offered within this new Wild Argan Oil line, along with prices
Anyways, I hope this review helped you. If you have any questions about something I didn’t cover here, please leave them in the comments below! If you too have tried this tell me what you think about my review! Do you agree/ disagree? I’d love to know!
#QueenOfOils
UPDATE!!! Oh my goodness, well, it’s been a month (July 21, 2014) and here I am again. It’s August 22 for the record. I REALLY couldn’t wait to try that scrub, but I waited until there was a sale anyways 🙂 and bought it. I’ve used it at least 3 or 4 times now and I really love it. I’m so glad I bought it. I was hoping that it would smell like the body butter and it does. It’s gorgeous in that regard. I love the exfoliation that I get from this product but I want to let you know that this isn’t your typical sugar scrub. There are shells in this and they can be abrasive. Personally, I love it, but I don’t think that anyone who has sensitive skin would like it. Of course, you can always take a chance and return if you’re not loving it- or give it to someone who might like it. The Body Shop seems to have a decent return policy, although I have zero experience with it- I usually love the stuff I buy from there 😉
Anyways, it smells exactly like the body butter- so you shan’t be disappointed. It works well as an exfoliant and the best part is that the argan oil leaves your skin feeling hydrated afterwards.
I just really love it. I even like it better than the last scrub I had and that’s saying a lot because I LOVED that one. This is definitely on my “repurchase” list!
Packaging.
Interior product photo
If you liked the Body Butter, I would definitely give this a try.
Hello! It has been a few months since I updated my New Year’s resolution regarding skin care, so I thought it was time for a new post. In my last post, I talked about how my skin had gone from dry to oily and how crazy the change had been for me, so I had started looking for solutions. I have found quite a few solutions since then and I feel like I know exponentially more about skin and skin care than I used to and I’m so much more confident about where I spend my skin care dollars. I’m here to let you know what I’ve learned in the past 4 months. Going from knowing literally nothing about skin care, to knowing as much as I feel I know now.
I also want to say again that (obviously) I’m not an expert and that I think everybody’s skin is different and what works for me may not work for you and vice versa. And, as in my last post, I’ll just stop and remind you here about my post about Glam Glow, and also my first post where I initially talked about developing a regular skin care routine.
Moving along…
Last time I updated, I talked about what I did and which products I used; I think that format worked well, so I’m fixin’ to use it again!
Morning:
Cleanse: I use Liz Earle’s cleanser and natural muslin cloth, that I got absolutely addicted to after I sampled it through BirchBox. (BirchBox is a monthly subscription makeup sample service.) It is really pretty, and comes in a sort of Tiffany blue tube, and the muslin cloth is slightly exfoliating. I absolutely love the Eucalyptus smell of it, it reminds me of the spa. It also feels quite luxurious on the face. I really recommend it, and you can get a huge tube of it (the small sample size lasted me 30 uses or so) plus 2 large muslin cloths (the sample came with a small one) for $24.50.
I don’t exfoliate in the morning, as I consider the exfoliation I get from the muslin cloth to be sufficient, so I tone next. I usually use a mild toner, like The Body Shop’s Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner, as that seems to be working well for me.
Next I apply a serum, usually The Body Shop’s Pomergranite Firming Serum, because it seems mild to me, no heavy acids (AHAs, for example). I’m probably going to try to find a different “mild” serum, because I don’t love this one, but it’s good, and I would recommend it.
Finally, I apply a layer of sunscreen. If I’m wearing makeup that day, I still apply sunscreen, it’s the one thing I won’t leave home without, and I keep some in my purse- always. One cannot overstate the importance of photo-aging prevention. As for which sunscreen, I’m currently testing out a few but I like The Body Shop’s Aloe Soothing Sunscreen, and Philosophy’s Take A Deep Breath SPF 30.
Night:
My nighttime routine is a little different from my daytime routine. I start with a basic cleanser, I have quite a number of them that I’m experimenting with right now, but I usually reach for either The Body Shop’s Seaweed Deep Cleansing Facial Wash or Purity by Philosophy and apply that to my Clarisonic.
I do a more intense exfoliating treatment in the evening, and after using my Clarisonic, I use a basic exfoliating gel or cream. I have been using The Body Shop’s Tee Tree Blackhead Exfoliating Wash and Skin Clearing Lotion, but I am no longer enjoying it as I find the particles are too big to concentrate on exfoliating properly. The two I’m enjoying most right now are Aveeno’s Active Naturals’ Positively Radiant Skin Brightening Daily Scrub and Philosophy’s The Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash. I prefer the Philosophy one because it has smaller particles that seem to last longer, so I have more time to exfoliate, but they’re both good and I would definitely recommend the Aveeno one to someone looking for a good drugstore product. The only thing I don’t really like about the Aveeno one is that it has Sodium Laureth Sulfate in it, which is, in my view, more of a shampoo ingredient than a face wash ingredient.
Then, once I’m out of the shower (did I mention that I Clarisonic in the shower?), I usually throw a mask on. Sometimes I Glam Glow, but most days I’ve been using Origins’ Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask. I really like the Origins mask because you can use it every day if you want I don’t think I’ll repurchase the white jar of Glam Glow again, but I do want to try the black jar next time, as I’ve heard it would be better for my skin type. On days that I don’t use masks, I use Biore pore strips to clear my pores, although it does say on the box not to use them more than once every three days. I also want to mention that the reason I do this after I shower is because it is when my pores are most open from the steam and how water, so my mask or pore strip will be most effective at that time.
Once my mask dries (or my Biore strip “paper maches”), and I remove it, I rinse off and dry my face. After that, I’m ready for toner. The evening is when I use a more intense toner. So, I usually apply my Clean & Clear Deep Cleaning Astringent, but once I run out of that, I’m switching to a Paula’s Choice one to see if I like it better. I’m happy I finally found a toner with a higher percentage of salicylic acid. I’ll let you know if I like it once I try it.
I usually wait about ten minutes after applying my toner to apply my serum and night cream. I don’t think I have to wait, it’s just something I like to do. My night serum is either the DDF sample I got (which I still have) or the same one I use in the morning.
My night cream is also in a state of flux. I know Philosophy’s Take A Deep Breath is not a night cream, but it’s so luxurious that I can’t resist using it sometimes. I also have some samples from Clinique and Origins I’m working through. I really haven’t made any significant development towards an evening cream, but I’m learning about what I like and what I don’t like. I enjoy a thick cream, but I don’t like ones that are strongly scented.
If y’all have any recommendations for a night cream I should try, let me know in the comments below. I’ll definitely update this post once I try out a few more things and develop a more concrete routine. This is really starting to become a hobby for me, as I feel I’ve learned a lot about proper skin care, even if I’m not 100% of the way there, it’s a long way from sunscreen and basic bar soap.
I went shopping with a friend yesterday, and I have yet to experiment with YouTube videos, but there’s no reason I can’t share my MINI haul with y’all! So, just for fun here are some products I got!
This is what I got at Sephora
My friend & I went to the *big* mall in our town & ventured into Sephora! I love all things cute & when I saw a Beauty Haul on YouTube featuring a Hello Kitty Brush Set, I decided to see if they had one. There were none on the sales floor, but I asked if the associate would check in the back for me,— my friend and I both ended up getting these adorable Hello Kitty brush sets! The head opens up & reveals a 5-piece mini brush set.
Hello Kitty Brush Set
There are 5 brushes, they all say “Hello Kitty” on them and are each labelled: lip, shader, angled eyeliner, eyeshadow, face. They’re really soft. AND the inside holder pulls out for easy cleaning! The best part is that these were on sale, so I got this set for $13! I also took home two sets of Sephora brand eyelashes, one in Flutter and the other in Mysterious, both on sale for $3. I’ve never tried Mysterious, but I’ve been using “Flutter” for a long time and they are perfect for when you don’t want people to know you’re wearing falsies, but still want to add some length and thickness. Also pictured above are some nail stickers I picked up. Hello Kitty nails are in my future!
We also went to Target, where I scoured the clearance area for deals.
Target Mini Haul
As you can see in the photo, I think I did pretty well. LOL. I’m sure you’re all preparing for Halloween, like me & I got a “Beware” sign that I’ll probably put behind a tray of cookies for a dollar. I figure, for a buck, how can you go wrong? So I got a few other dollar items including a two-pack of Puffs, the “Swanky Hankies” with leaves on them, a mini Dove deodorant for my gym bag, and a travel baby powder, great for stinky feet… which I may or may not get sometimes…
Moving on! I loved the packaging of the EOS Lip Balm, so I had to buy some. It’s so cute, and if you don’t have some, it’s very reasonably priced at $3.29 & smells pretty. I bought the Strawberry Sorbet because it was the pinkest pink one I could find. I also ended up buying a bunch of dental supplies including a mini pack of flossers for my purse, a new Spin Brush (mine fell in the toilet… *shakes head* *face palm*), and TWO Hello Kitty travel kits. Definitely a future purse/ gym bag addition in the future. I also picked up some Hello Kitty body spray for $4- it smells like candy!
I needed a new miniature purse brush without the little balls at the end because I just put my extensions (micro-ring) back in & those brushes will catch and pull my hair. So, I found a Boar Hair brush on clearance for $2.08. It will serve its purpose. I also spied some hair ties for $2.71, which I thought was a good deal, plus I needed more black ones. I don’t know what happens to my hair ties, but I think quantum physics could explain it. Perhaps they escape through a worm hole into another dimension, or maybe they’re all just under my bed somewhere. Either way, I really needed some more.
Finally, I’ve recently become obsessed with false lashes. They just really open up my eyes and complete every look, so I watched a few haul videos and product reviews and found the Ardell twin pack in Natural & some flamboyant Katy Perry lashes and picked those up. Also, upon recommendation, I grabbed some Duo Lash Glue. It’s a darker color, almost a brown/ black, so it won’t leave any ‘clues’ on your lash line. That way no one will see the glue or be able to tell (potentially) that you’re wearing false lashes!
I am most looking forward to trying out the DUO lash glue to see if there is any difference and to see if it makes my false lashes less noticeable/ obvious. I also want to see if its easier to apply than the glue that’s included with most other brands of lashes & if the color makes it harder to know where the glue is being applied on the lash. I will update with a review, once I try it out!
UPDATE!:
I tried out the DUO lash glue. It comes out a little runny, so *squeeze gently.* Plus side: you don’t need very much at all. It goes on a dark grey/brown color, and it isn’t hard to tell where you’ve applied it vs where you have yet to apply it. In my opinion, it’s not that much better than white glue, just because mine typically doesn’t show, but if you tend to use a lot of glue and it shows, this might be a good product for you. I found that my lashes went on easily, and stayed on all day. Then later, they were easy to remove.
Bottom Line: I will probably not repurchase this product because, in my opinion, it doesn’t work better than the glue that normally comes with my lashes. Sephora lash glue works just as well. However, if I typically bought bulk lashes in multi-packs (if you know where to find bulk (10 or more pairs) packs of Ardell lashes, please leave a link in the comments below), I would probably buy this.
I hope this review has been helpful 🙂 If there are other lash products you would like me to review, please let me know 🙂
I love Lululemon, but more than Lulu, I love to write. So, when I feel like writing, I’m gonna write. I also love beauty & beauty products and all things pretty. So, I’m going to start a series of new beauty-related posts, within this blog, but under a new category.
I found myself with some extra time, so I did a trial run for my halloween nails. (There’s just no way my nails will last two weeks.) As a base coat I used Sally Hansen Green Tea + Bamboo Nail Strengthener. I’ve been using this one for years. It’s my go-to. I don’t know if it works for growing my nails, but it goes on great and works well as a base coat.
Last month in my IPSY bag (which was fantastic), I got a “nailtini” nail polish by “Tini Beauty,” a makeup company that draws its inspiration from cocktails. The name of the colour is Mai Tai, which is a coral/ orange, but closer to orange/ orange. That makes it great for Halloween! I love the company’s concept! They have a guide on how to mix nailtini ‘cocktails.’ I wasn’t really impressed by the application of the polish, I felt like it went on a little unevenly, but it dried quickly. It has been two days since I applied it and it is chipping, but this doesn’t surprise me. I tend to be a little hard on my nails.
Here are a couple of pictures of my nails.
Mai Tai Nailtini Orange on Porcelain Blue DSJ
Mai Tai nail polish on Light Flare NLT
So, as you can see, it’s a pretty close match to Lululemon’s Light Flare color. I think these will work as Halloween nails 🙂 As a top coat, I used Sephora’s Top Coat: Mirror Shine. I like it a lot, and the extra-wide brush makes it easy to apply. I got the stickers at Sally Beauty Supply. They’re by Cina Nail Creations & they’re called “Haunted Nights.”
Do you have a favorite Orange Nail colour? Or a favorite brand? Why? I don’t think I would have purchased this Nailtini color on my own, just because of the way it applies. I can rock orange though, so if you have any recommendations, please leave them in the comments below 🙂
