Health & beauty
- LAGlamRGrl » See my profile
- Points: 5590
- Reviews: 34
Here are all my reviews:
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I've used this twice to punch up my natural color, which gets a little dull and brassy sometimes. I go a shade or so darker in the winter for richness, and two weeks ago I moved to a color a shade lighter than my natural color to brighten things up. The color is easy to apply and distribute through my long, thick hair, and it's nice that with this I only need one box instead of my usual two. I also love that it doesn't make a huge mess, so cleanup is really easy. The odor is about the same or slightly less than other at home permanent color, so having good ventilation is important. (I open the window.). After applying the included conditioner my hair was in good condition and not overdry (the conditioner that comes with it is fantastic). After coloring, conditioning, and rinsing out I follow the late Vidal Sassoon's advice of letting my hair "live with" the color for a couple of days before shampooing or using styling products. This seems to produce a more even, natural looking result that lasts longer and leaves my hair in better condition than when I don't take the time to do this, because it allows the natural oils to come back. The final result (the first shampoo and style after the "settling in" period) looks natural with good highlights and shine-- My most uberhonest friend and I thoroughly checked out my hair in strong sunlight and it passed inspection. If you follow the package directions and don't expect a home haircolor to do miracles (meaning, don't try to go up or down more than 2 shades at home-- you need a colorist for that) it's a fantastic product.
June 4, 2012
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Maybelline New York Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner
Not quite as good as Smashbox but a close 2nd
I bought this to compare to Smashbox Cream Liner, which is one of my favorites. The Maybelline shade I bought is "Eggplant." Texture-wise, the Maybelline is a tad drier than Smashbox, (which may actually be a help for those with oily skin), and although it doesn't drag at all, people who love the buttery texture of Smashbox will notice a bit of a difference. Color-wise, the pigments in Maybelline's Eggplant shade gave good color payoff, though it doesn't look as inky as Smashbox. Also, compared to Smashbox it's not as true to color out of the jar vs. in the jar. In the jar "Eggplant" looks much more purple, but out of the jar it lives up to its name and is a true eggplant...more of a dark plummy wine than purple. (To be sure it wasn't just my skin I put some on a cotton swab, and it 's definitely eggplant on the swab.) Staying power is good, and I didn't have any problems with smudging or running even after applying rewetting drops to my contacts. 24 hour wear is probably a stretch, though. My favorite aspect to this product came as a surprise, though: I love the brush that comes with it!!! The short handle makes for great control, and the tapered dome shape of the bristles is perfect for getting really close to your lashline. In fact I love this brush so much I bought another jar of this product in a color I rarely use just so I can use the brush for my everyday Smashbox! On the minus side? Smashbox has spoiled me with their clear plastic lids that make it easy to see the color inside. But overall this is a great liner at a great price, and the brush a lot better than any of the other liner brush styles I've used. (Come to think of it, it would be a great lip brush too. Hmmm...)
June 4, 2012
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I've been using this eyeliner for a couple of years and find success with this product depends on a lot on the other products I use around the eye--particularly moisturizer. If the moisturizer contains mineral oil or other ingredients that break down the product, smudging is a lot more likely to occur. When I'm careful with my moisturizer or use a good primer, I get good results and staying power. I love the texture of this product-- silky, buttery, and glides on so well it's easy to get heavy-handed at first. The fact that it doesn't drag makes me happy, because I wear contacts and hate it when applying liner to the upper lashline knocks them out of focus. The color variety is nice, with good color payoff and decent staying power when I'm careful with the moisturizer. I'm fair skinned and have this in Caviar (a great shade of black for night), Deep Mauve (a reddish brown I mix with a little black to make my brown eyes pop), and Khaki (my favorite--a dark, smokey gray with hints of olive and gold tones in it that doesn't read glittery metallic after I apply it). This product is a lot of fun to play with, and I love the versatility I can get by using different brushes for different looks and smudging with different tools. (ELF's smudge brush is my favorite smudging tool for a rock n roll look.) You have to work fast because it does dry quickly, but once you get the hang of it this eyeliner is a lot of fun to use. Also, this is a small thing, but I really like Smashbox's see-through plastic lids and rubberized packaging, which is especially handy on klutzy mornings or when jockying for space in front of the mirror!
June 4, 2012
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As another reviewer pointed out, in Smashbox lingo "enhancing" has nothing to do with plumping. But having super-sensitive skin, I'm OK with that! I have this in Illume and Crystal, both of which were originally gifts with other purchases. Nice texture--not as nice as NYX, as Smashbox is a bit stickier, but not nearly as sticky-tacky as most of my other lip glosses...just enough to grab onto the lips or lipstick. Illume, a golden nude-ish color, has just the right amount of sparkle without going Vegas and will look great this summer with a golden-brown eye. It has enough opacity to stand on its own while still being sheer enough to use as a topper for lipstick, so I like this color's versatility. As for Crystal, I wasn't expecting to like this, but I do! Despite its name, it's not a super-shiny wet-look gloss. What it is instead is moisturizing with just enough shine to give a nice finish to a lipstick without sending it into adult film star star territory...just a really pretty finishing touch. I especially like that this clear gloss doesn't migrate like a lot of clear glosses tend to do; it's slightly tacky enough to stay put without being obnoxiously sticky, and it gives a nice cushiony feeling to the lips. It also doesn't have a heavy scent or taste; it's a very faint vanilla-ish flavor which I prefer to the fruit flavors other brands try to do. Bonus: the small, skinny size of the tube fits in my tiniest evening clutch too; making it just the right size to cram into a wristlet. As for the price, the Smashbox website Tuesday and Thursday feebies and Sephora Beauty Insider points have done a lot to help ease the potential sticker shock, so a well-timed purchase when I need another product usually ends up being a really great deal. .
June 4, 2012
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A friend gave me a tube of this, because while I'd heard good things about NYX, I'd never tried it before. Pardon my gushing, but...I love the texture of this! As another reviewer said, it's almost more of a liquid lipstick because it has more pigment than most glosses, but it doesn't dry out and stays moist and supple on the lips. It's not sticky at all, and it's so moisturizing that when I throw it into my bag I don't bother bringing lip balm. Despite the moisturizing, it doesn't migrate, and as far as lip gloss goes it has really good staying power. I wore the rosy red one to dinner (edit: it's called Copper Sparkle, but is more like a beautiful soft rose red) and came out with a hint of color still on. A really excellent product at a super-low price!
June 4, 2012
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Caudalie Pulpe Vitaminee Eye and Lip Cream
Great for contact lens wearers in hot dry climates! My summer go-to!
I demand a lot from an eye cream: I stay out late a lot (dark circles), wear contact lenses (sensitive eyes), I live in the hot, dry climate of Los Angeles, and I have super-sensitive combination skin. This stuff checks off all my requirements. It hydrates and plumps up the fine lines that are starting to appear from 15 years of wearing contacts, it gives a great canvas for my concealer, and it doesn't budge in the summer or sting my eyes. I also like that it sinks into the skin quickly and that a little goes a long way. After a few weeks I noticed my eye area looked brighter, which was a nice bonus. For extra dry days in winter I alternate this with Shiseido Benefiance, especially at night, but for daytime and in the spring and summer this is just right. As for the lip benefits, I use it when I need light, non-greasy moisture, such as before applying lip gloss. For that it's perfect, but if you have super-dry lips it probably wouldn't be enough.
June 4, 2012
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Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream
Does exactly what it says and nothing more...but for the price I want more!
I wanted to like this product but for me it's just "meh". On the plus side, it does exactly what it says on the label: it hydrates. But that's it. No dark circle improvement, no line plumping, no removing crepiness., and the effect of giving my concealer a decent canvas was inconsistent from day to day. If I' m buying a separate eye cream, I want it to do more, because there was absolutely no difference between this eye cream and using my regular unscented facial moisturizer. Back to Shiseido Benefiance (which I also reviewed) or Caudalie Pulpe Vitaminee (which I'm about to write my review for after this one)!
June 4, 2012
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OMG how I love this stuff!!! As a sensitive-skinned, sensitive-eyed contact lens wearer, it 's not easy to find an eye cream that does the job and agrees with my skin and eyes...the irony being that, left unchecked, all the skin tugging from wearing contacts has the potential to speed up undereye aging! This Shiseido eye cream is my saving grace. It's super-concentrated, so a little goes a long way, but when I got the hang of how much my skin likes I found it to be non-greasy. It plumps up my fine lines, and gets rid of puffiness, and while I haven't noticed a big change with regard to dark circles, having used it twice a day for a year my eye area is definitely otherwise much improved, and my makeup glides on better. I also like that this product doesn't migrate into my eyes or burn or sting or smear my contact lenses.
June 4, 2012
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"Zero" came in a palette kit I bought , and I was immediately impressed with the creaminess of the product. No tugging or pulling, and really inky pigmentation which, applied as is can fake a liquid liner look, or can be a smudgy smokey look if you blur it out with a smudge brush or cotton swab. But work fast, because you've got less than 30 seconds to get it on and get your look together! For this reason I think newbies will have the best luck applying the pencil sparingly. blending as you go and building the coverage, but it's worth getting the hang of. Once it's on, it stays on, budge-free until you take it off. It even holds up through applying drops to my contact lenses, which is saying a lot (I don't apply it to my waterline, so I can't comment there, but undereye is no problem). Good stuff!
June 3, 2012
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Woe to the person standing behind me if I use conventional hairpins to put up my long, thick hair, because conventional pins tend to spring out and take flight from my head. Spin Pins are the only pins that actually stay in place in my hair all day. The bronze ones blend into my hair invisibly, and I love that it only takes two pins for messy updo when I'm careful about their placement (3 when I want to get it right on the first try). They're easy to screw into the hair even with a bad mirror view, easily "unscrew" without breaking the hair when you take them out, and they have good grip without damaging my hair. They're also comfortable and don't poke into my scalp, and the fact that you need so few of them makes them fantastic for travel. Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em!!!
June 3, 2012
