September Product Rave - Philosophy Present

I’ve been using Smashbox’s Photo Finish primer for a while now and I love the silicone feel it gives my face, but buying that primer was getting a bit too expensive for me. The Smashbox one runs for $49 at Sephora and this Philosophy one runs for $25, so, I thought I’ll give this a try since it doubles as a moisturizer as well—I have dry/combination skin.

Not only is it cheaper, it works better for my face. The only downside I can think of for this product is that you have to wait at least 2 minutes before applying your foundation or concealer to your face. I just do my eyebrows or get dressed while I wait for that.
There are some people who have said the lavender in the product broke them out, but I have not experienced that—and I used it on a week that I am prone to breakouts.

This is the only primer I have used that works VERY well for my under eye area. Concealers tend to crease under my eye and no matter what primer I used or what I use to set it. With this primer, my under eye concealer DOES NOT crease at all! My face makeup also look like I JUST applied it by the end of the day. I work with steam tables and it was very hot the last week—that just gives you an idea of the staying power.

IDK what else to say about this other than I will not be going back to my Smashbox primer. This lasts longer, it makes my face feel (more) moisturized, it doesn’t break me out, and it’s 2x cheaper than the Smashbox one. =]

September product rave - NYX cream blush in Boho Chic

I’ve actually been using this product for quite some time now—probably for about 3 months now. This month though, I’ve been using this a lot for a nice simple flush of color on my cheeks.

After applying my concealer (I haven’t been using foundation), I would apply this onto my cheeks and then apply my MUFE super matte loose powder to set everything. The color is perfect, it’s not too pink and it doesn’t look too obvious, especially after setting it with a powder that is the color of my skintone. This has also been my favorite technique to use on my cheeks. 
Concealer > NYX cream blush > MUFE super matte loose powder

The texture is very creamy but I do wish it was a bit more pigmented. I have to swirl my finger in the product about 4 times before picking up enough product to show up on my face as a natural flush. After setting it, the blush stays on for the entire day. Sometimes, when using a regular powder blush, it would fade by the time I get home, but it doesn’t happen when I use the cream blush first. 
If I want a more obvious blush look, I would put powder blush on top of this cream blush and the only thing it really does then is make the product last a really long time.

This blush runs for $6.99 at Ulta and it’s been lasting me quite a while. Good investment if you have trouble getting your blush to stay like I do and want a natural look without it fading and making it look like you’re washed out.

July product rave - Cover Girl Lashblast Waterproof mascara

I picked this up the morning before I went to the waterpark last month because I realized I didn’t have a waterproof mascara. I wanted something cheap and have heard good things about, so I picked this up, and ended up loving it.

It really is waterproof and did not come off AT ALL. My lashes stayed curled all day and nothing flaked off as well. That day, I wore a very thin line on my top lashline with my MAC Liquidlast eyeliner and used this as mascara—PERFECT COMBO for the beach/pool/waterparks.

After that day, I’ve been using it everyday. The only thing I don’t like about this mascara is how hard it is to take off. I use extra virgin olive oil as makeup remover and even with that, I have to really work to get it out of my lashes. I did find that covering it with the pad for 30 seconds or so than slowly wiggling the pad under the lashes works really well. 

I don’t quite remember how much I paid for this, but it is for sure cheaper than any other mascara I’ve tried. I will be picking this up again, but I do wish the wand is a little smaller. The Givenchy Phenomeneyes mascara brush is PERFECT for my lashes. If only Lashblast will have that brush head for this formula. <3

HG item #1 - MAC Liquidlast Liner in Point Black

My cousin was the first one who told me about this product and her’s was the first I’ve ever tried back in 2008. Right off the bat, I did not like the brush. The formula of this liquid liner is thicker than a traditional liquid liner—more like a watery gel—and mixed with a flimsy brush, I didn’t like the combo. What I loved was the staying power. I have always had a problem with traditional liners and gel liners staying on my lower lashline, they would smudge and wear off within 10 minutes of putting it on, no matter what I tried under and over it. That, of course, is not completely the product’s fault, my eye shape and how my muscles come in contact when I blink is a factor as well.

When I bought my own, the initial thought was the use this on my lower lashline, but sometimes, when I apply it, it would touch a bit of my waterline. It didn’t bother me at all and sooner or later, I started using this on my waterline. It stays on FOREVER. Granted that it is a liquid liner on a watery surface, a tiny bit would flake off throughout the day, but not noticeable unless you look super close.
A lot of you have asked me what you should do about liners smearing on your waterline and I told you many things that works but it is not preferred method because I don’t want to go around telling people to put liquid liner on your waterline, especially if you have sensitive eyes. I don’t want the flakes bothering you and you coming back and bashing at me for recommending you something.
I will stress that this is not preferred if you have sensitive eyes and if you wear contacts because when it flakes off—although it is only a little bit—it can cause irritation to your eyes. 

I use a different brush when I apply this product. I just dip a clean angle brush onto the brush that this liner comes with and dab off any excess on a clean tissue. I would then apply it straight to my lashline and whatever is left over, I smudge it on to my lower lashline. It is very easy to remove as well. I use extra virgin olive oil as makeup remover and it takes the product right off. As for the brush, a spot-clean brush cleanser will not take it off completely, but whatever you use to deep clean your brushes, will work—assuming you use stuff like shampoo, olive oil, anti-bacterial soap, etc.

Well, this is my secret. This is what I use on my waterline and is my number one preferred liner for my lashline. I have purchased this again and again and will be purchasing this product until I give up on using makeup.

June product rave - OPI Nail Envy Original

This is a nail strengthener that I looked up on due to frustration with my nails. I have never had a problem with my nails being thin or anything. A little bit after I started tumblr, I started buffing my nails. OMFG, I regret it so much. I NEVER had my nails peel, chip, or break so easily. 
I got tired of it—finally—and looked up some nail treatments for my problem. I found the OPI Nail Envy.

The directions tells you to apply this as a base and top coat to your nails. 2 coats as the first application and every other day, you would apply it to your nails again for a week. A week later, you remove it and reapply.

This isn’t a miracle worker but I have noticed my nails growing back to it’s natural thickness. As for the peeling, it has lessen, but it is still peeling because I was forced to buff them to even everything our right before I got the product.

I’m not completely sure if you will get the same effect if you were to use it above your nail polish rather than using it on your bare nails—know what I mean? I’ve tried that and the effects are pretty much the same—minimal peeling and nails are thickening again, I think. LOL I’m not very observant so… don’t blame me. I’m trying it right now over some polish and my nails feels the same as if I were to apply it to my bare nails.

I bought this at a local beauty supply store and I am not talking about Sally’s. Give it a shot if you have thin nails because although it doesn’t really help with my peeling, it does help with thickening, which is good because my nails have gotten really thin and sensitive BECAUSE of the peeling. It’s $8.xx a bottle, but I have used it religiously for 3 weeks and I have JUST noticed a dent in the product. Remember to eat lots of yogurt too for the keratin because we all know keratin is AWWESOME for the hair and nails. =]

May product rave - BeautyBlender Sponge

Okay, I’ve only used this for the last week of May and I am calling this my May FAVORITE. I remember seeing people use this couple years back and thought it was cool but never really thought about buying it, until recently when I grew tired of my foundation brush taking days to dry.

First things first, it is a reusable sponge. It goes for $20 on their official site. If you buy 2, you can get it for $25 I believe. MAN, I wish I got 2 because I am in LOVE with this thing. I believe Sephora sells these but not all stores carry them, so you might have to check out their site.

I would wet this in the morning after applying moisturizer and squeeze out the excess water. Then I would take my MUFE HD foundation and dab it all over my face. Afterward, I take this sponge and stipple it right on the foundation until it is evenly blended. 
One, this leaves such a nice dewy look, I love it because a lot of people (esp. family) has told me my skin looked dull. People have said it gives an airbrushed look, IDK how an airbrushed look looks like on my face but I’m liking it. Plus, it is very smooth.
Two, I don’t have to worry about blending because this thing does all the work for me.
Three, it presses the foundation into my skin so well that it literally lasts all day—even at work and I’m in front of steam tables all day.
Four, unlike brushes, I don’t have to make sure this is dry before using it.
Five, I just simply LOVE it more than my foundation brush because it melds my foundation onto my skin so well and I don’t need to worry about it drying in time. LOL redundancy at it’s finest. 

There are reviews that said the sponge is stained after a while, but I use my Olivia Care olive oil soap to wash it and it’s completely fine. Oh, and you do not have to buy the cleanser for the sponge, I just use my face wash and there are NO stains on mine—other than right after using it.

There was a foundation routine request, so look out for that if you want to see how I use the sponge. I have to wait for better lighting though, the sun is refusing to come out right now.  

Granted that $20 for a sponge is pretty expensive, but this is basically the same thing as buying a brush head for a Clarisonic—in my book. 
I WILL be buying another one as soon as I notice this one wear down. I don’t know how long this will last me, but I think they claim that their sponge will last 3 months—with DAILY application. Note that that’s about the time to switch out a Clarisonic brush head.

April product rave - Essie nail polish in Mambo

There isn’t much to say about this other than I love the color. Whether you have long or short nails, this color is very flattering.
I found myself reaching for this nearly every time I did my nails.

The polish does chip a lot easier compared to OPI polishes, but not as easily as China Glaze polishes. The color pay-off isn’t amazing. Two coats is enough but I use about 3 just because I feel like the color looks better with 3 coats. That doesn’t bother me much though, I really just go for the color when it comes to polishes.

It runs for $8 at Ulta, which is where I picked mine up and will be picking another one up because I love the color.

March product rave - Alba Botanica papaya enzyme mask

Product claim:

Papaya enzymes gently loosen and dissolve dull surface cells and impurities, increasing healthy circulation and dramatically improving tone and texture for a healthy, vibrant complexion.

With a blend of papaya and pineapple enzymes, this mask will gently but effectively remove surface cells while increasing circulation and noticeably improving the skin’s firmness and texture.

This was a brand that I have never heard of but have seen in Trader Joe’s/Farmer Joe’s and Target. I decided that my yogurt mask was taking too much time and effort because I had to worry about the expiration date, bring a tiny bowl of it down to my room with me, heat the honey so it mixes with the yogurt, etc, so, I looked into this almost a month before Mo’s wedding because of my acne scarring. They were fading, but not fast enough.
Since the product claims to remove skin cells and provide slight exfoliation, I thought I should try it.

When I first apply this, it burned. I have never used enzyme masks before so that was new. The burning goes away after a couple of minutes. You’re suppose to leave this on for 5 minutes and then rinse it off.

After a week of using this, I noticed my scars fading. Normally, my scars do not fade fast enough for me to notice it, but after using this for a week, I can actually notice the difference. My skin looked glowy, not oily after rinsing it off—kind of like after applying moisturizer but I didn’t yet.

It’s been a month since I used it and I am LOVING it! I also love the burning feeling because it makes me feel as though it really is removing the dead skin cells and whatever that was left behind from my Clarisonic.

Usually, when I try new products, my skin have negative reactions to it at first, then after a while, it starts getting used to it. This never caused a negative reaction, so that is a plus.

I used to use it very often, but more sparingly. I use this whenever I feel as though my skin needs the deeeeeeep cleansing. I don’t know how to explain it but like after wearing makeup for 2 days straight sort of thing—not like I’ve ever done that, but you know what I mean.

I recommend this to EVERYONE, even if you have great skin already because everyone needs to get rid of the dead-skin build up from the day. It is said that it is recommended for all skin types and is hypo-allergenic.

This mask made me look into more from this line and my skin is actually a lot better than using my Olivia Care olive oil soap alone. I do wear makeup, so the product does seep in; obviously, soap alone will not clean down pass the epidermis.
I don’t know if anyone noticed (not like you can unless you’ve seen me in person), but I have been wearing less and less foundation and concealer after this. I still have some light scars that are in the process of healing, but this thing doesn’t work miracles so it does take time.

Click for their official website

February product rave - Clinique Chubby Stick in Whole Lotta Honey

I carry this with me everywhere I go, even to work. It is very smooth and moisturizing. I can actually go without my Burt’s Bees with this, but I choose not to because I treat this more like a super moisturizing lipstick.
For a tinted moisturizer, the color pay off is very good. There is also a very good variety of colors from dark plums to neutrals to light pinks.
There’s really not much to say about this other than I love it and will buy a backup of this.
For $15, I would rather spend my money on this than a MAC lipglass.

January product rave - Makeup Forever HD foundation

This is my first foundation I’ve ever purchased. What I love about the foundation is not the coverage or how it makes my skin look, but how quickly I can finish my morning makeup routine now. It use to take about 10 minutes to cover my breakout scars, but it only takes a minute at the most now.
I barely get any sleep so getting as much sleep as possible is one of my highest priorities.
I can wake up and get out of the house in 30 minutes now —it use to take me a good hour.

As for the foundation itself, it works great. It leaves my skin looking dewy. It doesn’t feel heavy, nor does it feel like I have foundation on. The coverage is great but it will not completely cover super dark blemishes like my sun spot on the right side of my cheek —a concealer is needed for really dark spots.

This photographs really well. Sometimes, looking at my pictures, it looks a bit fake because my skin is very evened out and it’s just different from what I’m used to.

I use one pump and apply it with a flat-top brush. Then I set it with MUFE’s HD powder and it doesn’t budge. I do have to blot my face half-way through the day and I’ll powder with MAC’s MSF and I’m good to go. I’ve been using it for a month and it hasn’t broken me out and I have not even put a dent in the product yet. It expires in 24 months so one bottle will probably last me until the day it expires. Well worth the $40+.

*photo credit tagged in photo

Clarisonic MIA review

I started using this a month ago and the first couple of weeks it have me 2 HUGE cystic acne on the hollows of my cheeks. It also make it very bumpy and gross, they’re not necessarily acne though, they’re just bumps.

The 3rd or 4th week into using it, they started slowly going away.
They are now gone but I still have a scar or two left over from the transition phase.

I am no longer getting massive breakouts. I just got one pimple near my hair line but that is because I’m going onto my monthly soon.

My skin is now super smooth, after washing my Olivia Care off my face, I do not know if I’ve washed off all the soap yet because my skin glides against my hands. It is still the squeaky-clean feeling, but SMOOTH, like I still have soap on my face.

My skintone evened out more as well. My forehead was always darker than my cheeks, now they’re the same tone.

This is an amazing product and well worth the investment. ESPECIALLY, if you makeup, you should consider getting this. You’ll be surprised how much makeup you are leaving behind when all your impurities starts surfacing.
I bought this for around $120 because Sephora had a 20% thing. Calculating how many days I’ve used this and what it’s worth, it is considered to be less than $4 per use. This will last you for a long time, in a year, this product will end up to be 33 cents per use.

If anyone is wondering, my skin routine is as follows:

Remove makeup with extra virgin olive oil
Wash face once with Olivia Care olive oil soap
Apply Olivia Care olive oil soap and use it was the cleanser with my Clarisonic
Let my face “air-dry”
Apply virgin coconut oil

Every other day, or on the days I wash my hair I would use my yogurt and honey mask for 15 minutes.
I would remove my makeup, wash my face, wash it again with the Clarisonic, air-dry my face, use the yogurt and honey mask, wash it off, quickly wash my face with olive oil soap, air-dry again, and finally apply virgin coconut oil.

I don’t know if it is the use of all these natural products or the Clarisonic; but either way, the Clarisonic makes me feel like my skin is a lot cleaner. Even if it is just the mentality, it’s worth it because my skin is slowly restoring to the condition it was in.

This was the condition of my skin. It might not be porcelain, but it was flawless. No, I am not wearing any type of concealer or foundation. Only my eyebrows are filled in and I have a thin line as eyeliner. I don’t even have mascara on.

Olivia Care Green Tea soap update - first month
(I know, I’m a week late on this.)

This smells REALLY good, and YES it is a bar of soap. The ingredients are olive oil, palm and palm kernel oil, glycerin, and natural oils for fragrance. The only ingredient on there they is “iffy” is the glycerin, but from my knowledge, I think glycerin is needed to make soap.

I’ve used this for a month now and I am LOVING it. Before I started using it, a few weeks before, I was breaking out like CRAZY. I think it was the LUSH Fresh Farmacy and Coal Face that triggered it because I was trying that out for 2 weeks and the breakouts started. I returned the items —OF COURSE. Note that when I breakout, I usually get like 1 or 2 the week before my period starts and that was it. My confidence level decreased to NOTHING. I was scared to look at a mirror because it was THAT bad.

I always wanted to go the natural route when it comes to skin care. I read about this soap and thought, why not?

First day of using it, immediately, my face felt so much cleaner. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s that squeaky-clean feeling on your face. I expected it to be the olive oil because olive oil does an awesome job at removing makeup. I still use Egyptian Magic as my moisturizer.

After a week or so, my breakouts started to clear up —slowly, but it is still clearing up. My Egyptian Magic started adsorbing into my face a lot better. I even started using it in the morning before applying my makeup.

Couple weeks have passed and my breakouts on my forehead are now scars. I don’t know about you, but once my breakouts become scars, I know they’ll be gone in no time. I was still breaking out here and there,  especially around the hollows of my cheekbones.

A MONTH have passed and the breakouts on my forehead has completely disappeared. I have a few tiny ones that are still there, but it’s BARELY noticeable. I also started using my Clarisonic the third week into this, so I am still breaking out because it is getting rid of whatever the Olivia Care soap could not —beneath the Epidermis.
Clarisonic review will be around December 10th. Yes, I marked it down so I’ll know which date will mark the first month of using it.

I will do another update in another month. If there are no drastic changes, I’ll just do a quick update.

Hopefully, EVERYTHING will be better by the time Mo’s wedding comes along. I still have breakout scars around the hollows of my face. There are also a few cystic acne there. It could be the cause of my Clarisonic because it is only my second week of using it. It is still getting rid of all the mess I have underneath my skin right now.

Okay, more updates later!
Oh, if anyone is wondering, I am using organic extra virgin olive oil as makeup remover, Olivia Care soap as my face wash, I massage it in with my Clarisonic, and then I finish with Egyptian Magic.

I thought I would give this a try because I heard a lot of nail salons use this.

The only good thing about this “fast drying” top coat is that the brush reaches all the way to the bottom of the bottle.
I hate how most nail polish brushes starts drying up and does not fan out anymore because the brush is no longer dipped into the polish.

This top coat is NOTHING compared to the Seche Vite top coat. That one leaves your nails with a smooth texture and is completely dried within 30 minutes.
This one, leave your nails feeling sticky and feeling like it is not yet dried. It’s been over 3 hours and it still feels like that.
If you have used the OPI top coat, that is how it feels like, but supposedly “fast drying.”

Bottom line? Seche Vite is a MUST, this is a return item for me —more like exchange because I will be getting the Seche Vite like I originally planned.

Eve Pearl Salmon Treatment/Concealer - Light

I had HIGH expectations for this thing because of Eve Pearl’s YouTube videos. Then again, the people she worked on BARELY need any concealing.

She claims that this concealer …

No more dark circles! Revolutionizing the use of the “Salmon” or pinky/peach color as an under eye concealer to neutralize the dark blue undertones from the skin. (Yellows mixed with the blue undertones create those greenish/grey raccoon eyes that are highlighted and only accentuate the problem area.)

… and that was taken from the Eve Pearl website.

My initial thought was that this concealer looks too pink for my skin tone. That didn’t stop me from trying it though. It is amazing how little of the product you really need, and the pink tone actually blends really with my yellow skin if I use a light hand.

My problem with my regular concealer (MAC Studio Finish Concealer - NC25), was that it has a yellow undertone and it left my dark under eye circles looking grey. I never bothered with NW shades from MAC because it is super pink on my Asian skin.

I use a bit of this concealer under my eyes before applying my regular concealer. Eve Pearl says that this is the only concealer you need to cover the dark circles, but it doesn’t cover all of mine. That is why I go over it with my normal concealer.
It does not leave a grey tint to my under eye area after applying this under my regular concealer. I have bags so the shadow under them makes the area look grey anyway.

I was kind of disappointed when this didn’t work miracles on my under eye area like Eve Pearl makes it seem, but it is not a bad product. It is a bit expensive to use as a corrector though. There are probably cheaper ones out there like a peach toned concealer like the MAC NW shades.

Do I like it?
Yes, it is creamy, it doesn’t settle, it works pretty well as a corrector.

Is it worth the price?
For me, not really. Since I was born with bags and dark under eye circles, this product didn’t work too well for me. If you have just a bit of both, this is actually worth spending your money on because it will last you a long time.

Would I get it again?
No, I would probably just search for a cheaper peach concealer and use that instead.

Last thought?
My hopes were too high, so this disappointed me because I expected miracles. Not a bad product though, I am just in search for the PERFECT concealer.

Ojon Dry Rub-Out Cleanser

I am surprised how often I use this product, especially if I don’t feel like pinning my bangs back on the day I have to wash my hair. I don’t spray this on my entire head, just the bangs because they tend to feel/look oily —it’s the part of my hair I touch most often.

Shake up this spray bottle REALLY WELL, and I MEAN really well because if you don’t the rice and potato starches inside will try and come out in clumps. This clogs the nozzle.

Spray it onto your hair, rub it in for a good 2-3 minutes and then comb it through.

It does a really good job at soaking up the oils in your hair and making it look freshly washed. The down side to this is that it the product does come out white, so if you have dark colored it, you’ll have to really work it in and try to eliminate the white powder.

When I first purchased this product, I only bought the little size to see how it worked: love it. Luckily, I bought the smaller size because I wasn’t even finished with the bottle and it clogged up on me. It lasted a while though, and I was only about half way done.

I think this smells really nice as well. The small bottle is $10 and the bigger bottle is $20. You can pick this up at Sephora or Ulta, the thing at Ulta is they do not have the smaller size.Another thing, spray this product onto your head BEFORE changing into the clothes you plan on wearing that day because white specks might show up onto your clothes (depending on the color), making you look like you have dandruff.