e.l.f. All Over Color Sticks (Lilac Petal on left, and Pink Lemonade on the right). Used to use these more often before — they’re quite good as cheap shimmery cream hilighters — but I don’t reach for them anymore due to the smell. I’d pass on ’em.
- To start, put a small dab of foundation on the back of your hand. (I use minerals, so I just tap it carefully onto the flat part of my hand and try not to sneeze or trip).
- Match this amount with some moisturiser. I like to keep it oil-free, lightweight, and with an SPF of at least 30.
- Add a small dab of your acne treatment. I use 10% benzoyl peroxide and the treatment-to-moisturiser ratio is probably about 1:5. Don’t use too much, as it’ll induce the dreaded flakies!
- Blend with your fingertips (of the other hand) and apply.
What is it? Aveeno’s Ultra Calming Foaming Cleanser.
Why I tried it: After reading heaps and heaps of reviews, I decided this would be worth it to check out. I detest cream cleansers, but have unbelievably dry skin (especially in the winter!) So, I picked up a bottle of this when my old cleanser ran out. It was discontinued, and I didn’t like that the packaging was hurting the environment. I figured it was time for a change, and this, well, this was the change.
The packaging: Okay, so I know this makes me a bad person, but I’d take the polar-bear-killing packaging of my old cleanser over this one any day. I think I got a dud. When I pump down, foam comes out, but the pump doesn’t spring back! I have to pull it back up each time, and my LORD is it annoying. Honestly, if I was a teacher and this packaging was my student, I would fail the heck outta it.
The ingredients:
The product: So here’s where the title comes from. It’s not bad… I didn’t break out, and my skin didn’t get any drier. (It didn’t get any less dry, though, either.) But it’s boring. I don’t enjoy using this, there isn’t anything to draw me towards it. It just kinda… gets the job done. My skin feels the same before and after, the scent is negligible, blah blah blah. I want something that smells great, something that leaves me feeling clean, something with packaging that works! I want something that I can enjoy using.
Dear Aveeno cleanser,
This is how you make me feel.
This is how you make me feel.
The verdict? Don’t waste your time with this. I can’t even recommend it for those with dry or sensitive skin, because it really wasn’t incredible in those ways either — it didn’t harm my skin, but it didn’t soothe. There was nothing “ultra-calming” about it! The price wasn’t great but it wasn’t expensive (about $12) and it’s not paraben-free or for a good cause…
zzzzz.
I tried to wait as long as possible to post this, because after trying it out a couple times, I simply refused to believe anything could be this awesome. I figured that nothing (not even me!) is this perfect. There had to be some strange side-effect!
But it is. And it doesn’t even make your lips fall off. Which, bee-tee-dubs, is a total bonus.
The product in question today is Annabelle‘s Le Gloss Star in Flash Dance.
Texture: Can we say amazing? Because it totally is. Think Vaseline — plush but smooth. It’s not even the normal non-sticky kind of feel, where it’s slippery but somehow actually a little bit sticky if you open your mouth too fast or something. It’s as non-sticky as lip balm, I kid you not!
Wear: Though it is very slightly drying (though probably not for people whose lips don’t hate them, cracking and bleeding on a regular basis despite an obsessive lip balm habit,) this gloss wears like nobody’s buisness. It’s no Chanel Rouge Allure Laque, of course, but man is it impressive! I know I always say that you either get non-stickiness or long-wearing powers, but this has both — I can get probably three or four hours out of this with minimal eating (but lots of chatting!) The thing is, once the gloss is all gone, Flash Dance leaves the most incredible stain… MLBB to the max!
Texture: Can we say amazing? Because it totally is. Think Vaseline — plush but smooth. It’s not even the normal non-sticky kind of feel, where it’s slippery but somehow actually a little bit sticky if you open your mouth too fast or something. It’s as non-sticky as lip balm, I kid you not!
Wear: Though it is very slightly drying (though probably not for people whose lips don’t hate them, cracking and bleeding on a regular basis despite an obsessive lip balm habit,) this gloss wears like nobody’s buisness. It’s no Chanel Rouge Allure Laque, of course, but man is it impressive! I know I always say that you either get non-stickiness or long-wearing powers, but this has both — I can get probably three or four hours out of this with minimal eating (but lots of chatting!) The thing is, once the gloss is all gone, Flash Dance leaves the most incredible stain… MLBB to the max!
Bare lips
Stain
(what it looks like after four hours or so, or if you only put a tiny bit on)
Colour: Yah, so I kinda just went over this. But whatever, because it’s so incredible that I feel no guilt on covering the topic again. It’s a coral-y magenta-pink that has freaking amazing pigmentation… I can put a tiny dot of this in the middle of my lips and spread it out for a nice stain, or apply a “normal person’s” amount of gloss for major impact (below). It has similar undertones as my lips, but just looks… better.
What I define as a “normal person’s layer”
Load ’em up! It’s pretty major… love it!
Finally, packaging: Simple and sturdy! Normal doe-foot applicator, and I like that the tube mimics a squeeze-gloss rather than a lipstick — it means you can get out every last drop, which I promise you will want to do!
The verdict? Holy grail, people. I absolutely love this! A tube is $7.95, but like a lot of other Annabelle products, is usually on sale for about $6. Let’s just put it this way to get the message across: I would hate Annabelle if they hiked up the price to $20, but I love it so much that I’d totally still buy it.
I have my eye on the regular Le Gloss (the “Star” part of the name indicates glitter) in Breathless. I’m always on the lookout for a nice baby pink nude, so here’s to hoping this is it!
So this is pretty much my favourite look since, um… ever. It was insanely fun to do, for some reason. I think because it’s so UNwearable, and I always get such a kick out of doing unwearable looks. All images can be clicked on to be enlarged, as per the usual. Enjoy!
Lips without, then with, gloss.
White base — NYX Milk jumbo pencil
Pink — MAC Pink Fuchsia lip liner
Light blue — Jordana Tahitian Blue eye liner, Coastal Scents Blue Diamonds
Green — MAC So There Jade eye liner, Senna Glo Green
Violet — MAC Mauve lip liner, Korres Plum eye shadow
Dark blue — GOSH Pretty Petrol eye liner, Senna Blue Note eye shadow
Blush: Iman Rubor
Eyes: Rimmel Lycra Lash Extender mascara, MAC Vanilla pigment
Base: TimeBalm concealer in Lighter Than Light
note: It is SO MUCH FUN to take photos pretending to be a doll. Look vacant, dah-lings. It’s VAhnder-ful!
Gloss: VS Beauty Rush Minty Lip Shine, MAC PRO 321 brush.
That’s all! Perhaps you can put a spin on this for Halloween or something… just be sure not to lick those lips! Try sealing with something like Benefit’s She Laq, if you do choose to try out a lip look.
Anyone up for a little stop-motion Hamlet (act one scene four) with cookies?
Yah, I thought so.
This is what’s been making my weekend awesome, if by “making my” you mean “ruining” and by “awesome” you mean “completely”.
NEED TO GO TO JACOB. LIKE, YESTERDAY.
I hope this doesn’t disappoint! Jacob is one of my favourite clothing brands, so I’m pretty darn excited. Three shades, $10 a pop, paraben-free, and a dollar from each sale in October (10%) goes to the CCS. Sounds good. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Alright, so this one wasn’t in RdL — but it was just shortly before! I had her pick two shades that I’d use, and went from there. (She went with a plummy colour and one that with red undertones). Without further ado, may I present… Katherine!
Perhaps next time I get to work on her face, I’ll be able to convince her to do a more dramatic look. I’m just dying to line those gorgeous peepers!
Before
Alas! At just over five feet, we’ll look twelve ’til we’re forty.After
(I bought that fan brush with her, and she absolutely adored the look of it. Clearly, we had to use it on her!)
The photos after this text have gloss — the ones above do not. Why is it that I always leave it for the last minute and forget about it until I’m half-done taking photos?? (Besame Vanilla, I believe.)
Eye shots
Everyday Minerals stick gloss/balm in Pink Lemonade (which was very recently repackaged.) It’s nice enough, but had that annoying waxy scent that some lip products do… so, of course, it was quickly dropped into my swap box and never thought of again.
Some products are nice enough that I get over my insane hatred of waxy lipstick smells. This one was not. It was just kind of boring. (You know, in that college-boy kind of way. He’s nice, you’d bring him home, but HELL you are not planning a future with him.)
e.l.f. Plumping Lip Glaze in Plum Pout. Surprisingly nice, but with a gross mentholated scent and only 3 or 4 uses in the tube! O.o
The problem? You all know it well — I just finished a massive breakout, and I scar awfully. So, to deal with it, I’ve been working with different mixes and products and methods.
What I’ve come up with is a DIY recipe using foundation, moisturiser, and the non-sulphur-based acne treatment of your choice to create a zit-busting tinted moisturiser. I prefer to do this because a) I haven’t found a TM that also treats acne, and b) this way, I already know that what I’m putting on my face won’t break me out.
The exact things I’m using are Everyday Minerals Intensive Foundation in “Sandy Fair,” Bioré SkinPreservation moisturiser (review upcoming… once I’ve tried it for a while longer,) and Clean & Clear “Persa-Gel 10”. Feel free to go here to read more about how I’m dealing with suddenly having acne!