My Beauty Space

In my weekly Sephora email that announces new products that have come out, or just gives some new advice about products to try, I saw that one new product offering on the market is a home self tanning system by the folks at Mystic Tan, who I look at as the pioneers of the self tan at the salon, because of the reach and popularity of their Mystic Tan system at salons. 

The Mystic Tan at salons employs a really cool technology where you step into the booth and get sprayed on the front and then the back with a natural looking self tanner, and an optional bronzing agent as well.  The thing that’s unique is a micro fine tanning mist, which allows the self tanner to be distributed evenly, and also a technology that employs the use of magnetism to make sure the self tanner adheres to the body and doesn’t just fly around in the air with nowhere to go. 

Almost every time I’ve gotten a Mystic Tan at a salon booth, I’ve been pretty happy with it, unless the self tanner was low, which did happen to me once, and I barely got any color.  The only problem is the cost and inconvenience of it all.  Mystic Tans don’t run cheap at about twenty bucks a pop, and you have to leave your house to get one. 

Well, Mystic Tan has come out with a home tanning system now that costs around $66 and gives you a Mystic tan at home that is supposed to be natural looking and relatively easy to apply.  It has of course a Mystic Tan self tanning fine mist, but it also comes with a sort of primer for before you apply the self tanner called a Conditioning Complex, and then a Mystic Tan enhancing moisturizing spray for skin care after the self tanner has been applied. 

I’d say it’s a good bet that this is a high quality kit for self tanning, given Mystic’s great track record for supplying people with the best option for self tanning at the salon for years now, and even being endorsed by professional cheerleading teams for their self tans.  My be worth a try for all you sunless tanning addicts! 

I saw a banner ad for the new Neutrogena Wave facial cleansing system while I was looking at a news website last night, and clicked on the ad because it looked like such an appealing drugstore acne product that I thought of purchasing it.  Since the ad I clicked on wouldn’t take me anywhere, I went in and searched for the product, and came up with a couple of websites where the product is both sold and reviewed. 

While the Neutrogena Wave got initially great reviews from the first few reviewers, there were some mixed in there that offered some feedback that made me think twice about getting the cleansing product because of my skin type, which is prone to acne, but also extremely sensitive and prone to overdrying, which leads to more oil production in my picky skin.

The Wave is a product that is small and handheld.  It is battery operated and is supposed to be water resistant.  One of the complaints I read had to do with the so called water resistance, where the user said she used it in her shower and it went dead pretty fast, and didn’t work again. 

The unique thing about the wave is that it sends deep tissue cleansing vibrations down through the skin with the battery operated device, and uses a cleansing pad on the end of it that cleanses while the vibrator sends the cleanser down deep to get a nice, fresh, deep clean feeling.  Many users said their skin was baby soft after using it and that they saw a noticeable difference in their skin tone and overall appearance after using it for a few times. 

Others complained that the pad took forever to foam up, or did not foam up at all.  They may not have soaked the pad in enough water beforehand though.  Some said it dried their skin out too much, while others said that it left their skin feeling perfect, not dry or overly tight.  My guess is there is a difference between how these users used the product, perhaps those that said it dried them out used it too long, or their skin type just wasn’t compatible with the cleanser. 

There were definitely more good than bad reviews on the Neutrogena Wave facial cleanser, so I’d say it’s worth a look if you want to check out a novel new product that may make you feel like your getting a facial in your own home.  I might get it just to experience the vibration part, and see if my skin clears up from deep cleansing for a while. 

I have to admit, I’m usually not totally swayed by the weekly emails I get from Sephora, that inevitably try to bleed me dry of at least sixty bucks or so.  And I’m not saying a lot of the products they sell aren’t totally worth every penny, but hey, let’s face it, Sephora’s not cheap, they do tend to charge the premium prices for the multiple products they carry, and they do it well because their stores are almost always packed at the upscale malls where they reside when I’m ever in one.

I try to stay out of those stores, because they produce a manic-like need for women to buy beauty products, and before you know it, you can walk out spending a hundred bucks when you only meant to spend maybe thirty.  So you can see, I love the store, but we actually have a love/hate relationship both online and in store. 

The most recent product they are enticing me with is an email about a product that promises to make your hair soft, bouncy and shiny and restore it’s natural lustre and make you the envy of all your friends, in a product called Ojon Tawaka ancient tribal rejuvenating shampoo and conditioner set, which retails for almost seventy bucks for the set.  The packaging is alluring, in a deep brown, and it is supposed to contain some seriously restorative oils that are excellent for the hair and literally transform it into spun silk.

They are also running a special where if you buy the hair care product, you get a free trial size pair of the same, so that’s not too bad a deal, but it’s a little more than you may even spend at the salon on salon hair styling and care products, because it runs almost 35 bucks a pop, which is high in my book.  But, if it works the way it says, then it could very well be a wise investment for those of us who want to restore our hair’s beauty and lustre. 

I wish I could tell ya I’m gonna try this one and review it, but I don’t want to part with that kind of money right now for hair care products.  Got bigger fish to fry right now, as I’m sure you can understand

One of my best friends recommended this weird trick to me, and I had heard variations of it before, but never actually tried it.  It’s the old hemorrhoid cream or treatment for facial wrinkles and bags under the eyes trick, which you may also have heard of but never tried.  She said that instead of using the Preparation H ointment or cream under her eyes, she uses the Tucks Medicated Pads, which are primarily used by people to soothe hemorrhoidal tissue in a delicate area.

The thing I didn’t know about Tuck’s pads is that they are primarily just witch hazel, which is a gentle astringent that has been used for years by women and men as a gentle cleansing and toning treatment on the skin.  I’m not sure what this is going to do for my skin, but I bought a 100 pack in a tub of the pads, and I just started using them last night in the morning and at night, under my eyes, to see if over time it makes any difference in my fine lines around my eyes like a good anti aging and wrinkle treatment cream.

So far, it’s only been one day and night as I said, and I can’t tell a difference, but my friend told me that she noticed it after a few weeks.  The reason it came up was that I noticed under her eyes looked more refreshed, and her crow’s feet were less pronounced.  She told me about the Tucks pads she’d been using, so I figured for a six dollar tub of them, how could I lose out?

I’ll report back after a few weeks.  They do feel good running over the face, and instead of washing my face this morning, I just used the pad on my whole face, and noticed that it also picked up some dirt.  My only concern is that I don’t want to dry out the skin under my eyes, so I’m waiting to see how that pans out.  I also will be still applying my wrinkle cream as well, because I want to keep it well hydrated, as my skin under my eyes does tend to dry out very easily which makes the crows feet wrinkles much more pronounced. 

Going to the spa is a definite luxury, and it is one that usually costs an arm and a leg, even for one hour.  Think of all the money you could save if you can set up your own home, or an area in your home that you can set up to look and feel like your sanctuary of peace and beauty!  It’s all about you…..

If you think you would benefit from a spa experience to beat the winter blues, but lack the resources to go to one, you can create a spa right at home.  Set aside a time in the evening for your spa rest and relaxation.  Start with aromatherapy to relax the senses.  Try some of the candle oil diffuser sets as they last well and the aroma surrounds you.  You can use a lavender scent for extra relaxation.  Candles or potpourri simmer pots will work well for this purpose also.
Next, draw a wonderful warm relaxing bath and you can use bath salts with a soothing lavender aroma.  The sea salts will soothe your skin and revitalize you.  After your bath, fluff your softest, most plush towel to dry off with.
For the auditory senses, put on a CD with the sounds of nature from your favorite location.  If you prefer, soft classical music will work well to enhance the relaxation experience.
After the bath, choose a body lotion to keep the moisture in your skin.  Thymes Sleep Well body lotion uses a combination of rose oil an chamomile to chase away stress and moisturize your skin.  You can even try a good cellulite treatment and give yourself a cellulite busting massage with some sort of cellulite cream like the one we recommend, to make your skin look toned and tightened, adding to the whole luxurious experience. 

Next, wrap yourself in your most comfortable bathrobe so all of the stress of the day melts away.  Remember to instruct all family members that this is your time with no interruptions.  Setting aside time for a spa experience will refresh you and revive you.  This is self care and not selfish at all.  You will look and feel better more energetic the next day to devote yourself to your family and your work.
 

t’s been a LONG time since I’ve colored my hair, whether it’s a box color or I’ve gone to a salon to get it done.  I think I just got tired of dumping chemicals on my head, and I was happy with my natural color for a long time, so I decided to just skip it for a while.

Now that I’ve caught a few gray hairs popping up here and there though, and I also feel that my recent trip to Costa Rica bleached the ends of my hair out, I figured it was time for a hair coloring refresher, and I decided to go with my favorite brand of hair color of all time, L’Oreal.  In my opinion, if you’re coloring your own hair with a boxed kit from a drug store, L’Oreal is you best bet.

I’ve tried Revlon, Garnier, and other common brands - in fact probably every one there was besides L’Oreal, and I always ended up coming back to L’Oreal for the superior color and the even better after treatments they give with their hair coloring kits.   L’Oreal hair colors always left my hair shinier, and the conditioners made it really smooth.  The color always came out pretty well too, and was long lasting, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong with them.

Their newer line called “Natural Match” is supposed to give natural color to the hair that matches your natural color very closely, just boosts the highlights and the tone and makes it a bit warmer and brighter.  This time I chose the 4W shade, which is a warm brown shade that is supposed to give a hint of red tint in it as well. 

The only complaint I have is that it turned my ends a bit too dark, almost black in some places, but I also understand that my ends were very bleached out to begin with, and therefore more susceptible to soaking up too much color.  My hair feels great though, and I know that a lot of the excess color will wash out within the next week, and I’m sure I’ll be happy with it again!

I found a really good deal on a product I had never heard of, but was willing to try, at a local TJ Maxx off price store near me where i live, called Virtual Laser.  The packaging sure did peak my interest.  It’s a little over one ounce of product, in a taller bottle, and I have to admit the name is catchy, although I try not to be swayed by names of products or by packaging, because of the old adage, don’t judge a book by its cover always. 

The same holds true for cosmetics and beauty products and yes, wrinkle and anti aging creams as well, although I will say that nice, neat packaging is usually a  hallmark of a more pricey and often more high quality brand in the arena. 

The package for the Virtual Laser product claims that it reduces the look of wrinkles over time and with consistent night and day use, but doesn’t really explain why or with what ingredients it claims  can help do that for you.  We all know that creams and externally applied products can only do so much for the anti aging and wrinkle removing of our skin, but they can definitely improve the appearance and make us look younger if we use the right products with the right ingredients, like the Revitol anti aging skin cream line of products for example. 

Virtual Laser Anti aging cream did advertise that it has a special light diffusing formula for diffusing the look of aged skin and reflecting light to create a more youthful and vibrant appearance, and since I’m a fan of using light to our benefit when it comes to improving the look of our skin I figured I’d give it a try.

I like the cream, let me start off by saying that, although I’m not sure I like it so much to try it again, but I do think there is something to the light reflecting qualities, because I do seem to have a more vibrant look to my skin when I apply it.  As far as moisturizing, I’m  not sure it’s hydrating enough, but I do like that it sinks in right away and creates a nice smooth pallet for my foundation to go on nice and evenly. 

I think most of the trick behind this product is the light diffusion, and I would recommend it for day use, but as far as continued day and night use for actual wrinkle improvement, I didn’t see any ingredients listed that would lead me to believe this would be of additional benefit to use multiple times a day. 

Well, it’s been years since I used a Pantene product, at least in the way of their shampoos and conditioners, and I now remember the reason why.  Pantene is a reasonably priced hair care product that can be found in any drug store or grocers these days, and has been around for years, with that same, strongly scented formula, but now it’s in several different formulas, all smelling strongly of perfume.

That’s the first thing I can’t stand about Pantene shampoos and conditioners.  That darn smell that is so strong, permeates your hair, even well after you’ve washed it and blown it dry, and even sometimes in to the next day.  Another thing I hate about anything that is extremely strongly scented like this is that it usually contains indordinate amounts of alcohol, and not the good kind either, but the bad kind that dries the skin or hair when it comes in contact with it. 

And that’s exactly what the Pantene Always Smooth Conditioner did to my hair each time I used it - it dried it out very badly.  The Always Smooth conditioner claims to take away a lot of frizz, and make the hair “up to 75% smoother”, however, it may do this by drying the hair out instead of hydrating it.  The results are that you might have smoother hair, but it’s really dull looking because it doesn’t use moisturization as it’s means to smooth it out. 

What you end up with is flat, lifeless hair that has no sheen to it, so if it’s smoother (which I really didn’t see, but that’s just me), it’s dull looking from being so dry.  Bottom line - don’t waste your five bucks.  Instead go for something that touts moisturizing, and you’ll end up with more shine, and maybe even some more smoothness!

Well, on another trip to the local drugstore, I was looking for some new neutrally colored eyeshadow to add to my now defunct brown eyeshadow collection.  One of my favorite quads of brown shades had fallen to the ground and was completely crumbled, so it was rendered useless.  Also, the other numerous brown shades of eyeshadow I had didn’t seem to compare to the old one, as they had too many yellow and orange hues in them, which for my skin tone looks terrible.

So, I was looking for a similar quad of muted browns with mostly rich undertones, avoiding the yellowish and orangish tones.  The closest I came after looking at Revlon, L’Oreal and even Cover Girl, which is usually a drugstore brand I stay away from, I settled on a quad by Maybelline ExpertWear eye shadow, called Enchanted Forest. 

It’s called Enchanted Forest because it consists of three varying shades of rich brown and tan as well as a nude color for the lid, and then a nice, neutral green khaki color that I thought would go nicely with my paler skin tone and brown eyes.  It even had each color labled as to where it went on the eyes, so that you could coordinate like the “experts” do, and have an expertly done eye.

The green color went on the crease, the darker brown color (which I love, but have to use sparingly because it is very dark), goes on the Outer corner of the eye, and the medium nude shade goes on the lid, with the very light tan/nude going on the brow bone to finish the look off and create a highlighted look the the eyes, making them look bigger and brighter.

Overall, I have to say, although the colors are stay put totally all day like some of their more expensive and heavily pigmented counterparts, the colors are great, and very complementary to someone with a lighter skin tone and brown eyes.  For seven bucks, the quad is a genuine bargain, and sure to last at least a few months since so little of every color is used.  It is now my new standby until I find something better, since it coordinates with everything. 

Well, I know that I generally really like L’Oreal products, and their foundations seem to work very well together with the Revlon Skinlights illuminators.  And yes, I did end up buying the last of someone’s stock online as soon as I found out they were discontinued - I love it that much, and hope that it will come back because I know from other women’s comments online that it was also their favorite tool for brighter, more illuminated skin.

Well, I was in need of some new foundation to replace my now year old Revlon anti aging foundation, which hadn’t been used for my hiatus from liquid foundation and switch to Bare Minerals for several months.  I knew that if you have foundation for a year or so, you should definitely be getting a new bottle, so I went to my local drug store to search out my latest “experiment”, since with some things I don’t try them twice, foundation being one of them because I think there are so many good ones out there worth trying.

I ended up settling on a L’Oreal foundation called Visible Lift Line Minimizing and Tone-Enhancing makeup, since I was looking for something that would soften the lines on my now thirty-something face, instead of allowing things to settle into those lines to make them more obvious.  The Visible Lift makeup also has an SPF of 17, so that was an added benefit in my eyes. 

The costs was a little over ten bucks, which I thought was totally fair for a decent drugstore brand of foundation these days.  I picked the “buff” tone, number 110, because I thought it would best downplay any redness in my skin due to it’s muted tone.  I also noticed that it contains something the label proclaimed as a “new” ingredient, Pro-Xylane and Hyaluronic. 

Now I have no idea what Pro-Xylane is, but I do know that hyaluronic acid is an excellent ingredient in any anti aging skin care product, as it tones down lines and helps plump out wrinkles.  By the way, hyaluronic acid is also the principle ingredient in skin plumpers that are injected like Restylane and Juvederm.  It’s either a component of, or stimulator of collagen in the skin, so anything with that listed as an ingredient is excellent to achieve younger looking skin in short. 

My review of this product is that I like it, overall, but I do have one complaint.  It’s a very watery texture, so it feels as though it may not be giving as good coverage as some of the thicker foundations.  However, this is twofold, because if it were thicker, it would have the potential to look cakier, and thereby make the person look a little older by settling into lines. 

This is a tricky one with foundation, because both watery and thicker consistencies have drawbacks, you just have to figure out which works better for your skin and also for the time of your life, ie if you have aging skin, dry skin, younger skin with more oil, and so on and so forth.  The foundation does work well in tandem with the Revlon Skinlights skin illuminator though, and I will keep using it until it’s gone.  The color of the foundation is excellently matched to my skin, so it does give a very natural finish. 

A tip to figure out the right tone for you is to open the bottle and hold it up to your face, next to a mirror.  There are a lot of people who say to use your hand as a guide, but I’ve never found this to be useful for me since my hands have a very different color and texture than my facial skin.