My Beauty Space

A very good friend of mine introduced me to the line of Mac lip glosses that are now one of the staples in my makeup collection thanks to their superior color selection as well as their ability to stay on better than any lip gloss I’ve ever used - and I’ve used a lot of them!  The newest line they have in their lip gloss collection is the Plushglass line, and it’s basically the same as their Lustre Glass, except it is slightly flavored and may be a bit thicker of a formula.

It also uses a sponge applicator rather than a brush applicator, which I personally happen to like better than the brush because I feel like it gives me better coverage.  I love the color that I bought too, it’s called Power Supply, and it’s a slightly salmon, peachy color that only imparts a tiny bit of color to the lips without making them feel overly done or sticky and gooey and it makes my lips look naturally more plump and fuller, which I love.

It’s a bit more pricey than the other lip glosses by Mac, I think this one had a $22 price tage, if I remember correctly while most others are in the 18-20 dollar range.  It says that the Plushglass line gives a pearlized finish, but honestly I don’t feel like mine does, which is a good thing in my opnion since I’m not a huge fan of a pearl finish in any of my makeup.  I’m more into the sheer look, and that’s what I feel this gives me. 

You can always test out any of Mac’s products and colors at their counters, which are found at upscale department stores like Nordstrom, and are busy almost every time I visit them, for a good reason.  Mac isn’t limited to lip glosses, they sell makeup brushes and sponges, lip sticks, foundation, a competitor for mineral makeup that I’m told rivals Bare Minerals and all the others out there that are in loose form, and a ton of other makeup and cosmetic items that are made with high quality ingredients and last a long time. 

Well, this is actually kind of a funny situation, but I had received a full size tube of Halo high gloss rinse from someone I work with over a year ago since her husband worked for a beauty supply chain and she would get some free samples periodically.  I took it home, used it the wrong way, and I think I may have even given it a so-so or negative hair care product review on this blog at that time.  Well, I used it again, this time as a free small sample that my mom gave me, along with their replenishing shampoo and conditioner, and I loved it.

The high gloss rinse is exactly that - a rinse.  You should use it after you’ve shampooed and conditioned your hair, and it’s supposed to help keep that just colored glossy look in your hair in between colorings as well as for at least a week or two after you use it.  Problem is, the first time I used it, I only used it as  a rinse, and did not heat my hair when I used it like I did this last time, which I think was key in getting it to work as it should. 

This time what I did was shampoo and condition my hair as usual, then I added around a quarter sized dollop of the Halo high gloss rinse to my hair and worked it through really well.  I then stopped the shower, got out and blew a hot hair dryer on my head for about two minutes.  I didn’t wrap my hair in a towel or anything, just applied the heat directly. 

I then got back in and started the shower back up (admitted a pain, but it was worth it for the results), and rinsed out the high gloss rinse.  When I blew my hair dry my hair was super bouncy and had a really nice lustre to it.  As a matter of fact, my friend commented on my hair after I used it.  It had a nice sheen to it, not at all like it would if I’d just used my normal routine, so I definitely think this stuff works as it says when you apply heat. 

And get this, I threw away the first bottle thinking it didn’t work.  Imagine what an idiot I felt like when I just reordered another bottle, when I could have saved myself some money!  Oh well, it’s always worth it when you find a good hair care product, even if it is in such a roundabout way, and this is a lesson to always use as directed for best results.

Roc’s advertising must work pretty well, because their line of anti aging and anti wrinkle creams seems to be doing pretty well, and I have to admit recent ads I’ve seen for their Deep Wrinkle Treatment are enticing.  So is their reasonable price.  But are the Roc skin care products just another ploy for us to try another anti aging product that performs fairly similarly to others on the market?  I will soon see because I do plan on testing out the Roc anti aging creams as my next order of business.

The reason I decided to go ahead and try them, at least after my Skin Eternal skin serum is gone, which doesn’t seem to be too long since serums are notorious for running out fast due to their runny nature and dispensers that are designed to pump out too much of the product, is that my sister actually had the Roc Deep Wrinkle treatment cream, and I tried it one night and though that I might like it. 

Of course you CANNOT TELL a thing about a product by using it once, but I like the size of the tube and thought it was s decent deal, and if I like the feel of the product going on my skin, that’s half the battle for me.  You know my failed attempt at trying the Preparation H from Canada for my crow’s feet happened because I couldn’t stand the look or the feel of the heavy, greasy cream, so I’ve decided if it feels good at least I’ll try it for a while. 

Roc is a middle of the road priced product that can be found in many drug stores like acne products and other wrinkle products commonly are, so it’s easy to access and you don’t have to be loaded to put this in your skin care repertoire.  Plus it seems they really target the wrinkle and anti aging market, and I like the fact that they seem to concentrate on this market since I think it makes it more likely they may produce a better, more targeted product than some competitors who have their hands in a lot of other lines like hair products, etc.  I’ll be sure to report my results with the Roc product, but I haven’t even purchased a tube yet.

I have to still give you my review of the Skin Eternal serum with the DMAE, Vitamin C ester, and Alpha lipoic acid, so that will be coming soon.  It looks like it will be a positive review so far, but still to early to tell if it really benefits in a visible way. 

As you know, I’m a huge bargain hunter.  Often times, on the weekends, my boyfriend and I will head out to several different off price stores looking for deals, and many times I’ll run into close outs and things of that nature that are dramatically reduced from their retail cost.  Now, granted, these are usually not top of the line items, but rather things you’d find in your local drug store, but for about a third of the retail cost.

One such item I recently found was actually something I had already tried before, both when I was a blonde (I used to be blonde, now I’m brunette, my natural color), it’s the John Frieda line for brunettes called Brilliant Brunette.  I got two things, both for around three bucks, the Brilliant Brunette shine conditioner and the Brilliant Brunette hair glosser creme. 

I like both of them, except I do have one complaint about the conditioner, and that is that I don’t really care for the scent of it.  It has a scent that smells vaguely of a perm solution, and that’s kind of a turn off, although the product does not damage the hair, instead it moisturizes it.  It’s an extremely thick conditioner formula, and it does the job of enhancing shine, but I think that may be at the expense of sacrificing some moisturizing, which I’m not a huge fan of since the key to battling frizz in maintaining moisture so that excess moisture in the air has no where to go on the hair shaft if it’s all full of moisture already (am I making sense?)

The shine creme is very good, I mix this with a little of Aveda’s Be Curly and it adds a nice bit of moisture and shine to the hair, plus is has a very pleasant scent and it goes on easily without feeling heavy or too creamy. 

Boy, sorry, that was quite a mouth full, but that’s the full name of the product I recently purchased online to help with unevenness in my skin as well as some age spots that are emerging and some old acne scars that I’d really like to fade and get rid of for good.  I am still using the Preparation H from Canada here and there on my face to help with wrinkles and crow’s feet, but honestly the smell is nauseating and I think I’m going to have to give up on my small investment and experiment here soon because it’s not a pleasant product to use (it smells fishy).

I’ve used products before from Source Naturals, which is a naturally based company that makes both supplements and looks to be taking a foray into the skin care market as well lately.  Their products for anti aging and wrinkles seem to be reasonably priced, so I decided to give their skin serum with the excellent antioxidants of DMAE, alpha lipoic acid and Vitamin C ester in them a try since it was only just above ten bucks (albeit, for a small size container). 

One thing you have to watch with the “serum” formulas is that they tend to run out much faster than a cream because they are runnier and it’s much easier to pump out a lot more at a time, so you just have to watch how much you are pumping out each time and not overdo it so you don’t run through the product like wildfire.

This serum is a brownish color, and it feels a bit sticky/oily going on, but it imparts a wonderful dewiness and glow to your skin the next day.  I’ve been using it both at night and in the morning, but in the morning I don’t use it on my whole face for fear it will be too oily on the whole face since I have oily skin naturally, so I just put it on my problem spots such as under my eyes, and around my mouth where I noticed I’ve also been getting some fine lines and stress marks.  Oh, and on my forehead too of course.

DMAE, vitamin C and alpha lipoic acid are some of the most highly regarded antioxidants for use in skin care products, and if they are made correctly, they can really help to topically protect the skin on your face from cell damage, and help to replenish the cells integrity while restoring that youthful look that comes with healthy cell turnover.  I will definitely buy this product again, since the only drawback I can see is that it tends to come out too fast and get used up too fast. 

Other than that, I’m completely happy with it.  Oh, it does have a bit of a pungent citrusy smell, but I kind of like that, and it also has a bit of a gritty texture in some parts of the serum.  Not sure if that’s the vitamin C crystallizing, which I’ve heard can happen, but it doesn’t affect how the product goes on, so I’m not worried.   

I decided that I’d had enough of shaving, and that I could handle a little pain - not too much, but a little, as long as I could reap the benefits of having smoother, hairless legs for a long time, especially in the summer.  I have already tried the permanent body hair removal product Ultra Hair Away, and loved the results, but since I’m in the “business” of trying and sampling tons of different products, I decided to also try the Braun Silk Epil Epilator, which had gotten pretty good reviews from what I’d read on other online review sites as far as hair epilators go.

What is an epilator?  Well it’s not really a new concept.  They’ve been around for a while, and they are handheld tools that pull the hairs out by the root, supposedly gently.  In fact, I got my first one way back when I was just fifteen years old (yes, I hated shaving back then too), called the Epilady hair removal tool.  Let me tell you, epilators have come a very long way, because this tool was extremely painful to use.  I’m not sure how, but the Braun Silk Epil body hair removal epilator still works without being as painful as the older models of epilators. 

I guess it’s because it has massaging heads that help to pull the skin taut in the area you are working in that helps minimize the pain.  However, these tools still are not for the faint of heart who cant’ stand a little pain although I will say they get easier to use as time goes on.  I found it most painful in areas such as down by my feet, my knees, and closer to my bikini area, which is no surprise because those areas are notoriously more sensitive to pain. 

I found that if I just pulled my skin taut in these more sensitive areas while using the tool, it would make it a bit less painful while the hair was being pulled out by the root.  You also have to  make sure you use the Braun epilator when your skin is completely free of any moisturizers or oil, so it’s probably best used when you’ve just showered and dried off for best results. 

I did try to do my underarms, and that is definitely a little more challenging, but it does still pull that hair out as well, although it leaves more behind and you’d probably have to grow it out a bit to get the best results (I know, gross).  It’s also very painful under the arms, but again if you pull the skin taut it minimizes this pain. 

All in all, for those that don’t mind a bit of discomfort, I’d recommend the Braun Silk Epil epilator, and I do give it a good review because I feel like it is very thorough in getting the hairs in the areas you cover, and it does have a good pain miinimizing design, plus it’s easy to hold and also has a light on the end of it that you can use to better help guide you in finding those little hidden hairs that tend to escape scrutiny. 

My legs have been totally smooth for almost a week since I’ve used it, and I’m going to go back and do a touch up here soon, which I’m expecting won’t take as long since I got quite a bit of the hair in the first round because I took my time.  All in all, I think this or the permanent body hair removal product ultra hair away are a must have for any woman who hates to shave all summer long when the hair tends to grow a lot faster. 

For several decades, tanning booths were very popular for people to enjoy a golden bronzed look all year long.  However, due to increased warnings about UV damage with the resulting premature wrinkling and more importantly, the very real danger of skin cancer, people are seeking a safer alternative.  Self tanning products are safe for your skin and have come a long way since the earlier products that left an odd orange tinge to your skin and often appeared blotchy or streaked easily.
 Sunless tanning products come in a wide array of different forms.   They come in lotions, sprays and mousse forms.  It is recommended, prior to application of any sunless tanning solution, to shower using an exfoliating scrub.  St. Tropez features a full line of moisturizers, tan removers, exfoliating scrubs, tanning lotions, sunless self tanning mousses, sunless self tanning sprays and more.

Fake Bake also has an extensive variety of sunless tanning products.  Fake Bake self tanner features Legal Sunburn and Bronzy Babe for facial use.  Similarly, their other products come in a Fake Bake Scrub, Fake Bake Skin Smoothly, Fake Bake Mousse, a self tanning lotion, a face tanner and more.  Airbrush tanning is a new and upcoming method of sunless tanning.  The airbrush method can be done at home or in a salon. 

Airbrush sunless tanning ingredients are FDA approved and safe for use in either setting.   The airbrush sunless tanning method takes 5 to 10 days to achieve a golden tanned look.  The airbrush packages for home use for sunless tanning are a little under $ 400.00.  Whatever sunless tanning method you choose, pick a reputable brand name and follow all instructions precisely.  This will help you to avoid a blotchy orange look and achieve a smooth even golden glow to your skin.

Sunless tanning lotions are meant to be applied about 3 times in the first week and after that they can be applied about 2 times a week.  You may decide to either increase or decrease the frequency of use depending on the depth of the tan color desired.  The tan does not wash off, however, you may notice some of the brown color guide washing off.  The tan will stay.  The sunless tanning lotion by Faux Tan is meant to be applied at night and washed off in the morning to rinse away the brown color guide.

I have long been intrigued by a rumor that Preparation H, the snigger-worthy medicated cream that’s used for troublesome hemorrhoids, can help with wrinkles and also help to de-puff they under eye area.  Upon further reading on the subject, which unfortunately is pretty sparse when you search online for more information and experiences with Preparation H for wrinkles, it was hard for me to find actual experiences and “testimonials” of people who had successfully used the cream for their wrinkles.

So, like any good experimenter, I decided to buy the stuff myself and try it out.  I was able to find out that the only formulation of the product that was known to help with eye wrinkles and puffiness was the Canadian version.  The Canadian version of the cream supposedly has the older element to it that was taken out of the American version by the manufacturer years ago amidst concern of possible problems when it was being used for dual purposes (wrinkles and hemorrhoids).

This key ingredient is something called Biodyne, and it contains shark liver oil and some other ingredient that is supposed to help with skin respiration, whatever that means.  I’m assuming it may mean it allows the skin to absorb more oxygen, but that’s just a wild, totally unscientific guess on my part. 

Well, it’s a few days in and I’m not really decided on whether this stuff is going to help smooth out my crow’s feet (albeit temporarily), but I can tell you one thing.  It’s not a pleasant cream to apply at all.  It smells horrible, because it has a fishy smell to it that’s pretty offensive, and the consistency is so thick, almost between a toothpaste and a heavy cream.  It’s very greasy and it doesn’t sink in very well, but I do notice it immediately makes my wrinkles look a little less noticeable. 

I’ll have more of an update on the Canadian Preparation H for wrinkles and anti aging in just a little while, I want to give it some time to work. 

I have just gotten my second treatment of Juvederm injected lip enhancement from Evo Medispa in Akron Ohio, and I’m nothing less than pleased with the results for the second time.  The cool thing about getting your lips enhanced with Juvederm, or Restylane for that matter, is that they will store it for you for several months, as long as it’s still good, until your next visit, so they can use whatever is left the next time.  This time, since he only used about half of the syringe of Juvederm on my lips the first time to enhance them, he had enough left to do the second enhancement with no charge for the product itself.

This is my third experience with Evo Medispa in Akron Ohio for lip enhancement, and I cannot say enough good things about them.  The staff there is courteous, pleasant and friendly.  The atmospher is relaxing and the asethetics of the office are tranquil.  The costs are reasonable for all of their services, and once you go there, you feel as though you’ll be a customer for life. 

Now onto the experience with the Juvederm lip enhancement, the second time around.  This time I told the Doctor that I would like to try the lip enhancement without the shot of numbing agent that I had the last time, simply because I personally don’t like not being able to talk correctly for the remainder of the day after the injections, so he instead gave me the numbing cream only, which needed to set into the skin on my lips and around them for a half hour to an hour for maximum penetration and pain relief.

I can’t call the experience a pleasant one, but it also wasn’t pleasant when I got the shots to numb the pain either, so I think I’m going to go ahead and not have the numbing shot again next time since my recovery seemed easier without it.  It’s strange, because you do feel discomfort during the actual injection of the Juvederm, but it is only during the time that I felt the discomfort, afterwards it didn’t leave a residual feeling of stinging or burning, just during the initial injection.

My eyes did water quite a bit, and I just kept my fists clenched to help distract from any discomfort.  The outcome was great.  My upper lip was nicely enhanced and very natural looking, and my lower lip was only very slightly plumped, since this creates the most natural look.  I did have a tiny bruise above my upper lip, and also had a few tiny bruises on my upper lip, but they faded fairly quickly and I think that icing them right after the treatment helped greatly. 

I’m happy with them still over a week later, and especially with my top lip, which still has a nice extra added volume to it.  It makes me feel more feminine, and makes wearing lipsticks and fun lip glosses a lot more gratifying.  I have to say, having fuller lips is definitely not overrated!  If you live in the Cleveland or Akron area, Evo Medispa’s phone number is 330-666-4207, I highly recommend them from personal experience, and no I’m not affiliated with them in any way, so this is truly an unbiased consumer opinion

Today I was at one of my favorite bargain hunting stores, TJ Maxx, and as usual, I had to check out their cosmetics, body care and fragrance section since you never know what kind of beauty stuff you’ll find their at deep discounts. This time I found quite a bit of stuff, although I limited myself to buy only one of them (yes, I’m very proud:)