Quick Review: DHC Imperial Green Tea Shower Gel

Today is a sample from the Japanese brand DHC.  They are becoming more and more popular over here in the US especially in Asian markets and you can also find them online.  I am a long time fan of their products, but this is the first time I have tried one of their body washes.

 

Initial Thoughts: Very thick, reminded me of honey in color and thickness. This was nice as it could not wash away in shower before lathered. Made a rich fine lather, it didn't have many large bubbles, but it still felt rich and nice on the skin.  It also easily washes clean. Skin felt a little dry after shower, but I find this fairly common with clear body gels vs creamy ones with moisturizers in them. Didn't smell distinctly of green tea, but has a fresh herby scent that is hard to describe.

Swatch: wet n wild fastdry in Gray's Anatomy

Today is an awesome duo chrome. As with most duo chrome polishes, it is rather thin. This would be fun to try over black and white. It's a gray polish with flashes of purple and sometimes green. These swatches are with three coats and you can see how sheer the polish is.

Quick Review: Nivea Touch of Happiness Body Wash

Another sample from the Nivea Happiness line. I love how this sample came, it is a nice switch from the basic flat packet samples.  I think its cute!

Initial Thoughts: Oh how I love this scent! As with the lotion of the same scent, I absolutely adore the sweet citrus smell. It has a nice lather and left my skin feeling soft and moisturized. I am so in love with this scent I think I just might need to get the body wash and lotion! 

Manicure Monday

Today is a cling wrap mani. Still totally in love with this technique. Went with a base of wet n wild megalast in Venomous Vixen then did the top later in wet n wild wild shine in Metallica. I love how this looks with metallics. It looks like molten metal to me. It's also a bit subtle which is good since I'm starting a new job and not sure how well say, bright orange nails would go go over lol. Wish me luck!

Swatch: wet n wild fastdry in Buffy the Violet Slayer

This is the first time I have had to change the color of a photo to show an accurate swatch. This polish just would NOT photograph purple.  It kept coming out this nice shade of blue. I tried under different lights, sunlight and..still blue.  So I finally gave up and edited the photo.  The picture now shows the awesome bright purple color this polish is. 

Review: Pond's Luminous Clean Wet Cleansing Towelettes

Trying another facial wipe.  This one I got from an Allure Magazine giveaway...I think.  It kinda just appeared in a random box one day, no note or anything. But I vaguely remember it was one of the items you could try to win from Allure.  lol yay free beauty product of mysterious origin?

Seeing Kaolin clay as an ingredient makes my oily skin happy!

One thing I hated was after taking off the box, it left this awful glue that I could not get off at all. You can kinda see it over the ingredients.  Its still super sticky and its bugging me!

Good size, and remember, I have hands the size of a 10 year old

Initial Thoughts: Kaolin clay? Sign my oily skin up! I also like the design on the cloth itself, makes it better for gentle scrubbing and picking up makeup.  It did a good job removing all of my makeup and did not leave a residue on my skin.  I was happy that I did not feel the need to follow up with a face wash after using this cloth. 

Overall Thoughts: I was impressed! I used these for a full week.  I did not break out and my skin did feel nice and soft.  Even though I am more of a fan of traditional cleansers, I might repurchase these when I run out to keep on hand for quick make up changes or for those nights I just have no energy. They were also a life saver when I had a migraine the other night, the act of tilting my head forward to wash it was just not going to happen without my head exploding. So it was these wipes to the rescue! 

Quick Review: Nivea Extended Moisture Daily Lotion

Another from my sample stash! Today is Nivea Extended Moisture Daily Lotion.

Initial Thoughts: This is a great basic lotion for everyone.  It does not have a scent to it, so it is great if you need to share your lotion with a guy or if you do not like having anything conflict with your perfume.  It absorbs quickly and does not leave my skin with a sticky feeling after applying. It does what it says, it kept my skin moist all day and I did not feel the need to reapply lotion even with the cold weather we have been having.  Not sure if it works for 48 hours as I took a shower and reapplied everyday. Overall a great basic lotion. 

Swatch: wet n wild fastdry in Teal or No Teal

Another bright polish! This is a somewhat sheer shimmery teal blue.  For once I like the sheerness, it makes the layers of shimmer really shine and gives the polish great depth.

Quick Review: Origins High Potency Night-A-Mins

Another quick review! Today is Origins High Potency Night-A-Mins Mineral-enriched Renewal Cream.  First, I love the name! I think its adorable.

Initial Thoughts:  Smells amazing! Citrus! Totally in love with the scent.  This is a very thick cream that takes a few minutes to absorb into the skin.  I put it on about an hour before I went to bed, and it left my skin a bit oily.  Then again, I have super oily skin and this product is designed for normal-dry skin so this was expected.  In the morning my skin was super soft. Another awesome benefit was I didn't wash my hand after applying and my hands were soooo soft in the morning! I think this would be an awesome cream for dry skin, but it was a bit too heavy for me.  Totally bums me out since it smells so good! 

Manicure Monday

So I totally hated this mani, but still decided so show you my fail >__< I wanted to make a milky glitter sandwich and my sheer creme was just too creamy. I did a base of NYC Long Wearing in French White Tip then did a layer of Spoiled in Trust Fund Baby for the glitter.  I topped it off with another layer of white.  I was hoping since the white was somewhat sheer that this would work.  And it totally didn't.  But hey, I tried!

Swatch: Spoiled in Show Me the Money

To keep with the theme of super bright nails in freezing weather (ok freezing for California. aka freezing for wimps) This is a super bright shimmery blue.  I really love this color! Only problem is it is a bit sheer, I had to use 4 coats for these, but they dried really fast so it wasn't that big of a deal.

On a side note, this cold weather is killing my nails! *sniff* I think I will be stuck with nubbins for a while. So sad! At least nubbins look good in bright colors ^__^

Review: wet n wild megalength Waterproof Mascara

I love me a super affordable mascara.  And $2.99 is very affordable! Sorry I do not have package shots of this one, I bought it before I started this blog and the package is long gone.

It is a slim tube with your basic silicone bristles.

(please ignore the scary brows, totally need to work on those!)

Without mascara:

Without Mascara:

With one coat of megalength:

With one coat of megalength:

Overall Thoughts: Wow! This is great for at $2.99 mascara! It adds great length as it promised and even adds a bit of curl to my lashes.  I can wear this one all day, it doesn't budge until I take it off at night.  Another thing I love about this, is that even though this is a waterproof formula, it washes off with my normal cleaner.  It takes a little bit more gently scrubbing, but I like that I don't have to use a waterproof makeup remover as those tend to be oily.  This is the mascara I reach for when I know I need to have my makeup last past my work day.  I can't help but be happily shocked how well this did for $2.99! 

Quick Review: John Frieda Root Awakening Shampoo for Dry Scalp & Breakage-Prone Hair

More John Frieda! Unlike the Root Awakening Shampoo from yesterday that didn't really fit my needs, this one is perfect for me.  I have a dry irritated scalp and thin breakage prone hair.

(sorry for the cut open sample, I thought I took pics before I used it, but of course, I didn't)

Initial Thoughts: This made my hair SO SOFT. I kept touching my hair while using this shampoo.  It was just too soft and I couldn't help it! It moisturized my scalp and it didn't itch for days, which is wonderful.  This will be going on my list of shampoos to buy.  This is one of the best shampoos for my needs I have tried in a long time.  LOVE IT. 

Quick Review: John Frieda Root Awakening Shampoo for Oily Scalp and Dry Hair

I love John Frieda products, they always seem to work well with my hair.  This is their Purify+Nourish for oily scalp and dry hair.  I don't have an oily scalp, more like oily hair, but still wanted to give this one a try.

Initial Thoughts: This shampoo worked well and did not irritate my scalp.  It did not blow me away in terms of doing anything special for my hair.  This is one I would classify as a good basic shampoo.  It gets the job done, but nothing amazing.  If I had an oily scalp and drier hair, I'm sure it would have done more for me.  But since I don't really fit what this shampoo is trying to treat, it didn't blow me away. 

Quick Review: Dove Intensive Repair Daily Treatment Conditioner

Today is a quick review of Dove Intensive Care Daily Treatment Conditioner.

Initial Thoughts: I was able to use this sample for 6 uses.  It is a good conditioner, but I did not notice anything that made it stand out.  It was nice and thick and made my hair soft, but it didn't stand out to me from other conditioners I have used.  This would be a good conditioner if you like a good basic thick conditioner. 

Swatch: Spoiled in Club Rat

Today is Spoiled in Club Rat. This is a bright pink jelly with micro flakie glitter.  This is with three coats, and you still see the nail line. I also had trouble getting consistent coverage at the tips, they still look white in spots.  This polish might look better layered over a creme.  I'm going to have to play with this one for some jelly sandwich time!

Quick Review: Nivea Happy Sensation Lotion

Here is another from my sample stash! Nivea Happy Sensation Lotion

Initial Thoughts: I. Love. The. Scent. I am a total sucker for citrus scents and this lotion smells wonderful! The scent alone sold me on this lotion, but it also is a good lotion to boot! It absorbed quickly and did not feel sticky under my clothes. My skin was moisturized all day.  This is one I would purchase, not only because I love the scent, but it works too. 

Review: Simple Refreshing Facial Wash Gel

A while ago I had a coupon for $2 off any Simple facial product at CVS.  The travel size face wash is $1.99 so tada! I got face wash just for the price of tax =) I had been wanting to try this for a while, and for a whopping 9 cents, why not!

More of the side so you can see the ingredients. 

Initial Thoughts: The first time I used this I used way too much.  You really only need a large pea sized amount to wash your whole face.  It does a good job taking off most makeup, it has a bit of trouble with waterproof mascara, but this is to be expected.  It did not dry out my face at all and left it feeling clean.

Overall Thoughts: This tiny little bottle lasted me almost 2 months.  2 months! I love a product I can get a lot of use out of.  I have not broken out from this cleanser and it leaves my skin feeling smooth and clean.  I do not get that tight feeling some cleansers can leave behind.  I use it to wash off my makeup, and even with a bit of extra washing around my eyes to wash away mascara, the skin around my eyes is not irritated at all.  If any mascara is left behind, it is softened and wipes away with my washcloth.  I really like this cleaner and it is one I would purchase again.

Manicure Monday

More dots! The purple is Sinful Colors in Fig and the silver is wet n wild wild shine in Metallica.

Swatch: China Glaze Magnetix in Instant Chemistry

So I'm a tad late jumping on the magnetic polish wagon.  But my awesome friend got me this China Glaze polish and its like getting a new toy! I have used magnetic polish before, years and years ago when Lancome released one.  So I know it takes a bit of practice to get it right. I went with the chevron pattern first (the China Glaze magnet has a chevron, starburst, and stripe pattern)

I did one fairly thick coat of polish, then used the magnet.  As each nail went I got a bit better.  The trick is to hold the magnet as close to the polish as possible and to not move it for at least 15 seconds. I love how this polish is a one coater with fast dry time.  This will be added to my list of quick dry polishes for last minute manis, and its super fun to boot! Now that I have played with this, I want more colors! lol better late than never?

Left hand, you can tell I started with my pinky and got better as I moved toward my thumb lol

By time I got to my last nail, look! Perfect chevron!

Quick Review: The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Africa Shea Butter & Sesame Oil Body Balm

So one of my New Years Resolutions is to actually use all the samples I have collected.  This means lots of quick reviews coming up! And it means I get a drawer back in my bathroom lol

This is a sample of The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Africa Shea Butter & Sesame Oil Body Balm.

From The Body Shop website: 

BEST IF YOU WANT TO: Nourish and protect your skin from dryness with a rich, comforting and intensely moisturizing balm that will leave it feeling soft, velvety smooth and scented with our traditional Spa Wisdom™ Africa fragrance.

BEST FOR: all skin types, particularly those with very dry skin.

How it works:

• Community Trade cocoa butter and shea butter from Ghana and sesame oil from Nicaragua moisturizes and softens the skin.
• Community Trade honey from an organic source moisturizes the skin.
• Ximenia, an oil extracted from the ximenia tree native to Africa helps soften the skin.

Quick Thoughts:  LOVE this lotion! I put it on first thing out of my morning shower and the next morning my skin was still soft and moisturized.  It absorbed quickly and did not make me feel greasy at all.  The scent is very mild, perfect if you do not want something to interfere with you regular perfume.  This is something I would look into purchasing if I found it on sale, $24 for a lotion is a bit much for me, but if it was in stock for the $10 the website says its on sale for, I would snatch it up! 

(my bank account is glad its sold out lol) 

Manicure Monday

So one of my friends gave me the best give ever! A set of 5 double ended dotting tools! *squee* Soooo this means lots and lots of dot manis while I play with my new toy. So of course I had to do something with different size dots!

I started out with a base of three layers of wet n wild megalast in Venomous Vixen.  I then did the biggest dots in NYC Long Wearing in Black Lace Creme.  Then the medium dots in wet n wild Wild Shine in Metallica.  The tiny dots were NYC Long Wearing in French White Tip.

I LOVE this mani! It is fun and easy.  My right hand even looks pretty good.  Can't wait to play with more dots.

Here is a close up of my thumb

NOTD: Sally Hansen Complete Salon in Eel Skin with Nails Inc. in Hackney

Wanted something more than just a plain swatch so I decided to do a crackle top coat for some interest.  I'm really in love with the Nails Inc. Special Effects in Hackney.  It is a great silver crackle and a subtle shimmer to polish without screaming "crackle!" I started with three coats of Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Eel Skin and topped with one coat of Hackney.

Here it is without a top coat.  You can really see the texture of the crackle and it almost has a matte quality to it.

Here it is with topcoat.  I love how this is a more subtle crackle and makes the grey base have a great interesting shimmer to it.

Review: Simple Cleansing Facial Wipes

So I have yet to hop on the facial wipes trend.  I guess I'm weird and like using my hands and cleanser to wash my face.  Ok, and the fact that it reminds me of my days in Jr. High when I used baby wipes to wash away my forbidden makeup before I got home lol. (ugh my Jr. High makeup....something I wish I could blot from history...lol) I got this travel pack of Simple facial wipes I figure I would give it a try since I like the Simple cleanser so much (review soon!)

Initial Thoughts: The wipe is a pretty good size (please note I have tiny child sized hands =P ) It was soft to the touch and had a good amount of product on it, but not so much it was dripping.  It took off all of my makeup, including liquid liner and mascara and did not leave my skin dry.  I had to resist washing my face after using as it felt like I still had something on my face. 

Overall Thoughts: Did a great job of removing makeup, but I after a few days I started breaking out.  For oily skin like me, following with your regular cleanser would probably help.  I don't think I will be repurchasing these as I don't want to add an additional step to my daily routine.  These would come in handy for those days when you are just too tired to wash your face (I hope I'm not the only one who has days like that!) or to help remove heavy makeup before regular cleansing.