Category — Beauty Goodies

I have an excellent giveaway to start today with you!  L’Occitane, the maker of fabulous French soaps, lotions, makeup and more is going to give one of my VERY lucky readers a $50 gift certificate to use in their online store.

If you have ever wandered into L’Occitane you probably realize that this is a great giveaway.  Here are a few of the products that I have tried and really like …

 Honey Lemon Lip Gloss (which I mentioned in a lip gloss review previously) and Shea Butter Hand Cream (great for really dry hands without too much oily residue)

  

Lavender Bar Soap

Shea Butter Ultra Rich Shampoo

Because L’ Occitane natural beauty products are packaged so beautifully, I have given them as gifts and the soaps and shampoo bottles look great on my bathroom countertop.

So leave a comment below mentioning which of their products you are eying and on Wednesday, July 27th I will pick a random winner for the gift certificate.  Good Luck!

Unfortunately, this giveaway is only available to readers located in the continental U.S.

I think I am going to boycott the makers of certain mascaras.  I understand as technology develops the makeup industry thinks they can improve their product, making womens’ lives easier and even more beautiful, but sometimes they have stop messing with a good thing.

For as long as I can remember I used Maybeline Great Lash Mascara.  It is the old tried and true of mascaras.  My Mom has used it forever.  No fuss, no muss, and does the job.  You buy it in dark brown or black, or maybe the waterproof version.

I started noticing that my Maybeline Great Lash was leaving black residue under my eye after a few hours of wear so I switched to Maybeline Volum Express Turbo Boost.  Pretty much the same black mascara in waterproof and it helped with the falling mascara.  I should have stopped here and stuck with a good thing.

Then I visited my sister and she was going on and on about CoverGirl Exact eyelights mascara.  She has stunning blue-gray eyes and dark hair, with long dark lashes.  The girl really barely needs mascara.  But she noticed that everytime she wore this Exact eyelights she got compliments on her eye-makeup.  She said the hint of blue in the mascara brought out her eye-color.  My other sister and I ate this up and went out and bought the new CoverGirl craze.  I bought the one for green eyes.  Technically my eyes are hazel (a mix of brown and green) but I thought this would enhance the green in my eyes.

The CoverGirl Exact eyelights for green eyes is in a purple container and when you pull out the wand it looks like there is purple mascara in the bottle. But when applied it looks black.  It looks like plain old black.  I never saw any fancy purple shimmer and never got any compliments.  It was just plain old black mascara. The wand also had those new plastic bristles on the end that gave me spider-looking clumped lashes.

Next time my sister came for a visit I told her about my disappointment.  She scoffed and said I must have bought the wrong color mascara for my coloring and was still raving about her blue shimmer mascara.  I grumbled and noticed she was applying CoverGirl’s new LashBlast mascara. She said she loved the stuff because it gave her lots of volume.  I have long lashes but they are kind of thin.  More volume was what I needed, not purple shimmer.  So I once again I ran out and bought the Cover Girl Last Blast.

Disappointment yet again.  Along half of the brush it has short plastic bristles.  It was even harder to apply than the CoverGirl Exact eyelights and the mascara went on gunky and thick.  Completely annoyed one day, I actually threw this one in the garbage.

My next try was Lash Galore Mascara from Beauty Addicts.  They use a traditional mascara brush in a traditional black.  And guess what, it goes on easy and gives you long defined black lashes.  It doesn’t provide me with any extra volume but it doesn’t clump or end up under my eyes within an hour either.

The moral of this story is “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.  CoverGirl has 18 different choices in mascara on their web site and Maybeline has even more.  Most of them have plastic bristled applicators which I haven’t been so lucky with so far.  What is your favorite mascara?  How long have you been using it?

Have you ever gone to Ulta on pay day and spent more than 50% of your check on makeup? Do you have so many lip glosses that you could wear a different shade everyday for 6 months?  Do you get goosebumps when you take that little plastic wrap off a new eyeshadow?  If you answered yes to any of these questions you may be addicted to beauty products.  I certainly am.

I got introduced last month to BeautyFix and I has revolutionized how I buy makeup from now on.  Here is the jist:  You sign up for an account for a nominal fee.  BeautyFix asks you a series off questions about your skin type, coloring, etc. and a panel of experts (celebrity stylists & makeup artists) pick beauty products quarterly that they know are just right for you.  No more wasting money trying things that are the wrong color or irritate your sensitive skin.

The panel picks their “must haves” for each season.  These are products that they will send to you automatically.  Then they pick some “panel favorites”; a large quantity of products, everything from moisturizer to blushes to lip glosses, that they think you will like. Now the fun part — you pick from these what you want BeautyFix to send.

Now here is what I got in my order.  I have to admit I got so many products there are a few I didn’t get to try but some of them I LOOOOVVVEEE.

RED POINT CONCEALERS

Highlights: 3 different concealer colors for different issues.  One is for dark circles (I have that), one is for cover up needs (check) and one is for redness (check)

Panel Said I Would Like it Because: “The 3 shades that work well together for different problems. I particularly like the eye one. … Probably better than almost anything I have tried in terms of covering dark circles.”

“I’m a big fan of finger application. They’re thin enough that they don’t look caked on, and that I can apply them with my finger, but they are thick enough to really cover. ”

What I Thought: The panelists were right on all points.  It worked great for me.  I have been using it everyday.  The colors work really well for my skin color and it is thin so it works really nicely with my mineral makeup.  I thought it was a bit oily at first and not creamy enough, but they are right about being able to layer it and it never did make my skin oily.  It doesn’t really feel like I am wearing makeup after I use the mineral makeup over it.

GLOBAL GODDESS BEAUTY
I DIVINE EYE COLOR
(Color DARJEELING)

Highlights: Great neutral eye color

Panel Said I Would Like it Because: “A great neutral for your lid”.

“It’s really good quality and it’s very smooth”.

“Really nice and silky”.

What I Thought: They were right on all points again.  My only complaint is that they matched my skin color a little too well and this blends in more than I thought it would.  It makes an awesome base color though.

SKINDINAVIA
MAKEUP FINISHING SPRAY

Highlights: A finishing spray you use to keep your makeup staying put all day

Panel Said I Would Like it Because: “It really works — it makes your makeup stay put all day long — it is perfect for the summer!”.

“My makeup looks almost as fresh as it did when I first put it on”.

“It is clean smelling — not heavily scented.”

What I Thought: This was one of the products that I fully expected not to work.  I was surprised that it really did make my makeup last longer when I used it.  It feels a little like hairspray when you first spray it, but not quite as sticky.  As soon as it dries, seconds later, you can’t feel it or smell it.

MINERAL EYE SHADOW TRIO
(color Tuscany)

Highlights: Everyday colors that are very blendable.

Panel Said I Would Like it Because: No expert opinions on this one.

What I Thought: I immediately saw them and thought, “orange eyeshadow – yuck!” but was surprised that the colors worked better with my coloring than I expected.  However, mineral eyeshadow in general annoys me.  I hate that during application it falls all over my face.  If you like mineral shadow though, this is a goodie, because it is nice and light but still has a really rich color.  The darkest of the shades is a new fave of mine.

ROSIE JANE COSMETICS
EYE DEFINE  (color beech tree)

Highlights: A brown hue that is great for everyday but with just a bit of sparkle.

Panel Said I Would Like it Because: “The colors are great for everyone and the the tube packaging is so innovative!”

“Great eye pencil and no sharpening necessary.”

What I Thought: So why would it take this long for someone to come up with the brilliant idea of angling the point of the eye liner.  I am horrible at using eyeliner and this was soooo easy to use.  It glides on smooth, is just the right width, and with the angled tip I don’t have a shaky line. Freaking brilliant!  Have I mentioned that the color is awesome!

So those were my favorite things but I also got a makeup bag to put all of the shwag in, the IQ Derma Glacial Hydrating Mask (which I havent had a chance to try yet), a Red Point Kubuki Brush that is awesome (yes, you even get makeup accessories), and a Chella Enzyme Exfoliating Crema Mask (also haven’t tried yet).

BeautyFix has made me a VERY happy girl.

Well my last Dove Body Wash giveaway has ended and I have to admit I am a little disappointed in the response!  What?  You ladies don’t want free stuff anymore?  It is really nice body wash … I know because I am using it now.

So here is what I am going to do for you girls.  I am going to another Dove giveaway.  I will automatically take the readers who commented in this last giveaway and add them into the pool for the next one.  This giveaway will not only include a bottle of Dove with NutriumMoisture Body Wash but I will throw in a bottle of Dove Unscented Hairspray and Dove Clinical Protection Antiperspirant.  I think that sounds fair, right?

So get your comments in to enter the giveaway.  The giveaway will end Tuesday, Oct. 27th at 5pm.  Just tell me what you do (or hopefully don’t) like about the new blog design and you will entered.  Good Luck!

Oops.  Almost forgot to congratulate Monica on her win of the Dove Body Wash in the last contest.  Congrats Monica.

Update:  This contest has ended and Liz was our lucky winner.  Please try again next time though.  Thanks.

In celebration of the new blog redesign I am going to be doing a little giveaway!  Dove is promoting their new line of body wash with NutriumMoisture, available in deep moisture, gentle exfoliating and sensitive skin solutions.  They have decided to award a bottle of their new body wash to one lucky reader!

Unlike most body washes Dove’s new line promises not to dry out your skin.  It was just awarded a best breakthrough award in Allure’s 2009 Best of Beauty list.  Allure claims you won’t need lotion after using this body wash.

If you want to be entered in the giveaway just leave a comment about my new blog redesign.  It can be positive feedback or even constructive criticism on how I can improve my blog even more.  Your opinion can win you free stuff. The giveaway ends Friday, October 16th at 5pm so make sure to get in your comments.

Update: Congratulations to Monica who won the Dove Body Wash. Thanks for the Kudos on the blog as well.  But don’t stop commenting.  I am doing another giveaway now for Dove Body Wash,  Dove Unscented Hairspray and Dove Clinical Protection Antiperspirant.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, Oct. 27th at 5pm.