Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category

I started my search for an amazing summer palette early this year, and found this stunning waterproof eye and cheek palette by Tarte Cosmetics. At $38, this gorgeous compact has everything you need to look stunning on a gorgeous summer day – six eyeshadows (matte and shimmer), bronzer, highlighter and blush. Best of all, these colors are all waterproof, sweatproof and heatproof! Watch my review now, then check out the color swatches below!

The first thing to catch my eye was this gorgeous packaging, that kind of reminds me of a mermaid tail. Even the box is too pretty to throw away!

The compact itself is sleek, well-organized and has a huge mirror, which I love because it’s something I can actually use to apply a full face of makeup.

I’m in love with the selection of colors, that features mattes, shimmering neutrals and just a few pops of summer color. I especially love the turquoise shade (poolside), which is super pigmented and looks lovely swept along the lower lashline.

The top picture in this series is the colors when they are freshly swatched, while the second picture shows the colors after being submerged in water. As you can see, they faded a tad but stayed remarkably well considering how much water I exposed them too. If after a long shower, hair washing and a hair treatment these colors still look great, they will surely hold up under the bright summer sun.

Check back soon for reviews of the rest of the Aqualillies for Tarte line, and visit Tarte.com to get your own!

The only thing I look forward to around this time of year is the new Escada spring/summer scent. I know a lot of winter-haters may think that sounds crazy, but as someone who suffers from severe allergies, I loath spring. While some hear the word spring and think of flowers, sunshine and frolicking in the meadow, I think of sneezing, congestion and runny mascara. It’s not a pretty picture, I can assure you.

What is pretty, oh so very pretty, is Escada’s offering for spring/summer 2013, called Cherry in the Air. To sum this review up: IT SMELLS SO GOOD.

I was a little worried when I heard the name, since I immediately thought it would smell more like the Cherry Blossom scents at places like The Body Shop and Bath & Body Works, but it couldn’t be more different. Light, fruity and divine, it’s one of Escada’s best scents in years, and that’s saying a lot, because I love pretty much any scent they put out.

As per usual, Escada pulled out all the stops with this fragrance, from the lovely Parisian packaging, to the adorable bottle that comes adorned with a sweet little bow with a cherry in the middle. So cute.

Check out the full review below, and see why this is the must have scent for spring and summer!

Rarely do I say this about a product so soon after purchasing it, but OMFG I am in looooooove with the L’Oreal Total Repair 5 collection. In all the time I’ve been in Curl Rehab – about 3 months now- my hair has never been this healthy and amazing. So amazing in fact I’ve been swinging my tresses around all day like Kelly LeBrock in the old school Pantene commercials. Or Beyonce in, well, any music video she’s ever made.

I bought this instead of my usual Pantene Pro-V the other night for the sake of trying something new, but I have to admit my expectations were low. My hair is pretty picky and tends to reject anything that isn’t Pantene Moisture Renewal, but as I showered yesterday morning I quickly realized that would not be the case this time around. Since Walgreen’s was out of the shampoo, I started with the Restoring Conditioner ($4.99). This may sound strange to some of you, but I tend to only shampoo a few days a week and use just conditioner the rest to retain the moisture in my already dry and damaged curly hair. After using the conditioner and leaving it in for three minutes as indicated on the bottle, I immediately noticed my hair felt softer. I then moved on to the Damage Erasing Balm ($6.99), that’s so rich and creamy it feels more like body lotion than a hair treatment.

By the time I applied my product and dried my hair, it looked much shinier than it had when I stepped in the shower. The ends even looked smoother and healthier. Best of all, my curls looked almost completely back to normal! *cue Beyonce hair flips*

Check out the video below for more info and stay tuned for updates as I continue on my healthy hair/curl rehab journey!

Update: I found the Restorative Shampoo and Multi-Restorative Oil tonight at Ulta, so I’ll have a separate review of those items up soon!

Since Influenster sent me these products for review, I’ve been a little on the fence about using them for several reasons. First – Head & Shoulders treats dandruff, which I don’t have and second, the few times I used it in the past (I’m talking like, yeeears ago) it was very drying. I decided to give it a go anyway since the formula is supposed to be great for damaged hair, which I’ve been dealing with since the color correction I had a few months ago. Plus, all the handy dandy literature that came in the box was pretty convincing.

I (reluctantly) used both the shampoo and conditioner this morning and was surprised at how good they smell more than anything. I generally associate dandruff shampoo with smelling very medicinal, but this smells like peaches. I’m also surprised by how creamy and moisturizing the conditioner is – I almost forgot it was Head & Shoulders for a minute. While I like what I see so far, the information card says hair is noticeably stronger and healthier after four uses, so that remains to be seen,

I’ll keep you guys posted, but so far so good.

I’m a huge fan of theBalm, so I make sure to stock up on my favorite palettes, polishes and blushes every time they have a sale on Hautelook. This product was new to me, but I decided to give it a try anyway since it was on sale and I’m always in the market for a good eye-makeup remover. All I have to say is OH-EM-GEE, how did I ever live without this stuff?

Fortified with vitamins, plant-based lipids and other magical ingredients, this balm removes even the heaviest eye make-up with virtually no effort. I used it for the first time a few minutes ago and was so amazed I practically ran to my computer to write this blog post. Eye makeup remover is kind of a big deal for me since I wear lots of waterproof eyeliner and mascara, which can be a real pain to remove. Especially without damaging the delicate skin around the eye with the constant rubbing when using less effective cleansers. Not only is it painful, but it causes premature aging and as someone who is constantly waging a war against crowsfeet, that just ain’t the business.

What makes this product so unique is it’s texture, which glides on like butter – I literally rubbed a teeny amount of the balm on my eyelid and wiped away all traces of eyeliner, eyeshadow and mascara with just a few swipes. Now that I’ve found this, I really don’t see the point of using anything else as I’d be hard pressed to find a better product. It’s a tad expensive ( $20 for 2.2oz), but when you consider how little product you need to get the job done AND how much money it’ll save you on Botox in the future, it’s a worthwhile investment. Especially considering you can get it on Hautelook for $10, which is even cheaper than most drugstore makeup removers.

Final Verdict: La-la-la-loooooooove it!
Price: $20 (or $10 during Hautelook sales)
Get it: thebalm.com, hautlook.com