Makeup Found on The World's Dresser

Happy Halloween - Have fun and be safe!

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:24:03 -0500

Not my babies, but OH I wish they were!

Review: John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Shampoo and Conditioner

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:36:05 -0500

I was recently out of town and used the trip to try some sample products I've had around the house for a bit. Two were from the John Frieda Brilliant Ultimate Shine Series - the Brilliant Brunette Shampoo and the Brilliant Conditioner.

This duo comes in three shades: brunette, blonde and redhead and are intended to lift your natural color to the surface without adding any additional color.

I don't stray to often from my Carol's Daughter's hair products, but after just one use of this my hair looked healthier, was softer, had more bounce and had a shine that I've never seen without having to add in products after my wash. All of my natural highlights arrived for duty.It was simply amazing - I couldn't stop touching or looking at it.

The conditioner is heavy duty...extra heavy duty and I'm tempted to only recommend it for folks who have naturally dry hair. On the other hand, if your hair soaks up moisture like a sponge, then you HAVE to buy this duo.

At the end of the day, this product is so good that I'm changing my hair routine. Yep. me. Instead of using Carol's Daughter every week, I'm going to interject the John Frieda Brillaint Brunette line every other week.

Carol's Daughter + John Frieda + GHD FlatIron = Awesomeness. That's math you can use.

Nail of the Day: Orly's Calypso Breeze

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:26:33 -0500

Today's nail of the day (or rather week) is Orly's Calypso Breeze. This color is currently on sale at Sally's Beauty Supply for under $3. It gives off a vibrant, nonshimmery blue that applies completely in just one coat...that's right, one coat.

I used a Sally Hansen base coat under the color and the Beauty Secrets spray polish dryer on top. No proper top coat was used and the color has stayed on for 4 days already. I rarely use a nail polish completely up, but i'm going back for another bottle of this one just in case!

Origins Modern Friction

Mon, 5 Oct 2009 12:30:25 -0500

One of the workhorses in the Origins skincare line is Modern Friction and I've finally had a chance to give it a real try. Retailing at $37.50 for a 4 oz jar, here's what you get:

Cons

The product is in a jar - not very sanitary. You're forced to dig your hands in there before every use. A tube similar to Clinique's 7 Day Scrub would have been better.
At 9.37 per oz, its not the cheapest option (but certainly not the most expensive - read my review of Dr. Brandt's exfoliator).
Much too harsh for sensitive skins, even when used wet.

Pros

It works wonderfully. Old skin is sloughed away bringing fresh, bright skin to the surface.
The scent is just the most amazing mix of lemon and peppermint and I usually hate scented products!
It has just a touch of aloe to soothe any redness

All in all, this product is full of win. It can be used every other day or every 3 days and I hope you give it a try! If you have this, let me know what you think.

Revlon Line Fantasy Cream Eyeliner

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:48:28 -0500

Available at many drugstores, Revlon Cream Liners have fantastic payoff for a non-pro product. They come in four shades: black, blue, purple and brown and last all day.

They are not waterproof (so not wedding safe), but they will not smudge or smear on you for everday use. These can also be used as eyeshadow bases and will hold the shadow color on your lid all.day.long.

These were on a 90% discount and I understand they will no longer be produced. Revlon has a history of discontinuing their best products coughSkinLightscough so I can't say that I'm too surprised. Go to CVS and pick up every color right now. I haven't seen these at any other drugstore - if they are other locations for these, please let me know!

Face Atelier Lip Stick and Lip Glaze

Sat, 26 Sep 2009 07:57:02 -0500

Last night, I went to an event downtown and wanted a lip color to really pop against darkened eyes. I ended up mixing Face Atelier's Pink Sizzle Lipstick ($20) with MAC's Pupple Matte Pigment (Free Sample) and topped it with a light coating of Face Atelier's Flamingo Lip Glaze to come up with this:

I'll try to recreate this color this afternoon and melt it into one pot. I'm making two batches - one with the Lip Glaze and one without it. I'm not sure how well the former is going to work out...

In other news, I've gone and picked up some Flawless Skin (by Prescriptives) powder for my kit as well some new pancake makeup from the local theatre supply store - I'm anxious to try it out.

A bit of randomness: my aunt is trying the Nutrisystem plan and I'm really proud of her. I tasted the food the other day and, I have to say, its pretty good. Looking at the caloric data on the back though, it seems that she's taking in dangerously low amounts - each meal is 110 - 200 calories with a snack of around 150. Yikes! I eat more than that by lunch - granted I'm a weightlifter, but still... anyone have any experience with this thing?

The End of an Era - Prescriptives is Going Out of Business

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:56:18 -0500

Well, it's official - one of the best foundation and skincare lines commercially available is closing its doors in January. Prescriptives has, by far, the best powder AND liquid foundations for sensitive skins. It has been one of the few companies I could recommend to pretty much everyone and know that they'd not have bad reactions. There have been whisperings of its demise for awhile now and I have to blame it all on marketing. Prescriptives is not a cute line (like Clinique) or a popular, edgy line (like MAC) and its not particularly sexy (like Nars), instead, its products come in plain grey containers and its marketing is stuck in the 50s. Still, it was (and is) a good, solid line.

So, I'm ordering today - I'm ordering a ton of their Flawless Skin and Anywhere Foundations for personal use and for my kit. I'm ordering their mascara, also among the best and I'm going to ask them to do one more custom blended gloss - just for old times sake.

Reader Request: My Favorite MAC Blushes

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:02:22 -0500

Here are swatches of the MAC blushers I tend to reach for again again. None of those are MAC Pro colors so you should be able to find them at any counter.

Fever and Dollymix can be bold colors, so you'll want to apply them with a careful hand. The others are just perfect for nearly every skintone and can be built in coverage from quite sheer to very bold. To see some of my favorite blushers from other brands, check out my reviews here. If you need any more swatches, just drop a line!

Fix a broken laptop hinge or lid

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:50:19 -0500

Sometime late last night, my laptop had a date with destiny, or rather my cat.

The meeting was not kind. My laptop, which has survived being stepped on in France, thrown down a trash shute in India and dropped in Japan, was no match for a 10 pound shelter cat. And so my laptop, which was once so awesome was in two halves...she somehow managed to break the hinges of the screen. The lid was not able to stand up on its own and flopped back and forth.

So I thought...

I dug through the junk drawer (you must have one too) and pulled out ducttape, super glue, velcro and super putty. Each caused disaster. Going back through the drawer I found this thing and a heavenly host sang in approval:

Go ahead, be jealous of my MacGyverism. Its a liiiiitle blingly, but much like Mister T in 1986, I think it works. I know what you're thinking:

...and you'd be correct.

The Best Thing You Haven't Tried Yet: Boots Sensitive Hydrating Eye Cream

Wed, 9 Sep 2009 14:51:02 -0500

I know that I give drugstore items a hard time. I know that I talk an unnatural amount of smack about their lackluster quality. However, I am woman enough to admit when I have been proven false (check the archives...its happened before) and its happened again.

Boots, available at a Target near you, has one of the best moisturizing eye creams I have ever tried. There, I've said it. Heck, I'll even repeat it: one of the best moisturizing eye creams ever...that is to say, in this history of human life on planet earth. Yep.

Boots Expert Sensitive Hydrating Eye Cream provides the perfect amount of moisture and works well on both oily and dry skins. More importantly, it absorbs quickly and wears well under concealers. I'm finding this to be a wonderful, light, non greasy and non smelly day cream in the summer. Another plus is that it comes in a tube. Too many great eye creams come in jars that risk cross contamination everytime you dig in there. With this, you just squirt out what you need and get to work.

The Cons?

No SPF so you'll want to use a concealer that has some in it.
Parabens? They're in there!
No wrinkle fighting agents. If this is a problem you're dealing with, use Boots in the morning and a strong wrinkle fighter at night. Here's a review on the one I recommend most (riiiiight here).

I've listed the pros above, but one of the best things about this product is the price. You can get a long lasting tube (20 ml!) of this eye cream for less than $7. Put down the sandwich, get off the computer and go get it....NOW!