The Beauty Rundown

Review: Neutrogena Healthy Defense Moisturizer SPF45

Fiend — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:49:20 -0500

I know it has been a long long time since i posted, but since my camera broke i have been feeling somewhat lazy~. BUT since Black Friday is only a week away and i wil be picking up a camera then i have no excuse to continue my laziness and i decided to do some "easy" posts until i get my camera. I don't like to call them easy posts but basically they are posts that i can do without taking pics so easy is the best word i can think of.

Anyhoo on to the review; I recently purchased Neutrogena Healthy Defense moisturizer SPF45,

it is available in tinted and untinted formulas, i bought the untinted because usually tinted is not dark enough for my complexion. The first thing i thought when i saw the tube was "this looks like a sunscreen product". I prefer pump bottles to tubes and jars when it comes to my morning moisturizer just because i am usually in a rush and i know 2 pumps covers my whole face nicely. When i squeezed the product out the first thing i noticed was the texture and smell. Definitely feels like the texture of sunscreen, and a couple of seconds later the smell reconfirmed that thought. I personally do not like the smell of suncscreen, it smells like chemicals to me and although it is not a offputting smell i just dont like it. So i went ahead and applied it to my face, and let me tell you, i seriously think that this product is nothing more then Neutrogena's sunscreen product but in different packaging. It did not feel moisturizing to me the way a moisturizer should feel. I felt like i was applying sunscreen. You know how sunscreen goes on and it's not sticky but it doesn't moisturize even though it absorbs into the skin and disappears? Thats how this felt. I was very disappointed and i had to add baby lotion on top of it so my face could feel moisturized they way i wanted it to.

Packaging: 2/5 ( note: i am biased against it because i prefer pump bottles)

Performance: 2/5 I felt protected from the sun however it did not feel very moisturizing.

Cost: 1/5 - This product cost $12.99. The neutrogena sunscreen is $3 cheaper at $9.99 and they feel like the same product. Plus the Neutrogena sunscreen can be used on the face as well as body.

Overall Product Grade: 2/5

My Winter Skin Routine

Fiend — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:15:31 -0400

It's that time of year again when the season changes and our routines with it. For me, my issues are that my combo skin goes crazy. My cheeks become extra dry and my tzone stays pretty oily but it gets dry and flakey at the same time. It's a learning curve but i've learned to deal with my skin in the following ways

wash everyday with a gel cleanser
for daytime moisturizing: sensitive skin oil free moisturizer with a day cream that contains SPF, and if necessary add a layer of baby lotion over it after the day cream dries and is absorbed.
For night time: wash with a gel cleanser or use a Dove facial wash cloth (if face is feeling a little flakey or looks dull)
Use a night cream or baby lotion, slather it on generously.
Once a week designate a day to use a gentle facial scrub to cleanse the face and get rid of any dry flakey skin.
after using the scrub follow up with a gentle face mask to help keep the skin cells turning over.

Here are the products i use:

Pretty much what i've found for me personally, is that during the transitioning period (fall/winter weather), the best thing is to not use a lot of products, and to use milder products that don't contain chemicals that will irritate your skin. Your skin is already irritated by the wind, cold and fluctuating temperatures when you go in and outside throught the day. If you have any tips or tricks for winterizing your skin do tell below in the comments.

Drugstore Revlon Haul

Fiend — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 23:57:20 -0400

So CVS was having bogo (get one free!) on Revlon products and of course me being my usual self i had to make some purchases and justify it as a can't miss oppurtunity :)

So here's everything i got, (random nail file as well) not too much but some items that i had been curious about and used this oppurtunity to indulge in.

Starting with the eyeshadows:

L-R i got the 12hr color stay eye palette in the purples, (I havent tried it yet but i will do a review when i do.) and the matte shadows in green and brown.

Next up:

Colorstay mineral finishing powder in Sunkiss. GOREGOUS color i love it. Feels nice and soft too. It's and all over face powder but it is shimmery so i think it's best for just dusting on places you want to brighten up for a "sunkissed" glow (i.e. forehead, cheeks, chin).

I forgot to take closeup pics of the Colorstay mineral lipglazes but i did swatch them, they are pretty nude colors

Very soft, not sticky at all. top: #500 lasting shimmer, bottom: #510 Forever fig

And last but not least, nail polishes:

L-R: Hushed Blush, Silver Screen, Plum Seduction, Seche Vite Dry Fast top coat

And of course i forgot to buy what i had originally gone into CVS for, and spent all my money on Revlon (about $70 total, thats with the get 1 free). I originally was going to buy moisturizer for my face. I ended up buying my day cream, and one of my fave multitasking products:

Since i was broke as a joke, i bought the baby lotion for like $5-6 as a substitute for my night cream which runs $15. Baby lotion works just as well and i can also use it as a body cream so its a win win situation. Plus look how much bigger it is then the day cream! lordy. The day cream was $15.

i did go over the top, i went in planning on spending maybe $30 and i spent a little over $100. *sigh* But i think i picked up some good things so of course it's worth it in the end ^_^

Thanks for reading!

Review: Neutrogena eye makeup remover (oil free)

Fiend — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 22:13:45 -0400

So i wanted to do a quick review of this eye makeup remover for you ladies so that you would have a fair warning if you're considering purchasing it. And in hindsight, i shouldve taken pictures of me removing my eye makeup. Drat! i will update this post this weekend with those pics.

Anywhoo, the reason why i wanted to give fair warning is this product is supposed to be oil free. Let me show you a pic of the bottle after sitting on a counter and settling:

Looks like a whole lotta oil-like substance to me. Also (and this is were i needed to show you pics) there is an oily residue left on the skin so i don't know what ingredient is in it that causes the greasy-slick that is left on the face. There isnt any oil or petroleum ingredient that i am familiar with listed on the bottle so i'm stumped.

Regardless of that though, this is a great product. It removes eyshadow and waterproof mascara very well without needing to apply very much product, pressure or rubbing. There is a extremely faint scent that i cant really identify as it is so faint but what i can smell reminds me of baby oil...(I am telling you girls, i SWEAR there is oil in here somewhere lol. I am CONVINCED!!). It is a small bottle and like i said, alittle goes a long way. I use it with my trusty jumbo cotton pad:

Love these pads! I can use 1 pad to remove all my face makeup. and they are nice and fluffy :)

Overall i give this product a 3.5/5, i would have given it a 5/5 except for the fact that it leaves the skin greasy and i was looking for oil free product to avoid adding oil to my already greasy complexion. But honestly it works well so i will continue using it until i find something better.