Dermalogica Clean Start

Every time I come back home from school my skin rebels.  It must be something about the change in water or that fact that I am finally catching up on sleep, but whatever it is, its not pleasant. My skin has been in a full fledged revolt for the past three weeks and finally, I decided to take charge.  Now Im not the kind of person that breaks out everywhere on my face but I have intense concentrations of acne around my mouth and nose, this drives me crazy as I am typically acne free, baring the usual monthly breakout.  Anyways after having no luck with Proactiv (something I've used on and off for year), I decided to kick it up a notch.  After reading a review about Dermalogica's anti aging skin care system, I decided to give Clean Start, a system directed towards teens, a try.  At first I was skeptical as, in the past, nothing has worked when my skin revolts, however, after only one use my skin looks better.  The first day I used both the Wash Off cleanser and the Ready, Set, Scrub, both of which made my skin feel soft, fresh and not dried out.  Typically my skin is super sensitive to all acne treatment systems but this one gave me no problems! Also, all of the products smell great! There is no medicinal, clinic smell here, only fresh fruits and herbs. My only complaint is the price. At $35 for a small travel kit, I felt it was a little steep, however if it continues to treat my acne, its well worth the price!  Overall I am in love after only two days, however, we all know how quickly things can change so I will be sure to keep everyone updated.

4 out of 5 stars (Only because the price is so steep!)

Would I repurchase? Heck YES!

Photo Credit: http://cleanstart.dermalogica.com/us/#/home

Earth Science Azulene Eye Cream

I have extremely fair skin and along with that comes the inevitable and dreaded dark circles. In addition, I tend to develop extremely noticeable bags under my eyes no matter how much sleep I get. That being said, I am constantly trying out new products in hopes of ending this chronic problem. My newest love is Earth Science Azulene Eye Treatment. While I was searching the aisles of Whole Foods for a miracle zit cream, I stumbled across the tester for this delightful little product, whose vibrant blue hue immediately caught my attention. Now I have only been using it for a few days but already I have noticed the delicate skin under my eyes looks firmer and fresher, definitely a plus from before. While I can't give this a thumbs up yet, things are looking great for this little guy.

Photo Credit: Earth Science.com

After a long hiatus....

I know, I know. Its been entirely too long since my last post, however I have a good excuse; college. Between my two seminars and enjoying my last few months, posting slipped my mind, thats not to say that I haven't been keeping products in mind. I have some excellent new product reviews coming up as well as a few new tutorials so get excited, it's summer and time to get beautiful!

So for my first review of this new season...

Burt's Bees Radiance Night Cream
One night while pulling an all nighter at my sorority house, my skin was feeling super dry from lack of sleep and dehydration, so one of my sisters handed me this little miracle jar. At first I was skeptical as I have tried several BB products in the past and have not had much success, however, this cream was love at first touch. It smells delighful and slicks on easily. My only complaint is the slightly sticky texture, however that proves not to be a problem after several minutes as it absorbs quickly. When I wake up in the morning I find my skin looking refreshed and radiant, it must have something to do with the "Royal Jelly" ingredient, but my skin LOVES it!

4 out of 5 stars
Would I repurchase? YES!

photo credit: Burtsbees.com

Clinique Long and Pretty Mascara

During my two week trip to Egypt, I somehow, misplaced my mascara and had to rely on my roommate to darken my fair lashes.  Luckily my roommate had great taste in mascara and introduced me to my new favorite, Clinique Long, Pretty lashes. Not only does this mascara not clump, it lasts all day and delivers volume, curl and length!!! Also one of my biggest pet-peeves is mascaras that flakes, none here! I replaced my beloved Chanel Inimitable as this one has a much better price tag and provides the same results.  If you are looking for a fabulous moderately priced mascara than this is the one for you! 

5 out of 5 stars

Would I repurchase? YES!

Photo Credit: Clinique

Review: Eva Yoghurt and Cucumber Cream

I think I am in love.  During my travels throughout Egypt, I ran out of my beloved Olay moisturizer and had to brave an Egyptian pharmacy to replace it.  After an hour of exploring the enormous skin care aisle (Egyptian women have AMAZING skin!) I settled on this little gem of a product.  This daily cream is marketed for oily skin, which is a big problem for me.  It contains all natural ingredients, including Cucumber and Yogurt, which sounded extra nice in the hot Egyptian weather.  Not only does this moisturizer give my skin the perfect amount of moisture, it also mattifies, making if perfect for under makeup.  I have also noticed, after using it for almost 3 weeks, that my skin looks more radiant, clear and smooth, which is always a plus.  Eva does have two other products, when marketed for dry skin and the other for normal skin.  I am so upset that I didn't have time to go back and purchase these as well. Luckily they have a website where the products can be ordered, on the downside, the price of shipping is rather steep. Oh! I almost forgot the best part! The 170g jar I bought only cost about $1.50! What a steal for such a great product!

Photo Credit: Eva

Product Website: Eva Skin Care

and I returned from Egypt alive!

It seems like I've been gone forever! I got back from Egypt about two weeks ago and was thrown directly into classes, thus my posts have been neglected.  No worries, however, as I have tons of new reviews coming up, including a few Egyptian products. Here goes,

Review: Neutrogena Deep Clean Relaxing Night Scrub

On my first Walmart trip after Egypt, I was perusing the skin care aisle when this lovely lavender bottle caught my eye.  The words, relaxing and deep clean caught my attention, being the stressed college student that I am, so I decided to give it a try.  Later that night, I hopped into a nice, steamy shower and gave the scrub a whirl.  First let me just say that the scent is amazing!!!! A combination of lavender and lilac, its light but intoxicating none the less.  As for the scrub itself, once again Neutrogena has gone above and beyond.  The cleanser leaves skin exfoliated and yet amazingly moisturized.  Honestly I was so obsessed with it, I didn't want to stop washing my face! Definitely a keeper!

5 out of 5 stars

Would I repurchase? Yes

Metropolis Cordless Flat Iron

I think I may be in love.  Let's backtrack for a second.  Two years ago when I went to London on vacation, I brought my beloved Chi straightener only to have it melted to an unrecognizable heap a day later.  Instead of repurchasing my pink chi, I decided to invest in the Metropolis straightener.  You can imagine my surprise when I stumbled across this cordless version on Sephora's website.  Sadly, I did not find this until the day before I leave for Egypt, this would have been a great tool to bring to Egypt, in order to prevent a reoccurrence of the Chi incident. Alas, I did not find it in time, this will have to be a post Egypt purchase.

Photo Credit: Sephora

Review: Makeup Forever Smoky Lash

After misplacing my beloved Chanel Inimitable mascara, I decided to step out of the box and try something new.  Enter Makeup Forever Smoky Lash.  After reading several reviews on the product, I decided that this volumizing and curling mascara was the one for me.  Another plus is the fact that its ultra pigmented, providing for smoldering lashes.  The only downside I have noticed thus far (I've been using it for about a week) is that it flakes and clumps.  The clumping is easily solved with an eyelash brush but the flaking is rather annoying.  On the plus side, I love the color and the volume.

3 out of 5 stars

Would I repurchase? Maybe

Photo Credit: Sephora

Review: Loreal EverPure Shampoo

Yesterday as I was running last minute errands before I jet off to egypt, I stumbled upon a new sulfate shampoo by Loreal called EverPure.  This color protect shampoo is comparable to Pureology, it even smells similar.  There are two formulas, smoothing and moisturizing, the one that I chose, both smell faintly of Rosemary and Juniper.  Yesterday I used the shampoo and the deep conditioning mask and I was amazed.  I blow dried and straightened and to my amazement I had absolutely NO flyaways, frizz or dryness.  I have to say that I am usually one that does not use shampoos that don't come from a salon, however, I am replacing my beloved kerastase shampoo in my suitcase with EverPure.  We will see how well EverPure hold up in the Egyptian heat, more to come on that.

5 out of 5 stars

Would I repurchase? YES

Photo Credit: Loreal