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Posts Tagged ‘acne’

Beauty Box 5 September 2014 review

laelene Posted in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: acne, beauty, boxes, conditioner, hair care, nail polish, pictures, reviews, skincare, spot treatment, subscriptions

28 September 2014

Another ok but not fabulous box for me. I like that they include nail polish a lot but it’s not really in shades I’d use. I do appreciate the hair products they include, since I like to switch up my hair routine.

Beauty Box 5 is $12 per box (or as discounted as $99 for an entire year, with an option in between) and comes with 5 cosmetic products. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. You also have the option of buying it as a gift your box to a friend. They offer a referral program that earns you points towards products or boxes.

Nicka K New York Eyelight Crayon in Charcoal: This color is far too dark for me so I hope there’s someone out there who’d like to trade for it! If it had been a lighter color or something fun like a pop of color, I might have tried it. I’m curious about the crayon application so it’s a pity it’s not suited for me.

Natural Style by FUBU Deep Conditioner & Co-Wash: I haven’t tried this yet, but I love the smooth feel of using conditioner so I look forward to it. I’m still working through other samples I have at the moment.

Sally Hansen Toe Spacers: Haha, it’s always so awkward to have things between your toes. These will be useful next time I want to paint my toenails. I’ll have fun strutting around with my toes all fanned out.

My Beauty Spot Nail Polish: Oops, I can’t seem to find this polish now. I hadn’t decided if I was going to try it or trade it, but at this rate it looks like it will be neither. I think this would have been a nice polish to use for when I want some color, but nothing that stands out too much. If I can figure out where I put it, I’ll give it a shot.

Dr. Lin Acne Spot Corrector: This is my favorite product from this box and I’ve used it a few times. It feels nice, doesn’t dry out my skin, and seems to calm down my acne issues. They haven’t completely gone away, but using this has helped things from spiraling out of control as they often do.

The theme for this box was “balancing act” and I think overall it works. It’s not that important to me that boxes follow a theme though, so no big deal! Which items do you like most from these?

[This post contains affiliate links. Signing up through them helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review. I just purchased this box and wanted to share what I got!]

The Body Shop hauls

laelene Posted in lifestyle glimpses, reviews，Tags: acne, body butters, body scrubs, cleansing wipes, deals, facial wipes, groupon, lotions, pictures, products, shopping, skincare, sprays, spritzes, tea tree oil, the body shop

20 July 2014

Awhile back, Panda saw a Groupon for The Body Shop and he bought it for me to use. After visiting the store and purchasing some items, I decided to get the Groupon myself for another run. We paid $15 each for $30 worth of stuff. I now have a nice little collection of products from them, which I’m really enjoying. Let me share my two hauls!

the body shop tea tree oil cleansing wipes, bottle of tea tree oil, and vineyard peach body butter

Haul #1

The first time around, I was really focused on the tea tree oil products because of my incessant acne. Of course I also had to try one of their body butters! That’s what drew me to the store in the first place. The moment I smelled the Vineyard Peach, I knew I had to have it. It reminds me of white peaches from China, so fresh and juicy and lightly sweet. Have you ever seen those flat peaches? Between those and the peaches featured in the Journey to the West, that’s exactly what I think of here. Since they offer buy two get one free, I got either the Tea Tree Cleansing Wipes or Tea Tree Oil for free. I can’t quite remember the pricing, though the wipes were around $12 and the body butter was full price at $20 (I wonder if I should have gotten the 3 for $30 deal instead).

I’ve nearly used up the wipes and I’m probably halfway through the tea tree oil. I think they’ve definitely helped calm down my skin and I always feel so great after using them – like my acne is really being tackled. They have a slight tingling sensation upon application and smell medicinal. Meanwhile, I’m saving the body butter for when I’ve used up some more lotions, but I couldn’t resist trying out the bit that got on the lid and it feels fabulous. Just a little bit applied into my skin perfectly and left me with a whiff of peach.

the body shop mandarin & tangelo body, room, & linen spritz, special edition blueberry body butter, tea tree oil skin clearing lotion, and brazil nut body scrub

Haul #2

The second time, I was looking for more variety and actually was hoping to get more of the cleansing wipes, but they were all out. I opted for the Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion instead. If I can’t wipe my face with it, why not apply it after cleansing? I originally got the Brazil Nut Cream Body Scrub and special edition Blueberry Body Butter as the other items, but since the body butter was on clearance for $10, it didn’t count towards my buy 2 get 1 free option. Sooo I browsed around and added the Mandarin & Tangelo Body, Room & Linen Spritz – turns out to be a most excellent choice!

I remember the scrub was $20 or so and I think the lotion and spray were somewhere around $12-15? So far I’ve used the lotion, which is great for offering that healing feeling without the stickiness of the tea tree oil itself. I’ve also been spraying the spritz around and I love it! I’m so glad I had to choose another item, or else I might not have discovered it. I’m putting the body butter away for now since I have a ton of other items, but I really wanted blueberry because they’re my favorite fruit. I know, total sucker here. As for the scrub, I was really drawn to the unique Brazil nut ingredient. I think it’s kind of almond-y? Plus the scrub has small scrubby bits and large scrubby bits, which is super fun!

If you’re looking for a deal on The Body Shop stuff, they’re currently running their Christmas in July promotion: 40% sitewide and free shipping!

24ClearIt Acne Therapy review

laelene Posted in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: acne, beauty, beauty box 5, boxes, pictures, products, reviews, skincare, subscriptions

10 April 2014

In lieu of the April Beauty Box 5, I opted for the 24ClearIt kit that they were offering. I received it today and I’m ready to see if this is a solution that will work for me! I’ve tried a bunch of products before and various things have worked better than others, but none have truly calmed my skin for that long. Part of it might be that I moved on to other products. I’ve never been very good at committing to one set of skincare. I just like variety too much!

Step 1: Cleanse. Active exfoliating cleanser to be used in AM and PM. This is a more liquidy cleanser than I expected, so I accidentally squeezed out more than I wanted to. I like the scrubbing feeling of the beads – just enough without feeling too rough on my skin or too weak to do any exfoliating. It had the slightest scent that was vaguely medicinal. I massaged it in until it started to get sticky from all the water evaporating.

Step 1a: Target. Advanced treatment mask to be used as spot treatment or full mask. A few times a week, there’s the option to add the mask to the regimen. It is very thick and smells a bit of the sulfur that is in it. I tried a little spot of it and it tingled a bit. It sure feels like it can help zap away trouble spots. I’m going to have to see how the entire face mask feels and I’ll probably only do it once a week.

Step 2: Clear. Essential clearing toner to be used in AM and PM. The toner was very watery as expected and smelled quite nice. Once again just a very light scent and it felt very refreshing on my skin. I patted it over my face and let it dry. It felt really good!

Step 3 AM: Treat. Clarifying treatment to be used in AM. I tried this for the first time at night, so I just tested a little bit of it to see what it was like. It felt tingly and I think this is the harshest of the products and might have the potential of drying out my skin. We’ll see when I apply a full face of it tomorrow morning. It definitely awakens the skin and I feel like bacteria is being killed off right then and there.

Step 3 PM: Restore. Recovery treatment to be used in PM. This is a really nice lotion that is far more soothing and healing than the daytime one. I can see how it would be perfect to restore the skin while you sleep. My skin felt wonderful after this and completely hydrated for the night. I felt no need for any other products, which I like.

So based on first impressions, I am liking this line of products. I took a picture of my skin before and I’ll compare it to how things are looking in a week or two. At the least, these products feel good on my face, which is nice. Only time will tell how effective they are for their purported use. I’m really glad I decided to try this and skip the standard box Beauty Box 5 sent out for April!

Ipsy January 2014: 19 Reasons review

laelene Posted in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: acne, beauty, boxes, elizabeth mott, eye cream, eye pencils, leave in conditioner, lip balms, makeup, malin+goetz, pictures, proactiv+, products, reviews, sexyhair, skiin, skincare, subscriptions

15 January 2014

I just received my first Ipsy bag for 2014 and I’ve got to say I’m rather underwhelmed. The bag design makes me think of airports and all their reminders of what you can and cannot bring through security. I got an eye shadow yet again (how many times is this going to happen even though I indicated NO interest in eye products??). The thing I’m most interested in is actually the Proactiv+ Mark Fading Pads – if they work.

Ipsy is $10 per glam bag and comes with 5 or so beauty/skincare products. Bags are sent monthly with no option to skip. There’s usually a waitlist to get the subscription. They offer a referral program that earns you points towards free products.

I didn’t get the theme this month. Is there some significance to the number 19? Maybe they just ran out of ideas.

sexyhair soy tri-wheat leave in conditioner – At first I thought they’d sent me a repeat product, but a more careful look made it clear that I had previously received a hair spray before and this time it was a leave-in conditioner. I’m totally cool with that and will definitely give this a try. I haven’t used a spray-on conditioner, so this will be cool (especially after I just wrote about how I love sprays and the way it distributes more finely). I don’t usually use a leave-in conditioner but I probably should since my hair needs some help retaining a conditioned appearance.

skiin Soothing & Smoothing Eye Cream – I don’t use eye creams so I’m going to try to trade this. It’s a pretty good size for an eye cream and would last quite awhile! I have plenty of unused ones though, so if someone else is interested in this I might as well try to get something I’ll get around to using. I’ve never heard of this brand and I’d like to try something of theirs another time.

(malin+goetz) mojito lip balm – This is a pretty cool product with a unique flavor. Can’t say I’ve ever had a mojito-flavored anything before. There’s a lightly refreshing taste to it and it comes out in a clear, somewhat gooey liquid form. I can see it being very effective in keeping the cold air from drying out your lips. It’s slightly more sticky than lip balm but not quite as shiny or sticky as lip gloss.

Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow creamy eye pencil in Penny – I have nothing against the brand, but since the product is an eye pencil, I was disappointed to get it. The color is a coppery shade that looks nice. Still, I’m totally going to put it up for trade along with almost every other eye liner and pencil and shadow I’ve gotten. I wish Ipsy would really cut back on sending me those products. I don’t know how else to make it clear on my profile that I don’t use them!!

proactiv+ Mark Fading Pads – The most intriguing products of the bunch! My acne problem has seemed to calm down a bit as my body shifts focus to fight whatever illness or infection I might have contracted, but I still have awful scars. I’m really hoping these work because I could really use something to get this acne issue under control. I really thought things would have gotten better by now! Why don’t they warn you that acne problems last long past your teens??

If you’re interested in a trade, let me know and check out what else I have up on my FSOT list.

Juice Beauty Organics to Clear Skin kit review

laelene Posted in reviews，Tags: acne, cleansers, juice beauty, moisturizers, oily skin, peels, products, reviews, serums, skincare

18 August 2013

Last week I officially completed one month on my new Juice Beauty regimen. I thought I’d share my thoughts on their products and how they worked for me. I got the 30-day kit and it included the Blemish Clearing Cleanser (4 oz), Blemish Clearing Serum (1 oz), Oil-Free Moisturizer (1 oz), Green Apple Blemish Clearing Peel (0.25 oz), and eco-bamboo washcloth. I used the cleanser morning and night, then applied the serum and moisturizer. At least twice a week I put on a layer of the peel and let it sit for at least 10 minutes. Sometimes I used the washcloth to pat my face dry and a few times I used it to actually wash my face with the cleanser. I figured that’d give me a deeper clean since it’d be sort of exfoliating.

Overall I found the products to be nice to use, with light scents. A side benefit was that I actually motivated to use these products and stuck to the schedule. I’m pretty bad about consistently washing my face. I definitely enjoyed the cleanser and serum, but I felt like the moisturizer left my face a bit shiny, which was odd since it’s oil-free. I liked how the peel was not harsh though I can’t really tell if it helped or if the cleanser was already effective enough. I will have to try testing that next! I can’t say my skin cleared up, but I did notice that the overall condition of my skin was “calmer” if that makes sense. I still got a pimple here and there, but they were nowhere near as large as previous ones and they went away faster than usual.

I haven’t even managed to use half of the products so these sizes can actually last 2 months! I would definitely consider repurchasing the cleanser, serum, and peel, but not the moisturizer. I’d rather use a moisturizer that works better for my skin and doesn’t leave a shine. I do love how all of these products are so gentle, yet mostly effective. I didn’t have to resort to crazy harsh chemicals that would dry out my skin like many products I used in my teens. I love that it is an organic solution for acne-prone skin like mine. I want to try out some of their other products as well, like the Blemish Clearing Mask, Blemish Be Gone spot treatment, and Blemish Clearing Powder.

Mask me up! Murad Clarifying Mask

laelene Posted in reviews，Tags: acne, breakouts, experiences, facials, impurities, kaolin clay, masks, massage envy, murad, pores, products, reviews, skin problems, skincare

06 May 2013

I got a facial at Massage Envy a few weeks back – my first one there – and boy have I been missing out! They use Murad products for their facials and between the products and the esthetician, I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I came out with fresh, soft skin and for the first time, I actually noticed that my pores (particularly on my nose) looked smaller! After reviewing some of the products my esthetician during my facial, I decided to buy the Murad Clarifying Mask for use at home as well. I mean, this is right when I was getting fascinated with kaolin clay, so when I found it was one of the ingredients, I couldn’t help myself. I need some gentle skin purification!

I’ve used the mask a bunch of times since then and I’m really enjoying it. You don’t need much to cover your face, so the bottle will last a nice long time, even if you use it frequently. I am still struggling with acne and consistent breakouts at this age (whyyy?!), which this has helped calm down. My skin is clearing up and if I do get another breakout here and there, they are much smaller than before. Perhaps I should use the mask more than once a week to get that under control. Immediately after wiping off the mask, I always feel great – my blackheads have diminished, my skin is very soft, and overall my skin feels healthier. It’s great!

So if you have oily or combination skin, breakouts/acne, blackheads, or large pores – give this product a try. Let me know how it goes!

((little fat notebook))

Posts Tagged ‘acne’

Beauty Box 5 September 2014 review

The Body Shop hauls

24ClearIt Acne Therapy review

Ipsy January 2014: 19 Reasons review

Juice Beauty Organics to Clear Skin kit review

Mask me up! Murad Clarifying Mask

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