July Birchbox

Birchbox is a monthly membership that you subscribe to, and for $10.00 a month (that includes shipping) you receive four to five deluxe samples of name brand products to try.  If you like any of the products, you can purchase them through Birchbox at a discounted price.

Birchbox enlisted designer, Cynthia Rowley, to guest curate this month's box.  I have to admit, I had to google her to find out who she is.  According to her website, she is a “fashion and style authority with a namesake collection that includes women’s wear, beachwear and wetsuits, men’s wear, eyewear, handbags, shoes, baby, home sewing products, tools, legwear, shapewear, and ‘dress-up’ band-aids”.

OK.... on to my Birchbox.  This is what the box looked like when I opened the shipping box.

 This is the pretty cover that was on the box

The card introducing Cynthia and product listing on the back

 After removing the paper

The products

Products in the box were:

- Philosophy Purity Made Simple – one-step facial cleanser - A pH-balanced cleanser that gently clears away dirt, oil and makeup without drying out skin. 
- Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-usage Dry Oil – A multi use oil that gives face and body a pretty glow (minus any slickness) and it works to smooth flyaways, too.
- Redken Shine Flash – Weightless spray gives hair a brilliant finish.
- Zoya Touch Collection Nail Polish in Pandora color – Creamy, slightly metallic nude.
- Kind Almond & Apricot Fruit & Nut Bar – No preservatives or hard-to-pronounce ingredients.

I am really looking forward to trying these products and will let you know what my opinion is after I’ve used each product for awhile.  I already use the Philosophy Purity facial cleanser and I really like it.  It removes my makeup and eye makeup quite well and does not dry out my skin!!  (I gave my sample to my sister to try).

To sign up for Birthbox, go to www.birchbox.com.  Birchbox does not ship internationally, but there are similar programs in the UK from www.glossybox.co.uk and http://signup.boudoirprive.co.uk/. 

Take care!!

Great Hair Care Products at a Great Price

When I was a young girl, the kids at school would call me "frizzhead". Guess I don't need to tell you what my hair looked like when I was young!!! :) My hair was blonde, really curly and frizzy. My mom always had it cut short, in a "pixie" cut. Of course, I always wanted long, straight, smooth hair. You always want what you don't have, right??

Fast forward 30 years, and I now have straight hair thanks to professional relaxers. For the last 10 years, I've been getting a relaxer treatment put on my hair and I absolutely love it. I get a relaxer because it still leaves some body to my hair whereas a straightener is completely straight. My hair designer uses a Paul Mitchell relaxer and it cost around $100 A straightener would cost around $300.

Like all chemical products used on hair, the relaxer really dries out my hair, especially on the ends where I have a lot of breakage.  To help with that I've always purchased Nexxus products or Kenneth products (my salon brand) for hair conditioners. Both of those brands costing more money then I want to spend for hair conditioner.

I had the relaxer put on my hair in June and instead of leaving the salon with a expensive conditioner, I decided to research drugstore brands to see if I could find a good one that worked as well as a high end conditioner. The first drugstore brand I choose was Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition for dry/damaged hair. I purchased the Triple Nutrition Extra Nourishing Cream Shampoo. the Triple Nutrition Conditioner and the Triple Nutrition 3-Minute Undo Dryness Reversal Treatment.

I've been using the products for a little over a month now, and what a difference they made in my hair. My hair is thick, feels very soft, silky and really healthy. I absolutely love it. The product says it will make your hair 3X stronger and I really believe it does. I don't have near the breakage at the ends that I used to have. I use the shampoo and conditioner every day, and the Undo Dryness Reversal Treatment every two days.

Last week I went to my hair salon to have my hair cut and when my hair stylist was running her fingers through my hair she said, "I don't know what you're using on your hair but it feels fantastic and is in great condition". Well, that pretty much says it all!!!

I purchased my Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition products at my local Walgreens store and the cost was three products for $9.99. What a bargain for soft, silky, healthy hair!! I will be using these products for a very long time!!

Laura Geller Weekend Foundation

I wanted to find a foundation to use on the weekends that was lightweight, but had enough coverage to hide some age spots that I have on my face.  Unfortunately, due to way too many years of tanning, I have age spots on my cheeks.  I don’t like going anywhere without some type of foundation on my face to cover the spots.  As you know from my last foundation post I love the Chanel foundation, but since it’s so expensive I don’t want to use it on the weekends when I am just doing errands or sitting outside on the patio.

This search didn’t take as long as my previous foundation search.  What did I find, you ask?  Laura Geller’s Balance and Brighten foundation with SPF 15. 

It’s a color correcting foundation that starts out as a liquid and is baked until it becomes a powder.  It is mineral oil and paraben free and has the age-fighting, anti-oxidant protection of Centella Asiatica and White Tea.   I purchased the Laura Geller Lightness of Beauty 6-piece Color Collection from QVC (Item #A215552).   You can buy just the foundation for $35.00 (www.laurageller.com), or buy this collection from www.qvc.com for $59.76 and get the foundation, a whipped blush, eyeshadow & highlighter quad, eyeliner and a retractable baked powder brush

I’ve never used a powder foundation before so I was a bit hesitant to order it, but I have to say it is a really nice foundation.  It is weightless, buildable and leaves my skin feeling fresh and smooth.  It’s so weightless that it doesn’t feel like you’re wearing any foundation at all!  It doesn’t settle in my pores,  it covers my age spots beautifully and really evens out my skin tone.  It has just the slightest bit of shimmer which I really like.  I have to say though, that it doesn’t last all day.  I can see my t-zone start to shine after about four hours or so.  I didn’t use a primer, so that might help.  I just applied it after I used my moisturizer.  I also didn’t care for the retractable baked powder brush. It seems like the bristles are too long and doesn’t pick up enough product.  I use an Ecotools Bamboo Bronzer Brush.  I like it much better.

 All in all, I would highly recommend this foundation if you’re looking for something light to wear during the summer.

Just a few comments about the rest of the products in the kit.  The eyeshadow and highlighter colors are beautiful and apply nicely.  The eyeliner is waterproof and is a charcoal gray color.  The blush is a whipped blush, which I don’t care for.  I have a hard time applying it and getting it blended before it dries.  I doubt I’ll use it much.  The lip gloss is a beautiful shimmery coral color and I absolutely love it.  I apply it lightly over a neutral colored lip liner. 

If you’ve never tried Laura Geller before, this is a great starting kit.  You get a lot of products for the price.

In Search of the Perfect Foundation

The past few months I've been on a foundation search.  A foundation for mature skin that wasn't heavy, had medium coverage, that would help fine lines and wrinkles, and wouldn't slide off my face in the afternoon. That's not a lot to ask for, right???  I tried a lot of samples and narrowed my choice down to three:  Estee Lauder Futurist Age-Resisting Foundation, Lancome Teint Rénergie Lift R.A.R.E.™, and Hourglass Veil Fluid Makeup.

I purchased the Hourglass Veil Fluid Makeup and tried it for a week. If you haven't heard of the Hourglass brand, it is a fairly new, high end cosmetic brand.  Hourglass products are developed without the use of parabens, overpowering fragrances or animal-testing.  The Hourglass Fluid Makeup was a beautiful foundation with great coverage, but I just didn't like the way it looked on my skin, so I returned it.  

My second choice was the Lancome Teint Rénergie Lift R.A.R.E.™.  I got a sample of it and used it for about a week.  I really wanted to like this foundation because I read so many good things about it, but it didn't work out for me.  It seemed a bit drying and made my skin look cakey.  

My third choice was the Estee Lauder Futurist Age-Resisting Foundation and I used it for four weeks.  I loved the consistency of this foundation and the coverage was perfect, a light to medium coverage.  My makeup routine is to cleanse, tone, moisturize, wait five minutes for the moisturizer to absorb into my skin, then apply my foundation.  

The problem I had with this foundation was that I couldn't get it blended into the skin.  I used one pump of the foundation and applied it using several different methods, a flat foundation brush, a round foundation brush, my fingers, and a damp beauty blender.  When I applied powder to try to set the foundation, it stuck to the foundation in globs.  I couldn't apply the powder smoothly because the foundation was "wet" on my skin.  I applied the powder with either the powder brush or the powder puff, using a light rolling motion across the face. Nothing worked.  The powder ended up looking cakey and sat in the lines under my eyes, in the corners of my nose and in my laugh lines.  I even tried several different powders, the Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Skin Smoothing Loose Powder and the Laura Mercier Invisible Loose Setting Powder.  I used the foundation with and without a primer (Smasbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Light) and it made no difference  After four weeks, I gave up.

So, the search was on....again!  I went to Sephora and Ulta and couldn't find anything I wanted to try.  I walked by the Saks Fifth Avenue store and saw their Chanel makeup section through the window.  I had never shopped at Saks before - there is never anything in there I can afford!  But, I figured why not, I'll check out the Chanel makeup.  I explained to the Chanel makeup artist what I was looking for and she recommended the Chanel Lift Lumiere Firming and Smoothing Fluid Makeup ($65).  She did a color match and I made the purchase.  I also purchased the Poudre Universelle Compact Natural Finish Pressed Powder ($45) and the Eclat Lumiere Highlighter Face Pen ($40).  

The next morning I did my usual makeup routine and used the Chanel Makeup.  OMGosh!!!!  This foundation is amazing!!!  It is weightless medium to full coverage, has a natural luminous finish and it goes on beautifully. The description of the foundation on the Chanel website is:   "A SOFT CRYSTAL LUMIÈRE™ complex visibly diminishes the look of wrinkles and fine lines, setting makeup imperceptibly and controlling shine without a hint of chalkiness. Emollients deliver essential hydration, and firming polymers provide skin with an impeccably smooth surface and the look and feel of an immediate 'lift'."  Let me just say, that is the truth!!!  My skin looks amazing and my fine lines and wrinkles are less noticeable!  Yahoo!  The Poudre Universelle Compact Natural Finish Pressed Powder is translucent with a natural matte finish and has a wonderfully soft feel.  It makes my skin look soft and smooth.  I use the Eclat Lumiere Highlighter Face Pen on my dark circles, my laugh lines and the corners of my nose.  It also reduces the appearance of fine lines and covers my dark circles beautifully.  It gives my eyes a nice brightening lift.

I'm happy to announce that my search for the perfect foundation is over.  The Chanel Lift Lumiere Firming and Smoothing Fluid Makeup will be my go to foundation for a long time.  It is a bit expensive but it is worth every penny.  If you can only afford to purchase one high end makeup item, save your money and buy this foundation. It is the perfect foundation for mature skin!! 

Take good care of yourself.....

LiLash Review

Menopause has wide-ranging effects on a woman's body. With the attendant decrease and fluctuations in female hormones, some amount of hair loss is common and can affect hair not only on the head, but hair all over the body. Fluctuations in hormone levels can also cause an unwanted increase in facial hair. It may affect eyelashes and eyebrows as well as hair on the scalp. Oh joy, another fun fact about menopause!

In the past year or so, I have noticed I have thinning eyelashes and eyebrows. My eyebrows are about half the width they used to be but I can fix that with an eyebrow pencil. The eyelashes are a bit more difficult to correct.

So, I started doing some research on eyelash enhancers. I began reading about Latisse but decided I didn't want to go to the trouble and expense of finding a Dermatologist to prescribe the prescription. I searched on-line for over the counter eyelash enhancers and found LiLash eyelash serum.

LiLash claims that it is "the world's most popular purified eyelash serum, giving you the sexy lashes you have always dreamed of." Wow, was I ever excited about that! No doctor appointment, no prescription, AND the sexy lashes I have always dreamed of. I did some research on LiLash, reading a lot of reviews, watching a lot of YouTube reviews and I didn't see many negative comments or reviews on it. So, I decided to give it a try. LiLash can only be purchased on-line from http://www.lilash.com/ and has a 90 day money back guarantee. It's rather expensive, at $139.97 a tube.

 

It comes in an eyeliner type bottle and the instructions for use are:

1.Apply once a day, morning or evening, to clean dry skin. Allow LiLash to dry for 2 to 3 minutes before applying other cosmetics.

2.Remove the applicator from the tube and carefully wipe off any excess product on the inside of the tube.

3.Apply the applicator to the skin of the upper eyelid along the lash line from inner to outer corner of the eye.

A single application stroke is all that is required. LiLash is highly concentrated so little is needed for your best lashes.

Some of the side effects include and are not limited to: irritated, itchy or red eyes, and a slight darkening of the skin on the eyelid where the product has been applied. My side effects have been blood shot eyes the following day and my eyelids have darkened a bit in small patches. Looks like my eyelid has freckles. LiLash claims these dark spots will naturally fade with discontinued use of the product. The directions say you'll start seeing results after using the product for 30 days. When you stop using the product, your lashes will fall out as they normally do, and will grow back to the original length they were before using the product.

I have been using LiLash nightly since April 1st, and I have to say my eyelashes are a little longer and fuller, but they are NOT the "sexy lashes I have always dreamed of". Is LiLash worth the time and money? I don't know, I guess the jury is still out on that. It does bother me that my eyes are so blood shot. Blood shot eyes are not attractive no matter how long your eyelashes are. If you have really short and thin eyelashes, it might be worth trying. For me personally, I doubt I'll purchase it again. I've started researching the Tarte Cosmetics multiplEYE natural lash enhancer. Their website says, "Achieve a 152% increase in the appearance of lash length with multiplEYE, a natural lash enhancer." I like the idea of a "natural" lash enhancer. No nasty chemicals and it's a lot less expensive at $65.00. The product has good reviews on it's website from people who have used it. See it here:  http://www.tartecosmetics.com/

Oh, if you don't want to fill in your eyebrows with an eyebrow pencil, the makers of LiLash also make LiBrow specifically for eyebrows.

Take good care of yourself.....

Clarisonic Mia Review

Clarisonic Mia Review

Pores, pores and more pores.  As I’ve gotten older I’ve noticed the pores on my face have gotten much larger.  My skin looks dull, I have oily spots, dry patches, and lines.  My skin just looked old and tired!  So I got online and started doing some research for products to help with these skin issues.  What did I find?  A Clarisonic Mia!

My Mia did not come with the blue brush head, I purchased it later.

I read about what the Clarisonic could do for the skin and I read a lot of reviews and tutorials.  Not many people had negative things to say about it.  So, I went to www.clarisonic.com and purchased the Clarisonic Mia.  I’m a very skeptical person but there was a 100% money back guarantee, so I figured I didn’t have much to lose.  It was $149.00 and it came with the charger, a trial size of the Gentle Hydro Cleanser and one “sensitive” brush head.  The Mia comes in 10 different colors, I got white.  It holds a charge for at least a week, longer if you only use it once a day, as I do.  Great for travel!!
 
I started using the Clarisonic and I have to say, within a few days there was a noticeable change to my skin.  My skin feels firmer, the lines aren’t as pronounced, it has reduced the appearance of my pore size, and my skin just looks and feels better, even a little younger.  Yahoo!

The directions say that it can be used twice a day but I only use it in the evenings.  I remove all my makeup first, then I use the Clarisonic.  I rub it all over my face with light pressure.  It will stay on for 60 seconds then will shut off.  The inner circle brushes of the brush head rotate while the outer, taller brushes don’t move at all.  They are to keep the cleanser from splashing in your eyes.  I haven’t tried the Gentle Hydro Cleanser  yet, I use the Estee Lauder Soft Clean Moisture Rich Foaming Cleanser.  I cleanse my skin with the EL Soft Clean Cleanser and make sure all my makeup is off. I wet my skin again, put a little more cleanser on my hands and apply to my face.  Then I use the Clarisonic all over my face.  The directions say to put the cleanser directly on the brush head, but I find that it uses a lot more product then if you put the product directly on the face.  I go through 1 ½ or two cycles, splash my face with water and pat with a dry towel.  That’s it!  My skin looks and feels soft, clean, and wonderful (as wonderful as can be at this age, anyway).  I’ve noticed my skin care creams seem to work a lot better, too. 

Clarisonic says to purchase a new brush head every 3 - 4 months.  I’ve had mine for four months and I can just now see the bristles getting a bit out of shape.  Sort of like a toothbrush that’s been used for awhile.  I purchased a new “Deep Pore Cleansing” brush head for my Clarisonic at www.skinmedix.com and got it for $18.00 plus free shipping (It’s the blue brush head in the picture above).  Clarisonic sells it for $25.00 or you can buy two for $40.00. 

Since I don’t use the Clarisonic in the morning, I use the Purity cleanser by Philosophy on my face in the morning when I’m in the shower.  It is a nice cleanser and is very gentle for the skin.  I just think the Estee Lauder Soft Clean Moisture Rich Foaming Cleanser is a more robust cleanser for removing all the makeup before using the Clarisonic.

Purity in the morning, Estee Lauder in the evening.

So, if any of you out there want a change in the appearance of your skin, I highly recommend the Clarisonic.  Check out their website to learn more about it.  Search for YouTube videos on the Clarisonic, there are a lot of reviews there.  You can also Google “Clarisonic Mia” and might be able to purchase it at a different store using an online coupon code.  I think Ulta and Sephora sell it as well.

Take good care of yourself….

My First Entry

So...this is my first blog entry.

A little bit about me. I'm happily married and 48 years old. Seriously?!? The last time I looked in the mirror, I was 28 years old. Where did the time go??

I started this blog because I wanted a place where I could write about being a woman who is going through all things middle aged. Things like menopause, wrinkles, sleepless nights, going from a size 4 when I was 28 to a size 10 now at 48. Things like why it's so hard to lose weight at this age and why the heck is it so hot in here!?! :)

There are hundreds of blogs and YouTube vidoes regarding makeup and skin care products, but I haven't run across many that are for mature skin. Most of them are for young women in their teens, twenties and thirties, who wear dark smokey eyes, glitter eyeshadow, can create "cat eyes" with their eyeliner, wear a size zero and have bigger makeup budgets then I will ever have. When I was that age, Cover Girl was my "Holy Grail" (a term they use in their vidoes when they've found the ultimate product).

This blog will review makeup and skin care for "mature skin". I'll discuss makeup tips and products that I've found that help with fine lines and wrinkles. I'll discuss exercise, vitamins and supplements, and even some tasty and healthy recipes (yes, I used tasty and healthy in the same sentence).

So, please join me in my journey through middle age and join in the conversation. I think we'll have some good conversations and some good laughs along the way.

Take good care of yourself....