|
So I wanted to do a post about concealers, because I have some new ones. Also I wanted to not forget some great products that have been ride or die for me personally. Then I will sling in some that of course I don't care for and I bet you can guess what one of them is.  Recently, I got the new Tarte Shape Tape Concealer in Light. It's only available at Ulta and on Tarte's website. I really thought I wasn't going to like it because it oxidized like crazy on my hand when I swatched it. So I was sweating it. I also originally wanted the shade Fair. After I applied it while doing my makeup though, I LOVE it. It didn't oxidize, the shade couldn't have been any better and it didn't make my under eye area look "older" or "dry". It was actually amazing. This is now one of my faves. It's right up there with Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer which IS my favorite. This reminds me a lot of the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer, formula wise, only this is more hydrating on me. The NARS.... I was one of the few who didn't like it. It made my eye area look super old and dry. This doesn't do that but still the same great opaque coverage and great color. The wand is gigantic though! The packaging is also very bulky as well. Which is fine with me but I've never seen a wand that huge on concealer. This is $24 for .33 oz which is a good price in my opinion.  Also, I got the new Becca Aqua Luminous Perfecting Concealer. This one I'll be honest is just, eh. There are things I like about it and nothing I really hate, but it doesn't "wow" me. This is a super hydrating and luminous concealer. When I say "luminous" it has light reflecting qualities to it, not that it highlights the under eye area or anything. Honestly, that's why I don't love it. I got the 2nd to lightest shade (Fair) and swatching it was really deceiving. It looked more full coverage and much brighter/lighter shade wise. However, when I applied it, it seemed to lose some of it's coverage and the shade just kinda became the shade of my skin and didn't keep it's original color. Which not everyone likes to brighten and highlight with a concealer and if you are one of those you may truly love this. It's wonderfully hydrating like I said and gives a healthy look to the skin especially paired with the Becca Under Eye Brightener/Corrector pot. It doesn't crease terribly bad. I did notice that it did crease some as the day went on, and that it seemed like I lost even more coverage as the day went on as well. So if you don't have dark circles or if you have very mild ones and are just looking for a nice concealer that will help cover them and not be super full coverage but look very healthy and luminous, you may love this. This is $30 for .18 oz. A bit pricey in my opinion I would've like to seen it around $28 for .20 oz. That's just me though.  Next I have the Too Faced Born This Way concealer in the shade Very Fair which is the lightest shade. The first 3 I think I could've worn but I wanted something bright. Luckily, I got this shade because once applied it was actually darker than how it swatched so it was perfect color wise. This also smells like coconuts or something really refreshing to me. Which is cool. The formula is pretty thin but provides a good amount of coverage at the same time and I really like that. I will say that I like the Shape Tape over this though. Specifically because the Shape Tape has and maintains better coverage and keeps it's color through out the day better than this one. None the less this is a very good concealer. I think it would be great for people who have some texture issues around the eye, dry under eyes, or they get cakey fast. Because of the thin formula this is, it won't emphasize that texture or really set heavy. People love this and I totally understand why. This is $28 for .23 oz.  Now lets jump back to something that's not new and that's the Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless concealer. I have this auto delivered to my home. I love this so much, I make sure to never run out of it. I use shade Light Warm. It's a serum style concealer with amazing coverage. Which is why I love it. It's the perfect pale yellow undertone based concealer that I prefer and super light weight and the coverage is legit the whole time. I don't know how they do it but it's amazing. This is $28 for .16 oz and they also carry travel size in select shades for $12. That price kinda stinks but a little goes a really long way so I think one tube of this usually will last me about 6 months because it's thinner consistency and full coverage so you don't need a lot.  Going back even farther, the MAC Pro Longwear concealer is an old stand by that I still love. It's more liquid type formula in a pump and it's anti-crease. It works amazing as an eyeshadow primer as well. This is another that I always have just in case. This was probably the first great concealer I ever tried, that satisfied me and it still does. It can be somewhat wasteful with product because mine pumps out a lot and I never use as much as it pumps out, but what can you do. This is $22 for .30 oz which is a good price and a good amount of product. One bottle lasts me a year usually. No joke. These are available on the MAC website, free standing stores, and dept stores that have MAC counters ie: Dillards, Belks, Macys, etc.  One that I think goes unnoticed a lot that probably shouldn't is the Anastasia Beverly Hills concealers. They've been out for a long time, they come in a pot type packaging, they are amazingly full coverage. These, I feel, are really great for correcting circles and also for spot concealing because the formula is very thick and creamy. Also it's very shiny. Some might would say it's heavy. I think it's really good and they have a huge shade range per usual. It's also good for "sculpting" the brows or cleaning up liquid lipstick. It's very beneficial to have in my opinion. I personally like this under the eyes, I apply the tiniest amount with a concealer brush and it works really good for me but I know some don't like it for that and to each their own. The shade I have currently is .75 which I think is a more neutral base (incredibly pale as well) so I'm going to get shade 1.0 which is a bit more yellow-ish in tone which .75 works just fine.. This is $20 for .35oz. Which is a good amount for that price. Judging by how little you actually need I honestly don't know when you'd run out of this.  Of course I'm gonna throw in one that I don't care for. I've tried and tried to like this and use it or find a way to use it and I swear it just gets worse even more so now than when I initially reviewed it and that's the new Kat Von D Lock It Concealer. This takes forever to set, it settles into ANY fine lines you may have or didn't know you had, and for as opaque as it comes out it just doesn't keep that coverage. I have tried everything under the sun to make this work and I always look about 10 years older when I have it on, it requires a lot of touching up and just doesn't jive with me man. I know I'm like the 1% that doesn't like it apparently, if you believe anything on social media, but I can honestly say that after giving it NUMEROUS attempts, I officially hate it. This is $26 for .22 oz.  Also, my friend Edie at my Sephora (Hi Edie!!) introduced me to one of her fave stand by concealers which is the Lancome Effacernes Waterproof Under Eye Concealer. I love it when concealers are especially made for the under eye. This is a cool concealer, it comes in a squeeze tube, it's good coverage, and it's actually pretty thin formula wise in my opinion. Usually in squeeze tubes they're very thick. This really isn't. So thus it doesn't feel heavy or look cakey on your skin. It also doesn't budge. Once it's on there, it is on there folks, and lasts a really long time as well as not creasing (I find). So this is great for brides and big occasions because you really don't have to worry about touching up. It's been out for a long time as well. My shade is Light Buff. I feel like this doesn't get talked about enough and a lot of times they're still sold out of certain shades on Sephora. It's $31 for .52 oz. (Which is a TON of product). Like that's half the amount of a regular foundation kids.
These are just the ones that came to mind for me to talk about, but some honorable mentions of some that I do really like are: Baremineral Bareskin Serum Concealer $20 (similar to UD Naked Skin concealer) Sephora Bright Future Serum Concealer (more so for brightening rather than concealing) $14 NYX Gotcha Covered Concealer (for spot concealing) $6 Maybelline Fit Me Concealer $7 MUFE Ultra HD Concealer $27 Here's some promos for Sephora: Free Sephora Collection Mini lip product w/ $25 purchase code: SCLIPS Free eye care mini with $25 purchase code: EYELOVEIT Free skin clarifying mini with $25 purchase code: CLEARDAYS Free Formula X Top Coat Mini with $25 purchase code: TOPTHIS Free Too Faced Mascara Remover Mini w/ $25 purchase code: MELTOFF Ulta coupon right now: 20% off qualifying purchase (excludes prestige brands) "407339"
0 Comments
Farmacy, who I've talked about a few times on here, is debuting a line of honey products!! You'll already know that I really love Farmacy products. I think they're innovative and refreshing and I love their entire process of skin care combined with the knowledge of plants and farming experts so that they know the unique qualities every ingredient has.
This product is no different, it's the Honey Potion Renewing Antioxidant Hydration Mask with Echinacea GreenEnvyTM Honey. I'm gonna leave their description of the mask below: "Through an intensely moisturizing combination of honey (a natural humectant used since ancient times), propolis (a healing antiseptic found in beehives) and amino acid-rich royal jelly, the mask enhances skin renewal for a younger appearance." 
So for those of you who have skin like the Sahara Desert, this is ideal for you. It's beyond hydrating, and makes the skin appear younger by promoting skin renewal faster and it also promotes a more evenly toned complexion.
This mask warms the skin as you massage it. It comes out looking like, honey obviously, and then as you massage it onto the skin it warms up and turns white and then you leave it on for about 10- 15 minutes and rinse off. Talk about feeling relaxed! I think this is an awesome product but I expect no less from Farmacy, they always provide top of the line products and they are a breath of fresh air for the skin care community I think. Like I said before their approach to skin care is very unique and "home grown" in a way and I think we could all use a little more of that. This is : Naturally derived ingredients Free of Parabens Free of Formaldehyde Free of artificial coloring Not tested on animals **This post was powered by Brand Backer**  Alright guys, so remember last year when Sephora done the Epic Rewards and it was an Epic Fail for most people? I was one of the lucky ones that actually got one last year but I still don't know how I even lucked out. This year though they are doing Rewards Bazaar, some have already been posted but what's awesome about this is every Tuesday and Thursday from 9am-5pm they are launching new big point perk rewards "often" so keep a check on it throughout the day I guess. Now, I do not know if this will be from here on out or for a limited time. I know that at least for the month of September they'll be launching stuff. There is a preview they sent out of some stuff that will be launched, the quantities they have, and different point balances they take. They will obviously go very fast, and some things they still just have 1 available ll together. Like the the big 15k and up rewards. So it might still be a nightmare, I won't lie, but it looks like they're really trying for everyone to have a chance to hopefully score at least something and I can appreciate that. I hope this go around is much better for them and the customers cause it was brutal last year.  So here is a preview of what I hope is just some of the rewards for September. I'm not overly impressed with what I'm seeing so far except the Tarte set, but even that is mainly a lot of deluxe samples excect for maybe a few things. Still it's a very nice set. I haven't decided if I wanna use my points on that, and I definitely am not giving 750 points for 2 liners from Kat Von D. So here's hoping that they're gonna roll out some more than just these. I really feel like last year they had seriously awesome 2000 point perks and so on but they ran out in literally 30 seconds so maybe they're having to scale down in order for everyone to have a chance and that's understandable. The Rewards Bazaar is on the home page of Sephora right now so you can look at the previews and everything, also here is the link to it as well. So God speed and good luck!
  Lately, there has been a lot of buzz around Juvia's Place eye shadow palettes. For good reason. They are affordable and the shadows inside are HUGE. The packaging is bright and fun. I absolutely love it inside and out. So this particular one is on sale right now for $32.50, it's limited edition, and you get 16 large shadows. Five of those shadows being matte. I've heard some say that the matte shades aren't the best or not as pigmented but I think for the most part they're great. The only one that I have a issue with is Bori, it's a hot pink matte with glitter. It doesn't swatch the best but it applies to the lid and crease just fine. Zobo feels a little dry but it also applies beautifully. The shimmers are absolutely insane, they're beyond creamy and pigmented, so I love this palette because you have a good mix of warm neutrals, colorful shades, and standard neutral shades. So I honestly would try this one first so that you can have a little of everything. The packaging is quite tall, it's thin but it is tall so bear that in mind for storage. I love this palette. Even with the two shades that don't feel as nice I still think it's an amazing palette. I'm actually headed to buy another one of their palettes because I do love this so much. I'll leave swatches down below of each row from left to right. I feel like Juvia's Place just exploded on the scene and it's completely deserved. Here is the direct link to the Masquerade Palette. Definitely go check them out.  Swatches from top to bottom is in order of left to right in the palette, for reference.
Most of these swatches are just one swipe. There's also no primer being used the only ones that required more than one swipe was Bori and Zobo and I think I had to build up Cairo a little so you could see the intensity of it. Like I said these all apply wonderfully to the lid and they blend just as good. So I honestly can't say much of anything negative toward this palette. I'm super pumped for my next one.  Last week Ardency Inn sent me an awesome package of everything up above. They also made me an affiliate with them which I'm very honored that they wanted to do that. Basically I just wanted to give you an overview of their products because I've been using them for about 2 years and I really do love them. I honestly don't even know where to start. So I guess I'm gonna start with what I know the best which is their eye shadows. They are Manuka Honey Enriched Pigment shadows aka: super intense. I have 5 shades all together. My favorites being Royal and Rose Gold. Royal is a gorgeous Royal Purple. It's a true purple not so dark that it looks black. The shade Rose Gold is a darker rose gold in my opinion with not a ton of pink in tone. The other shades I have are Peacock (duochrome of teal and red brown), Copper, and Sunday. Copper needs no description its straight up copper a light toned copper. Sunday is a true gold. All of these are wonderful, I've not been disappointed by a single shadow yet from them. Next Punker Liquid Liner. I was running out of mine so I'm so glad they sent back ups. Not only is this a waterproof but it's jet black and very pigmented. Some liquid liners are not as opaque black they're almost sheer or too thin in liquid to where they run on you. So this doesn't budge, it makes a fierce wing, and I also use this in artistry for detailing or drawing for costume makeup or sfx makeup because this gives you a lot of control. It's also more of a matte black finish and not shiny black. Which I like. They sent 4 Modster Supercharged Eyeliners. The colors are: black, gold, blue, and brown. I definitely wanted black to use in my water line. Everyone talks about how great it is in the water line. I find it is definitely the creamiest for the water line but it doesn't stay there. So if you're gonna use it for that then take it with you for touch ups much like you would with other eyeliners. Next is the Modster Big mascara. I actually really like this! Typically I don't like many mascaras. I do like this one though. The brush is curved and quite big but I like how it builds up the lashes. I have short, thin lashes and this isn't clumpy or messy at all, at least for me. I have two Modster lipsticks in shades: Valentine, and Love Cat. Valentine is a great warm rose neutral shade. Love Cat is a classic red. They feel great. As with any lipstick you'll need to re-apply as the day goes on but I love them, they're very pigmented and creamy, which is all I ask in a lipstick really. Lastly I have a loose pigment in Friendly Fire. It's a white duo chrome sparkly shade. I love loose pigments, this is no different. It has a sifter which makes life so much easier. I'm SUPER pumped for this. I'm gonna leave some pics below of me wearing some of the products. You won't be able to really tell with the mascara but hopefully other things you will. Some products I haven't gotten to use just yet but I will, trust me.  Here I'm wearing Copper on the lids and Valentine on the lips.  Here I'm wearing Modster Supercharged liner in Black and it's smudged out.  I'm using Punker liquid liner for that ferocious wing you see right there.  I used Punker liner for the drawing and also Royal eyeshadow for the purple in this "Suicide Squad" Joker look.  I used the Punker liner for the detailing and drawing of this "torn comic book" look.  Here I'm wearing Rose Gold shadow in the center of the lid.  This is basically all Royal shadow with some glitter over top.
As I said earlier, I am now an affiliate with Ardency Inn so if you use my code "LOVEMASCARA" you will get 15% off your entire purchase on their website. 
Recently I got the chance to review some awesome skincare products. This company is from Britain, and it's Ark Skincare. The brand itself intrigues me because it addresses skin care by age. So that's the categories: teens and 20's, 30's-40's, and 50 and older. Basically the teens and 20's is all Age and Protect, the 20's and 30's are Age Defend, an 50+ is Age Defy. So what I got to try out was one of the "pre cleanse" and the Age and Protect moisturizer.
Packaging is an A+ for me on the Age and Protect, because the moisturizer comes out through a pump, like a nail polish remover pump, know what I'm talking about? Anyway, this comes out when you press down the top and you get a good amount that comes up through the center. It's basically like portion control for your skin, because you only need a thin layer as it is super hydrating. I'm someone who really likes to slap on the moisturizer but I've went by the book with this and it is really hydrating so I totally agree with using a thin layer on your face. It's also a moisturizer that just feels nice and doesn't try to tackle too many issues in one product. It's easy on the skin (for me anyway) and has no intense fragrance. It has Vitamins A, C, D, an E. Not only does it hydrate but it also soothes skin irritations. I really like it so far. I feel like it's ideal to use under foundations that are a bit drier in formula this makes you skin texture look so smooth and plump with foundations like that, without dealing with being super oily later. The Pre Cleanse is also super cool. It's been given Beauty Awards and so on. It's basically like step one in actually cleaning your skin really good. The intended purpose is to put this on your dry skin and wet your hands and then keep rubbing so that it lathers just a tiny bit and then you rinse. After that you can deep clean. This is where I start using my Foreo Luna to really remove what's left of my makeup or whatever and exfoliate. It definitely makes you feel super clean. So I think this product is very cool as well because it's not something you see often. I know there are plenty of things to take off makeup but this seems to do better as far as from a cleaning view. I feel like makeup wipes, just move stuff around and clog my pores up even more. I feel the same way about cleansing oils, which I don't feel this is really an oil because it's much thinner. It reminds me more of a micellar water more than an oil. So I'm giving this an A+ too. Ark Skincare is pretty much a luxurious brand that's been in Elle, Glamour, and OK Magazine. As I said they design their products with age as the first thought and skin concerns. The reason they treat by age is due to hormonal change your body goes through as you get older. I'm gonna leave a statement from them below that explains it much better than I do. "There are two main transition periods in the aging process where there is a dramatic shift in hormone production and a significant change in the way the body functions: late 20s to early 30s and late 50s to early 60s. ARK has looked at the skin externally and internally during these periods, to create three age-specific product ranges, which support skin with the optimum level of nourishment and skin-perfecting ingredients. Complemented by the Skin Perfector range of treatment products and the Skin Essential range of daily necessities, Ark Skincare offers a solution for all of your skincare needs" The Age and Protect moisturizer retails for $70 and the Pre Cleanse retails for $60. I'll leave the linkhere for you to shop the site. **This post was powered by Brand Backer**  ,As you may know Anastasia Beverly Hills (ABH) has released stick foundations! I'm super excited about this because everything that ABH puts out, I know has taken years in the making and honestly I can remember nearly two years ago seeing Norvina asking about formulation preferences and what have you, from their customers. Which I think is what makes their company so brilliant is that: they do their research, they're meticulous, and they have a strong social media presence where they interact with their customers and ask their opinions and also listen to their requests/concerns. I've always truly admired that and they are constantly trying to put out the best products possible and I don't think their has ever been a product I didn't like from them to be honest. This is no different. These released on Thursday, they are $25 each, there are 30 shades 4 will be coming in September, they will be in store toward the end of August. These are targeted for more oily/combination skin. I totally agree, because it's a drier formula. Although, I have normal skin and this works just fine for me. I would say it's a medium coverage and build-able coverage. So it could easily be full coverage if that's what you wanted. My honest first thoughts of this (this isn't sponsored in any way btw), is it's unlike any stick foundation I have. Most stick foundations are very dewy, heavy, and super full coverage which can be cakey. The MUFE Ultra HD foundation stick, which is also great, is very dewy on me and can sometimes feel a bit heavy on my skin. I have shade Ivory, and this is super light weight you don't feel like anything is on your skin. I buff it in with a flat top kabuki just because that's what gives me the best coverage and a damp sponge tends to sheer out foundations on me. So that's why I prefer the kabuki brush for this. The finish is a satin finish in my opinion. Also these are being marketed for cream highlight and cream contour sticks as well. Which I totally understand because of the formula and how light weight and not over powering they are. I used it the first day with no primer, and no setting spray because I wanted to see how long lasting the foundation was on it's own and what it done without extra reinforcement. It got slightly dewy not bad, just a bit, but it's humid and hot here in TN so I think that was why. It didn't seem to break up at all and my highlight, contour, and blush stayed in place and also didn't oxidize as the day went on. Nor did they get patchy. I'm thoroughly impressed. I finally took it off after 8 hours, when I washed my face, and it was still in tact. It had gotten a little more dewy but again I didn't have any primer, setting spray, nothing on to help this stay to its actual finish. So I think that this would be really awesome for oily skin types when using a primer or setting spray, or both.  Here I'm wearing shade Ivory. I tend to like foundations that are more yellow based and this is a great neutral-warm based foundation for me. I'm also pretty dang pale right now too so I'm loving the shade range they have. There are shades that are even lighter than this. They have the palest shades to a great selection of deep shades. They will be available in Macy's, Dillards, Sephora, and Ulta stores. They are available now on the ABH website.
 So it's time for another look inside this month's Play! by Sephora. I'll get straight into it.
This box is: "The Eye Openers" Lancome: The Smoothing & Glow Boosting Liquid Care Algenist: Complete Eye Renewal Balm Urban Decay: Perversion Mascara Sephora Collection: Contour Eye Pencil 12 hr Wear Make Up For Ever: Artist Shadow in 6P01 Clean Perfume in Reserve I'm gonna say right off the bat this box was lack luster for me. Mainly because I seen a lot of repeats of point perks or "deluxe samples" you get for free as promotion when you spend $25. So that makes me a little disappointed. If I'm paying $10 a month even though I know that's not much for a box of samples. Still I would like them to be different and not something I've seen a lot of been offered as a promo. Maybe one or two things but not all of them, you know what I mean? I kinda feel like this box was a waste of $10 is what I'm saying. Anyway lets get into this: Lancome The Smoothing and Glow Boosting Liquid Care: Long description short, this is supposed to be a very hydrating moisturizer, that makes you look more radiant and what have you. This may or may not be good but it's such a small sample I don't see how you could get more than a weeks use (maybe) out of this. Algenist: I have the full size of this. I've also received the sample of it a few times including this time. This is a very good eye cream. It's definitely worth checking out. Urban Decay Perversion Mascara: This is my favorite "high end" mascara. I love it. I prefer travel size mascara because we never finish a full tube of mascara before it needs to be thrown out (3 months is how long mascara lasts). I've also received this as a sample a few times as well. Sephora Collection eye pencil: I think I seen this as a point perk. The shade I have is Plum I think. It's supposed to be water proof and 12 hr wear. I'm not a big crayon eye liner fan. There's only a few I like. This could be interesting. Make Up For Ever Artist Shadow: this is in the shade 6P01 it's like a taupe color with a touch of plum. It very shimmery and it's beautiful. It's creamy and lovely like all the Artist Shadows. So this was cool to have in the box. There is a 500 pt perk out right now from Make Up For Ever and it looks like the eye shadow in that is the same eye shadow in this box. I can't be sure but they look very similar. Clean Reserve perfume: I'm sorry but this smells like really intense laundry detergent. Like really strong detergent. It gives me a headache and I don't like it. So that's that. Sorry it was kinda negative. I'm just not overly impressed with this box. I'd like to see some brands that are lesser known that are "under the radar", for example I loved that OUAI was included last month, for the love of God get rid of the perfume samples, and I'd like to see just one skin care product. That is if I had any say in this which I don't. Here is the link to sign up for the subscription if you want it.  Mmmmk so this is kinda a strange post too, however I just happen to like telling you things that I like. (and no this isn't sponsored). I'm from Tennessee so I've always liked tea. Mainly though it's always just been iced sweet tea or a flavored iced sweet tea. I love blackberry or raspberry unsweet teas, especially the ones from Sonic, Cracker Barrel, or Logan's steakhouse.
Lately though, I've been drinking hot teas. I've probably been doing that for around a year, but it's just as of the last few months that it's become a daily thing. It started with Green Tea and Chamomile as a way to improve my health and immune system. Then I started drinking Celestial teas in Vanilla Sleepytime Tea, which I drink before bed. I also drink Celestial Peppermint tea and Honey Lemon Ginzing Green Tea (in the morning). It took me a while before I could drink hot tea and like it. It wasn't something I ever like. Not one bit. Especially the Sleepytime tea. However, when I found the Vanilla I really loved it. Mind you I'd gotten used to the Chamomile and Green Tea before finding the Vanilla. So now I drink tea twice a day. The Sleepytime Tea is just what it sounds like, it's organic but it chills you out and helps you get to sleep and relaxes the body, which is why I drink it. Chamomile is obviously very good for your immune system, overall health, if you're sick mixing in some honey and lemon is very helpful especially if it's a cold or something similar. We all know the benefits of Green Tea so I won't get into that. Peppermint tea helps heal the stomach which is great for me. It helps relieve nausea and irritable bowel syndrome and what not. Also good if you have a flu/cold cause it eases the coughing. It's helpful if your stressed. Some think it's actually a appetite suppressant (unlike the next one I'm going to talk about) and I've heard some say it helps with headaches as well. Recently though, I've been learning about teas that are more beneficial for your body. One of those being Dandelion Root tea. I get the completely Organic one. To hit the high notes: it helps improve liver function, detoxes the body of toxins, is a diuretic that helps get rid of bloating and flushes the body out (which may or may not be a good idea for you so consult a doctor before drinking it.), it's a light laxative. It's also supposed to "improve your immune system". I've seen where some recommend 2 cups a day but I just drink one. I can't say that I enjoy the taste of it but it's not the worst. I try to get in a cup everyday just because of the benefits that it has. It also is said to "improve appetite". I would say I agree with that so far. Which I don't necessarily like but it's not a bad thing necessarily. For iced tea I really like Pomegranate tea from Tazo. They use that at Starbucks but you can buy it at the grocery store. It's nice to mix with Lemonade as well. I also have a off brand Wild Berry Hibiscus. I make both of these in a large pitcher with nothing added. I add a dash of raspberry sometimes or Stevia to sweeten it up when I pour a glass or tumbler full. I like iced flavored Green Tea as well. I don't drink it as often as my hot Green Tea though. So that's all my teas that I drink and love. I've never tried "fit teas" or anything similar to that yet. I would like to at some point but I'm really enjoying just hot tea at the moment. It helps calm my stress and my stomach. I thought maybe it would be something interesting if you were looking to try some teas. I really recommend the Celestial brand and the Tazo of course.  I don't usually talk about lotions or things for areas of the body other than the face. However, I wanted to do a post on this because I was so impressed with one of these items and with the other extremely let down. I had a Power Port put in my chest back in January and it left an ugly scar. A "keloid" type scar actually which is thick and bulky. I'm not prone to those so I don't know why this done it, and trust me I have plenty of scars. Anyways, it is now August and this scar still itches like crazy and also is still pink and raised. After a while a regular scar turns white and flattens out. This one was not doing that at all. So every six weeks I go and get my port flushed at my surgeons office so they can check it and I was asking him about my scar and how much it itched! It was literally driving me crazy. Plus I hate the way it looks. I try and at least cover up the redness with concealer finally just accepting that I wouldn't be able to do anything about the size nor the texture of it. I had been using scar cream as soon as I could but it hadn't worked and I just didn't feel like it was going to. My surgeon (who is old school, but wonderful and a great surgeon), tells me that I need to be using Cocoa Butter with Vitamin E on it every day until it turns white. This whole time I'd been using Mederma. Not just Mederma but the PM Intensive Overnight Scar Cream that is supposed to be used for 8 weeks on new scars and then 3-6 months on existing scars. Well it's August, so the 8 weeks have passed by now people. This was the 2nd time he'd told me to use Cocoa Butter and Vitamin E. I just was so reluctant because my actual scar cream was around $25. It actually runs anywhere from $20-$30 but I think I paid around $25 because it was supposed to be "better". So I went directly to Walgreens to pick up some cocoa butter and found the Palmers Cocoa Butter Formula with Vitamin E.....for $6. It was a solid and not a cream but they do have a cream apparently. This reminds you of solid coconut oil, texture wise. I got it though because it was cheaper than the Nivea and honestly I didn't think it would help. So I didn't want to waste even more money. It took me a minute to get used to the fact that it was solid. I finally just started using a makeup spatula to get out a good amount of product. First thing I noticed was that I loved the smell. I LOVE the smell of this. Then I loved that it could be used anywhere on the body whether it was a scar, rough skin, dry itchy skin, or what have you. Literally after 2 weeks of using this my scar is a lighter color and doesn't itch near as much (thank you Jesus), but it's also smaller. It's still pink but it at least felt better and looked better. So I didn't stop at just my scar. I started putting it on my feet and anywhere that I had dry or rough skin. Not only does it soften the skin but it heals it too. Which is a win win for me. It's 24 hour moisture but sometimes I put it on my super dry areas 2 times a day. I'm not a fan of lotions either but this really makes a huge difference for me because it absorbs so fast. It feels a bit greasy at first but in about 2 minutes that feeling is completely gone. So to sum this up.....thanks to my scar being a pain in the ass, I found a hidden gem and then also a disappointing product as well. Perhaps on some people the Mederma PM works but for me it didn't do hardly anything, mind you it could be because this is a "keloid" type scar. This Palmer's Cocoa Butter has done more in two or three weeks than the Merderma done in 7 or 8 months. Once again the Palmer's Cocoa Butter with Vitamin E is around $6 for 3.5 oz and the Mederma PM Intensive Overnight Scar Cream is anywhere from $20-$30 for 1.0 oz. There ya have it. I know this was an odd post but I truly hope this helps someone else who may have some similar problem or can be something you refer to your friends if they are having an issue like this. Or if you just have some really dry skin here is alternative if you can't find anything that helps.  These pictures are kinda like "progress pics". My port was put in sometime in January. So the top left side is actually February 29th when I took off the final bandage. Also the whole time I was keeping it clean and putting Neosporin on it constantly so that it would heal fast.
The bottom left is May. You can see its super red, raised and quite long. That was after putting Mederma PM on it every night. (yes I am eating Sparkle Cherry Laffy Taffy, cause I'm cool like that) The right side was actually taken today which is August 13th. You can see it isn't as long, It's definitely not as red. It's still raised which I don't think it's ever going to be flat but it looks a lot better. This was after using the Palmers Cocoa Butter for 3 weeks. |
ErinI'm from Tennessee. I'm a makeup and skincare lover. I have always enjoyed creating looks but I love to help people with product knowledge and application even more. I've been able to start blogging and do these things I love because God has seen fit to bless me with the opportunity. Thanks for stopping by and visiting with me! 
  
 Categories
All
Archives
January 2022
|
RSS Feed