L.A. Fresh Travel-lite Makeup Remover Wipes

  In case I haven't mentioned it, and I am sure I haven't, I am a subscriber to the ipsybag "club".  This isn't going to be a review of the IpsyBag subscription service, but I will say that before I decided which service to subscribe to, i.e; Glossy Box, Birch Box, etc.;I did a lot of research on the different services. I polled my friends, YouTube acquaintances and on Beautylish.com. The overwhelming response was definitely to subscribe to the Ipsy Glam Bag service. Up to this point, I haven't been disappointed. I was not wowed by this month's bag, but you win some and lose some I guess. Overall, I am pleased with my subscription to this service and would recommend it. That being said, two of my reviews this week are on products I received in this months bag.

  We all know that makeup wipes and remover wipes are a makeup bag essential. If the come in little travel sizes, so much the better. There are,of course, so many to choose from. Just about every skin care line has has their own version of makeup remover wipes. But for the most part (in my humble opinion) they are basically repackaged baby wipes that maybe or maybe not, have added ingredients to dissolve makeup.

  So when I got my glam bag this month, I wasn't overexcited to find a travel pack of some new brand (new to me anyway) of makeup remover wipes, but then again, they were travel size and fit in my makeup bag...hey ho.

  This new brand touts on the packaging, " dissolves makeup from eyes, lips and face. Moisturizing formula with vitamin E". Since I have sensitive skin, I always check to see what the first ingredient is, in this case it is water..YAY!! The next was mineral oil followed by nine other ingredients that I cannot pronounce and fragrance. Because of my sensitive skin, I tend to shy away from products that have fragrance. But, really, let's face it, this product was basically (minus subscription charge +S&H) free.

  I'll admit that my curiosity was piqued at the claim that it "melts" makeup from the face, as I have severe hyperpigmentation on my cheeks and jawline and therefore use a basic foundation and Vichy DermaBlend as a concealer over my trouble areas. Mind you, if I am taking my makeup off with wipes, I can easily use 4-6 wipes. If washing my face, I have to wash twice.

Bit O'Info: you may be saying to yourself, "Self, that is a lot of product and just HAS to be bad for the skin!" It does sound like a lot of product because, well, it is. However, I have strict skin care regimen that I follow morning and night so I do not experience clogged pores or breakouts. My breakouts are always hormonal, thank you very much Mother Nature!

 Finally it was time to give this product a go.

  When I first opened the package, it did have an obvious scent, but a clean and fresh one..bonus! The wipes were quite moist, yet not soaked. The product melts makeup alright, along with my face! As soon as swiped across my face the first time, my skin was on fire. And the sensitive, thin under eye are? Fugedaboutit!! I immediately had to go and use my regular face wash just to get the product off of my skin. Yes, it was burning and stinging that bad.

  As I mentioned that I have a skin care regimen that I follow twice a day, some of the products contain Salicylic Acid and my toner has a bit of low percentage alcohol, so I would confidently say that I have built a tolerance to a little stinging. But this was like, what the heck! What melts the makeup? Muratic acid? Sheesh!

  So I went back to the label with the ingredients. Fragrance could have been the culprit, as could the mineral oil have been. Taking a second look at the nine ingredients I could not pronounce, five of them ended with -paraben. Okay, huge oversight on my part. This product is not paraben free.

  Another Bit O'Info: Parabens are a preservative found in many skin, hair and personal care products. Recent studies show that there is a link between parabens and certain types of skin cancer as well as breast cancer, as paraben mimic the hormone estrogen.
http://thegoodhuman.com/2007/06/21/what-are-parabens-and-why-should-you-avoid-them/

  Bottom line: this product contains chemicals that most people are avoiding these days, just to be on the safe side and burns like the dickens. Would I recommend this product..uh, no.

As always, this was MY experience with this product. If you decide to try it, yours may vary. If you have tried this product and have had a different experience I would love hear about it so leave a comment.

Letter grade: Big fat F!!

Product info:

www.LaFreshGroup.com

1-888-5-la-fresh

1-888-552-3737

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Love and Beauty by Forever 21 Browns/Naturals 10 Color Palette

  I must admit, I am quite excited about this palette! I purchased it at Forever 21 in Modesto, California for $5.80, but I believe it was on sale. It was located at the impulse buy displays near the registers.

  I have been wanting the Naked 1, Naked 2, and Naked Basics palettes since I first saw them. However, finances being what they are, these palettes are not a purchase I foresee in the near future. That is why I am so excited about this palette. The colors in it seemed to be possible dupes for some of the colors in the Naked palettes, especially the gold and bronze colors. Of course, not owning any of these palettes, I can't tell you if they are dupes or not, but I can tell you they are AMAZING colors. The texture of the metallics is almost like a pressed pigment, very soft. All of the colors blend with no trouble at all and the pigmentation of these shadows are fabulous!

  This palette has 10 colors, 5 matte/satin and 5 metallic. Unfortunately, the shadows themselves do not have individual names.So I numbered them, left to right, top to bottom, with coordinating numbered swatches.

Left to right top; 1 2 3 4 5
Left to right bottom 6 7 8 9 10

Color 1 is a metallic dark gold/brownish color

Color 2 is a matte medium brown

Color 3 is a metallic golden bronze

Color 4 is a bright yellow gold metallic

Color 5 is a matte very light flesh tone

Color 6 is a dark matte brown

Color 7 is a metallic brownish/burgundy/cranberry color

Color 8 is a metallic brown/bronze color

Color 9 is a satin finish pale pink

Color 10 is a satin finish brownish/taupe color

  In all honesty, I can not say for sure if any of these colors are dupes for and of the colors in the Naked palettes or MAC dupes. If you think they are, please comment below to help others out. 

  I created this look yesterday using  colors 1,5,7 and 9; along with a color from another palette soon to be reviewed. 

  Whether or not these colors are dupes for any other brand, this palette is one to definitely purchase. Having a palette that includes mattes, satins and metallics is a wonderful thing. These colors can easily create natural, romantic, smokey and vampy looks. Not to mention if you use it for a natural daytime look, the addition of just one of the metallic colors will turn your look to a going out, smokey look. The palette is not that big so it could easily fit into your purse; probably not your makeup bag unless you carry an extra large one that accommodates brushes. Since these colors are so pigmented, a little goes a long way and building color is quick and easy. Overall, this is a great palette to have  for personal use or as added product to your makeup kit. 

Letter grade: A

Thanks for taking time out of your day to read my thoughts on this product. As always, these are my opinions, and yours may very. If you have this product, please leave a comment below telling me what think of it and any looks you created with it. While creating this look, I did film it for a "Get ready with me" "Face of the Day" video which will be uploaded to my YouTube channel soon. Be sure to check my links below and let's get connected!

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www.youravon.com/clear6676

http://instagram.com/elizabethglam77/

http://www.beautylish.com/GlamourByElizabeth

http://www.beautorial.com/usr/elizabeth-martin-clear

*All posts, text and photos are the written and intellectual property of the author. Do not copy or re-post any text or photos; in whole or part as your own. Links to the full posting is allowed.* ~Give credit where credit is due~

Banana Boat Summer Color

  On my never ending quest to find THE self tanner or bronzer, I watched a lot or reviews on YouTube and up popped this little "gem". Since it is difficult to sarcasm across without hearing my voice, just letting you know that "gem" = sarcasm.

  Now, mind you, I have fair skin that burns and freckles easily and almost every self tanner I have used in the past has either turned me orange or did nothing. So when this product, for the most part, got pretty good reviews, I decided, what the hell, I'll give it a try.

  So I took my happy, pale little self down to Wal-Mart and there it was, sitting on the shelf next to all of the other tanning and sun care paraphernalia. I had my choice..Deep Dark Color or Light/Medium Color. Naturally I would have gone with the light/medium, but the reviews I watched, especially the ones with people who had the same skin type as I do, said the light/medium did nothing for them. They recommended the Ultra Dark, and the bottle says it's for all skin tones so that's what I grabbed. On my way out of the cosmetics/beauty department, I grabbed a pair of exfoliating gloves, as it had been said in the reviews, repeatedly, exfoliation is the key to prepping the body for a flawless self tanning application. On this, I absolutely agree.

  After paying $6.67 for the tanner and a buck and some change for the gloves, I was on my merry way. I went home, showered, shaved and exfoliated until my skin was nice and pink. (side note: I hadn't exfoliated in a while and I turn pink easily. There ya go.) I was really looking forward to this; perhaps this would be The One. I snaked a pair of my husband's non-latex work gloves (he's a mechanic, and I didn't want to get it one my hands) and set to work. I had decided to do just my legs for the time being, seeing as how I don't wear shorts, if it went awry, no problemo, easily covered.

  Tid bit-o-info: More and more self tanners are incorporated with a color guide or color guard so you can see where you have applied the product, eliminating (mostly) the possibility of streaking, plus it gives you an instant bronze tint to your skin while the self tanner, well, tans. If that sounds kinda scary, no worries; it washes off the next time you hop in the shower. Not the tan, even though it looks like you are washing off your tan, it's really just the color guide.

  With gloved hands, I opened the product and squeezed out a nice size mound of what looked like chocolate colored lotion. It didn't smell like chocolate though. In all fairness, it did not smell any worse or any better than other self tanners. Following the directions on the bottle to apply to clean dry skin, apply sparingly on elbows, knees and ankles; I applied away. The color guide gave a nice shimmering bronze effect to my skin, even my husband admired it. So, settling in for the night, I let the Banana Boat Summer Color work it's magic.

  The next morning I got up, looked at my legs and noticed they were the same color as the previous night, just a little faded. There was no transfer of the product to my night clothes or or any of my bedding. Nice. I got in the shower and as the color guide washed away, I kind of felt that it was an aweful lot washing off, I might be having a situation. I finished showering, dried off and went into the natural light to look at the results...

  Y'all, this went from a situation to a going's on in a heart beat! My legs were just as white as they were before I applied the product, except for one minor (HUGE) detail; the pigment had attached itself to every single freckle I had and some that I didn't even know I had! I kid you not, I looked like I swallowed a hundred dollar bill and broke out in pennies! Seriously, it was so bad that I didn't even take a picture to post showing the results. Back in the shower I went to scrub and exfoliate, only to lighten the color by a miniscule amount. Pants...here I come!

  So, yeah, that was my experience with this product. As always, results may vary from person to person. Would I recommend this? Possibly to someone that already has a nice golden or bronze pigment to their skin and just want to darken up a bit. Anyone else? Most certainly not. Obviously, if you have any hyper pigmentation to the skin, the product is going to attach to it and will darken that first. I can only imagine what it would have looked like had I not exfoliated first...tree bark anyone?

  Again, this was MY experience with this product. I cleaned, exfoliated, dried, applied sparingly, allowed to dry and all that jazz. Straight up, this product not only did not work for me, it enhanced the hyper pigmentation (freckles) I already had. I would think that one would be hard pressed to find a being that has fair skin and doesn't have freckles, or at least get them in the sun. When all is said and done..the quest for THE self tanner continues.

  I am currently testing and reviewing AVON's new summer glow line as well as the Fake Bake Flawless, and based on the results from one of these products, I can defiantly say that my results from the Summer Color product were not caused by user error; it was the product.

  I would love to hear what has and hasn't worked for you! Leave a comment and let me know!

Letter grade: F

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