Self January 2014

Fake a Vacation Glow-

1. Brighten your eyes - lots of R&R means less puff. To fake it, fill a sink with  cold water, 15 ice cubes and ⅓ cup witch hazel. Dunk your bare face five times, keeping eyes closed. It helps instantly firm under-eye skin.

2. Bronze up - a real tan has a red undertone, so choose a bronzer with a coppery tint. Blend it up to temples with a fluffy brush and dust a bit on eyelids.

3. Get flushed - nightly, massage a serum that contains stimulating ginseng or peppermint into bare skin. Both ingredients boost blood flow for a healthy, rest-looking face.

4. Go tanning - apply a tinted gradual self-tanner for body, then do an extra coat following contours of muscles to define. Layering the color makes your faux not look it.

5. Smooth your skin - mimic sand’s exfoliating effect by running a pad with glycolic acid over rough spots post - shower.

Glamour January 2014

DIY Body Scrub

This combination of exfoliating sugar and moisturizing honey will really smooth skin. Stir together 1 cup sugar, ½ coconut oil [or olive oil], the juice 1 lemon, and 1 tbsp honey.

Chella Night Cream Ultra Hydrator with Peptides

Photo Credit - Chella

According to the product’s website, this night cream promises to “maximizes your body’s own nighttime renewal process for powerful, visible results”.  The night cream is chocked full of lavender, chamomile, marigold, horse chestnut, peptides, Vitamin C, E and B-5. The potent night cream softens, refreshes, hydrates and reduces the appearance of lines and wrinkles. The cream goes on smoothly and absorbs quickly. But with a hefty $100 price tag and packed to the brim with good-for-you ingredients, you would think I would be wowed with the results. I was using this night cream during the winter to make my skin less dry. Except my face got drier and rough and using this night cream didn’t make my skin feel or look any better. 

Philip B Katira Hair Masque

Photo Credit - Dermstore

The Philip B hair mask is packed with l-amino acid complex and Persian katira extract. The lightweight paraben free formula promises to leave your hair soft, silky, and shiny. The formula has Jello consistency and it was really hard to work into my hair and most of the product fell in clumps in the tub.  The first time I used the hair masque, my hair became really sticky, dull looking and unmanageable.  The second time I used the mask my hair felt soft, bouncy, and body. I had mixed in some of my regular conditioner to make the masque’s consistency a bit smoother and used a shower cap to keep the treatment in place. I am guessing I just got a bad batch or bottle. I did read somewhere  that with gel masque to coat wet or dry hair from roots to ends, leave on until it hardens, then rinse out.  I guess I will try the next time, if I decided to buy this mask again.

Julep Rock Candy Nail Glaze - Marie

I recently tried the different types of texture nail polishes and I thought I should try the Rock Candy Glazes.  I thought these would be like the jelly nail polishes but  Marie wasn't very jelly like. It was a sheer high glossy barely there lavender color. Even with multiple coats -- the color was still opaque. The nail polished dried hard and didn't have that "jelly" feeling but the annoying thing was that even after the polish dried it still left a mark when it got dinged. Overall, not my most favorite as it was syrupy to applied but I wouldn't mind trying the other colors in the Rock Candy collection.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays! I hope everyone has a great and peaceful holiday! I wish you and your family an amazing time.

Studio Gear Cosmetics Holiday Smokey Eye Palette

I was recently asked to try out this palette. I love trying new brands so I jumped at trying this palette and since it was a holiday theme it is a win - win. The palette had four eyeshadow and one blush. When I swatched the colors I noticed that the eyeshadows were gritty  and bit difficult to apply; unlike other makeup that goes on smoothly and blends easy. The colors were not highly pigmented and doesn’t last very long. While the palette had a tutorial that did go in detail, the colors didn’t match up in the tutorial and in the set. The palette contains a nice tutorial, it felt a bit lacking. It promoted using their brushes, but it didn’t recommend following up the smokey eyes with mascara or  any lip product. Everyone knows, to make a good smokey eye you need layers upon  layers of mascara! Overall, this was mediocre set for the $45. The consistency and quality reminds me of those cheap drugstore gifts set they have around the holiday. If the price was lower [$10]  it would be a good set for a teen or a novice makeup user. I don’t see myself ever purchasing this again but I might give their other products a try.

Reader Discount: 10% Off

Reader Discount Code: SGHOLIDAY

Note: This code does not expire and is good for 10% off your entire order on www.studiogearcosmetics.com.