Neutrogena visibly clear wash/mask review

Hello gorgeous! Couple weeks ago I was looking for a new facial cleanser (with salicylic acid) on a high street. I was totally disappointed by the poor assortment of cleansers (with acids) in Latvian high street shops. I went to a drugstore a found IT! It is Neutrogena visibly clear wash/mask.

First of all I was impressed by ingredient list.

Second - I was impressed  by the results. This wash/mask feels like a typical clay mask on the skin. The scent reminds me of some soapy chemical :) But it really does the job! My pores are tightened and blackheads gradually disappear.

 
After using Visibly Clear facial wash skin feels very clear. It contains menthol, thus it gives a nice coolness to the skin. Also it contains tiny particles (may be clay particles), which act like a very delicate scrub. I use it in evenings, because it is great in make up removing. Mornings I prefer my Avene Extremely Gentle Facial Cleanser as it is very mild and I don`t have make up on :)

Finally I think this is an amazing product (for my combination skin, I think this one may be too harsh for dry skin) for a good price (4.35 Ls ~9$).

My first beauty book – Bobbi Brown “Beauty Evolution”

I have read a post by Darya Kozachenko (I hope I wrote the name correctly in English) about beauty books at elle.ru HERE 

Darya is a very popular beauty blogger in Russia and she writes: no matter how long you are interested in makeup – a good (beauty) book may change your life. Afterwards is a short description of some of her favorites and she divided the books in categories: basics, books for advanced make up geeks etc. I was so excited by this post and decided that I NEED some beauty book too :) So I started to search for the books at amazon.com and I found that all of the beauty books are quite pricey ( from 40 to … dollars + shipping) and I found that there are a lot of used ones J First book I purchased was Bobbi Brown “Beauty Evolution”. I paid 2 $ for the book itself and about 16 or 18 $ for delivery (from US to Latvia). And it was totally worth it! :)

About the book: Bobbi gave an undertitle (or whatever it is) to the book – a guide to a lifetime of beauty. I would say that it really describes the content of the book. The book teaches you how to look (and feel) your best at every age (from your teens to even your seventies and beyond). 

The main idea is to make woman to accept and to love the changes happening in her life (and on her face or body). There are no make up looks, but many good and usable advices what can make you feel and look better when you got some breakout or on your bad hair day. You can find make up and even micro-element list, which is important in your age to save your beauty and to make investment in your future beauty (e.g. particular vitamins or sunscreen).

I changed my mind about some things and started to pay attention to things I never thought about. Some advices I found useful to me:

• When you wake in the morning, really look at your skin and what it needs. Don`t just blindly reach for whatever you used yesterday because your skin could be drier, oilier, or more tired than it was yesterday.
•  I find it helpful to write on the tube (of cosmetic product) when I bought it so I don`t accidentally keep an old one hanging around too long.
• (About how to look good in photos) For indoor photography, you have to factor in the flash. A flash tends to emphasize pink tones, so be sure to use only yellow-based foundation and powder.  

I found this book very interesting. It was like unexpected turn in my makeup life :)

P.S. The New Beauty Secrets (by Laura Mercier) is the next, and then Face Forward (by Kevyn Aucoin). Make Up Your Mind (by Francois Nars) is in my wishlist.

Catrice Made to Stay Long Lasting Eyeshadow review

Hello gorgeous! As I already mentioned HERE I love cream eyeshadows. And today I am going to share my thoughts about Catrice Made to Stay Long Lasting Eyeshadow. Because the product was new to me I decided to purchase just two colors to test.

I have No 30 Star was here (left) and No 50 Metal of honor (right).

And here are some swatches:

I tried to catch sparkles in eyeshadows. 

Briefly  No 30 Star was here is graphite color with silver glitters and   No 50 Metal of honor is browny-coppery-brassy color with red/green/gold shimmer. Both colors are very rich looking. The formula seems similar to Benefit Creaseless cream  eyeshadows. Eyeshadows have very delicate (I would say coconut) scent. The application is little bit tricky. And I do not recommend to buy these eyeshadows if they are going to be your first creams. I prefer to apply them with (artificial fiber concealer) brush. Because application with finger may turn into a real mess (They tend to crease and rub off). The good thing is that  Catrice Made to Stay eyeshadows can be blended after they set. For this reason is better to apply them over eyeshadow base, because otherwise they tend to fade away and come into fine lines.

Overall opinion: I think Catrice Made to Stay Long Lasting Eyeshadows is an interesting product for the price (2.99 Ls ~6$). But I do not suggest to buy them as your first cream eyeshadows :)

P.S. for Latvian girls:  Ēnas pirku Eurokos veikalā Barona ielā 24. 

наконец-то мы нашли друг друга - косметичка Mango

Здравствуйте, дорогие :) Я довольно долго находилась в поисках небольшой косметички, которую носить в собой в сумке. Моя старая выглядела довольно плачевно (настолько плачевно, что в общественных дамских комнатах, было стыдно доставать), и я искала нечто небольшое, но в то же время вместительное и за адекватные деньги. И вот она!

Вчера случайно заглянула в Mango и увидела ее :)  Сначала глаза разбежались от разнообразия цветов (честно говоря, если бы заказывала где-нибудь в интернете, то скорее всего, выбрала бы черную или бежевую, а в живую, бежевый цвет оказался просто никаким). В итоге остановилась на классической черной и оранжевой, и как-то оранжевый подкупил своей летней жизнерадостностью :) К тому-же летом можно будет использовать в качестве сумочки-clutch :)

(еще очень понравились цветочки на подкладке :)

Если вам интересно, то все цвета и цены можно найти ТУТ (ссылка на латвийскую версию Mango).

Baby Foot treatment review

Hello gorgeous! Today I am going to share my experience with "Baby Foot".
So, what is Baby Foot? Baby Foot is an exfoliator pack which promises you deep foot skin exfoliation and afterwards you should say "goodbye" to cracked feet. Sounds great, right?

The product is made in Japan which also sounds promising (to me). There are some funny pictures on the packaging - probably after using these fancy socks(?) my feet should feel (and look) like this:

As usual I will show you some nasty images of my feet before the treatment:

And the most problematic areas:

So, the pack includes instructions and socks :)

They are quite big, but there is special tape inside the packaging to adjust the size for your feet

And finally: me wearing socks:

I was hanging around like a bear for 2 hours (as it is said in the instruction). And with every single step "Baby Foot" were making "PFFFFFF" sound :D Afterwards I washed my feet and waited for the miracle :D 

After some time I noticed my feet became very dry and I would say a bit itchy. And this is a big downside, because you cant using any creams until the peeling process will come to an end (may be a week or more) :(

I noticed significant skin peeling after 7 days:

But the most problematic area is still problematic :)

And final results:

Final thoughts: This was interesting product to try. It worked, but I was expecting more "dramatic" effect (you can compare my images with images on product packaging). I think similar effect may be achieved using salicilic acid (can be obtained from pharmacies or you can use Skin Doctors Ingrow go as an alternative). 

P.S. The product is available at pharmacies. I purchased it on sale. The price was 7.50 Ls (~15$), but the full price is 15 Ls (~30$) ant to my mind the product is not worth its full price :( 

Orly Bonder base coat review

Hello gorgeous! Today I am going to share my thoughts about Orly Bonder base coat. My first impression about it was like "oh, it is totally different from all base coats I used before". This is mostly because of its formula. Manufacturer says: A unique rubberized basecoat, grips lacquer to the nail surface for extra lasting adhesion.

After drying most of the base coats look sleek and shiny, but Bonder looks matte. It reminds me of ridge fillers a bit. It feels like rubber to the touch.

The best thing about it that it really makes nail polish last longer. Not much longer, but I would say 25% longer :) Bonder became my new favorite.

P.S. it retails for about 5$ and to my mind is totally worth it. 

Быстрый пост - покупки в Drogas

Привет, мои дорогие! Да простят мои Латвийские подписчицы и читательницы, но я хочу сделать быстрый пост о своих последних покупках в Drogas (drugstore сеть магазинов). На посты на английском у меня уходит довольно много времени. Если к получению пинков за свой английский я привыкла, то к пинкам за мой латышский, я отношусь болезненно. Поэтому пост на русском :)

Немного предыстории: я - ярая фанатка глиняных масок, и масок, содержащих АНА-кислоты. Скрабами не пользуюсь, так как считаю, что они могут травмировать кожу. У меня почти закончилась моя любимая умывалка от Avene и я отправилась в магазин селективной косметики Douglas в поисках чего-то нового (желательно содержащего кислоты и не содержащего спирт) девушка-консультант любезно объяснила мне, что такие средства лучше искать в косметических кабинетах. Я расстроилась и вышла из магазина, а как раз напротив - масс маркет Drogas. И как выяснилось, там средств с кислотами достаточно много и есть из чего выбрать.

Итак, я купила:

Neutrogena Visibly Clear 2-in-1 wash/mask.  Гель-маска для умывания 2 в 1. Была очень приятно удивлена составом: и глина, и глицерин, и салициловая кислота, и молочная... Одним словом - Браво! Neutrogena за такой замечательный (по составу, ибо на себе пока не пробовала) продукт. Стоит 4.35 Ls (примерно 9$).

Лосьон для глубокого очищения лица Acnacid. Опять таки порадовал состав:

Еще, что очень хорошо - заявленный на упаковке pH  лосьона 4.5-5.5. Лосьон в упаковке с распылителем (выглядит достаточно дешево, но какая в принципе разница, если продукт хороший?). Стоит 2.85 Ls (~ 6$). Кстати в этой серии были представлены также умывалка, скраб для черных точек, крем и sos-лосьон непосредственно для прыщиков.

И последнее - спонжик. Сначала показался жестковатым, но, при смачивании водой, становится очень мягким. Буду использовать, чтобы снимать масочки (каждый день для умывания, мне кажется, все-таки не очень гигиенично). Стоит 0.99 Ls (~2$).

Кстати: сейчас в Drogas акция, если закупаешься на сумму свыше 5 латов, получаешь карту постоянного клиента бесплатно. Карточка работает по принципу карточек клиента Rimi и Maxima: за каждый потраченный Ls получаешь сантим на карточку.

Буду очень рада, если получу отзывы о постах такого рода и о постах на русском (полностью переходить на русский пока не планирую). И деликатный момент - комментарии по поводу языка обещаю не публиковать.

Спасибо за внимание :)

Участвую в бьюти-френдомарафоне

Всем привет! Поскольку информацию о бьюти марафоне нашла на сайте русской блогерши Bella_Shmella, решила эту короткую заметку сделать на русском :) Идея примерно следующая - вы оставляете в комментариях к бьюти-френдомарафону название своего блога и краткую информацию о себе и о чем пишете в своем блоге. Для блогеров это возможность найти новых читателей, а для читателей найти новые интересные блоги :) Я участвую :)

NOTD - OPI Quarter Of A Cent-Cherry

Hello gorgeous! I love red nail polishes. Red looks so feminine and classy. And I love how Quarter Of A Cent-Cherry pops against my fair skin color.

Lily Lolo - Ready, Set, Glow 5 piece mineral starter kit

Hello gorgeous! Today I am going to share my thoughts about this Lily Lolo foundation starter kit. About the brand: Lily Lolo is mineral cosmetics range which comes from UK. Every product is free from harsh chemicals, dyes and fillers and even has antibacterial properties to help improve the skin. Foundations, powders and bronzers give women the flawless, airbrushed complexion they so badly crave. Whilst vibrant eye shadows have the ultimate staying power and make the most of all your god given assets... (of course this information is from Lily Lolo site :)

The kit includes: three mineral foundations, finishing powder and a Baby Buki brush (sounds so cute :) all the stuff is sample size (0.75 g each). I got my kit in color light. And the shades of foundations are: China Doll (this it Lily Lolo`s second lightest shade), Blondie, Barely Buff and Flawless Silk finishing powder. 

Inside the box there are instructions on how to get a flawless complexion:

About the last step - I am not sure that it is a good idea to set your foundation with a highlighter all over (and to my mind this finishing powder is definitely a highlighter).

To the foundations:

L-R China Doll, Blondie, Barely Buff and Flawless Silk finishing powder

Lily Lolo says:

Finely milled mineral foundation SPF 15 that buffs into the skin effortlessly, and allows custom coverage when applied in buildable layers. Made from natural ingredients to ensure the skin is kept clean and healthy, minimising breakouts and blemishes.

Some time ago they had an information (on site in the description of the product) that foundation is minimizes the size of the pores and makes them less noticeable (but there was a LOT of comments from girls saying that it is a total bullshit :) So now there is no such an information :)

My impressions: Firstly, I definitely prefer liquid foundations, mostly because mineral foundations are not so good on hiding broken capillaries (I know that foundation is not meant to hide all the redness, but liquid foundation (without additional concealer) does this job better). And if you put a bit more you will gain an obvious texture :( Also powder foundations tend to emphasize dry patches on the skin. But if you have normal skin without visible rosacea, broken capillaries or dry patches this foundation is good enough. 

Lily Lolos mineral foundations are good on mattifying the skin and they have great staying powder. Actually I use them to set the concealer under eyes and they do the job amazingly :) 

Swatches: L-R  China Doll, Blondie, Barely Buff, Flawless Silk (finishing powder) 

As you can see China Doll and Blondie have a good match to my pale skin, so they are almost invisible

I tried to make photos under different angles to make the swatches more obvious :)

I adore Flawless Silk finishing powder :) It brings natural dewiness and luminosity to the skin without obvious presence of the highlighter. All the foundations and finishing powder finely milled and blend easily.

To the brush:

it is so cute. It is made from synthetic hair. The size is about 5 cm. The brush is very dense and the bristles are very densely packed. There was no shedding or coloring. It is good for applying mineral foundation and powder and just adorable for the blusher.

I got my Ready, Set, Glow kit from here. I have got it for a while, so you can see the difference in packaging.  There was additional charge for the delivery (about 4 British pounds to Latvia). You can get Lily Lolo products from Feelunique without shipping charge, but the kits are rarely available.

Huh! It was a long post :) I hope it was interesting :)

NOTD OPI Chocolate Moose

Hello gorgeous! Today I found one of my last summer favorites - OPI Chocolate Moose. This is an amazing warm taupey-brown color.

Dermalogica gentle cream exfoliant review

Hello gorgeous!
I have combination skin with oily T-zone and chin and some dry patches on my cheeks. To normalize my complexion and make the skin more luminous and polished I use different exfoliants (I am avoiding scrubs - to my mind they can damage the skin) and this is one of my favorites. A bit about Dermalogica brand: Dermalogica is a professional skin care (US) brand founded by skin therapist Jane Wurwand. The philosophy of the brand is truly understanding your skin. All the products are developed and researched by The International Dermal Institute.

About gentle cream exfoliant
from manufacturer: A non-abrasive hydroxy acid exfoliation treatment that thoroughly removes dulling surface debris, dramatically improving skin texture. Contains no artificial fragrance or color.
Directions:  Apply a thin layer over cleansed skin, avoiding the lip and nostril area. Use care around the delicate eye area as well. Let activate for 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse well. Use twice weekly.

My thoughts: cream exfoliant reminds me of clay masks but consistency is much more creamy. It is a bit tricky to to remove (I would recommend to use a sponge).

The scent is very nice and not annoying.  And the most important: it just works! It leaves my skin smooth and texture improved. Pores are tightened (have to say this effect is not long lasting). Product has a lot of good ingredients: i.e.  Apricot Kernel Oil, Papain, Salicylic Acid, Lactic Acid, Lavender Oil and a lot of plant extracts. In case if you can not get the product out of the packaging:

By the way I got my from here. But some time ago the price (£ 30.20 (British pounds)) was a bit lower.
Finally:
pros: good ingredients, the product really works, can be used around the eye area
cons: the price could be a bit lower :)