Tuesday, July 15, 2008

it's still great to exfoliate

i thought i would update you on my dermabrasion status; i am in step two/week 3 of my microdermabrasion system. i was a little scared of it as i mentioned in my earlier post, but i love it. step two has two exfoliators--the white one from step one and a gray one. now when i saw the gray color, i was like seriously, Do I want to put this on my face? but i shook off that silly thought, applied and massaged on my face for 1-2 minutes per instructions. i thought the other steps might be a little too harsh for my skin--we'll have to see about steps 3 and 4, but so far i am loving step two. i feel like my skin is softer and my complexion is brighter.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

a hair affair


i've been meaning to talk about these two products for weeks and it completely slips my mind every single time. i am not sure why because i am absolutely in love with both of them. every time i get in the shower, i can't wait to use the Kérastase BAIN MIROIR Shine-Revealing Shampoo for Sensitized, Color-Treated Hair (that's a mouthful, but worth it) and CHROMA REFLECT MASQUE Radiance-Enhancing Masque for Very Sensitized Color-Treated Hair. my hair always feels softer and smoother and the color always seems brighter. these are becoming two products i can't live without. plus, the fragrance is fantastic. Thank you JG and CT.
i have not yet found my go-to summer 2008 fragrance, which is frustrating because we're already in July. and i feel like my summer fragrances of the past will just not cut it this year. i am still looking for something fresh and citrusy, but i am dying for something new. i dont want my old standbys. part of my problem/hesitation is that i feel most summer fragrances are so light they dont last on me. it pains me to say this because i really do love you, but Dolce & Gabanna Light Blue, i'm looking at you. lovely, refreshing scent, but it doesnt last on me. i feel like i could go through a bottle in a week, and when i notice it on other people it makes me want to hurt them. ok, fragrance and violence don't mix, it's just that it would be absolutely perfect. alas. sigh. of course, there are all the sheer incarnations of your favorites, but i feel like that's just a rip-off. i want something new. and fabulous and summery. something that will remind me of the good times of summer 2008.

it's like they read my mind...

a couple of weeks ago i was in sephora--surprise! that never, ever happens--and i stumbled upon bare escentuals flawless radiance, which was like this beautiful soft beige-y peach color with a bit of sparkle. being that i love anything sparkly or glittery, i became obsessed with it and figured it could be a new foundation color since i sometimes use clear radiance as a foundation (i love, love, love it) and i am also a fan of the gossamers as foundation. K jokes that i want to look like J.Lo circa The Waiting for Tonight video. i dont even think the fine sparkle/glitter is even that noticeable. in any case, i debated buying it--do i really need it?--and finally just went into bare escentuals because i needed the fair foundation anyway. so i try it on and it's way too yellow on my skin. it would never work. i can't even use the fairly light because it's too yellow. so i was disappointed--until i remembered that i wanted to try the fairly light mineral veil. i usually just put the fair in spots and then the mineral veil all over, which you know, is not sparkly; however, the fairly light mineral veil is so it's really the best-case scenario for me. necessity is the mother of invention, as they say. i still maintain it's perfect for every day because the fine glitter/sparkle isnt that noticable, but it makes me feel good, which is what makeup should be.

it's great to exfoliate


so i've been trying out a lot of the new avon stuff i recently purchased and i am loving the anew clinical advanced dermabrasion system. i will admit i was a little nervous to try this and wondered if i really needed it, or if it would be too much for my sensitive skin, but i was running out of my exfoliators and just not super impressed with them. i felt like i needed something with kick and now, i couldnt be happier. i figured worst case scenario, i dont like it. plus, there were four settings (1-4) and if i really felt like the others were too strong, i could just stick with setting 1. you're supposed to use each setting for 2 weeks 2 or 3 times a week and "rest" for 2 days. basically dont use it two days in a row. i am finishing up my second week and i will probably move on to setting two. i really feel like it's making my face softer and smoother. plus, it's working its magic on that damn little wrinkle on my forehead.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

eye scream for eye cream

so i am loving the avon eye cream i posted about recently and i definitely feel like it's smoothing out this one, tiny crease under my eye (it's the same one i always complain about). but during the day, i feel like the area under my eyes is so dry--of course, i know it is because there are no moisture ducts there--though this isn't unique to the avon cream because i feel like this with all eye creams actually, no matter how thick or emollient. great at first, but then a loss of elasticity during the day. when i get up in the morning, i love how everything looks a lot smoother because of the cream and "beauty sleep", of course.

for example, when i touch up my under eye concealer during the day, i feel like the under eye part is so dry that it doesn't snap back quickly and has a loss of elasticity. that bothers me and makes me feel like wrinkles are just around the corner. the eyes are the windows to the soul so who wants a cracked, wrinkly, dry facade? i am not sure what i can do about this aside from just applying more eye cream regularly during the day since i am not having this problem with face lotions and creams. in that vein, i've brought two under eye creams with me and i am obsessively compulsively rotating them before i put on hand lotion, which is often. they are MAC Fast Response Eye Cream, which i always love and forget about, and avon ageless results renewing eye cream. i do feel like today has been better (i noticed the dryness last week) so maybe the key is to just keep reapplying.