Scored: Beauty & Hair
Just Natural
What it is: Natural Frizz Hair Shampoo
Retail Price: $22.99
because having used it on and off for decades now I know *exactly* how it affects my hair with every shampoo imaginable). I have to admit, I was quite literally shocked. My uber fine hair always tends to be very frizzy the day I wash it, and usually for most of the second day until it calms down a bit. It’s such a fact of life for me that I never even imagined there was actually a shampoo that wouldn’t make my hair flyaway immediately after washing, I wasn’t even expecting that from this one… frankly, it didn’t even occur to me to expect it. I should also point out that it’s been more than a day and half since I washed it and it feels just like it did when it dried. OK Just Natural, you win again! Or I win again! Aw heck, we all win! Either way, this one is definitely a keeper. Yay!
Just Natural
What it is: Frizz Hair Shea Butter
Retail Price: $25.99
What I think: I couldn’t wait to try the first item on my list of goodies from Just Natural because I’ve been tackling a new problem I’ve been having with my hair for about a year now… one I never experienced before in all my 52 years. My hair and skin have been oily all my life but it seems both are much less oily as of late (does this mean I might get a
Soooo, this issue was what actually finally motivated me to ask Just Natural for some of their goodies to try out, and I gotta say that so far I am so glad I did as I am just LOVIN’ their Frizz Hair Shea Butter! Just a little bit rubbed between my hands and applied to the bottom 2/3 of my hair and there isn’t a frizzy within miles, and it’s every bit as shiny as a silicone-based product makes it. Most surprisingly, even though my hair does still tend to get a little oily a few days after I wash it, this stuff *still* doesn’t weigh my superfine hair down, which is a miracle on its own as everything weighs my hair down. It also doesn’t seem to attract dirt like silicone seems to. It smells good too, in that shea buttery, creamy sort of way. Best of all, there isn’t a single chemical in this stuff, the entire ingredients list reads: Shea Butter, Geranium Rose Hydrosol Flower Water, Apricot Kernal Oil, Buriti Fruit Oil, Tucuma Butter, Vegetable Emulsifier, Essential Oils of Sweet Orange, Manuka, Extracts of Calendula, Cucumber Peel, Hibiscus Flower, Marshmallow Leaf, Papaya Leaf Extract. The tub they sent me (which arrived in a muslin bag and included a little “dipper”) holds 8oz and it’s obvious it will go a long way. I’m a a very happy camper! This one has definitely earned a permanent spot in my hair care arsenal. Yay!
blinc mascara
What it is: blinc mascara in dark purple
Retail Price: $25
Continuing with my review of blinc cosmetics, let’s examine their mascara. I was determined to test this out because having oily skin, smudging is a huge issue for me and what I found is not only is it fabulous but entirely different than any other mascara I’ve ever used.
So what’s so different? Tubes! Yes, I said tubes! blinc mascara actually encases each and every lash in a tiny tube! So what does this mean? It means *no* smudging, *no* flaking, and the ultimate in water resistance. Once the little tubies dry (which is in a matter of minutes), there is nothing smudgeable (new word) left on your lashes at all to result in any smearing whatsoever, under just about any circumstance (as I have satisfactorily ascertained, read on)!
So, I says I says to myself, how am I going to give this stuff a workout? I have a serious aversion to perspiring unnecessarily, so I wasn’t about to run around the block and work up a sweat. So, what did I do to test it out? The unthinkable…
I slept in it.
Considered the cardinal sin of makeup-wearers the world over, sleeping without removing your cosmetics can never result in anything good, and this is especially true for mascara! C’mon, we’ve all been there, coming home on New Year’s Eve at 4am, falling into bed exhausted, and then the next morning starting off the new year with a lovely new look that is so raccoon you’re afraid you might cultivate a desire to tip over trash cans. Soooo not good, especially if there is anyone around to witness your unfortunate transformation from human to procyonid. I have never, ever used a mascara, no matter how “smudge proof,” that would pass the sleep test. Until now.
Yes, believe it or not a full 24 hours after I applied it, other than three tiny little “tube specks” under both eyes combined, there was absolutely no evidence I had slept in mascara. None. Zippo. Zilch. Nada. Amazing. I’m sold!
The stuff also comes off, when you want it to, easy as pie. Though the instructions say to use slight pressure with warm water (apparently not even oily makeup remover will dissolve these fabulous tubies… which means oily skin won’t either!), I just washed my face with my usual cleanser and complexion brush and came away sparkling clean. I suppose the complexion brush supplied enough gentle pressure to slide ’em right off.
blinc mascara is available in black, dark brown, medium brown, dark blue, dark purple and dark green. I went with the dark purple, which is dark enough not to look punky (not that I necessarily mind a little punk) and added just a touch of drama. Love the color, love the mascara!
blinc eyebrow mousse
What it is: blinc eyebrow mousse in Dark Brunette
Retail Price: $25
Yves Saint Laurent Nail Lacquer
What it is: La Laque No 31 Blanc Scintillant Sparkling White Nail Lacquer
Retail Price: $20
I didn’t think it would happen being a huge Orly fan (still am) but Yves Saint Laurent has totally converted me. I LOVE their nail lacquer! I’ve been addicted to this nail polish all winter, and it’s actually unheard of for me to wear the same shade even twice in a row. For reference my nails are natural, pretty long but not ostentatiously so, and given my chosen profession I usually have a full set of ten of them two or three times a year, if I”m lucky (now being one of those rare times).
Two coats, even in the Sparkling White, covered completely. This color is absolutely divine, it’s a beautiful shimmery platinum white, the prettiest white nail polish I have ever seen bar none (white being my favorite winter nail color, I’m sure it’s a lingering rebellion of my mother’s long-past “no white after Labor Day” rule). It dries practically instantaneously, and with my standard topcoat of Orly’s Tough Cookie
Vincent Longo Cosmetic Brushes
What it is: Vincent Longo Dense Buff Brush
Retail Price: $32
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Lauren Hutton Cosmetics
What it is: All Natural Face Disc and Passport to Brazil
Retail Price: $158 and $347
What I think: I think I wasted my money, I dislike both of these. I bought both because they come in different color palettes and I wasn’t sure if one would work or if like usual with these kind of sets, I would have to find a combination of things between both to make it work on my extremely fair complexion. I bought the Face Disc in pink and the Passport to Brazil in light, both meant for the lightest complexions. Apparently, they meant not as light as mine, as I found just about everything in both compacts to be too dark for my skin. I was also under the impression that because the Face Disk actually came with the Breathable Loose Powder Foundation, that I would actually be able to use it with it… but you can’t use half the things in the disc with it because they are creams, and even Lauren repeatedly tells you not to use creams over powders (no duh), yet at the same time she instructs you to use the creams over foundation. The only foundation that came with the Face Disk was the powder, I had to use the cream foundation in the Passport to Brazil to use the creams in the Disk. You following me here? By the time I was done concealing, highlighting, contouring and making up, I looked like I had on practically no makeup but did have a really bad spray tan. And don’t believe the promise of this being a quick application, it took me much longer than my usual mineral makeup takes to apply. While learning some of the techniques used to highlight or diminish certain areas of your face was interesting, and the packaging is beautiful, the makeup itself doesn’t work for me at all. Back to my beloved minerals
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+Susan Maxwell Schmidt
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Loosely wrapped, creative, nocturnal, eternally blue, reclusive, eccentric, obsessive perfectionist... in other words, an artist.
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Purple mascara – I just might have to…
I’m tellin’ ya, I’ve tried lots of colored mascaras and I *always* come out looking like I’m wearin’ peacock feathers on my eyes. This one is the PERFECT, subtle purple. I’m gonna try the green next!
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