Tag: foundation

Playing Chemist Today & the Man Who Thought He Tasted Good

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I’m still impatiently waiting the day I get my hair colored and I have to admit, I don’t like waiting for things that I can do myself. Since last night, I’ve snipped a swatch of my hair and have taken the liberty to bleach and color it since I have a whole stash of hair color and lighteners in my bathroom. I like the results considering I started off with black hair (which was coarse and very-resistant) and now it’s a nice snip of light golden blonde with a few strands of bright golden blonde. I used 7th Stage Lightener with 30 volume cream developer as well as the bleach activator (ratio of 2:1:2) and it took about 45 minutes for it to lift from level 1 (black) to level 8 (light blonde). There were a lot of yellow undertones to it, but since I didn’t have any toner on me last night, I decided to lift it with a high lift blonde hair color that used blue and violet tones to counteract the yellow. The hair color has a nice consistency and I haven’t found any breakage or profound damage. I could add some copper brown lowlights and etc and I’m pretty sure I’ll definitely finish it off with toner but can’t do that now. So the swatch isn’t perfected yet. (yeah, I got lazy with lighting today so this photo will have to do.) Almost! Now, the hardest part is just deciding whether I should go ahead and do it myself or wait it out. Sigh … decisions, decisions.

I went and got my make up done this past weekend and so far so good. I swapped out my Laura Mercier Creme Smooth Foundation for the Silk Creme one since the Creme Smooth gave me a bit of an orange, ashy tone which didn’t work out so well since I like everything done to my chest to match. So I’m a Sand Beige in Silk Creme and that stuff really goes a long way because for the past few days, I’ve only had to use pea-sized drops. I left after my hour and a half make up session and I ended up going back to purchase the Flawless Skin Mega Moisturizer also from LM.

It wasn’t until I got home that I realized that my moisturizer was for normal/combination skin. I honestly hate going back and forth to the same places but the normal/dry skin version was definitely worth it. It has a light peppercorn scent. I don’t know why but no one seems to mind so far. It moisturizes all day and even if I start flaking, the cream does its job by keeping it all together and virtually unnoticeable. The cream has sunscreen infused in it as well as the Silk Cream Foundation so it’s a plus when it comes to protecting yourself from the sun. Yay, great skin until 65! It’s a 1.7 oz. pot of wonders and I’m hoping that I’ll be able to continue saying good things about it a few weeks from now.

I got a gift from the Laura Mercier counter and it was a make up bag full of everything I would’ve wanted from the collection such as tightliner, flawless skin repair serum, loose setting powder and so much more. I’ve been using the repair serum in the morning and evening after I cleanse my face and follow with a nickel-sized amount of the moisturizer. The serum works wonders and I can already see that it brightens the darker patches on my face and it’s only been four days! I’ll be hoping to purchase it soon when I have $95 to spare (yes, it’s great but a bit steep).

Nothing much has been going on except for that guy who went and cut his finger off to cook it with veggies last week. It’s pretty rare to find a cannibal let alone a self-cannibal.

The man from New Zealand reportedly consumed his finger after giving it a good saute with some peas and carrots. The 28-year-old was not under any kind of influences and after visiting the hospital do they diagnose him as moderately depressed. Crazy, huh? I guess we all wonder what we taste like ourselves at some point in our lives. I just hope he’s done after this.

Look out for my upcoming post this Friday on hair stylist etiquette and how to get the most out of your hair salon visit!

Laura Mercier and Cure arrives. Life Changed Forever.

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These two days are going by hellishly. I am tired and spooked. It’s not every day that you wake up from a dream about your dad trying to rob you and he ends up getting shot for it. The other night, the dream was about Raid that magically set spiders on fire when used. Pete said I got scared last night but I don’t remember.

I went to the mall yesterday and I have to admit that it was pretty awkward. However, I manage. The plan was that I chill at the mall and find my inner girl time for three hours while Pete tries his best at getting another job. He told me to take a photo of the new Microsoft store but I guess I forgot. Went to Bloomingdale’s and got some interesting finds at the abandoned Laura Mercier counter. It’s so rare to find a beauty counter with no one there, but then again, it was Monday. Small amounts of socialization are perfect for me. I actually like to experiment and check out the product myself without being guided.

So because of Ceci and a LM primer sample I got a year ago, I wanted to really get the primer. It was kind of confusing looking at five different primers but I know my skin and it needs a lot of hydration so oil-free would be a definite no-no. The hydrating version of LM’s foundation primers has a gel-like consistency and holds a mild fragrance. Think Clinique’s Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel. It spreads evenly and it can feel my skin plump and smoothen out as it maximizes and seals the moisturizing products you have on prior to the primer.

I try to let primers set (just like my moisturizers) before applying foundation or anything else after that but since my skin is as dry as the Sahara, everything is absorbed immediately. However, this hydrating primer stays put and continues working its magic. I was fortunate to get the Limited Edition and that’s basically double the size of the original hydrating formula (a whopping 3.4 oz. tube) and it’s for only $40 ($60 value). I checked online and I didn’t see that size for the other formulas, but hopefully, they come out with it, too. This tube should last me a year.

Afterwards, I tried out Laura Mercier’s new Creme Smooth Foundation. It’s a cream foundation (introduced last September in 11 shades) geared towards normal to dry/very skin (in my case). It doesn’t settle into your dry patches, which has always been a big problem for a lot of foundations I’ve used. It has a natural, satiny feel and the Dermaxyl keeps you glowing ( a key ingredient that makes this foundation costlier than its sisters). It comes in a pot with a spoon so you get absolute control over how much product you’ll use unlike pumps. You need only two fingerpads worth of product to go for the entire face. And yes, Laura M. recommends you use your fingers or a damp sponge (from her line or even better, the Beauty Blender) for a seamless application. Because the product is highly pigmented, meaning more coverage in a thick, creamy dollop, you should warm it up in your fingers.

This foundation is supposed to mimic the actual process and movements you would make when putting on a face cream/moisturizer. Simply, warm it up using your fingers. Dab it on your face and smooth it out, working inwards. If you’re using the sponge, stipple it onto your face and apply more product on your problem areas. With Lancome Photogenic, I usually finished off with Lancome Absolue Loose Powder but with this foundation, powder is optional. The Creme Smooth foundation comes in an 1.0 oz. glass jar and it should last me a year and a half. Perhaps, two if I get lazy. It costs $50 but that’s nothing compared to the low quality of some “high-end” foundations like Amore Pacific. This little jar delivers and it delivers thoroughly. By the end of the day, everything is still intact and not melting off of my face.

So for under $100, I am set for a long time. It’s just sad I didn’t discover Laura Mercier when I was teenager.

And speaking of what I cannot live without now, the Cure Natural Aqua Gel samples came today. I followed the instructions which was to cleanse and dry your face and hands, dab the gel on a finger, massage it onto your face (and especially longer for those problems areas), rinse off with lukewarm water and moisturize afterwards. I love this product! I haven’t used anything like this before and it’s amazing.

Because of my high skin sensitivity, I can’t exfoliate without getting all red and face hurt. Cure doesn’t hurt at all as it being 91% water. I barely even have to work it in (they tell you not to anyway). So I was hopeful about it and I was blown away not when the layers of years, yes, years, of dead skin came off, BUT actually when I rinsed my face and discovered how it felt to have normal skin for the first time in my life. I’m not saying it’ll disperse discolorations or take away your wrinkles in a matter of seconds and I can definitely say that it’s not magic. Cure acts as a powerful agent to make sure your skin is as clean and as bare as can be so that your skin care products can actually reach your skin, not the dead layers that you don’t know about. Cure works by breaking down that bind that keeps dead skin cells held to the surface of your skin and it works on your entire body.

Cure is for $44.95 on eBay. Yes, I said eBay because it’s not sold in department stores or beauty counters in the US although other websites besides eBay do sell it. They have it in Japan (it’s made there), Singapore, and most of East Asia. As to why it isn’t here, I don’t know, but I can tell you this: If this product hits America like it hit Asia (a bottle sold every 20 seconds there), no brand is going to ever be able to compete with this. I mean it. I’m going to finish the rest of my samples and if it continues to wow me, this girl with the worst skin ever (dry, dehydrated, sensitive, eczema, you get the point) will always have the best skin days for a long time.

Thanks Laura Mercier and Cure. And I’m not being paid to review this (one day … ). I would post pictures of myself using these products but I’m too tired for that now. Plus, no d-slr today so I had to make due with a replacement camera so sorry about the crazy fuzziness, except for Cure (not mine). No camwhoring today. Off to bed and hopefully, no more crazy dreams.