Happy Holidays (Quick Non- Makeup Post)

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Holiday or if you don't practice a religion or just don't care, a good week. The year is almost over and I honestly haven't achieved any of my resolutions. However, I just don't care. The latter half of this year has been just terrible and I really am looking forward to some good things next year to overshadow all the crap from this year. I have this personal way of celebrating and I give myself a gift every year. When I was tight on cash, it would just be a candy bar or something that I really wanted, not needed. This is just to commemorate how I managed to get through another year without landing in jail or not having gone ape shit; although that really shouldn't be an accomplishment. Either way it helps me feel better and makes me appreciate myself as an individual and wish you could do the same. Even if no one else loves you, love and respect yourself. 

This year, I treated my self to some face and eye masks as well as a cute hand lotion. Excuse the poor quality since I took this with my itouch.

Look at this cute kitty pot. I absolutely love cats and couldn't resist. I'm one step away from naming this jar but resisted since going crazy seems to be settling in early. Could you believe this all cost $22? What a damn rip off. Last year these masks were a dollar and now they're $2-3. I wrap everything up and place open it up on Christmas and I now just can't wait. Alright, enough of this nonsense and see you in the new year!

Baking Soda Exfoliant

I've been nothing but busy and haven't had time for anything else lately. I've also stopped buying makeup and don't think that I'll reach the VIB status this year from Sephora. Going to miss the email and deals but I just have too much to justify spending $300 and over for makeup. Just wanted to show you the Dior set that I've gotten for my sister. BTW, SOLD OUT! Called it!

I got this and just snapped a picture before wrapping it. My sister doesn't know and I've been encouraging her to use all of her eye cream and lotion by mentioning non existent dry spots and crow's feet on her face. I think it's backfired on me because we got a $20 off a $50 purchase and she got a face lotion. Damn you Sephora and your perfect timing.

Dammit. I'll ask her how she likes and review it for you.While I was wrapping her gift, I noticed my extravagant purchase for myself. It's $3.

It's a face scrubber. It reminds me of a toilet scrubber. Ironically, I lost my previous one when it decided to take a dive into the toilet. Fishing it out was... vomit. I usually exfoliate my face before I apply my Tea Tree Oil mask and since my mouth and chin area decided to go dry, I've been having a lot of trouble with my skin. While I was waiting for it to arrive, I started to use this.

I have this in my bathroom because I use this as a tooth polisher. Apply a sprinkle on my toothbrush and I'm convinced it helps my teeth stay a yellow tinge rather than a full on canary yellow. I do drink a lot of black tea, black coffee, and other varieties of teeth staining food, so I try here and there. It's a well known idea that I've heard in the bowels of the internet, that people use this as an exfoliant. I gave it a go and it was pretty good.

About yay amount. I have a layer of soap on my face or make a paste like this...

 and just start rubbing. It can be a bit too abrasive and I've rubbed my face raw a couple of times before. It also left a weird film of something on the face and I've had to wash my face with soap again. However, this really does the job and I haven't had any allergic reactions yet. It's also pretty cheap and handy to just have around. So one thumb an an extra bit if thumb shy of perfect. That's why my face scrubber is still in its packaging.

I got an email that my blog had problems loading. I haven't had any problems but I also am a computer noob so I don't know what's wrong. But thanks for reading, I appreciate that. I had the emails going to my spam folder but I've hopefully fixed that. Like I've mentioned, computer noob.

I plan to get  a Uniqlo jacket for my parents because my mother has been subtly putting out hints for it. That lady is something else. I also want a Belgian waffle maker for myself but no one thinks that it's a good idea. Those fools! A warm, crisp  and yet fluffy waffle with vanilla ice cream on top and a side of bacon, just for the salty goodness, is perfect. Fools!

Gift Ideas?

The best person to shop for during Christmas is my sister. She practically loves everything that I give her and I know her tastes. Here are a bunch of things that look like a great deal and a worthwhile gift list for those you love, like or tolerate. It's a bit of everything and this also isn't a comprehensive list by price, but more of a personal suggestion. Now, I haven't tried all of the products on this list but I've heard good things about them, so don't take my word as the bible.

*All images are from Sephora.com. Not mine.

For $10:

Caudalie Cleansing Duo

L'Occitane Hugs and Kisses

For $14 & 25:

Tokidoki Pittura Brush Set

Tarte The Stand Outs Limited Edition Best Sellers Kit

For $50 and a bit under:

Make Up Forever Aqua Eyes Collection

Burberry Womens Coffret .

If you plan to give someone over the $50 mark, then you should know them better than to pull their gift out of a generic list. Now this may be biased by my own tastes (Burberry set), but you can always make some changes and use that 20% off code. Now, I plan to get my sister something that is not on the list and I'll reveal it after I get it for her. I don't want it risk getting sold out.

If you plan to buy under $25, then Sephora has a Holiday IT KIT that looks great, especially the Best in Classic.

EDIT: Placed my order in and thought that it would be safe to mention her gift. It hasn't shipped yet, so paws off. She's almost out of her lotion and has been eyeing this eye cream so I know that she'll enjoy it.

Dior Hydra Life Youth Essential Hydrating Program

It's been a real struggle for gas here in my part of NYC and I know that other people have been hit worse. I've been sending out good wishes and donating where I can but still feel so bad for those who've lost lives and homes. Honestly, I've been living in NY for about 20 yrs and whenever we heard reports on hurricanes and storms, we've always scoffed. The forecasts were always over exaggerated and we've managed to get through it, and maybe that's why many have been dismissive and under-prepared for Hurricane Sandy. Sigh. It's going to be a cold winter.

Pond's Cold Cream

I haven't being putting on a lot of makeup in the summer and my skills have really deteriorated  For instance, I went to my friend's wedding and I went full out for the occasion. Usually, I just wear a highlighter and lip balm for most days out. When it came time for the full face, I did a horrible job. My eye shadows were uncoordinated and clashed with my skin and it really didn't look blended in flash photography. The foundation was a bit too thick in certain areas and tended to be too light with my skin. I decided to not push my luck with eyeliner but had to go back and blend my ass off. 

When I got home, my face felt so sticky and I just wanted to wipe it all off. For my regular days, a facial cleanser is all I need but for that day I took out the heavy gear. 

This does have a strong scent but since I wash my face twice, the scent isn't bothersome. I've had this for a long time and still have tons of it left. It removes a good bit of my makeup and while I haven't broken out because of it, I have a feeling that it has the potential to wreak havoc on your skin if used too often. 

It's extremely thick and on a dry face, I apply globs of it all over and just massage it into the skin. It's a great time to practice all of those facial massage techniques that you read in the magazines. Then I take a damp washcloth and wipe it off. Since I save this for my heavy days, I tend to wash my face twice again. I take a cleanser and on a damp face, I once again massage and wash. Then on a wet face, I take a different cleanser and wash again. You might think that this is a lot of work but it isn't a part of my normal routine and it also takes all of my makeup off. As you can guess, I don't have a lot of counter space.

Here's a test of my most water, budge and oil proof beauty products. Wet n Wild's gel eyeliner, Milani's liquid liner and a some mascara. You know about my oily skin and I've never had to worry about these products ever smudging on me. The Milani one tends to stain my eyelid and that's why I rarely use it.

There's a blob of cold cream...

and massage well into the skin.

It got most of it out and I'm not surprised with the leftovers.  I've had makeup removers that wouldn't have left a dent in these products. That's why I follow up with a  face wash, just to make sure.Not sure if I would recommend it for all because of how thick it is and the addition of mineral oil just doesn't make this a safe product for all. I would probably repurchase it but you know I like shopping for new things.

Horrible Back Acne with Bananas?

I was going to be getting pretty close with my bacne but guess what? I chickened out. I was typing it but felt like it would be too much. So let me just do this without pictures. Due to hormones, stress and a poor diet, my back has been just filled with painful cysts that hurt even when I laid down. Even with my trusty combo of Stridex and body wash wasn't enough to help calm the inflammation. I saw this post on Pintrest about bananas and acne. If you Google it there are precise instructions on what to do.

After applying the peel and going to sleep in it, my back seemed to turn a darker shade of red and the pain wasn't as bad. After two days of use the pain was gone, it was now a darker red rather than the bright red but the bumps still remained. I ran out of bananas on the fourth and final day but it seems as if my back has calmed down. My sister, the best and the kindest sister alive (who applied the bananas on my back) claimed that she didn't see much improvement but I honestly felt like it did. Before the peels, the pimples were tender to touch and were gradually getting worse. After the first overnight treatment, it seemed better. The only thing that may have contributed to the failure department is that my back still is pock marked by lots of scars and marks. It claimed to help get rid of scars but naw.

This post may have been more effective with pictures but honestly, I don't have the courage to post them. I'm pretty embarrassed and pretty sensitive about it and I don't want others to see it. Sorry.

I've also noticed a lot of grammatical and just stupid mistakes that I've made when I don't proofread my posts. Geez. I've been going back and fixing some stuff but why didn't anyone tell me about this? So much egg on my face.

How you doing?

Hey~ Not sure if I'm ready to blog regularly again but it seems like things are calming down now. I mentioned a recent medical incident on the post before, and it seems like things are better. To make a long story short, my father recently had his gall bladder removed. I know that it's not a particularly big surgery but my father has never been sick and has never been to the doctor. However, my mother called me at the crack of dawn, telling me to call for the ambulance since he wasn't feeling well. He's doing well now and everything is fine but we've all been on pins and needles. My mother is also having complications with her nasal passages and the family has just been completely swamped and overwhelmed. Thank goodness everything seems to be well and if you've been sending positive thoughts my way... Thank you.

This hasn't been good for my skin and my back has broken out like crazy. I was planning on improving my body because I plan on going on vacation in December ( hate NY in the wintertime)and have been working on fitting into a bikini. Now I'm not to sure that it's going to happen. I saw something on Pintrest and have been trying it out for my back and I'll post something up on it soon.

Hold Up

Hey, how you doing? I'm letting you know that I am going to not write on here for a while. My posts have been few and sparse, especially with the lack of posts. I'm overwhelmed with a lot of things and most of them seems to center around my family and their medical issues. So please be aware that I'm officially taking a vacay but will be back. Don't really know if anyone does read this blog often but I hate it when a blog just stops functioning abruptly. So if you can spare so good thoughts, well wishes and a mention in your prayer, don't really care where they come from, I would be very grateful. See ya soon.

Recommendations for Dry Skin

I think everyone knows about my skin type but I think that its been unfair of me to just keep putting up products for one type. As I've previously mentioned before, my sister has the complete opposite skin profile when compared to me. Whereas I have an oil slick after one hour of moisturizing, her skin is remains dry and clean. She rarely breaks out and has dry spots and eczema instead. Now I have to mention that her price points are different as well. I'm totally fine with using drugstore products but she believes that you get what you pay for, especially with her skin and tends to splurge with her skincare routine rather than makeup. Now this is her recommendation and I've never tried these products so this really can't be a review. 

For fairly dry to normal skin she used to use Clinique's Moisture Surge for herself but as she got older, drier and addicted to the good stuff, she then updated her creams to this. 

Dior's Hydra Life Creme Confort Pro-Jeunesse. She also recommends the Sorbet one from this line for a lighter feel.

+

For eye care, this is the Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Resist.

Both last for a good time and it is something that she wholeheartedly recommends, especially during the winter months. Both have a light, floral smell and I don't like the smell of the eye cream but the moisturizer smells so good. 

 This is the Dior.

This is the Shiseido.

Both creams are heavy but the Dior seems to be a bit lighter and is a bit more fluid while the Shiseido seems to be thicker. They both leave like a shiny, somewhat sticky film on the skin for a few minutes but absorbs nicely into the skin. While that part bothers me, my dry skinned sister states that it feels lovely and extremely moisturizing on the face and it provides a light barrier around her face. She tells me that this is a life saver during the winter months and the only thing missing from her collection is her Lancome's Genifique serum, but that's a bit too pricey for her. Geez. She tends to get these during Sephora's F&F sale to save some money.

Gosh this is getting too rich for my blood. Since its been Ramadan for this month, I've been gorging myself on the non crowded Indian restaurants in my neighborhood and I can't move. I also have an invitation to my friend's house for Eid and I can't wait. Oh plus, this blog is probably going to slow down considerably since I have nothing much to write about these days. Apologies.

Burt's Bees Res Q Ointment

I recently returned from my annual camping sojourn and I loved it. Do you know what my friends ask? "Did you go camping camping or camping"camping""? What? There's more than one type? Apparently I went the real route by sleeping in tents and braving the elements instead of luxury camping. While I was there, I had barely any problems with bites. I do admit that I go a tiny bite on the side of my ass, where a wayward mosquito decided to have a bite. But it paid dearly for it's taste. But after three days, nothing. However, when I returned home, after the first ten minutes, I was bitten everywhere. It was on the worst places ever! Mostly on my hands and toes. Gah! Except for the face, being bit on the hands and feet are the worst. Look at it.

 It burns.

I'm the type that doesn't like to scratch and would prefer to ride out the itch-fest but my goodness. I couldn't handle it. Then I remembered reading this in a magazine once about how bengay can be applied to stop the itching. I don't have bengay or tiger balm around but I did have this. Burt's Bees Res Q Ointment to the rescue.

This was supposed to be for muscle soreness but I've read that this does wonders for cuts as well. I still am skeptical about putting that on my cuts, I have neosporin for that, but decided to give this a try. It comes in a tin and is a smooth ointment that did not melt even during the east coast heat wave. It stinks to high heaven with the traditional tiger balm's, medicinal scent that doesn't really fade. But this thing worked like a dream and brought me temporary relief.

It stops the itching for a but and you do need to reapply it. It does seem to sink into the skin after a while but as I've said, the scent is still there. Since I know that Burt's Bees is a company known for healthier ingredients, I don't mind using this again and again. The tin does get a bit hard to open and close with the itchiness all over my hands but it does seal in the ointment. I've had this lying around as an unused gift set for a while but still hasn't dried out. So overall, this is a pretty good willing to repurchase product.

Carol's Daughter Healthy Hair Butter

I've been trying to grow out my hair and try a particular hairstyle that I saw on youtube. My hair is in decent condition with not a lot of split ends and no real rough texture. I do have the occasional tangle but the part that bothers me the most is the still dyed parts at the end of my hair. In order to combat that, I've started using my Etude House oil again but if you know me then you know that I needed a change. I was going to try some Argan Oil or some Macadamian oil but when I was on Sephora I saw this Carol's Daughter Healthy Hair Butter for about $11. Now let me reintroduce my hair. It is fine with medium to long length that is untreated at the roots but dyed at the ends. It tends to get oily very fast but the ends remain pretty brittle and so I've become best friends with my dry shampoo. 

Here's a picture of my damp ends. The water hides most of the damage but I do have a childhood bad habit of playing with the ends of my hair.

This is the product and it claims to pretty healthy with no parabens, petroleum, mineral oil or any artificial colors. It does contain beeswax and is recommended to apply directly onto damp hair in order to deep condition, protect it and provide a natural shine. Gosh this sounds perfect. This does come in a bigger container but I roped myself in and just got the smaller one. Now this thing smells extremely strong and doesn't really fade for a long time. It smells like musky ginger and I am not a fan of woodsy or ginger smells so this was not a good start. This was also extremely thick and I was worried that the hot, close to 95 degree weather would melt it but nope. It is so thick and I could tip the container upside down and not have it spill. Good for traveling. Now for the road test.

I first put on the amount, rubbed my hands together vigorously and tried to get it to go through my hair. But it still didn't really coat the hair. So I took a bit more but it still wasn't coating or smoothing out my tangles. I decided to wait and let my hair dry before doing anything else. My sister saw me after and asked if I had washed my hair. This left my hair really greasy and oily. It did not get rid of the tangles and didn't condition or smooth my hair. But wait, maybe I applied too much product. So I put on maybe half the amount or maybe a bit more on the hair next time and nope. Still the same. It did leave a shine but did nothing to improve the condition of my hair. Not only that but it was pretty heavy and I couldn't get the stuff off of my hair. I had to go soap my hair three times and follow it with a vinegar rinse.

This is a picture of me after the first time applying it. The roots look ok but the top part looks to greasy. Now most of the reviews that love this are primarily women with curly thick hair, which is the complete opposite  of my hair profile. I honestly wouldn't but this and would cough up a bit more to try the other oils. Damn it.

Sun Screen recommendations

I was going to write some long paragraph on the importance of skin care during the summer but screw that. All of you are probably old enough to know the ups and downs and don't need nagging. Although I am quite  pro at nagging. Now here are what I currently use for the summer. Also, excuse the quality of the pictures because they are from my droid and isn't as good as they would regularly be.

I finally got my hands on the Shiseido Sun protectant for $20.00 and I love it. Now I can say that the Dior is better but I don't have $52 to waste on 1oz of product. Screw Dat! Now this isn't as light but it still beats the pants off of the other drugstore ones. It's still pretty light for being a cream and unlike Dior, it isn't a s runny.

It has a light scent that it's too heavy and does fade. It is also non greasy and isn't heavy or mask like on the skin. I've also noticed that it doesn't leave my face feeling like it has heavy mask on nor does it show up white. It blends into the skin well and it also happens to be water resistant. I walked in the sun for a while and didn't feel this sliding or greasing up my face. Adore this better than my previous Aveeno sunblock for the face.

For the body...

I use Clinique's body cream SPF 30 with UVA and UVB protection. Everything I previously said about the Shiseido is something that I would repeat here.

Thick but non greasy and doesn't leave marks on clothing. It does have a heavier sunblock scent but it really isn't troublesome. I do enjoy the spray can sunscreen but they tend to be pretty oily, but this isn't oily but does leave a light sheen on the skin.

Now for safe tanning, I use this Hampton Sun tanning gel with SPF. My arms and face do tend to tan but since I'm quite the prude, I don't wear anything much that exposes any other part of my body. So the white pasty complexion of my legs tend to stand out prominently when I do go to the beach. This gel tans you nicely but not drastically. I go about one to two shades darker rather than complete faux orange and it helps my skin tan and look more natural.

I also got this hair butter that I am really excited to try out. Since my hair is quite long again, it really needs some TLC. So going to talk to you later. Bye.

Face Q's Caviar and Hyaluronic Acid Moisture Mask

 There is a blistering heat wave here and one thing that I use to keep me cool while keeping my looks from deteriorating any further are face masks. I put them in the fridge and after a hard day, I put these on. I usually get mine from The Face Shop because I can get them in store and it's about $1 each but then I saw these Face Q's Caviar and Hyaluronic Acid Moisture Masks. I forgot how much I paid for these but I remember them being a bit pricer than my regular masks.

The packaging looks so adorable and while I can't read what this says, I assume it has something to do with anti-aging and skin repair based on some drawings in the back. I also googled Hyaluronic Acid  and it states that it is used in skin repair when used for cosmetic purposes. 

Here is a list of ingredients, luckily in English and nothing seems out of the ordinary. These have a light scent that may bother some but I found it refreshing. When removing the masks, they were soaked in the liquid and I had to wring them out so that they would actually stick instead of sliding on my skin. The masks themselves were made of good quality and I did not see anything ripping.

This is what I like about these mask. See the edge? Usually most masks would just be a big circle but these had ear hooks that help your mask stay on. It fits comfortably and all around my face.

The other part that I liked were that the mask also extends to the neck and had the piece of fabric come below the jaw and it has an opening for your ear as well. It wraps against your neck comfortably, so that you get the most coverage. Now this did burn for a short time but after you get over that stage, the mask dries down comfortably with no sticky residue. Of course my face did appear brighter, but that's probably just a temporary side effect. I haven't broken out nor am I seeing dramatic changes so this mask is just so-so. Meh, I would probably just this up but save my money for some other masks but I hope that other companies would pick up on the shape and style of the mask.

It's so hot that I've gotten too lazy to cook and have been drinking my meals. Smoothies and juices. Too hot to cook. Do you see my finger?

A mosquito sneaked up on me in the night and bit not only the finger but in between it as well. The only other place that sucks even more than the fingers is the face. Never on the face. My finger plumped up like a juicy sausage and I was in a foul mood. But revenge came fast and swift. With a heroic war cry of " I've killed better mosquitoes than you mother fer" I got it. Haha!

Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer Spf 15

I'm melting... Big girls like me that are pale and tend to burn rather than tan should not have to be out in the sun. I've lost hope on applying makeup but still have to be religiously diligent about applying sunscreen. But being the lazy ass that I am, I've been trying to pare down the routine. I know that SPF 15 isn't much but at least it's something. 

One big selling point for this lotion was that it was supposed to even tone and texture as well as brighten skin. It was around $14 dollars at any drugstore and I've been using it for a couple of months in the morning. Although it is a moisturizer, I don't think that it's very moisturizing. Let's see if it brightens. 

I do understand that this is a bad picture of the before shot, mostly because of the flash but please bear with me. As you can see, I still have scarring and red marks from all of the acne. This is a fresh face with nothing on. 

The moisturizer is very heavy and I do have to make sure to warm it up to make it fluid enough to spread. It also has a strong scent that I don't mind but it does linger. It has no visible sparkle in it and is easy to pump on to the hand. Does it provide moisture? Not really. My skin doesn't feel dry but it doesn't feel very refreshing on the skin. Maybe because I'm used to a more watery texture but not a big fan. It also does nothing to control the oil on my face. I'm still oily as heck and this does nothing to help. Let's see if it brightens.

The picture deceives. Natural daylight looks great in photos. It does seem to lighten my skin up a smidgen but it is only temporary. The effects fade and then you're left with oily skin. I honestly wanted the Shiseido cream for ~20.00 but it's sold out. Oh well.

Argh, I have to start writing better reviews. Sorry. I promise to be a bit better.

Quick Park Avenue Princess Bronzer from Tarte

No ramblings to day, just straight to business. I got this from a friend who received it from a 500 perk set. This ended up being too light for her and she passed it on to me. It is a non overtly shimmery bronzer from Tarte and while I do enjoy it, I can't wear it as a bronzer. It retails for $29.00... Ouch.

This is the flashed picture, which shows how shimmery it is. No glitter but just light shimmer that gives a great glow. However, make sure to use this sparingly, just in case.

 This is the no flash color and this color looks to be a bit more true to what you might see. However, when you swatch it, it doesn't seem to be too dark on the skin.

 With flash you can barely see the color on my hand. It's a pretty noticeable color that would show up nicely on light to medium skin but not much use for darker colors. It lasted for a good amount of time on my skin but it is't really sweat proof.

 See, is it me or does it seem to look orangey on the skin? I swatched my Sephora bronzer against it and my Sephora bronzer looks coppery too. I don't know what's happened but maybe I haven't been getting enough carrots in my diet. I noticed that both the Sephora and Tarte bronzers break me out when applied to the hollows of my face. While I no longer really have a use for the Sephora bronzer, I use the Tarte one as a light glowy blush on my skin. I really brightens up my skin and for some reason doesn't break me pout when applied to my cheeks. Would I but this for over $30(tax)? Heck naw. It's too hot for  makeup here anyway.

In conjunction to Memorial Day, NYC had fleet week. My friend and I went the day after memorial day so it wasn't busy but the ship she wanted to see had already sailed from port. I saw a good mix of men and women along but families as well. It was so hot that I blotted and sweat my makeup off. The train station was really far from the ships and I got blisters. My friend teased me by telling me that I deserved it because I was wearing crocs. No! Croc sandals are good for short distances and they are really comfy while being squishy.

 Saw a lot of helicopters as well as guns just scattered for everyone to pick up. I have a weird thing about guns and didn't want to hold one but my friend was all COD and loved it. Telling me about the heft and the range... Like I care. It wasn't loaded but she made a comment about just pistol whipping people with it, I just backed away from her with one eye on her while having the other one search for a safe exit point.

 Everyone on the ships were all so very nice and it was great to see all the guys in uniform. Drool.

 There was also a guided tour of the other ship and we saw and learned a lot.

That was how I spent my Monday. I'm also trying to change up my diet for summer and I'm doing a bit of a lifestyle change with my diet. I don't know if I can actually manage to change it but you know... Cross your fingers and wish me the best.