Empty Products/ A Couple Holy Grails {Skin Care Edition}

I have been collecting trash for like months. I just never got around to posting this for whatever reason. It has gotten out of hand so let me get started on this. I have makeup from all catergories, and skin care. let's just start with skin care, then cross the other bridge when we get there. shall we?

One thing you should know is that I have acne prone, combination skin. It used to be oily but I am not sure what happened. Read about that more in the Kiehl's part of this blog post.

Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleanser.
 I knew this was good for acne prone, oily skin. At the time I bought it, my skin was really oily. It is amazonian clay mixed with really tiny exfoliants, which makes for a really thorough, deep clean. The very first time I used it, I remember being so impressed. My skin was the softest, cleanest it has ever been. As the months went on, my skin started to become more dry- not as oily. I am not sure if this is because of the face wash itself but all I know is that right after I would use this, my skin would be really, really dry. So dry, I felt the need {and never forgot!} to use a moisturizer. If you have oily skin, give it a shot but don't pay for it! Yep- get it for FREE! I got mine from Birchbox just racking up points months after months. Here's everything else I got for free from Birchbox.

Urban Decay All Nighter. 
Once you don't have a setting spray, you notice a difference in how long your makeup lasts. At least I did! Think of it as a hair spray for your face. There is a slight stickiness to it once it is starting to dry you can feel it if you touch your face, but it's not so sticky you can't stand it. It is weightless, as promised. I really liked this. It did the job.

Urban Decay De-Slick. 
Another setting spray. I LOVED this one. It is on my Holy Grail Page. This setting spray is for oily skin as the name would suggest. Like I mentioned my skin is more combination. What I really remember this for was keeping my makeup on for the whole day in the hot, humid summer last summer: 2012. If you live in a humid climate, I would recommend De-Slick over All Nighter. Or if you have oily skin. Or if it's hot where you live. 

Borghese Cureforte Moisture Intensifier.  
I got this in my Birchbox a while back. This is a thin serum. It is supposed to moisturize but to really get the benefits of it, you are supposed to use it before your moisturizer, along with whatever else you use. I didn't notice it giving me any moisture but I did notice it making my skin just all around better. When I read up on this product, I read that this is an activator for all of your skin care that goes on after it. So for example, if you use a moisturizer, it's going to make your moisturizer work even harder. I liked it. It was something different and fun to try.

{A rule of thumb for layering skin care goes like this: Cleanser, Toner, Thinnest Serum-Thickest Serum, Thinnest Cream-Thickest Cream. Think of it as thin to thick}

Dr. Hauschka Rejuvenating Mask. 
I got this in this kit from Birchbox.com along with the Kiehl's face wash- again, I racked up my points and bought it with those. I really wished I would have used this correctly because I would have loved it even more I am sure. Just like we have hair mask's that are like conditioners only 10x moisturizing, we have a skin mask moisturizer. Why I washed it off is beyond me because it was so comfortable to use and was seeping into my skin- in a good way. It's a green mask that is a thick lotiony consistency. When I washed it off, I noticed how soft it made my skin. This mask was like nothing I have ever used. It was my favorite mask to date. I am giving this a Holy Grail Award.

Proactiv Green Tea Moisturizer. 
I am an avid Proactiv user {have been using it on and off for years} and I always get a little trial size in every Proactiv purchase I make. It is a great basic moisturizer to use and have on hand. I have never had any problems with it. It gets it's job done. I like it better than any of the other moisturizers I receive from Proactiv. I go through these little things all the time.

Juice Beauty Oil Free Mositurizer.
If I was comparing this to the previous moisturizer I talked about, I would say this one is much thicker and better all around. It is really soothing and moisturizes better than any other one I have tried yet. I really noticed a difference in my skin when I used it. Another Birchbox sample. Another Holy Grail Award.

So as you can tell, all of this stuff was pretty good or really awesome. I like when that happens.

hey. I know im annoying but don't forget to vote in the poll in the sidebar for the give away! 

ok!
xoxo
Erica

January Birchbox Review

Hey guys! So if your new and wondering why I am talking about last month's Birchbox, I will fill you in. I was a little tired of just hauling the boxes that I thought I could do more of a review and be much more beneficial to the blogging world. Instead of me talking about my expectations for the things in my box, I would have had enough time to try them out to see what I think. This is also a motivating factor for me to actually try everything in my box and use it to the last drop. Let's get started, shall we?

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Moray: ($20) Stila is quickly becoming my favorite high end brand and this product did not disappoint! The only color liner I use is black- for the most part, anyway.. I really don't like brown and I will try purple every once in a while on my lid but my waterline is always black. This liner is really unique. A really dark greenish color with green specks of glitter in it. I find it is a great alternative to brown for me. When im in the mood for something different, this has been fitting the bill. I do find that it can start to smudge off of the water line after a few hours.  It goes on smoothly on the lid, and doesn't really budge there once applied.

However, I do have one complaint! It is really hard to twist up and once it is twisted up, you cannot put it back down. When I first received it, I immediately called Birchbox to let them know I got the liner tube and package, but no liner. I felt really stupid even admitting it to the B-box rep. She then made me feel better telling me they had the issue of twisting the liner up and even went so far to tell me they had to call Stila to ask how to use the liner. Was she just trying to be nice? I don't think so......maybe? Whatever, once I figured out how to use it, it was good to go from there. It can be a pain from time to time though.

Jouer Body Butter: ($32) I think if anybody were to own this body butter, it would be Lisa Vanderpump. It is extremely luxurious considering it's nice frosted glass packaging, extremely creamy consistency, and light, floral scent. I think this was nice to sample because I am so used to my overbearing, so-good-you-can-eat-it Bath & Body Works butters (which I love) I never really go for anything else. I probably will not be re-purchasing it because B&BW is easier to access and easier on the wallet. I do feel rich when I have Jouer's on though. I am probably not making any sense. These are my weird thoughts. If I can help just person with this paragraph, I have done my duty (: On a more mature note, I do want to mention that, out of any body butter's I have ever tried, this one is the least bit greasy. It is actually not greasy at all, as some butter's can be. I really love that the most about it. I don't get my keyboard all messy a minute or 2 after putting it on. It is just straight moisture. Im giving it a 5/5 because of that. It's just that price. ouch.

Borghese Curaforte Moisture Intensifier: ($67) I got my Birchbox around the same time my Proactiv Face Brush came and I started using them both and after a week or so, my skin wasn't reacting well. It just seemed red and irritated so I back off of both the Borghese Curaforte and the Face Brush for a day or so for my skin to go back to normal. When I brought both back in, my skin actually got better then before both of them and I was really pleased!

This stuff is not only meant to moisturize your skin,  "it also helps your other products sink in more deeply so that active ingredients can perform more effectively. As if that weren’t enough, the lightweight formula boosts skin smoothness and clarity." (birchbox.com)

So I have been putting this on after my Revitalizing Toner (Step 2) & Before my Repairing Treatment (Step 3) following the rule of applying the light product first, and heavier products after. The consistency of the Borghese Curaforte is a very runny serum. I found out that applying them in this order really made this stuff work 10x better! (Before hand I was apply the serum after all 3steps and I didn't notice much of a difference) First off, it really made my skin extremely soft. What I mean by soft is I used to have very small pimples that would never go away and it has smoothed them out to what are becoming non-existent. I also do think it is helping my other products (Proactiv, esp. step 3) work even more effectively. I do have acne prone skin and Proactiv has always made my skin manageable, but with this added in my skin is even better. I have really liked this stuff.

Here's an awesome article about How To Layer Skin Care I found on Birchbox.com



LaraBar in Chocolate Peanut Butter: I like Larabar's, but don't love them. I am not a fan of alot of nuts and such. This bar was the best bar I have ever had! I ate it in the middle of the night and the next day went to my local health food store to see if they had any of the flavor in stock...they didn't. They asked if I wanted to buy a whole box of the flavor for $30 (16 bars) that they would order for me. I can't spend $30 on freaking Larabars, but wish I could have. I don't have an original picture to show you, I hope this one will do. credit

Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy: I thought it was a really nice fragrance. This is right up my alley. If you guys like a fresh summer time scent, you'll love it. I am just going to read right off of the package for the description:

~

Wild Berries & Mandarin.

Honeysuckle, Gardenia, & Jasmine.  

(^^would go perfect with Jouer body butter!^^)

Amber, Caramel, Vanilla,

Sandalwood, & Praline.

~

There's my birchbox from Jan in review form. I do hope you guys like this type of take on it. For the most part, I usually love everything in my birchbox. Maybe not everything is a total hit but I usually like the majority of my box. Last month I really loved everything. be on the look out for this months (feb) birchbox post, next month! So far, im not really impressed but I will fill you in soon enough!

Have you guys had a chance to try everything in your box? What do you think? 

thank you guys for reading!

yours truly,

Erica