OOOoOoooOo L’ Oreal Youth Code, you mah new boo!
After 4-days of straight, beauty work;
No less than 7 make up changes day…. My skin was not happy.
It gets rough, people!
I finally learned the contextual & cognitive meaning of tired skin.
“How the hell does skin get tired?”
Well, it…. Does I guess. It losses it’s bounce, glow, it looks gray and dull. I can’t walk around ashen,’ telling people, “Oh, I’m a model!” Jaja! Yeah Right.
Thaz me, 4 looks in, posing for pictures 😋
But Aye, aye aye…oooooo Lala L’ Oreal Youth Code…..
No shame in your name. It’s about what’s muddled together in that little pump bottle of serum and pot of moisturizer that made my skin go. ough…..
“It did. Just like that, “ough…..”
L’ Oreal Youth Code Day/ Night Moisturizer serves up assorted percentages of probiotic, emollients, peptides, antioxidants To what percent, Idk… I’m not a chemist. Does it change “cellular composition at the genetic level?” Well the your microwave, cell phone, butter knives and tap water do! So I’ll leave it to you to form your own conclusion, and someday perhaps i’ll touch on the topic further. What am I saying, however? It brought me back. I’m back. My skin is a smooth and supple as it ever was, and I’m happy to feel normal again.
Youth Code, Thanks for working in a pinch. #Besitos
Uh…R&F Mini Facial Kit, Dear
I didn’t say anything at first because I knew you wouldn’t understand. You could never understand. Trust is something most of us grapple with, for months on end, until we give into the illest end of the broad spectrum, and say, “No. It’s happened one to many times, I’ve been through it before. I will not go back there. I will not be fooled again because I certainly will not forget. ”
Everything from your size, to your off color, and the pointed ways in which you needed me to manage you. Sure, you smelled so ….good, citrus-y & fresh. But then there was that card you showed up with, with that recycled little limerick about…. Seriously, how many others had you said it to before!? Alarms blared in my head, “not this one. …. Just not the one. Yet I gave you a chance. A sample try of all things. A shot at redemptions for the countless empty…….and what happened:
The next day I woke up red, splotchy and my face stung. I was upset. I wanted answers right then and there. So I took the internet, a cheap and free self-help right from the source.
There is was:
” Massage directly onto skin of face or body for 30 – 60 seconds.”
I did that.
“Do not wet skin before use.”
I Didn’t!
“For gentler exfoliation, use on damp skin and slowly add water to lessen the intensity of the exfoliation.”
AH Ha….
Oh… Oh.. So yeah…..so you got me there. I didn’t do that. So sure, of course you’ll say that…I did it to myself. But perhaps? ….Fine another shot.
So I let 3-days pass. A new beginning, and then used you again, Microdermabrasion Paste, instead of cleanser. Right? So then….
… oh….oh…Not bad. Not bad at all, Sweetie. You left my face smooth, and there was an added sheen to my shine.
O.k. So then you come with these little blue and silver ampules, like friends to a party, and according to the note: you twist off the top and….
The blue is your Night Renewing [retinol] Serum, and the silver is a Lip Renewing Serum. I spread these on, and no harsh sting, no sensitivity, in fact my skin felt smooth and coated after use.
📷 cred: beauty blogger Janise @Mamainheels
Wait! This can’t be right though because retinol doesn’t do that; except you because you’re silicon based, and R & F MD paste contains silicon too.
Uh huh…. Your very first ingredient is Cyclopentasiloxane, which according to the EWG is “a silicon-based cyclic compound that may be associated with environmental toxicity.” In addition the EWG reports that “one or more animal studies show effects at moderate doses. “It’s also said to cause mild skin and eye irritation, according to the ingredient’s material safety data sheet and other sources, and a small percentage of it reaches systemic circulation through dermal absorption, which may also have accumulate in the body over time.”
So that’s what you were hiding: you’re silicon based. Knew I should checked through the text sooner! Should never have let that small font, type-set discourage me.
That’s it! Now, I’mma call her. The product specialist’s hotline… Yup. I got her number.
To be continued……..
Oh Hello, Andalou Naturals
Threw my hands up in frustration after trying to mastermind the ingredient labels on skin care packaging. I mean the freakin’ Chemist Hieroglyphics, like, Dude. Really?
O.k. But your not a purist, so why do you care?
Because I do…….
I purchase skin care. I slather it on myself, I want to know what’s in it. That’s it.
So I find the only thing that’ll calm me down: Le’Sale.
Yes, a freakin’ sale. You know what mean. I was being cute. It was a skin care sale!
Except……, there’s a catch. The sale is located at the one place I’ve vowed to never purchase skin care, ever. The one place where, in my opinion, skin care doesn’t belong. The one place built for other addictions, indulgences, and vice: the grocery store.” That’s right I said it, “the. grocery. store. Skin care don’t belong in the aisle next to my Udi’s Gluten Free Double Chocolate Chip Muffins and Amy’s Organic Mac n’ Cheese.” It belongs in a place humming with heavenly music, decked in gardenias, with sales people in lab coats and perhaps an escalator. Skin care belongs in a place where I can harbor my addiction separately, under pretense whilst maintaining anonymity.
So I slide on my shades and tondu a long pointed leg into the aisle, peering left/ right, up/ down & all around. All’s clear….. It’s there that I spot it: Andalou Skin Care. It’s a line of all natural ingredients blended into formulas for each skin type. I carefully handle a box, between thumb and middle finger, rotating…rotating…. And what do I see: ENGLISH. The ingredients list is in plain English and not in the usual Sanskrit for Hammurabi’s, nuclear, physics lab that I’m accustomed to see.
So I lift a box of the Probiotic + Vitamin C moisturizer and the Vitamin C eye serum, expecting the dryness that can often accompany a Vitamin C product.
Instead, within a month’s time, my skin was the exact depiction of lush. The formula is ultra hydrating, standing up to air conditioning and the spray-on, sport sunscreen formulas I prefer to use on my face and décolleté, at times, despite the alcohol content. While I wasn’t wild about the jar packaging, which allows the active anti-aging ingredients to oxidize quicker, their affordable price made to worth the purchase. Just remembered to use the entire jar in 30-days or less.
Attention Aztecs: please note that I’ll be gone till Nov.
The sight of this product reminded me of my Mom’s ole skool Borghese Fango- Mom’s grand, ole, green glop that left her eternally crack free.
Bwahaha! Bring forth this sorcery to me.
But seriously how good could something that costs $10 be, right?
So when my friend paid a visit to my home with homage of Jeffree Star Cosmetics and Health & Beauty Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay, I acknowledge the little Tasmanian Diabla’s act to make amends for an entire day of whirlwinds, houses and tornados. I give her a sheepish grin and got out the cider vinegar.
Before long we’re pouring and mixing in my pristine, white, bathroom, then laying in front of the AC slathered in clay.
As the clay begins to dry you feel a few snags and slight tug here and there. Then bam! Everything- everything is pulled with a jolt, as if the Napa Valley, healing spirits in the clay are determined to defy gravity once and for all.
I was even accused of looking extra Asian. That’s really something to think about if you consider that I’m not Asian. The Tasmanina diabla– her face was tight. So tight, she looked like a third-grader having her hair braided, on the morning after mom receives a lice infestation notice from school.
There you have it. It’s healing clay. So it does what it says.
In fact it does it so well that it stripped the tans right of our skin, leaving us moon faced w/ bronze bodies in July. Jaja!
But don’t fret. This is a good thing if you really consider it. One use was enough to strip all the dead skin cells (Afterall, that’s what a tan is-unhealthy skin.) off of our faces. Meaning that this ain’t you’re ordinary mud. It’s a potent salve with exponential exfoliate properties. Yes, my face was white in comparison to the rest of my body, but it was also visibly brighter and lightened my dark sports.
Miss Tasmania, herself, said: it cleaned out her pores. When I sat in the makeup chair the next day, the makeup artist said: my skin was like baby soft and perfect. For someone who will read, re-read, and read again, and again this review prior to posting it; I’d more than gladly spend 10-bucks on that during the winter.
Thank You For Redefining “Basic,” Carrot & Rose.
I was entertaining the idea of seeking a moisturizing product, suitable for hands and face- something which I could just toss in my purse as a two in one. But I didn’t think there was one. Now here it is: delivered to my door in a bright fusha envelope with bubble wrap lining.
It’s the Seraphine Botanicals Carrot & Rose moisturizer that came in one my many ipsy bags.
It’s a light weight, vegan, gluten free, non GMO, non animal tested formula. Better yet, it smells like wherever the best angels live in heaven- one of those better neighborhoods they don’t talk about in the bible. I mean the scent really is divine. It isn’t over-powering or irritating–especially for someone like myself, who almost always experiences allergic reactions topically and nasally to anything with fragrance. Spritz me with something fragrant, and I’mma sneeze my life away. The main emollient is good ole glycerin, vegetable oil which, hey, was never broke to begin with. Combined with and organic emulsifier, It’s suitable for face, hands and body. I found it too thin for my dry hands, but it’s consistency was just right for my face, chest and neck spreading on oh so lovely. It soothes, moisturizes and seals moisture into your skin. It’s light enough for hot weather, yet textured enough for when the season began to change.
O.k. I’ll admit: if your looking for something chock-full of antioxidants and amino acids, this isn’t it. Gotta find you a night cream. But sometimes all you need a moisturizer to do is: moisturize, and it’s a job well done. Go back on with your life. So this product is perfect for travel, or after the gym or when you just need a olafactory pick me up. Sometimes the antioxidant rich formulas you may think to bring with you, have ingredients that would render ineffective, after being stored at anything higher than comfortable room temperature. So a product like Carrot & Rose is great for “on the go. “But honestly, sometimes it’s nice to just know that the active ingredient is tried and true, one thing only. Ah….. I know what I’m putting on my skin, and I won’t need to keep the Benadryl, Ventolin or Vicks close by just in case.
FYI: a quick note to Seraphim Botanicals, and the product specialist verified that the glycerin in Carrot & Rose is not derived from either carrots, roses or peanut oil– in case you are allergic. This is a real thing. I have sisters allergic to all three, and one with sensitive skin- all to who I now feel confident about gifting Carrot & Rose.
So to Carrot & Rose I say: Thanks for just being what you say you are because sometimes reliable, clear, trustworthy, uncomplicated and all things once basic are what we need.
Aqua Reveal Satin Bright Water Peel (For Face)
📷: @aquareveal
If you’re looking for quick, facial exfoliation in a rush, then you may like one of my new favs.
It’s a clear, semi-liquid/ semi-gel substance with no fragrance or smell. I carefully spread the product, starting with my chin and cheeks with the tips of my fingers. Within a few sec mounds it sloughed mounds, yes mounds, of dead skin. I’ve never seen gentle exfoliation like this, except during a facial. I worked my way up to the nose, t-zone, forehead and Aqualung Reveal, even, rolled away dead skin from under my eyebrows.
It was gentle enough to use around my eyes, which I always pay close attention to because I have some slight sun damage on one side.
My skin was truly instantly brighter and smoother. In less than a minute, Aqua Reveal left my skin with a slight squeaky clean feel. However, squeaky clean is what you want to avoid when exfoliating or cleansing your skin. Squeaky clean means you’re stripping your skin of precious lipids which protect an naturally moisturize your skin. So I’d use this product once a week or every other week, opting to alternate with something less effective. Also it did draw out impurities, so be prepared for a few short-lived blemishes and a little redness. But after wearing a few pounds of makeup this week, this is part of the well welcomed healing process. Both the redness and blemishes were gone by morning.
So there you have it. No fancy story, no messy tea, no drama to tell. Just happy with this product, and ready to hit the bed. After all, it’s still fashion week, and I’m exhausted.