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I was actually thinking of doing a different post but am so excited by this product that I had to rush and write this review.
I am not a powder person. Although lately I've been experimenting with different powder-type foundations, it hasn't been going very well. I used to LOVE powder foundations and powders but as I have aged, it has started settling into fine lines and bringing out fine lines that I didn't even know existed! I have been using Cle De Peau loose translucent powder to set my foundation but very sparingly. It is very finely milled so it has worked the best as a setting powder, as long as I don't use too much.
Recently, I discovered NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder--Loose and and been reading some pretty good reviews on it so decided to try it.
The ingredients:
What NARS says:
I've been using it quite regularly for about a week now and I'm totally loving it! It does exactly what NARS says it does. It is finely milled and very light to the touch. It hasn't brought out my fine lines and actually smooths out my complexion without making it look dry. There is a slight hint of a glow which really enhances your complexion. It's long-wearing on me and does seem to be hydrating. The only thing that might be a negative is that it has a slightly meaty/animal scent to it. It reminds me of when I was into making soap (melt and pour glycerin soaps) and one additive that I liked to use was this product called Silk. It also had a meat scent to it. The scent doesn't last long and it's only a hint of the scent as you're applying it. At first, I wasn't sure if it was my brush because my brush is made out of badger fur and when I wash it, it has that animal scent to it. I then used a synthetic brush and it had the same scent as I applied the powder so then I knew it was the powder.
I had a "sleep over" at Mai's house on Saturday night and told her that she needed to try this "magic" powder. She doesn't like to use powders either but she was pretty impressed with this powder too.
I purchased this at Sephora for $34.00. This will definitely replace Cle De Peau as a setting powder.
*Kat*
In my last post, I mentioned that Sephora made some changes to their eyeshadow collection and I'd like to do a quick review of it today.
It seems to me that Urban Decay is a "leader" of sorts in trends. First was NAKED palette that was so popular that many other brands started doing similar collections. Then they changed their formulation in their eyeshadows to make them richer and more pigmented, softer and velvety, crease-free and longer lasting. It isn't necessary to use a primer with this new formulation. Fast forward almost a year later and the Sephora Collection has also been reformulated similarly. Like Urban Decay, the Sephora Collection Colorful Eyeshadows can easily be depotted and placed into a 3-shade or 6-shade palette.
I don't know if this is a permanent or if it's for a limited time but if you purchase 2 eyeshadows, you will get the 3-shade palette for free and if you purchase 4 eyeshadows, then you will get the 6-shade palette for free. Otherwise, the 3-shade palette is $12.00 and the 6-shade palette is $14.00.
I had to purchase an eyeshadow for my daughter-in-law and decided to pick up a couple for myself, thus I got the 3-shade palette.
MAC and e.l.f. 4-shade palettes are the same size and in comparison, the Sephora Collection 3-shade palette is a bit larger.
The thickness is the same as the e.l.f. palette but the MAC palette is a bit thinner. I believe this is due to the fact that there is no mirror in the MAC palette. The Sephora Collection palette is also heavier and feels like it's well constructed.
The palette has a key inside, which you use to pop out the pan. It pops easily in and out of the palettes.
The eyeshadows themselves are nicely pigmented and do feel softer than the original formulation. I normally wear a primer so I can't vouch for how well they will wear without but they did last on me and didn't crease. I must say that I didn't find any fault with the old formulation although I didn't wear Sephora Collection eyeshadows much except for one color, which I don't use as an eyeshadow. I use it for concealing purposes. Unfortunately, with the new formulation, that color has been discontinued. According to the Sephora website, you can wear the eyeshadow for 10 hours with no fading due to Color Eye Last Complex. I also found out from the SA that these shadows can be applied wet or dry.
When I had my meet up with Lulu in January, we were talking about how we both thought that Sephora brand items were quite good and not much blogged about. They do have quality products and are less expensive than more popular brands. I think that with this new formulation, these eyeshadows are worth checking out.
*Kat*
Wow, January has come and gone already. It just flew by!
I surprised myself by using up some products in January.
Skin Care Items:
Estee Lauder Idealist Even Skintone Illuminator was okay. It didn't help with lightening anything, which is par for the course for all products I have tried. I've decided to go with hydrating serums instead and hopefully that'll be less pricey than those that claim to lighten dark spots, etc.
Vitacreme B12 was a good hydrating moisturizer. I've had this one for so long as I didn't use it consistently. It's something that I may repurchase although I'm undecided at this point.
Fresh Black Tea Age-Delay Eye Cream was an eye cream that I liked. It was nice and hydrating, which I liked. I hope that it did some age delaying but I didn't see anything significant. This is a maybe on repurchasing since it was a bit pricey.
Makeup Items:
Missha BB Boomer Primer was a primer that I really liked for the warmer months. I would consider repurchasing this but will have to wait till my friends go to Korea. (I do not like ordering from the U.S. site.)
I used up 2 MAC and 1 Sephora eyeshadow. One of the MAC eyeshadows is a staple color so I will definitely be repurchasing. The Sephora eyeshadow is also a staple but the color has recently been discontinued. I was fortunate to have purchased a backup a while ago and then last week the Sephora staff found two more in their back stock, which I purchased.
Miscellaenous Items:
I use my Clarisonic almost every night. In keeping with the suggestion of changing the brush heads every 3 - 4 months, I have decided to change the brush heads in January, April, July and October.
Philosophy Fresh Peaches and Cream Shower Gel was part of a gift set so this is a gift set size. I liked the scent of it but as with all Philosophy shower gels, I thought that it was a bit too emollient. I feel that they don't rinse off well. I will be reusing the bottle to put in some of the shower gel that I'm currently using to take on my trip later this month.
I use the Sephora brand Daily Makeup Brush Cleaner every day to do a quick cleaning of my brushes. This replaced my using Wet Ones every day. I already bought a back up of it and am using it.
Lux Super Damage Repair Conditioner is a favorite of my daughter-in-law. I had been using it and stopped for a while but have started using it again because I have so many of this line of shampoo and conditioner in my stash. It will probably be something that I will continue to stock in my stash--just not as much as I currently have.
*Kat*
