Fortune Cookie Soap Review

I first heard about Fortune Cookie Soap on the youtubes.  It's a lot like Lush products but more food scent focused and they get their name from selling soap in the shape of fortune cookies. Of course I was eager to try out some of their products.  They have quite a good selection of soaps, bath stuff, body butters and fragrances.  It was actually really difficult to choose the scents I wanted to try out first because they all sound really good. I ended up getting a fortune cookies soap in "rain shower summer", cupcake soap, a bath salt in "vivid", a bath bomb in "fresh pineapple sorbet gelato", their "clearly complexion" dry clay mask and I got a free sample of their bath melt in "cupcake"(which is not available anymore).  Now I will start off by saying most of the reviews will not be all that great but I still have hope I'll like some of their other products.

So first I'll talk about their fortune cookie soap.  The one I got smelled really fresh and I absolutely loved how it made my whole shower smell like a summer rain.  It also cleaned great, my skin felt squeaky clean with no residue and the smell lingered on my skin.  However, the down side is you don't get many uses out of it because it becomes very flimsy in the shower and breaks apart.  So that was a little annoying but if you have one of those bath mitts you can just put it in there and probably get more uses out of it. 

A soap I didn't enjoy all that much was their cupcake soap. I ordered it mainly because it looks so gosh darn adorable and I love cupcakes.  I was planning on just really using it as decoration, unfortunately as soon as I received it the cupcake icing started turning into this poopy brown colour.  I asked the maker and she said it's normal because sometimes the vanilla in it reacts which I was extremely disappointed in.  So because of this I had to use the soap and it wasn't much better than it looked.  It didn't lather very well, the smell wasn't very cupcake-y when used in the shower, it sort of smelt like play-doh.  It also didn't rinse off cleanly, it didn't just moisturize, it left a film on my skin.  As well, the scent didn't linger on my skin (probably a good thing).  Their cupcake bath melt was pretty much the same.  The tub smelled like play-doh and it didn't really moisturize my skin as it did grease it up. 

I got their clay mask to try out because of my oily skin and I thought it was neat concept; it comes as a powder and you use any of the mixing mediums listed based on your skin type, like milk, honey, water etc.  It comes in four packets and I tried different mediums.  It was a huge pain when I used yogurt or sour cream, all the clay just balled up and wouldn't apply to my skin, just kept falling off.  The milk and water applied a lot better, however, as soon as the clay started drying on my face it felt awful. The tightening was too much, it started to make my skin itch and become irritated, even if I only left the mask on for 5 minutes. And after I rinsed it off my skin was so incredibly dry and blotchy.  Luckily my moisturizer was able to relieve my skin but I would not recommend this product to anyone.

A product I was really excited to use was their bath salt.  I got it in their most popular scent and it smells like sweet laundry detergent. Some of you may not like that smell but I do haha.  It smelled so fresh and clean but when I poured the salts into the bath the smell did not disperse through the air, in fact, the smell disappeared all together and I was left sitting in boring bath water with salts that were supposedly having some glorious affect on my skin.  Needless to say I was disappointed.  But I would still like to try one of their other products with the same scent.

The only product I did actually enjoy was their gelato bath bomb.  It not only looks freakin adorable and good enough to eat but it smells good enough to eat too.  It works wonderfully, a great bath bomb and the smell fills your whole bathroom. The pineapple scent was so relaxing, and was a nice get away from the impending doom of winter.  The smell also stays on your skin which I enjoy since I love the smell so much. I would definitely recommend their bath bombs, but that's all I was able to recommend. Like I said I'm hopeful to try some of their other products and scents and maybe have more luck. I do suggest you take a look at their site, they have some pretty unique items that would make great gifts for the holidays or yourself.

October Luxe Box Review

The items I got this month were Lise Watier's Flash Face Lift Radiance Vials ($27), Kerastase's Elixir Ultime ($50), China Glaze's Crackle nail polish ($8), Olay Professional Pro-X Eye Restoration Complex ($60, drugstore), and Lise Watier's Plumpissimo Le Gloss ($20).  And as you can see they changed there packaging to a more sleek black design with a nice personal touch.

Lise Watier's Flash Face Lift Radiance Vials claims to erase signs of fatigue, smooth fine lines and wrinkles, restore radiance to your complexion and hold your makeup all day.  When I tried it I noticed my skin did look brighter and more refreshed, however, that's about all I noticed. There was no difference in fine lines and it certainly didn't hold my makeup all day.  I might have recommended this product just for brightening my skin if it wasn't for one major flaw...the smell.  The smell isn't disgusting but it isn't wonderful either.  The smell is strong and overbearing and it STAYS on your skin. For hours that's all I could smell, even after putting all my makeup on.  It ended up giving me a headache and I really don't want the smell of a beauty product to  overpower the perfume I'm wearing.

Yet another hair product, the Elixir Ultime claims to deep condition hair and smooth hair fibers to bring shine.  It also says it restores strength to hair and protects it from the harsh environment.  The product is good and standing up to the Moroccan Oil I've been using it does a decent job. My hair feel soft and smooth but I wouldn't say it's any more amazing than skmething you can pick up at the drug store.

I have been dying to try a crackle nail polish and have heard really good things about China Glazes.  I'm sure most of you have heard about crackle nail polishes.  You put it over any of your other nail polishes and it will form a deconstructive crackle design over it.  The colour I got was "Latticed Lilac" and it's so pretty! And as you can see below the crackle is awesome. There is an art to applying this stuff though and it takes a little bit of practice because it starts crackling almost instantly so you can only go over it once.  So it can crackle a lot cleaner than what's pictured. I've seen some brands that just crackles along your brush strokes and so it's only vertical crackle. This one crackles all over.  I highly recommend China Glaze!

Next is Olay Professional Pro-X Eye Restoration Complex.  It says it improves the look of crows feet which I don't have at all so I can't critique that part.  It hydrates well and for me, if I don't use a moisturizer, my fines lines are iore pronounced. But I prefer using an eye cream because moisturizers tend to look greasy under the eye.  It also decreased the puffiness around my eyes but did nothing for dark circles.  However, the act of massaging it in what's supposed to get rid of the puffiness. So overall, for the price, I wouldn't recommend this product.  I say just go a pick up some generic brand eye cream.

Lastly is Lise Watier's Plumpissimo Le Gloss.  It's a lip gloss that's obviously supposed to plump up your lips.  It says it contains some sort of dehydrated spheres that expand when they come in contact with the water in your skin and fill in and plump up the lines in your lips.  Well, surprise, surprise, it didn't work for me. As you can see below there's no difference.  However, I would like to say that I love the sparkling pink colour of the gloss. But for $20 it isn't worth it.

Also this month my box came with a $25 off if I spent $75 on this site dealuxe.ca.  Which I thought was pretty sweet.  I go to the site and it's really nice clothes..*even sweeter.  Then I look at the prices and almost the ENTIRE site is over $100 items.  Like there are maybe 10 basic shirts that are $85 and rings and stuff that are $60.  Even with the discount there is no way I'm paying $60 or ONE t-shirt.  I thought that was a bit ridiculous for the Loose Button company to do, obviously their clients don't have the money to be spending $300 on a skirt.  We're just regular people, not millionaires.  Needless to say I will not be using the giftcard.  But all in all it was an okay box this month. Hit or miss sometimes I guess!

Hope everyone is having an awesome October :)

September Favourites

The first item isn't a beauty product but it's still something I have been obsessed with all month!  I went to Wal-mart a few weeks ago and went a little crazy with scented candles. The brand is called "The Fern Group", and I got 3 scents, Apple Pie, Vanilla Cupcake and Cinnamon Roll. My favourite is, of course, the vanilla cupcake.  I wish I could have bought all the scents they had but my poor wallet could not afford it. For some reason my favourite time to buy scented candles is in the fall, I just think the scents really put me in the mood for the season change :)

Next is a matte eyeshadow by Urban Decay called "Chronic".  It was on sale for $3 so I figured why not, and it was in a pretty green colour that I loved. It is an EXCELLENT eyeshadow, as you can see in the photo it is highly pigmented and the colour pay off is amazing. They have a few other matte colours as well so if you don't like the green there's more neutral colours. I highly recommend this eyeshadow and since I have never tried any of Urban Decay's eyeshadows, I definitely think I will now if all their products are this good of quality. In the swatch below, on the lefp is the eyeshadow without a primer and on the right is with a primer.

This month I tried a few products from "mark." Usually you can buy their products through Avon.  I bought one of their facial cleansers and their face blotting sheets. With it I got samples of their Lemon Sugar 3 in 1 Cleanser and their Lemon Sugar Body Butter and OH MY GOD the smell is soooooooo yummy.  Out ob the two I woul` recommend the body butter because the smell lasts on your skin. With the cleanser it smells amazing in the shower when you're using it but it doesn't linger on your skin. I literally could not stop smelling my arms after I put the body butter on haha.

And lastly is a product I mentioned before from my Luxe Box, the Moroccan Oil.  I have been using it religiously and my hair has never felt softer and I've been getting a lot more compliments on my hair too. Again, if you want to read the full review it's in my previous post.

September Luxe Box Review

In this months Luxe Box I received Pur Minerals' Mineral Glow, Moroccan Oil Treatment, Laura Mercier's Perfecting Water and Mereadesso's Face and Neck Toning Gel.

Last month I tried Pur Minerals Pressed Powder which I really liked. Their Mineral Glow Powder ($24) is an all over powder that is supposed to give a natural glow.  At first I thought this was a bronzer because when I first looked at it it seems pretty dark. But when I applied it I noticed it was more of a golden shimmery colour.  When applied all over your face it gives that "sun kissed", gohden goddess look.  And what's good is that, depending on how much you apply, it can be a very subtle hook or you can apply more strongly on your cheeks or where ever. Overall, I think it's a good product but I wouldn't say it's amazing and I'd probably recommend just getting a cheaper knock off at the drugstore.

Next is the Moroccan Oil Treatment ($42).  Like I said in my previous post I have frizzy, dry hair.  A few months ago I tried another argan oil product and did not like it at all.  It didn't make my hair any less frizzy or feel any less dry.  So I was very skeptical about this Moroccan Oil because it is essentially the same thing only more expensive.  And in this case the cheap knock off argan oil was definitely showed up by the more expensive Moroccan Oil.  My hair felt incredibly soft after putting it in and it felt super hydrated and barely even frizzed out when I let it air dry.  I normally only wash my hair every couple days and I find my hair will get really dry and frizzy at the ends.  Using the oil, even after 2 days my hair still felt really soft and smooth.

Laura Mercier's Perfecting Water ($38) is a toner mist that you apply before any moisturizers/serums and it's supposed to super hydrate your skin.  As a toner it works really well.  In the sample it didn't come in a spray bottle so I just put some of it on a cotton pad and you could see all the make-up and dirt my cleanser didn't even take off.  It does seem fairly hydrating and I used my moisturizer afterwords.  For me this product would be better to test once winter comes because my skin gets really dry and flaky during the day and this is supposed to keep your skin hydrated all day and helps cell renewal.

Lastly, Mereadesso's Face and Neck Toning Gel ($120). Obviously this isn't a product I really need because there's nothing to tone or tighten yet.  It also says you'll notice a difference after 3-5 days but since I don't expect much of a difference I'm just doing a first impressions review. The product has a very thick but smooth texture, not watery.  It does absorb really fast into the skin and my face felt a little tingly afterwards.  I applied it under my eyes where I have noticed a little loss in elasticity and there was a difference.  The skin snapped back quicker but I wouldn't say it's an amazing difference.  I will continue to use it for the next couple of days so if I do notice a huge improvement I'll let you guys know!

Also, my Luxe Box came with a Hershey Kiss inside of it :). It's cute things like this, plus their EXCELLENT customer care that make me really love Loose Button and their Luxe Box's.  For each month they send you an email asking if you want to take a survey on the products you received and you get entered to win a $50 Starbucks card! Overall, it's just a great way to get introduced to new products without the concern of buyer's remorse.

My Hair Care Routine

Well, I wanted to do my Luxe Box review for September, but leave it to Canada Post to lose an entire shipment. So, I'll do sort of a continuation from last week and do my hair care routine! This one I'm not too strict about because I'm always trying out different products.  My main issues with my hair are keeping it's colour, maintaining frizz and stopping breakage.  Because of this I usually rotate products between all these issues. I'll just tell you a little bit about the products and tools I'm using right now.

First off, the shampoo and conditioner I use is by Nexxus' Pro Mend.  I've been growing out my hair for a few years so my hair is prone to split ends. So far it's doing a pretty good job, the only problem I've found is my hair tangles a lot easier now.  They have other Pro Mend products as well so I'll most likely try those out sometime in the future.

 As soon as I get out of the shower I put in John Frieda's Frizz-Ease hair serum in Extra Strength.  I've tried a lot of frizz control products and I like this one the best. It really controls my hair and shapes the waves and curls really nicely if I have to let it dry naturally.

When I straighten my hair I really make sure I'm protecting it from the damage caused by heating tools.  The products I use are all from the CHI line because I love it so much! While my hair is still wet I use their Straight Guard styling cream to help control frizz from blow drying and flat ironing. Before I blow dry my hair I spray in their Keratin Mist. This is a strengthening treatment and I also like to spray it in my hair every morning to smooth and add shine to my hair.  Lastly, while I'm flat ironing my hair I spray their 44 Iron Guard thermal protection spray as I straighten sections.

Lastly, the flat iron I use is an Avanti Croc.  It's got digital settings, heats up in a matter of seconds and it doesn't fry my hair at all.  It's a wet to dry flat iron but obviously you can't step out of the shower and use it. But what's great is that even if your hair is still damp it locks that moisture in your hair instead of burning it like most flat irons do.  It's a great flat iron overall and I highly recommend it!

My Skincare Routine

I'll start off saying I'm not extremely diligent about my skincare routine but I do try to keep my skin looking nice. Also, my routine changes from summer to winter because in the summer I have super shiny oily skin and in the winter it's dry and flaky. So I'll breakdown each routine and give you a little info on the products.

A.M. - Neutragena's Ultra Sheer Daily Face Sunscreen (Summer)
         - Arbonne's Hydrating Eye Cream
         -Arbonne's Mattifying Powder (Summer)

The sunscreen is great because it's made for the face so it absorbs fast and it works well with make up. The eye cream also absorbs fast and doesn't heave a greasy mess like most under eye treatments do. The mattifying powder is used to suck up oil but needs to be applied throughout the day when you get shiny.




P.M. -Arbonne's Exfoliating New Cell Scrub /Mario Badescu's Acne Facial Cleanser
         - Mario Badescu's Cucumber Cleansing Lotion
         - Oil of Olay's Night Fortifying Moisturizer (Winter)

  

I think it's a necessity to exfoliate your skin at least a few times a week. So I usually exfoliate every other day and switch it with my cleanser in the summer time but in the winter I may only exfoliate once or twice a week because my skin is so dry.  Afper my cleanser I use a toner.  Toners are good for clearing and tightening pores and I highly recommend always using a toner after you wash your face. In winter I use a moisturizer because my skin gets really dry. I use a night one because my skin just gets too oily and clogged when I use one before putting makeup on.


 

I also like to use any kind of face mask at least once a week. I love trying out different face masks at Lush or ones I find at the drugstore. It's a nice treat to do for yourself.  Two of my favourite masks are Lush's Mask of Magnamity that clears clogged pores and tightens them, and Mario Badescu's Whitening Mask which evens out skin tone.  As well, I like to use Mario Badescu's Buffering Lotion for when I break out right before that time of the month ;)

And that's all! I try out a lot of different skin care products so the list and routine changes sometimes. But, these are products I keep going back to so I hope you enjoy them as well if you try them out!

August Favourites

My first favourite item I already discussed in my Luxe Box review. It's the Pur Minerals Pressed Powder. I've been using it constantly all month.  I love it because it takes two seconds to dust on in the morning and it's been great with the heat not having a heavy liquid foundation on.

From my last Sephora order one of the samples I received was Jack Black's Double Duty Face Moisturizer ($17).  I always have problems with moisturizers because my skin can get really oily and they tend to only enhance that and clog up my pores.  But, this stuff absorbs SO fast into my skin and almost leaves a matte finish on my face. I cannot rave about this product enough, I love it. Plus it has SPF 20 and has antioxidants in it to keep your skin looking youthful. 

Also this month I went to Shoppers looking for a new mascara to try out.  I just happened to pick up Physicians Formula`s Custom Eye Enhancing Mascara Duo.  I only bought it because it was on sale and I`ve heard a few makeup guru`s talking about it. Because I got it on sale I`m not sure what the retail price is but I believe it`s around $13.  Each tube has a black mascara and a coloured mascara that is supposed to enhance your eye colour.  I got the one for green eyes and the colour is green.  I`ve never worn a coloured mascara before and I must say it`s not as shocking as I thought it would be, it actually looks really pretty, especially if you`re playing with colours in your eyeshadow.  The black mascara is great too, it has a shimmer to it but no fall out.  There is almost zero clumping and it really separates, lengthens and curls the lashes nicely.  Probably my favourite mascara I've ever used.  The only downside is it isn't water proof, so any hint of tears and you have a runny glittery mess under your eyes. 

Lastly, I want to share one of my new favourite clothing sites, gojane.com!  I really like their shoes and tops and I even bought 3 pairs of shoes from them this month.  I love this site because they are always having great sales. I got all my shoes for 30% off. And for labour day weekend, starting today, they are having an up to 75% off site wide sale!!!! If you are a Hello Kitty fan then you'll be as excited as I am that this adorable purse is 30% off :) Also, one last tip if you buy heels from them, go half a size larger than you normally get. I had to exchange mine because they were too small.

Happy shopping!