Sunday Summary

I've decided to augment Survey Sunday with a roundup of posts that I found particularly enjoyable/informative over the past week, and a list of the products that I'm currently coveting (bundling it all under the "Sunday Summary" label).  That way there's hopefully a little something for everyone, and I can learn what you're loving now, too!


Blog posts of note
Beautiful with Brains investigated whether powders with SPF offer adequate protection
Ebrushka's Makeup Bag swatches and reviews her favorite MAC neutral eyeshadows (now I want them!)
Makeup and Beauty Blog finds lots to love in the fall collection polishes from Sonia Kashuk
Pink Sith reviews the new Bliss Fabulips Treatment Kit––it's apparently less gimmicky than I thought (though I'm still not sold!)
Scrangie introduces us to LCN Magnetic Power Magnet Nail Polish, a concept I'd never even heard of, but now desperately want to try
Temptalia confirms what we all feared, that the new MAC Art of Powder Street Art Eyeshadow Palette is prettier to look at than it is to use
The Beauty Look Book shows us the new Rococo Nail Apparel Nude Wardrobe Collection, and her swatches make me almost believe I want to try nude polish
Vampy Varnish has swatches and reviews of much of MAC's new Posh Paradise collection, and I gotta say, I'm liking the paint pots!

And, if you haven't checked it out already, this week's Tip Tuesday was part 2 of DIY beauty solutions, full of ideas for how to use natural products you have around the house for hair and skincare!  I spent a lot of time researching for it, but I know there's other tricks out there that I didn't include, and I would love your input!

Skincare Saturday: Clarisonic Review and Pictures

If I actually had disposable income to speak of, buying a Clarisonic would have been a no-brainer.  Given my rather limited funds, however, I debated it for weeks.  I read all the testimonials on MUA and elsewhere about how well it worked, how much it improved people's skin, what a great decision it was, etc., etc.  For those who don't know, a Clarisonic is a facial cleansing brush.  It uses some kind of magical sonic pulses to rotate the brush head miniscule amounts, resulting in a deep clean without irritating the skin.  There are three models, the Pro, Plus, and the Mia; the former two have different vibration speeds and can be used on your body, and the latter is smaller (though the brush heads are the same size) and more portable, as well as being cheaper, though still very expensive: buying one new was, at the time of my purchase, $150 from Sephora, or ~$120 from Amazon--both of which were out of my price range.  They now range from $119 to $129 on Sephora (depending on whether you get solid color or print handles), and the same on Amazon.  I looked into other cheaper options, like one made by Olay, but ultimately decided that if I was going to drop a chunk of change on something, I wanted it to be the real deal.  On eBay I found a Mia brush handle for $45 and a brush head for $12, which I bought first.  The handle came fully charged, which, if used once a day, lasts about 2 weeks, so I figured I could fork out that money first and then buy the charger from Clarisonic for $25 after I got my next paycheck.  And so I did.  It totaled $80 for the whole shebang, which is something that still causes me some pain, but I will say it has made a difference...

Image from Clarisonic

Essence Stay With Me Longlasting Lipgloss in Kiss Kiss Kiss Review and Swatches

Essence has almost made a lipgloss girl out of me.  After seeing more swatches of their Stay With Me longlasting gloss (for review and swatches of Berry Me and Candy Bar, see here), I added one more to my collection: sheer red Kiss Kiss Kiss.

Fragrance Friday: Dolce & Gabbana L'Eau The One and DKNY Women Mini Reviews

For a summary of Fragrance Friday and an introduction to the basics of perfume, see here.


DKNY Women

image from DKNY

This opens with vibrant citrus, and dries down to about the same, but with more grassy, green notes (I can definitely smell the vine-ripe tomato leaves), which makes it smell like a freshly-cut bouquet with lots of leafy greens.  Since so many of the notes are light citrus, the scent does not last very long, only a couple of hours.  If you like bright citrus and fresh greens and don't mind the hassle of reapplying, consider checking out DKNY Women at Sephora (they have the current exclusive).
$36 for 1 oz, $50 for 1.7 oz, $68 for 3.4 oz, available at Sephora

Mini Mid-Trip Post

I'm still in DC, but I thought I should post some photos and updates of my trip!  I won't bore you with all the details, but here's a few pictures and some notes.

The Chili Cheeseburger from Ben's Chili Bowl, where we went after a night out (drinking and socializing always makes me ravenous); it's right next to the U Street Metro and they're open til 4 am.  Their cheese fries are unbelievable.  I don't usually like cheese sauce, but something about theirs was just so delicious.  You should definitely get them if you're ever in the area.

Recommendation Thursday: Facial Masks

Facial masks can serve many purposes.  Some are designed for acne-prone and oily skin (usually containing clay), some for dry skin, some for irritated and sensitive skin, and yet others work as peels and exfoliators.  I've scoured the web for the best masks of each type, and will now share them with you, my lovely and devoted readers!  For DIY mask ideas, see my Tip Tuesday posts here and here.

Peel masks, not necessarily the same as peel-off masks, are masks that contain AHAs (Alpha Hydroxy Acids) to chemically exfoliate and reveal brighter, fresher skin.  I've never used them myself, but I've read that you should leave them on for absolutely no longer than instructed to, as the acids can be too strong if left on for longer, and if you have very sensitive skin, it's probably wise to stay away.  This field seems to be one where higher end (and higher cost) products do give better results than cheaper ones, though you can still find affordable options that work well, too.

REN Glycolactic Skin Renewal Peel Mask and Alba Hawaiian Enzyme Facial Mask

REN Glycolactic Skin Renewel Peel Mask ($55 for 1.7 oz) and Mychelle Incredible Pumpkin Peel ($22 for 1.2 oz) come especially highly recommended, though Alba Hawaiian Enzyme Facial Mask ($10 for 3 oz) and Freeman Feeling Beautiful Facial Enzyme Mask, Pineapple ($3.99 for 6 oz) are good choices if you're on a budget.

Sephora Rouge Cream Lipstick in Sexy Game Review and Swatches

This is a lipstick I've had since last fall, but haven't gotten around to reviewing, in part because I don't wear it very often.  It's a lovely deep pink, very creamy and long-lasting, but it's too bold for everyday wear for me.  I decided to give it a try again last week to see if it would be good to bring with me to DC, since I knew I'd be going to some professional/fancy gatherings (my definition of "fancy" is informed by my Eugene upbringing, and therefore includes anything business casual and above) and figured it could be a nice choice to make me look classier.

Sephora Rouge Cream in Sexy Games (used to look nicer, sorry!)

Tip Tuesday: DIY Beauty Solutions H-Y (Plus a bonus C)

For a summary of Tip Tuesday, see here.  For part one of diy beauty tips, see here.  And for a video of bunnies wiggling their noses, see here.

Honey
Used as: Cleanser, mask, scrub
Good for: Everyone
Bad for: People who don't like stickiness
I've already done a couple of posts on the wonders of honey, so I'll keep this brief.  Honey is great.  You can use normal honey, raw honey (opaque and light yellow in color), or Manuka honey (full of super nutrients, with a price tag to match).  I've used normal and raw, and prefer the latter because it's less sticky, but both work well.  You can put it on dry skin as a mask or cleanser, or use it on wet skin as a quick cleansing treatment.  Honey combines well with yogurt and aspirin in masks, and with sugar as a scrub.  The possibilities are many, and the results are great––it's moisturizing, anti-bacterial, and it smells and tastes nommy!

Jojoba Oil
Used as: Moisturizer, hair treatment
Good for: Everyone
Bad for: No one
Jojoba (apparently pronounced hə'hoʊbə, who knew) oil is very similar in composition to the sebum and oil produced by your skin, so it can help convince oily skin to stop producing so much oil by making it think there's enough already (I have yet to try this, so cannot vouch for it, but am intrigued!), and its moisturizing properties make it good for normal and dry skin, too.  It's also great for moisturizing hair and reducing frizzies.  You only need a leetle beet, no more than a few drops, which is good because it can apparently be expensive.  It should be available at natural food and health stores, and if you've ever used it, I'd love your input!

Ebates

You may have heard of this before, but if you haven't, I figured it would be nice to share!  Ebates is an online shopping rewards program; accounts are free, and different online retailers offer anywhere from 1% to 20% cash back on purchases done through Ebates (Drugstore.com has 20% off your first order plus 6% cash back, Nordstrom has 3% cash back, JCPenney has 5%, among many, many others).  There are often specials, where the normal cash back amount at a given store is doubled, as when I bought my perfume from Sephora (normally 4% cash back, but I got 8%, saving me $5.44).  Cash back checks are sent at least 4 times a year; I received my Sephora check last week with no trouble.  It can take a few days for the credit to show up in your account, so don't be worried if it's not there right away!

If you shop online with any kind of regularity, Ebates is a great program to join (though Amazon is sadly not one of the available stores), and can save you quite a bit of money over time.  Here's a link to join; that is a referral link, so if you sign up through it, I get $5 cash back, but I wouldn't recommend the site if I didn't like and use it myself!  It is well and truly risk- and cost-free, and while I really don't know how or why Ebates/retailers offer cash back, I'm quite thrilled they do, since saving money is always fun :-)

Do you use Ebates?  Are you a member of any other shopping rewards programs?  What do you think of them?

Philosophy Vanilla Birthday Cake Shampoo, Shower Gel & Bubble Bath Review and Pictures

I've been hearing great things about Philosophy body washes for a long time, but the price has always put me off ($16 for 16 oz).  Zum Glück, the birthday freebie from Sephora is a 6 oz bottle of Vanilla Birthday Cake shampoo, shower gel, and bubble bath.  I've had the chance to use it in each of its intended functions, and can now report to y'all what I think.

Vanilla Birthday Cake