Vital Proteins Beauty Collagen in Strawberry Lemon flavor tastes delicious and it makes my hair and skin softer. The price is $25 and the container lasted me a month and a half. The directions state to use two spoons and mix in water but I typically only added one generous spoon and a half of spoon more. I did not take it every day, more like 2-3 times a week, and I made two servings each time to share with my mom.
I love mixing it with some filtered water store bought ice and drinking it in the morning after a cup of hot water with lemon. It tastes refreshing and somewhat sweet. There is no vitamin, cardboard-like taste nor is it overly sweet, it simply makes water taste slightly fruity. I once added it to a smoothie and I do not recommend drinking it this way because the fruit and veggie flavors clashed and tasted unpleasant. Its best as directed in fresh water for a light drink with a collagen boost!
This collagen powder is solid online at Walmart, Target, Walgreens, Sephora, and more. Now that I’ve tested the waters I will surely buy more to continue drinking it throughout the late fall and winter.
*Pictured above wearing SPF eyeshadow not Fenty, wearing Fenty mascara and setting powder
I purchased a box of Fenty goodies in October. I got Pro Filtr Instant Retouch Setting Powder in the shade chestnut, Full Frontal Volume, Lift & Curl mascara in Cuz I’m Black, Match Stix Shimmer Skinstick in Beach Bum, the Moroccan Spice Eyeshadow palette, and Total Cleans’r Remove-it-all face wash.
To start off with the setting powder I love that it easily blends into my skin. My face suddenly got too dark for my foundation from the sun so I wanted this to make my face match my current complexion with this powder. I like that the powder looks natural on and I can still see my skin underneath. It also is light enough in coverage to achieve the glass skin, dewy face look.
The Total Cleans’r Remove-it-all face wash is non-drying and fragrance free. I like to use it with other products for a double cleanse. Not much to say about it besides the fact that it is in line with Fenty’s universal one-for-all brand in that it does not irritate my skin and effectively washes my face and makeup off.
The Shimmer Skinstick in Beach Bum is orangey and peachy in color. The pigment is buildable and shimmery.
As for the Moroccan Spice palette, the eyeshadow is sheer. Its an everyday light coverage palette with subtle buildable pigment. The perk this palette has is its range of colors, it truly is a one-stop-shop for day to night looks.
This is awesome given that I got it on sale for only $29. Though I expected stronger pigment from the colors on par to Pat McGrath, I actually now appreciate this palette for daily use. I especially appreciate that Fenty included solid plain colors without glitter because many others from popular brands like Pat or Tom Ford in my experience only offer glitter shadows in palettes.
some of the glitter shadows on my mom’s arm
Pictured below is a day and night eye look only using Fenty. I am not good at makeup so I usually prefer more pigment to use one color all over my eyes. I also prefer little fall out because I frequently make mistakes and struggle to blend as my nervous Gemini energy really jumps out while doing makeup. I did experience some fall out but it is was not extreme.
The mascara is just the same as the palette light but buildable. See mascara close and eye shadow close up below. In short, all of the makeup products I tried are light and buildable and excellent for natural everyday looks.
I visited a small spa in Los Gatos, CA called The Skin Cottage. I highly recommend this spa because the owner Donna uses Eminence products for her facials. The spa is open now with the protocol of signing a health form beforehand and she offers online booking. I love that her spa is a small single room space with an entrance lobby and restroom because it makes the facial experience more relaxing.
I dislike day spas with full hair salons and other services because they tend to be louder by nature of the other activities happening at the same time. Her small space ensures privacy and cleanliness. The spa room has a heated bed and small storage space for your belongings. She does extractions and only offers one basic facial as of this post.
Eminence is a brand I’ve used since I was a teenager and I think this brand is special because of their emphasis on using natural plant ingredients and fruits in their products. In addition, the vast range of products they carry is also an asset.
Anything you need, you can get from Eminence from heated body lotion for cellulite to face mist, from sour cherry masks to face lotion like the one reviewed here made with yogurt! The pricing is also a bonus because though the brand is luxurious prices are not exuberant.
Eminence Clear Skin Probiotic Moisturizer is cooling. Only a pea size amount is needed for application and it can be mixed with water. A key ingredient is cucumber water for hydration. I like this product because my forehead tends to breakout easily from hair products and daily stress and this helps prevent regular irritation. It is a great buy for hormonal, acne prone, or teenaged skin.
Affordable Spa Shower / Bath Guide
Have you taken a spa shower and bath at home yet? I highly recommend you do because it can promote relaxation. The smallest thing you do for yourself in the week and can have a major impact. One great tip to have a spa shower is to use essential oils. Adding about three-to-five-drops of lavender oil to the sides of your shower creates an aromatic experience.
Another great thing to use in your bathroom during a shower or bath is eucalyptus oil. Inhaling eucalyptus promotes respiratory health and relaxation, try mixing some water and eucalyptus oil to burn on an oil burner.
A bath bomb I like using is the Dove lavender ones that can be purchased from most supermarkets or drugstores in the US. It makes a great addition to a bubble bath liquid of your choice. Additionally, as previously recommended St. Ives has great affordable body washes for under $4. The most recent one I purchased is sea salt and kelp, this wash has gentle exfoliation.
I got more rose water from Nandi Care since I love using it on my face and in my hair to refresh. This business was kind enough to send me a new body soap bar sample before its released and I ADORE it because it has the perfect amount exfoliation. I used the bar on my shoulders during a bath and it clarified my skin perfectly and is not too rough or too soft.
Additionally, though the bar is brown it did not leave a stain behind in my shower after use. I really hope this store releases this product soon because I want to purchase two more.
One last spa bath tip is to always finish off with some lip balm. I recently picked up Vaseline Rosy Lips and I love how hydrated my lips feel with use. What do you do for yourself to relax during the week? ❤
I made my first blog playlist devoted to upbeat self-care music. There’s a strong retro wave happening in music right now from American pop to k-pop. I thought an 80s style beauty playlist would perfectly compliment fall leather jacket weather and hydrating skincare recommendations.
Here is my Cannabliss Revitalizing Face Serum review:
Have you tried the face serum from the line Cannabliss?
The organic skincare line Cannabliss is awesome because they use organic ingredients. This face serum specifically produces actual results in one bottle purchase from my experience. Some products only work with continual use and may not even kick in until after two purchases but this serum is on par with Honeymoon Glow in that the results show in the first week.
Starting with the bottle itself, it has an airless pump to keep bacteria out and promote a longer shelf-life. This is an excellent feature for those who like to use minimal skincare and prefer to stretch the use of pricey products.
Secondly, the ingredient list is top notch and free of synthetic fragrance, dyes, and parabens. The serum is clear and lightweight. It absorbs into my skin rather than just sit on top of it. After using this serum for three days pigmentation disappeared from the side of my face and my cheeks became plumper.
My skin also feels smoother. I wanted this product to recoup after breakouts and skin sensitivity and it helped my skin bounce back. I no longer have texture from the breakouts or skin sensitivity. I think this is a solid product to use for a skin “bounce-back” after any issues. ❤
My sokoglam sheet mask collection is growing! Here are my thoughts:
COLLAGEN ESSENTIAL LIFTING & FIRMING SHEET MASK – These masks are thicker than the standard sheet mask. They help plump out your skin with hydrolyzed collagen. A key ingredient is beta-glucan, it can help cool and relax the skin and reduce redness. Read more about beta-glucan here, written work reviewed by a dermatologist.
PACKH.D.P PHOTOREADY TIGHTENING CHARCOAL MASK – This black mask is the same brand as the collagen ones listed above. These masks contain pomegranate, charcoal, and adenosine extracted from yeast. The ingredient adenosine has anti-aging properties. Read more on adenosine here.
PIBUWANG MASK – REST (5PACK) – I’ve blogged about these vegan sheet masks before. Back then, I enjoyed using them but did not understand the hype. Recently my skin became irritated and the mask did effectively soothe my skin within two days and they minimized the appearance of discoloration from irritation.
BRIGHTENING SHEET MASK SET – I have not tried every mask in the set yet. I do love that the selection of masks can change with availability, this way it feels like a surprise when purchasing. This $19 set comes with five different sheet masks!
Sensitized Skin Products:
Three sensitized skincare products I’ve enjoyed using:
Art of Skincare Hale & Hush Soothe Essence – This is a life-changing essence, no exaggeration. It makes a major difference when my skin appears irritated out of the blue. I first discovered this product as a sample. I used it when my skin became irritated with bright red bumps on my cheek. By the next morning, the irritation disappeared entirely after using this essence. I purchased it as a full-size product for the first time. I’ve used it to soothe skin irritation and I’ve found that it always helps.
The key ingredients are birch tree extract, which has inflammatory properties, sunflower seed oil to hydrate, and mirabilis Jalapa extract to support the skin barrier and more.
Art of Skincare Quick Recovery Sample Masks – This $23 set is a great way to try out different masks and see how your skin reacts. The avocado mask is gentle and moisturizing, the pudding tapioca and rice mask can help smooth out skin texture, and the pumpkin mask cleanses pores and improves skin blood circulation. Check out the links to the individual masks below. My personal favorites are the Pudding Apeel Mask and Splendid Dirt Pumpkin Mask.
BEAUTY OF JOSEON Green Tea Serum – This serum has centella asiatica to calm down redness and irritation, green tea as an antioxidant, and panthenol from vitamin B-5. Read more on panthenol here.
BODY – Anese Coffee Oil – This vegan oil formulated for the bum with watermelon oil and coffee beans. It can help reduce cellulite. It soothes dryness or irritation on your skin and leaves it feeling supple, most notably when used in combination with a scrub beforehand. ❤
I’ve tried out four Peter Thomas Roth products: the Potent-C Face Lotion, Vita-E Eye Cream, and Thermal Therapy Duo. Here are my thoughts on the products:
I think Peter Thomas Roth excels in eye creams. Though the reviews for Vita-E Eye Cream, pictured in the pink bottle below, are low on many sites due to the product’s texture, I love it!
See butter-like texture here
This eye cream MUST get melted down between your fingers before applying it. This is due to the product’s cold butter texture. I want to continue using this eye cream because I’ve noticed a difference in the sides of the eyes. In the past, there was a faint wrinkle on the side when I smiled wide and now I’ve noticed that wrinkle is gone. I know this is due in part to diligence overall in my skincare routine but I really think this eye cream helped make a major stride in the youthful appearance of my eyes.
Though I favor this eye cream, my mother loves the collagen eye cream from this brand and believes it has helped create a firmer look under her eyes.
Lastly, what I love about this eye cream is that it is formulated to protect your eyes from screen use on your laptop and phone that can cause premature aging. I definitely think it is a great product to look into as a student or someone working from home with a laptop or computer.
Moving on to the Potent-C Face lotion, pictured in an orange-silver container, this orange-colored face lotion formulated with excellent ingredients like collagen, ginger root extract, and turmeric. The key ingredients listed on Dermstore are ferulic acid, which is an antioxidant, Vitamin E, and THD ascorbate, which is a strong form of Vitamin C used primarily on aging skin. Potent-C has 20% THD making this one of the strongest products on the market.
Overall, I like how this face lotion brightened my appearance, but I do not consider it a favorite because I prefer DHC collagen cream (which I’ve previously blogged about). However, I know I can reach for this product in the future.
The Anti-Aging face wash is an exfoliating gel that effectively cleanses my skin but it does dry out the lower half of my face. I think the texture is on par or maybe even better than Le Mieux Exfoliating Gel. I highly recommend looking into this face wash because it has helped minimize the congestion of my skin on my forehead. Some reviewers with sensitive skin claim this face wash broke them out so be sure to check out the ingredient list and those reviews if your skin is sensitive. My skin is sensitive but this product did not irritate my face. I think this face was is best suited for oily skin. I’ve been using it only on my forehead and on my shoulder blades to prevent skin congestion during the summer.
The Thermal Therapy Duo makes a lovely gift. Both products work wonderfully. The facial scrub is layered onto your clean dry face and then activated after 3 minutes with wet fingers. The water on your fingers will make the mask warm as it gently exfoliates your skin. The face lotion is standard and moisturizing without a strong scent and formulated with Hungarian thermal water. I like using these products to cleanse and moisturize my skin when it feels congested.
What are your thoughts on the brand Peter Thomas Roth? ❤
Bliss Mighty Marshmallow Mask – This fluffy pink mask almost looks like the stuff Teletubbies used to drink. It feels soft on my skin and it did not burn when I applied it to my face after waxing. The key ingredients are Marshmallow Root Extract, Vitamin C Powerhouse Blend, Olive Leaf Extract, Lime, Lemon, Pine and Eucalyptus Oils, and Zinc PCA.
It appears it is sold cheaper by ULTA but it is currently out of stock. The Bliss site itself has email sign up discounts.
Matcha Mood Mask – With key ingredients green tea extract and aloe vera this vegan mask both soothes and strengthens your skin with the antioxidant green tea. The texture is like green tea ice cream. It has no strong scent or irritants. It is also formulated with vitamin B3. Vitamin B3 helps with skin water loss and can lessen the appearance of wrinkles by smoothing out your skin texture. What I enjoy about this mask is that it does not leave my skin feeling dry afterwards like most clay masks or clarifying masks do.
Jeju Green Tea Mask – These sheet masks are formulated with green tea jelly. The green tea extracts help soothe irritated or red skin, and it helps prevent breakouts with antimicrobial properties! I used this mask while taking a bath and it felt like the ultimate expression of self-care.
**I will link these masks at a later time, for some reason they disappeared off Amazon, this is where I bought them from – https://amzn.to/2Va8Z5l **link works masks available on Amazon again
This lip mask has key ingredients honey, cherry essence, and coenzyme. What coenzyme does is diminish damage to your lips created by environmental factors like sun exposure. I love that the mask does not feel greasy on my lips. It has a light and pleasant cherry scent. ❤
I’m happy to have discovered the Art of Skin Care business because they sell Le Mieux face wash (which I also blogged about too, check out my skincare tag).
The key ingredients listed on site are banana pulp and peel added for their antioxidants, turmerones from turmeric oil to brighten the complexion, echinacea purpurea, which is a flowering plant, to prevent sagging skin, and bentonite and illite clays to clarify the skin.
Detailed Ingredients List: “Water/Eau, Pumice, Glycerin, Kaolin, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Musa Pardisiaca (Banana) Fruit Powder, Echinacea Purpurea Extract, Parfum*, Corn Starch, Musa Sapientum (Banana) Fruit Flakes, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract, Illite, Decyl Glucoside, Xantham Gum, Phenoxyethanol, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzoic Acid, Sorbic Acid, Citric Acid. *Natural fragrance derived from 100% natural sources”
This Turmeric and Banana tightening mask is so awesome to use before dermaplaning. I love to use an ice cube from my freezer on my face to de-puff and then dry my skin and layer this active mask on. My routine is I wait for the mask to dry and then wash it off as a tightening pre-treatment before dermaplaning. The results are stunning, my face is super tight, clear, and bright afterward!
This mask is active so it does cause a little bit of a burning sensation and it leaves my nose slightly red afterward. However, the burning feeling is tolerable and it decreases as it dries. This is the reason why I always use it before dermaplaning because I imagine it would burn too much after exfoliation.
I recommend giving this mask a go if you’re in the market for an affordable skin tightening treatment, the sticker tag is $30.00. ❤
Have you ever considered microcurrent face treatments at home? NuFace Trinity includes 3 attachments: (1) a larger microcurrent attachment that contours the face and helps “face-lift” larger sections of your face and the sides of your neck (pictured at the top).
(2) an LED attachment that works as a wrinkle reducer for the face and entire neck
Picture from NuFace Site
(3) one small lip and eye microcurrent attachment for a more targeted treatment. This attachment is used in the same areas as the larger microcurrent attachment. Both micro-current attachments are not recommended for use in the middle of the neck. The set additionally includes a small primer gel.
Picture from NuFace Site
NuFace requires regular use. Though there is an immediate difference the effect is only temporary. Regular use works best because this device is essentially facial massage or light therapy and no one would expect one facial massage to permanently lift his or her face forever.
I like to use this device to relax and as a preventive measure against premature wrinkles with the red light attachment. While my mother likes to use the micro-current attachments and she notices a drastic “face-lift” difference wherein one side of her face is noticeably higher and tighter than the untreated side.
The NuFace Trinity set is pricey at $499 however there are payment plans available as well. The gel primer is necessary to use for the micro-current attachments. I recommend only applying gel to the section you are currently working on because if you apply it to your whole face it will dry and waste but if you work on one section at a time (forehead, then cheekbones etc) the gel will give you more bang for your buck.
The only place I noticed I could purchase a large sized bottle of NuFace gel is on Amazon. For some reason the NuFace site does not currently have large bottles of the primer gel for sale.
I recommend this product because it is easy to use and charge. Cleaning is also easy, I use paper towel with rubbing alcohol to clean after any attachment use. Importantly, the difference is immediate so it is excellent to use before a special occasion as well.<3
Herbivore Botanicals MOON FRUIT Superfruit Night Treatment not only smells like perfect lavender it also has fruit enzymes and vegan Hyaluronic Acid. This mask is similar to Kiehl’s Cilantro Anti-Pollution Mask in that when you use it at night you wake up with soft skin in the morning. The best part about this Moon Fruit mask is the experience, the lovey lilac color that sinks into your skin and night appropriate lavender smell makes for a relaxing experience. This product feels like spring in a night-time treatment and is a joy to use. I’ve had no irritation when using this product and I have super sensitive skin on my face and body.
Another herbal smelling product is Kiehl’s Cucumber Conditioning Cleanser made for dry and sensitive skin with key ingredients glycerin and cucumber extract. The scent is light on the cucumber and more of an assorted plant or herbal smell. I love how gently this face wash removes makeup and cleanses my skin without drying it.
