Category Archives: care

acne, alternatives, anti-aging, balance, beauty, brands, brighten, care, cheap, choosing, clarify, clay, cleanser, combination, convenient, cosmetic, cosmetics, demo, drugstore, face, facial, glow, glowing, good, health, how to, inexpensive, kitschkween, MAC, maintain, oil, oily, pore, product, products, radiance, radiant, recommendation, refining, removal, remover, review, skin, skincare, tea tree, tutorial, video, youtube

Pick of the Week…Makeup Remover Facial Towelettes

It’s late. You’re tired. You’re too lazy to take off your makeup. All you want to do is flop face down on your cold fluffy pillow and clock out. There’s only one problem. That voice in your head nagging at you about the breakout you’ll probably wake up with because you slept with your makeup on. The solution? Makeup remover facial towelettes. It’s a fast, convenient way to remove all your makeup and sleep stress free. It’s ideal to remove makeup and thoroughly cleanse your face and moisturize every night, but let’s be honest…it doesn’t happen that way.



Here I review my top 3 picks for facial towelettes. The first is MAC Cosmetics Wipes (maccosmetics.com, $19.50). These remove makeup very well, have natural botanicals to help sooth and brighten skin, and have glycerin to attract moisture. The second is the Yes to Cucumbers Facial Towelettes (Drug Stores, $7). I love these wipes because they have Dead Sea salt which help to tone, brighten and clarify skin for a radiance boost. The third pick is The Body Shop Tea Tree Wipes (www.thebodyshop-usa.com, $12). In the summer, my skin tends to get a little oily and I break out occasionally. Tea Tree helps to keep skin clean and clear of acne without stripping any natural moisture.

Enjoy my video review of my top 3 makeup remover facial towelettes!

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AIDS Walk 2011 Donation Giveaway

In the past, I have registered under the name Pomps n’ Gloss for the annual Raleigh AIDS Walk + Ride. This year, I am going as just me, Marissa. No advertisements. No gimmicks. Just plain ol’ charity fun. I love meeting the diverse group of people that walk every year. I most definitely look forward to petting the mascot of Team Llama. Usually I bring someone with me, but this year all I’m bringing is my ipod.

Last year I raised about $300, but this year I’m reaching out to all of you for support. I think my goal of $500 can be easily attained if everyone pitches in what they can. Every dollar counts, so don’t feel like what you can afford isn’t good enough. I’m donating my time to walk because I can’t afford what I want to contribute monetarily.

I know people donate out of the goodness of their hearts, but who says I can’t attach a great big thank you to your contribution? This year I’m offering an AIDS Walk 2011 Donation Giveaway. I’m raffling off a prize pack so AMAZING it will blow you away! You can watch my video below to see what you can win.

List of prizes:
Viva Glam Gaga Lipglass
Viva Glam Gaga 2 Lipglass
Viva Glam I lipstick
Viva Glam V lipstick
Viva Glam Gaga 2 lipstick

for more info on the M.A.C. AIDS Fund and M.A.C. Viva Glam products go here: http://www.macaidsfund.org/

How to enter:
Visit my donation page
Click on the “Support Marissa!” button above the thermometer.
Enter your donation info and amount.
You’re done!

Rules:
Don’t make an anonymous donation if you want to be entered in the Giveaway
An email address is mandatory, but I won’t share it with anyone or use it for promotions

acne, asian, beauty, blemish, care, control, cosmetics, korean, mask, pore, refining, review, skin, skincare

Marissa’s Pick of the Week – Lioele Pore Clean & Tightening Pack

18 Comments

A couple weeks ago Promise Phan (one of the most talented makeup gurus on YouTube) posted a link to http://prettyandcute.com/ on Facebook. There, I discovered a magical brand of Korean cosmetics called Lioele. It’s a fairly new company whose business model is the Cinderella story (evident in their packaging). Lioele believes that true beauty can be found in everyone.

Lately, I’ve been seeing pores that I never saw before.
“Great,” I said. “I’m aging.”

Thus began the search for pore shrinking skincare products that wouldn’t dry me out in the winter. On the Pretty and Cute website, I saw the Pore Clean & Tightening Pack ($20). The picture showed 2 tubes so I thought,
“This looks interesting. It’s like a 2-step pore tightening system.”
Well I was wrong. Only 1 box came. So then I thought,
“Okay? So maybe it’s like a gel peel or something.”
Wrong again.
What it actually is, is a mask. Yup. Just a mask. I was really disappointed, but then I tried it.

The clay mask was a dark gray color that had the same consistency as other masks I’ve used. It did have a distinct smell of leeks. Leeks aren’t in the ingredients, but I don’t know what else to compare it to. It was very fresh, crisp, and green smelling. Not quite grass. Not quite celery. just plant like.

Here is a list of some ingredients and what it’s supposed to do:

During application, the scent of the mask started to calm me. I was liking it more and more. When it started to dry, I could feel it going to work. It felt almost as if there were little suction cups sucking all the crap out of my face. It didn’t hurt or feel itchy like some other masks do.

(Ever wonder what your skin would look like when you’re 80?)
Rinsing off the mask was easier than other masks. I didn’t have to scrub or rub it off. My skin felt really smooth and soft. I didn’t feel any film or oils or anything at all, just my skin. Even though it felt clean, it wasn’t squeaky and tight. I could easily glide my finger across my cheeks without skipping. It’s hard to explain. My skin just had a nice slip to it without being slippery? My skin looked brighter and more radiant.
Here’s how I knew it worked:
After I completed the process, I noticed a little blackhead and blemish that I didn’t have before.
Here’s a tip– If you use a deep cleansing mask for the first time and you don’t have any new blackheads or blemishes, then it’s probably not working all that well.
In the end, I really liked this mask. I would have never tried it, if it wasn’t for the misleading picture and mysterious lack of info on the website. I already have a couple masks that I like, but this mask is definitely a favorite. It’s fresh, gave great results, and is perfect for my acne prone skin that turns dry in the winter. *Two thumbs up*
balance, beauty, care, combination, cosmetics, dry, oily, products, recommendation, review, skin, skincare, tips

Ask Marissa…Balancing Combination Skin

9 Comments


Jane Doe: I have normal / combo skin and in winter it usually gets a little dry…but this winter it’s behaving very differently. My skin is very dry in the cheeks and around the eyes, enough to where it is tight and uncomfortable most of the day. But my t-zone is just as oily as it would be in the summer and seems to be more prone to breakouts than usual. Any suggestions for how to tackle this? My current system is to cleanse with a normal cleanser, use a mild alcohol-free toner and moisturize with philosophy hope in a jar / eye hope for the eyes. I also exfoliate 4x a week and do an at home peel every other week.

Me: I would say stop using Hope in a Jar. Any oil on your face will make the oily areas worse. I don’t want you to waste your money though, so just use it at night with an oil control lotion on your t-zone. During the day, I would suggest MAC’s Studio Moisture Cream ($32). It’s safe for oily skin, but is very moisturizing. It gives time released moisture throughout the day and has spinach to help circulation. It will also add radiance to dry dull skin. Keep using your cleanser for normal skin, but switch to one with a toner in it. A toner’s main purpose is to pH balance your skin after using a cleanser that is too acidic. All of MAC’s cleansers a pH balanced, so you don’t need a toner. No toner= no irritating dry skin and no under-toning oily skin. Try MAC’s Creamwash ($19.50) or Green Gel cleanser ($19.50). Both are ok for all skin types.

Jane Doe: Perfect thanks! I haven’t tried any of MACs skincare maybe it’s time to give it a go. I think I’ll have to grab something from the Champale collection too.Champale was made for you! All of MAC skincare is made with natural ingredients. No synthetics. No animal testing. All cruelty free.

Jane Doe: I love everything in that collection, I really want the quad though. It reminds me a little of my fav MAC quad Liza eyes which is really really old but just very pretty neutrals. Does the MAC skincare smell good?

Me: Some of it has no fragrance. I don’t remember what Studio Moisture cream smells like, but the Green Gel cleanser is very crisp and clean. It’s got green tea and algae extract. Balancing combination skin can be tricky, but you will eventually get there with the right products.

beauty, care, cosmetics, dry, hydrating, mask, oily, review, skin

Marissa’s Pick of the Week – Moisture Mask for Acne Prone Skin

“Moisture” is a scary word for people with acne prone skin. The fact is, that even the oiliest skin needs it. Finding the right balance can be difficult, though. Too much moisture causes breakouts. Lack of moisture causes excess shine. Well, for those of you who always have at least one breakout somewhere on your face, but feel dehydrated at the same time, Laura Mercier has the perfect moisture mask for you.
Laura Mercier’s Intensive Moisture Mask ($32) is an oil free water-based hydrating formula that will leave your skin feeling baby soft. It’s a green gel that feels super light weight, so you can pile it on as thick as you want and won’t breakout. After cleansing your face, wear the mask for 5-10 minutes then rinse or towel off with warm water. After using this mask, not only did my skin feel soft and extremely comfortable, I was also more radiant. I’ve broken down some of the ingredients so you all can see that this mask is truly for all skin types and addresses all concerns.

moisture:
sunflower oil
sweet almond oil
shea butter

clarity/radiance:
grapefuit extract
rice protein
saxifragra extract

soothing/calming:
cucumber extract
barley extract
wheat germ extract
rose water

antioxidants:
tomato extract
vitamin e

firming:
coneflower extract