Beauty on a Budget: Hello Kitty Mon Amour Pallete & Mirror & Sephora Lip Brush Haul For $21

While visiting the mall today I actually came across some beauty items that I have wanted for a while and finally brought them home today. I actually had a pretty amazing deal since the original prices of these items were $52 added together but overall I paid $21 for everything. Hummm.... that makes it almost 60% off. WOW.... If you guys are visiting the mall and is interested in these items you can pick them up at Sephora located inside JCPenny. I'm pretty sure these items are all discounted at Sephora inside JCPenny but I know for sure that it's still for full prices at the regular Sephora store and on their website. Anyways, I know that this deal is not going to last very long so if you guys are interested please check it out before they run out! 

Well, this item was always on my "I want list" after swatching it but at $21 I just didn't want to pay so much for it but when I saw it on sale at $13 I literally jumped on the deal. Common, 8 eyeshadows and 2 blushes at $13 makes them $1.3 a shade, how cheap can that be? I totally cannot wait to use it! ♥

 

I also picked up one of these double sided Hello Kitty mirror form the Mon Amour collection for myself. The best thing about this mirror is that one of the side is an enlarging mirror so it'll be perfect if you want a closer look at yourself while touching up your makeup. It's so cute right? Haha and it only cost me $5! Regular price is $17 and it's considered a hard to find item too!

  

I really needed another lip brush because one is not enough for creating the popular gradient lip effects so luckily I ran into this $3 deal instead of going to the store and buying one for $10+. I believe the original price was $12 but I really can't complain too much as I'm paid so little for it. Overall, I'm liking it so far as it picks up the color well and hasn't lost any hair even after a quick wash!

I'll probably add some swatches and demo later on when I get a chance so say tuned! Good Luck finding these products!

TIP: Call before you go and ask them to reserve so you can conserve gas and not disappoint yourself! ♥

Beauty on a Budget: 6/17/12 - 6/23/12

Alright nothing is always free in this world so sometimes getting things for cheap is really great way to help us save money and look beautiful at the same time. I really have not been buying a lot of items lately because I have too much at home and would like to clear up the stock before venturing out again, but from now on I'll be more consistent with my beauty on a budget post so you guys could benefit from it! I actually like find ways to buy a lot of items on good deals other than beauty related so if you guys are interested then please let me know!

Item 1: Colgate Toothpaste for FREE @ Rite Aid & Walgreens or $0.24 @ CVS

RITE AID DEAL

Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost $2.99
2. Give cashier $0.75 off coupon

• internet coupon link 
• If above link do not work then sign up here to get coupon 
• cut coupon from 6/03/12 smartsource phamplet

3. $2.50 UP bucks will be printed for next purchase
4. Total price after all discount is -$0.26 which is a money maker, hooray! (remember it's limit 3 per household)

WALGREENS DEAL

 
Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost $3
2. Give cashier $0.75 off coupon

• printable internet coupon link
• If above link do not work then sign up here to get coupon 
• cut coupon from 6/03/12 smartsource pamphlet

3. $2.50 register rewards will be printed for next purchase
4. Total price after all discount is -$0.25 which is a money maker, hooray! (remember there's no limit for this item so stock as many as you need!)


CVS DEAL

Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost $2.49
2. Give cashier $0.75 off coupon

• internet coupon link 
• If above link do not work then sign up here to get coupon 
• cut coupon from 6/03/12 smartsource phamplet

3. $1.50 extra bucks will be printed for next purchase

4. Total price after all discount is $0.24 (remember it's limit 2 per household)

Item 2: Wet n Wild Cosmetic @ 40% off then $3 off $8 (prices varies) @ Rite Aid

Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost 40% off retail value
2. Buy up to $8 value after 40% off price and earn $3 up bucks valid for next purchase (remember it's limit 2 per household)
3. Total price varies

Item 3: Reach Dental Care Floss for FREE @ Walgreens

Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost $2.99

2. Give cashier $1 off coupon found on Walgreens self display

3. $2 register rewards will be printed for next purchase
4. Total price after all discount is -$0.01 (remember there's no limit so buy as many as you need)

Item 4: Tom's of Maine Naturally Dry Antiperspirant Deodorant for $0.49 @ Walgreens

Here's how it works:
1. Product will cost $2.99

2. Give cashier $2.50 off coupon

•   cut coupon from 6/17/12 smartsource pamphlet

3. $1 register rewards will be printed for next purchase
4. Total price after all discount is $0.49 (remember there's no limit so buy as many as you need)


Hope you guys enjoy it and buy only when you know you need it! I'll see you guys next time!

My Biweekly Facial Mask Routine

Hi guys! sorry that I have not updated my blog for quite some time! I actually took the pictures weeks ago but never got a chance to sit down and write the description for these pictures along with editing my pictures. I guess today's the perfect day for me to catch up and now that I have most of my personal matter taken care of I would have more time to dedicate to my blog and my fellow readers. (Oh yes, you guys must be happy).

Here's a little bonus for your guys...... a cute picture of my cat! His name is fluffy (aka fat cat). Isn't he just adorable........

Today I wanted to show you guys what I usually do every other week to keep my skin looking smooth and youthful. Yes, I am quite confident about my skin that I can go out without foundation or powder and feel like I'm worth a million bucks. Haha, I'm not that cocky it's just that I don't like the feeling of a weighed down face so I try harder on not having to conceal my face. Honestly, good skin don't blossom overnight, you have to maintain it on a daily base and I've been doing it for the past 12 years! Of course, I'm not perfect and I do have some slightly larger pores and freckles but it's really not that obvious unless you stare really close to my face. (whoops just spilled my secret...)

 Here's a head shot of me taken and all I have on my face is sunblock and moisturizer. Eyes and lips do not count because off course I couldn't keep them bare. Sorry couldn't find a better picture but this was taken with my sony 10mp camera.

Step 1: Clean face with cleanser

I wrote a review about my current favorite cleanser by Origins so if you guys would like to check it out please take a look at http://trouvailly.blogspot.com/2012/05/origins-checks-and-balances-face-wash.html
You guys do not have to use the exact one. You could always use your favorite cleanser.


Step 2: Remove old & dead skin cell on face.

This is product works kind of like a scrub except it's much more gentle and removes more dead skin cell. Basically this product is like a gel with many micro beads in it and you are suppose to rub it all over on damp or dry skin until the gel turns into little dry pieces of particle and then you could wash off. The exfoliating enzyme (beads) helps to gently remove dead cells buried deeply in the skin to create smoother and clearer skin.

Here's a picture of how the product looks like. It smells really nice too exactly like strawberry!

There's actually a lot of similar products out in the Asian cosmetic market but this is one of my favorite because it works really well and the bottle has a lot more product then companies with similar product. This whole bottle only cost me $20! You can also use it on your body!


Step 3: Open up your pores

You can always use warm water to open up your pore but I usually like to use a self heating mask like this one from The Body Shop for $17 to help open pores and using ginger, cinnamon oil, and kaolin clan to help clean out my pores at the same time.

The texture of the mask is very creamy and the instant you squeeze it out of the tube you will feel it warming up. Don't worry you will never burn yourself with this mask as after 5 minutes of a warm temperature it will start cooling down. Very cool right?

Here's a link to the product in case you guys want to check it out:
http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/skin-care/facial-masks/warming-mineral-mask.aspx
There's actually a buy one get one 50% off promo going out so if you guys are interested then you can check it out.


Step 4: Cleaning out blackheads!

This is one my favorite product to clean out blackhead from pores. (I bought mine for $20) For this process I would only use step 1 and 2 and save step 3 for the very end when we finish our whole mask treatment process. I wrote a review on this before and you could check it out at:
http://trouvailly.blogspot.com/2011/08/woot-savior-for-my-clogged-pores.html

Consistency of this product is very thick and you have to quickly apply on face before it dries!


Step 5: Manually remove stubborn blackhead

Alright no product is ever going to be 100% perfect so if you guys find one please let me know. Since the product only cleaned out 80 % of my pores I would have to go right in and remove the remaining ones with my pore extractor. Although this products works really well but it also does a lot of damage to the skin as you have to press your skin and drag it so try to use it as little as possible.


Step 6: Shrink your pores!

 

This is one of my all time favorite mask product that works really well to help shrink pore while giving you a clean, smooth, and refresh face all for $6-$7. Since I have just opened up my pore I would need something to help minimize them so this is the perfect product to get the work done. I usually take a little break in between this step and the previous one because I like to let my skin relax before putting stuff on it. 

 This make is very cooling when you put it on your face and the texture is very clay like so you would need to use a cloth to remove this product. Remember to wash your face with cold water afterwards!

Alright now! I am finally done with my biweekly mask routine. Hope you guys find it helpful and you should give it a try as it has done miracles for my skin. Good luck!

Beauty Food: Sweet Potato

 Hello everyone! Today I want to talk to you guys about my favorite vegetable, the sweet potatoes! Who doesn't love their sweetness...... drooling... I want some now but the market is closed. First off I would like my readers to understand that sweet potatoes and yams are actually different and not related although they are both considered flowering plants. Sweet potatoes are related to the morning glory family while yams are related to grass and lilies. I hope that that's informative and you guys won't mix them up!

Sweet potato (left) & yam (right)
Looks super similar to me but if you get the chance to eat both, yam will taste sweeter and contain more water.

Now back to the beauty part of this goody, sweet potatoes contains a strong dose of beta-carotene, cooper, and manganese that will bring miracles to your skin inside out! The beta-carotene helps improve rough, flaky skin while helping your skin shield out damages caused by the harmful UV rays.

Yes I know when you think of beta-carotene you guys will think of carrots but the thing you guys have to understand is that carrots are not as tasty as sweet potatoes. Carrots have this weird raw taste to it even if you cook it. (you can tell that I'm not a major fan of carrots) How many of you guys can really chug down 3 or 4 sticks of  carrots without any sauce? hard right? I knew it.

Alright, I wanted to look smart so I actually did some research to back myself up. I found out that beta carotene is actually very good for balancing ph levels and promoting growth of new skin cell. In addition, since this little baby is rich in vitamin c it will also help me fight against aging and dryness! Yah! forever youth! woot.... Oh gosh, I must stop this, I'm praising sweet potatoes as if it is gold.

I usually eat it steamed or baked without any sauce or else it'll ruin it natural sweetness. Now remember to eat more sweet potatoes! Yum!

Look at what I found at my local market....... hahaha...can you guys tell that there's something different about this sweet potato? (ignore the sign... this is a sweet potato, not a yam and I'm sure)

Haha... It's a gigantic sweet potato. See how big it is compared to a regular sized sweet potato? Almost like 10 times it's size. Yeah I know I'm lame but so cute right? Humm.. since a medium sized sweet potato is 117 calories... I wonder how many calories is this little baby. Omg...see how heavy it was? my veins are popping out.. eww... now remember to eat your veggies!

Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color Polish Review

I'm back again! Yes, there's a lot of new products released lately that sparked my attention so I'm going to try it out and give you guys my take on it. I guess the nail polish craze is hitting a lot of brands and Sally Hansen is finally coming out with their version of a magnetic nail polish. So far I've only seen this Sally Magnetic polish at Target but I've pretty sure it'll be available elsewhere soon.

Price of this polish is $9.44 which is quite expensive as it's not even half the cost of another famous brand that sells magnetic nail polish, Nails Inc. Nail Inc's magnetic nail polish cost a lot more at at $16 a bottle and the colors are very limited in the United States. Therefore, Sally's magnetic nail polish is a cheaper alternative with a lot more color selections so that's why I decided to pick up one bottle to test it out! (Honestly I think this product is too much of a copy cat because their bottles are almost exactly the same shape and size, but again cash is king so cheap is better.)

The formula painted on fairly smooth and did not streak. The brush is kind of big so I had to paint very carefully because my nails are very small.

You have to place the magnetic activator immediately after you paint your nail or it will not work! ( I messed up on one nail because I was taking picture and left it on for 1 minute and afterwards it would not move.) Remember to leave a gap between the magnet and nail to not ruin your nail.

Oh no just ruined my nails! Watch out and not touch your nails or you will stain this magnet like me.

Yes the final result! Looks pretty awesome right? The results are very similar to Nails Inc so I do like it. The only problem I have is that it's very hard to control the after effects of how the magnetic polish moves so it makes my nail not very united looking. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing but I personally prefer creating marbled swirl nails by dipping them in water instead because the results are more obvious.

 Enjoy and show me your results! Bye Bye

Ardell Double Up False Eyelashes Review

I have another lash review today again! I purchased this from my local drug store, CVS, for $4.99. This Double Up line from Ardell came out a few months ago but didn't get my hands on it till now. I absolutely love the idea of double lashes especially they are extreme time saver and are perfect for more dramatic occasions. Since I bought this item in a hurry I really didn't a chance to take a close look at it, but when I examined it at home I really did't like it.

A lot of people glue 2 pairs of  different style lashes together in order to create a more dramatic effect such as making the band longer to elongate eyes or variation in lash length for different types of look that original lashes couldn't create. Gluing lashes together is slightly problematic when you are new to this and don't know how to combine lashes together for the best results. Therefore, I think this is the reason why Ardell created this line. I mean if there's a demand then there's a market. You guys know... business is always business..

Sounds like a great idea so far right? The idea sounds simple and easy, but you guys are probably wondering why I don't like these lashes. I'm not a perfectionist, but I do expect greater quality when I'm whipping out 5 whole dollars to buy these lashes.

Front view! Looking nice and full!

Honestly, I really didn't like the fact that Ardell glued together 2 pairs of exactly the same style lashes. It only makes the lashes look fuller but it didn't create any sort of variation in lash length to create different wearable looks.



This is an example of how a few pairs of different style lashes are glued together to create more emphasis towards the end of the eyes and at the same time elongating the band of the lashes. This is really something that you can't buy outside that requires a little imagination and crafty hands.

Basically I'm trying to say that these Ardell eyelashes are boring and have no creativity. There's really no need to stack to pairs of lashes together for more volume when I can buy a pair of fuller lashes to begin with. I think it's all a gimmick to lure customer's attention.

I know that some of your guys might really love the idea of fuller lashes and I do too but these lashes are pretty poorly made. The company basically glued together 2 pairs of lashes instead of making 2 sets of lashes on one band to make it more natural looking that consumers can't do at home. Sucks right? I can do it myself so why do I have to spend the extra 5 bucks on you? Ardell, why waste so much time on advertisements and packaging if you are not planning to create better quality?

Look I didn't even use it yet and it's already peeling off! Oh... no... that's very bad! I have to glue them back together before I get to use it or it would be very embarrassing if one pair came off.

Now coming to the worse part......

The layers of the lashes are not clipped together! aww... I would literally have 3 layers of eyelashes if I were to put these on my eyes! Yes, that would look very creepy and disgusting at the the same time. I really wished that these lashes can look like one piece after gluing them together NOT letting people know I have double layers of lashes!

Overall, it's not worth the money at all! If something is going to make you look uglier then why do it? Why take the risk? Why wasting your time of finding a way to fix these lashes? It's really not worth it at all and if there's someone to blame then it's Ardell product designer. Designer, you disappointed me because I have always loved Ardell's lashes but definitely not this one. Hope this review helped you guys!

Origins Checks and Balances Face Wash Cleanser Review

Recently I've changed my facial cleanser to Origins because I've used up my Loreal's 360 cleanser. I had this sitting in my room for a year as I've got this free last Earth Day for giving them a empty container. Yeah they usually have free products on Earth Day. Don't be too jealous, I just always keep myself updated with ways to save! This year Origins gave out a free moisturizer for Earth Day but I didn't need it so didn't go get it.

 

Current favorite cleanser as after using this product my face feels clean and does not strip away my a lot of my natural oil making my face dry. This face wash also works really well in taking light makeup off. I feel like using this cleanser with my Clarisonic brush is making my pore look slightly smaller. woohoo!

I think this cleanser is going to last me a long time because I use it twice a day and a dime size is more then enough for my face. There's actually a lot in this bottle as I've used it for a month now and it still looks like the bottle is full. You can purchase this product online at Origin's website for $19.50. My packaging is different from their website because mine is released for Earth Day. 

Cleanser is in a creamy frosty texture and lathers up a little when you use.

Here's a test I did to show you guys how well this product works for cleaning makeup. 

 I applied 3 different brands of eyeliners on my hand then I'll go wash it off using Origin's cleanser. I chose to test with eyeliner because the results are more obvious then foundation and usually eyeliners are very stubborn and hard to wash off. 

There's so many times I had black residue stuck under my eyes that wouldn't come off without makeup remover so it makes my life more complicated.  Haha... yeah that's when I kind of look like I haven't slept for a week with such a heavy eye bag. If you guys think of the bright side, the residue made me look like a panda... awww.. isn't that cute (Yeah, that was meant to compliment myself).

Now thanks to this cleanser, a lazy person can put less stuff on my face.

Oh yeah, that's me but minus the size. so cute!!!

This is not related to my post but I just came across it and it's so cute! It's a panda dog! It's actually a dog but his owner dressed him up to look like a panda. Although, it might sound weird but I heard that its quite a trend in China now. I guess people are trying to seek alternatives in owning a pet panda by making their dog look like other animal. Sorry little fella, I can't tell that you're a dog. 

 

Here's a another one. OMG... this one I really really like. Sooo....... cute!

Alright enough of the obsession and back to the testing. Now let me wash my hand. 

After 2 seconds of scrubbing, everything came off! I didn't even rub my skin and it just came off by gently using this Clarisonic brush. Wow it was way to quick for me show you guys how amazing this combo works. 

You could see in this picture that the Origins cleanser does lather but but very little. If you guys don't have a brush like I do, using your hand will work the same way. No hard rubbing is needed to remove makeup. 

Bam... the final product, a clean hand! There's absolutely no residue left on my hand and I just realized it look more moisturized.  Yah! another good product I found for my skincare routine that cost me NOTHING!