Review : Bourjois 1,2,3 Perfect Foundation

Hai all, today I want to talk about another foundation from Bourjois. There was a deal at my local drugstore so I bought Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation along with this one in order to compare them. I suggest first you have a look to my first review on Bourjois.

i'm a mac nc20 (maybe now even nc15) and this is the lightest colour 52 from this series.

What I like :

It's thick-ish fluid and easy to apply. (either w/ a brush or your fingers)

It has medium to high coverage.

It has SPF 10. (enough for you?)

It's buildable.

It has demi-matte finish.

It's more or less moisturising.

You don't need a setting powder (unless you are super-duper oily)

It doesn't look cakey even if you apply two coats.

What I don't like :

Nothing at all. 

Except I would have preferred a higher sun protection to prevent my acne pigmentation to go darker.

it's genetic, it's called 'chubby cheeks syndrome'

Comparison between

1,2,3 Perfect Foundation :

More coverage   

Matte finish

Less moisturising

 More long lasting

SPF 10

Healthy Mix Foundation :

Less coverage

Dewey finish

Less coverage

Invisible to tell

I'd say Healthy Mix is for those who have normal to dry skin for moisturising purposes and those who want a have a natural finish (bare in mind that you mustn't have flaws though). And 1,2,3 Perfect is excellent for those with normal to oily skin who have acne, pigments to conceal.

 

 

Review : Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation

This review is a foundation alternative for people who don't enjoy splurging too much money on foundation or those who are on a tight budget.

i'm a mac nc20 and 52 was a bit dark for me

I'm cutting to the chase:

What I like:

It's fluid and goes on very well

Gives a little dewy effect

It's almost weightless, you don't feel it on your skin

It's more or less moisturising 

You don't see it, you don't see it at all.

It's build able. 

The latter is super-important for me being so insecure about my skin condition and scared of meeting people in day light -houston, we have a problem.

It's a very good quality product for the price.

What I don't like:

It doesn't last 16 hours as it's acclaimed, I'd say 5-6 hours according how oily your skin is.

It doesn't have SPF so I need to put a high sunscreen before I apply this foundation.

It has medium coverage, if you have skin condition or flaws like me, the amount of coverage won't cut it for you (unless you don't mind of course)

Anyhow, I find this foundation to be very high quality option for drugstore foundations.

Review : Vichy Liftactiv Retinol HA SPF 18 Day

I have a combination skin, I tend to get oily on my nose and on my forehead whereas my cheeks tend to be dry.

I have a bit of experience with salicylic acid and glycolic acid products but I've never used retinol products up to a few weeks ago.

I purchased Vichy Retinol HA a month ago mainly to see how my skin will react to retinol and to see whether it will help with my congestion on my cheeks and my acne pigmentation (they're everywhere). And I decided to chose a French pharmacy brand (like Avene, La Roche Possay, Bioderma, Vichy etc.), mainly because they're suitable for sensitive skin. Not that I have sensitive skin, but to reduce having any classic side effects of using retinol like dryness, redness and itchiness.

This is retinol for day time and has SPF 18 UVA and I absolutely adore the technology of the bottle. No air enters the bottle, therefore the cream won't loose its potency.

i guess you you'd never seen this nasa like bottle before

My skin didn't react to this at all. No tingling sensation, no redness whatsoever. I can even say that it's rather moisturising due to hyaluronic acid. It does take longer to get absorbed to continue with my foundation.

I've been using it for the last month or so, daily, under my makeup and I notice that I go oily on my forehead and my nose faster than usual. And I notice it gave me purging on my cheeks. I can't decide if the purging is good or bad though. Mostly it's suggested to use retinol products at least a month in order to see some benefits. So I'll keep continuing until this 30ml bottle finishes and will do a final update.

Review : Alpha-H Liquid Gold

Alpha-H is an Australian brand that offers high performance skincare with reasonable prices. Especially if you keep an eye on their kits, you can get so many divine products with discounted prices.

Today I want to talk about Liquid Gold. When I surf on the internet I see so many mixed reviews. Having used it wrongly, initially I thought LG was useless. Before going into the details this is the official description of the product;

Designed specifically for the treatment and reduction of minor skin complaints, Alpha-H Liquid Gold is a highly effective resurfacing and firming lotion for your skin.

Recognised for its natural medicinal properties, liquorice within Alpha-H Liquid Gold visibly reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, hyper-pigmentation, sun damage, acne, scarring and breakouts.

The complex formula consists of glycolic acid, recognised for its rejuvenating qualities combined with the soothing and softening properties of liquorice root extract. Together these gently stimulate the production of collagen whilst creating a complexion that is lighter, clearer, and more even.

Most of the people who use this use it wrongly. Liquid Gold contains 5% glycolic acid and looks like water: completely transparent. In order to get benefits from this product you need to apply it after cleansing (and toning if you want), and you MUST MAKE SURE THAT YOUR SKIN'S PH LEVEL IS 5.5. If you have a foaming cleanser, your skin's pH level will go even higher than 7 (mostly around 9) and Liquid Gold won't work. Actually, any kind of skincare product that has acids in it won't work.

Therefore, you need to cleanse your skin (and/or tone your skin) with a cleanser that will restore skin's natural pH level (5.5) or lower. If you do this step right, you will benefit from your LG, if you don't, you have a mediocre moisturiser.

LG is good for fine lines, pigmentation problems, congested skin, acne and oily skin. You need to use it 2-3 per week without moisturising. And make sure to use a SPF in day time. And please don't over exfoliate. 

Review : Lavera Natural Liquid Foundation

Lavera is one of the leading natural brands and people swear by its skincare. Having not tried any of the skincare, I do own Natural Liquid Foundation.

i am a mac nc20 and use 01 porcelain on lavera

The following is the company's official description of the foundation;

This hydrating foundation blends easily and hides imperfections, creating a porcelain-smooth canvas. Free-radical fighting Argan Oil, organic blossom butter and vitamins A, C and E protect, rejuvenate and nourish skin.

Having a problematic skin, I bought this foundation in order to escape from harsh chemicals when my skin was too sensitive. This is a very nice moisturising liquid foundation with a bit of coverage and anti-aging properties. If you have (more or less) problem free skin and you look for a nurturing tinted moisturising-ish cream, this is for you. However if you have skin flaws to cover this foundation won't be satisfying your expectations.

Review : UNE 100% Mineral Foundation

Hi all, today I want to talk about my favourite foundation for the last few months. Normally I prefer liquid foundations because they have higher coverage and considering I have too much blemishes, acne, scars, whiteheads (aka mines under the skin) and you name it, I want to have a foundation that would cover them all and doesn't irritate my skin.

i am a nc20 on mac and i wear the lightest colour on UNE (M01)

Voila, UNE's 100% Mineral Foundation is my holy grail foundation now. This is my 5th package. I use it with UNE's blush brush instead of kabuki brush, just because I get higher coverage with blush brush. 

What I really like about it is that it's so high performance. Really! It covers them all, it lasts a long time (I'd even say very water resistant -being caught under the rain a few times-) , once you apply it sits in your pores and looks absolutely natural. Lastly, it has a semi-glowy finish. And yes, it's 100% minerals, no chemicals. Not to mention I received nice compliments when I used UNE and so many girlfriends of mine bought this foundation too. 

The only negative things  I can say about this foundation is that the price point could have been more reasonable. One pot doesn't last too long even though it contains 4.5 grams (0.15oz) of product. And it's not the best powder if you want to use it as a setting powder. It looks cakey then.

Lastly, I advice everybody to try this foundation, you won't regret it. If you do, send it to me please.

Review : Calendula Oil

Last week, I killed my face by too much chemical exfoliation. Consequently, I am incredibly itchy under my nose, on my chin, on my cheeks and I also have scaly patches.

Calendula extracts are famous for calming and restoring the skin. 

Not only one of the most effective topical oils, it also makes an excellent base for salves, facial creams and many other natural cosmetics. Gentle, cooling, and soothing. Calendula oil is the most successful oil for assisting us with dry and damaged skin, skin inflammations, rashes, diaper irritations, and other skin disorders. Makes a wonderful baby's oil and is exceptional for those with sensitive skin.

For the last 4 days, day and night (and more), I've been putting this oil on my face and massage it gently improved my skin so drastically. Dryness, itchiness and redness is entirely gone. My face loves me again!

If you have sensitive skin and/or redness, you could use this oil beneath your moisturiser (almost like a serum) You'll be surprised how fast your skin will improve, plus, your face will glow.

Caroline Hirons and the Best Skincare Blog. Ever!

We all take care of our skin one way or the other. Anyhow, I can assure you that you're skincare routine has flaws, which is kinda normal because we aren't trained for it. But Caroline Hirons is!

And, aren't we lucky that she has a blog in which she gives vital informations, for free! I've spent hours reading her blogs and trying to learn her mentality on skincare.

I don't advice, I urge you to read her blog here. You can thank me later.

P.S: Be ready, she won't be advising cheap products, hence, my wallet is dead.

Review : Filorga Optim Eyes

Yes, Filorga, again! You can see my other reviews about their other two products here: Meso Peel and Meso Mask.

This is the only eye cream from that brand. It's acclaims to deliver this;

Dark circles – puffiness - wrinkles

Acts intensely and simultaneously on wrinkles, puffiness and dark circles that make the eyes look tired and distorted. Fresh, smooth texture restructuring the eye contour.

This care product is made of an original combination of ingredients for triple action on the eyes:

Anti-dark circle: a unique complex reduces dark circles by promoting the removal of pigmented residues that cause circles to darken.

Anti-puffiness: a cocktail of three active ingredients boosts vein and lymph circulation to reduce puffy lower eyelids.

Anti-ageing: NCTF®, a poly-revitalising complex identical to the NCTF® used in medicine, favors curaneous firmness.

At the same time, our trio of draining agents smoothes the eye contour. Fresh, smooth texture restructuring the eye contour.

First of all, I love the packaging, it's an air tight little bottle of 15ml. When you twist the top, the pump comes out. I don't love the amount that comes out from the pump though, it's way much more than what you need. That being said, a little goes a long way (classic with high-performance, guess you can tell I love F)

pump is off

pump is on

Now, I started to have fine lines under the eye area, I can't tell if it does anything about them but it makes miracles with my dark circles and puffiness.

Try it and see it for yourself.

Review : Filorga Meso Mask

Filorga is a brand that I've discovered only a few months ago. It'a French brand (oh yes, those heavenly French pharmacy brands) that's only sold by Iciparisxl in Amsterdam. I've purchased different products but Meso Mask is definitely one of my hero products.

The acclaims are the following;

Filorga Meso Mask 

Anti-wrinkle Lightening Mask

BRIGHTEN THE SKIN FOR A LUMINOUS AND RADIANT COMPLEXION. 

TREAT WRINKLES AND ERASE ALL SIGNS OF TIREDNESS.

Indication

The polysaccharides of rhamnose soothes skin irritations, 

evens and lightens instantaneously and lastingly the complexion. 

The NCTF®, our exclusive core formula, stimulates the cellular 

activity and the production of collagen.

A lightweight cream texture for a unique relaxing feeling. 

The skin is re-plumped, offering a healthy-glow and 

freshness complexion. 

The whole mesotherapy in a mask!

Now, I don't have wrinkles yet so I can't really comment wether this mask improves fine lines or not. But I have rubbish sleeping hours, great amount of stress on my shoulders and a very shitty skin due to wrong medications (salutations to my GP)

I can't exactly tell what the mask does, I leave it on my skin for almost an hour (it's recommended duration is 15-30 mins) even on the eyes area. The white paste dries up and when I take it off, my skin is extremely moisturised, glowing from within and my super-red acne scars are slightly lightened. The best thing is that the results aren't temporary.

Filorga recommends to use Meso Mask every week for the first month and then every 2 weeks, making it a 3 month programme.

What did I do? Being this cheap person that I am, used it sparsely neglecting my neck(poor thing is used to it by now) and counted the times I use it (see the pic)

i made a mark every time i used it

So, if you're cheap like me, you can profitfrom this Rolls-Royce 12 times rather than 8. Hehe, please don't boo. It's still recession, ya know.

Review : Syoss Beauty Elixir Absolute Oil

I have quite thick hair but I have it dyed and highlighted for years now. Result? Damaged and dry ends.

I've been enjoying different type of serums to solve the issue. And Syoss Absolute Oil is my latest favorite.

I guess we all know how good high end brands like Kerastase. But I find this to be a nice cheaper option yet very effective.

after 3 months of religious use

The oil is very thick, you need to warm it in your palms then apply it to the ends or to the lengths, depending on your choice. I wouldn't be exaggerating when I say a little goes a long way. As I have thick hair I can get away with using 2 pumps every time. If you have fine hair you need to use less than a pump.

I've been using o for the last 3 months almost every time after I wash my hair (which is every other day) and I've used only about 60% of the bottle (100ml)

If you like hair serums, especially nourishing oil based ones, this is a very reasonable priced serum for the quality.

Review : Filorga Meso-Peel

I bought Filorga's Meso Peel to kick start my skin clearing journey. As I mentioned before, my genius(?) house doctor accidentally prescribed me wrong type of medication that stimulated male hormones on my body hence this happened.

This is a chemical peel (36%) of 5 weeks (now they discontinued the 5 week programme but replaced it with 3 week one). It promises to improve fine lines, skin's texture, shrink pores, help with pigmentation. And it does deliver its promises....

but

I bought this in order to treat my whiteheads. My jawline and my cheeks were 'bumpy'. There was an incredible congestion there and those bumps were tooooooo many and too deep.

you can easily see the congestion

First 3 weeks, I experienced so much purging. Most of those bumps were either becoming pimples or getting closer to the surface. After the 3rd week, I saw that my skin calmed down, my pores shrunk and some of my acne scars were less visible.

after 5 weeks

The Meso-Peel is dumb-proof. It looks like this 

First you use the pre-peel then the actual peel and then the soothing cream. I do need to mention that if you're new to chemical peels or if you have sensitive skin, Meso-Peel will be very uncomfortable for you because it tingles/stings.

I bought this from Iciparisxl in Amsterdam, they are the only people selling Filorga in the NL. When I bought this, they were having 20% discount on skincare and I had to pay around 50 Euros. 

And it was worth every cent. I think for a 5 week treatment and for such a high-end product, the price is justifiable. 

Review : Stinging nettle tea

If you suffer from acne or if you want to improve your skin's condition, you must drink this.

Now, to be honest, stinging nettle doesn't have the best smell nor the taste but especially if you suffer from acne, I think drinking this tea is one of the best things you could do to yourself.

this is the only brand i was able to find in amsterdam

Every single time I drank this at night before going to bed, I woke up with a better skin. I hope you remember what happened to me?

Sometimes I brew 2 bags together and add some sliced lemon to make it more enjoyable.

Benefiting from nettle tea, I later bought stinging nettle supplements but I don't think I've seen any improvements with them. So I stick with the tea.

Struggling with my skin. Caution; it involves graphic photos.

I've been struggling with my skin over the last year. Before I moved to Amsterdam, I rarely wore foundation because my skin was (more or less) normal and problem free.

Stuff happened, blah blah blah, my house doctor was an ignorant, prescribed me wrong type of medicine, blah blah blah, from this 

no foundation

I went to this, (wait no throwing up)

My skin was super irritated, red and itchy. Some parts of my face were peeling off due to dryness. It was hurting so much I couldn't wash my face in the morning. The photo doesn't really show it, but underneath my skin, they were loads loads of bumps aka whiteheads, like mines waiting to come to the surface and explode.

In this blog I want to talk about different skincare products that I try and profit from so that if there is anybody out there suffering from the same problem, maybe I could help.