Reviewing L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes Mascara

Hi cuties and welcome back to my blog for a little review! :) For a while now, I've been searching for a nice everyday mascara. I've used a lot of Essence and Catrice mascara's but they weren't really doing it for me so I decided to try this one out. And boy, it sure wasn't a letdown.

L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes Mascara

I got this mascara at the beginning of April, when I was looking for a new one. I accidentally broke my old one which was from a beauty box (I'm a very clumsy person) so I was very interested in finding a new mascara that fit my simple needs - no black circles around my eyes at the end of the day and it has to look nice on me. At first, I wanted to buy the L'Oreal False Lash Superstar X-fiber one but I realized that I wanted a more natural look, so I picked this one instead. And I'm very pleased that I did. 

I've really been loving this mascara, it doesn't smudge or leave dark circles under your eyes like some other mascaras do (I'm looking at you - Essence and Catrice) and even if I have some little clumps, I can easily fix it with the wonderful wand this macara has. The wand is easy to use and very comfortable.

The mascara lasts the whole day on my eyes but it isn't waterproof. It also feels nice on the eyes, doesn't feel heavy and doesn't look clumpy, too. 

The mascara also has good ingredients, didn't find any ingredient that was rated "poor" on Paula's Choice's CID (http://www.paulaschoice.com/cosmetic-ingredient-dictionary/).

You can also find the full list of ingredients on their site here, if you're interested : http://www.lorealparisusa.com/products/makeup/eye/mascara/voluminous-million-lashes-mascara.aspx?shade=Black

I bought it for 10 euros, in my local drugstore which is called "Drogas" in Latvia, Riga. I think the price is pretty okay for the quality I get.

Time for the rating system!

If you've been reading my posts for a while, you'll know that I have my own rating systems for products. If you don't, check my other posts with the rating system on it (http://review-bar.blogspot.com/2017/03/saying-hi-reviewing-skinchemists-24.html)

This time the rating system will be a bit different, since mascara's usually don't have a scent or smell to them. 

I created my own little rating system(0-10 point scale) so I could tell if the product is good or not and should I recommend it. So I have 5 categories for 2 points each and they are :

1. Texture
2. Packaging
3. Does it work for me? 
4. Price 
5. Ingredients

This mascara gets 2 points for the texture, 2 points for the packaging, 2 points because it works, 2 points for the price and 2 points for the ingredients. I rate this mascara a 10/10!

It's a really brilliant everyday mascara, I recommend you try it and see for yourself.

Thank you for your time and have an amazing day!

Laura :)

Reviewing: Lookfantastic Beauty Box April 2017

Hello lovelies and welcome back to my blog! The review is going to be a little different this time - I'm reviewing one of the best beauty boxes (in my opinion) out there. I bought my first Lookfantastic beauty box on July 2016, when I finally decided to try out some new things and to get out of my comfort zone. I've been subscribed to the beauty box ever since. :) Sure, it is buying a "cat in the bag" because you don't know if the products will work on your skin type, hair type or if you will ever even use them, but I do think it's worth the price. Especially if you buy them for a year (it's cheaper!)

Lookfantastic Beauty Box April 2017

This month's theme is Natural Beauty, so you can be sure that these products will make your natural beauty shine.

As per usual, with the beauty box, you also get your complimentary Elle April 2017 magazine and your little beauty magazine from Lookfantastic!

1. Merci Handy Hand Cleansing Gel (30ml)

This seems like a really great cleansing gel, it smells wonderful (mine smells like Black Vanilla) and it dries on your hands so fast! At first, there's a strong alcohol scent but after some seconds you don't even smell it anymore. I think it's a pretty great addition to the box. 

2. Vitamasques Pomegranate Sheet Mask (one mask)

It's a Korean mask, which I do love since I've heard nothing but good things about their skincare rituals (and Korean women look great too!) but it is a little annoying to put a sheet mask on your face for 20 minutes. I did put on a tv show in the background but it was a bit hard to focus because it felt like the mask was moving a bit around my face and I had to make sure that the mask doesn't cover my eyes (it didn't but sure felt like it). But after those 20 minutes, I took off the mask and my skin felt oily and like I needed to clean it but the instructions said that I should tap my face with a towel and that's it, so that is what I did. For the rest of the night I did feel moisturized and my skin felt a bit tightened but I do think that to see the full effects, you should put it on more than once. 

3. Madara Smart Day Cream (20ml)

It was very awesome to see that a Latvian (my home country) company made the cut on Lookfantastic's beauty box. Since I've already used some Madara products, I know that they do work. The day cream feels very firming on my skin but it's meant more for dry or very dry skin, I have a combination type but I still feel like this works for me,too. It feels a bit thick for a day cream but maybe I'm just applying too much of it.

4. Omorovicza Cleansing Foam (25ml)

It says that it's a cleansing foam but it doesn't foam up. Believe me, I've tried to make it foam! I used it after I removed my makeup with micellar water and it made my face feel clean and fresh. 

5. Alterna Caviar CC Cream (25ml)

This cream promises to perfect hair in 10 different ways and those are - moisture, shine, smoothness, softness, UV protection, manageability, strength, anti-breakage, heat protection and light hold. I put it on my hair after washing it but I really didn't feel the perfection it promised. My hair had more volume and I looked like a lioness. Maybe I should've styled my hair, maybe that looks good if you style it, but not on air dried hair. I really didn't like the effect, I felt disappointed in this product. It also has a "citrussy" smell that I'm not a fan of.

6. Laura Geller Balance and Brighten Foundation (1.8 g)

This foundation was in the shade "Fair", but it was a bit too dark for my pale skin. But I did try it on myself anyway and it has great coverage. But I wouldn't know how it holds up through the day - I took it right off. This kind of saddens me, because I really looked forward to the foundation but I shouldn't be surprised - most light foundations are still not light enough for me. But I do know a person that I'll be giving this to :) 

7. This Works Pefect Legs Skin Miracle (10ml)

This is a tinted serum for your legs, it looks a bit like a fake tan but it's a lot lighter. At first, I was totally not into it, since I am really pale but if you apply just a small amount, it just makes your legs look shinier. But I don't think I'll be buying the full size, though.

I won't be having a rating system for the beauty boxes but I can tell you that I liked 5 out of the 7 products in general. But I have 4 that I will use up (since the Laura Geller foundation is too dark and I'll be giving it away). I really liked this month's products but I hope that May will bring us some more makeup!

You can subscribe to the Lookfantastic Beauty Box here - (https://www.lookfantastic.com/offers/beauty-box.list)

Thank you for your time and have a great day! :)

Laura

Reviewing: Matrix Oil Wonders Indian Amla

Hello lovelies! I'm back with a yet another post and this time it's about haircare. A little backstory about my hair: I went to a hairdresser last July with my damaged hair and she cut my hair so short, I actually cried. Yes, of course, it was damaged, but the way she cut it... The new cut did not look good on me, I looked like I came straight from the 70's. And my hair doesn't grow fast at all, so you could imagine how upset I was. I even ordered a wig! I don't use it anymore since my hair has grown since then but I did use it for a while. And I do think this oil helped my hair a whole lot.

Matrix Oil Wonders Indian Amla Strenghtening Oil

I got this oil from Lookfantastic, as a Beauty Box winner, on September 2016. I also got other Matrix Oil Wonders products as well. The whole box was delivered to my house on September 26th. 

This is what I recieved as a Loofantastic September 2016 Beauty Box winner :) 

I was so excited to try all the hair-care things I got, I tried this oil the same day. When I first applied the oil to my hair, it smelled so good. It had a mellow, sweet scent and it smells good on the hair throughout the day. 

On the bottle it says: "Pump to prime, apply 1-2 pumps before shampooing, during conditioning or as a finishing treatment." 

I usually shampoo and condition my hair, then I wrap my hair in a towel, let them dry for a few minutes. Then I pump the Matrix oil (I do 3-4 pumps because my hair is really thick) and apply it to my hair  BUT I only put the oil in the middle section of my hair and the ends, I don't apply it to my scalp/roots. Then I let my hair air-dry and when they're dry, I feel like a silky smooth goddess. My hair has grown a lot over these past months and I do think some credit has to go to this oil that helps them stay healthy and shiny.

And you really don't need much of it - I've been using the oil religiously since the end of September and I still have more than a half of the bottle left.

And now for the ingredients... The Matrix oil has 18 ingredients and 6 of them are rated "poor" on Paula's Choice Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary (http://www.paulaschoice.com/cosmetic-ingredient-dictionary/) and they are : Alcohol Denat, Hexyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Salicylate, Alpha-isomethyl Ionane, Limonene, Linalool (you can find all of them in the link provided above). At first, I thought it looked unacceptable and that I would have to dismiss the product since 30% of the ingredients are rated "poor" but I realized that they all were mostly "poor" because they were heavily scented and not meant for very sensitive skin. For a skincare product that would be considered "poor", but since this is a hair-care product - it shouldn't be near your scalp anyway. There is also a product rated "BEST" which is Phyllantus Embica Fruit Extract (http://www.paulaschoice.com/cosmetic-ingredient-dictionary/definition/phyllanthus-emblica-fruit-extract) -  that is an antioxidant and soothes the skin. 

For  €14.95 (on Lookfantastic) you get 125 ml of the product.

(https://www.lookfantastic.com/matrix-oil-wonders-indian-amla-strengthening-oil-125ml/11027760.html)

Time for the rating system!

I created my own little rating system(0-10 point scale) so I could tell if the product is good or not and should I recommend it. So I have 5 categories for 2 points each and they are :

1. Smell
2. Packaging
3. Does it work for me? 
4. Price 
5. Ingredients

Matrix Oil Wonders Indian Amla gets 2 points for the smell, 2 points for packaging, does it work for me - 2 points, 2 points for the price and 1 point for the ingredients. 

I rate it a 9/10!

I think it's a great price for the amount of product you get and overall I really recommend you try it if your hair is brittle, in a bad shape or you just want to give a little love to your hair. It's one of the best products I've used on my hair. 

Thank you for your time, have an amazing day! :)

Laura

Reviewing: Limecrime's Matte Velvetines (liquid lipsticks)

Hello cuties and welcome back to my second blog post! This week I have some pretty lipstick shades to show you.

Limecrime Matte Velvetines

I got these lipsticks online from Limecrime's official website (https://www.limecrime.com/) on September of 2016 and I have been loving most of them since then. The shades are : Teddy Bear, Raven, Squash and Marshmallow. The problem with buying things online, that you haven't tried or swatched, is that you don't really know if it is a good fit for you or not. I would love it if companies who do sell their products mainly online, would have them not only in full size but also a travel size, so I wouldn't have to buy the full product and then find out that it wasn't a good fit for me, and just throw it out or find someone who wants it.
Since Limecrime is a vegan and cruelty free company, I expected to have some good ingredients and I wasn't disappointed when I researched them. My main research was done on Paula's Choice Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary (http://www.paulaschoice.com/cosmetic-ingredient-dictionary/). All ingredients were marked "good" and the intriguing part was that all the lipsticks have sunscreen agents, which means that your lips are well protected from the sun's UBV rays.

Here is a little swatch on my pale skin.
The lipsticks smell wonderful, they a sweet candy scent but Teddy Bear (which is a collaboration with Melanie Martinez), in my opinion, has the strongest smell of all.

The colors are much darker than I thought they would be - especially Raven. It looks almost black, if I went out wearing this lipstick, people would probably think I'm wearing a black lipstick not a dark purple one. I also expected Marshmallow to be more pink on me but I  realized that my lips are naturally darker, so the lipstick will look a bit darker on me than on others.

The wand of all of them is very soft, and the lipsticks are rich in pigment. But you do have to put a layer more on the darker shades (Teddy Bear and Raven)  because one side may look a little lighter than the other. Marshmallow felt a little sticky on my lips when I first applied it but I might have put on too much of it.
One lipstick tube is 2,6 ml and it costs 18,73 euro (from the Limecrime website) and they might look small, but I do think that it's enough for a year or so. I've been using Squash loads of times since September, I still haven't run out. The thing I don't like is the shipping cost from the website, other than that, I think it's an ok price for the products.
The lipsticks have a matte finish but it takes a moment for them to become matte - I'd say give them 5 minutes or so.

Time for the rating system! 

I created my own little rating system(0-10 point scale) so I could tell if the product is good or not and should I recommend it. So I have 5 categories for 2 points each and they are :

1. Smell
2. Packaging
3. Does it work for me? 
4. Price 
5. Ingredients

Limecrime velvetines get 2 points for the sweet scents, 1 point for the packaging, does it work for me - 1 point, the price gets 1 point and the ingredients get 2 points.
I rate them a 7/10!  I would recommend you try them. They have loads of different shades and right now they are having a sale on some of their beautiful shades, including Teddy Bear and Squash. (https://www.limecrime.com/categories/sale)

Thank you for your time and have a great day! :)
Laura