Monday Makeup Review- Hempz Body Butter

Product Review: Hempz Body Butter

Hempz Body Butter

Hands are a vital part of a makeup artist’s service for her clients. Taking care of your hands is important and having soft, hydrated hands when applying makeup is most important when touching the face. Knowing this, I thought it very important to look for a product that would be good for personal use as well as for the makeup kit and the manicurist kit as well. I wash my hands a lot and this is one of the only products that keep my hands soft, smooth, and hydrated after repeated hand washing.

I have used other Hempz Brand products and love the feel and richness of the product. This particular product, the body butter is a thick crème intended for ultra hydrating and moisturizing dry rough patches of skin. I love using it on hands and feet. It is a light white-yellow color and has a very fresh clean scent. It is especially great for the manicurist/makeup artist kit because the scent isn’t over powering. The scent is comprised of Cucumber, Jasmine, Passion fruit, Plumeria and Violet. It also contains Shea butter, Cocoa butter, Coconut oil and of course the infamous Cannabis Sativa Seed extract, better know as Hemp Seed extract. The Hemp Seed used is 100% organic which is great since there a very few products out on mass market that have this claim. It is THC free, which is the psychoactive element in cannabis, therefore this product is completely safe and albeit edgy to those who may play it safe in life and fear trying the product because of its name and contents.

The ingredients in this product work together nourishing extremely dry skin without feeling greasy or heavy. It’s a great product in the winter when skin is really in need of extra hydration. If your skin is constantly fighting the dryness battle then you will want to use this year round. I tend to use it more for the hands and feet during summer and all over body use during the winter months. In the summer to keep my manicure and pedicure fresh looking this product does wonders for hydrating the cuticle without dulling the shine of the polish. Anyone who invests time and money on a manicure and or pedicure knows that using the right product that won’t destroy the shine of a newly applied polish will love this body butter.

A little of this product goes a long way because it spreads so easily and is very thick and creamy. It comes in a nice handy travel size (that I use in my kit), which is the 1.5 ounce or the back bar size in 8 ounces. The eight-ounce size I have at home for personal use lasts a long time and I haven’t finished going through the whole jar yet. It’s been approximately 7 months and I have about half a jar remaining. So you can see that a little really does go a long way.

This product can be used with both male and female clients, although some male clients might feel the scent is too much for their masculinity. The good thing is the scent doesn’t last long. Most of my male clients haven’t had a problem with it but every once in a while I do have someone ask about the scent. I do however, usually tend to choose products that do not have scents for this reason. But because this product works so well I give it a thumbs up for efficacy for both male and female.

**SPECIAL NOTE FOR MANICURISTS** This product can help eliminate a step and hydrate the cuticle bed without adding the oil if you are pressed for time. But remember you still have to prep the nail before applying the polish. Recommend this product to your clients and they will love you as well as the product. It’s that good!

Verdict: Keep, love and recommending it.

Thanks to One River Media for photographing this product. For more information about this company go to www.onerivermedia.com Tell them I sent you!

Monday Makeup Review – Makeup Remover Wipe

Product –

Make-up Cleansing Tissues by Absolute! Vitamin C Extract and 

Make-up Cleansing Tissues by Absolute! Green Tea Extract

If you wear makeup, then of course you need to take it off, at sometime or another. Always on the search, for an easy way to remove makeup for my clients as well as myself, I found a new company called Absolute! They sell two different options, of the make up cleansing wipe, Vitamin C Extract or Green Tea Extract. The Vitamin C Extract has an orange – lemon scent and the Green Tea Extract smells like subtle green tea with a hint of jasmine.

The product claims to thoroughly remove eyeliner, eye shadow, lipstick, blush and waterproof mascara without causing irritation. The company didn’t mention anything about removing foundation, and I’m not sure why they hadn’t thought to include foundation removal. The wipe is about 5×7 in size, which is large enough to remove a full face of makeup. The wipe itself is actually really soft and both scents are wonderful. So far the product seems good.

The first wipe I tried was the Vitamin C Extract and it removed foundation, lipstick and blush really well. It did not however remove my eyeliner or waterproof mascara without a serious struggle. I tried circular motion, back and forth in a straight line and came away with a big mess around my eye. It removed only about 40 percent of my eye makeup, which mainly included the eye shadow and still left a lot of dark residual liner and mascara. Needless to say I was not happy. What I thought was to be a quick makeup removal process turned into an ordeal involving eye makeup remover AND a separate makeup cleanser to get a clean face.

The Vitamin C Extract makeup remover wipe I believe is only good for people who are light makeup wearers and those who don’t wear makeup but want to refresh their face throughout the day. This is not a product that I will carry in my kit for professional use. But I do think it is suitable for refreshing throughout the day. My suggestion for this one is keep it in the beach bag or the gym bag for days you don’t have much makeup to remove.

Still on the quest for a good makeup remover wipe a few days later I tried the Green Tea Extract cleaning wipe. You might wonder why I tried the Green Tea Extract makeup cleansing tissue, after knowing the Vitamin C Extract tissue didn’t meet my requirements for removal. Well, let me shed some light on the reason for you. Every product is not made the same. More often than not it isn’t just the scent that makes the formulation of a product change. Manufacturers also change the ingredients and the ratio of products.

Strangely enough, that is exactly what happened with this product. The Green Tea Extract works wonders for removing all face makeup, including waterproof mascara without a struggle and without irritation and the scent is heavenly! It’s a keeper and made up for the double face cleaning duty I had to perform a few days ago. One piece of advice I want to share, is after using the makeup wipe rinse your face with water to remove any cleansing residue from wipe. Your face will feel clean and prepared for the remainder of your beauty regimen.

This is a keeper for both my professional kit as well as for personal use when I travel. (Just to be clear about this, I have not accepted any type of compensation for this review.)

Verdict: It’s a no go on the Vitamin C Extract wipe except for the beach and the gym.

 Keep, love, buying more of the Green Tea Extract, so those of you I work with, you have a choice of the unscented makeup remover wipe of the Green Tea Extract.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Get Smooth Skin for Summer

As the summer months are approaching quickly everyone wants to get smooth beautiful beach worthy skin. So how do you find the right products to get what you want?

First analyze your skin and determine what really needs attention. Review the questions and solutions best needed for achieving the results you desire. Yes, it’s that easy!

QUESTION: Do you have rough and scaly patches of skin?

SOLUTION: Exfoliate and moisturize. There are several products out on the market that exfoliate the skin and leave you with touchable soft and smooth skin. Your other option is to use a loofah or exfoliating mesh ball. Pour your favorite liquid body gel and rub in circular motion. Remember there is no need to rub hard. The loofah or mesh ball is effective enough without pressure to smooth out rough patches of skin.

QUESTION: Do you have dry areas of skin?

SOLUTION: The type of moisturizer you should use, should be determined by several factors, age, skin type and condition of skin such as sensitive or acneic. After moisturizing choose a thick rich emollient cream to deeply penetrate the top layers of the skin to hydrate and leave the skin dewy. Look for a product that is rich in humectants. Humectants attract water and increase the moisture level in the skin.

QUESTION: Are you concerned with skin protection?

SOLUTION: The best and least expensive protection is clothing. A broad hat that covers your face and especially your ears is a smart choice. Many people forget that ears need protection too as well as the tops of your feet when wearing sandals. The other option is a physical sunscreen or a chemical sunscreen. It may seem complicated but here’s the easy way to understand it. The chemical sunscreen absorbs the UV light and the Physical sunscreen reflects or blocks the UV light. So you probably are thinking, which one do I use? The short answer is to choose one that you are going to wear consistently to ensure at the very least you are protecting your skin. Until my next post about the difference between chemical versus physical sunscreen check out these websites for more information.

http://www.skincancer.org/

http://www.webmd.com/skin-beauty/beauty-sun-care-directory

Photo credit: Africa

Monday Makeup Review-The Eye Concentrate

Makeup Monday Product Review for Professional Makeup Artists

Review for Crème de la Mer- The Eye Concentrate 

So what’s all the hype about Crème de la Mer? Let’s take a look at The Crème de la Mer product, The Eye Concentrate and how it can be used by professional makeup artists.

The Eye Concentrate is said to hydrate, diminish lines, reduce discoloration and puffiness, smooth out uneven texture and tone. Hydration in the eye area is a important for actresses and models when dealing with close ups. Generally the eye is the first thing we see so it must look amazing. For professional makeup artists purposes its great for hydration but its also great because my high profile clients are familiar with the brand and are comfortable knowing what I use on them, is what many are using at home to keep there eyes in prime condition.

Many of my clients I see in varying degrees so it’s hard to say whether there is an improvement with just the one application they receive from me if they aren’t using this at home on a consistent basis. What I do know as a result of working with many different people and not just celebrities is that everyone has been in favor of The Eye Concentrate.

For those of you who haven’t used this product I will give you a short review. The Eye Concentrate has a pleasant smell, clean and reminiscent of all things oceanic. The texture is light and absorbs fairly quickly. The product is a white cream encased in an airtight dark glass container. It claims to be ultra hydrating. The applicator enclosed with the product feels nice against the eye area especially on a hot, dry day and protects skin against dragging or pressing too hard with your fingers. Over time on a personal level I have noticed a difference in hydration, diminished lines and a smoother texture around my eye. Now remember, this is my opinion of the product your opinion and results may be different.

The definite subtle scent is good for your makeup case when keeping in mind your clientele can be very sensitive to overpowering smells.  I generally try to keep all the products in my kit consistent with the fragrance free or light scent rule.

Now I will share my pet peeve about the product.  The applicator is great for personal use, but awful for multiple client use. I use disposable applicators when pulling from the jar or a sanitized metal spatula. On a personal note I suggest keeping the applicator in some sort of enclosed container to protect it against contamination and dirt. The applicator really should have come with some sort of protective case given the purchase price.

Now let’s discuss the price. Everyone always has something to say about how much it costs. On the average it is $165.00 for a .5 oz container. Yes it is a lot to spend at one time for the average person to spend on beauty products.  For those who are using the product on a personal basis, consider this, if you are using a .5 oz jar that is $40.00 each month, then essentially you are using the same amount as what it takes me to go through a personal jar of The Eye Concentrate and equates to $41.25 per month. There is the difference of the $1.25 extra per month for which in my mind is the cost of the applicator that still should have come with an enclosed container, but I digress… So does this fit in your budget?  And will it do what you need done? Those are the questions you need to ask yourself. For me, it fits my budget, my clients love it and it does what I need, so it is staying in my kit. Love it, keeping it!