Five Favorites: June 2011

I’m a little late posting my June favorites since its already July . Better late then never, right? The products I pick every month aren’t always “new” or items that just came out recently. The purpose of my monthly Five Favorites is just to share with you the products I’ve discovered I'm loving and using this month. A few of the products on this list were bought this month and the others I’ve had and finally got around to trying. Again, these are products I’ve used myself and wouldn’t be recommending them to you if I didn’t really like them and thought they were worth buying.

Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer

I’ve always had an issue with finding the right concealer to cover up blemishes, mostly the issue was with the color. I’ve read (and I’m sure you have to) that you should always pick a shade lighter than your skin tone to cover blemishes. I always went by that rule and that was my problem. I picked up this concealer hoping it would be the right shade for my skin tone.  Well it definitely wasn’t lighter than my skin tone but it was the perfect match and what do you know, it covered my blemishes beautifully! It really goes on smoothly and blends right in. It made me forget I had that annoying blemish. I love how it has that mousse like consistency too.  When using a lighter shade it just brings more attention to that monster. The variety of colors are wide which gives you a big selection to choose from. If you get home and decide its not the right color I'm pretty sure all CVS stores will let you return it with the receipt. The shade I use is Medium Beige. 

Tip: Use a pointy concealer brush (these work best for this), load up the brush with concealer and now stipple the concealer onto the pimple with the brush.

Stippling means to dab the product on, rather than rubbing or stroking it over your zit. You want as much coverage as possible and stroking tends to rub the product off. (not a good idea).

Suggested Retail Price $9.99 found at your local drugstores.

Tea Tree Oil

Tea tree oil is derived from a steam distilling of the leaves of the Melaleuca tree that is native to Australia. Pure tea tree oil (which is the kind you want to use) contains about 40% of a bacteria fighting ingredient called terpinen-4-ol.  With all that said, tea tree oil is  an excellent natural remedy for hundreds of bacterial and fungal skin ailments such as acne, abscess, oily skin, blisters, sun burns, athlete's foot, warts, herpes, insect bites, rashes, dandruff and other minor wounds and irritations. One of the most common uses of tea tree oil is fighting acne, when applied on acne tea tree oil helps the immune system to kill the bacteria and consequently reduce the inflammation.  Also, if you use tea tree oil with Vitamin E and a good healing agent it can not only heal your blemishes but also cure scar tissues. 

I’ve heard a lot about this natural oil doing wonders for your skin. I found it at Wal-Mart after searching stores like GNC and other health food stores because I knew it would be a lot cheaper at a drug  store. I’ve been using it consistently for 4 weeks now and I’ve noticed a big difference in my skin. My skin looks clearer, ive noticed that the blackheads I had on my nose have mostly gone away. When I do get a pimple I treat it right away with this and it clears up 90% faster than any other acne fighting treatment I’ve used. Don’t expect to see immediate results, it took about a month of using it everyday for me to notice the difference. There are a few different ways you can use this on your skin: 1. you can dab the affected areas onto your freshly washed face with a cotton swab before going to bed, then rinse your face when you wake up. 2. Pour a few drops of the oil into your favorite facial cleanser, mix together and wash your face as usual. 3. You can also use it as a toner, pour a few drops onto a cotton pad and gently wipe over your skin (or only the affected areas) after washing your face. Then rinse off well. 4. Use it as a spot treatment on a blemish, just dab it on the zit with a cotton swab. No need to rinse off. My favorite method is to mix it with my face cleanser and on the days I only exfoliate I will use it as a toner.

I should warn you about the odor. I wish someone warned me because it has a very strong medicine type of smell. (that’s the best way I can describe it). It’s by far a pleasant odor and the first time I used it I held my breath because it was so strong. Thankfully after a week of using it I got used to the smell and now it doesn’t even bother me. Also, if you have sensitive skin it can cause itchiness or irritation. Sensitive skin or not, I suggest testing a small amount on your skin to see how it reacts. If you feel its too strong or experience irritation don’t worry you can still use it, you just have to dilute it with water and that will help. Tea tree oil should never been taken internally and extra care should be taken when used around your eyes.

Tea tree oil is not only for acne, it can be used for a variety of different reasons. If you want to check out different ways on using tea tree oil check out this great site:

“20 Great Ways to Use Tea Tree Oil” at http://www.care2.com/greenliving/20-great-uses-for-tea-tree-oil.html

Suggested Retail Price $8.00 at Wal Mart stores nationwide or you can go to http://www.walmart.com and order it there.

Rimmel London Lasting Finish 25 hour Liquid Foundation

This is one of the best drug store foundations I’ve bought in a while. Like I’ve said before I tend to have normal to dry skin so I’m always looking for something that is hydrating or moisturizing. My makeup table is filled with all different brands and types of foundations bc I never found one that went on smoothly, didn’t dry up on my face or rub off in a hour. Until now, (thank the lord)! LOL..plus its not putting a dent in my wallet. This product does what it claims to. It promises that its sweat, heat and humidity proof (perfect for summer days)! It’s also enriched with a moisturizing Aqua Primer which must give it that hydrating feeling. I can’t say for a fact that it stays on for 25 hours bc I’ve never not washed my face for that long. (yuk)! but I can say I’ve had it on for at least 16 hours still going strong. I use my fingers to apply and it goes on flawlessly. It comes in 11 different shades, the lightest being Ivory and the darkest Natural Beige. I use Classic Beige. Overall I’m highly impressed with Rimmel and this product. 

Suggested Retail Price $7.99 found at your local drugstores.

Neutrogena Micro Mist Airbrush Sunless Tanning Spray

LOVE IT!!!!! My two words to describe this product. I’ve been to tanning salons and had the professional spray tans done and always turned orangey or with streaks. I’ve also bought a lot of different self tanning creams/sprays. I’m not going to lie, I am guilty of the occasional tanning bed sessions and laying by the pool or at the beach still. (I know, I know)! I’m not proud especially with all the cancer scares out there and the warning we here. However after using this product I’m probably going to think twice about going out in the sun now that I know I can get the same look without the risks. There are a few cons with this but I really think the pro’s outweigh the cons and here's why. CONS: okay, it doesn’t smell all fruity and yummy, but the smell is only there when you’re applying it, its not like you can smell it on your skin afterwards, you do have to pay attention when applying (but that goes for all spray tans) you have to spray in one even stroke (not a spray painting motion) or you will get streaks but its easy to avoid. Basically you have to follow the directions (which aren’t hard at all) to get the great results I’ve had (but that’s a given) . Okay now onto the PROS: it is oil free so you can apply it to your face by spraying some onto your hands and evenly applying it (you wont breakout)!, it has a one touch continuous spray that works on any angle to tan hard to reach places, the directions say you will see the color develop in 1-3 hours but I notice it less than a 1/2 hour therefore you don’t need to sit around for hours before putting your clothes on. I’ve sprayed it on my legs and put on pants 10 minutes later and there wasn’t any tan marks on my pants. Overall the few cons I think the pros outweigh the cons. They come in two different shades; medium tint and deep tint. I personally like the deep tint. Like I said it doesn’t turn you orange, its like you just came back from a tropical vacation.

Suggested Retail Price $10.99 found at your local drugstores or go to http://www.neutrogena.com/home.do to purchase it.

 Sally Hansen Grow Nails Now!

As far as getting my nails to grow I will always choose Sally Hansen’s Grow Nails Now. Not only do I love the clear gloss it gives to my nails it also truly makes your nails grow while strengthens my nails at the same time. Back in the day I would go to the nail salon and get those acrylic long nails put on and they looked good, until I got sick of them and decided to take them off. All I remember was my real nails being brittle, fragile and basically gross looking. I recommend any Sally Hansen nail growth or strength product, but this is my favorite. I would apply I to my nails every other day along with cuticle oil to help the growth. Not at all am I saying that your nails are going to grow instantly after one application but give it some time (not a lot) and you will notice the difference in your nail growth. Even though my nails are at a good length right now, I still apply this as a base coat (or top coat) just to prevent the breakage that could happen when using your hands and nails everyday. So, I find this product to not only help my nails grow but to also harden them and keep them healthy. If you're trying to grow your nails or prevent them from chipping or splitting you will like this.

Suggested Retail Price: $6.99 found at your local drugstores