Weekly Beauty Edit 1.25.2015

Every Sunday I share the ups and downs of my beauty bucket! Topics change a little each week but always include my hauls, edit and deletes, and empties. This week I added a Mani of the Week.

EMPTIES
Foxbrim 20% Vitamin C Serum.  Using a Vitamin C serum every morning is a standard step in my morning routine. It brightens skin, over a long period of time will lighten age spots, over a long period of time will build collagen, and fights those nasty free radical molecules. Free radicals are oxygen cells that have gone crazy and instead of being good guys have mutated into bad guys. The Kami-Kaze oxygen molecules love to attack the collagen cells in your skin. Collagen goes, firmness goes, wrinkles arrive.Vitamin C is an anti-oxidant - it fights 'against' the 'oxygen' cells that have mutated into bad guys, also known as free radicals.

Foxbrim 20% Vitamin C Serum on Amazon

The brand of Vitamin C doesn't matter to me. There's quite a few "types" or forms of Vitamin C for topical use. Some forms are fragile, some are more stable. Vitamin C serums also comes in various potency levels. I use a stable 20% potency and search on amazon for the the best price. Checked my amazon account and my empty Foxbrim was ordered October 7, 2014 which means 1 ounce lasted me over 3 months. I use about 5 or 6 drops each morning. Foxbrim uses Vitamin C from sodium ascorbic phosphate, a relatively stable form of Vitamin C which means it doesn't degrade easily from air and light; it holds it's potency and efficacy. Not forever but surely for many months. Here's a great article about this form of Vitamin C and skincare. Also, here's a link to Foxbrim 20% Vitamin C serum on amazon. (This is not an affiliate link, none of my links are affiliate links.) I have a deluxe size of Algenist Vitamin C serum from Sephora, one of Algenist's newest products. Will use that up and then repurchase the Foxbrim. It's a good price, 20% potency and stable.

MANI of the WEEK

Marc Jacobs LE Polish in Enamored

Marc Jacobs LE in Enamored, a very dark navy creme, borderline black. I knew it was dark when I bought it but once applied it was too dark for my taste. Love deep, inky blue polishes but want them to look navy, not black, when I'm indoors. As with the entire Marc Jacobs beauty line, packaging is stunning. Enamored is opaque in two coats, had a bit of puddling with this color.

My number one issue with Marc Jacobs polish is the brush! Horrible, cheap, tiny, stiff, will cause drag marks if you're not careful. Just really awful, especially the small size. Grips very little polish which means you need to redip which in turn can lead to drag marks. Other problem is the shape of his polish bottle is unique but not functional. Very prone to tipping and the more often you dip, the more likely the bottle will fall. Ugh. This particular shade also stains. Removing was a bit of a pain even with 100% Acetone. Clean up was problematic as the polish stained and smeared while I was trying to get it off my cuticles from the puddling. I rarely rarely have chipping issues but had bit of chipping with this one. You didn't miss anything with this limited edition. Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Night Watch is a gorgeous dark navy creme that applies, performs and removes wonderfully!

HAUL-A-LULU 
Bobbi Brown Extra Repair Eye Cream.
Ordered a deluxe sample size on ebay which I always try to do with higher end eye creams. The skin on my face is oily and very tolerant but the skin under my eyes is as fussy as can be plus it's very, very dry. Might be too soon to say but early results indicate Shiseido Benefiance eye cream is more emollient for night time (and less expensive than Bobbi Brown Extra Repair). 

Perricone No Makeup Makeup Bronzer and Blush
QVC had a great price on this duo. I wanted the bronzer, which is very liquid-like, almost a serum consistency, to mix with my foundations in the summer for deepening the color to match my self-tanning. The blush was an added plus, haven't tried it yet.

Perricone No Blush Blush, No Bronzer Bronzer and Gray Away

Gray Away
This is Holy Grail status for me. With dark hair that is thinning, the scalp shows through terribly. Plus as gray roots start to show, it looks like even more scalp. In 5 seconds, a quick spritz of this makes me look like I have a full thick head of hair and gray roots are gone. Doesn't run or rub out until you shampoo it out. I have to do a full review on this. Love the very fine, targeted nozzle.

Maracuja Miracle and Naked Skin

DELETES and EDITS
Urban Decay Naked Skin in 3.0
I wore this yesterday to make sure this would be a delete and it is. The shade is too light. I like this foundation for a quick trip to the grocery store or maybe coffee with a friend. On my oily skin, looks good for about 3 hours. It's a very thin, comfortable, lightweight formula. Coverage is light. Biggest issue is that it wears off my nose area in about an hour, even if I apply a second layer and set with powder. I would recommend for very dry, dry and normal skin.  I'm planning to repurchase in my correct shade. I like the way my skin looks in it for short periods of time.

Tarte Maracuja Miracle Foundation
This foundation was discontinued a while ago so it needs to go due to age. It was never a good match for me, way too yellow, and a little too dewy for my taste. 

REDISCOVERED BEAUTIES.... aka Shopping My Stash
Maybelline Full n Soft Mascara - As the name implies, your lashes but better! I amplifies what you have but wouldn't go so far to say it volumizes. No clumping, builds nicely, have me more length. I use the waterproof but it wasn't great a holding my curl.

IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores Loose Powder - Still one of the best pore coverage powders I know of. Needs to be gently swept on rather than dabbed on. There are lots of great finishing powders that cover pores today and this is one of the best. 

Philosophy Apricots and Cream Body Lotion - I own the body wash and fragrance mist but the body lotion by far nailed the fresh apricot scent the best.  My favorite time to apply is at bedtime, surrounded by this fresh, gentle and delicious fragrance.

Thank you for stopping by and carving some time out of your day to spend with my blog.  

Cheers,
Lulu

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