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Monthly Archives: April 2010
Dollface Reviews: Kona Tanning Company Gradual Tanner
I was actually sent this product some time ago, but the long, hard winter has meant that my legs haven’t been seen without trousers or tights for months now, which means I haven’t had a chance to use it. This weekend, however, Spring finally sprung, and I decided to have a go at taking some of the glare off my legs before I risk blinding people with their pallor, so I dug out the bottle and prepared to turn tan.
The first thing to note about this product is that it smells fantastic – like chocolate, in fact, which is far, far preferable to the usual fake tan smell we’re all familiar with. It actually left my bathroom lightly scented for a short while after I used it, too, and Mr Dollface commented on how nice it smelt, which is further testament to the pleasant scent!
The other thing I like about this is the fact that it goes on brown, rather than being colourless, like many of the other gradual tanners I’ve tried. This makes it so much easier to apply, because you can see exactly where it’s going, and make sure there are no streaks or white bits before it even starts to dry, thus making it much more likely that you’ll get a streak-free finish, which is exactly what I ended up with, much to my joy!
As this is a gradual tanner, I didn’t notice a huge difference with the first application, but the second was enough to leave me with a natural looking “tan”, which isn’t too dark, and isn’t at all streaky. The slight downside is that the product did stain my bath towels a little (the marks came out as soon as I washed them, though), and as it goes on brown, I had to leave it a little longer to dry before getting dressed, for fear of tanning my clothes as well as my skin. The only other downsides for me are the price ($35), and the fact that the website is US based, although it does ship internationally.
To find out more, visit the Kona Tanning website here.
Dollface Reviews: Collection 2000 Lasting Colour Lipstick
I’m still on the hunt for long-lasting lipsticks, and, like a Fairy Godmother in my time of need, Collection 2000 sent me some of their Lasting Colour Lipstick to try out.
Take a look under the jump for some swatches:
Jessica Simpson goes make-free on the cover of Marie Claire
Sorry for the lack of posts this week, everyone: it’s officially been One of Those Weeks, so I must resolve to do better next week! I don’t have a Friday Face for you today either, because I’m having a major clean-out, and am currently totally barefaced, which means I’d rather eat my own eyeballs than show you a photo.
Not everyone minds being photographed without makeup, though, and Jessica Simpson has just become the latest celebrity to grace the front cover of a major magazine, without so much as a lick of gloss – and no re-touching either, apparently. She’s seen above on this month’s Marie Claire cover, and I must say, she’s looking absolutely fantastic, isn’t she?
This cover comes shortly after Jessica’s trip to India to film The Price of Beauty, which examines attitudes towards beauty around the world. What do you think of this cover? I think Jessica looks beautiful (and I probably wouldn’t have realised she wasn’t wearing some form of makeup if I hadn’t been told), but at the same time, I’m very glad it’s not me up there sans slap!
Dollface Reviews: Nivea Visage Aqua Sensation Anti-Shadow Eye Cream
Well, Dollfaces, you can colour me amazed.
As many of you know, I’ve been complaining about the dark shadows under my eyes for a loooong time now, and I have to admit, I’d actually reached the point where I was about to give up on them. Absolutely nothing worked: creams, concealers, highlighters, lifestyle changes - no matter what I did, I still looked a lot like a raccoon, and, short of booking myself in for expensive surgery, I’d started to feel that I’d just have to learn to live with the Shadows of Mordor, as I’d come to think of them.
Obviously I wasn’t exactly thrilled about this. I actually think dark shadows are more ageing than wrinkles, and I was permanently walking around looking like I hadn’t slept in weeks. I was tired of shelling out for products that didn’t make much of a difference, though, so when my current eye cream ran out and I started scanning the Boots website for a replacement, I was guided mostly by price.
That’s the main reason I decided to take a chance on Nivea Visage’s Aqua Sensation Anti-Shadow Eye Cream. At £5.99, it’s definitely one of the least expensive eye creams out there, and while I’d learned not to trust the claims of shadow-blasting creams, I figured it couldn’t hurt that this one promises to “effectively reduce puffiness and the appearance of under eye shadows “. So I bought it, and started using it as soon as it arrived.
As far as the appearance and texture of the product go, there’s nothing much to write home about. It comes in a 15ml glass pot, and is a white cream of medium consistency, with a very faint fragrance. It contains cucumber to refresh and de-puff the eye area, vitamin E to nourish and protect, plus magnesium, ginseng and light-reflecting pigments to get rid of those blasted shadows. I had absolutely no expectations at all about this product: I thought that, at best, it would probably be a reasonably good under-eye moisturiser, so you can only imagine my surprise just a few days later when I looked into the mirror one morning and noticed that my eyes were looking better than usual. Quite a bit better, actually.
Now, I’m not going to tell you the dark circles have disappeared altogether, because they haven’t. They are, however, looking significantly better, and are more like the “normal” dark circles people with pale skin tend to get, rather than the “I am actually a vampire and I haven’t slept for fifteen years” look I was previously sporting. I’m using much less under-eye concealer than I used to, and I really notice a difference in the under-eye area. I don’t think there are any other changes that could account for this, so I’m assuming Nivea has done exactly what it promised to do, and trust me, no one is more surprised than I am.
I noticed an improvement after just a few days use: I’ve been using the cream for about two weeks now, and while I can’t say that the shadows get less noticeable every day (they don’t), I’m still very happy with this, especially given the low price.
Is it just a fluke? I really hope not, but if you want to try it for yourself, this is £5.99 from Boots.
Happy Easter from Dollface!
As it’s a public holiday today and Monday, I’m taking the opportunity to have a long weekend, re-charge my batteries, and hopefully reduce those dark circles under the eyes a little. And shop, obviously. I’ll be back on Tuesday: until then, I hope you have a wonderful Easter, whatever you’re doing!
Dollface Reviews: Lacura Double Lift Regeneration Anti-Wrinkle Cream and Firming Gel Serum
As I get older, I find myself becoming more and more susceptible to the claims of skincare companies who promise to give me youthful skin in a bottle. Or sometimes in a jar.
The thing is, though, despite wanting to believe these claims are true, I’m always highly skeptical about them, especially given that so many of these skincare solutions come with a hefty price-tag. This is why Lacura’s budget-priced offerings are looking better and better to me these days: ever since they got a lot of press attention with the launch of their Wrinkle Stop serum last year, they’ve been busily producing more products that cost less than £5, and yet still manage to draw comparisons with the high-end brands.
One of these creams is called ‘Double Lift’, and I’ve been trying it out for the last couple of weeks, courtesy of the people at Aldi, who sell Lacura. This is an anti-wrinkle cream and firming serum in one: the bottle actually contains two different products (the cream is white, the serum is red), which are mixed together in the pump dispenser, a bit like toothpaste. Press the left hand side of the pump and the red serum comes out, press the right and you’ll get the cream. Press it in the centre, meanwhile, and they’ll both come out together, allowing you to apply both at the same time, although you have to be careful to make sure that both products are dispensed: the first few times I used this, only the face cream came out and I applied it merrily, not realising there was also a serum. A few pumps of the dispenser will fix this out, though.
This cream promises an immediate firming effect, and sure enough, when I apply it I can feel a slight tightening of the skin: it’s not unpleasant or too extreme, and I was actually quite pleased, because it reassured me that the product was actually doing something. The tingling/tightening only lasts for a few seconds, and immediately afterwards, the lines around my eyes do look less noticeable, although they’re normally back in full effect by the end of the day. Boo!
The cream is really nice to use: it absorbs quickly, and leaves the skin nice and smooth in preparation for makeup. It has a sweet smell, but it doesn’t linger too long, so it’s not competing with any other products you might want to wear. So far I’ve yet to see any overall reduction in wrinkles, but the two weeks I’ve been using it may not be quite long enough to see a difference. My skin does feel softer and smoother, however, and given that this only costs £4.99, I’m impressed: I think it’s easily as good as the more expensive (sometimes much more expensive!) creams I’ve used in the past, and I will definitely re-purchase it when it runs out. Well, why pay £30+ when you can get the same kind of thing for £4.99?
If you want to try it for yourself, the products are unfortunately not available to buy online, but you’ll find a store locator at the Aldi website.
