Review: Freeman Feeling Beautiful Avocado & Oatmeal Clay Mask

I've been testing quite a few masks over the past few months and this is just one of many. This was actually my first mask ever.

It is: A light green thick cream that smells of avocado and ever so faintly of rose.

Claims to: Purge pores and cool the skin. Dries within 3 minutes.

-I can definitely say it cools the skin. It's not a there's peppermint oil on my face feeling either, it's more of that refreshing feeling you get right after you've splashed cold water on your face. I've gotten really tired of masks that claim to cool and only make me feel rather minty.

-As far as the purging pores goes, I don't have a ton of black heads, all I have are pores that squeeze out some white gunk on my nose, and my dermatologist says that is not supposed to be removed and is totally natural. My face does feel cleaner after using this mask, and any blemishes I have look smaller.

While on the skin, it feels refreshing and a tiny bit itchy. The itchy feeling is a feeling I get with most masks, especially fast drying ones like this one. The mask dries completely in 3 minutes but I start seeing the first dry patches at around 1 minute. (mainly around my nose)

ON THE DOWNSIDE:
-Can slightly burn the eyes even when not in the eyes.
-Hard to get an even layer.
-Itches while drying.

How it Works & What is in it:

Ingredients: Water, Kaolin, Bentonite, Titanium Dioxide, Propylene Glycol, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Colloidal Oatmeal, Tocopherol, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) oil, Capric Tryglyceride, Montmorillonite, Disodium Edta, Sodium Polyacrylate, Diazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Fragrance, Yellow 5.

The Clay: Kaolin.
-Kaolin, also called china clay, soft white clay that is an essential ingredient in the manufacture of china and porcelain and is widely used in the making of paper, rubber, paint, and many other products.

-Since this clay is soft, the product is thinner than say, the Queen Helene mint julep mask. The clay dries and as you would expect, clings to dirt on your pretty little face. (this part of the mask removes the dirt)

Avocado oil.
-Whether you realize it or not, avocado is often used in many rich spa grade products because it is known as nature's moisturizer. Avocados provide healthy doses of vitamins A, B, D, and E. Something unknown about avocados is that they have more potassium than a banana, approximately 60% more. This means that this natural moisturizer sinks into the skin evenly and quickly, while delivering a powerful moisturizing punch.

-This mask cleans but doesn't strip, and I give the credit to the avocado oil.

Oatmeal.

-Oatmeal is gentle and is used in many skincare products. It reduces redness, and restores moisture.

-I can't actually see any visible oats in this product, but I'm sure it's in there, because after using the mask my barely there to begin with redness is byebye.


Packaging: 5 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Comes in a squeeze tube so the product dispenses nicely.
Product: 4 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Cleans and moisturizes, but itches while on the skin and can slightly burn the eyes.
Texture: 4 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Is light and creamy on, but a little goopy and hard to wash off.
Application: 3 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Glides on smoothly, but it is a bit difficult to get an even layer.
Overall: 4 out of 5 stars *****
         ~It is a nice product to have for the price and does what it claims, but isn't the greatest mask ever.

THE MAIN POINT:
This mask is nice for the price because it cleans and moisturizes while reducing redness and shine, however, it itches slightly while drying and can burn the eyes even when not in contact with the eyes. Overall it's a good product, but there are better masks out there. If you're on a budget and have normal, dry-combination, or oily-combination skin, try it. If not, skip it.

This product retails for anywhere from $3-$6.

Photos:

My skin before the mask. Take note of the shine on my nose and the redness on the lower parts of my cheeks.

The mask right after application.

The mask after 3 minutes. At this point it is dry and cracking with any facial movement.

Close up of the dry mask on my forehead.

Close up of the dry mask around my jaw and nose.

My skin after the mask. The shine is gone and my redness on my lower cheeks is gone.

Close up of the product.

My Photo of the packaging.

Packaging: photo courtesy of http://www.themashidip.com/

Hope this was helpful!

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Late Nights Lead to Online Shopping & Rain Sounds

It's May 29, 4:54 am and I cannot go to sleep for the life of me. I've tried everything! Errr, restless me. *I can't sleep pity party* Well, when I can't sleep, I usually just watch all of the youtube videos my subscriptions have uploaded, and when those run out, I shop. No no no, I don't stomp my way to the mall in the middle of the night, I shop online. It usually starts with Forever 21, then onto American Eagle and Hollister, then going to Toms. While I online shop I have to have background noise. So I log on to youtube and go to two of my favorite videos.

"Thunderstorm" 20mins of Thunder and Rain w/o music 

OR

"Heavy Rain" 30mins Natural Sounds "Sleep Video"

I think I have insomnia. For all you crazy people out there like me, maybe these links will help a wee bit?

Links:

Forever 21: http://www.forever21.com/default.asp

American Eagle: http://www.ae.com/web/index.jsp

Hollister: http://www.hollisterco.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/HomePage?storeId=10251&langId=-1&catalogId=10201

TOMS: http://www.toms.com/

 "Heavy Rain" 30mins Natural Sounds "Sleep Video":  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNkaeUr3-HU

"Thunderstorm" 20mins of Thunder and Rain w/o music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvyXGNx_jYc&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

Hope you enjoyed this fun random post. I like little tidbits like this every once in a while.

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Summer Hair

Lately I've noticed that magazines are saying it's time to lighten up!... your hair!

Here's how it goes:
Blondes go Gold
Redheads go Strawberry Blonde
Brunettes go Caramel
Deep Brunettes/Black hair go Medium brown with a few highlights

I thought this was a great idea, even though it's not a new one.

First, I'll give you some background on my hair. (which might hint why I want to change color) :
I wash my hair every 1 to 2 days, depending on if I sweat that day, if it's been recently dyed or the season.
Dying my hair cuts my hair oils in half, which is great.
My hair HAS been dyed numerous times, because I love change and often get bored of my hair color.
My hair is in no means damaged, due to deep conditioning and using heat sparingly.
I've dyed my hair black, bleached it blonde, and dyed it three shades of red.
The texture is fine, but I have ALOT of that fine hair. (which according to my stylist, takes a long time to cut)
It is naturally wavy-ish, beachy-ish. I don't really need a salt spray for beachy waves!

I've been admiring Lauren Conrad's hair and I'm seriously considering lightening up for summer.

 

P.S. If you want a hair routine, just leave a comment & ask, or tweet me!

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Darn it! Typo!

I had a typo in my last title. I know that it's turquoise and not turqoise but apparently my keyboard didn't! Lol! Sorry about that!

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Obsessed with... Coral, Turqoise, and Bronze!

I'm obsessed! I surrender! Lately I've been gravitating towards coral clothing, makeup, and even a coral, turquoise, and tan feather hair extension bundle. Here's a few makeup products that have been catching my eye.

NARS Wonder Lipgloss

NARS Cap Ferrat e/s trio

NARS Laguna Body Illuminator

Tarina Tarantino Sparklicity Bronze e/s Palette

MAC My Paradise Cheek Powder

So that's pretty much it. Lovely summer collections from MAC and NARS always get me. I see stuff and my mind just goes LAYLA. MUST. HAVE. Hope you enjoyed! Read the caption below for overly corny humor.

ORANGE you glad you read this? (:

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Project Find the Foundation: Part 1: Prep

We all know that there are two products that we're always searching for: foundation and mascara. I've found my holy grail mascara, so this leaves me one thing to hunt for: foundation. I'm guilty of being one of those people who researches everything way too much because I have expensive taste and high quality standards, but I don't like to dish out the money. So I've come up with a system. Let me explain...

I decided that I would tackle things separately. I broke things up into Sephora, Dillard's (because this is where my MAC and Chanel counters are), and Drugstore. I then made a list of all of the foundations that I believed I would enjoy. I usually prefer natural or dewy finishes with light to medium coverage.
I also added in some beauty community favorite just to see.

NOW, keep in mind these are foundations I want to sample...NOT buy. If I had that much money my ride would be a Lamborghini.

Sephora:
Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation (dewy, light coverage) $45
Clinique Even Better Foundation (natural, medium coverage) $15
Dior DiorSkin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup (natural, light coverage) $46
Korres Ginger and Vitamins Foundation (dewy, light to medium coverage) $28
Korres Wild Rose Foundation (natural, medium coverage) $30
Lancome Teint Miracle (natural, medium coverage) $37
MUFE HD Invisible Coverage Foundation (dewy-ish, medium coverage) $40
MUFE Face & Body Foundation (dewy, light coverage) $38
NARS Sheer Glow Foundation (natural/dewy, medium coverage) $42
Stila Perfect and Correct Foundation (natural, medium coverage) $44

Dillard's:
MAC Face and Body (dewy, sheer to light coverage) $33
Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua (natural/dewy, light to medium coverage) $45

Drugstore:
Almay Smart Shade Smart Balance (natural, light to medium coverage) $12
Almay Smart Shade Anti-Aging (dewy, medium coverage) $12
Almay Smart Shade (dewy/natural, light to medium coverage) $12
Hard Candy Sheer Envy Tinted Moisturizer (glowy, light coverage) $8

Others:
Body Shop Moisturizing (natural, light coverage) $23
VS Makeup Soft Focus Liquid Foundation (dewy, light coverage) $14

I am going to tackle trying all of them little by little. I picked up the samples on the following:
NARS Sheer Glow in Gobi
MUFE HD in 117
Body Shop Moisturizing in 03

And bought the following:
Almay Smart Shade Smart Balance in Light

As I go I will review the foundations since I have about a week's worth of each foundation.

Sorry this isn't the most exciting thing but I figured I'd blog about it anyways!

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Favorite Brands: Drugstore, Midway, and High end.

I own many different products from many different brands but there are a few brands that I tend to prefer far more than some others. We all favor some brands even though we may not realize it. Some people will scream for dior and some people are happy with revlon. It's all personal preference and here are my preferences.

Also, this is a summary posts. I will posts more in depth details of these companies in the future. This is also only for makeup and not for skin care. If it included skincare I'm sure I would go on forever. Thank you!

Drugstore:

I tend to purchase more drugstore products than any others because they're cheaper and you're probably in Walmart more than Sephora... but I don't know... I live reallyyyyyy close to a Sephora.

Almay-

If you didn't know, Almay is owned by Revlon. I've never been a huge fan of Revlon but I LOVE Almay. In fact, my favorite foundation just happens to be their Smart Shade foundations. (The anti-aging, smart balance and the regular.) I've tried a ton of their face products and I haven't disliked one yet. I'm not a huge fan of their eyeshadows because I haven't tried a lot of them, but I love their other eye products and face products. A downside to this brand is that they only have one lip product, but I tend to stick to balms and mac lipsticks so I'm not too disappointed.


http://www.almay.com/

Hard Candy-

Hard Candy is a brand that is only available at walmarts but I absolutely love it. I haven't found a product from them that I dislike. Can't say much more. I own tons of products from this brand and will for sure, buy more!

http://www.hardcandy.com/
Runners up:
Wet n' Wild
L'Oreal- Great Mascaras!

 Midway:

These are brands I don't necessarily consider high end, but aren't sold at drugstores.

MAC-

Everyone knows about MAC. Great quality products most of the time, versatile, and works for individual consumers or makeup artists. Love. <3

Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush and VS Beauty-

Every time I go to the mall I have to stop in Victoria's Secret. I love everything about that store! Their Beauty Rush products are fun and high quality and the same goes for their VS Beauty products.

http://www.victoriassecret.com/beauty/beauty-rush
http://www.victoriassecret.com/beauty/vs-makeup

High end:

I own the least products from this end of the spectrum because of course, everything is bigger better and most importantly- has a higher price tag. I'm just going to tell you these two because I don't own many products fro each of these and don't feel like I can speak for the entire brand but I love the products I do have.


NARS
Chanel

Other:

I know what you're thinking, what the heck is in other? Well, for me it's things like Forever21's love & beauty line or icing's and claire's makeup.

Claire's Makeup-
Most of it is pretty cheap but some of it is quite amazing. Just be wary. If it looks too little kiddish I wouldn't buy it. Later I'll do a post of things I own from here, things to get, and things to avoid.

Icing Makeup-
Icing is owned by Claire's and is often described as the "big sister" to Claire's. I love their bronzers, individual eye shadows, and their brushes. I'll do the same for Icing as for Claire's although generally, the quality here is better.

Forever21's Love&Beauty-
I love love&beauty. All I can say for now. Great quality and really tops the list.

http://www.forever21.com/category.asp?catalog_name=FOREVER21&category_name=beauty_viewall&Page=all


So that's it! Feel free to leave a comment telling me your favorite beauty brands! Byebye! (:

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Review: Maybelline FitMe Foundation

Ok, let me start out quick and simple. I HATE HATE HATE Maybelline for making foundations. Now onto the actual review.

Maybelline's Claim:

"Let's the real you come through. This foundation is beyond matching: Fresh, breathing, natural skin with SPF 18."

They also claim you'll love it because it's:

"It's makeup that fits you."

Then they include this list (of absolute nonsense)

• No oils, no waxes, no nonsense
• Natural coverage that leaves skin the way it was meant to be…fresh, breathing, natural  
• Exclusive translucent base and lightweight pigments allow skin's natural highs and lows to show through
• Non-comedogenic, dermatologist-tested

When I first tried out this foundation, I loved it. It was everything I was looking for. It was light, smooth, natural looking, dewy, and brilliant. But that night, we started having issues just like a couple who has just come out of their honeymoon phase. I had FIVE breakouts that I didn't have that morning! I hadn't changed anything else in my routine. It had to be the foundation that was causing this. I NEVER have more than one breakout at a time, if I even have one, which is rare. I have normal skin, no oily areas, no dry areas, and I am the farthest thing from breakout prone. Plus, I never react badly to any products. So, like any beauty junkie does, I began my research. My first stop was the Maybelline website. Now, this claims to be non-comedogenic (fancy shmancy talk for won't clog your pores), to have no oils or waxes, and to let your skin breathe. I was absolutely puzzled! If this foundation had none of the common red flags (like containing mineral oil, or not say it's non-comedogenic) then why am I breaking out?! Are my teenage hormones flaring up or something?! For reassurance, I logged onto youtube and started watching reviews. Every review I watched included the words, "this foundation broke me out". So, I figured, it's the foundation, and stopped using it. My blemishes disappeared within two days after discontinuing the use of the product. Since then I've been breakout free.

Now, this experience wasr oughly a month ago, so why am I just now writing a review? Well, about a week ago my mom asked if she could use it. I warned her that it had caused me to break out and she told me that it was probably a coincidence and to hand over the makeup. I simply said, "tell me when you breakout". Surely enough, she comes to me a few days later and says eight glorious words. She said, "You were right about the fit me." YES! Told you! After that I was positive it was a horrible foundation and that I could spread the word not to waste your 8 dollars on this.

So, bottom line, DO NOT purchase this foundation. Product photos below.

Review breakdown:

Maybelline's claim:
This foundation is breathable, lightweight, and is no nonsense when it comes to ingredients.

PROS:

• Lightwieght
• Natural
• Glowy

CONS:

• BREAKS EVERYBODY AND THEIR GRANDMAMA OUT.
• Fades after roughly 4 hours
• Settles into fine lines and wrinkles

Ratings:
Packaging- 4 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Sleek.
Wear- 1 out of 5 stars *****
          ~fades after 4-6 hours.
Initial look- 4 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Dewy, natural, & nice.
Price- 4 out of 5 stars *****
          ~$6-$8 The only foundation cheaper that I know of is Covergirl Aquasmoothers. (Amazing!)
End of the day look- 0 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Foundation was almost gone, had settled into pores, and had caused breakouts!
Look of skin after use- 0 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Horrendous! Had caused 5 major breakouts!
SPF- 3 out of 5 stars *****
          ~Has more than 15, but not the recommended 30. Average.
Shade selection- 5 out of 5 stars *****
          ~18 shades, from 110 to 335. Note: shade 110 is only carried in Walmart stores.
Overall- 1 out of 5 stars *****
          ~The pros outweigh the cons.


Product Photo:

Note: I purchased the shade 110: porcelain.

Links:

Maybelline's FitMe page: http://www.maybelline.com/products/92/face/foundation/fit-me-foundation/ivory/115?shadeId=494&cm_mmc=LabeliumSearch-_-GoogleBrand-_-MNY+Face-_-fit%20me%20foundation

 -Avec l'amour de Layla

Look Of The Day: Bright Spring Eyes

Today I woke up and just felt like doing something bright with my makeup today. I'm sure you know that us girls sometimes wake up and just start going through our beauty routine like machines. I usually end up doing a light, shimmery neutral eye. Today I wanted a change. The look I did today was a bright seafoam blue/green with medium thickness black liner and wispy lashes. I also added a bit more of a something with a blue/green/gold glitter right along the lower lid. To say it was pretty was an understatement. Enjoy! (: Product names along with pictures of the look below.

Products used:

Face-
Clean& Clear Morning Glow Moisturizer
Mac Select Cover up in NW15
Mac Face and Body Foundation
Hardy Candy Glow All the Way face luminizer in Doll face
Hard Candy Welcome Matte Powder
NYC's Sunny Bronzer
Hard Candy Blush Crush Baked Blush in Living Doll
Almay pure blends eyeshadow in petal (used as a highlighter)

Eyes-
Hard Candy Eye Shadow Primer
Nyx Jumbo Pencil in Milk (used as a base)
Mac's Aquadisiac Eyeshadow
Claire's 21 Glitter Palette- green/blue/gold shade used
L'Oreal Hip gel liner in Black
Hard Candy 1,000 lashes mascara in ink (black)
Hard Candy Curl Up and Dye mascara in ink (black)
Maybelline Brow Pencil in Light Brown
Discontinued Maybelline Brow Gel

Lips-
Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush lip gloss in Strawberry Fizz

-Avec l'amour de Layla

Illamasqua Toxic Nature Collection

Have you seen Illamasqua's Spring 2011 makeup collection? It looks gorgeous! I don't know about you, but I have always thought that unique beauty is better than ordinary beauty. I adore Illamasqua because they go along with that idea. Their artwork never fails to give me something to absolutely marvel at. When I saw this collection I was amazed. Their saying for this collection is that things were 'Distorted by Mankind, and now the Natural World is Fighting Back'. Pictures are worth 1,000 words right? So enjoy...

-Avec l'amour de Layla