BEAUTY REVIEW: Clinique Continuous Coverage SPF 15 in Ivory Glow

SOURCE:  Clinique

I don't know many women with flawless skin.  Admit it ladies, we all have some blemishes that need hiding or a little touch up, so a good concealer is a must have item.  My favorite concealer used to be Almay's Nearly Naked Cover Up Stick in Light/Medium until I found out that this concealer was discontinued.  Instead of searching for a concealer from the drugstore, I decided to go to the department store.  I am a satisfied and dedicated user of Clinique products for moisturizing, cleansing, and face makeup, so I figured I would give its concealers a whirl.

Incidentally, my mom uses Clinique's Continuous Coverage and suggested that I try it.  I'm glad that I listened to her (I admit it, I don't always listen to her) because it does a fantastic job with covering my facial blemishes and sun spots without leaving a cakey appearance.

THE PROS:

• The performance:  This liquid product provides full coverage and is easy to apply onto the face with using your fingertips or concealer brush.  It applies on smooth and leaves a matte finish without streaking.  It also does not leave a cakey appearance and easily blends with your foundation.  I use this product under my liquid foundation.  This product provides such great coverage that you can use this as a concealer or a foundation.
• The benefit:  This product has SPF 15, so it provides protection from the sun.  Although I always wear sunblock under my foundation, a little more protection can't hurt.
• The variety:  This product comes in four different colors to match a full spectrum of skin tones, including Creamy Glow, Ivory Glow, Porcelain Glow, and Natural Honey Glow.  I use the Ivory Glow, which is good for light to medium skin tones.
• The packaging:  This product comes in an easy to use squeeze tube with a needle point nose.  Forget the messy doe foot applicator wands or the pumps that sometimes squeezes out too much product.  The squeeze tube allows you to control the amount of product you need.  However, the Clinique website states that new packaging is being phased in, so I am not sure if it is just a change to the color or design of the tube or if Clinique is doing away with the squeeze tube all together.  I hope that is not the latter because I love the squeeze tube.

THE CONS:

• The price:  This product has a retail value of $24 for 1.2 fl. oz., which is pretty steep, but I find that this product lasts me several months since just little goes a long way.
• The availability:  This product is not available at drugstores.  However, Clinique is widely available at most major department stores and Sephora as well as outlet cosmetic stores, such as Ulta or the Cosmetic Company Outlet.

All in all, I am sold on this product.  Again, I guess mothers do know best because this product performed great on my skin.  Even my female coworkers noticed the difference and asked me if I was doing something different to my regular skin care routine because my skin looked clearer and brighter.  I give this product a thumbs up all the way!

BEAUTY REVIEW: Neutrogena Formula Moisture Wrap Body Lotion

SOURCE:  Drugstore.com

Yes, long time no blog.  I am obviously having a difficult time consistently blogging, which makes me wonder if I should keep this blog going, or just face reality and close it up.  Perhaps a blog month is needed for me to change my tune.  "Blog-tober" anyone?  How about "Blog-vember"?  But, I digress.

I was looking through my room the other day and realized that I have all these used products that I am ready to chuck, but have been holding onto because I wanted to blog about them.  In light of my growing "to chuck" pile and an urgent need to reduce the clutter, I decided that I better start blogging again.

I have been looking for a good body lotion.  Although I suffer from dry skin mostly on my hands and face, which I have great moisturizers for each, I would like to address my ashy legs.  I was a pretty consistent user of Victoria Secret body lotions, but stopped using them.  The scents were driving my olfactory senses batty and my favorite scent was discontinued.  Boo hiss.  I noticed the Neutrogena Formula Moisture Wrap Body Lotion in my local drugstore and decided to give it a try.

I am a fan of the Neutrogena sunblock line, so I was eager to try out the body lotion line.  Perhaps the hand cream and foot cream products are better, but the Moisture Wrap Body Lotion needs more work in my humble opinion.

THE CONS:

• The body lotion has a thin, almost watery, consistency.  I could shake the tube and hear the product bouncing vigorously around inside.
• Due to the lotion's thin consistency, it takes a while for the lotion to settle into your skin.  I found myself fanning my legs to speed up the drying process.
• The body lotion is not the best for extremely dry skin.  My legs are not extremely dry, but the lotion didn't do enough to moisturize my ashy legs.  Perhaps after continued use I would have seen more results, but I am impatient and didn't see much results after one week of continued daily twice-a-day use.
• The body lotion has a slight fragrance, so it is not "fragrance free" as advertised.  Perhaps my sense of smell is a little more sensitive, but this product does have a slight fragrance that reminds me of Keri Lotion a little bit.  I don't think that it is off putting at all and really don't mind it, but the tube says "fragrance free".
• The body lotion leaves a slight sticky feeling on your skin.  I prefer moisturizers that don't leave a greasy or sticky feeling.

THE PROS:

• The price.  The regular retail price for this product on Drugstore.com is $7.99.  I think this product costs more at my local drugstore in Hawaii since things tend to be a little more expensive here.  Still, that's super reasonable for body lotion, especially from a pretty reputable brand, such as Neutrogena.
• The size.  The body lotion comes in a generous 8.5 fl. oz. tube, which at $7.99 comes out to $0.94 per fl. oz.  Very reasonable, especially when you consider that body lotion from Bath & Body Works comes in an 8 fl. oz. bottle at a retail price of $11.
• The availability.  Neutrogena products are sold in every major drugstore chain.  The Nordstrom Rack I visit also has a large variety of Neutrogena products available at a discounted price.

After writing out the pros of this product, it's a shame that I didn't like this product more.  I just wished that it performed better because at the end of the day, that's what really matters in my book.  Since I don't have much use for it now, I am chucking this into the trash can.  What a pity.