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: Physicians Formular Concealer 101 Duo in "Yellow/Light"

SOURCE:  Drugstore.com

Like many women out there, I suffer from dark under eye circles.  Sometimes I can get away without concealer, but for the most part, applying concealer is part of my regular makeup routine.  I am always on the hunt for a good concealer, but my hunt is a little harder because I have some conditions.

First of all, I do not like wet liquid concealers, which you need to apply with a brush.  I prefer concealers with a thicker consistency, so that I may apply the product with my fingertips.  I feel like I have better control that way and besides, it is one less makeup brush that I need to clean.

Second, the concealer needs to provide good coverage with relatively easy application.  I like thicker concealers, but I want a concealer that is so thick that it is like applying nearly dry paste to my under eye circles.

I am a fan of Physicians Formula products, but usually wait for the brand to go on sale at the drugstore as the regular price can be relatively higher than other brands.  It looked like this product fulfilled my conditions, so I was eager to try it out.

The Physicians Formula Concealer 101 comes with a yellow shade to color correct dark under eye circles and a light shade to cover yellow and any minor skin irritations.  The package contains a small applicator brush.  I have to give this product a thumbs down.  The consistency is just too thick and the coverage is too patchy.  The concealer is also so thick that it is difficult to extract the product to apply to the skin.  The small applicator brush in the compact is of absolute no help to serve the product's intended purposes and claims.  Back to the drawing board to search for another concealer.

BEAUTY REVIEW: Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer...DISCONTINUED

ARGH!  It would just be my luck that when I finally find a concealer that I love-love-love, it's gone-gone-gone!  For my first beauty product review, I was going to review the Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer, but according my favorite makeup review website (http://www.makeupalley.com/), Maybelline discontinued production due to a low demand for this product.

Granted, I haven't been a long time user of this product as I still use my Almay Nearly Naked Cover Up Stick as my primary concealer, but I have recently fallen in love with the Maybelline concealer to add extra coverage for my problem areas.  The mousse consistency enables me to get to hard to reach areas, such as around the nostrils (I prefer to apply concealer with my finger tip rather than a concealer brush).  When applied over my foundation, this product provided great coverage for my dark under eye circles and old acne scars.  I tried the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Double Face Perfector with the concealer on one side of the stick and a highlighter color on the other.  The concealer on this product is not as effective as the Dream Mousse Concealer.

I guess I am just going to suck it up and deal with it.  I am also thinking about trying the Sonia Kashuk Hidden Agenda Concealer Set or Sonia Kashuk Let's Face It concealer from Target or the PRO Camouflage FX Concealer Palette from Victoria's Secret.  I am veering away from liquid concealers these days.

Oh Maybelline...I'm so sad...