Benefit Erase Paste Concealer

I'm not one of those lucky girls without imperfections on their skin. I have blemishes, dark under eyes, large pores... so I try everything I'm told to hide them. That's why I tried Benefit Erase Paste.

This is a creamy concealer that works wonders on my under eye marks. Those dark circles are gone! 

What is this product? This product is concieved as a concealer that will hide all the imperfections you might have on your face. It's a salmony concealer available in 3 different shades. I have shade number 2. It comes in a small pot with a small spatula. I say a small pot because it only contains 4.4g. of product. Compared to other concealers, this one is quite expensive. But to be honest, it works wonders under the eyes.

Since it have those salmon tones, it corrects beautifuly the under eye area, hiding those dark blue ugly marks. Can be applyed directly over the skin with the spatula and then blend with your fingers, or you can use a brush.

I apply the product after my foundation with a Zoeva 142 concealer buffer brush.  This way I can make sure both products blend well. If I use the concealer first, sometimes it's harder to blend, or it migrates if my eyecream is too emolient.

I don't like how this product hides blemishes. The color does look too salmon on my skin when I try to cover them. It does not look like natural skin, so I don't use it for this purpose.

The worst thing about this product is the price, and although you don't really need a big quantity of product to hide dark undereyes, I think it's too pricy for what it is. I'll try to find something else to compete with this product. If anyone knows any good dupe, please, let me know.

Thanks,

The Body Shop Seaweed Ionic Clay Mask Review

Do you like face masks? Right now I'm trying this Seaweed Ionic Clay face mask by The Body Shop. It's an algae clay face mask for oily to combination skin. I personaly think that it's better for oily skin types than combo, but that's just my opinion.

It comes in a 100ml (5.0 oz) jar that costs 20€ and The Body Shop also used to have individual sachets for about 6€ so thay you could try it first at home without buying the fullsize product.  

This mask has a grey color and a minty scent. It contains kaolin, heilmoor clay and bladderwrack seaweed from Ireland. This mask is good to take impurities out of your skin, it has clarifying properties and it's very refreshing. 

I apply this mask after my cleansing routine with my Clarisonic. Then, the mask. I know most people apply facemasks with their fingers, but I preffer to use my Sigma foundation brush (F60) to apply it evenly and spread a thin layer of product on my face. Then, it just has to stay put up to 10 minutes. It's not recommended to leave it on longer because it might cause skin irritation. I do find that if I apply a too thin layer, it's like not applying anything on your face.

When I apply it, I can see the small seewead particles. It feels fresh at first, but after a couple of minutes on it feels itchy only on the parts of my face that are more sensitive. I feel this itchiness on the area between my nose and the apple of my cheeks. It feels nice on the rest of my face, though.

It should get dry after those 10 minutes, but as you can see in the previous picturer, some areas are dry and some are still wet. If after 10 minutes it's not dry, I leave it on for a little bit more, as long as it does not feel to itchy. 

The last step is only to rinse it thoroughly with water. Cold, warm or hot, it's up to you.

I find that this mask really makes my skin feel clearer, but I see no difference in the size of my pores and other imperfections I have. After the mask my skin feels tight and dry, so a good moisturizer is required. 

The regular use of this mask combined with the rest of the products of the Seaweed range by The Body Shop are suposed to clear your skin, and control excess oil and keep you matte. This mask alone without the other products (or other products designed to achieve these same results) will not give you such good results. 

Over all it's a good face mask. Good quality, good price and nice results. The amount of product you get is also nice. 

I've found this pin on Pinterest that this is also a good dupe for the Glamglow Supermud mask. I'll try this soon and write a review about that one, and also make some comparison of the two.

Mary Kay Timewise Microdermabrasion Kit

Have you ever tried a face scrub? Do you like them? If the answer to this question is YES, then you chances are you like this product.

First of all, this is a microdermabrasion kit. It's a two steps kit that it's suposed to clean your skin more efficiently than other face scrubs and improve its condition. It's pricy because it's almost 50€. I got mine as a present. Otherwise I would have not bought it. 

This kit contains two products. The first step is the tube with the refine product. This product comes in a tube and you need a very small amount of product. I use less than a pea size ball. 

The product contains a creamy product with microballs that scrub your skin and eliminate death cells, it unclog your pores and refine the texture of your skin. You have to apply it in circular motions all your face. I have applied it with my Clarisonic too, but most of the times I use my fingers. I like to apply it while I'm at the shower after washing my face when my skin is damp and my pores are all open.  I massage the product for about a minute. You don't need more time than that.

Then you just have to rinse well and follow with step number 2: replentish. At this point, you apply a product that comes in a tube with a pump. I find that one pump is more than enough for my face. The product you apply calms your skin after the scrub. This product is not a moisturizer, so please, please, please, don't use it as one. This only works to calm your skin. It does not add moisture to your skin. First you have to apply it, and when you feel like your skin has absorbed it all, then, you appply your regular moisturizer.

What do I feel when I use it? At first I thought I really felt my skin different and better, but I use my Clarisonic Mia regularly and now I don't feel like I need anymore. It's true that sometimes I combine them (step 1 + Clarisonic) but that's because I want to finish up that product. I feel like using only my Clarisonic does a good job for my skin.

Will I buy it again when I finish it up? Nope. I don't think it's necessary, but just because I have the Clarisonic and I use it on a daily bases. Will I recommend it to other people? Yes, as long as they don't use the Clarisonic, because it does a great job all alone. Using it once or twice a week you can see that your skin feels better.