Style Chicks

Product Review: Luminess Air X-Out

Beauty, Eyes, New Products No Responses »

Jan 272015

At the end of the year I picked up a few items (well, maybe more than a few) at Luminess Air. One of them was new to me – Luminess Air X-Out, for under eyes. It’s not quite a concealer, it’s not quite an eye primer…let me explain.

X-Out is to be used with your Luminess Air airbrush around the eye. I picked the Light color, because let’s face it, I’m ridiculously pale. It is actually a peach color, which works well for the reason I’m about to mention.

Here is what I found interesting about X-Out: do you remember when YSL touché éclat made you look like you slept for 12 blissful hours, at which point you jumped out of bed full of energy (when in reality you were up until 3am for whatever reason)? Adding a drop of X-Out under Eclat gives the same super-bright eyed look. I am thrilled.

I found after a day in a very, very dry office that it got a bit dry, but nothing that a dab of moisturizer on a Beauty Blender couldn’t fix. As you see in the swatch below, it is a thin enough formulation that the moisture bleeds onto paper. Also, After about a week I went to open the bottle and the entire bottle ripped in half, which unfortunately has happened before on the large Luminess bottles I have used. I will probably pay a bit more and get the small bottles from now on to prevent it from happening again. I couldn’t retrieve much from the bottle, but I did experiment a bit with what I could retrieve, and mixed it with Hyaluronic Acid Serum (manually applied, not airbrush applied) and it stayed dewy all day.

Find Luminess Air X-Out at HSN.com.

On White Paper

Color Swatch (bottom) and blended (top)

Product Review: Fekkai Apple Cider Shampoo

Beauty, Fekkai, Hair, New Products No Responses »

Jan 272015

I have been using my old bottle of Fekkai Apple Cider Shampoo as a great hair clarifier. As I came to the end of my bottle, I picked up the new formulation in hopes that it worked as well. Here’s my thoughts:

The Good:

It’s a solid shampoo that doesn’t overly strip hair. The pear scent is lovely (though I preferred the apple cider scent in the previous version.) In the rotation of shampoos I use, it is a decent shampoo that doesn’t do damage.

The Bad:

It no longer leaves my hair silky and frizz free. In fact, it leaves a bit of a reside that, in my mind, disqualifies it as a clarifying shampoo. Lyn mentioned to me that she had to lather twice, and even then it didn’t give the results that the old formulation did. Now, I will allow the proviso that the old formulation left hair squeaky clean, which can be bad for hair in the long term. However, whenever I needed to get rid of serious product buildup, it got the job done without leaving my hair dry. This won’t be my “get the buildup” shampoo now, unfortunately.

So what’s the alternative?

If you adored the old formulation, try using actual Apple Cider Vinegar when you need to clarify. Some people say to dilute it with water, some say to mix it with conditioner, I just use it straight when I wash my hair and end up with shiny, bouncy waves after. I definitely preferred the old formulation to this, but it is a decent replacement.

Now as a word of caution: I don’t color my hair, and straight Apple Cider Vinegar will likely make your hair color fade faster if you use it on a regular basis. But Lyn uses it occasionally and it does not adversely affect color.

So all in all, the new Frederic Fekkai Apple Cider Shampoo is a good shampoo that I will likely buy again, and it is great that I can pick up a shampoo at CVS that doesn’t completely dry out my hair, but if you were devoted to the old formulation, it doesn’t match the wonderful clarifying results of the old formulation.

Find Frederic Fekkai Apple Cider Shampoo at drugstore.com.

Product Review: Instanatural Hyaluronic Acid Serum

Beauty, Skin No Responses »

Jan 132015

I don’t mean to shock anyone, but I don’t mind splurging on skincare products (*cough* La Mer *cough*), but sometimes something basic does the trick. This is the case with Instanatural Hyaluronic Acid Serum.

It is probably not something I would have tried, but I saw a post on a deal site that there was a $15 coupon off of the ~$16 price. For a dollar, with free Amazon Prime shipping, I figured it was worth a shot. And I’m glad I did.

In addition to vegan Hyaluronic Acid, it contains Vitamin C, Green Tea, Jojoba Oil, and other very good ingredients, and does not contain parabans, also a good thing. One application left my skin soft, smooth, supple, firm, and glowing, and dried out a few pre-acne spots. Not bad, huh?

I spot-tested it on my hands first, and loved the way they looked. It also absorbs delightfully, so you can wear it under makeup.

I’m definitely going to pick it up again, and will likely start using it on hands on a regular basis. And even if you think your throat looks fine…it looks way better after applying this stuff!

Find Instanatural Hyaluronic Acid Serum at Amazon.com.

Because Fit is Pretty!

Misc No Responses »

Dec 272014

We don’t really cover fitness a lot on Style Chicks, but we probably should. Regardless of your size or shape, you can still be fit, and why not start now?

We heard about the Life Time Fitness Commitment Day coming up on January 1st and it sounds like a fun and healthy activity for the whole family. I’ll let the press release do the talking:

Join a Revolution | Life Time Opens Its Doors to the Community During Commitment Day Festival 2015

As the battle of the bulge wages on in America, we’re seeing skyrocketing obesity rates and lower life expectancies among children. Life Time–The Healthy Way of Life Company aims to inspire positive change by opening its doors to the community and hosting one million workouts across the country during its Commitment Day Festival (January 1), Fun Run (January 1-4), and Indoor Triathlon Workout (January 4, 2015).

Set to take place at 113 Life Time destinations from coast to coast, the Festival will feature healthy family events all weekend long. In addition, 52 Life Time destinations will host the annual Commitment Day 5K Fun Run on January 1^st for all ages and abilities as participants join together in a symbolic commitment to lead healthier, more active lives in 2015. Plus, in partnership with IRONMAN, on January 4^th, 79 Life Time destinations will host an inaugural Indoor Triathlon Workout to encourage and educate people of all athletic abilities on the sport of triathlon.

The Commitment Festival is open to both members and non-members and will kick off on January 1, 2015 with the Commitment Day 5K Fun Run taking place in 52 cities in 24 states. Commitment Day Festival offers a variety of educational and entertaining events, including:

Daily Fit Talks and Workout Workshops – The FIT Talks series is designed to educate and empower participants with approachable, relevant, and simple life-changing actions, such as breaking up with sugar, eating fat to burn fat, and why counting calories won’t lead to long term results. Participants may also attend a Workout Workshop in which they’ll have an opportunity to learn and burn with a new workout, such as ViPR, LT Connect, Strength and Flexibility, Battling Ropes, Upper Body Strength & Tone and more.
Jan. 2^nd Alpha Madness – The Life Time Alpha program is designed for anyone looking to lose weight or enhance performance. Participants will start with a Get Connected Seminar to introduce heart rate training via LT Connect, which helps them train smarter not harder. From there, they’ll have the opportunity to compete against themselves in an Alpha Workout focused on functional movements suitable for all ages and fitness abilities.
Jan. 3^rd Yoga Commitment Jam – Yogis and beginners alike will de-stress from the holidays and kick off a commitment to yoga with 90-minute Vinyasa Flow class suitable for all ages and abilities.
Jan. 4^th Indoor Triathlon Hour powered by Life Time Tri and IRONMAN – Redefine your 2015: commit to tri. If you’ve ever wanted to try a tri, this is where to start. Inspiration without intimidation, the 60-minute indoor workout will feature a 10-minute pool swim, 30-minute spin, and 20-minute treadmill run. Athletes of all abilities from beginner to experienced are invited. All participants who register for and attend the Indoor Triathlon Hour ($25 fee) receive a lifestyle training shirt, swim cap, race bib, $20 off a $100 purchase at ironmanstore.com, one free month of Masters swim lessons with Life Time Swim (new participants only) and $10 a new LifeSpa service of $50 or more, plus, are eligible for a chance to win one of three slots to the 2015 IRONMAN^® 70.3^® World Championship in Zell am See-Kaprun, SalzburgerLand, Austria or, one of five slots to a Life Time Tri Series race. Learn more about event locations and registration at www.indoortri.com. Limited spots available per club.

Product Review: Sarah McNamara Miracle Skin Transformers Treat & Conceal Eye and Face Concealer

Beauty, Eyes, New Products No Responses »

Jul 062014

We received a sample of Sarah McNamara Miracle Skin Transformers Treat & Conceal Eye and Face Concealer to try out and it is a pretty versatile product that adds a nice skin treatment to a robust concealer.

What I love most about this concealer is that it is the only eye skin SPF that does not irritate my eyes in the least. Usually eye creams/concealers with SPF manage to make my skin raw and migrate into my eye and cause irritation. So if it did nothing else, it would earn a spot in my makeup bag just for the SPF factor.

The application is smooth and doesn’t crease. In fact, it seems to get smoother as the day goes on. Love it, love it, love it. The coverage is very sheer – if you need more substantial coverage try two thin layers. But again, it won’t cake up. The texture is thick, so you only need a little bit at a time. No worries about running out anytime soon.

Other than just on eyes you can use it on your entire face or as a spot treatment/cover. I especially like it to cover the little bit of redness under my nose – it really gives a visual boost to the nasal tip. I tried the light color, and it is very light even on my super pale skin tone, but more in an illuminating way. My Mom (slightly more yellow toned than me) found it to be great in terms of color. But if you are on the fence as to what color to choose, you should probably choose the darker color, although you might want to get both and mix them together for the right shade.

It’s great to find a concealer than both treats with great ingredients like marine collagen and chammomile and does the job to cover up pesky dark circles! We’re thrilled!

Find Sarah McNamara Miracle Skin Transformers Treat & Conceal Eye and Face Concealer for $36 at MiracleSkinTransformer.com!

Fantastic deal on ISH Rescue Ionic Pro Treatment at Frizzy2silky

Beauty, Hair, Sales No Responses »

Jul 042014

Update 7/10: I placed an order and Frizzy2Silky wrote me and said that ISH Rescue Ionic Pro Treatment has been discontinued and replaced with Nelsonj Argan Oil 7 Moisture Healing Mask. Both are made by the same folks, but instead of Jojoba like the ISH, the Nelson J is made with Argan Oil as the name suggests. None of us have tried it so we can’t vouch for this product either way, but we love the Nelson J line!
We’ve mentioned previously how ISH Rescue Ionic Pro Treatment is a fantastic hair rehab product. Lyn is heading to Warren Tricomi pretty soon to get her hair colored, and after a wee bit of not seeing the inside of a salon for a good reparative treatment…well, she’s embarrassed.

So she was pretty psyched to see this great deal today at Frizzy2Silky – 4 16oz containers for $132.00 – that is 60% off! It only takes a treatment every few weeks to get movie star hair – the stuff is great.

If you are in the mood to make your hair look like it hasn’t seen a pool or the sun all summer, head over to Frizzy2Silky and pick it up!

Sunscreen Search: La Mer the spf 50 UV protecting Fluid

Beauty, Nordstrom, Skin No Responses »

Jun 212014

We are firm advocates of sun screen, 365 days a year. There is no simpler aesthetic anti-aging treatment. But we know it’s a hard sell.

Yes, many people look good with a little bit of a tan. We aren’t those people (the three of us are pale enough that we don’t tan, we just burn), so standing on a sunscreen soapbox is easier for us than many. Nonetheless, it’s easier to add a little color with blush and bronzer than to be chasing youthful skin for the rest of your life, apart from skin cancer risks.

OK, I’m stepping off my soapbox now.

That being said, none of us are too happy with the sunscreens we’ve been using lately so we’ve been buying and trying a lot of new ones to find the glass slipper of sun protection. We’ll tell you about the ones we like, and today let’s start with the only one that we still like: La Mer the spf 50 UV Protecting Fluid.

La Mer Protecting Fluid is the only SPF that never stings when I put it on, which is one of my big gripes with a lot of sunscreens of late. It’s an odd mix – you want a sunscreen to be powerful enough to do its job, but you want it to be delicate on the skin, and ideally, have the added benefit of a skin treatment through the day. La Mer fits the bill there.

The other thing I look for is a good texture. Protecting Fluid is indeed a fluid, like a very, very lightweight moisturizer. It truly absorbs and doesn’t leave any weird white streaks. No greasiness even in 85 degree weather, and makeup goes on like you are just wearing a light moisturizer. I’m actually able to eliminate primer when I use this.

There is nothing bad I can say about this fantastic SPF. The price ($85) can seem like a bit of a shock, but balance that with the products you won’t need – primer, anti-aging, lightening, etc – it really works out to be pretty inexpensive. I’ve heard some complain that because of the price they are hesitant to use the amount they should, but I think it lasts as long as cheaper SPFs even when the proper amount is used.

Find La Mer the spf 50 UV Protecting Fluid at Nordstrom for $85.

Nuface Trinity: First Impressions

Beauty, Gadgets, Skin, Spa Economy No Responses »

Jun 062014

Mom, Lyn, and I all jumped on a particularly good deal we saw on the NuFace Trinity device. We’ll give periodic updates, but here is what we think of it after using it for a few days. This article started out as our thoughts after using it for a few weeks, but it got a little long so we’ll post an update soon.

First off – I planned on taking before and after pics to post, but where we are really seeing difference is not so much still faced, but rather in movement at first, which is amazing. The three of us have hyper-expressive faces (aka no poker face whatsoever), which means that a lot of the time any laxity of the skin becomes evident upon movement. Now, none of us have droopy dog faces, but a little extra crispness to the face is nice.

I have heard many good things about both the original Nuface Classic and the Nuface Trinity over the years, but recently became interested. Most home toning devices seem like smoke and mirrors to me, but Nuface seemed to have good science behind it, so we decided to give it a shot.

So far, we are all very impressed. There are instant results that build over time, and it is gratifying to see results pronto! It keeps you using it even when you are tired at night. I’m really excited and love the way my jawline looks (my jawline was never fantastic.) Lyn is thrilled with how much it improves general skin tone and underlying tightness. Mom is thrilled with everything about the NuFace and is stopping at every reflective surface to happily examine the results.

We’ll be updating you every couple of weeks or so on our thoughts. In the meantime, find NuFace Trinity here.

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