Gym Beauty Bag → Style Chicks → Page 2

Travel: Mr. Sleek Toiletry Bag

September 19, 2016 · Leave a Comment

The Mr. Sleek Toiletry Bag comes in three different colors; we selected pink, and we use it to hold makeup and beauty supplies while traveling, going to the gym, or for makeup redo jobs if we are leaving for a social event directly after work.

Mr. Sleek Toiletry Bag

SIZE AND APPEARANCE
About the size of a purse, it is suitable for discretely carrying to the ladies room for a mid-day emergency beauty touchup (or total overhaul). It is also suitable for using as a handbag/carryall for the gym to hold my jewelry, phone, wallet, makeup, and toiletries for taking a post-workout shower and styling my hair afterward. There are convenient pockets to hold my gym membership card so I can quickly swipe my card and get to my workout.

Mr. Sleek Toiletry Bag

CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN
There is a black plastic hook to hold it upright in place when used in a locker or bathroom, and a handle for carrying it. There is a fair amount of cushioning within the bag to keep items safe in transit. It is waterproof and leakproof, which is particularly useful when transporting multiple beauty products that could cause a mess in your suitcase.

The bag comes with a black eye mask and earplugs, suitable for use to get some sleep while traveling. This bag would be very helpful if you choose to keep your beauty supplies with you while traveling, which I prefer to do whenever possible to keep them out of my luggage and avoid hot/cold weather extremes when luggage is in the trunk of the car.

There are two internal zippered pockets for holding more fragile makeup powders or perhaps jewelry during a gym workout. I use it to hold more expensive beauty items. For example, my Hourglass powder trio is very delicate so I keep it in the box when using it outside of the house, and having a secure pocket to hold it in is very useful to keep it safe.

The deep middle pocket holds a long thin can of hairspray or dry shampoo, face wash and a ton of makeup and beauty supplies, as seen in the photos.

It has multiple side pockets for various makeup pencils, makeup brushes, toothpaste and toothbrush and makeup palettes. The inner side pocket is useful for holding a wallet and different cards, or a small book or journal. The pockets are deep enough to hold a full 8-ounce size tube of lotion or face wash. I carry hand cream in this pocket.

Mr. Sleek Toiletry Bag

CONCLUSION: Useful for carrying all your toiletries and beauty tools while traveling, post-gym workouts, or to discretely redo your look after work before a night out, the Mr. Sleek bag holds a TON of stuff in an easy-to-find internal design that keeps even delicate items securely in place.

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I received this product for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and I’ll do my best to answer it!

Travel: Giovanni Navarre 17″ Italian Stone Design Leather Tote Bag

September 14, 2016 · Leave a Comment

This Giovanni Navarre travel bag is 17″, not as large as a briefcase, and slightly longer than a laptop case or hobo style handbag, yet it holds lots of stuff. Not as cumbersome or heavy as a backpack or a full duffel bag, this can carry all of your gym workout wear with room to spare, especially in the summer months when workout wear is generally lighter. I am also able to carry multiple textbooks in the bag.

Giovanni Navarre 17″ Italian Stone Design Genuine Leather Tote Bag

FEATURES
It comes with a sturdy detachable shoulder strap and handles to carry the bag. The leather has a textured pattern; there is a zipper pull top to provide a full covered closure. There are full around zipper pockets on either end of the bag and a long deep pocket along the length of the bag. The side pockets are suitable for holding shoes, liquid containers, or dirty laundry. The pocket along the front length of the bag is long enough to hold a book, tablet, or water bottle.

QUALITY:
No loose threads scratched leather or subpar workmanship, it looks more expensive than I expected. Handles and strap are sturdy enough to hold the contents of the bag without tearing or pulling on the leather. Zippers are solid. The stone design pattern on the leather emulates the look of a more expensive bag.

FOR TRAVEL OR BEAUTY EMERGENCIES
There is enough room in this bag for a low-maintenance last-minute overnight getaway. It is also roomy enough to hold all of my beauty essentials (makeup, hair styling tools, beauty products) for a trip, or for packing all the makeup and tools needed to prepare for a special occasion, makeover session, wedding, prom or photo shoot. But the reason I use it most often is beauty emergencies due to weather-related mishaps.

New England weather can be tricky: it rains frequently and often unexpectedly, so hair or makeup disasters due to humidity, fog, snow, sleet or rain are almost inevitable. And on special occasion events such as weddings, or important presentation meetings with clients, looking like a drowned rat is unacceptable.

On bad weather days, I bring along this bag with my trusty hair appliances and duck into an out-of-the-way ladies room (or the office building fitness center when necessary) and quickly dry or restyle my hair as needed. The inside of the bag can easily hold my CHI ionic HairDryer with the full diffuser attachment, a set of the T3 Hot Rollers, and a round brush. The long outside pocket can hold an InStyler to quickly straight iron and style damp or even wet hair. The two side pockets can easily hold four full-size styling products such as mousses, sprays, dry shampoos, serums, or other styling aids. I like to keep a hair towel in the other pocket just in case I get drenched, or my makeup bag if a full beauty overhaul is required. If I am leaving directly from work or the gym to go out for the night, this bag is an easy way to keep all my beauty tools in a discrete bag that looks like a large handbag.

Giovanni Navarre 17″ Italian Stone Design Genuine Leather Tote Bag

Find this great bag at Amazon.com

I received this product for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and Iâ€™ll do my best to answer it!

Le Edge Full Body Exfoliator: What to Know

August 3, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Le Edge Full Body Exfoliator

Summertime skin care requires lots of exfoliating to stay smooth. But those of us with sensitive skin on our face and body often find scrubs and loofahs too abrasive. So I was glad to find this Le Edge Full Body Exfoliator, which is a no-chemical, gentle means of exfoliation. It does not irritate the skin or micro-tear the skin. The problem I find with many exfoliating methods such as scrubs and creams is that they contain harsh grains that can do damage to the healthy skin in the process of removing dry, flaky or dead skin.

ABOUT THE Le Edge Full Body EXFOLIATOR

Shaped something like a small squeegee, it has a stainless steel dull “blade” that gently and hygienically lifts and removes dirt, debris, and dead skin cells without irritating the underlying skin. The stainless steel blade will not rust and is naturally bacteria free. It is dull and smooth, you cannot cut or scrape yourself with the blade, but you can over-do it if you are too aggressive. It is intended for use on both the body and the face.

This kind of tool is different from pumices or loofahs because it just removes the skin that is ready to exfoliate away without disrupting skin that is healthy and should not be removed prematurely. There are no chemicals or drying agents, just the ability to exfoliate without introducing bacteria into the area.

RESULTS

I was surprised that such light pressure at a 45-degree angle could remove so much dead skin from both the face and the body. It is important that the skin is wet, and it is best used in the shower after the skin has had a few minutes to absorb moisture, which allows for the best conditions to remove more dead skin. I do my face first, then rinse it off and use it on my body, periodically rinsing it off in the water stream, and I use it on my feet last.

EXFOLIATING THE FACE
On the face, it helped to remove dead skin, oil, sebum and even some blackheads, especially around the nose. It did not irritate or open the skin on some healing acne I have, but it did slough off the dead skin around the blemish. I was surprised to see how much dead skin exfoliates off of the nose, chin, and jawline, as well as my throat. I made sure to use gentle strokes on the face; it seems like the tool won’t accomplish much because the stainless steel blade is not sharp, but it does remove skin quickly.

AFTER CHEMICAL PEELS
A tell-tale sign that one is using chemical peels or Retinol is a very light layer of peeling on the face. Trying to remove this light peeling is tricky since too much scrubbing or exfoliating scrubs or creams can make the peeling seem even worse.

This Le Edge Exfoliator tool is especially useful if you use AHA peels, or you are on a Retinoid or Vitamin C serum program and have some very light peeling dry skin that you don’t wish to scrub off vigorously with a washcloth or sponge, but still need to remove it before applying any makeup. This Le Edge exfoliator removes this lightly peeling skin gently so that you don’t damage the skin but can still remove light peeling and apply makeup over it.

EXFOLIATING THE BODY
Before applying lotions or self-tanning creams, this gives a smooth, debris-free surface for makeup, tanning lotions or creams to adhere. It is not irritating like a loofah or pumice could be, so the skin will not be red and sensitive after use. I was impressed to see how much dead skin comes off the feet, as well as hard to reach areas such as knees, elbows, upper arms, and thighs. I often overlook these areas during my skin care routine, but the Le Edge Exfoliator makes quick work of keeping these areas smooth.

Le Edge Full Body Exfoliator

CONCLUSION

I was impressed to see how much dead skin this Le Edge tool removes without irritating the skin. This is ideal for when you need to do more than one task on your skin that might irritate your skin, such as shaving and exfoliation, exfoliation and applying self-tanner, or exfoliating and applying makeup afterward. Particularly useful for those who use retinol, acne creams, and do at-home chemical peels and experience some light peeling of the skin which needs to be removed with care.

Le Edge Full Body Exfoliator

Find it at http://www.le-edge.us

I received this product in exchange for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and Iâ€™ll do my best to answer it!

InstaNaturals Dual Phase Mattifying Toner

July 20, 2016 · 2 Comments

InstaNaturals Dual Phase Mattifying Toner

I started dealing with the issue of excess oil years ago as a teen. At fourteen, on a family trip to Florida, my aunt noticed and shared an expensive commercial mask that worked for her but it didnâ€™t do the trick for me. Over time I tried an untold number of dedicated products, alternate use products and even do-it-yourself home formula suggestions designed to hold back the oily tide but experienced little lasting success.

Most of them did initially mattify upon application, but oil broke through quickly. Though I would apply the mattifier as late as possible in my morning makeup routine I still would arrive at my destination, even ones only twenty minutes away, needing to blot and powder.

The only product that did have a long-lasting effect was a department store powder that didnâ€™t advertise itself as an oil retardant but did have that serendipitous benefit for me. However, Iâ€™d picked it up on clearance and when I needed to replace the compact it had been discontinued by the manufacturer.

When the opportunity to try â€œinsta natural Dual Phase Mattifying Toner â€œ came along I was happy to give it a try but didnâ€™t have high hopes, given my background. The pure and natural ingredient list is impressive. Even though I usually avoid anything with fragrance due to allergies, Insta naturalâ€™s very pleasant inherent natural scent is extremely subtle and didnâ€™t bother me a bit. In fact, since hasnâ€™t prompted any allergic reaction, I prefer it to fragrance-free.

The instructions call for shaking the bottle well before each use since separation occurs naturally, probably due to the kaolin clay. Then the toner is poured into dry hands and applied to the skin. The manufacturer, instaNatural, recommends after the toner dries, following with a moisturizer. I followed the instructions as written, applying a moisturizer (I chose an oil-free product) over my entire face.

Well, the proof is in the pudding and, to my surprise, the toner does reduce oil and shine for an extended period, in my case an unprecedented five hours, sometimes longer. After the first few days, I experimented by discontinuing applying the moisturizer on my nose to see if it had any impact on how long the mattifying effect would last. It seemed my nose remained shine-free for about the same length of time with or without the moisturizer, but it did look more matte (which I prefer for that area) when I didnâ€™t use the moisturizer. I have continued using the moisturizer on the rest of my face, though, since it leaves a nice finish after using the toner.

The product also helps to reduce the appearance of pores (a big plus for me since you could drive a truck through mine) and helps with acne.

Iâ€™m delighted with my results and will continue using the product. It’s reasonably priced at about $16.00 for 8 ounces. I would pay more, if necessary, to achieve these results but am glad I donâ€™t have to. And everything comes with a reassuring money-back guarantee.

Find it at InstaNaturals