REVIEW: Lilla Rose Flexi Clips

Functionality - 5 (excellent)
Variety - 5 (excellent)
Overall:


I was introduced to these clips a while ago, and you guys, I am obsessed. These are so cute, convenient and fun to use. Lilla Rose is a direct Sales brand and they sell hair accessories. I reviewed the AMAZING bobby pins a while back, and you can read that review here. The flexi clips are the brands signature item and best seller though. These clips come in a ton of cute designs ad colors, and they are made with beads strung onto piano wire. This makes them super strong, but also very gentle o the hair. They are super versatile and can create a ton of great looks. They also come out with new designs every season, and they are so easy to use!

The one pictured above is called "Simple Band" in the shade Nickle. I am going to post some super cute picture of various hairstyles you can do with these. Some of these are pictures I took of myself, or my coworkers wearing these. P.S. you guys I have SUPER cute coworkers! But I also pulled some other people's photos from online, and I will credit those people for their pictures, as well as post which bands they are wearing in each one. And you can shop Lilla Rose Flexi Clips Here. I don't make any commission, kickbacks or money from sales made thorugh this link. If you hop onto your Facebook or twitter ask your friends if they sell, and see if you ca support someone local. Otherwise this is my distributor's link.

In a Low Pony! I love this because it makes the hair look look fuller, and it doesn't slip throughout the day. It looks a little dressier than a classic ponytail and the flexi clips are gentle on your hair, where a classic elastic for pony tails is not at all! These are modeled by my cute friend Krysta and she is sporting the Flexi Clip called Carmine

 This is a Low Pony with a twist :) Picture credit from AVirtuousWoman.org this gal is sporting the style Etched Cross.  

Krysta again, showing off how you can use these to secure braids. This style is called Black Band

Mariah is showing off a classic 90's look that is making a comeback with the Carmine Flexi Clip. 

Securing a messy french twist for a fun but casual look with these. This style has been discontinued I think, but is similar to Tiger Lilly and Antonia. The picture is courtesy of HappyMothering.com

This is a  horrible selfie I took of myself, coupled with a cute picture of Krysta again, showing off the Delta Flexi Clip and how cute it looks pinning just a small amount of hair back out of the face. 

This is by and large my favorite way to wear these. This is the Carmine clip again, but I have a half up/half down look with a cute bun. Love this! 

 And here Krysta Sports the Delta Clip in a half up half down look as well. 

And this one shows off a cute girl with her hair in a messy french twist showing off a clip similar to Hues of Blue. Photo from Living Above the Noise. 

How do I remove my Fashion Color?

Fashion Colors are tricky to remove, even for the most seasoned stylist. A classic color uses ammonia or some other propellant to push the color molecules inside the hair strand. There, they attach themselves to existing pigment molecules and kind of take over. With fashion color you start by pre-lightening the hair. When you lighten (or bleach) the hair color molecules are dissolved and removed. Once there is little to no pigment left in the hair a fashion color is placed on the hair. Fashion colors stain the hair shaft, and do not penetrate into the hair itself. This makes it hard to remove because you are trying to remove a stain as opposed to dissolving or lifting pigment.

So I am going to get real nitty gritty about this. As a stylist, this is hard. WE have access to a lot of gentler removal tools and options that the public doesn't. It's hard for me to give DIY advice, because you can ruin your hair so bad if you aren't careful. My best advice? Find a hairstylist or salon that uses Malibu DDL. Book an appointment.

For at home, you can use cheap clarifying shampoos on your hair, but be sure to follow those with a mask or conditioning treatment, because they will DRY your hair out. This could aid in initial fading though improving the result of a treatment.

Please do not use Color Oops or The One and Only Color Fix. These are basically low developer bleaches. You can tell because when you apply them, your natural pigment on hair that you haven't colored will lift as well as your fashion shade. It does more damage and the lightener can actually drive some of the fashion shade into the hair shaft which could cause underlying pigment issues if you want to apply a new fashion shade or if you want to begin the regimenting process to go dark again.

***Thanks to Kirsten for asking this question***

REVIEW: Sei Bella Luxury Lip Color Lipstick

Packaging - 5 (excellent)
Variety - 2 (not very good)
Scent - 5 (excellent)
Pigmentation - 3 (average)
Wear - 1 (bad)
Transfer - 1 (bad)
Overall:



I love a lot of products from the Sei Bella brand (look back to about a week ago when I reviewed their eye shadow - which I loved). But this lipstick just misses the mark.

The packaging is lovely. It's a more oval shape, as opposed to round, which actually make it's more convenient in your bag or pocket. The container has a metal feeling to it as opposed to a cheap plastic and it looks very sleek. The scent is also really nice. It has a light cocoa smell, which is pleasant and not overwhelming. That's where the good stops unfortunately. When it comes to variety there are only 18 shades, and the matte shades aren't a true matte, they just aren't shimmery.

There isn't much to say about the pigmentation of this lipstick. It's drugstore quality. Three layers will do fine, but it's nothing to talk about. It comes off within a few hours of wear and it transfers A LOT. Like I mean a ton. Even two hours after application you could kiss off 100% of this lipstick within 5 smooches. For the high end price point, it's simply not worth it.

REVIEW: Chella Eyeliner Pen

Packaging - 5 (excellent)
Scent - 2 (not very good)
Vibrancy - 4 (very good)
Variety - 3 (average)
Wear - 3 (average)
Overall:



This eyeliner pen just doesn't make the cut. The packaging is beautiful, sturdy and high end looking. It has a very strong alcohol scent that kind of irritate my eyes to be honest. The product goes on smoothly and the color is very vibrant. The biggest issues with these pens application is that if they are not store pointing downward they don't have enough ink it them, and it's harder to apply. This product only comes in black, indigo, a medium brown and purple. So that's all. I guess those are the standard shade but the brown is to light for me, and I wish there was more variety. It is by no means long lasting. The color broke down on my eyelids within 5 hours.

Inspiration ♥

Here is a little look I did recently in collaboration with a Something Borrowed Bridal, Miranda Farnsworth Photography and Olivia Hall. The bouquet was made by Creative Wedding Events Utah, and it was shot in Spanish Fork, Utah at Sandy Beach by Utah Lake. And of course I did the hair and makeup of which you can see more at Angela Woodward Cosmetology.

We did two looks for this shoot. One was a bit more of a vintage-inspired romantic look. We wanted to feature an architectural updo that was intricate but still loose and messy as opposed to perfectly coiffed and static.

I kept her complexion light and natural. The lip has a bit more of a deep nude tone, and her brows were previously micro-bladed so I didn't touch them. The lipstick was the Urban Decay Vice lipstick in the shade 1993.

I wanted to keep the makeup really soft. For her eye shadow I used soft matte cream shades in the center and inner corner, with a touch of a brown shade in the outer corners. The shadows used were the Makeup Forever Matte Ivory, Matte Sugar Coated Candy, Matte Apricot, Matte Cappuccino and a touch of Iridescent Pinky Sand popped in.

For the second look I let her hair down and smoothed it through to create a soft and romantic modern curl.

The lipstick was warmed up using a hint of a warm burgundy shade - Jeffery Star's Liquid Lipstick in Androgyny mixed with some balm to sheer it out.

I amped up her eye shadow by popping some gold into the center of the lid, and tapping a little bit of the liquid lipstick on the outer corners. I deepened the outer corners with a slightly deeper brown shade and added a deeper blush followed by a more bronzed blush.

I used the eye shadow shades Gold Status from Buxom, Espresso from the Lorac Pro Palette 1 as well as tapping some of the Jeffery Star Cosmetics Liquid Lipstick in Androgyny on. The blush was Japonesque  Velvet Touch Blush in Shade 04 followed by Makeup Revolution Golden Days Blush N Bronzer.

Which is your favorite look? The updo or waves? The barely there makeup, or the slightly more glam look?

REVIEW: Sie Bella Eyeshadow

Packaging - 5 (excellent)

Variety - 5 (excellent)

Pigmentation - 5 (excellent)
Fallout - 5 (excellent)

Wear - 5 (excellent) 

Overall: 

I got a bunch of Sei Bella skin care and makeup and I expected it to suck. For those of you who don't know Sei Bella is the beauty brand from Melaleuca, which is a multi-level marketing company. I want to start by saying that I am not trying to sign anyone up under me and I will not be making any sales, commissions or money from people who buy using my links here. I don't even have my own account (I purchase using my mother in law's account because I am lazy) and I highly recommend you go on social media and see if anyone you know buys Melaleuca and buy through them so you can help support your friends and family. But now back to the makeup. I expected based on the nature of the company that this wasn't going to blow my mind. Often MLMs do okay with skin care, but I haven't been blown away by most of their makeup, specifically eye shadow. I was pleasantly surprised by this though. Now let me break down the ratings for you. 

The packaging is small, sleek and sturdy. An individual eye shadow comes in a small clear plastic casing that is very sturdy. It is easy to depot using a flat iron and wax paper, and the metal tin is magnetic on it's own. These shadows come in 35 shades including matte, shimmer and satin finishes. 

Now for the actual performance of the shadows, I was super impressed by pigmentation. I didn't get hardly any fallout or have to use very much product to get an impactful color payout. The formula was smooth and silky (even on glittery finishes) and the color stayed in place (with primer of course). These have become my go-tos honestly. I have a little metal palette that I keep my every day highlight, contour, blush and shadows in. I literally depotted all of these and replaced all the ones in my every day palette, because I like these better. A few brands they replaced were my Rosette from Anastasia Beverly Hills, which was replaced by Vintage Rose from Sei Bella, and my Kylie Cosmetics Eyeshadow in Sandy (which I had from a palette I had purchased) was replaced with the Sei Bella Shade Cashew.

I am linking you to a spot to purchase these. You can purchase the singles here or you can purchase the duos here.  You can purchase these at their wholesale or become a member and get the member discount. Becoming a member requires a membership fee (like costco) but it's only $20 or $25 a year, which I get back three times just in member savings from the things I buy from them. Just for those that are curious click here for a look at Melaluca, being a member, how to do that and what that entails. 

REVIEW: NYX Pore Filler

Packaging - 3 (average)
Longevity - 5 (excellent)
Wear - 3 (average)
Oil Absorption - 5 (excellent)
Pore Filler - 5 (excellent)
Overall:



The NYX Pore Filler is a popular choice for many, but I wasn't 100% impressed by it. First of all the packaging is not good at all. It's cheap looking and it wears and stains super easily. The actual wear of this product is also not great, it has a super powdery texture, so it wears off quickly. It's not a primer, so you have to prime before AND after in order to get it to last. It does however absorb oils, and it does fill in pores really well. I just wish it had more of a priming effect and balm like consistency. A little goes a long way so you won't run out of this anytime soon.

How to Learn about your Beauty Product's Ingredients

I have been working on this post for such a long time. You all know that I am an ingredients nerd when it comes to beauty products, but I am not infallible by any means. I didn't go to cosmetology school and memorize every bad ingredient commonly found in hair and skin care. But I do read product labels and I do know ingredients, and that has all come with time and practice. I still trip up though. I recently posted a video first impressions review of the Flower Beauty line, and I even looked at the ingredients and said they impressed me a little bit, little did I know (as I explain in my post Why I Don't Offer First Impressions - I learned my lesson)  there were several pore-clogging ingredients lurking in there - just not ones I knew. But now I DO know them. And I learned this ingredient's name from this experience.

So what is this post about really? I am going to try to give you the tools to find the best quality products and to understand ingredients better. You will find that when you look up product's ingredients lists, that the same few ingredients stand out over and over again as bad choices. You will eventually familiarize yourself with the names of bad ingredients over time, and eventually you will just be able to look at a label.

Most companies have ingredients listed on their websites. So let's say you are picking up a primer at Ulta. Well Ulta.com has every single product's ingredients listed on their site.  This is also the case with Sephora.com as well as many retailers. Check your retailer's website or app to find a full list of the ingredients you are looking into. Of course you can also look at the back of the box, but having a copy and paste-able list is super nice to use for my favorite tool, #3.

 Campaign for Safe Cosmetics created a "red list". I have it saved on my phone and I used to look over it before buying beauty products. This list is full of common ingredients that are known to be bad for your skin and body that you should always avoid. Here are the lists for cosmetics, but you can click here to see all 7 lists that they provide. You can also visit their site to learn more about each ingredient and why it's not good for your body.

NEW INFORMATION - Acne Mantra in no longer a supported site. I now use Skin Carisma's Ingredient Analyzer or the Skin Salvation Comedogenic Vetting Process Tool in order to find out exactly what ingredients in my skin care could cause me issues. The Skin Salvation tool just pulls up ingredients in your copied and pasted list that could be problematic, it tells you how bad they are and a short overview of why, and you can click "show more" for more information. The Skin Carisma analyzer gives more information. It talks about how bad it would be for different skin types and why. It goes over quick product notes and points out highlights (is it sulfate free, paraben free, etc.) as well as if it has any anti aging ingredients and more. I use Skin Carisma more than Skin Salvation, but if you prefer something simpler then skin salvation is the way to go.

 This app is brilliant, and the more people use it, the more amazing it will be. The think dirty app is an amazing tool. It is available for those using both android and apple devices. The think dirty app allows you to scan product barcodes and it will pop up with the item and the over all rating for that item. Click on it and you will get a breakdown of each ingredient and it's individual rating. Click on the ingredient and you will see it's other names, what it's used for, health concerns related to it and more! It is SO MUCH information in one place!

However the Think Dirty app doesn't always have the products we want (but they do have THOUSANDS of products listed). If a product you want is missing it allows you to put in the name of the product and to take a picture of the front and back of it (including the ingredients list) and they will add it within 30 days. So the more people that use it, the more info we will have.

But be real about Think Dirty's motives. WHY is that ingredient considered bad? They focus mostly on toxic ingredients and things that are harmful to the environment as well as to your overall health. They may clear pore-clogging ingredients that are safe for the bees and non toxic. It's important to read up on the ingredients as you get more into this.

 This app works pretty much the exact same as the Think Dirty App, except you can't submit your own stuff (as far as I am aware). There are also a few things about this app that I don't love - for example, if you scan a bar code and it doesn't have that item in their database, it freezes the app. But you can simple close it out and use it again otherwise. If it does have the item it pulls it up very quickly, which is nice. You get a good break down but the initial rating can be deceiving, so you have to look further. For example, I looked up the Not Your Mother's Clean Freak Dry Shampoo which had an initial rating of 0 (which is super bad and in red). When I looked at the break down though it had an ingredients hazard rating of 8 (which is pretty good and in green), and the red was because of independent performance reviews and lack of information on a few ingredients. So you do have to dig a little deeper with this guide.

I check everything out on Think Dirty first, and if they don't have it I check Good Guide. On Think Dirty the same dry shampoo was found, with a negative red score, but when I clicked on the product list the only negative ingredients were added fragrances, which many people don't like, but aren't known to be toxic and I don't mind them. However if you are sensitive to artificial fragrances this would be great information to have. But on Think Dirty the info is a little more accessible.

 Before these lovely two apps became known to me, I used several ingredients sites to basically look up any ingredients I didn't know on products. Typically the most important ingredients are the first five. The rule of thumb is that the first 5 ingredients make up 75% of the product. Even if I had only looked up the first five ingredients in the Flower Beauty foundation, I would have learned about the Ethylhexyl Palmitate that broke me out, as it is the second ingredient listed!

There are a lot of ingredients guides out there, but it's best to research on at least two sites. The thing about Ethylhexyl Palmitate is that it is not a toxic ingredient, it's just highly comedogenic. Because it isn't considered toxic it's given a pass by a lot of sites, so that's why it's so important to start by checking AcneMantra.com. Here are a list of other sites I like to research ingredients.

EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database 

COS DNA

Paula's Choice Cosmetic Ingredients Dictionary

This all seems like a lot - I know. But if you are vigilant in the beginning by looking into all these things thoroughly you will begin to remember words, phrases and ingredients so well and eventually you will memorize certain ones. It is easier than it sounds, give it a try next time you are in the beauty isle.

REVIEW: Flower Beauty Light Illusion Liquid Foundation

Packaging - 4 (very good)
Shade Range - 1 (bad)
Coverage - 5 (excellent)
Wear - 5 (excellent)
Ingredients - 0 (horrible)
Overall:




I am so bummed out by this foundation and I will tell you why. First of all the packaging is exactly what most drug store foundation look like. I bumped it up to a four instead of a three rating because I like the pretty rose gold metal plating on the lid, as well as the fact that it has a pump, which I did not expect. Also the shade range on this product is abysmal. This line has been out for over two years and still only has twelve shades, and all of them are for Caucasian skin (with the exception of one super warm yellow/tan shade). The world has spoken - we want diversity. We want inclusion.  And after 2 years they have had plenty of time to expand the shade range. Also the whole brands tagline and message on their site is that "Flower Beauty is for Everyone" which apparently only includes white people....? I am not a fan.

So here is my experience with the product. I was hooked! You guys can click here to see the first impressions video I did using this and I was clearly a fan. I remained a fan at the end of the day too! It was so creamy and blendable, it had amazing coverage but wasn't cakey or thick. My skin looked like skin. It lasted all day and didn't break down or anything. You guys - I was AMAZED!

So where is the let down? After day three, my skin was a war zone! It was inflamed in multiple places where acne was coming up and there were zits everywhere! I had not had skin that bad my entire life, I am not kidding. My puberty skin was clearer than this. I was so upset, I had only changed my foundation, so I went ahead and stopped using it. After a week of hard work, my skin is finally clearing up again and normalizing. I finally did some more research on the ingredients, at first I didn't see anything of concern on the label (I only did a quick glance) and so after researching all of the ingredients I wasn't familiar with I found out that this foundation has SIX comdeogenic ingredients (which means they clog the pores) and a couple are considered HIGHLY comedogenic, and one of them is a non-hypoallergenic skin irritating ingredient that a lot of people are allergic to. I would never recommend this product at all.

REVIEW: Mary Kay CC Cream

Packaging - 4 (very good)
Coverage - 4 (very good)
Sun Screen - 5 (excellent)
Longevity - 4 (very good)
Hydration - 3 (average)
Overall:



The packaging isn't my favorite. If you keep the lid on you can set this product on a counter, otherwise it actually has a pump on top so if you loose the lid (which I always do) then you can't sit it up on the counter at all. But the package is air tight, so you will get every single drop of that product out of the bottle, which is a win for the packaging. It's also really nice and sleek packaging and I don't feel the writing comes off easily.

This has a really decent amount of coverage for a CC Cream, it's not full coverage is one go, but it covers my redness and acne fairly well. It does only come in 5 shades, but they do really blend with your natural shade, and I have only met a few people who couldn't find a shade compatible for them. It has great SPF, my sister in law is super sensitive to the sun, and she tried this and ditched her separate SPF step completely, which is so nice.

I wouldn't say a little goes a super long way for longevity. It's probably average, but I gave it a four because the packaging does make it easy to maximize the amount of product you get out of a tube, which I appreciate so much. As far as hydration goes I live in a dessert and I need a lot of it! This product doesn't have enough moisturizer in it for me, so I have to use a little moisturizer before I put it on. 

Why I don't offer first impression reviews - I learned my lesson

MOST youtubers review based on first impressions - which I don't do. I did offer a first impressions of a popular name brand foundation once and a few days later gave a full review on it. But I simply don't do first impressions. Why? Because you can't trust them.

All a first impression does is tell you about the immediate application and immediate pigmentation of a product. It doesn't tell you about the wear of said product, the ingredients, the reaction your skin has to it, how it lasts throughout the day, if the colors oxidize, nothing. So I don't want my immediate first impressions to persuade people to run out and buy things that end up being horrible for your skin.

So how did I learn my lesson? Well a few days ago I posted a first impression video for the new Flower Beauty line. As you all know, when it comes to foundation and makeup I never review anything I haven't worn for 5 days. But I had high hopes for the Flower Beauty line. Especially once I applied it. It stayed on all day and looked amazing, the application was awesome and I did a quick once-over of the ingredients and I didn't see any of the 8 super bad and common ingredients in foundation that I look out for. I was stoked - hoping I had just found a $13 holy grail foundation to replace by $60 one.

 Boy was I wrong! I hope that no one ran out to purchase their Flower Beauty product because my face broke out like it never has before.  I literally have never had so much acne in my life, after 4 days of wearing this. I wanted to know WHY, what was causing the acne, because I didn't see my worst ingredients on there.

First of all - I was wrong. There are three types of silicone in this product, all of which I missed in my quick once over. *face palm* But I had to find more, so researched each individual ingredient to find there are not one, not two, but SIX comedogenic ingredients in this! SIX! One of which is labeled as "highly comedogenic". For those who aren't aware an ingredient that is comedogenic means that the ingredient will settle into and clog pores.

So I've learned my lesson - no more first impression videos. But I will do more future tutorials.

REVIEW: Starlooks Lip Liner

Packaging - 3 (average)

Variety - 1 (bad)
Vibrancy - 3 (average)
Wear - 3 (average)
Ease of Application - 5 (excellent)
Overall:

 

Let's just dive right into the breakdown of the scores here. The packaging is super basic. It looks like any and every other lip liner on the planet. There are 3 different colors, so it's hard to find one to perfectly match your lipstick unless you buy their lipstick. They have a few mechanical pencils too, but altogether there were only 7 options, that's for ALL their types of liners. It goes on super smooth and easily (no tugging), but it isn't super vibrant. It definitely wears off throughout the day and doesn't last. This one was just kind of a miss for me.

First Impressions of Flower Beauty and a Natural eveyr day Makeup tutorial

 I don't typically post videos of myself here, but I have had A LOT of demand for some tutorial videos. I am not a youtuber. I do not have fancy lights or time to heavily edit my videos. Also please note - there is a HUGE difference between a professional makeup artist, and a professional social media artist. What is that? A social media artist typically does 95% their own makeup. They know their face and skin, and they beat it more often than not in a way that is super flashy and dynamic on camera. I am not one of those. I spend max 20 minutes on my makeup every day, if even that. I spend 45-60 minutes on my clients though, and I understand facial structures and all skin types. So unlike NikkieTutorials I am going to be super basic with my application. This is me people.

Please also remember this is a Facebook Live, so I do shout out to those watching and answer questions for those who watched it live. If you want in on the fun next time I will be posting more Facebook Lives in the future I think, many that I will not be posting here.
You can follow me on Facebook by clicking here. The content there is 80% different than what's here, so it's super worth it.

PLEASE TAKE MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS WITH A GRAIN OF SALT - they are first impressions. Don't run out to buy anything until I have posted a full review (at least not of the Flower Beauty Products)

REVIEW: Unite Blonda Shampoo

Packaging - 5 (excellent)
Scent - 5 (excellent)
Toning Power - 5 (excellent)

Longevity - 3 (average)
Overall:



As far as purple shampoos go, Blonda blows every other one out of the water. First of all it smells like grape soda! Yum! It has a sleek and sophisticated packaging and the packaging is seriously beautiful. When I say purple shampoo, I mean purple shampoo. This stuff will tone away any unwanted yellow or warm tones in your hair in days! This is definitely my favorite! The only downside is that the formula is very thick and doesn't lather super well, so you have to use a little more than normal, but it isn't as drying as other purple shampoo brands, which is super nice.

REVIEW: TIGI SFactor Serious Conditioner

Packaging - 3 (average)
Scent - 5 (excellent)
Texture - 5 (excellent)
Hydration - 5 (excellent)
Longevity - 5 (excellent)

Healing - 5 (excellent)

Overall:

I love this product! It uses ingredients like hydrolyzed silk, sunflower seed oil, amino acids and more to heal your hair, repair and prevent split ends and hydrate your damaged and dull locks. It smells like peppermint, but it isn't strong. A little goes a long way with this product so you will only have to buy it once a year if you are using it once a week. All you do is shampoo your hair and then instead of using normal conditioner put TIGI S Factor "Serious" Conditioner on your hair focusing it on the ends of the hair. Clip your hair up for 5 minutes or so and then wash it out. It's that easy! You will see a dramatic difference after the first use. My only gripe with this product is the packaging. The pot is fine until you are almost out of your product and it's difficult to get it all out. Otherwise it's a great product with great ingredients and it gets the job done.