Advanced Hair Repair Shampoo & Conditioner by Arvazallia {Review}

Hello there! I’m here today to share a new-to-me shampoo and conditioner that I recently had an opportunity to test. The lovely people at Arvazallia let me try their Advanced Hair Repair shampoo and conditioner. I was pretty excited to do so, since these products are specially formulated to work in combination to restore, strengthen, and revitalize hair that is dry or that has been damaged or weakened by heat styling, chemical processing, or coloring. I heat style my hair fairly often, and usually look for products that will help moisturize and strengthen my hair.

The advanced proprietary formulas of these products are “infused with both the highest quality cosmetic grade Argan oil and Macadamia oil, which nourishes hair with essential nutrients while fortifying and strengthening each strand of hair by sealing dents and divots found in dry and damaged hair. This promotes natural hair growth and improves the texture, elasticity, and manageability of your hair giving it a beautiful healthy look and a luminous shine.”

I’ve been very impressedf with how soft and manageable my hair is after using these products together. It really does give my hair a beautiful shine wihtout weighing it down.

I received these products for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Best,

Jen

Beauty Lashious Eyelash Curler {review}

So recently I had the chance to try this new to me eyelash curler from Beauty Lashious. I found it on Amazon here and the owner graciously let me try one in exchange for an honest review – thanks, Nat!

I have funky eyelashes. On one of my eyes the lashes curles up beautifully – all on its own, and the other… well, not so much. Crazy, huh? To be honest, eyelash curlers have always kind of intimidated me. (When I was little, I’d watch my mom curl her lashes. I always thought it must be terribly painful!)

Plus then there’s the issue of those pads with an open curler… I just picture all the germs from my makeup drawer jumping right there… and then I’m going to put them on my eye? Yeah, no thanks to that. So I’ve shied away from lash curlers – until now.

The thing I like most about this lash curler is that it comes with a holder to keep the curler closed when you are not using it, which greatly lowers the chances that that pad is going to get all germ-y and gross. That alone was enough to make me want to try it. Once I got it, I also like that it’s a manageable size. It fits really comfortably in my hand, and I have small hands – so the natural, comfortable grip made me feel much more confident that I wasn’t going to pinch or pull at my lashes or skin accidentally.

It was just a bonus that they come in really fun colors, I swear! I got red, though it looks more like pink to me. Oh well. 🙂 It works incredibly well, and I couldn’t be happier I gave this great curler a try!

Now go – get one of your own!

Best,

Jen

Cellulite Cream with Caffeine and Retinol {review}

Caffeine and cellulite – not two words I thought I’d normally throw together on this blogspace, but hey, who knew? 🙂

So, funny story. I accidentally had this shipped to our small, family business – and as we frequently order things from Amazon c/o the business, not in my name, our receptionist opened it. Imagine her confusion when she saw my cellulite cream… my husband said, “clearly now she knows your secret.” HA! 🙂

This cellulite cream promises to tighten and tone the skin. The key ingredients:
+ Caffeine
+ Retinol
+ Cocoa Butter
+ Shea Butter
+ Vitamin C
+ Vitamin B5

Now, I can’t say that I found it terribly effective at tightening and toning, but it is a really nice moisturizer. As with anything, I think this in conjunction with – you know – diet and exercise and healthy habits really makes the difference more than anything. Did it hurt? Certainly not, and it kept me moisturized – which also helps skin appear more youthful and vibrant. My skin looks nice. Firmer? I’m not sure.

This cream is really thick – a little goes a long way, and the smell is really fresh and light. I like it a lot!

I received a free bottle in exchange for an honest review.

Best,

Jen

Lemon Oil – 100% Pure & Natural Essential Oil {review}

Hey there. I love, love, love the scent of lemon. It’s just so fresh and clean. If you look in my house most times and I’m burning a candle, odds are it has a lemon scent to it! So I was thrilled when Pure Body Naturals sent me a bottle of their essential oil in lemon to try.

It has tons of uses… everything from freshening your house to polishing leather. That’s my kind of multi-use product!! 🙂

This is a BIG 4 oz bottle!

• PREMIUM QUALITY LEMON ESSENTIAL OIL – 100% Pure Oil No Fillers or Additives – Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oil
• FRESHENER – Has a natural, refreshing and uplifting scent that clears the mind and used for aromatherapy. Perfect for air freshener and freshening up clothes.
• MULTI-BENEFIT INGREDIENT – Add drops of lemon oil in your water for aid with digestion, to boost weight-loss efforts, and to boost your mood and metabolism.
• HEALTHY LIFESTYLE – Our premium lemon oil is naturally a detox, antiseptic and disinfectant. Our pure lemon oil has the ability to help clear the skin, treat stress disorders, fever, infections, asthma, obesity, insomnia, skin disorders, hair conditions, stomach problems and tiredness. Used by Aromatherapists to treat anxiety. Good immune system booster, helps aid in digestion, and can help detoxify and purify the liver.
• CLEANER – A naturally good cleanser of the body. Also a disinfectant, ideal for cleaning metal surfaces, dishes, and clothes. Perfect for polishing leather, jewelry and wood furniture. Perfect non-toxic and natural cleaning alternative for household use.

I received a free bottle in exchange for a review, thanks to Pure Luxe LLC!

Best,
Jen

ORGANIC Argan Oil For Hair, Face, Skin & Nails {review}

“Yes, please, we’ll take the biggest bottle of Argan oil we can find.”

Quite frankly, I’m suprised Google and Facebook aren’t showing Argan oil in my sidebar ads lately. This cold weather has been brutal, and yes, I know I’ve complained a lot mentioned it before, but this week school was cancelled because of the weather. Because it was dangerous to be outside. Needless to say, even with all the cold weather gear we can clothe ourselves with… our skin is super dry. That goes for the whole family, folks. So yeah, we need the biggest bottle of Argan oil because we are going through moisturizers like crazy.

Enter this organic argan oil from Pure Beauty. Yeah, they got my message about needing a large (4 oz!!!) bottle. 🙂 This is a really nice argan oil – it goes on smoothly and doesn’t leave me feeling greasy. The family was impressed with that, for sure! 🙂 it doesn’t have added scent, which we all appreciate, and the bottle will last us at least a few weeks. Plus, you can use it on your skin, nails, and hair!

The benefits are:

    • Revitalised, Repaired and Radiant Hair
• Moisturized Hydrated Beautiful Skin
• Strong and Healthy Nails
• Treating dry and unhydrated skin, eczema
• Reduce Symptoms of Aging like Wrinkles and Puffiness
• An all-round Healthy Beautiful Attractive Glow

I’m a huge fan! Thanks to Pure Body Naturals for allowing me to test this argan oil.

I received a complimentary bottle in exchange for an honest review. 

Best,
Jen

Foxbrim’s Total Hair Repair Oil [Natural & Organic] {review}

Hello there!

If you read my posts, you’d know that I really like the Foxbrim products. WELL. I had a chance recently to review their total hair repair oil – I’ve never tested a similar product, and I was really excited to give it a whirl. Then this came in the mail:

That’s a crushed bottle of hair repair oil. Thanks, USPS holiday rush! 😦

Yeah, yeah… USPS cares – I actually love the staff at our local office, but this was just not meant for a bubble envelope! The package was SO soaked that I only opened it to verify that the Amazon warehouse had tried to wrap the bottle before sending. They had, so I contacted the folks at Amazon and Foxbrim and they quickly sent me a replacement bottle (in a box this time!), so I was able to test it.

The directions say that you should use a small amount as a hair refresher/revitalizer or as a leave-in treatment, use a slight bit more, work it through, and then let it sit for several minutes or overnight. I’m not the type to sit around and wait to wash my hair – LOL!, so I pumped the product 3-4 times, applied to my hair, and went off to bed.

The key ingredients in the hair repair oil are:
+ Organic Argan Oil
+ Jojoba Oil
+ Shea Butter
+ Grapeseed Oil
+ Sunflower Oil

I do tend to have slightly greasy roots, so I was a little worried that this would make my scalp appear greasier even after shampooing. It did not! I was pleasantly surprised in the morning how soft and shiny my hair was after I shampooed and dried my hair. I started using it on my daughters, who both have longer, fine hair, on the ends as a treatment. It is really working to keep their hair tangle-free (oh, how I detest brushing hair time in the mornings! anything that helps with tangles makes my life so.much.easier) and it’s shiny, too! I noticed that the extra softness lasts about 2 days before I can’t tell a difference anymore.

I’ve been using the hair oil about once a week on my hair, concentrating mostly on the ends, and I really like how my hair feels and behaves. It will be very interesting to try this product during summer when it’s humid and see if it helps with frizz at all. Unfortunately, I have no beach vacations coming up soon, so it’s going to be a few months before I get any warm weather… but I’ll let you know how it goes. 🙂

Best,
Jen

UNi 100% Organic Pure Moroccan Argan Oil {review}

It’s so cold my hands hurt. Do you know that feeling? I am terrible about wearing my gloves, though I admit that I am doing much better this year than last year. My hands are constantly dry, and even though I keep lotion everywhere it doesn’t seem to help all the time.

Enter UNi pure argan oil. I had tried some hair products with argan oil recently, so I was excited to try this, especially when I saw all of the uses for it!

The oil is 100% pure organic made from Moroccan argan trees. This naturally light scented oil helps protect, hydrate, and restore elasticity to all hair types. A large concentration of fatty acids and antioxidants help restore the appearance of dull skin, hair, body, scalp, and hands. It reduces and removes frizzy and damaged hair. Excellent for cuticles – helps prevent cracking and peeling of nails. Can treat all skin types as well.

WELL, um, sign me up, ‘k? So, first I tried it on the cuticles, because these hands – they hurt. And you know what? This stuff is GOOD. I like it a lot. A few times I even put a larger portion on my hands, rubbed it in well, and let it soak for a while while I was in the bath.

My daughter had some really dry skin on her legs, so I rubbed a little in after bathtime. Then she had super soft skin! On my own skin, it really helped with dry patches and kept my skin soft and supple.

I was a little skeptical of the claim that “the fast absorbing light weight oil is smooth, and NON greasy compared to other brands” but it is not very greasy at all. It’s a very nice formula.

Best,
Jen

December 2014 Birchbox {review}

Hello and welcome! I received my Birchbox yesterday (addressed to “The Cheery Jen M.”, which made me giggle) and thought I’d share the contents!

I chose the Lo Bosworth box for December. I don’t generally chose the specialty boxes… but I liked the products offered, so why not?

Birchbox is a monthly beauty and subscription box that provides 4-5 samples per month for $10 shipped. You can find out more here. This is the women’s box.

I got five products this month, plus two bonuses (the foil packets). If BB lets me review all of them, that’s 70 points ($7) to spend in the BB shop!

Here’s the box. What do you think of my sign? Found it at the Goodwill! 🙂

Product shot!

I received…

• Cynthia Rowley lip stain in sugar – I already had this sample from a different box and do not like the color. The formula is nice, though!
• Embryolisse lait-creme concentrate, which I’ll use as a primer more than a makeup remover. It’s pretty small – the box is a little misleading!
• Joie folle de Joie parfum – I love this. I seriously considered saving points to buy the full size, alas, I chose a clarisonic instead.
• Ruffian Nail Lacquer in ruffian red. LOVE! So pretty.
• Davines replumping hair filler superactive. This is a nice 1.69 oz size!
• Bonuses: Davines Replumping shampoo and conditioner packets. These are great for travel!

I am very happy with this box! I can use everything except the lip stain, which I’ll give to my sis.

Best,
Jen

Foxbrim Vitamin C Lotion [Natural & Organic] {review}

Hello, have you met my sad hands? This is cold weather craziness. Rough, chapped hands, sad, sorry cuticles… it’s not pretty.

What’s a girl to do?

Enter:

 Foxbrim’s vitamin C lotion! I really like the line of Foxbrim products so I was excited to test this lotion. I tried it first as a facial lotion. Honestly… it was a little too heavy for my skin. No big deal; I thought I’d try it on my hands and discovered it’s genius. Super moisturizing, not greasy, blends in quickly – plus it’s full of great ingredients including Vitamin C (15%), Aloe Vera, Shea Butter, Jojoba Oil, and Green Tea!

Happy hands… well, they’d be happier with balmy sunshine and flip flop weather – but I take what I can get! 🙂

Jen

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Foxbrim beauty {review}

Today I have two more great Foxbrim products to share with you. (I swear, I don’t only adore Foxbrim for their amazingly cute packaging… it does help, though. I love that little fox!)

First, Foxbrim’s Hyaluronic Acid Serum (pictured on the right) brings together proven premium ingredients for a “comprehensive beauty solution. Hyaluronic Acid coupled with Vitamins C & E have been found to effectively hydrate and nourish skin for astonishingly visible results. Formulated for even the most sensitive of skin types. ”

Well, all I can say is that this stuff is GOOD. My skin feels hydrated and softer and I noticed a difference in just a few days! This light serum doesn’t go on sticky at all and it absorbs really quickly. I follow it up with a nice moisturizer and I do think my melasma has lightened already. I even use it under my eyes (carefully, yes, but still….)! Bless the hearts of the good people at Foxbrim!

Speaking of moisturizers, that brings me to Foxbrim’s complete antiaging moisturizer – vitamin a plus antioxidants lotion. I’ve really liked using these two products together! This is a really light, non-greasy facial lotion that sinks in quickly and easily and keeps my poor skin feeling semi-hydrated in our frigid winters. (Seriously – several days of inside recess for the kids due to frigid weather already. In November and December!! This does not bode well for how cold the rest of the winter will be.)  My skin needs extra moisturizing in the winter and this really seems to fit the bill. I like it a lot!

I love this formula because it’s 100% natural and organic with no parabens or additives, and it’s not tested on animals.

So there you have it – two more super awesome Foxbrim products… in my humble opinion, anyway.

Best,
Jen

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using <a href=”http://www.tomoson.com/?code=BOTTOMc6f2fb124f69019c546eb1f0c3bd4328&#8243; rel=”nofollow”>Tomoson.com</a>. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.