Curiously Carmen

Estée Lauder Nutritious Vitality8 Overnight Cream

Hi everyone!

Can’t believe it’s June now! Summer is finally here =)

Anyways, I have been using this Estee Lauder Nutritious overnight cream for the past two weeks now, and decided it was time to finally write a post on my thoughts about it.

Prior to this night cream, I used the same The Body Shop seaweed mattifying moisturizer in the day and evening. But my recent trip  to Kelowna really dried out my skin, as I don’t think it was used to the drier, interior BC climate. When I came back, I spent the first couple of days trying to repair by skin. It was flaking badly around my lip and nose area, something which has never happened!

I received this as a gift from the Estee Lauder media preview event in March, and had used it a couple of times here and there. Looking back, I should have brought this on my trip if I knew how dry my skin was going to get!
Estée Lauder Nutritious Vitality8 Overnight CreamHere is the description from The Bay’s website:

This rich overnight moisture creme restores skin’s balance and infuses deep hydration and nourishment. Helps re-activate skin’s natural moisture defenses.Can also be used as a nightly mask for intense nutrient infusion. Awaken to skin that looks rested, renewed, radiant. In just 8 days, 96% of women felt their skin look more nourished and supple.

Estée Lauder Nutritious Vitality8 Overnight CreamMy cousins tried the cream, and the first thing they noticed was how amazing this smells! Seriously, this cream smells absolutely wonderful – clean and fresh.

Normally, I dab this cream around different areas of my face – cheeks, around my lip (this was the flaky area after I came back from Kelowna), and forehead.
Estée Lauder Nutritious Vitality8 Overnight CreamI love this cream because my skin feels great after I put it on. My skin feels deeply hydrated, supple, and healthy. I feel that my complexion has improved and my skin feels a lot more radiant and bright when waking up in the morning.

This cream has quickly became one of my favourites and I have incorporated it into my daily routine. I honestly look forward to putting this on each night because it smells so great and my skin absolutely loves this stuff!

This cream is so nutrient rich and moisturizing for me that I don’t really need to apply moisturizer in the day. I used to wake up with dry skin, but I haven’t had a problem with that after using this everyday. I’m so glad that I discovered this product!

What’s your favourite night cream?

Thanks for reading!

-Carmen

Press product featured, all opinions are my own.

Bliss Fabulous Foaming Face Wash

Harroooo everyone! =)

About a month ago, I told you all about my Black Friday Sephora mini haul. One of the items I bought during the sale, which I briefly mentioned in that post, was the Bliss fabulous foaming face wash, a 2 in 1 cleanser and exfoliator.

Haul

It was one of those items where I wasn’t planning on buying it, but I saw that it was on sale for 50% off and had great reviews. I took too long deciding whether or not to buy it, and when I went to checkout, I found it was sold out along with all the other products I wanted =(

But when I went to Sephora in person the following day, I was happy to find that they had plenty in store, for the same sale price! I got it for $12 canadian, usually it is $24.

Because Sephora is always better at marketing a product than I am, here is what they say- “Bliss Fabulous Foaming Face Wash harnesses the power of botanical soothing technology and super soft exfoliating beads to deliver a simply sensational skincare solution. This bestselling, oil-free purifier instantly dissolves excess oil and makeup and lifts away dead cells, leaving skin clean, nourished, and fresh.”

Blissssss

Maybe because I read so many great reviews on this product, I was expecting more than it delivered. Some people claimed that this product instantly melted away their entire face makeup, so I was really excited to try it because having difficulty removing makeup when you just want to go sleep is a pain!

I tried this a few times when I had full coverage makeup on, it did not remove all my makeup easily. It also did not come off instantly, I had to scrub. It also said that it is an exfoliator, but I see this as a cleanser because it doesn’t do a great job in exfoliating.

I think this face wash would be good on a daily basis, but if you are wearing full coverage, I would recommend something else. My Lush Herbalism cleanser does an amazing job at taking off makeup, clearing breakouts, making my skin tone even, etc… it is truly a magical product. Actually, even my $3 St. Ives Apricot Scrub does a better job at exfoliating and taking off my makeup LOL!

Bliss

I really liked the light scent it had, it was very refreshing. The gel formula also had a bit of a cooling sensation. This did not dry out my face at all, and felt really moisturized after usage.

For $24 regular price, I don’t think I would buy it again because it’s not worth the price to me. There are products out there that are definitely better at removing makeup, and for a better price as well. However, I am glad that I tried it and I’ll probably finish the bottle eventually because it’s not a bad product. I just had higher hopes for it! =)

What are your favourite face washes? Let me know in the comments down below!

-Carmen

Montagne Jeunesse Blemish Mud Mask (Part 2/3)

Hi everyone, Happy New Year! I hope you all had a blast celebrating New Years Eve last night!

A few days ago, I had written about how Obsessed Canada had sent me a few samples of the Montagne Jeunesse facial product that they carry online. If you didn’t read that post, Obsessed Canada and Nail Polish Canada are sister companies that cater to the Canadian beauty addict!

They offer a $3 flat rate shipping, and also free shipping over $25 Canadian. Both are also Canadian owned and operated, which means that shipping times will be a lot faster. My interaction with Obsessed Canada has also been positive- they have been very responsive and informative!

Montagne JeunesseI had reviewed the mud pac (far right), today, I will be talking about the blemish mud pack! The blemish mud pac is composed of a blend of aloe vera, willow, rosemary, and witch hazel. All of these ingredients are amazing at combating and targeting acne. The most toughest acne battling warrior products out there are composed of those ingredients! I was quite surprised that tea tree oil was not listed though.
MontagneWhen I first opened the package, I noticed that there was an unpleasant earthy smell to this. The bad part is that it doesn’t smell great, but the good part is that you know that this product contains natural ingredients. Let’s face it, natural ingredients normally do not smell good compared to fragrances or perfumes made in laboratories =P I have a Lush product that doesn’t smell great either, but it does an amazing job at clearing your skin =).

Compared to the mud pac, I found this mask to dry extremely fast. I was only done covering half my face when I noticed it started drying, to the point where it hardened and I couldn’t move my face. After I was done applying, the mask was starting to really tighten up because it was dry. Compared to other face masks I used, this one felt the toughest on my skin and dried the fastest.

After 15 minutes, I rinsed it off but it took a good, thorough wash. I took this time to carefully wash away the mask and moved my fingers in circles around problem areas. When everything was finally off, my skin felt really refreshed and it was nice to be able to move my face again! My skin also felt softer. I noticed that it seemed a bit dry though.

Comparing this mask to the mud pac, I prefer the mud pac one more because I found that this one dried out my skin and hardened really fast. I also felt that the mud pac was more moisturizing and gentle on my skin. Is it a good thing to have a mask that dries really fast and gets really hard?

Have you tried this mask before? If yes, what did you think of it?

Here is the full catalogue of Montagne Jeunesse products that Obsessed Canada offers! I will be trying the honey mask soon so keep your eyes posted on that one =)

-Carmen

Press product featured, all opinions are my own.

First Impression- My Beauty Diary Mask (Sake Yeast)

First off, I want to say that I rarely use Asian facial masks like these. In fact, this is only my second time using one of them! I got this as a gift from my friend, who went to Asia in the Summer.

I was just feeling tired tonight, and had some time to kill so decided to re-energize and vitalize my skin! I know that this brand is hugely popular among Asian countries, so I was quite excited to try it. The only other Asian facial mask like this one I’ve used is the Innisfree brand masks, which I will be using to compare my first impression with MBD!

photo (15)As I mentioned before, I used the sake yeast one. From my knowledge, MBD carries a bunch of other masks, such as strawberry or black pearl. The sake yeast one claims to be whiten and moisturize. The package was the size of my hand, just to give you a rough idea.
photo (16)The Innisfree mask that I used was pretty fragile, it did not take a lot to tear it. For that reason, I was a bit wary and very careful in opening this one.

To my surprise, there was actually another harder sheet inside which was used to protect clumsy people (like moi) from tearing it. I was off to a good start. This mask was so much easier to unfold and apply to your face with the other sheet.
photoThe plastic sheet also made the application process waaay easier than my experience with the Innisfree mask. I had no problems with it. When I put it on, a wave of refreshing, cold, liquid hit my skin. It was instantly awakening and there was a cooling sensation to it. I felt so much more energized!
UntitledAfter 5 minutes, the mask was still super, super cold. I felt like I had dumped ice on my skin. There was also a lot of liquid serum from the mask that was starting to drip.

Eventually, I had to take away my pillows because the angle my head was in was making the liquid drip down to my neck, which got really annoying. I kept having to wipe my neck and pat the dripping liquid onto other parts of the mask. After 20~ minutes, it got better since the mask was starting to dry. However, the whole time, my face was very cold!

Be sure to take this mask off over the sink in case there is still excess liquid, you don’t want that to drip all over your clothes! My skin was still covered with the product, so I decided to just pat it and leave it, instead of rinsing since that was what most bloggers did. It dried after 10 minutes and as I write this, my face feels very soft and refreshed!

(PS. Do you love the cat on my eyes? Hehe. I look freakish with this mask on, and I’m not about to let the internet see that stuff. Let’s name her Polka.)

Pros:
-Easy to apply due to the extra sheet
-Cooling sensation, making your skin feel refreshed and energized
-Light but pleasant scent
-Skin feels energized & soft afterwards

Cons:
–Serum drips everywhere, you have to lie on a completely flat surface (no pillow)
-Serum can drip on your neck since it’s so liquid-y
-Product instructions are written in Chinese, good luck deciphering it unless you can read Chinese (That’s what Google is for! Yay!)
-Not sold in major Western drug stores/retailers, TNT or online is your best bet

Summary:
-Would use this product again, but maybe press out a bit of the serum before applying
-A box of 10 sheets sells for around $16 USD on Amazon

-Carmen