L'Oreal Youth Code BB Cream

Today I thought I'd share an oldie but a goodie. Because well I think this BB cream is super underrated and deserves so much more attention than it gets. Since I first wrote a review on this back in 2013 (woahza!) I have tried a number of bb creams and my opinion of these just being glorified tinted moisturizers still hold true.  I feel like I'm constantly trying new bases but once the warm weather hits I just can't stay away from this bb cream. This relationship has been going strong for three years now!

However this is the closest one that I think resembles that of an eastern bb creams, especially for the drugstore. This one stood out to me because it was in the skin care not the makeup aisle. Here are the clams that I got of the L'Oreal website "Youth Code™ BB Cream Illuminator instantly evens, illuminates, perfects, moisturizes, and protects skin. In one week, tone and texture are improved and skin is healthier looking".  I totally think this bb cream lives up to its claims, besides the tone correcting properties. I leave that up to my skin care, and I think this would have to be worn daily to see the results and well I like to go days without makeup as well as use different products. I can however say that my skin loves this stuff. It is super moisturizing and give this beautiful glow to the skin. I've worn this out to the bars and every time I do some guy is telling me I have beautiful skin. Guys don't normally compliment skin, so I'm going to assume they weren't just hitting on me. I love using this on its own or under a foundation, because whenever I do use this, the next day my skin looks amazing. I usually reach for this most often when I'm experiencing a breakout because its light and evens out my complexion. I think this bb cream is great for all skin types, however it would do wonders for those with dry to normal skin. If you have oily skin I would recommend you set this with a powder. My only issue with this bb cream is that it comes in two shade light and medium. I have it in medium and it only matches me when I'm tan, however at the moment I am not so it's a bit dark for me. I wish L'Oreal would come out with more shades!  

All in all if you can wear one of the two shades, I totally recommend this product. It has worked great for me and hope it does for you too. If you've tried this bb cream, what are your thoughts on it? 

Have a great weekend!

Non Intimidating Color Correcting

I have always had dark circles and I always will. Unfortunately my undereye problems are genetic (my mother would beg to differ). However, ever since becoming a mom and running on broken sleep for the past seven months I have become full raccoon. Concealer on its own is not sufficient coverage for me anymore. That is when I shopped my stash a found the Tarte CC undereye corrector. I had picked this up last summer and honestly forgot about it (no real time for makeup anymore). I had heard Amelia Liana rave about this for sometime and thought I'd give it a go considering I have always suffered from dark circles and her recommendations haven't steered me wrong yet.

The Tarte Colored Clay CC Undereye Corrector runs for $24 USD which is a good price but only comes in two really similar shades. I honestly could've gone with either one but in the end went with medium-tan. I found it really interesting that this corrector is said to improve the appearance of skin tone and texture over time. Now I'm not to sure about the science behind this, but if it wants to do all that awesome if not I wouldn't expect it to.

The texture of this is creamy, so initially I was scared this would crease on me. However you only need the tiniest bit to get a thin layer and I love that because it doesn't interfere with the performance of my concealer.

Kat Von D Double Dare Everlasting Liquid Lipstick

Back in August I picked up the Kat Von D Liquid lipstick in Double Dare after hearing so much about the range. The shade is a great everyday color it is described as a "cocoa blush" but I find it to be a bit of a MLBB and darker.

This was not the first liquid lipstick I have used however it is the first high-end liquid lipstick. I have tried the NYX liquid lipsticks and really liked them, though I didn't find the lasting power of them to be anything more than a matte lipstick.

When I tried on the Kat Von D formula I noticed it set a lot quicker than the NYX formula and was a bit more drying, however definitely not uncomfortable. I managed to wear this for 11 hours with the application at noon and removed around ten. I was very pleased with how well this formula held up throughout the day, from lunch to dinner and baby kisses in between this did not budge! I only applied once and it lasted all day. Though through out the day it did begin to get a bit uncomfortable.

I think the formulation of these are phenomenal, especially for long days and for when you can't be bothered to reapply lipstick. Like I said above these are totally kiss proof so absolutely great for date nights. There are 28 shade in the range so there is a shade for everyone.

Have you all tried this range before? What shade should I try out next?

xoxo Franchesca

Simple Cleansing Micellar Water

After hearing about the great benefits of micellar water for years now, I got really excited when Simple came out with a micellar water a couple months ago. Its the only one that is easily accessible in the states thats also affordable. Now after years of hearing about micellar waters I never really understood what made it different from regular water.

Micellar water takes its name from micelles, tiny round balls of cleansing molecules that float in the water. When you apply the product to your skin, the cleansing agents come into contact with oil and dirt on your face, allowing them to be swept away quickly and efficiently. Micellar cleansing water uses very gentle but effective cleansing agents. There is no tingling or tightening effect, and it’s powerful enough to remove eye makeup, so there is no need for a separate makeup remover.

So now that we know what makes this different from plain water, how does this one hold up? It is very gentle, leaves the skin feeling smooth and clean. It does a good job of removing makeup, but takes some effort with mascara. Essentially I holds true to  all its claims but I did find it did sting a bit. Not as bad as with cleaning wipes, but definitely enough for me to notice. I will say though I do think this is a nice product, I don't have much to compare it too. So I'll keep you posted as I try to test out other micellar waters.

Which micellar water is your favorite?

xoxo Franchesca

source / LaRoche Posay- What is micellar water?

Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder

I'm not the biggest fan of powders, I don't like them to mattify too much. However, I absolutely HAVE to use a powder to set my under eyes. No matter how good the concealer, they will always crease.

Back in may I picked Laura Mercier's Secret Brightening Powder. It is a loose, finely milled translucent powder with light reflecting shimmer. This powder is absolutely perfect for setting under the eyes, and blurring out any fine lines like smile lines. Now the shimmer is not noticeable to the naked eye once applied, but if applied to much you can look sparkly in photos.

What I love about this powder is how light weight it is and how it doesn't get cakey after a couple touch ups. I will say though that you only need a tiny bit with this product. A little goes a long way!
However, though there are many great things about this product I will warn you that there is an issue of flashback.

Have you tried this powder, what were your thoughts?

xoxo Franchesca

Peter Thomas Roth Mini Magic Kit

I feel like I've had this little trio for ages, and well I guess I have. I have been trying out these masks since February and there are some pros and some cons.

Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Gel Mask: Normally you save the best for last, but I'm just going to tell straight up that this is the stand out in the trio. This stuff hydrates, smooth and firms the skin. Once you take this off your face feels baby smooth. I talk a bit more about this in my July favorites [here].

Pumpkin Enzyme Mask: This is the exfoliation mask in the trio and though I do think it does a good job at getting rid of a dull complexion and helps with congestion it is pretty harsh on the face. I think that says a lot because I don't typically have sensitive skin. Though if your skin can handle it I think it would be absolute fab!

Cucumber Gel Mask: This mask is meant to hydrate, and soothe irritated skin that makes this mask
really nice after a day in the sun, especially if you pop it in the fridge. I will say that this does a nice job in the hydration department but I'm not blown away. I think there are better hydrating mask in the market. Like the NARS aqua gel luminous mask... do I sound like a broken record yet?

Though I do believe all three masks live up to their claim I'm not sold on all of them. However, if you have been curious about these mask I would 100% recommend picking up this trio. Test them out and then purchase the full size, as they are pretty pricey.

The Mini Magic Kit is sold exclusively at Sephora.

Have you all tried any of these masks?

xoxo Franchesca

Sunshine Vox Box

About two weeks ago I was lucky enough to be send a VoxBox from Influenster. If you guys haven't heard of Influenster it is an online community where one can write and read reviews on just about any product. Influenster's VoxBox is filled with goodies for members to review. The great thing about Influenster is that it is completely free and you can find a ton of reviews on one site. If you want to checkout Influenster just click this badge(on the right or at the bottom of my blog).

This time around I received the Sunshine VoxBox which I suppose is one of their summer themed boxes. So in this box I received...

Infusium 23 Moisture Replenisher Leave-in Smoothing Crème with Avocado and Olive Oil (longest name ever). But basically you put this in your hair while its still damp and style as usual, I've only used it twice and so far its feels really nice. It hasn't weighed down my hair and has controlled some of the frizz. All in all in pretty nice and it smells great too! But I'll keep you guys updated on this.

Vaseline Intensive Care Aloe Soothe Spray Moisturizer. Now this was something I was excited about because it always intrigued me, but I never got around to purchasing it myself. After testing this out, its okay its exactly like the regular moisturizer just in a bit of a more travel friendly bottle. This is definitely something I wasn't crazy about.

SinfulColors Nail Polish in Southern Belle. I've tried sinful color polish before and love it! They're affordable, last a decent time on the nail and have a great color range. My all time favorite shade from them is bubbly, its very similar to Essie's ballet slipper with a bit more shimmer.

Dickinson's Original Witch Hazel Refreshingly Clean Towelettes. I didn't like these for taking off my makeup, but they were really great for after removing my makeup to clean up the edges before I went in with my cleanser. My one tip with these is don't use around the eyes. They stung a bit. I think these would be great to through in your beach bag to refresh your face after being in the sun all day.

Blue Diamond Almonds Bold in Sriracha. Haven't tried these, don't think I will. I'm not a fan or sriracha at all.

Don't forget to check out influenster for reviews and even get some goodies for yourself!

xoxo Franchesca

Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate

You know that one product that you use everyday, but never realize how vital it is to your routine till one day you switch things up and it goes completely horrible? No, never experienced that (lucky you!). Well this past week I did.

Every since becoming pregnant my skin has done a complete 180 on me. I use to be very dry/dehydrated now I can get quite greasy. Back in February I picked up the Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate and had been using it as my night time oil religiously. It has worked great for my skin, its kept it hydrated and felling plump in the mornings. No miracle worker here... or so I thought.

About two weeks ago I didn't use this at all, and my skin was not happy. I couldn't pin point what was causing the terrible breakout, but once I added this baby back into the mix things started to calm down. No more new spots, the old spots started to subside, and I noticed a difference in my hyper-pigmentation. During my stint without this I noticed dehydration lines, but in just one night of using this product those line have disappeared. Miracle worker!

Oh and I love using this on my belly too! Not to much just typically whatever is left over, I think the oils help prevent huge stretch marks.

Kiehl's get another thumbs up from me!
Have you all tried this before?

xoxo Franchesca

The Wonky Liner...

The drugstore has so many eyeliners, its hard to pick one that's going to suit your needs. The MasterPrecise liner from Maybelline just didn't meet my needs. Here's what Maybelline claims are about this liner;
Its an exclusive felt tip, that never dries and never skips. Its ultra-thin 0.4mm brush supplies smooth, even lines. No mess or excess. 

Now here's what I think about this product, the first time I used this I like that I was able to get a thin line. However, the tip was really flimsy and I couldn't get a good flick. The formula is very black, but it smudged on me by the end of the day, and started to get patchy mid day. After a couple uses the tip was basically un-usable. I've been using the side of felt tip to get a line which I do most of the time, just now I use another product to get a flick.

I'm typically a fan of Maybelline's products, but this one just didn't make the cut. Maybe I just got a defected. Have any of you had this experience?

Honey Dew Me Up

Me and primers have a love hate relationship. I'm always looking for a primer that will make my application smoother, wear longer and blur imperfections. So when the NYX Honey Dew Me Up primer made its way to my vanity I was very intrigued. First thoughts about this product was that it looked quite gimmicky, but before I tell you how it holds up heres a little background.

Honey Dew Me Up is gel primer infused with honey for its natural antiseptic. The gold flecks are used to increase radiance and collagen to strengthen skin.

When I first tried this I was scared that I would have gold flakes on my face, but they blend out so they're not a problem. The consistency was not what I was expecting at all. It's a very thin gel that absorbs easily, I was expecting a thicker honey consistency. The applicator was a bit odd, I get what they were trying to go for its hygienic, but it would prefer a pump or squeeze tube.

What I did notice when I applied this was how smooth my skin felt, makeup application was smooth. However, I just was not a fan of how makeup looked on top of this primer. I tried it with a number of bases and I just did not like the way the base sat on top of the primer. The sections around my nose and smile lines were emphasized, more than any of my other primers.

I may not like how this looks under makeup, but I did really like the look I got when I wore this alone. It added a natural glow from within look, that's perfect for just running some errands.

Have you all tried this before?

xoxo Franchesca

The Hair Product Fail

Having curly hair, I have tried my fair share of different products promising luscious frizz free curls. And if you couldn't tell from the title this was not one of them. I had high hopes for the Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Mousse as I love Shea Moisture's other products, but this one just didn't cut it.

Here are its claims "This moisture-rich styling secret easily enhances natural curl memory and wave pattern. No sticky, crunchy or flaky residue - just high impact volume with a soft finish. Fights frizz all day while promoting shine" Sadly I did not find any of these claims to be true.

For one it was not hydrating at all. The texture of this mousse was very watery and when I would use it my hair felt like I had air dried it with nothing in it. I don't believe this product has much to do with curl memory, I think that would be impacted by ones application technique. It was non sticky or crunchy, but there was a residue left on the hair, maybe not flakey, but a clear lining of gunk. As I said before the texture of this mousse is very water based, and I don't see how water can help frizz. On the days I tried this out, my frizz was out of control. Now through the years, I have learned to accept that with curly hair comes some type of frizz, all day every day. However, my frizz got so bad that pulling my hair up along didn't help. Lastly, the shine properties this claims to have are false, as I stated about I had this weird residue when I would use this product and you just can't have shiny hair with gunky hair. One does not equal the other. My final issue with this product is that if you have medium to long hair you have to use a ton of this product to get some type of hold.

All in all, this was just a complete flop. The days I used this product were easily my worst hair days.

Have you guys tried this product?

xoxo Franchesca

Benefit's Hoola Bronzer Yah or Nah?

We have all heard about the cult favorite Hoola Bronzer from Benefit, how it's THE bronzer for contouring. For years I've heard so many great things about this bronzer I would always swatch it every time I was in Sephora and NEVER did I think YUP this is amazing. For one reason alone it looked way to light for my complexion.

So when I found myself in the market for a new bronzer I shopped around. Now my other option was the Kevin Aucoin Sculpting powder but at $44 I thought I rather give the less expensive alternative a chance. I went into my Sephora grabbed the hoola bronzer and walked out before I had a chance to even think about putting it back on the shelf, and I'm so glad I did!

The Hoola bronzer lives up to all the hype. Yes, it looks way to light for someone with medium/olive complexion but its not. It gives a natural shadow to the face allowing me to fake the super high cheekbones. It is not too ashy that it looks muddy, it has just the right amount of warmth that allows you to use it all over. It has amazing lasting power for a bronzer, most bronzers are gone by lunch time for me and this makes it way well past lunch. All in all, I am super impressed and kind of disappointed I waited so long to finally give it a try. This definitely gets a Yah from me!

What products do you think are worth the hype?

xoxo Franchesca

Valentia Even Glow Serum

Yesterday in my September Favorites I mentioned the Valentia Even Glow Serum. I received it from BrandBacker about a month ago now, and I think you may be able to tell that I love it.

There are a couple claims with this product, like evens skin tone, increases glow and radiance, boost collagen production, and reduces wrinkles and fine lines. I have noticed a significant difference in my complexion since beginning to use this. My hyperpigmentation is practically gone. I need to really look to notice any spots. I would link this to the Rosehip oil in the serum. I can also notice a healthy glow to my skin in the mornings when I use this at night, which I believe can be linked to the 20% vitamin C. It is also very moisturizing linked to the sea buckthorn oil, but absorbs really quickly.

Now this has some anti-aging properties that as much as I would like to say they work, I just can’t. Not saying that they don’t, but I just don't have many fine lines and wrinkles to say much. But in about ten years I’ll probably be able to see if these properties work.

You can find the Valentina Even Glow Serum on Amazon for $35.

xoxo Franchesca

Exuviance Skin Care

I am a HUGE fan of skincare and am pretty much down to try anything to give me clear, smooth, glowy skin, except of course that vampire facial thing that was going around. So when given the opportunity through BrandBacker to test out an at home peel came about I was game! Exuviance was kind enough to send me a couple samples of their
Excuviance Performance Peel AP25 along with their OptiLight Essential 6 Serum
and their Evening Resorative Complex.

I have always wanted to give try out a glycolic peel because I have always experience some type of breakout that left me some scars. There are a few reasons why I never actually got one, one my mother said no for a number of reasons but the one that was repeated most was that I was just too young to do that to my skin. Two they’re on the pricier side of things. Three straight fears I would look like Samantha from Sex and the City when she had a peel done.

The Performance Peel was created to be safe and easy to use at home. How it works is that you are meant to use it twice a week for 6 weeks to see results. Their claims are that after a month the peel will help with…

•Refine pore size and smooth texture
•Visibly diminish the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
•Improve clarity and brightness
•Brighten and even skin tone
•Provide an all-over healthy glow, suppleness and smoothness to skin

What I experienced with this peel is that I experience no irritation and no redness. So I can say I do believe it is safe to use at home. However, I only tried this out for 2 weeks so I can’t really say much on the long term results. After each use I did notice that in the mornings my skin did look brighter, and I believe that this did play a part in the appearance of my scars. When it comes down to pore size, texture and fine lines I have to say that my age came into play. I’m 22 [Taylor Swift song now stuck in my head] so fine line, wrinkles and texture isn’t a concern just yet, however pore size are and though I do believe this may help in long term use. During my trial run I just wasn’t able to record any noticeable difference. So mom you were right!

When it comes to the appearance of my scars I believe the biggest player here was the OptiLight Essential 6 Serum. This was something I wasn’t too sure about as I thought “well everything now claims to even your skin tone” but this actually does! Now when I first applied this I was surprised because it reminded me of a targeted spot treatment more than a serum. It’s thin and absorbs super quick, so I used it like a sport treatment and I’m really impressed. There is so much science that is behind this so check out their site if you want to know how exactly this works.

Lastly Exuviance sent me their Evening Resorative Complex, in layman's terms their night cream that is A-MAZ-ZING. It smells divine has a fresh cucumber-y sent, its thin but moisturizing and absorbs quickly. Now like the serum there is a ton of science into this product, so for more information head on over to their site www.Exuviance.com

xoxo Franchesca

The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

The Body Shop's Camomile Cleansing Oil was a recommendation from Amelia Liana [not personally]. I took my first trip into body shop, which I was very surprised of because I passed it every time at my mall. However, when I picked this up it was on deal...PLUS and its on deal NOW...PLUS PLUS.

I picked this up after hearing how great it was at removing makeup, even waterproof and how it didn't leave an oily film. As I typically have dehydrated/dry to normal skin a cleansing oil sounded like the best alternative to removing my makeup as opposed to the wipes. I have been meaning to try a couple out but hadn't wanted to shell out a ton for it, in fear I would hate it. I went into the body shop with no intention to actually grab anything but when I found this on deal... it was a sign!

After about a month of using this to remove my makeup, there is no going back! I'm in LOVE with it! In just one pump it can take off my everyday makeup and with just two it can take off heavy makeup. I am able to remove my waterproff mascara quicker than ever, and lastely the reason this stands out is because there is no oily film! Your skin will feel clean and smooth.

Here's what you do... you shake it up take one to two pumps and rub it onto your face for a couple of seconds, wet your hands and rub your face again the oil begins to lather, take a cloth and wipe off and TA-DA you're done!

Have you all tried it?

xoxo Franchesca

Lush Green Bubble Bar

I recently made my first trip to a Lush and though it was wonderful it was also confusing. I went specifically because I wanted to try their bath products. However, when I walked in I felt very overwhelmed as I couldn't understand the difference between a bath bomb, bubble bar, and their bath melts. I also had to pick through all the options they had, who knew baths could be energizing? I personally use them to unwind.

After much help from the store associate and playing with just about everything in the store, I decided on the Green Bubble Bar. I choose this one because it has a fresh scent and I was told I would get more use out of it because you were only to rip a piece off, not use the whole thing...more bang for your buck I figured.

The other night I finally gave this a go and though I loved the scent and it was a rather relaxing bath. However, I didn't get many if any bubbles from this product. I think that I should have used the entire bubble bar instead of just half. I'll have to keep that in mind next time.

xoxo Franchesca

NYX Butter Gloss

By now we've all heard about the NYX Butter Gloss, the smooth non-sticky gloss. Sounds awesome right? I decided to give it a go when ULTA was having a deal, and the verdict is that they are great but I don't think they're worth all the hype.

NYX claims that it’s buttery lip gloss with a sweet scent that provides sheer to medium coverage on your lips without that sticky feeling. Provides nourishment with a flush of color on your lips giving you the perfect pout.  It can be worn alone or over your favorite lipstick!  

How well does this live up to the claims, well it has amazing color pay off I mean look at Cherry Cheesecake! The coverage is sheer to medium which is fabulous and they can be worn alone or on top of lipstick like most lip glosses. I think the greatest thing about these glosses are how they nourish the lips. That being said, there are some flaws to this gloss. For instance, though NYX claims they are non-sticky this is false. They in fact are sticky but nothing crazy at first but I did find that they became stickier as the day went on. Another flaw to this gloss is that it does sink into lip lines and will accentuate cracks and flakes so make sure you exfoliate your lips before apply this gloss. They wore on me for about two hours, which I found very impressive.

Apple Strudel described as a peach, but it falls under a pink for myself and has a medium coverage.
Tiramisu described as a brown and has a more sheer coverage. This is my perfect nude gloss.
Cherry Cheese Cake described as an orange and is a sheer-medium coverage. A great shade to test out the orange lip trend, I LOVE this shade.

Over all these glosses are a great value, they run for $5.00 at full price but if you can get them on deal they are close to nothing... seriously I found Cherry Cheesecake in a clearance basket at target and only paid I think a dollar and change [serious bargain]. Now, why would I say I don't think they are worth the hype? That's because they are nothing revolutionary to me. Yes they are revolutionary for the drugstore, but I have tried some high-end glosses that are basically the same thing. So maybe I'm a bit bias but I can understand why all the hype came from because they have the feel of a high-end gloss for a drugstore price tag.

Am I the only one that feels like this or did I go into this with to high of expectations? Let me know in the comments below.

Hope you all have a lovely day!
xoxo Franchesca

imPress Press-On Manicure

LORAC Pro Palette

UniVoxBox!