Auravedic Pure Calming Face Mist

A good face mist is a boon for all those who suffer from dry skin. Although we use dry skin products - sometimes our skin needs hydration after every few hours - specially in winters. Facial Mist is a savior  when you constantly work in an air-conditioned room for the most of the day because staying inside an air conditioned room for most of the day causes our skin to dehydrate. And in such times - a good calming face mist is the only quick solution to fix the problem.

One such mist I will be reviewing today is Auravedic Pure Calming Face Mist.  

Product: Auravedic Pure Calming Face Mist.

Price and Quantity: INR 200/- for 100 ml

What it claims:

This gentle antioxidant Facial mist delivers nourishing moisture to balance and hydrate all skin types. Blended with pure fragrant organic oils, Aloe vera and Green tea to tone and repair skin. This mist is just the thing to keep your skin feeling soft, hydrated and moisturized without looking and feeling oily. Aloe vera soothes and refreshes skin.

Neroli and rose infuse skin with antioxidant nutrients that protect skin against environmental stresses that damage skin. Free of Parabens, SLS, Harmful Chemicals & Colours.

My Experience with the Product:

The mist has really great as it has helped me in the heat of the summers to keep my skin hydrated and fresh.

Close your eyes and spray this mist directly on your face while holding the bottle four to five inches away from your face. I let the mist to sit on my face and allow it to air dry.

Only one spray of the mist is enough to refresh me with its calming smell of roses and hydrate my skin.

I have also used this mist to set my makeup - The mist acts like a finishing spray to set my makeup. It does a good job.

The mist also seals in moisture into the skin and keeps the skin moisturized.

I also experimented by mixing this mist along with my face-pack and I quite liked the results it gave - A subtle nice glowy skin.

The mist is perfect as it is very light, doesn't cause any irritation and most importantly it is not at all greasy.

 I use this mist the instant I step inside the house after facing the heat to instantly cool off my skin.

This facial mist is great skin care aid and a product mixer. Below are some of ways you can use face mist sprays --

• Use it on your face before applying moisturizer to seal in hydration. 
• Use it as a facial mask - (Just like the one I reviewed recently - Neutrogena's Deep Whitening Mask) Apply the mist generously on facial cotton pads and let it sit on your face for 15 mins. 
• Use it to set your makeup. 
• Use it as a mixer for your face packs. 

Love it or Chuck it ? 

Definitely love it !!! I will recommend everyone to pick this product up - It offers great Spa Treatment for your face when you are stressed out !!!  

Please note: The product was sent by the company's PR for consideration.

Lotus Herbal Colour Dew Nail Enamel Crimson Red

I love Red nail paints on my nails !! The shade instantly brightens up my hands and feet. It sorts of uplifts my mood as well when I am down.  Enough of jabbering ..lets get to my take on Lotus Herbals Color Dew Nail Enamel in Crimson Red.

This Nail enamel came as a  part of the recently launched Gorgeous Natural Diva kit from Lotus Herbals. I have already reviewed the lipstick HERE.

I already posses few shades from The Color Dew Range and I have never been disappointed by them. These nails enamels are excellent in quality - They go on smoothly over your nails and give that lustrous glossy application.

These nail enamels unlike others are free from Toluene , Formaldehyde and DBP which is great because being a research student I regularly work with solvents like Toluene and Formaldehyde - Hence I know how harmful these solvents can be if in case they are ingested or inhaled accidentally.

Crimson Red is a perfect Bright Cherry Red color. It finishes off as a glossy color on your hand and toe nails. The staying power of these nail enamels is excellent - It easily stays without chipping for 4 days. The texture of the nail enamel is runny and although one coat of this shade is enough, two coats of the shade will give you an opaque and longer lasting finish.

I will recommend this shade to everyone who is looking to give a bright and glam look to your hands and feet. You will definitely love it ... Try it once !! Go Red !!!

Please Note: The product was sent by the company's PR for consideration.

Relax Yourself ! : Oriflame's Swedish Spa Exfoliating Massage Bar.

I had picked up few soaps from Oriflame during my first purchase as a consultant. They were lying safely in my cupboard until I noticed them and took out one to see how they were....

I had never tried a Massage Soap Bar before so this was my first time ....Swedish Spa Exfoliating Massage Bar comes in a transparent packaging bag which houses a baby blue soap with brown scrub granules.

I had reviewed Makari 's Exfoliating Soap Bar long time back - Here. This massage bar, however, is quite different than the Makari one... The massage bar doesn't have too many exfoliating granules making it more skin friendly.

The soap is priced at 89 INR for 100 gms. The soap has a very refreshing smell which tends to linger on for a while. The soap is therapeutic - long, smooth strokes on your body will instantly calm your body down and provide relief from stress.

The granules will mildly scrub away dead skin - revealing fresh and smooth skin with constant regular usage.
The soap lathers well and doesn't dry out your skin. I only wish Oriflame comes up with a range of massage bar soaps with different fragrances.

I would recommend this massage bar soap to anyone who wishes to treat themselves with a spa session at home. This product is an inexpensive alternative to exorbitant spa sessions. 

Online Shopping Experience: Makeupshades.com

YES !!  I hauled again - - I shopped from Makeupshades - another Indian website which caters to us makeup freaks !! Its so good to see so many Indian online shopping websites coming up.

Before I narrate the experience, a brief overview about Makeupshades---

Who are we
Makeupshades is an online cosmetic store based out of National Capital Region. Our aim is to deliver rich variety of branded cosmetic and makeup products at the customer's doorstep.

Makeup shades aims to help both women and men to get vast collection of beauty products thus helping our customers explore new looks in this glamorous world. Inspired by the who s who of the fashion world, Makeup shades helps women in not only getting the trendsetting products online but provides numerous make up tips that helps women to display their own beauty and persona

Great Offers and Discounts
We offer variety of products from different brands with attractive discounts and best offers. Our association with major brands offers our customers to feel rich shopping experience thus enhancing customer delight.

Our endeavour is to achieve customer satisfaction by introducing many exciting offers periodically thus adding to customer pleasure so keep visiting us to learn more.

Secure Shopping
We guarantee you a secure shopping experience on our Online Store. All information entered by you on these pages will be kept strictly in confidence and will not be sold for commercial gains. Our payment partners and shipping partners ensure a safe and comfortable shopping experience for you.

My Experience with the Website -- 

The site is very user friendly - easy layout which anyone can easily cruise through the site and have a look at all the things the site has to offer.
The site has very limited brands to offer -  Revlon, Maybelline, Olay, Lotus, Garnier, Tips and Toes, Lakme and Colorbar. I was pleasantly surprised to see Tips and Toes !!! I haven't seen sites selling products from this brand.
Another thing I observed was that full range of products aren't available in each brand but nonetheless- however products they have -- They offer nice discounts on each of them.
After registering on the site - I tried placing my order on 9th January but for some reason the voucher code didnt work out and I couldnt place the order.
The next day, their customer care services called me up asking why I didn't place my order or was there any problems while shopping from their site. I found their customer care service quite prompt to provide solutions.
The next day I placed my order - 10th January. I learnt that they dont charge shipping on orders above 300 Rupees - which is also good.
I was surprised to see that my things reached me safely on 12th January itself. The goods were delivered in perfect condition. The packaging was perfect and sturdy. Products came wrapped in bubble paper inside a cardboard box.

The site does not offer COD option on all the cities yet. I do hope they plan to introduce more brands and offer COD payment option on all the cities.
All in all , Its a good site if you wish to buy something small or if you want to buy Tip and Toes products.. :) 

Please Note: I was offered a voucher to shop from the website but I have expressed my honest opinion.

Lakme Fruit Moisture Winter Care Lotion - Honey & Avocado.

Hello Girls ... I am back !!! The trip was wonderful and I had lots of fun in the wedding too... I had been to Gujarat for my cousin's wedding and the weather there was same as Mumbai but the nights were slightly chilled - Which was just the way I like it !!!

Earlier I was using Lakme's Fruit Moisture Technology Peach Milk Moisturizer, but the hydration which lotion provided to my skin was not enough - I had to re-apply lotion by evening because my skin become dry by the afternoon time. Hence I decided to switch to Lakme's Winter Care Lotion with Honey & Avocado during my trip.

I assumed the winter care lotion will be rich in texture and provide my skin with better moisturization. Read on to find out how the lotion fared on my list ---

Product:Lakme Fruit Moisture Winter Care Lotion - Honey & Avocado.
Price: 139 INR
Quantity: 120 ml

What the company claims?

Fruit Moisture Honey & Avocado Winter Care Lotion with Nutriv moisture Technology -A breakthrough deep moisturizing technology that is a blend of 9 Hydrating Agents

Essential vitamins 1 anti oxidant & 1AHA

Seeps into your skin’s deepest layers to replenish and revive parched skin.Experience deeply moisturized skin for 12 hours long.

Usage: 
Use everyday over cleansed skin for optimal results. Suitable for all skin types. 

My Take on the Product: 


The lotion comes in a stylish cream bottle with a flip cap top which dispenses light peach colored lotion. The bottle is travel friendly and quite sturdy. 


The lotion is slightly fragrant. It is somewhat similar to that of Honey and Avocado Winter Care cream which I have reviewed it earlier HERE. It smell is not over empowering and tends to linger on for a while. Also the fragrance is not as artificial as the Peach Milk Moisturizer I had used before 


The lotion is neither creamy thick nor liquid and runny. The consistency is just right. It sinks right into your skin and provides just the amount of hydration that our skin needs in this winter season. 

The lotion is not as rich as a body butter but it does provides moisturization for more than 6 hours.


Applying the lotion right after you step out of a shower is a BliSS !! The fragrance lingers on and your skin is instantly soft fresh and moisturized. 


The lotion also kinda precipitates after continuous usage over the week - I don't like cleaning up the mess that accumulates at the mouth of  the bottle.


Again this lotion has all the four "Carbon" atoms parabens i.e methyl (1 Carbon), Ethyl (2 Carbon), Butyl ( 4 Carbon) and Propyl (3 Carbon) PARABENS.  I still don't get the point of importance of using so variety of paraben compounds in one product.



Also the lotion lacks SPF .. so you need to apply separate sunscreen. 




Love it or chuck it ? 

It is perfect lotion for Mild Winters. Worth trying once !! Might not work for very dry skinned people though... 


Please Note: The product was gifted by the company for consideration.

Lakme Fruit Moisture Strawberry Kiwi and Passion Fruit Night Cream Review

I had mentioned before that Lakme Launched its New Fruit Moisture Range of Products before winter- HERE. Amongst the range of products belonging to this range, Lakme Fruit Moisture Night Cream was one of them.


Being Honest, I am not regular user of night creams. I have combination skin and I avoid using any kind of cream on my face because it turns my face into a frying pan in a matter of 2 hours. I am too tired by the end of the day to wash my face and then apply night cream regularly on my face before retiring to bed. 


There are very few good days when I have ample of time to fool around - when I religiously pamper my face before going to bed. My pampering session includes the WORKS - cleansing,toning, moisturising( thats when I apply the night cream), followed by application of under eye cream and then retiring to bed. 


I had used Lakme Fruit Moisture Skin Renewal Night Cream before - which badly broke me out. Hence I was very cautious using this night cream on my face.  


Here's How the product fared on my skin--- 

Product: Lakme Fruit Moisture Strawberry Kiwi and Passion Fruit Night Cream
Price & Quantity: 130 INR for 50 gms

What the Company claims: 
Fight Winter Dryness while you sleep with Lakmé Strawberry Night Crème
Wake up to youthful skin with this ultra-nourishing blend of juicy strawberries, 4 Hydrating Agents & 1 Anti-oxidant. Formulated with Nutritiv Moisture Technology, it works with your skin’s natural night-time revival process and implants your cells with moisture for 12-long hours. So when you wake up after a good night’s sleep, you skin will look nourished and youthful.


Usage and Ingredients:

First Look at the Product: 
The Night Cream comes in a white tub- like packaging which has a twist cap top. The cream is light pink in colour. Quite similar to the old Lakme Skin Renewal night cream. 

My Experience with the Product: 
The moment you open the tub - you are first to notice the smell of the cream is which strongly of fruity strawberry smell. The smell tends to linger on for a while. 
The texture of the cream is slightly on the heavier side which is a BIG NO-NO for people with combination skin tone like mine. 
I used this cream for a week - And by the end of 2 days I got 3 breakouts. THANK U for that !! Just when my skin had started becoming clear I had to curse myself for experiment with thick creams again !! 
The first day I applied the cream - I noticed the cream sinks into your skin and keeps your skin moisturised well throughout the night. 
Since the cream was good at keeping skin moisturised, I went overboard into using it every night in hopes of doing some wonder on my skin. 
But by the third day - the cream broke me out and I stopped using it immediately.
I guess the cream will work better with people with dry skin. 
The product is fairly priced and will last long. Also it is travel- friendly. 


Love it or Chuck it ? 
Of course I will Chuck it !!  I am planning to giveaway this cream to my friend with dry skin tone. For people with oily/combination skin tone I would recommend using Himalaya Night Cream.


Please Note: The product was given by the company for consideration. 

Clear Skin Is Three Steps Away: My Experience with Proactiv

We all are troubled by acne at some point of our lives - For most of the people it's when they were at their early teens. However, I was not troubled by acne during my teen years - I basked in the glory of having clear skin while the rest of friends were troubled with acne. It was later, recently, past one or two years that acne was troubled me and have been frequent visitors to teach me the lesson on how my friends felt.

My dermatologist suggested me for glycolic peels but I shuddered at the thought of having glycolic acid on my face and to top it all - I am to refrain myself from roaming anywhere outside for two - three days - JUST STAY HOME - keep washing my face and apply sunscreen every two hours - To see myself shedding my skin Like a SNAKE !!  ewww !!!!

I decided to stick to creams and ointments instead. All the creams and ointments which were prescribed were slow and steady process. Just when I got rid of one acne that kept bothering me for week - BAM!! He left behind a new fella for me to tackle by the time he was gone... BACK TO SQUARE ONE !!

FIRST LOOK AT THE KIT -
Just when I was loosing hope I was offered to a product review on Proactiv Products and I can't stop thanking my stars for the day I started using Proactiv.

Proactiv offered me a starter kit which consisted of basic three products in the Solutions kit.
These are -- Renewing Cleanser
                    Revitalizing Toner
                    Repairing Treatment Lotion.

In addition to the above products - I also got a Refining Mask. I will be reviewing the mask later on.

When I first got the kit, I was worried about TWO THINGS -
Firstly, My face is not fully covered with acne. I do suffer from acne every now and then but I usually get 2- 3 acne or comedones in a particular area on my face.  I had always seen Proactiv ads on Tv  showing people who are majorly troubled with severe acne cases. I had doubt on the products because they seemed to be strong in action and whether it will ruin my skin.

Secondly, I had heard a lot of people saying that once you stop using Proactiv your skin will be prone to severe acne. I had also heard that people who dont have too much acne will be experiencing new breakouts !!

In short, I was petrified as HELL to let these products touch my face...

THE BEGINNING -- 

Nevertheless, After reading and re- reading and going through all the instructions thoroughly I started using the basic three products. I stuck to using the products ONCE DAILY.

Below are the instructions on how to use these products---

My Take On RENEWING CLEANSER--

The Renewing Cleanser is a white colored cleanser which has medicated smell to it. The cleanser has a beady rough texture to it. This is because of micro crystals of medicinal ingredient in the product  - 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide. The Benzoyl Peroxide functions as a aid in acne relief.
The formulated Cleanser with tiny round beads helps in exfoliating the skin, removing dead skin cells and cleansing the skin of acne causing bacteria.
I use to apply the Cleanser on wet face and let it sit for a minute for the medicine to properly reach into my pores and cleanse them.
The first time I used it - The product causes a tingling sensation on your skin. That is because of the volume of benzoyl peroxide in the cleanser which trigger sensitive responses.

Caution - After you are done with the cleanser, Be sure to rinse the face thoroughly with water so excess product doesn't remain on your skin.



My Take On REVITALIZING TONER--

The Revitalizing Toner is the next step of the regimen. It comes as a light green colored solution in a transparent flip cap top bottle.
The first time I used the toner I experienced tingling sensations again on my face. Looking at the ingredients of the toner - I noticed it had glycolic acid as its component in the product. Glycolic acid is also known in management of acne - As in, It prevents buildup of acne scars. Also the toner helped in drying out the skin and glycolic acid decreased the capability of dead cell skin to mix with skin lipids. This weakens their bond and smooth skin layer is gained by stripping away dead cells.
  
Caution-- Allow the skin to breathe for sometime after applying cleanser. Then after sometime, Use cotton ball to apply toner on your face. Let it sit for 2 mins and allow it to dry. Do not rinse your face after applying toner.


 My Take On REPAIRING LOTION--

Lastly, Repairing Lotion is to be applied on the affected areas. This lotion comes in a smaller bottle with a flip cap. It is a white colored lotion in which the main ingredient is benzoyl peroxide.
The moment you apply this lotion - It STINGS you like hell !! The texture of the lotion is very light and it is easily absorbed into your skin. The lotion wont leave your skin greasy but yes ! You will feel tingling sensation for a while after applying the lotion. The sensation subsides after few minutes of application. Do not rinse your face after application of the lotion.
  
The JOURNAL --
Along with the kit, I was provided with a journal to keep a track on changes of the skin in the coming weeks. The journal requires you to record the changes you notice thru the period of 4-6 weeks of continuously using Proactiv Products.

Below are the changes that I observed on my skin ---

FIRST DAY USING PROACTIV -- I have oily skin, with acne on my chin area, around the nose and 3-4 acne on both of my cheeks. I have just started using proactive ONCE DAILY on my entire face.

WEEK TWO -- After using Proactiv for one week over the entire face, my skin around the nose had become very very dry. The toner and the cleanser caused my skin to become flaky and dry. The skin on my cheek area was less drier than that around the nose. This was resolved by applying moisturizer after using Repairing Lotion.
Since the products were causing skin drying to large extent, I decided to use all the three products ONLY ON THE AFFECTED AREAS OF MY SKIN.

WEEK FIVE-- After using Proactiv for five weeks now, I saw new comedones emerging on my forehead area. Also I saw a large pimple around my nose which did not seem to go away. It was then I stuck to my three step process ONCE daily and in addition to that , I started applying the repairing lotion TWICE. Once during the day time and then before going to bed. 

WEEK EIGHT TO THE PRESENT DAY--
After using Proactiv products for 8 weeks now, My skin has cleared out a lot !! I was not affected by severe acne hence I will recommend people like me to apply the three products ONLY ON AFFECTED AREAS AND NOT TO THE ENTIRE FACE. I also got rid of my stubborn acne around the nose just recently. My blemishes are also started disappearing which is quite a surprise. 

Proactiv is very convenient to use. Plenty of people might be captivated by the concept that Proactiv can make your skin worst. Some might say once you stop using the products - Acne will come back on your skin lot worst. Personally I have not yet experienced this. All in all, I am quite satisfied with the results Proactiv has shown on my face.

My friend also suggested me to use A MILDER VERSION OF PROACTIV PRODUCTS which are suited for people like me who do not have severe acne problem.

You can check out Proactiv Products HERE. The Indian website also allows you to place an order and they also offer Cash On Delivery Option.



Please Note: The product was provided by the company for consideration purposes. 

Maybelline Color Sensational - Plum Paradise - It's all about PLUM dis Season

Hello girls, Today I will be reviewing a lip color I have been using on and off daily since I got it. This is also the First time I will be reviewing a lipstick on my blog - so any mistakes please let me know and please pardon me.  :)

Product: Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick

Shade: 425 Plum Paradise

Price and Quantity: 299 INR for 4.2gms

Swatches: 

My Take On the Product-- 

I had been to Maybelline's Beauty Editors Meet a while back where Maybelline introduced their Plum-tastic range which includes colours from deep wines to berries and plum. At the end of the event we were given goodie basket which had this lipcolor in it - Plum Paradise Shade no. 425.

The first look at the colour and the thought came - I am never going to be able to wear and carry this colour off. The Plum Paradise is a deep plum colour shade with tiny red shimmers in it. It is a great shade for a night out parties or a date night :)

The lip colour sat hidden in my lipstick drawer and was finally pulled out for the first time in Navratri, when I had gone out to play dandiya at night with all my friends.

One swipe on my lips and It instantly gave it a dark plum lips which reminded me of one of aunty's who use to apply this coloured lipstick a lot !!  I instantly ran for a tissue and blotted it on my lip to tone down the colour and then top it off with a gloss.

Volia !! I loved the final result it gave - A soft plum healthy coloured lips with a hint of shimmers on it and the gloss did a wonderful job of accentuating the lips.

The lipstick proves to be very moisturising and does not settle within the fine lines of your lips. It also does not make you lips go all CRACKY  after a while of application !!

It does not bleed from your lips and even if I swipe the lip colour once on my lips - its stays put for good 4 5 hours  even after you had your meals.

All in all - I am daily using this lip colour and Plum shade has certainly changed my mind about using dark and deep shades on my lips.

HAVE YOU TRIED THIS LIP COLOUR YET ????

WHICH COLOR SENSATIONAL LIP COLOR IS YOUR FAVORITE??? 

Himalaya Herbals Lip Butter

One more addition to my collection of lip balms and chapsticks - Himalaya Herbal's lip butter. I have used a variety of lip balms and chapsticks before - but this lip butter is the first one I  have ever used. Hence I was very curious when I received this one for review purposes.

What's the difference between Lip Balms and Lip Butters ? 

The skin that cover's our lips are without the oil glands that prevent drying out the skin so we need to keep them moisturised and healthy at all times.

Lip Balms are more waxy in consistency that help prevent chapping,drying or cracking of lips.

Lip butters are thicker in consistency and contain no artificial ingredients. They are more moisturising than the lip balms.

PRODUCT: Himalaya Herbals Lip Butter
PRICE: 125 INR
QUANTITY: 10 gms

What the product claims? 


A unique and luxurious blend of exotic butters that provides nourishing care,keeping your lips supple,smooth and healthy all day long.

Ingredients:

Cocoa Butter, Sal Butter, Kokum Butter, Mango Butter.

My take on the Product: 


I am a basic kajal, eyeliner and lip balm/gloss person for most of the days. Hence it is obvious I have a stack when it comes to lip balms and chapsticks. 


When I first eyed this product - I was very curious to use it because I had never used a lip butter before. So when I used it for the first time I definitely loved it because it is perfect for winters.

This product comes in a transparent tub like packaging with a green screw cap lid. If you open the lid, inside there's a white lid that fits into the mouth of the tub. It prevents the butter from drying out I guess.

I love the cocoa butter smell of the product.

The consistency of the lip butter is obviously very thick which makes it perfect for winter when my lips dry out immensely. I apply this butter before going to bed every night to find my lips moisturised and soft the next morning.

The lip butter stays on for hours after application which I like !!

The quantity provided is quite a lot - the product will stay for a long time.

What I dislike about the Product: 


The price - It is expensive. Himalaya Herbals generally have affordable products.

You can't apply this lip butter during summers and other season - the thick consistency just won't work out in humid weather of Mumbai.

Also I hated it when it caused my hair to stick to my lip butter on the lips. I found that very irritating.

The product lacks SPF.

I personally do not prefer tub- like packaging. Dipping your fingers into the product is just very messy.



Love it Or Chuck it ? 

I am in a love - hate relationship with this one. WHAT ABOUT YOU ???


Please note: The product was sent by the company's PR for consideration.