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Josie Maran (or any brand): Argan Oil Review

Claims: This 100% Pure Argan Oil is a legendary oil that's rich in vitamin E and essential fatty acids, and grown organically in Morocco. With its multitasking benefits, Argan Oil can be used for many areas including hydrating and nourishing skin, as a daily moisturizer, skin treatment, treating spilt ends, and softening cuticles. It's gentle enough to use on all skin types and is believed to help with skin conditions including acne. Argan Oil easily absorbs into skin to give you a youthful, dewy glow, and has astonishing healing, conditioning, and antiaging properties to keep your skin and hair nourished and revitalized and to keep you looking beautiful from head to toe. (Sephora)

Opinion: I recieved a sample of Josie Maran: Argan Oil a while back and was a bit afraid to try oil on my already oily face. If your skin is on the drier side, this oil can be applied directly on the face and will soak in pretty quickly but with oily or combination skins, there is always that icky feeling whenever the moisture on ones face seems too much. This oil will sink in after a few minutes and is best applied at night when shininess is no worry.

I realized that mixing in a few drops of argan into my daily moisturizer will decrease the feeling of oil going directly onto the face. After letting my face lotion soak in, I noticed dry patches decreased and my skin hydrated without the yucky feeling. After a few days of using this there was a greater difference such as softness and smoothness of my overall complexion. Success!

Price: $48

Size: 1.7
Rating: 5/5

Loccitane Original Hand Cream Review

Claims: Enriched with 20% Shea Butter, this super-creamy balm penetrates quickly to protect, nourish and moisturize hands. Honey, almond extracts and coconut oil are blended with Shea Butter to create this extremely effective formula. The rich texture leaves hands soft and smooth with no oily traces, and can be applied as often as needed.

Opinion: This Loccitane Original hand cream is a decent find. I got my hands on a travel size when they were offering them for free at Loccitane. The first thing you notice when applying this lotion would be the strong baby powder smell which dissipates after a few minutes. The application is on the greasy side but is hydrating for those really dry hands. All in all a decent cream and a nice addition to ones travel bag.

Rating: 3.5/5

Price: $10 (10 ml)

Carols Daughter: Ecstasy Shea Soufflé

Claim: Lightweight and non-greasy, each emollient-rich soufflé leaves dry to extra-dry skin feeling soft, supple and smelling delightfully divine. Moisturizing never felt so good! 

Opinion: I received Carols Daughter: Ecstasy Shea Soufflé in my Glossy Box a few months back and have been using it on and off for a two months or so. The lotion is true to it's claims! It is the only body lotion that I find non-greasy on my body and is the best remedy for my extra dry skin after a long hot shower. After using the lotion, even my hands are left with a soft moisturized feeling. The scent of this product is amazing hence the name ecstasy I am guessing... it smells of strawberries and cream mostly with a bit of other tropical scents mixed in. 

Rating: 5/5

Price: $13.50 (4 oz.)

Pangea Organics Facial Scrub - Egyptian Geranium with Adzuki Bean & Cranberry

Claims: for all skin types

This dual-action scrub polishes the skin's surface without disrupting its delicate balance. Never harsh, drying or stripping, this Scrub is gentle enough for daily use.

Enzymatic exfoliants work to dissolve expired skin cells while mechanical exfoliants gently free them up to be rinsed away. Raw, ground-up adzuki bean has been used in skin preparations for centuries in Japan. It provides gentle, manual exfoliation while its astringent properties help clarify and tighten pores. Both cranberry seed and geranium oil offer skin-brightening attributes, which assist with reducing hyper-pigmentation (dark spots due to sun exposure and past acne breakouts). The ingredients in this Scrub nourish the skin with antioxidants that scavenge free-radicals and optimize cellular function, resulting in more radiant skin and increased cell turnover.

Opinion: This scrub definitely does what they say it is suppose to do. I use this scrub every other day in the shower and it leaves my skin smooth, free from flakiness and dryness, without it being stripped from all the oil or moisture. The scent is definitely a fruity cranberry which leaves me feeling hungry some of the time. The texture is a grainy feeling, not the beaded scrubs which some people may or may not prefer. I love the fact that this product is mostly natural which cuts down on the chemicals I am putting on myself. Last but not least, this is one of the only products that I have finished. Thumbs up to using everything up! This scrub will last you about half a year using it 2-3 times a week.

Rating: 4/5

Price: $32

Bioderma: Crealine H20

I have been on the hunt for the best face cleanser/ wash that doesn't require actually scrubbing my face and splashing water from the faucet like those beauty commercials. Here comes Bioderma! Many great things were said about this product and I had to give it a try. I got the sensitive skin formula, the pink bottle.The solution to cleansing the face without wasting tons of face wipes and water.

As you first put this on a cotton pad, make sure you do not dump the liquid on because it tends to spill all over everything. The dispensing system would work much better if it was a pump or spray instead of just a regular cap with a hole.

As you apply the cotton pad to the face, you will feel an icy or refreshing feeling which makes me think the product is doing its job, it does not sting the skin or the eyes. You will need to use more than one pad to cleanse off the face fully if more makeup is involved. Waterproof mascara is taken off easily with no hard rubbing needed. This does take off most of the makeup but if you want a deeper cleanse, you will need to use a face wash after to get the rest of the dirt off. This is also a great wake me up in the morning to wash off all the oils produced when you were sleeping the night before.

After my face has dried from the wash, it leaves my skin soft and only a bit drying around my really dry  patches. Apply moisturizer and you're done for the day. :)

Rating: 4/5

Price: ~$33 (500 ml) 

OC8 Professional Mattifying Gel

I received the OC8 Mattifying Gel in my September Glossybox, I have got to say that this is my new go to product for mattifying and priming the face before I load on the make up. It leaves a smooth surface for product application and helps control my oily face for at least 5-6 hours but not 8 hours as it claims. The product is gel based which makes it feel drying but yet feels moisturizing at the same time. (hard to describe) I personally have never tried mattifying products before but this is definitely worth trying for oily skin. I only wished that this product did not contain parabens. The smell may be a little chemically but it goes away after it dries. 

Rating: 4/5

Price: ~$26 (1.6 oz)

Free Loccitane Hand Cream (Facebook)

Loccitane is giving away a free 10 ml hand cream when you sign up for their emails on their facebook page. If they reach 500k likes by mid October than they will upgrade the freebie to a 30 ml hand cream. Emails for the freebie will be sent in mid October. Happy liking!

Free Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil Sample (Facebook)

Shu Uemura is giving away 2,000 0.13 fl. oz. samples every day until August 27th, 2012 to American Facebook Fans. If you don't get one today, come back and try tomorrow.