Clarisonic Skincare brush

Contents: Pink Clarisonic brush, Sensitive brush head + cover for travel, 120V charger, and 3 cleansers.




One each for oily, normal, and dry/sensitive skin types:




Two lights on the back indicate when it is being charged:




Claims (from the website)

"Clarisonic is the sonic technology proven to gently yet effectively loosen dirt and oil to clear your pores. The Clarisonic Skin Care Brush uses a patented sonic frequency of more than 300 movements per second to clean, soften and smooth your skin. In just 60 seconds a day, the Clarisonic micro-massage action cleans more than twice as effectively as manual cleansing.

In addition to cleaner skin with the Clarisonic, you’ll notice a reduction in the appearance of pores, improved skin tone, a reduction in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and improved absorption of serums and moisturizers.

Clarisonic offers a safe, gentle and natural way to cleanse your skin without any harsh abrasion or chemicals."

Price
US$195 / CAD$217

Types available
White, Pink, Graphite (via Clarisonic.com). Sephora also has a Christmas package for the white colour which includes a Kinerase product.

There are also 3 types of brush heads available (US$25). The kit comes with the Sensitive version, but you can buy the Normal or Delicate heads from the website / Sephora / some department stores.

How it works
I apply my cleanser of choice over my face first, before turning the brush on and gently massaging it over my face one area at a time. It has an automatic timer set for 60 sec in total. Within the 60 secs it pauses momentarily to allow you to switch the brush to different portions of the face.

Its supposed to be gentle enough to be used as a daily cleansing brush. I've been using it twice daily without any problems. In the mornings I use a gentle cleanser (either the Clarisonic one or the Dove Sensitive skin wash). For evenings I use DHC Washing Powder or Bliss Clog Dissolving Cleansing Milk. If I wear makeup that day though I'll remove it first with cleansing oil before using the Clarisonic + face wash.

The brush is completely waterproof so it can be used in the shower as well.

One thing I noticed about my Neutrogena Rejuvenator and also the Wave is that they vibrate at really annoying frequencies (it actually makes my ears uncomfortable when using it). However with the Clarisonic that doesn't happen at all. The brush vibrations also feel much gentler than the Neutrogena versions.

I remember getting a question on whether it was equivalent to the method of using an electric toothbrush to exfoliate. The Clarisonic is definitely much gentler to your skin than the toothbrush would be. As for effectiveness I don't know since I was too afraid to use the electric toothbrush again after the first try.

Other observations
The brush stays charged quite long. I used it for over a week, twice a day without putting it back in its charger and it was still going strong. However the best place to store it is still the charger. The brush head is quite heavy so its hard to find anywhere else to let it dry properly.

Also the brush head looks larger than drugstore cleansing systems such as Neutrogena Wave, but the outermost ring of bristles don't move. Only the black bristles and whatever's inside vibrates, so it has about the same "cleansing area". Apparently the outermost ring is to help prevent water from splashing all over the place while in use (unlike say an electric toothbrush)

Results
I was afraid the brush might be too abrasive but thats not the case. The sonic vibrations are surprisingly gentle and don't irritate my skin at all. In contrast the Neutrogena Rejuvenator made my skin a bit red after cleaning.

My skin definitely felt cleaner after using the brush. It also feels smoother and a bit more radiant in general, because its like a little bit of gentle exfoliation everyday. I don't get much dry spots anymore, and my moisturizer is definitely doing a better job than before.

However I am a bit disappointed that I didn't see a reduction in the number of blackheads / whiteheads so far. From one of the demo videos they made it look like the vibrations would vibrate the gunk out of your pores, haha but that didn't happen. I still got the same number of blackheads and whiteheads, and I do still get a few breakouts here and there.

Pros
- cleans skin very thoroughly
- suprisingly gentle, much more than using an electric toothbrush
- helps moisturizer / lotions / serums work better
- built in timer prevents you from overexfoliating (unlike drugstore brands)

Cons
- does not reduce the size of pores that much
- does not clear pores as claimed
- pricey, plus brush heads have to be replaced every 3 months
- not very travel friendly, the brush is large and a bit heavy
- charger is only for 120V, so you can't use it in countries that do 240V unless you get something to change the current

Overall
It does help with cleansing your skin, but may not be enough to justify the price tag. If you already have a great skincare routine that works, then you will find this unnecessary. However if you have problematic skin and are looking for a way to cleanse more effectively and thoroughly, give it a try.

If you want to try it, I would strongly suggest getting it from Sephora or somewhere with a great customer satisfaction policy. That way if you end up not liking it you can still return it. Also according to Sephora I can bring it back at any time if it malfunctions, so I much prefer that over having to ship it back to Clarisonic to be repaired.


p.s. I replied to questions/comments in the previous post :)

Some Japanese goodies!

Recently I was fortunate enough to have Nic Nic do a CP for me :) She also sent me her Sana concealer to try! Thank you Nic :D

• Sana concealer in Light Yellow
• Lunasol Geminate liner (most expensive liner ever but I got it because it looks so good on Fuz!)
• Kate Super Sharp liner in BK-1
• Esprique Dress On Moist Rouge in RO610 (because of Row's swatches)

So far I've tried only the concealer. The texture is nice, it doesn't crease at all (almost all concealers do that to me), however the coverage tends to be sheer. It reminds me more of a highlighter/eye brightener than a full coverage concealer but I will have to use it a few more times before I can give a proper verdict on it.




I also got some Majolica Majorca goodies in the mail lately courtesy of Paris B. from My Women Stuff! She had a giveaway a couple months ago and I entered completely last minute, within the last hours of the deadline...and somehow I won :) Thank you Paris! :D

• Majolica Majorca eyeshadow in GR185
• Majolica Majorca gloss in PK384
• and a super handy cellphone pouch :)

The eyeshadow is pigmented and easily blendable, I actually find the texture better than the Majolook palette I got this spring. The lipgloss is sticky, but the staying power is good and it has really nice shimmers in it.




Finally, today's outfit:





Black knit top, H&M
Brocade olive gold skirt, Forever 21
Sheer black tights, Life Brand (lol)
Black leather boots, Browns

Layered a denim jacket (pictured) and black wool coat (not pictured) over it before going out.



The skirt is new :) I was waiting impatiently for it to get on the Canadian website since spotting it on the US F21 site. Only thing is it feels a bit tight :/...probably because of the high waisted cut as well.

I haven't worn these boots in ages...the last time I wore them was the previous winter so almost 2 years ago. Mostly because these aren't very comfortable. They feel fine initially but after a couple of hours my feet will hurt depending on how much walking is being done. Then again though I do have problematic feet...I'm getting some custom made orthopaedic inserts soon to help with my foot issues.

The metal stuff around the ankle is actually on a removeable leather piece, so I could remove it to make them look like regular plain leather boots.

Finally I hope everyone in the US had a great Thanksgiving! 3.5 weeks left to Christmas :)

Shiseido Clean Contrast Eyes SV844

I did this ages ago, meaning to write up a review but didn't get to editing these pictures until now.

The Maquillage Clean Contrast Eyes palettes were released as part of this year's Spring collection:














The colours are sheer as with most Japanese makeup.

- Sheer white with some glitter
A bit glittery so a light hand is needed to apply it

- Matte cool lilac
Kinda chalky on its own, looks much better used as a base under the shimmery grey shade

- Shimmery warm grey
My favourite shade. Very unique colour

- Charcoal grey powder liner
Smudges easily...I wouldn't use it without a liquid/gel liner over it to fix it.

This palette was used on the model in the Spring '08 collection promo pictures





I wouldn't have had the slightest clue how to use the purple shade properly if not for A Touch of Blusher's review. She mentioned that the model used the purple shade as a base all over the mobile lid, then layered the shimmery grey on top. The colours are sheer so the grey still allows the purple to show through while adding dimension at the same time.





1. White shade to highlight
2. Purple all over mobile eyelid
3. Warm grey over the purple, blending along the "crease"
4. Charcoal grey as liner






Added some silver glitter liner (Kate gel liner) since the model used it too

La Mer Radiant Infusion, new skincare haul

I picked up a sample of La Mer Radiant Infusion about a month ago. I'd originally asked for a sample of Hydrating Infusion but the SA gave me this instead, and I didn't realise it until later.

These are the claims for this product:



Sounds too good to be true....and it was.

Radiance? Nope
Clarity? Nope
Pore minimizing? Nope
Tone? Nope


What it did though, was prep my skin nicely for the moisturizer. Its similar to Japanese style toners (called "lotions") which are liquids that you spread over your face prior to applying moisturizer. (Check out a great post on Asian-style toners here)

It made my skin more supple, and the moisturizer used afterwards helps lock this moisture in. Granted, the supple feeling is temporary, but it does help my moisturizer feel a lot more effective. Instead of having to use a heavier cream for fall like I usually do, I felt that I could get away with using the Infusion, then a light moisturizer afterwards.

It also has a nice light sea-ish fragrance which adds to the luxurious "I'm using La Mer" feeling lol :D

Overall: Nice, but not necessary. Also remember it does not reduce pores or improve radiance at all - all it does is add a bit of extra moisture to your skin. However there are cheaper products out on the market though that will do that anyway.

Review on Gel de la Mer to come soon!


***

I went to Sephora yesterday to return a few things and got these instead.





DDF Redness Relief gel
Bliss Steep Clean Mask
Bliss Clog Dissolving Cleansing Milk
deluxe sample - Fresh Rose Mask

Reviews on all 3 items were generally positive. Will report back after a month or so, as skincare products supposedly take at 28 days to see an improvement.

Some discount codes

Thank you for all the warm birthday wishes! Much appreciated :)

I have a review coming up next but wanted to post these codes since I haven't seen them posted anywhere else yet.

1. LeSportsac's 25% off Customer Appreciation Sale:




2. Skinstore is offering 20% off storewide:




3. American Apparel has a Friends & Family 15% off discount!

The codes are unique but they do let me forward the offer to 5 other people. I think what happens is they'll give you a different code once you click on the link. Now I'm not sure if that applies to only AA Canada online, or also the AA US site but if you want me to forward it just drop me a note at watercoloursky[at]gmail.com.


I'll probably only use the American Apparel one since the others are US based and will probably not do free shipping to Canada :/

Yet another year older

Some pictures from my birthday a couple of weeks ago:

One of my friends had her birthday the day after mine so our bfs got together and planned the surprise for us.

They booked a karaoke room and went there beforehand to decorate it. My friend and I went there assuming we were just there to hangout and chill for a bit, so we were surprised when we went in and the room was all decorated out :D





They got lots of balloons - helium ones and also blew up lots of regular balloons. We had to remove the decorations before we left, so we had a lot of fun popping the regular ballons before we left, haha. There was bits of balloon spatter all over the walls...fun stuff :P



We should've taken a picture of the room after - it was basically a tiny square room but the guys really changed it up with their efforts :)

After that we did a bunch of things...went for a movie, dinner at a Japanese place before going back to my friends' place to chill.

Me with my cake:



Tiramisu:



My friend had a mango mousse cake:




We split up the helium balloons, these are the ones I took home.



The balloons had really cute weights tied at the bottom to hold them down.




The bf also got me a Fossil watch :)



EOTD from that day using Lunasol's Sheer Contrast Eyes in Lavender Coral:





Sorry no good shots of the makeup that day...I took all these pictures at the end of the day, so my face looked greasy and shiny...not something you wanna see I'm sure.

And my outfit:





I'm all H&M'd out here...

H&M white knit shrug
H&M black knit top with ruched sleeves
F21 satin trim / cotton pleated navy skirt
H&M black tights
B2 brown suede buckle boots
Swarovski starfish pendant necklace

I also curled my hair that day, so it looks more wavy, because I did sorta expect we might go out someplace nice for dinner or something lol so it was worth it, haha.

Some recent favourites + basic FOTD

This has replaced the Nivea Labello Moisture as my HG lipbalm. Labello is great for locking in moisture to protect lips but it doesn't actually ADD moisture to already chapped lips. Also, it doesn't allow lipstick to apply well on top because it feels so greasy.

In contrast the Lip Care balm actually feels protective and moisturizing at the same time. It has a thick creamy consistency that performs well as a base under lipstick in my opinion. The scent is faintly vanilla-ish, which goes well with the usual MAC lipstick scent. (I dislike using fruity balms underneath MAC lipsticks because it just smells funny together...). Bonus - this contains Q10 to nourish lips as well :)




This is one of the few things I would recommend from ELF. The pads remove polish really well and I can usually use 1 pad for just 1 use. It may take 2 if you have a strong topcoat like Seche Vite but still works better than other removers I've tried. The pads are also scented with this citrus scent, it may smell a bit artificial but is still much better than the chemical smells from regular polish removers.

Only complaint is that the container isn't airtight, so it doesn't help keep the pads moist. After a couple months, the pads tend to dry out. They still work if you dampen them a bit with another polish remover, but aren't as effective as before. If they could improve the packaging, this would be an awesome product.




This year's birthday gift from Sephora - Vanilla Cupcake shower gel. It smells fantastic - like baked vanilla cupcakes...I might consider actually buying this if it isn't too expensive. Using it is like having a sinful dessert without the calories :D

Check out the scent description:



***

I've been skimming through a number of Japanese magazines online recently so I felt like doing a more simple look focusing more on the winged liner:

Urban Decay Zero liner
Kiss Me liquid liner in black over UD liner
Maybelline Cool Effect liner in Champagne Ice on lower lashline
Blinc mascara




Shiseido Maquillage Rouge Climax lipstick in PK730
Nivea Lip Care Q10




Everyday Minerals Mint concealer to hide redness
Everyday Minerals Sunlight concealer all over
MAC Emote blush to contour
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in So Ceylon on sides of the face, on cheekbones
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Petticoat on apples of cheekbones

Nars Jolie Poupee eyeshadow duo

Closeup of the product:




Pigmentation is decent, similar to MAC eyeshadows. They are also soft and blendable, even the matte shade blends easily. The shade on the left is a matte bluish purple, while the shade on the right is a shimmery purpley plum.




I tried comparing Jolie Poupee to the some of the purples in my collection:




The matte colour on the left is a lot more unique than I thought. The closest match for it when swatched was ELF's Periwinkle eyeshadow (but ELF has a bluer tone, while Nars has a purplish tone). The shimmery purple was easier. In the pan it looks like MAC Nocturnelle, but when swatched it is more similar to Milani Shock, but still not an exact match.




Quick EOTD with Jolie Poupee duo:



Sorry about the weird concealer job, haha. I was experimenting with a new concealer palette at the same time and didn't realise it was going to show up so much when taking the pics on Foliage mode.




Matte shade on the inner 2/3 of the lid, then the shimmery purple over the outer half of the lid. I added some Maybelline eyeshadow in Make a Move Mauve to highlight the inner corners but its not very obvious.




I think its worth buying if you don't already have similar colours. Also I tried to pack on more colour to show up on camera. but you can definitely use a lighter hand if you prefer a sheerer look.