Review: Gillette Venus Swirl Razor #ChooseToSmooth

So I’ve seen this razor in stores for monnnthhhsss now and just couldn’t bring myself to bite the bullet.

I’ve tried lots of razors and had basically given up on the expensive ones. The shave I would get just did not justify the price tag! In my mind I might as well stick with the moderate priced ones. A Shave is a shave right?

Well maybeeeeee not….

When I was given the chance to try the Gillette Venus Swirl Razor I thought ok, lets see, anotherrrr one. I didn’t bother to do my usual routine of waiting till the end of my shower when my pores are nice and open and then exfoliating to remove the dead skin cells and soften my skin for a better shave.

I just went for it! I wanted a truly unbiased opinion on the quality of the shave.

Annnddd I lie to you not! It was the best shave I EVER had! I can only imagine how much better it would be with my full routine.

I used the razor in conjunction with the violet swirl shave cream. I honestly expected the razor to have more range of movement. With the big silver ball I thought it would rotate and swivel all the way around. Although it didn’t it was necessary that it did! The range of movement was just enough that the skin contact remained through out the shave.

Would I #ChooseToSmooth again?

YESSS

Would I recommend it?

YES!

___

The initial razor with one cartridge retails for about $9-10

The refill pack of five cartridges retails for about $20

*I received this product free for testing purposes. All opinions are honest and my own. I only share products I love on my blog!

Review: Cutex Advanced Revival Nail Polish Remover Pads

So I loveeeeee nail polish!

I feel like it’s such an easy way to express yourself and its something you can change everyday if you want. Nail polish makes your rings look more poppin, your extravagant gestures come alive and all around it just makes you feel good!

Because I love polish so much that means I’m changing it quite often. I hate chips and raggedy polish. 😦 So when I got the chance to review these Cutex nail polish remover pads I was game!

I personally loveeeeee wearing press on nails and it’s time that I redid them so I’m going to try these pads on my natural nail and the fake nail to see how it works in both instances.

The claim:

“Cutex Advanced Revival Nail Polish Remover Pads, complete with Black Currant, Flaxseed, and Apricot Kernel botanical oils, strengthens and nourishes your nails while quickly removing polish.

One pad cleans all 10 nails!  These portable and convenient felt pads allow you to remove nail polish whenever and wherever you desire.”

The 3 count box retails for $1.49!

The experience:

So the pads are individually wrapped. Inside I found one pad, that was a very nice thick felt material. There was plenty of the polish remover solution on the pad to remove the polish on ALL of my nails.

My natural nail did not feel stripped or dry after use!

The fake nails held their integrity, I didn’t experience any breakdown of the material which is awesome and the polish came off very easy.

All in all I give this two thumbs up!

Maybelline #BetterSkinChallenge!!

Sooooo I was given the opportunity to participate in the Maybelline 3 weeks to better skin challenge courtesy of Influencer! Yay!

The challenge 

Use the SuperStay Better Skin: Skin Transforming Foundation exclusively for three weeks straight!

The Claim

“It’s longwear foundation that improves skin’s appearance every minute you’re in it.
With the antioxidant power of Actyl-C, a more durable form of vitamin C.
For all skin types. Medium to full coverage.

Superstay Better Skin Foundation gives an all-day flawless coverage and better-looking skin in 3 weeks. The foundation reduces the appearance of spots, dullness and uneveness and gives you a brighter, more even and stress-free skin.”

My Thoughts

Typically on a day to day basis I use the Maybeliine Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm Skin Perfector. Which has Titanium Dioxide  Sunscreen in broad spectrum SPF 30, which I love because I do live in the dessert and the temps get up to 115 degrees in the summer! That, plus clear blue cloudless skies, means no break from the sun and its essentialllll that I’m protecting my skin from the harsh elements. I also like the BB cream because its oil free which is a must for me because I have a tendency to get really oily on my cheeks and in my t-zone so I don’t need anything extra added. lol

So as I mentioned I was sent a complimentary full size bottle of the SuperStay Better Skin: Skin Transforming Foundation in the color Nude Beige 25! I was verrrryyy happy to see that it, not only, is oil free but also has titanium dioxide sunscreen SPF 15, which is awesome!

In case you don’t know titanium dioxide sunscreen is a physical sunscreen which actually reflects UVA and UVB rays opposed to chemical sunscreens that work by allowing the rays to hit the skin before being absorbed and turned into non-damaging rays. Ekkkk, thats a no no!

Knowing that the foundation I would be using had the key things I look for in my facial make-up I started on my 3 week challenge with no worries. 🙂 I’m two weeks in and so far I must say it does do what it claims to do!

I must first admit though that since this was sent to me by Influenster ( and they did a pretty darn good job matching it to my skin) I’m not sure that nude beige 25 is the perfect match for me. It is a little chalky looking so it’s hard for me to say with certainty that they don’t all do that unless I was able to have done a swatch test of other colors.

Bare face on the left.  SuperStay Better Skin: Skin Transforming Foundation on the right. 

Top:  SuperStay Better Skin: Skin Transforming Foundation.

Bottom: Maybeliine Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm Skin Perfector.

(Notice difference in color)

Anyway moving on, I find that I do have to moisturize well underneath the foundation. Unlike my BB cream which hydrates my skin as one of the 8 benefits, this foundation will leave my skin looking dry and thirsty unless I use a cream moisturizer first. Which isn’t a HUGE deal, but for someone like me who fights with oily skin, sometimes too many products just makes my situation worse. I find the less I can use on my face the better.

With that in mind the SuperStay Better Skin: Skin Transforming Foundation offers nice coverage. Maybelline suggest applying it in a thin layer, doing so offers medium coverage, that is without a doubt, is buildable if you desire fuller coverage!

As far as breakouts go, I haven’t experienced anything out of the ordinary, I def do not feel like the foundation added any skin issues.

So far after using this for 2 weeks I have noticed that my skin does appear more even and even my under eye dark circles have diminished! Whattttt!? That is amazing! I have been struggling with under eye circles for a while and have yet to find a remedy that helped reduce them. I’m thinking that its the Actyl-C (more durable form of vitamin C) that is doing the trick. I have never been one to shy away from going bare face in public but now I can step out even more confident without anything on my face, which is a great feeling.

I’m excited to see what this last week does for my skin. I’ll be posting a final results video on my Youtube channel so be sure to check back for my update! 🙂

* I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.