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What brands won't you use?
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I will never, ever, use the following the following brands because for some odd reason, their eyeshadows made my eyelids swollen and eventually cracked the skin, leaving me with red, puffy eyes that hurt like mad!
Revlon and Cover Girl
It sucks too because they have some neat products I'd love to try but am very leery of the potential fallout! -
I'm not crazy about Cover Girl. I tried their eye shadow once and it made my eyes burn like crazy.
I'm scared to use Aveeno. I used their facial moisturizer once and developed a case of tiny red bumps all over my face. It wasn't acne, it was like a rash. -
there is nothing in the world that could get me to open a cover girl product. i just will never forget their orange cicle tinged foundations that reeked of noxema back in the 70s. it was the first makeup i purchased as a young teen (oh, please, let me look like chrstie brinkley!)
it was also the first i threw away barely touched. it takes a lot to regain my confidence.
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another line that i won't touch with a ten foot pole is benefit and it pains me to say. i met the ford sisters in the early 80s in san francisco; i learned much of my makeup technique at their patient hands. they owned a handful of makeup boutiques at that time. i adored them, they kept me looking totally spiff throughout my 20s until i chucked the corporate world and went totally organic.
about two years ago, i decided to start playing with makeup again (funny what turning 40 can do to you) and was excited to see their little company has grown and it was the first place i hit in my quest to look 10 years younger. i love supporting woman owned companies and really want these women to succeed, i know how hard they worked. benefit has has been purchased by vuitton in recent years, which is why they are suddenly popping up all over, most notably in macys.
all the good intentions in the world however cannot disguise the heavy handed products and application techniques. although initially pleased with their foundations and concealers, i was soon overcome with a hideous rash and went running to the dermatologist with my first rosacea outbreak.
it took serious medications and weeks to undo the damage of those ingredients on my face. since that time, much of my free time is spent educating myself about rosacea and cosmetic ingredients.
although i returned most of the products, i kept the benetint and high beam. i'm sure that they are both fine products, but my experience was so dismal i'm reluctant to repurchase. also, at this point, i know for a fact that i am better educated on cosmetic application and ingredients than their sales associates and just cannot go along with their program.
(note to moxiehart -- your experience also sounds like a rosacea outbreak which is characterized by small bumps along with rashy, flaky skin.) -
I will not use and will tell everyone to steer clear of ProActive.
I witnessed someone- age 28 mind you- with minimal acne suffer raw, red, peeling skin and cystic acne after less than a week of use. Her face is STILL recovering months after and she is now plagued by the cystic acne which had never occurred previously.
I dislike Revlon's formulas and color palettes, but I have never had an adverse reaction to a skincare/makeup/haircare product except due to my own overuse. -
Funny...I have rosacea too (cleverly called adult acne) while I do use Metrocream (prescription) I have never had trouble with anything other than masks/exfolliants which usually increase the redness of my skin. Especially ZIA products which are supposed to be mild but unless I use very little I am in trouble.
I use Benefit's concealer foundation stick and have been very happy with it. Just lucky I guess. -
(note to moxiehart -- your experience also sounds like a rosacea outbreak which is characterized by small bumps along with rashy, flaky skin.)
I never suspected that, I just thought I was allergic or sensitive to the ingredients. I ended up buying some Cetaphil and it went away in about a week.
The news about Benefit makes me sad. I really love their Benetint lip balm, High Beam, and Dandelion blush. I agree, though, their application suggestions are super tacky. Their lipstick is really dreadful. I bought some because it was half off during one of their sales. The color was nice but it was really, really dry, and gave me Old Lady Lips (Really dry, cracked, and heavily pigmented). That was disappointing, especially because they made all these claims about how moisturizing their lipsticks were. -
Urban Decay Eyeshadow Transforming Potion. Cost a lot (forgot how much).
You mix it with your favorite color powders like eyeshadow, and it makes a little bit liquid so you can use it as an eyeliner or whatever. One side has a thin brush, the other a wide brush. great idea but...
Burned the hell out of my eyes! -
Anonymousblonde:
I totally agree with Pro Active. I had started using it a few years back. I rarely used it, maybe 2 times a week. I generally don't break out, it was more preventative. Anyway last November I went to a spa with my girlfriend who was getting married (It was her bachelorette party) and had a facial. Apparently the Pro-Active dried out my already dry winter skin that when the girl started a microderm treatment I had to have her take it off my face burned so badly. It was red and blotchy for several weeks afterwards. Perhaps it was her products or perhaps it was the pro-active. I have stopped using pro-active. -
I've sworn off Origins skin care products. They are all so over-priced and filled with stuff that makes my skin look red. Like, I understand that mint smells good, but seriously, I don't want to be sticking peppermint oil on my poor, finicky skin. And certainly not for those prices! Their Out of Trouble mask smells horrendous and completely nuked my skin. And don't get me started on that Modern Friction stuff. Yeelch! At least they were willing to take it all back, though. :-)
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ozinn- you bring up a good point
while it's not a brand, i steer clear of products that use high concentrations of irritating essential oils (origins would be high on that list!)
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