From The Beauty Brains Forum Member: Taiwanese Girl

I love peppermint. Christmas is great because everything from chocolate to lattes are peppermint flavored, and the world just smells nice and minty. Nothing gets me in a better mood than peppermint. With that being said, I was so ecstatic to find a box from KLEAN Bath and Body containing their Bath Syrup and Whipped Shea Butter in Peppermint Dream!!

Scentual experience

From their website, KLEAN B&B’s mission is to “share our gift of scentual discovery with others by providing luxurious and refreshing products that are high quality, competitively-priced, mostly natural, while pleasing the body, nose and spirit.” If you’ve read my previous review about natural/organic products, you’ll know that I’m not a huge fan. However, looking at the ingredient list and breakdown of each product provided on KLEAN B&B’s website, it seems that they choose to use chemicals extracted from plants, rather than synthesized chemicals. This is slightly different from Origin’s use of natural products, in that they are just using certain plant extracts, without defining exactly what chemical is in the extract. Anyhow, their main focus is on scent, and boy, one whiff of their products will completely relax you, taking your mind off things like chemistry, cosmetic ingredients, and your grocery list.

Bath time and biochemistry

Anyhow, since I don’t have access to a bath tub, I used the Bath Syrup as a shower gel, and it was one amazing and scentsual experience. The syrup foams up quickly, making lots of spa bath bubbles (micelles!! Trap oil!! Yay biochem and what little I remember of it!), so it cleans ya up properly. It’s not as moisturizing as I’d like it to be, but I have been spoiled by using Olay’s Body Wash with those moisturizing ribbons. The smell however, completely makes up for everything. That cool peppermint smell has a hint of vanilla in it, evoking memories of holiday parties with hot peppermint cocoa and candy canes.

Rich and dreamy

After the shower, I applied the Whipped Shea Butter all over, and boy, was it rich and dreamy. I love how moisturizing shea butter is, but sometimes I hate how thick it is, and how much work I have to put in just to get my skin to absorb it. This whipped version makes it much lighter, and it absorbs into my skin quickly, without leaving any grease afterwards. My skin just felt smooth, buttery, and well moisturized.

The only down side of the Peppermint Dream is that the peppermint oil used for the fragrance has a cooling effect, so if you are like me, living in an apartment without any heat sources and poor insulation, you would be a tad cold after applying the Whipped Shea Butter. Your body will eventually heat up again, but I do suggest snuggling inside a warm blanket or in front of a heater after you apply the Shea Butter.

Yummy!

Overall, KLEAN Bath and Body offers great products at a decent price (not quite drugstore, but certainly still affordable), and they totally fulfill their mission of providing us with a luxurious scentual discovery. I would love to try more of their Whipped Shea Butter in other scents, such as Fig, German Chocolate Cake (yummy), and Klean Kolada.
What do YOU think about Klean products? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Taiwanese Girl directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

From The Beauty Brains Forum Member: Taiwanese Girl

I’m not a gal that’s totally into “organic” products. First, the term “organic” boggles my mind, because to me and everyone else who studied chemistry in college, organic means any compound with carbon atoms (attached to 1-4 hydrogen atoms). So since we’re composed of carbohydrates and proteins and fat (which all contain carbons with hydrogen atoms attached), we’re organic! Anyhow…. I do think that organic farming is great for the environment, whether or not the products really have any benefits to it or not. From my own experience, as well as speaking with cosmetic industry insiders, organic or natural cosmetic products aren’t any better than regular ol’ products.

Intriguingly Organics

With that being said, I was really interested in trying Origin’s new Organics line, Origin Organics. Origin Organics products are certified under the strict requirements of USDA National Organic Program. I’m always out to prove my own opinions to be wrong, so I began testing the products I received with an open mind.

I received the Purifying Tonic (a toner), the Nourishing Face Lotion (a moisturizer), as well as a great 100% Organic Cotton Canvas Reusable Shopping Bag. The Purifying Tonic is 95% certified organic, and the active ingredients are: Organic Lavender Alcohol Blend, Organic Vinegar, and Organic White Willow Bark. The Nourishing Face Lotion is also 95% certified organic, and the active ingredients are: Organic Cocoa Butter, Organic Coconut Oil, Organic Glycerin, and Organic Rosemary Extract.

Let’s start with the good first: the bag is awesome! It’s cute and chic, and definitely makes a bold statement when you take it out to shop either at the grocery store or the mall. Now, let’s get on with the skincare products.

Irritatingly Organic

I looked up the ingredients on Paula Begoun’s website, The Cosmetic Cop, and guess what? Most of the ingredients can cause irritation. And boy, did it irritate my skin! Let’s begin with the Purifying Tonic. With the main ingredient being alcohol, it’s bound to be drying and mildly irritating. Does it matter that it’s an organic lavender blend? Absolutely not! The smell was also horrendous, to a point that I couldn’t sleep because of it. It reminded me of this Chinese herbal massage oil called “Red Flower Oil” that my parents use. Did it soothe or calm my face? No. Did it clean and clear my pores? How do you tell if a product cleans or clears your pores anyway? You can’t.

The Nourishing Face Lotion didn’t get any better. This product irritated my face so badly that it was red for at least half an hour every time I used it. After using it for a few days consecutively, my cheeks were permanently red, and I had trouble covering it with foundation*. The moisturizer itself was light, but it didn’t absorb very well. I felt like it left a greasy film on my face, and it certainly didn’t work well underneath foundation. I think it might work better for someone with drier skin that is not prone to irritations. The biggest problem I had with this was that when I use it at night, I really couldn’t sleep either because of the smell. It smells like this herbal medicine my godfather makes to cure all stomachaches, but trust me, it doesn’t smell good, nor does it taste good. Not only that, the smell was so strong! My husband would not come near me to give me a good night kiss because it smelled that strongly.

Over done Organics

While I applaud Origin’s efforts of introducing an Organic line that meets USDA requirements for organic products, I don’t think they made great products. The Purifying Tonic and the Nourishing Face Lotion did more harm than good in my opinion. It could be that my face is too sensitive and oily for the products, so if you have dry skin that tolerates everything, it might work for you. That is, if you enjoy the smell of strong herbal medicine on your face. But if you are super gung-ho about using only natural and organic products, go over to an Origins counter and smell it for yourself.

*If you are wondering, I went back to my normal regime, which is detailed in the “Introduce Yourself” thread on the Beauty Brains forum, and after 2 days the redness was gone.

What do YOU think about Origins products? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Taiwanese Girl directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

The Beauty Brains Forum Member Purple Rules reviews Diesel Fuel For Life fragrance.

The bottle for Diesel Fuel For Life warns me to “use with caution.” I don’t know why. It’s not a daring fragrance; no need to worry about emptying the elevator with this.

Sniffing Skittles

The fruity top notes smell just like Skittles! Then it dries down to very generic, fruity heart notes but it’s an artificial fruity smell like the overly sweet, fruit candy that kids like. It’s almost medicinal at times and then it becomes very powdery and slightly less sweet at the end.

You’re an animal

It’s described as having “a heart of jasmine, intensified by indole, a floral-animal note that is found naturally in jasmine” but I get none of that. Indole doesn’t smell particularly good on its own (it’s often described as smelling fecal or like cat pee) but when combined with other notes, it gives them weight and depth. It can also take the edge off florals that are too sweet or too nice; it’s dirties them up a bit.

It’s often combined with jasmine, which may explain why Fuel For Life reminds me of so many other fragrances that are popular now. Fragrances containing indole are often described as being animalic and sensual but I wouldn’t describe Fuel For Life as either. It’s fruity, then it’s powdery and then it’s gone.

Cheesy packaging

The bottle is not terribly attractive. It’s described as being covered in lace but it looks more like cheesecloth to me.

This is not fragrance that I would normally be drawn to. Most fragrances that are described as “fruity” are cloying on me, although they may smell great on others. If you’re one of those who can wear fruity fragrances and not smell like a sticky-fingered preschooler, or if you want to smell like Skittles, you might like this. If you’re looking something bold and sexy, this is not it.

What do YOU think about Diesel Fuel For Life fragrance? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Purple Rules directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

The Beauty Brains Forum Member Judy reviews Prive Herbal Blend Shampoo and Conditioner.

Judy says: I have to confess to being wantonly promiscuous when it comes to shampoo and conditioner. I just can’t stay with any one product for very long before I get bored and want to move on to something…more exciting…more aromatic…or just plain different. Loyalty to any brand is just not my style. I’m always looking for the next newly formulated product that will offer a new thrill…or at least something that will temporarily give me some Great Hair Days!

Because I have color-treated hair I do use shampoo and conditioner that is specially formulated but I have used everything from Suave to Goldwell and have never seen a great difference between products.

The Basics

Once you have water, sodium laureth sulfate, glycerin, proteins, and some color and fragrance you’ve got a basic cleansing shampoo. Same thing with daily conditioners…water, cetearyl alcohol, proteins, parabens, color and fragrance are the usual ingredients that help you to moisturize your hair after cleansing and make it easier to style. Depending on your hair type other ingredients are added to work on different hair types’ special needs.

OK…I admit it…despite my constant need for the next big thing in hair care my budget doesn’t allow for any obscenely expensive prestige salon products so I may not be as much of a thrill seeker as I like to think.

However when I was offered the opportunity to try Privé hair products created by French celebrity stylist Laurent Dufourg I cried “mais oui!” With this line of herbal hair products Monsieur Dufourg promises to bring quality products to those of us not fortunate enough to be able to afford his personal service.

Luxurious but too herby

I tried Herbal Blend #6 Reparative Shampoo which is described by Privé as enriched with aloe vera and orchid to deliver softness and shine to chemically damaged hair. I found this to be a luxuriously rich shampoo that lathered well without stripping my hair. However, I didn’t care for the fragrance, which seemed to be to more like kitchen herbs than orchid.

I followed my shampoo with Herbal Blend #14 Reparative Conditioner which has ginseng and rose hips and is said to provide “intense conditioning” for dry or chemically treated hair. Again, the fragrance reminded me of Fines (Italian) Herbs that I use in cooking. This too was nice and rich and did leave my hair feeling pleasantly soft and conditioned when I went to style it.

My products were packaged in a handy Jet Set Travel Kit that consisted of: 1 Reparative Shampoo 2oz. 1 Reparative Conditioner 2oz. 1 Firm Hold Hair Spray55 3oz. 1 Jet Setter Gift Bag and sells on Amazon for $24.

I probably won’t be able to remain faithful to Monsieur Dufourg forever but at the moment I am enjoying the fling and the excitement of being pampered by my own celebrity stylist and his Privé line.

What do YOU think about Prive products? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Judy directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from over 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Cate” shares her thoughts on Juice Beauty Soothing Serum and Pangea Organics Facial Toner.

Cate says: Today it is all about ‘Going Green’ as they say, from recycling our garbage to organic markets filled with all natural and organic food, even beauty products and hair products. Kaia House is a company that sells natural and organic beauty products. To make sure that their products are all natural they are put through a Most UN-Wanted list.

The two products that I had a chance to try are Juice Beauty Soothing Serum and Pangea Organics Facial Toner

Juice Beauty Soothing Serum:

Juice Beauty Soothing Serum is “A soothing blend of certified organic antioxidant-rich raspberry juice, aloe vera, licorice and bearberry botanicals, helps to alleviate redness due to environmental pollutants and harsh elements that come in contact with your skin…”

I have combination skin and after I wash my face it can be pretty red and irritated especially my cheeks, which are very dry and my forehead and chin, which are oily. So I thought this would be the perfect product to cool my skin after I wash my face. I have noticed that in my oily areas I tended to break out more and my face felt much oilier with this even with the small amount that I used. On my dry cheeks, it was very nice and less dry. Unfortunately on my neck and upper chest I have something that is similar to eczema in the fact that it is itchy and irritated called Pityriasis Vesicolor. I thought that this product would soothe my itchy neck and chest. So I applied it after I showered and it did and AMAZING job of relaxing the skin, although it does need to be re-applied several times a day. It’s a quick fix for the itch without medication. I think this product would be good for someone with drier skin.

Pangea Organics Facial Toner:

I also had the opportunity to use a different line of beauty supplies from Kaia House. Pangea Organics Facial Toner Italian Green Mandarin with Sweet Lime (for combination skin). This toner is “Specially formulated to combat environmental toxins, Pangea Organics Facial Toners are reknown to refresh and balance the skin in the purest way possible. The Italian Green Mandarin with Sweet Lime toner for balanced and combination skin energizes and cleanses with lime juice while mandarin extract uplifts and cools the skin with a sweet refreshing scent. Lime is also known to be an excellent antioxidant and astringent for troublesome skin.”

I used this product after I washed my face before putting on any other facial creams, serums, or lotions. It comes in a pump spray glass container and I just sprayed it on my face a few times. I’m really not sure what it did, if anything at all. It has a nice lavender scent, and you can supposedly use it on your décolleté as a body spray and a refresher for that mid-afternoon lull. I enjoy the scent of lavender, but I don’t want to smell like it all day, so I chose not to use it as a body spray.

The coolest part about this product is the packaging. There is absolutely NO trash! The box it comes in can be planted and supposedly the herbs that they used to make the product will grow in about 2-3 months. Talk about REALLY Going Green! I’m planning on doing it. Everything else is recyclable.

Kaia’s in the house

Kaia House has a lot of natural and organic lines. The Juice Beauty Soothing Serum did a really nice job on my itchy neck, and the Pangea Organics toner did not move me, but that is why Kaia House carries many different lines to suit your preferences. They even have children and men’s products too! So if you use natural and organic beauty products or are interested in trying something new check out Kaia House.

What do YOU think about these products? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Cate directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from over 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Taiwanese Girl” shares her thoughts on PURPOSE Redness Reducing Moisturizer.

Taiwanese Girl tells all: I used to have an extremely sensitive face that was always red. The redness was from a combination of pretty stupid things, such as:

• Using products that irritated my skin (thanks mom for telling me to use a salt scrub everyday to get my face really REALLY clean!)
• Spending tons of time in the sun without proper SPF, and
• The lovely and infamous Santa Ana winds that we experience here in LA.

Mother doesn’t always know best

Even though my skin has calmed down dramatically since the days of following my mom’s clueless skincare advice, my face is still a tad red and angry looking. When the opportunity to sample PURPOSE Redness Reducing Moisturizer with SPF 30, I took it right away. After all, according to its website, this product claims to have “CLINICALLY shown to reduce redness in just one week while it protects your face with broad-spectrum SPF 30 sunscreen. Its unique moisturizing complex begins to soothe dry skin on contact and works to improve overall skin tone and texture.”

After using it in the morning for 5 days, I don’t know if my face is really less red. The area right beside my nose is still red, but I think that’s due to my year-round “seasonal” allergies. Also, my face has been behaving rather well for the past 2 months, meaning no angry pimples exploding out of nowhere, no random rashes (except when I eat seafood), or anything evil. My diet has been normal, I haven’t seen the sun since I started working, and I’ve also been getting plenty of sleep each night. I did ask my sister over the weekend if she thought my face looked less red, and she said it did…

BUT, I’ve been having stomachaches the entire weekend, making me look a bit ghastly. So, does this product really work as a redness reducer? I really have no idea! None of the active ingredients are redness reducing agents, and their website doesn’t contain a working link to any research data showing that it contains an agent proven to reduce redness.

A good value for UV

Nevertheless, it’s a good basic morning moisturizer that contains tons of protection against both UVA and UVB. Their active ingredients are: Ensulizole, Octinoxate, Octocrylene, and Zinc Oxide, all of which offer great protection against the evil sun. It’s not oily at all, and it absorbs pretty quickly into my skin. I’ve found it to be a great base for both liquid foundations and powdered foundations. A lot of moisturizers tend to be too rich to use under liquid foundations, while others are too dry to use under powdered foundations, but this one was great for both. It’s also quite inexpensive and can be found at almost every drugstore. I definitely recommend this to people who spend a lot of time outside, but I can’t say for sure that it reduces redness.

What do YOU think about PURPOSE Redness Reducing Moisturizer? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Taiwanese Girl directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from over 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Karen” shares her thoughts on Aveeno Essential Moisture Lip Conditioner.

Addicted to lip balm

I love using lip balm and you may, too. Evidently, 64% of women use lip conditioning products. I have tubes of it everywhere and can’t stand how my lips feel when it’s not on. I might even go so far as to say I’m addicted to it but experts say there’s no need to worry about that. There simply isn’t an ingredient in any of them that could cause a true chemical dependency.

Okay then: I might not have a chemical dependency for it but I must have a psychological one because I sure feel relief once I slather it on and my lips feel a whole lot better, too.

My products of choice

First, I reach for Blistex to repair, soothe, and moisturize. It’s an absolute must for me to protect my lips from the elements once the cold weather hits. Second, a fellow Beauty Brainiac in the Forum recently turned me on to Caudalie Lip Conditioner, a wonderful but pricey creation that takes lip balm to a whole new level with its antioxidant ingredients. It’s now my go-to product that I apply before bed to repair free-radical damage. I’ve also found that it makes an excellent base under lipstick, a function my beloved but slippery Blistex can’t do. Additionally, it contains a sunscreen so I wear it on my light makeup, lipstick-free days.

Essentially Aveeno

When I had the opportunity to try another lip balm, Aveeno’s Essential Moisture Lip Conditioner with SPF 15, it seemed like the perfect assignment to send my way. Aveeno claims their lip balm is unique in the following ways:

• It’s enriched with natural oatmeal, an ingredient known to soothe skin
• It contains a blend of natural conditioners including jojoba oil and shea butter
• It leaves lips feeling moisturized long after applying
• It shields lips from harmful UVA an UVB rays
• It’s hypoallergenic

Aveeno explains it was also developed to address frustration over the constant need to reapply lip balm, a common complaint from women using other products on the market.

Soft and smooth, not heavy and waxy

I used it for a week, giving up both Blistex and Caudalie Lip Conditioner. How did Aveeno’s lip balm compare to what I personally liked and used? I didn’t think it was as good at repairing chapped lips nor keeping them as moist as Blistex but it did a reasonable job of making them feel soft and smooth when it was on.

I liked the fact that it didn’t feel overly waxy or heavy but I did feel the need to apply it at least as frequently as my other two products of choice. It’s also effective as a lipstick base but doesn’t contain the antioxidant ingredients that Caudalie lip conditioner does to soften fine lines and keep lips plump at the same time. “Fragrance” was not listed as an ingredient but it had a mild pleasant vanilla scent due to the addition of Vanillin.

Petrolatum is best

I did a little research on lip balms. I learned that petrolatum-based lip balms are always a smart choice for chapped lips. One dermatologist called this key ingredient “the gold standard” for lip balms and claimed it was the very best thing that you could possibly put on your lips. Does Aveeno’s lip balm contain it? The answer is yes.

A good value

Its price is very good: $3.49 or less per tube and it’s available at most drug stores. It comes in both stick and pot form. Overall, it’s a good value for the money if you’re looking for a lip balm to maintain soft healthier looking lips. If you’re looking for a product to prevent or repair chapped, cracked lips or a lip conditioner that offers anti-aging benefits, you might want to have something else on hand. What you use will depend on your likes and needs.

There you have it, Brainiacs! Now I’m off for my must-have lip conditioner “fix!”

What do YOU think about Aveeno Essential Moisture Lip Conditioner? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Karen directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from nearly 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Judy” shares her thoughts on Neutrogena Triple Moisture Hair Conditioner.

Triple Moisture: Is it a “must have” or a “maybe?”

Judy says: The Neutrogena Triple Moisture Hair Care line is described by the company as the solution to the fact that “hair experimentation has evolved faster than the availability of effective hair treatments.” For a brief moment I thought dismissively that they couldn’t be talking about MY hair. Experimentation? I don’t dye my hair a different color every couple of weeks…and I don’t style my hair everyday with lots of goopy substances.

However, then reality hit and I realized that I do have my hair colored every month and do use quite a few products even before I blow hot air on it. Sooo…maybe I actually should consider something like Neutrogena’s Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask. After all, who am I to pass up recovery…especially DEEP recovery.

This deep conditioning product is a heavy cream that is to be applied sparingly after shampooing and left on the hair for 3-5 minutes before rinsing out. It is meant to be used as a weekly treatment for dry or damaged hair.

According to the packaging the Triple Moisture comes from: Olive which penetrates the center of the hair shaft; Meadow Seed which helps moisturize the middle and Sweet Almond which seals the surface hair. I don’t know if these claims are scientifically true but each of these natural ingredients are known as emollients that have moisturizing properties.

I have naturally slightly coarse, naturally curly hair that is colored to cover the gray. I used this treatment twice within a week as directed and my results were that my hair felt softer to the touch but in both instances actually a bit over-conditioned and fly-away. And so it may be that my hair was not in such bad shape as to need a deep conditioning treatment as often as weekly.

Neutrogena Triple Moisture product line also includes shampoo, conditioner, leave-in cream, and a shine serum. All are priced between $7-$12 so they are reasonably priced. The Mask that I sampled currently comes in a generous 6-oz size for $6.99 which seems as if it would last forever, especially if you didn’t use it on a weekly basis.

For those with truly damaged and/or over-processed hair this conditioning mask might work well but for me the results wouldn’t make this a “must have” for my hair care regime.

What do YOU think about Neutrogena Triple Moisture Hair Conditioner? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Judy directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from nearly 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Cate” shares her thoughts on Aveeno Active Naturals Intense Relief Hand Cream.

Nanny knows best

Cate says: Well the Fall is here, the leaves are changing colors and there is a bit of Jack Frost in the air. It’s simply beautiful! But with all the beauty and cooler temperatures comes dry skin. And in my case dry dry dry hands. So I was extremely happy to try a product that might really help my skin. It seems that dry, cracked, skin is coming earlier and earlier every year.

I have been using Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream on my severely dry hands for a week. This product is “formulated with natural oatmeal and rich emollients to heal dry skin and form a protective glove against the elements.” It claims that it gives moisture for 24 hours and even lasts through hand washings.

It goes on nicely and quickly absorbs and feels great for a while. My hands felt soft and smooth. But after a while I could feel my hands becoming dry again and so I would re-apply. Also you can’t apply too much or it won’t absorb very nicely at all. I made the mistake and had to wipe it all off.

I am a nanny and decided to put the “lasts through hand washing” claim to the test. I wash my hands at least 20 times a day, potty breaks, feeding, diapering etc. And in my case this did not last through hand washing for me. I generally had to re-apply after I dried my hands. It may last for other people during hand washing, but in my extreme case it definitely did not.

I have noticed though over the past few days that my hands aren’t as cracked as they used to be and the skin around my nails doesn’t seem as dry. So it is definitely doing something.

I think this is a fine product. I’m not jubilant about it, but my hands do feel a bit softer and smoother. I’m going to continue to use this product and proper maintenance (such as wearing gloves to wash dishes and not using scalding hot water when washing), and hopefully the condition of my hands will improve.
What do YOU think about Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Cate directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!

If you enjoy the Beauty Brains blog, you’ll also enjoy sharing your thoughts with others in the Beauty Brains Forum. There are thousands of comments from nearly 400 members on all kinds of beauty issues.

As a special reward to the more prolific Forum members, we provide them with new beauty products to review. In today’s post, forum member “Purple Rules” shares her thoughts on Neutrogena’s Norwegian Formula Foot Cream.

Feelings For Foot Cream

Purple Rules says: I’ve used the Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Foot cream for a week. It’s a thick glycerin-based cream so it creates an effective barrier that locks in moisture and is recommended for dry heals and calluses. I buff my feet regularly so there isn’t a lot of dry, cracked skin to prevent this from being absorbed but it still took some work to rub it in and I was still aware of the residue on the surface. (One of the listed benefits is that it “does not stain socks;” I can see how that might be an issue.) It also contains Menthol but my nose and feet couldn’t detect it.

After a week, my feet were no better and no worse so I’d say it’s a good, basic foot cream that will keep your feet soft and moisturized if you take the time to remove the rough, dead skin first but it’s no substitute for a good foot file and some elbow grease. It doesn’t contain anything that would penetrate a layer of thick, dead skin so if you’ve got dry, rough feet I would expect it to sit on the surface and feel greasy. If you use it regularly and take a minute to rub it in, it will improve the condition of your feet and may even make them look better but if you want sandal-ready feet that look like you just got a pedicure, you’ll need to put a little more effort into it.

What do YOU think about Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Foot Cream? Leave a comment and let us know. Or, you can start a thread and talk to Purple Rules directly in the Beauty Brains Forum. And if you’re interested in getting free goodies of your own, join the Forum now and show us you’ve got what it takes to be a Beauty Brainiac!