A Quick Review - Nail Magic Nail Hardener and Conditioner!

Nail Magic Nail Hardener and Conditioner

I just wanted to quickly share with you a product that I've been using constantly for the past several weeks and have seen great results with!

This winter my nails have really taken a beating to the dry air. In just one day, I broke 4 of my nails on one hand (all while grocery shopping and running errands). Any slight ding and my half of my nail was gone. It was at the point of ridiculousness, so in desperation I made a quick run to Sally's, which happened to be in the same mall - jagged nails and all.

So I walked out with a bottle of Nail Magic that was recommended to me by the sales associate.

Nail Magic contains a blend of ingredients that not only strengthens the nails, but also conditions them. It treats splitting, chipping and repairs weak and/or damaged nails.

You can use it alone, applied as a base coat, and it even says that you can use it as a top coat (which I haven't tried).

I've been applying two coats to my nails and leaving them bare of any other polish. In the bottle the liquid is tinted pale pink, but it applies clear and makes the nails look a little more primped and shiny.

I'm kind of hard on my hands with household chores so it does wear off my tips within a couple of days, but when it does, I'll usually just remove it with nail polish remover and apply it again.

LORAC TANtalizer Deep Body Bronzing Luminizer Review, Photos and Swatches!

LORAC TANtalizer Deep Body Bronzing Luminizer

LORAC TANtalizer Deep Body Bronzing Luminizer ($32) is a shimmering deep-dark bronzing cream for the body. It provides instant, long lasting color to the skin without the sun or the hassle of self-tanning - and it washes off easily by the end of the night.

I've been using self-tanner for years to maintain a dark tan, but I've slowed down a lot in the past couple of years and have been keeping up with a more natural sunkissed glow.

Whenever I feel that I'm lacking color or if I want to enhance my fresh, faux tan, I always go for a tinted body moisturizer.

I always used L'Oreal Sublime Bronze One Day Gel and it worked great, but I'm pretty sure it's been discontinued, as I can't find it anywhere. I've also used Milani Body Bronzer, and it worked fine, but the results were slightly orange. That too was discontinued. So, my quest in finding a new instant bronzing tint led me to LORAC.

LORAC Tantalizer Deep Body Bronzer has the typical creamy water-based moisturizer consistency that you see in most body bronzers. It's a deep bronze shade with loads of ultra-fine golden iridescence.

It smells like vanilla, and although I loathe the smell of artificial vanilla, it's light enough where I can't smell it unless I put it up to my nose.

You can apply it as you would a self tanner or moisturizer (bare hands is fine, it washes off immediately) and the color blends out really well without looking patchy or uneven. I like mixing it with equal parts moisturizer so it smoothes on easier and so the product goes a longer way. Depending on how much you apply, you can get pretty dark, but because of the shimmer, I only use a light coat to keep it looking natural. On my skin, it's a true bronze with brown and slight red undertones. I wouldn't consider it orange.

My main use for this product is applying it on my neck and décolleté to make my skin sunkissed and glowing. It's really useful for the days when I forget to self-tan and need my face makeup to match my neck.

MAC Archie's Girls Betty Bright Lipstick Review, Photos, Swatches and Comparisons!

MAC Betty Bright Lipstick

MAC Betty Bright Lipstick ($16.50) is one of the three new limited edition lipsticks that recently launched in the MAC Archie's Girls Collection. Betty Bright is described as a light, vibrant peach, but I don't find it very peach at all. It's more along the lines of a vibrant, coral-pink. I'd almost consider it a lighter, slightly less pink version of Viva Glam Nicki (I'm sure if you mixed Nicki and Myth together, you'd get something very close).

Betty Bright was one of the first Archie's Girls lipsticks that sold out on the MAC website because, well, who doesn't love a good coral?

I was excited to see that it's a MAC Satin, so the coverage is opaque with one swipe. With this particular lipstick, applying less is more. I found that if I apply more than one layer, the color settles in my lip lines when I rub my lips together, the color can look uneven.

Also with light shades like this it can emphasize dryness. I own several bright peach, coral and pink lipsticks from many brands and they all do the same thing. It's almost unavoidable unless you exfoliate your lips regularly and apply a good, hydrating lip balm prior to application. Applying a lip gloss over top always helps mask dryness with shades like these.

One thin layer of MAC Betty Bright Lipstick on my lips.

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer Review, Photos and Swatches!

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer ($9.99) is a super-concentrated and pigmented liquid concealer combined with goji berry and haloxyl to help erase the appearance of dark circles and puffiness around the eyes. It has a unique tube design in that when you twist the top, product will be released in the round, squishy applicator sponge.

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer is available in (6) shades: Fair, Light, Medium, Honey, Neutralizer and Brightener. Although the neutralizer shade can be used on it's own, it's also recommended for extreme dark circles to apply underneath your regular concealer for maximum coverage. The brightener shade is pink based used to brighten up areas of the eyes and face.

I was conflicted which shade to purchase. For reference, I have medium skin with warm undertones (MAC NC35 coloring currently). Fair and Light looked too light for me, and Medium looked too dark. So, I ended up with Neutralizer.

Neutralizer is a light peachy yellow color. It seems to apply slightly lighter than it looks in the tube, and it's a little too light for me, but works fine if I blend a little foundation on top. (See swatches at the end of this post.) Medium would've probably been a better match for me.

You have to twist the tube several times to get it going at first and thereafter a small amount is dispersed with each twist. You can apply it to your undereyes with the sponge directly, or you can wipe the product off with your finger to apply or wipe the product off with a concealer brush. I like using it directly from the tube, as I think the sponge is the funnest part of using this product!

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer Before & After. (my skin is not moisturized prior, so you can see it looks a bit dry and powdery)

Here's how it looks with my skin moisturized applied over my foundation. (you can see it looks much better)