Monday 24 February 2014

Influenster and L'Oreal Canada's Mystery Box Revealed!

The wait is finally over, L'Oreal and Influenster have finally revealed the Mystery Brand! It is Garnier Fructis' "Damage Eraser" line.  I received the full line of the "Damage Eraser"...complete with Shampoo, Conditioner, Split-End Repair Serum and Reconstructive Butter.


SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER: 
The claim is that the shampoo and conditioner reconstructs strength and helps repair hair. Protects hair from future damage.  The formula contains Phyto-Keratin complex, with plant-based proteins and active fruit concentrate, cupuacu butter with natural lipids.

SHAMPOO RESULTS: 
After using the shampoo, my hair felt shiny, bouncy, full of volume and healthy. I honestly can not believe how impressed I am with the results.  I have tried many salon brands and they have always fallen short. It's nice to try out a product that really gives me the results that I love, which is shiny hair with lots of bounce and volume.  The only con I had with the shampoo is that it did leave my hair somewhat tangly.

CONDITIONER RESULTS: 
The conditioner was a nice thick formula that left my hair smooth and soft and tangle free. What I love about this conditioner is that it detangled my hair, and did not weigh it down.



SPLIT ENDS BANDAGE SERUM: 
Helps to prevent split ends and reconstructs and preserves hairs strength.

RESULTS: 
The Split-End Bandage Serum is a nice thick creamy serum which I applied on towel dried hair.  Although, I do not feel that split end serums get rid of damage...only a good pair of scissors can do that, it did lessen the frizz of the hair and smooth my ends, which I did notice after blowdrying my hair.


STRENGTH RECONSTRUCTING BUTTER: |
Rich, indulgent butter is designed to intensely reconstruct hair's strength for strong, rejuvenated and shiny-looking hair.  Use weekly for optimal results.

RESULTS:
This is a great hair mask that leaves my hair extra conditioned. I have fine, wavy hair and it was nice to use a product that did not weigh down my hair.



OVERALL:
I'm really enjoying all the products that were sent to me through Influenster and L'Oreal Canada/Garnier Canada.  I always find products that are either for damage repair or volume and I have to compromise one for another.  Surprisingly, these products actually provided me with both volume and shine. I'm talking big, bouncy, shiny, healthy looking hair! I really recommend these products to anyone who is dealing with damaged hair due to styling products, age, colouring and blowdrying.

Another bonus, you will get salon results with drugstore pricing! Imagine that, affordable and helps with damaged hair!

The scent of these products have a slight banana/mango scent that is light and not overpowering.  A note: I have fine, wavy hair and my personal results were amazing.  If you have thicker, course hair, your results may be different than mine.

Disclaimer: The above are my honest opinions and although the products were sent to me for free to review, I have provided my honest experiences and opinions, as always!

If you have tried these products, please feel free to leave me your thoughts!

Sunday 23 February 2014

INFLUENSTER AND L'OREAL CANADA'S MYSTERY VOXBOX

I'm so happy to be participating in this Influenster campaign. For anyone not familiar with Influenster, it is a FREE website in which you complete several surveys, afterwards, they may qualify you for campaigns to participate in based on your surveys.  Campaigns vary. If you are chosen to participate they will send you products to try out and review on social media for FREE!

Being a beauty guru of sorts, I was super excited to have been chosen to participate in their latest campaign. Influenster and L'Oreal Canada partnered up and sent a Mystery VoxBox, which comprised of a shampoo, conditioner and split end remedy treatment.  I have used this product for about a week and thus far the results are fabulous!  The formula is for distressed, damaged hair! Oh, and yes, that would scream my hair right now! I suffer from damaged hair due to age, colouring, curling, teasing, and so much more!




The product that was sent to us is one of L'Oreal Canada's 25 global beauty brands.  We are supposed to guess and what the brand could be.

MY GUESS:
After using these products, I feel that this could be one of L'Oreal's professional line products.  The BIG REVEAL will be in about 1 weeks time, when Influenster will send out the second box with the brand and it's full product line! I can't wait..in the meantime, below is my review on each item I received in my Mystery Vox Box.

SHAMPOO:
The shampoo is lightly fragranced.  It is creamy and lathers very nicely.  A little product is required.  After shampooing my hair, it rinsed off nicely, however, my hair, being fine does have a tendency to get tangled and this shampoo did still leave my hair tangly, but not as bad as other brands I've tried.

CONDITIONER:
The conditioner smells slightly like bananas. I love the scent.  It is creamy and thick and really leaves your hair silky soft.  I loved that it did remove the tangles from my hair and rinsed off nicely.

SPLIT-ENDS SERUM:
Split ends are every girls nightmare. Have you ever gone to the hairdresser and they say, lets just trim of the split ends, only to have an inch chopped off! Sadly, there isn't any miracle cure for the ever so dreaded split end, but this serum did bind my ends together, leaving a nice shiny finish.  I still did experience some frizz, but not nearly as bad as I normally experience.

OVERALL:
My hair after styling was left shiny, soft, but with huge bounce and volume.  I'm so excited to see what the BIG BRAND REVEAL will be.




THANK YOU INFLUENSTER for allowing me to participate in this campaign.

If any of you wish to join Influenster and participate in future campaigns, please go their website...it's all FREE!

www.influenster.com

Thanks for reading my blog!


Thursday 6 February 2014

Manic Masks - Montagne Jeunesse

I have to admit, I'm not regimented like some girls.  I should do more masks on a regular basis, but if I do a mask twice a year that is a WOW for me.

I figured that I would try and improve on my mask routine in 2014, and here is my very first mask of the year.

I used the Montagne Jeunesse mask that I received in my complimentary Maple Vox Box from Influenster.  The type of mask that I received was the Dead Sea mask.  Typically this mask is for those who have normal to oily skin and for that ultra deep pore cleanser.  Well, I am on the dryer side where the skin goes, but I decided to still give my pores that ultra deep cleaning.



PACKAGING AND PRODUCT REVIEW
The packaging is very convenient for travel and comes in a pouch packet. You receive 20grams of product or .7oz.  Honestly, the amount of product you receive is good for two applications.

The product itself was a thick cream consistency and it was a lovely Robin's Egg blue colour. The smell was a fresh clean smell, not offensive.

HOW TO APPLY:
1. Squeeze the product out and apply with fingers or brush to a clean face. The instructions state not to use a soap on your skin prior to using, so a mild cleanser is what I used.
2. Apply all over face and neck (see attached photo)
3. Let product dry on face for about 10 to 15 minutes. You will know when it's dry as it hardens on your face
4. Wash product off face with warm water and a wash cloth, follow by your normal face routine.



CLAIMS:
The product claims that the Dead Sea Mud draws out impurities and opens blocked pores to leave skin feeling cleansed and soft. MY CLAIM: Yes, it does do this.

The product is Cruelty Free and is Vegan, and has the Vegetarian Standard of approval. Product is made in the UK.

PRICE:
Depending on where you purchase this mask, which is available at Walmart in Canada, it varies. I have seen the mask priced at $2.99

OVERALL:
This mask is a fun and affordable option for pampering yourself. From my experience with the Dead Sea Mask you definitely receive instant results. I personally did not experience any irritation to the product.  If you are one with sensitive skin, I recommend doing a patch test, prior to applying all over your face. With regards to long lasting results after using the product, I would say, no. The results last for a day or two. However, with any mask, they recommend using once per week.  The best part is that they have a variety to choose from to provide you with choices to suit many different skin concerns or if you just want to pamper yourself. I would recommend this mask and would purchase.

I hope you enjoyed the review. Please feel free to leave comments below. I love to hear your thoughts if you have used this product.

Ciao for now
Maria aka pebbles