Product Review: Too Faced Shadow Insurance

What it claim it does: This is your full-coverage insurance policy against all fading, creasing, melting, blurring, oil slicked, and hard-to-blend eyeshadow accidents. Our silicone based eyeshadow primer transforms any eyeshadow into a perfectly blendable, color-drenched, intensified version of itself, then locks it down perfectly until you take it off. This soothing formula evens out the skintone on your lids and smoothes lines while securing a barrier between the oils of your skin and your makeup, so no shadow catastrophes will ever happen again.

Ingredients: Isododecane, Talc, Cyclopentasiloxane, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Glyceryl Triethylhexanoate, Polyethylene, Trihydroxystearin, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Isopropyl Lanolate, VP/Eicosene Copolymer, Propylene Carbonate, Dimethicone, PEG-40 Stearate, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopherol. May Contain (+/-): Mica, Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499). (Source: Sephora)

Price: $17


Too Faced Shadow Insurance Report Card:
Quality: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥/5
Price: ♥ ♥ ♥.5 /5
Packaging: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥/5

Overall: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥/5


What I liked about it: It actually works! It really keeps your eyelids from being an oilslick at the end of the day. I've tried L'Oreal De-Crease as a base at one point in my life only to have it end up as an epic fail! I normally opt for my MAC paint pots as a base for my eyeshadow or just a base to help my eyeliner stay put and prevent it from creasing (meaning preventing your black eyeliner to some how find its way to travel up to your crease). However, due to the sweltering heat we're experiencing in California, my usual MAC paint pots by itself are currently no good. So I opted to try for another base which can save my eye makeup from fading or creasing and has led me to try this awesome product. What's also good about the Too Faced Shadow Insurance is it dries up transparent in your eyelids and instantly. There's really no drying-time unlike the L'Oreal De-crease which took forever to sink into my skin. Another good thing about it is it lasts for a really long time (and I will prove it to you in just a moment). The product packaging is also better than UDPP and L'Oreal De-Crease since it doesn't use a wand to get the product out. It comes in a squeeze tube so nothing really goes in the product, just out keeping bacteria away. And there's also no need for you to break into the tube and then storing it in another container just to get all your money's worth.

Here are a couple of images to prove my point...

I applied my eyeliner around 7 am to get ready for work. Although I'm always in my office most of the time, I do go out and have lunch in our patio and walk to my car (which is a long walk!) in the sweltering heat. Yes, I do have lunch outside no matter how hot it is since I like to "enjoy" the sun and see the sky since I'm couped up in my office most of the time. When I did this experiment, our weather was forcasted at 100 degrees and up. My day also ended at 10:30 pm after I ran a few errands to different stores (again in the sweltering heat) and RUNNING/jogging/walking for about two hours after that! So that's a 15 hour day for me with Too Face Shadow Insurance on my lids with some activities going on.

Freshly Applied at 7 in the morning:

Around 10:30 pm: After some errands and running around the block. Notice how there is only minor creasing after I've sweat and been out and about the whole day. Usually by this time, without the Shadow Insurance, I'll have black goop on my lids from my eyeliner.

What I don't like about it: When I directly put eyeshadow on top of the Shadow Insurance, I actually had a bit of a hard time blending my eyeshadows. But that can be fixed by layering your Too Faced Shadow Insurance with your MAC paint pot (or other cream-based product you have available) for better blending. It is also more expensive than UDPP by a couple of bucks which can turn-off some people into buying it. Although the packaging seemed to be more sanitary compared to other eyeprimers, the tube can go through possible, unexpected mishaps such as squeezing the tube too hard causing too much product than you orignally intent or worse, accidently puncturing the tube with something sharp in your makeup bag. Other than that, I can't think of anything else bad about it.

Will I buy it again?: Most definitely! Although I haven't really tried UDPP, I just don't believe in using a wand to apply my eyeprimer or breaking through the packaging so I just feel that I'm not getting ripped off. Although Too Faced Shadow Insurance is a few bucks more, it is still more sanitary than other eyeprimers and it has a great staying power that keeps my lids oil-free.

Product Review: Monistat Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder Gel AS A PRIMER?!

This is not anything new if you've been lurking around beauty blogs and beauty forums. I recently just learned about this after reading some entries from Alienman and Stefunki (old blogsite)'s blog but was a wee bit skeptical about using this product on my face until I read up more about it. Then after a few more researches, I decided to give it a try.

For a picture of how the product looks like, Vanessa, has comparison pictures of it with her Camellia Soothing Primer.

And for some of the people thinking, "Eeew? Yeast infection medication on your face? Are you crazy?" or something of that nature, please be aware that this particular product IS NOT MEANT to treat yeast infections. You are simply associating the name with the product since Monistat is the MAKER of a popular yeast infection cream. They created another branch of their company which is the Soothing Care line for other symptoms that is geared towards for relief of the skin (learn more about here).


Also, if you end up deciding trying this product out after reading this review, you can request a sample from their website. Click here for more details.


What the Product Claims:

Relieves & prevents chafing. Inner thigh & bikini area. From moisture, heat, movement & shaving. Dries to silky finish. Fragrance free. Skin protectant. Breakthrough form - Dries to silky finish. Provides on-the-go daily prevention and relief from chafing and irritation of skin in intimate, delicate areas like the inner thigh, bikini area, under arms and breasts. Made especially for women, the exclusive Power-Gel formula combines the protective benefits of lotion and powder by forming a silky, breathable moisture control barrier to fight friction. Delicate skin feels healthy and protected from the uncomfortable irritation caused by moisture, heat, movement and shaving. Also helps reduce the appearance of redness that can develop after shaving or waxing the bikini area. Works with just one application and is gentle enough to use every day. Non-greasy. Fragrance free. Non-irritating. Non-staining. This product is not intended to treat yeast infections.


Ingredients:

Active Ingredient: Dimethicone (1.2%). Inactive Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Tocopheryl Acetate, Trisiloxane.


Monistat Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder Gel's Report Card:Quality: 4 out of 5
Product: 4 out of 5
Price: 5 out of 5 ($6-8 available at your local drugstores)

Overall: 4.3 out of 5

I never really cared so much on using primers as a base for my foundation. Let alone, Monistat on my face. I've only tried two primers: Napoleon Perdis Auto Pilot Primer, which if you can recall from my previous post has been the root of my acne problem which is why it made the cut for my five beauty must NOT haves. And the Philosophy Present Clear-Makeup Primer that also didn't cooperate with my skin (maybe because it contained two parabens: Methylparaben and Propylparaben). It had to go no matter how much I love Philosophy products. I never really saw the point in adding an extra step in my morning routine. Until I tried this product and changed my mind.


What I like about it:
Because Chafing Relief Gel main ingredient is Dimethicone, it's a great alternative to your expensive primer since this is also the main ingredient found in other primers. Dimethicone creates a breathable barrier between your skin and foundation to protect it from the bad stuff yet allowing your skin to breathe and not clog your pores. This product gives my face a matte finish after application. At the end of the day, my makeup still looked as fresh as it did as if I just applied it. My blush color stayed on longer too! And I just definitely loooove how my skin looked. My face looked even and shine-free. Usually at the end of the day, I get pretty oily on my t-zone which is why I carry blot papers with me. As vain as it sounds, I kept looking at my face in the mirror just to see how great my skin looks with Monistat underneath my foundation. It was really put to the test yesterday because of the warm weather. No oilies at all.

Also, I haven't broken out from this product which makes me love it even more. I guess it's because of the fact it's light and doesn't have a thick consistency compared to the previous primers mentioned. Also, it doesn't have any scent or parabens that can probably trigger irritation or adverse reaction.

And lastly, it is multipurpose! Just finished shaving? Slather this on to minimize any irritations. Wearing shoes with out a sock or your sandals rubbing against your skin causing friction that it hurts? Apply it to the affected area. This product is genious! And the fact that it's cheaper than branded primers and it's available in drugstores is a plus.

What I don't like about it:
It can be pretty difficult to find sometimes in certain stores. Some stores don't carry a big stock of this. And nothing else really.