As mentioned in previous posts where I’ve discussed my drugstore beauty department finds, the store I go to is Shoppers Drug Mart, and the items are bought with points, rather than cash. So basically, the stuff I come home with is free, which allows me to try some things that I might otherwise not go for.
In this most recent haul, I ended up getting mostly basic items, that are meant not to be noticed when used. Well, all except for the red lipstick, but I had to include something fun.
Several of the items I got are things I’ve tried before and liked so much that I regularly repurchase them, but we’ll begin with the ‘new, never tried-by-me before’ things :
Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara, in Deep Brown : The first thing into my basket was this. My eyebrows are very fine and have always been so. In fact, I’ve never plucked them in my life. The only use for tweezers I’ve ever had is to deal with that occasional splinter in my finger. I understand that brow thickness is hereditary, and you can clearly see that fine brows run in my family. Anyway, that being so, I like to check out products for that part of my face.
This product is mascara for your eyebrows. The formulation is thin with no clumping, and someone like me still has to fill in with pencil or powder first (I like the powder I told you about here). All in all, it’s a nice product that I’ve been using every day since I got it.
Tru Blend Fixstick Concealer by Covergirl, in Fair : This concealer is in a stick form, and is pretty thick so gives really good coverage. I got this to help deal with another hereditary characteristic, my deep set eyes. I’ve been using this to brighten up the dark area between my eyes and the bridge of my nose. The shade is so well matched to the skin around my eyes that I barely have to blend it in (but I do so it’s not obvious).
This is a bit heavy for under the eyes and I am still using the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser, that I mentioned in this post, in that area, with a small bit of the fixstick on the darkest parts, when needed.
It does a great job for what I need and I really like it.
Blending Sponge by Quo : So now, let’s talk about a new tool to blend everything together. I asked if they carried the Beauty Blender and she led me to this. So it seems that, as ‘Kleenex’ has become a generic term for tissue, ‘Beauty Blender’ has become the term for a non-latex blending sponge shaped something like a teardrop. I feel badly that their idea has been copied by others, but it’s worth noting that this one is priced well under $10 while the real thing goes for $26.
Having seen that these are also used to apply foundation, (which I don’t often use), I’ve also dampened this sponge and used it to apply the Beauty Balm discussed further down.
I’ve never used a sponge to blend or apply makeup. And now I’m wondering what took me so long!
Collection Exclusive Lipstick by L’Oreal, in Eva : And now, about that lipstick. I know I just bought a red lipstick (discussed in this post), but it is a blue red and this one is much more of a burnt orange/brick red shade. I felt a need for a colour like this in the fall, when all my usual pink/burgundy shades clashed with the fall coloured clothing I wanted to wear. So when I saw this L’Oreal Lipstick, in a colour formulated to suit Eva Longoria, was marked down to $3.99, I picked it up. Yes, I still look for bargains, even when shopping with points, not money.
This was part of the L’Oreal campaign last year, where 4 different celebrities had a shade of red lipstick formulated to suit their colouring. While my skin tone is not as dark as Eva’s, I really like the colour. And the quality can’t be beat at the drugstore.
Cleansing Oil by Balea : The make-up has to come off at night so let’s talk about the cleanser I got.
I was looking for something else but they were out of stock at the three different Shopper’s Drug Mart stores that I checked (over the span of a week … we happen to live in an area with three stores within an easy walk.) The cleanser I had just finished and wanted to buy again was the ‘3 in 1 Cleanser’ by Balea, but it appears that it is no longer available. So I picked up the Cleansing Oil by the same brand.
I had heard about cleansing oils and was curious to see how they worked.
I’ve found that the oil takes a bit longer to use as it requires a washcloth to properly get it off, but I’ve been happy with this product. My skin is left clean and soft.
That is it for the ‘New-to-me’ products.
These next things are all items that I (and in some cases ‘we’ because Nick uses some of them too), have used before and like so much that we always have a spare on hand.
Repurchased items :
Moisturizing Bath Oil by Balea : (which I see is a brand exclusive to Shopper’s Drug Mart). This was recommended to us by a dermatologist. Well, actually the doctor recommended any bath oil that is ’emulsified’, which means they mix with the bath water and help your skin absorb some of the water. It is used in the treatment of eczema, which I don’t have but Nick does. So emulsified bath oil is more medicinal and good for you than are regular bath oils or bubble baths, making those soothing wintertime baths therapeutic as well as relaxing. Here’s an article written by the Centre of Dermatology, that includes this Balea product as something to look for. Aveeno also makes an emulsified bath oil, which we were using until we found that Balea, a less expensive brand, made one too. Note that these products might be hard to find, and we have had to ask the pharmacist to order them for us. But if you like taking baths, you really should try this type of bath oil out.
[Edit – July 2015 : This same product is now being packaged and sold under the ‘Life Brand’ found at Shopper’s Drug Mart. It continues to be a firm favourite in our home.]
Leave-In Smoothing Cream by Dove : I picked this up for Nick, who has been using it about once a week, for a while. I borrow it now and again and it does a nice job at smoothing out frizz. We actually began using this because a similar product by L’Oreal was discontinued, but this is a good substitute.
St. Ives Timeless Skin Facial Moisturizer : I mentioned this facial moisturizer before here. I’ve been using it for a few years now, and it is great stuff. I have tried all kinds of moisturizers from expensive (Le Mer) to reasonable (Oil of Olay), and this one, which sits far to the left on the reasonable scale, is quite excellent. I first gave it a try because of the packaging … a regular tube. I was tired of pumps that inevitably meant wasted product at the bottom of the container, or a tub that allowed the introduction of bacteria via your fingertips. A tube is perfect and should be used more! With this the delivery method of the moisturizer is ideal, as is the product.
St. Ives is produced by Unilever, and so should be available worldwide. Look for it on the lower shelves, where they keep the basic products that aren’t backed by tonnes of marketing and advertising dollars.
8-in-1 Beauty Balm by Maybelline, in light : I discussed my first try of this product in this post, and I’ve since used it all up. As mentioned, I don’t often use foundation but have found this tinted beauty balm very nice. Not only does it have an SPF of 30, it gives me some light coverage. It’s easy to use and makes my skin look nice. What more could you ask for?
[Note : Spring 2017 – This product has been changed and no longer contains any spf. It’s too bad because my friends and I really liked the way it was.]
Right about now, I’m thinking that I should do a post where you can actually see me wearing some of this stuff! I think that make-up is best demonstrated on video, and one thing I hope to get going this year is making videos.
Thank you for checking out my recent drugstore picks.
xo loulou
