Out Darn Spot! Part 2: Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Overnight Peel Update

Remember how tickled I was with the Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Overnight Peel? Well, sad to say, that was the peak of the product. After eleven weeks, my spots have not gotten any lighter. Honestly, they've gone back to being difficult to cover with concealer, and I haven't changed concealer. With half of the product gone, and a plateau hit, I had to throw in the towel and throw out the bottle. I'm going to go back to my Philosophy Help Me retinol cream to see if that makes any difference.

I am so disappointed. After six weeks, I really thought that this was going to work. Now, I'm beginning to think it was all in my head. I'll start the Philosophy tonight, and I'll take a picture to document the "before". Here's hoping!

Out Darn Spot!: Garnier Dark Spot Corrector Progress

Happy Lundi Gras!!!! I'm actually going to be at the big party this year, so look for pics coming soon. Of course, it's also supposed to pour buckets during the parades, so those pictures might be of the inside of the local shop. We'll keep our fingers crossed.

Quick update: I've now been using the Garnier Nutritioniste Dark Spot Correcting Peel and Daily Moisturizer for six weeks, and I can tell a difference. My dark spots are nowhere near gone, but they are lighter and easier to cover with concealer. I'm going to continue using these products and keep you posted on the progress. I got mine on a BOGO, so I only paid around $16 for the set. That's a heckuva lot cheaper than an in-office procedure, I'll tell you that.

Have a fantastic Monday, and I'll see you soon!

The Saga Continues: UNII Palette Review Part III

Hello, 2012! With the new year, we have a chance to start over; wipe the slate clean, if you'll pardon the cliche. Thomas and I are ringing in the new year by moving into our very first house. No, we're not homeowners (yet), but we'll be in an actual house. Not a townhouse. This is a real house with a real yard and real driveway to separate us from the immediate neighbors (finally). There is even--get this--a white picket fence. Seriously. Best of all, the landlady's a real doll. She's also my mom.

Oh, did I neglect to mention that? Thomas and I are moving into the house I grew up in. My family moved out of it ages ago, and it's just sitting there, waiting for the housing market to turn around so that someone can buy it. Ridiculously long (like, Tolstoy-length) story short, we wanted a house, the house needed a family, and Jupiter aligned with Mars. We're moving in!

Of course, this requires packing, which requires organizing, which requires boxes, storage containers, and the like. I decided to start small and work my way up, like a Russian stacking doll. Maybe the little stuff can consolidate into the bigger items, and take up even less of the U-Haul's precious real estate? I don't know, yet, but I figured it was worth a shot. I'll let you all know how it works out.

Now, by small, I mean small. I've started with the makeup I tend to keep out on my counter. Most of my cosmetics are in a fantastic train case in my closet, and I just grab as I need. However, a few of more frequently used products are kept in an organizer on my bathroom counter (which is horrible, as the steam from the shower can damage them, but I really have no other option right now. I'll have a drawer in the new house, but my current bathroom has no drawers. Not one. Zip. Nada. It's a scandal, it's an outrage). In an effort to reduce some of larger, less efficient packaging on a few of these go-to products, and save a couple of those products from some serious damage (caused by the larger, less efficient packaging--again, long story), I turned to the UNII company.

If you recall, back in April, I ran across this new, innovative product, the UNII palette. This was a completely customizable palette that could be filled with refill or de-potted cosmetics. After reading and watching review after glowing review, I ordered my own and wrote my own review here.

The palette was a revelation. It was sleek, gorgeous, and held positively everything I could need for travel. The design was sturdy, air-tight, and I never worried that my makeup would break, or that any dust/glitter/residue would end up all over my purse or luggage. I wanted a dozen more, but, alas, had to make do with the just the one for the time being.

Well, the impending move came up, and my amazing UNII was stuffed to the gills (to the point of needing to move things into another case), so a second palette had moved from "want" territory on over to "necessity". However, when I went to order the new case, I was met with the news that things had changed on the UNII front. The cases were...different.

Well, different is good, right? Change can be for the better, right? Um...let's talk about this for a sec.

I ordered one. I had no real choice, at this point. Here's the breakdown:

The Good: The color is just gorgeous. I ordered turquoise, and it's a bright, Spring-y teal with just a sprinkling of fine glitter throughout. The inner plate is a coordinating shade of pale aqua, and the new thumbgrip is much more space-conscious than the older design. The palette looks amazing, and seems just as sturdy as ever.

Photo Credit: UNII

The Bad: It's no longer air-tight. Not even close. The rubber gasket in the original design has been replaced by hard plastic, and none of the inner workings are removable for cleaning. The UNII company has stated, though, that the intend to bring back the rubber gasket. The magnetic plate is nice, as most of my pans are plain old ordinary metal, but not everything sticks right to it. Magnet to magnet doesn't work very well, and some items that already contain magnets have to be moved around the palette until they "click" into place, while other items (including anything aluminum) require a "Not-A-Magnet" sheet to allow them to even stick at all. Let me just say that this "Not-A-Magnet" option does not seem secure. The hold is weak, and I am very concerned. Luckily, only one product needed it. If your pans are just plain metal (think: Stila refills), you'll be good to go.

The Ugly: The palette is not as deep as it used to be. The magnetic plate is thicker than the sheet metal that used to line the bottom of the case, so you can't fit the same products from the old into the new. For example, in this picture, you can see where I have a mini eyeshadow primer, travel brush, travel eyeliner, and short (really used) lipliner.

Photo Credit: Me, but now on the UNII website. That's how much I love the old design.

Um...yeah...the brush still fits. That's it. The flat product pans fit without any problem, but the round items are too large for the new case to close around. If I take the lid off of the lipliner, it works, but then I have a whole host of other problems to contend with.

So, in the past, I could fit everything I could ever need for touch-ups in a UNII palette. Now, I have to carry my eyeliner and lipliner separately. It doesn't seem like a big deal, unless you've ever had to turn a purse upside-down to find an errant lipliner, only to find out later that it fell out in your car, inbetween the seats, and you're never going to be able to fish it out, so you have to buy a new one, which will only get lost again...not that that's ever happened to me. Strictly hypothetical, of course.

In the end, it's still a really good case, and a fine way to organize your products or keep badly packaged items from being destroyed. Honestly, when the rubber gasket returns, I plan to purchase another palette. It's just not as good of a case as it used to be. To use another cliche, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Final Verdict: 7 out of 10. Anybody know where I can find some flat liner pencils?

UPDATE!!

Today's blog is going to be ridiculously short, and I do apologize.  I'll make it up to you somehow later on down the line.  Things are just a little crazy today.  It's the holidays, I guess.  I just didn't want to leave you hanging without a couple of updates.

#1:  One Hundred Pushups

I started today.  First off, I took my hips, waist, and bust measurements, so I could measure my progress not by pounds, but by inches.  Let's just hope they come off the hips and waist and leave the bust alone.  I can't stand to lose anything there. 

As for the pushups themselves, it took all of ten minutes to get through today's set.  Seriously.  I didn't even break a sweat.  My arms aren't sore, either.  If anyone wants to jump on board with me, now's the time to do it. 

#2:  Wrinkle Cream

I've been using Lumene ($22, CVS.  Don't have time to link, I'm sorry) for a solid week, and I can already tell a difference.  My forehead wrinkles are still there, but I don't have to use the spackle on them anymore.  My skin's texture is also vastly improved.  Honestly, one morning I almost forgot to put on foundation--my skin looked that good.  I'm not recommending it, yet, because I want to give it a little bit longer to truly wow me, but it's well on its way.  Added bonus:  Thomas says it smells really good.  That's always nice.

Alrighty.  That's all I can do today.  Life calls!
 

Challenge! B-Movie Update

Photo by Netflix

Last night, Thomas and I kicked back with Mystery Science Theatre 3000's take on The Blood Waters of Dr. Z. To say this was a bad movie would be like saying that sugar is a bad fuel additive--quite the understatement. I mean, I guess it's good as a public service announcement. The monster does remember to always use handrails when taking the stairs, afterall.
Overall, it's some of the best work the MST3K guys have done. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time, and once I looked over and Thomas actually had tears in his eyes. It's hilarious, and if you haven't seen it, you're really missing out.

Now, for the point. This was a severely dated movie. It came out in the 70s, and everything about it screams period. Toward the end of the movie, one of the actresses had on a maxi dress. Taking into consideration the pastel colors and sheer, flowy material, I think it was chosen to represent her youth and beauty. I couldn't find an image of it from the movie, but here's a dress that's fairly close.

Photo by Rusty Zipper

Now, the dress in the movie had a higher neckline and was all yellow, but other than that, this is pretty similar. It's a lovely dress, but it's so of its era, I'm not sure you could wear it and it not look costumey. If you're into it, though (and you happen to be a size 0 Extra Small), it's available for $35 at rustyzipper.com.

I thought it might be a fun challenge to see if I could find a modern version; something a little more wearable, but still keeping the basics--flowy material, floral motif, pastel colors, youth and beauty. Oh, one more thing, the movie was set in Florida, so weather appropriate (no long sleeves).

This was a much tougher challenge than I had estimated. Apparently, tribal prints and tie-dye are all the rage when it comes to maxi dresses. I had no idea. I'm 5'3" and curvy. I have no business even looking at maxi dresses, much less wearing them. Who knew?

I did find one, though, at Macy's (on sale for $17.99!!!), and I have to say I'm fairly proud of myself.

Photo by Macy's

I apologize for the awful picture. I won't go into the details, but it was like pulling teeth to get a picture this good. If you would like to see a better image, you can go here, but I couldn't pull it for the site. Sorry.
Okay, everyone back from Macy's? Isn't it pretty?! For those of you who didn't attend the field trip, it's a strapless maxi dress, white, with a ruffled neckline. It's a blouson (peasant) style maxi with a smocked waistband and a blurred (no kidding) Ikat print. It's lovely, and , I thought, a nice update for the movie dress.

Let's just hope they never update the movie. Some things should just be left alone. *shudder*