Under the Influenster: Meaningful Beauty Crème de Serum

I just turned 30.  I'm not anywhere remotely close to old, but I don't take good care of my skin and sometimes it shows.  My big skin accomplishment of the past year is that I now *usually* wash my face before bed.  Actually, I wipe off my makeup with a disposable face towel.  Washing my face with water is too much effort.  My other skin accomplishment is that I usually use a moisturizer.  I'm a low-achiever when it comes to taking care of my skin.

In spite of my less-than stellar track record, I was intrigued when Influester offered me the opportunity to try the Meaningful Beauty Creme de Serum.  I received it just before my birthday, and after using for almost 2 weeks I can honestly say my skin looks and feels better at 30 than it did at 29...

Here are my first impressions.


Things I like about Meaningful Beauty Creme de Serum:

• you only need to use it once per day;
• you can use it either in the morning or the evening;
• it has light, clean scent;
• it is silky, not greasy;
• it is gentle on my sensitive skin;
• my skin feels less dry;
• my face looks less shiny throughout the day than with my other moisturizer;
• my skin looks slightly more even than it did before using the Creme de Serum;
• my face feels much smoother than it did before using the Creme de Serum.

You be the judge.  Here are two photos, taken about 10 days apart.  My perception is that my skin tone looks slightly more even.  It definitely feels smoother.  

Bare face before.

Bare face after.

I'll post another bare-faced photo once I've finished my Creme de Serum sample.  

The Meaningful Beauty Creme de Serum is available as part of a skincare system direct from Meaningful Beauty.  You can see the full purchase options for those systems on the Meaningful Beauty website.   

I'm not sure that I'll actually purchase the Creme de Serum.  I like it, but it appears that the only option for purchase online is as part of the system.  $39.99 isn't tremendously expensive for skincare, but it is a lot more than I currently spend, and the only product I know I want is the Creme de Serum.  I would be more likely to buy  if I could purchase the products separately.  I do really like the Creme de Serum, but I have other products I like for other skin purposes.  

If you are concerned about your skin and you aren't committed to other products, I would recommend trying the Meaningful Beauty system.    There is a 60 day money-back guarantee, so the only thing you'll lose is 60 days.  You can learn more about Creme de Serum and the other products available from Meaningful Beauty from the Meaningful Beauty website.  

* I received Meaningful Beauty Crème de Serum complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Under the Influenster: Dr. Scholl's® For Her Active Series® Part 2

I run.  I don't run fast.  I don't run far.  But I enjoy it.  Unfortunately I've had some trouble with foot and leg pain during and after my runs lately.  


As I mentioned in my previous post and the video above, the Dr. Scholl's website is currently offering a $4 off coupon for your purchase.  They are available at Target, Walmart, CVS, and many other retailers.

Dr. Scholl's Active Series replacement insoles are also available on Amazon with a "Subscribe & Save" option.  You save either 5% or 15%, depending on your number of subscriptions, and have your products delivered to you at a frequency of your choice.  You could have them delivered at an interval of your choice.  I'd choose every six months as a reminder to switch out my old insoles. 

Make sure to read and watch my first impressions of the Dr. Scholl's Active Series replacement insoles too.

*This post contains lots of affiliate links.

I received this product complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Under the Influenster: Dr. Scholl's® For Her Active Series® Part 1

Influenster has done it again.  They've introduced me to a great product that I might not have considered otherwise: Dr. Scholl's Active Series  replacement insoles.

These are my first impressions upon opening the package.  Please excuse my proximity to the camera.  I should either make more videos to improve my skill, or never make a video again.




I am impressed by the level of cushioning in Dr. Scholl's Active Series replacement insole, especially as compared to the original insoles.   I'm very happy with my Asics running shoes, so it never occurred to me that my feet and legs could be even more comfortable during a run.  I predict that these insoles could also extend the life of a pair of running shoes by compensating for any loss of cushioning over time.

The price is reasonable (around $20 msrp) and the quality seems good.  Dr. Scholl's offers a satisfaction guarantee, so if you're not satisfied you can receive a replacement or refund.

About the only downside I've noticed so far is that they only come up to a size 11 in the women's model.  I'm set because I wear an 11, but any women with larger feet could check out the men's options.  It annoys me to wear shoe products meant for men, but perhaps other women have fewer hang-ups.  Or perhaps a man will read this and find insole solutions too.

If you're interested in trying these out, the Dr. Scholl's website is currently offering a $4 off coupon for your purchase.  I'm going to buy a second pair to try in my non-athletic shoes.  They are available at Target, Walmart, CVS, and many other retailers.

Dr. Scholl's Active Series replacement insoles are also available on Amazon, and you can get them with a "Subscribe & Save" option.  That way the insoles would be delivered to you periodically, and you save either 5% or 15%, depending on your number of subscriptions.  You could have them delivered at an interval of your choice.  I'd choose every six months as a reminder to switch out my old insoles.

Make sure to read more about my first walk and run with these insoles soon (spoiler alert: pretty cool)!

*This post contains lots of affiliate links.

I received this product complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Under the Influenster: Lashed

It is no coincidence that when reviewing the items I received in the Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox I left the Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit for last.  You know I love RuPaul's Drag Race, so you know I love false eyelashes, but when I have tried applying false lashes in the past it has never ended well.

Usually I end up with the false lashes affixed half way up my eyelid and my natural lashes glued underneath the falsies.  Not a good look.  I didn't really feel like trying again.

I started by watching a number of YouTube videos about applying false eyelashes.  The best of those I found is below.  The most helpful tip I found it to look down into a mirror as you apply them.  That made it a lot easier.  The kit came with a pair of plastic grabbers to help position the lashes, and those helped somewhat too.  

It still took me quite a few tries to get the lashes situated more or less where they were supposed to be.

Seriously, it took me a lot of tries to get them where they were supposed to be.

Once I finally had the lashes on, I felt silly.  How silly?  Really silly.

 

 

Maybe I felt like a ham because the lashes are so theatrical.  I managed a few serious pictures after I wore myself out making faces.

 

I wore these lashes out to dinner, and I felt less self-conscious as the night went on.  I think they actually look pretty from a reasonable distance, but they are way more dramatic than I am used to.  The box says they will last for a few uses, and I will try them again.  I can almost guarantee they will make an appearance when we go to Las Vegas in a couple months.  I think they will go well with sequins.

The Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit retails for $4.99.  I'd say it's worth it for that price.

* I received the Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit for free from Influenster, but all opinions are my own.

Under the Influenster: What is Influenster?

I've been blogging about the Beauty Blogger Voxbox that I received through Influenster all week, so I thought I would talk a little more about the site and how you, lovely people of the interwebs can get involved too.  

From the Influenster website: Influenster is a free-to-join community of invited trendsetters who  give opinions of products and experiences. Influenster creates links between brands and members to reward participation and influence future products.  

Basically, you review products and services with which you've had experience, you share your interests and demographic info, and you are rewarded for that market research and promotion with deals, promotions and freebies.  

I've been a member for a couple of months and feel like there has been a good cost/benefit ratio for me.  I have done a few reviews, and I received the most recent Beauty Blogger VoxBox in return.  I am reviewing the items that were in the box on this blog as well as on Influenster, so it doesn't take much more of an investment of my time than just blogging.  

I know some members have expressed disappointment that the items in their box didn't closely match their needs (for example products for straight hair and their hair is curly), but I just figured that if I received a product that I couldn't use I would pass it along to someone who could use it and have them write a guest post.  I don't think you can/should complain too much about a box of freebies.

I was very pleased with what I received, even if I would not purchase all of the items.  

Under the Influenster: Smooth Moves

On of the products I received in the Influenster Beauty Bloggers VoxBox is Not Your Mother's Smooth Moves Frizz Control Hair Cream.

Before I moved to Georgia, I never would have guessed that I could make use of an anti-frizz product.  Georgia is a strange place, however, so now I know that even my fine, straight hair can get frizzy.

I don't know that this product made a monumental difference in how my hair behaved, but I do think my hair looked great the day I used it.  I felt like princess shinylocks, and I found myself tossing and playing with my hair way more than usual because it was just so smooth and soft.  Not Your Mother's Smooth Moves Frizz Control Hair Cream made me 37 percent more annoying to others!  Ok, hopefully not.

At $6 for a full-sized tube, I would be willing to pay for this product again in the future.  You only use a little bit, so a tube would probably last quite a while.

Shiny, shiny hair.

Smooth, shiny hair.

* This post contains affiliate links.  I received Not Your Mother's Smooth Moves Frizz Control Hair Cream for free, but all opinions are my own.

Under the Influenster: a Boost for the Body and Nose

Today I'm taking on two items from the Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox.

I was so excited to give EBOOST a good review.  It tastes pretty good, it fizzes (which is cool), and I felt a fairly immediate burst of energy after taking it.    Unfortunately my stomach started rolling a few minutes later.  I think something in the formula upset it.  I know it wasn't the caffeine because I drink copious amounts of coffee.  If I had another sample I would probably try it just to make sure the correlation was causation, but I won't be buying any as it is.

I am not a scented candle person.  Most of the time the scents are overpowering and sometimes they are positively gagging.  This is what I expected from the Bath & Body Works Mini Candle, but I was pleasantly surprised.  I received the Mahogany Teakwood scent, and it is clean and subtle smelling.  I would actually like my house to smell like this.  The normal price for this mini candle is $3.50, and a full-sized, three-wick version is $19.50.  I probably wouldn't spend that much for my house to smell this way, but the VoxBox did come with a coupon for a large candle for $10, and I'm contemplating using it.

*This post contains affiliate links.  I received the products in the Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox for free, but all opinions are my own.

Under the Influenster: Goody Simple Styles Spin Pins

The package contains two spiral pins.

As I said Monday, I received a box of beauty products to review from Influenster.  Hair styling doesn't come easily to me, so I was excited to try Goody Simple Styles Spin Pins.

For my first experiment I decided to do a bun in the top part of my hair.

First I separated the top section of my hair.

Then I twisted it until it curled into a bun.

I twisted one pin in from the bottom
and one from the top.

Ta da!

The great thing about this style is that it was lightning fast, and I think it turned out pretty well.  I'm sure I will find more uses for them as I experiment.  This is definitely better than a bun I could do on my own... though that's not saying all that much.

According to the VoxBox materials, these pins retail for $7.29, but they are available on Amazon for only $4.76.  I would not pay $7.29 for these, but I would pay $5 or less.

I've already ordered more of these pins for myself, and I'll probably be giving them as gifts come Christmas.  They are just that good- easy to use with lovely results.

* This post contains affiliate links.  I received the products in the Influenster Beauty Blogers VoxBox for free, but all opinions are my own.

Under the Influenster, IndividualEyes & RuPaul Returns

I am feeling very influential today.  I just received a box of goodies to review from Influenster as part of their Beauty Blogger VoxBox 2012.

The box included six products for me to try:

• NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact
• Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit
• Bath & Body Works Mini Candle
• EBOOST
• Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin
• Not Your Mothers Smooth Moves Frizz Control Hair Cream

I'll review each of these products in the next few days, but, in honor of RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race, I'm starting with the NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact.

I know two ways of doing my eye shadow.  I learned the tasteful way from my friend Angie.  I learned the over-the-top way by watching RuPaul's Drag Race.  In honor of the season premier of Rupaul's All Star Drag Race, I tried our the over-the-top style using the NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact.

I was actually looking for Manila's video where she shows how to do "natural" makeup, but I couldn't find it.  I'm no Manila Luzon, but here is how I used the NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact to create a dramatic eye look.

The compact comes with four powder shadows and two creams.  The shades are labeled for the semi-makeup challenged like me.  There is a primer, an illuminator, a highlighter, an all over lid color, and two crease/contour colors.

The palette I received is called Dark Shadows, and, according to the information in the box, the colors are specially coordinated to intensify and enhance your eye color.  Let's try it out!

I started with only foundation.

First, I applied primer from lash line to brow.

I used the highlighter shade from the
inner corner of each eye to the inside edge of
my iris, and across each brow bone.
I used the all over lid shade on the outer half
of each eyelid.

I used the lighter of the two crease/contour
colors along the crease of each eyelid and
extended it out a bit for a cat-eye effect.

I used the darker of the two crease/contour
colors along the lash line.

I dabbed illuminator around my inner eye,
and used Ulta Legendary Lengths mascara on
upper and lower lashes.

Ta da!

This is how much I love you interweb people.  I made this
makeup graphic just for you.

I really like how my makeup turned out, even though I didn't manage to make it quite as over the top as I had intended.  Next time.  I have had it on for a few hours now, and it is comfortable on my sensitive skin.  The VoxBox information says the retail cost is $4.99, but you can get a two pack on Amazon for $6.89.

I look forward to trying the rest of the Influenster VoxBox products and sharing my thoughts.  For more reviews of the Beauty Bloggers VoxBox and the NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact, check out Influenster.

Now Sashay Away and go watch RuPaul!

* This post contains affiliate links.  I received the products in the Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox for free, but all opinions are my own.