face products | Beauty expression by Luchessa

January 31, 2013
by Luchessa 6 Comments

Review: ♥ Power Moist Mask by Biodroga Institute ♥

Hello my Beauties.

What would you say we all are looking for during winter, when it comes to skin care – especially for your face? Right, much-needed protection and a really good moisturization. We all know how important the daily and weekly hydration is. And at this point i’m not going to remind you to drink water and have a well-balanced diet, since for each and every one of you, who’s so much interested in beauty, should be obvious – your diet can be a “Make It or Break It” – deal for your skin.

Of course we need to distinguish between a daily moisturizer, that we put under any foundation and masks or other long-term skin care products.

I don’t know about you, but i’m that kind of girl who likes to put a nice calming and moiturizing mask on, while have a bath or simply relaxing after a long day & watching a movie. Who said, we aren’t multitasking?!

So while my skin is combination to sensitive, i need to think twice, before putting anything i’m not sure about on my face. Sometimes the product ingredients sound amazing on the cover, but it just doesn’t feel right after applying it on my skin. As you might have guessed i’m a picky mask user.

In december 2012 i was lucky to get my hands on a 1.1oz / 30g sample of the Power Moist Mask – intense moisture – by Biodroga Institute in the Glossybox Golden Christmas Edition.
It was definitely a lucky day, since the products aren’t too cheap and i would have been probably too unsure to just get it without trying a sample size first. (Aren’t we all like that?)

What do we know about the brand Biodroga?
Biodroga Systems is a company that began back in the 1950s, and is now run by a group of executives in Germany. Even though it is stated that Biodroga Systems are only available in fine spas/salons, they appear to be sold via the website too.
Among them you will find products like Cleansing Oil, Milky Cleanser, Effective Lift Mask, Mud Mask, Power Moist Mask, Anti-Time Reactivating Day Care, Age Performance Formula Restoring Night Care, and Alpha-Energizing 24-Hour Care for dry skin.
Some of the key ingredients used in these topical treatments are Matrix Optimizer, Hyaluronic Acid, Baden-Baden Reislin Grape Extract, Vitamin E Acetate, and Grape Seed Oil. As with most skin care lines, these products should be used daily in order to achieve the desired effect.
This is what Biodroga Institute claims about the Power Moist Mask:

Description:

Refreshing, silky mask that nourishes, pampers and protects moisture-deficient skin. Optimizes and stabilizes the skin’s moisture balance over the long term and promotes skin elasticity and diminishes fine lines and wrinkles. Gently stimulates collagen and elastin formation in the skin and reduces tautness and dryness. For moisture-deficient skin. Suitable even for neurodermatitis.

How to use:
Apply a 1 to 2 mm thick layer to the skin as needed after thorough cleansing or exfoliation. Leave on for 10 minutes or more. Remove residue using a cosmetic sponge or a compress. Follow up with skin-specific care.

Key Ingredients:
AquaCacteen, Himalayan raspberry root extract, Macadamia nut oil, Wheat protein and Apricot oil.

My experience:

The mask has a typical facial cream scent, which didn’t bother me at all.
Even if it’s actually a mask, i had the feeling it was less “sticky” or heavily creamy and greasy, than a usual night cream.
What i personally did, was to apply a quite thick layer of the mask on my clean face and just leave it on.
There were no problems to spread the mask all over the face, since it has an even texture.
After a few seconds i felt a cooling effect, which might be incredibly nice during summer. (Especially if you leave the mask in the fridge before using it).

Even if the brand tells you to remove the residue, i didn’t feel the need to do so, since my face was absorbing enough of the product by itself. Again here i was reminded of a night cream.
I assume if you apply a heavier layer of the mask, you might feel the need to remove the rest after a while.

Overall i had a good experience using the mask. Any possible allergy, itching, break outs, burning or redness, that i sometimes experience when using a new product luckily did not appear. (I’m always testing the product on the inside of my arm before applying to my face!)

The sample is now almost finished and i’m really thinking about getting a full size. I don’t know if it’s really diminishes fine lines or wrinkles, but the performance of moisturizing and soothing was sure there.

My Conclusion:

If you are looking for a great birthday or Valentine’s Day gift for your mom, sister or girlfriend, this would be definitely a good option. As i was saying before, it is rather expensive in comparison to many other brands ( 50 ml around $50 on their homepage ), but some might appreciate the fact that this skin care company has been around since the 1950s and it’s a spa skin care line, which has won a few times the intense moisture formula award.
(Who doesn’t want to have a little bit of a spa in your own home?!)
(Picture taken from the biodroga.com site)
Besides i have to point out, that i have found many online stores that sell this line for much cheaper, almost half of the price. For example on Amazon. You just need to keep your eyes open.
I hope you will consider trying this mask (i can not speak for other products of this brand, as i haven’t tried them yet). If you do, please let me know about your experience.

What’s your favorite facial mask at the moment, that are on the market? Or are you preparing your own masks out of ingredients found in your refrigerator or pantry?
Please share your beauty secrets with me! 😉

*This review is based on my own personal experiences with that brand and product.

My choice: Kiehl’s Açaí Damage-Protecting Toning Mist

Good evening Beauties around the world.
Thanks for being such a great sport and supporting my blog as much as you do. It means a lot!

Today I would like to share with you the little secrets about my most favorite toner of the year 2012.
I know most of us are using some kind of toner after taking the makeup off. Some of the most raved ones this year are probably the
Eau de Beauté by Caudalie, Pore Refining Toner by Sanctuary, Cucumber Face Toner by The Balm and Toning Lotion w/ Chamomile for dry or normal skin by Clarins.
Why should i use a facial toner at all, you might ask? In my experience it helps to control the dirt and oil of your skin and at the same time it also shrinks your pores ( no one likes having huge pores around the nose and chin area!) And another good reason is to restore the pH balance. Don’t forget that by using all the different soaps, face washes ect you disturb this natural balance – even if you’re actually trying to keep your face healthy and clean. That are at least my reasons.
And now back to Kiehl’s.

I have never used Kiehl’s products before, but heard so many great things about this brand and it’s products.
So I was incredibly happy when I got this 50 ml (1.7 fl. oz.) bottle in a beauty box to try.

(I’m wearing Victoria’s Secret: To die For on my nails)
First of all, it’s an antioxidant toner, that helps to balance and refine skin’s texture. It can also be used at any time as a refresher, which is a big plus especially during hot summer days. In my experience it helps to cool & calm my skin down a lot better than just the normal thermal water. (Btw: I have a sensitive & combination skin)

It’s 100% natural origin ingredients and 77,1% of the total formula is organic; paraben & silicone free.
It contains Açaí berry, fruit waters, flowers, leaves and stems of plants, lavender and leaf oils.
It mostly smells like lavender to me, which I personally love, as well as the fact, that it comes in a recyclable spray bottle.
This toning mist leaves my face completely refreshed with a feeling of a “breathing & healthy glowing skin”. If i touch my face after the mist soaked in completely, it feels like pure silk – and i’m loving it!
So as you can probably imagine, i will definitely be purchasing a 180 ml (6.0 fl. oz.) full size bottle soon.

Hope you give it a try. If you do, let me know about your experience.
In case you are a fan of Kiehl’s products, or have some kind of other magical weapon, please share your secrets with me.

September 18, 2012
by Luchessa 17 Comments

Cosmetics around the globe – russian goodies.

Hello Beauties!

Every time I hear about exotic new brand names or see amazingly done packaging in a very feminine style, my heart goes “boom boom boom”.
Even if the product isn’t that easy to get, I still enjoy learning more about it, while comparing to the items I already have in my collection.

That and your answers in my beauty poll were exact my motivation to start this series about the cosmetic items around the globe. And let’s be honest, we all want to know what kind of fabulous things they are using in Japan, Australia, Belgium, Turkey or Russia.

So why not starting with the last one.
I was lucky to get my hands on some russian decorative cosmetics in a very distinctive vintage parisian chic style.
The brand name I’m talking about is Vivienne Sabo. It was created in 2006 in Samara, the sixth largest city in Russia, by Gradient Cosmetics (one of the leading distribution companies in the country).

After having a better look at their official site and the products itself, I realized it was quite a good marketing decision to create a “french brand” in Russia. It combines definitely some aspects of conservative traditional makeup along with fresh and innovative ingredients.

That’s what the brand claims:
Vivienne Sabo is a brand with a romantic Parisian soul, modern and classic, enigmatic and democratic. When creating the cosmetic products from Vivienne Sabo we use up-to-date textures and formulas. Fresh violets fragrance makes you feel Paris’s air in spring, this delicate flower decorates the collection.
The packaging of Vivienne Sabo’s products has symbols on it. Polka dot is the most romantic French pattern, an absolute classic. Violets are a symbol of revival, love and spring, a symbol of Paris.

Make-up by Vivienne Sabo embodies the true Parisian chic and elegance. It is created with the modern cosmetic products and corresponds to the latest fashion trends. Vivienne Sabo is a company with a very beautiful history and named after a beautiful heroine.

Genuine cosmetic romanticism…

(Photo was taken from the official Vivinne Sabo homepage.)

Why not looking at the products a little bit closer and see what they are really all about.

First up was a blush in light rose, which applies really sheer, but is also buildable. It gives you the chance to intensify the color if needed. The feel is very powdery & velvety. Might be nothing for the cream blush lovers out there. But over all it’s a nice every day product.

Next item is the beautify shaped eyeshadow trio – Fleur de Velours nr.73.

I didn’t even want to touch the flower, since it looked so lovely, but of course I was excited to see how well the color pigmentation was. Unfortunately I have to admit that only one of the three colors was pigmented enough for my taste. (The silvery blue shade looks very pretty on the lid.) We often see that phenomenon of drugstore eyeshadow being less pigmented than high-end products. In this case I hope to be more successful when using a primer beforehand.

Next two items have been the smoothing lipsticks with wine extract in nr.410 and nr.411.

First of all, how cute is the packaging? The polka dots are spot on at the moment, immediately giving the little box a vintage flair.

The shape and even the application is similar to the L’Oréal Paris Color Riche lipsticks, maybe a slight reminder of the Revlon Lip Butters through their creamy and moisturizing formula and very wearable colors.

They apply very well and leave a shiny finish. But the best is definitely the smell. When you take off the cap you instantly smell wild strawberries. It’s an incredible smell that reminds me personally of my childhood. So far the smoothing lipsticks have been my favorites from this collection. I enjoy wearing them a lot these days.

There are still two different mascara, powder pearls and a moisturizing brilliance lipstick in testing (which you can see in the main picture). So stay tuned for more of this brand.
Hope you liked the little overview of the russian cosmetic brand. Have you tried anything from that country yet? If so, what was it?

And if not, what are you most worn blushes and lipsticks of the past season? Share your secrets.