February Favorites

FIRST THINGS FIRST:
I want to thank all my blog readers (who are mostly my friends) for checking out my blog!  I've received some really good feedback, which only motivates me to keep this thing going and to blog more religiously.  I never thought that I would have over 500 page views...thank you!  I'll be doing a nice giveaway for my readers once I reach 1000 hits =]

I know it's already the second week of March, but I was on vacation in California last week (foodie pictures coming soon) so I didn't have a chance to blog about my February favorites.

During the month of February I decided to steer clear of all beauty counters so I could save my pennies for vacation...it worked, because I didn't buy a single thing!  I'm still in love with my Urban Decay Naked Palette and my MAC Pro Longwear Foundation, so I haven't even felt the need to buy anything.  I am planning to do a little shopping later this week, so stay tuned...

Onto my February Favorites!

KORRES Shower Gel

My skin is very sensitive especially during the winter months, and I've found that most drugstore body cleansers are too harsh and drying for my skin.  When I do use a moisturizing, creamy body wash, I break out!  After my lack of successes, I started to realize that maybe I need something more natural and gentler for my skin.

In addition to the KORRES Lip Butter that I received as a beauty.com freebie from RueLaLa, I also picked up this KORRES Shower Gel in Basil Lemon ($13-$19.50, available at Sephora & other online retailers).  I'm a huge fan of basil and lemon, so I knew I had made the right choice when I chose this scent.

As I mentioned in my review for the KORRES Lip Butter, all KORRES products are environmentally friendly and use active natural extracts for the best results.  I know the price may be a little steep for a shower gel, but believe me, it's worth it.  After my first use, I noticed that I no longer have those annoying, dry, itchy patches on the back of my arms, and my skin is still moisturized even without applying body lotion!  I never thought a GEL could be so moisturizing, but I'm sure the product's all-natural and gentle ingredients also play a major part in its effectiveness.  Most drugstore body washes contain a broad list of chemical ingredients that can irritate the skin, so I'd rather splurge on something that won't require me to purchase buckets of body lotions and creams.  I do still follow up with my Aveeno body lotion, and I'm left with the softest skin ever.

Sephora now offers the KORRES shower gels in value-sized pump bottles for $19.50, so I'm definitely picking one up when my smaller bottle runs out.

______________________________________

Cetaphil DailyAdvance Ultra Hydrating Lotion

I know I've said a million times before how oily my skin gets, and I swear I'm not exaggerating.  But even though I have oily skin, it's still important to moisturize because lack of moisture only stimulates the skin to produce more natural oils.

I purchased Cetaphil DailyAdvance Ultra Hydrating Lotion ($9 for the tube / $13 for the pump bottle, available at Target and other drugstores) on a whim because I threw out my tub of Cetaphil cream.  I hated the feeling of sticking my fingers into the jar every day...how sanitary can that be?  I knew there had to be an alternative, and since my facial skin is acne-prone, I decided to stay with Cetaphil because all their products are fragrance free and non-comedogenic.

For someone with oily skin like mine, the words "ultra hydrating" and "for dry, sensitive skin" are enough to scare me away from a product.  However, I found that my previous experiences with facial moisturizers did not leave my skin hydrated, and the product felt like it was sitting on top of my skin and not sinking in.

I'm happy to say that this is my HG (holy grail) facial moisturizer!  It sinks right into my skin and doesn't leave my face feeling greasy and disgusting.  A little bit goes a LONG WAY, so I'm sure I won't have to repurchase for a while.  If I have any dry patches of irritation on my face, this clears it right up.  I even turned my brother and my sister Jillian onto it, and they both love it!

______________________________________

DUO Eyelash Adhesive

My very first blog post was about Model 21 Eyelashes, so you can tell that I'm a huge fan of falsies.  When I first started using false eyelashes from the drugstore, I would use those little tubes of glue that would come with the lashes...and it STINKS!  The Ardell lash glue seriously smells like fish - and believe me, I'm Filipino...I know how fish smells like.

I saw that many YouTube gurus used DUO Eyelash Adhesive ($6, available at most drugstores), so I threw out my fishy glue and headed to the drugstore.  I purchased the dark tone glue based on a recommendation from hollyannaeree.

Although the glue has a slight smell, it's definitely not as pungent as the Ardell lash glue.  I'm really glad I chose the dark tone glue because it dries to a dark finish instead of leaving any white glue residue on my eyes.  It doesn't dry out easily and my lashes stay put for hours on end.

It's very important to make sure you don't leave this glue in cold temperatures!  With my last bottle, the whole tip broke off and some of the glue hardened because I left my makeup bag in my car amidst Chicago's freezing temperatures =[ I can't live without it so I had to pick up another bottle.

That's it for my February favorites!  Hope you guys have a good hump day...I'm so ready for the weekend.