If you follow my Facebook page you probably saw that I recently went on a Urban Outfitters haul. I went out for dinner with one of my greatest group of friends here in NYC and while at the dinner we brought up my beauty blog and one of my closest friends +Carrie L. said she wanted to go to Urban Outfitters and then Sephora. I was all for going with her and it was great. The night was really gorgeous to walk in the city and we caught up while walking. I was super excited to go to +Urban Outfitters because they have a great selection of many things but one of the things that they have is a variety of foreign beauty products. One of the best things about living in NYC is that you have amazing variety of different things at your finger tips.
A couple of weeks back I went there and picked up Panda Dream eye cream and I was super happy that I did since it really works. I've been using it ever since. I figured I'd go back and get some for my Mom since I spoke about it to her and she was jealous. Once I was there I was strong armed into buying other things, obviously. Carrie showed me this bar of soap. It was black and I immediately said I needed it without knowing what it was. Most of the lettering was in Japanese so I really couldn't understand it but I still wanted it. This soap is something else. I got home that night and wanted to use it. I removed the plastic and a really strong odor came from it-- sort of like menthol. This soap is enriched with Koalin clay and carbon powder which I think was that menthol smell. Now that I have wet it and have used it for about a week the smell has gone. This soap is definitely not for people with sensitive skin-- I don't think. I feel its a bit harsh since it really makes my skin tingle after and I really feel that my skin is really getting clean because my skin feels really tight after using. I've put on my night time retinol and that stung a bit which isn't a bad thing since retinol is so strong I didn't think it was an issue. The good thing about this soap is that it has Bentonite which moisturizes your skin and it leaves it feeling fresh and hydrated.
I raved to Carrie about this soap because if she didn't show it to me I probably would have passed right by it. I do see my skin looking clearer and just more radiant. This soap retails for $10 and you can find it at Urban Outfitters in store or online. $10 for a bar of soap isn't that much since its a huge bar of soap and since you use it on your face, I can easily see it lasting about 6+ months. If you need a new soap I totally recommend this one and trust me you won't be disappointed.
Do you have anything that you've just stumbled upon and were really happy your purchased? Please let me know in the comments below.
So many of people ask me what types of face masks do I use. I have to tell you I use a lot. I have a couple that I love and just some that I try in sample packs to see if they are worth buying the larger versions. I will start with some of the drugstore brands that I love.
One of my favorite drugstore brands is Freeman. You can get these in the larger bottles or you can get the single use ones. This is good so you can try these out in smaller form and then if there is one that you like, you can buy the larger one. From this line, I have 3 in particular that I love. First is the Freeman Feeling Beautiful Clay Purifying Facial Mask: this is a clay mask thats purifies your skin with a mega 8 complex which contains things like acai, mango, pomegranate, and blueberries. These are all natural ingredients that will help with the purification of the skin along with brightening and anti-aging effects. The next
mask I love is Freeman Feeling Beautiful Facial Anti-Stress Mask Dead Sea Minerals and this one is another clay mask, I am not sure about stree part of it but I do like that it extracts all the oil on my face. It doesn't dry out my skin too much so its just perfect. My last one of the Freeman brand is Freeman Facial Polishing Mask Charcoal & Black Sugar. This mask is less than a mask and more of a scrub that you leave on your face. I love this one the best. It is all sugar so its really gritty and when you put it on your skin, it warms up. I think that helps me believe that its working. You scrub it into your face and then you leave it on your face for about 3 minutes and when you rub it off,
your skin is so smooth. The charcoal in this mask is really good for purifying your skin. You can find these in drugstores and the big bottles range from $4-6. I usually use these at least 3-4 times a week. As I described in my Nighttime Routine post I just put it on after I remove my make up with the facial wipes.
Other masks that I love to use which I've also explained in blog posts are the Boscia Bright White mask which is a peel mask and I love this one but its not cheap. So I don't use it all the time. Maybe once every 2 weeks but I love the way it smells. Other ones that I use that I honestly don't know the name because they are Korean brands are sheet masks. These are amazing. they have different things like ginseng, green tea and other things that help with anti-aging, brightening the skin and just overall great skin health. Korean culture is really into skincare so they have a lot of products that are really amazing and since they aren't mainstream yet, they aren't expensive at all. I get sheet masks from this dollar store near my house for well $1.
Are there any masks that you love or have fallen in love with? Let me know, I am always down to try new things.
