Tatcha Rice Enzyme Powders

      The packets you see

are the wonderful Rice Enzyme Powder samples

     from Tatcha. 

  

As you may be able to see, there are  three different Rice Enzyme Powders.

 

The three you have to choose from include the Deep Rice Enzyme Powder, Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder and Classic Rice Enzyme Powder. Aren't sure which one would be best for your skin? Good thing you have me to go into details for you.

First of all, each of these lovely Rice Enzyme Powders work by adding water. That's right, the container or sample packet actually comes with the full powdery product, instead of the product with water added. You add some water yourself. So in my opinion, that's better since most skin products come watered down already. You choose how much water you add.

These sample or if you purchase the full jar, it's a jar/packet full of fine, white powder. 

To use:  Simply wet your hands and face. I just wet my hands, dump the powder in, and then smear it on my face, adding drops of water when necessary.

This is the same way all the Rice Enzyme Powders are used. 

Once you've got the desirable amount on your face, you massage in tiny circles--like you would any facial cleanser--for one minute. I suppose you could do for less time, but I feel like my skin's softer and I get better results when I massage for a good minute or two. Plus, it's relaxing to keep massaging.

All of Tatcha's Rice Enzyme Powders are:

Paraben free

PEG & PPG free

Urea free

DEA & TEA free

Pthalates free

Sulfate detergents free

Mineral oil free

Synthetic fragrance & color free

Let's start with Gentle. 

The Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder contains Papaya, Rice bran and  HADASEI-3 Bioactive Complex, which is an ingredient in many Tatcha products.

INGREDIENTS IN GENTLE:

 
Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate (Licorice Root), Papain (Payapa Extract), Algae Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract

What the Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder does:

Tatcha's Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder is designed to gently exfoliate, clean and reveal your skin's natural "gleam."

• The Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder is non-sensitizing 
• Exfoliates skin without being harsh and abrasive
• Is dermatoligist tested, in case that's important to you.
• Non irritating

 The Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder also contains licorice root to soothe skin. Licorice root is a good ingredient for those with sensitive skin. This product should not cause any irriation, even for those with extremely sensitive skin.

Feel:
Once water is added to the rice powder, it takes on a thick, creamy, white, slightly clumpy form. It isn't unpleasant, but does feel like it's cleansing my pores while I massage it in. 

Scent:
The Rice Powders have virtually no scent to them. Nothing I could detect. Maybe the faintest "creamy" scent, but there's hardly a smell there.


Results:
 After using the Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder, my skin feels velvety soft and clean. 

When I first seen the white powdery product, I didn't really expect it to clean my skin, but to soften it only. I was happy to discover that the fine rice powder does exfloliate my skin, but does so gently. Normally "gentle" exfoliants don't actually exfoliate at all. I feel satisfied after cleaning my face with only this product. I don't feel the need to add extra cleansers, make up removers or corn meal to fully clean and exfoliate my face, whereas using other facial products, I do often feel that something else is needed to really do the trick.

There isn't any noticeable residue, greasyness or redness to my skin after using the Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder. However, since my skin can certainly use a deeper exfoliant every few weeks, I decided to use the Gentle Powder on days where I've tanned and use the Deep Rice Powder a couple weeks later, when my skin can use something deeper. I liked this routine a lot. It seems to do exactly what I need.

I'll say it again, my skin isn't left red, dry, or with residue after washing with this. I love that it doesn't leave my face shiny and oily, like most products do. It seems they leave my face looking dry immediately and then my face suddenly produces way too much oil an hour or two later. That is annoying and requires a lot of extra work. Moisturize, then try to fix the excess oil. Not my idea of low maintenance skin.

Instead, my skin is left really, really smooth, clear, matte-like and soft. Pores are fairly minimized, there's no left over makeup. Not that I use very much to begin with besides eye makeup, a little bronzer some times.

My skin and issues
 I like to include information about my own skin and issues that way you guys have a better idea of how things work and what to expect. 

As I've said before, my skin would be considered "combination skin."  I have the oily T-zone and dryness everywhere else. My skin is high maintenance and requires exfoliating daily. I also wear mascara and often hard-to-wash-away eye shadows.

My problem with facial products is usually one of two things: either they're too abrasive or they're not cleansing enough. If you've ever used a skin cleanser that seems to not clean your skin, but only leave a layer of residue, you know what I mean. I like to have soft, exfoliated, truly clean skin after washing. 

 The Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder well exceeded my first expectations. I've used it daily for about a week with pleasure.  This cleanser would be good for people like me, with combination skin since it seems to reduce the excess oil without any drying at all. People with extremely oily skin, I feel will benefit greatly from this product, especially combined with Tatcha's Aburatorigami papers. 


               Classic Rice Enzyme powder


  This powder, very much alike all the others, the Classic Rice Enzyme Powder also contains Papaya, Rice bran and HADASEI-3 Bioactive Complex. This powder is "created with pearl extract for combination skin."

•   Non sensitizing
• Dermatologist tested--incase you care about that
• Non irritating
• Non abrasive, not harsh on skin

  Again, like the Gentle Rice Enzyme Powder, the Classic Powder has the same purpose: to reveal skin's natural gleam.


  As I said, each of the powders are "water activated," meaning that you add water to the powder and then massage onto the skin.


  INGREDIENTS IN CLASSIC:
Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran, Papain (Papaya Extract), Algae Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Hydrolyzed Conchiolin Protein (Pearl)

  The difference in Classic and Gentle's ingredients are three things:

Pearl

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate 

Licorice root.

  The Classic Powder contains Pearl whereas the Gentle Powder contains two more ingredients: Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate  & Licorice root..

  The feel, scent are pretty much identical in both Classic and Gentle. So if you have combination skin and even excessively oily skin, I think you'll benefit greatly from either one of these. Even skin more simple will surely benefit and be softer and smoother.




                   Deep Rice Enzyme Powder

   As with the Classic and Gentle Enzyme Powders, the Deep powder also contains HADASEI-3 Bioactive Complex, as well as many other ingredients.

  The deep powder is a mint green color/no scent.


  Looking at the ingredients closer, you'll notice that this Deep Rice Enzyme Powder is pretty close to the Classic Powder except for one ingredient. Instead of Pearl, the Deep Rice Powder contains Dokudami, making this only one ingredient away from the Classic and two ingredients different from the Gentle Rice Powder. The Deep Rice Enzyme powder contains Dokudami whereas the Gentle Rice Powder contains Licorice Root.

  INGREDIENTS IN DEEP

 Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran, Papain (Papaya Extract), Algae Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract (Dokudami)

  The scent, feel and purpose is similar to both the Classic and the Gentle Rice Enzyme Powders. This too leaves you with a wonderfully soft, velvety smooth face. I do notice that the Deep Powder really, really, really cleans deep! My pores and skin in general look like absolute perfection after using this. I LOVE it.

  The purpose of the Deep Rice Enzyme Powder is the same as the other two powders: to "reveal skin's natural gleam."

I prefer to use the Gentle or Classic daily and the Deep only every couple of weeks, although it's so tempting to use it that lately, I've been doing so more than once a week! It just makes me feel so lovely.

 All work wonders for my skin and I believe every skin type will at least benefit from the soft, smooth skin these leaves you with.

 

A Nano Renue

Photo courtesy of Nutra-lift... I didn't have my own photo of it on hand, but will post it asap!

 I have been one lucky little thing! I've been using several products from Nutra-Lift and while I fell in love immediately with them, A Nano Renue has me just star-struck (sorry, I really couldn't think of a better word that really described my... emotions for this particular company and product).

First, I'll start with a little info on peptides. 

To the best of my knowledge -which is minimal on this subject - peptides are basically protein. Peptides are break-downs of protein.  I imagine them as tee-tiny little things that can penetrate the skin in some cases. There is a such thing as using a product that contains peptides without reaping the benefits. Right before I began using this product, I wanted to do enough looking into the active ingredients to know how to get the best benefits. From what I've learned, peptides need to be "stabalized" or else they can break down further (remember my earlier attempt at explaining peptides and how they're break-downs of protein?) Lotions can break these peptides down even more causing them to be pretty much ineffective. That's why you need to be sure the peptide-containing product you use is going to deliver the peptides rather than break them down. In other words, they need to penetrate skin. How can you be sure that your little peptides are actually digging their heels in and doing their job rather than lounging around atop your skin all day? The only thing I know to do to be sure is using copper peptides since these are effective in penetrating the skin, therefore actually working for you. 

With the peptides and all the other super fine ingredients in this product, I'm very confident that my skin is actually reaping the benefits! When you're young and haven't developed a slew of wrinkles yet, it's hard to tell if your anti-aging products are working, but when you know a little about what you are using, this will help you know if you are going to reap the benefits in the future. 

A Nano Renue does so, so very much and has so many ingredients that have so many benefits that it's hard to really know, let alone go into detail about all the possible benefits using this product will have on your skin.

Here's what Nutra-Lift says in their page description:
" More Peptides at 8%, More Moisture, More Organic Extracts & Anti-Oxidants, plus a Mild Exfoliant for healthy younger looking skin.

Breakthroughs in skin care technology, now bring you the most advanced Peptide serum. Golden Collagenine is the latest weapon in the Anti-Aging war, to achieve younger looking more beautiful skin. A NEW peptide Nanoconjugated to 24KT Gold Particles with a remarkable effect on Collagen outgrowth. Nanoparticles are now being used in biomedical devices to improve delivery systems for more effective results. 30 day studies conducted on Golden Collagenine indicate increases in Collagen by up to 205%, increases in Elasticity by 41%,Hydration by 31%, and can reduce the look of wrinkles by up to 55%.

Now Golden Collagenine is combined in a complex formula with other time tested peptides for even better results. Peptide-8 Complex includes Matrixyl, 3000 at 5% (Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 PAL KTTKS). Argireline,(Acetyl Hexapeptide 8), Di-Peptide 2, Golden Collagine, Acetyl GlutamylHeptapeptide Snap 8, Tripitide, Myristoyl Pentapeptide-8, for younger looking healthier skin. The GOLD Standard in Skin Care with Anti-Aging Peptide-8 Complex plus Nanoconjugated Gold Particles for remarkable collagen growth. A New & Improved Tissue Repair formula with natural & organic ingredients with 3 times more moisture & 20 times more antioxidants that aid in cellular regeneration. Rejuvenating "A" NANO RENEU™ stimulates production of collagen and elastin, minimizes hyper pigmentation and protects the skin from free radicals. For younger looking, healthier skin. Mildly Exfoliates, Moisturizes, & Reduces the Look of Wrinkles. Younger more Beautiful Skin is now yours.

The GOLD Standard in Skin Care with Anti-Aging Peptide-8 Complex plus Nanoconjugated Gold Particles for remarkable collagen growth. A New & Improved Tissue Repair formula with natural & organic ingredients with 3 times more moisture & 20 times more anti-oxidants that aid in cellular regeneration. Rejuvenating "A" NANO RENEU™ stimulates production of collagen and elastin, minimizes hyper pigmentation and protects the skin from free radicals. For younger looking, healthier skin. Mildly Exfoliates, Moisturizes, & Reduces the Look of Wrinkles.

Directions: Wash face. Apply 1 to 2 times per day as needed to face and neck area. Can be used with other Nutra-Lift® products. A slight Flush /Tingling sensation is a normal reaction to the use of this product upon application. Since this product is highly concentrated, we RECOMMEND for people with Sensitive Skin, to apply on Slighlty WET face.



PS: All of the uses of Gold Mineral have not been found and there is continuing research to discover all the benefits of Gold. Gold Mineral is Non-toxic, promotes a general euphoric feeling of well being, stimulates the body's restorative functions, enhances the body's natural defenses against illness and promotes vitality and longevity.

For centuries gold has been used by American Indians for many purposes. After boiling a gold nugget in water the Shaman (medicine man or curandero) would give the water to the patient to drink for a variety of illnesses. Primarily the gold water was used for patients with mental illness or disturbance.

Gold has been reported to be effective against active joint inflammation and has been used as an add on therapy with aspirin for arthritis when pain relief is required. Gold is not an analgesic but may have anti-inflammatory effects.

Human Growth Factors are proteins produced by various cells in the human body. Their primary function is to activate cellular proliferation and differentiation. They act as chemical messengers between cells, turning essential biological activities "on" and "off," and are involved in increasing the rate of cell growth, cell division, new cell and blood vessel production, and collagen and elastin production. Scientific understanding of how HGF works has not only proven to be related to resolving many cell developmental diseases, but it also directly applies to helping someone obtain a more youthful and vibrant look to your skin, without expensive plastic surgery or Botox treatments as well as to healthy, fuller-looking hair.





Ingredients: Certified Organic Aloe Vera Gel*, Peptide-8 Complex (includes Matrixyl 3000 at 5% (Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 PAL KTTKS). Argireline (Acetyl Hexapeptide 8), Di-Peptide 2, Golden Collagenine, Acetyl Glutamyl Heptapeptide Snap 8, Tripitide, Myristoyl Pentapeptide-8, lactobacillus/algae extract ferment, Cetyl esters, Ascorbyl Palmitate (Vitamin C ester) Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, (Vitamin C ester) sea kelp/algae, liposomes (from lecithin), Hyaluronic Acid, Lipidure, Ceramide-3, Retinyl Palmitate, (vitamin A), Glycosaminoglycans, Ceratonia Siliqua (HGF), Carnosine, Grape Seed extract*, Co-Q10, pycogenol*, DMAE Bitartrate, A-Lipoic Acid hydroxyethylcellulose, Marine Collagen, Marine Elastine, Organic royal jelly, Mexican yam, Green Tea*, White Tea*, Milk Thistle*, Hydrolyzed Rice Bran, Pomegranate*, White Cranberry*, Acai Berry, Black Current Seed*, Reishi Mushroom*, Shitake Mushroom*, Licorice, Astaxanthin, Rosemary, Rose Hips*, Oregano*, Sage*, Red Clover*, Tumeric*, Olive Leaf*, Ginger*,Fennel*, niacinamide, Gotu Kola (centella asiatica), Orange rind, Melon rind, l-Tyrosine, Copper Peptide, Zinc Sulfate, Squalene, Colloidal Minerals. *Certified Organic 

Whew! That's a lot, but that is directly from Nutra-Lift. I am learning so much and seeing some very new effects on my skin. I've currently been using a variety of the products from Nutra-Lift and will be talking about those when I've had time to really know what they do for me.

As for A Nano Renue, I haven't experienced and tingling, irritation or the like. It's easy to use and absolutely worth it! Upon learning that A Nano Renue contains gold particles, that probably intrigues as well as scares since most products are so pricey! A Nano Renue is actually a very great price for the product. This is one product with never ending benefits, and to tell you the truth, it makes me a little giddy just using it! 

A Nano Renue looks like a normal facial cream. It's somewhat rich and thick and what really makes my day (besides the benefits) is that I can press the pump bottle one time and walk out the door while rubbing it on! A small amount will spread easily. Before the lotion is absorbed it feels slightly sticky when I touch my skin, but that disappears and I'm unable to feel residue or thickness on my skin. It does feel as if it absorbs rather than sitting on my skin, a big plus.

Besides how well this makes your skin look in the long run, it also doesn't clash with your regular routine. You don't have to worry about it leaving your face greasy and you can skip moisturizer! As I always say, my skin is desert dry. In the past 7 days I have not touched a moisturizer! A Nano Renue, plus using the non-soap herbal cleanser has given me no reason for extras. I seen my face looking prettier and smoother at the very beginning of use. 


I'm giving A Nano Renue a full 10/10 rating because the benefits are truly endless and instead of worrying if my skin product is actually anti-aging me, smoothing me and keeping me all break-out free and lovely, I can have fun with my young life without worrying if I'm aging! The Nutra-Lift products (especially the foundation, Nano Renue and Cleansers) have climbed past my great skincare products that I've used for a while and made it to the best I have ever put on my skin. With my other products I was always sacrificing something. I sacrifice nothing at all using Nutra-Lift. I kept going through different skincare (just take a check at all the products I've mentioned using and you'll know I've literally tried hundreds!) and I would find some here and there that I liked and even a few that I loved. 1 in about 12 products that I try, I will like something about it for example, it exfoliates better than my other products whereas another one I'll try will completely break me out each time I use it. 

Then there will be another one that has big claims of anti-aging and I'll dread using it, but I'll use it and cake on powder to disguise the thick greasy residue it leaves. Like I said, I'm forever sacrificing something and never feeling totally satisfied with any of them. So far the Non-Soap Cleanser has been a miracle as has the Nano Renue, foundation and Mask. No worries, I'll fill you in on all the outstanding details of those when I've had time to use them longer. 

Most importantly, when I use A Nanu Renue, my skin plumps a little and is somewhat more firm instantly! It has worked miracles for those dark sunken in areas around my eyes! Lately I've had those circles so badly that no matter how much concealeR I applied, it was still there. I can apply a drop of the Renue serum and instantly plump and eliminate the lines and circles! It has shown more results than any aging product I have ever, ever used before! I will happily continue to use this.. forever! I've been using it for such a short time and already the little bitty lines around my eyes are not even there! I often have smile lines (parenthesis!) after smiling so I smiled for several seconds then applied the serum then smiled again for several more seconds and they disappeared! No lines were indented! It's so awesome! 


Also I wanted to see this stuff working close-up so I applied some to that super wrinkly area between your thumb and forefinger and could actually watch the deep lines disappear! I was comparing it to the hand I didn't use the serum on. My lovie and I were so impressed!


Conclusion.
If I were to recommend ONE product only for anti-aging, no matter what age you are, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend A Nano Renue. I do believe that it will benefit every person.


PS: A Nano Renue smells heavenly! I'm unable to smell it after it is absorbed, but for that minute before, I sniff away! It's subtle and almost tropical. 


I absolutely *adore* this stuff! Ya'll guys check it out and let me know your own results! I can't wait to hear!

Sea Kelp Ultramarine

 

  This jar of lovely bubbly blue gel has to be one of my favorite Skin Actives products so far! Just looking at it is almost soothing. 

As with most of Skin Active's products, the Sea Kelp Ultramarine can also be used by male or female and anyone from children to the elderly can reap the benefits lying in the jar!

I first have to say, this is not, I repeat not your average face mask. It won't burn or irritate your skin and will not leave it as dry as the desert when it's rinsed away. 

What it will do however, is leave you with glowy, smooth, pore-reduced, firm and even skin. Not only that, but unlike your drugstore masks, the Sea Kelp Ultramarine's lovely benefits will not diminish after a few hours. Is it only me or have y'all had those results with most masks? It's like right when you rinse a mask off your face looks nice or at least better and by the time you've slept for a couple of hours your skin's right back to normal! Enlarged pores, redness, etc. I hate that!

Thankfully, you won't need to use the Sea Kelp Ultramarine daily although you certainly could. Once a week has kept my skin looking great, but I will probably use it a couple extra days this week since I've had some sort of freak breakouts suddenly. Why does it seem like I've written that sentence a lot? Maybe I have these freak breakouts more often than I though. Crap.

Anyways, what I love about the Sea Kelp Ultramarine is the cool soothing and redness, inflammation reducing properties. It's what I'll run to when my skin acts up!

You only need a small amount to totally cover your face/neck and it does not burn! I feel a little cooling, but nothing irritating. I've actually had some "mud masks" as well as others burn the skin off of my face. Really! The Sea Kelp Ultramarine cleans so deep into the pores that I could swear they feel cleaner! It tightens and closes everything up and leaves you with the nicest clean, dewy glow! A major plus, you aren't left with dried out skin.

If you've had inflammation, acne or irritation, the Sea Kelp mask works wonders. Once it has dried and you are ready for it to come off simply rinse or wipe away with a warm wash cloth! That's another thing that really impressed me. Being able to rinse it away quickly without having bits stuck all over my face was so convenient.

According to Skin Actives this works as a moisturizer too. It does in fact leave you with moisturized skin, but since it dries like a mask, I wouldn't use it as a lotion. It will peel off easily too.

The other night I was so exhausted and I had washed my face and applied the Sea Kelp Ultramarine and planned to get in the shower when it dried. I was reading and ended up passing out for several hours with the mask on. I'm not sure if leaving it on for so long helped, but I appreciated how nice my skin looked the next AM due to my crashing!

WHO, WHAT AND HOW?
The Sea Kelp Ultramarine is good for normal, oily and dry skin and combination skin. You can use it all over the body, hair, eyebrows, lashes, eyes, hands, lips, etc. I'm a little worried about using this on my eyes as It'd be a pain if it got inside and I've had terrible eye irritation lately and I'm finally getting over that. 

Another awesome thing about the Sea Kelp mask is that it can be used as a shave gel and it is paraben free so y'all paraben-haters, rejoice!

This product is supposed to be great for rosacea! You can even add water to it and turn it into a serum! In fact, I think I'll take a small amount of it and do just that. It will soften your hair and if used as a shave gel will prevent nicks and if used after shaving it'll help with irritation and redness, red bumpies! Like I said, a very soothing Skin Active product. 


INGREDIENTS:

Lactobacillus/kelp ferment filtrate, Porphyridium extract,  Laminaria japonica extract, Arthrospira extract.

 Check out Skin Actives to see this as well as many, many other products for any skincare need!


*Too see more info on sponsored reviews see my disclosure page and honesty pledge at the top.*

ONE skincare Olive Oil Nourishing Enrichment

 

Remember me posting about a new skincare approach I had begun, the olive oil deal? I guess that was about a month ago, but while doing a lot of reading and asking around about this olive oil approach, this is something I came across. One Skincare's Olive Oil Nourishing Enrichment. 

 While looking for olive oil based skincare products available, One Skincare is what stood out to me most. I was surprised to find that there really wasn't that much to choose from in this area. I had someone ask me about One Skincare and asked if I had tried the products. Now, I have! 

So I decided on a the Olive Oil Nourishing Enrichment since I was already interested in trying something that contained olive oil for my skin. I recieved a few sample packs of this oil. 

ABOUT THE OLIVE OIL NOURISHING ENRICHMENT

 The Olive Oil Nourishing Enrichment can be used on your hair, hands, face or about any other skin you have on your body. One Skincare refers to their product as a "soothing solution built upon properties like 100% organic olive oil polyphenols and restorative vitamin E, which are rich in antioxidants."

The Olive Oil Enrichment contains an all natural lavendar scent and that I love! 

"O.N.E. is suitable for all skin types. Paraben-free and USDA certified organic. It's time to rejuvenate the natural way."

O.N.E. looks and feels like an oil, but to my surprise it didn't leave me super greased and itchy like the DHC stuff did. Remember me saying I looked like a glazed ham and had gotten the stuff in my eyeballs! O.N.E. does not feel or look like that at all. How nice that was for me! It's actually much thinner and didn't make me itchy. 

MY EXPERIENCE

You guys probably remember me saying that I was trying DHC's oil for my face when I talked about trying olive oil. Well, I did use the stuff a little and didn't just love it. I really didn't care for it. However, I'm so far happy with One Skincare's Olive Oil Nourishing Enrichment. 

What do I love oh so much about O.N.E?

The ingredients! Here they are:  Ingredients: 100% organic olive oil, sunflower oil, vitamin E, lavender and geranium essential oils.

If you happen to be one of the people (if so, you better be the ONLY one! lol) who didn't read my post on olive oil back when I started looking into trying it for my skin, I will go ahead and briefly tell you why I wanted to try it. Olive Oil is supposed to be so amazing for the skin and according to some, miraculously keeps your skin looking incredibly youthful. I'm 21 and will turn 22 in a couple of weeks and when I turned 20 I started thinking about using anti-aging products. Not that I'm opposed to aging! I just want to reserve my youth :)

 Now that I'm about to be 22, I'm hoping to find something that truly will prevent serious aging.

O.N.E. does not leave you looking greasy, like I said. Instead, once it's nice and massaged in, you'll just have some glow to your skin and be extremely moisturized. This stuff is great for extreme dryness which I do have. Those flakes will be gone in no time! It'll also help with dandruff if you massage into your scalp.

So far, I enjoyed sampling O.N.E. and I believe this is the product I want to stick with for my "journey".

*see my disclosure page for more info on sponsored reviews. You can also view my honesty pledge at the top!*

Lumene Skincare Review

 Vitamin C Pure Radiance Day Cream With SPF (the one with orange lid).

  The Vitamin C Pure Radiance Day Cream is a rich, velvety moisturizer with arctic cloudberry. Cloudberries is are grown in Finland and are used in products like jam, marmalade, juice, liquor, and other sweets. 

Lumene has an area on their site that contains  a little information about the different ingredients like Cloudberries. From what I've read, in the 15th century, sailors would take Cloudberry jam on trips with them to prevent against scurvy. A neat little bit of info there.

What Lumene says about Cloudberry:
"Cloudberry seed oil also contains copious amounts of linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid (Omega 6 and Omega 3), vitamins A and E, and plant sterols. It strengthens skin, prevents aging and, due to its antioxidant effects, protects skin from external factors. Moreover, the detoxification properties of cloudberry nectar help to make the skin look brighter and more radiant."
I have yet to learn much about arctic cloudberry and its benefits, but I do know it contains tons of vitamin C. Lumene's Vitamin C Pure Radiance Day Cream gave my skin a change in one day! It moisturizes deep down and has such a beautiful scent!

  It's velvety soft and has a feel to it unlike other creams. It's rich, but takes a small amount to cover the entire face and neck. This means it lasts quite a while! Major plus. It leaves my skin feeling velvet-y as well and drumroll... is totally non greasy! Yipee! This stuff quickly became a product I like. However, I worried that with my seeing such a difference in my skin so quickly that it would be a one week wonder type of thing. You know, the kind of skincare products that wow you and give you gorgeous skin for one week only then all goes downhill from there? I've had that happen and it's disappointing to say the least. So far, I'm pretty positive that Lumene is  keeper! I doubt that the benefits will stop after long term use. In fact, I would bet they would increase.

  The first day I used the Vitamin C Cream I thought wow, my skin's looking nice today, but maybe it's just me. Then later that night my sister told me my skin was looking great! That's not something I hear often either! Lol.

  Lumene's Vitamin C Day Cream is great for outdoors and even hot or cold weather. It has SPF 15 and I used it when we were at the 11 year old's football game on freezing nights and it worked wonders protecting my skin from the harsh wind! 

  The cream is super moisturizing and deeply penetrates making it perfect for those with dry skin. I had a dentist appointment (cringe!) the other morning and noticed how dry around my chin and mouth was, probably from the dentist poking at it and me having to wrestle my lip ring out with fingers and pliers! Anyway, my point is, it was dry and irritated! Pliers and skin aren't the best of friends. I quickly slapped on some of the Vitamin C Cream and watched the dryness and redness disappear! It seems to clear up my skin from blemishes and breakouts as well. I've had zero breakouts since using it so it may be good for light breakouts too. We will see.

  When applying my bronzer facial powder after using the day cream I noticed a much smoother and even coverage. It seems to keep me from piling too much on, but in a way the cream seemed to make it look natural rather than like a bronzer. It's  really great for a base. 

  Thank God it didn't roll up in little balls while I massaged it on my face and after applying make-up! I've had moisturizers that ended up rolling up in little moisturized balls on my face! It's especially disasterous if you've just applied bronzer. Not a pretty sight. I was relieved that this Day Cream went on smoothly and didn't just sit on my skin. The beautiful scent helps too! It smells citrusy, fresh and energizing. Not perfumey though! No worries there.

My opinion in short: I adore this stuff! It instantly gives my skin a boost and leaves it soft, firm and smooth. It evens out skintone and really reduces flaws such as blemishes, age spots, fine lines, etc. It works wonders for fine lines under the eyes! Amazing stuff!

  It's also ant-aging!  I love that you get SPF, anti-aging, moisturizer,etc. all in one!

Lumene Firming Day Cream Time Freeze with Arctic Heather

  The Firming Day Cream is pictured at the top in the pink container.  From what I gather, Arctic Heather is a wrinkle reducing plant and like Cloudberry, is also grown in Finland. It is said to have calming effects. From what I've read on Lumene's information page, arctic heather has been used to cure insomnia and coughs, to clean the blood and purify wounds. Very interesting! 


What Lumene has to say about it:

"the extract from heather flowers helps maintain healthy levels of collagen and elastin fibers in skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines. It also contains flavonoids, which are antioxidants, and therefore protect your skin cells from free radical attacks and other damaging oxidative effects. The ursolic acid in heather helps slow the effects of aging by inhibiting the action of the elastase enzyme, which is responsible for degrading the skin matrix. The stalks of the heather plant contain arbutin, a skin brightener which helps lighten and prevent pigment changes. Heather flower extract also softens and moisturizes skin."

  Unlike the Vitamin C Cream, the Firming Cream is lighter and not as rich. It's more likely to leave a slight look of shine behind for those with oily T-zone. It's not greasy, but can give you a bit of a shine. This can easily be taken care of by not applying it heavily in the oily areas or using an oil sheet to get rid of excess oil first.

  However, it does leave my skin feeling velvet-y and smooth. When applied around the neck and eyes or wherever fine lines are, it quickly makes them and pores appear less noticable or in my case disappear altogether! I really feel confident with Lumene's products for people my age and older, or anyone who's looking to give their skin long term benefits and prevent aging. I can definitely tell that both creams would work wonderfully for this purpose.

  I have heard some pretty nice things about Lumenes Time Freezing Day Cream. Since it doesn't have an SPF some people prefer to use it as a night cream. It works as a great moisturizer for dry skin. I can't get over how poreless and even my skin looks after using these creams!

  I would suggest letting it absorb well before applying foundation or powder. If not, it might cause the cream to roll up in little balls. This can also be helped by using it at night instead. It leaves no residue behind.

  Pure Radiance Beauty Drops (the little orange capsule thingy)

  I'm a sucker for the little capsules! I remember my mom using little capsule like things that had vitamin C and even some for the bath. They're just cute.

  The little orange capsule is broken open to squeeze the ingredients out and massage into skin, just like a moisturizer except this stuff is more like velvet! It feels amazing on the skin. It's like rubbing your fingers over silk and when applied to the face I can feel my skin softening. It leaves my face looking and feeling like soft velvet all day. 

  The Pure Radiance Beauty Drops contain Arctic Lingonberry which is a wild berry grown in Finland. Lumene includes information on their ingredients and from what the site says, Lingonberry is used to treat urinary tract infections. Here's some of what Lumene has to say:
" Bursting with flavonoids, moisturizing properties, phenol compounds and antioxidants, its seed oil promotes skin renewal. Antioxidants and essential fatty acids (omegas) provide the skin with important nutrition. The leaves of the lingonberry plant contain Arbutin, which has a lightening effect on skin discoloration, and vitamin C, which protects and brightens skin."


Sounds pretty awesome! If you've ever used DHC's Velvety Skin Cote, the Pure Radiance Beauty Drops are similar in texture, except they actually do leave your skin looking velvety and soft. 

  As for the radiant skin, it does give me a pretty glow, but instead of a greasy look, I have a slight glow with matte complexion if that makes sense? Non greasy and leaves behind no residue! 

  These are great for fine lines and they moisturize the skin. I wouldn't count on these solely for moisturizing, but they add  a nice extra oomph to your skin. I love the soft, semi-porcelain skin they give me! 

  For dull skin, these are  a perfect solution to masks and layers of make-up and bronzers! They do brighten my entire face. 

 ExCELLent Future Deep Repairing Cream
 This would be the packet you see in the above photo on the left. The ExCELLent Future Cream is good for skin that's exposed to harsh sun or other harsh environments that are known to cause damage to the skin. It's great for fine lines and will prevent wrinkles and fine lines. I love the sound of that! 

  The light creamy texture makes applying quickly and evenly a breeze with only a small amount of product needed to do so.  It smells wonderful and when applied to smile lines or light fine lines, it will reduce the appearance quickly. It works well as  a moisturizer and smells so great that I want to use it all over just to smell this good! 

  It's a non greasy or oily cream that leaves behind no residue. When used with other Lumene products it will enhance your skin's glow. I've had no problems using this under bronzer and makeup. It leaves my skin super smooth and silky and I'm able to apply bronzer, blush or powder when it's absorbed and everything stays smooth and even. Beautiful!


               Bright Skin Radiance Nectar 

  The Bright Skin Nectar is the packet on the right in the photo way up there. This too contains arctic cloudberry. So far, I have liked the Bright Skin Nectar.  The texture is that of a serum with no greasy or sticky residue behind. I've used  light layer under make-up with no problems. 

  The Bright Skin Nectar gives a similar radiant glow as the Pure Radiance Day Cream With Vitamin C. Like the Vitamin C Day Cream, the Bright Skin Nectar has a light citrusy scent. It's a very clean and refreshing scent. 

  The Bright Skin Nectar has been great for redness and irritation. This isn't a moisturizer, but it help  little dryness. The Lumene products I have tried have never given me problems with acne or breakouts so far and I don't see them doing that ever. If anything they help. The Vitamin C that's in a lot of the products is one of my top must haves in my skincare products. It gives a healthy glow like nothing else. 

  The Nectar as well as the other Lumene products have worked like a charm for my enlarged pores! They totally shrink after using the products.  


  



 

JUARA skincare - Does it work?

  In the photo above is several Juara skincare samples I've been trying and testing. There's the Avocado and banana moisture mask, the sweet black tea and ginger mattefying moisturizer, candlenut body creme, sweet black tea and rice facial moisturizer, Tamarind Tea Hydrating Toner and the rice facial cleanser.

  I'll start with the Sweet Black Tea & Ginger Mattefying Moisturizer. Juara calls this a "gel-creme" I'm not exactly sure what that is, but I'm assuming it's a gel and a cream mixed. The little sample packet has a brief description on the back that states the moisturizer has age-defying benefits and is completely oil-free.

  With my recent trip to the beach and then tanning lately, the oily-ness on my face is just-a'-shinin'! It's red as a lobster too! So, I was more than eager to try out these little samples and put them through a real test on my skin at it's worst. The Mattefying Moisturizer is a good product for oily skin since it does take the shine down quite a bit. I imagine it would work wonders on  everyday oily skin because mine's been so bad you could almost see your reflection in my forehead and nose! It's bad! Anyways, Juara's samples have been a real pleasure and I like the Mattefying Moisturizer. I've been using it daily and it's helped with my shine tremendously.

  Upon first applying the Mattefying Moisturizer, I wondered whether or not it was going to do anything, but after moving on, letting it absorb into the skin and then taking another mirror check, I did notice a major difference in my shine. It reduced it after several minutes.

 TIP: Resulst are not instantaneous. Before you get frustrated and give up on this one, do give it a few minutes to really absorb. Try to avoid putting on other facial products or make-up for 3-6 minutes to allow the moisturizer to absorb fully and then you'll see your results. For super-duper mattefying results, add a brief swipe of bronzer powder over T-zone after using Mattefying Moisturizer. You can also combine the Mattefying Moisturizer with DHC's Velvet Skin Coat make-up primer ( Juara first, DHC next and then carry on with regular regimen.) and you're smooth, make-up will stay on all day and no shine will make it through your mattefied face.

  I've used other shine reducing products and I've not found anything that I could really rave about specifically for the shine-reducing properties, but I am impressed with Juara's Mattefying Moisturizer. I've used the oil absorbing sheets that you get a drug stores or Wal-Mart and so far, when I'm looking for something strictly for shine reducing, I turn to those. I think it's safe to say the Mattefying Moisturizer is pretty darn close at giving similar results as you'd see after using the sheets. I likey!

  Would I recommend? Yes, for oily skin and for dry skin. However, it's a bit pricey. I have a freaky combination of super oily and sand paper dry all at the same time (lucky me!) and I've been successful with using only the Mattefying Moisturizer for both problems. It reduces oil while also highly moisturizing. Thank God it doesn't leave you even greasier than you were to begin with! Ugh, some products are nightmares. Kudos to Juara on Mattefying my shine.

Tamarind Tea Hydrating Toner: The one in the cute little bottle shown in the above photo.
Now this was very handy for my sun burned skin. It immediately soothed and calmed and cooled. This is awesome for irritations, redness, etc. It dramatically reduced my rudolph nose! For some reason when I tan my nose burns, but no part of the rest of me does. My face rarely reddens, but it will be slightly burned. Still, my nose will be screaming red hot fire! It's not pretty. I was grateful to have the Hydrating Toner. It contains  Hyaluronic acid for softening skin. I simply squeeze the sample bottle and rub on my face with hands. The full size bottle has a pump.

It worked wonders for my almost peeling skin. It gets super dry (except the freaky oily T-zone) and will have awful little dry spots and light peeling, even with no tanning. Many "moisturizing" products have only made the dryness more visible.. strange, but true! The toner was so nice. I needed little more than the Mattefying Moisturizer and the toner and I was good to go.

Whether your skin's sensitive, oily, dry or you have combination skin like me, you'll more than likely benefit well from the toner. I love it. My pores appeared smaller and I've yet to see dryness when using the toner. Juara's description says that the Tamarind increases hydration, with other wonderfully healing and soothing ingredients.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely! Especially for the price. The stuff's just wonderful. Helps skin in many areas including dry, tired, inflamed and irritated. The price is well worth all the benefits! Love, Love, Love it!

  Candlenut Body Creme:  Contains Candlenut oil. I immediately loved the Candlenut Body Creme. I swiped some on my arm first and watched how lovely my skin looked! Very pretty, smooth and felt luxuriously smooth. This adds the perfect extra smooth texture to just shaved legs and it even softens you up on the prickly days leaving your legs feeling super soft and smooth. I didn't mind skipping a few days of shaving my legs because the Candlenut Body Creme had me covered. I love using it all over my arms, legs and other parts. It's really soft and doesn't leave that layer of residue on your skin. When rubbing your hands over the skin you can't feel that lotion's there. It feels like young, soft skin. I'm a huge body lotion and cream fan, but more times than not, they end up just adding a layer of softness to the skin rather than penetrating and actually smoothing and softening and hydrating it. If you know very much about creams, lotions and moisturizing, you know it's rare to find a body cream or lotion that actually makes your skin soft rather than, like I said running your hand over a soft layer of lotion. I love the light, fresh coconut-y frangrance too!

It's also rare to find a body lotion/cream that doesn't leave the slightest hint of sticky/greasy residue behind. It's less noticeable on legs, but if a lotion leaves behind any feeling between my fingers other than smooth softness it frustrates the heck out of me. Even high-end lotions do it. A lot of people don't notice, but I do. Always! I will not use a lotion or cream that leaves any sort of tacky or slightly sticky, greasy feeling between my fingers. It's the most annoying feeling to me and I've had to take many trips to public restrooms just to wash it off my body. The lovely Candlenut Body Creme leaves nothing of the sort. Only a silky finish that looks wonderful. It's light, but creamy and rich, but not greasy.

  Juara mentions candlenut oil's fatty acids, this is what seems to be the amazing ingredient in the creme. Oh, can't forget, it's paraben free baby!

Would I recommend? Yes, of course. It's wonderful, a tiny-shiny bit high, but totally worth it.

  Rice Facial Cleanser: Rice is nice. Rice products have really started to grow on me this past year. I used a rice powder for my face (which is also great for reducing shine and massaging into hair for those days when you skip washing and have greasy roots!) and liked it, but didn't continue using since it powdered up my complexion and I haven't been able to find one that hasn't left that white powder so visible on my skin. Anyways, rice is good. I like Juara's unique ingredients in their skincare items and I highly recommend doing a brief search on the awesome ingredients they use!

  The Rice Cleanser is very gentle and the look and feel of it kind of reminds me of hotel shampoos. It's got a pretty pearl color to it. OK, color does not matter, but still. The Rice Cleanser is good for sensitive skin especially since it's so gentle, soft and non-irritating. Not to mention is sulfate-free, yipee! It contains rice starch, which is soothing to the skin and protects. I like it and think it'd work wonderfully for low maintenance skin. Sadly, I tend to need a bit more than what this one has. That's not to say it isn't great, but my skin demands super treatment like serious exfoliation and moisturizing. The Hydrating Toner, Mattefying Moisturizer and Avocado and Banana mask fit my needs better, but every few days my skin sure loves the Rice Cleanser!

  To use, I simply wet my face and then massage the Rice Cleanser in small circles for a few minutes. It feels really nice and I love the foamy-ness of it. I can feel the heavy duty cleansing it does as I'm massaging it in. It's great for days when my face gets dirtier than usual or if I've been out in yucky weather. It's also great for removing makeup. The deep cleaning Rice Cleanser shrinks my pores and gets down and dirty to clean them completely. This is one of those cleansers you actually feel working.

 Would I recomend? Sure! The price is amazing and both the product and results are long lasting. In fact, I love how Juara's skincare products have been very long lasting. I've never needed to reapply any of it before at least 24 hours. I love the fresh, totally clean skin I get after using the Rice Cleanser. While it may not give me my needed exfoliation, it does do a wonderful job. It feels wonderful after a yucky, stressful day and seems to wipe away the "tired face." It leaves no residue behind! No oily, sticky, residue, instead, it clears away dirt and reveals your pretty skin.

 I couple the Rice Cleanser with either the Mattefying Moisturizer or the Hydrating toner alone and I'm totally good to go. No extras needed.

  Juara's products are some of the most beautiful and unique smelling skincare products ever. Of course results are more important than the scent, but it certainly is a plus! I love how easy it makes my skincare regimen. I'm used to exfoliating daily, moisturizing, toning. I can't just do a quick wash and go. I have to line up my skincare products on my dresser just to save time! Juara's skincare items have made things so simple and quick for me. I don't have to use a cream for my eyes, a moisturizer for my face and a toner and then a product to reduce the shine. I've actually had extra time on my hands! Ha Ha.


Avocado and Banana Mask:  The mask is a fluffy, creamy green mask with a vurtually no scent. I used it the day I got burned. My face was pretty fiery. When I showered I smeared the mask on my nose, chin and forehead and left for 10 minutes. It felt wonderful on and even better when massaging it in.

It's good for breakouts, irritation and both oily and dry skin types. I was left with perfectly balanced skin. Not too oily, only glowy and not dry at all! I don't know if I would recommend to someone with extremely sensitive skin since it did give me a slight warming sensation, I liked it, but if you're sensitive to that sort of thing, I suggest trying a small dab on the inside of your wrist first. It leaves a silky, soft finish to my skin and done very well on my crazy-awful breakouts. I had one heck of a bump and that thing was starting to cause me pain. I dabbed some of the Mask on the pimple and it helped dry it up and the next day I was able to extract the nasty inside and now it's on its way to healing. 

Would I recommend? Sure would. It's super creamy and a little goes a long way so it'll last a very long time even with repetitive use. I loved how clean and glowy my skin was. It's both frangrance and paraben free!

*The words written are my 100% honest opinion. I was in no way influenced to write a particular review. I was given samples in exchange for my honest opinion. See my honesty pledge at the top of the page*

NOTE: Always check ingredients before using any product on your face. If you have allergies use caution when choosing a skincare item. Most of Juara's aren't likely to cause any kind of severe reaction, but with skin allergies, caution is necessary.

My Pearl Of The Day Blue Flame Purifying Gel

 Astara Bio-genic Skincare has been the absolute best skin care products I have ever used. I'll start with the Blue Flame Purifying Gel Cleanser.

The Blue Flame Purifying Gel Cleanser is designed for blemish prone, oily and combination skin.  My skin has a mind of its own.  I have the combination thing happening most days where my skin is dry, but I'll have the oily T-zone thing going on and there's no mistaking the large pores I have on my cheeks and forhead. I've used about every single skin care product available and have seen bad and decent results and even amazing results, but they rarely lasted longer than a month. 

While the Blue Flame Purifying Gel is great for my kind of skin, I'm pretty certain it would be helpful on most skin types whether it's oily, dry or both. 

My experience:

The Blue Flame Purifying Cleanser helped my skin with the very first use. It evened out my oily and dry problem and left my skin equally moisturized without being oily or giving an overly shiny look, which is a very common result when using products for dry skin. You only end up with oily skin! Talk about frustrating. 

I didn't even need my regular moisturizer after using the Blue Flame Purifying Cleanser! I've even been skipping my fine lines and wrinkle prevention/diminishing cream! 

We just went to Panama on vacation and that alone was harsh on my skin. The sun, the salt, chlorine and exhaustion from the trip home had me looking like an awful mess. I wasn't happy with the way my skin was looking. I had dryness, some peeling, blemishes and awful dark circles which were caused from lack of sleep, exhaustion from the trip home and from being sick the day we travelled home! What a nightmare. 

My point is, I was really relieved to have Astara when I got home. I was looking like hell to be honest and I knew I'd look somewhat less hobo-esque after using the Blue Flame Purifying Cleanser. 

After the first use my skin took a dramatically new appearance and looked healthy, glow-y, dewy and energetic. I didn't have the pale, dark circles and it's heavy duty for cleaning dirt from pores! It was the first time I'd seen clean pores on my face in 2 weeks. 

I felt like a new person after looking in the mirror. It's an awesome product! It gave my skin an immediate boost (not to mention my self-esteem!)

The Blue Flame Cleanser isn't labelled as a treatment for aging or dark circles and fine lines, but the lines and circles under my eyes were completely gone! They look great. 

I also found it to be amazing for getting stubborn make-up off the face. 

About the Blue Flame Cleanser

When applying the cleanser to my face I notice a unique scent. It smells very clean and I'm able to smell some of the awesome ingredients. I really like the smell of this stuff.

It works wonders on oily and dry skin by balancing sebum production.

It's super gentle on the skin and leaves my face extremely smooth and soft.  

  

Ingredients:
Water, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Sugar Cane Extract And Citrus Extract And Apple Extract And Green Tea Extract, Salix Nigra (Willowbark) Extract, Water (And) Phoenix Dactylifera (Date) Extract (And) Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Extract (And) Fragaria Chiloensis (Strawberry) Fruit Extract, Peg-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate, Yeast Extract, Citrus Sinensis (Orange) Oil, Cymbopogon Flexuosus (Lemongrass) Oil, Citrus Paradisi (Pink Grapefruit) Oil, Citrus Bergamia (Bergamot) Oil, Citrus Aurantifolia (Petitgrain) Oil, Backhousia Citriodora (Lemon Myrtle) Oil, Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine) Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavander) Oil, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Oil, Melaleuca Quinquenervia (Niaouli) Oil, Artemisia Ludoviciana (Owyhee) Oil Caprylyl/ Capryl Glucoside, Totarol