Review: NEW Ulta Beauty Smoothie Sugar Scrub

Hello Again! I hope everyone has had an awesome Saturday!

Today I'm gonna do a review on the new Ulta Beauty Smoothie Sugar Scrub in the scent Butter Cream Cupcake.
This product is also available in two other scents, "Berrylicious" and "Pina Colada" and is regularly priced at $12.

The claims:
"This detoxifying, skin softening Sugar Scrub buffs your skin to provide a spa like experience in your bath or shower. Sweet sugar crystals and mineral rich sea salts combine with moisturizing coconut oil to gently exfoliate the skin, leaving it silky smooth with a healthy glow." 
 - Ulta.com

What I Found: 
So as stated above, this scrub contains "sweet sugar crystals, mineral rich sea salts, and moisturizing coconut oil." 
The exfoliating properties of this product comes from the sugar and salt. That being said, think of crushed rock/sea salt. Now think of the sugar you put in your coffee in the morning. Blend the two together and you have the exfoliating particles of this scrub. In other words, there are both smaller and larger pieces of exfoliant. I really enjoy that because I feel like its almost two in one, it really gets the job done. When you look at the product itself, you can see the different sizes as well as the scent beads that dissolve. But because it isn't all finely milled (one size), it is a bit more abrasive.

I do sense the coconut oil, not that I can smell it, (because you can't) but I can definitely feel it. While your exfoliating your skin, the sugars and salts begin to dissolve and your left with the slippery feeling of coconut oil. After rinsing, some of the oil is left behind and I did find that it hydrated my skin, but it also felt the slightest bit greasy. 

The Scent: This is a product I use at night for two reasons. One, so the coconut oil can absorb & Two, because of the scent. When I went into Ulta knowing I wanted to try this product out, I smelled all three different flavors/scents. This was my favorite out of the bunch, but it is very sweet. I wouldn't wear this in the day because the scent does linger after the product has been rinsed off and your out of the shower. I do enjoy the scent, but it's a bit too heavy to wear during the day. I know many people dislike very sweet scents, there for I try not to wear anything too overwhelming in the day time. It does smell like a butter cream cupcake but it has a bit of an artificial tang to it. I found it subtle and don;t really mind, but if you don't like uber sweet scents, maybe go for a different flavor?

All in All:
I wouldn't recommend it if you have more sensitive skin.
If you have dry/flaky/patchy skin this would work quite well. I also discovered, if you have rough heels or dry patches on your feet, this works nicely with continuous use, where as a pumice stone you may only need to use once.
The coconut oil does give your skin a "healthy glow" but I don't find it particularly detoxifying and I don't think it feels quite as pampering as a "spa like experience." However, I do recommend this product to those with drier skin. I myself prefer the Nivea Touch of Renewal Body Scrub, as that is currently my holly grail body exfoliant. (Let me know if you want a review) But I did truly enjoy this product and would consider repurchasing!

And just a heads up, Ulta Bath & Body products are on sale now, Buy 2 get 2 Free!

~Avaliable at Ulta and Ulta.com now.

xoxo,
Glimmer

Review: Aquafresh Iso Active Toothpaste

Hi Again!

Today I'm going to do a review on the Aquafresh Iso Active Toothpaste. Random I know, But I just had to rave about this amazing product I recently discovered!

I picked this up on a whim one day (at Walmart) and decided to give it a go. Normally I'm a faithful Crest 3D White user. But I don't know, I just had a feeling I would like this. And I do. A lot.

What's unique about this toothpaste is it is packaged in a can and is more of a gel than a paste, very similar to shaving cream. Now why would I want shaving cream in my mouth!?
Well firstly, it foams up like no other. I feel like because of this, it gets into the little areas of your mouth and around your teeth, cleaning better than average toothpaste.

The Claims:

• Breakthrough gel transforms into an active foam
• iso-active® fluoride formula penetrates deep, surrounding and protecting the whole tooth against cavities front, back and in-between.
• Fights cavities — front, back and in-between
• Provides Aquafresh® Triple Protection® benefits — for healthy gums*, strong teeth, and fresh breath

(- http://www.aquafresh.com/products/isoactive)

I agree with all of these claims. That is very rare with products for me. Although I can't prove that it is fighting my cavities and protecting my teeth in the time I've used it, I feel like it has to be considering how extremely clean it makes my mouth feel. Along with that, the clean feeling lasts in my mouth for quite a while, making my breath fresher, for longer. 

This toothpaste is available in 3 different formulas, Pure Breath Action (the one I stumbled upon) and 2 whitening, Fresh Impact® and Deep Impact®  

Has a very shaving cream like consistency

I do highly recommend this product and I will definitely repurchase when I'm out, probably in one of the whitening formulas,

I hope this review encouraged you to try out this awesome product!

xoxo,
Glimmer

Review: NEW Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss

Hello everyone!

I hope your having a great Thursday evening.

I thought I would kick of my blog with a Review/Comparison of the new and improved Revlon Super Lustrous lip glosses. Depending on where you purchase these can average anywhere from $6-$9 and was released with 10 shades in the range.

That being said, the former Revlon Super Lustrous lip glosses are being discontinued, so if you see them on clearance at your local drugstore, snatch them while you can! The new formula, realsed under the same name, is their "new and improved" version!

So whats the difference ?
The new glosses are packaged in a round tube, opposed to a square one, and contain 0.13oz of product, where as in the older version you received 0.2oz.

Aside from the amount of product received, they have also changed the size of the applicator. However, the design is nearly the same except for it is slightly larger on the new ones. Because its slightly larger on the new ones I noticed it was a bit less dense than the original. (not that the originally was hard, just the new ones are a bit softer) Also, the scents are different as well. I wasn't a fan of the original's scent. Some thought it smelled of berries but all I could sense was a plastic like undertone. The new formula however has a light, pleasant fragrance. Similar to vanilla or sugar.

What about the formula?
The new formulation seems to be entirely different. It now contains things good for your lips like avocado oil, which was not in the old formulation. However, there is not any SPF in the new formula as there was in the original. Aside from ingredients, after continuous wear I did notice a difference between the two.

The original formula was thicker, not exactly sticky, but almost tacky like, so it was fairly long lasting. Also, because it was thicker, most of the colors were quite pigmented and very creamy. I really enjoyed this about the originals.
The new formula seems to lack that creamy texture and pigmentation. As you can see in my swatches, 2 out of 3 of the glosses I purchased were more on the sheer side.
However, the sheerness of the gloss did not effect the staying power for me. Both glosses seemed to wear from 2 and a half to 3 hours on me, maybe a but longer for the originals.
Lastly, there are less cream shades than there were in the original line. The new line consists mostly of shimmery or glittery shades.

Original Formula

Left to right: Coral Reef, Pink Pursuit, Pink Afterglow

New Formula

Top to Bottom: Pango Peach, Kiss Me Coral, Pinkissimo

Over all, I think some people will love and some people will hate the new glosses. Those who hate will most likely long for the old formula. I really enjoy both glosses, however I wish they had only released a new line instead of redoing the old formulation. I feel that they are so different they aren't very much like an improved version of the originals, more of an entirely new gloss.

Hope this was helpful!

xoxo,
Glimmer

Welcome!

Hi Everyone :)

Welcome to Glimmer Beauty! I am so excited to share my love of makeup and all things beauty with you. I will be doing reviews, first impressions, current favorites, and MANY more things on my site. Before I begin I just want to let you all know that I am not a certified makeup artist, however I do have a passion for cosmetics and beauty is my hobby. I test and try a variety of products from drugstore to high end. I hope you all enjoy and stay tuned for what I have planned!

xoxo,
Glimmer