Ulta Haul & a Few Exras

I received a few gift cards from friends to Ulta and this is what I purchased. I also added a couple of items that I got for Christmas. I hope you enjoy this haul!

Watch Here

Let me know if you would like me to review any of the items.

See more hauls here.

Beauty QT: Dealing with a Flaky Nose

It is winter now (well close enough!), which means that it is getting much colder and our skin is starting to dry out. What do you do if you notice that the skin on your nose is all flaky and you are not at home? Putting more foundation or powder on it will only make it look worse. If you have non-scented lotion then you can dab some of that on your nose, but most of us have scented hand lotions which irritate your facial skin. 

To get rid of that flaky skin try putting some lip balm on it. I know it sounds weird but it is meant for dry chapped areas. It will instantly sooth your skin and diminish the appearance of the flakes. You will probably have to reapply a couple times throughout the day but it is a great trick. Just make sure your lip balm is clear and doesn’t have any sparkle to it. You don’t want to have Rudolph’s nose. ;-)

My favorite lip balms are EOS, Smooth lips  and Nivea.

What are your favorite lip balms? Will you try this?

Initial Thoughts: Bioderma

A couple of weeks ago I decided to see what all the hype is about Bioderma. I have heard so many beauty bloggers and vloggers say that it is such a great product and I wanted to try it myself. You can only buy it online in the U.S. and I was able to find the 500ml bottle for $36 on Amazon. It's expensive, but I decided that if it's as good as everyone says it is then it'll be worth it. 

                       

I am not completely sure if I am using it properly because the instructions are in French. In the evening I use it after I wash my face to get the remaining dirt/makeup off my face. I use it in place of my toner (witch hazel). In the morning I use it to cleanse my face instead of washing/using toner.

I love the way Bioderma makes your skin feel! You can definitely feel it get deep into your pores. Unlike toners it doesn't dry out your skin. In fact I think it helps keep the moisture in. Plus, it smells great! ;-) 

I have only been using it for a couple of weeks, and when I started using it I was having serious acne issues. I think it works well and it gets dirt that my toner doesn't get. I will do a full review after I use it a little longer and get a better idea of how well it works. So far though I am with everyone else. I love it! Even my dad likes it! 

*Picture from here.

Birchbox Review: Suki Balancing Kit

This facial system was in my July Birchbox and I was really excited to try it. The packaging said it was formulated for acne prone skin, and I had just been in the middle of a breakout so I thought it was the perfect time to try it. The full size of the Suki Balancing Kit retails for $50.

Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser:
This cleanser uses a combination of lemongrass and sugar to cleanse and exfoliate your skin. I loved the way it smelled. Very sweet and refreshing at the same time. After using it my skin felt so smooth and refreshed. I also really liked that it only took a little of the cleanser because it meant that I could use the sample more than once. Always a plus!

Transformative Cleansing Clay:
This product can be used as a quick 5 minute deep cleanser in the shower or as a mask. I chose to try it as a mask because I like clay masks. It uses white willow and zinc to extract the dirt from your pores. The product was very thin and it wanted to go everywhere but where I wanted it to go. There was just enough of the product to use one. I really liked the way my face felt while it was drying. It gave me the good tingling feeling that lets you know that it is getting deep into your pores. When it came time to wash it off it had dried almost clear, which made it hard to know if I had gotten it all.

Concentrated Balancing Toner:
Uses white willow and Vitamin C to balance your skin. Felt like most toners. There was enough in the sample to use it multiple times.

Pure Facial Moisture-Balancing:
Uses blue chamomile and echinacea to moisturize your skin. It really surprised me when I opened the sample because it was an oil. A bunch of it ended up being wasted because it came pouring out. It felt really strange putting an oil on my face after I had done so much to get rid of the dirt and oil. It took forever to soak into my skin and after 30 minutes I had to wipe off what was left over. It didn't make my skin feel good. It made it feel greasy and clogged.

Balancing Day Lotion:
Uses white willow and natural retinol to moisturize your face. It smelled horrible! I can't even to begin to explain what it smelled like but it was bad. It soaked into my face really fast but it made it feel tight and dry. A major downside is that this daytime moisturizer has no SPF! Who doesn't put SPF in a day moisturizer now a days?

Overall:
This kit had it's stars (the cleanser and the mask) and some losers (the 2 moisturizers). I was glad to be able to the products but I will not be purchasing this kit. However, I may buy the cleanser and the clay mask.

Grade: B-

Today's Video: Beauty4Less DIY Mask

This video is another simple DIY. A viewer by the name of CassHeartsBeauty recommended it to me. It's a great way to really moisturize your skin while clearing it up at the same time! I hope you like it!