Sunscreen: To Use or Not to Use?

So, school started for me yesterday (no classes on Mondays!!), and so it begins, me waking up about half an hour earlier than my lazy day summer schedule, my long hike from the parking structure to my building, and yesssss wearing a more intense sunscreen on my face to protect from them rays. During the summer I was just working, so I never used a really high SPF, just either my VitaZing moistirizer, or my Murad Oil Control Mattifier which are both SPF 15 only. Now that I will be out in the sun for longer periods of time, and during those peak hours (10 am till 2 pm) more often, I tend to wear more sun protecting products to keep my face safe, and white ;P

What is the problem you ask? Well along with stronger sun protection, most of these products do a number on my oily skin!!

As you may remember, I tried MAC Prep + Prime Face Protect that had an SPF of 50, which was nice. I was ok with how it was on my face...not horribly greasy: manageable, but then I broke out and gave it to my friend, who I think is liking it.

So, I tried Neutrogena Liquid Moisturizer SPF 50, and I used it straight out of the bottle, and hated it...way too greasy. However, after my experience with the MAC product went down the toilet, I tried this stuff again, and mixed it with my Murad moisturizer, which ended up being pretty good...not great, but tollerable! I also tried it with MAC Oil Control Lotion, which is ok too!!

I also tried a sample of a Shiseido one, one that I got in an earlier haul. It was the same...ok.

My dilemma: I need to find a better sunscreen that will control oil on my face. I will always be in the search, and I hope I find it soon. For those of you who do face the sun on a regular basis, whether it be walking from your car at those peak hours, or you like to walk around your neighborhood in the afternoon, I really do suggest you wear sunscreen. Meleanoma can kill, so take it seriously! If you have not too oily skin, you may want to check out some of the stuff I mentioned :)

My Brazilian Peel Experience

The other week Sephora was giving a special pack of samples to their V. I. B.'s (basically the Beauty Insiders that spend way more than they need to be), and I picked one up because it had this one sample, the Brazilian Peel. It just sounded so appealing, maybe because it's "Brazilian?" I don't know, but I ended up buying my $35 worth of product to get this and I tried it on Saturday. This won't be a full review because I believe you're supposed to use it for a month (4 treatments) to get full results, so I'll just talk about what happened and my first impression of this stuff.

I've hear glycolic acid has its benefits with acne, so I thought this would be nice to try, and the anti-aging properties weren't so bad either :) Also, since it's supposed to tighten skin, I thought it would be good for my rather large pores.

The product comes loaded into a syringe. One side contains all the good stuff: glycolic acid, and the other is a neutralizer so that the stuff doesn't go nuts on your face.

Don't ask me which side is which...I'm NOT a Chemistry major!

Here's my face before this process. I used my Clarisonic and cleansed with St Ive's Green Tea Cleanser, which contains Salacylic Acid.

My forehead has been breaking out a bit lately, but this is it up a little closer.

Here's my nose area. Big pores.

I heard that there's a lot of product, so putting some on your hands may be wise (to decrease waste).

So the instructions say to shoot the whole syringe into your palm:

It shoots out really nice...no waste!

Then you have to mix the two parts with your fingers until you feel a heating sensation, then apply it to your face, neck, wherever!

It's colorless, and just makes your face a bit shiny. I really thought this was going to make my face burn or irritated because of its high glycolic acid content, but it didn't. And I guess I just assumed that because some salacylic acid and benzoyl peroxide treatments leave my face like that, but I will have to go out on a limb and say the glycolic acid isn't like those guys? During my 10 minutes, my face really tightened up, not to the point where I couldn't talk or show emotion, but enough to notice. I washed it off with cool water and patted dry.

I think my face looks a bit smoother. Maybe like I have a primer on? Nothing too noticeable though.

Pores look a bit tighter.

Forgot to take a before pic of my chin :( But this is after...no real change...

My hand doesn't look any much younger either :( Well...I think my hands look pretty descent, so I don't think they could get any younger looking ;)

FINAL THOUGHTS

This treatment wasn't really bad, but it wasn't as great as I thought it was. Maybe it's because I'm not really that old, and in need of such a treatment, but the day after, I think oil production was lower than usual, and it was really hot and humid in my house. So, that was a plus! I am quite non-differentiated about this stuff.

I must admit, I really liked the packaging. Like I mentioned earlier, it was literally a no waste package, which is great, especially for the price you would have to pay (if it wasn't a sample). I am a sucker for packaging, and if all my acne treatments came packaged like this, I would be in heaven!

Would I pay $78 to see what a month of this would do? Not at this moment, but I may check out the acne treating version of this stuff in the near future :)

Spotlight On: Sigma Beauty

Ok, gonna start doing a new series that spotlights different beauty companies. I will talk about my favorite products from the company, and about what I know about from what I can tell about the company. I just want to show these companies through my eyes and why I like them so much!

For this first spotlight, I'm spotlighting Sigma Makeup.

When it comes to makeup, the tool is just as important as the products you're using. I find it quite easy to find cheap alternatives to expensive makeup in relation to finding cheap alternatives to brushes and other beauty tools. In comes Sigma Beauty.

I own a ton of Sigma brushes. I have both the complete and the advanced kits. With the advanced kit I had no option with the brush roll, but with the complete kit there was an option, and I opted for no roll, mostly because it was cheaper. However, I recommend getting one of the Make Me Up kits which come with a brush carrier/holder. It comes in handy if you are doing work on people and you can separate the clean and dirty brushes. Plus, they come in neat colors. I think I want to get the purple set one day :) I may just treat myself to it for Christmas or something ;) I also have the F80 brush. I LOVE it for foundation--powder or liquid, doesn't matter...it's good with both mediums :)

My personal favorites are: E25, E45, E55, F10, F25, F35, and the F80. And now that the brushes can be purchased individually (not just in the kits), you could just pick up the ones you need. Although, if you see a bunch that you're going to like, I would pick up a kit that has those in it, and you'll probably discover something new :) and it's usually a value too.

Check out their site, browse around, and if you have any questions, you can ask me, or I also found their customer service very helpful and very personal, not too business-y, more like a person (if that made sense).

This post contains affiliate or invite links that I am able to earn commission from. I would not support any company that I didn't like. What I earn from affiliate programs are going to be used to improve this blog, and bring more things for my followers.