The Good
Etival Oil-Free Care cream
Secret: I hate moisturizers with a passion. Up until a year and a half ago, my skin just never got dry. I used to run every day in sub zero weather in eskimo wear and it just never got dry. When people complained about getting flakey skin during winter, I viewed it as the dermalogical equivalent of Big Foot.
It just did not exist.
Thanks to hormone changes, I am now subjected to combination skin and must moisturize/exfoliate like a crazy mofo or my cheeks will get dry and my blush will look funny. I've spent a good portion of the past year trying to find a good moisturizer.
Trust me, when you've never needed to moisturize for most of your life, the frantic search for a good moisturizer is comparative to finding the shiniest needle in the haystack. Not only is it difficult but it's also subjective.
Biotherm smelled like rotton fruit, Lancome smelled like rancid flowers, Clarins felt like I was putting lard on my face. I could go on.
BUT Etival Oil-Free care cream is extremely light. It smells fresh and lovely, shrinks my pores and gives me a nice glow in the morning. I've used half the jar over the past month and a half so I think I'm pretty safe in giving it a solid A +.
The Bad
Etival Clarifying Cleanser
DEVIL PRODUCT BE GONE. I don't know why I bought this cleanser, to be honest. I've used Cetaphil's gentle skin cleanser since I was 12. I think a part of me (*playing a tiny violin here*) always wanted a three step system but never found the right one. The aesthetic lover in me always wanted to place a three step system on a beveled glass plate, like some kind of a decorative routine.
I used this about 5 - 10 times and every time, I'm left with dry and splotchy skin. I tried very hard to like it so I attempted to use it again two weeks ago. It got worse and gave me little pink patches on my face. Luckily, I have Wolverine skin so they all went down in an hour but I'm basically never touching this again.
Bright side: It does smell gorgeous.
The Undecided
Revlon's colorburst in Papaya and Etival Clarifying Toner
Revlon's Colorburst in Papaya
I don't like talking about my general dislike of drugstore cosmetics because I always come off as snotty and high maintenance. I do have a few products I use occasionally but it comes from years of trial and error. I do believe drugstore eye products (Shadows/mascaras/eyeliners) are a great alternative to Mac or Sephora brands but when it comes to lip and cheek products, I haven't liked anything in years. The reason I tend to veer off drugstore is because I find that their colors aren't very good or they fade very fast and have flimsy packaging. The amount of money I've spent breaking drugstore products could have bought me something solid that I can use daily for at least half a year.
Revlon Colorburst in Papaya is a nice coral pink and reminds me of Nar's Love Devotion. Unfortunately, it lasts about 5 minutes on your lips and you have to constantly reapply throughout the day. While I don't really mind reapplying, the formula also has larger sparkle chunks so after 5 reapplications, your mouth looks like an orange glitter ball.
The one good thing about this is that it adds a really nice kick to an existing lip product and it is a really pretty color. Undecided, will keep in my stash to use sporadically.
Etival Clarifying Toner
I don't usually use toners because 97% of my skin doesn't need it. However, my chin can be a scary place if I don't take care of it so I've been using this toner on my chin only. I'm undecided on this product mainly because it turns your skin (or in this case, my chin) very pink for a good 10 minutes BUT on the other hand, it is very good for preventing breakouts and calming any pink spots. So it's like "Oh god, I look horrific" vs "Oh, look it's morning and the pink is gone"
I would put this on the further side of undecided, more towards the Good.
One thing I'm always going to say: Etival clarifying products smells amazing. If they made a perfume, I would buy it.
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