Lauren Brooke Creme Foundation review

I've been a loyal fan of Revlon ColorStay foundation (for combo/oily skin in Sand Beige) for a couple of years now. Of all the makeup I have tried, I thought it has been the closest match to my skin tone, is long-lasting, gives good coverage, and is drugstore affordable. According to some women's magazine I read, a foundation bottle is okay to use for up to 2 years. However, I find the Revlon foundation starts to turn a different hue and becomes chalky on the skin after a year. The problem is, I only use foundation minimally as a concealer to cover up some random acne and red spots on my face, so there's always tons of product left in the bottle after a year. I feel bad having to toss out the bottle when it looks barely used. The glass bottle is also heavy and bulky, so not ideal for traveling either.

When Michelle Goes North posted about this Lauren Brooke Cosmetiques creme foundation recently, I was intrigued about the natural ingredients and the little sample tubs. I've been wanting to find a company that sells sample size liquid/cream foundation. Since I wear minimal makeup, I like the idea of makeup sold in small quantities, so I can actually use it up before it turns rancid. Since Michelle had a very positive experience with this company, I decided to order some samples with her discount code (thanks Michelle!). 

I only ordered 2 samples: the creme foundation in Warm No. 20 and Warm No. 30. But to my surprise, they added extra complimentary samples, a creme foundation in Neutral No. 20, and a lip colour in Frappe (which is a frosty light pink with shimmers, not my style, so not reviewing here). 

I'm glad they added the Neutral No. 20 foundation, since it turned out to be closest to my skin tone. 

Here's a look at the foundation colors I have (comes in plastic contact-lens-size cases):

Swatches on my inner arm:

Neutral 20, Warm 20, and Warm 30

As you can see, the Neutral No. 20 almost disappears on my arm because it's a close match to my skin. The Warm No. 30 is very pigmented and orange-y. If you are a pale Asian like me, I would stay away from any of the 30's or more.  

Here's how the colors compare with my old Revlon Colorstay foundation:

Neutral No. 20 (left), Revlon Sand Beige (middle), Warm No. 20 (right) 

Lauren Brooke has more yellow undertones. 

Again, I only use foundation minimally like a concealer for spots on my face, so I cannot attest how well these work for full-face application, but I find these Lauren Brooke creme gives good coverage to my acne and scars as well as the Revlon. Sometimes the Revlon foundation makes me want to rub my face off throughout the day, whereas the Lauren Brooke is not noticeable at all. For duration, the Revlon does stay on longer (up to 24 hours as it claims), but Lauren Brooke still lasts me the whole work day (8-10 hours), which is all I really need. 

After using the Lauren Brooke creme foundation as a concealer everyday for over a week now, I'm a convert! I'm also grateful that the ingredients are all natural and organic. The creme does have a weird smell (reminds me of oil paints), but doesn't linger around once applied on the face. Actually, the Revlon Colorstay has a worse stronger smell. Overall, I'm loving the Lauren Brooke foundation so much, I decided to do a review right away! 

I've been using a mixture of the Neutral No. 20 and Warm No. 20. Here's how well it works to cover some acne scars on my chin:

after

before

One or two of this pin-dot amount is all I use daily...

So these samples will probably last me a long long time. I'm going to try to maximize the shelf-life of these samples by storing them in a glass jar (reusing an empty Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-cream container, yay for recycling!) Hopefully if this works out (and if Lauren Brooke continues to offer sample sizes), I'm never buying full size foundation bottles again.  

If you are looking for a new foundation or concealer to try, I recommend these! Michelle's 15% off coupon code michellegoesnorth_15 still works until May 31, 2014. 

Summer Beauty Favorites

For the Face:

Just thought I'd share some of my favorite beauty products I've been using all summer....

I have sensitive, prone-to-breakout, combo-oily-dry skin with huge pores, so I'm usually minimal and picky when it comes to beauty products. I'm happy these products work for me:

• Best Facial Moisturizer: Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-cream ($7.99): still using the same jar since last review, it really does make my skin feel refreshed and moisturized, without ever being heavy, oily or shiny. I love dabbing this on my face every morning before I start my day! I don't want to go back to regular creams after using this "gel" formula.

• Best Foundation (to use as a concealer): Revlon ColorStay Makeup for Combo/Oily skin in Sand Beige ($11.99): since my skin is so sensitive, I cannot stand foundation on my entire face, so I only use this sparingly to cover-up some redness around my nose, chin, and random acne spots. The color blends well with my skin tone with good coverage and lasts all day!

• Best Bronzer: Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzing Powder ($30): I think I deleted my original review on this, but I bought this way more than a year ago (the packaging seems to have changed in-store now), it's a bit pricey, but definitely worth it since it's hard to find a "matte" bronzer without shimmer, and there's tons of product in the container...I probably can keep using this stuff for 5 more years! I use this to contour my cheekbones with the Sonia Kashuk Multipurpose Brush No. 16 ($18.39).

• Best Blush: The Balm Fratboy ($21): talc-free, paraben-free, and with great color payoff with just one brush stroke! The matte Fratboy peachy-pink is so pretty on the skin, definitely worth the money! I use the EcoTools Blush Brush ($6.99) with a light-hand to apply this. 

• Best Lip Balm: Nivea A Kiss of Milk & Honey Lip Balm ($2.99): previously raved about it here, I cannot live without this. Best lip balm on the market ever!

• Best Lipstick: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous ($8.99): I've been a fan of the moisturizing Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters (see previous review) but found the colors fade too quickly throughout the day. After reading countless positive testimonials on this balm stain, I caved in. I picked up the orange Rendezvous color, and it turned out to be the perfect pop of "sheer red" for my complexion. It's not as moisturizing as the lip butters, but still comfortable to wear compared to most other lip products I've tried. Since the long-wearing staining effect works, I also use this underneath my other lip butters. Here's how the Rendezvous color looks on me...

• Best Eyebrow Pencil: NYX Auto Eyebrow Pencil in Charcoal ($4.50): previously reviewed here. I normally don't wear eye-makeup due to extremely oily eye lids...and I cry too much, haha...but I can't go a day without filling my sparse eyebrows with this pencil. Love it so much!

For the Hair:

• Best Shampoo (for oily thin hair): Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Shampoo ($7.99): this now beats my previous favorite (2Chic Ultra-Sleek Shampoo). The 2Chic shampoo left my hair shiny and silky, but did nothing for volume. The Organix Coconut Milk leaves my hair clean, shiny and fuller in volume. Every time I'm having a nice hair day, I realized I had washed my hair with the Organix shampoo the night before. Of all the shampoo's I've been using, I find myself reaching for this one more often!

• Best Hair Product: Tresemme Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Spray ($4.99): I bought this due to the plethora of Youtube rave reviews and have stuck to this brand for almost 4 years now and continuing. I'm actually not sure if this really protects my hair form heat, but it definitely helps smooth out my hair and holds my curl better without the gunky, oily, or heavy-feeling of most other hair products. I use this everyday before I style my hair with the Hana Professional 1" Flat Iron. 
  
  
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Summer drugstore products that work!

I know, summer is over, but I want to share 3 drugstore products that I've tried over the summer that works wonders! These are now included in my beauty regimen:

1. FX Moroccan Moisture Healing Argan Oil Spray (4 fl oz.) $5.99
Ever since I discovered the flat iron, I've been hot-ironing my hair everyday because it's fast at putting in volume and shaping my hair in the right place. Of course the consequence of daily ironing is brittle hair. My tresses have been dried out even more by living in the hot, dry heat of the desert, and maybe "aging" has something to do with brittle hair also. I use to have naturally silky hair (when it was not permed) back in my tweens and have not had hair like that ever since. Until now! I feel like an infomercial, haha. But it's true, this spray is like a miracle. I've tried random oils before that always left the hair feeling more dirty and greasy. This FX Argan Oil actually does what it claims. After I flat-iron my hair, I spray this stuff on my palms and rub in my hair or mist it directly into my hair depending on how I feel that day.....and my hair instantly feels and looks shinier and softer without any grease or weight. The oil seems to absorb right into each hair strands. There's no greasy residue left on my palms after I apply this stuff...so the hair really absorbs it. My thin hair is usually prone to clumping with most hair products....but this actually seems to prevent the clumpy kind of greasiness too. My only complaint is that it does have a perfumey-scent, but luckily it goes away after half an hour or so.  Other than that, this product is HOLY-GRAIL status. I highly recommend this product if you are a daily flat-iron user or have dull dry hair. It's only $5.99 or cheaper with sale, so go get it!

2. Nivea A Kiss of Milk & Honey Lip Balm (0.17 oz) $2.99
I learned about this lip balm from this review by Ella Pretty. Remember my previous lip balm hunt/review? Forget all of that. This lip balm is better than all of them! It moisturizes longer than all the other ones, feels great on the lips, and no peeling or annoying residues. This is now my favorite lip balm and the only one I use. My only complaint again is the weird scent...it's a sweet scent..almost like baby-powder...but I got used to it. I'm just happy that it works!  Please note though that only this Milk & Honey flavor seams to work. I've tried the Nivea Cherry, Strawberry and Berry Swirl version and they were horrible and icky. I would stay away from the "tinted" ones. I wonder if the new Olive Oil & Lemon one is any good...anyone tried that one?

3. Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-cream (1.7 oz) $7.99
I purchased this product after seeing a magazine ad about it and rave reviews from Musings of a Muse. This is my first time hearing about "gel-cream" so I had to try it out. Truthfully, I don't think this can replace the usual creams for major dry skin. This gel just makes for a great "morning/day" moisturizer on hot summer days, because it feels cool on application and does not grease-up the face as with regular creams. I'm usually picky about scent, but this scent is nice...like refreshing cucumbers and it doesn't linger. My skin does not break-out with it. It helps sooth some dry patches on my cheeks. I recommend this for morning or throughout the day moisturizing if you don't want the grease or heavy-feel of a cream, especially on hot days. But when the cold winter comes, I'm sticking to my old creams, since I don't think this gel-cream will cut it for super dry, peeling, wrinkling skin. Yet, I recommend this gel-cream especially if you have oily skin and want a light moisturizer that doesn't make the face shiny.

What are your recent drugstore beauty-miracle finds?