Monthly Misses: May 2023

[greeneyedgirl107]

Did you have more beauty misses than hits this month?  If so, this is the place to tell all the BICers about it.  It could be a tried and true product with a change in formulation.  Or, it could be something new that you tried out during the sale that just didn't work for you.  Whatever it is, this is the place to post about it.

[heartsmyface]

I tried the foundation and skin tint from LeahLani.  They’re locally made so I was excited about them.  Absolutely no.   They’re weirdly oily and powdery at the same time, don’t blend evenly and exasperate the look of every pore I didn’t even know I had.   I’m not getting that airbrushed finish I was promised.  The seashells one is slightly better but honestly, cover girl or maybelline are much better and more affordable than these.  

Even my smooth inner arm swatches look patchy and dry.  You can imagine what it looked like on my face.😳

 

[CookieGirl1]

@heartsmyface how sad!  And how odd...🤔.

[curlychiquita]

Ugh, sorry to hear it, @heartsmyface!

[smudgyeyeliner]

I bought the Farmacy limited edition Strawberry Shortcake balm  last week and I’m disappointed because it smells awful! It doesn’t smell like strawberry shortcake at all. It’s a great balm but I’ll stick with the original from now on. (I miss the cherry balm—that was great.)

[lmaster]

@smudgyeyeliner I sadly agree, they should of tried to make it just plain strawberry for that matter, I don't even smell strawberry or pastry or sweetness in any way shape or form

[heartsmyface]

@smudgyeyeliner  Strawberry shortcake is a hard flavour to get right.  

[curlychiquita]

Grande Cosmetics GrandeBROW 2-In-1 Tinted Brow Gel + Brow Enhancing Serum Medium was really bad.  Wand is too small. Serum is too wet.  It smears no matter what you do. I tried it 7-8 times and I just threw it away.  I rarely throw makeup away and I'm sure it's the only brown gel I've thrown away.

[Loretta55]

Thank you very much for posting this @curlychiquita. I really was thinking about getting it because I like Grande Cosmetics GrandeBROW Brow Enhancing Serum 4 Month Supply in the tinted version. Guess I will stick with that.

[heartsmyface]

@curlychiquita  Not even with a clean spoolie?  That’s my last resort when a lash or brow product isn’t dispensing well.  A wet brow product sounds awful though.  brow products are something I want complete control over cause it’s too easy to overdo them.  I’d much rather have a product that’s too dry when it comes to brows.    

[CynthieLu]

I have one miss to report on this month. 

And for me,  the Farmacy Mini Clearly Clean Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm 1.7 oz/ 50 mL was a big one. 

I have used this balm in mini form soooo many times, so when the skin around my eyes had a negative reaction to this I was very surprised. 

The skin there has calmed down but now reacts soooo easily to things that never bothered it before. I am trying to be patient and not use anything on my eye area while my skin calms down and is being pretty reactive. 

Just basic gentle skin care and hoping for the best ❤️‍🩹

[heartsmyface]

@CynthieLu  Aw noooo!  Did the formula change or are you perhaps suffering from seasonal allergies and were already primed for a reaction?  I and a similar reaction to garnier micellar water a couple months ago while dealing with food allergies and pollen. My eyes were poofy and sore.  I was using simple water to wash my eye area for about a week and a half cause everything else hurt.   I recently tried the garnier again and was fine.  

[greeneyedgirl107]

@CynthieLu as you know, I've been working on mine.  Around the same time I started using this, I noticed some circles under my eyes and puffiness.   I've been coming up with a game plan to get around those issues but was very discouraged because I was starting to look my age.  Well, I didn't use it over the weekend and now the issues have cleared up.  I'm really thinking it was Farmacy Mini Clearly Clean Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm 1.7 oz/ 50 mL .  What a shame!

I contacted the company and told them I thought it was the fruit extracts, and id love to see a versionwithout.   I got a terse email telling me that the sunflower oil is necessary for it to work.  I responded that I wasn't concerned @ the oil but the fruit extracts.  They just wrote back that they were sorry it didn't work out.

I'm thinking about trying your rec of SEPHORA COLLECTION Melting Cleansing Balm with Algae Extract 4.22 oz / 125 mL .  Also CLINIQUE Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm Makeup Remover  although beautypedia sd it could be heavy for those with oily skin (me).  Neutrogena also has one although I haven't looked into the ingredients.   I wonder what other options there are for gentle but effective ones.

This is why I dislike "clean."  In my mind it should be geared toward sensitive skin but so much "clean" isn't. 

[heartsmyface]

@greeneyedgirl107  The Sephora collection balm is really nice.  Also if you have a pure and peppery flavoured olive oil with high biophenol count and peroxide value lower than 6 it’s very anti inflammatory.  The oliocanthanol content of olive oil makes it a low dose NSAID which can help with topical inflammation while the squalene keeps the area soft and moisturized.  

[greeneyedgirl107]

@heartsmyface great info!  Thanks!!!!  ❤️ 💙 💜 💖 

[CynthieLu]

The The INKEY List Oat Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm 5 oz/ 150 mL for me is a super safe makeup melter, but the others just work so much easier with less effort lol but I'm going back to The Inkey just until my skin is less reactive. I do like Sephoras makeup removing balm but I am limiting anything but the most gentle until my skin is less reactive.  My eyes are sooo sensitive right now it's been a long battle. 😪 

[greeneyedgirl107]

@CynthieLu I'm using The INKEY List Oat Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm 5 oz/ 150 mL now too.  I 100% agree with your points. 

And I'm sorry your skin is so reactive...esp around the eye area!  Hang in there!  ❤️ 

[CattyT3]

I had a horrific allergic reaction to the Sulwhasoo Active First Serum (I'll update the product tag when I switch device). Immediately made my eyes swell my skin increasingly irritated and heating up and actually impacted my breathing a bit - so I know very quickly that whatever is in this caused an immediate allergic reaction.

Luckily after washing everything off meticulously and applying my gentle recovery skincare all returned to normal halfway through the next day. I loved the concentrated ginseng cream I first tried last year, but this serum was such a painful disappointment - the texture itself also did not feel hydrating or like I even applied a serum in the slightest.

No other ingredients were such that I don't regularly use them in my routine in other formulations - I just know that I don't use anything with parfum listed high nor anything with denatured alcohol funnily enough.

It was after my reaction that I realised that the combination of the parfum being listed to high on the ingredients and alcohol denat being 2nd/3rd on the list is now an alarm bell I'll be vigilant of, since just generic artificial fragrance (parfum) even after my lavender allergy diagnosis does not effect my when it's low enough on the list to be under 1% concentration.

I think my review under the actual product has as many dislikes as upvotes, so obviously my reaction to the product was offensive to some people - but I can't deny that this has now made me very skeptical about trying anything new by brands I am loyal to now 😅

[heartsmyface]

@CattyT3  I’m sorry to hear this!  are you allergic to ginseng as well by any chance?  I found the ginseng slightly irritating but I also feel that’s the ingredient which stimulates the extra blood flow which makes this product work so well.  
Interesting how people get offended when you have a reaction to a product and speak about it.  Those are exactly the kind of reviews I want to read when researching a product.  

[CattyT3]

> Same here, it's helpful for me to see if there's a trend in people with the most similar skin concerns as me having an issue across the board with a formulation.

> And no, my skin thrives on ginseng products, my most trusted skincare and makeup has ginseng in it:
 Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream and Beauty of Joseon's sunscreen and eye cream are what I love using on my skin with any other products I use, and I always use the SEPHORA COLLECTION All Day Makeup Setting Spray 2.7 oz/ 80 mL to set my makeup with no problems.
That's why I am so sure the issue is just isolated to the serum, and I'll now just be taking care to not use any skincare with denatured alcohol. The setting spray has it of course, but there's a huge difference with how makeup interacts with your skin as it's on top of all the skincare layers VS something that goes directly onto freshly washed skin. So glad I know now to pay attention for this even in the luxury brands I like other products from. 

[Loretta55]

I had a similar reaction to tarte Knockout Tingle Treatment Toner 5 oz/ 150 mL @CattyT3 . It was extremely uncomfortable.