Tuesday, January 29, 2013

How About a Massage for Valentine's Day?

Good evening, dear readers!  I hope you enjoyed the weekend and have had a good start to the week thus far.  Today's blog post is inspired in part by television, but mostly by a product I'm sure you will enjoy.  I'm one of those people that has to have the tv on in the background for noise, and unless I am obviously watching a program (laptop down and eyes on the screen), I can rarely tell you what is actually on at any given point.  Something I have noticed, however, is that the volume is so much louder during commercials than during the actual programs.  Sometimes I can continue reading away on my computer, but they often distract me and grab my attention for several seconds.  Now that January is coming to a close and February is almost here, the channels are packed with commercials for Valentine's Day.  You know what I mean- the men always give their significant other a sparkling new piece of jewelry and the women all swoon over the gesture and their new bauble.  Sure, these commercials are cute, but are they really based on reality? I enjoy a nice sparkly adornment as much as any other woman, but I feel like these commercials put too much pressure on our partners to buy us expensive gifts.  I don't know about you, but I prefer a more intimate and bonding experience with my partner, and I have the perfect solution that is sweet AND won't break the bank.  How about a massage using massage oil that has been customized just for you and your partner?  I know that's what I would want the most!  I have Glisten & Glow to thanks for preparing me for a romantic evening with the hubby.
I've reviewed numerous products already by Glisten & Glow, but I just cannot seem to get enough of this brand!  Jill, the creator and mastermind behind the brand, is a dear friend of mine and always a delight to work with.  Once you select your product, she has over 95 scents to choose from, and Jill is always happy to accomodate special requests.  I've always been very sensitive to smells even before becoming pregnant, and Jill makes sure to use a lighter hand when scenting my products.  Once you have your product and scent selected, Jill will customize the label for you.  Because I wanted to review this for my blog, I asked Jill to use "The Jedi Wife" on my label.
I really enjoy this massage oil!  I'm sure many of you are rolling your eyes at me and saying "Of course you do, you just got a massage!" BUT I was the one massaging the hubby's messed up lower back.  Ha!  I've used several different massage oils and lotions over the years, but I prefer this one.  Many other oils are way too thick for my liking, and my hands feel like a disgusting grease pit after I'm done.  Lotions, even those that are designed for massage, sometimes soak into the skin too quickly and you start to slough off dead skin cells mid-massage: that's definitely not attractive.  I like this massage oil because it is thick enough and doesn't get absorbed too quickly, but it isn't too thick that my hands feel foreign to myself.  Having the ability to choose a scent is an added bonus; I love that I have a massage oil that I enjoy from a quality perspective in a scent that both my husband and I like.  I'd definitely recommend picking up your own customized massage oil from Glisten & Glow and spending the evening either pampering or getting pampered by you favorite Valentine!

Links and Additional Information
Massage oils and other Glisten & Glow products can be purchased from the Glisten & Glow Bigcartel store.

Also, keep your eyes on the Glisten & Glow Glisten & Glow Facebook page for updates on sales and new products.

Until next time, dear readers, have a great evening!




Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Makeup Your Face Polishes- Part II

Good evening, dear readers!  I wanted to share the remaining polishes I was sent to review by Lauren of Makeup Your Face.  In case you missed it, check out my previous post where I featured a polish that is currently available for purchase in addition to two others from a collection that will be released later next week.

It feels like it was just Christmas, but it's already that time of year when the Valentine's Day themed polishes are making their appearances.  I have to admit I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day.  I've had my fair share of dating jerks over the years that would treat me so well on the holiday because it was expected, and then turn back into a frog on February 15th.  As a result, I prefer to not do anything special for Valentine's Day and enjoy the sweet gestures my husband makes year-round because he was thinking about me.  Of course I'll paint my nails something festive and cute because that's something I like to do, and I am enjoying some of the Valentine's Day polishes people are releasing.  Let's check out two Valentine's-inspired polishes by Makeup Your Face!

Anti V-Day Party
Anti V-Day Party is part of the "Be You" Valentine's collection.  After all, who says you can't have a fun time on the holiday without a significant other!  I wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to swatch this over at first, but because it technically IS an anti Valentine's Day polish, why not go for a look that screams something other than Valentine's Day?  I already had the gorgeous Fairy Garden featured yesterday on my nails, and I thought it would be a nice non-Valentine's look.  Of course when I made that decision, I didn't realize that my fingernails would end up looking like Christmas trees!  Well, that's  certainly not Valentine's Day!  I used one coat of Anti V-Day Party over Fairy Garden, and topped my nails off with two coats of top coat for the photos above.

In spite of being packed with glitters, this polish applied perfectly for me.  The glitters dispersed easily as I swished the brush over my nails, and the glitters left the brush easily where I dabbed over some over the open areas.  I had the slightest bit of texture on my nails with one coat of top coat so I opted to add a second coat, but one coat might be enough for you if you don't mind some texture or are a little more generous with your top coat.

As much as I enjoyed Anti V-Day Party over the green, I couldn't help but think about how Christmas invades Halloween and Thanksgiving; how could I possibly do this to Valentine's Day as well?!?  I decided to swatch it again, this time layered over three coats of Zoya Sirena.

Just having it swatched over these two colours really reminded me of just how different a polish can look depending on how you layer it!  I found both these looks to be too different to really compare, so I'm not sure which look I prefer.  While I tend to shy away from crazy multi-coloured glitters, Anti V-Day Party really won me over.  I love that there is a predominant colour (black), and it keeps this polish pulled together nicely for me.

I Taupe You Love Me
I Taupe You Love Me was a happy accident, and as a result the recipe never was written down!  This polish is limited to only 14 bottles, and if the brown and pink colour combination is your thing, you'll want to snag this one while you still can.  I layered one coat of I Taupe You Love Me over two coats Zoya Pasha on my ring finger, and the remaining fingers are two coats of I Taupe You Love Me.  This polish was surprisingly top coat hungry for me, and I followed it up with two coats of top coat.  As you can (hopefully) see, you get a lot more of the pink and brown glitters when you use a second coat, and I prefer it a little less glittered.  I actually expected this to be more sheer when I first started to apply this polish, and I was surprised at how much coverage I got with two coats.  There were maybe touches of visible nail line if I looked at my nails just right, but it really depended on how the glitter was laying on my nails.  The application was easy enough- not too much clumping and the glitters dispersed pretty easily when pushed around, but dipping the brush in the bottle didn't yield consistent amounts of glitter.  In spite of the polish being thoroughly mixed and appearing uniform, I could dip my brush in the bottle and end up with a few pieces of glitter and the next dip would result in three times as much glitter.  I didn't find it problematic, just something interesting to note and keep in mind if you're neurotic enough like me to want to try to keep approximately the same amount of glitter from one nail to the next.

Final Thoughts
I really enjoy both of these polishes, and they are a welcome addition to the Valentine's Day-inspired creations on the market.  I think my favorite thing about them is that they are not over the top sickeningly sweet, and while inspired by a day based on love, I didn't spy any hearts.  Obviously shape preferences vary from person to person, and I like that Lauren ensured there are options on the market for those that want a Valentine's Day polish but just don't care for hearts.  

Links and Additional Information

Both of these polishes are currently available at Makeup Your Face's Etsy shop.

If you're a Facebook user, keep you eyes peeled on Makeup Your Face's Facebook page for shop announcements, new collections, and contests.  Lauren has a Valentine's Day nail art contest planned that should be lots of fun!







Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Makeup Your Face Part I

Good evening, dear readers!  I hope you have had a wonderful day and week thus far!  I have received several polishes by indie line Makeup Your Face to review, and I decided to break it up into two posts.

The brand was created by the lovely Lauren Walker, and her polishes are a lot of fun!  She has created several pretty shades for her shop, and I have also had the privilege of seeing a few custom polishes she has made for other customers.  For today's post, I am going to focus on a few of her creations she will be releasing soon and another she currently has stocked in her shop.


Fairy Nights
Fairy Nights is part of the "Fairies Are Real" collection.  Lauren describes this collection as "Pretty solids sprinkled with coordinating micro glitter and complementing shimmer dust."  I used two coats of Fairy Nights and one coat of top coat for these photos.

I'm the first to admit that I can be fickle when it comes to polish favorites, but this is now my absolute favorite blue polish!  It looked more purple in the bottle, so I was surprised to see just how blue it was, and it is gorgeous!  In spite of all the microglitters, it still applied rather smoothly.  It dries pretty quickly, so if you find an area that needs a little touching up, I found it best to let it dry and add the next coat.  Otherwise, you might have the polish smudging on you a little bit.  I was sad to have to remove this one so soon to swatch the next colour, but such is the life of a polish blogger!

Fairy Garden
Fairy Garden is another polish in the "Fairies Are Real" collection, and I have to tell you when I walked outside and saw it on my nails, "oooooh" escaped my lips.  It is a stunning shade of green and I knew I liked it when I first started swatching it, but it is even prettier in full sun light.  Due to the bouncing of the light on the shimmers that are in this polish, it looks quite a bit like a scattered holographic polish although it technically is not.  I don't know if it was a happy accident or brilliant planning on Lauren's part, but it truly is a stunner!  This polish is more along the lines of what I was hoping Zoya Logan would be (sorry Zoya, I usually love you), and I can definitely see myself wearing this one many times!  I used two coats of Fairy Garden and one coat of top coat for these photos.


Abstract Expression
Abstract Expression is described as "A nail polish creator's artistic take on the Abstract Expressionism painting style.  Black and white hexes and bars, silver and holo hexes with translucent pink hexes scattered throughout."  This polish is Makeup Your Face's take on the black and white glitter top coat.
I love black and white glitter top coats, but it gets to the point where once you've seen one, you've seen them all.  Thankfully, Lauren took the trend and gave it her own flair and turned it into something different and uniquely her own.  I knew the pink glitters were translucent  and I was afraid to use a base colour that would make them difficult to see in photographs.  I opted to use two coats of OPI Dulche de Leche as the base, and I dabbed and swished on a coat of Abstract Expression.  I followed up with two coats of top coat.  The application wasn't too difficult: the glitters broke up pretty easily for placement in my nails, and I had some issues with the bar glitters laying flat, as per usual for this type of glitter.  There weren't too many bars to contend with, so I wouldn't say this polish is very difficult to work with.  It's a really cute polish, and I love the touches of pink!  I'm definitely going to be playing around with this one and trying it over a slightly darker base next time!

Links and Additional Information
Abstract Expression is currently available at Makeup Your Face's Etsy shop, and the "Faires Are Real" collection is scheduled to be released on March 1st.

If you're a Facebook user, keep you eyes peeled on Makeup Your Face's Facebook page for shop announcements, new collections, and contests.  Lauren has a Valentine's Day nail art contest planned that should be lots of fun!

Keep your eyes peeled on the blog for my next post where I'll be featuring other polishes by Makeup Your Face.  Until next time, dear readers, have a wonderful evening!






Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Review of Girly Bits Heirloom

I must admit that every single time I think of the indie line Girly Bits, I start giggling like a 12 year old boy.  I may be a bit quirky on occasion (ok, very quirky on a regular basis), but I like to think of myself as being a mature adult most of the time.  That being said, I just cannot seem to help myself when it comes to this particular brand.  The name is just too cute to resist, and I am excited to be sharing one of Pam's lovely creations with you today.

I had a particular polish in mind to use as underwear when I bought Heirloom, but once I received it in the mail, I wasn't as committed with my initial choice.  I swatched a few different options on a nail wheel and decided to showcase this polish over two polishes: Zoya Pasha (two coats on my ring finger) and Sally Hansen Complete Manicure in Commander in Chic (two coats on the remaining fingers).  I then dabbed on a coat of Heirloom and followed with one layer of top coat.

Indoors
Partial sun
I was fully prepared to have some difficulty in applying this polish; it seemed a little thick in the bottle, and it has quite a bit of glitter.  I'm pleased to say I was wrong, and it applied very easily for me.  A little dab here, a little swish here, and the glitters broke up rather nicely for me.  They all laid very nicely on my nails, and one coat of top coat was plenty to smooth out the surface of my nails.

Links and Additional Information
Heirloom can be purchased directly from Girly Bits' Bigcartel site or from distributors Llarowe and

Keep an eye out on Girly Bits' Facebook page for news on upcoming collections as well as shop announcements.  At the time of this blog posting, Girly Bits is currently experiencing some difficulties with processing orders due to shipping changes in Canada, but it will hopefully be resolved soon!


I hope you enjoy the rest of the day!




Tuesday, January 15, 2013

And What a Beauty It Is!

Good afternoon, dear readers!  I hope this post finds you both well and warm!  It's been so cold here in Arizona this winter, and my heater decided to stop working for us the coldest few days of the season thus far.  Thankfully it is now fixed, and I can do more swatching!  The last thing I wanted to do was the remove my gloves and unbundle myself from the layers of clothing and blankets that were keeping me warm!

For today's post, I have the aptly named Black Beauty from SoFlaJo's new Matte Love collection to share.  I was highly intrigued when I first received this polish to review because I knew absolutely nothing about the collection when I received it.  I had no idea that the collection was going to be featuring matte polishes, and I stared at the bottle for a little while trying to determine if it was going to be a matte or a black holographic polish.  I didn't have to wait too long to find out the answer- I got my answer right away as I started painting my nails: it was a holo!  I had one wet coat on my nails and spent some time talking with the hubby while it dried.  When I looked down to paint a second coat on my nails, I was shocked to see that my nails were now matte.  What was this craziness?  Surely this polish isn't both a matte and a holo!  I just HAD to have been wrong with my assessment that it was a holo in the first place.  Dear readers, I was amazed to discover that I had in my hands the most awesome combination of finishes that I never imagined would even exist- a polish that is both matte AND holo!  I had never seen anything like it before, and I asked another lacquerhead if she had ever heard of the combination.  She claimed she's never seen it either, so this just might be the first one on the market!  Let's check out some photos!

Two Coats of Black Beauty (no top coat)

Two Coats of Black Beauty (with top coat)
As I mentioned above, I used two coats of Black Beauty for these swatches.  I almost had complete coverage with just one thin coat, so if you tend to use slightly thicker coats, you may not actually need a second coat of Black Beauty to reach opacity.  The formula was sublime, and this polish applied like a dream!  The holo is subtle- this isn't a crazy linear holographic polish that some people love and expect from holographic polishes.  I'm personally in camp "less is more" and love the modest holo effect adding a touch of pizzazz without overpowering the base colour.  You can best see the holo on my pinky finger the most in these photos.  

Photo courtesy of SoFlaJo.com
These are the other polishes from the Matte Love collection.  I love matte polishes, and these colours are amazing!  I think SoFlaJo is trying to get me to reach outside my normal comfort zone: I am even intrigued by the white and yellow polishes!  


Extra Links and Information
SoFlaJo polishes can be purchased from either SoFlaJo.com or etsy.  At the time of this posting, the Matte Love Collection is only listed in the SoFlaJo site.

Keep an eye out of the SoFlaJo Facebook page for shop announcements!




Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.


Monday, January 7, 2013

My Feet Have Been Slushied!

I think this might be the most random-sounding title I have ever used, but I couldn't think of anything more accurate to use for today's blog post.  I am thrilled to be sharing a brand spankin' new product provided by Glisten & Glow, and I really hope you love it as much as I do!

For those of you that are not familiar with the brand, Glisten & Glow is the creation of mastermind Jill, a dear friend of mine, and she sells an assortment of customizable bath and body products in addition to the infamous HK Girl Top Coat.  I have reviewed several other products made by Jill, and you can check out those reviews here and here (spoiler alert: they're awesome).  When Jill first mentioned to me that she was thinking of selling her new Jellie-Cure Foot Treatment, I knew I had to get some to test out and review.  My poor feet were really starting to suffer, and I needed an easy way for me to soften them and prevent dryness.  The Jellie-Cure is made up of crystal mud (which is an assortment of natural plant extracts), aloe vera, and ginseng, and it is designed to do just that in addition to reducing foot odor and sweating.  Let's check it out!
First Impressions
The Jellie-Cure Foot Treatment product actually consists of two 2 oz. screw-top jars.  One jar contains the scented granules that make up the jellie that you soak your feet in, and the other is used to dissolve the jellie after you have finished with your treatment for easy disposal.  The jellie portion is scented strongly enough and coloured, whereas the dissolve portion is white and unscented; it is highly unlikely that you'll mix the two up should you not screw the caps on right away.  I chose to review lemon, and I love the scent.  It seems a little stronger in the jar, but you only need to use 1/4 of the jar in a footbath so it's really not too strong when you're actually using it.
Application/Use
I had a horrible realization when I was ready to try out this foot treatment- I don't own a footbath!  I had offered it as a gift suggestion to the hubby as a holiday gift this year, but he had other things up his sleeve instead.  While I was contemplating a trip to the store to buy one (and the needed shower before leaving the house), I spied an empty shallow plastic storage bin under my bed and decided to give it a go instead.  I added hot water to the container and proceeded to pour 0.5 oz of Jellie-Cure (1/4 the jar) into it.  I stirred it together with my hand, and the particles started to slowly expand into a very watery slushy consistency.  After about a minute of mixing, the granules had expanded further to a nice thick slushy consistency and was ready for use.

I eagerly plunged my feet into the Jellie-Cure, and it was one of the weirdest sensations I have experienced.  Even though it looks like a slushie, the consistency is more reminiscent of jello except it is warm.  The Jellie-Cure was able to retain the heat relatively well in my make-shift footbath, although I'm sure it would have lasted longer in a normal insulated one.  It may be warmer in Tucson than other parts of the country, but I have tile floors at home and they get cold!  I soaked my feet and had fun squishing the jellie with them for about half an hour before deciding I was done.  I wiped off my feet as much as I could with a towel before quick rinsing them in the tub and applying lotion to them.  

Since I no longer needed the Jellie-Cure, I scattered approximately 1/4 the container of Dissolve-Cure over the jellie mix, and some of it started to dissolve immediately.  I added some hot water and let it sit for a couple minutes; when I looked at my little bath again, all the jellie had dissolved into the liquid and I dumped it down the drain.  Easy as pie! 

Final Thoughts
I'm totally digging this new product!  My feet definitely felt much softer even after the first use, and I will be enjoying the experience again in the future.  It is a nice way to spoil yourself and your feet, and cleanup was a cinch.  I'm not a fan of products that require a significant amount of prep time and clean up, so the Jellie-Cure Foot Treatment is perfect for me.  It smells nice, and it's just fun to play with!  It is currently available in Lemon, Lavender, and Menthol, so you have a few fun scents to choose from.

Links and Additional Information
Jill's birthday is tomorrow for me, now for her (gotta love the time difference), so she is having a Birthday Blowout Bash for the next 24 hours to celebrate!  Right now, many items in her Big Cartel shop are available at reduced prices, including the new Jellie-Cure Foot Treatment.  The sale ends 11:59PM EST on January 8th, so take advantage of it while you can!

Also, keep an eye out on her Facebook page for other fun shop announcements.

Until next time, dear readers, have a wonderful night!

XOXO,  Jen



Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.

Friday, January 4, 2013

Ludurana Supernova Polishes

Good afternoon, lovelies!  I hope you have had a wonderful week thus far and have something fun planned for this weekend.  My weekend will incude catching up on sleep, but I am really looking forward to it.  I've had several early mornings this week, and I'm trying to sleep as much as I can.  I know I won't be able to when the baby arrives, and I really wish it were possible to bank sleep!

For today's post, I have several of the Ludurana Supernova polishes to share.  I absolutely love the Ludurana brand, and have always found that they apply so smoothly and easily.  The Supernovas were no exception, and they are truly dazzling in the sun.  Not only are they holographic, they are also have colour shifts!  I found the colour shifting to be subtle in several of the polishes from this collection, but there definitely is some.  Of course the holo effect makes it a little more difficult to make out exactly what colour changes are taking place, but I will describe it as best as I can.  Prepare for it's kind of this but kind of this.  LOL!  I applied two coats of polish for these photos, and I did not use any top coat.  Let's check out some pictures!
Estrela
This is a gorgeous colour, and one of my favorites from the collection!  I'd probably describe it as a rose-leaning light taupe.  I found the colour shift to be very subtle with this one, but it occasionally looks a little more rosy or tan than the base colour.
Fenômeno 
Fenômeno has a more apparent shift, and you can definitely see it in the first photo. The base colour is a silvery pale blue, and it shifts over to a pinky-purple. 

Galáxia
Galáxia is very similar to Fenômeno, and they actually look identical in the bottle. Galáxia is a hair darker blue, and the shift is more of a darker purple.  

Onda De Luz
Do I really have to say that I love Onda De Luz?  It's no secret that I love my orange polishes, and this one is no exception!  The base colour is a lovely coppery orange, and it shifts to a gorgeous golden yellow.

Órion
Órion completes the Galáxia-Fenômeno trifecta and is the darkest of the three colours.  It is more plummy purple-tone that shifts to a pretty blue- purple.

Because Ã“rion, Galáxia, and Fenômeno look identical in the bottle and pretty similar on the nails, so I went ahead and swatched these side by side for easier comparison.
Fenômeno - Galáxia - Órion
As you can see, all three of these are different colours after all.  They actually make a nice gradient, and I kind of wish Ludurana had more polishes in this collection to complete the gradient.

Final Thoughts
I LOVE this collection and need to get Celestial when it becomes available again in the US.  I'm generally not one that needs to get full collections, but I know I'm missing out on a good thing and this situation needs to be remedied as soon as possible.  I should also point out that these polishes are scented.  I'm not familiar enough with perfume scents to really describe them, but the scent is definitely present.  I'm pretty sensitive to smells, more so now than before, and I didn't the fragrances to be too strong and over powering.  I didn't find the smell of these too distracting from doing routine tasks, nor did it give me a headache than similar items occasionally cause for me.

Links and Additional Info
Unless you happen to be traveling to Brazil or have a Brazilian swap buddy, you'll have to order these online from a distributor.  Llarowe is my go-to stockist that feeds my addiction, and they can also be found at Ninja Polish.

Thanks for reading, and enjoy your weekend!

XOXO, Jen



Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.















Wednesday, January 2, 2013

365 Days of Color: Sunny's Hand Cream Review

Good afternoon, dear readers, and Happy New Year!  It's hard to believe that yet another year has come and gone, and I look forward to some big changes this year.  I am a complete slacker and still haven't made a single resolution, but then I guess I don't have to feel bad about breaking one already!  ;)

Today's blog post is featuring the new hand cream made by Sunny of 365 Days of Color.  I had heard some amazing things about this product from a couple people, and I was so excited about getting sent some to review!  The dry Arizona weather is so rough on my skin, and I go through so much lotion it's ridiculous.  That being said, I'm a total wimp when it comes to the cold, so it really is one of the best places I could live, until I'm able to move to Hawaii one day that is.  A girl can dream, right?  Let's get to the review for now and dream about a tropical paradise a little later...
First Impressions
The first thing I noticed about the hand cream was the smell wafting out as I was unscrewing the jar.  I must not have been feeing particularly wintery when I opted to review Cucumber Mint, and the smell is simply divine.  The scent is mostly cucumber with a light touch of mint, and it's a great choice for those that like a little bit of fragrance that isn't too overpowering.
Despite knowing that the hand cream was whipped, I was still a little surprised when I first saw the product itself.  Maybe I've done way too much baking recently (actually, I KNOW I have), but it reminded me of the texture of egg whites that have been whipped to a firm peak.  It appears so light and fluffy, and definitely not what I was expecting from the hand cream.  I was intrigued by this product because I had heard good things about it already, but I had to try to get egg whites out of my head before I could test it out.

The hand cream also has a little bit of gold shimmer, although it was difficult catching it on camera.  If you click on the photos to get larger images, you might be able to pick up on the shimmer.
Application
I can honestly say that this hand cream is very different from any product that I have tried before.  I scooped a little bit of the cream from the lid that had shifted there during shipping, and I found the texture odd.  Even though it appears light and foamy, the texture itself is more reminiscent of frosting.  When I applied the cream on my skin, the emulsion first broke down into what looked like fine curdles of milk before quickly melting into a liquid with the consistency of melted butter.

I have included a series of photos so you can hopefully see the effet, but it melts so quickly I'm not sure that you can catch it all.  I applied a small amount on the bottom area of my hand and a much larger amount to the top so you can see it more easily.
It was difficult to capture both applications on camera; thankfully I have a lovely little scar in the area I rubbed the small portion on cream to use as a reference.
While not fully rubbed in, you can see that is has completely melted. I was also able to capture some of the gold shimmer in this photo some.
Final Thoughts
I know that some people really love this, but I'm sad to say that this hand cream was a flop for me.  I found the texture to be a little too off-putting for my taste, and I never felt as though it soaked in and actually moisturized my skin. Instead, I was left with a persistent greasy feeling that did not go away until I washed my hands.  I thought that perhaps I was using too much product, so I tested it multiple times using various amounts, and each time I was left wanting.  Either my hands were too greasy, or I was using so little I felt like they weren't benefiting at all and had an odd almost waxy feeling.  Neither feeling is appealing to me in general for any sort of body cream or lotion, and I especially don't like it on my hands.  That being said, I know a few people that love it, so I just have to chalk it up to personal preference.

Links and Additional Info
Sunny's Hand Cream can be purchased at the 365 Days of Color store in both 2oz and 4oz sizes.  Due to having to keep the product stocked and the bulk nature of the packaging, fragrances are limited to a select list and does not include all the scent options normally offered by 365 Days of Color.  That being said, there are currently 31 scents to choose from so you're really not THAT limited.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your day!

XOXO,  Jen



Disclaimer:  The products reviewed above were provided to me for my honest and unbiased opinion.  All thoughts stated are entirely my own and are based on my use of said products.  I love receiving feedback from my readers, and any comments left here are the express opinions and/or property of the individual authors.  Therefore, I, the author of this site, cannot be held responsible for the opinions held by others.  I reserve the right to remove any comments that I find to be harmful, unnecessary, or not constructive for other readers.

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