Noire Tropical Beauty

Beauty...Natural Hair...Vibes

Category: Reviews (page 6 of 25)

Travelling this holiday time? Keep these wipes from CLEANSE in your makeup case!

July 31, 2014 / / 0 Comments

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I love using makeup wipes. I find them a lot more convenient to use than liquid makeup removers and cotton rounds. I have tried a lot of wipes out there, but many of them are okay, they don’t take off professional-level waterproof makeup. Or they may sting my eyes. And many removers are too oily for my liking.

A few months ago, I received a box of CLEANSE by Lauren Napier Luxury Facial Cleansing Wipes.

By the way, I had the opportunity to meet Lauren, and she was super nice!

Lauren Napier and me!

The wipes come in a box of 12 that are individually wrapped.

1 wrap

This is fantastic! Makes them ideal for travel! I love that! You can literally throw a couple of them in your makeup bag or carry-on and you would not have to worry about them spilling in your bag or drying out!

Each wipe is larger than the size of your hand and it is soaked (but not drenched) in mix of cleansers, hydrators and skin-soothing ingredients, like aloe and cucumber. The surface of the wipe has a slight texture but it still feels soft against my skin. I decided to test this product out on a day that I had a full-on face on! HD foundation, gel liner, cosmetic glitter, mascara, matte lipstick, everything! I was able to get rid of everything off my face, and it felt refreshed and there was no slick residue. All with one wipe.

A box of 12 costs US$18, which might be cost-prohibitive for some to use on a daily basis, but you could get this for special occasions. They are ideal for your summer getaway and perfect for dancers, performers and artists in your kit.

They are available online at laurennapier.com and in NYC at the New London Pharmacy.

Overall Grade: A

FTC Disclosure: Products were provided by PR or brand for consideration for review.  All opinions expressed are 100% honest and my own.  I have not been compensated for this review. For more information, please see my Disclosure Policy.

Zoya Magical Pixie Dust nail polish, Summer 2014, review & swatches.

June 30, 2014 / / 1 Comment

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Hi folks!

Anyone watching the World Cup?? It’s been great so far!!

Anyway, for those not interested in football, here are some nail polish swatches.

Zoya Magica Pixie Dust Collection – Summer 2014

Zoya has brought out their summer versions of their Pixie Dust collection, which is a textured and matte nail polish.  They’ve brought out other versions reviewed here and here.  There are just three colours this time and as usual, Zoya does a really great job with this formula.  There are consistently some of the best that I have tried.  Wonderful array of colours and there are slight variations between the this collection and older ones.  Zoya recommends that these polishes are applied to the naked nail, free of oils and without a base coat or a top coat.  In these swatches, I applied two coats.  The formula is quite thick, which makes sense as both the matte finish and glittery texture lend to this.  The caps are also have a matte, rubberized finish.  Polishes are available from zoya.com, and select retailers for USD$10 each.

So lehwe go!

So what makes this “magical”?

Close-up

 

 

These sand-textured polishes have silver micro-glitter as well as medium-sized, hexagonal holographic glitter and small, circular holographic glitter.  This gives that added, multi-dimensional sparkle and of course I love it!! This formula also has a milky/creamy appearance, and the base is semi-opaque.  All swatches done with two coats, no base coat.

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Tahitian Noni & Monoi Smooth & Repair Nourishing Hair Masque by SheaMoisture review

March 27, 2014 / / 0 Comments

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Every couple of months, I like to give myself a protein treatment, to help re-strengthen my hair.   Constant manipulation will eventually weaken the hair shaft and adding a treatment will fill in the weak spots.

The lovely people at SheaMoisture sent me a couple of products from one of their newest product lines, the Tahitian Noni & Monoi Collection. This is touted as their “hair smoothing system” allowing users to go from curly to straight without permanently altering the hair. According to SheaMoisture, “The protein-based treatment products smooth, soften and control frizz, leaving textured hair more manageable for up to four weeks”.

All the products contain certified organic Shea Butter, Tahitian Noni, which is an antioxidant enriched with Vitamin C to help maintain hair health, Monoi Oil, which revives damaged hair, and Keratin, Peptides and Botanical Extracts, to nourish, repair and protect distressed hair fibres. Of course this all-natural line does not contain sulphates, parabens, mineral oil and other stuff.

This line contains a number of products including the Smooth & Repair Straightening System. I got the Nourishing Hair Masque and the Hair Scalp Weekly Treatment.

NoireTropicalBeauty SheaMoisture Tahitian Monoi

I must admit that I was rather skeptical to try these products. Since the day that I decided stop relaxing, I have had zero desire to straighten my hair. So I did not want to apply anything to my hair that would alter its texture. I scrutinized the ingredients and the masque actually does not contain keratin (which is a naturally occurring protein and is the main component of hair and nails) or any ingredients that may straighten the hair. It contains mostly moisturisers and hydrolyzed vegetable protein. This masque is supposed to deeply condition the hair, impart intense moisture and strengthen and smoothen the strands.

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This cream has rescued my weather weary hands!! Nubian Heritage’s Goat’s Milk & Chai Hand Cream review.

March 24, 2014 / / 0 Comments

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This past winter has been leeeegendary! *Bevy Smith’s voice*  The cold was no joking matter and I could not keep my hands moisturized fast enough.  And that harsh hand soap in the restroom at work, just added to the dryness and itchiness. So I was sent a few products from the new Nubian Heritage Goat’s Milk & Chai line and quickly busted out the hand cream.

I’ve heard of Nubian Heritage for years.  This natural hair and skincare line was often sold by African vendors on 125th Street but it started popping up much more recently at local drugstores and retailers like Target.  I think they are even sold in Trinidad at Body Beautiful On D’Avenue on Ariapita Avenue in Woodbrook. Nubian Heritage products are all natural and made without many of the ingredients that we try to avoid like sulphates, phthalates, mineral oil, parabens and they are not tested on animals.

The Goat’s Milk and Chai line contain, of course, goat’s milk, which contains lactic acid and vitamins A, B6, B12 and E which soften skin and the Chai (which is tea in Swahili, which I did not know!) contains antioxidants that help fight off premature aging and skin damage.  This is specially targeted for those who have ultra sensitive skin, eczema and psoriasis.

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Vintage-inspired hair accessory by Ododo Originals…..

March 6, 2014 / / 0 Comments

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Ever since I decided to go back to natural years ago, I had a long list of brands and products that I heard about or read about that I wanted to try.  There weren’t a lot of hair accessories or hair jewellry on my list, but Ododo Originals was on there.  Lesley, the founder and owner, makes handmade hair floral accessories in a myriad of colours and designs.  Ododo means ‘flower’ in her mother tongue.  I was immediately intrigued when I visited the website!! Oh the colour!

Fast forward to last Black Friday, I finally ordered my first flower.   I chose to get a neutral colour that I would wear with any outfit  and I had a particular liking to the Art Deco section, which has a particular pattern, and often featured 2 different colour beads.  All of Ododo’s flowers are made of beads of different sizes and finishes and fine wire and come in a couple of different sizes.   You can get the flower with an alligator clip, a pin to use as a brooch or as a headband.  I picked up the Art Deco style in antiqued silver and bronze and that cost USD$45 less 20% (Black Friday deal).  I literally spent all weekend trying to decide which one I was going to start with!

My package came after about 2 weeks, wrapped like this…..

The packaging….

Nice, eh?

In the middle of the de people post office, I opened my package….and was blown away!! I actually let out an audible gasp!  I was highly impressed at how delicate, and beautiful and well made it was!

Delicate as in refined, not fragile.  On the website, the pieces are enlarged, to show detail, but in person it looked professionally made.  The beads are round and smooth with an iridescent/duochrome glaze, so it has a subtle shine.  The petals come to a point and the flower has some flexibility as it is made with bronze coloured wire.  The centre is bronze as well as the edges.  The rest of the petal is this burnished silver.  The flower is about 2.5 inches across with an alligator clip that just slides into the hair.

Used on twist-out high bun

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