Dolce & Gabbana Dolce Matte Red Lipstick in Flirt 621

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce Matte Red Lipstick in Flirt 621 is a perfect blend of emollients and pigment, the quality of this lipstick is amazing.  Everyone needs a red lipstick but finding the right one can be difficult.  I have been searching for the perfect matte lipstick that is not drying to my lips.  I was a little skeptical when I first received the free Dolce&Gabbana red Matte Lipstick sample from BzzAgent.  It looked like every other red lipstick on the market. Then I tried it on and instantly fell in love with it.

The Dolce & Gabbana Dolce Matte moisturizing formula lipstick in Flirt 621  is a rich red color with subtle blue undertones.  What is good about blue undertones in a lipstick is that it brightens your smile and Creates the illusion of whiter teeth.  Additionally, the pigment and lasting formula on this lipstick is amazing.

 

The formula in this lipstick is moisturizing and not drying on my lips.  I have tried so many of the matte lipsticks and most dried my lips out and made them look bad.  My teenager tried it on and loves it too.  She even kept the sample.  

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce Matte Red Lipstick in Flirt 621 is not cheap at an average price of $37.00, however I believe it is pigmented enough that a little goes a long way on my lips.  I liked it enough to pay the $37 for the full 0.12 oz. tube.  I recommend visiting Sephora or Macy's to see the lipstick for yourself if you are searching for a non-drying matte lipstick that is a rich pigmented red. 

Thank you to Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, and BzzAgent for sending me a free sample to test and review. If you would like to test and review products, then you should contact BzzAgent for more information. They are great to work with and their website is super easy to use.

My Review of SKII Facial Treatment Essence

The Sk-II Facial Treatment Essence and mask is a wonderful way to boost skin firmness and improve the overall texture of the skin.  I have so many friends who swear by their line that I was more than a little interested in trying the line. Since the SK-II Facial Product line has such an amazing reputation for its skin care products, I was excited to have the opportunity to test out one of their mini kits for BzzAgent.  

My kit had the following products in it:

SK-II Treatment Essence (1oz)

SK-II Treatment Mask (1)

SK-II Essential Power Cream  (.05 oz)

The SK-II company uses only the highest quality ingredients which is reflected in the price tag of their product line.  The SK-II Essential Power Moisturizing Cream, 2.71 fl. oz. sells for $215.00 at Amazon and Sephora.  So getting to try this tiny sample of the cream was really important for me before I would commit to purchasing such an expensive product.  The little jar holds a bit less than .05 oz of the cream but with this product a little goes a long way. I have really oily skin and suffer from break outs and wrinkles (what a combo) so I was a little bit afraid that the cream would break me out.  I used a pea size amount on the drier parts of my skin to see if I would break out.  I am happy to say that the cream did not break me out.  I was also surprised at how smooth the texture of the cream is. It spread out so easily so a little really went a long way.  I got about three weeks worth of use out of this little jar. That was enough time to get a good idea of its effectiveness for my skin.  

The cream is great and really moisturized my skin.  I found it a bit too heavy to use during the day since it has been really warm out here this summer.  I decided to use it only at night and got some great results.  I think this cream will be wonderful during the winter when my skin tends to be drier.  

According to the BzzAgent website the "SK-II Essential Power Cream contains Stem-Acanax and Pitera™ to radically improve firmness and reduce wrinkles".  This miracle ingredient is at the core of the revolutionary products SK-II offers. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence is a liquid concentrate with 90% Pitera™ in every bottle. SK-II Facial Treatment Masks deliver an indulgent concentration of Pitera™ in a single application."

The Pitera compound stimulates the skins natural cellular repair and promotes more efficient skin regeneration.  For those who do not know, Pitera is a type of fermented yeast that is supposed to speed up the skins rejuvenation process.  The yeast come from Saki. 

The SK-II Facial Treatment Essence, 2.5 fl. oz. was my favorite product.  It is enriched with more than 90% Pitera.  Additionally, the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence has vitamins, amino acids, minerals and some organic aides which are added to help promote health skin cells and aid in the skin cell renewal cycle.  The website states that with daily application the essence helps improve the texture of the skin.  I have to agree with it.  It also helped clear up my skin and improve the tone of my skin around my mouth and cheek area.  I found it easiest to use by pouring a very small amount onto the back of my hand and patting it onto my face.  That way I would not waste any of the product.  This product sells for $105 for the 2.5 oz size at Sephora.

The SK-II Facial Treatment Mask is a very high quality mask. The cotton mask fabric is thicker than some of the other masks that I use from Sephora.  If you are not familiar with this type of mask, it is a bit goey when removing it from the packaging.  This is good because it means that the company did not skimp on the liquid product.  

You just need to carefully unfold the mask and place onto your skin. SK-II does include directions in their packaging which make using their masks for the first time very easy.  I love the thick texture of the serum on the mask.  My skin was pretty dehydrated that morning and just sucked the serum right up.  I kept it on for about 30 minutes and then just patted the residual serum onto my neck and chest area.  My skin looked great.  Thanks to the serum my skin was so moisturized that it swelled up slightly for about 5 hours.  It actually made my fine lines and eye wrinkles disappear for most of the day.  I had a photo shoot that day and my skin looked amazing.  I know that I will be purchasing the mask when I need to attend special events and look my best. The glowing skin effect did last a few days which was amazing for a one time use mask.   The mask sells for about $17 for one on Sephora.com.  

Overall, the price of these products may appear to be on the high side.  However, if you consider how well they work and how little of the product you use at each application, then the price is actually pretty reasonable.

Update, September 15, 2015:  Costco has the SK-II kits for under $175.  So if you are a fan of the product, you might want to visit your local Costco and pick it up before they sell out.

Thank you to BzzAgent and SK II for providing me with samples of these products to test out and give my honest review of my personal experience with the SK-II Facial Product line. If you like sampling new products then check out BzzAgent for yourself and sign up to test and review products. 

Great News for those of you who live in the UK, BzzAgent has a homepage just for you.  If you would like to review products and give your honest opinion on them, then check out their homepage.

NOTE: if you are sensitive to yeasts, you may have a different reaction to the product than I did. I imagine if you suffer from any type of yeast intolerance you may want to check with your doctor before using this product

My Review of the Muller Strawberry Cheesecake Flavor Dessert Inspired Yogurt

I could not believe how wonderful the  Muller Strawberry Cheesecake Flavor Dessert Inspired Yogurt   was.  I tried four of the dessert inspired yogurt flavors and found that they each have an interesting flavor.

One flavor stood out more than the others, which is the strawberry cheesecake flavor.  This is a hard flavor to make work with yogurt.  I have tried it from several different companies, and this is the best.
The packaging is excellent it keeps the crunchy topping fresh by keeping it separated from the yogurt.

Additionally, the Muller Strawberry Cheesecake flavor of the Muller dessert inspired yogurt is the perfect yogurt to create a light summer dessert.  Just pair it with fresh strawberries or blueberries to give just a little bump of fun.

Hint:  If you want to make a last minute dessert for that unexpected company, just cut up some pound cake and put it into some glasses.  Then carefully spoon some of this yogurt into the glasses (each package can be easily divided into two servings), then top with the crunchy topping and a bit of whipped cream.

Thank you to BzzAgent and Mueller yogurt for providing me with samples and coupons to taste these cool dessert yogurts and give honest reviews of my personal experience with this yogurt. If you like sampling new products then check out BzzAgent for yourself and sign up to review products. I got these yogurts free by combining the dollar off coupons with last weeks sale prices at my local Ralphs (aka Kroger) store. 

COPPER SOLE™ Sock Review

COPPER SOLE™

I am fairly picky about what type of socks I buy for my family members because any sock has to be well constructed, be made of quality materials and still be comfortable to wear. The Copper Sole socks really fit that requirement nicely, addition to all health benefits they offer. 

The Copper Sole socks are a specialty sock made of 58% Copper Poly, 26% Polyester, 15% Nylon and 1% Lycra Spandex that are made in the U.S.A.  The Lycra is what makes the fit so nice.  The socks are unisex so men and women can wear them.

The Copper Poly is what gives the feet benefit while wearing these luxurious socks.  The socks themselves are very soft and comfortable. However it is the Copper Poly claims that I am really interested in.  The company claims that the socks are Anti Fungal and that they help athletes prevent getting Athlete's Foot (yes you can still get Athlete's foot if you don't wear foot protection gear in public showers....the sock can't work miracles) from strenuous workouts and sweat.  

I like to hike and that can be really hard on my feet.  I wear a quality pair of boots but have had a hard time finding socks that really provide a good amount of cushion to the sole of my foot when doing these hikes.  I have purchased several different types of socks from specialty stores and they were not cheap.  One pair was $25 at REI, however, I expect to pay more for the type of protection I was seeking for my feet while hiking.

Luckily for me, I was recently sent three pairs of the new Copper Sole socks to test out and give my opinion on by the folks at BzzAgent.  My first test was to take a close look at the stitching on the toe of the sock.  If you hike a lot, you know that stitching can cause problems if it is not done correctly.  I was happy to find that the stitching was done so that it lays fairly flat and will not rub on the tops of my toes.

The next test was to check out the tufting on the sock. It has to be soft and thick.

Again, I was pleased to find it was thicker than my most expensive pair of hiking socks.

As for the Anti Fungal nature of the product in the Cupron Anti Fungal Fibers (EPA Registered), well I don't have the problem so I can not answer that issue directly.  However, the socks did keep my feet dry and were very comfortable to hike and walk in.  Since my feet were so well protected, it allowed me to walk with out any issues of tired and sore feet.  This is a plus when you are very active. I really like these socks and plan to buy a couple more pairs to have on hand.  The retail price on these is around $25 a pair.  They are not cheap but then again, they are not everyday kind of socks.  The price point is about right for specialty socks. I also have some discount coupons that I can apply towards a future purchase that will bring that price down a bit.

There are a lot of other similar socks being sold on Amazon. However, the quality can really vary.  Look for the trademark on the sock to ensure that you are getting the real Copper Sole sock.  Below is a picture that shows the trademark on the cuff of the sock.

Note: These socks are really thick and will be less comfortable if you shoes are too tight.  

If you are a physically active person, stand all day on your feet or need socks with the speciality Cupron Anti fungal Fibers then these socks are worth a try.  Once again, I would like to thank BzzAgent for sending me these socks to try.  I don't think I would have known about them otherwise.

Update: I have had these for almost a month know and have worn them to work and for hiking.  They have held up well to multi washings and wearing them with different types of shoes and/or boots.  I am really impressed with the quality of these socks.

By the way, if you are interested in trying out new products, getting great coupons or just like to give your personal opinion on products, you should sign up with BzzAgent.