Review: Avon PRO Brow Enhancer in Dark Brown

Most of you know by now that I draw in the ends of my brows. I've been doing so for the past 7 years. Why? Well, you can read here to find out :P So when I saw this product in an Avon catalog, I was instantly interested. Of course, the before and after product pictures made it look ahhhmazing. And of course, while I was skeptical, I was silently hoping for an eyebrow miracle.

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And let me tell you, this product was no miracle :(

Price: $8 (I got mine for the introductory price of $5)

What they say: No more worries about sparse brows! Fills in, defines and shapes brows.

What's in it: WATER/EAU BUTYLENE GLYCOL NYLON-6 HYDROXYETHYLCELLULOSE PROPYLENE GLYCOL TRIETHANOLAMINE PHENOXYETHANOL CARBOMER CAPRYLYL GLYCOL PVP DISODIUM EDTA SILICA PANTHENOL CITRIC ACID MAY CONTAIN:IRON OXIDESBLACK 2/CI 77266

The good stuff:

• Tinted gel, is a good match for my brow color
• Contains little fibers to mimic brow hair
• Easy enough to apply
• Makes brows look good from a distance
• Unique tip "combs" through brow hairs and deposits product ↓

The low-down:

• A bit pricey
• Can get messy
• Only 3 shades (black, dark brown, light brown)
• Fibers obviously will not all go in the same direction your brows are growing
• Makes brows look messy close up
• Will not adequately fill in missing sections of eyebrow

My take: Unfortunately, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, this product was no eyebrow miracle for me. It is basically a tinted gel with tiny fibers in a basic twist-click pen (which I needed to twist a gazillion times to get the product to come out -- just like ELF lippies! XP)

Dark brown looks like this:
See the little "hairs"?

I do like the unique applicator tip though... it has little "fingers" that comb through your brow hairs to deposit the product more evenly. It also combs through the brows and gives them a "groomed" appearance.


However, the product itself is less than spectacular. While Dark Brown is a good match for my brow color, it just doesn't look good on my brows CLOSE UP. The gel gets deposited heavier in some places and clings to some hairs more than others. Also, the little fiber "hairs" will of course NOT all face the same direction that your brows are growing in... so some will be horizontal or at other awkward angles (not that you can tell from far away).

Also, not enough fibers are deposited onto my brows in a single application for it to sufficiently mimic eyebrow hair. And the more layers of product you add to get more fibers, the messier it starts to look. Also, if you need to fill in large missing sections of eyebrow like I do (I have to draw on the ends), this product will not work. Like I stated previously, not enough fibers come out in the gel in order to realistically mimic full eyebrows.

Here's what it looks like filling in my brows:

I only fill in the inner half, then draw on the ends using
Physician's Formula Brow Pencil in Dark brown (my HG).

Okay, I guess it looks alright in this picture. But that's why I said it looks good and natural from afar. But CLOSE UP, it looks very messy and obviously filled in. Even if it does look good from far away, I'm too self-conscious to wear this on its own, just knowing that up close it looks so terribly messy :/

Here's what it looks like with brow powder:

So my solution to this problem was to just finish off with some darker brow powder (which I normally use anyway). So my brows still retain the groomed look thanks to the unique tip applicator, but look A LOT less messy when inspected up close, since the powder covers up all the inconsisntent gel spots. While I do like the way it looks with the brow powder a lot better than without, this still isn't something I'd like to do every day. So I just went back to using my normal DHC Eyebrow Perfect Powder (another one of my HGs) to fill in the inner half of my brows. To me, that's a lot quicker, easier, and more natural looking than going through the entire process of using the Avon PRO Brow Enhancer first, fixing it up, AND THEN using powder.

Would I repurchase/recommend?: No, I personally would not repurchase this product. While it does fill in brows "good enough," -- It works relatively well on sparse brows, it just takes a little fooling around with the product to get it to look natural AND clean -- I still think this would fare a lot better on people who only want to enhance their brows a little. I wouldn't recommend this to people like me who need to fill in large sections of eyebrow or don't want to spend time fixing up their brows after applying this product.

The Rundown:
Packaging: 4/5
A twist pen. Exactly what you'd expect from a twist pen. But it's at least sturdy.

Product: 3/5
Good concept... but will not work for EVERYONE. Takes some working with to get it to apply "nicely."

Price: 3/5
I think it could be a little cheaper.

Overall:
[ click here to read about my Review & Rating System ]

Revisit: Avon Nail Experts Pearl Shine Polish [How to fake it: Healthy Nails Pt. 3]

Hello loves! Today is the third and last part of my "How to fake it: Healthy Nails" series! I wanted to go back and revisit a product which I had originally deemed unsatisfactory: Avon Nail Experts Pearl Shine Polish. My original review was here. I thought that it didn't really give my nails a nice shine... wasn't impressed.


To recap from my previous post, these are what my nails looked like after using Island Girl "Yellow Out." Tinted purple and the surface texture is accentuated.



I was unsatisfied with the way my nails turned out after using Island Girl "Yellow Out." So on a whim, I decided to use the Pearl Shine polish OVER the Yellow Out.

And VOILA!
2 coats of smooth, glossy goodness.

Price: ~$4.
I don't see it on Avon anymore, but found it elsewhere online for under $4.

What they say: Leaves nails with a lustrous pearl finish... and a healthy buffed look. Helps strengthen with vitamins. Brushes on fast... dries instantly.

The good stuff:

• Nice packaging
• Pretty color
• Dries quickly
• When used over another polish, makes nails look healthy, smooth, and glossy!

The low-down:

• On it's own, it just makes nails look dull/buffed.

Now tell me those don't look like healthy nails to you!

This polish did the perfect job of toning down the purple tint from the Yellow Out, and made my nails look super smooth. No trace of the previous rough surface texture. Also, it DID give my nails a nice healthy shine with slight shimmer and a healthy pinkish color.

My conclusion: After revisiting this product, I have changed my mind about how I thought about it. Layering 2 coats over an unsatisfying manicure yields perfectly smooth, healthy-looking nails, even if they aren't healthy underneath all that polish :P Definitely a new go-to in my polish collection when I lazy to paint my nails & want to go for that "healthy natural" look!

So...
If your nails are dry, cracked, peeling, or just plain abused... I hope I offered some useful suggestions over the past three days for products that can give you instant (Fake it!) healthy nails! : )

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Happy b-day & Avon nail polish review #2

EDIT: Oh yeah! Forgot to mention my giveaway is now over! Thank you to everyone who entered! I'll be picking the winner tonight... will announce tomorrow!

So today was my Mom's birthday (: we just had a simple steak dinner @ home. It was a nice relaxing day for everyone lol (pssst! It's also Honey Bunny's b-day today hehe :D). Anyways I decided to re-do my nails today with the new nail polish I ordered from Avon so I figure I'd do a little overview on both polishes. Sorry no pictures today!

Avon Nail Experts Pearl Shine Polish

I wanted to love this polish, I really did :( But I'm not impressed with it at all. It claims to "Leaves nails with a lustrous pearl finish... and a healthy buffed look. Helps strengthen with vitamins. Brushes on fast... dries instantly."

Well, it does dry pretty instantly. However, it did NOT leave my nails with a "Lustrous pearl finish," it was more of a dull, buffed look. I can't say this is completely bad, but it just wasn't what I'd expected. It's fine for a natural "clean" nails look. It looks so pretty in the bottle too :(


Avon Nail Experts Smooth Beginnings Base Coat

At least this was something I could be satisfied with. Even this base coat polish had waaayy more shine than the Pearl Shine polish :P It definitely smooth out nail ridges and prepped my nails for a smooth coat of polish. Dried quickly.

Here's what Avon had to say about it: Evens out ridges. Enriched with Okume oil to help nails look healthy, it's a great start to the perfect manicure. I'd have to agree here (:


Aaand! Today was our 1 year and 11 month anniversary (:

We didn't do anything special since my mom was queen today xD

Can't believe it's nearly been 2 years lol... funny to think back on those days when we met 4 years ago xD There's just that one person that you know will end up being special in your life from the moment you meet them. I've always thought people can't change and guys are all the same but he proved me wrong. It's been hella tough times but also those unforgettable moments... and I still wouldn't want to go through it with anyone else ♥

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NOTD + Avon review, etc.

So, my Avon haul came in a few days ago... I got a nailpolish, a lipgloss, and I was supposed to get a dual sided liner/shadow brush but it was not available :( Anyways, here's my take on their nail polish:

I got it in "Classic rose." It's a nice baby pink color.

It's very glossy, shiny, and subtly bold. I like Avon's polish because it goes on smoothly, dries pretty quickly (I have major probs with polish drying slowly and tacky) and doesn't get dull or chip easily. I'm planning on getting more of their polish soon! I wish I was pro at nail art like Nikki from Askmewhat's :( lol. She is Queen of nail art :D I can barely manage to paint my nails on my right hand using my left -_-;; I am NOT ambidextrous, apparently xD

I also got one of their Colortrend rollerball lipglosses in watermelon. All of this stuff was on sale so it was cheap :D It smells super sweet like candy and tastes good too (:

There is pretty much no color or sparkle and it goes on sheer and clear. It's not sticky at all (kind of hydrating actually) and doesn't dry out my lips. It gives off nice shine and lasts relatively long.

And that was all I really had to review for today. So I'll leave with some pics of Muffin...

...Do you remember me?
I'm a big kitten now. I'm FAT.





























I'm also vicious and NOT cuddly at all unless I'm tired. Which I was in this picture but I don't look like it huh. Mommy has to hold me super tight so I don't claw her face. Which I've done two times already! :D

I like to bite mommy and daddy and everyone else. I still climb legs, chairs, screen doors, you name it. I'm a pro at climbing (and looking innocent while doing it). And now I'm tired. I'm also expert at sleeping. Which is what I'm going to do now. Bye!

Haha okay enough from fat cat. On another note, I've lost enough weight to finally perfectly fit that skirt I got from Oahu :D It was a bit too snug before. Thank you Wii fit! lol. I've dropped ~5 lbs. since I graduated ^_^ Excuse teh dirty mirror lol.

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Avon look alert eye brightener review

So, I ordered this concealer pen from Avon and it came in on my birthday. I was debating between getting this one for $3.99 or the Anew one (for wrinkles and fine lines) for $8. I got this one. I've been using it for about 3 days... and it's nothing to brag about.

Avon Look Alert Eye Brightener

Product Description: Light-reflecting pearls appear to dispel dark circles, fade away fine lines and optically airbrush imperfections...visibly gives eyes a brighter outlook. Dot and blend Eye Brightener under eye, from inside corner out. Wear alone or under foundation. .04 oz. net wt.

Ingredients: click here for a list.

Pros: goes on smooth, blendable, relatively inexpensive, portable twist-pen design.

Cons: only comes in 4 shades with pink undertones (except for illuminating pearl), coverage is VERY sheer, does not cover dark circles very well on its own, the twist pen has problems, shimmer particles?

What I thought about it: Since it was pretty cheap, I wasn't too upset with the results. I haven't tried Avon's concealers before so this wasn't a good first product to try, I suppose. I like that it comes in a twist up pen which is easy to store and small enough to fit anywhere, but it has problems. After pre-use twisting, the product comes out. However, I've found that the next day I want to use it, the product dries up and you have to do a lot of twisting again. One twist gets nothing, until you get to 5 twists. Then A LOT of product comes out :( Too much; and there's no way of seeing how much is coming out up until that point. Then, you cap it, and the next day, the extra product has already dried up. So that's kind of a waste.

Coverage-wise, it is VERY sheer and cannot conceal dark circles by itself. Also, my skin tone doesn't quite match with the pink undertones (I've found that most of Avon's skin tone products are more pinkish than anything). However, the coverage is buildable and blendable, but applying too much ends up looking cakey. It worked best for me to pat and smooth on a thin layer to conceal as much as possible, then go over it with my EDM pressed powder... this works pretty well, but I'd rather have a concealer that covers better than this one without looking heavy or needing to set powder over it. Also, there are shimmer particles in this! I cannot decide if this is a good or bad thing. They don't show up too much around my eyes but when I swatched it on my hand, it was noticably glittery.