The Dark Side of Beauty: Reviva Labs

Showing posts with label Reviva Labs. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Review: Reviva Labs Makeup Primer

Greetings from the Dark Side~!

Today, I want to share with you a review of my favorite face primer. This is a long time coming, since this is my 3rd bottle of this primer!

Price and Availability

$19.50 on the Reviva Labs website.

Sometimes you can find this cheaper on Amazon or other online stores.

I would say the price is similar (yet definitely on the cheaper side though) to other department store primers.

Description

According to Reviva Labs, this paraben free primer:

-Fills in lines, conceals pores, controls excess oil

-Helps skin instantly look and feel smooth and silky

-Helps makeup foundation last longer

-And COQ10 adds protective antioxidant action

Product in Action

Here is one pump on the back of my hand:

This is the primer once it is barely spread over my skin. You can see it has a glistening quality.

This is the primer completely blended into my skin. It now looks smooth, brighter, and ready for foundation (or not, you can wear this on its own).

Review

Let us consider what Reviva Labs says that this primer will do for our skin:

1.Fills in lines, conceals pores, controls excess oil

I don't have many fine lines, so I can attest to that, but I do think this does a decent job at helping to make pores look smaller. I don't know about "concealing" but it does helps. I have combination skin, and although this does help to control excess oil, it won't really stop your skin from getting excess oil. Don't expect it to do any miracles if you have very oily skin. It will help, but it won't eliminate the problem.

-Helps skin instantly look and feel smooth and silky

This is definitely true. The primer feels so silky on the skin. It makes the skin smooth and bright. This is great even for you who don't wear foundation.

-Helps makeup foundation last longer

This is a tricky one. I feel that this helps my foundation last a bit longer, but again, it is not some miracle product that will make your foundation look perfect for 24 hours. But, it does extend the wear of my foundation for about 2-3 hours, which is better than nothing.

Some thing that the bottle does not mention but which I would love to mention is that this is a wonderful primer for girls with combo skin. It helps the oily parts but it also helps to smooth out and moisturize the dry areas. If you have dry skin you know that foundation on those dry areas look really bad. This will help to prime those dry and flaky areas!

Also this is the only primer I have tried that does not break my skin out. I've tried MANY high end/department store primers and all of them have broken me out :/

So to sum up, although this is not a miracle primer, it is better for me to use it than not. It helps significantly enough for me to justify purchasing it. I would love to try some other primers but I am hesitant to try something new. It is a little pricey, but not too bad. One bottle lasts me about 3-4 months. $20, four times a year is not too bad. This will definitely be a staple product in my makeup bag until the day I find a better primer (if I find a better one that is).

Rating: 9.5/10

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Empties #1

Greetings from the Dark Side! ^_^

I've been lagging a bit these past few days and for that I apologize. I haven't commented on other blogs as much as I would like and I haven't been much on my own blog either. I haven't been feeling like myself these past few days and I've just been very tired. I just had midterms too, so excuse me if I am a bit brain dead. Maybe I am a zombie and I haven't realized it...or maybe school is just getting to me. That's a more likely reason!

I thought I would do this post since I have been too lazy to post it for the past days. These are the products I used up in the month of April. Some of them I have already mentioned before.

Eucerin Plus Intensive Repair Lotion
This stuff is seriously moisturizing! I use this mainly because I suffer from eczema. Let me tell you, I've had eczema for as long as I can remember and it is not fun. My skin gets itchy, red, dry, flaky, and sometime it can bleed. This Eucerin lotion is very thick, and it moisturizes the driest skin. It takes a little longer for the skin to absorb it,but it does the job. It really helps to get rid of the dry and flaky patches of my eczema. This would work as well for those who just have very dry skin.I have already repurchased this since my eczema has been rather bad recently because of the weather changes.

Organix Brazilian Keratin Therapy Conditioner
I have a love/hate relationship with this conditioner. I like it and sometimes I don't. If I use it too much it can leave my hair feeling really weird and greasy (yuck!). But if I use it occasionally, it leaves my hair super soft and shiny. It's like $4-5, so I would purchase it again if I needed a cheap conditioner.

Artistry Illuminating Essence
I love this stuff. I ran out of this about two weeks ago and my skin suffered after I stopped using it. It is moisturizing, it leaves my skin radiant, and it has been helping with my acne scars. I just recently bought a second bottle and my skin is starting to feel a bit better again. I still have a long way to go, but I hope that this will significantly reduce the appearance of my scars.

Artistry Makeup Remover
I've been using this to remove my eye makeup. It works well, although it does leave a oily residue. On the bright side, it removes my makeup without stinging my eyes. But now I have my Bioderma to remove my makeup so I don't think I will be needing this anymore.

Reviva Labs Makeup Primer
I adore this stuff! This is the second bottle I have finished, and I just started using my third. It is the only primer thus far that I have even remotely liked. I can't say that it makes my foundation last for 24 hours, or that it prevents all shine, but it does make my foundation it last longer and look better. I mainly like it because it helps to prime the dry areas of skin. It also does not break me out :)

So far that is what I have finished! I will update you guys with my empties at the end of this month :D

Have you guys tried any of these products?

Also here is my puppy, Chewbacca (aka Chewie). He just turned 1 the other day~ He is so cute, but don't let his innocent exterior fool you. He is hyper and a troublemaker. But I love him regardless!

Monday, April 9, 2012

Dark Side Tips: Concert Makeup

Are you a concert fiend like me? Are you afraid that your makeup will melt off while moshing? Or are you simply confused about what makeup to wear to a concert? Don't fear, the Dark Side of Beauty is here! Although my tips are going to focus on rock/metal type of concerts, these tips could be applied to all sorts of concerts.

1. Avoid the cake face / overdone foundation.
This is a huge no-no, and I can say this by personal experience. Go light with your foundation or apply a lightweight and sweat-proof foundation. If you can, avoid applying foundation at all. Maybe stick with a long lasting concealer instead.
Why is this? Well because you will sweat and your foundation will look patchy and gross. If you are in a crowded area, with other pushed up so close against you that their sweat will get on you, you beat that your face will start to sweat and the foundation will just melt off. So keep it simple; apply something that will be easy to touch up. Concealer and a light but long lasting foundation will be better than a high coverage, mask-like foundation.

YSL Teint Resist Foundation / MAC Studio Finish Concealer / Everyday Minerals Kabuki brush

January Favorites

How insane! January is almost over and yet again it is time to do a monthly favorites. It is not yet the end, but close enough. I have been ridiculously busy, so I should just plan ahead of time :D

1.Reviva Labs Makeup Primer
I LOOVE this primer so much! This is my second bottle (I just recently finished my first bottle and bought 2 back ups). I always have to apply this before applying my BB cream. It definitely helps the application of foundation and it makes the foundation last a little longer. The best thing is that it doesn't break me out and that it is actually worth buying and using.

2. Lioele Triple the Solution BB Cream (I need to do an updated review of this foundation)
I started using this again after I finished my Skin79 Oriental BB Cream, and although I now prefer the Skin79 one, this is still a really great BB Cream. It has a heavier coverage than the Skin79 BB cream and is a little more beige toned. I definitely love it enough to purchase it again, but I am still at odds as which of the two I would repurchase first. @_@

3. NARS Danmari Palette (Sin)
I have had this palette for over a month now, and I can say without a doubt that my favorite color is Sin. I thought it might be too dark for me, but it really isn't. I don't own any full size NARS blushes, but I had imagined that the colors would be a little more pigmented. I can't say for sure, but regardless, I am in love with Sin. I have practically used it all month. It is such a great winter color! For swatches, go HERE.
(I used it in my Psychotic Galactic Empress look).

4. Chanel Illusion D'Ombre eyeshadow in 'Mirifique'
I haven't had this for long, but I am totally in love with it. It is such an amazing color, I mean just look at the sparkles *~* It also doesn't crease or smudge throughout the day!

5. Wet n Wild 'Petal Pusher' Palette
Although I love the entire palette, I have mostly only been using two of the colors in the palette: the right "Eyelid" and "Crease" colors. The "Eyelid" shade is a really gorgeous purple with copper shimmer, and the "Crease" color is a dark purple with purple shimmer. To see swatches go HERE and to see an eye look using this palette go HERE.

6. Gold Eyeshadows (especially Chase from the UD 15th Anniversary Palette)
I mentioned that I have been loving gold eyeshadows. My favorite right now is Chase, which is SUPER pigmented and just a really lovely gold =3

7. Jordana Matte Lipstick in Lily Rose
I <333 this~ Not only is it a beautiful mauve/purple/pink, but it also has a great matte formula. Another great thing is that it costs less that $3! This color actually reminds me a lot of Revlon's Pink Pout matte lipstick, but this one is slightly more purple.

What are your favorites for this month?

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

September Favorites 2011

Another month has passed by so quickly! And here is another post of my favorites for this month. Hope you enjoy :)

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1.Reviva Labs Makeup Primer
This was sent to me in the beginning of August, and I have been using it since them. It is the best primer i have ever used and I am very impressed with it. I will most likely be purchasing it with my own money once it runs out. My bottle is about half ways, so it should last me until the end of this year or so.
2.LORAC Oil Free Luminizer in 'Pearl'
I used this lumizer consistently this month. I admit I had forgotten about it in the past months, but I rediscovered and I can't believe I shad not used it. Although, I also must admit that I have a new highlighting powder which I absolutely love, so this might be slightly forgotten once again.

Primer / Luminizer (I applied waaaay too much product on my hand)

3.Prestige My Blackest Lashes mascara
If you have seen any of my EOTDs, you might realize that I have been using this mascara very often. For the price, this is a really great mascara! I am pretty much done with the tube above, and I will be repurchasing it. Check out my review HERE for more details.

4.Stila Smudge Pot in 'Little Black Dress'
This smudge pot was from the Barbie Loves Stila collection. I got this when the collection came out, but I lost it before I ever used it. I had painted my room and removed everything from my room, and this ended up a box which I forgot about and it was left in my garage. I recently found the box and I was angry that this beauty had evaded me for such a long time. This is the closest dupe of MAC Young Punk eyeshadow, but in a cream shadow form. It is a black base with gorgeous purple shimmers. What I love about this, beside the color, is that it is extremely long lasting and waterproof. I wore this to the recent Blink 182 concert, and it stayed put all night (can't say the same thing about my foundation though!). I believe this was LE, but I checked online and saw many places you could purchase it from (eBay, Amazo, ect...) for a relatively decent price.

5.MAC Sheen Supreme in 'Asian Flower'
I absolutely love this shade and I have been wearing it so much since I purchased it. The color is phenomenal, it is moisturizing, and the staying power is quite good for a super moisturizing lipstick (3-5hrs). I adore wearing this lipstick in conjunction with either MAC Young Punk eyeshadow on my eyes, or the Stila Little Black Dress Smudge Pot (as shown above).