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Health and Beauty - February 2008

Olay's Hits & Misses

February 27th 2008 01:49
I’m the kind of person who, when she discovers a good product, then has to try all the other beauty products endorsed by the same brand – and I still think I should have received some kind of loyalty reward from Clinique & Dermalogica! For the past one and a half years, I’ve been obsessed with Olay. The good news is Olay products aren’t as expensive as Clinique or Dermalogica. The bad news is, like with everything else, Olay has its hits & misses. Here are mine -

Age Defying Series Eye Gel
Olay Age Defying Series Eye Gel


This clear gel contains cucumber and hazel extracts that target the dark circles and puffiness around the delicate eye area. The texture is slightly sticky as you dab dots all around your eyes and gently smooth it in. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like my eye area was moisturised at all and there were no results after 3 months’ of use.

Total Effects Anti-Ageing Eye Cream
Total Effects Anti-ageing cream


I really had high hopes for this after Total Effects Moisturiser quickly became my favourite beauty product. The texture wasn’t as sticky as the eye gel, is slightly tan in colour and spreads out evenly and smoothly over the eye area. But it left a glitter after application and actually made the area under my eyes look slightly darker. Very disappointing.

Regenerist Eye Lifting Serum
Olay Regenerist Eye Serum

After reading the rave reviews on www.amazon.com which catapulted this serum to #1 eye treatment product, I was impatient to get my hands on this product. The texture isn’t sticky and leaves no glittery residue. It glides over the eye area very smoothly and leaves it feeling moisturised. The best thing is that it comes in a small pump bottle so you don’t have to dip your finger into the tub (leaving bits of the product on your nail). It’s higher-priced than all the other Olay eye products and so far, after 3 weeks’ of use, there have been no results. But I’ll keep trying and hopefully something will happen.

Total Effects Moisturiser
Total Effects Cream

I love, love, love this product. Let’s go through the downsides first : it’s a little thicker than what I was previously used to. The texture is a smooth but slightly thick white paste that you have to gently rub into your skin for it to be fully absorbed. And, after a year of use, it’s actually made my skin whiter (might be good news to those who prefer ‘whiter’ skin) and now, after everytime I use it, it actually makes my skin look quite pale. Paired with the Total Effects eye cream, it only highlighted the dark circles under my eyes. BUT, the result is an even, smooth skin tone with a soft healthy glow that compels people to say “Wow, your face is really clear” and made me abandon my concealer and foundation for a while. Despite it making my skin look pale, I still love this product as I haven’t had the same results from any other moisturiser – high-priced or not, so I’ve compromised to wearing this as a night cream instead.

Olay Regenerist Regenerating Lotion with UV protection
Olay Regenerist Moisturiser

This moisturiser has the texture of a sunscreen but not as sticky. It’s also not as thick or pasty as TE moisturiser. While it doesn’t have the same ‘wow’ effects TE moisturiser induced, it’s still better than most higher-priced moisturisers I’ve bought in the past. I use this during the day with TE moisturiser at night.

Regenerist Facial Treatment Mask
Olay Regenerist Mask

So what’s this supposed to do again? Oh, right. It’s supposed to give you a smoother, firmer looking skin in just 15 minutes. For AUD$40, you get 5 sheets and some reassurance that it would have some positive results. The wet sheet (drenched with anti-ageing serum?) is draped over your face, adjusting it so the holes of the eyes and the nostrils fit your face but ends up making you look like Michael from Halloween (warning : DO NOT step outside your door at night with this mask on, especially when holding a pair of scissors with a filled plastic bag). The result was absolutely nil, except that it made me look like I’d been on the threadmill for an hour. No smoothness, no evening of skin tone that I’m used to when applying masks that harden on your skin.


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I recently grew attached to a lipstick. It didn't matter that it had a tacky floral print on the cover and I found it in a dilapidated cardboard box in the corner of a $2 shop. All it mattered was that it gave my lips that shimmering, plump look. The shade wasn't so dark that it looked like I had no lips at all, not too pink that I looked like I was permanently stuck in the 80s. It was just right, the texture so smooth it went over my lips like silk and most important of all, it made my lips look 'kissable'.

So obsessed was I that I would use it routinely throughout the day, directly after meals and even resorted to drinking my 8 glasses of water through a straw. Mind you, I never put my lips around the straw, just my teeth so I looked like a braying donkey with my lips pulled back everytime I drank, sorry, sipped.

Medusa
What do you mean DISCONTINUED!?!

Then came the black day when I drove the 45 minutes to my beloved bargain shop for the 3rd time and was told the product was no longer being sold - after me scouring the back corner of the shop with mounting panic. There was the numbness, then disbelief before panic overcame again, to be replaced by a dogged resolve to go on ebay and buy directly from China, regardless of the steep delivery charges. When that search proved futile, I had to concede defeat in a manner a tantrum-chucking two-year old would have been envious of - mingled with a strong desire to headbutt myself and ask why, why didn't I buy the whole box of 10 for $20???

The fact that the product was pulled out due to 'health' reasons was of no importance. The reasonable thought of "Oh no! What effects will I have after two weeks' of continued use?" didn't occur to me (until now) as I was too preoccupied mourning the death of my once luscious, kissable lips attained for only $2.

So, have you ever been obsessed by a beauty product only to find out it's been discontinued?

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In one of my previous posts, I highlighted the length short eye-lashed women (including yours truly) would go through to possess those long beautiful eyelashes you can bat with. As short as my lashes are, I was not prepared to fork out hoardes of money for an eyelash extension or an eyelash transplant but I mentioned one product that has been clinically proven to stimulate eyelash growth the natural way.

Talika Eyelash

In just 28 days, Talika Eyelash Conditioning Gel claims to give you naturally longer and thicker lashes without regular appointments with your beautician, 2 hour-long sessions and won’t cost you thousands of dollars. The gel is clear and comes in a long white tube and an applicator wand which you apply to your upper and bottom lashes, twice daily, day and night. You can wear it under or over your eye make-up, won't leave any residue on your lashes and won't irritate your eyes. The product contains only natural extracts and is not tested on animals.

When I first heard about Talika, I dismissed it as another gimmick miracle product aimed at the gullible with some spare cash. But when I started envying my male boss his straight, elephant-like eyelashes, I finally conceded and asked a friend to buy it for me for Xmas.

Verdict? When my usually oblivious husband gave me a double take and exclaimed, "Hey, is it me or do your lashes look longer?", I knew the product actually worked. The good thing is I didn't even have to wait 28 days as I noticed the results in a mere 2 weeks. While I would have liked the results to be more dramatic, somewhere along the lines of sultry Salma Hayek's, I couldn't deny that my lashes do look longer and thicker as the before and after pics show -

Eyelid eyelash
Before


Eyelashes
After


On the downside, the product is something that you have to use daily for as long as you want your longer and thicker lashes to remain. There are also no appointed distributors in Australia so the only place to buy the gel is from their website for AUD$49.

Is it worth it? Hell, yeah! While many blessed with normal to long thick lashes would scoff or even shake their heads at this in amusement, citing vanity, it is well worth it for those sick of getting dirt in their eyes because of the lack of lashes to protect their eyes from debris.


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