Skin in Need of a Quick Fix? M∙A∙C FIX+ to the Rescue.

If you are like me and notice your skin (particularly my face) getting drier or tighter as the day goes on, you probably wonder what you can do for a quick pick me. Now I am talking a full face of makeup on - not something you really can mess with moisture wise.

When I was at the M∙A∙C store last week, I presented this very question to my artist. He suggested FIX+ for a "quick fix". FIX+ is a very lightweight moisture mist in a spray bottle. Infused with a calm-the-skin blend of green tea, chamomile, cucumber, with a super fresh and calming scent, it adds hydation and radiance to the skin.

It is very simple to use - with or without makeup. All you do is hold the bottle about 12 inches from you face, and spray a few mists over it. Voila! Instant refreshment; my skin feels so much better for it. It dries nice and quick too.

I have used it in the mid-afternoon the last few days, and it not only made my skin feel fresher, it made my face look much fresher as well.

FIX+ is just $15 and deserves a spot in your handbag. Pick it up at all M∙A∙C locations or online at maccosmetics.com.

Photoshop in a Tube: L’Oréal Paris Revitalift Miracle Blur.

Browse through your favorite magazine and look at one of the celebrities or models in it. You know how lines and wrinkles are blurred and an overall look is softened? Well, that is done with digital retouching. It's no secret. Wouldn't you love to be to walk around and look like your were professionally retouched? I know I do. And I have found something that does just that. It's one of L’Oréal Paris' latest launches and it is called Revitalift Miracle Blur Instant Skin Smoother Finishing Cream. It's like Photoshop in a Tube.

Miracle Blur utilizes new Opti-Blur Technology to diffuse light in millions of directions to instantly erase the look of lines, wrinkles and pores. It feels like a thick primer and it is formulated with Silica, so it also absorbs and disperses skin’s natural oils so skin looks matte, with a soft blurred finish.

Now, this is not particularly primer. It is called a Finishing Cream and it is meant to be used as the last step in skin care. After testing Miracle Blur and feeling the primer-like feel, I put it on my makeup vanity. I was wrong. It needs a few minutes to settle into skin and stop feeling tacky, so it's now in my bathroom where I keep and do my skin care routine. It is my final step after my moisturizer every morning.

I have a difficult time with daytime moisturizers and sunscreen, so I love that Miracle Blur also contains an SPF of 30. It's great not to need to use an additional sunscreen anymore as this takes care of two things (well, really a lot of things) at once.

Though Miracle Blur fills in my lines and wrinkles and gives my skin a soft feel, I don't notice it making my makeup last any longer. I still use primer immediately before I put on my makeup. I guess that is why it is not called a primer and it emphasised being a skin care product.

L’Oréal Paris Revitalift Miracle Blur Instant Skin Smoother Finishing Cream sells for $24.99 and is available at drugstores and mass retailers now. Don't let the higher mass product price turn you off. It is worth this price and then some. It its honestly a product I would expect to pay $50+ for at the department store.

Olay Fresh Effects.

Olay knows that the women of today are very different than the women of yesterday. We are busy and want products that not only work, but work fast and can suit our hectic lifestyle. That is why they just launched Olay Fresh Effects, a NEW skincare collection dedicated to the needs of the millennial girl-on-the-go. This new line deep cleans and hydrates for beautifully fresh skin that lasts from morning till night, so all we have to do is focus on the busy day ahead.

I love how Olay Fresh Effects has taken the advanced science that Olay is known for, but updated it in fresh, new formulas that are so not "your mom’s Olay." From the updated clean packaging with bright colors, a wonderfully fresh scent, and super fun names, I am obsessed! 

The new collection of products include six cleansers and two moisturizers to mix, match and layer for your very own customized skin care routine.

Cleansers
 
{Va-Va Vivid!} Powered Contour Cleansing System - $14.99
This battery-powered brush with a vibrating, tri-tip brush reaches deep into contours and liberates skin from dirt, oil, and makeup in and around the T-zone, hairline and nose.

{Shine, Shine Go Away!} Shine Minimizing Cleanser - $7.99
This cleanser gently lathers deep and helps reduce the appearance of pores.

{Bead Me Up!} Exfoliating Cleanser - $7.99
This cleanser brightens with exfoliating microbeads and foaming bubbles, removing dead skin to let healthy, natural skin shine through.

{S’Wipe Out!} Refreshing Make-up Removal Cloths - $5.99
These soft, pre-moistened cloths lift away dirt and make-up – even waterproof mascara – in a flash.
 
Moisturizers

{BB Cream!} Skin Perfecting Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 15 - $14.99
This all-in-one silky sunscreen SPF 15 moisturizer with a wash of sheer color evens tone and refreshes dullness, leaving skin looking flawless. It's available in two shades: fair/light and light/medium. The light/medium shade is great for my NC30 skin tone.

{Long Live Moisture!} Satin Finish Lotion - $14.99
This 24-hour moisturizer has all the rich hydration of a lotion with the lightweight feel of a gel that leaves skin smooth and glowing without a greasy residue.

The most addicting thing about these products has got to be the scent. It is super fresh and clean - not overpowering, yet strong enough to help me get started on my day when I use Shine Minimizing Cleanser in the morning.  At night, I have been using the Make-up Removal Cloths followed by the Exfoliating Cleanser and my skin is looking clean and bright. And I have to give it up to Olay for calling the new BB Cream what it is - a tinted moisturizer, and this is a nice one that I am using to even out my skin on the weekends.

Shop for the new Fresh Effects collection at your favorite drugstore or mass retailer now.