The Best Kabuki Brushes

In life, we spend on some things and save on others. When quality and performance matter, we spend even if we have to save up to buy an item. At other times when good enough works, we can save.

Discontinued 😞

Good makeup brushes make a huge difference in applying makeup evenly so usually, we spend on quality brushes, moving up from the good enough ones we settled for when we were younger.

I did so one makeup brush at a time, but before I could buy my last planned brush, in the It Velvet Luxe Collection For Ulta, the line was discontinued! So my coveted Kabuki brush (at $54 without a deal) got away! I looked a long time for it on eBay to no avail and so I had to move on. 

Today I'm featuring 3 Kabuki brushes that are top-notch in the qualities I love in makeup brushes: They're (1) plush/dense, (2) soft, and (3) do not shed for a smooth application of liquid or powdered makeup. I use a Kabuki brush to apply face powder as a final step to blend and set the makeup on my face. (Some people use it for liquid foundation, which I skip.)

I've uploaded the 3 brushes in today's blog in the order of most to least expense. They are: 

1) Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Face 2.0 Teardrop Kabuki (See the top image.👆) 

2) Isle of Paradise Foundation Brush (See the purple case.👆)

3) Petal-Shaped Kabuki Brush - This option is sold all over the internet. I bought one from Walmart. It also sells on Chinese retailer websites like Temu and Shein. Surprisingly, it is a great quality brush at a low cost! The brush has tons of 5-star reviews from happy customers!

Although I found a good Kabuki brush for less, I still regret losing out on the pricey Kabuki brush that got away! All I can do now is show and write about it.😢

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Damask Rose Body Wash

Lately, I've been addicted to the scent of roses. Nowadays, I help my senior mom with her bath, and I try to find mild organic or near-organic products to pamper her senior skin. We need pampering at every age! 

Samui Damask Rose Body Wash is a T.J. Maxx find I also sampled on my skin. I put a squirt in her bathwater and a dab on a washcloth for my shower. Love it! She loves it too!! Ultra moisturizing, it's supercharged with sensational-smelling Rosa Damascena flower extract, and it contains gentle, moisturizing cleansers like glycerin, aloe barbadensis leaf juice, and hydrogenated caster oil.  

If the ingredients continue to play nice with mom's skin, I'd like to replace the Aloe Wash I buy for her from a medical supply company with Damask Rose Body Wash since it's only $7.99 for 33.8 fluid ounces instead of $12+ for only 8 fluid ounces of Aloe Wash. Whenever you buy products made for seniors the cost is jacked up 3-fold or more! Plus, I adore huge sizes of stapes that last a long time before they end up as empties. With a fancy floral scent to boot, we can't go wrong!

A wrinkle in my plan is I can't find other merchants who sell the Samui brand I just discovered at TJM, so I returned to the store to buy a 2nd bottle. After we use them I may need to find competitors that make Damask Rose Body Wash.

So stock up, all my rose-scented-loving readers of moisturizing body wash while supplies last at TJM of the Samui brand in this big bargain size! 

Other rose-scented beauty products I saw in the beauty aisles (but didn't buy since I didn't need them) include:

Click to read brands of products.

The love of roses is on right now at T.J. Maxx, where you can save and splurge simultaneously. You can't beat the sweet floral scent or the prices to bring it home!🌹 

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b. fresh Deodorant Smells Great

Scents - Grapefruity Good, Roses All Day, Coconutty Vanilla, Lush Lavender

If you've been following THE SAVVY SHOPPER for a length of time, you may remember our discussion about underarm personal care products. Sweating is the body's natural way of cooling itself, and as it turns out, eliminating this necessary function with antiperspirants may not be desirable according to some recent medical studies.

Let's review why: Antiperspirants stop wetness by clogging sweat glands, while underarm deodorants prevent odor (not wetness) with bacteria-fighting ingredients. But what antiperspirants also do is make you sweat more so you may be better off using deodorants. Going 1 - 4 weeks (because everybody's body chemistry is different) without using antiperspirants lets your body rebalance itself, and surprisingly you should end up sweating less. What's more, the ingredients in traditional antiperspirants are also raising enough concern to pay attention.

B. Fresh deodorant is a T.J. Maxx find that smells fantastic! Aluminum-free, it is made with a blend of natural plant and mineral odor-eliminating ingredients including rose flower extract, bergamot leaf oil, zinc ricinoleate, lavender oil, orange peel oil, and lysmeral. 

I bought the Roses All Day scent to pamper my senior mother after her bath. She does smell like roses all day! It's a good, clean scent ... strong, yet not artificial or overwhelming.

I also like the shea butter and hyaluronic acid in the product for a smooth application, especially restorative after a shave.

Photo: Getty

IMHO, once you pay for a product and walk out of a store, ain't nobody's business how you use it! In our family, we may end up using it as a perfume on our arms, neck, behind our ears, etc, etc. to smell awesome like roses all day long!🌹

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10 Face Moisturizers For Fall

1) 7E Wellness Restore

As fall descends upon us one of the first signs we may notice is the tightening of our skin especially on our faces. Summer humidity gets replaced by a dryer climate resulting in a dryer face.

Ceramide

With the change of season, you may have to add a moisturizer to your routine to combat the dryness. Two ingredients to look for in an effective face moisturizer are ceramides (fatty acids that are naturally in the skin) and hyaluronic acid (a  

Hyaluronan

chief component in connective tissue that helps the skin retain water). You should moisturize your face right after you wash it in the sink or step out of the shower to lock in moisture and on top of thinner face serums such as vitamin C (an antioxidant that lightens the skin), retinol, or bakuchiol (a natural retinol alternative for sensitive skin) if you use them.

2) Cocokind Ceramide Barrier Serum and 3) The Inkey List Bio-Active Ceramide

So let's learn (by clicking the brand names) about 10 new beneficial face moisturizers that help fight the dryness of autumn without breaking the bank.

4) Cerave Moisturizing Cream and 5) Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream

CeraVe (#4) and Cetaphil (#5) above👆 are what I use on all my skin including my face. Neither cream is heavy or clogs my pores, and I find each brand as pure, mild, and effective as moisturizing creams formulated expressly for the face. 

The more choices consumers have the better IMHO! Some moisturizers work better than others on different skin types --oily, combination, dry, or sensitive. It's also fun to discover and try new products. When we have options galore we can take full advantage of retail sales to never go without or spend more than necessary. If we know what to buy, when a budget-friendly favorite is out of stock, we can buy another budget-friendly favorite in stock. 

6) SimplyVital and 7) First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream

None of today's examples cost more than $20 and the majority are less, with a few offering you extra ingredients like vitamins C, B5, E, etc. Still, without more research to compare concentrations in the right forms of a product, I'd turn to them mainly to moisturize. A moist face is also a younger-looking face!

8) Organic Manuka Honey Rescue Cream and 9) SeoulCeuticals Snail Muscin Moisturizer

#9 SeoulCeuticals cream is 97% snail mucin valued in Korean beauty as having anti-aging properties; manuka honey in #8, is hailed for its antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. Inflammation causes the skin to wrinkle.

10) Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer with Ceramides and Hyaluronic Acid

Vanicream (#10) is a brand dermatologists praise and recommend as pure and suitable for all skin types especially sensitive skin.

The list could go on and on since nowadays there are a ton of fantastic budget-friendly moisturizers on the market. With choices galore, you need never empty a wallet to buy a great face moisturizer. Watch this space periodically for future skincare recommendations.

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Makeup Organizers

When I got tired of wasting time searching for my stuff, my organizing gene kicked in! Now I'm a dedicated organizer. Everything big or small I own in my apartment must have a home. I also got rid of purely decorative items that can't do a job. No freeloaders in my small living space, at least the inanimate object must be able to hold something, or it goes!

The Syntus 360 Rotating Makeup Organizer sits neatly on a bathroom countertop to save space. You spin it around to see and get to all your makeup. The dolly organizer is slim and compact with adjustable partitions.💄 

Since I don't have counters in my Manhattan bathroom I have to keep my makeup and skincare products inside my medicine cabinet so I bought smaller organizers to fit inside it. They are clear with divided compartments, and a step-level style. I can't spin them around, but can still see and reach for everything without moving anything.

Organizers are relatively inexpensive and over the years save you a ton of time! I also think I buy less since I can see the makeup I already have and nothing gets forgotten or lost! I'm also trying to use up what I have and eventually shrink or consolidate what I purchase. My long-term goal is to be an even more mindful shopper. One step at a time!

Start decluttering and putting things in place today. You'll wonder why it took you so long to get organized!

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Savon De Marseille Beau Terra Soap

One of my favorite T.J. Maxx finds is Savon De Marseille Beau Terra Soap, also the best liquid soap I've ever used. Why do I love it so? Let me count the ways:

1) It has a lovely and potent smell of roses, the fragrance I selected.

2) When I fancy a product whether it is soap, shampoo, condition, moisturizer, or even household cleaners I love big quantities of it so I can use it without soon running out. Savon De Marseille Beau Terra Soap is sold in a 1L (33.8 oz) size. With daily use, it lasts and lasts!

3) Not only does it clean, but it feels gentle and nourishing so never dries my hands. Marseille soup is made from vegetable fats without coloring, perfume, or synthetic additives. True Savon de Marseille soaps are 72% olive oil (whereas Castile soaps are 100% olive oil).

4) It doesn't have the organic seal, though it's enriched with olive oil, botanicals, and super beneficial ingredients.

5) Usually products made in France are expensive, yet this soap is cheap, and the 1L size makes it excellent value for the money.

I hope I find it again at T.J. Maxx because if you wish to buy it for roughly the price I paid, you need a $100 order to get free shipping, and no matter how much I love it, that's a lot of soap!🌹

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NOW Solutions For Natural Beauty

NOW Foods, a retailer focusing on healthy living, has a skincare line called NOW Solutions. Its beauty arm offers a wide range of clean personal care products, organic oils, premium skincare lotions and potions, as well as, aromatherapy. You'll find the natural beauty line sold at health food stores in the US and Canada. These first-rate products are formulated to be safe, effective, affordable, and cruelty-free.

The company's prices are surprisingly inexpensive, plus it often has coupon codes such as 25% off a $40 order and gives customers $5 for signing up for emails to sweeten a purchase. It's good value for the money.

For consumers familiar with health food stores, NOW Solutions has every type of personal care inventory you could think of, for example: fascial scrubs, purifying toners, moisturizers, and treatments, skin detox masks and clays, skin butters and oils, vitamin creams, progesterone cream, joint and muscle creams, natural deodorants, shaving cream, shampoos and conditioners, toothpaste and mouthwash for oral care, and anti-aging elixirs to give you some idea!

You must do the research to know exactly what to buy. At times people waste a lot of money on natural remedies that have no science behind their effectiveness when instead they should discuss their health with their doctor.

That said, NOW Solutions is serious about the purity of its ingredients; product efficacy; and keeping prices reasonable. Put this trusted brand for natural and organic goodies on your radar!

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Skincare At A French Pharmacy

When in a foreign country I love checking out its pharmacy. There are so many unique and fascinating beauty and personal care products inside that are not found in our home country pharmacies.

Let me introduce you to 3 skincare items you'll find in a French pharmacy that you can also buy on Amazon. All 3 are dermatologists' approved!: 

1) A313 Pure Retinol Cream Top image 👆 - A synthetic vitamin A prescription-strength concentrate you apply at night to reverse the signs of aging. No prescription is needed here!

2) Biafine Act Emulsion Cream - It's a healing ointment containing Trolamine and water to treat skin wounds from chapped skin to light burns including sunburns. Rub it on to protect and mend.

3) Bioderma Cicabio Mains Repairing Barrer Balm - A repairing barrier balm to soothe very dry hands and skin. Users say it also smells divine.

Amazingly these used-in-France offerings are sold at reasonable not outlandish prices! 

Essayez l'un de ces produits pharmaceutiques français si vous souhaitez ajouter quelque chose de très spécial à vos soins de la peau.🇫🇷

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It's A 10 vs Pantene Miracle Rescue

It's A 10 Miracle hair conditioner is a brand recommended by celebrity hairstylists. The trademark's formulas come in a (1) daily, (2) leave-in, and a (3) deep conditioner plus (4) special hair treatments. It's pricey yet affordable. Still if used every day the expense would add up to quite a chunk of change over the span of a year.

I tend to splurge on skincare but save on haircare. With my skin, I try to prevent damage from happening, but our hair is already dead, so I simply trim off any damage.

A worthy competitor at a lower price is Pantene Miracle Rescue Deep Repair Condition. Pantene's line has the corresponding formulas to the It's A 10 brand. What I like is, Pantene is recognized as a great brand for hair products with a ton of satisfied customers. It's available at drugstores, Walmart, and Target so there are promotions further lowering its price if you wait for them, and with the money saved, you can also buy the shampoo, as well as, put some change back in your wallet.

Difeel is a T.J. Maxx discovery I use daily.

On hair products, there's no need to splurge for high-end brands since it's easy to save without compromising. You'll find new outstanding hair care shampoos, conditioners, and treatments in the beauty aisles of T.J. Maxx! Always worth a browse.

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Lume or Native vs Homemade Body Deodorant

Recent advertisements selling all-over body deodorants have us convinced we all stink. It seems like the main reason to buy them is they work on areas outside of armpits that might be too sensitive for regular deodorant.

Sweating is the body's way of cooling itself therefore it's not good to completely disrupt this essential function. Unlike anti-perspirants which eliminate wetness by clogging sweat glands, deodorants stop odor (not perspirantion) with bacteria-fighting ingredients.

Bacteria naturally live on your skin. Antiperspirant-deodorant combinations can alter your body's ecosystem and actually make you sweat and stink more! The reason is traditional antiperspirant-deodorants also kill good bacteria (named Corynebacterium, Staphylococcus, Propionibacterium, and Micrococcus) leaving the way for bad bacteria to grow and cause stronger odors, not to mention disrupting your immune system leaving the door open for infections.

Switching from a traditional antiperspirant to a natural deodorant requires a transitional period of 1 to 4 weeks when you may sweat more while your body rebalances itself. Stick it out and you'll sweat less soon enough.

The new body deodorants on the market are much more expensive than most armpit deodorants (including organic varieties), ranging from about $12 - $22. 

I bought Lume deodorant in Lavender Sage to pamper my senior mother. Frankly, I see no difference in its effectiveness compared to what I use daily, Crystal™ Mineral Body Deodorant Stick, which is cheaper and lasts and lasts forever! The Crystal™ stick sometimes lands in the beauty aisles of T.J. Maxx for even less.

You may wonder what makes a deodorant natural? According to Healthline, "3 ingredients are common:

• ingredients with disinfectant or antibacterial properties, such as coconut oil and tea tree oil
• essential oils like lavender, sandalwood, or bergamot to provide a pleasant scent
• naturally, absorbent ingredients like baking soda, arrowroot, or cornstarch to combat moisture"

There are several homemade deodorant recipes on the web. An easy one is:

Photo: Treehugger

Ingredients:

1/3 cup coconut oil (Shea butter can be substituted)

1/4 cup baking soda

1/4 cup arrowroot starch

10 drops of eucalyptus; lavender; or your favorite scented essential oils

Directions:

1) Spoon the coconut oil (or shea butter) in a cup to melt in a microwave or submerged in hot water.

2) Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until smooth and incorporated.

3) Pour into a cleaned recycled deodorant container or a recycled makeup pot container with a lid. Leave the lid off until the mixture solidifies. 

Although this alternative recipe is superb, I never buy beeswax, sunflower oil, or zinc oxide powder. I prefer simple!

Homemade natural deodorant, suitable for armpits and body is many times cheaper than 3 oz of Lume, Native, or their retail competitors. If you make your own deodorant (or buy, my brand, Crystal™, you can sit back and wait for Walmart, Target, or drugstore knockoffs to enter the market at lower prices. $12+ really adds up over time! BTW: My senior mom and I just treat our armpits. We don't need 72-hour entire body protection as we rely on bathing and after-shower baby powder with cornstarch to stay fresh. I suppose it exists if we ever were to need it.

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Surprisingly Effective Hair Tamers

I'm wearing my hair longer than usual. Penny, my longtime hairstylist retired, and I've been slow in finding a new hairstylist. Luckily the Rapunzel hair trend is on! You don't get the bounciness of should-length hair, yet longer hair is easy to care for requiring just a tad of extra conditioning to maintain its health. 

Years ago I stopped buying special hair smoothers to tame my hair. Often the additional products left an undesirable stickiness, stiffness, or residue without really improving my hair. You do need a good hair conditioner after shampooing ... and on days I style my hair with the hot air of a blow dryer, I also spray on Tresemme Thermal Heat Protectant which leaves strains clean.

So what do you use to slick down those flyaways?

Two surprisingly effective hair tamers are, in fact, skin moisturizers that are not marketed as hair treatments. But when used in moderation they do an excellent job of calming frizzies while leaving your locks of hair clean. I use them every morning after showering.

1) CeraVe Moisturizing Cream (with hyaluronic acid and ceramides). Why it works on hair: It's light, oil-free, and fragrance-free. By dabbing a dime-sized amount on the ends of my hair, the cream combats dryness. It also reverses the negative charge in your hair that causes flyaways and frizzies.

2) Body Oil - Try coconut oil, baby oil, or any light oil you use to lock moisture into your skin after showering. Why it works on hair: It's heavier than a strain of hair. I use just the residue left on my hands after putting it on my skin. A little goes a long way. Avoid your scalp and focus on the middle and ends of your hair. Don't use more than a tiny amount ... or you'll weigh down your hair for a greasy unwashed look.

If you think about it, the ingredients that go into moisturizing your skin are many of the same ingredients that go into products that tame your hair, namely water and conditioners. You can simplify your life by finding effective personal care products that multi-task for your skin, hair, and nails! Skin moisturizers are cheaper than hair moisturizers and come in larger sizes also.

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