During & After Henna....

Hey ladies,
I mentioned awhile back that I'd share my journey getting the henna out of my hair. As you can see from the pics above, my henna had built up to a nice deep red/burgundy color. I adored the color, but frankly I am completely addicted to changing my hair color regularly. I love the variety of it, and in my inner circle, I'm sort of known for it. :) I realize that it's not the healthiest thing for my locks, but what's a girl to do?

So obviously the bottom pic is my hair after lightening. I've done a round of bleach, several highlighting sessions, and 2 dye sessions with blonde colors. I've done it over time, probably in the course of 3-4 months, and honestly my hair is still really healthy. I self-trimmed about an inch or so a few weeks ago, and I did a Cassia treatment last week. Before the cassia treatment my hair was pretty light, all things considered, but the Cassia gave my hair a more deep golden/yellow color. The pic above isn't entirely accurate, it looks really orange, and my hair isn't orange at all. For some reason my camera will not pick up colors accurately. Oh well. You can see how much lighter it is, which frankly when I started this experiment I wasn't sure how much of the henna I would be able to remove, if any. If your OCD with hair like I am, you can also see how much curlier my hair is without the weight of the henna on it. I guess when I was using henna I hadn't noticed any curl loosening, but looking at the pictures now it's really noticeable.

Anywho, if you have any questions about henna or cassia, let me know in the comments. Until next time........

Review: Hard Candy Lash Ink- 4 Day Lash Stain

Hey ladies! It’s review time again, and today we’re talking about Hard Candy Lash Ink- 4 Day Lash Stain. I should note that I bought it months ago, before I found the Roux Lash and Brow Tint. I also had unfortunately not done my research on it beforehand. On to the nitty-gritty…

Hard Candy Says:
Mascara that won’t quit until you do. Flatter your flutter for 4 days straight! Hard Candy four day lash stain defies the elements. Paint Lash Ink on and don’t reapply for up to 4 days. Shower, go in the pool, cry, rub your eyes, or get rained on – your lashes will stay flawless no matter the circumstances! Perfect for a weekend away or partying all night long.

Mrs. Blacksten Says:
Um, from the name alone, you immediately get the wrong impression. I saw an ad for this in a magazine, and like I said didn’t do any research before purchasing. So of course I thought it was an actual lash stain. I was wrong.

It’s more accurately and hellishly difficult to remove waterproof mascara. If waterproof mascara has a staying power of 8 on a scale of 1-10, then Lash Ink is a 14. Seriously. So of course it has all the drawbacks of regular mascara; potential for clumping, looking unnatural, flaking, etc. And since it’s basically semi-permanent, once you sleep on it, your lashes get funky creases which aren’t really fixable.

The brush for Hard Candy Lash Ink is pretty basic, and definitely not designed for volume or thickness. So the results were basically like applying mediocre mascara and then being unable to remove it, having to rock it for 4 days.

Hard Candy Lash Ink is not a stain in any sense of the word, and will not stain or tint or in any other way alter your natural lashes. Unless you mistakenly apply it thinking it’s a stain, and then subsequently try to remove it. In which case the only difference to your natural lashes will be that you hardly have any left, because you’ve accidentally pulled them out trying to remove this.

Needless to say I was severely disappointed in Hard Candy’s Lash Ink, and wouldn’t repurchase it. However, I’ll take my fair share of the blame, I should’ve known to get all the information I needed beforehand, and I wouldn’t have been in semi-permanent mascara hell at all.

So ladies, Have you tried Lash Ink? What were your thoughts on it?

Review: Ramy Beauty Therapy

Hello Beauties!

I’m back again! I should really quit taking so long between posts, my apologies.

Today it’s all about makeup. Ramy Beauty Therapy products to be more accurate. I got a chance to check out some of the Ramy Summer Fling 2011 Collection and a classic Ramy product which includes; On-The-Go! Face Gloss, Perfect Lip Tint, and Alive! Blush. In all honesty I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I didn’t have high expectations going in. I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

The On-The-Go! Face Gloss is a hybrid of sorts, it’s a cream-to-powder formula that can be used on your cheeks, eyes, or lips. It produces a very sheer, buildable flush of color. It’s one of those products that anyone can use, it’d definitely be difficult to overdo. The color is gorgeous, and looks like a natural flush, not your typical blush.

The Perfect Lip Tint is precisely that. It has a sheer flush of color that would compliment any skin tone. It’s neither a lipstick or a lip balm. I really liked it, I’m not a lipstick kinda gal, I use Carmex, Burts Bee’s, and Yes To Carrots, religiously. This is a great option for someone like me who just isn’t a fan of lipstick, or for a No-Makeup kinda day.

Now to my absolute favorite product in the line; Alive! Blush. This blush is half bronzer, half blush. It’s got a perfect combination of pink, gold, and brown that just wakes your skin up. I’ve used it on my cheeks and eyes, as a blush, as a bronzer, and a light contour, etc. It’s a versatile product, and if you’ve read much of my blog you know how much I adore multi-use products. If it’s gonna save me time, and produce results I like, then I’m all for it. 

Any of these products can be purchased at Ramy.

If you’ve tried any Ramy products, or you have any questions, leave me a comment.

Disclaimer: These products were sent to me for consideration. The opinions expressed are 100% my own.