Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Review: Youthful Trends™ Makeup Primer & ThermaSkin Anti-Aging Soap™ - Thumbs Up


Well it's finally time for the review of these two products:  The caffeine primer from Greensations and the ThermaSkin Facial Cleanser from Youthfultrends.  I absolutely loved the makeup primer and the facial cleanser was pretty nice too. 

If you'd like to give these a try enter the code "SHEBLOG" for a 25% discount at either of these sites.

The Claim:
Youthful Trends™ Makeup Primer is the world's first caffeinated primer with 100% natural ingredients. Makeup primers are all the rage these days, and they are used to help set your makeup and reduce the appearance of lines while absorbing oils and binding makeup to the skin. Unlike sticky primers and serums, this water based spray dries evenly while hydrating skin and tightening lines. Our spray also helps pores breathe and keeps makeup looking beautiful all day long. It also reduces facial sweating and protects skin from UV damage.

This proprietary formula outperforms all other makeup primers and one bottle lasts for many months. It's fantastic stuff works for all skin types and colors, as well as all types of makeup including mineral powders, creams and liquids. Supercharge your makeup regimen today for flawless beauty with the world's first caffeinated skin primer.

Ingredients:  Purified Water (hydration), Caffeine (UV protection/tightening), Cucumber (hydration), Green Tea, Maitake Mushroom (hydration), Cats Claw (tightening), Sage (reduces sweating), Rosemary (antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory), Vegetable Glycerin (hydration), Witch Hazel (tightening), Ascorbic Acid (vitamin C), Alpha Lipoic Acid, Potassium Sorbate (preservative).

The Review: I love, love, love this stuff.  It has a pleasant fresh smell (love the smell of cucumbers) and left my face feeling refreshed, moisturized and is not sticky at all.  It also doesn't contain silicone, which can be irritating to some.  I have been using Na-PCA to set my mineral makeup, but it doesn't compare to this at all.  My face felt instantly moisturized and my makeup stayed in place all day.  I also noticed that I did not have any itchiness at all when I used this to set my mineral makeup, which has happened with other products.

Now let's get to a break-down of some of the ingredients.  It has been shown that caffeine can help with sunburned skin and the prevention of lesions on damaged skin, but I would still recommend using a sunscreen that protects again UVB and UVA rays.  Cucumber, glycerin, and distilled water are all hydrating, but I'm not sold on the Maitaki mushroom just yet.  I found lots of articles supporting it's medicinal values, but they were all for the ingestion of Maitaki, not the topical application.  Alpha lipoic acid is used as an antioxidant, as well as green tea.  Witch Hazel and caffeine are great toners, but I'm also not sold on Cat's Claw for tightening the skin.  It does have anti-inflammatory and healing value so it's still a good ingredient for keeping your skin looking fresh.

Overall I love this product and the fact that it contains no parabans or SLS (Sodium Laureth Sulfate), which are primarily used as preservatives when you want to keep it cheap.  This 2oz bottle lasts a long time and leaves my skin feeling fresh and hydrated and keeps my makeup looking wonderful all day.


The Claim:
Youthful Trends™ ThermaSkin Anti-Aging Soap™ is like botox in a bottle. This all natural soap is not like any other soap or non-soap cleanser. It instantly unclogs pores, tightens skin, reduces lines and replenishes elasticity and color without chemicals that strip your skin. It’s perfect for removing makeup, dirt, pollutants and oils. Whether you have oily skin, dry skin or just skin that’s been damaged by time, ThermaSkin Facial Cleanser is the answer.

This formula also combats problem skin conditions including acne, eczema, psoriasis and dermatitis. The self foaming container allows us to make a formula with no harmful foaming chemicals such as SLS or SLES. The anti-aging secret of this formula comes from combining tiny doses of natural capsaicin with exotic botanicals that literally fix your skin by increasing circulation and absorption. A tiny bit goes a long way, and our facial cleanser can be used anywhere on the body.

Unlike regular soap, our formula does not clog pores because we use a proprietary base of natural botanical extracts and astringents. ThermaSkin Facial cleanser also works better than non-soap cleansers without harmful chemicals. You will absolutely fall in love with this soap.

Ingredients: Castile Liquid Soap (unclogs pores/tightening), Clary Sage Water (antioxidant/antimicrobial), Cucumber Water (hydrating/cleansing), Green Tea (antioxidant), Jewelweed (unclogs pores), Cranesbill Root (astringent), Rosemary Oleoresin (antimicrobial/preservative), Thyme (unclogs pores), Oleoresin Capsicum (unclogs pores/tightening/reduces lines), Witch Hazel (tightening), Vegetable Glycerin (reduces lines)


The Review:  Just before I received this sample I had an awful acne breakout on my left cheek and chin (hello stress related acne).  I was a bit hesitant to use this product, because of course I don't listen to my own advice, and I am a "picker" when it comes to acne.  I was afraid that because this product contains capsicum (pepper) it would burn my skin, but it did not hurt at all and within a couple of days my acne had cleared up.  This product has a nice earthy smell, cleaned my skin without leaving it feeling dry and lasts a long time.  As far as Botox in a bottle, that is a bit of a reach, seriously nothing works like Botox, other than Botox.  I still have my 1 inchers across the forehead.   

There are quite a few interesting ingredients in this cleanser and I'll touch on the biggies. I have not found a study that indicates that Castile soap will tighten your skin, but it is an excellent cleanser that will not irritate or dry your skin.  Clary sage water can be used as an antioxidant and we all know that's important.  Oleoresin Capsicum, which is the main ingredient in pepper spray has other topical uses.  Now remember we're not spraying it into our eyes and the amount in this formula is small.  It is used as a topical pain reliever and in this product it being used to unclog pores, reduce lines and tighten the skin.  This is only me guessing, but I believe that it may have some temporary effect upon wrinkles and sagging skin, because it is an irritant.  Irritants temporarily inflame the skin and inflammation gives the appearance of tighter skin.

Overall this product did help to relieve my acne.  I'm not sure how well it will work on someone with chronic acne, but at this price point it's worth a try.  I did like the way my skin felt after using it and it has a nice earthy smell.  Do I look ten years younger after using it for almost a month?  Well no, but I wasn't expecting to.  Would I use it again?  Yes, I plan on using this whenever I have my acne flare ups.


2 comments:

  1. I always purchase it at iherb.com. You can use my coupon code NAK992 to get $5 off your first order + free sample. They ship worldwide.

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