Review: Tarte Dark Circle Defense Concealer + others

Happy Sunday everyone! :)

I want to thank you all for the lovely comments on my last hair post! Many of you were not sure where to go get it done, or if your area has it. Just to clarify, the salon does not have to be a specialty salon where they only do hair straightening. Many licensed Asian salons have stylists who are trained in hair straightening techniques. There are a variety of them: Japanese, Brazilian, hair relaxation... etc. Be sure to specify which technique you'd like. I've done them all.. Japanese, Yuko, relaxation.. LOL Yuko is another Japanese hair straightening that is good on "virgin" hair (ie never dyed your hair, never straightened, etc). It is more gentler, but I can't really remember the experience because I first did that when I was 18 or 19. I remember the cost was over $500 for shoulder length hair. Really expensive!! Regular Japanese hair straightening costs upwards of $150-500 depending on the salon. Mine was really good at around $180 before tip. Relaxation (or getting your hair relaxed) is a method that is popular amongst African American hair. In contrast to Japanese hair straightening, it is a temporary fix and I believe they use stronger chemicals, which isn't necessarily good. My experience with that method had been horrendous. My hair was fried! Never try it unless you are African American!! Really. It's not made for Asian hair!

My hair thus far (an entire week) has been healthier than it's ever been. It is softer, easy to manage and I have a more pleasant shower experience b/c my hair is now easier to wash :) YAY!

Now I want to talk about a concealer that is really catered to dark circles. I have been using this concealer for about 2 weeks now. I bought it because I am a concealer hoarder and can't get enough of them. There really is a difference between a concealer, an eye concealer, and brighteners.

This is the Tarte Dark Circle Defense (find it here) concealer in light to medium. The salmon colored shade really counteracts any darkness and blends really well with your natural skin color. I've never been happier with any other concealer, truthfully. My dark circles on my eyes never go away regardless of how much sleep and fluids I have :(

Ready for the mugshot? =p

Side by side view with the before and "after" of the concealer. My dark bags have diminished significantly.

The awesome thing about this concealer is that you only need very little. Only a brush stroke amount and you're ready to go. After applying it on with the brush, use your ring finger and blend it away. Do you see the consistency? It is like paint! It's extremely creamy, which is a plus in my book. I really like that has hydrating properties. The concealer is quite pigmented, almost foundation like but it can only be used as a concealer. It's a flat salmon shade that counteracts with dark circles. I think this is my HG concealer to date. It has some serious power.

Naturally, Tarte is a great company. I love their products, especially their eyeshadows! They also use good ingredients and formulate without parabens and other yucky things. No animal testing :)

I also want to shed light on 2 mascaras that I've found to be really good. I hated them at one point but I slowly started to like them again!

Maybelline's Pulse Perfection (find it here) - I didn't like it at first because of the obvious: vibration. It's so gimmicky and all sorts of ugh. It wasn't terrible, just okay. But i really started to like it because it separates  my barely-there lashes well.. haha After applying it on, your lashes are still soft! It is a good thing. As with all Maybelline mascaras I've tried, their formula is superb.

After the Maybelline mascara has dried, top it off with the Loreal's Telescopic mascara (find it here).It gives my lashes so much more volume than I care to think for. I really love it! :)

Maybe it's the flexi-wand that i used to despise? I just know that I found a way to use it to my advantage :)

Enjoy what's left of the weekend!!! :)


Disclaimer: All products mentioned were purchased solely by me :)