When tests were done on public makeup counters in department stores, specialty stores and drugstores, they found staph, strep, and even E.Coli bacteria on makeup testers. If that doesn’t freak you out, this finding will – when they tested the makeup on Saturdays which has the most customer traffic at cosmetic counters – THE PERCENTAGE OF TAINTED MAKEUP WAS 100%.

OMG. As if you don’t have enough things to worry about like whether that self-tanner makes you look like an oompa loompa.

So how do you try out new makeup/beauty products without physically testing them? While it’s recommended that you really shouldn’t try on any publicly-tested makeup on your eyes, lips, and nose, if you still feel the need to try on that new shade of pink lipstick, here are some tips to remember:

• Make Weekday Visits: Go during the week when there are fewer customers. If you don’t currently carry one in your purse, bring an anti-bacterial hand gel or pack of wipes with you.
• Use Tester Apps: Always use plastic, disposable applicators or cotton swabs like the ones at stores like Sephora. If you’re at a department store, don’t be afraid to ask the customer service rep behind the counter.
• Use Bottled Products: Try bottled products of lotions or foundations instead of ones that are in jars or palettes so that you can squeeze or pour them directly on your hand instead of using your fingers to scoop them out.
• Scrape the Lipstick Tip: Use a disposable applicator or a tissue paper to scrape off the tip or use a tissue paper.
• Eye & Lip Pencils: Sharpen the tip using mini sharpeners.
• Use the Spray Alcohol Bottle: Use an alcohol spray bottle to lightly spray the product. Wait a few seconds for the alcohol to evaporate before testing.
• Remove Tested Makeup ASAP: Remove makeup immediately with anti-bacterial wipes or makeup remover after testing.

So if shopping for beauty/skincare products isn’t scary enough in the first place, now you’ve got some real grossness to deal with.

We all like gifts with purchases but some freebies are better left at the cosmetic counter.

On my most recent trip to Tokyo, I noticed these delightful BLACK Q-tips everywhere. I love how they have both a smooth end and a spiral end. Black seems to be the  “IN” color for a lot of  items including blotting tissues, toilet paper, facial masks, shampoo, toothbrush, and even their chopping boards.

Black Q-tips

Notice how they are individually packed, so I can carry them everywhere with me to retouch my makeup or on a weekend getaway. The spiral end is perfect for combing through my eyelashes and smoothing out the clumps of mascara. 

Individually packed

 Here’s a close up:

Normal and Spiral Ends

If anyone is interested in trying this, you can buy it online here for only USD 2.99.

I asked her what her secret was…. Good genes?  Foreign products made in silence by monks? Nope: “I scrub my face like crazy with a loofah every morning under the hot shower. Scrubbing dead skin away is the key!”

So I tried it. The results? Well, lets just say I didn’t feel like going out that night.  Not all of us have thick skin! But it got me thinking: there’s got to be a better way to shed the dead skin cells that are clogging my pores. And that’s when my desperate search to properly exfoliate my skin started!

Remember that whole at-home-microdermabrasion-craze? Sure, massaging my skin with pea-size beads made out of walnuts shells and ingredients I could not pronounce exfoliated dead skin. In fact, it exfoliated most of my skin away, leaving it blotchy, red and sensitized. NOT what I was looking for. Neither were all the scrubs, peels, serums and magic washcloths that followed: the chemicals in most of the products only managed to assault my skin, causing it to flare-up!

Little did I know that over-exfoliating, just like hard water, weather and pollution, is actually harmful to your skin. So what’s a girl to do?

Please meet Marie Louise’s Restoration Clear Gel. First of all and most important, this exfoliating gel is actually hydrating and nourishing, thanks to ingredients such as desalted deep sea water, glycerin and algae extracts, known to help the skin retain moisture.  It literally melts as your skin absorbs it, dry grains gently (and that’s the key word one should look for in all products) lifting away impurities and dead skin. Once they have ceased to appear and have been rinsed off with warm water you are left with a bright and pure complexion. Since it’s gentle enough, you can use it more often; this regular regimen will allow your skin to absorb all the benefits your moisturizers, masks and serums have to offer, thus making them more effective! It will also reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles- after all, it’s no secret that the cleaner your skin is, the younger and healthier it looks!

Just remember: you shouldn’t need sandpaper to get results!

Apparently so in Asia as double-eyelid plastic surgery is still the most common plastic surgery.  Since larger eyes are still considered to be more attractive by most Asians, there are all types of tools or methods to help you achieve this look.  Beside eyelid tape/glue which has been around for quite some time, I just discovered this crazy tool from Japan: a clip to help you create double eyelids.  What you must do is clip your upper eyelids with this tool for about 5 minutes and it will create deeper and wider eyelids.  The makers claim that this will give you larger-looking eyes.

Double Eyelids Maker

Directions with Before and After Photos

Creating Double Eyelids Tool/Clip

So what’s my verdict?  Well, after trying it for 5 minutes for 3 days in a row, I must say that I didn’t notice any dramatic differences in my eyelids yet.  My eyelids do look a bit deeper (or more swollen) for the first hour or so, but after that, it looks pretty much the same.  So I don’t think I would recommend this to anyone.