10/08/2022

John Frieda Detox and Repair Deep Conditioner Masque, 250 ml

I love Frieda's hair masks and this is also the case for this one. It detangles my hair beautifully and my hair looks shiny and healthy afterwards. It has a very pleasant fresh scent, too. However, this is not my fav Frieda's hair mask due to the texture not being as creamy and nourishing as others and to the fact that it takes a bit more of product to detangle my long hair than others. For the rest, very happy with the product. Price is an added bonus.

Crescent N40D Nicholson Soldering Iron

I bought this soldering iron to have it at home in case of need, but, above all, to use it to burn paper that I then use in my artwork. This allows me to make patterns on the paper without creating flames and with minimal ash spread.

The iron takes a few minutes to fully heat up, and the temperature it reaches isn't too high. I know this because, once it does, the tip easily burns rice paper but not as fast average printer 80mgs paper. Yet, I don't put my hand on the tip because I will get burnt.

The stand is too feeble to stand the weight of the iron without the risk of the soldier auto-releasing and hitting me. It's safer when unplugged or when the stand is used horizontally, but when the iron is plugged the weight and tightness of the cable is too much for this paper-thin metallic stand to stand still.

I got what I paid for and it suits my needs and purpose.

MIND
The iron doesn't have an on/off button to switch.

Rimmel London Nail Nurse Base & Top Coat 5 in 1

This is one of those products that I buy when I travel or I'm on a budget. It does the job quite nicely for a fraction of the price I pay for other brands. It is not as good as others I buy, but it's good quality nevertheless. The bottle design is simple and effective as it has the average quantity of product but isn't as bulky as others.

Clairol Root Touch Up, 4 Dark Brown

I use this brand and colour kit on a regular basis between visits to my hairdresser's. It fully covers my very white grey hair and I find it easy and safe to apply. I always let it on more than the time the package recommends, as I've seen that, if I don't let it stay longer, my greys aren't fully covered. I do this as I haven't noticed any allergic reaction when using it for longer. The colour lasts me great about 2.5 weeks, which is OK and what I expect it to do.

I wish the bottle had a bit of more product so that I could cover my back head roots. The quantity in this retouch kit allows me to cover the front and top layers not the back or my hair, which is OK as I have long wavy hair and it would not show much either way.

Unlike the same brand full-regrowth package, this kit comes without conditioner.

The application brush is excellent for the price. I don't put it in the rubbish, but I use it for my artwork, to clean grout or other home purposes.

10/02/2022

Youshares Colored Pencil Case 166 Slots Pen Case Organizer

PROS 
> Beautiful exterior design. 
> Good quality sturdy materials. 
> It accommodates tons of my drawing stuff: different kinds and lengths of markers, pencils, crayons and what's not. See my photos. 
> The elastic bands aren't individual but 2-3 joint together, large ones, which comes handy to put different sizes of pens together still keeping them all secure. 
> Great to carry around. 
 
CONS 
> A bit bulky. 
> Takes lots of space in my drawer and it's not easy to accommodate in small spaces. > Zip area a bit too tight or close to the inner trays.

9/25/2022

Mavala Switzerland Mini Nail Polish Baghdad, 5 ml

I've bought Mavala mini nail polishes before and I love the travel size and the quality of the product. However, this item has been a great disappointment. To start with, the photo is misleading as the colour is not orange but an orange-ish pink (see my photo); most importantly, the colour is quite translucent and, even if I use two coats, the results are quite neutral. If I had been looking for a neutral pink I might have been happy with this colour and texture, but I was looking for an opaque orange as per the colour in the photo and I got neither.

Umisu 6 Rolls Washi Tape Journal Paper Tape Vintage

This is a beautiful selection of antique/vintage inspired tapes in different widths and printing motifs. The prints are neat and good quality. These rolls are a great addition to some of my mixed media projects. I tend to add matte gel medium to the top once in the artwork just to secure their position as they're low tack and can be lifted/removed easily. The main downside is that they're a bit pricey