CHI Silk Infusion vs. FX Silk Drops

A couple of months ago, I decided I wanted to try silk drops. I stopped into my local CVS and absentmindedly grabbed a bottle of CHI Silk Infusion (it wasn't cheap, either.)

When I saw that I had grabbed the wrong thing, I looked up reviews online, which were mostly favorable, and decided to try it out anyway.

The smell is a bit masculine, but since I don't regularly smell my own hair, I figured that wouldn't really bother me. I really liked it, at first. I smoothed some on my hair and was amazed to see how easily I could comb through tangles.

After regular use, though, I noticed some issues. The smell lingers and it really did bother me. CHI Silk Infusion really builds up in my hair and clings to my comb, even with washing. Combing my hair every morning made my hair look seriously greasy, even if I had recently washed. I was having to wash more frequently, which is a major pain in the butt with as much length as I have. The CHI had to go.

I think the CHI Silk Infusion would probably work better if I washed every day and heat styled (and didn't mind the smell.) For those of you that fit these criteria, you might give it a go if you were curious about it. It does have a lot of reviews by people who really love it, so I do believe it's probably a good product for the right person.

Undaunted, I started looking in my local shops for silk drops and finally found FX Silk Drops. I really like them. They're really light but make my hair smooth and glossy without build up. They don't smell of anything, which is great. It's nice to be able to smooth a couple drops onto my length and braid my hair. Braids stay sleek for longer and don't go "fuzzy" for a much longer time.

I'm going to give it a bit more time before I give it a formal stamp of approval, but so far, I'm really liking it.

Giveaway Reminder (Moona Lisa, Lush, Sugarcandie and Grahtoe!)

Just a reminder- I'll be drawing the winner of the giveaway tomorrow. Make sure you leave one comment for each entry.

Just for fun, here's a 'do that I have no idea how I did. I think it's similar to JJJ's Pretzel bun, but since I can't remember how I did it, I'm not entirely sure. At least I got a picture!

New Arrivals: Sugarcandie Scrubs

When I was living in Hawaii, I'd see commercials bemoaning "dry Winter skin." It didn't make a lot of sense to me. Why would Winter cause dry skin? Now I get it. The cold, icy winds blasting you in the face chap your skin terribly. I've never had such dry skin in my life!

I've been using assorted lotions and creams and even Haus of Gloi's sugar scrubs, which work very nicely.

I'm a firm believer that every one deserves pampering, at least every once in a while. For me, I used to get pedicures in Hawaii. Living here on the East Coast, I wear boots most of the time and a pedicure kind of seems like a waste of time.

I found Sugarcandie Beauty Bar through a forum I frequent. The prices seemed very reasonable (plus, they were having a special which got me free scrubs!) and the scrubs themselves looked so decadent and luxurious that I had to try it out.

I love candy canes. They're one of my favorite things about Christmastime. I start looking out for that terrible Candy Cane ice cream as soon as Thanksgiving hits. I saw that Sugarcandie had Candy Cane cupcake scrub and whipped bath soap and I was done for.

In real life, the scrub isn't overflowing the jar, of course, and instead of peppermint candies, they just have a mini candy cane. Either way, the stuff smells awesome. It's called "Candy Cane Cupcakes" and smells so pepperminty, but with a lovely cake note that tones the mint down.

They ran a special, having sugar scrub/whipped bath soap splits available. That's scrub on the bottom, cream soap on the top. I've been using my splits the last few days and it is a wonderful experience at the end of a tough day.

The whipped bath cream has the texture of soft ice cream. It's awesome alone, but add the scrub in and it's just perfect. It's just a decadent thing to scoop soft creamy soap out of the jar and lather up with it.

The scrub is less oily than some, like Haus of Gloi, but foams up nicely and leaves me moisturized. (Disclaimer: I love Haus of Gloi's scrubs and I like that they are oily, but sometimes less oil is a nice thing.) I don't find that I have to put lotion on after getting out of the shower. The one thing that is kind of a bummer is that the scents don't last on me. That's okay, though, because I also got body spray in Peppermint Bon Bons.

The stand outs of what I bought are:

Night Before Christmas (Sugary sweet cookies, candied fruits, vanilla cupcakes, spiced muffins and pies and fresh cut spruce.) It smells like cookies with Christmas tree. I actually like this smell, although it may be off-putting to some.

Ho, Ho, Ho! Santa's Hot Cocoa So chocolaty. It really does smell like hot cocoa. I didn't think I'd like this because I'm not a big fan of chocolate in bath products, but I really did love this.

Candy Cane Cupcake

Merry Mint Chocolate Cookies This one was my second favorite. It smells *just* like that green mint ice cream. It has the same color and texture, too. This one surprised me.

The one thing I got that I will not use at all is "Cozy By the Fire." It smells just like a chimney. I got it for free as part of a promotion, though, so I don't feel bad tossing it out.

I do have a few minor issues. The labels on the jars are not waterproof, so they end up falling off in the shower. Not a major problem, but a minor annoyance. The descriptions on the website could use a good editing. They can be hard to read with all the pauses and periods. 

The website is easier to navigate than many etailers, in my opinion, and I didn't feel overwhelmed by options.  
 

The creams and scrubs are so decadent and fun that I want to use them every day. Sugarcandie's customer service has been top-notch. I peppered them with seemingly endless questions, and they were patient and friendly each and every time. They even combined two orders for me.

I would recommend Sugarcandie if you're looking for a fun, decadent way to pamper yourself.  They often have sales and have a regular BOGO special on Tuesdays. 

You can find their website here. I'm planning a Sugarcandie give-away towards the New Year, so stay tuned for how to enter!

(Disclaimer: I was not paid nor provided free items for this review. These are my opinions based on my personal experience.)

New Arrivals: Haus of Gloi beauty products

I love Haus of Gloi. I've been ordering from them for over a year.

It all started with their Pumpkin Queen scent. I ordered it in soap, sugar scrub and perfume (which, one year later, I still have and still smells fabulous.) (Pumpkin Queen: Gentle hay pillows, pumpkin, ripe peaches dusted with clove and nutmeg, dried summer herbs, and lastly, a lovely crown of amber.) 

**They still have some left on their website as of this posting!**

I'll admit I haven't ordered for a long time because my money was going to hair accessories. (Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't just sign my paycheck over to Grahtoe.)

I've gotten back into the bath product habit (which may or may not be a bad thing. It depends on how much it ends up costing me. Hair forks, after all, last forever.)

Anyways, I've been feeling a little blah lately so I decided to treat myself to some scrubs.

I ordered:

Peach Mama Soap

Samhain Body Butter

Peach Mama Bubbling Scrub

Peach Mama Body Emulsion

Hearth Pumpkin Butter

and I got a free perfume sample in Depravity ( "A bewitching ladies boudoir! Pure corruption: clove, nutmeg lurk amongst the sweetest offerings of coconut, on a bed of rich golden amber, laden with a dusting of sandalwood and spilled wine.")

                                           (Perfume sample not shown.)

Haus of Gloi ("HoG") describes their Peach Mama scent as "Peach nectar and a host of resins: offertory frankincense, styrax, copaiba balsam and ambered labdanum absolute. Warmed with cassia and a barely audible breath of black patchouli." 

It's a luscious scent. I love real peach scents (not those over-sweet confections that actually smell more like mango.) This is a real peach scent and the resins really round it out. This is certainly my new favorite peach scent.

The soap is gorgeous and lathers beautifully. I have a hard time using HoG soaps because they're just so pretty, but I don't think I'll have any trouble using this one. It just smells so darn good!

                                                                          Sparkly!

The Peach Mama Body Emulsion (lotion) is very thick. After taking the next picture, I just rubbed it in and I can still smell it!

Even thicker than the Body Emulsion was the Hearth Pumpkin Butter. It's so thick and creamy that the consistency kind of reminds me of ice cream (well, ice cream that magically stayed warm without melting, anyway.)

HoG describes Hearth's scent as "The warm glowing center of any home. Autumns last apple pickings, warm bread, orange rind, various fire roasted nuts, cracked black pepper all nailed down by an oozing sticky benzoin." 

Samhain's scent is a little different. I bought some soap in that scent during Halloween 2009. The soap (if I recall correctly) was a strange pearly gray color with bits of leaves on top (which I actually loved.) Hog says that Samhain is scented of "Rustling leaves, chilled winds ...Freshly turned earth, wet leaves, and a cool herb laden wind carrying spectres and spooks!" I think that description is spot-on. I like the scent of crushed leaves and dirt, but this scent may not be appealing to some.

HoG's products are vegan and cruelty free, which I like. Their turn around time ("TAT") is a very fast 3-5 business days. Considering the demand for these products and the fact that it's a small family run business, 3-5 days is pretty incredible. You can find their products here.