Beauty Product Diary

I have been unable to find a good product log for beauty products. I would like an app where I can rate products, easily see my own ratings, and create lists of beauty products and brands. Like a Goodreads or Letterbox for makeup and skin care.

Store apps like Sephora and Ulta are limited to their products and do not let you easily see your own ratings nor create more than 1 list of products. There are a few skin diary apps where you can set reminders to complete beauty routines, take skin progress photos, and log expiration dates, but none of the mobile apps allow reviews logs and multiple lists.

I went over to YouTube to see if any beauty gurus had any advice. The two common suggestions are (1) blog about it or (2) use Excel / Google Sheets. My goal is to keep fewer spreadsheets, so I'm going the beauty guru route and will keep my beauty product diary here on my blog.

Key: 5 - perfection / 4 stars - I like it / 3 stars - mediocre / 2 stars - acceptable / 1 star - bad

Ranked by Type

Cleansers

- Avène, Cleanance Cleansing Gel, $20 - This is a think gel that doesn't have any rough exfoliants. It's in a squeeze bottle so can be cut.

- Fresh, Sugar Strawberry Exfoliating Face Wash, $33 - Dumb brand name, but I like this scrub a lot. I may have just been recovering from the wreckage the Ordinary products wrecked on my skin, but this really helped most of my acne clear up. It's in a squeeze bottle so can be cut.

- ZO Skin Health, Hydrating Cleanser, $49 - this smells like grapefruit and is very nice on the skin. At this price, I wouldn't buy again since no Ulta or Sephora points and I didn't notice a change.

- CeraVe, Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser BPO 4% for Acne Prone Skin, $19 - Doctor recommended but has benzo peroxide.

Toners & Masks

- Biodance, Hydro Cera-nol Real Deep Mask, $4.75 each - dramatically brightening

- Patchology, Serve Chilled Bubbly Brightening Eye Gels; $3 each - nice and cold

- I Dew Care, Let's Get Sheet Faced Sheet Mask Set; $2 each - nice and brightening

- Bliss, Mighty Marshmallow Whipped Mask, $16 - It's supposed to make skin brighter and radiant, which it slightly does. It's a very calming mask. Plastic jar.

- Mario Badescu Skincare, Glycolic Acid Toner, $18 - Solid toner. Plastic bottle is refillable. Has quite a few fragrance fillers so not good for sensitive skin.

Make-up Removers

- Lancôme, Bi-Facial Double-Action Gentle Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover, $42 - Great makeup remover, best used with compostable cotton balls! Plastic bottle.

- Farmacy, Green Clean Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm, $36 - Great makeup remover, best used with washcloth! Plastic jar.

- Versed, Day Dissolve Cleansing Balm; $18 - this is really soft, it's not irritative at all, and takes off make-up well! Plastic jar. I'm knocking points because it's only available at Target and Wal-Mart.

Moisturizers

- Estee Lauder, Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Multi-Recovery Complex Serum, $80  - great results. They have sustainable packaging commitments so it's near perfect.

- Estee Lauder, Advanced Night Repair Eye Supercharged Complex, $70 - didn't do anything

- Estee Lauder, Revitalizing Supreme+ Youth Power Creme Moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid, $70 - basic moisturizer. I'm not sure it's worth the money.

- Avène, Tolerance Control Skin Recovery Cream, $36 -it's fine but I don't notice any difference. I think someone whose already got clear skin could use this. Plastic of course.

- Clinique, Redness Solutions Daily Relief Cream With Probiotic Technology, $56 - The IT Cosmetics "bye bye redness" moisturizer was amazing at reducing redness and I was hopeful the Clinique would live up and it did not. I don't think it really helped with redness.

- Drunk Elephant, F-Balm Electrolyte Waterfacial Masque Hydratant, $54 - this packaging is horribly wasteful and plastic. Did not notice a massive difference.

- Drunk Elephant, T.L.C. Framboos Glycolic Night Serum, $90 - this packaging is horrible, but unlike the masque, this does appear to clear up skin.

- IT Cosmetics, Confidence in Your Beauty Sleep Night Cream, $64 - strong lavendar scent, perfect for night time

- Kate Somerville, D-Scar Scar Diminishing Serum, $56

- Kiehl's, Powerful-Strength Dark Circle Reducing Vitamin C Eye Serum, $50

- Kiehl's, Midnight Recovery Concentrate, $30-60 - wonderful lavender scent; this is mostly herbal essential oils. I used this the same time as the Lancome serum and I think the Lancome one is more backed up by science.

- La Roche-Posay, Retinol Face Serum with Vitamin B3, $42

- Lancôme, Rènergie Lift Multi-Action Ultra Face Cream SPF 30, $65 - Left a weird film on my skin, so only good at night, which doesn't make sense with SPF.

- Lancôme, Advanced Génifique Radiance Boosting Face Serum with Bifidus Prebiotic, $60 - lightweight serum for locking in moisture and giving a glow. Prebiotic is supposed to help with your skin microbiota but I'm skeptical.

- Mario Badescu Skincare, Collagen Moisturizer SPF 15, $24 -it's fine but I don't notice any difference. I think someone whose already got clear skin could use this.

- Versed, Press Restart Gentle Retinol Serum, $44 - this is fine, it is nice and gentle on the skin but I can't say it was a drastic change on the skin the way Estee Lauder creates a drastic change.

Foundation & Primers

- Urban Decay Cosmetics, Anti-Aging Eyeshadow Primer Potion, $24 - This is a great primer, I really can notice a difference in both vibrancy and ease of application, but it also reduces eyeshadow fallout. The bottle is small enough for travel or makeup case. The best part? The bottle can be cut-up so you really get your money's worth and then recycle it.

- It Cosmetics, CC+ Cream Illumination SPF 50+ Color Fair Light (ivory pink), $44 - Decent coverage foundation and can be easily cut with scissors

- It Cosmetics, Bye Bye Under Eye Full Coverage Anti-Aging Waterproof Concealer, $29 - really heavy coverage

- IT Cosmetics, Bye Bye Under Eye Bags Daytime Treatment for Eye Bags, Puffiness and Crepey Skin, $42 - It does tighten skin, but cannot be worn with any other makeup or else it flakes.

- Patrick Ta, Major Skin Crème Foundation and Finishing Powder Duo, $52 - In Fair 1, cool rose, this was a gorgeous cream foundation but it's only 0.32 oz of cream. My Lancôme stick is 0.33 but that feels like way more because the formula is more matte. The 0.14 oz of powder becomes hardpan really quickly. If someone gave this to me free, I'd take 2, but it's pricey with bulky packaging.

- YSL, Touche Éclat Awakening Concealer Click Pen, $40 - I'm very whelmed by this concealer. It was very hyped in beauty magazine and many celebrities supposedly use it.

- Maybelline, Dream Cushion Fresh Face Liquid Foundation, $6 - Messy to get the last drops of foundation, usually only found at Walmart, but is a nice weight on the skin.

- Maybelline, Master Primer by Facestudio SPF 30, $11 - This is fine, it works as a primer. It has a pink tone and is light in coverage and feel.

- Milk Makeup, Hydro Grip Primer Deluxe, $20 - made my skin texture weird but maybe will work for other people with different skin.

- Clinique, Beyond Perfecting Foundation + Concealer Alabaster CN 10, $34 - This is Clinique's full coverage foundation. It comes in a glass bottle, which I dislike as it's too difficult to ever clean the insides to make it truly recyclable and you can't cut into it to get the last amount.

- Honest Beauty, Everything Primer Glow, $23 - This is extremely light coverage and the bottle can't be cut up. There's only 1 shade offered for Honest's primer (this one) but they offer 3 shades for their tinted cream and 12 shades for their foundation. Maybe in conjunction with Honest's other full face products, this primer makes sense. However, as part of my general routine this primer does nothing. It's so light coverage that it doesn't help even my skin tone at all. Also, you have to be really careful to apply the primer evenly, because once the powder is applied, any unevenness or streaks from the primer show.

- Honest Beauty, Magic Beauty Balm, $13 - This did nothing. Pore filler primers and petroleum jelly work better.

- Fenty Beauty, Pro Filt'r Foundation in 175, $20 - medium coverage, okay. comes in a firm plastic bottle. Product doesn't blow me out of the water and dries weird.

- NYX, Bare With Me Foundation, Vanilla, $11 - hard plastic bottle, like tarte

- Smashbox, Halo Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20, $41 - This is fine for someone with no blemishes who wants to add a highlighter moisturizer to their light, SPF routine. However, for someone with blemishes and uneven skin tone, this is a waste of money. Just buy a foundation, highlighter, and SPF separately.

- Tarte, Shape Tape Contour Concealer, $14 - it is a solid concealer but does expire after a year and dries up. It is in a solid plastic tube so a lot of product is left in the tube.

- Too Faced, Born This Way Matte - Snow, $45 - medium, long-wear coverage, okay put maybe patchy. Comes in a firm plastic bottle.

Contouring

- Ofra Cosmetics, NikkieTutorials Highlighting Trio, $35 - Most like Becca's old highlighters and bronzers, very soft and shimmery.

- Hourglass, Vanish Flash Highlighting Stick - Gold Flash, $46 - all of hourglass cream face products look terrible on textured skin and separated from my current foundation. Pretty color, but not for my skin, no matter what I tried.

Lips

- Burt's Bees, Lip Shimmer, $5 - Hydrating like lip balm but colored like shiny lipstick

- Burt's Bees, Moisturizing Lip Balm, $4 - Hydrating like lip balm but colored like matte lipstick

- YSL, Loveshine Lip Oil Stick, $45 - The caramel swirl is a gorgeous red brown, perfect for fall and overcast days. It is hydrating with a nice shine. The one issue is the bulky packaging has a pink label, not showing the correct color of stick.

- Laneige, Dreamy Lip Kit, $20 - This was hyped-up to me as life-changing, which was the problem. It's good, but not magic.

- ULTA, Weightless Water Lip Stain Cherry Pie, $11 - Really beautiful color. This is actually a lip stain, I've found some of Ulta's newer formulas sometimes don't do what they advertise but this is a true red lip stain! However, and why I've knocked it down, is it doesn't last a long time. It's nice, but short lived. I'll finish out the full bottle in about 12 months. Also, it does stain your skin if you accidentally spill it.

- ULTA, Luxe Lipstick, $9 - Solid packaging and product lasts for a long time. Just doesn't spark joy right now, probably because I just finished a massive set.

- Homemade, Lipstick, $32 - The diy kit from Amazon was fun, but it came out super dry. The lack of hydration of the formula is really rough. Maybe a new formula would be better, but it would be hard to remove from the mold.

- Melt Cosmetics, Crushed Glitter Lip Gloss, $16 - Bought this because Trixie Cosmetics black gloss was sold out. It's fine but Trixie's formula looks better. Also, I hate uncuttable packaging.

- Lancôme, L'Absolu Mademoiselle Lip Balm in Mint Fresh Blue, $20 - I get in this mood where I like the frosty and glossy look, but I got tired of it after a few weeks.

- Sephora, Glossed Lip Gloss - Electric Metallic Purple, $14 - normal lip gloss, felt like a lot was stuck in the un-cuttable packaging

- Hourglass, Phantom Volumizing Glossy Lip Balm, $36 - I got tired of this lipstick in a way I can't describe.

- Ulta, Tinted Lip Oil, $10 - more like a matte lip than an oil and has a plumping agent that is uncomfortable ( I believe the Sodium Hyaluronate). Lasted about 8 months before I called time on the uncomfortable feeling.

- Ulta, High Shine Liquid Lipstick, $12 - more like a matte lip than high shine and has a plumping agent that is uncomfortable ( I believe the Sodium Hyaluronate). Lasted about 8 months before I called time on the uncomfortable feeling.

Eye Liner

- ColourPop, BFF Ultra Fine Liquid Liner, $9 - dried out at 2.5 years. It's fine? I'm not sure if it's my skin or the product, but it smudges and doesn't have an even pigment application. With the brown liner, it lost it's fineness and really smudged well before it dried out.

- NYX, Matte Liquid Liner Vegan Long Lasting Black Eyeliner, $10 - The Nyx formula varies widely on the color and type. The neon bights dried out in 18 months, which isn't a bad run but the black lasted longer (about 24 months). The blue is more liquidly than the neon or black.

- NYX, Black Vivid Matte Liquid Liner, $11  - The applicator got less fine and separated as time went on, I don't know if it even lasted a full year.

-Tarte, Tarteist Pro Lash Adhesive Black, $15 - having a black adhesive is nice but it's tough to get a clean line with the formula

-Bobbi Brown, Perfectly Defined Gel Eyeliner - Pitch Black, $36 - meh

-Ulta, Black Liner, $6.30 - purchased November 22, dead November 24, wouldn't buy again.

-Ulta, Cat Eye Liner Stamp, $12 - purchased November 22, dead by June 25, was a good run. I'm surprised Ulta doesn't sell it anymore as it worked.

Eye Shadow

- Aether Beauty, Joshua Tree Desert Matte Eyeshadow Palette, $58 - Does not contain plastic or parabens and is supposed to be okay with sensitive eyes. Matte, desert colors.

- Physicians Formula, 24-Karat Gold Face Palette, $19 - lot of gold

- Covergirl, Clean Fresh Creamy Eye Shadow Stick Lilac Bloom, $11 - It's smooth on the skin but it's a very pale color and will rub off throughout the day. My main issue is how pale the color is on my skin, I felt it made me look sickly but may look better on someone with better skin. I passed it on to someone with darker skin tone.

- Kiko Milano, Baseline Long Lasting Eyeshadow Stick Vintage Rose, $11 - It's very harsh on the skin as it's a tough stick, but the color is nice and seems to be decently long lasting.

- NudeStix, Magnetic Luminous Eye Color Burnish, $27 - this is super soft on the skin and is a bold shimmer. Really enjoy this! It requires to be sharpened which makes it a longer stick by having the sharpener at the bottom.

-Hourglass, Voyeur Eyeshadow Stick - Phoenix Warm Copper, $34 - lasted a year and broke, it was a good color but not as good as nudestix

- NYX Professional Makeup, Wonder Stick Cream Highlight & Contour Stick, $14 - Lasted almost exactly 12 months before the stick broke. Since it's not sharpened, the stick breaking is a risk. I used the highlight like triple the speed of the contour. It was nice, but it didn't sit on my skin all that well. I think that's my skin, not this product. A "it's me, not you" moment.

-Nudestix, Lilac Sky Eye Stick, $12 - Lasted 3/4 before drying out, which is about 2 years. None of my other sticks have dried out yet, so I think the purple and blues don't last as long as the browns. It's fine, but I'm on the fence if I would buy it again as they don't blend as well, but that could be the dryness talking.

Lashes

- Ardell, Magnetic Lash Wispies, $15 - I like the look of glue better than magnetic, especially because the magnetic liner tends to flake after a few hours.

Mascara

- Honest Beauty, 2-in-1 Extreme Length Mascara + Lash Primer - Black & White, $18 - the white primer really does lengthen lashes, not waterproof

- YSL, Lash Clash Extreme Volume Mascara - Blue, $32 - great but bulky packaging

- YSL, Lash Clash Extreme Volume Mascara - Brown, $32 - great but bulky packaging. Used for year and half, until it stopped making my eyelashes look good even though there's still product inside.

- MAC, Macstack Mascara Superstack - Black, $28 - perfect for travel

- L'Oréal, Telescopic Original Waterproof Mascara - Black, $13 - used for a year and half, worked nice, the brush is a little fragile

- Eyeko, Brown Colored Lash Alert Mascara, $19 - solid mascara; expires standard time of mascara, after expiration it gets very lumpy

- PYT Beauty, Swipe Right 12 HR Mascara Date Me Blue, $20 - lasted exactly two years, solid

Settings & Sunscreen

- Ben Nye, Final Seal Spritzer, $33 - I was told this is used by drag queens and it certainly lived up to that suggestion! Quite a set and lasted it me 2 years. Sadly, it's not sold at normal makeup Vacation, Classic Spray 50 SPF 50 MLstores.

- Pacific, Set & Protect Matte Sheer Setting Mist SPF 45, $18 - Like most combo products, this product is very average in both goals.

-Vacation, Classic Spray 50 SPF 50 ML, $8 - This lasted me one day at a pool resort. It smells nice but the small amount of product annoyed me. I did get it on sale for $5 so maybe the math works out, I'll have to compare it to other sunscreen sprays.

Tools

- Morphe, All The Looks 5-Piece Eye Brush Set, $15 - Ulta, Super Blender Sponge, $5 - Ulta, Sculpting Blender Sponge, $5

-Schick, Hydro Silk Touch-Up Exfoliating Dermaplaning Tool Eyebrow/Facial Razor, $16 - this is my second derma-plane razor (first from Koreatown in LA) and I just don't think this tool is for me. I prefer waxing or straight razor.

Hair

- Curlsmith, Wash & Scrub Detox Pro-Biotic, $28

Nails

- Zoya, Naked Manicure Glossy Seal Top Coat, $14

- Nails Inc, NailPure Top Coat, $15 - double top doesn't make sense and short wand

Brow

- Benefit, Brow Microfilling Pen, $25 - The three prong brush helps to make this brow filler seem very real. Used medium brown. Lasts a solid 1.5 year.

- Loreal Paris, Brow Stylist Shape & Fill, $12 - meh. I feel like this breaks and has a dusty color.

- Loreal Paris, Micro Ink Pen by Brow Stylist, $12 - meh. I feel like this dried out early.

For Mom

- Caliray, Freedreaming Blurring Lightweight Skin Tint - The 5 , $32 - Hydrating foundation, light medium with a neutral warm undertone.

- The Inkey List, Peptide Moisturizer, $17 - Hydrating primer.

- Peter Thomas Roth, Pumpkin Enzyme Mask Enzymatic Dermal Resurfacer, $60 - Mom's absolute favorite scrub and mask.

Brands Ranked by Opinion

Perfection

- Biodance, Hydro Cera-nol Real Deep Mask,$4.75 each - dramatically brightening face mask

- Lancôme, Bi-Facial Double-Action Gentle Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover, $42 - Great makeup remover, best used with compostable cotton balls! Plastic bottle.

- Farmacy, Green Clean Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm, $36 - Great makeup remover, best used with washcloth! Plastic jar.

- Estee Lauder, Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Multi-Recovery Complex Serum, $80  - great results. They have sustainable packaging commitments so it's near perfect.

- Urban Decay Cosmetics, Anti-Aging Eyeshadow Primer Potion, $24 - This is a great primer, I really can notice a difference in both vibrancy and ease of application, but it also reduces eyeshadow fallout. The bottle is small enough for travel or makeup case. The best part? The bottle can be cut-up so you really get your money's worth and then recycle it.

- It Cosmetics, CC+ Cream Illumination SPF 50+ Color Fair Light (ivory pink), $44 - Decent coverage foundation and can be easily cut with scissors

- Ofra Cosmetics, NikkieTutorials Highlighting Trio, $35  - Most like Becca's old highlighters and bronzers, very soft and shimmery.

- Burt's Bees, Lip Shimmer, $5 - Hydrating like lip balm but colored like shiny lipstick

- Burt's Bees, Moisturizing Lip Balm, $4 - Hydrating like lip balm but colored like matte lipstick

- Ben Nye, Final Seal Spritzer, $33 - I was told this is used by drag queens and it certainly lived up to that suggestion! Quite a set and lasted it me 2 years. Sadly, it's not sold at normal makeup stores.

- Caliray, Freedreaming Blurring Lightweight Skin Tint - The 5 , $32 - Hydrating foundation, light medium with a neutral warm undertone.

- Peter Thomas Roth, Pumpkin Enzyme Mask Enzymatic Dermal Resurfacer, $60 - Mom's absolute favorite scrub and mask.