Samples of the Day (Review: DHC, Global Goddess, Dr. Brandt, Estée Lauder, Lancôme, LookX and Chanel)

Hi everyone,

I’ve really been into trying out samples for the simple reason of “my drawer is overflowing”.

Today I picked out:
Global Goddess by Shalini Vadhera – Shine Coconut Amla Revitalizing Hair Treatment.
The Beauty Secret of India.
Most of real the hair that’s used in extensions and weaves and all those kinds of things is Indian hair. So they have really good hair, but on the back of the sample it says: Secrets Revealed: For their to-die-for shiny hair, Indian lovelies give themselves a weekly coconut oil scalp massage to promote growth and wash away tress stress. Treat yourself to this extraordinary complex blend of Coconut, Jojoba, Sunflower and Avocado – each vitamin-enriched oil with its own agenda for taking the guesswork out of luscious locks. Also contains Amla Extract, Henna, Grape Seed Oil, Neem Oil and Vitamin A. The combination of ingredients in our unique formula helps to moisturize, add shine and rejuvanate your hair. The end results are a more shiny and tamable mane. Use as directed on your scalp to promote healthy growth and quench dryness (a trick overseas women have relied on for years).
DIRECTIONS: Massage into scalp and hair, roots to ends. Leave on for 30 minutes, shampoo and condition. For an extra deep conditioning treatment and overnight luxury, leave on while you sleep. SHampoo and condition when you wake. For on-the-go rejuvination, smooth on oil in the shower after you shampoo, leave on for 5-10 minutes. Rinse, shampoo, condition and style!
Shalini’s pro tip: For a red carpet glow, use this on your arms, legs and shoulders. Makes the perfect after bath moisturizer for dry, dehydrated skin. And don’t forget your lashes and brows – try the Coconut Amla Lash and Brow Conditioner.

I’m used this as a scalp massage and then let it sink in for the night. It feels really nice to massage into your scalp and it actually soaked into my hair really nicely. The next morning I went on to shampoo and condition using:

DHC Q10 Revitalising Hair Care Shampoo (which has only Japanese instructions on the back…. help…. website!!!)
Age-defying care for your scalp and hair is a reality with this fortifying shampoo that washes away dirt, debris and product buildup while promoting thicker-looking hair with its Volume-Up Complex. It also helps smooth and strengthen with its Damage Care Essence. Contains antioxidant powerhouse coenzyme Q10 to revitalize, sodium acetylated hyaluronate to encourage moisture retention and luxurious black pearl proteins to nourish.
DIRECTIONS: Apply to wet hair, massaging gently to create lather. Rinse thoroughly. Repeat, if desired, before conditioning. For best results, follow with DHC Q10 Revitalizing Hair Care Treatment.

So use it as a shampoo is basically the advise.

The contitioner is also by DHC and is their:
Q10 Revitalising Hair Care Treatment, which also has Japanese instructions on the back but since I’m online, I looked that up as well.
This age-defying daily conditioner for your scalp and hair nourishes and promotes thicker-looking hair with its Volume-Up Complex, as well as helps smooth and strengthen with its Damage Care Essence. Antioxidant coenzyme Q10 fights free radical damage, ceramide and sodium acetylated hyaluronate moisturize and black pearl proteins fortify. Hair looks thicker, healthier—with more control, bounce and softness.
DIRECTIONS: After shampooing, squeeze out moisture and massage cream into hair. Leave in for 3-5 minutes. Rinse thoroughly. For best results, use with DHC Q10 Revitalizing Hair Care Shampoo.

After this I used my normal Macadamia Natural Oil Treatment Hair Oil and a little Curl Cream by Toni & Guy (which aren’t samples and I use once every other day). To see how healthy and curly my hair looked, look for the pictures later on in this post. My hair felt super soft and was amazingly managable.

On my skin I picked out Dr. Brandt products today (which I expected to love, I’ve had full sizes of a couple of Dr. Brandt products before and they’ve never disappointed me. I will be trying:
Dr. Brandt – Microdermabrasion Exfoliating Cream for All Skin Types which is supposed to Reveal Radiance and Smooth Skin’s Texture.
On the back is states (without punctuation): superior dual performance all in one step. polish away dead skin cells to reveal more radiant skin. with lactic acid, jojoba, aloe and green tea to help soothe & soften the skin.
INSTRUCTIONS: dampen skin with warm water. slowly and gently massage cream onto the skin avoiding the eye area, for 1-2 minutes. rinse well, pat dry. best if used 1-2 times per week, allowing 3 days between applications.
formulated under Dr. Brandt’s supervision.

This does leave your skin a bit red (because of the gritty bits in polish but your skin is supersoft. It smells a bit minty but isn’t tingly or anything.

Followed by his Lineless Cream – Anti-Oxidant Moisturizer with Age-Inhibitor Complex for Normal to Dry skin which helps preserve moisture and elasticity.
On the back is states (again without punctuation): contains unique age-inhibitor complex with TIMP-2 fullerene. helps protect collagen, while preserving moisture and elasticity, preventing the formation of lines and wrinkles. concentrated levels of anti-oxidants green tea, white tea and grapeseed contribute to slowing down the aging process.
* moisturizes the upper skin layers.
INSTRUCTIONS: apply to cleansed and toned skin. use am or pm.
formulated under Dr. Brandt’s supervision.

I haven’t used his microdermabrasion before but the lineless I’ve had a few years back as a full jar. I didn’t repurchase because it’s $100 which is wayyy toooo much for me to spend on a cream at the moment. If I was a millionaire I would actually repurchase this because I remember loving it so much. After using this sample 3 times my skin is already silky and looking amazing and radiant. Dangit.

I also tried the Estée Lauder – Resilience Lift Extreme foundation (this is a Radiant Lifting Makeup with an SPF of 15). I tried it in the colour 4C1 Outdoor Beige which is way to dark for me, but I know how to hide a darker foundation and how to make it work for me, so I’m actually a lot more tan in these pictures then I am naturally ;).
This foundation applied like a dream and felt smooth and stayed on like a charm.

The concealer I’m wearing is one I’ve been trying out this last month Lancôme – Long-Lasting Softening Concealer in 02 Beige Sable. I seriously believe this is one of the best concealers I’ve worked with in a long time. At least for underneath the eyes because it lightens and brightens but isn’t fake and doesn’t go into the fine lines underneath my eyes. It’s really a magnificent product!

As a liner I tested out the LookX liner I got in this Febuary’s Beautybox. This is no. 14 Green. I didn’t use a primer underneath and didn’t set this liner simply because I wanted to test it out without giving it a “helping” hand. It does last pretty well, but I don’t have really oily eyelids. I did notice that the point goes really fast though, so try and do the point of your wing first and then line to the inner corner and then resharpen your pencil’s point.

The mascara I’m wearing is Chanel – Inimitable Masacara in 10 Noir. A really nice applying, long lasting, nice feeling mascara.