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Don't always lie. Strange but true. Now, infomercials are those "paid advertising" 30 minute things on TV that you sometimes can't help but watch. Kind of like a car crash...you want to look away but just can't. I will admit that I'm extremely skeptical about most infomercials but in the last year I've used two products from such commercials and have liked them. I bought the items either when I found them in a store or from the web site listed on the commercial, I've never called in. So here are my reviews of the products I actually like.
Windsor Pilates is a video pilates program. It looks fairly relaxing but it kicks your butt. I've been using it off and on for about a year and it works :) I have tried several exercise programs to loose weight and this is the first thing that has worked for me. Going to a gym might work too, but I hate exercising around other people which rules out the gym.
I bought my first DVD from Target and it worked great but then I needed a little more high intensity workout so I visited the Winsor Pilates web site and bought the Fat Burning workout DVD for $9.95. This also got me in the "two DVDs every 60 days" club. I've since unsubscribe 'cause I just can't afford it right now but I got two other great DVDs that I love through the program: the Abs DVD and the Thigh and Buns DVD.
Quick note: I only do the 20 minute workouts, I don't really have time or desire to do longer workouts. This would also work better if I actually did it with any consistency, but even with limited use I still see results. Great workout, I highly recommend it.
bareMinerals from Bare Escentuals is a powdered mineral foundation free from the chemicals and preservatives that most traditional make-ups have. I've been thinking of trying this make-up for awhile but just didn't have the motivation or money to buy the starter kit. Recently, in the last six months or so, I've developed a bit of an acne problem. I've never had problems with zits before but I've had pimples erupting on an annoyingly regular basis recently. So I changed a bit of my face care routine and got some zit cream and that helped a little. My next thought was well, maybe I need a new foundation. Maybe the one I'm using is clogging my pores or something. So I was at Ulta this last Saturday and bought a bareMinerals starter kit for $45 dollars. This is possibly the most expensive make-up I've ever bought. So far (three days later), I like it. I saw an immediate, overnight improvement in the appearance of my pimples and no more have erupted as of yet. That, in and of itself, makes the kit worth it.
On to some of the claims on the infomercial:
Coverage: Not nearly as good as claimed. Good, mind you, just not the "it covers everything" I was expecting. I was using a liquid, three different concealers, and one to two powders before and I get about the same amount of coverage out of the bareMinerals foundation and Mineral Veil. Now, the Ulta kit didn't come with the "full coverage" brush advertised on the infomercial, so that may make a difference.
Feel: Oh so much better than the liquid. I had no idea how "mask" like the liquid felt and looked until I tried bareMinerals. The commercial is right on in that aspect.
I would not recommend getting the Ulta kit. Why? 'Cause the started kit from the web site or infomercial has a more complete product set. The Ulta kit is $45 and comes with the "Flawless Application Brush", two foundation shades, all over face color "Warmth" (cool stuff, I no longer look completely washed out under florescent lights), Mineral Veil (helps minimize large pores, works well), and instructional DVD. This is about $105 worth of product if purchased separately. The starter kit from the web site is $60 s&h and comes with the "Flawless Application Brush", the "Full Coverage Kabuki Brush", the "Concealer Brush", two foundation shades, Warmth, Mineral Veil, and instructional DVD. You also get the 'free gifts' of the "Baby Buki Brush" and a expandable make-up bag (which I think is a bit ugly). This ends up being about $193 of product if purchased separately. I'm going to pop down to the 16th Street Mall Bare Escentuals store (yes, we have a store in Colorado) on Saturday and buy the concealer brush 'cause I need it for the detail work. I might also buy the separate concealer they offer. So I would definitely recommend getting the kit from the commercial or web site because you really need both the full coverage brush and the concealer brush. I'm planning on saving up and buying one of the big kits from the site so I can get a bunch of brushes and various cosmetics a little cheaper than buying them all separately.
Quick warning - some people are allergic to some of the ingredients. I'm not one of them but if you start getting irritation, just send the kit back/take it back to the store. The web site has a 60 day money back guarantee and it should only take two to three day to know if you're going to have a reaction. Also, you should use this over a moisturizer of the non greasy variety, otherwise it doesn't work too well.
Plugging of products done, but there may be a bareMinerals update as I get some more of the products :)
Windsor Pilates is a video pilates program. It looks fairly relaxing but it kicks your butt. I've been using it off and on for about a year and it works :) I have tried several exercise programs to loose weight and this is the first thing that has worked for me. Going to a gym might work too, but I hate exercising around other people which rules out the gym.
I bought my first DVD from Target and it worked great but then I needed a little more high intensity workout so I visited the Winsor Pilates web site and bought the Fat Burning workout DVD for $9.95. This also got me in the "two DVDs every 60 days" club. I've since unsubscribe 'cause I just can't afford it right now but I got two other great DVDs that I love through the program: the Abs DVD and the Thigh and Buns DVD.
Quick note: I only do the 20 minute workouts, I don't really have time or desire to do longer workouts. This would also work better if I actually did it with any consistency, but even with limited use I still see results. Great workout, I highly recommend it.
bareMinerals from Bare Escentuals is a powdered mineral foundation free from the chemicals and preservatives that most traditional make-ups have. I've been thinking of trying this make-up for awhile but just didn't have the motivation or money to buy the starter kit. Recently, in the last six months or so, I've developed a bit of an acne problem. I've never had problems with zits before but I've had pimples erupting on an annoyingly regular basis recently. So I changed a bit of my face care routine and got some zit cream and that helped a little. My next thought was well, maybe I need a new foundation. Maybe the one I'm using is clogging my pores or something. So I was at Ulta this last Saturday and bought a bareMinerals starter kit for $45 dollars. This is possibly the most expensive make-up I've ever bought. So far (three days later), I like it. I saw an immediate, overnight improvement in the appearance of my pimples and no more have erupted as of yet. That, in and of itself, makes the kit worth it.
On to some of the claims on the infomercial:
Coverage: Not nearly as good as claimed. Good, mind you, just not the "it covers everything" I was expecting. I was using a liquid, three different concealers, and one to two powders before and I get about the same amount of coverage out of the bareMinerals foundation and Mineral Veil. Now, the Ulta kit didn't come with the "full coverage" brush advertised on the infomercial, so that may make a difference.
Feel: Oh so much better than the liquid. I had no idea how "mask" like the liquid felt and looked until I tried bareMinerals. The commercial is right on in that aspect.
I would not recommend getting the Ulta kit. Why? 'Cause the started kit from the web site or infomercial has a more complete product set. The Ulta kit is $45 and comes with the "Flawless Application Brush", two foundation shades, all over face color "Warmth" (cool stuff, I no longer look completely washed out under florescent lights), Mineral Veil (helps minimize large pores, works well), and instructional DVD. This is about $105 worth of product if purchased separately. The starter kit from the web site is $60 s&h and comes with the "Flawless Application Brush", the "Full Coverage Kabuki Brush", the "Concealer Brush", two foundation shades, Warmth, Mineral Veil, and instructional DVD. You also get the 'free gifts' of the "Baby Buki Brush" and a expandable make-up bag (which I think is a bit ugly). This ends up being about $193 of product if purchased separately. I'm going to pop down to the 16th Street Mall Bare Escentuals store (yes, we have a store in Colorado) on Saturday and buy the concealer brush 'cause I need it for the detail work. I might also buy the separate concealer they offer. So I would definitely recommend getting the kit from the commercial or web site because you really need both the full coverage brush and the concealer brush. I'm planning on saving up and buying one of the big kits from the site so I can get a bunch of brushes and various cosmetics a little cheaper than buying them all separately.
Quick warning - some people are allergic to some of the ingredients. I'm not one of them but if you start getting irritation, just send the kit back/take it back to the store. The web site has a 60 day money back guarantee and it should only take two to three day to know if you're going to have a reaction. Also, you should use this over a moisturizer of the non greasy variety, otherwise it doesn't work too well.
Plugging of products done, but there may be a bareMinerals update as I get some more of the products :)
