Ever Bamboo HEI Charcoal Face + Body Bar

April 5th, 2012

Hey there, Beauty Queens!

Miss Bonnified here with a somewhat interesting bar of soap to try out.

As you may know from my previous post, I got really really sunburned. My skin from the neck down still hasn’t exactly recuperated. I’m tired of seeing cracked skin and feeling like I’m stretched out like a drum.

Enter Ever Bamboo Face + Body Bar to the rescue. If you’ve been reading my blog (more specifically, this entry about coconut oil), you’ll know I’ve been fixated on this stuff for a little while.

I figured it might be a good time to treat my skin to the same stuff I’m gulping down in my morning smoothies. Here’s some initial pictures of the product and some thoughts.


image taken by me and property of missbonnified.com
Sideways view of the packaging.

I got this size because I wasn’t sure if I would like it. I figured a travel sized bar would be good to try out for a few weeks.


image from missbonnified.com
Yes, the soap is black.

The soap really is this color. No, this is not a trick. That’s because it’s made out of bamboo charcoal.

From Frizzy2Silky’s website, here’s a brief description of the product :

Bamboo Charcoal Face + Body Bar restores the natural beauty of your skin by purifying, exfoliating, moisturizing, detoxifying, and absorbing impurities. Bamboo Charcoal has a negative ionic charge that also helps stimulate blood flow and has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. Each bar is handmade to perfection and is fabulous for sensitive as well as problem skin. With daily use, you will truly appreciate the improved radiance, texture and tone of your skin.

Bamboo vinegar, a byproduct created during the process that turns bamboo into bamboo charcoal, is known as chikusaku in Japan. It’s been used as a topical treatment for a wide variety of ailments. This is not the edible kind of vinegar, in case you’re wondering. I liked the part where it’s supposed to soften skin.

Coconut acid is the part that caught my eye. Used in small amounts, this is great for sensitive skin and even children’s skin. It has anti-inflammatory properties. Coconut oil is very moisterizing.

Lavender smells divine and is very calming. Actually, the more I sniff this soap, the more I’m convinced that there’s also a….a…woodsy, evergreen-y oil too. I could be wrong.

All in all, the smell reminds me of what would happen if a lavender field made a baby with a Christmas tree. Weird analogy, I know, but that’s what it reminds me of.

In my next review, I’ll be going into detail about what it was like to use it.

If you can’t wait for my thoughts about this and want to try it NOW, use coupon code BONNIE10 at checkout to save yourself 10%.

Till next time!

iS Clinical Hydra-Cool Serum

March 18th, 2012

Hello there, Beauty Queens!

I’m back from my most awesome honeymoon in TAHITI! It was absolutely beautiful. If you ever have a chance to go, DO IT!! There really is no place in the world like the islands of Tahiti. Moorea and Bora Bora, I’m looking at you.

Now that I’ve been there once, I now know what to pack next time. One of the products that made the Honeymoon Cut is is Clinical’s Hydra-Cool Serum.


image from isclinical dot ie

Frizzy2Silky’s site describes the product as follows :

* Provides penetrating hydration
* Calms, soothes, and cools irritated skin
* Reduces mild acneic symptoms
* Offers antioxidant protection

Exactly what I needed in order to brave the scorching Tahitian sun! It was light enough not to ever make me feel like an oil slick and yet my skin never dried out. I tend to break out with cystic acne so I was little worried when I had to slather on sunscreen every 2 hours. Religiously applying this every day BEFORE the sunscreen helped me avoid breakouts.

Another great use for this stuff beautifully blue hued elixir of awesomeness?

Soothing my sunburn!! I grew up in Hawaii so I’m no stranger to the tropical sun. However, Tahiti’s sun is BRUTAL. I fried. I’m still peeling. It’s now past the middle of March. We came home at the end of February.

I applied your standard, generic brand aloe vera to the burns on my back, my arms, my legs….basically, everywhere from the neck down. I applied iS Clinical’s Hydra-Cool to my face. Guess which part of my body isn’t peeling? That’s right. My FACE. Now if only iS Clinical came out with something for the entire body….

I know this stuff is a little pricey but it’s worth it. A few drops of this magical blue serum is enough for your entire face. Generally, a 0.5 ounce bottle will last me about 2-3 months if I apply it everyday in the morning. It’s $55 for a 0.5 fluid ounce or do what I do and pay $90 for a 1.0 fluid ounce bottle.

As always, use coupon code BONNIE10 and save yourself 10% off your entire order.

Till next time, Beauty Queens!

Deborah Lippmann and I Are Going To Tahiti

February 19th, 2012

Aloha, Beauty Queens! Miss Bonnified here! How are you all doing today?

Just so there’s no confusion, Deborah Lippmann and I will be going with my husband on our honeymoon. However, Deborah Lippmann, the PERSON, will not be accompanying us. Deborah Lippmann, NAIL POLISH BRAND, will be! Hooray!

Yes, I said “honeymoon”. By the time you read this, I will be in TAHITI on my honeymoon. Hopefully, I will also be lounging around and soaking up the sun versus cooped up in my bungalow as the skies rain down on my head.

So let’s hope for the former, shall we?

I’m packing up all my stuff and I noticed that my nails are looking positively ratty. This will not do for a honeymoon in what, quite arguably, is the most romantic place on Earth!

It was time for me to take matters, literally, into my own hands.


From Left to Right – Like A Virgin and Bring On The Bling.
I love anything with the words “bring on” and “bling”.

I love Deborah Lippmann polishes. There is a reason why she’s famous and mingles with Hollywood’s finest. Her polishes apply well, dry quickly and resist chipping like nobody’s business.

I know because I tried “Prelude To A Kiss” for a few weeks before the wedding. I was running around the ICU like a chicken without a head and STILL my nail polish did not chip. This stuff is awesome.

Seeing as how I’ve never been to Tahiti, I figured something named “Like A Virgin” is more than suitable for my intents and purposes. Plus, it’s such a beautiful, crisp white color that’s perfect for scampering around in a tropical paradise.

One coat of “Like A virgin” really won’t do much as it’s pretty transparent. It took me three thin coats to get a nice crisp, clean white color. After that, I applied one coat of “Bring On The Bling” to give my nails some subtle sparkle. After all, nothing says “honeymoon” like “my nails are blinging out like there’s diamonds on them!”

Yes, you heard me correctly. “Bring On The Bling” is a clear polish with beautiful flecks of real diamond powder. Hence, the subtle sparkle.

Now how awesome is that? Bring On The Bling works well with any shade of nail polish. It gives darker colored nail polish an interesting twist. Next time, I’ll be showing you what it looks like over something a little darker and richer in hue. $20 a pop isn’t cheap BUT consider the following :

  • A little goes a LONG way. Remember, you’re going for SUBTLE, not in-your-face bedazzle.

  • Where else are you going to get real bits of diamonds on your nails?
  • Just sayin’.


That’s me! All ready for some fun in the South Pacific sun!

An alternative route for using this polish besides on honeymoon escapades is for your wedding. If you looked at my pictures and wondered why the bottles look a bit on the smaller side, it’s because I picked up a trio of Deborah Lippmann polishes as part of a set called “Princess Bride”.

I tested them out for my wedding and, I have to say, they’re a pretty good choice. Not only are the colors wedding friendly in a traditional way (pale pinks and white) but they resist chipping like nobody’s business. Believe me when I say that will come in handy. You don’t want chipped nails in your wedding pictures. Heck to the n-o.

If you would like to pick up a bottle of either of these, remember to use checkout code BONNIE10 to receive 10% off your entire order.

Till next time, Beauty Queens!

Philessential – From Scaly Skin To Silky Smooth Skin

January 23rd, 2012

Happy Lunar New Year, Beauty Queens!!

Any resolutions for the year of the Water Dragon? I got one for you – banish dry, flaky skin on my hands!

On a normal day, the skin on my face is oily enough to grease a griddle (sexy, I know) but the skin on my hands can get pretty dry. This is because, by day, I am a Registered Nurse in an intensive care unit. What that means for my hands is that they can look forward to taking a beating every day I’m at work. I put on latex gloves, rip them off, rub alcohol onto them to disinfect them and then wash them with a very un-gentle soap. I do this at least twice every hour and I work 12 hour shifts.

You can imagine the kind of damage done to my poor hands. In case you can’t, here’s a picture.



Super dry hand is super sad hand. :(

Yes, I know I’m white enough to glow in the dark. Yes, I know this makes it harder for you to see what I’m trying to point out to you. However, if you can direct your gaze (assuming you’re not blinded by my epic paleness) to the part of my hand above my pointer finger knuckle, you can see where there are white flakes coming off of my skin.

That’s how dry I got. I’ve tried everything. I tried shea body butters, body butters with Dead Sea minerals….but nothing worked.


Here’s another picture of the dry, flaky skin hand.
Ugh. Yuck. So sad….

And then the proverbial light bulb went off in my head. I got my hands on some Philessential capsules and read up on them. Btw, if you like Dermalogica Age Smart Multivitamin Power Concentrate but don’t like the hefty price tag, give these Philessential babies a whirl.


courtesy of Frizzy2Silky

Here’s a brief exerpt from the Frizzy2Silky site :

Each Philessential Antioxidant Serum capsule delivers natural Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, antioxidants and complexion-friendly oils that helps minimize the signs of skin aging and promotes the appearance of incredibly silky-smooth, naturally-glowing skin!

Philessential Antioxidant Serum Capsules are a safe, effective, and natural way to reduce wrinkles.

- Anti-aging properties: Reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Protects against free radical damage and environmental stress.
- Promotes increased hydration: Naturally enhance hydration and strengthen skin’s protective barrier.
- Enhances youthful appearance: Helps produce nature collagen, improve firmness, elasticity and radiance.
- Helps improve skin tone: Instantly retexturizes for noticeably softer, brighter, smoother looking skin.

Preservative free and artificial fragrance free AND no testing on animals? Nice.

Granted, the skin on my hands don’t look old yet (thank the powers that be) but they were looking super dry, scaly, flaky, uber gross and extremely dull.

I figured “Oh, what the hell. What have I got to lose” and I twisted the cap off of one of the capsules.


Good things apparently come in small, heart shaped capsules.

Here, in order, were my thoughts as I was squeezing the contents of these deceptively small capsules on to the back of my left hand :

  • “Hm…that’s not a lot of product. How is this supposed to cover someone’s FACE if it doesn’t look like it’ll cover the back of ONE hand?! What a rip off.”

  • Wow, it smells really good! Like….unsweetened lemonade. Sharp, zingy and tangy. I kind of want to taste it….but I won’t.”
  • “Holy good God, this stuff is oily!”
  • “Wow….a little bit goes a long way….”
  • “Hm….interesting. It was oily beyond belief when I first squeezed it on my hand but now it doesn’t feel oily at all! Imagine that.”
  • “….wow….my hands aren’t oily. It’s like the skin just sucked this stuff up. Crazy.”
  • “….oooOOohhh….my hands feel so soft and smell so nice!” *sniff * sniff * sniff *

I’m not very good at remembering to pamper my hands everyday so I’ve only used 7 capsules over 21 days.

I have to say, this stuff is amazing. My hands are no longer dry and flaky. They went from dull to sort of normal. I’m sure the “sort of normal” would be more like “vibrant and beautiful” if I was more diligent with using this every day. However, what my hands look like now is a huge improvement over what it looked like a few weeks ago.

Actually, when I remembered to put it on every other day, my hands were beautiful. They were smooth and silky with no dead, flaky bits of dead skin to be seen!

As for the small amount contained per capsule, let me tell you that it was enough to cover BOTH hands from front to back and even some of my arms just above the wrist.

Good things come in small packages!


No more flaky, dry skin!!

Beauty Queens with dry skin! If this stuff can do all this for my beat up hands, imagine what it can do for the dry skin on your face!

Act now because there’s a Buy One, Get One Free promotion going on now!! There’s even one with free shipping!

This is for a trial 1 week supply. $5 gets you 7 capsules on a normal day…but now it will get you 14 for a limited time!! There is a limit of 3 per customer.

This is for a 30 day supply $37.50 gets you a 30 day supply on a normal day…but now it will get you 60 DAYS WORTH for a limited time. There is a limit of 3 per customer.

Here’s the best deal of all. 60 capsules PLUS free shipping! Tell me 120 capsules at $75 with free shipping is not a great deal.

Each capsule is sealed, thus ensuring that its contents are not exposed to air which will decrease the effectiveness of the product. This, however, does not mean these will last forever so use them in a timely manner.

As always, use coupon code BONNIE10 upon checkout to save yourself an additional 10% on all orders!

Till next time!

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