Bleh, stretch marks!

Stretch marks are the single hardest thing to get rid of. And sadly, you can't get rid of them 100%. I've dealt with heavy acne that cleared up with the right medication, skincare, and lots of water. But my stretch marks will not budge. I'm always searching for ways to reduce their appearance and I decided to give into the hype and try cocoa butter.

First of all, stretch marks are caused by well, your skin stretching. Stretch marks occur in the middle part of skin, called the dermis. It is when the dermis does not have enough support to keep it from tearing, causing stretch marks. You can get stretch marks from gaining weight, pregnancy, or just plain ole' puberty and the overproduction of hormones.

Cocoa butter enriched with vitamin E supposedly helps because the motion of massaging it helps the blood flow of new stretch marks (the reddish/purpley ones) and it penetrates into the dermis to repair the damages. Whether this is true or not, I have no idea. I've seen mixed reviews and messages. But I decided to give it a shot, in the end, the worse that can come out of it is that I still have stretch marks but super smooth skin, haha. 

I feel like I have them everywhere! On my thighs, calves, hips, and  my side/love handle area (that I'm attempting to get rid of xD )

Right calf

On lower side/ love handle area

Upper thighs/hips

That's an example of what I'm dealing with, and trust me, it looks a lot worse in person! 

I started using Palmer's Cocoa Butter on December 10th, 2010 and I apply it every day after I take a shower and massage it into my skin until it's totally absorbed. I'm going to continue using it until I finish the bottle, which will be probably the end of this month. Until then, I will post my 'after' pictures beside the before and I'll tell you my final verdict!

<3

Equate Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover

So my first post will be a review :)

Equate Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover
-Purchased at Walmart- it's their generic brand
-Compared to Neutrogena's Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover
-Around $4-$5
-5.5 FL OZ
-4 out of 5 stars

I've read a lot of good reviews for the Neutrogena one, and when I went to Walmart to pick it up, I saw the off-brand beside it. It was a good 2 bucks cheaper and I thought, "Why not?". The selling point for me when I'm trying to decide between two products is that I'll go with the one that is costs less, haha.

The makeup remover claims that it is:

-Effective and gentle

-Removes waterproof mascara

-No oily residue

It removes my waterproof like a dream! Two swipes and it is completely off. I also haven't experienced any eye irritation in the 2 weeks that I've been using this. I have really sensitive, acne prone skin and I haven't had any clogged pores, pimples, etc. while using this. 

And finally, it claims it leaves no oily residue. Uh, I don't think so. I've never used a remover that made my eyelids so oily I had to use like 4 extra cotton balls just to soak up the residue. I also tried to see if I could clean up my eyeliner with it, so when I winged the liner out, the line would look more precise. I took a q-tip and dipped it in the solution ever so lightly. When I tried to give the excess liner a quick swipe, it dissolved whatever makeup I had on an inch into my eye. 

So overall:

-I would recommend this if you want something to get rid of that mascara that doesn't budge with other removers

-Super oily

-I can't say for sure if the Neutrogena one is better, I haven't tried it. It's on my to-buy list after I finish this bottle

-Good for sensitive, acne prone skin

Thanks for reading :3