Oral-B CrossAction Pro-Health Toothbrush

This has to be, hands down, my favorite manual toothbrush. The variety in bristle lengths and textures really makes you feel like your teeth are getting extremely clean.

It also had ridges on the back of the head of the toothbrush, which help with getting your tongue clean, so you're left with that whole-mouth clean feeling.

While, I'm not as big of a fan of this brush as I am of the Oral-B Pulsar toothbrush line, this toothbrush ends up being a lot cheaper. You can usually find it on sale once-a-month or so, at my favorite store, CVS. But if it is not on sale there, WalMart usually has a pretty good price for them.

Another neat feature of the Oral-B line, is that the company tries to help you track down coupons for their products. You can check out this LINK to their site which will advise you on rebates you can get through the company, as well as how to track down Oral-B coupons in your local papers.

Alberto Vo5 Moisturizing Shampoo in Strawberries and Cream

Alright, so on vacation I typically buy Vo5 shampoos and conditioners, due to the fact that you can get a full bottle for $0.99 or less, whereas some of the travel size shampoos and conditioners can run you up to $1.39 a piece and is 1/32 the size of these containers.

However, you can definitely see what is lacking in the quality. While this shampoo will get your hair clean it is not as nourishing or as nice as some of its more expensive counterparts. Plus the smell of Vo5 Moisturizing Shampoo Strawberries and Cream is particularly overwhelming, and not in a good way. This shampoo smell sweet, very sweet, sickeningly so.

I think the better way to go is stock up on neutral smelling Suave's when they are on sale, the performance and scent of that brand is much better, and with coupons both of the brands are price competitive.

All in all, the price is the only thing that this product has going for it.

Chanel Levres Scintillantes in Sundress

Now Chanel lipglosses are wicked expensive, coming in at $38 at the counter, and Chanel does not offer gift with purchase like many of the other department store counters. What I usually do though, when making a Chanel purchase is ask the counter if there are any samples available when making my purchase.

However, as far as lipglosses go, this one is totally worth the price tag. The tube is bigger than many of the lip gloss tubes offered by Clinique or Lancome or some other competitors. So it lasts longer than many of my other lip glosses. Plus the gloss stays on longer than many of the other glosses I have tried, so I only have to re-apply once or twice throughout the evening instead of give or six times.

As to this specific color, Sundress, it is one of my favorites. I think it is the perfect summertime lip gloss and goes awesomely with all your sundresses. It's pale enough that you can wear it to work and sparkly enough that it still makes a great evening and night out lip gloss.

Overall it is one of my favorite lip glosses, and if I don't wear it all the time, it's just because the cost is a little steep.

Head & Shoulders Smooth & Silky Conditioner

Back in the day, you could only get Head & Shoulders in one variety, and while it dealt effectively with dandruff problems, it also stunk to the high heavens, and not in a good way. I used to use Head & Shoulders shampoo and conditioner and then go over my hair again with a cheap conditioner that had a pleasant smell, so my hair would not smell funky throughout the day.

However, these days, Head & Shoulders has a whole product line of different kinds of Head & Shoulders: silky & smoother, color treated, for curly hair, etc. etc. etc. I personally prefer the Silky & Smooth, as my hair is sometimes frizzy and gets tones of flyaways.

Now the smell has gotten MUCH better than the Head & Shoulders of the 1990s, but it still isn't the greatest. However, I don't have to use a second conditioner these days, which is a plus.

Another pro, is that it really does well on removing dandruff. I alternate this condition with my regular condition, every other day, and I really do see an improvement in the amount of flakes and dry scalp I have. So it delivers what it promises... the only thing I could wish for is further improvement in the scent department.

Lancome Sensational Effects Eye Shadow Quad Modern Edge

So as always, I wait to buy Lancome products until one of the Lancome counters is in gift. These days Lancome is in Macys, Lord & Taylor, Boscovs, Sephora, etc. So there are a variety of choices in looking for a counter that is in gift.

The palette itself is good eyeshadow. The shadow is long lasting and wears well throughout the night, without smudging or disappearing on you. And I'm also fond of the color combination in this specific palette as it can be used to create a nice brown smokey eye when using all of the colors, or the colors can be worn individually and still create a nice look.

The one downside to this eyeshadow is the cost. This palette of four is a bit expensive when compared to other eyeshadows that have the same or better quality. Some of this cost can be offset if you do purchase it when a free gift is included, and that might be enough to make you choose this brand, but I personally prefer Chanel's eye quartets. The Chanel quartets are roughly the same price and are a higher quality product in my mind.

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion

So you would think from the name, that Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion, would be dramtically different than the rest of the moisturizers on the market. Sadly, it is not. Now granted, it is less expensive that many of the department store moisturizers out there, but it is still significantly more expensive than a drug store moisturizer.

My main problem with this moisturizer is that it is SUPER greasy, it almost feels almost sticky, both on my fingers when I apply, as well as on my face. And even after I have rubbed this moisturizer into my skin, it feels most like bug repellant than moisturizer.

And another turn-off is that there are artificial colors added to this moisturizer. And any reason the creators might have chosen to do that is absolutely beyond me. I prefer my moisturizer to not have any color.

I prefer Nivea's skin so soft or any of the Dove or Neutrogena moisturizers to this. For about one third the price, you can get a moisturizer that actually feels like it is hydrating your skin. And of course, you all know that my FAVORITE moisturizer is Lancome's Hydra Zen for Dry Skin ... but that of course, comes with a steeper price tag.

The one upside, is that I purchased this program, as I do all of my department store moisturizer purchases, when Clinique was in gift. So I did accumulate a bunch of free make-up when I bought this product, which made me feel a little bit better about wasting money on this over-promising product.

Clinique All About Eyes Moisturizer

Clinique's All About Eyes Moisturizer is touted as being able to diminish the appearance of eye puffs, darkness and fine lines. It is also marketed that the formula actually helps hold eye makeup in place.

I have been using this moisturizer for a few weeks now. I was initially excited, because I do have dark circles under my eyes, and there is nothing I would like better than to have them disappear.

The moisturizer's texture is nice, it's not greasy, and it applies smooth. And I have noticed that I am less puffy around the eye area than before I started with the moisturizer. However, there has been no affect whatsoever on my dark circles, which are just as dark as they were before I started using this moisturizer.

I'm not sure what to say about the claim that this moisturizer helps keep eye make-up in place. I do not wear eye make-up every day, usually only for special occasions. I wore some the other day for Easter and was wearing this moisturizer as well, and my eye make-up did stay in place all day long. But I'm not sure whether to credit that to the make-up itself or to this product.

This product is a little pricey at $28 for a small bottle/tube. And for what it is supposed to do, I am relatively unhappy with it. Most of my moisturizers prevent puffiness, I was really looking for something to reduce dark circles, and this just didn't cut it.

As per usual though, I did receive a gift with purchase, so it's not a total loss.