February 2009 -

Looking for the best deep conditioner? This is it! Kronos Phyx Overnight Repair Masque is certainly the most unique hair conditioner that I have tried. It also is the absolute best that I have tried, beating out even my other darling conditioner, Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment (read review).

First, why this is unique: Kronos Phyx is a leave in, overnight hair treatment that will not rub off or otherwise make a mess. The conditioner is applied to dry hair and it absorbs very quickly, leaving no film to rub off on sheets and pillowcases. There is no particular scent, and not a whole lot is needed for a full application. While on, it goes to work, providing deep conditioning. Wash it out in the morning to find extremely soft well behaved hair.

I found Kronos Phyx to be nothing short of amazing, and my dry, color treated hair does wonderfully with it. Best yet, using Phyx several times per week just intensifies the results. Now compare that to Ojon, which is also truly wonderful stuff in terms of results, but its also a stinky, greasy mess that is difficult to use too often because of the time commitment to sitting around all day with oily hair. Needless to say, since I discovered Phyx, my jar of Ojon is getting used much less often.

Of course many good things still have a downside, and Phyx cannot escape that. It is expensive. At $105 for a fairly small bottle, it really is a luxury item. But here is the upside to the downside: Not a ton of product is needed for each application, so it will last for quite a bit, but nevertheless, it won’t fit in every woman’s budget. Regardless, I think this one is well worth the price. Kronos makes a number of other highly rated hair products as well.

I got my bottle in the first edition of Beauty Fix. Which they no longer seem to include. But you can get it Dermstore and often on sale there, making it more affordable: Kronos Phyx Overnight Repair Masque

Dior DiorSkin Forever Compact Flawless & Moist Extreme Wear Makeup SPF 25 is one heck of a good powder foundation. I have a few complaints about the packaging, but the quality of the foundation makes up for those issues. I also particularly recommend this one for those with melasma or other pigmentation issues.

Dior’s Forever Flawless is a powder foundation that goes on smooth and then stays on, and stays, and stays. This stuff lasted all day for me without changing in appearance. Coverage is medium and it does a good job of covering pigmentation. It is advertised as moist, but it is not necessarily moisturizing. It just isn’t as dry as the typical powder. The result is that it wears nicely by not getting stuck in wrinkles and lines or looking flaky. It is also oil free, so no worries there. Dior’s powder foundation is also buildable, so if you have trouble areas, such as melasma or over pigmented areas, it can be used to achieve full coverage. I find that it covers melasma with a fairly unobtrusive appearance better than most other powder and full coverage foundations available. The SPF of 25 is also rather impressive.

The downside for me with the Dior compact is that at first, I seemed to have trouble opening the main compartment, and then I again had trouble opening the second compartment under the sponge. After it loosened up a bit it was fine, but those first few openings were a bit difficult.

I found that I get a wonderful look with Dior’s foundation by using a bit of tinted primer or tinted moisturizer under the Dior foundation. For full coverage, try it over a sheer liquid foundation. It comes with an application sponge, but I like to use a stiff kabuki style brush to apply it. Overall, initial issues with the compact aside, this one is expensive, but worth it!

Comparison Shop for the DiorSkin Forever Compact

Disclosures: Beauty and Fashion Tech at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page

About the Author: Carleen Pruess Coulter