A to Z: Z is for Zzzzzz....

Ahhhh, sleep. Something that I always have trouble with.

Fun fact, did you know the one-two punch of anxiety and depression can trigger insomnia in some folks? Guess who has two thumbs and is that unlucky soul!

So I have a looooot of tricks to get around the lack of sleep look. Perfected, of course, during college. Enjoy!

My personal favorite trick for waking up looking refreshed even after not getting enough sleep? Water!

Water is a miracle, let's be honest. Universal solvent. Polarity. Necessary. It's really cool, right? But did you know that one way to fight under eye circles in the morning is not to get dehydrated when you sleep? 

It's easy, actually. Just drink a really tall glass of water before you go to bed. Most nights, I try to down 12 oz of water. When I started this routine, it was because I would wake up with the absolute worst case of dry mouth. And I sleep with my mouth closed! However, after a couple days, I began to realized that my skin looked awesome in the morning, even if I hadn't gotten a lot of sleep.

If my eyes look really tired in the morning, I'll rub a little bit of my morning green tea in under my eyes. Usually, I just squeeze the excess water out of the bag and onto my fingertips and then rub it in under my eyes. The warmth helps me relax and the caffeine does wonders for my eyes. 

If my eyes are still a hot mess, I'll actually use a tiny amount of coconut oil. I don't know why it helps, but it does. I just get a tiny bit on my finger, rub it in (gently) in circles, and then add my makeup on top. I discovered this by accident when I rubbed my eye after applying my lip scrub. 

And last but not least, eye drops. My eyes tend to get really dry because I wear contacts 99.9% of the time. Usually, after a long night of no sleep, my eyes are tired and sore and dry and itchy. It's miserable. I invested in some of the best eye drops around.

Awww, who am I kidding? It's just saline drops from the drug store. Nothing special. Right now, I think I'm working on a bottle of the CVS brand. But first thing on waking up, I'll add some eye drops. And then again before I put on my makeup. And once more before I leave the house. If it feels like you're applying too much, apply some more. Your eyes could always do with the moisture. 

And I have to say, all of these things seem to work. Even when I'm physically exhausted, no one seems to notice unless I mention it. Of course, working at coffee shop has to help, too.

Thanks for reading! And thanks for sticking with me through the A to Z challenge. I know it's been weird and behind schedule, but I promise, this has definitely gotten me in the habit of posting more regularly. And soon, I'll have lots of fun goodies to review!

A to Z: Y is for Youth

This is more of a mini rant than anything else. And it was inspired by Brightest Bulb in the Box. This wonderful woman does a segment called Beauty Bullshit, and I just had to jump on that bandwagon for Y, AKA the letter I couldn't think of anything for.

Why is everyone so obsessed with looking younger? Yeah, I get it. You always want to look healthy and gorgeous. But I, personally, think that you should work with your age. Remember W? Work with what you've got? Yeah, it goes for age, too.

My mom is 50. And she doesn't try to look young or hip or sexy. She looks gorgeous and wise and collected. Pics or it didn't happen? Fine.

Yes, that's my mom (and me). She doesn't wear a lot of makeup because she's already gorgeous. She doesn't try to hide her wrinkles or that worry line between her eyebrows. She would never consider botox. Or lipo. She is beautiful just the way she is. 

And in a way, I gleaned a lot of my opinions about beauty from her. Which is why, when someone asks if I'm using any products for anti-aging, I just...I can't even think about that.

I'm 23. I'm relatively healthy. I take care of my skin, sure, since it's an organ. But beyond the basics of being able to pronounce what I put on my skin (or in my body, for that matter), that's it. I feel like as long as you treat your skin well, it will work well for you. And if you get wrinkles? You earned them! You have laugh lines? The name says it all!

Not to mention, I feel like a lot of anti-aging products on the market are, as Brightest Bulb would put it, total bullshit. Most of the ingredients listed don't soak into your skin. They don't rewrite your DNA (and we would be in trouble if they did). They don't make you suddenly look 30 years younger. 

I truly believe that everyone should love the one body that they have, for all of its flaws and lines and quirks. If you want to take care of your skin by using youthful looking products...just be careful. Read the labels. Try it first. Ask if it's worth the money. And as for makeup...Well, I think we all know what can happen when someone wears makeup that is out of their age range. 

Yes, this is a rant. But I also don't have any products starting with Y. So there you go. 

And yes, that picture was taken at my wedding. 

Thanks for reading!

A to Z: X is for eXfoliation

This is a review of Aveeno's Smart Essneitla Daily Detoxifying Scrub.

This was a sample I received in one of Target's beauty bags, and it's what I carry with me on long trips.

Overall, I feel like exfoliation is something that everyone has strong feelings about. Some people do it every day, some never. Either way, pretty much everyone in the beauty industry has an opinion about exfoliating, and every opinion seems to be different. 

My opinion? I exfoliate very slightly with the face scrubbies I reviewed previously. Every time I was my face, I use that. I wouldn't term that exfoliation, though. It's more of a deep scrub. 

I exfoliate pretty seldomly, to be perfectly honest. I feel that if you scrub off too much skin, it's either going to be really dry or really oily. And I know this because my skin likes to go both ways. If I exfoliate too often my skin either flakes off or I break out because of all of the oil. 

I find that exfoliating once a week or even once every two weeks is perfect for me. That, in addition to using the face scrubbie, keeps my skin relatively balanced and happy. 

When I do need to exfoliate, I pull this stuff out of my travel bag. 

The exfoliating bits are small, so I don't feel like I'm sandpapering my face off. The solution that the bits are suspended in is gentle and cleansing. It doesn't make my skin feel tighter than usual. It doesn't cause any adverse reactions for me. And while the ingredients aren't exactly wonderful (sulfates are the third ingredient), I use this so seldom that I don't think it's going to cause any long term effects. 

This is a pretty decent product for the price, and I know that it's getting the job done in the safest way possible. 

Thanks for reading!

Review: Ruby Wings Take 2

Like I said in my first review of Ruby Wings, their customer service is unbelievable!

Within a few days of talking to them via email, I had a package containing the color changing Fate, a lavender indoors and a rich violet outdoors.

What follows is the review. Just for sanity's sake, I will state that this sample was provided to me for consideration.

This is Ruby Wing's Fate indoors. It actually looked a little lighter, but unfortunately no light seemed capture the color exactly right. It's a nice, muted lavender. A little on the dark side. Not pastel or frilly, but still feminine.

Outdoors, within seconds, it changed to a dark, rich purple. Definitely a significant difference, I'd say, and a lot better than the sample bottle that I received in my Birchbox.

Overall, this polish was much better to work with than the sample of Peony that I reviewed earlier. What you see here is three thin, manageable coats of Fate. It went on smooth, with none of the weird, stringy, pooling mess from before. There were no bald patches after two coats, but I put on a third just in case I missed something. 

You'll notice in the second photo that there are some decent chips in my polish. That picture was taken at the end of day three of wear. And I have come to assume that I will always chip my polish within three days since I work with my hands a lot. 

Even without the staying power of a standard polish, this is a fun little addition to my collection. I like that the colors are within the same family, so both indoors and out my nails looked good with my outfit. It was also a great conversation starter.

I'm very proud to say that Ruby Wings has good polish and amazing customer service. I can't wait to try out more of their products in the future. 

Thanks for reading!

A to Z: W is for Working with What You've Got

I was going to write this post on another topic, but I covered my makeup wedges is another post. So here goes. This is completely unplanned and off the cuff!

Aw, who am I kidding? Most of my posts go through only minor editing because I like writing from the heart. Not from the agenda.

This is something that I struggle with ALL THE TIME. Seriously. Because in addition to the other issues I have, I have some pretty bad self esteem issues. I mean... totally, self loathing, can't look in the mirror issues.

I find myself in a flux of desperately wanting to love myself for how I am and how I look, but then hating glancing in the mirror. And honestly, I feel like this is what a lot of women struggle with. Especially women my age. 

But in the end, you can't just give up. You can't. Because that would be the absolute worst thing to do. 

So what do you do? You work with what you've got!

Round face? You can pull off rosy cheeks and bold lips to make yourself look like a classic pinup. Or do something bold with your eye shadow to make yourself look less cute and more edgy.

Long nose or jawline? There are tutorial everywhere for diminishing the shape through special highlights and contours...Or, you can rock it! Show off what evolution gave you. 

I know that one that got me to love the way my face looks is to check up on why my face is shaped this way. Genetically speaking. I'm Irish and German, and both of those cultures had some interesting bouts of feast and famine. My face (and body) is designed to hold onto weight to survive a potentially tough future. 

And the fact that my body recognizes that? BRILLIANT! I, personally, love to do simple eye shadow and the really add blush to my cheeks so that I look young and fresh and adorable. I'm not a fan of myself with the edgy look because I always feel like I'm trying too hard. Not to mention, the faux blush emphasizes the roundness of my face, which is what I'm working with.

I could say a lot more about loving yourself for who you are, but there are a myriad of videos on the internet to help with that. Watch them if you're ever in need of a boost. I like to watch something empowering right before I put on my makeup, that way I feel more confident and more awesome.

Thanks for reading this random text post!

Juice Beauty CC Cream Review

This was a sample that I received from my friend Patricia. She already has a BB cream that she’s in love with, while I’m having…not so much luck. I was eager to try this, though, since Birchbox sells it. With my accumulating Birchbox points, I could easily afford this.

Right out of the bottle, I knew this CC cream and I were going to be fast friends. It smells. Like. Heaven. Fruity and floral, but still natural, Juice beauty got “fresh” right on nose.

This CC cream does have a slightly thicker consistency than what I’m used to, but that didn’t hinder its application at all. In fact, this stuff applied like a dream. It wasn’t streaky or thick, and soaked right in. It didn’t look like I was wearing makeup at all! In fact, I looked like I was just naturally awesome.

It didn’t cover up freckles or blemishes, but it did even out my skin tone something fierce. Even the redness in my t-zone was pretty much gone.

This also lasted all day. It helped the rest of my makeup stay on even longer, and it didn’t feel heavy at all. In fact, it felt light and comfortable. A few times, I had to remember that I had put on makeup in the morning.

Let me tell you, this stuff is absolutely a winner. I can see myself buying this once my current foundation (Covergirl Natureluxe) runs out. Which could be a while, but I might accidentally spill the Covergirl so I can get this sooner.

Way to go, Juice. You guys did very, very well.

Thanks for reading!

A to Z: U and V are for...UV!

Cheating? Maybe. Creative? Oh, I think yes.

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Today's post is all about something near and dear to my heart: Sunlight.

I'll be the first to tell you that I spent a good portion of my senior year of college tanning. Yes, me. The pale-skinned, easy-to-sunburn redhead. I would slather on a thin layer of low SPF and lay out in the sun for at least an hour, sometimes more, taking a few chances to jump into the pool to cool off. 

Although my skin got slightly darker, I did start to notice a few side effects. First off, my skin started getting really oily. Whether it was from the sunscreen or the sunlight, I don't know. But it got to the point where I would have to use oil blotting sheets several times a day. Normally, my skin isn't that oily. In fact, it's a little on the dry side.

I also started getting serious heat problems. I would be in my air conditioned apartment and suddenly feel like I was back out in the sun again. Frying. I would have to shower off to deal with it. 

Then came the acne, the hair turning from red to blonde.

Sure, the skin color was nice. I don't like looking like the underside of a trout. But then my dad came home with skin cancer. And that was the day I called it quits. I stopped hanging out poolside unless I was actually hanging out. 

And from then on, I wore nothing less than 30 SPF. I still won't.

I've had a history with bad sunburn. Once, it was so awful, it ruined an entire vacation with my then boyfriend/now husband's family. I spent the rest of that week trapped inside the beach house, miserable. 

Now that I'm a little older and have all of that knowledge to pull from, I'm super careful about sun exposure. I still like sitting out in the sun, soaking up the vitamins, reading, listening to music. But I don't do it purely to tan now. I don't want to be 40 or 50 and look like I'm 80, y'know?

As if reading my mind, Birchbox has been putting out all sorts of videos about sunscreen and SPF lately. And I really like them. I'm slowly wrapping my mind around the fact that it's something I have to do to keep my skin healthy. Limit sun exposure and always wear some form of SPF.

My general routine? My moisturizer has SPF 15. As does my foundation powder. My chapstick, also, is a great protector. And if I know I'm going to be in the sun for a while, I always don my Neutrogena Ultra Sheer that I mentioned earlier. Usually, 30 SPF. 70 if I know I'm going to be out for a while.

Seriously, guys. I know that it's super popular to look tan and glowing and golden. But be safe. There's no reason that something as fleeting as a good tan should ruin your skin later. 

Thanks for reading!

April Birchbox: Number 4 Blow Dry Lotion

First and foremost, I really don’t blow dry my hair that often. Maybe once in a blue moon. I usually just let my hair dry naturally, since that seems to be what makes it happiest. Not to mention, blow drying often can really damage hair, and mine is finicky enough without assistance.

So when I received this product in my Birchbox, I was pretty ambivalent. I knew it probably wouldn’t end up being purchased simply because I have no need for a blow dry lotion.

But I used it. And reviewed it. For you guys. (You’re welcome.)

And really, I’m glad I wasn’t too excited about it. I think I might have used too much, but even on the side where my hair soaked it in fine, it wasn’t impressive. My hair wasn’t shinier or healthier looking, and it didn’t seem to make the style stick anymore than usual.

On the side where I accidentally put too much in…well…My hair was mostly dried and I had to rinse it out in the sink because it was like wearing a helmet. A sticky, oily looking helmet.

Even after rinsing it out, my hair was kind of tacky all day. It certainly made my hair stay in place, but it worked almost like the hair putty that I have for costuming.

Overall, it just wasn’t a pleasant experience. Maybe if I used it properly, but even then I don’t think I would get the results I was looking forward to. Still, it was nice to try! And it also established BeautyProtector as my  number one hair product for blow drying.

Thanks for reading!

A to Z: T is for Tools

Today's (on time) post is going to be all about the tools that I use.

I think they're pretty important. But more on that later. First, pic spam!

This is, quite literally, the first serious makeup brush I ever bought. It's a kabuki brush that I bought with my first blush. In college. Yeah, I was a bit of a late bloomer. Still, this brush has lasted me for about four years. I keep it clean, treat it like gold, and love it to pieces. Because it is the absolute best (IMO) for putting on my BareMinerals foundation powder. Nice coverage, good natural bristles. I love this thing. And really, having one brush you love and use regularly is so much better than a hundred that you don't. 

This is a small travel set of brushes that I got at Sally's Christmas clearance for less than a dollar. Everything I need, on the go. 

I never use the spongy white one (you shouldn't, they're terrible), but I keep it in case of emergencies. Sometimes I will use it to remove smudged mascara when I don't have a q-tip handy. 

These...these are also precious to me.

I got them on Amazon for about $5, plus shipping, and they are the absolute best eye shadow brushes I have ever come across. All of the brushes I could ever need, each uniquely designed for a specific purpose. This is one of those times where the tool really changed how professional my makeup looked. 

Before these tools, I was just using the sponge applicator that came with the shadow. That really just wasn't giving me the accuracy or coverage that looked good, though. These tools changed all that. Now I can contour, shade, and smudge to my heart's content. 

Here's the brand, in case you wanted to invest in these for yourself.

More cheap brushes from Sally's clearance section. The one on the right is what I primarily use for blushes. The mini kabuki on the left I use for lots of different things, sometimes translucent power, sometimes blush. The middle one I haven't used yet, but it for foundation. 

This is the reason I haven't used that middle brush for foundation. I have found that these super cheap makeup wedges are perfect. The front side is for foundation, the back is for fixing blush if I need to. It gives me pretty good precision and nice coverage. 

If you'll notice, I don't have a whole lot of brushes. Because, honestly, I don't need them. Everything here I use pretty regularly, with a few exceptions. I wouldn't know what to do with one of those fan shaped brushes. I don't have a clue about the vibrating makeup puffs that are all the rage in Korea. 

So really, this is all that I need. And I'm not ashamed to say that, either. 

Now maybe, down the road, if I get better at applying my makeup...sure. Then I'll invest in fancy brushes whose uses I can't even imagine right now. 

But as a beginner, this is all that I need. 

Thanks for reading!

A to Z: S is for Soap

All natural, all the way!

I'm a HUUUUUGE fan of soap. And I'm not just saying that because it's a wonderful, cleansing product. And I'm not talking about that crappy bar stuff or, even worse, body wash. Shudder.

Ever since college, I've been a huge fan of this stuff:

Handmade, all natural soap. No SLS, no chemical perfumes, and lots of love.

Each bar is crafted by someone, out in the world, that I have met or talked to in person. Each bar smells delicious and unique and true. And I know that these soaps are the absolute best for my skin. Moisturizing bars? Got 'em. Bars that smell like a fresh cup of chai tea? In the shower now.

As far as vendors go, I've gotten soap from lots of different places. A couple of my currents bars are from conventions. A few are from Etsy. I'll include a list of all of my favorite retailers at the tail end of this post. For now, more bragging.

These soaps also last forever. I use a loofah soap holder from Walmart that cost me less than a dollar, and I can keep a bar of soap going for at least a couple of months. And because they're in a loofah, they don't grimy or gooey. They stay just as fragrant as when I purchased them. 

And what really makes me happy? The fact that I am helping folks at home run their own business, doing something they have a passion and talent for. Big box soap manufacturers don't care. They only see dollar signs. But the people that I buy soaps from love making things that make people happy. And that along makes me happy! Not to mention having a wonderful soap that feels amazing, is good for me, is great for the environment, and smells absolutely divine. 

Yay artisan crafts! Try out some homemade soap from one of the below retailers. I promise you won't be disappointed!

Thanks for reading!

Soap retailers that I use regularly:

Ele and Honey

Tea Gypsy

Rocky Top Soap Shop

St. John's Soap Works

Daisy Cake's Soaps