Favorites.... hair and skin care addition.

Last week I shared some of my favorite make up products. I am continuing this week with some of my favorite hair and skin care products!

 

1. Neutrogena Clarifying Shampoo. This stuff is great. I use it once a week or so in place of my regular shampoo and conditioner just to clear out the junk.
2. Organix Macadamia Oil Mask. I use this after I use my clarifying shampoo. I have used the expensive Macadamia Nut Oil mask, but this one works just as well for a FRACTION of the price.
3. Tresemme Heat Protectant. I wash my hair every other day and on washing days I need to blow dry so I love using this before hand to help protect.
4. Dove Nourishing Oil Treatment. I use this before the protectant on just the ends of my hair. I rarely get my hair cut so I like to make it last and keep it looking healthy.
5. Suave Dry Shampoo. I have tried TONS of dry shampoos and I always come back to this brand. I know some people don't like the smell, the build up, the white cast, BUT I don't have any of those problems. I love the scent. I don't get a build up, this is the only dry shampoo that will actually volumize my thick hair on day two of no washing, and I don't think it leaves a white cast on my hair.
6. The Body Shop Coconut Body Scrub. This is my favorite scent from The Body Shop. And this scrub is the best for me because I like the granule size and it isn't greasy.
7. The Body Shop Coconut Body Butter. Hands down best brand of body butter. I prefer this particular scent, makes me feel like I am on vacay.

8. Origins Checks and Balances Frothy Face Wash. I love a super foamy face wash, makes me feel like it is actually working! A little goes a LONG way with this product.
9. Philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash. I have my friend Brianna to thank for introducing me to this great product. Again, a little goes a long way. It is a little pricey, but lasts forever. And leaves my skin feeling SO SOFT!
10. Ole Henriksen Power Peel. My all time favorite face treatment. This three step system has a scrub, lemon peel, then mask. When I buy a 'treatment' I like to feel something happening on my face. The peel in this product stings a little, but feels like it is working. And my skin is a little red afterwards, but feels great. After moisturizing I feel as good as new.
11. Josie Maran Argan Oil. This is a miracle product. I use it as my serum/moisturizer. I have combination dry skin, and this stuff just makes it feel and look good! I usually use it at night.
12. Aztec Indian Healing Clay. I mix this powder with apple cider vinegar. Again this is a great treatment because it feels like it is working. My skin gets tight and when I wash it off my skin feels fresh.

Favorites... make up addition.

I thought it might be fun to share some of my favorite beauty products from 2013. I started making a list and have lots of favorites. I broke it down into makeup, hair care and face/body. This post has my favorite make up products, or the ones I find myself reaching for the most. 

 

1. Benefit Erase Paste, I am number 1. A little goes a long way, the peach undertone does a great job of concealing under eye darkness.
2. Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser. I have used the concealer and the brightener and love them both.
3. Cover Girl 3-1 Foundation. Great coverage, last all day.
4. BeautyBlender. I first received this as a sample in a Birchbox, and I haven't looked back. Love this thing for applying foundation. And if you take care of it (ie, wash it regularly) one will last a long time. I have only repurchased twice.
5. Tarte blush in Dollface. Lasts forever on my cheeks!
6. Hard Candy Bronzer in Tiki, I actually use this as a highlight. It doesn't have any glitter in it, it is more like a 'baked' shimmer product. Gives a great glow!
7. Rimmel Stay Matte powder in translucent. I use this mostly in the summer, when I really don't want to be shiny.
8. Buxom Lip Tarnish in Extortion, a neutral pinky color. I love this pencil, it tingles a little bit after you put it on and lasts awhile. I think it is advertised as a stain, but it doesn't last like a stain. I don't like that you have to sharpen it, I feel like it wastes product. But I really love it.
9. Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait, color matches well with my natural lip color so I feel like it just enhances what I have :) and it moisturizes.

10. Benefit Stay Don't Stray eye primer. I love this, it has a little bit of a yellow undertone color, so it is a great base for eyeshadow and really helps show off eyeshadow color and make eyeshadow last longer.
11. Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze. This is a great base or stand alone color. Easy to use, doesn't crease, lasts all day.
12. NYZ Jumbo Eye Pencils, these are great multitaskers! I have several colors. I use them as bases, stand alone color or as an eyeliner.
13. Cover Girl Clump Crusher. Mascara junkie I am not. I have been blessed with long full lashes. When I am buying a mascara I am usually just looking for something to darken my lashes and make them stand out more. I like this because it doesn't leave my lashes brittle.
14. Urban Decay Naked 2 palette. I have the first Naked palette as well, but I feel like I get more looks out of this one. I love the big mirror and the brush that came with it. I always travel with this palette.
15. Revlon ColorStay eyeliner in cocoa. I don't like dark liner, this is a great brown and stays put.

Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday....

I don't know if it is the super comfy maternity jeans and poncho sweater I am wearing, or the red cup from Starbucks I am drinking from and Christmas Pandora station playing in my office BUT I am in a GREAT mood today!

For my Five on Friday I am going to share some things I am loving:

1. I am loving these beauty advent calendars. I love advent calendars, I love beauty products, what could be better?!

Benefit's Countdown to Love

ciate's calendar is available at Sephora

 

2. S'more brownies. My dear sweet friend Megan sent me these for my birthday (she always sends me something wonderful for my birthday) and they are DELICIOUS! I may or may not have finished the pan already.

3. Southern Living Thanksgiving Edition. I was over at my old boss' house last Saturday and he had his edition of Southern Living out on the table and it had all the Thanksgiving recipes. The Salted Caramel Chocolate Pecan pie looks like a winner to me.

 

I am hosting Thanksgiving this year. My parents are coming from VA and my brother and sister in law are coming from FL. I will feed them, then put them to work painting the nursery and putting together baby furniture :)

4. It is getting COLD around here. And I have to have my fuzzy warm socks. My feet are always freezing. Target has cute cheap socks. I have a couple of pairs like this, but I usually end up stealing a pair of Kyle's extra thick wool socks.

5. And speaking of cold, my hands are always dry this time of year. I love Soap and Glory, Hand Food. Smells great, works great!

 

Five on Friday

I am currently on my way to VA and I could not be more excited! This weekend is my friend Megan's 30th birthday celebration and I get to have a reunion with some of my favorite people that I haven't seen since March! I also get to spend time with my parents, which means full control over the menu. I have already put in requests for an apple pie, Megan's chicken (a cream cheese chicken recipe my mom makes, and my favorite growing up) and my dad's homemade cinnamon rolls. The baby and I are going to PIG OUT!

I decided to link up for Five on Friday and share some things from this past week:

1. The Body Shop is having a "buy 3, get 3 free" deal on some of my favorite scents. I love the cocoa butter scent (it has been my go to pregnant belly lotion) and the Vitamin E line of face products are great! Sale ends October 28th!

Really great gentle cream cleanser

Hands down BEST body scrub

2. I made the mistake of reading this article on BabyCenter about what happens to your body after you give birth. I have read What to Expect When You're Expecting and had all the sex ed stuff in health class, but until I read this article I didn't really know what to expect to happen to MY BODY after delivery. I know this is the miracle of life, it's going to be hard, it is so rewarding, etc. But man, if you want some FREE birth control, read that article!

3. The last couple of weeks my energy has totally surged. I mean like higher energy levels than before I was pregnant. I have used this time to prioritize walking and getting in exercise. And Kyle has started walking with me. Just between you and me, he has gained some sympathy weight. So I have been encouraging him to join me. I wonder what the chances are of me getting him to do the prenatal yoga DVD?

Saturday's hour long excursion.

 



4. I made chocolate chip cookies last night. They are so delicious. Sometimes you just have to return to the basics and make a classic like the chocolate chip cookie. I will make sure to pack some of them in my carry on for the flight!

5. Bouncing around on some blogs this week I saw a recipe for homemade fruit and veggie gummy snacks. I def want to try these out!

Birchbox January

So I cancelled my Birchbox subscription. And January was my last box. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Birchbox. But I can think of a better way to spend $110. Anyway, I thought I would do a quick write up of my last box.

Yet another perfume sample. This one is not in a pump and it drives me crazy. I am less likely to use the ones that don't come in a pump. I loved the Embryolisse moisturizer and it is a decent price! The clarifying shampoo smells GREAT. I don't like that it is low suds. I love the Balm and this Hot Mama blush is really pretty. I would not use it as a highlighter, it is too pink, and I haven't tried as a shadow. Kinda of a weird shadow color. Finally the Deborah Lippmann nail polish remover smells good and was a great break from my Equate brand nail polish remover pads, but I don't think I would buy the Lippmann version.

Eternal Optomist

I love a good pink nail polish. It just screams feminine and classy. The other night I painted my nails 'Eternal Optomist' by Essie.

Matches my pink pajama pants!

Samples for everyone!

I recently ran out of my daily moisturizer that I LOVE, boscia Oil- Free Daily Hydration. While I love boscia products I wanted to try something new. It was my birthday so I was able to redeem my free gift with purchase from Sephora and that helped guide my purchase. I got a Mini Lip Duo from fresh. I really like the Sugar Rose.

Sephora was also running a promo on these "It Kit" samples. They had three kits to choose from so I picked the "Classic." It came with Murad Clarifying cleanser, Sephora Eye Make Up Remover, Lancome mascara, Sephora primer, Make Up Forever HD powder, Nars Velvet Gloss lip pencil, stila "In the Light" palette, L.I.L.Y. perfume from Stella McCartney and Cartier Baiser Vole perfume  SO MANY SAMPLES! I am enjoying them all so far: the Nars lip pencil is GREAT and I like the Sephora primer.

On top of those samples I got to pick the standard three free samples that come with every Sephora online purchase. I got a shampoo/conditioner sample, Origins serum and a Lancome primer. (The Origins serum is great, haven't tried the other samples.)

Then I had some Sephora Insider points so I picked up a Too Faced primer. (Haven't tried yet.)

This was ALL for this: an Origins box. Frothy face wash, face scrub, eye cream, anti aging serum and the VitaZing moisturizer. I am LOVING LOVING LOVING the moisturizer. I didn't know it had a tint, but the tint is GREAT. I am using it as a weekend moisturizer/ makeup. Love this box of goodies!

Vlogging... again.

I love a good vlog! It's been awhile since I did a vlog, when I saw Erin and Ashley are hosting a vlog link up I decided to join! Enjoy! p.s. sorry for the creepy thumbnail photo on the linky tool, I clicked the wrong picture on my computer and it uploaded an old photo of my husband. How embarrassing!

Midnight Navy

More dark colors. This is Midnight Affair by Revlon.

Looks like I missed spots, but that is just light reflecting. Love the dark navy!

October Birchbox

My October Birchbox, was ok. I was really excited about the beautyblender and the Chantecaille lip gloss. The gloss is a nude color and not TOO sticky, which I like. The beautyblender is a GREAT tool. I have wanted to purchase these and now that I have tired one I am definitely purchasing!

The Anti- Aging Oil was nice, I use argan oil now so it was a nice product to try, full size is just too expensive and I will stick with my argan oil. Same with the DDF moisturizer. Nice product, full size too expensive.

I know some people don't like when Birchbox sends snack bars, I LOVE THEM! I throw them in a drawer in my office and have an emergency snack stash! This Luna bar looks yummy!

Burgundy!

Happy Friday! Thought I would link up to share one of my favorite fall colors, burgundy. I love all the Essie fall colors, but I am really loving this color right now.

Essie- Skirting the issue

September Birchbox

Yeah, yeah yeah I know it is October. But I loved my Birchbox last month so I thought I would share.

 The Vasanti face scrub is great! I love it and I want the full size. The Color Club nail polish is a great color and I put it on right when I got my box. I also love the Bvlgari scent, perfect for fall. The hair tie is fun, totally useful and the Brush guards are clever. Great for travel. The only thing I didn't really like was the Wei To Go Beauty "Sleepover Kit" the CC cream was too light and I didn't like the texture. And I feel like the cleaner didn't really cleanse. I am more of a soapy lather kinda face cleaner. All in all I loved the box!

Fall Nails

Cooler temperatures, Pumpkin Spice Lattes and back to darker nail colors! Last night (while GiGi slept on my lap) I painted my nails with Sally Hansen 'Fearless Fog.' Love this color. Mix of purple and gray.

New me!

So I made a radical change, I cut 10 inches of hair off! I love having long hair, but I wanted something new. I am still getting use to it. 

My first swap!

So I participated in my first swap last month! This was so much fun! I was paired with Aubrey from High- Heeled Love! You should go check out her blog.

My box had a wonderful handmade card! Love the quote!

We both had the brilliant idea to recycle subscription boxes to mail our swap stuff in! 

Look at all those goodies! And she got my FAV lip gloss, eos!

I love the decorative plastic bag, it is so cute!

This was a mascara and  lip gloss swap, but my partner treated me to a little something extra! NAIL POLISH! 

Designer.. De Better

I may or may not have put this on immediately after opening my box :)

Benefit is also one of my favorite brands.  Love all of this! 

Aubrey did a great job! I felt like I was  getting a Birchbox, it had so much stuff in it. The swap was great! I loved trying new products and getting some of my favorites. I also loved adding another blog to my reading list! Thanks Aubrey!!!

Masquerade!

I am a beauty product junkie. My favorite skin care products are usually face masks. I love them! I thought I would share some of my favorites right now.

Mario Badescue Enzyme Revitalizing Mask- I use this once or twice a week. I think it keeps my face looking bright!

Mario Badescue Silver Powder- This stuff is AMAZING for acne prone areas. Dries it up FAST and I think helps heal it faster. I use as needed. I also think it makes pores less noticeable.

Something to mentioned about this line of products, they are pretty inexpensive. You can try lots of things without breaking the bank.

I actually first got a Masqueology sample in my Birchbox. I love them! You get 4 in a back for $24, which can be a little pricey. I usually use this every two weeks. There are different types to target different things. I also like the brightening mask. You don't wash your face after you use it, you rub in the remaining mask on your face. I liked it. Made me feel like it was actually doing something!

Currently my most favorite mask. It is a black peel off mask. It takes about 30/40 minutes to really dry, but when you peel it off you face feels tingley and fresh. Better than any exfoliator I have. I use this once a week.