as promised i did a round up of some of my favorite beauty products and things i use religiously.
so hunker down with some strong coffee and get ready for some dumb blogger's stupid tips!
first of all know this..
i use a lot of different stuff for my hair, face and body.
i like to change it up.
and i get sucked into the latest trends, pretty packaging and what angelina jolie uses to get her alien glow just like everyone else.
and chances are if the gooper uses it i will use it too.
this is admittedly my douchiest quality.
that and apparently ripping up sweatshirts according to um no.
but these are the products i come back to over and over and pretty much always have on hand.
skin facts:
my skin is oily-ish dry-ish (totally truth).
i have big pores and a wrinkle in my forehead (aka the furrow of hate),
but i am relatively wrinkle free for my age (genetics).
unless i smize and then i have the feet of the crow.
but that's totally acceptable.
because everyone's prettier when they smize.
anyway...big pores. i has 'em.
which means i also have zits.
but..
i believe my skin complaint in the near future will be sagginess and jowls.
this is the path i am headed down.
starting face yoga immediately.
seriously.
it's my next project.
hair facts:
my hair is wavy if i leave it alone and straight if i run a brush through it.
it's also colored/bleached.
and like my skin- oily.
the primary reason i can never have full bangs is because
shit gets greasier than mama june's 3rd chin.
ok, so now you know the know.
here are the goods..
1. my go to cleanser for all times..
acure cleansing gel facial cleanser.
it cleans wo drying it out.
simple as that.
i have tried thousands of cleansers over the years and they either dry my skin out so bad i need to slather my skin in moisturizer which then leaves it too greasy bc it has to compensate,
OR the cleanser leaves a film on my face.
hate.
this one is good.
does none of the above. is organic and not too expensive.
2. face scrub...
boots in shower facial polish.
i love the smell and it scrubs well.
it's also at target and like 8 bucks.
i think it's silly to buy expensive exfoliators.
some might argue silly to buy them at all when you can make them with some ground nuts and apple cider vinegar.
which i do...but most of the time i am waaaaay too lazy to whip up a batch and this is always in my shower for a good scrub.
and i scrub my face every other day.
but seriously...grab some almonds, grind them up, add a splash of apple cider vinegar and a few drops of lemon oil or basil oil and you have an awesome exfoliator for your face that also tones and brightens.
3. say hello to the best toner in the world...
gaelle organic's toner superieure.
shit is amazing.
worth every penny and something i never thought i needed until i began to use it.
i keep it in the fridge for major pore tightening.
i use it morning and night and it smells like roses and other flowers and shit.
and the lady on the front has an eye on her hand which is warding off the evil that is trying to ruin your beautiful skin.
4. moisturizer of my dreams..
also from gaelle organic.
creme suprerierue is expensive,
but a little goes a long way and it makes my skin glow.
really and truly.
it is regenerative and it's made for dry skin but my oily skin loves it too.
it is also worth every penny.
i use the teeniest tiniest bit i can and rub it in while the toner is still damp and this helps it to go further.
if you try any of the things on this list it's those last 2.
and that's it.
i don't get into specialized creams or wrinkle creams.
i think they are bull to the shit.
i think simple is best and too much is simply too much when it comes to skin.
i wish i could afford facials or at least remember to save for one once in a while bc i think they are kind of important.
and i DO want the clarisonic mia (asking for it for christmas)
but ultimately i think your skin will look good if you eat well and drink a lot of water.
period.
it won't matter what you put on it if the inside isn't up to par.
another thing i do once a month in lieu of spa facials is steam my face.
i boil some water in the kettle and hang my face over a bowl of steaming water for about 20 minutes.
throw a towel over your head and just let the steam open your pores.
after the 20 minutes is up i stand in front of my magnifying mirror and take a dry cloth and squeeze all the blackheads out.
GASP!
i know..some of you are like...no!! you should never ever do that...blah blah.
but if you do it correctly it's actually a GOOD thing to do.
that dirt and oil and shit settles in your pores and causes breakouts and dull skin.
so..
how do you do it correctly?
well...steam the shit out of your skin so that nasty dirt comes out easily.
don't use your bare fingers.
use a soft cloth or a tissue between your two pointer fingers and squeeze and wipe, squeeze and wipe.
then when you are good and red and crazy looking..
take 2-4 drops of lavender essential oil and rub it in your palms to distrubute and then rub THAT all over your face.
this will kill all the bacteria that may be lingering and it will reduce the redness from residual bruising or breaking you might have caused to the capilaries.
next up is the make up i use every day..
ok i don't wear make up every day.
but i am not as cute anymore without it, so i probably should.
but when i do this is it:
it covers everything.
i have used it forever.
2. bare minerals spf foundation in fairly light.
have also used this forever.
i don't wear any other foundation ever.
it has changed my life.
3. sephora eye-shadow duo in fresh brown.
it's actually a brownish burgundy and a pinkish taupe.
looks great with blue eyes.
fact: i only wear eye-shadow when i have an audition or a date.
also fact: i never wear eye-shadow.
4. tarte bronzer in park avenue princess.
great for fair skinned blondes.
i put it on my cheeks like blush and my forehead and chin and nose.
then i put my blush over that, but just on the apples of my cheeks.
5. nars powder blush in desire.
the best shade of pink on earth.
it looks great on everyone.
6. smith's minted rose lip balm.
i never ever wear lipstick or lip gloss.
this is the closest i get.
7.
blue bottle for my dewy face spray.
ok..so after i put on all of the make up...but before mascara and lip balm...i spray my face several times with my home made magic face spray.
it's especially great if you use the powder foundation from bare minerals.
it sets everything and just leaves your skin looking dewy, not like you just put on make up.
i keep distilled water in the fridge basically until it expires which is like, almost never.
then i add it to the blue bottle to which i have added 20 drops of lavender (winter and fall)
or 20 drops of tea tree (spring and summer).
you can add any oil you want...rose oil is great if you have really dry skin as is carrot oil.
i have been doing this for years.
one of my all time favorite books on essential oils is this one:
there is a cure-all recipe for just about everything in this book.
my copy is well worn and well loved.
ok hair stuff.
again...i use a lot of different stuff.
i don't wear any creams or styling products.
ever.
well with one exception if i have to..i'll get to that in a minute..
but as far as shampoos and conditioners go..i really have tried them all.
cheap, expensive, no chemicals, lots of chemicals...
i am a fan of pureology and go back to that quite a bit but for the last year i have used...
yep.
and trust me when i say it is hard for me to buy anything from this guy:
because he is clearly not a real human.
he is a cartoon camel.
but i have to say my hair is softer and shinier and bouncier.
and i guess that's all anyone really wants for their hair to be, right?
the only drawback is that it takes longer to get the job done.
you have to really work up a sort of pseudo lather and that takes a good bit of elbow grease and approximately 7 minutes.
but there is no conditioner unless you are doing a deep coniditoning which is a separate product.
so that's a positive.
john masters organics sea salt spray.
so i mentioned that i don't use styling products and i really don't.
except for when i need a little hair spray to set a curl or something to help me tease my roots for an updo or whatever.
this product is not hairspray.
it's BETTER than hairspray.
get you some.
dr. bronners eucalyptus for my body.
also good for cleaning your make up brushes bc it's so gentle.
i love herbal smells.
tea tree is another favorite.
have cellulite and saggy skin?
guess what??
use a dry skin body brush religiously and you will greatly reduce all of that.
promise.
here's a tutorial.
and that's pretty much it.
at least for the products i use to make the outside pretty.
next up i will post about the inside out.
which includes the magic of apple cider vinegar, charcoal capsules, bach essences, yoga, and tracy anderson
to name a few.
so to end this long ass post i will tell you my top 5 important tips for good looks...
1. wash your face before you go to sleep at night.
2. do NOT over moisturize. this is actually counterintuitive and anyone who tells you different is a knucklehead.
3. drink water more than you drink anything else.
4. give up diet soda.
5. eat less (reasonably, this doesn't mean starve yourself. we americans eat far more than we need for the most part) and exercise.
