Bye bye Winter Skin Blues

If you are like me, the change in seasons means dull, dry skin. Your beautiful summer glow is quickly being replaced by pale, lackluster skin and the cold weather days are far from numbered. Well, I have a few tricks in my arsenal to combat your winter skin blahs.

I’m sure you’ve all heard it before but exfoliation is key!! At this time of year more than ever it is extremely important to exfoliate regularly (at least once a week) to aid in cell turnover and to avoid that flaky skin from taking away from your otherwise beautiful canvas. For your body, I like a good, old fashioned loofa or a shower cream with exfoliating beads already in the mix. Try Softsoap’s Body Butter Coconut Scrub Body Wash for a luxurious and economical choice with an amazing coconut scent. For your face, I like the tried and true St. Ives Apricot Scrub (and for sensitive skinned lovelies like me, they do make a sensitive version). My newest find is Neutrogena’s Deep Clean Invigorating Foaming Scrub and my face is thanking me for it. They also have a matching face wash that is worth a look. (It has been working great at removing all my eye makeup with just one lather.)

Once, you are done exfoliating, your skin is primed to be pampered with an ultra-moisturizing lotion made for times like these. I swear by the Jergen’s line of skin lotions. From the Original Scent to the Shea Butter, I don’t really think you can go wrong. As far as facial moisturizers, I have a couple of picks for day and night. During the day, I am loving the Garnier Nutrioniste Skin Renew. Within the Garnier Nutrioniste line, I also love their Night Treatment and would use it all day if it had an SPF. At night, I have also been employing Clinique’s Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion. This lotion has a great, light feel but its moisturizing power is undeniable. I originally purchased the Clinique as a day lotion but was surprised (and frankly disappointed) to find out that it does not have an SPF. Since, I do not often wear foundation, I count on my face lotion for sun protection as well, so it was a no-go. It works great at night, however, and would work during the day if you wear a separate sunscreen or foundation with a good SPF.

Now, that your perfect canvas is set, it’s time to embellish. Bronzers and highlighters are not only for the summertime. In fact, I think they are even more necessary those days when you have completely forgotten what the sun looks like. I am currently owing my lit from within glow the Physician’s Formula Shimmer Strips in Sunset Strip. These lovelies come in a variety of shades and can be used as eye shadows or bronzers. I find them a bit to shimmery to use as an all over bronzer but on the high points of the cheeks and above the brow bone, they are amazing! In a pinch, I have used them as eye shadows and they are gorgeous. Don’t you look a good multi-tasking product? You can find these at your local drugstore of choice but be sure to keep a lookout for a BOGO or 40% sale so you stock up and save!

On the pricier side, MAC makes a variety of Mineralize Skinfinishes that I also adore (check out the So Ceylon if you love a rosey, bronze as much as I do). Clinique lovers can rejoice that Clinique also makes a product called the Shimmering Tones Bronzer that works in a similar way. Pick your price point and product and glow on! (I promise that I am not normally this cheesy. Blame all of the Christmas music I have on repeat. Is all of your Christmas shopping done yet?)

Christmas in October

Although this holiday season may be a little less than jolly given the current state of the economy, the holidays do still mean great limited edition holiday gift sets from your favorite makeup brands. Most brands amp up the style, the packaging and the savings this time of year, so if you still have a little play money in your budget for numero uno or a makeup obsessed someone special, these sets could be perfect for you.


My beloved Smashbox has just released their holiday collection called Rapture. It includes a great essential holiday brush set ($49.00) and eyeshadow set which includes 8 eyeshadow duos and two brushes ($59.00). My pick from this collection is their set of 6 lip glosses. This collection last year is what introduced me to Smashbox. The color variety in this set is amazing, with shades of brown, nude, pink and berry. And you get a good amount of product (I’m still not done using up all of the glosses I purchased last year) but the size of the tube is perfect to slip into you smallest purse or into your skinniest jeans if you’re going super low profile.


Of course, makeup titan MAC knows a thing or two about a great holiday collection, too. Their Passions of Red collection is the most extensive holiday collection out there (release date: October 23rd) with 3 brush sets, a plethora of bejeweled eyeshadow and lip palettes, and much more (than I can fit into this run on sentence) all in the most festive shade of red. I could go on all day about this collection but I will stick what I think are the most drool worthy offerings.

I am in love with these eyeshadow palettes! The packaging alone is incredible but the colors are also so beautifully coordinated and it comes with a great little brush (and not those horrible sponge things). I am currently torn between the Cool Eyes and the Warm Eyes palettes but you honestly can’t go wrong with either of them. Their brush sets are also a great deal as you can try a variety of their renowned brushes for just a fraction of the regular price. Tis the season…

Recession Proof Your Beauty Routine: Makeup Edition

Like many of you, the economy really has me down lately which makes thinking about spending on things like makeup seem quite frivolous. I do, however, know that putting the kabash altogether on something that makes you happy and keeps you going, won’t help either. So, it’s time to find a way to get my beauty fix on a budget. I did a post a while back about recession proofing your beauty routine in terms of hair care, which I had said would be a series (whoops). Well, I suppose I’ll call this is the much delayed conclusion: Recession Proof Your Beauty Routine: Makeup Edition.

My most recent, not-so-wallet friendly addiction has been MAC products. My foray into the Cult of Cherry collection via the Spiced Chocolate quad completely converted me and I definitely found out what all the hoopla was about. In terms of pigmentation, staying power and quality, their stuff basically spits on everything I own, so, yeah, I’m converted. But I have found ways to fulfill my MAC addiction on a budget. First, there is the Cosmetics Company Outlet. These little outlets are normally a small section of another outlet store such as Saks Off 5^th (the Saks Outlet at my local mall). They sell MAC products, and various other brands as well, at about a 30% discount. Like your average clothing outlet, these will be items that are often no longer carried at your regular MAC stores or counters but are of great quality nonetheless. I have purchased MAC paints (awesome eyeshadow bases, by the way, but more to come on that in another post) for $11.25 vs. $16.50 full price, eyeshadows for $10.00 vs. $14.00, and lipglosses for $10.00 vs. $14.00. There are definitely great deals be had, so be sure to check it out!

Another way to save, if you’re not going to spring for pricey makeup at all, is looking to oft overlooked brands. I did a post about ULTA eyeshadows and how they are of such great quality for the price. They are my favorite affordable eyeshadow brand. Their shadows are huge, thoroughly pigmented, and have the smoothest texture. Paired with a good eyeshadow base like a MAC paint or Too Faced Shadow Insurance, they will last all day. Plus, ULTA regularly has these are on sale as BOGO free or just $3.00 a piece (they are normally $6.50). The only downer with these is that I love them so much that I have a ton and they can become a pain to store. The thing I love about the MAC shadows is that you can depot them and place them in palettes for easy storage. Well, chulas, I have got you covered! I found empty palettes you can buy online that fit these shadows perfectly, so you won’t have to fumble with those little pots. And these shadows are a breeze to depot because they are only held in their pots by a small bead of glue. Simply insert a small, sharp knife (be very careful) or hair pin along the size of the pan, pry the pan upward, and they’re loose. I’ve actually been able to remove some sans knife or pin, so that’s worth a try.

Another great way to save on eyeshadows is to only splurge on colors you are likely to get the most use out of. (How often are you really going to wear a lime green shadow?) Then if you want to branch out and try a funky look, look into a cheap eye shadow palette with a ton of great, funky colors to play around with like the 78 color palette from Coastal Scents. These shadows have great pigmentation and can give you great bang for your buck if you put them over a great base.

My last tip is to know when to splurge and when to save. For products with a short shelf life like mascara (yes, you with the mascara that you’ve been using since the dawn of time, you’re supposed to toss these puppies every 3-4 months), I would not spend a ton. There are great drugstore options like Covergirl’s Lash Exact, Volume Exact, and Lash Blast (my new favorite!). Maybelline has some great ones too but I’ve been using the Covergirl one’s lately. I would splurge on things like foundation, which is harder to match and has a long shelf life.

That’s all I have! If you have any great tips, please do tell in the comments!

Looks like for me 5 am is the new 7 am...

Good morning! Looks like you guys are getting another I'm up way too early in morning and I might as well make myself useful post.

My attempts at a moratorium on hair and makeup spending isn't going all that well (though I really haven't bought anything new for my hair since the Joico and Kenra liters I got on sale at Trade Secret). For some reason, I cannot leave the drugstore or Target without something makeup related in my hands. I will say that I have cut down quite a bit as I am trying to save up for a big birthday haul (my 25th bday is in November and I can't wait). I am mainly looking to purchase some Mac (officially converted by that Spiced Chocolate Quad) and Make Up For Ever products, so saving will definitely be necessary. (Lest you think I am completely irresponsible, I have been hitting my new revised monthly savings goal of $500- woo hoo!)

I did manage to leave Le Targe, as I like to call it, with something that I have been looking for forever- the L'Oreal HIP Jelly Balm! I don't know why these things have proven so darn ellusive but I went to a different Target this past weekend and there it was. Like a shining beacon of lip glossity goodness just waiting to be purchased. (This is what you get at 6 in the morning, ladies!) They were a bit on the pricey side (I really need to stop buying this stuff when it's not on some sort of BOGO sale- ULTA is having one by the way!) at $7.99 but it is amazing. I purchased Succulent (love the names of the colors by the way), which is a pretty berry meets mauvey color (as shown below).
You get unbelievable sheer, luscious color with these things. And the best way to describe the texture really is "jelly balm." It's so incredibly soft on your lips and the shine you get is beyond lust worthy. I've been rocking this on my way too overworked to do a full face of makeup, but don't forget I'm still fabulous days and cannot wait to get more. I'd have to say, however, that the best and worst thing about these glosses is the packaging. I hate having to put my finger in my on the go makeup. I'd love to just be able to reapply as needed without having to worry about what grossness my hands have been privy to throughout the day. But I have to say that this product does feel so amazing on your fingertips as you apply it and that the pot really gives you an appreciation for the texture. Oh well, completely torn on that one. I do have a portable lip brush but then I most certainly would not apply it outside of the bathroom for fear of looking uber high maintenance. Who me? Never!

Cult of Mac

I am sure my MAC addicts out there have been eagerly awaiting the Cult of Cherry Collection for quite some time now (though how can you keep up with the all of the collections MAC has been releasing what seems like every week now). However, I am not among you (travesty, I know) as I only have a few MAC products: a few lip glasses, some blotting powder, a lip pencil, and some tinted moisturizer, most of which I purchased for my wedding; I had most wonderful MAC artist do my makeup- shouts to Laura Vaeth!

Either way, I saw a few YouTube videos and read a few reviews on the eye shadow quads in this collection and I think I am in love. I am particularly obsessed with the quad in Spiced Chocolate. This quad is an infinitely wearable, totally modern take on fall neutrals. I think the colors would perfectly compliment any woman of color and the quad is a perfect addition to your makeup case if you’re just looking for a few things to update your makeup as we go into fall. The quad is $36.00 and will be available when the collection is officially released next Tuesday, August 19th (online; August 21st in stores). See you there!