I’ve always loved the idea of having a streamlined beauty routine, but I haven’t always taken the right steps to move in that direction. With the winter season approaching and some travel planned for the end of the month, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to carefully edit the products on my vanity. I’ve been having a lot of fun just using my winter beauty capsule, so I thought I would share with y’all what I’ve been using.
Tag Archives: beauty
7 Steps to Longer, Stronger Hair
This is me (well, this is my hair) six months ago. About two weeks after this photo, I chopped it all off, donating 10 inches to the American Cancer Society during Relay for Life fundraising efforts. I was so happy to support a wonderful cause, and I was really loving my new “lob”. Fast forward to about two months ago when I realized I was really, really missing my long hair. During the summer months, all I want to do is throw it into a fun ponytail or top knot. There is still not enough length for a full bun and there is nothing “fun” about my stubby ponytail. Suffice to say, I’m ready for it all to grow back. I measured it out recently, and I realized I have grown back almost 4 inches in the past 6 months! Hair normally grows only half an inch a month, so I must be doing something right! I’ve also noticed how much thicker my hair is. It used to require 2 twists of my ponytail holder to secure it and now I only need to do one. Frizz is pretty much nonexistant unless I step outside during the sauna that is the Deep South after a summer afternoon storm. Now that I am paying closer to attention to my hair, here’s what I do to help my hair grow stronger and longer.
Rifle Paper Co x LeSportSac Cosmetic Bags
Just like my obsession with cosmetics, I’ve been captured by cute cosmetic bags for as long as I can remember. Nothing feels more perfect than have a well-edited makeup collection all wrapped up in a cute pouch. Considering this, I thought it was a little crazy when I realized I have never actually purchased a pouch for the purposes of holding my cosmetic essentials. I have had about a million (not even an exagerration) free with purchase bags over the years that I have used. And I did purchase a Vera Bradley travel pouch for toiletries awhile back. But nothing specifically for makeup. When I saw the collaboration between LeSportSac (known for it’s graphic, yet utilitarian, luggage, purses, and accessories) and Rifle Paper Co. (the beautiful stationary and gift brand that just so happens to be headquarted in my birthplace), I knew it was time to invest in some cute cosmetic pouches.
August Favorites
1. Beautycounter Hydrate Body Lotion – First off, the citrus mimosa scent is everything. When I purchased this product, I knew it was scented, but I wasn’t overly concerned with the smell because everything from Beautycounter smells pleasant to me. But this scent is so completely on point. It’s like Sunday Brunch in a bottle minus the dehydration (and eventual headache) that comes with daydrinking. There aren’t many body lotions in my life that I have repurchased. I normally move from brand to brand because nothing sticks out to me. But I was really blown away by how quickly this sinks in. Summer months normally call for lighter moisturizers so I’m not sure yet how well this will do with very dry skin, but I can tell you this soothes irritation really well. I recently used a new bath soak sample that was fragranced with eucalyptus and lavender. After I got out of the tub, my skin felt super dry and itchy. I slathered this from head to toe and my skin immediately felt better. I can imagine this is a great after sun lotion as well. This now has a permanent spot in my shower.
14 Back to School Beauty Essentials
When you have lived and worked with college students for a decade, you know a thing or two about “back to school”. There’s a lot of preparation for your new digs – bedding, cookware, and Pinterest-inspired DIY decor galore. And prepping for your actual classes by purchasing textbooks and major-related supplies. Shout out to all my design majors spending quadruple digits on supplies every semester. Y’all are the real MVPs. But, of course, there are the other situations you want to be prepared for. Nothing hurts your confidence more than feeling like a hot mess while you’re navigating campus life. So I have decided to bestow upon you my wisdom 😉 Here are my recommendations for can’t-live-without beauty products to get you through all that college life throws at you!
Beach in a Bottle: Lani Tropical Hair & Body Treatments Review
I don’t recall the first place I noticed Lani products. Or even the second or third. I just remember that I kept seeing this gorgeous turquoise bottle in Instagram and Pinterest photos, meticulously placed in a beach setting or next to some bright hibiscus flowers. Some products just portray a certain lifestyle, and this bottle was telling me “if you buy me, you will feel like a bronze goddess with a flowy mane of perfect beach waves”. How can you resist a promise like that! So I hopped onto the Lani website and ordered their Tropical Hair Treatment and Tropical Body Treatment. The products arrived about 11 business day later, about average for a product from overseas.
Creating an Energizing Morning Routine
One of the tasks in my 30 Step Minimal Challenge is creating an energizing morning routine. I fully believe that if you don’t start your morning right, you’re not going to have a successful day. Since moving up to Alabama, I have crafted the perfect routine for helping me make the most of my mornings. My mornings normally go like this:
While You Were Sleeping: Nighttime Beauty Products
Getting your beauty rest takes on a whole new meaning when you add the right products to your nighttime routine. We spend a third of our day sleeping so why not do a little bit of multitasking while you’re catching some shut eye. These products are some of my favorites for getting the most out of my bedtime.
Stop Battling Your Face: My Love-Your-Skin Guide to Blemish Control
Recently I have talked to a lot of ladies about their skin care woes. It seems like everyone is having major breakout issues this summer. And after having the same talk over and over again, I decided to skip my scheduled post for today and talk about how to care for oily/acne-prone skin.
Josie Maran Cosmetics
The first product I tried by Josie Maran was her Argan Oil Moisturizing Stick. It was like a big stick of lip balm except better, promising to moisturize chapped lips, soothe dry skin, tame fly aways, alleviate itching and stinging from insect bites, moisturize dry cuticles, relieve chafing skin, soothe stretch marks, calm sunburn, soothe waxed skin, and much more. Bliss had a similiar 20-in-1 balm on the market at the time, but I was drawn to the organic, natural, and paraben-free ingredients in Josie Maran’s version. I purchased the big stick for about $22 from Sephora. It came in a shiny rose gold tube promising to solve all of my moisturizing needs. I used the stick for few different purposes: as a lip balm, undereye moisturizer, cuticle softener, to tame my unruly eyebrows, basically everything that was promised on the tube. I repurchased this product multiple times (it is no longer carried by Sephora now, unfortunately), and I found myself drawn to some of the other items in the Josie Maran skincare line.
Lauren, Etc. 