Hey guys! Remember me?! I know, it's been way too long since my last post. 10 days, if you want to get technical. I honestly am not sure why it's taken me so long to write up a post. I think part of me is feeling a bit blah in general, I've been exhausted from work, and when I get time to relax, all I want to do is just sit on my butt and do nothing. And with the holiday's coming up, my work schedule might be getting a bit crazy in the next couple weeks, so posting may be sporadic. I'm just warning you now! Anyways, sorry for the long intro, but today's post is going to be my current nighttime skincare routine. I did a post earlier this month on my morning skincare routine here if you want to check that out.
I shower at night, so I wash my face in the shower and I start out with Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleanser. I really love this cleanser. I featured it in a past favorites post and I just love how well it cleans my skin. I remember I used to hate this stuff but now that I'm older and my skin has changed, it's an amazing cleanser.
Next up, it should be no surprise that I use The Body Shop Aloe Calming Toner. I've talked about this product about a million times and it's still my favorite toner to use at night. I just started using it during the day as well because my skin is starting to get drier due to the colder weather. This toner really is so calming and when I feel like my skin is being sensitive, it just helps so much.
Then I use the Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Gel for all skin types. I was using the lotion version of this for years and decided to try this one instead once I ran out, and I'm in love. Even with my skin getting drier, this product helps my skin feel soft and keeps my blackheads in check. I have incredibly large pores, so dirt and oil love them. When I don't use this, I start noticing my pores looking larger and my blackheads getting darker. This stuff is a miracle worker!
Now my moisturizer changes depending on my mood and how my skin is feeling, but the one I've been using regularly is the Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisture for Combination Skin. This moisturizer is incredibly light, but still hydrating enough to help with any dryness I may have. I've had this particular bottle for a really long time too since a little product goes a very long way.
The last part of my routine is an eye cream. I've been using the Own Lifting Eye Cream that I received from iFabbo. I did a full review on it here. I'm really loving this product alot. It's really hydrating but it still feels light. I'm not the biggest fan of heavy eye creams because they always seem to make my eyes puffy and sensitive. For me, this product is the perfect consistency for an eye cream.
Now these are products I switch out or use occasionally. When I mentioned above that I switch out my moisturizer depending on my skin, the next two products are what I use. The Own Firming Silk Concentrate is an awesome serum that I'll use by itself or I'll mix a couple drops in with the Neutrogena moisturizer for some extra hydration. If you have incredibly oily skin all year round, this would be a great moisturizer to use on its own. That's what I'd do in the Summer. I also did a review of this product here.
I'll also use the Hydroxatone AM/PM Anti-Wrinkle Complex SPF 15. Now even though this has SPF in it, it's too heavy for daytime use for me, but it's awesome as a night cream. I'll use this moisturizer after I've used a mask or some other treatment on my skin. After I use masks or other treatments, my skin can get dry at times, and this helps give me the hydration I need in my skin. Full review here.
For exfoliation, I tend to use a bunch of different products. I just ran out of a different scrub, so the one I fully switched over to is the Yes to Tomatoes Clear Skin Daily Pore Scrub. I did a full review of this here, and while I was reading it over again, I still agree with what I wrote about the first time. It's quite abrasive, which doesn't make for a good daily scrub. I'll use this 2 times a week tops. It leaves a film on your skin, so definitely follow up with a toner. I don't think it does much in helping with acne, but it does smooth out the skin. I probably won't repurchase this because it's too abrasive for my liking.
I use a mask about once a week or so and I've been loving the Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque. This mask is incredible if you have breakouts and oily skin. I notice if I have a few spots on my face and I use this mask, they're gone the next morning. I don't know what they put in this to make it so effective, but it's amazing, especially since it's so inexpensive!
Two to three times a week, I'll use my Clarisonic when washing my face. I used to use it every single night, but I started feeling that it was doing more harm than good, so I cut back. Since Ive done that, my skin feels alot better and less sensitive. Currently I'm using the Deep Pore brush head with it. I typically use either the Sensitive or Delicate brush head, but I can buy these where I work, and I wanted to try out something different when I got an extra discount. To be honest, I can't really tell the difference between the brush heads, but I'll probably end up buying the Delicate ones again since I do like those.
That's my nighttime routine! Let me know if you've tried any of these products! :)
I also am sorry again for my lack of posting, I really hope to get into a decent schedule soon!
Hey everyone! Sorry my Ipsy bag post is going up a bit later than normal. I received my Ipsy bag in the mail this past Friday and was away for the weekend so I didn't bring anything with me to be able to blog! Better late than never, right? Anyways, lets see what I got this month!
The theme for this month is called The Art of Beauty. I love the look of this bag! It's so cute with the all white and red lettering. This quote is pretty nice as well. Onto the products!
I'll admit, I'm not terribly impressed with the products I received this month. First, I received the La Fresh Eco-Beauty Oil-Free Face Cleanser Wipes. I've gotten wipes from this brand before in a past Ipsy bag but I haven't used them honestly. They're just sitting in my shoebox that I keep all my samples in. I will use them and the ones I just got eventually, but just when all my other face wipes run out.
I then received the Nourish Organic Deeply Nourishing Coconut & Argan Body Lotion. I've never heard of this brand before but I do love coconut smells so this seems promising.
I could do without this Big Sexy Hair Blow Dry Gel. Fun fact about me, I never blow dry my hair. Hell, I don't even own a blow dryer! Seriously, I shower at night and just let my hair air dry and in the morning, I just throw it up in a ponytail. Although, I did just buy a curling wand, so that hairstyle may change. Anyways, I have zero use for this product :/
Next, I received a Zoya Nail Polish in the color Giovanna. I do like Zoya nail polishes, but I have to admit, I'm a little tired of getting nail polishes in these bags! Don't get me wrong, I like nail polish, but I'm not one of those girls who constantly changes up their nail color. I'm lucky if I paint my nails once a month. I feel like all the nail polish I have is just sitting here in my room getting hardly any love. I'll use this, I'm just not sure when.
The last product I received is the Buxom Full-On Lip Polish in the color Dolly. Another meh product honestly. I have a ton of these Buxom glosses and I don't really feel like looking through all my lip products right now, but I'm about 95% sure I already own this color.
Now I'm not complaining by any means, but when I look at the other products I could've received this month, I would've loved to have gotten either one of the two Ole Henriksen products, the Coastal Scents Shadow Brush, the H2O Plus Hydrating Treatment or the Wet N' Wild Eyeshadow Palette.
I love Ipsy, and usually I love the products I receive but like I said, I'm not overly excited with the products this time around. I'm still staying subscribed because I know when I haven't really liked a bag, they usually redeem themselves later on! If you want to subscribe to Ipsy, you can right here! For only $10 a month, it really is a sweet deal! Even though I don't like every single product this month, the $10 spent is really worth it :)
If you're already subscribed to Ipsy, what did you receive this month?
Hey everyone! It's been a little over a year since I've done a post about my skincare routine, so I thought it was time to show you all the products I'm currently using. Now the routine I'm about to show you is still a good part of my Summer routine, and the weather is just now starting to cool down. I'll probably stick with what I'm using now for a few more weeks, then I'll change it up a bit.
The first product I start off with is the Soap & Glory Face Soap and Clarity 3-in-1 Daily-Detox Vitamin C Facial Wash. I just started using this a few days ago as I had ran out of what I was using prior, and so far I do like this. There are little exfoliating beads in this, but they're small enough where I can use this cleanser every morning without having it irritate my skin. The vitamin C in this helps to promote a glowing complexion, which I seem to really need right now. So far, so good!
The next product I use is The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner. This was featured in my last morning skincare post, and for good reason! I absolutely love this toner when my skin is feeling super oily, especially in the Summer. It can be drying, which is why I'll have to switch this out soon. I always have backups for my backups of this!
After toning my skin, I follow-up with the Clean Scene Begging for Balance Moisturizer. I purchased this when the Clean Scene line was carried at Sephora, which was quite a while ago to be honest. I don't really care for this moisturizer. It doesn't do anything special for my skin and actually makes it feel a little drier than normal. I don't know if they still sell this anywhere, but don't spend your money on this. It's not worth it in my opinion.
I should've switched the last two products in the picture, because I always use eye cream after I moisturize my face. I've currently been using and loving the Philosophy Eyes Wide Open Instant Refreshing and Depuffing Eye Gel. I've talked about this in a favorites post, and I'm so in love with this product! It actually works when I wake up in the morning and I see I have puffy eyes. Seriously, I wake up sometimes and my eyelids are so puffy, it looks like I've been punched! This is a miracle worker for me, but I don't think they sell this anymore :(
The last step in my routine is, and always will be, sunblock! I'm currently using the Neutrogena Clear Face Liquid Lotion Broad Spectrum SPF 55. I know that seems like a high SPF, but I burn very easily so I have to use it. I'm really enjoying using this sunblock alot! It hasn't broken me out and it keeps my skin looking matte, but doesn't dry it out. I normally use the Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Sunblock, but had this one so I changed it up a bit. I do like this one and would repurchase once I go through my other sunblocks I have.
That's my routine! I'm going to be doing a separate nighttime routine post because that actually takes longer and has more products involved. I didn't want to make this post 10 hours long ;)
What products do you use in your routine?
Hey guys! Today I'll be showing you another look I came up with using my Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette. I have to warn you guys, my skin doesn't look so great in the next couple of pictures, and I'm not bothering covering it up because it's my day off from work. I like to give my skin a break on my days off. Onto the colors I used!
As always, I start off priming my eyes and I used the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion.
I first took Rewind and blended that through my crease. I'm not sure why, but I had a bit of a hard time blending this in. I'm not sure if it's the brush or the eyeshadow, but I had a little bit of patching, if that makes sense, especially on my left eye.
I then took the color Ambush and patted that all over my eyelids. This is such a stunning color and is beautiful for Fall!
After that, I took Derailed and put that on the outer V of my eyes and then blended everything together with a fluffy blending brush.
I used Habit as my highlight and to blend out any harsh lines. I also went over where I felt like there was a bit of patching and it seemed to help smooth the lines out a bit. I finished off my look with Maybelline The Rocket Mascara.
The finished look! I told you my skin looked bad... Oh well! I do like how this turned out though. It's a nice neutral look for Fall. It does look better in person, I don't think it looks that great in these pictures. I promise the next look I do will look better! I just get lazy on my days off work so I don't usually put much effort into my makeup, especially if I'm not going anywhere. Also, if you want a closer look of the colors I used, I did a review on this palette here.
Have you tried out this palette yet?
Hey everyone! I'm sorry I haven't been around much. I started feeling sick after I got my flu shot and I've been pretty busy with work and life, so I hope you forgive me! I'm back today with a little haul from Bath & Body Works. I've become obsessed with their candles and they had their 2 for $22 sale on them, plus I had a bunch of coupons to use up! Here are the candles I got:
- Mahogany Teakwood: "The scents of fine woods- mahogany, cedarwood, and oak- highlighted by delicate lavender and geranium notes conjure up an escape to a cozy library on a chilly fall day." Funny story about this candle. I was shopping with my husband and was having him smell a bunch of candles to see what he liked. I picked this one up as a joke saying that this smells like hot Abercrombie models. He took a sniff and said, "Wow, that actually smells really good." I was in shock, but bought it since he was happy with the smell.
- Pumpkin Cupcake: "Satisfy your sweet tooth with the scent of a freshly baked pumpkin cupcake covered in loads of rich buttercream frosting." This candle smells so freaking good, I can't stand it! It really makes me wish I had some actual pumpkin cupcakes in my kitchen to snack on. This is a pretty popular candle and one of the girls working there was really awesome since she found it for me :)
- Leaves: "Celebrate the brilliant colors of autumn with this rich blend of golden nectar, red apple and spiced berries." Ingrid, or MissGlamorazzi on Youtube, talks about how much she loves this candle. One whiff of this and I was in love. I absolutely love the smell of fruit, and this is perfect.
- Winter: "A season full of fun in the snow is captured in notes of pine needles, clementine, and winter woods." I honestly don't know what attracted this to me because I'm usually not a fan of pine, but this has a sweetness to it that makes me love it. Must be the clementine coming through.
- Pumpkin Apple: "Experience the blend of your two favorite fall scents- apple and pumpkin- enhanced by notes of cinnamon and clove." This smells like heaven! Apple crisp is one of my favorite desserts and to me, this smells just like it. I don't smell too much pumpkin in this though, mostly just apple and cinnamon.
- Cider Lane: "As sweet as the trip to the local apple orchard each year, a delicious fall blend of mulled cider, warm caramel and sweet cinnamon." I don't think I need to really say why I love how this smells...
- Blueberry Pumpkin Patch: "Blueberries fresh from the farm are the perfect match for ripe pumpkins in this delicious autumn blend." This smells like amazingly awesome blueberry pancakes!
- Roasted Pumpkin Butter: "Savor the delicious fragrance of a fall treat from the local pumpkin patch- whipped pumpkin, toasted cinnamon and creamy vanilla butter." If I had some actual blueberry pumpkin pancakes, I'd want this added on top of them...
That's my candle haul! If you can't tell, I love food and the smell of food. I'm so in love with Bath & Body Works' candles, especially their fall ones. They're just so amazing, and when you get them at 2 for $22 and have a coupon on top of that, you really can't beat the price for such wonderful candles! Hopefully I've inspired some of you to go out and sniff a few of them :)
Which B&BW candles do you like?
*Disclosure* I was sent the product complimentary from iFabbo for review purposes. I used my coins they give us to get this product
Perlier Volcanic Thermal Spa Thermo Renewing Scrub is a body scrub that to me is very interesting. It's not the typical scrub I usually go for, but it's got some pretty cool features:
- Complex of key ingredients contains water from the hot spring concession located in the municipality of Abane Terme (Padua)
- Helps optimize skin's elasticity for a more youthful appearance
- Helps combat visible signs of aging such as the appearance of dull-looking skin
- Formulated with key ingredients that are rich in mineral salts
- Contains minerals of different particle size for dual rejuvenating and smoothing beauty action
- Fine powders smooth skin and rough areas
I really like this packaging. It's made of plastic but feels incredibly sturdy. The lid screws on and off easily but isn't at all flimsy. As for the claims made above, I can't say for sure how effective this is at anti-aging but it feels very nice on the skin when you spread it around.
As you can probably tell in the above picture, this is basically a gel based scrub, which to me is interesting. I typically go for scrubs that have a creamy base to them and I like the little scrubbies to be bigger. The particles in this scrub are very small and even though I do have sensitive skin, this doesn't irritate at all, which is nice. I was very surprised though when I used this that it doesn't warm up. When I hear volcanic and thermal in the name, I tend to think of something warming, but this is quite the opposite. It's incredibly cooling, but I actually like that. It's been so hot here lately that I don't mind how cooling this is. When I use this, I don't notice a difference right away in my skin's texture, but I do the next morning. It's soft, but not really as smooth as I like. I don't have too many skin issues with my body, so that could be the reason why I don't notice much. I also have to say that this smells so good! It's a bit hard to describe, but it's very fresh and luxurious smelling. I'm not used to smells like this, but it is very nice.
I have a code for my readers for $5 off your Perlier purchase on HSN.com. The code is iFabbo5 and you can go here to purchase!
Hello everyone! My name is Katy, and I am a palette-a-holic. I just had to buy the new Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette when it came out. My dad had gotten me the first Vice Palette and I fell in love with it. When I saw that this was out, I was so excited for it! I saw the colors and it was definitely love at first site. I've gotten a chance to try it out and take pictures of swatches, and of course I have to show you guys! :)
I'm absolutely loving the colors in this palette! There are tons of jewel toned shades and then you have your neutrals at the bottom of the palette. When swatching these colors, they were all very pigmented and creamy, and even the matte shades felt buttery and smooth. This palette also comes with a double-ended Good Karma Shadow and Crease Brush. All 20 of these shades plus a brush cost me $59 from Sephora. I'll definitely be getting lots of use from this palette for Fall!
I have to say, getting pictures of these shadows was a pain in the butt. I don't know if it's my camera or the lighting in my house, but some of the shades look brighter or darker in the picture than in real life. All the pictures above were taken in the morning without flash near a window that usually has great lighting.
The next few pictures will be swatches and a description of the colors are taken from the Sephora site. These colors above are from the first top row of the palette.
- Smokeout: Dark taupey-black satin
- Lovesick: Black matte with iridescent micro-glitter (to me, this looks like a brown color in the picture)
- Shellshock: Bright metallic silver (this color is insanely pigmented. The picture doesn't do it justice)
- Coax: Medium metallic pink with golden iridescent micro-sparkle
- X-Rated: Baby pink satin
These next colors are from the second row.
- Prank: Deep navy matte with turquoise floating pearl
- Madness: Bright metallic blue shimmer with blue micro-glitter
- Strike: Antique gold shimmer with silver micro-glitter (the perfect gold color, in my opinion)
- Stash: Deep olive green shimmer with iridescent micro-sparkle (this color has a bit of fallout if you're not careful)
- Poison: Charcoal satin with iridescent micro-sparkle
These colors are in the third row.
- Radar: Metallic brown shimmer with iridescent micro-glitter
- Damaged: Bright metallic emerald shimmer (I'm obsessed with this color and it's beautifully pigmented)
- Voodoo: Metallic purple shimmer with iridescent purple micro-glitter
- Betrayal: Bright purple satin with blue shift (Another gorgeous color that I'm obsessed with)
- Derailed: Medium metallic taupey-brown shimmer
These are the last row of colors.
- Dope: Warm champagne satin (gorgeous highlight shade)
- Toxic: Metallic copper pink shimmer with tonal micro-glitter
- Habit: Light nude matte (Believe it or not, this color is a perfect natural crease color for me since it's about two shades darker than my skintone)
- Ambush: Metallic brown satin
- Rewind: Medium brown matte (that perfect matte brown crease color everyone wants)
Here is my first look from this palette. I'm thinking of doing what I did with the last palette and post different looks every once in a while that I like.
I first primed my eyes with the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion. I then took Strike and patted that over the inner half of my lids. I then took stash and patted that on the outer half of my lids. This color has some fallout like I mentioned above, so definitely be careful when using it. I took the color Habit and put that through my crease to blend out any harsh lines, and than used Dope as my brow bone highlight. I finished my look with Fairydrops Scandal Queen Mascara in Black. I've had this mascara for ages and it came in one of those Sephora Lashstash boxes.
What do you guys think of this palette?
