Getting up close and personal (selfie style) today to talk about one of my favorite beauty products.
I take a lot of liberties with having curly hair. You know that messy bed head look, only washing every few days and often times just putting a hat on to delay hair washing one more day, in fact I haven't truly cut my hair in almost two years. Oh dear. Not proud of that last one, will save that for another post.
But one trick that I love is when I'm in between hair color appointments, which I admit is quite often a very long time, I use Color Wow Root Cover Up to camouflage my roots.
What, you thought I was a natural blonde? Most of the time for sure. Plus, I have so much gray. So much that I am almost considering going gray.
Almost.
In all seriousness though I love this stuff. It covers my roots effectively but looks natural. It lightly covers the gray just so your eye doesn't head straight there. Am I right? And a little goes a long way, it's easy to brush on wherever you need it. Bonus - you can use it on your brows in a pinch.
I like to mix two shades - dark blonde and light brown, since my hair has a lot of highlights and lowlights.
Well, admittedly sometimes as a blogger you do things that are just silly, and then you share it with the world.
It's funny to think that words such as "hashtag" "regram" and "selfie" didn't exist in my 20's, and somehow they are a part of my daily life now. Yes dating myself a bit. Speaking of age, part of this process is loving myself as I grow older. I really want to embrace (most) of the aging process.
This is why I'm posting 5 unedited selfies in honor of my new favorite lip product. Sure, the lighting was good, my makeup was on point, and I'm hiding a bit behind my hair. But really folks it's about the oil. I love oil. I love the orange tint. I love that it smooths and doesn't just settle into my, ahem, wrinkles. This product has sold me.
And I looooove Julep's beauty campaign Brave Pretty.
Julep's beauty products won continue to win me over, these are my favorites so far. Click the image for details.
1. Their nail polish is my favorite for it's color, staying power and 5-free of toxins. Cassandra is my favorite color.
2. Nail treatment in the sweetest matte pink. Works under nail polish color or on it's own with a couple of coats.
3. Matte Lip Whip. Holy cow be prepared, this lipstick stays in place. I love the bright pigmented colors, but don't think you can quick put this on in a car mirror, it's not so pretty if you mess up.
4. Lip oil. My color is Crave.
One great way to try out Julep is join their beauty box program. I have been receiving my box since January. You receive 3 products each month that you can customize to your heart's desire.
If you saw yesterday's post, this is the scrub we used for our holiday spa party.
And well it's not the season without a good DIY, don't you think?
So this is what I am making this year as some of my Christmas gifts. I have been making variations of this scrub for myself for a few years now, I also loved making this for guests who stayed at our California home. I have done many different combos but this one in particular is great for morning showers. The peppermint is invigorating and the orange scent is a mood-elevator. Besides coffee, two things I definitely need in the morning. The sugar is a great exfoliant and the coconut oil moisturizes so well.
This scrub is great for the entire body, but I would avoid scrubbing your face, especially near the eyes, peppermint can be too strong for that area.
Other great combos are mint and lime (think mojito) or cinnamon and ylang ylang. I prefer to use essential oils and keep my ingredients organic, which is why the sugar isn't bright white. You can vary this however you'd like...
Good Morning Sunshine Organic Sugar Scrub
1 cup organic coconut oil
1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups organic sugar
1 Tbsp olive oil
5-10 drops peppermint essential oil
5-10 drops wild orange essential oil
zest of one orange
Mix the coconut oil and olive oil – you may need to microwave
the coconut oil for a few seconds to soften it but try not to liquefy.Add sugar – more will create a scrubbier
scrub, it’s a personal preference, zest (when you zest only the colored part no
white pith.) and essential oils.Depending
on potency and preference you will need to add less or more oil, I use Doterra
oils which are more potent than store bought.
It has come to my attention that a lot of people don't enjoy going to holiday parties.
Don't get me wrong, I am a bit of an introvert, so when it comes to the holiday season, I protect my down time, but the opportunity to get fancy always makes an event more appealing to me.
Perhaps it's the prep and the stress of finding something to nice to wear? Having nothing to wear ruins the anticipation of any event. For sure. Then there's planning and primping. Our lives are full of life, and adding in an event that requires getting dolled up can seem overwhelming. Sometimes washing my hair is more than I can take.
So here's my proposition - Pamper yourself!
Take this opportunity to take some time out for yourself, sure it might seem like a lot just for a company party, but really it's just for you. To sit and breathe and let yourself be waited on, without requests being made of your time, if only an hour. I'm putting this in the category of holiday self care.
It works wonders for the soul. And it's a great confidence boost.
I feel pretty. Oh so pretty. There is real meaning behind these words. And it's deep. And everyone should feel pretty. Period.
So here's the plan. Book yourself a few moments to yourself. Here's some of my ideas... Manicure and Pedicure - Grab your girlfriend and make it happen. Need childcare? Plan it for a weekday that isn't prime time and bring your kiddos, they can set next to you and play iPhone. If you are in the Seattle area, Apollo Spa offers an affordable 1 hr champagne mani/pedi. No time? Get some glitter polish and put it on the tips of your nails.
Spray Tan - Planning to bare your shoulders, or forgo tights? If you want a holiday glow, this is the way. No tanning beds, ok? My favorite in Seattle is Rainglow. Their tan is sprayed on by a trained technician, no booth errors and it's organic and paraben free. Make sure you exfoliate ahead of time, come in with clean skin, wear lose clothes and no doing dishes for 10-12 hours. Really. So your pampering just got even better. Also make sure you schedule your mani/pedi pre-tan. No space for getting a tan, these are my backup tan wipes.
Hair - A major mood booster for me is getting my hair balayaged to hide my gray. Maybe schedule yourself a cut and/or color? Another great option is a blow-out. Let the experts blow dry and curl your hair. It's no longer all about an up-do, although that is always fun too. The go-to place in Seattle is Swink Style Bar. Bonus - you hair will stay sleek well past party time.
Makeup - Let someone else doll you up. Add fake lashes! A bright lip. This is the time to do it. If you have an idea in mind, make sure to bring pictures, and let your artist know what you have in mind. For the Seattle Ball I was able to have my makeup done by Emilio at Swink Style Bar.
Brows - brow shaping is another great way to pamper yourself, brows frame your face and having them dyed makes your eyes brighter and your morning routine shorter. Swink also does brows.
Lastly, Attire.
The power of a Cinderella dress. Asos is a great place to find smart, stylish dresses at reasonable prices - see my picks at the bottom of the post. There are other options such as Rent the Runway (use code FIRSTRTR20P for 20% off first order), or borrow from a stylish friend. Just ask. I love lending my clothes, it helps me justify why I have so many.
Trying to rid our house of as much chemicals, pesticides, artificial colors, flavors and fragrances as I can - without making myself bonkers - has been a priority for me for several years, now I am turning my attention on my beauty cabinet.
This has been a slow and challenging quest.
Natural deodorant for instance, I apologize to anyone was downwind of me fall 2015-winter 2016, until I finally caved and went back to aluminum. I have briefly jumped back on the bandwagon again, with little success. Baby steps.
Another examples is natural makeup - There are a lot of makeups on the market that label themselves as natural and mineral-based, but it is deceiving. On top of that, the truly natural makeup market, although it is slowly starting to grow, does not give you a lot of variety, so my attempts at a chemical free face have been falling short.
Then I was introduced to Kari Gran by my stylist friend Jenn. I had the opportunity to spend the morning in Kari's new loft space learning about her products and getting pampered. Even compared to all my favorite conventional makeup, this one is tops. Let me tell you why...
First, I love the story. Spend anytime with Kari and you will like her. Her skin is gorgeous, it glows from within. And her intention to her brand, from mixing the product with her own hands to her determination to find recyclable yet stylish packaging. Did you know normally you can not recycle black glass, but Kari's you can, that was a deal-breaker for her. She recently decided to develop her own sunscreen because she just wasn't satisfied with what was currently on the market.
Second - The Mineral Foundation. I have been wearing this every since that morning, well when I manage to put on makeup. I seriously can't say enough compliments. I mix the smallest amount with one pump of sunscreen and it covers my entire face, and the coverage lasts. So it's coverage and protection in one step. I can also adjust the coverage depending on what I need, a tiny bit more when I want more coverage or just a half scoop for more of a sheer bb cream look. And because you use such a tiny amount, this product with last forever, which I also totally appreciate.
Sidenote: Spending the morning with Kari and Jenn, who both have great skin and are religious about their sunscreen, I am now a convinced applier. I know hello I'm seriously late to the party. Sun damage (and not just when it's sunny) is the number one ager, and well my late 30s have not been easy on my skin. It's never to late to help the face out.
Third - The Lip Whip. Ok the shimmer lip has actually gotten me to reach for this sheer slightly shimmery color over my favorite reds. That is saying something. It's also refreshingly pepperminty. And the shimmer is easy to mix with any color in my repertoire for a more natural look. I have been counting down until Kari's new color launched. Suji Red - done lightly it mimics more of a lip stain, or build it up for more drama, and it's packaged with a pampering lip scrub, a mini spa treatment just for your lips and the perfect way to prep your pout for bold color. Attention: girlfriend holiday gift.
A big thank you to Kari Gran, I had so much fun learning about their products in her fabulous new space (which will soon be open to the public!) I'm a big fan. You can find all the products on their website.
