Save Your Stressed Skin!

These first two weeks back at University have been a little hectic and my skin has been taking a beating! I've been having late nights and even earlier mornings and haven't been taking proper care of my skin! I have a pretty sure fire way to get my skin back in order (I have to do this a lot haha) and I'll list my tips for you!

(Keep in mind, my skin is oily, so I get clogged pores, built up dead skin cells and just overall dullness! This is what I do to liven it back up!)

Boots Botanics Brightening Cleanser

Cleanse Deeply - This is going to sound scary but to really get my face clean I use either Olive Oil or my Boots Botanics Brighten Cleanser. I use these because oil breaks down oil, especially built up oil. It also breaks down any makeup or debris that might be stuck in your skin giving you a super deep clean! I follow it up with my normal cleanser to remove any traces of the excess oil.

Marcelle Tonifying Lotion (Normal to Dry)

Toner - Take a simple toner and sweep it all over to ensure you removed everything, we want to really clean our skin! I use Marcelle Tonifying Lotion (normal to dry skin), just because its a better formulation than the oily skin toner.

Cure Natural Aqua Gel (Sample Packets)

Exfoliate - Because my skin has a lot of build up now, I need a good exfoliation. I don't use a scrub, my skin is too sensitive for them, but if that is what you prefer then use your favourite scrub here! Use it for 2 minutes longer than you usually would but with extremely gentle pressure. This will ensure all the dead skin cells get removed without irritation. Personally, I use a chemical or natural exfoliation gel. I use Cure Natural Aqua Gel at this step, which removes dead skin cells with no granules.

Naturopathica Pumpkin Enzyme Peel

Mask - At this point, a mask is great because you have exposed new skin through the exfoliation process so its a great time to nourish it! You can use whatever mask you like! If you have oily skin pick an absorbent clay mask. I really like the St.Ives Firming Clay mask or Biore Self-Heating Clay mask (come in individual packets). For dry skin or for a brightening boost use a moisturizing mask. My favourite is The Body Shop Wise Woman firming mask, which doesn't firm but is so hydrating and brightening without causing breakouts! Last, but not least, my favourite mask! If you need an extra brighten or exfoliation, use an enzyme mask. I love Naturopathica Pumpkin Enzyme Peel! But for an inexpensive option, try Freeman Pineapple Enzyme mask (only $3 at Wal-Mart!) and works really well actually!

Isomers Copper-P Concentrate Serum

Treat - If you are prone to breakouts, treat your skin with a Salicylic Acid to keep spots at bay! If you have persistent breakouts, also apply a 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide (Panoxyl Mild Aqua Gel). If you have dry skin, to keep skin bright use a Glycolic Acid, I like Neostrata 10% Oil-Free Smoothing Lotion. Also, no matter what your skin type, treat your skin to as many nutrients and repairing properties as you can! You have bright new skin now and we want to keep it that way! I like to use a Vitamin C serum which helps with skin tone problems (Isomers Vitamin C & E serum or Copper-P serum) but any serum with nutrients, peptides and vitamins & minerals is great! Even a great moisturizer if you have dryer skin is awesome!

C.O. Bigelow Rose Salve

Eyes & Lips - Don't forget your eyes and lips! Apply a hydrating, plumping eye cream (Mac Moisture Lush is good, I also apply my serums around my eyes so I have little need for eye cream) and apply your most moisturizing lip balm! I love B.Kamins Bio-Maple lip balm (its only in Canada!) and C.O. Bigelow Rosebud lip balm!

Use this treatment whenever you feel the need! It really does help, I use it all the time! If you have more tips for helping stressed skin let me know! :)

Romantically Rosy - Fall Look

Fall is upon us once again and the cold air brings us rosy cheeks and lips! To keep this look even once your warming up inside here are a few tips to get that healthy, romantic, outdoorsy look!

Personal Preference: Sephora Lip and Cheek Stain in Merlot

Darken you lip colour - you don't have to go too dark or even out of your comfort zone. What I like to do is apply a stain. It gives you great rosy colour while staying natural and sheer. If your more adventurous, opt for a warm rose-red or plum lipstick or gloss with more pigment.

Personal Preference: NYC Blushable Cream Sticks in Big Apple Blush

Switch your blush - For that real outdoorsy glow, use a blush colour that matches what your cheeks look like when they have been pinched. This colour will look the most natural and make your face look alive and healthy! For fair skin tones, rose is good for medium, try a deeper red and for darker skin try a brick tone. Whatever looks most natural on your skin and gives you a warmth. (These can be shimmer, matte, cream or powder whatever your preference!)

Personal Preference: Stila Pretty in Paris Palette Shadows, Physicians Formula Gel Liner in Brown, Colossal Mascara in Black

Frame and Contour your eyes - This look is all about natural radiance so the eye makeup shouldn't be the focus. Add a lightly shimmery pale pink (preferably one with warm tones as opposed to cool, so it goes with the warm rosy tones of the rest of the face) to highlight spots such as the brow bone, tear ducts and centre of the eyelid. Add a matte chocolate shadow in the crease to contour your eyes and add more depth. Create a very thin line of black or brown liner only on the upper lash line and take it out a little on the edge to lengthen the eye and give a flirty look. Curl your lashes and add two coats of black mascara.

TIPS: Since its getting colder and the air is getting drier, make sure to keep hydrated! This means applying lots of lip balm and moisturizing the skin regularly to keep it radiant. If you feel dry throughout the day because of heaters and brutal weather, carry a hydrating mist with you for a boost of moisture. (Ones to try: MAC Fix+, Clinique Moisture Surge Face Spray) I hope you enjoy this look made to usher in the fall! :)

NOTE: I had to use my MacBook camera for the photos, so they aren't the best :(

How To: Acne Prone Skin

No more hiding behind makeup or hair or hands! Clear skin really is attainable and is simpler than you might think! I have learned these tips and tricks from various sources throughout the years and would like to share my knowledge with you! This is also my skin care routine and has really worked to heal my skin! I am acne prone and oily but finally have my skin under control!

First Step - You need a good GENTLE cleanser! You don't want anything that is going to strip your skin of its natural oils. Stripping your skin leads to more oil production and therefore more clogged pores and breakouts. This always scared me because I liked the feeling of squeaky clean skin. Some Cleansers I like are: NEUTROGENA EXTRA GENTLE CLEANSER, BOOTS BOTANICS BRIGHTENING CLEANSER and CLINIQUE EXTRA MILD CLEANSER.

Step Two: You need to exfoliate your skin. This may not be in the way you are used to. Scrubs can aggravate breakouts further and cause micro-tears in the skin, leading to increased breakouts. Not to mention they cause a lot of redness. Instead, use an exfoliating lotion. A great exfoliant for acne prone skin is Salicylic Acid. This is found in many acne products. Some great ones are: NEUTROGENA 3 IN 1 HYDRATING ACNE TREATMENT, CLEARASIL OVERNIGHT SERUM and CLINIQUE MILD CLARIFYING LOTION.

Step three: If you have persistent breakouts, you need to kill the bacteria on the surface before it can cause them. To do this, use a Benzoyl Peroxide. This is again very common in acne treatments but a good formulation is key to prevent the drying effects it has. Some I like are PANOXYL AQUAGEL, CLINIQUE ACNE SOLUTIONS LOTION and CLINIQUE EMERGENCY GEL/CREAM. Benzoyl Peroxide comes in different strengths. The lowest is a 2.5% (which is in the Clinique Solutions Lotion and can be found in Panoxyl's MILD aquagel) and is good for sensitive skins prone to drying. Next is 5% which is the average amount and the highest is 10%. Most people can't handle the 10% as it is very strong. Always start with a lower one and work your way up if needed.

Step four: A good moisturizer with sunscreen. Salicylic Acid and Benzoyl Peroxide can both increase skins sensitivity to the sun so a good sunscreen is essential! Its pretty tricky to find a sunscreen that isn't greasy and won't cause breakouts. I've managed to find a few that work for me: CLINIQUE CITY BLOCK 25, NEAUTROGENA TONE CORRECTING MOISTURE SPF 30 and AVEENO ULTRA CALM SPF 30. Make sure to find a sunscreen that you like the feeling of so you will use it everyday!

Options: Start with an eye cream early! It's easier to prevent than to correct! I like MAC MOISTURE LUSH eye cream. Also, add a serum if your skin can handle it without feeling heavy or greasy. A serum will add extra healing properties like antioxidants to your skin to make it overall healthier and prevent/help correct aging. ISOMERS LABORATORIES makes great serums at decent prices for every age! I use the Copper-P and Vitamin C & E serums. Retinol is another great product for acne prone skin and is in the NEUTROGENA TONE CORRECTING MOISTURE. It helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles and clear out pores at the same time.

I hope these help you out, they have certainly helped me! My skin is clear and healthy! Let me know your opinions, and add me as a friend :)

I originally posted this on my Luuux Page: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/tips-tricks-acne-prone-skin?blog_id=12048 

Hautelook.com Beauty Blowout!

Hey Everyone! I'm not sure if all of you are aware of Hautelook.com but it's a website that has different sales everyday from fashion to beauty to home decor! It has some amazing deals and starting today they are having a huge Beauty Blowout! Today (September 20th) is Stila, Somme Institute, Instyler and NuFace. The Stila products are being offered at insane prices, some above 60% off! If you love Stila, go and check this out! They are having different brands each day so to see a full list visit www.hautelook.com! I hope you all get some great deals! If you do, let me know what they are! :)

Please Comment and Follow :)

How To: Fake Awake!

My "awakened" Eye :)

Good Morning Everyone! It's time to "fake awake"! So grab your coffee and lets get started on our quick and easy awakening makeup routine! :)

For this look you will only need about 5 minutes. I use this most when I'm heading to school because I have to get up at 6am and want to stay in bed as long as possible! (I'm sure many of you can relate! ;))

So this look is all about looking awake, not seeing the makeup per se! You should look really fresh and completely natural when wearing this look so don't expect to "see" the results! haha

STEPS:

1)   Highlight your complexion with an illuminating tinted moisturizer or illuminating foundation for more coverage. If you are running extremely low on time you can forego the foundation in exchange for spot highlighting (more on that later!) A few options of good illuminating foundations that I like are:

              -Laura Mercier Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer ($42)

              -Sephora Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 ($21)

Apply this all over your face using a sponge, stippling brush or just your fingers making sure to blend evenly and down your neck!

2)   Next, Add a light reflecting concealer under your eyes and in any shadows (Ex/ Nose to lip folds, around the nose). Use a concealer brush or fingers to blend in for a natural glow. Some of my favorites are:

              -Benefit Erase Paste ($26)

              -Rimmel Recover Anti-Fatigue Concealer ($5 roughly)

               -Smashbox Photo Op (for light coverage) ($18)

3)   After concealing, add a pop of colour to your cheeks using a cream blush. I find cream blush to look a lot more natural than powder and it wakes up your whole face, making you look alive! Some I like are:

              - Stila Covertible Color (Rosebud) ($25, but limited edition color only available in Travel Palettes)

              - MAC Blushcreme (Lady Blush) ($22)

              - NYC Blushable Cream Sticks (Big Apple Blush) ($3)

Blend this into the apples of your cheeks and up your cheek bones for a natural flush.

4)   Moving to eyes, apply a shimmery, light shadow all over the lid, on the brow bone and the tear duct. I like NYX Smokey Eye Palette’s lightest shade ($15) and Almay's Pure Blends in Petal ($6). After the shadow, apply a light coloured eyeliner to the lower lash line. Pink, nude, white or light blue are suitable colours and will all make your eyes more open and awake. I used Bonne Bell Eye Definer in Sky ($2). Make sure to blend with your finger so there are no actual lines, just a sheer wash of the colour.

5)  Curl your lashes and apply one layer of mascara to continue with the natural look. Some I like are:

              - Revlon Grow Luscious in Blackest Black ($8)

              - Maybelline Colossal Mascara in Glam Black ($6)

              -  LashFusion XL Mascara in Black ($25)

6)   Finish your look with powder if you need and a clear lip balm. For powder I like:

              - ELF Studio Mattifying Powder in Translucent ($3)

              - NYC Loose Powder in Translucent ($4)

For lip balm I use Chapstick All Natural ($2) or PeaceKeeper Power Berry ($8).

OPTIONAL STEPS:

You can also use a specialty product like Benefit Bright Eyes (which I did) all around the eye to further increase the brightness. Also, you can apply a Highlighter to key points on your face such as cheek bones, brow bones, cupids bow and down the center of your nose. 

Some key Products for this look!

I hope this helps out with the morning rush! Please Comment and Follow! :)

Simple, Everyday Makeup Look

Hey Everyone! So, I have a video tutorial Posted on my YouTube Channel, If you want to go check it out just hit the link below:

Simple Makeup Look

Please rate, subscribe and comment (here and on YouTube!) :) Thanks guys!

Enjoy!

NYX Smokey Eye Palette (REVIEW & SWATCH)

NYX Smokey Eye Palette (missing applicator)

As you can see I have used this palette before! This is what the palette looks like open, without a flash. Using a flash just washed out the colours, making them unrecognizable! Anyways, as you can see this palette has a great array of colours to create a smokey eye! They range from creamy white to dark matte black with everything in between! This palette also includes browns which is great because most smokey eye palettes only include blacks or browns, so its great to have both in one palette! All these eyeshadows are amazingly creamy (which I didn't expect from such an inexpensive eyeshadow) and blend like a dream! I use all of these different colours and they are all fantastic! If you are searching for a smokey eye palette, I definitely recommend picking up one of these NYX palettes, you have every colour you need for a smokey eye and even if you want to add a pop of colour you have all your base shades to work with!

What the palette looks like closed :)

If you live in Canada like I do, you can find a limited selection of NYX products at Rexall or I.D.A. Pharmacy. I found this palette there but they have an extremely limited selection so I was very happy to find this!

Here are swatches without Flash (top row, then bottom)

Swatches with Flash

Overall, I would highly recommend this palette, its just so incredibly versatile, inexpensive and amazingly budget friendly! I will be doing a smokey eye (maybe a few) with this palette and will post photos so you can see what the colours look like on your eyes! 

Enjoy guys, Please Comment, Follow and Friend :)

(I originally Posted on this on Luuux  September 6, 2010, this is a revised review)

Luuux!

Everyone needs to go check out Luuux.com! Its an awesome site that awards you with points for blogging! (SO EASY!)