Beauty Boxes

If you haven't heard of beauty boxes, please come out from under that rock you've been living under!  Right now, beauty boxes are huge.  They are subscriptions for between $10-$20/month that send you trial size makeup, skincare, hair care and nail polish, among other things.  Big name companies are sending these trials so we can see what we like and don't like and hopefully for them, purchase a full size product.  I came across a FANTABULOUS new website today called SheSaidBeauty.  Go there.  Now - no WAIT!  After you read this blog :)  What does this amazing website have to do with beauty boxes you ask?  They did a whole article about beauty boxes and have links to a number of them.  They also tell you which countries they are available in.  This is the link to that article.  The only beauty box I'm surprised they don't address is Ipsy.  This seems to be a favorite among people I've talked to.  I'm on the waitlist for Ipsy and Influenster.  They notify you when a subscription becomes available.  Fingers crossed that someone cancels their membership soon so I can move right in there!  Do you subscribe to any beauty boxes and which ones do you recommend?

Favorite of the Week

A few days ago, I put my foundation on just like every other morning.  Apparently I had a few extra minutes that morning because I decided to check my work in the mirror before leaving the house.  Bad idea.  I ended up being about half an hour late for work.  Once I got a good look at what my skin looked like, I had to wash it all off and start all over again.  It looked so caked on - I wish I had taken pictures!  My foundation looked like it was just sitting on top of my skin and was just CAKEY for lack of a better word.

Now I take pretty good care of my skin - I wash it every morning and moisturize right after and I wash every night (okay, most nights) to take my makeup off and I use a night serum.  My skin for the most part is in pretty good condition.  One thing I don't do is exfoliate.  Well that all changed when I saw the makeup on my skin the other day.  I have really dry, sensitive skin that is really red most of the time.  After researching exfoliators for dry, sensitive skin online, I decided to try Aveeno Positively Ageless Resurfacing Scrub.  It has vitamin C which is said to be great for skin because it is the key to the production of collagen - which is a protein that aids in the growth of cells and blood vessels and gives skin its firmnss and strength (source:  WebMD).

I tried it this morning and I loved it.  It's not a super abrasive scrub - which is good for my type of skin and it smells pretty good too!  When I put my moisturizer on this morning, it went on so much smoother and actually felt like it got absorbed into my skin.  My foundation even looked better than it had a few days before.  I wouldn't say it's 100% right now, but after just one use - it's definitely better!  Do you exfoliate?  Which one do you use?

Open Letter

Hey everyone! The Curvy Fashionista had the most amazing post today that I just had to share. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Check out the blog here

My Mascara Review

I know at this day and age, us ladies are supposed to be happy and comfortable in our own skin, but Come On! Who is actually 100% happy with themselves all the time? I can't think of anyone. One thing I'm not totally happy with are my eyelashes. They are thin, not too long and straight...and I cannot for the life of me get them to curl. Suffice it to say, I'm always on the lookout for a new mascara. I feel like I've tried them all. My two absolute favorites are Volum' Express The Falsies Flared in Blackest Black by Maybelline (I was NOT born with it) and False Lashes in Extreme Black by MAC . On a side note, these are MY reviews. What does or doesn't work for me may be completely different than you. Right now, I'm using False Lashes by MAC. It seems to be the mascara I always go back to when I've tried something that doesn't work. The pigmentation is beyond great and is a true black...some mascaras have a grayish tint to their black mascaras. The wand has a tapered brush so you don't hit your eyelid as you go close to your nose and it's packaged in a really cool tube. I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but I do love the way this one looks.

Again, these are my thoughts and what works and doesn't work for me. I tried Eyeko London Mascara Wardrobe - based on all their rave reviews. I was underwhelmed. It almost seemed like it was too heavy for my lashes and weighed them down more than normal. I also tried Origins GinZing Brightening Mascara ...again, underwhelmed. This one I had the biggest issue with. Not only did it weigh my lashes down, but it didn't look like I was wearing mascara after the first layer was on. Maybe I'm spoiled because I'm used to MAC and Maybelline needing only one layer but Origins just didn't do it for me. I could very well be in the minority on this because this is another one that got great reviews, but I just wasn't crazy about it.

What are some of your favorites? I'd love to hear from you all!

Cleaning Makeup Brushes

I get asked a lot "what is the best way to clean your makeup brushes and how often should I do it?" There are so many answers to the question of "How", but "How often" is pretty easy. You should ideally clean your brushes once a week - unless you're a professional and then you should clean them after each use. Once a week is kind of pushing it though because honestly, who has that kind of free time? So if you can do at least once a month you should be ok. I always have used Origins Brush Cleaner - it's a great product and really gets my brushes clean. The only downside is the price - which really isn't even bad. $13.50 for the 3.4 oz bottle. Well with health insurance and daycare to pay for, I started looking for a cheaper alternative. After trying some DIY brush cleaners, I stumbled on a blog called Carolina Charm. SUCH a great blog. She has the simplest cleaner EVER and it might be my favorite. This doesn't leave any residue on the brushes and they are just as clean as if I used a "real" brush cleaner, storebought. It involves Johnson's Baby Shampoo and water. That's it! Works amazing and smells oh so good. Even better, I already had the shampoo from my kids so it literally cost me nothing! Here is a link to the article. Enjoy and thanks for reading!

Alexa Persico Cosmetics makes it personal

I'm always excited to find makeup in the mail. I ordered Liquid Blush in Pink Me Up, Lip Velour in Naked, and Hide and Seek Concealer in Light Ivory Beige. As excited as I was to get my new products, I was in awe when I saw the paper insert personally written to me by Alexa Persico herself. Who does that?! I had to share quickly...

This stuff can only be bought online right now but you should definitely go to the website at www.alexapersicocosmetics.com and order. Her products are amazing and the service is clearly top notch!

My Brides

I have loved working with each and every one of my brides. They have all brought something special and unique to the table. One thing they all have had in common so far is that they're scared of makeup. They don't want to wear much of anything. I have tried countless times to tell these ladies that a VERY light hand won't show up on camera, but I have to do what they want. Please ladies - I beg of you...on your wedding day, wear some makeup! This is supposed to be the one day that you look out of this world amaze-balls! I promise, no one will think you look like a clown - they'll think you never looked more beautiful. Yes, you will still look like yourself - just the best possible version of yourself! Most brides get their hair done in a way that isn't an everyday look, why do you want your makeup to look like every other day? So I'll say it one more time. Makeup ladies, makeup!