Homemade Beauty

The skin care industry is a multi-billion dollar business, estimated to be worth USD43 billion per year.  There are always new products with new claims to get you the beautiful skin you've always dreamed of.  You can spend a small fortune on lotions, potions, creams, toners, masks, scrubs, etc., etc., etc.  I was getting tired of spending so much money only to find that some of these products would cause breakouts or just not really do much of anything for my skin.  I decided that I would do some research and trials with some back to basic (and cheap!) products for my skin and hair.  My wallet and my skin are thanking me-BIG TIME!
I have put together a list of beauty treatments you can try with things you can purchase at the grocery store or drugstore.  There are so many natural and simple ingredients you can use in place of commercial beauty products, but I will just focus on my tried and true favourites.  Please give them a try and see the fantastic results!

Lemon Juice

I mentioned lemon juice in my last favourites post.  Lemons have natural antiseptic and astringent qualities as well as lightening effects on the skin.  I use lemon juice with sugar on a cotton pad every 2nd or 3rd night as a very refreshing exfoliating scrub.  I also use lemon juice on it's own all over my face and leave it for 15-20 minutes before rinsing to help tighten pores and to lighten some discolouration.

Sugar

I use sugar in a couple of different ways.  I use sugar and an exfoliating scrub with lemon juice, as mentioned above, or with honey.  When I use honey and sugar I can also scrub my lips and it works better than any lip scrub I've purchased.  I don't like to use the lemon juice on my lips as it can be drying.  I also add sugar to a bit of extra virgin olive oil for a more moisturizing scrub.  This too can be used on the lips.  You can use the sugar and honey combo to use as a body scrub as well of you can just use your favourite body wash and add a little sugar in the palm of your hand.  WARNING!- sugar can be abrasive, always scrub gently in a circular motion.

Honey

LIQUID GOLD! This is probably my favourite beauty product from the pantry.  I use it either on it's own or as a base for my masks.  When I use honey my skin feels so soft, my skin looks so even and I have a really nice glow.  I slap this all over my face and leave it on for about 15 minutes, then rinse it with warm water.  Surprisingly it rinses away quickly and nicely (not what you'd expect from sticky honey).  As mentioned you can add sugar to make a scrub and mask in one and use it as a lip scrub.  I also use honey with oatmeal and with Aspirin for other types of masks! I will give some easy instructions and recipes below.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

I love this stuff.  I think I use it the most of everything I'm mentioning. It has so many great uses and it is so cost effective considering it's multiple uses.  EVOO is very moisturizing.  I use it on it's own as a moisturizer at night, sometimes I add a drop or two of glycerin when I need a heavy duty moisturizer.  I use it with sugar as a face/lip scrub.  I use it with a bit of dish soap to clean my makeup brushes (it takes and oil to get rid of other oils!).  I use it as an eye makeup remover.  I also use EVOO as a hair mask, saturating my hair for 15 minutes before shampooing.  It repairs my dry ends and leaves my hair so soft!  You can also use EVOO to soak your finger nails, it will moisturize the nails and cuticles and actually nourish your nails and make them stronger!

Yogurt

Yogurt is great for the skin, it is cooling and calms redness and puffiness.  The lactic acid in yogurt acts as a natural exfoliant.  Be sure you get the plain unsweetened yogurt.  I use this on it own as a mask and I also add honey and oatmeal from time to time.  I find if I have active breakouts, the yogurt calms them and reduces the size!

Oatmeal

It is worth the $15 coffee grinder you will need for this ingredient.  Ground oatmeal can be added to honey or yogurt and applied to the skin as a mask and it will sooth dry itchy skin.  It is also fantastic in the bath if you have dry-itchy skin.  Be sure to use regular oats, not the instant kind.

Aspirin

Aspirin (ASA) is great for treating acne prone skin.  Added to some honey of a bit of water, Aspirin can reduce redness and reduce blemish size.  The acid exfoliates revealing soft skin.  Be sure to use uncoated Aspirin and moisturize with EVOO afterward.

Glycerin

You can find Glycerin at the drugstore usually where the rubbing alcohol is sold.  Glycerin is in almost all beauty products, especially moisturizers.  On it's own it can actually dry out your skin, but added to 3 parts water or adding 1-2 drops to a teaspoon of olive oil it will leave your skin soft and smooth and without dry patches.  If you have a favourite moisturizer already, you can add a few drops of glycerin when applying to make it an intense moisturizing night cream!  One part glycerin and three parts water in a spray bottle will keep for about 2 weeks.  This recipe can be used as an all over moisture spray and also as a mixing medium for mineral makeup!

So, as you can see there are so many wonderful and cheap grocery/drug store items to make you beautiful!  The best results will be finding a balance that's right for your skin type and sticking to that routine!  Let me know your homemade beauty secrets!

Recipes

I made these as easy as possible 1-3 ingredients only.  I used to shy away from homemade beauty regimes because I believed it would be too much work, but with these simple recipes you'll save a bundle and find it so easy to have beautiful skin (and hair)!

Scrubs

Lip scrub- 1-2 drops of extra virgin olive oil or honey and a pinch of sugar

exfoliating face scrub-  1 tsp lemon juice and a pinch of sugar.  Saturate a cotton pad with the juice then sprinkle on some sugar.  Rub the cotton pad gently over face, avoiding eye area. Rinse (if you happen to lick your lips mmmmm lemonade!)

exfoliating and moisturizing face scrub- 1tsp olive oil or honey and a pinch of sugar

Masks

Yogurt Mask- 1/4 cup yogurt on it's own or add 1 Tbsp honey and 1 Tbsp oatmeal. Leave on for 15 minutes then rinse.

Aspirin Mask- 2 uncoated aspirin dissolved in 1 tsp water to create a paste (optional: add 1 tsp honey) Leave on for 15 minutes then scrub, then rinse.

"All Drugstore" Smokey Eye!

This shimmery and dramatic smokey eye was created using makeup purchased at the drugstore.  You can be beautiful on a budget!  It just so happened that I chose all Maybelline products, but you can substitute for any products you like.  I love the eyeshadow quad I used in the video and I use it often.  I did not however like the Maybelline Liquid Liner and I definitely will not be repurchasing.  I found the formula way too thin.  Here is a list of everything I used in the video:

Maybelline Stylish Smokes eyeshadow quad in "02- Natural Smokes"

Maybelline Liquid Eyeliner in "Black"

Maybelline Expert Eyes eyeliner pencil in "Velvet Black"

Maybelline Great Lash mascara in "Soft Black"

Mark. Cheek Tint in "Cheeky"

Quo In The Club/V.I.P Lip gloss in "Pink Stilettos"

March Favourites

I love trying new products and the month of March was no exception.  I have tried a number of new to me things and revisited some things that I used to use.  I found a lot of great things, but like always I tried out a few not-so-great things too.  I will let you know the winners and losers of the month!

Winner: Rimmel Soft Kohl Kajal Eyeliner in "White"

Kohl (also called Kajal) is an ancient eye cosmetic. It was made by grinding galena (lead sulfide) and other ingredients. Today the trend is to make it without poisonous ingredients. It is widely used in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia to darken the eyelids and as mascara for the eyelashes. 

Kohl eyeliner has the softest powder texture and is available in dark matte shades. This product may come in several forms: pencil, pressed powder, or loose powder. It is usually applied to the inner rim of the eye (the pink area behind the eyelashes) unlike other eyeliners as it does not irritate the sensitive tissue

in that area.

Using a white liner on the water line (inner rim) makes your eyes appear larger and makes you look more awake! Some mornings you just need that extra something, and the Rimmel liner works perfectly.  It lasts quite a while and does not irritate my eyes.  For some reason March was not a great month for me in the sleep department so I relied on this product to disguise my utter exhaustion!

Winner: Lemon and Sugar

I am so happy this has been working for me! This is such a cheap and effective treatment!
Lemon juice contains one of the AHAs or Alpha Hydroxy Acids which is citric acid. It works by sloughing off dead skin, promoting skin elasticity, and enabling new skin cell growth rise from underneath. It also flushes out pores and keeps your skin feeling fresh and bright. Lemon juice has skin lightening properties as well which will help diminish age spots and acne scars.

Every night after cleansing my face,  I saturate a cotton pad with lemon juice and rub it all over my face (like a toner, avoiding the eye area).  It does tingle a bit but it makes me think it's working really hard!! I let the juice soak into my skin and leave it for 10 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.  Some people leave it on overnight with amazing results.  I am gearing up to do that myself but I want to ease into it so I don't get any adverse reactions.  Every other night or every third night, after soaking the cotton pad, I add about half of a teaspoon of granulated sugar and rub this all over my face.  This is such a great exfoliant and my face just glows afterward!


Winner: Nivea Milk & Honey Lip balm

After using a "loser" lip balm that I really wanted to love and clearly didn't, I went back to my Nivea Milk & Honey Lip Balm.  The smell is incredible and the formula itself leaves my lips super soft!  I keep this on my night stand and put it on just before bed.  This lip balm is only $2, which excites me even more!







Loser: EOS Smooth Sphere Lip Balm

Like I said, I really wanted to love this lip balm.  The packaging was what lured me in, it is so cute!  I have other sphere lip balms (like Ballmania) but they all require you to dip your finger into the product and I don't like that.  The EOS sphere opens to reveal a dome shaped lip balm that you just rub directly onto your lips.  The shape makes it so great for finding it in the bottom of your purse.  Too bad the formula is absolute garbage :(  I used this for a few weeks hoping it would start to work but it never did, in fact it left my lips dry and I found my self reapplying so often.  At least I have my Nivea Milk & Honey!  

Winner: Yonka Emulsion Pure

This products deserves top spot for my March favourites!  I have had this product for about a year and a half.  For some reason I never got into a routine using this, and I don't know why.  I always have great results and yet I forget it's in my arsenal.  For the past month I have been using this and I will officially say I'm in a routine!  This is a milky, magical potion.  It is a blend of essential oils of thyme, lavender, cypress, rosemary, and geranium in their most concentrated form to render a pure and highly effective treatment for oily or problem/acne skin.  The best way to use this product is use a compress; soak a piece of gauze and hold it on the problem area for 15 minutes.  Do not rinse.  If I feel a pimple coming on, even the big hormonal cystic ones, I will do this at night and in the morning I wake up so happy! The redness is gone and the inflammation is reduced to almost nothing.  You can use the Emulsion Pure as an all over toner as well and the smell is incredible!





I hope you enjoyed this month's favoutires! Comment below with your favourites!

Flawless Foundation Routine

Watch the video below to see my foundation routine to achieve a flawless finish!

Products Used:

Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Dark Circle Roller in "Sheer Tint"

Monistat Chafing Relief Powder-Gel

Makeup Forever Matte Velvet + in "Vanilla"

Benefit Boi-ing Concealer in "02"

Benefit Eye Bright Pencil

MAC Select Moisturecover Concealer in "NW20"

Benefit Powderflage

* All products mentioned in this video were purchased by me

How to Contour, Highlight and Blush!

Whether you are looking to enhance your cheekbones or looking to create the illusion of defined cheekbones (that's me!), then follow these tricks of the trade! I will also show you how to disguise a large forehead -, slim your nose, and define your jaw line all with just a few products!

Contouring (Sculpting)

As you can see in the photo, I have indicated the main areas to contour but I will also explain a couple of other areas to sculpt that will further enhance your look!

You can contour with a powder, cream base, dark foundation, concealer stick or some bronzing powders as long as you follow these simple rules; the shade must be 4-6 shades darker than your skin tone and the formula must be matte!  I am really liking the Coastal Scents Blush & Contour Palette. 

Take a contour brush or chisel brush and start applying the contour shade under your cheekbones.  It should follow a line from the corner of your mouth to the top of your ear, however it should go over as far as your mouth, just under your pupil is perfect.  Be sure to blend this right into the hairline to make this as natural as possible.  Next, continue contouring at the temples and up the side of the forehead along the hairline.  **If you have a large forehead continue the shade around the hairline at the top of the forehead creating a big "C" shape from the temples.

If you wish to thin your nose you can apply the contour shade to the sides of your nose.  Blend very well! You can also shorten the appearance of your nose by applying it to the tip of your nose.

If you have a round face you may wish to define your jawline. Apply the shade on the jawline and just under the bones. You will want to avoid this step if you have a thin face or a very structured jawline as this can come off looking quite masculine to those face shapes. 

Be sure to blend all of your contouring really well using circular motions with your brush.


Highlighting (shaping)

Highlighting will enhance your look by drawing the eyes to the higher planes of your face.  You can also use techniques to straighten your nose.  I absolutely love the Cream Colour Base in "Hush" by MAC.  It has a beautiful shimmer that catches the light and is so gorgeous! You will also need a matte highlighter if you want to do a complete sculpt and shape.  In the photo I have marked the areas to highlight with a shimmery highlighter.  I will explain where you can apply the matte highlighter to fully shape your face.

Start highlighting by taking your shade right on top of your cheekbones from under the pupils to the outer corners of the eyes.  This area is particularly flattering when the light catches the subtle shimmer.  Take a small amount and run it down the centre of your nose.  This will make your nose appear straighter and slimmer.  You can use this as a brow highlight too!  Those are the only places you want to apply a shimmery highlighter.  For the next few places you will need a matte highlighter.  The one in the Coastal Scents Palette is great for this too.  Take this product on a fluffy brush and apply it to the centre of your forehead, on your cupid's bow and the centre of your chin.  You will also want to apply this matte colour on the tops of your cheekbones from the corner of your eye to your pupils to meet up with the shimmery shade.  Take a clean fluffy brush and blend all contouring and highlighting.  You should not see any lines, this is to look like natural highlights and shadows.




Blush

Too many times I see wrongly applied blush and hear people give such poor advice on how to apply blush.  I will tell you how to apply blush the proper and most flattering way!  DO NOT SMILE to apply your blush- doing so will cause you to apply your blush too low!  When you smile you raise your cheeks so your application falls when your smile does!  Instead, follow these tips to find the perfect spot to apply blush on your face!  Make a kissing face rather than a smile if you need to find your apples.  You can also draw an imaginary line from the corner of your nose (right in the crease beside your nostril) to the top of your ear.  On this line directly below your pupil is where you want to start applying your blush, from there all the way back into your hairline.  This should be right in the middle of the highlighter and contour shade.  Do not allow the colour to go any closer than this to the centre of your face, doing so will make you look years older and blush is meant to mimic a natural youthful glow!  Be sure to blend all of these steps together we don't want stripes!


Have fun shaping and sculpting! You are beautiful!

How to Paint Your Nails Like a Pro

So many times I see women beautifully dressed with their hair and makeup just right and no nail polish or completely unkempt nails.  20 minutes of attention once a week is all it takes to keep your hands beautifully manicured and your look complete!  Having your hands and nails in shape not only looks beautiful but it boosts your confidence too!  I have put together some steps to "Polish Like a Pro" and save a small fortune by doing it all yourself!

Step 1- Preparing your nails

Start by removing any old polish with a cotton ball and non-acetone remover.  Wash your hands afterward so there is no remover remaining on your nails.  Use a cuticle remover, I personally love the Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover. Either clip away or push back your cuticles (whatever your preference).  Next file your nails with an emery board in one direction, do not go back and forth like a saw!  This season the "squoval" shape is in (square/oval).  Use a buffing block to buff away any rough bits along the edges and then buff out any ridges on your nails.  Now you are ready to paint!

Step 2- Paint

It is very important to use a good base coat especially if you tend to wear dark colours.  A base coat will prevent the polish from staining your nails.  Apply a thin base coat and allow it to completely dry.  Next take the bottle of polish you have chosen and roll it between your hands.  Rolling it will warm the product and mix it.  Do not shake the bottle as it may cause air bubbles to form and it will affect your finish.  Open the bottle and gently swipe one side of the brush along the inside lip of the bottle.  Start by placing the brush about 1mm away from the cuticle and brushing straight down the middle of the nail in one stroke.  DO NOT use small strokes or start a brush stroke at the tip or middle of the nail.  TIP: Let the brush do the work.  The next stroke will be slightly off centre.  Apply a little pressure so the brush fans out as you brush from cuticle to tip and this will make the brush reach to the edges of your nail perfectly!  Do the other side the same way.  That's it! Only 3 strokes. Don't worry if it's thin and the coverage is inconsistent, the second coat will fix everything.  Finish all ten nails this way then go ahead and do the second coat right away the exact same way you did the first coat.  Allow your nails to dry fully.  It will take about a half hour, so watch TV or read a magazine.....just do not touch your nails!  Once your nails are completely dry you will want to apply a top coat.  TIP: After a half an hour tap 2 nails together (polish to polish), if they feel tacky then wait a little longer, this will not affect the finish.  The top coat will seal everything, fill in any unevenness and make your colour last longer.

Step 3- Clean up/Finish up

Once your top coat is completely dry use a cotton swab dipped in polish remover (squeeze out the excess) to clean up any mistakes along the edges.  Apply your favourite hand cream to soften your hands and complete your beautifully manicured look!

LUSH Haul!!!!!

Today I went to LUSH with my Luscious Ladies! Actually we are the "Hood Mamas" (Mothers from the neighbourhood!), that's what we like to call ourselves- I know we're nuts! Anywho, I'm so excited to have stocked up on LUSH goodies!

I'm writing this following a soak in the tub with the "Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds" Bubble Bar.  It is an earthy scent with frankincense and patchouli.  I admit that it doesn't smell the best concentrated in the bar, but the lingering scent after the bath is lovely! I use about a quarter of the bar for my standard size tub.

I also got the "Creamy Candy" Bubble Bar.  This one smells so yummy and creates so many bubbles!!! It's a less relaxing scent, but it leaves your skin so soft and sweet smelling!

I got one "Happy Blooming" Bath melt, described as a cheery cherry bath melt.  This smells amazing (if you love sweet cherries)!  It melts in the warm bath and leaves you soaking in all sorts of essential oils.  I find this one quite moisturizing.  I usually try to half or quarter everything from LUSH to make it last but I find with the bath melts that the full pie shaped segment is perfect.  I tried less and it just didn't leave my skin as soft.  I felt as if I wasted that amount as I didn't get the result I wanted, so keep that in mind!

The above are products I have tried before and obviously repurchased! The next group I have not tried.  I am anxious to get soaking!  I purchased 2 Think Pink Bath Bombs, one for me and one for a friend.   They were just too cute to pass up!  I also bought a massage bar and a "Dorothy" rainbow Bubble Bar.  The Bubble Bar is for my daughter, I just knew she'd love the rainbow and fun colours!  The massage bar is for my husband (to use on me)!  I got a vanilla scented one.  You just hold in in your hands and the warmth of your hand melts the bar slightly leaving the oils on your fingers-ready to give a massage!

Oh! I almost forgot! I also picked up the Mask of Magnaminty Face Mask.  I heard great things about this mask and I am anxious to try it.  This mask claims to pull dirt from your pores, exfoliate and polish the skin.  I will let you know what I think of it once I use it a few times!

Thanks for checking in.....have a LUSHious day!!