All posts filed under: Beauty

Indie Alert: Organic Sheet Masks by Orgaid

Published by lauren

If you’ve been following along with some of my previous posts on here or even my Instagrams, you might have noticed me mention (briefly) that I was doing the #30daysheetmaskchallenge. You haven’t heard TOO much about it from me because, well… It didn’t work out. In hindsight I should have known that trying out dozens of different products for a month straight would go terribly wrong. I think my skin just couldn’t handle the variety I was putting it through. Needless to say- I didn’t make it to 30 full days, probably just over 2 weeks. It wasn’t a completely waste though: I still got to test out some really interesting masks, discover new brands and have dozens stock piled for later occasions and posts. One brand I found pretty interesting is US based Organic sheet mask company Orgaid. Orgaid has three different masks, and I tested out one of each. I found them all to be pretty good, solid sheet masks, that all did a nice job of hydrating my skin. Like I mentioned, Orgaid is a …

A Lazy Girl’s Guide to Skincare

Published by lauren

Honestly this should be titled the I don’t give a F about skincare but I want good skin guide. Because A) Gender Neutrality… guys want nice skin too! and B) Most all the ‘Lazy Girl’ skin care guides I’ve read aren’t really for the lazy. If you know what a cleansing oil is or what acid toning means, then you’re probably not that lazy…  and this post might not be for you. But please, feel free to send it to your sloth friends who want their skin cake and eat it too. I wont go too in depth, hence only three suggestions, but the post is loaded with useful advice AND a ton of pictures, because hey, shiny visual references to keep your attention! 1. Make Small Changes to Cleansing My first suggestions for those who don’t give two shits about a skin care routine is to just make a couple of small changes to how you wash your face. You probably don’t use a makeup remover or even own one. So just follow the old …

End of Summer Cleansers

Published by lauren

It might already be September, (I know, where DID the year go…) but summer doesn’t give its’ last hurrah until the 22nd of this month! As the true end of Summer draws near, I find it’s the perfect time to switch up my skin care. The seasonal changes bring upon a necessary routine transition. Besides layering up on serums and gravitating towards more richer night creams, I find rotating my cleansers helps me with any lingering summer skin fatigue and preps me for some of the colder weather ahead. Here’s my current go-to’s that I’ve found pair nicely with this in-between time of year. HADA LABO TOKYO HYDRATING CLEANSER The Hada Labo Tokyo Hydrating Cleanser is a good bridge from summer into fall for those of us with dryer skin types. It’s creamy in consistency, but foams up really well. It does an excellent job removing dirt and makeup with out stripping the skin. The gentle formula leaves my skin clean but rather silky. I like to use this for any cleansing step whether it’s my first, …

Current Favorites | The (mostly) Skincare Edition

Published by lauren

Okay short attention span friends, here is the finale to my Current Favorites. AND, lucky for you, one of my shortest videos yet! (high fives self). I posted my Current Makeup Favorites last week (watch and read it here!) But now here is all the goop skincare wise (mostly) I’ve been slathering onto this body as of late. The video has the scoop, but there’s some sneak peaks and an abbreviated rundown below! I have not used faked tan since I turned myself into a streaked orange mess in grade school (which ultimately resulted in wearing long pants and sleeves in 90 degree weather). Since my wedding was coming up I wanted to add a little bit of color to this strobelight complexion of mine. I found some easy success with St Tropez’s In Shower Tan. A little pricey, but pretty fool proof for the tanning idiot like myself. Hair wise, I’ve been slipping some of Morrocanoil’s famous Hair Treatment on to these tresses of mine. The scent reminds me of walking the Jasmine lined streets …

SU:M 37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick (and the rise of twist up soap)

Published by lauren

The K-Beauty scene is really exploding here in the States right now. I’ve been sort of dipping my toe into it over the last year by picking up the occasional sheet mask or essence and sporadically dabbling with a 10 step Korean style skincare routine. But not until this past summer did I really dive in and start picking up on all the cool shit that is out there! I by no means know even the tip of the iceberg (and it’s a big iceberg) but I’ve been steadily educating myself on some of the most beloved products and trends at the moment. One product in-particular that kept popping out at me was the much hyped, cult status face wash: SU:M 37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick WHAT IS IT? The Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick has a bit of a craze around it. In part because of it’s low PH, which is great to have in cleanser, but also due to its incredible packaging and excellent ingredients. It’s formulated without parabens, artificial colors or synthetic preservatives, in fact it contains …

Current Favorites | The Makeup Edition

Published by lauren

It has been a bit (to say the least) since I sat down here and gushed about all the things I’ve been loving as of late. It’s been so long, and I’ve found so many things I want to rave on about, that I thought it better for all of our attention spans to break it up into two parts. Here we have my current Makeup Favorites, or rather, all the shit I’ve been painting onto my face for the last 3 or so months. There’s some sneak (photo) peaks below, but the video has the full scoop! A huge percentage of these guys I actually wore for my Wedding (mainly all the Lancome bits). That Teint Idole is no joke, it might not actually be 24hr wear but it sure got me through at least 10-12 hours of looking photo worthy! They didn’t just grace this face for my nuptials, I’ve been loving them all on the regular as well. The Juicy Shaker for instance has made my purse its’ home this summer. Cocktail inspired lip wear …

Trilogy Skincare: Organic Rosehip Oil, Cream Cleanser and Hydrating Toner

Published by lauren

Well if it’s good enough for the future queen, then it should be good enough for me right? When a super model, a princess and my favorite burlesque dancer all seem to dig the same oil, the annoying skincare obsessive inside me has to know what the fuss is about. I’ve tested out some products from the New Zealand Skincare brand Trilogy over the last few months and have been loving this Rosehip based line. Trilogy was founded by two sisters, Sarah Gibbs and Catherine de Groot, nearly fifteen years ago. This natural, organic, and eco friendly line, based around the powerhouse that is Rosehip Oil, has some of the most awarded oils on the market. Rosehip is definitely having a bit of a heyday right now. I think it swooped in some time last year and stole the crown off of Argan Oil’s head. It’s packed with anti-oxidants, Omegas (6, 7, & 9) and loaded with Vitamin A; a powerhouse all on its own. Vitamin A is known to increase collagen, help fight acne, and fortify the …

Shopping List | Cult French Beauty Brand Bourjois Paris

Published by lauren

I’ve really only been traveling down the beauty community rabbit hole for about a year now. One brand that kept popping out at me on this journey was Bourjois Paris. Now owned by Chanel, this brand got its start way back in the 1800’s as stage makeup during a booming time in theatre. It’s rumored this line is similar if not the same as Chanel’s cosmetics line (they are made in the same factories) but I haven’t tried much Chanel so I can’t compare. This drugstore priced French makeup line is all over youtube, beauty blogs and social media… but just not on our shelves here in the States. Annoying I know. Nothing makes you want something more then when you just. can’t. get. it. Well I could, sorta. Through online retailers like Amazon, lookfantasic and ASOS… but I hate purchasing makeup online that I have not seen in person first. I wanna know what I am getting myself into. So when my fiance Husband (still getting used to that!) and I made the decision to head …

Shopping List | Whole Foods Beauty

Published by lauren

Oh Whole Foods, how I bitter sweetly love you. I long for the day I can shop you and not feel the bite of my credit card after. Luckily for me, and well, YOU, Whole Foods’ beauty section is some how (mostly) spared from its normal aspirational pricing. I have found some darn right steals living on its shelves! Here are 7 of my current favorite skincare gems to buy from Whole Foods! Now unfortunately Whole Foods does not have an online retailer for their beauty stock, which they really really should! So for those interested and don’t have a Whole Foods available to them I included a couple link options for each item! I tried to include links that had similar pricing to what I payed at Whole Foods! This is a great, INTENSE, clay mask. I actually prefer to save this one for my back and chest area which are prone to congestion and black heads. I love how Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay really just pulls everything out, you will be red, …

Farmacy Clear Day Mask Medley: Soothing, Brightening, and Deep Moisture

Published by lauren

Sheet masks guys. I remember being skeptical of them when I saw them pop up a few year back, but this was long before my interest in beauty and skincare really took flight, when even moisturizer was a bit of a mystery to me. Now a few years later sheet masks have become a staple for myself and the industry. You know something has reached staple status when not only every luxury brand has their own, but places like CVS have dedicated shelfs to them. I’ve tried a good amount by now, but lets be honest, that’s not even scratching the surface. There are probably more types of sheet masks out there then wine at this point. I like picking up sheet masks as my introductory product to a new line. I think it gives a good, low commitment and economical way of testing the waters of a new range. Recently I’ve found myself a new favorite this way. Farmacy, a newer natural brand carried by Sephora that centers it line around a new found strain of Echinacea, has launched …