Friday, February 11, 2011

SUYL- Beauty Secrets!

I saw this on Kelly's Korner today & thought it'd be fun!

Show Us Your Life: Beauty Secrets

Although I am not usually "done up," I do like to take care of myself.  Unfortunately I am always running late (sleepy head!) so I typically have to throw myself together pretty quickly...

Here is what I look like naturally, 100% raw (NO make-up, no fixing my hair! And YES, my handsome hubby ALWAYS looks this good!):
And now my "normal" look,which is how I think I look the majority of the time:
 And every once in a while I add a little more make-up, throw on a dress, or make my pony-tail a little more fancy! (Only on special occasions though....ha!)

So, here's my regimen:

 1. My hair: I am pretty low maintenance (I only wash my hair like 3-4x a week...which makes my highlights last longer, keeps my hair from drying out/being damaged from excessive heat, AND allows me to sleep in!), but I am totally a shampoo and hair product snob.  I always ask for nice shampoo for Christmas! I have used Aveda and Biolage in the past, but my current fave is the Paul Mitchell Smoothing hair care system- It smells AWESOME!  My hairdryer and hairbrush are both from Target...and I use a Heat Protectant spray from Sally's on the rare occasion I straighten my hair (it's naturally fairly straight). I just got a Chi straightener for Christmas. It looked like a Barbie wrapped up in its box. :) I do have to say, in my non-professional opinion, it is worth the money to buy the nicer straightening tool.  BTW, my hair is SUPER long right now! The longest it's been since I was like 6 or 7....and I am SO pumped to finally chop it all off after the photo shoot in a couple weeks!! I'm going back short short....cute little bob. Don't worry, I'll post before and after pics!

2. Skin care: I was blessed to have great skin growing up. (I'm not bragging, and I'm totally allowed to say that considering all of my "adult skin issues.") At the age of 20 I randomly developed adult acne. What fun?!?! I have tried everything from microdermabrasion to Retin-A to Differin to Proactiv to oral antibiotic treatments. Nothing worked, and I was super self-conscious about it, so my doctor finally decided it was my hormones and I needed to take birth control.  I started taking Yaz, which cleared up my face big time. Unfortunately it also caused Melasma, a major skin pigment discoloration.  So, basically I traded my adult acne for brown spots that totally look like a mustache above my upper lip. Awesome.  My dermatologist finally gave me some bleaching cream to clear it up, and thankfully it worked.  However, anytime I'm in the sun for an extended time (i.e. beach trips) it comes back. I have a few wide-brimmed hats that have become my friend. Remember "Sunspot"?  Anyway, my M-I-L knows how much I worry about my skin, so she bought me this AWESOME Clarisonic skin-care system for Christmas. It's like a face massage every morning and evening and is supposed to clean much deeper than ordinary cleaners. I am currently using the hydrating cleanser that came with it, along with Pond's moisturizer afterwards. If I remember I dab wrinkle cream under my eyes at night as a preventative measure against wrinkles.


3. Make-Up: I love Bare Minerals. Their concealer brush & concealer are seriously like mini-magicians. I start with a base of foundation powder all over my face, then go back and add concealer to any spots (I'll just tell ya, I go through a lot of this stuff!) and under my eyes. I also add the dark/light brightener to the tops of my cheekbones under my eye. I dust Pure Radiance bronzer all over, then Rose Radiance on my cheekbones. I blend everything by adding Mineral Veil, and I do this before my eye makeup.  Usually (because of time's sake) I don't wear eye shadow, so I just use Covergirl brown eyeliner in the corners of the upper and lower lid.  I follow with Sky High Curves mascara by Maybelline, and yes, I wear a LOT. This is the BEST mascara EVER!!!  Unfortunately it's off the market, but my sweet hubby has been able to find me some leftover stuff online. I wear LOTS of mascara to make my eyes pop, which means I go light on the lips. I typically wear a clear or neutral gloss from Victoria's Secret.

 **Here are a few extra tips I've learned throughout the years (but don't always put into practice!)...
-Drink LOTS of water. It flushes toxins and impurities out of your system and keeps your skin hydrated.
-Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize!!!
-Wear sunglasses when it's bright to prevent "squinting" wrinkles.
-Sleep on your back. When you sleep on your side or stomach, you are pulling/stretching your skin.
-Do not overwash your face or overuse any product.
-ALWAYS wear sunscreen, even in the winter.
-Need a cheap hair clarifier (to remove product)?  Try apple cider vinegar.
-Need a cheap way to exfoliate? Mix raw sugar granules in olive oil and scrub away! Be careful gthough, it makes the bottom of the tub/shower really slick!
-Use baking soda for a quick/cheap teeth whitening!
- Avoid sugar. Did you know it causes wrinkles? True story.  Heck, avoid anything processed if possible!
-Take a multivitamin.
-Add ground flaxeed to your diet, along with as many fruits and veggies as possible!


That's all I got, friends. Maybe ya learned at least one little trick. I'd LOVE to hear yours, too. :)

11 comments:

Lindsey @ Magnolias and Gobbers said...

Wow. Loved reading this post. The summer before I got married I started taking Yaz and shortly after I developed Melasma. At the time, I had no idea this is what it was called but finally figured out it had to be the Yaz. I of course switched BC and starting using stronger SPF and it has faded a lot but always darkens in the summer. Crazy to hear it happened to someone else. I think I will definitely have to invest in the Clarisonic. I used to wear BM but I found it didn't cover my "old woman spots" very well so I switched to Clinique's Even Better Makeup. It covers the spots better.

Anyways, sorry for the long comment but I was excited (for lack of term) with the same problem. Can you imagine the lovely pregnacy masks we are going to get one day?

Clarisonic said...

Tell your mother in law thank you from us for sharing the gift of sonic cleansing! We are so happy that you are enjoying the cleansing experience. Thank you so much for sharing. If you ever have questions you can find us on Twitter @Clarisonic or facebook.com/Clarisonic. If you're feeling sonerific too you can even get your hubby a extra brush head and share the gift of sonic cleansing with him. Men love it before shaving because it can help reduce irritation! :)

Danielle said...

Mrs. Magnolia- I am dreading the day, sister! I meant to address that in my post bc my dermatologist warned me it would DEFINITELY get worse with all those pregnancy hormones!! The Tri-Luma cream I have works really well, but I am still taking the Yaz to help with the acne. Oh well, so much for a "glowing" pregnancy!

Danielle said...

Clarisonic- My MIL wants one too, so we're going to get her one for Mother's Day. I LOVE mine! :)

GREG AND JANICE said...

Thanks for the post on your favorite products!! I really enjoyed reading about them. I'm sure you've heard of it before, but I had terrible skin all during high school and college until I took acutane (sp??). Do you still have acne problems? Acutane causes really difficult side effects to live with while you are taking it, but I would take it again in a heartbeat if I ever needed to. It works wonders, and maybe you could come off the birth control.
Anyways... I love your blog, and I look forward to reading more! I really admire that you deleted your facebook account to do more Bible studies. What a great inspiration! :)

texas girl said...

I found your blog through kellys korner I LOVE my clarisonic I got it for chirstmas this year and its life changing! I wish I looked as good as you without make up on your too cute!!

Brittany said...

I'm so glad you commented on my blog! I use the lavender scented BP too...it's definitely my fave! And, yes I'm a Rainey...so crazy, you don't hear of many of us! Your tips are awesome btw!

Sasha said...

I used to take Yaz and have terrible melasma as well.... luckily I was able to stop taking them last year and my skin is beginning to look better- and I use a pink Clarisonic too!

Brittany said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Brittany said...

For the dirty hair days, what do you use on your hair? I keep trying dry shampoos and haven't found one I love yet!

*Butler, Party of 4* said...

a little bit of baby powder on ym roots (i get the scented kind!) goes a long way... :)