Biore and Burt's Bees Haul

As the weather turns cold, my acne-prone skin gets quite dry. So I run into the dillemma of needing intense moisture while at the same time not clogging my pores and getting more breakouts. So I bought two things the other day: The first is Biore's new moisturizer with the dual pump thingy that reminds me of an epoxy gun. I love Biore's Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser, which I've repurchased twice, so I wanted to try their moisturizers too. This product is for women that are past teenage acne but are not dealing with wrinkles yet. So its just prevention: 1 part moisturizer, 1 part SPF 30. I've only been using this for about 3 days and so far so good.

The second purchase is the Burt's Bees Radiance Healthy Glow Kit. The Radiance line's main ingredient is royal jelly. This sample kit comes with 7 Burt's Bees products, which is awesome as I've been really curious to try out all-natural skincare products. I will say that I am glad I bought this sample kit. It's been a lot of fun getting to try so many things at once. I've got that haul-high all week long. Yaaay for samples! Ok here's what you get

•  Body lotion: contains natural mica to enhance skin tone
• Creamy body wash: infused with oil beads to moisture while it cleanses
• Soap: cleanses and exfoliates to smooth and even skin tone
• Day and Night creams: increase radiance, firmness, and minimize the appearance of fine lines
• Eye Cream: reduce fine lines and natural lip shimmer  
• Lip shimmer (not shown cuz its currently tucked away in my purse)

I'll do in-depth reviews of both the Biore and Burt's Bees products once I've used substantial amounts of both. Till then, I'm enjoying my haul high!

Espresso Yourself! Coffee+Chocolate Mask

It's getting cold, and that means that I'm craving 1) hot chocolate and 2) steaming cups of joe. But did you know that chocolate, coffee and milk are an excellent combination for a DIY mask? Here's why:

1. Chocolate and coffee contain caffeine, which constricts blood vessels, therefore reducing redness from acne or rosacea.

2. Chocolate and coffee contain antioxidants, which can prevent and even repair sun damage. Fall and winter are the best times to repair sun damage from the summer months.

3. Milk contains protein, fat, and vitamins A and D. All of these ingredients calm down dry, chapped skin.

        Mix 1/2 tsp of coffee, 1/2 tsp of cocoa, and 1 tsp of milk. I used Starbucks french roast, Hershey's cocoa powder, and 2% milk (you can use any kind).You can reduce the lumpyness of the cocoa powder by putting it through a sifter, but you and I know we're too lazy to do all that. ;)

       The mixture will be granular and runny. You can add some honey to bind the mixture a bit better, but I had no problem keeping it on my face.

      Leave the mixture on for 15-20 min, then wash off. It can be a wee bit messy when washing off, so you can just do this before taking a shower. I love how I smelled yummy the whole time!

      I didn't see immediate reduction of redness from this mask, but my skin looked very bright, awake and refreshed. Also from just smelling the chocolate and caffeine, I kind of felt revived. I think this mask is a fun pampering session, especially on a cold and rainy day like it has been here all week. So take it for what its worth, and enjoy this little pick-me-up!

My fall purse

I snagged this supple leather purse by Guess at Macy's for around $80. It was originally in the $90 range, but I got a 20% discount with my Macy's gift card. I work in a fairly conservative environment, so I love how this purse is sophisticated, black, and yet has the chunky metal trend incorporated into it. It fits into any environment, and I lohohove it. I think it'll see me through till spring. What do you think?

Product Review: MAC Strobe Liquid

In my ongoing quest to look radiant and dewy, I've been on the hunt for the perfect illuminator.

So for the last month or so, I've gone through a generous sample of MAC Strobe Liquid. Strobe Liquid is a lighter-weight version of the Strobe Cream, and is meant to give you an illuminating effect.

Now that I've gone through the whole sample, I keep going back and forth about whether or not to purchase it. The pros are that it absolutely does give you a J Lo glow. I dab it on my cheekbones and browbones, and its just the most beautiful finishing touch. And I'm an NC45, so it looks good on dark skin too. But the big ole' con is that it doesn't last more than an hour. I refuse to believe that a MAC product would not have lasting power, so I think there might be something wrong with my application. Maybe since I use powder foundation (Studio Fix),  this light-weight cream just gets absorbed by my powder? Maybe I need to set my makeup with Fix+ or my rosewater spray? I dunno...the MUA at Nordstrom suggested that I mix this with my liquid foundation to get an all-over dewy look, but given how pearlescent it is I think I'd end up looking like a disco ball. Plus I'm not a big fan of liquid foundation for everyday use. It's messy, time-consuming and I always get a feeling that there's a lot of makeup on my face. Maybe I haven't found the best liquid foundation yet, but that's another post.

So in total, Strobe Liquid, in the first hour, gives me a beautiful celebrity glow. But after a while, it goes away. I tried on Strobe Cream the other day (Strobe Liquid's original thicker formula) thinking it would have more staying power, but its not really very illuminating; just moisturizing with a bit of a sheen to it. So it's not really an illuminator. I think for now I might pass on this product. It's quite beautiful, but at $29.50 I need it to stay on all day long.

Have you guys tried Strobe Liquid? What did you think? Do you have a favorite cream illuminator?

My First Blog Award!!!

The lovely  Eliza-Make Up Junkie has awarded me my first blog awards! Eliza has awesome hauls, product reviews, and makeup tutorials. She's one of the sweetest bloggers out there as she always gives kudos to fellow bloggers, which is so generous of her. So here are my awards (woohooooooo!)

With these awards, I have to:

1. Thank the person who nominated me for this award (Eliza, you da bomb diggity)

2. Copy the award and place it on my blog.

3. Link to the person who nominated me for this award (here's Eliza)

4. Tell us 7 interesting things about yourself (see below)

5. Nominate 7 Bloggers (see below the below)

6. Post links to the 7 blogs I nominate.

7 things you probably didn't know about me:

1. I get cold very easily. When I'm cold, I bother my hubby by 1) turning up the heat and 2) whining.

2. I hate unnecessary abbreviations. What the hell is "peeds"? Why can't you say pediatrician?

3. I love the spicy italian sub at Subway. It's da bomb. daaaaa bomb.

4. "Halo" by Beyonce gets me soo pumped up during kickboxing. That song is magical.

5. I sit down in random parts of my living room when I'm tired. It's like I'm half cat or something.

6. I have a love/hate relationship towards La Mer. It's stupidly expensive, and yet I want to try it.

7. I want Santa to give me a Lush haul this Christmas.

7 Bloggers I nominate

I love everyone I follow, so this was quite hard to do. Here they are in no particular order:

1. My Fashion and Beauty Blog is one of the first girls to follow me. She's very honest about her experience with products, and her hauls are lovely yet approchable.

2. Gaby's Beauty Blog is a great place to find DIY products and deals and steals. And she has this adorable hamster on a wheel on the side bar. I'm such a sucker for cute animals I swear.

3. Makeup Diary Confessions is a fabulous place to read about hauls on all sorts of products. I basically live vicariously through her shopping sprees.

4. Hell Candy Make-Up has some of the most enviable hauls I've ever seen. She's also very honest and hilarious about everything she tries out.

5. Amynicola_ox is someone I can live vicariously through for over-the-top hauls. Love it!

6. Awilda Hearts Makeup is one of the most talented MUA out there. Also her skintone is close to mine, so anytime she buys something, I haave to have it.

7. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder does such great hauls. She's also beautiful, hilarious, and honest about whatever products she tries out. I think she has substantially increased my wishlist.

Sorry so long, but loving other bloggers takes time! I hope you all enjoyed this. Please let me know if you'd like to see a blogger of the month post from me. I might also do just blogger of the month in the sidebar instead of a post so it stays up all month. Not sure which one I'll go with but in any case, the bear hugging has started!

What's in my travel makeup bag?

Hi guys, sorry I haven't updated my blog in a while; I was away in Chicago for a conference. For my 6 day trip, I packed makeup that made me look polished, but not colorful. After all, this was a scientific conference. No one was going to appreciate a Manish Arora pallete on my eyes.

I picked up a generic travel kit that included a soap case, hairbrush, toothbrush holder, and 2 empty bottles ($2.99!). I didn't take the bottles or hair brush, just the toothbrush holder, the soap holder, and the travel kit. The soap holder was filled with hair accessories, q-tips and toothpaste. The travel kit contained makeup:

Face:

MAC Studio Fix Powder Foundation

Maybelline Dream Mousse in Soft Plum

Mary Kay Mineral Powder Brush

Mary Kay Signature Concealor

Loew Cornell concealor brush

Eyes:

Lancome eye makeup remover

MAC Powerpoint Engraved

MAC Fluidline Blacktrack

Kat von D eye palette in Ludwig

Loew Cornell 1/8" angled shader

Coastal Scents blending fluff

Random Target eyelash curler

Maybelline Define-a-Lash

Lips:

Egyptian magic (sample size)

MAC Fastlane

C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine

I was kind of strict about how many "me too" products I took along just cuz I like to travel light. I'm overall quite happy with everything I took, but the only thing I'd change is to take more than one lip color. What kind of stuff can you not live without when you travel?

Secret to Clear Skin

After dealing with acne for about 12 years now, I want to share my thoughts on what are the two most common underlying causes of acne. Remember that acne is just a symptom of a deeper problem. Solve the problem, and you'll get rid of acne. In my experience, acne is caused by  1) a hormonal imbalance, and 2) inefficient digestion. If either of these two things is out of whack, I break out. It's as simple as that (for me!). Here are my 2 top tips for good skin:

1) Balance your hormones: the best way for girls to calm down their hormones is to birth control. My hormones were all over the place as a teenager because I always had severely painful periods and I always broke out like crazy around that time. It sucked because it was like a billboard to the world that said "Aunt Flo is visiting me for the week!" So I've conquered the hormonal issue by getting on trisprintec. Obviously, talk to your family, dermatologist and/or OB/GYN before getting on birth control.

2) Have a good digestive system: if you are constipated, chances are, you have acne. When you're constipated, the toxins in your body have nowhere to go, so they get into your bloodstream, which goes everywhere, including your pores! I know that's disgusting, but bear with me, this is VERY important to good skin! There are very simple ways to stay regular. Here are a few all-natural, no-side-effects, results-driven and super-affordable tips:

• Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day. If you do NOTHING else on this list, do this one. Your makeup will stay on longer, you won't have mid-afternoon lulls, and your skin will not only be acne-free, it will glow.
• Take psyllium husk every morning with warm water. Psyllium husk can be found under the brand name Metamucil, but you can also find higher-quality stuff at the Indian store, where its called Sat Isabgol. Take a heaping teaspoon every morning with warm water.
  
• Take 1/2 a tsp of Triphala every morning and night. This is a wonderful Ayurvedic compound that acts as a mild laxative. It works wonders and there are no side-effects.
  

On a last note, I've seen that taking charge of my hormones and my digestion has not only cleared up myskin, it actually makes me feel happier on the inside. Believe me, clear skin starts from here, so I hope you try it!