Monday, April 30, 2018

April Favorites 2018


I haven't been happy with my old foundation routine so in April I changed everything! I found my last foundation color wasn't matching me right, there was dry patches clinging and peeling during the day, my pores seemed to be enlarged...it just looked overall gross. So I decided to start from scratch - these are my April favorites and my new foundation routine.

Pixi Rose Flash Balm - This was a very interesting product because it has multiple purposes. It claims to be a 3-1 moisturizer+primer+mask. I've been using it as a primer and it is VERY hydrating. My skin has been so dry and gross which has been affecting how my makeup looks. This has been wonderful in hydrating my skin and preping my face for makeup. LOVE LOVE LOVE

NYX Pore Filler - Normally enlarged pores aren't an issue I struggle with. But for whatever reason my skin has decided to go crazy this last month and my pores around my nose has been an issue. My makeup doesn't sit right during the day and just looks blah. I use this filler in around my nose area and it just blurs all those imperfections you don't want seeping through. Works great with the Pixi Rose Flash Balm.

Dermablend Smooth Liquid Camo Medium Coverage Foundation - I haven't changed my foundation in a while so I didn't know where to start. I did a ton of research and came across this Dermablend foundation. I find that with my dry & pale skin it's hard to track down a foundation that truly works for me. I constantly struggle with color matching or the foundation being too matte or being too dry or moving around. This is a no fuss foundation. I put it on in the morning and I don't have to touch my face throughout the day.....yet it doesn't dry out my skin or cling to dry patches. It works amazing with the two primers I've been using and the color matches me! I use the lightest shade Linen 0C. This covers all my imperfections and uneven skin tone yet it's very skin like and still lets my freckles show through. It has an in between look of makeup and skin that I find very flattering.

Overall I have been extremely happy with this new trio foundation routine.

Leave in the comments below what your current foundation routine has been.

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Lifestyle Update | Bear & Diesel





My last update about Bear & Diesel seems like a long time ago! I posted Living With Two Dogs about mid December...so much has happened since then. 

Bear and Diesel both went in for surgery two days after Christmas - they are now spayed and neutered...Merry Christmas! It was a tough time healing for both dogs. We had to keep them quite and of course they both just wanted to run around and play. We also couldn't walk them for about 2 weeks which they are didn't like. Both dogs healed up nicely and they are back to their old rambunctious ways.

Diesel has grown SOOOO much since my last update. I keep looking back at old pictures and miss those times we had with her were she was so tiny. She's now 10 months and about 50lbs. She's still shorter than Bear and I'm not sure how much more she's going to grow but she'll definitely fill out more - she's still very skinny.  

Bear has also surprised us and did another growth spurt after getting neutered. He's now close to 80lbs and I noticed that he's taller than our coffee table!

Both dogs are still in training, they are doing really well at loose leash walking together but of course some days they are more cooperative than others. We've had a little bit of off leash training with them and they have done amazing! I'm a little nervous to take them back to the off leash...Bear has become very overprotective of Diesel...so our training was just done in a big open field. 

Diesel attended some puppy social classes. We found that because she didn't get to go to the off leash much like Bear did when he was younger she wasn't very well socialized around dogs. We did puppy social for about 3 months straight and she is much better around dogs. We frequent pet stores with both of them so they can be around other dogs on leash - also we find pet stores a great place to do some training with some distractions. 

We are really looking forward to having an awesome summer with these two - last year we couldn't enjoy our summer because of Bear's leg injury. If you don't know what I'm referring to you can check out Bear's 1 Year Update where I talk about his accident and was diagnosed with chronic lameness.

I want to hear from all you dog lovers out there - what is your most favorite thing to do during the summer with your fur babies?  



Friday, April 13, 2018

5 Tips To Stay Active


Life has been crazy busy - can you relate? Sometimes it's hard to find time to workout and stay active. Lately I haven't had the time to stick to a full time workout plan, so here are 5 ways I've been trying to stay active daily

1. Including the dogs - my dogs need exercise everyday too so why not include them! Bear has really enjoyed heading out for a run here and there. It's nice to mix up our walking routine with a run.....plus he's very tiered afterward which means I can get more work done around the house while he naps.

2. Wear a step counter - I'm not a typical "fitbit" user...honestly I prefer Garmin products. I wear my Garmin step counter everyday, this helps motive me to try to aid for 8,000-10,000 steps per day. Sometimes when I'm on conference calls I will pace around my home office to get in a few more steps. 

3. Park far away - when I'm out and about running errands I park far away from the door. This way I have to walk a little bit more - plus my car doesn't get dinged as much because there's no one else parked around me.

4. Workout during commercials - I feel like this is an oldie but a goodie. I've heard this says so much but it really works! Just even getting up and doing some squats, push ups, stretching .... just get moving during that 3min commercial break. 

5. Schedule - working from home I find I don't take as many breaks as I should - so I schedule them. If it's in my schedule I'm more likely to follow through. 

How do you stay active? Tell me your secrets in the comments below.



Monday, April 2, 2018

March 2018 Favorites







March has been a very busy month for myself and my family. It has been a month of very minimal makeup and just focusing on my skin care and self health. For all my skincare favorites make sure to check out my updated skincare routine for 2018.

I have discovered a new brand for some amazing hair care products - well new to me. I've added a few products from OGX and they have been amazing. Their spray mousse gives me so much volume when blow drying and what I really like is it doesn't leave your hair feel dirty. I hate using volumizing products straight out of the shower that make your hair feel dirty...what was the point of showering!?! I like my hair to feel clean but still have tons of volume for styling. This has a great nozzle that I can spray the product directly in hair and then I can use my hands to really work the mousse in.

The other two products from OGX are thermal protecting cream and spray. My favorite thermal spray is discounted (of course!) and is no longer available. I've been on the hunt for a new one and I love these. I alternate between the two, one is supposed to blow dry your hair faster and the other one is a thicker formula which I feels protects my hair better. It depends on how much time I have to style my hair. Both are great products and they are very similar.

My Beauty Blender finally wore out and I went to purchase a new one...but at the last minute changed my mind and out the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponges. I have used this sponge in the past and did really enjoy it - PLUS it's way cheaper and I found this 4 pack which was a great price! I have two sponges on the go, I like to use one for foundation and then a clean one for powdering. Now that I've switched back to this sponge I think I like it over the Beauty Blender. I think this sponge has a better shape and I like the flat edge when I'm trying to build up coverage.

The few times I have used foundation this month I've been reaching for the LA Girl Pro Coverage foundation in white to lighten my foundation. Because I'm the whitest person on the planet I have a hard time find foundations that match me. Usually this means I wont buy a lot of really great foundations because of their color selecting. With a mixer you can adjust the color to fit your skin. I find this mixer doesn't really change the formula too much but I only use 1-2 pumps.

I haven't changed my primer in a very long time. But I discovered the Smashbox Photo Finish Primerizer. This claims to be a primer + moisturizer which peaked my attention. I have very dry skin so anything that says moisturizing I have to try! It says this has hyaluronic acid and if you read my updated skincare blog post you would have seen that I use The Ordinary hyaluonic acid with my moisturizer and I've been loving the results. This is definitely a primer I would only recommend to dry skin - I think if you had combination or oily skin your foundation would slide off your face. This feels very hydrating and my foundation sits amazing over top. I wouldn't say it increases longevity of foundation so you will want to powder or use a foundation that's long lasting.

Have you tried any of these products? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
Take care and thanks for vising!