The Hunger Games Nail Polish Collection: Capitol Colours

I don't think I've ever been so excited for a movie premiere in my life as I am for The Hunger Games, which comes out in theaters tomorrow. I read the trilogy, and can't wait to see how the movie compares to the first book.

When I saw the China Glaze Capitol Colours collection inspired by each of the 12 districts in The Hunger Games, I knew I had to pick up some of the colors! My favorites are Electrify, Riveting, and Dress Me Up.

Are there any other Hunger Games fans out there who bought any of these polishes? And an unrelated question: are you team Peeta or team Gale?

Chemical Peels At Home: How To

Chemical peels have been around for a long time-ancient Romans used food acids aka Lactic Acid to peel their skin to reveal younger, brighter looking skin. Today there are so many different chemical peel options, and it can be overwhelming to figure out which is best for your skin.

Picking your poison: 

What kind of chemical peel is best for your skin?

-Lactic Acid: Lactic Acid is one of the safest peels available, and is great as a "first peel". It is safe to use on darker skin tones, and helps to hydrate dry skin. Additional benefits of using a Lactic acid peel are: treats sun damaged skin, improves the appearance of stretch marks, helps with hyperpigmentation, and improves the tone and texture of the skin.
-Glycolic Acid: A more aggressive peel that rejuvenates normal to oily skin, addressing acne, acne scarring, wrinkles, and fine lines.
-Salicylic Acid: Salicylic acid peels are great for oily skin, and are great for the treatment of blackheads.
-TCA: Excellent for acne, lines, wrinkles, sun damage, age spots and general scarring. This peel is deeper than the above three and is longer lasting.
-Jessner's: Great for treating cystic acne.

*Each of these peels can be purchased at varying strengths. I am not an expert on which percentage to choose depending on your experience with peels, but for reference I first purchased the Lactic Acid Peel (35%) and have moved onto the 70%. For first time users, it is very important to use a low percentage. Please check with your doctor and/or use discretion when choosing your strength.

I use the Lactic Acid Peel, and I use both the 35% and 70%. Since the Lactic Acid peel is beneficial to those with rosacea (which I have on my cheeks) and keratosis pilaris, I use the peel on my face and on my arms. The first time I used the 35% peel, my skin did peel, but it was't horrible; my skin just looked like it was extra dry for about three days.

How to use a peel at home:

Step 1: Gather your supplies. You will need a foundation brush (you can use almost any type of makeup brush, but I like to use a dense brush to apply the gel evenly over my face and arms), your gel peel, water, and baking soda. Baking soda neutralizes the peel on contact and stops it from penetrating the skin.
Step 2: Pour a dime sized amount of your peel gel onto your brush and apply evenly over your face (or body), avoiding the eye and mouth areas.
Step 3: Wait 5-10 minutes, then rinse with baking soda and water mixture. Do not leave the peel on overnight. I learned this the hard way!! It was not pretty.

After you use a peel, it is very important to heavily moisturize and to apply sunscreen as your skin will be extra sensitive in the days following the peel. I usually use the peel at night and do not use makeup within at least 12 hours afterwards to let my skin breathe and recover.

I hope this was helpful! I'd love to hear about your experiences with at home peels if you decide to try it!

{Hair} Line I Love: Oribe

I fell in love with Oribe's hair products about a year ago, when I switched hair stylists. Surprisingly, I had never heard of Oribe, who is a world renowned hair stylist who has worked with countless celebrities and has styled several Vogue covers, Victoria's Secret fashion shows, Fall 2011 Runway shows, and famous Chanel and Louis Vuitton editorial campaigns. He has been in the hair biz for 30+ years, and is known to have made Jennifer Lopez's hair as famous as it is since her first album cover.

{Completely obsessed with this hair}

There are so many reasons why I love Oribe's products. What first caught my eye was the glamorous, rich looking, sleek packaging. I was surprised to hear from my stylist that all of the packaging is made from recycled materials, and Oribe's products are all vegan, made from plant extracts, vegetable proteins and vitamins.

The first Oribe product I purchased was the Signature Moisture Masque, after finishing Aveda's Damage Remedy which honestly seemed to dry out my hair. The Moisture Masque is so luxurious from the look of the jar to the smell. It makes my hair SO soft, like it naturally was when I was 5. I did have to talk myself into purchasing the 5.9 oz jar for $60, but it was well worth it.

Since then I also bought the Ultra Rich conditioner to prevent myself from using the moisture masque every day, which I love. It detangles my hair and smells just as good as the moisture masque.

And after using the Royal Blowout spray for my wedding hair trial (and wedding), I had to pick up a bottle. It's super light and doesn't weigh my hair down, which is great because I LOVE big hair.

I also have the Dry Texturizing spray and the 24k Gold Pomade sitting in my amazon cart. 

Read Rachel Zoe's review of the 24k Gold Pomade here.

Have any of you used Oribe's products? If so, which one(s) are your favorites?

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Review

These are my newest obsession. 

I'm not usually a fan of intricate nail art, but I found many of Sally Hansen Salon Effects strips to be wearable. The first ones I tried out were the multi-color glitter stickers in "Frock Star", which I wore during my Bachelorette weekend-they were perfectly appropriate for such an occasion.

Next I tried "Laced Up", the pattern I was most drawn to:

Today I applied "Bling It On":

Each box contains 16 nail strips with varying sizes to fit each nail, a mini file, buffer, and a cuticle stick. I ended up not needing the cuticle stick. The strips are very easy to apply and what's great about them is that you can shape them onto rounded or squared nails at almost any length.

Once applied to the nail, the remaining strip is easily filed off the nail with the mini file/buffer.

Ta Da!

The Salon Effects package claims that the nail strips last up to 10 days, which I've found to be true. I removed the "Frock Star" strips after 6 days since my wedding was one week after I had applied them but they would've held up at least another few days, and I kept the "Laced Up" strips on for almost two weeks!

I love that there is no dry time (also stated on the box), the strips are easy to remove with nail polish remover, and they do not contain any DPB, Toluene or Formaldehyde.

The one con for me is the price ($8.99 at Target), however they are significantly cheaper than Minx and last about as long.

Up next I'll be trying "Misbehaved"

What are your thoughts on Sally Hansen's Salon Effects? Which is your favorite Pattern?

Favorite Drugstore Products

Below are my favorite drugstore products, which are pretty much the only drugstore beauty products I use but absolutely swear by. I admit that I am a little bit of a designer brand snob. I am really interested to hear what your favorite drugstore products are, so please share yours with me!

Buy on Amazon

I use Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser for shaving, in place of shaving cream. After years of dealing with razor burn and ingrown hairs, I've finally gotten a system down for avoiding such problems. I've tried pretty much every shaving cream out there, from drugstore brands to fancy $50 products. Once I tried this cleanser, I never looked back! Some major factors that I believe make this product work with shaving are: it's fragrance free, non-comedogenic (most shaving creams are not), and it does not disturb the skin's natural pH balance. 

Buy at Walgreens

Again, I've used so many different types of razors and none have worked for me...until I tried the cheapest of them all: Bic's sensitive razors. The key with these are that they do not have that "moisturizing strip" that most razors have above the blade. I only use these one time, so they do tend to add up.

Buy at buy.com

While I use non-drugstore shampoos and conditioners regularly, this is the only clarifying shampoo I use. I've been using Suave's daily clarifying shampoo for about 10 years! I use it when my hair feels heavy and a regular shampoo won't get all the buildup out. I hate it when I wash my hair and then when I dry it, it looks and feels dirty! This shampoo fixes that problem and makes your hair feel squeaky clean.

Buy on Amazon

I just discovered these scunci evolution hair bands during a recent trip to Target. Love. They are "ouchless" and do an amazing job at holding your hair in place. I never have to fix a ponytail at the gym or a bun when I wear one of these, and I have very thick, long hair.

Buy at Walgreens

Without Aquaphor's Healing Ointment I don't know what I'd do! I'm pretty sure I suffer from Psoriasis on my scalp and forehead (going to the dermatologist this week to confirm) and nothing pacifies the dry skin on my forehead like this stuff. It definitely doesn't treat the problem, but it's a world of help. If I don't put it on before I go to bed, my skin is a peeling hot mess in the morning even with my daytime moisturizer. I definitely recommend this to anyone who has extremely dry skin, or just some dry patches. 

Buy on Amazon

I've been using the Demi 120 Ardell Lashes since high school and swear by them, over MAC lashes and other drugstore brands. Ardell lashes are very thin, so they're easy to apply and they look natural. 

Buy at Target

To apply the lashes, I use Duo eyelash adhesive. Trust me when I say your lashes will not go anywhere. I've really tested this stuff in crazy HIGH wind weather...it must have been a hilarious scene to watch this girl covering her eyes with one hand and weave with the other!

L'Oreal Sublime Bronze Self Tanner Review

I'm a sucker for buying different self-tanners although I usually try and stay away from drugstore self-tanners because they tend to be orange-y and streaky, leaving me looking like I have a skin disease. *note: I have had the same experience with some high-end brands as well! I'd heard lots of good things about L'Oreal Sublime Bronze Self Tanner and decided to try it. I am so impressed with how easy is is to apply: you can see the gel go on as it is already a bronze-y color. After a couple hours I had a very even tan that looked more like I had been out in the sun {brown} rather than slathering myself with a self-tanner {orange}. It has been 3 days since I've applied the tanner and it still looks great with no splotchy-ness. One downside: I got a really bad breakout on my chin, which could be attributed to something else (I'm thinking maybe constant diet coke consumption if not the self-tanner). I normally have clear skin and rarely break out. My word of advice to anyone who tries it is not to use it on your face just in case.
What is your favorite self tanner? Do you usually apply it to your face?

Hair Inspiration

I was blessed with a head of super thick, wavy hair and when I went to get some layers a couple months back, I came out with a mullet. Like one (yes, just ONE) layer that was ear-length and then the rest of my hair hit mid-back. With my thick hair this just looks awful. It takes almost an hour to make my hair look decent, but it looks very contrived, especially after spraying it with ten pounds of hair spray! The cut was right before the craziness of midterms, and then finals, so since I barely had time to even shower, I did not get my hair fixed. I am thrilled that I think I have found my wedding stylist who I am going to next week to get the layers blended and to figure out hair color for my wedding. As you can see in the photos below, Kate Beckinsale is one of my hair idols. She always looks put together without looking like she tried too hard. When I saw her on a shopping trip awhile back, I was in awe of how naturally beautiful she is!  Here are some photos I've kept in a "hair" folder on my laptop of beautiful hair; some of which I will bringing to my appointment next week. I will keep you guys updated on how it turns out!

 

 

 

 

 

The Truth About Sunscreen

With summer rapidly approaching and a need for a new bottle of sunscreen, I went to research products and a rumor I've been hearing over the last several months about the safety of sunscreen. What I found out is horrifying and I think it is SO important that I share with everyone who reads my blog.

In simplified terms, most sunscreens on the market are harmful to your health for a couple reasons. First, most contain cancer causing chemicals. Secondly, sunscreen depletes the body of Vitamin D, which can slash all forms of cancer by 77%. One article I read states: "Scientific evidence shows quite clearly that sunscreen promotes cancer by blocking the body's absorption of ultraviolet radiation, which produces Vitamin D in the skin."

The carcinogenic products in sunscreen have never never been tested or approved by the FDA. As a side note, I took a pharmacology course recently and learned that many drugs are never tested by the FDA, but they pay the FDA to write them off. I believe that this is the truth regarding sunscreen products.

The chemicals that are proven to be harmful when absorbed into the skin include:

Benzophenone-3 or Oxybenzone: These are both free radical generators activated by ultraviolet light. Free radicals can initiate reactions and lead to melanoma and other skin cancers.

Triethanolamine (TEA): his ingredient may combine with nitrite (used as a preservative or may be present as an environmental contaminant) to cause formation of cancer-causing nitrosamines. Nitrites are not disclosed on cosmetic labels so there's no way of telling which products are contaminated with nitrosamines. Particularly disturbing is that up to 35 percent of TEA applied to the skin can enter the bloodstream.

Titanium Dioxide: has the ability to cause DNA damage in human cells and there is concern that it may be carcinogenic.

The Good:

Zinc Oxide: Zinc oxide is a mineral that provides complete UVB/UVA protection, has anti-inflammatory properties, and is considered a safe sunscreen ingredient. However, the regular form of zinc oxide leaves a strong white residue on the skin. To create a clear skin product rather than one that leaves a white residue, zinc oxide is now made in the form of nano-size particles. There is growing concern about the toxicity of nanoparticles, which has initiated a world-wide effort to study the skin absorption and phototoxicity of nanoparticles of preparations used in sunscreens and cosmetics.

From here, I felt helpless but found a few brands of sunscreen that did not contain the harmful products normally used in mainstream products; I ultimately chose to order a sunscreen from Kabana Skincare.

In addition to ordering sunscreen, I felt it was extremely important to buy some Vitamin D capsules as well.

To read more about sunscreen safety, click here or here
*Update: Check out EWG's website for more information and help with picking out the right sun care products for you.

Minx Nails

I'd been wanting to try Minx for months and last week I found a salon close to me that does them. I had no idea how they were applied or anything about them beforehand (except they look really cool!) so I'm going to give you all the low-down on how they work.
When I got there, I picked out the gold minx (from lots of different colors and patterns). They come as nail-size strips adhered to a piece of special paper and are activated by heat. The nail technician put them under a heat lamp and asked me to put my nails under it, too (verrrry hot and when it got painful I took my hand out from under the heat). Once she peeled the minx from the paper, she smoothed it on over my nails and cut it down to my nail length and held it, again, under heat to seal them on.
I love the way they look but I'm starting to get annoyed because the minx will start peeling back from the top of the nails. It's been 5 days now since I've had the minx on and they still look great (probably because I'm paranoid about messing them up) but I can feel them snag on things. For $40-$50 I don't think they're worth it unless it's for a special occasion. I'm missing my regular, painted nails that are smooth right about now, but I'm going to keep the minx on as long as they stay on. Have any of you tried Minx? What was your experience like?
Those of you that read my blog regularly may have noticed that I have a different ring on my finger--I exchanged my radiant cut engagement ring for a round Tiffany with a Platinum band a couple months ago.

Candy Colored Eyebrows

While at the gym tonight, I read the new issue of Allure and this trend featured really caught my eye. At the Fall 2010 Balenciaga fashion show, the models wore colorful hues on their eyebrows. Pat McGrath was the makeup artist who created the look by bleaching the models' eyebrows and then covered them with grease paints. McGrath's explanation: "I just thought about the playfulness and the fact that it was like children's toys and I was thinking 'where can I put it, the eyes are kind of boring, so do it on the brows."
I wouldn't pull this look except maybe for Halloween, but I do think it's fun and very creative! What do you guys think?

Drugstore Beauty Products I Love

Most of the beauty products I use are "high end" but I have found several drugstore products that work fabulously for me. Below are my favorite items that I re-purchase time and time again...
I use Aquaphor every single day during the winter or any time my skin is dry. No other facial moisturizer has worked as well to hydrate my skin in extremely dry areas. Now, I do not use this all over my face because it is VERY heavy and thick. I only use it on my forehead between my eyebrows and close to my hairline (these areas are EXTREMELY dry on my face). Also, I never put it on in the morning. It takes hours to absorb since it's so heavy, so after I wash my face at night I slather it on and my skin is hydrated and not dry in the morning.
I know I've blogged about Tresemme's Heat Protectant before but it's seriously a miracle worker. My hair loves me for using it because I use heat on my hair almost every day.
If you follow me on Twitter you might know that I tried facial wax for the first time a few weeks ago. I don't know why I didn't try this sooner. My mustache was out of control (IMO)--no, it wasn't a full-on 'stache but it definitely glistened in the sun when I caught myself in the rear view mirror while in my car. I love that the Sally Hansen stripless wax doesn't hurt horribly. I was terrified of using it but coming from a wuss--no pain! I just bought another jar for round 2 of mustache removal.
Love, love Revlon's lip glosses. I own three of them and I've never found another drugstore lipgloss I like more than Revlon's. I just recently bought the lilac color (pictured on the right end) and it is GORGEOUS. If any of you have tried MAC's cremesheen gloss in the lavendar color, it's similar but has more of a color payoff.
I usually do my own nails (can't say the same for my toes--I can't give myself a pedicure to save my life!) and Sally Hansen's Double Duty clear polish is amazing. It's SO shiny, and my nail polish stays on for 5+ days which never happened before I started using Double Duty. I've used OPI and various other topcoat polishes and none have compared.
Too often I am way too lazy to wash my face at the end of the day so I keep these in my night stand drawer. They have probably prevented numerous breakouts and do the job well at removing all traces of makeup.

What are your favorite drugstore beauty items? I'm always looking for new goodies to try!