Even though we’re no strangers to warm weather in Miami, the official kick-off to summer means adjusting to slightly lighter and more refreshing options for our skin care and beauty rituals. Just ahead, I’m sharing some of the essential summer skin care tips and products I’m keeping handy this season.
Tag Archives: skincare
DIY Beauty: At-Home Spa Recipes for Stress Relief
Janice Cox, one of America’s leading natural beauty experts and bestselling author of Natural Beauty at Home, shares some of her favorites DIY beauty recipes to soak in for stress relief, better sleep, skin exfoliation, and more. Read on for full recipes and details.
Clarins 2018 Spring Collection
The latter half of my thirties have had me on an enthusiastic quest for skincare. So when Clarins reached out to offer me a chance to try their 2018 Spring Collection, I happily agreed. Read on for a review on Clarins Extra-Firming Day and Night Creams and SOS Primer.
DIY Strawberry Peel: Recipe & Video
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Snow Fox Skin Care is sharing a DIY Strawberry Peel. Watch the video and get the full recipe in this post.
When to Clean Out Your Makeup & Beauty Products
The start of a new year is a great time to clean out your beauty arsenal. Beauty expert June Jacobs has some simple tips and timelines to help us all clear out the outdated junk in our makeup drawers.
Product Review: IT Cosmetics ‘Bye Bye Foundation’ and Kit
Confession: I love a good infomercial. I mean, who doesn’t? I get sucked in and want to buy everything. Every damn thing. Slap Chop? Got it. NutriBullet? Totally had it. George Foreman Grill? Obvy. So there was no resisting the allure of the IT Cosmetics TV presentation hosted by Alison Sweeney, who I grew to love/hate/love on Days of Our Lives as a teen.
Since I am a bit of a beauty junkie, I had to give their famous ‘Bye Bye Foundation‘ a try. Sharing some photos and thoughts on the full kit just ahead.
Better Skin from Within: Relax Spa
“Our skin is a direct reflection of what we put into our bodies. What we eat, what we drink, everything we consume shows up on the surface,” explains Alberto, founder of Relax Spa and my esthetician for the day, as he describes the way in which the JetPeel Hydra-Infusion facial works from deep within the skin to remove impurities and provide rejuvenating results on the surface. He likens it to pressure-cleaning for your face and I nod emphatically, immediately regretting my breakfast burrito and wondering how deep he’s going to have to dig to eliminate months of speed-mom drive-thru breakfasts.
éclos Skin Care Giveaway – #EclosBeauty
This post brought to you by éclos Skin Care. All opinions are 100% mine.
Though I’m usually loathe to being photographed sans makeup, I’ve made an exception for this post in appreciation to the good people at éclos for sending over a little kit for me to try out the nicest-smelling skincare products I’ve ever come across.
I’ve always been a bit lax with skincare because, thankfully, I’ve never really had blemishes or acne to take care of. But then I hit my thirties and realized I could no longer keep coasting – my dark circles were becoming more pronounced and there were little lines and spots I hadn’t noticed before. That basically heralded the end of what I’d hoped would be perpetually maintenance-free healthy skin – and the beginning of my quest to find the right products.
Truthfully, when this little box arrived from éclos, I had three different brands sitting in my bathroom, all sort of pulling their weight but not really doing anything to gain permanent residence. Without sounding like too much of an infomercial, once I actually tried the plant-based beauty line, I was convinced I’d keep them around for a long time.
If you’ve never heard of them before, éclos products are made with Plant Stem Cells extracted from a rare Swiss apple (Uttwiler Spätlauber), which has shown tremendous “ability to stimulate skin stem cells, encouraging aging skin to behave like younger skin.”
I gave it a chance for a week and tried: the Facial Cleanser Skin Prep, Cellular Activator Face Serum, Moisture Therapy Regenerative Eye Cream, and the Instant Radiance Facial Scrub (use once daily, every other day). Aside from loving the way it smells (I wanted to eat it), the amazing thing about these products is that they don’t feel harsh on your skin like other cleansers and exfoliators I’ve tried. As I said before, I’m not really a fan of posting makeup-free pics, but I seriously think I’m a little more glow-y in the “after” pic, and the fact that my dark circles are pretty tame here does wonders for my self-esteem. Really. I feel as though I should be splashing water on my face while really upbeat music plays in the background.
THE GIVEAWAY:
One lucky reader will get a full éclos Skin Care kit to try for themselves by completing these two really easy tasks:
1) Leave a comment on this post telling me which product you’re most excited to try
2) Like the Bubbles & Ink Facebook page if you haven’t already
See? Easy. Contest runs through Thursday at 11:59 p.m. Eastern. Winner will be selected at random and announced on Friday morning. Best of luck to you all!
DIY: Home, Self, and Fashion
I can’t get enough of the DIY projects lately. Maybe it’s the new year prompting me to get everything in order. Whatever the case, I’m riding the wave and seeing what these little hands can create.
If you’re having the same creative cravings, these sites should whet your appetite. If you have any other DIY sites, I’d love to hear about them. Leave me your favorites in the comments!
1) HOME: Blik Wall Decals – Because I tend to switch things around every few months, I love working with Blik’s decals; most of them are reusable and all are safely removable. They will send you your graphics in separate pieces to allow you to arrange as you see fit. Blik also works with companies like Threadless to bring you lots of great pop culture items (read: Pac Man on your wall) and countless designs from up-and-coming artists.
2) SELF: DIY Cosmetics – I could probably do this all day. There’s nothing like the freedom to create the exact color and product you want. DIY Cosmetics, “a green company”, has everything you need to customize that exact shade of lipstick you just can’t seem to find anywhere else.
And if you need the moisturizer and lip balm to go underneath that new makeup, Made On: Skincare Products sells a kit to make your own. Their site offers recipes and instructional videos to guide you through the process.
3) FASHION: Fashion, at it’s very basic, relies on the right print and fabric. And if the right print isn’t out there, just make it! Spoonflower actually allows you to design your own print on premium natural fabrics with no minimum requirement and an easy $5 swatch option to be sure you’ve got it just right.
If you want something done right, do it yourself. So go ahead – now you can. 🙂