Everything About 5 Make-Up Essentials!

Whether you are a frequent makeup user, or are just starting to wear it, it's always good to have an idea of what products are really worth owning. Below are my personal top 5 most important makeup essentials!

1. Concealer - This makeup essential is used to cover up under-eye circle, for those nights we didn't get as much sleep as we'd like (which feels like every night, doesn't it?), and covering any pimples or spots on the face. Sometimes we find that the little imperfections on our face don't really require a full face of foundation and powder, but rather just a spot treatment like concealer.

2. Eyeliner - Whether you prefer a liquid eyeliner or a pencil eyeliner, this make-up essential will bring out your eyes in a bold way! Whether you prefer just applying it to the top of your eyelid to make your eyelashes appear thicker, or around the whole eye for a more dramatic look, eyeliner is great way to make your eyes come alive.

3. Mascara - I think it's pretty safe to say that every woman wishes their eyelashes could be thicker, darker, and longer. So which makeup product can help achieve this look? Mascara. Mascara comes in tons of different colours and types to acheive any eyelash look you want. You can choose a voluminous type to add overall volume, a curling type to give your eyelashes more curl, or a lengthening type to make your eyelashes appear longer. Sometimes you can find a good mascara that does all 3!

4. Lip Stick/Lip Gloss - Adding lip stick or lip gloss to your makeup routine is like putting the cherry on top of a sundae! There are so many colours and textures that will all give a different lip look. Lip products can be the bold or subtle statement that pull the whole makeup look together.

5. Blush/Bronzer - Whether you prefer blush or bronzer (or even both), these two face products can give our skin that extra glow that it may be lacking. Blush, typically applied to the cheeks, gives our skin a healthy dose of colour, especially on those pale and tired days. Bronzer is a good choice for adding a subtle tanned and bronzed look when we may not have seen the sun in weeks!

Below is a video for a simple and quick 5 minute makeup routine by YouTube user AnniesBeautyLife.

Everything About Healthy Haircare!

     No matter what type of hair you have, chances are you want it to look and feel as healthy as possible. Many woman say that a person's hair is the first thing they notice when looking at someone. Healthy hair may come easier to some people than others, but it's an extremely important attribute to have! Chances are that we will most likely have hair on our head for the rest of our lives, so why not learn how to make it look the best it possibly can?

      How many times have you seen celebrities on the red carpet with their perfect, shiny, and healthy hair and wished you had millions of dollars to get your hair to look just as good? Well, to be honest with you, it really doesn't cost much at all! Achieving healthy hair is easier and cheaper than you think, so here's a few tips and tricks to get yourself headed in the right direction towards healthy hair!

1. Avoid washing your hair more than 3 times a week. Now, I know starting off by telling you to not wash something may sound gross, but your hair really does not need to be washed as much as you think! Our hair produces natural oils, which keeps the hair shiny and hydrated which is super good for our hair. Over washing our hair will not give the oils a chance to provide any health benefits, and will also dry the hair out leaving it brittle. Try a dry-shampoo or a quick rinse with conditioner solely on the ends of your hair on the non-shampoo days!

2. Maintain a healthy diet. I'm pretty sure you've heard the expression, "You are what you eat", right? Well our hair definitely reflects when we are eating healthier! Eating a poor diet does absolutely nothing for our hair besides leaving it dull, dry, and even can cause hair loss. So try to look for healthier meal options with foods that provide you with some protein, omega-3, and iron to not only help your hair, but also yourself become healthier as well!

3. Deep-condition once a week. Deep-conditioners are pretty heavy and contain quite a bit of oil which is why its only recommended to use them once a week. However, they are extremely useful for moisturising the hair and adding shine for the weeks we may have over washed or over styled our hair with tools as well as repair damage! You should also find a natural homemade hair mask recipe you like on-line to use once a week on your hair as well for repair. (Hint: There's one recipe provided at the end of this post!)

4. Cut down on your hair products. Many woman, myself included, tend to forget the expression "Less is more", when it comes to applying hair products to our hair. If we notice our hairs a little frizzy, we run out and by anti-frizz serum, and if we notice our hairs a little flat, we run out and buy volumizing moose. We feel like we should have 1 product for each of our needs so we know we've covered them all. But applying too much product is really just leaving our hair heavy and weighing it down! Try to look for products that will cover more than just one of your hair needs. Also, make sure you read the back of the bottles for the recommended dose of product you should be using. If you have a short pixy cut, you definitely will not have to use the same amount of product as someone with super long hair!

5. Avoid using heat if possible. I know for many of us ladies, blow dryers and hair straighteners are our best friends in the morning. But no matter how good they may make our hair look, they also come with a lot of damage for our precious strands! To minimize this damage you can try a few things, such as air drying your hair to avoid using a blow dryer all together, purchasing a heat-protectant spray, and try rocking your natural hair once in a while!

6. Trim your hair every 3 months. No matter how much or little we do to our hair on a daily basis, it always manages to get damaged one way or another between haircuts. When the ends of our hair begin to split, they eventually break off if they are not treated. The longer we wait to cut our hair, the more damage our hair will encounter, leading us forced to trim more hair than we wanted. Getting frequent trims (0.5"-1.0") will keep our ends healthier, and help our hair grow longer faster!

Everything About Acne! - Part 2

Alright, so our last post discussed the basic need-to-know information about what acne is, how it's formed, and the different factors that contribute to the cause of it. So since we learned that nearly everyone will be affected by acne one way or another during their life, we might as well see what kind of treatments we have to choose from to control and get rid of it!

The first thing you need to know is that everyone's acne and skin is different, so different treatments that work for some people, may not work as well for others. Lucky for us, there are several options to choose from so lets see what they are! Researching acne treatments can seem overwhelming so I'll try to break it down for you guys as simple as possible. There are hundreds of options to choose from, but like i mentioned earlier, not everyone has the same type of skin and acne, so different styles of treatments will work better than others.

Alcohol Solution Products: Products containing alcohol are best suited for people with oily skin that is not very sensitive, as it will help dry out the skin (eliminate oil), won't add excess moisture, and can tend to be irritating on fragile skin types.

Aqueous Solutions: If you read the word aqueous, and automatically thought of water, you have the right idea as these type of solutions are water-based. They are best for normal to dry skin (very moisturising) types and even suitable for sensitive skin as it's not known to be irritating because they are sans-alcohol.

Creams: Creamy products are great for normal to oily skin as they do not have a greasy texture, and they absorb into the skin quickly. It's another product that's good for sensitive skin as it is very soothing on the skin.

Gels: Gels are a popular choice for normal to oily skin as well, as they are used as a spot treatment, rather than a product that is applied over the whole face like most of the other options. This is a good option for people with minimal acne because you typically only apply it when a blemish occurs.

Lotions: Lotions is the most popular type of treatment as there are so many different types, and they can suit every skin type equally well. Most lotions will display which type of skin they are best suited for on the label so keep that in mind if you would like to pursue this treatment style.

Ointment: If you suffer from very oily skin, ointments would most likely be the worst option for you as they tend to be very greasy, which will only add moisture and increase the amount of oil your skin will produce. This products better suited for very dry skin that needs as much moisture as it can get a hold of.

So since you ladies have a better idea of how to treat your acne, and what product types will best suit your skin type, I've decided to post another video from the YouTube guru DiamondsAndHeels14 where she demonstrates her amazing foundation routine to cover up her acne while she's in the process of treating it.

Everything About Acne! - Part 1

     Whether you get the occasional pimple at that time of the month, or receive frequent visits from blemishes, you probably aren't a fan of acne. It's an unfortunate thing that everyone will experience to some extent, at one point in their lives. Since we all will, have, or are witnessing some form of blemishes on our skin, why not learn how it's formed, and how to prevent it? 


     Acne, also referred to as it's medical name of Acne Vulgaris, is the over production of oil that leads to clogged pores, which results in pimples, nodules, cysts, and blackheads. Though the most popular place for acne to appear is the face, blemishes can appear allover the body. When skin cells, oil, or hair clump together, they can form a hard plug in our pores which blocks our skin from breathing. The bacteria that forms and grows in our pores results in swelling, which breaks down the plug, and voila! You see a pimple. But blemishes don't just appear over night. It can take over a week for acne to form and become visible. And before we can put an end to acne, we've got to go back to the beginning. 


     So we've already established that the formation of blemishes is caused by clogged pores, but their are several factors that are linked to acne as well. Our genes have a lot to do with the type of skin we have, which is why some people may experience worse acne than others. Another factor is our hormones, which are constantly changing due to our mentural cycles, puberty, and even pregnancy and menopause, which all can increase oil production in our skin, triggering breakouts. Our hygiene plays a large roll, because sweat is a huge factor for bacterial growth and clogging pores, which leaves our skin dirty and unable to breathe. Other factors such as our stress levels, certain medications, the environment, cosmetics, and even our diet, can all be potential triggers to provoking blemishes.


     So I hope this post helped you understand and learn a few new things about what acne is, how it forms, and potential reasons why it forms. Below is a video I attached from one of my favourite YouTube users who has 10 useful tips and tricks for dealing with acne to conclude the post. Enjoy!