My Current Beauty Regimen: Skincare.

If you have difficult skin, you know that finding the right products can be either an adventure or an expensive nightmare. Why does this search last so long? because our skin is constantly changing, growing used to products, aging, reacting to the sun, becoming dry or oily from the weather. Skin is amazing. It protects us. It is our largest organ, but sometimes it is a pain in the butt. Below are my current go to products.

My Skin Type for Your Reference:

• I have combination to dry skin, but mostly dry. I have a hard time finding products that are moisturizing enough for me.
• I often have to change up my skincare regimen between seasons, so I don't get too dry or oily.
• I have acne prone skin and I am more often than not fighting a blemish, so I have to use products that won't break me out.
• I have to be very careful to not dry out my skin while treating acne.
• I also have slightly sensitive skin that can get a little irritated now and again.

• My Complexion

  is neutral to fair with an olive/yellow undertone, and I also can get tan very easily.

However with the right products I have fixed most of my skincare issues.

Let's Start with Cleansers

• Jose Maran Argan Cleansing Oil

This cleanser retails for $32.00 for 6 fluid ounces or $12 for 1.9 fluid ounces at Sephora & lasts for a long time. I love that it cleans my skin and doesn't leave it dry. It replenishes the moisture on my face. Also, since it is an oil cleanser it cleans off my makeup beautifully. Sometimes I use a dab of it on a tissue or cotton pad to remove my eye makeup.

Never mind the fact that it smells divine (like oranges and sunshine), it really is a great cleanser. It's all natural too, so you don't have to worry about putting superfluous nasty chemicals on your skin. Full of vitamin E, argan oil is a current star child in the beauty world. The cleanser lathers up on your skin nicely into a milky texture and I always feel fresh after. My skin is happier when I don't dry it out by consistently over cleansing with heavy duty cleansers or exfoliates. You only regenerate skin so quickly.





• Neutrogena Clear Pore Cleanser/Mask

I use this cleanser when I feel I need an extra clean or if I feel a breakout coming on. It retails for about $7.00 for 4.2 fluid ounces and can be found at most drugstores and grocery stores (though sometimes I have to look around).

Since it is both a cleanser and a mask, it is a multitasker. As a cleanser it leaves you squeaky clean, but if you leave it on as a mask your face tingles like your getting a scrubbing bubbles facial and you feel minty fresh afterwards. Just make sure you don't get it in your eyes, you wash your face off well, and you moisturize well post mask.

Eye Creams To Keep the Crows Away ;)

I think that at a certain point we need to accept that smile lines are a sign of good times and life. Take them as a badge of honor not a burden. Have you ever looked at someone older and thought how cheerful they looked, like they have had a good life? What did you notice? probably their deep crinkly laugh lines. In the meantime though, that doesn't mean we have to give in to being life's canvas without a fight!

• Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Intensive Eye Contour Cream
At $55.00 for 0.51 ounces from Sephora, Shiseido is my go to eye cream. It is creamy, thick, and very moisturizing. It has burnet extract (Sanguisorba Officinalis Root Extract, basically an herb/bush from the northern hemisphere), Hyaluronic Acid (there's no easy way to translate this one, but it is basically a specific polysaccharide found in connective tissue), and hydroxuyproline (a common amino acid). I'm not sure how effective it is on my fine lines, but I'm holding out hope. It does seem like it smooths out my under eyes for a bit, but eye creams can only keep smiles so far away.




• Philosophy Miracle Worker Retinoid Eye Repair Cream
This eye cream is more expensive priced at $66.00 for 0.5 ounces. I received this one as a sample from an online Sephora order (Take note sample lovers, you get more samples from Sephora if you order online.) and managed to make the sample last for 3 days. I really enjoyed this eye cream and after I do some more research I may buy this one after I finish my Shiseido. It felt rich and creamy, but maybe a little more silky than the Shiseido? This cream's workforce is comprised of retinoids and peptides.

Reinvigorate and Correct with Skin Treatments

• Ole Henriksen Invigorating Night Gel
This one works. It claims to improve fine lines, pigmentation, and breakouts. I do think that I have seen a decrease in pigmentation damage from the sun (read: baby sunspots/light freckles). I'm not positive how well it works on acne and fine lines; I think it may help some, but I can't be sure. The consistency is like a watery gel and a little goes a long way, so your product will last you a while. It has an AHA complex(for moisture and skin renewal), algae (for nutrients), and mucopolysaccharides(to improve the strength of skin). Retails for $45.00 for 1.7 ounces at Sephora.


• Ole Henriksen Truth Serum Vitamin C Collagen Booster

$48.00 for 1 ounce. This serum smells very strongly of oranges. I find the smell pleasant, but I've read others saying that it is too strong. No worries though, that lovely orange bouquet dissipates quickly. This serum uses a vitamin c complex made from 5 sources, green tea extract, and sodium hyaluranate. Vitamin c has healing properties for the skin and green tea is packed full of antioxidants and nutrients as well. Sodium hyaluronate is actually used in plastic surgery to reduce wrinkles. Sodium hyaluronate is the sodium salt from hyaluronic acid and is found in skin tissue. Sounds good to me.

I find this serum very moisturizing and smoothing. Since I still have relatively young skin I'm not sure of the long term affects of this serum, but I feel like it does leave my skin more plump and happy.

• Neutrogena Rapid Clear Acne Eliminating Spot Gel
$7.88 at the drugstore or grocery store. This is my strong man for spot treating blemishes. It is comprised of 2% salicylic acid, so it packs a bit of a punch. (Increasingly higher percentages of salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide have decreasing returns. If you go too high on your percentage of acne fighting chemicals you will just dry out and aggravate your skin. More doesn't always mean better1) I try to use this spot treatment sparingly so I can reserve it for when I really need it and don't just aggravate my skin and accustom my skin to high levels of salicylic acid.


• Peter Thomas Roth Therapeutic Sulfur Masque Acne Treatment Masque
Retailing for $40.00 for 5 ounces at Sephora, this is my go to treatment for really deep or persistent acne & the product lasts a long time. With its key ingredients of eucalyptus, sulfur, and clay it works to sooth and purify my nasty little facial felons. I either put it all over my face for a pampering treatment mask or more often I use it as a spot treatment before bed for an overnight mask on stubborn blemishes. I think that it does a pretty good job of decreasing my angry little bumps and who doesn't appreciate shortening a blemish's lifespan?

Let's Get Some Moisture On That Skin

• Algenist Firming & Lifting Cream
This just may be the best moisturizer I have ever used. I have used drugstore moisturizers, specialty moisturizers, and some sephora moisturizers. Out of them all, I'm not sure I have ever been quite so impressed and for $94.00 for 2 ounces I should hope I would be impressed. The price makes me cringe, but I think it's worth it,considering how much my skin is loving it and the fact that I only have one face. It is smooth and silky, creamy and substantial, and yet lightweight and not greasy. You do not lose the moisture throughout the day and I find that when I wash my skin before bed, my face is nice and soft. It also soothed some of my blemishes, reducing their redness and size. I did not expect this result, and at first did not attribute the results to this moisturizer. After reading similar results in the sephora reviews I conceded that it must be the Algenist, since I hadn't changed much else in my products recently. I find these results impressive, since the product doesn't even claim to correct these issues.

• Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation
This used to be my go to moisturizer. The price is much more reasonable than the Algenist. $58.00 for 2.5 ounces at Sephora, but they also have other sizes and package deals. Until I found the Algenist, this was for sure my favorite moisturizer. It is lightweight, but substantial. There is no significant scent and the consistency is silky if a tinge thin. This moisturizer did not break me out and kept my skin moist even during a harsh winter (read: below freezing). I even got my grandmother hooked on this moisturizer. I was suprised at how effective it moisturized for such a light cream. Perhaps the fact that is so packed with ingredients is what makes it such a strong yet lightweight moisturizer. It has Actiwhite™, licorice, vitamin C, and botanical fruit acids to turnover skin cells and invigorate skin. It also has sandalwood, geranium, and chamomile to sooth your skin.

My only qualm with the Ole Henriksen line is to do with product consistency and a strange habit of forming a product skin that peels off. Sometimes the moisturizer would come with a funny odor and wouldn't be as smooth. Also every so often the products (I'm not positive which one or if it was a chemical reaction from using the products together.) would create a skin after being applied on the face that would flake off or I would have to pick it off. I also had a friend who tried it, and it gave her a small breakout.

For the most part though, these things did not happen, and I absolutely loved this moisturizer. It has been the best moisturizer for me ever, until I stumbled upon the Algenist. And as a more affordable option, I may still use this moisturizer off and on.

• Hourglass N° 28 Primer Serum
Comprised of lipid oils, plant oils, and vitamins this may be one of the most luxurious things I have ever put on my skin. Despite its $65.00 for 1 ounce price tag, I LOVE this product & I don't know if I ever want to be without it again. It is the perfect primer! At first I wondered how an oil based serum would perform as a makeup primer, but it does an outstanding job. My makeup goes on exceptionally smooth and lasts almost all day (I could use some touch ups here and there). What makes it truly amazing is that it packs a ridiculous amount of the most luxurious silky smooth moisture. I enjoy the moment when I glide it all over my face and neck. Also I haven't found that it breaks me out. Hurray! For those of you who don't like your skin to feel kind of dewy or moist to the touch, this may not be for you, but for moisture starved skin like mine this is heaven sent.

Don't Forget About Your Smoocher

• BITE BEAUTY Agave Lip Mask $26.00 for 0.52 ounces
So... I'm a lip junky. Not in the 'I have tons of lipstick and gloss' way, but in that I get very dry lips if I don't moisturize them. Lip balms, butter, creams, oils, vaseline, I love them all, but very few give me the amount of moisture that my lips need. I was skeptical about this mask at first, but was amazed at how well it worked when I tried it. I have since been using it not as a mask, but as an everyday lip balm. Its ingredients to note are organic agave nectar, jojoba oil, vanilla CO2 extract, and a super load of trans-resveratrol(the antioxidant in red wine).

It is very thick, creamy, and smells delicious. I'm not to keen on the taste(since we all know you always end up getting some of your lip product in your mouth this must be noted), but I think the performance more than makes up for that. It has usurped all my other lip moisturizers currently.

Cover, Conceal, Protect

• Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm SPF 45 $39.00 for 1.5 ounces
I don't know what I did without this BB cream. It is fabulous. I recently tried a bunch of different BB creams and decided on this one. I had wanted to jump on the BB cream bandwagon, because I had been hearing such great things and the skincare promises sounded so superb. Not to mention I have a friend who has always worn BB cream, that she orders from Asia, and her morning coverup process always seemed so easy and fast.

I partly chose this BB cream because it is Asian(specifically Korean) and I wanted to keep true to BB creams origins. Also I am a little skeptical about every single western brand suddenly jumping all over the term BB cream. More importantly I chose this BB cream because it seems to be perfect for my skin. It is very smooth and not heavy. It glides on easily and blends in to match my skin tone perfectly. It adds a luminosity to my skin, which I love. Not glittery or shimmery, but a natural looking healthy dewiness/glow. I think this is caused by the white gold in it(yep you read that right. I wondered why that was in there too.). It also contains a bio-peptide complex and SPF 45. The HIGH SPF is one of the reasons why I picked this BB cream, because the SPF(it also has broad spectrum... ie uva/uvb) makes it multi-funtional. It only comes in one "universal" shade. I'm not sure if this would work for someone with a very dark complexion. It might come off as ashy, but I'm not sure.

The coverage is medium to light, but it is build-able. I blend mine in with my Beauty Blender and watch it disappear while lightly correcting pigmentation problems or redness. This is my base for any other concealing or makeup, but I definitely consider this BB cream a skincare item and not just makeup.

(I cannot attest to the complete accuracy of all the information provided.)

Quick & Healthy Dessert or Snack! Baked Apple.

Gooey, warm, and tasty this baked apple is sure to satisfy your inner cookie monster.

The Finished Product!

Ooey Gooey Deliciousness.

*2 Minutes to Yum!*

Like most people I love desserts and snacks, but often times they aren't good for us or don't fill us up. Why not have something delicious, nutritious, and filling? Often homemade desserts and snacks take a long time to make and involve many ingredients. In this post I will tell you how to make a 2 minute baked apple, a modified version of an oven baked apple.

Your Simple Ingredients

• Half of a Scrumptious Apple (One full apple makes 2.)

Today I used a Granny Smith apple. With its tart, crisp flavor I think that it lends itself well to a baked apple, but feel free to use any apple you love or have. Just keep in mind that your apple is the base to your dessert/snack and a bland apple will only be so good.


• 2 Teaspoons of Vanilla

A splash of vanilla adds another layer to the flavors, making your baked apple more complex and delicious

• 1 Tablespoon of Brown Sugar

I quite like dark brown sugar. The darker the brown sugar the more the flavor.


• 1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon (make it 1 if you really love cinnamon like me or less if you have a small apple.)

Cinnamon is super good for you. It's packed full of nutrients and is a leading antioxidant. Most importantly though is that it's delicious! And cinnamon and brown sugar are flavor friends.

Put it Together

1. Carefully halve your apple & remove the core.
2. Place it in a bowl that will keep it upright, like in the pictures above.
3. Pack your 1 tablespoon brown sugar into the center of half the apple, where the core used to be.
4. Drizzle your 2 teaspoons of vanilla on top of the brown sugar.
5. Pour all of the 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon over the apple.
6. Place your bowl full of goodies into the microwave, cover the bowl (with wax paper or my favorite microwave covers, mine are orange) so it doesn't splatter, & microwave for 2 minutes. Time may vary depending on your microwave. I cooked mine on Quick for 2 minutes. (If you are going to make 2 halves at once they will need to cook longer)
7. Pull out your hot bowl and enjoy! (but don't burn your tongue!) That liquid in the bottom is your sweet sauce and can be spooned up with each bite.

Enjoy!!!

Apps I'm Loving Right Now

Okay, so we are all striving to be better people in every way possible. You can't deny it, because you know it's true. We are trying to lose weight, get healthy, learn new skills, or even improve our personalities and we could all use a little help.

(if you don't want to look at all the apps, scroll down. I saved the best for last)

Current Health Apps I'm Using Now.

Stop, Breathe, & Think

Guided meditations lead you, through soothing instruction often accompanied by soft music, through the mental exercise of purposeful relaxation. They are often surprisingly fulfilling and very personal. I used to love guided meditation cool offs after a group exercise class, but I hadn't found any good quality guided meditations anywhere online (youtube, private websites, you name it) & I did not want to shell out for a mp3 or dvd. Then I stumbled upon the mobile app Stop, Breathe, & Think & loved it. The best part is that it is free!

This app asks you "How Are You?" mentally, physically, and emotionally to pick which of their meditations is best for you. I use it occasionally to unwind. Have you ever had trouble going to sleep because your mind was too full of nagging thoughts? I find that meditation before bed has been one of the best ways that I release mental tension. I bet it could help you too.

To Bed

So, do you remember back when your mother, father, guardian used to wake you up in the morning or remind you how late it was and to got to bed? Well as 'adults' we have to perform this task for ourselves and let's face it we don't always put our best interest first when it comes to curfews. Personally I never had a bedtime, but I'm loving this little app for telling me to hit the sack. I think a little reminder every once and awhile of when you should really go to bed is healthy. We are at our best when we are fully rested and fresh.

If you didn't want to download this free app or you don't have it available on your phone, then do yourself a favor and program alarm reminders for your sleep schedule! It's simple, easy, and it's good for you!

Yoga Studio

Okay, this is the one app for which I broke down and actually spent some money, $2.99 to be exact (I know it didn't break the bank, but I like to be as frugal as possible). I had been using a free yoga app for a while and I finally admitted to myself that there was a reason why it was free, it kind of sucked. So I set out to find the best and most affordable yoga app. I stumbled upon Yoga Studio and it has been a dream. I can honestly say I love it!

The app is straight forward and once you have paid that $2.99 they don't try to weasel any money from you. You have access to full classes from beginner to advanced. Having gone to yoga classes before I find that this app does a great job of bringing the instructor and the studio to you. Each pose is video blocked so that you can see exacly how to do it and the vocal instruction is soothing and helpful. I love that they also let you create your own classes so that you can pick and choose the poses that you want to do. Using this app I have been doing yoga at least once a day and I can tell that my body and mind thank me.

Last but certainly not least:

Plant Nanny

It's not what it looks like! You are not simply growing a virtual pet plant. You are hydrating! The premise of this app is that whenever you drink some water, your plant can drink some water. If you don't stay hydrated your cute little virtual plant will wilt and die.

Alright, at this point some of you may be wondering what the point of being a plant nanny is. Well have you ever decided to stay hydrated, I mean really stay hydrated? Drink that 64 or more ounces of water a day? It's hard! did you go to the bathroom every 10 minutes when you first started your healthy water movement? (yeah me too) Then, somewhere down the line you just stopped drinking as much water. Perhaps you were going on a road trip and didn't want to hit every truck stop or you just convinced yourself that there was no conceivable way to keep up with all that water glugging. It's important to stay hydrated. We all know it, and we have all tried at some point or another to make a hydrating commitment to ourselves.

It's strange but somehow it often easier to take care of others than ourselves. We can encourage others to have good habits, but improving our own takes real effort. Plant Nanny makes it not about hydrating yourself, but about not killing your little green buddy. And with little growth checkpoints along the way, where you get to watch your plant grow, its more fulfilling and fun to stay hydrated. The creators are using our naturally nurturing instincts against us or for us, however you want to look at it :) . That is my little Dandelion in the picture that I named Sweet. I managed to drink enough water to make it grow all the way up. With cute little sound effects and images there's really nothing to lose, especially when you consider how perky and hydrated you will be! Oh, did I mention free?

So go out there and lend yourself a helpful hand! Apps are everywhere and for everything. Who knows there could be one just for you.

- - - I'd like to note that I have an iphone so unfortunately some of these apps are not available on other phone platforms. Sorry! Also, I am not affiliated with any of these apps or their creators. The images are from itunes.

Ready Set Calm.

Find Your Peace in the Storm of Life.

We all get caught up in planning our next venture or the next step in our outlined plans for the future. Focusing on the future weighs on your mind and spirit; we grow anxious and/or stressed. We all need some means of grounding ourselves in the present to remain sane and productive. One of the best ways to anchor yourself in the here and now is through physical activity. Are you feeling bogged down? Go take a walk! Go for a bike ride! Turn on some music and dance like there's no one there!

Choose Your Anchor.

Whenever I became too caught up in worrying about the next day, month, year, decade... during university I would take long walks by myself to focus my energy. Simple acts such as this can truly make a difference when you are caught up in your mind. Make sure to focus on your senses. Breathe the air around you and take note of what you smell. Acknowledge the tension in your body and then work to actively release it. Give your body a good long stretch and enjoy the sensations in your muscles. Really be present in these meditative moments. You deserve and need a little tender love and care from yourself. You need some mental zen.

What I Love Now.

For a period of time, I had stopped giving myself the TLC I deserve. I stopped meditating and taking personal moments of silence or performing spastic dance breaks, and I felt this loss as a loss of calm within. I now make a conscious effort again to practice yoga and meditate from time to time. I love setting aside a moment here and there every day to just be calm and center myself. My dog also loves to do yoga with me. You can see him below spacing out in 'reclined goddess' pose after stealing my yoga mat.

How About You?.

Do you ever find yourself building up tension and stress? What do you do to relax and unwind? How often do you really take personal and mental breaks to just enjoy life?