DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT

Concealer - this is the one thing that no matter what I do not leave the house without it. I don't sleep that well and even if I did I still may have less than perfectly colored skin under my eyes. Even with concealer I don't, however it's much improved with a good swipe of the stuff. I used to use only MAC and then it just ended up that their light textured blend in the tube was too light and their heavier stuff in the pot was too heavy. I switched to Trish McEvoy Flawless Concealer which is a great product, but it's $40 and I decided to stay home this year with my kids and I'm not getting a side job to purchase makeup.

I hunted online for some recommendations for a good drugstore concealer and came across this old school yet helpful word doc - in it I came across Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles. I picked one up at my local Rite Aid for about $10 and it's awesome! It goes on easily and gave me great coverage all day - I didn't notice any difference between this and the much more expensive Trish McEvoy version. I got the number 20 light color and I have light olive skin, people always say I'm dark but that's mainly since I moved to Vermont from the south. I just found it on Amazon for the next one for only $7.54 if you purchase with their subscribe and save program! Score!


PS - This is not my video, it's a repost from YouTube and does a great job at explaining how to use this product.

I THOUGHT THIS WAS HELPING

Update August 5, 2012 - The Nature's Gate is fine if you're not going to sweat much or go in the water - if you are then don't buy it. It'll come right off. Alba Botanica is on sale at our local co-op (maybe at yours too) for 6.99 for 4 oz and it works really well. Just be sure to buy their mineral formulas since they sell both mineral and chemical sunscreens.

Update June 12, 2012 - We normally buy Badger, but just bought Nature's Gate Mineral Kids Block for the body since it was on sale and much cheaper and I've been really happy with it. It's $8.15 on Amazon for 4oz which is a fair bit cheaper than most of the zinc blocks. For the face we all use MyChelle SPF 28 with Zinclear, it's a bit more expensive but it is so light and so easy to rub in that it's all we use now. I love it!

I was under the impression the sunscreen that I was using and putting on my kids all the time it seems in the warmer months was helping. Well, it seems that the studies say otherwise. I was using high SPF sunscreens that contain oxybenzone - which according to some research is a hormone disrupter. The shortened version of all of the research is that the sunscreens with a bunch of chemicals in them are not a good option to rub on your body and especially not on your child's body. Here is a list of good sunscreens, we've used Badger for the last few years - it isn't greasy once you rub it in well - you will get a workout rubbing it in! The easy to remember tip for sunscreens is - "mineral good chemical bad". The minerals used are typically Zinc Oxide or Titanium Dioxide - look for those as the main ingredients and you'll be all set.

WASH THAT GREY RIGHT OUT OF YOUR HAIR

I've dealt with grey hair since I was twelve years old, not at all kidding. I have dark, curly hair that is prone to early greying - inherited from my mother. Luckily, I inherited other awesome things from my mom - tenacity, independence and good skin - yay mom! The first time I colored my hair at fourteen, much to my mother's ire I chose a gothic black to match my Doc Marten's and Head on the Door t-shirt. I looked AWFUL and my mom quickly packed me in the car and off to her hair salon for my first professional coloring session - I ended up with a not so awful auburn color and did not color my hair at home again for many years.

Flash forward about twenty years - married, working full time and a one year old daughter. Spending a few hours each month at the hair salon on my precious weekends away from my family seemed like a complete waste of time and money and I searched for a way to free myself of this obligation. I need to add that letting my hair grow out grey is just not my thing, I love seeing women au naturelle, but just not my reflection. I asked my hairstylist for some tips on how to color my hair myself. She was a friend and obliged and let me know which brand she was using and which color to buy and how to mix/apply properly. Schwarzkopf Igora Royal is what I used then and woo hoo it worked! I went from spending the time and money at the salon, to doing my color myself at home but with the results from a salon. Now if you're looking for some drastic changes - this is not the way to go. However, if you're looking to give your roots a monthly touch-up - then go for it. I switched recently to Schwarzkopf's Essensity Organic color and I LOVE IT! I've tried colors from the grocery store and have not had luck getting a natural color that blends my roots well with the existing growth. So, I just do what is now comfortable for me and wanted to share it. I buy the color on Amazon and use half a tube each month - $3.50 per application. You'll also want to get the corresponding developing lotion - it's made with beeswax and is thick and easy to apply. Speaking of which - it's in my hair right now and I best hop in the shower before I leave it in for too long and risk a trip to the salon. BRB.

It came out great - no greys and no blend line. Granted - this may not work for everyone, hair is a funny thing. Choosing the right hair color and the right red lipstick are very personal decisions. One thing that you could try is to go to a hair salon that uses a color that you can buy online and have them do it the first time for you - if you like it just reproduce it at home. I've used the Schwarzkopf for a few years now and haven't strayed. I did completely fubar it once and buy 6-00 instead of 6-0 and ended up with a stripe of black (only did the roots thankfully) and my husband asked if I had an appointment at the salon to help take care of that. My husband is thrifty to say the least, so I knew that I had really messed up if he was suggesting that I spend money at the salon. My current hairstylist fixed me right up  - she actually made it so much nicer than normal and added a few highlights, but it's just not something I can keep up with (time+money) and I was right back to coloring my hair at home again. So, the moral of that story is really figure out what color you need and pay attention to what you're buying online - the numbers do matter. Ignore the name of the colors and just go with what works - my color is called Dark Blonde and it's not blonde at all. Try it out  - it's worth the risk if it works!