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Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Halloween Makeup: Spider Lady

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It's that time again, Halloween! I love this time of year, I get so excited for the start of the holidays (yes I include Halloween in this). But the real fun of Halloween is picking your costume. You get to decide who you want to be for the night; something sexy, something scary, creative, store-bought, homemade, makeup, etc... Choices!

After Halloween last year (see last year's makeup here) I found an amazing spider necklace and decided I would be some sort of spider queen. Unfortunately, my crown became more of a hat, so I call this the Spider Lady or Lady of the Spiders...whichever you prefer. You def need flexibility in costume creation!

This is a great look for a last minute costume as you can really do it with just makeup- and maybe the hat. It's an easy costume that's super dramatic and fun. So sit tight and see the magic unfold:


Face

I used a light foundation as a base with light concealer under my eyes and around my nose. I then powdered with a white highligher to bring the color even lighter. I contoured using some grey-brown and grey eyeshadow. This took a while with a lot of blending but I think it adds a gothic feel to the look. Then I added a bit more of the highligher on the high points of my face.


Eyes

A gray smokey eye look that's great for hooded eyes! I used the sticky note technique to get a sharp line like I did here. I went in with a fluffy brush and the same gray-brown eyeshadow from contouring, then darkened it with a medium gray eyeshadow and a smaller fluffy brush. 

I then took a small brush, mine is a lip brush and I love it for detail eye work. I took a dark gray and drew a cut crease right above my crease. Then I made sure that everything was blended up. To make the cut crease stand out and brighten up my eyes, I packed a white shade with a flat brush on my lid. I was careful to bring it right to the cut crease line to clean up that area. 

I finished off the eyes with a black winged eyeliner, and black liner in the water line and tight line. I smoked out the bottom with gray eyeshadow and cleaned everything up. 


Lips

Wow, these are some lips for a lady who never wears lipstick, but I absolutely love how it turned out. First, I lined and filled in my lips with liner. Then I used the liquid lipstick to darken the color. I had to do a few coats though - to be honest, I wasn't thrilled with the quality of this lipstick, it never went quite opaque. Then to  add depth to the lips I used a black eyeliner to liner to line and fill in the corners of my mouth. I think it turned out so cool.

Spiders

I used black liquid eyeliner to draw in the web and spider. I definitely suggest practicing this first. Spider tip: 3 pairs of legs come out of their middle and then 2 come out of the front. I could have done more, but the makeup took so long I didn't want to chance making a mistake!


Finishing Touches

When I was going to be a Spider Queen I knew I would need a crown. Unfortunately, when I looked for one all I could find was a black fascinator (hat with headband attached). So I thought,"What the hell, I'll get creative!" 

I bought some fake spiders and went to town with the glue gun. I also trimmed the lace on the hat. I didn't want to cover the awesome makeup.

Then voila! I was a Spider Lady!


Makeup I Used

Below is the makeup I used for this look:



What's your favorite part of Halloween?
What are you going to be this year?

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Tuesday, October 18, 2016

All the Reasons You Need a Facial

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Ahh... a facial to me is what a massage is to most people... pure relaxation. I love the calm music, pampering creams, lotions, and serums, the clean feeling of exfoliation, and of course the mini head and arm/shoulder massages aren't bad either. It amazes me how many people I know who haven't had a facial before. Crazy! I promise you need a facial, in your life, now!

I was lucky enough to win a free facial from a fairly new local business, I Heart Skin. Jenny is the owner and esthetician. She is great at the facial and relaxtion aspects, but she is also a fountain of information. As a self-proclaimed "skincare nerd" she can help you figure out your skin type, issues, solutions, and recommendations.


Below is my experience and why you need a facial too!


Learn About Your Skin

Ever since my skin went a little haywire about 2 years ago I really started focusing on my skin. And apparently I was confused, as I was so focused on getting rid of the acne that I didn't really see my skin. I thought for years I had oily skin... until an oil made all the difference and I started to question that.

Jenny informed me that my skin isn't oily, it's combination/dry. Also, where I used to think I had large pores, she told me mine are actually small. Mind Blown!

Treating Your Skin

After speaking with me and examining my skin Jenny made a plan to start the facial and treatment. She says the first time you visit her, she likes to start with gentle products to get to know your skin and see how it reacts. She starts with steam, which is nice an warm, to open your pores and prep your skin for the products. Then she did a cleanse, toner, serum... and of course the mask! The mask did some exfoliation with fruit enzymes and provided some moisture. 

Then there comes the extractions, no one's favorite portion, but necessary none-the-less. If you don't know, this is when the esthetician cleans out your pores, by squeezing out the gunk. In my past experience this can be really painful (like they should use it as torture, painful!), but Jenny had a gentle touch and it wasn't near so bad... which is high praise!

She finishes off with some sunscreen and moisturizer to make your skin feel silky smooth. Afterwards I feel so clean and nice.

Relaxation

With calming new age music playing quietly in the background and a darkened room you feel relaxed before you're even laying down on the table. Then you get cozy and are almost transported to another world once the steam machine starts going.

All the products being applied on your skin feel soothing. Plus mini facial massages! Finally, as the mask does it's business you get a lovely shoulder, neck, and head massage that are just glorious. I came out of the facial feeling relaxed but also rejuvinated and oddly invigorated :)

Product and Treatment Recommendations

Finally, throughout the whole facial I was asking a million and one questions to Jenny and she was so helpful with answers on products and treatments I could try to treat my skin concerns. One of my major concerns has been the texture and tone of my skin. I've had recently some bumps and overall uneveness throughout my face as well as some blotchiness. Jenny recommended exfoliation a few times a week and microdermobrasion (maybe our next session).

My Skin After the Facial

Here is my skin right after the facial; it's a little red but it really glowed and felt oh-so-clean. And the redness went down by the next day, so it doesn't last long at all. Also don't mind the black around my eyes... I made the mistake of wearing eye makeup before I went in :(


Final Thoughts

As I'm sure you can tell by now, I love me a facial! And I believe Jenny at I Heart Skin does the best one I've had yet. She is knowledgable, skilled, and so sweet. I'll definitely be going back for more and I recommend her and facials to everyone... man or woman. It's time people!



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Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Fall Layers and Self Acceptance

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Fall is finally popping up in Denver and I thought it'd be time for a fashion post.

I'd like to talk about a few things today... first the fashion or style post - it's been a long time, I know. And second, we need to chat about having confidence and accepting yourself.

First, I feel like we're half in fall and half still in summer which makes dressing challenging to say the least. Here in Colorado it's all about the layers - jackets, sweaters, button downs, you get the idea.

This jacket has been my go to layer piece of late. It's flowy and neutral but adds some pizzaz to an otherwise boring outfit. It's nice and light and great for some extra warmth during these days of cold mornings and warm afternoons. I also love how it cinches in at the waste so you aren't getting lost in the material.


Now, let's talk about body confidence.

One of the reasons I haven't posted a fashion post, or really any full-body shots is that I don't like the way I look on camera... and often off camera too.

About a year and half ago I gained back all the weight I'd lost previously plus some and I was the heaviest I'd ever been. I was feeling really down on myself. Then I went through the separation, divorce, moves, etc... and started doing yoga. I have since lost 20 lbs. and am feeling much better physically.


But I can't seem to shake this insecurity, these constant thoughts about my stomach being too flabby and out there, or my double chin, or my huge thighs. I know this is not productive thinking or helpful to my self image at all, but I can't seem to move beyond it. I'm at least some of you know this feeling.


Lately I've been following some great ladies (see below) on social media that perpetuate body love and acceptance, no matter your size. These women are amazingly empowering as they have accepted and love themselves; curves, thighs, stomachs, asses (you know the drill), and all!  I figured then, if these woman are out there showing the world it's okay to be confident with your body type - of any size and shape - so then can I.

Now don't get me wrong, I am still having confidence trouble and just posting these pictures is really hard for me as I see all the flaws. But, I want to be postive and help any of you out there who may be struggling with self-image. I want to focus on the things I like about my body; how far I've come with my body, the fact that I have lost weight, that I'm stronger and have muscles, and, that I really like how curvy I am.


So ladies, let's all take a moment together to think of something you love about your body. We can support each other and empower each other to be our most awesome selves - inside and out.

Remember: Girls Rule!

Need some more inspiration follow these amazing ladies:



Thank you all for listening and I hope you're having a great week!

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