Homemade Exfoliant

We all know exfoliating is an important part of a well rounded skin care routine but if you're like me many store bought exfoliants dry your skin out and can leave your face feeling tight.  That is exactly why I have started making my own natural exfoliant at home!  Now, before I walk you through how I exfoliate my skin I would like to stress that I am not a dermatologist and everyone's skin is different, this is just what has worked for me and my extremely dry skin.  Also, remember not to exfoliate anymore than once or twice a week.  It is not something you should be doing to your skin daily, it will probably get irritated and/or dry out.

What You'll Need:

• Honey
• Brown Sugar (I have heard people with more sensitive skin prefer to use oats.)
• Water
• Bowl

1.  Put some of the brown sugar in a bowl.  If you are exfoliating by yourself (not that it should be a group event but sometimes my sister and I exfoliate together. BONDING!) you do not need that much. Maybe just one to one and a half small spoonfuls.

2.  Squirt some honey on top of the brown sugar.  I do not exactly measure it but it is about 1 teaspoon.  Your brown sugar and honey will then look like this...

3.  Next you will want to add some water to your brown sugar honey mixture.  It is very important not to add too much water because your exfoliant will become soupy and the sugar will start to dissolve.  I usually just put some water on my fingertips and sprinkle it over the brown sugar and honey.  Do this a couple times then mix the exfoliant with a spoon until it looks like this...

The mixture should still be a bit thick although I'm sure you cannot tell from the picture.  You can add more brown sugar if it gets too watery.

4.  Splash you face with warm water (not too hot) then start scrubbing your face with the exfoliant.  Massage the mixture around your entire face gently.  Let me say that again, GENTLY.  Way too many people abuse exfoliants by scrubbing them roughly on their face thinking that will scrub away all their dry skin.  If you are not gentle it will dry out or irritate your skin.  I do this around my entire face for a couple minutes.

5.  Rinse face with warm water, make sure to get all of the exfoliant off of your face because no one wants to find sugar behind your ear later.  You will probably get it in your mouth at one point but hey it's just sugar and honey! And yes, it does kind of taste like baby food but you won't die.  Finish by splashing some cold water on you face to snap pores shut and don't for get to moisturize right after!  I use Cetaphil because it's amazing.

When you are done your skin will be happy and thank you!  Like this...

What's In My Bag?

Time to see what's in my bag!  Now that I have this new purse there is so much more room for everything I need.  Everyone loves bags with oodles of pockets, right?

1.  My keys.  I don't have many keys, just my house key and of course the key to my sweet ride, my 2005 Ford Escape.  I also have all my rewards cards like Autozone, Panera Bread, Blockbuster, Alberstons, and my Borders card that I have yet to take off since they have gone out of business.

2.  My make-up touch up emergency kit. I probably need a new bag, I've had this one for years, I don't even remember where I got it. Inside you will find...

• An old MAC studio fix compact.  This one is in in NW20, although my color does vary a bit from summer to winter.  
• My Burt's Bees lip balm with passion fruit.  A LOVE Burt's Bees it's a god send.  I got this one at Borders before it closed :(
• L'oreal Voluminous Full Definition mascara in black.  I used this mascara for a while and it does definitely give you fuller, darker lashes.  However, a little goes a LONG way, you have to wipe off the tip a bit before application so that it does not clump.  I have gone back to using Covergirl Lash Blast but I keep this one in my purse just in case.
• Avon glimmerstick eyeliner in Saturn Grey.  I usually use black Covergirl eyeliner but again, this is just for touch ups if I need it.
• Mark "Totally Balmed" SPF 15 tinted lip balm, a little protection and color for my lips.
• And lastly, Kiss maximum speed nail glue.

Back to what's in my bag...

4.  Iphone and ipod charger.  Always important to have on hand.

5.  My Ray Ban Wayfarer sunglasses in tortoise shell.  These were my dad's in the 80's and I kind of inherited them.  I alternate between wearing these, my cat-eye Ray Bans and my knock-off Aviators.

3.  My wallet, that goes without saying, everyone has one. It's full of boring things like my license, debit card, insurance card and zero cash.  I got it for about $12 at Forever21 and it holds quite a bit, I've been happy with it so far.

6.  This was an old wallet that my mom got me for Christmas a few years and because it is a clasp wallet it does not hold all of my stuff but I've just been using it as a check book holder until I find one I like.  It's actually ripped on the other side but at least it's pretty!

7.  More beauty supplies! I have tweezers just in case and three lip products that I use regularly.  First is my favorite MAC lip gloss in "Just Superb."  Second is my Carmex, could NOT live without this stuff I would definitely recommend it for dry, chapped lips.  Third is my Rimmel London lipstick in 006 "Pink Blush."  I got it at target for a few dollars, it's a great matte pink if any of you are searching for something a little cheaper than MAC.

8.  Aveeno Active Naturals Daily Moisturizing Lotion.  I really haven't used this much it just came as a small sample for free with my Aveeno face wash so I stuck it in my purse.  

9.  Purell hand sanitizer, a must have in everyone's purse.  Having clean hands is never a bad thing.

10.  Victoria's Secret's Pink body lotion, I use it on legs and arms if they get dry while I'm out and about.  This lotion came with perfume that I got for Christmas last year.

11.  Mini Suave deodorant, again self explanatory and always a good idea to keep in your purse just incase.    

12.  Neutrogena sunblock in SPF 55 because I when I burn, I BURN.  Although my dad is hispanic I got my mother's Russian, lilly white skin so I take sun protection very seriously.  I cannot tell you how many times I have forgotten sunblock and gotten a terrible burn just from walking around in the sun for a couple hours.  I don't know why it took me almost 22 years to learn to just stick a tube of sunblock in my purse.

13.  Small compact mirror from Forever21.  Again, always a good idea to keep a mirror in your purse.

14.  My 80GB ipod classic.  I've had this one for years, I got it for my 17th birthday and I have no interest in getting a new one a long as it keeps working.

15.  Lastly, my most prized possession, my iphone 4s.  I'm sure you can tell that my phone is not in there it's just the case, sneaky, right?  I took these pictures with my iphone so I obviously couldn't have it in the picture.  Yay for cheap blogging!  I'm saving up for a camera but I currently do not have one that works.  My iphone case is from Kate Spade and it is unfortunately breaking.  I have a couple cheap, rubber cases but I'm currently lusting after some phone cases on Etsy.  Also under my phone is it's sleeping bag!  My mom crocheted it for me and I keep my phone in it while it is in my purse to protect it.

Hope you enjoyed learning what's in my bag!  My best friend is coming over today to make pistachio cupcakes so look out for that blog coming soon :)

June Favorites

1.  Black wrap with gold studs: I got mine at a local boutique but this one pictured is very similar and can be found here.  I have seen them all over though. It's perfect to add a little edginess to an outfit.

2.  Sparkle nail polish:  I am obsessed with sparkle nail polish lately, whether it's ombre sparkle nails or an sparkle accent nail.  I get most of my nail polish front the drug store or Forever 21.  I cannot afford to constantly buy expensive nail polish and at only $2.80 I've found that Forever 21 polish lasts pretty long. The polish pictured as well as other colors can be found here.

3.  Two Faced Shadow Insurance:  I had been looking for a shadow primer at a reasonable price that would make my shadow last all day and this one has worked out great so far!  It's under $20 and the tube has lasted me quite a while, you do not need to apply too much for your shadow to stick.  This primer helps my shadow and liner not to crease, smudge, or fade which is perfect for long days. I got mine at Sephora, you can find it online here.

4.  Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream:  OH. MY. GOD.  So I have incredibly dry skin and get eczema when I stress out so it is very hard for me to keep my skin moisturized, especially my face. Between wearing makeup and washing my face every night my face dries out very easily.  I have tired moisturizer after moisturizer and this is by far the best I have ever found.  My mom has the same dry skin I do and she had bought it for herself; I tired it out and after one night my skin felt ten times softer. I cannot believe I lived for so long without this product.  But, like I said I have incredibly dry skin so I can't say how this would work for someone with oily skin.  You can find Cetaphil at pretty much any drug store, here it is at Target.com.

5.  Knit Fedora with Bow:  I got my knit fedora with a black bow on it at Forever 21.  I am fedora obsessed this summer.  It's the perfect summer accessory.  The fedora pictured is the one I have however it is no longer available on Forever21.com although there are tons of other fedoras at Forever21 as well as other stores for summer.

6.  Suave Professionals Dry Shampoo:  Unfortunately if I don't wash my hair everyday it gets incredibly oily so I have been in search of an affordable dry shampoo that wont leave my hair feeling gross.  This product is only $3.00 at Walgreens! Can't beat that! And it works great!  I just spray a little on my roots and brush my hair out and it's like I just washed my hair.  It can be found here online.

7.  Billabong California Love Shirt:  I recently went shopping for some summer clothes and after stalking this Billabong California love shirt online for months I had to go into Tilly's to see if they still had it.  I am proud to announce that I got the very last one in my Tilly's!  It's no longer at Tilly.com either although if you like the shirt, you never know some stores may still have it in their sell section!

8.  Silk Elements Heat Protection Spray:  I went on a bit of an online shopping spree on SallyBeauty.com and I bought this heat protectant spray for $7.99.  I've really loved it, I spray it before I do any heat treatment on my hair and not only does it protect my hair but it makes it incredibly silky and smells nice.  When I first used it I thought it was making my hair a bit greasy but after brushing my hair and styling it my hair didn't look greasy at all, it was just super soft.  I would definitely recommend it.  Not to mention it is now on sale for only $4.99 at SallyBeauty.com.

9.  H&M Bird Print Jersey Top:  I bought this top at H&M a couple weeks ago; the number one reason I bought it was because I don't have anything that looks like it.  It's not exactly something I would normally buy but I've been feeling like I should branch out in my style.  I just walked past it when I was first looking around the store but then when I came back to it I though, "I could make this work" so, I bought it and I'm glad I did.  Like I said, it's different than anything I own and it's a perfect, light, summer top.  I did not see it on H&M.com currently but it still may be in some stores.

Nail Obsession

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I have a recent obsession with painting my nails and trying new things. Here are some that I am drooling over lately.