Oh, the modern woman. We’ve progressed so far since the past century, and yet so many of us still wear debilitatingly high-heeled shoes and paint our faces in order to feel beautiful. I’m all for girl power, but I must admit, I find it an advantage over men that it is socially acceptable for us to indulge in the vanity of makeup. It’s pretty nice to fall back on some under-eye concealer and mascara when you wake up and cringe at your reflection staring back at you.

So, without further ado, I present to you my makeup toolbox. I might not use them all every day, but I would feel shamefully lost without these wonders in my makeup kit. Got any questions about products featured here? Be sure to add your question to the comments section below and check back for answers.

1. | Artistry Replenishing Eye Cream
2. | Loreal True Match foundation
3. | NARS lipstick | “Manhunt”
4. | Revlon Colorstay liquid eyeliner
5. | Loreal Double Extend mascara | Black
6. | Oscar Blandi dry shampoo
7. | Erase Paste under-eye concealer
8. | Loreal Hydra Perfect loose powder
9. | Loreal Mineral Sheers eye shadow | “Clay 60”
10.| Bare Minerals Blush | “Optimimist”

It’s that time again! When most girls complain about how big their hair gets in the humid weather, when meanwhile mine flattens away to nothing. Right now, it’s starting to get pretty hot and humid outside, and I try to keep my air conditioning off for as long as possible- which means, my apartment isn’t much different than the great outdoors. So what do I do about that flat-haired styling problem?

Out of sweaty frustration, I usually twist my hair up into a bun (sometimes simply knotting it to stay secure) and shove a nearby pencil or couple of bobby pins into my locks to secure their place. At this point, my hair is already slightly damp from the heat and humitidy*, and it feels so frefreshing to have it all off my neck.

After an hour or two of refreshing air on my shoulers, I take out the fasteners and let my hair fall down. And check it out! Waves. No other time of the year can I produce wavy hair from these slinky, straight locks of mine. Alright, humidity, maybe you’re not that bad after all!

*If your straight hair isn’t suffering from humidity, and you also want to get this look, just dampen your hair, or don’t dry it completely after showering. Then, wrap up into the bun and allow to dry for a couple of hours before unfurling those wavy locks.

We’re all accutely aware of our own faults, our own blemishes. And how much more so the little bumps on one’s face that are so miserably obvious when one stares at them through a magnifying mirror. Through my high school and college years, it seemed that the magnified mirror was teaming up with my own beautifully skinned best friends, telling me that my face wasn’t good enough. Pile on the makeup, hide your face with your hands, and the wretched problem only ever got worse.

I went through bottles and tubes and tubs of every single skin care line I could get my hands on. Birth control helped for a bit, but I decided it wasn’t for me. All of those hormones messing with my body’s natural state. So the pimples came back, and with a vengence.

Well, recently I’ve come to peace with my skin. I’ve figured out how to properly treat it, and found a line of products that balances its bi-polar behaviors. These days I even have people telling me that my skin looks beautiful, and asking what kind of makeup I use. To be honest, I don’t really use great makeup, and don’t wear it that often.

When I had readers ask about my skin care regimen, I figured I should dedicate a post to the issue. Yes, I’ve suffered. Yes, I still suffer occassionaly (once a month, to be precise). But what has worked for me is washing my skin (which I found to actually be sensitive, as greasy as it was) with a gentle cleanser, using a mild astringement afterwards, and then finishing with a medium-weight facial lotion. Once a week I use a pore clarifying mask, and every day I use eye cream to make those dark circles fade a bit.

The line I settled on is from Artistry (sold through an Amway independant business owner), and I believe it’s called the balancing line. Anyway, it looks like this (image below). If you have also suffered from manic skin, greasy one season, desert dry the next, I would really reccomend this product. (If you don’t know an Amway independant business owner, email me for more information about purchasing Artistry products.)

In the near future, I’ll be doing a write-up about the makeup I use as well!
*pie chart inspired by this Kyla Roma post