undertones." To me it is the perfect match to Santa's hat and Rudolf's nose. :)
What are some of your go-to shade for the holidays?
Monday, December 17, 2012
Holiday Nails with Essie's Russian Roulette
undertones." To me it is the perfect match to Santa's hat and Rudolf's nose. :)
What are some of your go-to shade for the holidays?
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Oil Cleansing: Ancient beauty secret or modern day fad?
Using oil to cleanse your skin is not a new concept, although the concept is regaining a lot of new attention, especially with the overwhelming desire of many to use more gentle and natural products on our skin. I have been using the oil cleansing method (or OCM as many online devotees so lovingly refer to it) for about three weeks. It's hard to tell yet if I love it, but I have promised to give it time to see its full potential.
Our skin, whether we like it or not, is an oil factory. It naturally produces oil (good oil!) that helps to protect and naturally moisturize our face. Unfortunately for some of us, our skin can produce too much oil, mix with bacteria, get clogged in the pore and produce black heads, white heads and acne.
So your skin is oily- strip away all of the oil and you can clear your acne, right? WRONG! So many of us, especially with problematic skin, immediately turn to cleansers that contain super-drying ingredients such as alcohol, benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and so on. Then, after washing and stripping our skin of all of the dirt and oil, our skin is left feeling dry and irritated, so what do we do? We attempt to re-add the moisture back to our skin with a myriad of moisturizers and lotions. Our skin is thinking, "What the heck?. I'm so confused!" And to make up for lost moisture, your skin produces MORE oil, which is exactly what you were trying to combat from the start. So you wash your face more and it gets drier and... I think you get the picture. It's a vicious skin cycle. One of which many of us, myself included, has found ourselves in at one point or another.
Insert the Oil cleansing method.
For many, especially with trouble skin, the thought of putting oil on the skin sounds like a nightmare- the worst possible idea. But in fact, the science behind it makes sense. Its the idea that like attracts like; as you cleanse your skin with the oil, it attracts the oil and impurities in your skin and as you rinse the oil away, with it goes excess oil without stripping your skin. Over time, using the OCM, so the theory goes, your skin will eliminate clogs and impurities and find its natural balance
Will any oil do?
There are many choices of oils when it comes to the OCM and your choice will often have to do with the type of skin you have. Crunchy Betty has an amazing blog post all about the oil cleansing method and breaks down the different types of oils that are great for various skin types. Almost all uses use a base of castor oil mixed with another (carrier) oil. Do NOT attempt to use castor oil by itself. It's very thick and gloopey and if you use too much of it you can dry out your skin.
What I do:
Every morning and evening I wash my face with a blend of castor oil and jojoba oil. Jojoba oil is a great choice for people with oily/acne prone skin. It is also said that jojoba oil is the oil that is most similar to our own natural oil.
In my hand I mix about 50% castor oil with 50% jojoba (my favourite is from Desert Essence) and apply it to a dampened face. I massage it in my skin, focusing on areas I'm wearing more makeup, for anywhere from one to three minutes. I then take a washcloth damped with very warm washer and gently rub the oil (along with all of my makeup) off my skin. I then rinse with more hot water and rub again with the wash cloth until all of the oil and makeup are off my skin. It is very important that all of the oil is off of your skin, as any residue may cause breakouts. Sometimes if I have a little bit of extra time I will steam my bare face with boiling water before I cleanse to help open up the pores even more. And viola- that's it. A clean, fresh face with no chemicles!
If you feel like your skin is either overly oily, or overly dry, after using the OCM, try playing with the percentage of castor oil to carrier oil. If you find your skin to dry, up the amount of carrier oil, and vice-versa for oily.
After I'm finished cleaning at night, sometimes I like to apply a simple mask of just honey. Honey has natural anti-bacterial properties and is also a natural moisturizer.
The verdict... still yet to be determined. So far I have definately seen improvements in my skin,less clogged pores and more balance. Although only time will tell if I am a life-long oil cleansing convert.
Have you tried the OCM? What were your results?
XOXO
Jess
Our skin, whether we like it or not, is an oil factory. It naturally produces oil (good oil!) that helps to protect and naturally moisturize our face. Unfortunately for some of us, our skin can produce too much oil, mix with bacteria, get clogged in the pore and produce black heads, white heads and acne.
So your skin is oily- strip away all of the oil and you can clear your acne, right? WRONG! So many of us, especially with problematic skin, immediately turn to cleansers that contain super-drying ingredients such as alcohol, benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and so on. Then, after washing and stripping our skin of all of the dirt and oil, our skin is left feeling dry and irritated, so what do we do? We attempt to re-add the moisture back to our skin with a myriad of moisturizers and lotions. Our skin is thinking, "What the heck?. I'm so confused!" And to make up for lost moisture, your skin produces MORE oil, which is exactly what you were trying to combat from the start. So you wash your face more and it gets drier and... I think you get the picture. It's a vicious skin cycle. One of which many of us, myself included, has found ourselves in at one point or another.
Insert the Oil cleansing method.
For many, especially with trouble skin, the thought of putting oil on the skin sounds like a nightmare- the worst possible idea. But in fact, the science behind it makes sense. Its the idea that like attracts like; as you cleanse your skin with the oil, it attracts the oil and impurities in your skin and as you rinse the oil away, with it goes excess oil without stripping your skin. Over time, using the OCM, so the theory goes, your skin will eliminate clogs and impurities and find its natural balance
Will any oil do?
There are many choices of oils when it comes to the OCM and your choice will often have to do with the type of skin you have. Crunchy Betty has an amazing blog post all about the oil cleansing method and breaks down the different types of oils that are great for various skin types. Almost all uses use a base of castor oil mixed with another (carrier) oil. Do NOT attempt to use castor oil by itself. It's very thick and gloopey and if you use too much of it you can dry out your skin.
What I do:
Every morning and evening I wash my face with a blend of castor oil and jojoba oil. Jojoba oil is a great choice for people with oily/acne prone skin. It is also said that jojoba oil is the oil that is most similar to our own natural oil.
In my hand I mix about 50% castor oil with 50% jojoba (my favourite is from Desert Essence) and apply it to a dampened face. I massage it in my skin, focusing on areas I'm wearing more makeup, for anywhere from one to three minutes. I then take a washcloth damped with very warm washer and gently rub the oil (along with all of my makeup) off my skin. I then rinse with more hot water and rub again with the wash cloth until all of the oil and makeup are off my skin. It is very important that all of the oil is off of your skin, as any residue may cause breakouts. Sometimes if I have a little bit of extra time I will steam my bare face with boiling water before I cleanse to help open up the pores even more. And viola- that's it. A clean, fresh face with no chemicles!
If you feel like your skin is either overly oily, or overly dry, after using the OCM, try playing with the percentage of castor oil to carrier oil. If you find your skin to dry, up the amount of carrier oil, and vice-versa for oily.
After I'm finished cleaning at night, sometimes I like to apply a simple mask of just honey. Honey has natural anti-bacterial properties and is also a natural moisturizer.
The verdict... still yet to be determined. So far I have definately seen improvements in my skin,less clogged pores and more balance. Although only time will tell if I am a life-long oil cleansing convert.
Have you tried the OCM? What were your results?
XOXO
Jess
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Bad, Blogger, Bad!
Hey Ladies!
Long time no chat! I have been absent for just over a week and I feel horrible. I feel like I get into blogging cycles- I either blog tones and tones in a short period of time, or I completely fall off the blogwagon for a while until I feel like something's missing.
I'm not going to moan and groan about a million excuses, but I was working a lot last week (for the last month for that matter). But, yesterday, Tuesday, was my last shift at work for a while. I told my manager that I was going to take all of September off so I can get a feel of my new school workload and schedule. I'm also going to be commuting 5 days a week to my school (about an hour each way) so I need to see when I am finding myself free to squeeze in some extra shifts at work. I don't start school until Sept 6th so I've decided that the time between now and the start of school will be my summer "me time". This Friday I am heading up north to go to my university roommates house, which is beautiful and right on the water, with all my other uni girls. I am so excited for tanning and sipping on cocktails all weekend!
I have some plans for some upcoming posts that I'm excited to start writing! Tell me, what is everyones' end of summer plans?
Long time no chat! I have been absent for just over a week and I feel horrible. I feel like I get into blogging cycles- I either blog tones and tones in a short period of time, or I completely fall off the blogwagon for a while until I feel like something's missing.
I'm not going to moan and groan about a million excuses, but I was working a lot last week (for the last month for that matter). But, yesterday, Tuesday, was my last shift at work for a while. I told my manager that I was going to take all of September off so I can get a feel of my new school workload and schedule. I'm also going to be commuting 5 days a week to my school (about an hour each way) so I need to see when I am finding myself free to squeeze in some extra shifts at work. I don't start school until Sept 6th so I've decided that the time between now and the start of school will be my summer "me time". This Friday I am heading up north to go to my university roommates house, which is beautiful and right on the water, with all my other uni girls. I am so excited for tanning and sipping on cocktails all weekend!
I have some plans for some upcoming posts that I'm excited to start writing! Tell me, what is everyones' end of summer plans?
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Mac Studio Fix Powder review
Previous times purchasing this product the girl matched my colour to an N5, which seemed to match me great. But this time I was matched to an NC40! When she said let me try NC40 I was like, "ummm I think that's going to be way to dark!" Although, surprisingly it fits! Keep in mind though I am nowhere near an NC40 in their foundation, so it's always best to go in and get matched in a store or at a counter rather than risking a shade disaster by purchasing online.
Have any of you girls tried Studio Fix Powder? Would you give it Holy Grail status? Let me know in the comments!
xx Jessica
Monday, August 15, 2011
Bag Love
For the last couple of months I have had my eyes peeled for the perfect school bag that I could carry my laptop, folders and other necessities, and look professional AND cute. A lot to ask of a bag but I think I've found her! On Friday my Mom and I went shopping and we just happened to walk into Danier Leather, a store I had never really been in before nor had the desire to. Although when I saw this bag I knew it was what I had been looking for, and it was on sale...double score!
It has its own padded compartment for my laptop with lots of extra room for my other things. It was a little bit more than I had initially wanted to spend, but my Mom made a good point that I should buy something of good quality that will last me and stand the test of everyday use. I'm loving it!
What are you girls planning on using as your school/work bag this fall?
P.S. Sorry for the less that perfect pictures. The last one is from their website. If anyone has any tips on taking good quality pictures I would LOVE to here them!
xx Jessica
Friday, August 12, 2011
Follow me on Twitter!!
Hey guys. I recently just created a twitter account for my blog. My username is @ruffsandtruffs .Send me your Twitter usernames so I can follow you guys too!
My Everyday Eye Makeup (Using Mac)
This is the eye routine that I use pretty much everyday. It is my go-to look and it literally takes me 4 minutes- tops. If I'm going out for dinner or something and want the look to be a little more dramatic I am just a little more heavy handed with the crease colour and switch out my brown eyeliner for black.
What I used and how I do it:
1: First I apply All That Glitters from Mac over the entirety of my lid and blending it out a little higher than my crease. If you own or have used this colour you know how absolutely wonderful and versatile it is. It is by far my favourite Mac eye shadow. A lot of times I just use it alone, putting a little more in my crease and it looks like I'm wearing more than one colour and I spent so much more time on my makeup than I actually did. PLUS it makes blue/green eyes *POP*!
2. Next, I apply Wedge from Mac in the crease with a fluffy blending brush. This shadow has a matte finish and is a perfect crease colour to compliment a more shimmery lid colour.
3. Recently I have become a huge fan of brown eye liner. It gives a much more softer and less harsh look over black, but stil defines your eyes beautifully. Here I used Maybelline's Unstoppable in "Cinnabar" and applied it to my lid and my waterline.
4. Finally, I finished of with a mascara. Here I used L'Oreal's Voluminous Carbon Black.
And there it is. It is seriously that simple to achieve a quick, yet pretty eye look super crazy fast without using tonnes or products.
What's your go-to eye look for work/school? I would love to see it!
xx Jessica
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