February Beauty Must-Haves
This February has been SO cold & snowy. As pretty as the first snow is and as many photos as I might take of it, I am now 100% over the snow and cold weather! My hair is dry, my skin is dry, my hands are dry, and we’re not going anywhere or doing anything because it’s just too dang cold!! One thing I really try to focus on in the winter is moisturizing - I feel like I can never moisturize enough! One product I have come to absolutely love over the years, especially during this cold dry season, is Tarte Maracuja Oil. I think I got a sample of it a long time ago and just fell in LOVE with how it made my skin feel. I generally only use it at night, since it’s an oil it really gives my face a sheen, but it’s a luxurious feeling and really gets my skin soft and hydrated. I’ve also been known to use it to tame flyaways when styling my hair, and when my hands get REALLY dry, I’ll use a bit of this oil to help soothe them. Tarte Maracuja oil, $48USD.
Speaking of hydration, I’ll admit that I didn’t hop on the Mario Badescu rosewater facial spray right away, but once I did, I definitely agreed that it’s an instant classic! Not only is a great way to hydrate and refresh my face mid-day, but it smells fantastic! I also use it when I do makeup instead of wetting brushes. If I really want a shimmer to POP, I’ll spray a little rosewater spray onto a flat brush, dip it into the shadow, and pat the shade onto my lid. It seriously helps give shimmers that extra POP! they deserve.
There’s no way I can leave February behind without talking about a bold red lip! While bright red is always a classic, I personally prefer to go with a dark statement lip. I LOVE the formula of the NYX Liquid Suede cream lipsticks. They don’t dry out and get crusty the way other liquid lippies do, so I don’t constantly feel the need to remove and reapply. This is the shade Cherry Skies and is one of my go-to’s when I am looking for a dramatic lip. A trick to wearing lipstick under a mask - separate the layers of a tissue, place it over your lips after you’ve applied your lipstick, and dab setting powder over your lips with a fluffy brush - It sets your lipstick! Available at Ulta.com for $7USD.
Imagine, if you will, and 11-year-old girl with long hair hanging halfway down her back going to the hair salon hoping to walk out with the Rachel haircut, and instead getting the Shirley Temple. Well, that was me in 5th grade; and so began the life-long struggle of curly hair. I cringe looking at my confirmation picture - it was one of my first attempts at straightening my hair, and let me tell you, it did NOT go well. Then came my overly-crispy-hair teen years. In my twenties I finally figured out how to heat style my hair for it to look nice, and that became my go-to whenever I really wanted to look put-together. However, at 31 I decided to embrace my naturally graying hair, and this past year while in quarantine I stopped heat-styling my hair since I wasn’t going anywhere, and made the decision to start following the Curly Girl Method, or CGM, for my hair. I’ve gone through a lot of different products in the past few months trying to find the right routine for me, and wound up trying out this conditioner when everywhere seemed to be constantly out of the leave-in I’d been using for months. Well, it was kismet, because on most days this is now the ONLY thing I put in my hair! From needing multiple products to tame the mane to only needing one - that is a major upgrade! It’s taken me a few months to get past the always-greasy stage of CGM, I’ve finally found my HG product, and I just scheduled my first curly haircut - I can’t wait!! The Mane Choice Soft as Can Be 3-in-1 revitalize and refresh Conditioner.
