SUGAR SCRUB FOR SOFT HANDS & FEET

Hola chicas! Happy Friday indeed! I sure am glad this work week is over! I have been so stressed. Last night I did one of my stress-relief activities...took a hot bubble bath (added bath salts, and stress/tension relief oil), lit candles all around the bathroom, turned the lights off and just relaxed in the tub for about 15-20 minutes. I slept like a baby! I have to go buy some more of that stress relief oil--it works wonders! I can't remember the brand name though; I'll get back to you on that for those of you who may want to try it. Anyway, about today's post...

I was looking at my hands the other day and thinking, "Wow, my hands could use some work." What I mean is they could look a lot more youthful, and be a lot smoother & softer. So I started looking online at things I could use to start conditioning them. I decided to try a homemade sugar scrub. Store bought scrubs are expensive, so I chose to make it myself! All you need it sugar & olive oil (or whatever body oil you use), and grapefruit. Grapefruit is the key ingredient and let me tell you why:

• Natural antioxidant: Antioxidants fight off the free radicals that our skin is exposed to everyday and cause us to age quicker; this means grapefruit is detoxifying. Antioxidants also slow down the process of aging, keeping the skin looking youthful.
• Natural exfoliator: the citric acid (which is an alpha-hydroxy) serves as an exfoliator. This loosens up dean skin cells and reveals a fresh layer of skin, making the skin softer & smoother to touch!
• Aromatherapy: the smell of grapefruit is very uplifting, and good for easing anxiety and depression! I imagine it would be good for stress relief as well.

To make the scrub, all you do is combine the sugar, oil, & fresh squeezed grapefruit juice in a bowl. I would only do enough for one or two uses though--the remainder can go in the fridge for next time. Mix all the ingredients with a wooden spoon or spatula. You can add more sugar and/or oil until you get the mixture to the consistency you desire. Take a small handful and gently scrub your hands (both sides) for about 2-4 minutes. Rinse with cool or lukewarm water and notice the difference! Pat your hands dry with a clean towel and follow with your favorite moisturizer!

This is definitely a routine I'm going to start doing on a weekly basis. I notice a lot of women that may look young, but their hands tell their age and I don't want to be one of those women. Besides, I work in an industry where I use my hands 100% of the time so I need to give them special attention. SIDEBAR: I just broke a nail! Darn it! Oh well! Anyway chicas, hope you all have a wonderful weekend! My brother is coming to visit and I'm excited about a fun-filled weekend of hanging out with him! Until next time, take care & take charge

P.S. Don't forget to become a follower of this blog & the GIVEAWAY CONTEST is still running!! :-)

My First Photoshoot

Hey chicas! Sorry this post is up so late but I was so preoccupied at work today. I'm trying to plan a benefit fashion show for later this year (between customers) and I was getting the sponsorship package together. I'm praying everything pans out cause I'm really excited about it! I didn't have a post planned or thought out due to my busyness so this will be a last minute quickie, hope ya'll aren't too disappointed!

I wanted to post pics of my first photoshoot. There's no way I'm gonna remember what I used though because this shoot was done exactly a year ago! I'll post pics of the before, halfway through, and after! Check it out:















































I also had to do her eyebrows. Here are the before & afters:

My model was Falana, who is gorgeous without makeup so I just wanted to enhance her beauty with some splashes of color. Hope you enjoyed the pics! Until next time ladies, take care & take charge! :-)

The Little Things: Ways to Jazz Up Your Style!

 

Hola chicas! How was your weekend? I will say that mine was a little too short, but it was good. I was definitely NOT looking forward to this Monday morning!  

 

This will be a fairly short blog post today (although your definition of short may not be the same as mine, lol). I wanted to give you some quick tips on things you can add to your look to jazz it up a little bit. Sometimes the simplest additions can make a major difference. First, let’s start with the face. There are a couple of things you can do to add more drama and step it up a notch. I’ll do this in list form.

 

FACE:

• Use eyeliner to lengthen or change the shape of the eyes. By extending the liner past the eye, you can make your eyes appear longer. And when lining the bottom, try applying the liner just underneath the lashes instead of directly on the water line, this will make your eyes look wider.  You can also make your eyes appear slanted by angling the eyeliner upwards on the corner.
• Use a brow pencil or eye shadow to fill in and shape the brows. You can shape your brows almost any way you want to. You can make your arch higher, lengthen the brows, make them appear closer together, or change the shape of the brows completely. You’ll be surprised at how you can change your face and gives yourself a totally different look!
• Give yourself a beauty mark, Marilyn Monroe style.  Use a black eyeliner and place the mark just above and off to the side of the mouth; whatever side you prefer is fine.  Just make sure to set it with sheer powder!! You don’t want it smearing or smudging as the day goes by. This is also a great technique to use to cover up pimples, actually one of the oldest tricks in the book!

 HAIR:

• Add hair clips or pins to accent your hairstyle. You can make a simple hairstyle look very classy & sophisticated by adding decorative pins.
• You can also accessorize with headbands and clip on flowers (which are especially good for spring/summer looks). Anyone that knows me will tell you I love to put things in my hair. It’s one of the easiest ways to change your style without going overboard.

WARDROBE:

• Belts are great! Putting a belt around your waist is one of the most popular ways to transform the look of your outfit. Try using a color that compliments your outfit and not one that matches exactly. If you’re gonna do this though, make sure you have on other accent pieces (jewelry, shoes, scarf, etc) that match the belt. Adding the belt also draws attention to the center of the body and makes your waist look smaller!
• Scarves can also work wonders for your wardrobe. They are sooo versatile. When you buy them, most of time they’ll have picture diagrams showing the different ways they can be worn…around the next, around your head, around the waist, tied to a belt loop on your jeans, etc.
• High heels/pumps can add flare to a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Skinny jeans seem to be what’s hot these days, and pumps go great with them because not only can you rock the jeans, but you get a chance to show off your shoes! They give you a completely different look; try this, put on a pair of jeans and a form fitting t-shirt with a pair of sneakers…now with the same outfit, put on a pair of heels and maybe some bangles to accessorize. See the noticeable difference? I’m sure you do.

So, to sum things up, there are always easy and inexpensive ways to add some spice to your personal style. I have found that you can pretty much use things you already have at home. Get creative and have fun with it! I’m always recycling things I buy and using them for something else. See what you have that you can make use of as an accessory! And as always, questions and comments are welcome. Take care & take charge! :-)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey there chicas! Congrats on making it through the week! I’m so glad its Friday (although I have to work in the morning). Sooo, today I wanted to blog about prepping & priming the skin for makeup application. This is especially important if you have oily skin. I can get away with not priming most of the time because my skin is dry-to-normal, but I do always set or fix my makeup after I’m done, which I’ll explain later.

First, let me explain what it means to prime/prep your skin. I’ll explain it the way I do to all my clients (I always try to put things in simple lingo so people can understand and relate better). When you paint a room in your house, you don’t just slap your color on the walls right? Any painter will tell you the first thing you have to do is put up a coat of primer. Just like when you’re painting your nails; you put a clear coat on first. This priming process helps your color go on more smoothly. When you prime your skin before applying foundation, it helps the makeup go on more smoothly by filling in fine lines and pores, which also means oil control. If you have oily skin, you’ll find yourself looking less shiny throughout the day. There’s a third benefit as well: priming the skin helps your makeup to last longer and have more staying power. Here are some face primers I have used and recommend:

*Too Face Foundation Primer: this has the consistency of a lotion/moisturizer. It has a peachy color to it, but that disappears when you rub it in.
*Ulta Foundation Primer: this is a silicone based primer and feels great going on the skin. It’s very light and airy feeling if that makes sense.
*Rimmel Foundation Primer: this has the consistency of a moisturizer as well, but I find it doesn’t work well for brown/dark complexions. This is because it has a peachy tint, so it makes darker skin look ashy. It works best for fairer skinned women.
*MAC Prep + Prime: this is a translucent powder. It looks chalky white but the powder is so fine that it disappears when you apply it. This can actually be a multi- use product. It’s also great for setting cream concealers and for blotting/touching up to minimize shine throughout the day.
*MAC Fix +: I use this to set my makeup in place. I think of it as a finishing touch.


Now let’s talk about priming the eye. Of course it serves the same purpose as priming the face, but in my opinion it’s far more important! Have you ever seen someone wearing eyeshadow that’s started to collect in the crease of the eye??? I hate that! Primer will solve this problem. If you can’t afford to get primer, using your foundation can serve as an alternative. If you’re wearing eyeshadow, you need to wear a primer…period! These are the ones I use most often for myself and for my clients:

*Urban Decay eye shadow primer: kind of like a lotion; this is my go-to primer when I have a client with oily lids [insert pic]
*MAC paintpots: these are great because they come in different colors, which can be used to contrast/brighten your eyeshadow [insert pic]
*Cream Foundation/Concealer (use a powder to set in place so it doesn’t crease): as I mentioned before this is a good alternative if you can’t afford to purchase the primer. I know they can be pricey.

So to sum things up, primers are used to create a smooth surface to work with, filling in lines, cracks, and pores. They also make it easier to cover up imperfections. You may like me and can get away with not using primer under your foundation, but you should ALWAYS prime your eyelids before you put on eyeshadow! Only your dress slacks should have creases, not your eyeshadow!

If you have any questions about any other primer brands other than the ones I mentioned in thsi blog, you can send me an email or comment on this post. Take care & take charge chicas!

*The name brands mentioned in this blog are my personal opinions. I was not paid by any company nor am I an affiliate of any of the companies mentioned.

Naturally Me: My Decision to go Natural

Hola chicas! I’m really hoping this blog post makes sense today cause I’m super tired! I was up until 2:30am this morning and I had to get up at 7am for work; I’m hoping this extra strong coffee I made does the trick. Anyway, today I wanted to do a blog post that’s a little more personal so this one won’t be about makeup or skin care tips. I really want my readers to get to know and understand me as a person, and not just a Makeup Artist. So from time to time I will be posting blogs just about me and my life in general—gotta put some excitement in here for you some kinda way, lol!

I titled this entry “Naturally Me: My Decision to Go Natural” because I get sooo many questions about why I cut my hair; sometimes it’s a little annoying but I do understand it was a drastic change for me and people have to adjust to that. I had long hair all my life and that’s how people were used to seeing me. When I cut it, I got jaw-dropping reactions from friends, family, and co-workers. No one could believe I had cut off my long, beautiful hair. And honestly I haven’t really missed it! Here’s a pic of how long it was before:














So, why did I do it? Well, I started thinking about going natural around May of last year. I was going to make a slow transition and let it be a gradual process, so I decided to not perm my hair for a while. I believe the last perm I had was around the start of June. I knew I had a pretty good hair texture so I was able to deal with a few inches of new growth. My plan was to let a few inches of new growth come in, then cut of a few inches on the ends, and so on and so forth (I read online about transitioning to natural hair before I made up my mind to actually do it, and it seemed this was the most recommended way if you’d had long hair all your life).

Well I was going through this whole process, and had actually just cut several inches of my hair off at the beginning/middle of August—I cut it just above my shoulders. I would just straighten the roots with a flat iron sometimes. Check the pic:
















(this pic is from 2007 but it had grown all the way back since that time, and I cut it this length again)

Unfortunately, life doesn’t always go according to planned. At the end of August, I found out my mom was terminally sick with breast cancer. I won’t go through all the details, but just three weeks later she passed away (September 12th). My life was turned upside down and inside out. It was then that I decided to chop my hair completely off; I did it four days after my mom’s death, September 16th. My stylist was afraid to cut it cause he thought I’d wake up the next morning hating the decision I made and hating him for cutting it, but I had my mind made up. Here I am after the "big chop".















I guess doing the “big chop” versus the transition to natural hair was an expression of what I was going through emotionally at the time. And I don’t regret it at all. I love my natural hair. I love the little spirally curls. I love the fact that I don’t have to be afraid to walk outside in the rain without ruining my hair. I love it that I no longer look like what our society tells us women should look like! So now you know why I chopped off all my hair. Hope this gives some clarity to some of you who were too afraid to ask me why I cut it, LOL. I’ll leave you with a recent pic to show you how it’s grown since I cut it in September:

So there you have it! That's the story behind me chopping off my hair. Sometimes its challenging because I'm having to learn my hair and what works for it all over again, but I love it! If anyone wants any tips or how to deal with the big chop decision you just made, email me or leave me comments and I'll be happy to share more. Take care & take charge ladies!