Take It Off! (Lazy Girl's Guide to Good Skin Part 1)

I've been guilty of being too lazy tired to wash my make up off when I come in from a night out, and that smear of cream blush on my pillow case always mocks me the next morning promising that I will almost certainly be seeing a new pimple by the end of the day. Without a doubt, putting on makeup is more fun than taking it off. BUT like, all other good hygienic habits, it must be done. So, of course I had to devise the laziest way to take it all off at the end of any kind of day. *Disclaimer - I'm not a dermatologist, skin specialist or medical professional. This is just what I think from my own experience*

Here we go:

Work Day :

Whether you're a super busy run-around person or you sit behind a desk all day, the optimum time to take off your makeup is as soon as you get home. Why? The longer your skin has to breathe with absolutely nothing on it, is the longer it has to recover on its own. Remember how it feels to take your shoes off and wiggle your toes? That's what you're doing for your face.

Make it easy by putting a pack of makeup remover wipes close to where you put down your bag or take off your jewellery when you get in, and you're less likely to forget to do it. After you've wiped it all off, on your next trip to the bathroom splash your face with some water.

Gym/Workout:

Always always always sweat make-up free. Makeup and sweat is a horrible combination for your pores and will leave you super clogged. Yes, I know you still need to look presentable at the gym, but for the sake of your skin, please wipe off your face make up (foundation, blush, bronzer, highlighter) at least. If you don't want to go completely bare leave on your eye makeup, make sure you're wearing waterproof mascara and that your eyeliner is on your top lid only, otherwise you will end up with raccoon eyes. Plus, foundation on your gym towel just looks like dirt, or worse...skid marks.

Make it easy by slipping a pack of makeup remover wipes into your gym bag. Reduce smears by wiping off your foundation and blush before you change your clothes. Never mind if you look like you're missing a little colour. Working up a good sweat will make you flushed and glowing naturally.

Night out on the Town:

You're finally home and your feet ache and you can barely stand but you slathered on the makeup earlier and you need to wipe it off. Typically, we go heavier with the makeup at night and are even more lackadaisical about taking it off when we get in.But this is exactly why we need to do it. Heavier makeup requires a two-step process especially if you're gonna be too lazy tired to wash your face.

Take a makeup remover wipe or two and wipe everything off as best as you can. Wipes can end up leaving your face slightly sticky so you can always substitute the second wipe for witch hazel on a cotton pad. The second step is a face oil. Didn't see that coming did you? An oil, in its virgin form like tea tree oil or argan oil will do alot for your skin. The moisturizing properties will help to combat the dehydration from any alcohol you consumed or any smoke that was in the air while the anti-bacterial properties will nix any remaining dirt that could be clogging your pores. Get your oils here if you live in Kingston, Jamaica.

My favourite make-up removers are:

  

Neutrogena                                        Simple                                                   Ponds

                                                                                                                     (Keep this in the fridge)

DIY- Makeup Removers I like:

- Witch Hazel & Rose Water

- Olive Oil and Witch Hazel

Fave Eye Make-up Remover:

Neutrogena Oil-free Eye Makeup Remover

Remember ladies, just washing your face doesn't remove your makeup. Your best bet is to use a make-up remover (store bought or DIY) and then to wash your face. I don't recommend using an exfoliating scrub after you've used a makeup remover. A cream cleanser or other regular cleanser will do the job without irritating your skin.

If you want a step-by-step breakdown on how to make your own makeup remover leave me a comment and I'll get right on it. 

Till later,

**Jane

PS - Can we take a minute to just swoon at the loveliness of cream blush at night? Especially in candlelit areas? Swoooooon!

P PS - Yes, I'm starting a new series of posts, and aren't you a smarty pants for noticing.

  

The Nail Polish Colours You Should Be Wearing Now

Summer is almost here and its time to pretty up our tips and toes. So clear away your moody colours and reds and get out your neons, brights and pastels. Here are my my five favourite colours for this season:

1. Essie - Saturday Disco Fever
   
   
   Nothing says summer to me like bright orange toes. This will look great on all skintones. The color is from Essie's new neon collection and reminds me of last year's pantone colour - tangerine. I love it. It can be girly, it can be classy, it can be edgy. Super versatile colour. I wouldn't do this on longer nails though unless you're going for that more ghetto-fabulous vibe.

source

2.  Klean Kolour - Pastel Purple

source

There is such a thing as a neon pastel - and this is an example of that. Usually if you want your pastel colour to stand out you have to paint a white base underneath. But just one coat of this baby and it's opaque pastel brightness will wow you. I fell in love the minute I saw the bottle. It looks equally pretty on toes as it does fingers. And though Klean Kolours is on the cheaper end of the spectrum, this has very good lasting power - five days before a single chip. Run out and get it now.

3. Brucci - Luscious Lori

You can't quite capture the luminescence of this colour. It's a cross between a parrot blue and cobalt. I am not a blue person unless it's a dark dark blue. The formula isn't very smooth so you do have to work with it but the colour is opaque on the first coat. The colour is pretty close to essie's butler please but it has a little more depth to it. Luv.

4. Bruci - Kelly's Kool

I tried several times to capture this colour but it doesn't photograph well. It is a striking neon purple with an undertone of fuschia. Pretty, bright, girly colour. It's a tad sophisticated but still playful and flirty. Nuff said. 

5. China Glaze - Custom Kicks

Not the tiffany blue colour or the mint colour that everyone's been rocking, but a deeper, more modern take on it. Looks amazing on dark skin. It just screams Sunday afternoon barbeque by the pool to me. Close your eyes and imagine it - white shorts, staw fedora, blous-y yellow top?Yess....

And that's it my lovelies! What colour are you rocking this spring? Leave a comment below and let me know. ( All nail polishes bought from Woolworth Pharmacy in New Kingston Shopping Centre).

Till later,

**Jane

Beauty on the Go -What I carry in my makeup bag

I am not nor have I ever been a morning person. So I have oodles of respect for those women who wake up earlier to do their hair and makeup. Most days I don't really know what I look like until I get to my desk.

So I am that girl who carries around a brush and a makeup bag not because I touch up after lunch but because I need to be fully awake before I start drawing on my face. I'm sure you would agree.

I've pulled together a few of my tried and true low maintenance but super effective beauty products and stashed them in a washable pouch to tote around with me. And now for your viewing pleasure, here they are:

•Maybelline Great lash Big
I like this because it's buildable. I can swipe on a coat for work and then swipe on another coat at the end of the day if I end up going out with friends right after I leave the office. 
Flaking is minimal and it holds a curl and separates the lashes really well.  I also like carrying it around because it's colourful.

•Revlon Just Bitten lip balm stain in Smitten
This looks like a giant crayon but its colour payoff is great. Almost completely opaque but sheer enough for you to swipe on without a mirror,  it is super purse friendly.
Additionally, this will not melt in your bag or break but somehow it manages to still be moisturising. The colour once it sets does not budge either.  Props Revlon.

•Victoria' s Secret lip gloss in Toasty Almond.
This works two ways: when I am sporting naked lips and I want some shine this is my go-to. But this also works as a smell cover. The scent is so strong but pleasant it masks any remaining smells of your lunch.

•LA Colors Lipstick in #8398
This is a dusty Rose nude colour and is perfect for those days when I don't want naked lips but I want a mellow colour. It isn't moisturising but it stays put for up to four hours.

•Revlon Colorburst Lip butter in Raspberry pie
This is super glossy and I like to wear it on days when I am extra tired to brighten up my face. This is the only product I reapply after lunch because it has a tendency to slip all over your face.

•Palladio baked eyeshadow trio in bes04 metallics
Neutral shadows for the lids that can be darkened for night or natural for daytime. I apply this with my fingers and blend.

•L'Oréal True Match blush in rosy outlook.
Thankfully this compact comes with a brush and a mirror in the bottom. I've finally hit pan on this and I'm excited to try out a new shade. This is my second L'Oréal blush and I am super impressed by them.

The last item is a black Revlon double sided compact mirror.  I like to pull it out when I'm doing a more complicated eye shadow look than just a swipe and blend.

The bag was a gift but I've seen similar bags of all shapes and sizes in lots of pharmacies islandwide.

What do you tote around with you in your makeup bag?  Any recommendations?

Till later, 
**Jane

Review: Maybelline Mega Plush Mascara

Mascara is pretty much a part of my daily routine and it was one of the first beauty products I ever bought. I've pretty much tried almost all drugstore mascaras so when I saw the ad for the Mega Plush Mascara by Maybelline I knew I had to try it.

The ads promised lashes that were flexible to the touch, voluminous and non-flaky. I was excited. As a be-spectacled young lady, flexible lashes meant that my lashes could bump my lens without flaking and breaking like crusty dried up matta. Score!

I purchased it in 'Black' at Chesterfield Pharmacy Beauty Counter and ran home to try it. I eagerly unscrewed the cap and was promptly disappointed. The wand was one of those bend-y wands which, in my experience makes wiggling the wand through your lashes that much harder. The formula was also pretty wet which means a longer drying time. Now, this could be good news if you enjoy putting on more than one coats of mascara but since I have the particular problem of the corners of my top and bottom lashes sticking together (even without mascara) I would  have to refrain from blinking for a full 60 seconds to let the coat dry to not have my lashes stick together the entire time.

That aside, I applied the mascara. After one coat, I did notice a bit of lengthening and some slight curling. However, nothing fantastic. I waited for it to dry and I checked it. No difference. I applied one more coat to the underside of my top lashes and noticed some clumping on the ends of the lashes. I let that dry then combed through the lashes with a lash comb and waited...

After about five minutes, I noticed that the ends of the lashes had gotten a bit fatter (read: voluminous) but that was it. Needless to say I was not impressed. I went back a third time - can you tell I was getting desperate? Because really who has time for three coats!!? - I went through my lashes from the top side wiggling the brush through the lashes and rotating the wand. (Getting real technical and all). The only difference was the slight wilting of the lashes.

So here's my breakdown:

Price
This can be bought in Jamaica from $600 to $1100 depending on where you buy it.


Packaging

  


The bright blue packaging with the purple metallic trim and lettering is attractive and functional but not classic. The handle is pretty bulbous and is a tad more awkward to work with than a cylindrical tube but not anything to really complain about. The weight is pretty light.


Wand

  

As I've said, the wand is one of those bend-y ones which I am not a fan of. I'm not really sure how bendy wands benefit persons with natural lashes. If you wiggle the wand that hard, your lashes will probably fall out. This kind of mascara is probably better suited for blending your natural lashes into false lashes. So no-go for the average woman.

Brush

The brush is spider-y. It actually reminds me of the bottle brushes you use to wash out baby bottles. My lashes are longer on the outer ends and shorter towards my inner eye and so are most of the women I know. So I'm not sure how tapering on both ends is supposed to be better. I found myself using the tip and middle of the brush only.


Formula

This is a wet mascara. This means that you will be able to build coats to fatten up lashes but it will not separate your lashes. I prefer a voluminous fanned out look to a super-long spider-legs-y look so this is not my favourite formula. True to its claim, it did not flake at all and I was super impressed by this but this is the only thing that distinguishes this mascara from any other.

Results

My lashes were slightly lengthened, definitely darker and slightly fatter. There was no flaking and though they did not feel soft to the touch they were flexible as promised. After wearing this for about six weeks, I would give this a 6 out of 10 and I probably will not re-purchase this unless they make some changes.

Have you tried this mascara? Do you like it or hate it? Do you have a product you want me to try to see if it's worth your money? Leave me a comment and let me know.

Till later.
**Jane

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