Friday Favorites: 2015 Breast Cancer Awareness

It’s October which means Breast Cancer Awareness Month! As I mentioned in my post last year, this is a cause near to my heart as my mom is a survivor. Here is this year’s list of all of the great products that support the cause. You can buy them all month and give a little back.

1. Bobbi Brown Peony Blush & Brush Set ($50)

With every purchase of the Breast Cancer Awareness Peony set, Bobbi Brown will donate $12 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Bobbi Brown Peony

2. Nest Passion Classic Candle ($38)

This candle honors the memory of Evelyn H. Lauder, Founder of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. It combines the essences of blooming peony and dewy garden roses with warm sandalwood and a hint of flowering pittosporum, Lauder’s beloved fragrance note. 10% of the purchase is donated to the Foundation.

Nest

3. Tory Burch Ramble on Rose Lipcolor ($32)

Tory Burch created a special limited-edition golden and pink fretwork case for one of her favorite shades, Ramble On Rose. 20% of the purchase price is donated to the Foundation.

tory burch

4.  Avon Skin So Soft & Sensual Bath Oil ($10)

Avon will donate 20% of this purchase to their Breast Cancer Crusade.

Avon

5. La Mer Lip Balm ($55)

La Mer equals the ultimate in luxury to me so I love that they are supporting breast cancer awareness with their nutrient-rich Miracle Broth and patented Lip Lipid Complex. $10 of this purchase is donated to the foundation.

la mer

6. Jane Iredale Smell the Roses Hydration Spray ($29)

This facial spritz contains rose flower oil and extracts to cal and support your skin’s function while its rosy fragrance refreshes and lifts your mood. All profits from the sales of Smell the Roses Hydration Spray are donated to Living Beyond Breast Cancer.

jane iredale

7. Smashbox 24 Hour Photo Finish Shadow Primer ($20)

Five dollars of this lid primer go to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

smashbox

8. Evelyn Lauder & Elizabeth Hurley Dream Pink – Modern Muse’ Solid Perfume Keychain ($49.50)

Estée Lauder came out with this cute perfume keychain that swivels open to reveal a solid perfume. Modern Muse is a lush floral woody scent. 100% of the proceeds are donated to the foundation.

Modern Muse

9. Donna Karan Limited Edition Liquid Cashmere EDP Spray ($88)

I’ve mentioned my love for Donna Karan’s Cashmere Mist Deodorant in previous posts and now they’ve created a limited-edition spray of the sensual Donna Karan Liquid Cashmere. It combines accents of mandarin, bergamot and muguet with undertones of patchouli, vanilla, sandalwood and musk. 20% of the purchase goes to The Foundation.

Donna-Karan-Cosmetics_-Donna-Karan-Liquid-Cashmere-EDP-Spray_0

10. Ann Taylor Necklace and Bracelet ($49.50 and $59.50)

Ann Taylor created this limited edition necklace and bracelet that includes delicate emblems tied to powerful symbols, which each tell a story of love, hope, and endurance. 50% of the purchase price will be donated to The Foundation.

ann taylor

11. OneHope Pink 365 Gift Box ($49)

I talked about OneHope’s Chardonnay last year, but this year they have teamed up with Voluspa to offer a special gift box. This gift box is so cool because every three gift boxes fund a clinical trial for one woman with breast cancer. This is such an amazing thing!

 

onehope

12. Hope Scarf ($20)

This is a local Michigan company that is donating $10 of every purchase to local women who need temporary financial assistance due to financial distress as a result of breast cancer.

hope scarf

13. Clinique Pink with a Purpose – Cheek Pop Blush & Case Set ($22)

Clinique will donate $3 to The Foundation with every purchase of this cheek pop blush in Berry Pop. Your purchase of this limited-edition Cheek Pop Blush in Berry Pop with a carrying case includes a $3.00 donation to support.

clinique

14. Asics Gel-Fit Sana 2 PR ($80)

Number one – these limited edition GEL-Fit Sana 2 Pink Ribbon shoes  are ADORABLE! They were designed to raise money for Breast Cancer Research and $10.00 from the sale of every pair goes to the About Right Action for Women charity established by Christina Applegate.

asics

Do you have any products I should add to the list? Let me know in the comments.

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Five on Friday: Wine for Your Face

I love my Wine of the Week features, but today I wanted to talk to you about wine for your face…wine beauty products that is! Here are some cool wine beauty products that you can use while drinking wine:

Tony Moly Red Wine Face Mask ($4)

These face masks are really fun and easy to use. Tony Moly has a whole line of different ingredients to try, but the Wine version caught my eye. There are two in a package and you just keep it on your face for 20 minutes. This particular mask is infused with real red wine extracts and rosemary to address enlarged pores while purifying, refining, and tightening skin.

tony moly mask

Coco Cabernet Custom Vinotherapy Mask ($46)

This custom face mask has both wine and chocolate to make it a decadent treat! It comes dry and then you mix it up before you use it.

grapeseed co

Wine Blot Lip Balm ($10)

29 by Lydia Mondavi is aligned with the famous Mondavi name and you can buy the whole line at Target. I thought this lip balm was perfect for the coming colder season. Apparently grape seed extract is 50 times more powerful than Vitamin E when it comes to protecting your skin, so this gives you a lot of bang for your buck.

wine blot lip balm

Italian Red Grape Shampoo ($8.99)

This one isn’t for your face, but close enough. The ingredients include red grapes native to Italy, organic grape extract, resveratrol and red wine extract. These antioxidants act as UV filters to help correct sun damage. Sugar and coconut oil cleansers remove everyday pollutants and organic kelp and nettle extracts add iron, calcium, potassium and other vitamins and miners to help strengthen each strand of hair. They also have a conditioner too!

wine shampoo

Red Wine Resveratrol Nourishing Cream ($45)

This cream protects against signs of aging such as environmental damage, lines, wrinkles and loss of elasticity.

wine cream

Do you have any wine beauty products?

For more Five on Friday posts, click here.

If you would like to join the Five on Friday with A Liz AdventuresThe Good Life BlogHello Happiness and Carolina Charm just click the button below for more details.

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You can join the Oh Hey Friday Linkup with The Farmer’s Wife and September Farm just click the button below for more details.

I am also participating in the Friday Favorites Linkup with A Little Bit of Everything Blog, Grace and Love Blog and Momfessionals. You can click the button below for more information and to join the linkup.

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Fall Beauty Finds at Meijer

Disclosure: I received beauty products from Meijer to help promote the Meijer Beauty Department. All opinions expressed are my own.

I was thrilled to receive a treasure trove of fall beauty items from Meijer for this post. Even as an adult, fall means a new year and new beauty products. Meijer is a great place to shop to refresh your collection as they have everything from styling products to beauty products all in the Meijer beauty aisle. There were a few things in particular that stood out to me (and I couldn’t believe you could get them at Meijer, how convenient!) and I even tried a new look to share with you.

The first item that caught my interest was the Simple Cleansing Micellar Water. I was thrilled to receive this since I had just discovered Miceller Water (you can read about it in my previous post here).

Meijer fall4

The next items I was stoked to receive were the Garnier Fructis Full & Plush Shampoo & Conditioner. I have baby fine and super thin hair so this was right up my alley.

Meijer fall3

I have been living on fragrance samples for a while so this full size Versace Bright Crystal Eau de Toilette was perfect. I love that Candice Swanepoel is the face of this scent in their new ad:

Versace describes it as “an enthralling and voluptuous fragrance, for the Versace woman who is strong and confident yet feminine, sensual, who loves to be enveloped in a fragrance that tastes of juicy pomegranate grains, iced freshness and shining yuzu.” Let’s just say that this is perfect for me!

Meijer fall7

I also got some fun cosmetics including some amazing new palettes!

Meijer fall

I used the Revlon Colorstay palette in 528 Passionate to create this look below.

Meijer fall9

Revlon guarantees that this eyeshadow won’t crease, fade or smudge for 16 hours. I wore this look at work and it stayed all day. I watered down my eyeliner brush and used the dark color for eyeliner to really make my eyes pop.

Meijer Collage

I also used the Loreal Lumi highlighter in Ice on the high points of my face. If you’ve never used highlighter before, they have a handy diagram on the back of the bottle to help you.

Meijer fall11

What are your favorite fall beauty finds?

For more Meijer Beauty posts, click here.



What is Micellar Water?

I recently heard about a product called micellar water. This is surprising because it’s not often that I come across a beauty product that I’ve never heard of before.

micellar water

Micellar water has been around for more than one hundred years, first gaining popularity in France, where it was used to help deal with the region’s harsh water supply. Micellar water is made up of micelles, which are tiny balls of cleansing oils that are attracted to dirt and makeup.

When you combine them with a cotton ball they act like a magnet to attract dirt and makeup from your face. It requires no rinsing so it replaces your nighttime routine of taking off your makeup. Cotton is hyrdophilic which means ‘water-loving’  and means that it will absorb oil and dirt. Micellar water draws out impurities in your skin without stripping it or drying it out so it is a win-win cleaning and hydrating at the same time.

I’ve been using micellar water myself for the last month and have loved the results on my skin! This will take off all of your mascara and hard to remove makeup. Here are some of my recommendations and ones that I want to try.

I do have to start this off by talking about my experience with Caudalie’s Micellar Cleansing Water ($28). This was recommended to me and I had a bad reaction to it. I have since discovered that some people have a negative reaction to the grapeseed oil in this product. Some people loved this, but if you have sensitive skin like I do just be careful about products with grapeseed oil.

caudaliewater

After my mishap, I started using Sephora’s Triple Action Cleansing Water ($12) which I LOVE! This product takes off all of my makeup and makes my skin feel refreshed before bed. I highly recommend this to anyone.

sephora cleansing water

The gold standard in micellar waters seems to be Bioderma ($26.89). I read something that said that many models use this backstage because with so many makeup changes their skin would be raw without it.

biodermaThere’s been a lot of buzz around Simple’s Cleansing Micellar Water ($6.99). It adds vitamins B3 and C for a extra punch plus it’s easy to find at any local drugstore.

simple

La Roche-Posay Physiological Micellar Solution ($18.49) is a French solution that has an added antioxident called Selenium which helps your skin fight free radicals.

La-Roche-Posay-Physiological-Micellar-SolutionIf you like a higher end product Gucci has a Purifying Cleansing Water ($49) that has a really nice dispenser.

gucci

The Dior Instant Cleansing Water ($38) includes pure lily extract to give you an extra glow.

dior

Lancôme Eau Fraiche Douceur Micellar Cleansing Water ($38) includes a soothing Rose de France.

lancome

Have you tried micellar waters before? I would love to know which ones you recommend!

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Save on Beauty with #MeijerSavingsSweeps

Disclosure: I received beauty products from Meijer to help promote the Meijer Beauty Department. All opinions expressed are my own.

So here’s the deal. I signed up for Meijer mPerks last year, tried to use it once in the store and then never used it again. I was really overwhelmed with all of the options and I tried to do it at the register which took too much time. So I decided that before I could go any further I needed to figure out how I could maximize mPerks for me and my lifestyle:

1. Make a shopping list and search for specific coupons based on your list. You can search by product or browse the weekly ad in the mPerks app by category. All you need to do is “clip” each coupon you might want to use. Don’t try to do this at the register. It will work much better if you think about this in advance.

2. Enter your mPerks number and PIN at checkout to use the coupons that you’ve clipped. Your mPerks app will save digital copies of your receipts and keep track of your spending at Meijer. mPerks will recommend coupons to you based on your receipts, so the more you use it, the more tailored to your needs it will be.

3. Click on the “Start Earning” button under “Earned Rewards. Once you’ve spent a certain amount in different departments like beauty or pharmacy, you’ll receive special rewards that you can “clip” and use during your next trip. You have four weeks to complete each reward.

For example, I need to get some supplements, like the Biotin and Vitamin E I take for my hair. This reward gives me $5 off my shopping trip after I spend $30 or more in supplements.

mperks reward

Now, here’s the exciting news. Meijer has launched the 2015 #MeijerSavingsSweepstakes where you have the chance to win $250 in mPerks coupons! All you have to do is take a picture of your savings dial and submit it here. The contest runs through June 20, 2015. For the first two weeks from May 24-June 6 you can enter by submitting your savings dial and then from June 7-20 you can share a picture of your favorite deal that week. You can enter once per day, but each photo needs to be a different picture.

mperks contest

Meijer will select four winners for each week of the contest. So if you haven’t signed up for mPerks yet, now is the time! With $250 at Meijer you could get a couple of fun beauty products, like the CurlSecret ($99.99) I mentioned in my previous post, Sally Hansen Salon Gel Nail Polish Starter Kit ($53.99) or the Crest 3D White Gentle Routine Whitestrips ($23.99).

Curl Secret

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to start saving money on all of these beauty products!

Have you used Meijer mPerks? I would love to hear how you are saving in the comments.

For more Meijer Beauty posts, click here.



Spring Cleaning with #MeijerBeauty

Disclosure: I received beauty products from Meijer to help promote the Meijer Beauty Department. All opinions expressed are my own.

Of all the partnerships I have had the opportunity to participate in, my favorite is with the Meijer Beauty Department. They always challenge me to get out of my routine and try new things. When I received a huge box of Meijer goodies, I loved that the theme was stocking up on new beauty finds and they definitely delivered! Some of the items they sent me are definitely on the cutting edge:

Meijer Spring Cleaning

My husband came home to find me squealing over the Curl Secret! I was SO excited to get this.

Curl Secret

I first saw this on my friend Mary’s blog, Raising Dick and Jane. This thing is seriously amazing! I’ve probably shown Mary’s video to five different people already because most people haven’t even heard of the Curl Secret yet. I am planning to do my own separate review, but this is so cool it really deserves a video and I am still getting a spot set up in the new house to do it, but stay tuned. In the meantime, you can get wowed by Mary’s review – the Curl Secret will blow your mind!

Next up is Neutrogena’s Hydro Boost Water Gel. I first saw this on Kerry Washington’s Instagram. Apparently she gave them out to all the girls at Scandal. How fun!

kerry washington

Hydro Boost includes Hyaluronic Acid which is an ingredient naturally found in skin that acts as a sponge for dry skin cells and moisturizes up to 1,000 times its weight in water. it is one of the most hydrophillic (water-loving) molecules in nature…who knew?

Hydro Boost

I have seen a ton of commercials recently for Nivea’s new In-Shower Body Lotion. The thing to remember with this is that you apply it in the shower, then you rinse it off. So it’s a little different then regular lotion.

You just have to be really careful because it might make your tub slippery. They have a few different variations: sea mineral, almond oil and shea butter.

nivea

I had fun trying on this new Cover Girl Lip Lava gloss. Mine was Oh La Lava. Definitely a great color for spring!

Lip Lava

L’Oreal has a new line called Infallible which is made for longevity. This is important for me because I am teaching again and have long days. I need my makeup to stay on all day and night and look just as great as it did when I first put it on. The Infallible Pro-Spray & Set Makeup Extender Setting Spray helps set your look and keeps it in place all day. When you apply it you spray two sprays in an X shape.

infallible

I’m not sure what I did to deserve all these awesome goodies, but I sure had a lot of fun testing them out! What are your favorite new products for spring?

For more Meijer Beauty posts, click here.



Holiday Gift Giving with #MeijerBeauty

I received beauty products from Meijer to help promote the Meijer Beauty Department. All opinions expressed are my own.

brace-yourselves-the-holidays-are-coming

For those of you Game of Thrones fans, I thought I would interject a little holiday humor. I love the holiday and I dread the holidays at the same time. I love the season and everything it stands for, but sometimes I get overwhelmed by everything that needs to get done over the next few weeks. That’s where Meijer comes in.

meijer-night-704x550

Meijer has sent me their Bath Collection gift sets to help prepare for my upcoming holiday celebrations. These bath sets are perfect to:

  • Have on hand for last minute presents
  • Prepare for holiday house guests
  • Give for Secret Santa or gift exchanges
  • Bring for a holiday party hostess gift
  • Tuck in as a stocking stuffer
  • Pamper yourself when things start to get crazy

Meijer has sent me two of these awesome gift sets, one to keep and one to give away. I thought about who I would want to give my second set away to and I decided to give it away to one lucky reader to use for one of the reasons above. You will receive body wash, body lotion, body scrub and a bath puff all in the heavenly Winter White Vanilla scent.

I would love to hear what you plan to do with the gift set should you win!

meijer bath set

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Friday Favorites: Halloween Edition

I figured I would have some Halloween fun this Friday and found some festive beauty products to share with you. I have been having a lot of fun with makeup lately so I figured I would just keep going with these items:

1. Make Up Forever Fluo Night ($31)

I could have so much fun with this stuff! I could see it at Halloween, for a club night and Vegas – this would be killer in Vegas.

fluo night

2. Lush Sparkly Pumpkin Bubbly Bar ($7.95)

Lush bath bombs are so fun and this one is especially fun because it sparkles!

lush

3. Illamasqua Bat Lash Duo ($7.05)

These bat lashes are so Elvira-esque. The come with matte black glitter nail varnish to further complete your look.

bat lash duo

4. Disney Lashes

Whether you are going for a villain or princess look, Disney has lashes to cover you. They have Cruella De Vil, Ursula, Evil Queen, Maleficent, Snow White and Ariel.

disney villians

disney princess

5. MAC Rocky Horror Collection

I am a huge fan of the Rocky Horror Picture Show and I love that MAC has come out with a special Rocky Horror Collection to celebrate the 40th anniversary. At the least I will need to get those lipcolors!

mac rh

Do you have any favorite Halloween beauty items?

I am excited that Five on Friday with A Liz AdventuresThe Good Life BlogHello Happiness and Carolina Charm is back. While it was gone I joined a few other link ups and I am loving meeting everyone!

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If you would like to join the Oh Hey Friday Linkup with The Farmer’s Wife and September Farm just click the button below for more details.

I am also participating in the Friday Favorites Linkup with A Little Bit of Everything Blog, Grace and Love Blog and Momfessionals. You can click the button below for more information and to join the linkup.

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For more Friday Favorites posts, click here.


Back-to-School with #MeijerBeauty

I received beauty products from Meijer to help promote Meijer Beauty Perks. All opinions expressed are my own.

When I was younger, I used to love going back to school. It was a time to get organized, buy colorful binders and folders and a new outfit and get back into a routine. Now, I am no longer going back to school, but fall is always a great time to get back into a new routine. I feel like summer is all about breaking the rules and having fun – many of you might forget to remove your makeup every night or throw out expired products, fall is the time to get back to business.

Let’s start with skincare. You should be washing, exfoliating and moisturizing your face every day. I had heard great things about the CeraVe line at Meijer and decided to check it out. I originally saw this article talking about how Emily Maynard used it as part of her skincare routine.

I purchased the CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser and the CeraVe AM Facial Moisturizing Lotion.

cerave

I also like to give myself a weekly facial, where I do my at home microdermabrasion (more to come on that later) followed by a face mask. I was thrilled when I was at Meijer to see the Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips again. I couldn’t find them for a long time and I like to use them before I do the face mask.

biore

While I was shopping I came across this handy little blackhead/whitehead remover. I haven’t had one of these in years, but picked it up. This is a great tool to use following my weekly facial.

remover

Next up is refreshing my makeup. Did you know that most makeup products have an expiration date? While the products might still look okay, they may not work as well or could cause break outs or irritation. Here are some guidelines:

Mascara

Mascara has a shelf life of three months. If it starts getting clumpy or flaky once you’ve applied it, then you should toss it. I NEVER share mascara, it is a good way to spread germs. If someone wants to borrow my mascara I just let them keep it or toss it and then replace it with a new one. One of my favorite brands is Maybelline The Falsies.

the falsies

Eyeliners

I like using gel eyeliners, which come in a pot. It’s important to screw the caps on tight to keep them from drying out. Eyeliners will last for about 4-6 months.

Foundation & Concealer

Foundation and concealer have a shelf life of 6-12 months. If it starts separating, you want to toss it. Most of the time you’ll use it up before you get to that point.

Lipstick, Lip Gloss & Lipliner

Lipstick, lip gloss and lipliner has a shelf life of 1-2 years I probably need to throw away all of my old glosses and lipsticks.

Nail Polish

The shelf life of nail polish is about 1-2 years. You can tell it’s time to replace it when it starts getting goopy.

Eye Shadow, Blush & Powders

Any type of powder will only be good for about two years. By keeping your brushes clean and sanitized, it will help keep your makeup cleaner.

While I was shopping, I got this new palate from Cover Girl for some fall looks.

cover girl

Perfume

Any fragrance will last for 8-10 years, so feel free to invest in a lot of different perfumes because they can stay around for a long time.

So there you have it…let’s get back into our beauty routines and clean out our makeup drawers.

What are your best back-to-school beauty tips?

For more Meijer Beauty posts, click here.


Tools of the Trade: Clarisonic

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a long time and to sum it up in a few words – if you aren’t using a Clarisonic yet, you should be. Let me tell you why.

I first received my Clarisonic for my birthday last year and loved using it. My mom got it through a QVC deal so it came with some Peter Thomas Roth products.

clarisonic-tsv-5.11.2013

I had only been using it for a few months and I had to go on a business trip where I left it in my hotel room. The hotel was never able to find it and I suspect a cleaning lady got a very nice Clarisonic that day.

The interesting part of this story is after a few weeks of not using my Clarisonic, my skin was terrible. I couldn’t believe what a difference the Clarisonic had made and I didn’t even realize it until I couldn’t use it anymore. I immediately ordered a new Clarisonic and have been happy ever since.

So before you decide to get one for yourself, let me tell you what the Clarisonic is and the science behind it.

You may have seen many other cleansing devices that look similar to the Clarisonic, but let me share the difference. The Clarisonic is a sonic micro-massage tool that deeply cleanses your skin. The Clarisonic doesn’t spin or vibrate, it oscillates at over 300 movements per second. This loosens dirt and oil to cleanse your pores, which in turn allows your skin to absorb your cleansers, toners and moisturizes better than before.

Courtesy of Clarisonic

Image via Clarisonic

Here is a link to a more detailed easy-to-read research study if you want to know more: Clarisonic Clinical Study

Now that you know why you should get a Clarisonic, which one should you get?

I personally use the Mia 2 because it is foolproof to use. It has a timer so as you are using it, it vibrates to let you know when to change position. It offers two speeds, low and normal. When you cleanse your face with the Clarisonic, you cleanse your forehead for 20 seconds, each cheek for 10 seconds and your nose and chin for 20 seconds.

The other great feature of the Mia 2 is that you can use it multiple times before you have to recharge it again. I usually only end up having to charge it maybe once a month or less.

I have the pink crocodile Mia 2, which is unavailable right now. Sephora has a fun Hollywood Lights limited edition Clarisonic Mia 2 that is see through and lights up. I would probably get this one for myself if I didn’t already have one.

p384712-av-02-hero

Here is a quick video on how to use your Mia 2:

There are a ton of different brush heads and you have to determine which one is right for you. In any case, you should change your brush head once every three months.

I hope this answered all of your questions about the Clarisonic. In the future, I hope to try out other Clarisonic devices and share my favorites with you.

Have you used the Clarisonic? What do you think about it?

For more Tools of the Trade, click here.


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