Panty Liners to the Rescue

Oh, yes I did.

I'm pretty sure that I did not make this up. For the life of me, I cannot remember where I saw it but IT WORKS.

I am always so self conscious about pit stains. It goes back to high school when I raised my hand in class and the girl next to me, who was kind- of a friend, told me to keep my arms down because I had awful pit stains. She wasn't mean and didn't make fun of me to my face but I was mortified. The shirt I wore today was silk and my office is always stuffy. Just thinking about the pit stains had me sweating before I even got dressed.


I grabbed two of my U by Kotex thin liners and stuck them to the armpits of my shirt. It looked so ridiculous and funny and naturally, I tweeted about it. Some people laughed, some asked "WTF?" and others were intrigued.

I checked my shirt all day long.
No stains and they stayed where I had put them. I was impressed. I will definitely do this again. Who knew panty liners could be so useful?

My Daily Face

My daily face isn't anything fancy. I've been using BareMinerals since girlfriend was swirling, tapping and buffing on QVC. And, I'm pretty sure that I've worn the same shade of brown eyeshadow since 7th grade. I held off on the Naked palette for so long because of the price but its honestly worth every penny. Clearly, you can tell which color I wear every single day.


I use coconut oil as my facial moisturizer.

ELF eyelid primer: A must when using oil on your face. This primer works just as well as more expensive primers and its only $1!

Hard Candy Glamoflauge concealer: Best. Concealer. Ever. It's definitely worth the trip to Walmart. You use such a small amount so it will last you a while. I was skeptical because its only $6 but it does serious work on your face.

Bare Minerals Foundation: Most days I just use this to set my concealer. If I'm going out, I do a full face of foundation.

Bare Minerals Warmth: Bronze bronze bronze, all over the face and décolletage.

Bare Minerals Blush: In Vintage Peach.

Bare Minerals Eyeshadow: In Bahamas. It's a Glimmer, so it's very shimmery but a really fine powder. I use it all over my lid and up to my eyebrow. It's really neutral and pretty and doesn't look as bad as I'm making it sound! I swear!

Naked Palette: Buck all over my eyelid. A little bit of Darkhorse in the crease.

Sephora Collection Nano eyeliner: In coffee. Set with a little bit of Darkhourse from the Naked palette. Love this pencil and its only $5!

ELF eyelash curler: THIS IS ONLY $1. And it's my favorite curler I've had! One. Dollar.

Benefit They're Real mascara: Loveeeeee this mascara. It has a comb wand and the formula is creamy/pasty VS watery. If you want to try it out first, Sephora's birthday gift this year features a sample size of the mascara.

ELF eyebrow gel: Taming the eyebrows has made a difference in how I look. I can't rock a heavy eyebrow without looking angry so it's great that this is clear. Again, it's ELF and its only $1. No need to spend more!

Benefit Moon Beam: Just a little bit on my cheek bones, under the eyes.

Bare Minerals Buxom lipgloss: In Samantha. Not pictured, sorry!

I use brushes from Bare Minerals, Sephora and ELF. I have some other makeup for when I'm trying to look fancy but this is what I typically what you'll find me in. I'd recommend all of it to everyone. Lol.

You Glow Girl: Oatmeal Body Scrub

(Yes, I just said that)


Spring and Summer are (hopefully) on their way and that means you’ll be showing more skin. Hey, girl, hey. The winter can leave you hairy (sorry, hubs) and scaly but as the weather warms, it’s time to slough it all off. I cannot believe that stores charge (and THAT PEOPLE PAY) so much money for something that you can easily make at home, with natural ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen. This is my Coconut Oatmeal Scrub. Oatmeal has anti-inflammatory properties and it’s great for even the most sensitive of skin. It’s moisturizing, contains natural cleansers, helps to treat eczema, rosacea and other skin rashes. And coconut oil is, well, miraculous.

Ingredients
½ cup raw oats
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
½ coconut oil, melted

Directions
In a food processor or a blender, chop the oats until they are small in size but not too fine, as you do not want oat flour. You want them to be small enough to fit down the drain, if they have to.
Combine the sugars and the oats in a bowl.
Pour in your coconut oil and mix well.
Use immediately or store in an air tight container. I keep mine in a Mason jar. Of course. ;)

You could leave the white sugar out if you want it to be a little less exfoliating. Because Coconut oil is solid, you might have to run your jar under hot water for a few minutes before you use it. That will loosen the oats a little and make it easier to get the scrub out. Also, if you use this in the shower, be sure to rinse the tub really, really well. I don't want to be the one that makes you slip and fall!

New Mom Beauty Essentials

This isn't my first rodeo, but I would most certainly consider myself a new mom. I'm not sleeping, I've got a little extra weight on me and it takes 3 hours to get out of the house. For me, this is not like riding a bicycle - my son was the easiest baby ever. When I put my baby girl down, I know that I have between 3 and 5 minutes to get myself ready before she starts getting annoyed. Here are my 5 favorite things to use when I'm trying to get out of the house.



Dry Shampoo - You don't get a whole lot of time to shower, let alone blow-dry! I hate leaving the house with wet hair so I'd rather just use a dry shampoo when my hair is looking a little slick. Dry shampoo has come a long way and drug store versions perform just as well as the more expensive ones. My favorite is Got2B's dry shampoo. It's only $6!

Tinted Moisturizer - Honestly, I was never big on foundation. I couldn't find one that didn't make me look as if I'd caked it on. Tinted moisturizers typically have sunscreen in them which is a big plus, making this one product replace three. Truth be told, they don't offer a ton of coverage so if you have troublesome skin, you might need something more. But, it's nice to know that you can throw is on and it will help you look a little more alive. I like Mary Kay's tinted moisturizer, $18.

Highlighter - Ahhh, the shimmer. I typically wear a highlighter when I'm going out or trying to look fancy. However, I wore it daily throughout my pregnancy and now wear it everyday. Lol. I figured my dewy cheeks would distract people from the bags under my eyes and the multiple chins I had going on. It worked because people would compliment my pregnancy glow. Sorry y'all, it was just my highlighter. Under the eyes and a little on the cheeks, goes a long way. For a long time, Benefit's Moon Beam was my favorite but it's been replaced with Benefit's NEW highlighter, Watts Up. $30. (The price is steep but it lasts a long time! Believe me, I'm cheap frugal.)

Lip/Cheek stain - I'm not joking when I said that I have an average of 4 minutes to make myself look alive, much less presentable. I also like my makeup to be pretty basic - I don't wear false eyelashes to Target (I know people who do!). A lip and cheek stain gives a nice wash of color and obviously, is a 2 in 1. It's also nice because you can build the color, making your lips darker than your cheeks. I like to keep it old school and prefer to use Benefit's Benetint, $29.

Coconut Oil - MY HOLY GRAIL! I use coconut oil to moisturize my face, my body, my kids and anyone else that comes through my door. I also use it to take my eye makeup off. And I use it in my cupcakes, instead of vegetable oil. There is a bunch of information on the internet about coconut oil and it's fabulousness. I don't know if I believe every single use that I've read but I have sipped the Koolaid. For an oil, it sold in its solid form, which is nice. The scent is pretty light, as I HATE coconut anything. It absorbs quickly and it doesn't make me break out. It's becoming extremely popular so it's availability is growing. However, the best price I've seen is at Trader Joes, $5.99. (UH-MAY-ZING PRICE!)

I don't have drawers or train cases of makeup and I lack the attention span/ skill to apply 45 different colors to one eye. I do, however, try a lot of different products. Hopefully this helps anyone in the New Mom (or busy student/overnight shift worker/ etc) boat. Love!