January means the dead of winter, dry cracked skin in places that are really sensitive, Cracked lips and crispy split ends. I’ve been addicted to a few drugstore products as well as some diy hacks you can easily do at home.
Once I find a brand I like I stick with it. But I like to experiment in the store with different products that come to the shelves. I’ve recently been impressed with Schwartzkopf and Wet’n’Wild. Let’s start with the face and move our way to bath and body: Fresh Face Getting a clean bare face is the core you a good makeup day. Alba Botiancal had put out a mini peel facial with alpha hydroxy in it. Although I Was using an over the counter alpha hydroxy cream, I noticed my skin becoming very shiny and seemed thin in laced. This can happen because that the compound does is slough off dead skin while renewing the surface underneath, over time you can make your lines disappear but it’s because the compound is actually promoting new skin growth while dissolving the dead stuff. Too much or using it too often can make the skin thinner, and therefore easier to peel of you get too much sun or just the sheer cold of the winter air can cause dry skin. Alba has made a happy middle ground with this product.
I had taken a break from alpha hydroxy products til I saw this on the shelf at my Walgreens in Corning NY. It smells wonderful and it was priced around $10. This mask is a gel like consistency, not a cream like what I was previously used to. The instructions say to use generously, but I’ve found that a thin layer on the skin with a cosmetic brush is enough to get my skin tingling. It helps to do this maybe twice a month to get the dead skin off and it opens the pores so you can get at those pesky white and black heads. If I’m doing a full face facial I will wipe this off with a warm towel and follow up with Shea Moisture Black African Soap Face Mask. It has tamarind oil which is anti inflammatory. I like using this mask as a follow to the Alba mask because your pores are fresh and opened, the better to receive the benefits of the African Soap. If you have sensitive skin this may not be for you. If I haven't done a facial at home in a while I like to be thorough.
I’ll wipe this off after it dries down with the same damp towel and move on to some serious exfoliating and moisturizing. I mix room temperature coconut oil (refined) with castor sugar until I create a hard sand like paste. I’ll also add a drop of tea tree oil and rub this mix on my face, lips and hands. This doesn’t give dry dead skin a chance to hang around. It also hydrated the skin heavily without feeling greasy after. It’s also really refreshing with the use of the tea tree oil. To remove, you can’t wash in the sink! Coconut oil is a terrible thing to put down the drain, you will eventually ruin your pipes. Instead boil a cup of water in the microwave for 3 minutes and use a disposable face cloth by Olay or your favorite brand to remove this moisturizing and tightening scrub. Dip the disposable wipe in the hot water and gently squeeze out the excess water. Wipe away from your hairline so you don’t get sugar granules in your hair. Once the wipe feels like it’s too sugary or oily to be of use, simply dip again and squeeze in water and repeat the movement until the sugar is dissolved off your face and the excess oils are wiped off. It should feel wonderfully soft and fresh. Dispose of this water in a well lined trash can, usually in the bathroom waste basket there is enough tissue and paper to absorb the water without making a dripping mess at the bottom. It’s probably best to change this trash can shortly after, or at least double line it.
Run cold water from the tap and instead of splashing water on your face like a commercial, cup the cold water in your hand and press it into the skin. This tightens the pores and makes your makeup application smoother.
Makeup Base I’ve been strolling through the drugstore looking at Boots No7 skin care and makeup sets for the holidays, basically waiting for them to go on sale. I scored 50% off after December passed by. I have been a die hard Stila Color Correct Primer fan for years, it’s my go to base before I use my L’Oreal BB Cream. But the gift set I purchased from Boots No 7 had included a primer as well as mascara and eyeshadow. I honestly forget what else was included, but I love this primer so much. It’s very creamy but disappears on the skin surface. It smoothes my little lines and open pores nicely without feeling heavy or like it’s just sitting on the top of my skin.
The eyeshadow palette is beautiful, I love the smokey neutrals and they aren’t deeply pigmented so you can build up a look or use sparingly for a more subtle shadow in the crease. The mascara I gave away because I’m loving Almay Multi Benefit Mascara right now. It goes on smoother than what I was previously using. This particular formula is said to promote new lash growth and it’s buildable. So I can just do one coat to kick off the fallout from my eyeshadow, or I can do multiple layers to build a more dramatic look. I don’t often do that though since I am a glasses wearer, and if my lashes are too long I find it annoying because they either press up against my lenses of they get caught up at the top of my frames of they slide down my nose a bit.
As I said, I am using L’Oreal BB Cream as my foundation base. It’s a smart shade changing formula so it will color match specifically to you. I use the medium shade all year, and I find that if I get lighter in the winter or darker in the summer this still wears well and looks like a match to my natural undertones. It is hard to match my skin color since I’m mixed, and most medium to light hues that are not close to ivory are made with either an orange or yellow undertone, which does not flatter me at all. So this is a good solution for me specifically. I did try other smart shade formulas in the past, like Almay and Physicians Formula, but L’Oreal is what works best on me.
For my under eye area I like Almay’s Under Eye Concealer. I bought a medium light shade and I feel like it’s too light, but I enjoy that it brightens up my dark circles while filling in fine lines. I bake this with a banana yellow tone press powder from a contouring palette from Wet’n’Wild. I bought it on a whim because it was only $5, I figured if I didn’t like it “Meh, no big loss” but WOW. Honestly, the press powder has a lot of fall out, but it adheres to the skin nicely and the darker shade in the palette does blend beautifully. I use the darker shade to bronze my face around my cheekbones and hairline. My mother turned me onto Jordana lip liners. They don’t skip and go on smooth. I actually had to pick up her favorite lip liner in a brown tone and picked up two for myself in a nude and a lighter pink shade. I’ve been using Revlon Liquid Lips lately and to be honest, the frosted glass packaging was deceptive to me. I didn’t get the shades I thought I was getting. Instead of a darker brown nude I got something much lighter and once it wears through the day it leaves behind a berry stain that I don’t really like. The other shade I got I thought it was going to be a classic nude like my Rimmel cream lipstick, but instead I got a pink far too pink for me. They are nicely packaged, but a clear plastic container would be better in my opinion. They also take a long time to dry down, and even then they still feel sticky to me. I was curious about a new display for Wet’n’Wild with Catsuit Liquid Lips. There was only two shades to select from, so I got a nude pink. Again, I’m so impressed by this bottom shelf brand, they are really stepping up the game for their line of products. This applied smooth with no mysterious chunks and it was the exact shade I expected it to be. It also dries down fast and super matte. After this dries I like to use a rich hemp seed oil lip balm. It will wear all day long, but you do need to moisturize, after a few hours this can be very drying.
I’ve also never used a setting spray before, but there was one for $5 by Wet’n’Wild next to the contouring palette I love to use so I figured why not. I do notice by the end of the day my BB Cream will have a stippling effect where it’s hard to maintain clean application like between my eyes and just under my lips. This setting spray does the job, my makeup looks pretty fresh by the end of the day.
My only complaint is that the Boots No7 Eyeshadow will crease by the end of the day despite my setting spray application. I’ve been reaching more for my Color Tattoo powder by Maybelline for the lid and doing the darker hue in the Wet’n’Wild contour duo in the crease of my lid.
Bath and Body
I’m a no frills kind of girl in the shower and the bath tub. Bath Bombs and harsh soapy bubble baths tend to dry out my skin and leave me itchy even after I’ve moisturized with a thick body butter. I often take super hot baths with epsom salts and a half cup of apple cider vinegar. If I need some soothing skin care in the bath, I always keep dry milk in the pantry just for this. Simply add 2 cups to a hot bath and pat it dry off the skin, you can follow up with a moisturizer of you like but I find that isn’t needed for my skin type. Hair Care
Schwartzkopf is more widely available in drugstores now. I’ve seen them in Rite Aid, Walgreens and my local Grocery Store. I’ve had some brassy highlights coming through from my last dye job so to color correct I tried the Keratin Color Smart box color in their product line. It adjust tone to fit your skin tone and I’m impressed. It was easy to apply and the pre-treatment left my split ends softer than ever.
I’m also using the hair mask offered in the same hair care line by Schwartzkopf. When I’ve fried my hair too much from heat styling tools this fixes my life, if only as far as a good hair day anyway. On my ends I’ve been using Carol’s Daughter Black Vanilla oil. It smells like cupcakes! It leaves my ends very hydrated without being heavy.It was a steal at my local CVS for under $3 because the store was closing. Ogx product line is also a favorite of mine. I am loving the light hydration from the Coconut Water mist. To promote new hair growth and avoid dry skin scalp buildup I’m using the Ogx Niacin and Caffeine spray directly on the scalp. It is winter and I do find that all my skin everywhere is getting dry and flaky, so I do use a dandruff shampoo. Neutrogena T Gel was on sale but I found that it doesn’t lather well. The Walgreens store brand right next to it was much better for my hair type, it creates a lather instantly and it has the same percentage of ingredients as Neutrogena. I guess the formulation is different, resulting, in my eyes, as a better product. I am trying to stay away from heat styling tools to avoid cooking my hair. A fresh washing with a clarifying shampoo and following up with Pantene 3 Minute Fix deep conditioner works well for me. I apply the Black Vanilla Oil on my ends and wrap in a towel to dry.
Nails
I have tried to find any other substitution but nothing beats Essie’s Protein Building Compound, it’s a ridge filler that promotes new growth and protects the tips of your nails from flaking off and splitting. At $9 it’s worth it, but I’ve found the same item for sale on eBay for as little as $4.50. I do still like the one coat wonders of Revlon Colorstay Long Wearing enamel, but I do use a gel top coat from Sally Hansen.
