Spring Reds

This spring has been an absolute gift from the Chicago gods to a couple of Las Vegas transplants. We have decidedly loved the sunshine and the warmer weather-- I've even been to the beach three times!

All of this has me much more in the mood for spring-- vibrant colors, flowers, sunglasses, dinners at outdoor cafes-- than I was during last year's snowy holocaust of happiness.

I have found a shade of red that I am particularly in love with for this spring. It's a kind of candy/cherry/coral red that's brighter and more orange than the winter shades, and wearing it just makes me feel alive.

Although too much of this kind of color can be a bit overwhelming (witness this atrocious pic from Christmas a few years ago!):

(See: I don't even look happy. And the curly hair? My friend was wearing the same color. Yep. Thought I'd spare her the humiliation.)

But a few accents in just the right places will go perfectly with the flowy, pastel, sheer shades that are so popular this season. I currently cannot live without these two products:

Essie Lollipop nail polish, with a topcoat of Seche Vite,

and Cover Girl's new shade from their Outlast Lip Stain line: Red Affair:

As you can see in the very first picture above, I've paired this lively shade with some neutrals: a sheer, flowey ivory blouse, some skinny jeans, and some nude flats or sandals will do. But it's a color that will compliment most skin and hair shades, and it's playful and vivid, just like spring!

Easy Eye Makeup Remover

This natural, gentle, effective makeup remover is also a DIY project-- or, as I refer to it, a two-for-one! I've spent countless amounts of money perfecting my beauty routine, and as last week's Beauty Tuesday post revealed, I'm not only about the St. Ives scrub and Benzoyl Peroxide cream at Target (though I might die without them). I know how and when to spend money. And this is when not to.

Here are your ingredients/supplies:

Empty bottle (I got mine for $1.50 at Target in their travel stuff section)

1/3 cup distilled water

1 1/4 tsp no-tears baby shampoo (I used Burt's Bees- $6.99 for 8oz)

1 tsp grapeseed oil

Mix all the ingredients together, and, using a funnel, put them in the bottle. Or, if you don't have a funnel, put all the ingredients in the bottle and shake! You have to shake anyway, each time you use it.

I got the reusable pads here from Etsy.

The original recipe I made this concoction from includes instructions on making your own reusable pads. But I don't have that much time. Or a sewing machine.

Anyway, it's super cheap, and it works really, really well. The oil and soap combo dissolves even my water-proof mascara, and it's so easy to just swipe each eye every night. I will warn you, though, that the pads get dirty and stained VERY quickly, so don't spend too much time or money on them.

Also, I don't recommend using essential oils or fragrances, even though they make it all nice-smelling and everything, because they burn the eyes. And this is the FIRST eye-makeup remover I've ever used that doesn't burn at all. Also, the trip to the store for the grapeseed oil is worth it because it has antioxidant (read: anti-aging) properties, and it's thin and gentle enough for the delicate eye area.

Happy DIY--uh, I mean, Beauty Tuesday, everyone!

Homemade Lip Scrub

So this may seem like a blog more appropriate for Beauty Tuesday, but seeing how this project was totally DIY, I decided it would qualify.

In the winter, my lips are ugly. They chap, they crack, they peel, they bleed-- no bueno. I try to use chapstick every night (and I've tried every kind: medicated, natural, hypoallergenic, vegan, you name it), but nothing helps much. Recently, I saw a lip scrub in a beauty magazine. It seemed like it might do the trick. But when I researched it, the price was too high and the ingredients didn't really look like anything I'd want to be near (or accidentally IN) my mouth.

So, I decided to make one. I know that scrubs are essentially salt or sugar, some kind of base oil, and usually a blend of essential oils or fragrances for scent. Using this basic model, I constructed a yummy, effective, and wholly natural lip scrub made from ingredients I had in my kitchen.

Here's the recipe:

1) 1/2 cup of sugar (salt sounded pretty gross!)
I used 1/4 cup of raw turbinado sugar and 1/4 cup of regular white sugar because I like the two different sizes of crystals.

2) 2 Tbsp of Coconut Oil, melted
I decided to use coconut oil because it's a great moisturizer, and it tastes good! I tried my beloved olive oil on my first run, and it was too thin and did not pass the taste test very well.

Because coconut oil has a high freezing temperature (just around 76 degrees F, or room temperature), it's usually solid. To mix the ingredients, I needed to melt it, so I just stuck the 2 Tbsp in the microwave for 30 seconds.

3) 1/4 tsp of natural vanilla extract

I knew I didn't want to use essential oils because they usually taste bad, so I raided my spice cabinet to see what was up, and found... ta-da!... the perfect fix: vanilla! It gives the scrub a rich smell and yummy flavor. You could use other flavor extracts too, but some of the citrus and mint ones might be a little drying.

I mixed everything up and put it in an old herb/tea tin I had lying around -- you want a nice consistency: not too oily, but moist and spreadable. 

And voila! A simple, cheap, quick recipe to luxuriate your lips!

I slapped a cute label on the tin (I got the template for free here from Etsy) and I use my scrub every night-- and try not to eat it! Just get a little finger-full, rub on your lips for a moment, rinse, pat dry, and follow with your favorite lip moisturizer.

PS- the coconut oil will naturally harden a bit (returning to its usual solid state), so you'll notice a little change in consistency, but as soon as you spread it on your lips it's all the same! Happy DIY-ing!

Evanhealy is Awesome!

I am a starving grad student. Well, perhaps not starving exactly (see some of my yummy recipes!), but certainly not rich. I DIY my heart out and will pledge allegiance to Forever 21. However, there are some products that I find are worth the extra money (even though it pinches a bit to part with it-- I could have bought FIVE Trader Joe's bottles of wine with that!).

Evanhealy is one of these brands. Unfortunately, I cannot afford to douse my face in every perfectly well-made, pure and natural, and heavenly-smelling product they make. But I have three that I keep at all times in my medicine cabinet.

Their Blue Lavender Cleansing Milk, Lavender Facial Tonic, and Chamomile Eye Care Cream I will not be left without. No other products can handle my super-oily/ dry-in-certain-patches/ turning-30 skin like these delicate products can. And did I mention the heavenly smell??? My nighttime beauty routine feels like a nice, relaxing ritual that I actually look forward to every evening. Plus, the eye cream doesn't contain caffeine, a chemical present in many "anti-wrinkle" formulas that tends to de-hydrate the skin under the eye-- NOT something those of us in our 20s and 30s, or really any woman using a night cream, should be looking for in our eye products.

I buy my Evanhealy at Whole Foods, but they're online too. The prices are WAY lower than the expensive department store brands (though a commitment for those of us used to shopping at Target), but take a look at the ingredients. Plus, the products last forever, and they're generally just worth it.

Check them out here: http://www.evanhealy.com/