10 Beauty Hacks for the Busy Woman

We all have been there- crazy day, tons to do, look in the mirror and "AHH!" things are not what they were that morning. I know what this is like- I am a full-time worker, a wife, a homeowner, a blogger, and I am working on starting a business. Every day is a busy one for me lately and I don't always have the time to primp and pamper as much as I would enjoy being able to. SO, here are my favorite beauty hacks to all you busy women trying to conquer the world and look rockin' while doing so :)

1. Chapstick is not only good for softening those lippies but an awesome brow tamer in a pinch! If you have some unruly brows, rub your ring finger in your chapstick then gently shape the hairs. Chapstick typically has beeswax in it which helps hold hairs in place. Bonus points if you use chapstick on your lashes too!

2. Lipgloss/ lipstick can make a great blush when you're hurrying. Rub your finger in your lipstick or dab a little gloss on your finger then gently pat on the apples of your cheeks. (Side note- simply patting your cheeks or giving them a light pinch will create a natural flush as well)

4. Use your finger to curl your lashes when your eyes begin to look tired. Simply place your finger below your lashes and press them upward. 

5. Lotion can be used to tame static-y hair. When your hair starts standing on end, simply rub some lotion all over your hands a run them through your hair.

6. A splash of cool water on your face in the morning can wake you up, but mid-day that's a little trickier to do. So, instead, wash your hands then run them under cold water. Dry them and press them to your face. This coolness will help sleepy skin wake up and get it's rosy on!

7. Use only waterproof mascara on lower lashes or skip it altogether. Any natural wetness from your eyes will follow gravity's rules and go down so when your eyes water in the slightest it can mess up mascara on your lower lashes and leave you with that lovely "dark circle" look. Not cute. Make it waterproof or don't use it, trust me.

8. Toilet seat covers make great grease blotters! Snag a CLEAN toilet seat cover from your work's restroom and tear off a small chunk and press it to any shiny areas of your face. The brown napkins from Starbucks work great for this too :)

9. Baby powder can make a nice "mop" for greasy roots. Simply dust some on your fingertips and run them through your roots to defy that oil!

10. Peppermint oil not only freshens breath and helps with digestion, but rub a little dot on your lips and you've also got an instant lip plumper! 

Now that you're ready to take on those crazy days looking like a rockstar, share some beauty hacks YOU love or comment below with requests for my next post!

...Vanessa...

Hair Love ( and why I've been gone )

I'm back!

I know it's been a VERY long time since I last posted to my blog. It's been a wild ride for me the last 8 months so I figured I'd update you all on what's kept me away for so long and then get right into the fun stuff!

So as I've mentioned in the past I was in my last semester of college when I started my blog. It could be seen as a mistake to start it in the midst of literally one of the hardest classes I've taken in all of my 6 years of college, but I'm kind of a go-getter and for better or for worse I decided there is no time like the present. I managed to graduate ( yay! ) in May 2014 and so began the whirlwind that took me away for a while.

I started a huge job that was very much out of my comfort zone... and my county! I was commuting 2 hours a day to get to work and ended up completely exhausted by the day's end. Then my boyfriend at the time proposed to me and we got engaged and decided (the way I tend to decide things) "why not get married in 3 months?!" Ha! I was running around like a chicken with it's head cut off between my job, trying to move my stuff to a new city, and planning for our wedding which, of course, was going to be in a location about an hour and a half away from my job. So by the time our wedding rolled around in September I had lost 10lbs from stress and was so sleep deprived that we slept for a solid day when we finally got to our honeymoon destination!

When we came back it was back to our full-time jobs by day and unpacking by night and on the weekends, until recently. Things have finally started slowing down for my now HUSBAND and I. So here I am 8 months later: graduated, married, moved, and working. It's been crazy!

Here's a few wedding photos I wanted to share with you all, courtesy of our Photographer Eryn Kesler :)

But, sometimes crazy brings you to realize what's important to you in life and one of the things I realized I missed like mad during all of this was my blog- getting to share with all of you and ( hopefully ) enrich your lives in one way or another. I've really been looking forward to the day I could get back on here and post to you all! So, I hope you all enjoy what I have to share about today!

Hair Love.. All about my hair-care routine

How you treat your hair really says a lot about how you regard it. Your hair needs kindness, gentleness, and love to grow. If you treat your hair with care it will surely love you back. I have recently started really taking notice to how I am treating my hair and how it is behaving in return. I went to my hair stylist the other day to get some highlights and after the process she looked at my ends and said "wow, girl, what have you been doing with your hair? It's loving it! It's in great condition- not a single split end!" I started to tell her about my hair care routine and she said "well keep doing that, more people need to do what you're doing."

It's true! My hair is loving the way I've been treating it and it's all quite simple! I wanted to share with you all my hair-care routine and some suggestions to keeping your hair healthy too. There's no obligation to do any of this, these are just my own personal choices and I wanted them to be available to my wonderful readers to use at their own discretion. 

1. Read the Ingredients

I've become a major label-reader recently. I no longer allow products that contain alcohol or sulfate to touch my hair. The reason being, both ingredients are incredibly drying and I don't want anything drying out my strands. So, taking this to heart, I took a peek through all of my hair products. Anything that had either ingredient- bye bye!

2. Avoid Over-Washing

As you all know from my TOXINS OUT BEAUTY IN post I only wash my hair about every 3 days. The reason for this is my hair used to get greasy really quick. I know, it sounds incredibly backwards, but I started looking into what might be causing the over production of oil and I found that actually your hair will do this when it's not moisturized enough. Makes more sense when you look at it that way huh? So I looked into what ingredients are drying to the hair (  see step one ), eliminated those, then started slowing down on the washes incrementally. It took a few weeks to train my hair to the point I only had to wash it every 3 days, but I was very persistent about it and now my hair has a much healthier oil production because I'm not stripping away the natural oils or drying it out. 

3. Coconut Oil

I have also begun a new step in my hair care routine which I am noticing has really been the kicker for my hair health. I like to protect the ends of my hair with coconut oil before every wash. 

Here are the steps to how I do this:

• I section my hair into two halves ( like pig tails ) then I rub coconut oil between my palms to melt it, then apply it to my hair from about my ears down avoiding my scalp. 

• I let the oil sit about a minute so it can really soak into my ends.

• I hop in the shower and rinse my hair and scalp with hot water to open up the cuticle and allow the oil to soften so it won't remain as an oily residue after I wash.

• I use my favorite sulfate-free shampoo found HERE and massage it into my scalp concentrating on washing from my scalp and out about 3 inches from my scalp.

•  I rinse my hair with cool water to close the cuticle of my hair and I let the shampoo run down my ends to remove any remaining oil

That's it! My hair is never greasy-looking after I wash it and the oil really protects the length of my hair from over-drying. The truth is you really don't need to suds your entire head of hair to get it clean unless you are using some really gunky products which I avoid using on a daily basis and reserve for occasional use.

4. Reconstructor and Deep Moisture Treatments

I recommend this step if  you...

• Have chemical treated hair.
• Live in a dry climate.
• Use styling products such as: mousse, hair spray, gel, or pomade.
• Use heat styling products such as: hair dryer, curling iron, or flat iron.
• Spend time in salt water or chlorinated water.
• Spend time in freezing or overly hot weather.

For chemical treated, heat styled, or regular exposure to salt water/ chlorinated water:

I recommend using a reconstructor in your hair at least once every two weeks because these hardships take a toll on the structure of your hair making it brittle, dry, and split. Reconstructors work to rebuild the proteins in your hair and restore it's strength. I use THIS ONE once every week since I've begun getting my hair highlighted again. It's important to towel dry your hair before you use it, then wrap it up into either a grocery sack or a shower cap. This will hold the heat in to keep your hair cuticle open and absorbing the reconstructor into it. I leave it in for 10-15 minutes then rinse it out with cool water.

I recommend using a deep moisture treatment 1-2 times per week in addition to using the reconstructor. I alternate between using THIS DEEP CONDITIONING MASK and using hot oil hair treatments which I talked about in my COCONUT BEAUTY post. 

When I have a salon appointment coming up I do extra hot oil hair treatments and reconstructing treatments and skip the deep conditioning mask for the week or two prior to my appointments. This gives my hair extra moisture and structure so the chemicals won't damage my hair to oblivion. I follow up the week after color treatments doing the same and so far I've been in luck with my hair holding up!

For those who live in a dry climate, spend time in freezing or overly hot weather, or use styling products in your hair:

Reconstructor may not be a needed step for you if this is all your hair endures. However, deep moisture treaments 1-2 times per week is a good idea to keep your hair moisturized in the dry, freezing or hot air, and/or use of crunchy products because all of these things can sap the moisture from your hair quickly. Remember, though, there's no need to apply deep moisture treatments to your scalp- your scalp will produce it's own natural oils to moisturize itself.

5. Air dry

I almost always let my hair air dry. It's an easy way for me to skip using heat and my hair is fine enough that it will dry on it's own in just a few hours.

6. Oils

After every shower, once my hair has air dried about 3/4 of the way, I like to rub argan oil and a macadamia oil between my palms and finger- comb it through my hair. They smell nice and give my hair a nice little sheen which I love! Plus the oils soak into my hair and keep it protected form harsh products, heat, and the elements. 

7. Bun It

After my hair is about 3/4 the way dry and my oils have been run through it, I like to take my hair and twist it up into a ballerina bun and secure it with a soft elastic ( the kind that have a knot in them... what are those called? ) then I sleep with it in a bun. 

8. Style it

When I wake up I take the bun down and my hair has a nice wavy texture which makes it easier for me to style in one of my preferred "lived-in" styles using some salt spray or texture powder to make it a little messy looking. :)

Is there anything you'd like to start trying with your hair that your read here? Is there any products or steps you swear by that I didn't mention here? Leave a comment below and tell me about it!

...Vanessa...