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  • Beauty, Holiday, Sponsored

    How I Achieve My Holiday Glow

     This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayGlow #CollectiveBias

    how-to-holiday-glow

    [Tweet “Here’s how to get #HolidayGlow @Costco no beauty store trip required! “]

    So it’s the holidays and between moving the elf, Santa, and wrapping gifts my bedtime is moving further and further back. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while now, you would know that I strive to go to bed at a reasonable hour so I’m not too happy about these late nights and early mornings but anything for the kids right? Anyway, besides doing everything to make the season magical for my little ones I like to have a little holiday glow when I reconnect with old friends and family to celebrate the season. Now, that I am 6 years into this mommy life, I have a few tricks to achieve that glow. I wanted to share them with you because we’re in this thing together. So here is how I achieve my holiday glow, feel free to do as I do:

    1. Prepare your skin with a face mask

    My very first step to glowing holiday skin is to prep my skin for awesomeness. I like to mix some coconut oil and castor oil and apply it to my skin for about 15 minutes. I have very oily skin naturally and this combination is perfect for my oily skin. I know it seems counter-intuitive to add oils to oily skin, but it’s actually very effective at balancing the oiliness. I use a warm face towel to wipe the oils off of my skin.

    2. Wash face with a gentle brush.

    Next I wash my face with a gentle brush, I’ve found that this always makes my skin smooth. I’ve been using an Olay brush that I like to joke Oprah gave me (I received it in a goodie bag at her Life You Want Tour).

    3. Rinse with Cold Water

    I’ve been practicing this for almost 15 years! The advantages of rinsing my skin with cold water are that it closes up my pores as well as stimulates my blood vessels.

    4. Shape your eyebrows

    My next step is to use my tweezer to remove any wild eyebrow hairs. I usually get my eyebrows professionally threaded every two weeks, but I’m still guaranteed to have a few wild strands. If you shape your eyebrows yourself, remember to follow the arch of your brow bone so it looks natural and frames your face well.

    5. Moisturize with Olay Total Effects

    oilofolay-fresheffects

    I use a pea size of Olay Total Effects and tap it into my air-dried skin to ensure that it’s moisturized. I really love this moisturizer because it is very hydrating which is great for the cool holiday weather. Although it moisturizes my skin well it isn’t heavy which is perfect for wearing under makeup. Olay Total Effects is perfect for a busy mom like me because it’s 7-in-1 and anti-aging. Now, that I am in my thirties I like a little sunscreen and anti-aging properties in my moisturizer.

    oilofolaytotaleffects

    I purchased the large size at Costco for almost the same price as the smaller sizes at drug stores. Purchasing Olay Total Effects at Costco is definitely a good bargain if you want to treat yourself this season. I know you don’t think of Costco for beauty products, but they actually have some really legit deals.

    6. Apply a primer of choice

    Next I apply my primer, I don’t use primer on a daily basis, but I always do so for special occasions like the holidays because it makes my makeup appear much smoother and helps it to stay on longer.

    7. Apply Concealer

    Next, I apply every mom’s bestie — concealer. I use a concealer that’s a shade lighter than my foundation to brighten the area around my eyes.

    8. Foundation and Powder

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    Next is what I consider the most important step for a beautiful complexion. I use a blending sponge to apply my foundation and to blend my concealer in with it. This takes a while to blend out all the harsh lines. Once you’ve blended it in beautifully it’s time to set your foundation using a setting powder.

    9. White Liner

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    One of my secrets for looking radiant after long nights is to line my waterline with a white eyeliner. This makes the whites of my eyes appear whiter.
    10. Winged liner and mascara
    I love a winged liner, it’s my go to look so I went for it using a liquid black liner to accentuate my eyes. After adding the winged liner, I applied my mascara.
    11. Highlighter
    I rarely wear blush lately, but I am a tad bit obsessed with highlighter, I’ve been using one with a golden tone which is just perfect for my dark complexion. I just love how it illuminates my skin. I use a little along my cheekbones, the center of my chin and my forehead.
    12. Lipcolor
    Next, I add my lip color of choice. Lately, it’s this beautiful shade of pink. I love how bright and fun it is.

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    13. Whiten teeth

    Here’s the icing on the cake for my holiday glow, Crest 3D White Strips Combo Pack. I wouldn’t have a holiday glow without a little teeth whitening. I purchased this combo pack from Costco and cheated with the 1-hour express whitening strips. They’re also perfect for us moms because we can get results even if we only remember a few hours prior to an event we have enough time to use the 1-hour express strips. Just like the Olay Total Effects moisturizer this was a Costco purchase at a fantastic price.

    crest-32-costcoAnyway, this is how I achieve a holiday glow to look and feel my best during the season to be jolly. I hope you got some ideas on how you could do the same too.

    What are your beauty tips for glowing holiday skin?

  • Lifestyle, Sponsored

    5 Ways To Enjoy Luxury On A Budget

    I’ve always been a lover of the finer things in life! At all points of my life, I’ve taken some time to enjoy some luxury. Now, you’re probably wondering how are you always able to enjoy luxuries Adanna? Where do you find the money? Well, the truth is that luxuries aren’t necessarily expensive. There are plenty affordable luxuries ( I know those two words together are a bit of an oxymoron) but I promise by the end of this post you will have a few ideas on how you can also add a few luxuries to your life. Let’s face it, all of us moms can benefit from a little luxuriating. So here are 5 ways to enjoy luxury on a budget:

    1. Prosecco

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    I hate that my friends can’t make it over more regularly for a grown up ladies night. I finally got them to come over last week and I went ahead and created a super chic ladies night in.  There is nothing like the giggles from girl chat, seriously nothing like it and I wanted the ambiance to be perfect. I got my girls luxurious treats like macaroons and good prosecco. My prosecco of choice was VOVETI of sparkling variety that’s fabulous for our girly shindigs. After setting up all of my pretty and luxurious gold party decor, I bragged to my girls that VOVETI  produces only 15,000 cases of their high-quality craft prosecco annually. What I didn’t tell them is that VOVETI is affordable and only costs $15 per bottle (you need to keep some secrets).

    voveti-wine-2

    2. Coloring Books

    adult-coloringbook

    I consider time to be the ultimate luxury, it’s the one thing that everyone seems to enjoy bragging about not having enough of lately. I try to make the most of time and take advantage of savoring good moments. One of the ways that I’ve been doing this is by coloring. There are tons of really cool adult coloring books these days and I went as far as to get nice pencil crayons so I wouldn’t be sharing with my kids. Coloring relaxes me and helps me to be more present which is hard with all the technology I am constantly surrounded by.

    3. Face Masks

    Face masks have been part of my beauty regimen since my early teens. I just love to relax on the couch with a mask. Recently, I’ve been enjoying overnight masks and waking up to glowing skin.

    4. Home Manicures

    luxuryonabudget

    Since I was a little girl, I’ve always found great joy in at home manicures. Back then, my mom would set up her foot spa on Sunday evenings and we would take turns doing our weekly pedicures. These days, I like to treat myself to high-quality nail polish for my at home manicures. While they’re a little bit more pricey than other brands they’re still very affordable.

    5. Fresh Flowers

    luxury-on-a-budget

    I know you were guessing I was going to add fresh flowers to this list and that’s why it’s last. I love fresh flowers and I’ve said that many, many, many times here on the blog before. Flowers bring beauty and aroma into your space, a true luxury.

    These are some of the ways that I enjoy luxury on a budget. Now, let me go enjoy some of that VOVETI wine.

    What are your favorite affordable luxuries?

    I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

  • Holiday, Sponsored

    Spreading Cheer During The Holidays + GIVEAWAY

    ideas-to-give-back-during-the-holidays

    Did you know that yesterday was National Cookie Day? Yep, that’s really a thing. The kids love making cookies so it was a good excuse to get them in the kitchen and bake while playing some of our favorite Christmas carols. It turned out to be an evening full of giggles with the little ones sneaking sprinkles whenever I looked away. We added some of those sprinkles to the mix and then cut our cookies out in Gingerbread Man and butterfly shapes.

    spread-cheer

    My daughter is old enough to crack the egg, mix the ingredients and cut the cookies and my two-year-old enjoyed nibbling on everything and pouring out the ingredients. We used the Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix which was really easy for my little chefs.

    betty-crocker-sugarcookie

    We wanted to share cheer with our neighbors and make them feel encouraged and inspired to do something special for another person too. You could feel the spirit of the holidays in our home and I wanted our neighbor to get that feeling too when she received her cookies. I found inspiration on the Betty Crocker Spread Cheer website and decided to package the cookies in a Christmas themed basket. The Betty Crocker Spread Cheer website is filled with goodies like spread cheer video inspiration, printables, coupons and yummy cookie recipes.

    cookies

    Anyway, I want to invite you to join me and share cheer this holiday season. National Cookie Day was a great start, but we can keep it going throughout the season. You can download Betty Crocker coupons to make your cookies, share cheer and then share it on social media with the hashtag #sharecheer. This is a great way to get your kids to think about others and to give back during the holidays. Let’s teach them to make others smile!

    bettycrockercookies

    To get you started, I’m giving away $20 Paypal cash.

    TO ENTER: 

    1. First you must visit the #SpreadCheer page for coupons, printables, and inspiration.
    2. Then create your own #SpreadCheer basket (using your coupon!) and post an original photo of it on at least 1 of your social channels with the hashtag #SpreadCheer and nominating 2 friends (by tagging them in the post) to #SpreadCheer, too!
    3. Lastly, comment on this blog post discussing who you #SpreadCheer to AND include a link back to your social post.

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