Dry Skin Chronicals – Facial Mask

Dry, flakey, blotchy skin is what i’ve suffered most of my life, namely my face.  I’ve been trying different things to see what works for me and through research I found out my water intake could be an issue as well as possibly adding a mask to my skin care regimen. I must mention that since I’ve been using the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel-cream, my skin has not been nearly as thirsty. My face does feel moisturized and the flakiness is nearly gone but upon close up inspection I still see it lurking behind my makeup.   Below is the simple skin care regimen I’ve been following for about two months now.

Bedtime

– remove make up with coconut or EVOO and a warm rag

– wash face with black soap

– rinse with water, last rinse being with cool water

– blot face dry with clean towel

– apply Vaseline Intensive Care Pure Oats lotion

Morning

– wet face with warm water

– clean with Cetaphil Facial Cleanser

– rinse with warm water then cool water

– blot off access wetness

– wipe face with Neutrogena Alcohol Free Toner

– moisturize with Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel-cream

– apply primer and makeup.

I’ll be adding a mask to this as soon as I find the right one for me.  Researching has provided some good information that I am now reviewing so that I can choose wisely.  This research has revealed that several different types of mask exist for dry skin alone.  If anyone knows any good ones for dry skin please comment and I would greatly appreciate it. 🙂

Types of Mask that I will be trying to help provide some moisture to my face:

Calming  – helpful for dry skin

Resurfacing or Exfoiliating – good for white heads (which appear more often since I’ve been wearing makeup)

Hydrating – helpful for dry skin

Enzymes – good for flaking, clogged pores, and dull skin

Rose – helpful with dry skin and dull skin

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Eye Shadow Trials

I’ve been practicing my eyeshadow application some. I don’t think I’m ready to wear it out yet but I’m getting there.

I purchased two color pallets to play around with. I got a shimmer palette from Coastal Scents and a matte palette from BH Cosmetics. The shimmer pallet is pictured above. Most of the colors are highly pigmented but there are a few that are not. The matte pallet and some pictures of my trials thus far are below.  I think I’m getting better but im very inconsistent, one minute it looks acceptable and the next it looks like i’m color blind…lol

This was my first attempt using blue shadow

This was my next attempt with a green shadow. I think I’m getting better 🙂

Eyes. Lips. Face Haul

Living most of my life oblivious to makeup, besides lipstick and eyeliner, I am just discovering E.L.F. I love how inexpensive they are and the array of different products they offer.

I decided to get several things that I wanted to try and with prices like they have I was able to try a lot and not feel it in my pockets. Winning!!!

The items I purchased and small reviews:

* High Definition powder : I love this translucent powder, it has replaced my MAC powder which I now only use on my lips (my bottom lip is slightly lighter than my top lip and I like my lipstick to be the same color..lol) and when I need to touch up my face throughout the day.
* Tone Correcting Concealer  in honey: totally not my shade it is too light, so I have not used it yet.
* 3 Foundation Sticks in Coffee (my shade), Almond, and Tan: THIS IS THE BOMB!!! It goes on smoothly with my fingers or a brush.  I don’t even know I have it on as its very light. It last me all day and it does not settle into any creases.  To me its a good doop for the NARS All Day luminous foundation WHICH I LOVE!
* 2 HD blushes in showstopper and encore: These are highly pigmented so a drop of the product goes a long way. They actually changed my thoughts about blushes from im not into them to YASSSS blush YASSS!
* Pressed Mineral Blush in wanderlust: I haven’t tried this yet
* 3 Eyeshadow Primers in pearl and sheer: They booth work fine in making the shadow stay in place as well as making the colors more vivid.
* Clear nail polish
*  Sponge wedges
* Fan brush
*All Over Color Stick in pink lemonade..I have not used this yet but the site says you can use them as blush, lipstick, and/or browbone

Dry Skin Cronicals – Saying Goodbye To Sheabutter

Getting into makeup has now  opening my eyes to the wonderful world of skin care.  Prior to wearing makeup I would just moisturize my skin with lotion, not even a facial moisturizer.  I would have to pile it on because my skin is severely dry and half way through the day in the winter it would start to flake and I would have dry patches scattered throughout my face…TACKY!

What I noticed started to happen after I put foundation on ,my cheeks still get dry and begins to flake under the makeup and it can be SEEN!  I was using a primer and a facial moisturizer (I will talk about what I’m using in a later post) and still my face was dry. What I’ve started to do now is moisturizer my face at night with Shea butter.  And this is helping a lot BUT I am starting to develop  white heads!!! I’VE NEVER HAD A PIMPLE PROBLEM UNTIL NOW!

Through researching I discovered the problem may have been the Shea butter because it is so rich in providing oil into the skin I had an oil overdose (so to speak) and with the production of the access oil it got trapped in my pores thus forming this white head.  This is all my SPECULATION based off a few articles I read…none of them said that exactly.

I’ve since stopped using the Shea butter and have noticed that I do not have a single bump, pimple, Whitehead NADA on my face. Which is what I am used to and I like it!  I am now us Vaseline Intensive Care on my face at night and I am getting good results just as I did with the Shea butter.  I had one bad day  where my dry patches started to show and that was because I applied my BB cream at 6:30 am and did not get home until 6 pm and I was sweating A LOT.

Goodbye Shea butter on my face, however you will always be my true love when it comes to my natural hair 🙂

 

Makeup Review: Black Radiance BB Cream

The lighter the makeup the happier I am unless it’s a special occasion then I can pile it on like the next person…lol. But in attempts to find something very light…sheer if you will…I did some research and discovered that BB creams are a way to go.  Not only are they good for light coverage but my research also uncovered the fact that they are good for people with dry skin. As a bonus, they are wonderful for the summer months when you don’t want you makeup sliding off your face. BOOM! I am in love with this concept.

For anyone new to makeup as I am, BB stands for beauty balm mainly but can also mean blemish balm or blemish base. It is lighter than foundation and heavier than a tinted moisturizer.  It also has some skin health benefits depending on the brand, such as anti-oxidants and/or SPF.

So my first experience with a BB Cream was with the company Black Radiance  in color Coffee Glaze which I discovered while browsing drugstore.com (loving this site right now). It is very creamy and extremely light weight.  It feels like I lotioned my face and now its just a part of me.   I’ve been wearing it since I purchased it about a week ago and I don’t want to stop…lol

This may very well be my last review because why keep going if I’ve found true love….NAH just kidding, im addicted to trying new things for now. lol

I highlighted my brow area with my mac concealer. Used Mascara and eye liner for my lower lid. And the lipstick is violet volt by Milani.

I’ve been looking into blotting sheets for my nose and this picture confirms the need lol.