D.I.Y. Fix Plus

Do you wear mineral power foundation? Do you feel powders can get cakie and feel drying or heavy?

If so I got a 'do it yourself' project just for you. This is a little something I learned by fusing together some of the research I found when trying to do my own replication of the M.A.C. fix plus spray. This is a great product for refreshing the skin with or without product, using it to set power foundations so that it bonds better to the skin, rather just sitting like a thick layer on top of the skin, and can also be used as a mixing medium for pigments, loose eyeshadows, creating eyeliner from dry shadows or to use with tricky products like shimmer or glitter.

You Need:

Glycerine: Which can be found at any drug store, just ask the pharmacist

1 Cucumber

1/2 Lemon or substitute with Lemon oil extract.

Distilled water

Tea Trea oil

Rose Water or Rose oil

1 green tea tea-bag

First boil 2 cups of distilled water, when it reaches the boiling point turn off heat and add the green tea. Let sit. Then cut one whole cucumber(medium size-or 1 cup when cut). Add the cut cucumber into the hot water-tea combination. In a different glass add 2 Tablespoons of Glycerine and 4 Tablespoons of distilled water. Stir well. Add 4 drops of Tea Tree Oil to the Glycerine-Water combination, one drop of lemon oil (or one teaspoon of lemon juice), one Drop of Rose oil (or one Tablespoon of Rose water), and then for fragerance you can add any kind of oil you wish (Lavender, Jasmine, Sage, and Rosemary-any or all but only use one drop). Take the Cucumber-Tea Tree mixture and drain into a bowl, you can use a coffee filter to strain out the cucumber and seeds. From this mixture take 4 Tablespoons and mix it into the Glycerine-Water-Oil combination. Stir Well. Put into any spray bottle, and Voila! You have a cheep version of Fix plus, and all those ingredients can be used to make SEVERAL batches of it. Make sure to date the spray with a label, this has a shelf life of about 6-8 weeks. Whenever using fresh foods as ingredients you have to make sure it doesn't spoil quickly, which is why we added the lemon. The Tea Tree oil is good for the skin as is the Rose oil. The cucumber is moisturizing, and the caffeine from the Tea is invigorating for the skin. You can add Vitamin E oil as well, but go light, you don't want the mixture to get too oily, otherwise with will not work over makeup. This spray is also great as a moisturizer, a toner, and an aftershave.

Good Luck and Have Fun!

(I know I did)

Revlon Photoready Foundation Review

The time has come. I have been using my latest foundation, Revlon Photoready, for over two weeks now. What had been my obsession, watching youtube videos and reviews covering peoples opinion of this latest drugstore foundation craze, I have come to my own conclusion of its success and failures.

What I LOVE:

I love that this foundation is less cakie than the Revlon Colorstay foundation, which offers great coverage, but is heavy and often dries too fast to thoroughly blend.

I love the medium coverage, which can be buildable to a high coverage foundation.

I love the overall finish, which is dewy with a slight subtle use of shimmer, so that your best features glow and create a high cheekbone and brow.

I love that this bottle has a pump, therefore the bottle doesn't get gross with extra product around the lid and I can conserve how much I use.

What I could DO WITHOUT:

I have to agree with some beauty bloggers that this foundation does creates a white cast, and I do not think it is as photographable as it has been hyped up to be. I would say Relvon Photoready is a close dupe for an HD foundation, but doesn't achieve it completely.

I don't like how it can exaggerate the look of pores. In natural light you can easily notice how the shimmers within the foundation sit within the pores, and for those like me who have very large pores in my T-Zone, this is not super flattering.

I have a love hate relationship with the hydrating consistency. I love that it is moisturizing enough that it does not sit in my fine lines and exaggerate dry areas, yet I still have to set this foundation with a powder so that it won't slid right off my face. A translucent powder is great at making the foundation last longer, yet it changes the dewy affect of the finish, which ultimately was the most appealing aspect of the makeup (for me atleast).

Overall I would say that I am glad I gave this new foundation a try, and I will continue to use the rest of the product, but I do not think I will re purchase it. My next try will probably be the Coastal Scents HD foundation which retails at about $16.50 online while the Revlon Photoready is any where between $10.50 and $13.50 depending on store specials.

For those who are interested in this product, or currently have it and and are experiencing some of the same problems I am as far as its staying power and exaggeration of pores, here are some tips you can try which have worked for me:

-First to combat my oily skin and to keep the foundation from slipping off my face I use a thin coat of Milk of Magnesia ($2-$4 at any drugstore) on my T-Zone, yes I know that sounds weird but it helps my skin from getting oily all day and acts as an adhesive for the foundation so that I can get the dewy look without having to use powder to set it, this will keep your makeup on all day.

-Second, to stop the large pore look, I use the Revlon Color Stay foundation only on my nose, I get full coverage, lasts all day and hides my largest pores, then I use the more sheer and flattering Photoready on the rest of my face.

Thats my opinion and I'm stickin to it!

April Showers bring......lots of wine. Thats right, wine.

One Bottle

Two Glasses

and a crap ton of make up=

One GORGEOUS lady!

Here is my April pic of the month staring the one, the only, McKenzie Michelle.

Put a little SPRING in your step!

Steal your boyfriends......what?

As I was browsing through the April issue of Cosmo, and yes you guessed right I only bought it because Gagaloo was on the cover, I came across a quick tip to help get the best bang for your buck when it comes to body scents. Heres the trick.....steal your boyfriends, or in my case I stole my dads. I started wearing mens cologne months ago, after my friend McKenzie told me she had snagged her dad's Aqua Digio and had been using it as a new fall scent, let me tell you she smelt like a dream, and not a bit masculine. There must be something about the chemical make-up of females, because so far almost every male scent I have tried for myself has been a success....well except for Old Spice, that been chemically created to remind everyone of old man aftershave no matter what gender you are. My personal favorite is Very Sexy for Him by Victoria Secrets, it lasts all day, and most men's cologne is much cheeper in comparison to high end perfume.

So next time you find your favorite parfume is meeting its end, save yourself some money and stress, grab your husbands, boyfriends, fathers or brothers.....it just may be your signature scent!

Out with the Old in with the New

As I have previously posted on my top-ten favorite products, my go-to foundation for the past few years has been Revlon Colorstay. Its got great coverage, controls my oils and most importantly it has my shade. But lately I have been flirting with the idea of trying the much raved about Revlon Photo Ready. Many bloggers and vloggers have had great reviews, so lastnight....I gave it. Even with 4 almost full variations of foundation sitting in my drawers at home, I decided I needed to try one more, just one. I have yet to decide exactly how I feel about it since I have only applied it one, but so far so good. I will be sure to update with a full response and review soon.

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