Beauty Routine: Makeup

A little delay, but finally the last installment in my daily beauty routine. If you missed the previous posts, here you go: Part 1 - Skin Care, Part 2 - Hair.

And now, on to Makeup. Here's a peak at my go-to routine.

1 - On a daily basis, I use this Revlon face powder. I apply it with a brush and it provides just enough coverage to mask any shine moisturizer left behind. It is so lightweight. On days where I need a little boost, I'll apply Olay's CC cream first to add a touch of softness to my skin. The CC cream does a great job of smoothing out any discoloration.

2 - Next is eyeliner. I apply it all the way across my upper eyelid and only half way across the bottom (outside edge). I'm a big fan of this Maybelline one. It's smooth and not too thin, just enough definition.

3 - Once I've applied eyeliner, I swipe on a neutral, highlighting eye shadow. Something to brighten up these tired eyes during the week! The Mary-Lou Manizer is the brightest one I tend to use, on those real tired days. Other days I opt for Clinique's sunset gold which is a little more neutral. Lastly, I've had fun with this Smashbox eyeshadow sampler I recently received from Birchbox. Swipe across the top, dab on the inner corner, dab on the outer edge of the lower eyelid. And then smooth out any excess shadow that may have fallen below the eye with a pinky.

4 - As a last step to my eye makeup, I finish up with mascara. I'm a huge fan of this Clinique mascara. The comb works amazingly at lengthening those lashes! But I ran out of this mascara recently and Birchbox stepped in, providing Smashbox's full exposure. It is awesome. It has worked well thickening and lengthening my eyelashes. Definitely doesn't lengthen as well as the Clinique one does but the thickening characteristic is fantastic. And on the plus side, they both stay in place very well. I hate when I look in the mirror and there is mascara under my eyes.

5 - J stuck this rosy lips Vaseline in my Christmas stocking this year and I must say, it is fantastic. It smells amazing, adds a touch of color, and keeps my lips healthy in these cold, dry months. It's just enough sheen to finish off my daily routine.

What's your go-to makeup product?

If I only put on one thing, on weekends for example, it's mascara. Just a few swipes really seems to brighten up my face.

Beauty Routine: Hair

I loved the feedback on my skin care routine, thank you! So I thought it only best to keep this series going.

Let's talk about hair care. As I've mentioned, for an Italian girl with curly hair, may hair is actually fine. So something that does not work wonders for me? Moroccan Oil. I tried. I tried desperately to use it and wanted so badly for it to make my hair even healthier. But all it did was leave me with oily, stringy hair. Lovely.

So over the past year, well actually more specifically the past 6 months, I've learned what works best for me.

Shower

I'm not sure why I started buying the Clear brand shampoos, I am a sucker for good packaging. But from the first use, I've really loved it. Not only for my hair, but my scalp. Oh my scalp. It can get so uncomfortably dry in the winter. And the Clear shampoos have seemed to clear this right up. J also has a dry scalp and has had luck with this shampoo.

And since I was enjoying the shampoo so much, I recently decided to switch over to their conditioner as well. No complaints. This shea butter one definitely makes my hair feel even softer.

Lastly, this Neutrogena anti-residue shampoo was recommended to me by a hair stylist this summer. As you keep reading, you'll see that I kinda/sorta use a few extra products to style my hair. So about once a month now, I'll use this Neutrogrena shampoo to get rid of any residue the styling products have left behind. My hair feels so light and soft on those days! 

Wet  Styling

My after shower hair process is a bit more in depth...

1. Spray in a volumizer. I got sucked into buying the Oribe one at the salon at one point. I can't complain though, I love the smell and it definitely helps. It's pricey though so I did find a more affordable option that I now use during the week. The Organix brand works just as well really for me. All I'm looking for is a bit of a boost in volume and thickness. I swear the Organix one makes my hair grow a little faster too with the Biotin in it...

2. Brush/comb out my hair and then add mousse. If money wasn't an issue, I would use the Redken mousse daily. Redken products in general are just amazing. But, I use a decent amount of mousse everyday and J uses it now too. So we'll stick to our $4 bottle for now. It's the best "cheap" mousse I've used for sure.

3. Curl cream. Just a little something to add some softness to my curls. Mousse can leave your hair rather stiff if you let it dry naturally. Plus, I need something to fight frizz on rainy or humid days. I absolutely love the Miss Jessie products! Both I've been able to use thanks to Birchbox and just now need to purchase one as my samples are finally running out. Boo. But where I use less than a dime size amount daily, I don't mind spending a bit more money on this product.

4. Blow dry with a diffuser. For my curly hair, using a diffuser is absolutely necessary. It works its magic to fight frizz.

Dry  Styling

On those days where I give my hair a break from shampooing, I rely on dry shampoo. If you're a brunette, you know how frustrating dry shampoo can be when it's not tinted. Or maybe it's just me? Either way, the brown tint to this Baptiste dry shampoo is fantastic.

And on those (rare) days that I use a curling iron on my hair, I rely on Spray Wax. This is a new find as of this summer and is amazing. Apparently regular hair spray is a no no on fine, dry hair as it dries your hair out even more. Oops! I had my hair washed and styled for a wedding this summer and learned so much from the stylist. She used spray wax on my hair and it held all night. I then came home and asked my normal hair stylist about spray wax and she also raved about it. Sold. I bought a can on the spot and have been using it since. Be careful though! A little goes a long way.

Night Before

And lastly, as I mentioned in my tips last week - spray in some dry shampoo the night before. I've been buying the Psst brand for a while now and love it. My only complaint is that it's white. So I now use this one at night when I know I have a few hours for it to soak in.

What hair products can you not live without?

Definitely mousse for me! It's probably the one product I've been using for more than 15 years, well that and shampoo/conditioner....but besides those. Some days I'll use only mousse. It's the saving grace for these curls.

Beauty Routine: Skin

My daily skin routine had been the same for years. I found what worked and just stuck with it. It was easy. But thank you pregnancy hormones for causing my skin to start breaking out like a teenager. It was bad.

Ok, it really wasn't that bad but it freaked me out. And made me feel ridiculously uncomfortable. So things have changed over here and thank god it's working! 

Day

Each day starts with exfoliating my face in the shower and then lathering on some  Olay moisturizer (with sunscreen!). Now that I'm also fearing stretch marks, I've added in using a skin oil. This one linked above smells like dessert and was recommended by another blogger who swears its the reason she didn't get stretch marks. Um, sold!

And thanks to this lovely, freakin cold winter I've even taken up using this oil on my face every so often too. A few months ago, my sister gave me a sample bottle of face oil from Beauty Counter and I loved it. After cleansing my skin I'd smooth on the oil, followed by moisturizer. And no, it didn't make my skin oily at all. It worked wonders! But the Beauty Counter oil is pricey. And since I'd already purchased the toning oil above, I figured why not use it on my face? It's all natural and coconut oil is great for your skin.

Night

To be honest, I just recently started using Cetaphil when my face began breaking out. I know it's a fan favorite but I didn't love the whole no lathering/lack of soapiness it has. How the heck is this cleaning my face?! But I decided to give it a whirl in the hopes that it's sensitive formula would be just what I needed. That paired with the best face tool ever, the Clarasonic Mia, and the newest addition to my skin routine, toner - and things are looking much better! Phew.

When my skin first started having issues this past fall, I immediately googled how to curb this while pregnant and using toner seemed to be the best solution. Heck, I'd definitely give that a try. So I jump in the car and head straight to the store. Being newly pregnant I thought maybe I shouldn't use anything too harsh. The Simple brand seemed to be my best bet. Either that, or I thought I was going to pee my pants so I grabbed the "greenest" looking toner and ran. Can't remember... But I am happy with my purchase! I told a good friend who is an esthetician that I started using toner and she agreed whole heartedly. According to her, toner balances out the pH in your skin. And like I said, it seems to be working wonders over here.

Night cream. I am a huge proponent of night cream for really no reason at all other than doing my best to hinder aging. J was kind enough to include the Olay regenerist line night cream in my stocking and I am in love. It's soo silky smooth to put on. I'm probably looking younger everyday now. Ha.

Do you have any skin products you can't live without?

I've been using Olay (so weird not calling it Oil of Olay...) moisturizers for years. I got this from my mom, and seeing as she has beautiful skin, Olay it is for me too!

Birchbox: March & Favorites to Date

Birchbox, you've done well this month. Very well.

• Miss Jessie's Original - Super Slip Sudsy Shampoo
• Miss Jessie's Original - Creme de la Creme Conditions
• Sumita - Color Intense Pencil
• Whish - Shave Crave Shaving Cream
• Vasanti - Brighten Up! Enzymatic Face Rejuvinator
• Madewell for Birchbox - Emery Board

Way back in August, I received Miss Jessie's Quick Curls from Birchbox and I absolutely love it. It gives my hair soft, relaxed curls. So I am really excited to test out their shampoo and conditioner. The color pencil sure is intense...it's blue. I can't say I've had the opportunity to test out a blue eyeliner on my brown eyes yet....really Birchbox?

Moving on, the Brighten Up! face cleanser is awesome. I originally thought it would work really well with my Clarasonic Mia, but do not do that! The cleanser has micro crystals in it to gently exfoliate the skin, and let me tell you, I love it. It's definitely grittier than most gentle exfoliants so I can see how it might brighten up my dull winter skin. Lastly, the shave cream is super soothing. Not a huge fan of the blueberry scent, but the shea butter, green tea, coconut oil, and jojoba seed oil it contains is awesome. I'm planning to save some for our upcoming trip to the beach.

Birchbox reminded me that I've been a customer for 9-months, and clearly wants me to spend a little cash as they've offered me 20% off this month. Sweet! So I thought I'd share with you my Birchbox favorites to date. 

Birchbox Favorites by talkative-tlc 

Want to check out my past reviews?  

February, January, December, November, September/October, July/August

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Birchbox: December

In true Tracey fashion, this post is super late. But, not only did I take pictures of what I got the day I received it, I've been using some of the products daily too.

How pretty is this box?! 

Ok, here are the goods:

• Juice Beauty - Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream
• Keratase - Resistance Ciment Thermique - Protect
• Nicole Richie Fragrance - Nicole by Nicole
• theBalm cosmetics - Mary-Lou Manizer
• Emily's Chocolates - Dark Chocolate Peppermint Holiday Fortune Cookie
• $50 gift card to Rent the Runway (the catch - had to spend $125, and had to use by 2/28...)

I've never been comfortable wearing foundation or tinted moisturizer daily, until now. I am loving the Juice Beauty CC cream. I know BB cream (blemish balm cream) is all the rage right now and I haven't tried it, but CC cream (control cream)....well CC cream is taking over. The only thing about the Juice Beauty cream that you may consider the downside, it smells like grass/dirt. Very strange for a beauty product. But the upside, it uses only natural and organic ingredients. 

Also getting used daily, the Mary-Lou Manizer. I use it as a nice light, bright eye-shadow but its an illuminator so throw a tiny bit of shimmer on those cheek bones if you want. My sister and I both got the Nicole Richie perfume and both agree, that we kinda, sorta, actually really like it. It's a much warmer scent than I normally wear so great for winter. 

I'm really excited to try the Keratase product, just haven't gotten around to it yet. If you received it too, how it it??

Lastly, the chocolate was eaten within a day or two of receiving this Birchbox. Dark chocolate & peppermint? Delicious!

Thank you Birchbox for introducing me to some great new products. Job well done.

If you'd like to see my past Birchbox reviews, they can be found here: July/August, September/October, November

Interested in joining Birchbox? Here's an invite! (full disclosure - if you use my invite, yes I will earn points. But I've loved learning about new products and wouldn't invite you if I didn't think it was worth the $10/month)