kisses

Hello! It's been a while. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not very good at blogging. Someday, when I have more free time, I promise I'll be better. But as an apology, please accept this great lipstick reccommendation!

Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Matte lipstick

I bought this stuff the other day in the above shade: Craving Coral. It was a little more bright orange than I had expected, so I really wasn't sure about it. However, I decided I'd try it out today, and holy cow do I love this stuff! First of all, I LOVE the matte texture. Very trendy. But secondly, this lipstick lasted all day! I even had a snack and drank out of a water bottle, and it still didn't fade! I did touch it up just a little after my snack, but it wasn't really necessary (just habit). Here's what it looked like at the end of the day (please excuse the picture quality): 

So go check it out! There are ten beautiful shades to choose from! Maybelline's website lists it at $7.49, but I got mine at Smith's Food and Drug for about 50 cents cheaper. Enjoy :)

winter skin saver

So I suppose that technically, it's still fall. But any of you that live out in the Rockies like me know that winter is coming fast! And especially in a dry climate, this season can be brutal on your skin. So how do you fix it? Lotion of course! Now, I have used many different body lotions that work just fine, but when it comes to facial moisturizers, there's only one that I've found that works. I've tried TONS of others, and I always come back to this one:

Cetaphil Daily Facial Moisturizer! This stuff is amazing. A lot of other moisturizers either  don't give your face enough moisture, or they leave your face feeling super greasy afterwards. This does neither of those things; it completely moisturizes without making your face feel greasy. Now, it is a little on the pricey side of the drugstore brands (listed around $12 at WalMart), but it is definitely worth it. That's why I keep coming back to it! I'm a very cheap person, which is why I've ended up trying so many other brands...trying to find the cheapest one. But seriously, nothing I've ever tried works this well. And if you've been using some fancy, upscale brand? This is probably a much better choice. I guarantee it works just as well, and it's probably less expensive.

Bonus? The SPF works great! I've never burnt on my face when I was wearing it.

Extra tip: Don't like the feeling of stuff on your face? I don't. So, after applying the moisturizer and letting it dry for maybe 3-5 minutes, I lightly rub my face in a circular motion with a washcloth. My face stays moisturized, but feels like I just washed it!

crazy morning life saver

Happy Thursday! I don't know about you all, but I am exceptionally excited that it's Friday tomorrow. This week has just been too much. Speaking of which, do you ever have those mornings where you wake up and realize you barely have time to get dressed, let alone shower? Those are the worst. Especially if you, like me, have fine hair or hair that tends toward the greasy side. So what do you do when you find yourself with 5 minutes to get ready and a mop of unwashed hair? Friends, let me show you:

Tada! Dry shampoo! And not just any dry shampoo, Suave dry shampoo. Now I know what some of you might be thinking. Suave? Really? Well, I've had my biases too...but we'll get to that.

First of all, let's have a little chat about how exactly dry shampoo works. Basically, it's kind of like a spray powder. You spritz a little on the problem area, rub it in with your hands, and then comb it through. DO NOT skip any of these steps. If you don't rub it in, you'll end up looking like you've got baby powder all over your head (and when I say rub, I mean more of a finger-comb than an actual rubbing motion). Anyway, the powder absorbs the oil in your hair, making it look like you actually washed your hair, when maybe you didn't.

Now, why Suave? Maybe some of you have had bad experiences with Suave. I know I have. I'm not at all a fan of their shampoo or conditioner (not to say it doesn't work for some people, because I know it does). However, their dry shampoo seems to work the best. This conclusion is a combination of using the product myself and talking to other people about it. Obviously, I have not tried every dry shampoo ever made. But then again, since I found the best one on my first try (thanks, Marissa!), why would I need to? I will say this. The other brands that I did try left my hair feeling extremely gunky and did nothing to absorb the oil. And while, with Suave, you can still tell there is product in your hair, it didn't feel gooey like some of the others. Another plus for Suave? It smells nice. Which I'm sure is a hard thing for a weird spray-powdery substance to achieve. 

BONUS: If you hair is lacking in volume, you can use this as a texturizer/volumizer! Just spritz a little on your roots, rub it in, comb it through, and your hair will hold volume way better!

So, in conclusion, for those days when you're too rushed, too busy, or even too lazy to wash your hair, this product is an absolute lifesaver! Go Suave!

PS-the best part? It's cheap! Check it out at WalMart for $2.88! 

hey curly girls!

So this one's for those of you who don't have perfectly straight, shiny hair....for anyone who has trouble taming their curls/waves/frizz. I'm one of you. My hair is curly...but it's not that perfect, sculpted ringlet kind of curl. It's the kind where if I just let it dry on its own, it goes all over the place. I've tried a ton of curl products, from gels to mousses to syrums. It wasn't until I got a nice little sample in my August Birchbox that I finally found something that actually worked. And here it is:

Curly Hair Solutions - Curl Keeper. This stuff is amazing. I didn't really believe in it at first, but once I figured out how to really use it, I realized...it's magic! Not only does it not leave a sticky residue in your hair, it also has a very pleasant, light, peachy scent to it. And it controls frizz better than anything else I've tried. Here's my routine:

-After showering, work product through wet hair. You can use a little more of this than most serums, because it's not oily. I usually use maybe a quarter-sized amount. Start at the ends of your hair and work it through, making sure to get the areas that tend to frizz the most (for me, it's the hair near my temples).

-Comb or brush your hair to distribute the product more evenly.

-At this point, the bottle says you should let your hair dry without touching it until Curl Keeper starts working. Instead, I apply my curl product (Samy Big Curls defining creme - also amazing!), which I finger-comb through my hair. I then scrunch my hair (this helps my curls know what to do...otherwise they're kind of lost...). And that's it!

The first time that I did this, I thought it was a fluke. My hair had never been so curly and frizzless before! But I've used it several times since then and let me tell you what, ladies, it still works! I honestly am so excited that I've finally found a product that tames my crazy hair! And I'm even MORE excited that it's inexpensive! This size bottle (3.38 oz) was only $9.99! And I'm pretty sure it'll last for a long time. I don't think I've even gone through half the sample size that came in my August Birchbox yet (1 oz).

So, if you want to try it out, you can find it on Curly Hair Solution's website here. They also have a gazillion other products that I have not tried, but if you decide to test one, feel free to let me know how it works for you!

xoxo

welcome to bonjour jolie!

Hi friends! I've been pondering starting up a fashion/beauty blog for a while now, and finally got around to it. I think that checking out all the instagrams of NY Fashion Week kind of pushed me to it. Here, I hope to post everything from reviews of beauty products, to current fashion trends, to hair and makeup tips and tricks! Hopefully I can update frequently so stop by every so often and see what's new :)

**A little about the name: I have a ridiculous obsession with all things Paris. And let's be honest--that's where a lot of the best fashion comes from. So a French name seemed to work well! Bonjour jolie simply means "hello pretty."

xoxo