beauty – tide & bloom

My Salon Suite Facial

You may have noticed that I haven’t been showing my face as much as I used to – there are less style posts and less selfies overall (instastories don’t count). The reason for that is doublefold; the first is that I no longer work at Anthro so I’m not constantly buying new clothes. That’s a good reason. The second is that I’ve had a lot of trouble with my skin lately. Somehow in this year alone, I’ve gotten more cystic acne than ever before in my life!

I turned 30 this year and I have no idea if that has anything at all to do with it. I thought I had a skincare regimen down last winter and then sometime earlier this year.. things just began erupting. Not only that, but because of all the activity and how easily my skin darkens, I’m left with dark marks of pimples past. So there’s just crap all over my face! Relative to actual acne, I know it’s not that bad. But for me with the history of my skin, it really has been the worst (this picture doesn’t feel like it really portrays the worst I’ve had).

My Salon Suite came to my rescue, like the universe answered my prayers! They offered me a complimentary service of my choice and of course – duh – I wanted to see an aesthetician. I needed someone who could look at my skin objectively and help a sister out. I had never heard of My Salon Suite; it’s sort of like a boutique beauty office where you can have the opportunity to work with as many or as few beauty professionals in one space as possible. The suite set up allows each expert to set up their own suite and be their own boss. The lovely aesthetician I spent the morning with is named Donai with D’Vivre Beauty and she was telling me how much she really enjoyed having the freedom My Salon Suite provides to her, allowing her to branch out as an independent entrepreneur.

There’s not really many pictures because essentially it’s a dark and meditative room where I had it, but this is actually why it was so relaxing. I spent an hour and a half there with Donai working on my skin and me asking every question that came to my head, like a skin therapy session. The products she used on me were great – honestly I don’t know what they are but they’re all natural. I remember hearing papaya and pineapple (because those words get me going) enzymes and natural oils. She’s the expert – not me!

Donai also does massage therapy soooo it didn’t hurt that during my mask time, she also gave me a neck and head message. YAAASSSS. It was just wonderful; Donai talked about her goal being that she wants to give people the power to take care of themselves, to treat themselves, and feel beautiful. Yes it’s about the skin but it’s also about the way you feel and how it emanates outwards. She was pretty amazing. Her own journey into becoming an aesthetician started when she was dealing with her own skin issues. She found that there was so much information out there that it was too overwhelming and she decided she was going to figure out her skin the right way – which led her to here.

My skin is still on the road to recovery, but this facial got me on the right path and using My Salon Suite was easy. I’m a believer! Now how soon is too soon for another facial?…

If you’re feeling like you need a little pampering, please check out D’Vivre and book an appt ASAP! Before those winter feels really set in…

copper eyes

I did my makeup one day and it randomly came out bomb dot com. It’s always when you’re not trying that hard that it comes out pretty awesome. But really, I’ve been doing much of the same old stuff with just some small tweaks. I’ve been mixing the Pur Cosmetics Bare It All foundation with my Infallible Pro Glow foundation for the just-right mix. It gives the Bare It All more glow and the Infallible more lasting power. WIN WIN.

And then the secret to the eye shadow is just that I have a really great quality palette. This March Jacobs All About Last Night palette is one I got last Christmas and the shimmers are to die. Using my finger to apply straight onto my eyes is the best and I often get compliments when I wear these colors. The orange-y copper is my favorite because I’ve been all about the warm tones lately. Rusty red, orange copper, bronzed brown, rose gold.. all of those kinds of colors are perfect for summer. I apply shimmer to the lid and then use a brush to apply a matte shadow to the crease to blend out the entire look. Two shadows is all it takes for some depth.
To top it all off, a reflective gold highlighter to pull the whole face together. Bronzed to the heavens, just like I want. I don’t go overboard, just enough to make me feel like I got a little something going on. I still use the Benefit Cheekathon palette for Hoola bronzer and a mix of blushes. Oh! And I forgot to say I’ve been using Smashbox Primer Water to prime my face before application; this plus setting with Kat Von D LockIt powder has been my go-to daily routine.
If I manage to do one more finishing touch, it’s mascara and a bit of lipgloss. I don’t do mascara often because ALL mascara runs on me (I really mean all.. maybe it’s just my lashes) but I’ve been liking this Aloette A-List Lash if anything at all. Aaaaand that’s it! Well I also did my brows, but that’s nothing remarkable. All in all, this was actually a simple look, but with lots of blending and the perfect hues I felt super pretty in it.

pur cosmetics vanity palette

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, but not for a lack of activity in my life. Actually quite the opposite. It’s getting harder and harder to find the time to sit down and type out a blog post, but I do hope I can keep it up. Because having the space to write a little bit more than what I have on Instagram is definitely needed for clarity of mind.

The other day I tested out a full face of Pur Cosmetics for the first time. Wait I lie, minus the lips. I’ve used the 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Powder before as a foundation but this time I got to use their recently launched Vanity Palettes, in addition to some others.

I started off with the Bare It All 4-in-1 Skin Perfecting Foundation. This is right up my alley, seeing as how I like liquid foundations that claim to improve my skin. It feels more like a cream than a liquid, but the coverage is really good and did last me all day long at work. Very often most makeup begins to dissipate from my face at the 4-hour mark because of how active I am at work, but this one stay put! I applied it with a dense foundation brush and then lightly set it with the Pressed Mineral Powder.

Onto brows, which really is the part of my makeup routine where I start to look alive. This Wake Up Brow pencil will be my new go-to once my current one runs out. It was the kind that isn’t super creamy so you don’t have to have a super sensitive touch like some other pencils. It includes a highlighter on the other end, but I didn’t really need to use it.

Here is the star of the show, the Vanity Palette! As you can see, it fits in the palm of my hand and the mirror pops out for added ease. This is a great palette to throw in your purse to touch up through the day since it does include highlighter, cheek, bronzer, and eye shadows. This, much like the brow pencil, was easy to use. The pigments are soft and blendable and great for beginners. I say that (me myself being a beginner) because I do own some palettes where the pigment comes off WAY too easily and then you have to spend a million years blending out your raccoon eyes. The whole palette is soft and buildable, lending itself to a bronzey romantic look.

I used more of the warmer shades because I have a yellow undertone in my skin so I just feel more comfortable using browns, oranges, corals. Once I was done and happy, I set the entire look with Balancing Act to make sure I wasn’t going to get too shiny throughout the day.

Overall I was really pleased with how everything performed! I got compliments on my makeup at work and I think everything is really well-suited to the girl on the go. I never do dramatic eye looks so I’m not sure if it’s good for that. Overall I think each and every product is definitely worth a try!

Pur Cosmetics products used:
Bare it All 4-in-1 Skin Perfecting Foundation
4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Makeup Foundation
Wake Up Brow
Vanity Palettes

the warmest winter

You’re probably well aware by now that this has been the warmest winter. I write this as the sun is beating down outside and the temp reads somewhere in the 60s. I will never complain about Spring weather coming early (except that I’m not into this whole climate change situation) but I’m just a little disappointed that I didn’t get a chance to wear these new boots for just a little while longer. I got them from Target for $20. How.

I typically have a tough time with shoes, but I mean.. don’t we all. I have even worse trouble with boots this high; I can never find ones that hit the right spot and also have the right heel and also don’t look like hooker boots. The color of the grey faux suede is probably what did it for me. And I also can never wear boots all the way to my knees because it’s just not flattering. Trust me.

current beauty routine

Once upon a time, my mom bought me an Urban Decay makeup palette for Christmas. Lil old me had no idea how to make a good eye look out of it so I did what any normal person does, I looked up a tutorial on YouTube. I found one YouTuber who I thought was so beautiful yet down to earth – she reminded me of one of my college BFFs. One video led to another and the rest is history. Here I am over a year later and I am addicted to watching YouTube makeup gurus every night before I go to bed. Part of it is to learn more about beauty and skincare and the other part is that its become ritual. It may sound lame, but it starts to feel like these personalities are like your friends.

Some of the products I list here are from YouTube recommendations, others were random finds, and some were recommendations from real live friends. I have no idea if you’re interested in my beauty routine at all, but I’ve found some really good keepers so I thought I would share just in case! This is not my entire makeup collection – just my absolute staples for the last month or so. Without further ado…

Starting with skin; I feel like I’m so dumb when it comes to skincare. I’m rapidly approaching 30 this year and I’ve yet to figure out the best things for my skin. Since I have a short makeup attention span, it’s been hard for me to stay with something long enough to love it. The products above though? They’ve been working for me for the last month or so and I think I’m in love. Everything feels great on my skin – light scents, refreshing textures, and really easy to incorporate into my bedtime routine. Of all the things, the Origins GinZing moisturizer is probably my favorite. It smells like a tall glass of OJ for my face! Oh and here’s what I look like without anything but moisturizer on:

Yup, that’s me. My biggest qualms with my face are texture and tone. I’ve been trying out lots of foundations and concealers this year (high end and drugstore) and the combo pictured above is the best of the best right now. The other foundations I used this year were: Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Foundation, Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Water Foundation, Maybelline FitMe Liquid Foundation, and Urban Decay All Nighter Foundation. Surprisingly enough, this L’Oreal Infalliable Pro Glow is pretty much the best of all worlds. It gives me good coverage (not too much but not too little) and leaves me looking dewy, like myself. Paired with the Hourglass primer and the Maybelline FitMe Concealer… match made in heaven. At least for now.

creative makers: anna oh

Something that I really love and want to get back to is interviewing other creative and stylish individuals. The connections I get to make in this city are more inspiring than anything else could ever be. I do tend to make connections with other women, not because I particularly choose to, but because there’s a deeper understanding between us about how our creative pursuits really affect the trajectory of our success – both professionally and personally. As women we are carriers of the responsibility to nurture families and raise the next generation. That added layer of pressure on top of trying to chase our dreams makes every step feel that much more crucial; every success and every failure is that much more important. Anyways, I digress.

Today I introduce you to Anna, a fellow artist who is brimming with talent and just trying to make her way up in the world. She’s already got the hard part down, I mean just look at her illustrations. Now all she has to do is be patient and wait for the world to pay attention. I have no doubt that soon this girl’s IG followers with explode and I’ll be seeing her drawings all over the industry. Her work is effortlessly precise yet loose, a striking balance of form and free strokes.

When did you start illustrating? How did you decide that pen and paper was your destiny?
I started drawing early in grade school–really the same time anyone else starts drawing. Nothing else really “clicked” with me like art did… and I threw myself into it wholeheartedly. Maybe art found me 😉 I haven’t stopped drawing since.

gift guide: for the overachiever

The overachiever loves things that keep her world organized, bright, clean, and optimistic. This means fun desk stuff, cool calendars or motivational posters, and beautifully functional accessories.

gift guide: for the girly girl

Pretty self-explanatory, I think. The girly girl loves to indulge in the luxurious and is not afraid to dress it up a little. She loves things that make her feel glamorous, like she’s wearing a little piece of heaven.

view from chattanooga: part one

There are really no words to describe this. Maybe just, thankful.

amicalola falls

When you live inside of screens and lenses, you can start to forget the beauty that exists in your own backyard. Within just a short drive of the southern metropolis I call home, there are wondrous views and unforgettable experiences. All you have to do is be willing to explore; thankfully my family always wants to do just that.