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I Haven’t Used My Acne Medication in Four Weeks: Here’s What I’ve Been Using Instead

April 13th, 2016 by Marcella Yakalis 24 Comments

boots-no7-skincare-regimen
From L-R: Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Facial Oil, Protect and Perfect Day/Night Cream, Protect and Perfect Intense Eye Cream, and Youthful Eye Serum

If you’ve been reading my posts here, you know that I’ve really struggled with adult acne, and especially with being comfortable in my own skin. Recently with my dermatologist prescribed medications, I finally felt that I had found a routine that worked for me, but the products often left my skin dry, red and, at times, very itchy. Sometimes, after using these medications, applying different products and makeup on my skin would also cause irritations.

Then I found the Boots No7 Protect and Perfect and Boots No7 Youthful lines, and now I think I’ve finally figured out exactly what my skin’s problem is.

It’s moisture. I actually need more of it.

I was a little wary of all of the moisture in these products. After all, I can be sort of an oil slick, and I’m always afraid of waking up in the morning to discover that the products I applied the night before haven’t sunk into my skin, and now I have a giant grease face.

But these products didn’t just work well; they actually improved my skin over time. On the packaging they promise better looking skin in four weeks, so that’s how much time I gave them.

Let’s start with the Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Facial Oil. This is the product I start with every night before bed, applying it to a freshly washed and cleansed face.

boots-no7-youthful-replenishing-oil
Boots No7 Youthful Replenishing Oil ($22.99 for 1 oz.)

Ingredients
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Rosa Moschata Seed Oil, Isostearyl Isostearate, Alcohol Denat,. Tocopheryl Acetate, Parfum (Fragrance), Isopropyl Myristate, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Salicyloyl Phytosphingosine, Tocopherol

This non-greasy blend of jojoba and rosehip seed oils sinks into my skin in but a moment. I usually concentrate it around the areas where I’m driest and red, like the apples of my cheeks; the sides of my nose, where I have some broken capillaries; and the areas on my chin where I have some acne scarring.

There’s also a little warning on the back that literally says, “May make surfaces slippery,” and they aren’t kidding. The bottle is glass, and I almost dropped it on my bathroom floor several times. In spite of that fact, though, it makes a wonderful precursor to…

protect-perfect-night-day-cream
T-B: Boots No7 Protect and Perfect Night and Day Cream ($22.99, 1.6 oz.)

The Boots No7 Protect and Perfect Night Cream, which is my follow-up to the Replenishing Oil. It blends in seamlessly, and has a clean scent that doesn’t irritate my skin. As far as the Day Cream goes, I wasn’t sure how it would work out, but I was pleasantly surprised. Most of the time when I use moisturizers with SPF, they tend to clump up when I try to put makeup on top of them, but that isn’t the case here. It dries nice and matte.

Night cream ingredients
Aqua (Water, Eau), Glycerin, PPG-15 Stearyl Ether, Sorbitan Stearate, Demethicone, Butrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter, Beurre De Karite), Ethylhexyl Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Polyacrylamide, C13-14 Acid Glycol Ester, Dimethiconol, Butylene Glycol, Parfum (Fragrance), Sucrose Cocoate, Methlparaben, Carbomer, Laureth-7, Ethylparaben, Dipropylene Glycol, Retinyl Palmitate, Xantham Gum, Ascorbyl Gluoside, Tetrasodium EDTA, Potassium Hydroxide, Lupinus Albus Seed Extract, Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol, Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract, Polysorbate 20, Gingko Biloba Leaf Extratc, BHT, Tocopherol, Butylparaben, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Silica, Propylparaben, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Day cream ingredients
Avobenzone (3.0%), Octinoxate (6.0%), Octisalate (2.5%), Aqua (Water),Glycerin,C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate,Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter,Dimethicone,Isononyl Isononanoate,Cetearyl Alcohol,C18-36 Acid Glycol Ester,Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Phenoxyethanol, Polyacrylamide,Sorbitan Stearate,Mica,Polysorbate 20,Alcohol Denat.,C13-14 Isoparaffin, Dimethiconol, Butylene Glycol,Methylparaben,Potassium Cetyl Phosphate,Ethylparaben,Parfum (Fragrance), Laureth-7, Retinyl Palmitate,Sucrose Cocoate, Dipropylene Glycol,Xanthan Gum,Ascorbyl Glucoside,Tetrasodium EDTA,Citric Acid,Lupinus Albus Seed Extract,Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol, Carbomer,Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract,Potassium Hydroxide,Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, BHT, Tocopherol, Butylparaben, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Propylparaben, Isobutylparaben,Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7,Cl 77891 (Titanium Dioxide).

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There are 24 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Beauty Tips, Boots, Guest Post, Skin Care

What’s in My (Very Streamlined) Travel Makeup Bag

April 12th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 24 Comments

Travel Makeup Bag

Picture a 19th-century noblewoman waiting to board a steamer bound for faraway lands.

Can you see her? Standing there on the dock surrounded by wardrobe trunks and chest cases containing all of her earthly possessions?

You can?

Awesome. Because she looks exactly like I did up until a few years ago whenever I traveled anywhere. 🙂

Yep! I used to pack sooo much stuff, “just in case,” but those “cases” rarely happened, and I’d usually come home with half of the things I brought still untouched.

Thankfully, possibly because I discovered the joy of traveling with only my carry-on bag, I’ve finally learnt how to streamline and pack the bare minimum.

Travel Makeup Bag
The things in my (very streamlined) travel makeup bag

Case in point: I just spent a few days in Edinburgh, Scotland, and only brought along a minimal makeup stash (at least by a beauty lover’s standard).

I knew I wouldn’t want to waste the little time I’d have to explore the city on my weekend away doing my makeup, so I streamlined my beauty arsenal.

Edinburgh Castle Scotland
Hello from Edinburgh Castle! 🙂

Would you like to have a look inside my travel makeup bag?

Foundation: Chanel Perfection Lumière Velvet

Chanel Perfection Lumière Velvet

With its matte yet luminous finish, I ❤ Chanel Perfection Lumière Velvet foundation every day of the year, but its plastic packaging makes it especially convenient for traveling.

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There are 24 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guest Post, Just For Fun, Makeup, Travel

Let’s Chat! What’s Your Makeup Comfort Zone?

April 12th, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 46 Comments

MAC x Halsey Lipstick
MAC x Halsey Lipstick

Call me crazy, but I have a habit of thinking about habits.

Is that weird? Like, I notice things about myself, and then I spend a fair amount of time pondering whether it’s just me, or whether everyone else has the same quirks, and because I have a job that involves a lot of long-term quiet focus, my mind inevitably wanders…

“Am I the only one who does [INSERT QUIRK HERE]?” Or, “I wonder how she feels about [INSERT PONDERABLE TOPIC HERE]?” Or, “Why would the writers of The Walking Dead play with my emotions like that?!”

Of course, because I totally adore makeup, I most often find myself thinking about what’s hot now, or how we wear what we wear, or why we wear what we wear. For instance, where do the trends come from?? It’s sort of a chicken/egg situation, right? Because I think you could argue that sometimes the trends come directly from cosmetics companies (color correcting), and sometimes they come from us (strobing).

Anyway…now that I’m here helping Karen (and Tabs, who’s a real taskmaster, BTW!) on Makeup and Beauty Blog, I want to chat with you about something that’s been rolling around in my noggin.

Here’s my question: What’s your “beauty comfort zone,” so to speak, when it comes to lipstick colors?

My makeup comfort zone is pretty big where lipstick is concerned!
My makeup comfort zone is pretty big where lipstick is concerned!

And I don’t just mean traditional lipstick. I’m also talking gloss, glitter, liquid lipstick (because it seems like errbody is talking about liquid lipstick right now) — you name it.

MAC x Halsey, that masterpiece of a grey lipstick, got me on this subject, because as wearable as it is for a grey lipstick, my brain automatically said, “Nope, that is not something you can wear everyday.”

Later after I thought about it some more, I wondered…why? Where was the girl who at 15 decided “I’m going to wear bright red lipstick to high school!” and did it fearlessly (despite the whispers in the hallway)?

Where was the girl who decided that bright purple lipstick was totally okay in the office on a Tuesday, just because?

[Continue reading…]

There are 46 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guest Post, Just For Fun, Lips, Makeup

Life in the Fast Lane

April 12th, 2016 by Karen 51 Comments

connor claire mint green onesie

I noticed that I started doing this recently, and I’m 100% sure that it’s linked to Mommy Land, ’cause now, whenever I eat, I eat hella fast, shoveling every bite into my mouth like someone is about to take my food away. Because I’m always waiting…always listening…for Connor Claire to start huffing and fussing.

She has some kind of special radar. “Ooooh, Mom wants to eat a hot meal? OK, time to turn on Fussy Baby Mode!”

LOL.

connor claire mint green onesie 3

And I don’t just eat quickly. I pay bills quickly, do laundry quickly, shower quickly, use the potty quickly (Haha! It’s true though…) — I move like the Flash during those precious minutes of quiet time when Connor’s napping.

I’ve been wondering (worrying) how I’m going to get stuff done with an infant at home when I go back to blogging full time, and I was talking to a friend (Hi, Steph!) about this the other day, and she said that it is hard to work from home with a baby, but still entirely possible.

Because right now it seems impossible.

She said that the keys are 1) to have routines, 2) to work as fast as you can while the baby sleeps, 3) to be flexible with yourself and 4) to regularly ask for help.

So, um…help?

connor claire mint green onesie 2

Anybody else have any good tips? I could sure use some ideas (and a little reassurance).

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

There are 51 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Just For Fun

The Easiest Eye Look That Complements Even the Craziest Lip Colors

April 12th, 2016 by Jen Clark 36 Comments

OCC Lip Tar in "Hoochie"
OCC Lip Tar in “Hoochie”

This is probably really weird, but as I’m laying in bed at night, I’ll close my eyes and think about what makeup I want to wear the next day. I’ll think about the specific colors, products, and techniques I want to use…

Does anyone else do this? Just me? Dang it!

Sometimes, I’ll have a really fun lip color that I’m dying to wear, but I’ll have a hard time thinking of what to wear on my eyes that won’t clash with it. Lucky for me — and maybe you — I’ve come up with the easiest eye look out there that goes with any color you can think of, like bright purple!

Eye look for any lip color using Morphe palette

The other awesome thing about this trick is that you can find colors for it almost anywhere. I bet you $50 (you can email me for my Venmo name ☺ ) that you already have two colors just like these in your collection.

I used the Morphe 35O palette just because I think the mattes in the palette are the best! A mid-toned matte neutral brown and a darker matte neutral brown are all you need, and what I mean by neutral is that neither one is too warm or cool toned, so it’ll go with any shade you wear on your lips.

IMG_7004

To start out, using a Mac 217 blending brush or something similar (almost every brand makes something similar), blend the lighter brown shade all over your lid and through the crease.

I like to pull the color outward beyond the corner of my eye to make my eye look more elongated, but feel free to create any shape that suits you.

Eye look for any lip color using mac 217 and morphe palette

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There are 36 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guest Post, Lips, Loreal, MAC Makeup, Makeup, Makeup Tips/How To, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, The Body Shop

Look Perfect Naked With Urban Decay Naked Skin One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector

April 11th, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 35 Comments

Urban Decay One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfectors (SPF 20)
Urban Decay One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfectors (SPF 20)

In the summer I’m all about light, dewy coverage.

I know, I know, I work in an office…but when I’m not stuck sitting at my desk, and I’m out somewhere actually having fun in the sun ☀ and the warm weather, it’s nice to not feel weighed down by a heavy base product, and even though I’m a fair-skinned SPF freak, it’s always a relief knowing that my foundation, BB cream or tinted moisturizer are also there to add a little extra oomph where sun protection is concerned.

Urban Decay recently released the most beach bag-friendly base product a girl could want, an oil-free formulation with SPF20 that’s meant to even out your overall complexion and blur imperfections while keeping you looking natural and fresh, and it’s called Naked Skin One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector (I dare you to say that one five times fast!).

Available in 6 shades for $34 each, it’s ideal for speedy makeup application or touch-ups on the go after a day at the beach or an afternoon by the pool.

UD’s official description says it all…

“We’re not exactly what you call low-maintenance when it comes to beauty (and we’re not ashamed to admit it). But we’re more than happy to take a shortcut or two — as long as it doesn’t look like we did. THIS is one of those times. Naked Skin One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector combines all the benefits of skin treatment and protection with the coverage of a sheer foundation. This multitasking cream is the best of both worlds”

Urban Decay One and Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector
Wearing Urban Decay One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector in Light
Urban Decay One and Done Hybrid Complexion Perfector
Urban Decay One & Done Hybrid Complexion Perfectors in Light, Medium Light, Medium, Medium Deep, Dark and Deep

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There are 35 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face, Face of the Day (FOTD), Guest Post, Makeup, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

1 Palette, 2 Looks: Youngblood Cosmetics Perfect Pair Mineral Eyeshadow Duo

April 11th, 2016 by Adia Goss 17 Comments

youngblood mineral eyeshadow duo

I love eyeshadow duos because they get rid of the guesswork and make it easy to figure out which shadows go well together.

Youngblood Cosmetics is a new brand to me, and when I recently tried their products for the first time, I was really impressed by their eyeshadow duos, particularly the Youngblood Cosmetics Perfect Pair Mineral Eyeshadow Duos in Desire and Charismatic.  

Desire has a dark royal blue shimmery eyeshadow and a lighter lavender/gray, while  Charismatic has a chocolate brown eyeshadow and a shimmery peachy pink.

I think both are really pretty, but Charismatic speaks to my soul.  It’s totally my kind of eyeshadow because the colors are subtle, but also a bit sparkly.

youngblood mineral eyeshadow duo
Youngblood Cosmetics Perfect Pair Mineral Eyeshadow Duo in Desire (L) and Charismatic (R)
Youngblood Cosmetics Perfect Pair Mineral Eyeshadow Duo
Youngblood Cosmetics Perfect Pair Mineral Eyeshadow Duo swatches of Charismatic (first two) and Desire (second two)

[Continue reading…]

There are 17 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face of the Day (FOTD), Guest Post, Makeup, Product Reviews, Youngblood

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 418

April 11th, 2016 by Karen 48 Comments

hello-monday-final

You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past eight (!) years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

  1. I want a new ______.
    Car.

    Not that I need one, because I’m happy with my Mazda 3 (zoom, zoom!). It runs reliably… I’m one of those boring car people who’s all about reliability

    Oh, and it’s paid for. BIG PLUS!

    But if I could get a new car, like, if I won the lottery or something, I’d get a car with power locks, ideally a Volvo, because my Mazda doesn’t have them, and it’s a four door, and ever since the baby came along I’m always forgetting to lock the back door after we take her out of her car seat, so I’ve been basically rollin’ around for the last month or so with my car open…

  2. Camping or hotel?
    Oh, hello, do you know me at all?

    Hotel, ALL THE WAY, since homegirl does not do camping.

  3. What do you want to postpone?
    Ugh, tax day. Make it stop.
  4. Three words that describe your current social life?
    Temporary baby jail
  5. What lipstick shades have you worn down to the nub?
    There have been quite a few over the years, like my old school ’90s love, MAC Paramount. I can’t even begin to tell you how many tubes of Paramount I went through back in the day.

    More recently, let’s see… Ah! MAC Viva Glam V.

Le List

Your turn. 🙂 Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ’em!


1. I want a new ______.
2. Camping or hotel?
3. What do you want to postpone?
4. Three words that describe your current social life:
5. What lipstick shades have you worn down to the nub?

Good morning, glory! 🙂 How did you sleep last night? Did you have any dreams that you can still remember?

I slept pretty well, actually. No dreams that I can remember, but Connor was good about going back to sleep between feedings.

What are you up to this week?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

There are 48 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Just For Fun

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Welcome to Makeup and Beauty Blog

Welcome to Makeup and Beauty Blog! My name is Karen, and I’m a freelance writer obsessed with makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog features daily product reviews, makeup tips and beauty news — like an interactive version of a monthly print magazine, except with occasional pictures of my cat.

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