Classic Eye Make-Up Look Application

Enjoy!

SPF is your Friend =)

This weeks skin care topic is SPF (Sun Protection Factor). SPF is super important for your face - especially if you are concerned with getting wrinkles. I know, I know, everyone always seems to feel better when they get that lovely glowing look from the harmful rays of the sun, but it's at a cost. Which would you rather have: a nice golden tan now or wrinkly leather skin (and the possibility of melanoma) later - think Magda from Something About Mary - yuck! 

Last week we talked about moisturizing and this ties into moisturizing because laying out in the sun actually causes your skin to dry out. So, yes, continue to hydrate, but maybe find a moisturizer that has a dual purpose, one with an SPF in it. This will help protect your skin from those awful UVB(Ultraviolet B - sunburn/cancer causing) rays. What you really want to look for is a moisturizer with a broad spectrum SPF in it, this means that it protects against the UVB and UVA(Ultraviolet A - wrinkle/cancer causing) rays. You know you can still get a tan with your SPF on? So make sure you are using it every day - if not in your moisturizer then maybe in our foundation. You want to make sure you are protecting yourself from those wrinkle causing rays. And believe it or not you are still getting the harmful effect of these rays on an overcast day (like the many we have here in Seattle). So you still need a sunscreen on a cloudy day. 

If you're still wanting that golden glow - try a spray tan, or a good self tanner that doesn't turn you orange.

Read more about SPF, UVA and UVB here:
http://www.911skin.com/uvbubarays.html
http://jaxmed.com/articles/wellness/spf.htm

Good luck and check back on Friday for another video on classic eye make up looks and next week to learn about taking care of that delicate eye area!

Eye Shadow Application for a Natural Look

Two easy steps to applying eye shadow for an everyday natural look.

Let's fight those wrinkles!

The lack of firmness in your skin is directly related to the lack of moisture, this means more wrinkles!  One of the most important things about fighting wrinkles is to make sure you hydrate. Yes, hydrate, this means drinking a lot of water - at least 8 glasses a day. My personal goal is to drink a gallon a day, I know, it sounds like a lot, but it is so beneficial to you and your body. You should also moisturize your skin as well.

As far as your face goes (because this is where people notice wrinkles first) you should use a good moisturizer twice a day – in the morning AND in the evening. 

Now when I say a good moisturizer that means one that is meant for your skin type. One of the things that people don’t realize is that everybody’s skin is different. This means that the moisturizer that works for your sister or your mom or even your best friend isn’t necessarily going to be the same moisturizer that is good for your skin. You should know your skin type – is it oily or dry, or even a combination of those two things? This is vital in finding a good moisturizer.

Most people I know that have dry skin use a moisturizer, which is great – keep up the good work! But, it is a common misconception for people that have oily skin to think that they do not need a moisturizer. They think that their skin is so oily that they do not want to put anything heavy or thick on their face, and that this may cause clogged pores and breakouts. This is so completely wrong! You need a good moisturizer just as much (if not more) than the next person. Here is the reason: oil and water (hydration) are two different things. I have come across many people who have oily skin and they swear that they wash their faces multiple times a day (and then wonder why they have more oiliness and breakouts), but then do not use a moisturizer because they are afraid of adding something thick and greasy to their face. Well, what they are actually doing is stripping all the oil and moisture from their face and then not replacing it with hydration, which in turn causes their pores to create more oil. If only they would find a good moisturizer that is meant for oily or combination skin that has oil absorbing agents in it to help control the oiliness in their skin. 

Moisturizer helps to keep your skin soft and supple, this fights those nasty wrinkles. Next week we'll talk about the importance of SPF and those awful UVA/UVB rays. Happy moisturizer shopping!

Wedding Dress...check!

Oh what a great day! Last week I went wedding dress shopping with a couple of my bridesmaids and my mom and MIL-to-be came down from Whidbey Island to join us. This was a little nerve racking since deciding on a dress was making me have slight anxiety already(mostly because I had set what I thought was a decent budget and realized that I have expensive taste). I had been to a handful of boutiques and consignment shops as well as the local David's Bridal, but found that the deals were better for the whole wedding party if you just did everything at good ole David's. So, this was to be my last time trying from the top few dresses that I really liked and with mom (and the extra funds) there to help decide (if she was going to help out) on THE dress. Well, I found it and had anxiety the whole time during the whole ordering and down payment of this beautiful dress (yes, down payment - it was much more than I had set my limits on - not to mention the additional costs of bustling and any other alterations that could potentially be a few hundred more). I got home that evening and looked at my top two choices and decided to do some online research - well I found both available on multiple websites where brides were trying to sell their once used or in some cases never used dresses that were not refundable. It is just shocking to me that you cannot return a wedding dress even if you haven't worn it! Anyway, I emailed multiple women about their dresses and actually got a couple of responses - one who was in San Diego where one of my bridesmaids lived. Not only was she a bridesmaid and oldest friend (who also works in the fashion industry and has a keen eye), but I am also going to be a bridesmaid for her in April, the month before MY wedding. Well, the stars must have aligned and this dress was meant to be mine - for half the price!!! The woman was leaving the country the next day, but put me in touch with her husband and said that if my friend/bridesmaid wanted to take a look at the dress this weekend, then that would be fine. Tracy went to see it today and said it looked gorgeous - so I transferred the money via paypal and she took the dress home and will be shipping it to me next week :) SO HAPPY!!!! Oh the power of the internet - I love technology...

For all you brides or soon to be brides out there - check out oncewed.com, recycledbride.com or preownedweddingdresses.com there are many women that are trying to sell their beautiful wedding dresses fur much less than the large chain stores. And think about it - it is something that you will only wear for a few hours for one day...it was definitely worth it to me.

Here's a teaser...

He Proposed!!

Hi all!! So, it's been a while...over a year - I know, I suck. Anyways...I decided to keep all the wedding planning up to date on my outdated blog. Things are going smoothly so far and we just sent out the save the dates. If you don't know the story of the engagement - here goes: Tristan, my wonderful fiance, and I went downtown to see the holiday lights at the market and the surrounding shopping areas. My friend Jessica, who happens to live a few blocks from the Space Needle wanted to show us around and take some fun pictures with her new fancy camera, so we picked her up and went to dinner. Well, after dinner we decided to go walking around and saw all the fun lights, the Macy's Christmas tree, the holiday carousel and the Nordstrom's star. Jess and I rode the carousel, we took bunches of pictures and even had some mini donuts. Well, it was getting late so we dropped Jess off and headed home. On the way past the needle Tristan informs me that he's never been up the space needle and so I say "let's go", so we stop and park and as we are walking up to it he suggests that we walk through this little park that has a cobblestone pathway. It wasn't lit up, so I said "I don't know, there may be some bums sleeping on the bench in there", he assures me it's okay and when we get to the fork in the path he got down on one knee and proposed. I had a mini freak out, but of course said YES! He got up and kissed me and picked me up, far off in the distance we heard clapping (perhaps it was the bums in the park - at least that is what a friend of mine suggests), but we couldn't see anyone, since it was so dark. So we shrug it off and continue walking to the gift shop on cloud nine. We decided not to go up the needle that night, but found the cutest keepsake - it was a picture of the space needle with our little park in black and white - with the exception of the yellow brick path. My maid of honor, who is a very talented graphic designer decided to photoshop us into the picture to create our save the dates.

Miracle Sunday...seriously

So I was on my way back to church for a meeting about the next fundraiser for our Honduras mission trip. I had just dropped off some Mary Kay products in Marysville to one of my good clients and was heading southbound on the 5. I was in the Everett area (where you can see that cemetary on the right of the freeway) when all of a sudden this silver truck suddenly comes into my lane (they must not have seen me at all), no blinker or anything. So I swerve to the left as to not get into a wreck, and lose control of the car. The next few minutes were really fuzzy but it went something like this:

I skidded left then right and next thing you know I'm Tokyo drifting counter clockwise into the carpool lane and thinking I'm going to slide right through the gaurd rail. I'm thinking to myself  'HOLY CRAP! I'm going through this gaurd rail and plummeting into I5 Northbound lanes...' but instead I find myself facing a grey minivan (backwards in the carpool lane), still moving - however I'm not sure if I'm moving forward or backwards - it just doesn't make sense to me. For some strange reason I figure out how to flip another 180 counter clockwise and recover going 30mph in the carpool lane managing not to hit anyone or anything else. This is around 4:30 on a Sunday afternoon and there is quite a bit of traffic, so my jaw is on the floor by this time, heart racing, white knuckling the steering wheel, I'm pretty sure that I've forgotten to breathe as well. The thought goes through my head to pull over on the left, but then I realize I am going 30 in the carpool lane and decide to speed up and head to church. I'm looking around at the other drivers in disbelief to see if there is any reaction, but the people that must have witnessed this horrifying and miraculous event have since passed. Save one green CRV with 2 girls in it that pass me and are waving uncontrollably and giving me a thumbs up - as I stare at them like I saw a ghost. By the grace of God I managed to escape any sort of car wreck and am walking and breathing today. It was the most intense, unbelievable, horrifying thing I've ever experienced. And all I can think is - thank you God for getting me out of this situation, there is no other explaination but that it just was not my time yet. I got to church and just cried in the parking lot - I was early to my meeting (also a miraculous thing) so nobody was there yet. When I went in, I saw Riley, who had taken me to Anh and I just sat and cried. I am so thankful.

After church I went over to my friends Mary and Stu's house for dinner, and tell them about this crazy thing that just happened, still shaken up. After dinner I got a call from another good friend, who tells me that she and her boyfriend of 3 years have just gotten engaged. And earlier this miraculous sunday I had gotten a phone call from one of my best friends, Hazel, in Phoenix who tells me that she and her husband have just welcomed the newest addition to thier family, Caliahna Daylyn (named after me - Lynnie Dale). What an eventful day, that I know I won't ever forget. It still seems like it didn't really happen...weird.