4-in-1

Ok guys, I've been studying like a maniac in preparation for the PA state board exam for my RN license that I am taking soon, so I'm going to consolidate all of last week's "would be" posts into one!!

Music Monday

First off, I love Phoenix. Their music is soulful, groovy, and great for a rainy day in or a sunny day on the beach! Whats better than Phoenix is a GREAT cover of their hit song "1901" by Birdy. Check this out and let me know what you think!! 

Product Pick of the Week

This week's product pick is related to my latest video about the efficacy of face brushes compared to washcloths. If you haven't seen it yet here it is:

This video seemed to stir up a tiny bit of controversy!! I NEVER SAID THE CLARISONIC DOESN'T WORK!!! All I'm saying is that a washcloth or microfiber face cloth is an excellent alternative for a fraction of the cost!! ...and yes I have used the Clarisonic before, it was alright.

If you are looking for a great microfiber face cloth here are a couple great options. 

The first option is the exact face cloth that I displayed in my video, I will admit it works but the quality isn't all that great. The second option is much better quality and will get more uses:

Skin Care Tip

After washing your face, NEVER rub your towel on your face. Just pat dry. Rubbing a dry towel over a clean face causes irritation and can spread bacteria and oil from your hair onto your clean skin! 

Photo of Lilo (the most amazing cat in the world)

couldn't help myself.

Soooo everyone have a GREAT weekend!!! 

Ross

Product Pick of the Week

My product pick this week is bound to get you some you know what! ...and no, its not a kitten...but that helps too!

She loves being in front of the camera!

For much less work, you can get the same amount attention with a great smelling fragrance! I mean who doesn't like to smell AMAZING, and believe me, when you smell great, people notice!

Here are three options that I have personally owned full-size bottles of and would recommend to anybody! Not to mention they are SUPER cheap on Amazon.com!

Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier

To me, this fragrance has strong, powdery scent. To be honest, I didn't even like it at first. HOWEVER, every time I wear this fragrance, I receive compliments, its crazy! Over time the scent really grew on me and it became one of my signature smells. Primarily, I wear it when I'm going out, not typically during the day. The person who bought it for me said it was "sex in a bottle", and he was right!! LOL

L'Homme by Yves Saint Laurent

Now THIS is a fragrance I LOVE! Unlike the one above, I wear L'Homme because it smells SO FREAKING GOOD, and I do get a compliment here and there. It has a crisp, clean fragrance with sweet notes that you are bound to love! Not overwhelming by any means, I wear this one during the day. It does wear well throughout the day and has great packaging too!

Armani Code by Georgio Armani

In terms of sophistication, this cologne hits the nail on the head! With an very subdued scent you will feel like James Bond while wearing this fragrance. Does have a slight powdery note but really its just freaking sexy! Highly recommend, great for day or night!

There you have it! Three GREAT scents that will work for ANYONE! Out of the three, my favorite it L'Homme, but I get the most compliments while wearing Le Male.

Enjoy!

Music Monday

Here's an upbeat track for ya! Dragonette creates dance music that is fun and sends out the right kind of message...a positive one! Dragonette also released a song you may be very familiar with, "Hello" featuring Martin Solveig.

I've had this one on repeat all weekend!

Love Dragonette! Here is the original track and a remix by Laidback Luke:

Ross

Full Review of Paula's Choice Products

Considering I just posted the last video in my series of reviews on Paula's Choice products, I figured I'd wrap it all up with a blog post ...then hopefully I'll never have to talk about her products ever again! LOL

First off, here are the three videos in the series:

At the end of the day, I reason I hang on to Paula's Choice for dear life, is the concept behind her products. There are other companies that cite science as the driving force behind their products but still use it as a marketing scheme. On the other hand, Paula's Choice refuses to include ingredients that haven't been researched and proven to be beneficial for skin, additionally, the brand willingly provides the citations for each bit of research which is more than any company has ever done!

Truly, the products are reliable, effective, and live up to their claims! This also gives me, as a skin care guru, confidence in recommending products because I KNOW I am not falling prey to a marketing scheme and recommending crap products!

My ALL-TIME favorites from Paula's Choice are:

1. Skin Balancing Moisture Gel (bought 4 bottles of it today!! It's on sale for less than $10!)
2. Skin Balancing Cleanser
3. 2% BHA Liquid
4. Shine Stopper Instant Matte Finish
5. Brighten Up 2-minute teeth whitener

If you have tried her products, I HOPE you have enjoyed them as much as I do!

Ross

Music Monday

OMG, I can't believe I almost forgot about Music Monday! To wrap up today here is an AMAZING track by Ellie Goulding. I don't know what I love about it so much, but if it doesn't string a chord in your soul than I don't know what will!

Enjoy! 

Ross

Sweating After a Shower: The Remedy!

Isn't it the WORST when you sweat after a hot shower?!? 

You get yourself all fresh and clean, feeling like a million bucks...

Kinda like this right?!?

BUT THEN:

You dry off.....Start to get ready for the day/night......Put on your facial moisturizer.....And then you start sweating!!! 

Ugh! It's the worst! I end up feeling like this:

Not quite so fresh anymore....

This always happens to me when the summertime comes around because I still want to take a hot shower. However, I have learned the trick to prevent this from happening! ...and NO, its not just lowering the temperature of the water altogether.

Here's what you do:

1. Take a shower as you typically would. 
2. At the end of your shower, turn down the temp a few notches, nothing drastic, just a little cooler, and stand in the water for 45 seconds. 
3. Then turn it down even further, again standing in that cooler water for about 45 seconds. 
4. Finally, turn down the water temperature to COLD! Now you have to stand in the cold water for 1 whole minute! (this is key)

Not only does gradually lowering the temperature help your body cool down after the shower, it really gets the adrenaline flowing! You'll feel refreshed and ready to go after doing this and I promise you, you will not sweat (as long as you stand in the water long enough to actually cool down your body!).

It really works!

If you tried this and liked it tweet me here: http://clicktotweet.com/n88CQ

Enjoy!

Ross

Product Pick: Sunscreens for every skin type!

Considering my little run-in with the sun over Memorial Day weekend, this week's product picks are all about sun protection! The key to sunscreen is simple...you just have to USE IT! Finding a product that suits you well will help you feel more comfortable using it regularly, therefore improving the likelihood that you will actually use it and preventing this:

Super sexy, right?!

Not all sunscreens are made equally. When choosing a sunscreen, you have to consider how the texture will work with your skin type and weigh out the benefits of irritating ingredients verses adequate UV protection. Generally speaking, higher SPF sunscreen (SPF 30+) will cause more irritation without adding significantly more UV protection. Below you can match your skin type with the appropriate product! Additionally, many of the options below contain skin beneficial ingredients like antioxidants to keep your skin healthy while in the sun.

Combination Skin

• A sunscreen with a lightweight texture will be best for you. These products are AMAZING, you won't even know you are wearing sunscreen (especially the one for your face)!



Oily Skin

• Oily skin can be really tricky because many sunscreens have an oily texture by nature. I recommend this product by Peter Thomas Roth and follow up with a powder (that also includes SPF) that will keep your skin shine-free throughout the day. This great combination works really well for me:



Dry Skin

• The most options exist for people with dry skin not prone to breakouts. An emollient moisturizer with sunscreen will be perfect, I recommend these products that also contain antioxidants!



Sensitive Skin

• If you have rosacea or sensitive skin you should choose a product that uses titanium dioxide and/or zinc oxide as the active ingredients. These are excellent recommendations:



Now that you have a better understanding as to why certain types of products are better for each skin type, you will be able to protect your skin from UV rays on a daily basis and feel comfortable doing it!

I hope this helps a lot!

Ross