Top 3 week. Day 5: Moisturizers

Hi stunner,

Today is the conclusion of my week of Top 3's. I invite you to follow my blog so you can stay in tune for all of my upcoming posts! These are my own unbiased opinions based on my personal preference and experience. As always leave me your top 3 down in the comments! Todays top 3 is my 

Top 3 Moisturizers

This is another set that was really hard for me to chose the order of. I love all of these products for different reasons, and it wasnt easy for me to say which was better than another. Some of you who have been here a while may know that I have pretty problematic skin. I deal with breakouts and oily skin as well as dry patches in weird spots. Its always been hard for me to find moisturizers that dont leave my face feeling goopy and oily. Its actually really amazing that I have three and that it was even hard for me to pick an order for them! Without further ado, my top three..

3. My third pick for this set is the Lumene Bright Now Visible Repair Night Cream. Lumene is a brand that you can find at drug stores, Target, Ulta, and many places online. I think this product is around $30 for 1.7 oz, which is pretty much on par with some other top brands you might find at ulta, but definitely more expensive than a lot of the stuff youll see at your drug stores. I know this is a night cream, but I use it in the morning as well. It hydrates my dry spots really well, without leaving the rest of my skin feeling oily and gross. It goes on smooth and feels pretty  nice. It also smells decent, which is never a bad thing. This product is also supposed to help with wrinkles, which I dont have yet because Im only 24, but it should help prevent them too! Which is always a plus!

2. The second spot goes to Garnier Skin Active Clearly Brighter Sunscreen and Daily Moisturizer. This moisturizer says that it is a sunscreen, and has SPF 15. (which really isnt that high for a facial sunscreen, id prefer something a bit higher if its supposed to last me all day!) I love how smooth this product goes on. It absorbs really well and doesnt leave my skin greasy at all, which is so important to me! I can put it on under my makeup and it protects my skin from the sun while leaving it smooth and hydrated! This is the cheapest product on my list, around $15 for 2.5 oz. so its affordable for most people! I enjoy the scent of this product, it smells clean and fresh, which matches perfectly how it makes my skin feel when I use it!

1. My final number one pick goes to Malibu C Vital Creme. Malibu C is probably my current favorite skin care brand, and this moisturizer is simply amazing! Malibu C is a company that aims to solve your problems using nature inspired technologies. Their products are 100% vegan, cruelty free, and formulated without gluten, parabens, sulfates, preservatives, fragrences, and all of the nasty things we dont want on our skin! Their products are also made in the US. This is what sets them above the rest for me. This moisturizer is the silkiest and smoothest of the group, and it leaves my skin feeling so soo nice. It will cost you about $40 for 3.4 oz. which I think is completely fair! In the winter the backs of my hands get really dry, so I often find myself using this for that purpose too, and it works amazingly! After just a day or two my dryness is solved and my skin feels soft and smooth again! I love this brand and really suggest that you all go check out their products. They have amazing things for your skin. And soon I plan on checking out their hair products too!

I really hope you enjoyed this Top 3 series and look forward to another in the future! Feel free to leave any suggestions in the comments below for future Top 3 series!

XOXO
Always stay humble & kind.

Top 3 Week. Day 4: Drug Store Mascaras

Hey beauty,

As I hope you know by now, this week I am doing my Top 3's. Feel free to follow my blog so you can see when the next one goes live! These are my own unbiased opinions based on my personal preference and experience. As always leave me know your top 3 down in the comments! Todays top 3 is my 

Top 3 Drug Store Mascaras

This has been by far my hardest top 3 this week trying to decide the order. Mascara is one of those things that can be either amazing or a total bust. Its can be very hard to find your perfect mascara, so not everyone is willing to fork out big bucks to try all of the prestige brands. And believe me, I almost prefer using drug store brands sometimes. (And even drug store prices are getting up there!) Ive tried a LOT of different drug store mascaras, and I think Ive finally pinned my top 3 picks.

3. My number three spot is going to have to go to Revlon Lash Fantasy Total Definition. (Which Im just finding out they no longer make) This was the one with the primer/base on one end and mascara on the other. I loved this one because the base was amazing! I first saw this mascara in a Kandee Johnson video and knew I had to try it..I had never used a mascara primer before and was so into the idea! I will never understand why companies discontinue products that their customers love..I know this had to be one of their top mascaras, so it doesnt make sense to me that theyd stop making it. I contemplated choosing a different product that is still available, but this really was my top 3 :(

2. Second choice is Covergirl Lashblast Clump Crusher. I absolutely love the brush/wand on this mascara. It is curved with the both sides being different. The curved shape, I feel, makes it easier to get in there and coat your lashes without making a mess of your eyelid or misshaping your lashes. The one side loads the mascara onto your lashes, while the other "combs the clumps" so you get voluminous lashes without the clumps and blobs. (Im not one of those girls who likes spidery lashes..I like the full, separated look.) 

1. Finally, my top pick is Revlon Grow Luscious. Again, Revlon has discontinued all of their best mascaras and have come out with a whole new line of products.. This has been on my favorites list for years now. This mascara gave the most beautiful voluminous, long, full lashes. The formula was also supposed to help them to grow! I just loved the way it coated and separated my lashes. They always looked so long and full, and I got compliments on my lashes ALL the time! I am beyond mad that they no longer sell this product, and I dont know what Im going to do about the fact that Ill never be able to purchase it again! :'(

So really, with 2 of my products being discontinued, I guess this post doesnt make a whole lot of sense, but these were my top three, Im so disappointed that Revlon has gotten rid of two of my favorite products! Let me know your favorite drug store mascaras! I guess now I need to find some new favorites!

Nonetheless, I hope you are still enjoying this Top 3 series and please leave me suggestions for other Top 3's you would like to see in the future!

XOXO
Always stay humble & kind.

Top 3 Week. Day 3: Dry Shampoos

Hey beauty,

This week, as you know, I am doing my Top 3's. Be sure to follow my blog so you can see when the next one goes live! Again, these are my own unbiased opinions based on my personal preference and experience. As always feel free to let me know your top 3 down in the comments! Todays top 3 is my 

Top 3 Dry Shampoos

As we all know by now, it is bad to wash your hair every day. Its essential for healthy hair to let it build up its natural oils in between washes. Many girls have taken lots of time and endured plenty of grungy-ness to train their hair to last a week without washing it. I have tried this for so long and my hair still ends up greasy and disgusting looking/feeling by day 2. I definitely can not go any longer than 3 days without washing it.. So dry shampoo has become my best friend. Ive tried a bunch of different ones, so here are my top 3.

3. My Third choice is a little cheaty, becuase this brand will appear again on this list. But I chose the Batiste Dry Shampoo. This brand is very popular, they even claim they are voted #1 favorite. I can definitely believe that, although Im not sure who voted :P They offer a bunch of different kinds of dry shampoo for all of your different needs. And Batiste is one of the more affordable brands you can find. I get mine at TJ Maxx for under $5! But you can also find them at Ulta, Target/Walmart, drug stores, and many other places. (I even just found the original dry shampoo on Amazon for $3!) If youve never used dry shampoo before, basically its an aerosol spray of a powder that absorbs the excess oils in your hair, leaving it looking nice and clean again!

2. My second pick is the TIGI Bed Head Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo. I had been wanting to try this stuff for a long time, and one day I saw it at our K Mart which was having a store closing sale, so I bought it and gave it a try. I LOVED it so much I had to go back and stock up while they still had them! I have tried a lot of other brands, and many I had tried previously just didnt cut it for me, they still left my hair looking and feeling dirty. But this one was different. I also really liked that it had a more pleasant scent than pretty much every other brand I had tried. The thing about dry shampoo, though, is it is a powder, so it leaves a dusty look to in your hair that you have to massage into the hair to disappear. I do find that this one is a little harder to get to disappear competely in my dark hair, and sometimes Ill notice later in the day that I totally missed a spot and have been walking around like a dusty old fool. :P It is also much more expensive, costing you about $21 regular price at Ulta. (But it often goes on sale for like $10 bucks! Which is when I stock up!) I also find that it seems to run out really quickly! And for the price thats not really a great selling point. Which is why its number 2 and not 1.

1. And lastly.. My number one choice is Batiste Dry Shampoo Hint of Color. As I mentioned earlier, Batiste would be on here twice. I also mentioned that they have different kinds for various needs. One of them being a tinted version! Like I said in my number 2 pick, dry shampoo can leave a white dust in your hair, so batiste has eliminated this problem by offering 3 different shaded options as well. They have a medium & brunette version, which is the one I use most often. And they also have a dark & deep brown, which I want to check out, and a light & blonde option for you. The brunette dry shampoo is ideal for me, having obviously dark hair, so I dont ever get that chalky dusty hair residue left behind. It works exactly the same way of the other dry shampoos, it just has a hint of color to it. Which makes this my number one pick! This one is also available at Walmart/Target, drug stores, Ulta, and many other retailers. I look for it every time I go to TJ Maxx and they usually have it, although when I was there last week they didnt have any! It comes in a decent size bottle and lasts a fair amount of time, but it is super affordable, so theres no fuss if it runs out in 4-6 weeks. 

I hope you are still enjoying this Top 3 series and feel free to leave me suggestions for other Top 3's you would like to see in the future!

XOXO
Always stay humble & kind.

Top 3 week. Day 2: Brow Products

Hey gorgeous,

This week, as you know, I am doing my Top 3's. Be sure to follow my blog so you can see when the next one goes live! Again, these are my own unbiased opinions based on my personal preference and experience. As always feel free to let me know your top 3 down in the comments! Todays top 3 is my 

Top 3 Brow Products

Im a firm believer in defining your brows. Even when I dont do a full face of makeup, I like to at least put a little product on my brows and some mascara to wake up my eyes. I definitely think doing your brows can change your whole look, and kind of complete it. If I leave my brows undone, my face just looks..off. Lol. Now dont get me wrong, some people just dont need it, but for me its a must.

3. My third choice might be a little "cheat-y" because I chose just an appropriate shade of eyeshadow and an angled brush. This is what I used when I very first started defining my brows. and what I tend to use quite often. You really cant go wrong, and most of the time..you already have this in your collection. And if you dont, its probably the cheapest of my top 3 for you to purchase. Just find a neutral (matte) shade that matches your hair color, (unless youve got pink hair, then just go with a nice brown :P) take your angled brush and do work. Its very simple, and easy to correct if you happen to mess up. I love using this method when traveling or on vacation, etc. because eyeshadow is something Im bringing anyway, so it allows me to pack a little lighter, because thats one less excessive product I have to bring. 

2. My pick for number two is Benefit Brow Zings. This is basically the step in between just a shadow/powder and my number one choice. It does allow you to define your brows a bit more. It comes with a cream and a powder as well as a little brush for each product. (and a little pair of tweezers right in the kit, which is always handy.) So you take your angled brush and define with the cream then fill in and set it with the powder. Ive been using this product for years now and it is still one of my favorite products to use! If youve never really done your brows before this is definitely an easy product to use for your first time, but definitely make sure youre using the right shade! I actually have dark brown hair but use the light or medium one because I found that dark was too harsh on me in my opinion. You can find this at Ulta and online on Benefits site. This is the most expensive product on this top 3 and, honestly, the price is a little off-putting, especially since there are products that are just as good for less money..Youre looking at about $32 for this product. But I must add that it does last me quite a while, but Id still like to see that price drop a tad.

1. And finally.. My pick for number one is Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. This product is a bit more intimidating, and probably not for a first timer. It took me a try or two to get it just right. This is definitely a product youll want to purchase in person the first time so you can get the correct shade. On the website the color Caramel looks like it would be a lighter shade not suitable for my dark brown hair, but in person it was actually a near perfect match. So I suggest checking them out and swatching before buying. Once you find your shade you can obviously repurchase online if you want/need. I chose this as number 1 because it allows me to define my brows so much more than just using a brush. And the super fine tip makes it easy to fill in sparse or over-tweezed spots and its so thin that it mimics natural brow hairs. This product does take a little bit longer for me to use than my second and third choices, I do have to be a bit more precise, but that is also one of the reasons I love it, because it does give me the perfect brow! The only downside I can really say, is the price point. (yet still more affordable than number 2!) This product is around $21, available at Sephora, and Ulta in store or online, or at Anastasia Beverly Hills website. 

I hope you all are still enjoying this Top 3 series and please be sure to leave me suggestions for other Top 3's you like to see in the future!

XOXO
Always stay humble & kind.

Top 3 week. Day 1: Makeup Removing Wipes

Hello beautiful,

This week I decided to give you a run down of my top 3's. I have 5 different categories Im going to cover, from skin care products to hair and makeup. Ill tell you why I love these products and give a sort of mini review. If you want a full in depth review on anything please let me know! Remember, these are my own unbiased opinions based on my personal preference and experience. As always feel free to let me know your top 3 down in the comments! And please follow this blog to stay on top of all of my posts! Todays top 3 is my 

Top 3 Makeup Removing Wipes

Ive actually taken a break from doing my makeup daily to kind of improve my skin and let it breathe, so this isnt something I use every single day. But when I do wear makeup, by the end of the day it feels so good to take it all off and relax. Ive always found that if I dont remove my makeup before washing my face, just washing alone doesnt get my skin as clean as Id like. Theres always something left behind. So I like to use a wipe (creams and oils dont work well for me, so my go-to is always going to be the wipes!) to remove my makeup before continuing with washing with a cleanser.

3. My third choice in wipes is the Dickinson's Witch Hazel Cleansing Cloths. These are relatively new, Ive only been using them for a few months. Theyre technically not "makeup removing wipes," but a lot of the time they are just called cleansing cloths anyway..on the package it does say it removes makeup. I love these wipes because they are super soft and gentle on my skin. They do smell a bit strong, but thats witch hazel for you. They come in at number 3 because they dont remove makeup as well as the others. But they are in my top because they are really nice on my skin! They are affordable but might be a little more difficult to find for some of you, but I do know they are available at Walgreens nationwide!

2. My pick for number two is the Simple Cleansing Facial Wipe. These wipes are really nice and it was realllly hard for me to decide between 1 and 2..so I ended up choosing these ones as my second.  These are also gentle on my skin, theyre made with no harsh chemicals, perfumes, or dyes. Which is really important to me! No one needs that stuff on their skin. Simple is a brand that focuses on using skin loving ingredients that are kind to your skin and great for those with sensitive skin! These remove makeup better than the Dickinson's and on par with my number 1. Their products are affordable and available everywhere! Pretty much every grocery store, drug store, or Walmart/Target. They have some really great products that are great on your skin, so I definitely suggest checking them out!

1. And finally.. My number one favorite wipe is Pacifica Natural Skincare Essential Makeup Removing Wipe. These wipes are realllly great, theyre made with jasmine and coconut water, theyre gentle on the skin and are 100% vegan and cruelty free! They are made without the nasty stuff like sulfates, sls, parabens, etc. They smell fantastic and remove my makeup very well. Pacifica is another brand that focuses on using all of the good stuff and none of the bad. They also support Clean Water, which is so important to me!! It also doesnt hurt that they have some of the cutest packaging I have ever seen! These made my number one spot because: they are natural, vegan, cruelty free. Portion of proceeds go to support clean water. The products work really well on my skin, and the packaging sets them apart from the rest. These wipes are also pretty affordable, although maybe a dollar or so more than the other brands, I think. And theyre not as easy to find as the Simple brand, but they are available at Target and Ulta and can be purchased online too! They also have lots of other skin care and beauty products you should all check out! 

I hope you all are enjoying this little Top 3 series and be sure to leave me suggestions of other Top 3's you want me to do in the future!

XOXO
Always stay humble & kind.