SKINCARE IN MY THIRTIES

1.   Ole Henrikson Truth Serum Collagen Booster

2.   Clarisonic Replace Brush Head

3.   Clarisonic Mia

4.   Fresh Soy Face Cleanser 

5.   Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Cream

6.   Ole Henrikson Power Peel

7.   Ponds Original Fresh Wet Cleansing Towelettes

8.   Glamglow Supermud Clearing Treatment 

9.   Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Peel

10. Shiseido Benefiance Eye cream 

11. Korres Greek Yoghurt Advanced Nourishing Sleeping Facial 

Throughout high school and college I worked in salons and beauty retail stores. I have always been a product whore and love trying new beauty and hair products and finding new serums, lotions and "goo," as my husband would call it. I used to keep my purchases to hair products and makeup, however once I started getting up into my late twenties, (...and eventually 30) skincare became more important to me as I began seeing the signs of aging. 

My skin is in no way perfect and for many reasons. One thing I do know is that it always looks best when I take off my makeup and put on serum, moisturize, etc., consistently at night, and when I drink lots of water to stay hydrated. Duh. But seriously, I can tell in my face if I've been slacking on drinking water. Often I need to force remind myself to do those things, but I'm always happy to wake up with a clean face and know I took care of my skin the night before. 

Sephora is by far my favorite store to spend time in. One of my favorite things about shopping there is the Rewards program, (About to reach Rouge status and cannot wait for the upgraded rewards!!) which you can read about here. Another one of my favorite things about it is the amount of reviews that site holds and how I can read what other ladies have to say about products before I purchase. They have a great sample system both online and in the stores. In the back of the store they'll make you a sample of anything you want to try and print off information and directions for it, which is awesome. My mom sent me this article called 25 Things About Sephora Every Makeup Addict Should Know, which I highly recommend and found fascinating. 

Okay, now onto the products I use or used last winter that I love. I use my clarisonic mia daily with the Fresh Soy Face Cleanser, (or cetaphil in a pinch) but it is currently broken, (Yes, it won't take a charge anymore and I can't get it open!) so I'm using this face scrub by Laura Mercier right now. I use it in the shower each morning and love the smell and clean feel. I use this glamglow supermud clearing treatment, which is awesome, when I have any breakouts and also as a masque a couple times a month. It is kind of amazing to put on and watch how it turns a lighter color and actually pulls stuff out of your skin. It's pricey but really worth the money. Maybe try a sample before purchasing the whole thing. I did this and told the beauty advisor not to be shy and he filled it up all the way! I got at least three masques and lots of zit use out of that sample. 

I use the Korres Greek Yogurt Night Facial and the Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Resist Eye Cream when my face is feeling really dehydrated and both work great. I really love the Korres Greek Yogurt and need to repurchase a jar. During the winter I use the Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Cream on my face in the morning before putting on my foundation. I have really oily skin, however it can handle this cream in the mornings during the winter. 

Peels are something I've only gotten into over the past year. I started by using the Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta extra strength peels about a year ago, but haven't used them every day since. I do notice a difference in my skin looking brighter and more even-toned when I use them consistently. They are great in the winter when you have dry patches (I get them around my nose) and they smooth your skin right out. I've stepped it up to the Ole Henriksen Power Peel, which I use maybe twice a month, and it feels so refreshing and tight. I love the tingling feeling it gives my face and my face looks brighter after I use it. 

I obviously love to talk about beauty products so I may try to do more of these posts in the future. Sorry it was so long. ;) I apparently have a lot to say about skincare. Who knew? Happy Friday!!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Sarah

DEEP THOUGHTS ON OMBRE HAIR

Just kidding, no deep thoughts here ;) So this is something a little different for my blogitty that I don't usually do, but I can't decide what to do w/ my hair and need some help. These are some screenshots from my phone ~ sorry for not linking the pics!! I just googled ombre hair and looked for really blonde and light ombre looks. Although I have sort of a natural ombre going on right now,  (on accident) I'm thinking about going in and having my stylist professionally complete the look. I am so sick of my current hair, and feel like I've always had long blonde hair. Except for that one time I cut it all off and got addicted to haircuts. It kept getting shorter, and shorter, and shorter.  

Anyway, I am really looking to change things up, although I'm scared out of my mind. Any thoughts on this? Is ombre still in style? I see it everywhere but don't really know how it'd look on me. My stylist thinks I would hate it because I do hate when I have roots showing. I think some of these are kind of close to how it looks now, so maybe this wouldn't be a big enough change. See, I told you this would get deep, haha! 

Love this last photo. I will certainly post pictures of the final look on the blog. Not sure when I'm doing this either, but feel like Fall is the perfect time. 

On another note, I'm in California on vacation right now and can't wait to share all my pictures. Yesterday I had my first In-N-Out Burger experience and I'm probably going to eat there at least one more time this trip. We also hit the outlet stores in the desert on our way here and the stores and deals were amazing!! Here's a pic of what I wore to explore Palm Springs last night. Full posts next week. 

EDIT: I originally wrote this post while on vacation in California, and published it from my phone last Friday morning (September 18, 2015) while in Palm Springs. I had never used the blogger app on my phone before, and when I hit "publish" it wasn't published at the top of my blog with the correct date, it got buried. Buried deep. Anyway, I just wanted to repost it in case anyone wants to give me some feedback on the ombre hair. :) 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Sarah

Lucy's Makeover! Before and After

Lucy is a tricolor American Cocker Spaniel, which means she is an adorable black and white mix with tan spots. Her tan spots are on the underside of her ears, her eyebrows, some freckles on her face, and underneath her sweet little tail. 

Her hair grows fast and needs lots of brushing or she gets matted. I love having her in the cocker cut, which looks like she's wearing a skirt, but it's not practical for summer. It's not ever really practical for my girl who likes to roll in whatever she can find. Thus, we go with the shave down and ask them to keep her cocker ears long. 

Here is Lucy's "before" picture:

My little monster :)

The hair on her face grows so long between cuts that I do some trimming around her eyes so she can see. You can tell how uneven my cutting is, but it's not an activity she loves. She's getting better every time we do it though. Practice and patience, friends. 

So, without any further ado, here is Lucy's "after" picture:

Long mornings at the spa call for afternoon naps. 

 So pretty! You can really see her tan coloring when she gets groomed. Her freckles in the second "after" picture really stand out. The bows were gone by dinner time. :)

Speaking of the second picture, that empty room in the background is the dining room. J and I moved into this house in March so I think it's time to finally finish out the downstairs. I'm hoping there's a trip to Ikea this weekend to furnish the dining room, but that sounds pretty productive. I think this weekend is looking more relaxing than productive, but I'll let you know how that goes. 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Sarah