Cocoa & Coffee Mask

So I live on Long Island currently, and where I live has hard water. This means that it makes your skin abnormally dry. I usually have pretty dry skin, so when I moved here for the summer, it got even worse. 

I work as a TV/movie extra, so I can't have dry skin because it will look horrible on camera. Not only do I lotion my face about a thousand times a day (tip: an easy way to know how much you should lotion your face-- lotion your face every time you get hungry) I've been using different kinds of DIY face masks. 

I have a shoot tomorrow, so I did this one tonight for about a half an hour, rinsed my face and then lotioned it. My skin feels great! I'm excited because my face will be nice and moisturized for tomorrow's shoot.  

I found this one online when I looked for masks for dry skin. It's suppose to use coffee grounds, but instead I used the Frank original body scrub which has amazing ingredients that help targets a number of skin conditions! I like it because it helps reduce the look of cellulite, eczema and stretch marks all of which I personally have.  

Mix: 

2 tbs coffee grounds

2 tbs cocoa powder

3tbs milk

1 tbs honey

It makes quite a bit so I've been able to use it a couple times, and I love it! My face is so smooth now, I can't even believe it. 

I'm always skeptical about beauty practices until I do them for myself to see how they work, and this one I definitely recommend!

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This is where I got the recipe for the mask, all rights reserved to original author. 

I only made the recipe better 😏

Waist Trainers: Use it or Lose it?

I recently got a waist trainer. I've seen them all over Instagram, and I'm sure you have too. Everyone seems to use them, including the notorious Kardashian clan. This is where they initially gained traction from. But are their claims legit, or just another bogus celebrity endorsement? 

I'm taking the time to help you figure this out before you spend your hard earned money on one. 

First, here's my before picture:

I've read that results come anywhere from overnight (which, let's be real, doesn't sound entirely realistic) to about a month. I'm assuming it's going to take closer to a month because you're basically reforming your body which can take a while.  

I got mine about a week ago and have been wearing it ever since. The optimal wearing time for the trainer is about 4-8 hours a day. I've personally been choosing to wear it around 7-8 hours, if I can. 

After wearing it for about a week, I do notice some slight changes, but nothing too major. When I start to notice more and more of a difference, I will update you with pictures.  So far, so good. The first time I put it on, I could barely make it to the widest clips, but I've been about to take it in to the smallest clips recently.

Unfortunately, since I didn't get a brand name one, the quality of the trainer has been lessened. This specific one has been ripping and some of the steel bars pop out, but it's an easy fix I can deal with for now. 

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Fair warning: I did not use a name brand waist trainer, I simply got a cute one (see picture) off eBay to test it out and see if it was worth spending the money on the real deal. It contains steel bones/bars just like the ones celebrities use.  

Let My Eyes Look Into Your Soul

One of my favorite things to do that both relaxes me, and makes me look better, is doing my makeup. It's really a therapeutic activity that many girls (and guys!) use for multiple reasons.  

This is one of my favorite go-to looks for work. I usually use pink and gold, or purple and gold. Sometimes I even use teal and gold.  I love gold eyeshadow with brown eyes. It just makes your eyes stand out so much more (in addition to on fleek eyebrows). 

More people should use colors that make their eyes stand out as their normal go-to look. Your eyes say a lot about you, so make sure they're saying something good!

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Used:

a small Bobbi Brown palate 

(circa 2009 so they probably don't sell it anymore)

using their light gold and dark gold for the base and the outer corner

No name brand for the purple

Maybelline Lasting Drama gel eyeliner in blackest black

NYX mascara La Amoureux

Maybelline Lash Sensation Mascara