Beauty Tip of the Month

What's New

My Favorite Products

Manicure Tips

Self-Tanning Tricks

New Eye-Lash Miracle Product

Fitness Fashion News

2. You can benefit from having two kinds of mascara - a thin, lighter mascara for day and a thicker, fuller, heavier mascara for night. I like Cover Girl's Lash Blast if I'm wanting a thicker heavy smoky eye with fuller lashes - which I used to use during the day because I needed all the help I could get, but now that my lashes have grown from using Enormous Lash and I've changed it all up. I use Telescopic by L'Oreal  and Define A Lash which both which give my lashes a natural long look without a lot of heaviness. Bristle brushes are out! The newest thing is the plastic/rubbery wand - You almost can't go wrong with the stuff! 

3. Neutrogena Mineral Sheers - Sheer Bronzer. It's a really nice bronzer that also evens out the skin too. I use both the bronzer and the medium Mineral Sheer powder. The cool thing about this is you can throw it in your purse and retouch your face lightly without looking like you caked on powder. It also really evens out the skin tone even when used alone. I have all my family and friends hooked on it!

4. Nail Polish Thinner - any brand from Sally's Beauty Supply. Polish evaporates with use and needs to be thinned out. Put in a few drops and shake until it's the consistency that you need. Thinner polish dries faster and doesn't streak as easily when you are applying it. Don't go too thin of course, but you'll notice a BIG difference if you keep your polishes thinned out. I have polishes that are 10 years old and are still working like I just bought it!

6. Infallible 6 Hour Lip Gloss from L'Oreal. I love lip glosses but I hate that they wear off in like 20 minutes! This one really does last. It just came out.

7. Paul Mitchell Flat Iron - I just bought this from my hair salon (True Colors). It works awesome and you can even curl your hair with it. It has rounded edges so you can flatten it and curl it under at the ends or even do spirally stuff...it's about $150 but it's pretty freaking amazing.

8. Victoria's Secret's Sweet Cravings in their Mood line. This is a sweet, warm, rich fragrance that smells similar to Bath & Body's Black Current Vanilla line. My husband loves this stuff and I get compliments on it all the time.

9. Vanilla Red Current Bath & Body Works Aromatherapy Line. I just LOVE the way this stuff smells! I have the oil warmer, lotion, pillow spray, massage oil....basically everything they make! ha!  If you try it, make sure you let the products soak in a few minutes before you decide if you like it. I actually didn't like it at first but it warms up to a lovely fragrance.

10. Fake ID. This product is new to me but so far I really like it. It has 10% glycolic acid in it which is the highest you can go over the counter. Glycolic acid exfoliates dead skin cells revealing fresh new cells causing your skin to be brighter and smoother. It also increases cellular production so you have more healthy cells which helps smooth out lines. Normally you can only get something like this in a doctor's office, you will rarely see a product with 10% glycolic acid on shelves. Fake ID is by Intuit Beauty.

These are just a few of my favs off the top of my head! I'll let you know what else I find! I'm sure I'll go shopping today! ha! :)

 

Manicure Tips

Every woman appreciates beautifully manicured nails. I remember paying close attention to my own nails ever since I was small. As I became an adult, I realized I wasn’t the only one who enjoyed pretty nails. Manicured nails transitioned from the mark of the pampered to just another part of expected grooming. A nice manicure quickly became a part of daily business attire. Men and women began to spend more time and money on their hands than ever.

As a former licensed nail technician, I know that it can be difficult to maintain that perfect manicured look. Cleaning, gardening and doing other household chores can take quite a toll on your fingernails whether you have them professionally cared for or not. There are a few helpful tips and products that can help you maintain that nice manicured look everyone desires.

1. Shop for nail supplies at a beauty supply store like Sally’s. These stores offer the consumer a much larger variety of nail products including professional grade files, buffers, cuticle treatments and manicure tools.

2. You can’t live without a white buffing block. OK you can live without one, but you will not want to once you discover what a buffing block does for a manicure. A fine grain buffing block buffs away ridges and discoloration, dead skin from the cuticle and preps the nail surface for a smoother polish application.

3. One file can’t do it all. There are different types of fingernail files for different reasons. A course file is great for acrylic nails, hard natural nails and toe nails. Medium and fine files are better for finishing and shaping nails.

4. Nail polish thinner is the best kept secret. Nail polish evaporates every time it’s opened. A few drops of nail polish thinner can make almost any goopy polish as good as new again.

5. Know your limits. You must be realistic when choosing to maintain long nails. If you break nails often, then you are too active to have long nails. You must experiment until you find a length that seems to best suit your lifestyle.

6. Treat yourself to a professional manicure. You can learn a lot from a professional. If you don’t get your nails done professionally already, an occasional manicure can be a good refresher on the latest nail care trends and techniques.

The 5 S's to Self-Tanning

Go for the Gold…and the Bronze!  One of the greatest tricks in Hollywood to slimming sexy divas up for a night of awards can be found in a little bottle the night before! That’s right, we’re talking about self-tanning. You wouldn’t believe how many of the stars were a little ghostly just a couple of days before they hit the red carpet. Since I am the queen of self-tanning myself, I thought I would share my little secrets with you; I call them the “5 S’s to Self-Tanning” Shave, Smooth, Spread, Sleep, Shower.

First you have to SHAVE and exfoliate your skin so your tan will look smooth and last long. Next, it is important to SMOOTH out your skin with a good moisturizer, like Nivea, so that the dryer skin doesn’t grab too much color causing darker spots. The most important places to moisturize are hands, feet, ankles, knees, and elbows. Then SPREAD on your favorite self-tanner evenly and generously in a circular rubbing motion. If you use too little, you may miss a spot or streak. You’re body will only absorb so much and if you are unsure about an area, like your feet, just add a some moisturizer to help blend it evenly. Make sure knees and toes are bent so you get in between the creases of the skin. When you are all done with your body, wash your hands thoroughly to prepare for the final application to the tops of the hands. Mixing equal parts moisturizer and tanner will help make it easier to blend the tops together, making sure that your knuckles are slightly bent. Finish with more moisturizer in the palms to prevent start and stop marks. Now all you need to do is throw on a big dark T-Shirt (just in case your tanner stains) and go to SLEEP. It normally takes a few minutes to dry, but the tanner works best if left alone overnight to avoid prematurely showering off your results. After a good nights sleep, you can see your beautiful tan and SHOWER off the excess moisturizer and smell, which tends to occur from the chemical reaction between the cream and your skin.

            I know this seems like quite an ordeal, but it won’t take long before you’re a pro. Besides, this could be your time to pamper yourself and make it a real treat. For example, every Sunday and Thursday night I set aside enough time for me to take a relaxing bath and to treat myself to my favorite self-tanner. I always wake up feeling refreshed with my new glow.  Sunday gets me ready for the new work week and Thursday freshens me up for the weekend!

Bonnie’s Self-Tan Picks: The brand new SUBLIME BRONZE by L’Oreal Paris in Deep with out the bronzer tint and Banana Boat’s Deep Dark Tanning Cream with the color guide so you can see where it goes, which is better for beginners. Go for dark tan if you have more natural color in your skin or are more experienced with tanning and go for the soft to medium color choice if you are fair or just a beginner. Happy Tanning!

Afraid to do it yourself?

Visit Vero Beach's PLANET BEACH for a spray tan and let them do the work for you!

A spay tan is all you need to get the Hollywood glow!  Call (772) 562-3826 or visit them at 1555 US Hwy 1
Vero Beach, FL 32960