Yamleh Foundation Brush

When it comes to foundation I spent a lot of years using powders with kabuki brushes so when it came to using a liquid I always defaulted to my fingers. But of course, I decided to put a brush to the test because I'm tired of people telling me how unhygienic it is to use my fingers. Hello! Ever heard of washing your hands and letting them air dry before touching your makeup? No...figures!

But anyway, as a beauty blogger I have to be a trooper and try things out as much as possible and thankfully Yamleh gave with the chance with their foundation blending brush. I really like that the fibers don't shed, therefor not leaving any strands of hair trapped between my skin and the subtle foundation/tinted moisturizer. They're also super soft so it doesn't feel rough against my skin. I mostly used this for my ELF foundation because it's the thickest liquid face makeup that I own and I wanted to see if this brush not only grabbed on to it well but applied most of it to my skin. It was a success on both accounts.

When I went to wash it off a few days after using the foundation brush it was easy to get everything off and it dried within 24 hours. While I still blend my tinted moisturizers with my fingers I"m going to keep this brush around for nights that I want more coverage by using foundation that normally takes me a bit longer to blend in.

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Posh v Pinch: The Perfect Coverage

It's been a long time coming! I've been on the hunt for the prefect and affordable foundation for what seems like years. I found it a while back in Laura Mercier's Tinted Moisturizer but the price started to get a little too steep for me. Especially since I constantly mixed it with my Stila Illuminating Beauty Balm so I was using twice the amount of products to achieve the same result.

When I was in NYC this summer I decided to give Sephora's 10 hour Wear Perfection Foundation a try to see if I could find the perfect shade and I was so happy to find that I did! Not only did I grab that but I also tried it with their Bronze Perfect CC Cream and it was affordable heaven!

Now I know that my go to Laura Mercier product isn't a foundation but it acts like one for me. It supplies me with enough coverage while leaving my skin looking totally natural. the only complain that I ever had with it was that I sometimes felt like my skin looked really flat so I would use an all over face bronzer my Bare Minerals to give my skin that extra kick. The cost of the product was never really an issue for me because I was fine paying just a bit more for a single product that worked well. But after realizing that I also used a bronzer the cost kinda went up so the search began.

It took a few tries for me to find the right shade of the Sephora foundation and I've started to use it without the addition of the CC cream but with just a moisturizer with SPF instead since it is something that the tinted moisturizer has over this one. All in all the cost comes out to be more beneficial for my wallet with the Laura Mercier at $43 and my Sephora combo now coming out to $31 thanks to a sale on the CC cream. I now just have to see if I'm 100% happy with the results. So far I did leave my mark on my boyfriends shirt the other day but that could have been because I just got ready right before he arrived and we hug a bit too much, so we shall see. I'll let you ladies know if I've found a suitable and affordable replacement or not!

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Microbiome Plus+ GI - Ultimate Probiotic and Prebiotic Supplements

We all know that probiotics have been a trend for years thanks to Activia so I don't need to go into why they're a good thing for general health but I will say that anyone changing their diet to a healthier can benefit from them. Just like any detox supplement these Microbiome Probiotic Supplements are said to help get your digestive system in order and help with bloating, keeping you regular (which also kinda helps with bloating, right?), and getting rid of all the nasty stuff left behind from eating really crappy food.

I was given the chance to give these a try but since I already eat pretty well I didn't notice a super kick to my system. I also drink tons of coffee in the morning so....you know what that means! I do like how it's said to help with the immune system and living with someone who has been sick for weeks, as well and dealing with really sick co-workers I do have to say that I haven't had so much as  a sniffle so maybe this has been working.

My order came with 4 boxes--one for each week--with two pills each. I'm not that big on taking pills but these go down easy and I don't feel any side effects after, which would be a total no-no for me! I'm not sure if I'll continue to take these because I try to get everything I need in terms of vitamins and minerals naturally but I know that not everyone has as much time to devout to making sure they get enough of what they need on a daily basis so if that's you and you want to give these a try feel free to enter the giveaway they're letting me run and you can try these out for yourself! a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Is Traveling for $20 a Day Possible?

Well, Vanabode says yes! I am pretty much a super budget traveller. I know when to purchase tickets, what days to fly out, how to maximize my time abroad by not having to backtrack (unless I have other friends to see in my first city), and where to find the best accommodations. I never did get to travel on $20 a day though which is something I wouldn't be able to do now because I pretty much spend about that much on booze alone while I'm on vacation. Per meal. Per. Meal.

So basically living in a vanabode is living in a van that is your home for more than just a week or two. It's a total lifestyle that I know is super hard for me and 95% of my friends to do in this stage of our lives. I yearn for the days that I can just roam around with a few of my family members in an RV, keeping ourselves entertained without needed the Internet or TV, and just making the best out of being minimalistic but realistically I'm way past that point. I like things. I need my moisturizers, to keep in touch with my friend across the US and abroad, eating fancy cheese and drinking wine. I wouldn't survive on $20 a day. I can probably spend only $20 as it is now but housing and keeping the lights out already have me at a lot more than that.

I do love the book and know a few of my friends that would love it as well. If anyone really wants to disappear into the open road there's so much advice here not just on choosing the right essentials but keeping yourself safe and secure while doing so. The idea really does fascinate me. I know I can easily do it if I wanted to or if my cousins just gave me a really big push! It's just so tough to leave things like health insurance, income, and an apartment behind. And my shoes. I am just a wee bit attached to my shoes!

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Sleep Well CD & Giveaway

I've been having lots of trouble sleeping lately. Life is getting a bit overwhelming and I've got a lot going on that makes it a bit tough to fall asleep easily. I've been taking unisom but I don't want to be dependent on a pill to fall asleep and I know it's not helping me sleep easier. It's just helping me fall asleep fast.

On came the Sleep Well CD by Janet Montgomery and Jeff Gold. Janet is a hypnotherapist with a super soft voice that pretty much gives you a relaxing session whenever you want. I'm a huge supporter of people working in the mental health industry so I was able to listen to this CD with an open mind.

The music in this CD is very relaxing and goes great with her voice. It helps put me in a really calming place and lets the stress of the day be washed away. It's pretty much like having someone read The Secret to you before bed so that you could go to bed super relaxed and positive and wake up the same way as well.

If you're like me and need help calming your mind before bed, or even during an afternoon nap, you're in luck because they gave me the chance to give one of these away to my amazing readers! So enter below:




a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Gurin Hair Straightener

I haven't had the chance to try out many hair products or tools so I was really excited when I was sent Gurin's Flat Iron to give my thoughts on it. I've had my most recent straightener since 2008 and it still worked amazing even though it looked a bit worse for wear so it was totally time for a new one!

When I got this straightener in the mail I loved how it came. It was set in this red silk bag that doubled as a carrying case and it just looked really nice. It wasn't just thrown in the box with the cord tied up. I decided to use it that night because I was due for a night of beauty and just really wanted to play with it.

My hair routine goes a little something like this: I shampoo and condition, set my hair in rollers, sit under my awesome hair dryer for about an hour while I pretend to do work, blow dry the roots as I remove eat roller and then pass the flat iron. This takes me about 2-3 hours, depending on how slow I am, but the results are worth it. I'm able to do this about once a week, usually on a Sunday, and then I'm done dealing with my hair too much for the rest of the week.

Sadly, I was disappointed when trying the Gurin straightener for the first time. The hair straightener started to heat up right away but it didn't do a thing for my strands. I used really small sections of hair , because my hair can be really thick, and I didn't get any kind of result. My hair was still slightly frizzy, bouncy, and nothing was achieved. After trying it on two sections I unplugged and went back to my Babyliss flat iron that has been keeping me sleek and shiny for over six years now. 

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