5 Weird Ways to Get Gorgeous

We've all tried a few unorthodox things in the name of beauty- but have you heard of these?

1. Poke your face with hundreds of tiny needles
Whoever said "Beauty is pain" wasn't kidding! A process called "dermarolling" involves rolling a tool with hundreds of needles (the length of the needles vary for depending on the results you're looking for) all over your face. The thought process behind it is that, by pricking your skin, it stimulates collagen production in those injured areas. The longer the needles, the more "injured" your skin gets and the more collagen you'll produce. A dermaroller with 1.5mm needles would be good for wrinkles, scars, and cellulite on thighs. For acne, or for making serums/treatments penetrate the skin better, you'd only need .5mm needles. Some people even use dermarollers on their scalp for hair loss. If you're interested in learning more about dermarolling, check out Dermaroller.com.

No pain, no gain?

2. Rub coffee grounds on your face to reduce bloating and bags under your eyes
We all know that drinking coffee makes you feel and look more awake and also acts as a diuretic to rid your body of excess water. But did you know that caffeine works topically as well? When you rub freshly-used coffee grounds on your face, it helps get rid of that puffy-faced look that happens when you consume too much sodium. Scientists believe that it may even help burn fat cells. Caffeine also acts as a vasoconstrictor, which means it helps shrink blood vessels- which means it'll help diminish bags under your eyes.


3. Use Monistat Chafing Relief Gel as makeup primer
One of the weirdest things I ever learned from a makeup forum was that Monistat Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder-Gel, a product meant to be rubbed on your thighs so they won't chafe, makes a great face primer. Basically, it's a silicone gel, which is the same main ingredient that gives Smashbox Photo-Finish Foundation Primer and many other popular primers their "slip". So, if you're looking for a really cheap alternative for primer, definitely try the Monistat Gel. I've tried it before and it works! Makeup applies like a dream on top of it!

Monistat Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder-Gel as Foundation Primer

4. Use a coil to rip out facial hair
Many people love threading because it quickly plucks hair out from the root, which means less stubbly regrowth, but few people can actually do threading themselves. This Bellabe hair removing coil takes the complication out of the threading process. It has foam grips on either side of the coil, and you just bend and roll it from side to side.

5. Exercise your facial muscles
Many women believe that, by strengthening certain muscles in your face, their skin gets better support, which means less sagging and wrinkles. It sounds odd to workout your face, and for good reason: most of it involves making funny faces and other methods that you should probably do in the privacy of your own bathroom (otherwise people might think you're crazy). You can find many videos and tutorials with a simple Google search of "how to exercise facial muscles"

Exercising facial muscles? She's starting young!

Obsessed: GlamNoir Snakeskin Print Bangles

All right, I admit it. I'm a ho for animal prints. One look in my closet and it's like a safari exploded in there- I have leopard print everything... but I also have crocodile bags, snakeskin and zebra print heels, and a zebra iPhone case. (Don't worry, I don't wear all of it at the same time.)

Luckily, the animal print trend is like the cockroach of fashion- it will always be there and it will survive through anything. Python is huge for the upcoming Fall season and you can find it everywhere on everything- but how 'bout some snakeskin jewelry? Far from tacky plastic bangles, these genuine snakeskin cuffs by GlamNoir are totally on-trend and look absolutely luxe (but very affordable!):

GlamNoir 14k Gold Plated Genuine Gray Snakeskin Safari Bangle Bracelet, $45

Glamnoir Genuine Golden Python Snakeskin Safari Gunmetal Bangle Bracelet, $45

Glamnoir 14k Gold Plated Black Python Snakeskin Safari Bangle Bracelet, $45

Glamnoir Genuine Pink Snakeskin Safari Gunmetal Bangle Bracelet, $45

Glamnoir Genuine Silver Snakeskin Safari Gunmetal Bangle Bracelet, $45

And one leopard print for good measure:

Glamnoir 14k Gold Plated Genuine Leather Leopard Safari Bangle Bracelet, $47

Short and Sweet: Find these gorgeous bangles + even MORE glam animal print jewelry and accessories at GlamNoir.com!

Would You Put Nipple Balm on Your Lips?

Apparently, temporary lip tattoos aren't the only weird thing people are putting on their lips these days. Women are putting nipple balms, meant soothe the area during pregnancy, on their lips as a moisturizing treatment.

Women in the UK swear by Dr. Lipp Nipple Balm for Lips. In Japan, they're using Pretty Pink Cream for Lips and Nipples. Americans came up with the Nipple Nibblers Lip Balm Stick and Sugar Lips Nipple Gloss in "Whip Me Cream", which (surprise, surprise) weren't really designed for pregnant women so much as erotic experimentation.

Would you try any of these products???

Dr. Lipp Nipple Balm for Lips, $40

Nipple Nibblers Lip Balm Stick, $4 (different flavors)

Sugar Lips Nipple Gloss in "Whip Me Cream", $7

Pretty Pink Cream for Lips and Nipples, $40   (Gotta love the happy, smiling nipple and the well-endowed cat.)

Have You Taken Your Pretty Pills Today?

 

 These vitamin and supplement packs are like the Fountain of Youth in pill form. I bought a 7-day trial pack at Walgreens for $2 (the vitamins are individually packaged for daily use, with 5 different pills in each daily package:

1) Green Tea + Alpha Lipoic Acid
2) Lycopene
3) Biotin
4) Vitamin C
5) Multivitamin

I did a lot of research on what vitamins/supplements the body needs to prevent wrinkles and signs of aging and these packets contains sooo many beneficial ingredients.

How to Get Million-Dollar Hair for Under $10

Today, I read that Rihanna spends $1 million dollars on her hair every year. That's INSANE!!! Then again, her perfectly styled, fiery red locks are a huge part of her image and stage presence. (Plus, she has the money to spend, so why not?) Celebrities like her have teams of people who work around the clock to keep her looking gorgeous.

As for poor little ol' me (emphasis on the word "poor"), I don't have the dough for celebrity hair maintenance. My wallet already takes a beating from my financially-crippling online shopping addiction. :(

Horrible spending habits aside, I've recently made it my life's mission to have hair as shiny as Camilla Belle's. Luckily for me (and anyone else on a budget), getting super shiny hair is pretty inexpensive.

Camilla Belle, you are my hair idol

 

After reading the book Can You Get Hooked on Lip Balm?, I found out that avocado and coconut are two of the best things to put in your hair because the oils penetrate the hair shaft better than other oils. I break out from using avocado oil or coconut oil directly on my hair or skin but, for some reason, I don't break out when I use mashed avocado and coconut milk. I make a hair mask every once in a while with both of those ingredients to strengthen my hair and hydrate it a couple days before coloring:

 

Ingredients
1 Can Coconut Milk
1 Avocado
Medium-Sized Pot
Mixing bowl
Stirring Spoon
Shower cap
Someone to help you (if possible)


Directions
1. Simmer down the coconut milk on LOW heat until it is a thick cream. Stir constantly to prevent burning/sticking to the bottom of the pot.

2. While waiting for the water to evaporate from the coconut milk, scoop out the avocado, removing the skin and the pit, and mash in a bowl until smooth.

3. Pour the coconut cream into the mashed avocado and mix until blended.

4. Let this mixture cool until lukewarm and then massage into DRY hair from ends toward roots. Saturate well and cover your hair with a shower cap.

5. Let the mask sit for as long as possible (at least 30 min). You can wrap a hot towel (fresh from the dryer) around your head to help it penetrate your hair better/faster.

6. Rinse the mixture out of your hair in the shower and shampoo and condition your hair.

Short and Sweet: Do this avocado and coconut hair mask a few times a month and you'll have crazy shiny, healthy hair, sans the huge dent in your non-celebrity bank account.

Orange Hair: Tolerable on Muppets, Tragic on People

My new 'do :)

I got my hair cut and highlighted yesterday! I've bleached my hair in the past, so I know that going lighter means a lot more upkeep. (Brassy hair is the worst.) To keep my hair color looking fresh, I looked up sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners that wouldn't strip the color off of my hair.

Enjoy Sulfate-Free Luxury Shampoo and Conditioner, $40, Amazon.com

Enjoy Luxury Shampoo and Conditioner have rave reviews all over the web. I don't think many people have heard of Enjoy Hair Care yet but all of their products look promising. Unfortunately, this is a salon-quality line, so it's pretty pricey, so I looked for the best prices and found them at Amazon.

5-Piece Enjoy Luxury Travel Kit, $15, SkincareChoices.com

I just ordered a Enjoy Luxury Travel Kit to test the products out before I drop a ton of money on full-sized (or even Costco-sized) bottles. I like that these products don't contain harsh sulfates, which irritate my sensitive skin, or oils, which break me out.

Ardell Red Gold Corrector Plus

To counteract any brassiness or yellowing when I get my hair highlighted, I always add a few drops of Ardell Gold Red Corrector to both the shampoo and conditioner bottles to deposit a very sheer violet-blue color (opposite of yellow-orange on the color wheel) each time I wash my hair. This helps tone my hair to keep it from looking orange.

I'd be upset, too, if my hair was that orange...

I'll write a review on the Enjoy products as soon as I can. I'm hoping that my hair will look healthy, gorgeous, and vibrant for the full 2 months until I go back to the salon :)

The Mary Poppins of Styling Products: Tough Love for Bratty Hair

My hair is like a bratty little kid, living on my head. It refuses to do what I want it to, it stays up when I want it to lie down and lies down when I want it to stay up, and I have to beat it into submission on a regular basis. (Ok, so I wouldn't beat a kid but you know what I mean.)

On top of that, my scalp is super sensitive to all kinds of ingredients-  so if my hair was a bratty kid, it would be one of those kids that constantly needs an inhaler and an Epi-Pen and has to live in a bubble to protect itself from the outside world. You can imagine the trouble I have finding hair products that work for me.
Luckily, I stopped by Naimie's Beauty Center last weekend and spoke to a really friendly sales girl who knew exactly what my hair needed: Osmo Essence Aqua Wax Hard.

Osmo Essence Aqua Wax Hard, $20

I am absolutely in love with this styling product! It's a transparent cobalt-blue wax (think blue Jello) that's firm enough to keep flyways and frizz at bay but soft enough that it doesn't make my hair stiff at all. It imparts glassy shine, touchable hold, and a very light unisex scent. (I literally have to hide it so my boyfriend won't steal it.) It's also water-soluble so you can mix a bit of water and product in your palm to thin it out.
I use it straight out of the jar, on dry hair, for maximum hold. Just grab a dime-sized amount, rub it between your palms, and apply to the middle to ends of your hair. Then, lightly pat down any baby hairs at the roots.
I highly, HIGHLY recommend this finishing product to anyone whose hair needs some tough love! This stuff is firm enough to keep my bratty hair in line-  but in a gentle, non-irritating way.

If This Clay Mask Were a Man, I'd Marry it

I couldn't sleep the other night, so I ended up window-shopping the skincare goods on Amazon. Somehow, I stumbled upon a product called Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay. I was immediately attracted to the mystical sounding name- I envisioned witch-doctors using the clay to heal their patients' wounds... (It was 3 AM, okay- I was delirious.)

Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay, $7-9, Whole Foods or Amazon.com

Then, I noticed that this product had great reviews from over a hundred people who all swore that this stuff could get rid of everything from acne to poison ivy to spider bites. I was definitely intrigued and, after Googling it a bit more, I found out that this calcium bentonite clay has tons of uses and rave reviews all over the internet.

Jewel-Toned Heaven!

Summer's almost over, which means it's fall wardrobe shopping time! Here are some of the gorgeous jewel-colored goodies on my wish list:

Bebe Slit Sleeve Keyhole Bodysuit, $44

Brian Atwood "Maniac" Calf Hair Pumps, $735

Diane de Maria "Bonnie" Bag in Hollywood 104, $1500

ISSA Emerald Sleeveless Silk Jersey Dress, $460

NYX "Haute Jersey" Palette: It's Like Snooki-in-A-Box

Like any other born-and-raised New Yorker, I was bred to hate all things Jersey. That is, until I started watching Jersey Shore on MTV. For the record, my boyfriend and I only started watching that show so we could bash the pumpkin-orange, fist-pumping mess of a cast but, admittedly, I'm kind of obsessed with it now. (Hey, every girl's allowed to have some guilty pleasures.)

Now, to my even greater shame as a New Yorker, I have another Jersey-related obsession: the "Haute Jersey" palette by NYX Cosmetics. (Although the name will always be an oxymoron to me.)

NYX Cosmetics Haute Jersey Palette, $25

This palette is like Snooki-in-A-Box:  the leopard print (which is definitely what drew me to this thing in the first place), the bronzers, the intense eye shadow colors... as Ms. Polizzi would say, "It's fuckin awesome."

NYX Cosmetics Haute Jersey Palette, $25

NEW Ardell Clear Brush-On Lash Glue

I love fake eyelashes but they can be such a pain in the *ss to put on-  the glue is so messy and gets all over the place. There's usually also a lot of product waste since you only really need a skinny strip of glue yet it just spurts out of the tube.

Luckily, Ardell's new brush-on lash glue will save you time and aggravation. It goes on clear, dries clear, and makes it easier to get just the right amount of glue on the lash strip.