Jan30

January 2019 Finishes

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January 2019 Finishes

Hiiii everyone and welcome to our first finishes post of 2019! We are one month into the new year and, since basically anything beats the month that I had in December, I’d say that I’m feeling pretty good! Because I wasn’t well enough to comply with my beloved beauty routines last month, it felt good to fall back into the swing of all of my self care and this brought me lots of empties to chat with you about today. Take a look and let’s discuss:

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Would I Use Again?

  • Suave Almond Verbena body wash: Maybe
  • Bath & Body Works Mango Mandarin body spray: Yes
  • Lubriderm Daily Moisture lotion: Yes
  • Unknown brand Radiance Crystal Cleansing Foam: YES!
  • Garnier Micellar Water: Yes
  • AlpineSilk moisturizer: Yes
  • Clinique Moisture Surge moisturizer: YES!

Why/Why Not?

Suave Body Wash: This Almond Verbena body wash by Suave was just okay. It smelled fine, it lathered fine but could be better, and I finished the bottle in one month. I wouldn’t go out of my way to use it again but, if it was cheap and available, I would probably get it.

B&BW Body Spray: I loooove the Mango Mandarin body spray from B&BW and I stock up on it every year during their summer sale. It’s the perfect fragrance for a warm day, but it is also nice to use during the colder months to add some sunshiney pep to your step. Any citrus scent always goes down well with me, especially when it takes me over five months to finish one bottle!

Lubriderm Lotion: I am constantly getting new tattoos and Lubriderm has become a staple in my bath and body care hoard. It feels oh so good on fresh ink and it helps move along the healing process. My tattoo artist recommends applying it to new tattoos once in the morning, afternoon, and night and it takes me about four months to finish one bottle.

Crystal Cleansing Foam: I, sadly, have no idea what brand made the Radiance Crystal Cleansing Foam and I really wish I did, because I LOVED IT. Foam cleansers are my favorite to use, simply because it feels really good and my skin always feels so fresh after using it. This face wash removed my makeup and left my skin feeling so soft and looking really bright. I started using this product in mid October and I finished it at the end of January, so it was an amazing value, to boot!

Garnier Micellar Water: Another product that has become a staple in my beauty routine is the Garnier Micellar Water. I like to use it as a toner and a makeup remover and it always does its job well. And, as per ushe, it took me one month to finish one bottle.

AlpineSilk Moisturizer: I purchased this moisturizer from TJMaxx a while back ago and finished it up in mid January. I liked this product because a little went a long way and you didn’t need to cake it on for your skin to feel hydrated. It took me about a month and a half to finish this moisturizer up and I would definitely use it again if I found it the next time I was at TJ’s.

Clinique Moisturizer: This is my second sample of the Moisture Surge moisturizer by Clinique and I love it just as much the second time around. I can’t even describe the texture of it – it’s a lot lighter than a gel moisturizer, though, so it spreads so easily across your skin and, my god, does it hydrate. After one use, my skin felt so good and supple and it just glowed. I would LOVE to get a full sized jar of this product and am hoping to find it at TJMaxx some day. Fingers crossed!

January was a great month for empties and I loved being able to pamper myself the way I like with all of my favorite products. I missed using all of my bath and body and skin care goodies in December, so it felt so good to indulge in all of the items that have become must haves in my beauty routine. 🙂

Have you used any of the products discussed above? What were your thoughts on them? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan29

Huda Beauty Emerald Obsessions Eyeshadow Review

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Huda Beauty Emerald Obsessions Eyeshadow Review

Hello! Recently, we swatched the Emerald Obsessions palette by Huda Beauty to take a closer look at all of the colors that you can see below. I finally got around to using the emerald glitter eyeshadow the other day and, sadly, it did not go over too well. I wasn’t expecting much from this palette because, as you can remember, all of my reviews were pretty wishy washy. And, in this case, I hate being right because it was such a thoughtful Christmas gift from my sister! I didn’t take any pictures of my MOTD because I was working all day, but here is a reminder of what the palette and that specific shade of eyeshadow looks like:

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^^^ The first heart is the eyeshadow wet and the second one is when it’s dry.

When it comes to makeup, I really do like to keep things fairly simple. I try not to go overboard because I have a lot of facial piercings and tattoos on my body, so heavy makeup often looks too “much”. So, when I am applying my eye makeup, I either use a colored eyeliner or use an eyeshadow as an eyeliner and leave it at that – and it works! When I decided to use my Huda Beauty palette, I knew that I would be lining my eyes with the shadow and that’s about it. 1) I’m bad at doing makeup on my eyelids in general. 2) If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.

If you can recall, one of the resounding comments that I made as we swatched the Emerald Obsessions eyeshadow was that it was very dusty. Regardless of whether it was wet or dry, the product was flaky and powdery and it didn’t apply well on my hand – so I don’t know why I thought it would apply well on my eyelids! It took many micellar water Q-tips to clear away all of the eyeshadow that fell onto my face and throughout the day I had to continue wiping away little flecks that had fallen.

By the end of the day, the eyeshadow had completely transferred all over my eyelids, which was a far cry from the lining I had originally started with. I hate when this happens more than anything and I do a great job of preventing this by covering my lids with my Blush On Radiance beads from The Body Shop once my eye makeup is on. But, my tried and true technique didn’t stand a change against the Huda Beauty eyeshadow and my eye makeup looked like I spent a long day partying by the time I got home. Not cute.

If this is how all of the HB eyeshadows are, then I wouldn’t recommend it at all. I quite liked the color that I used, but the quality of the shadow was so low and I was left looking like a hot mess instead of a hottie – not a good look! -___-

What are your thoughts on Huda Beauty products? What is your favorite brand of eyeshadow? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan28

Surgery Story

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Surgery Story

Hello! A lot of you have shown interest and sent well wishes in regards to my surgery from hell last month and it has been so appreciated. Now that I’m finally in the clear, I figured I would give all of you a run down of what happened, because it was pretty intense! For those of you who don’t remember, last month I got all four of my wisdom teeth out as well as a gum transplant, which is when gums from the palette of the mouth get sewn into areas where the gums are receding. In my case, it was essentially along the front length of my bottom teeth. Hurray!

The first thing that I can remember about waking up from surgery is screaming from the anesthesia, which is what always happens when I come out of it. A nurse then walked in the room to inform me that I had to be quiet because other people were in the office. Then, she had me get up and go into my dad’s car to get home. Sweet! The entire car ride home, I can remember asking my dad if he was my dad. And he, in fact, was. So that’s always a plus.

Once I got home, everything went as expected and I spent the rest of that Friday and weekend recovering. Then, on Monday, I returned back to work. And everything until Thursday was going as good as it could be, despite the pain. It was about six days out from surgery that things started going poorly, and I had to leave work because the pain was getting really intense. I went home and figured I had pushed myself too hard post-op and decided to spend a long weekend recovering. At that point, I was still eating even though it was really hard and soldiering on thinking that this was all just part of the surgery drill. I was oh so wrong.

Within the next few days, the pain got so bad that I could no longer eat and I decided to take a trip back to the surgeon. He informed me that my oral hygiene was bad and to brush better. Yes, brush better even though I had seven open wounds in my mouth. I received no pain medication, left the office feeling just as miserable, and went home to try and implement the doctor’s advice. It was within this time period that I had to start drinking with a syringe, because I couldn’t stand any type of food or liquid touching the surgery sites in my mouth. I also had to cancel all of my clients for the week, because I was too weak and woozy with pain, lack of sleep, and hunger to do anything.

For EIGHT DAYS, I drank Gatorade and water from a syringe and, then, the weekend rolled around and I couldn’t stop throwing up. My empty stomach couldn’t handle the medication cocktail of Motrin and Tylenol that I was taking. So, you can only imagine what stomach acid felt like on all of the wounds. Sunday came and I had to go to the ER to get fluids, anti nausea medicine, and Morphine administered to me via IV and I was given a prescription for some liquid Codine and nausea meds to take home.

The following day, I went back to the surgeon and he told me that the sites where he took gum from the roof of my mouth pretty much bottomed out on itself and I had nothing but exposed bone up there. Thus, the extreme pain when it came to basically anything. He also treated a dry socket, during which a smiling nurse told me to be quiet while I yelped in pain as a pack of gauze was shoved in the hole where my wisdom tooth was taken out. So nice!

The only positive about that visit was that I learned what was wrong with me and that I finally was prescribed with painkillers so that I could try chugging some Ensure to help get my strength up. The surgeon told me he has never seen anything like what my mouth was doing, so that was also very reassuring. For the next several days, I was drinking up to ten Ensure a day to try and make up for the eight days where I ate nothing.

Although I still could barely sleep or do anything, for that matter, I felt like I was somewhat on the upswing, because I was taking in some calories. And, then, when it felt like nothing else could go wrong – my jaw got infected on Christmas day. Happy holidays to me, am I right? A huge, painful knot had formed in what felt like an hour and one side of my face was extremely swollen. So, another trip to the surgeon was scheduled for two days later.

At this appointment, I was given antibiotics for the infection and, although the surgeon noted my obvious need for more painkillers, I was not given any because of the opioid epidemic, so that was awesome. From December 27th to January 3rd when I returned back to work, I was in a weird limbo of doing nothing, drinking Ensure, and attempting to eat pureed food. I don’t think I started eating soft food somewhat regularly until the following weekend. You guys have no idea how good any type of food tastes after throwing back bottles of Ensure day in and day out!

It took me a while to get back into the swing of work because, unfortunately, I had to take over three weeks off. And, during my first week or so back, I got tired very easily while on the job and had to rest a lot. The only major upset I’ve experienced was two weeks ago, when I pulled two huge chunks of bone out of the roof of my mouth, which was super delicious. Other than that, things have gone fairly well, thank goodness.

December truly was a miserable month for me. Not only was the pain in my mouth so extreme, but I didn’t get my first full night of sleep until January 5th so I was utterly exhausted, my stomach was a mess because of the medicine that I was taking and the liquid diet, and it hurt to do just about anything. I had to take a lot of time off of work and, because I’m self employed, I got no type of sick leave. The Ensure was expensive. And, the holidays just felt sad and gloomy, which made me feel even worse, because it is usually my favorite time of the year.

I am so thankful to be feeling better and back to work and I am slowly forgetting about the major trauma that I went through for the duration of a month. And, obviously, I will never be recommending the surgeon who I saw to anyone, EVER! Woof.

Has anyone dealt with the trauma of a surgery gone wrong? What is your least favorite type of doctor to see? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan27

Lots Of Snow In Ohio

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Lots Of Snow In Ohio

Hiiii! This past weekend, my neck of the woods in good ol’ Akron, Ohio got absolutely pummeled with snow. It had myself and my family stuck indoors for three days straight and the roads were so bad that I couldn’t get to work when Monday rolled around. I also couldn’t go to my planned weekend trip to Pittsburgh for some quality cousin time. I was so bummed! In a nutshell, it was insanely boring, freezing, and oh so very, very snowy. Lots of people have been interested in pictures of what this massive snowfall looked like, so I ventured out into the tundra and snapped the following:

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^^^ As you can see, the snow was up to my mid thigh – yikes!

For three days in a row, I basically did nothing but hang out, play Candy Crush, watch TLC, and a few LifeTime movies. And, of course, stare out the window and watch all of the snow that we didn’t get throughout the winter fall outside in a matter of a day and a half. It was pretty crazy to see, because my area barely got any snow for the past few months – in fact, we had a lot of days in the forties and fifties. Incredibly mild, to say the least!

Since this RAS (Random Act Of Snowfall), things have pretty much gone back to normal weatherwise in the 330. It is definitely a lot colder than what we’ve been used to, though. But, single digit temperatures have never stopped us Midwesterners yet. 😀 #ope

What is the weather like where you live? What is your favorite type of weather? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan26

Daily Dose Of Adorable

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Daily Dose Of Adorable

Hello! My parents are seriously one of the cutest couples on the planet, and they always seem to be doing something sweet for each other. Just this past week, for example, my dad brought home the gorgeous tulips seen below for my mom to bring a little spring to her step despite the insane snowfall our neck of the woods was hit with. He also used a Precious Moments advertisement in the Parade magazine to make the most precious thing I’ve ever seen. Check it out:

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Every year, my dad plans an amazing summer family vacation. And, after my mom had read several books set at charming beach locations, she decided that the sea was the place to be. Coincidentally, my dad was thinking the same thing after many trips to the mountainous North Carolina region. So, he chose Hilton Head for the very first Mushenheim family beach vacation.

Shortly after this decision was made, I saw the Precious Moments ad hanging on our refrigerator with some adjustments to it in my dad’s handwriting. It was basically the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen and I think my mom agrees, because it has been displayed ever since. This, on top of the lovely bouquet that my dad bought for her is more adorable than I can bear and, needless to say, my parents are definitely #relationshipgoals!

What is something sweet that your significant other has done for you? What are your #relationshipgoals? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan25

Face Mask Festivities: Global Beauty Care Metallics Edition

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Face Mask Festivities: Global Beauty Care Metallics Edition

Helloooo everyone and welcome to a new edition of Face Mask Festivities. In the words of Goldmember from Austin Powers…. I love gooooooooooooooooold. Oh yes, I sure do. Gold jewelry, gold eyeshadow, and now, most recently, gold skin care! My love for all things gold when it comes to my skin looking right began with the Azure Lux Rose Gold Sparkling Serum that I scored from TJMaxx. It is utterly amazing and leaves my skin positively radiant. So, during a recent haul at TJ’s, I needed more – including this Global Beauty Care face mask:

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The metallic face mask seen above includes gold, Manuka honey, and royal jelly. All of which work wonders for your skin. The gold firms and tones the skin while reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The Manuka honey helps your skin lock in moisture for a dewy complexion. And the royal jelly treats dry skin while promoting new skin growth. Talk about a trifecta to combat dull and dehydrated skin – especially during these cold winter months!

I have never used a metallic face mask before and I was really looking forward to putting this Global Beauty Care mask to the test. Usually, my first impression of a product is its smell but, this one is scent free, so we will move onto its appearance and texture. This mask was a bit more runny than I would like, however, I did love the over exaggerated gold color and shimmer so that made up for the thinner texture.

One disappointing thing about this mask, is that it didn’t seem to dry – which is what I like for a face mask to do when I’m using one. It stayed very wet for the ten minute duration that I had it on for and that’s fine, but definitely not what I prefer.

My skin did feel somewhat hydrated after I washed it off but it wasn’t so remarkable that I would rave about it. I also didn’t notice the radiance in my skin that I see instantly with the serum that I’m using, which takes a matter of seconds to apply. This Global Beauty Care mask was fun to use because of the color and shimmer, but I don’t recommend purchasing it because it was overall a bit of a let down. Whomp whompppp.

What is your favorite metallic face mask? Do you prefer silver or gold? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan24

Blush, Baby: Clinique Swatch In Melon Pop Edition

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Blush, Baby: Clinique Swatch In Melon Pop Edition

Hi! Clinique is a brand that I’ve grown increasingly fond of as of late. I love their skin care, I’m obsessed with their chubby sticks, and their Pansy Pop blush was my first high end makeup product. So, I was really happy that my sister passed down her Melon Pop blush by Clinique onto me. Their Pop blush collection is such a fun array of bright and springy hues and they offer the perfect pop of color for any MOTD. Take a look and let’s discuss:

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What I love the most about Clinique products is that you know you’re getting the good stuff. It is such a reputable brand and makeup lovers young and old all seem to flock to it at some point or another. I feel pampered when I use Clinique goodies and, even though this blush is used, I know that I am still going to enjoy it as if it were brand new.

Like I mentioned earlier, I love the Clinique Pop collection and Melon Pop is a delicious summery shade fresh out of a chopped fruit salad. Melon Pop is delightfully reminiscent of a juicy cantaloupe, and it has the sweetest hints of pink underneath so that you’re not rubbing straight up orange onto your cheeks. This will be the perfect shade to bust out come springtime with a lovely floral dress or while you’re trying to catch a tan this summer. I can’t wait to use it!

Thanks a lot to my sister, Kristen, for sharing her makeup with me! We swatched a lot of great products and I am looking forward to putting all of them to the test soon! 😀

What is your favorite product that we swatched recently? What is your favorite brand of makeup or skin care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan23

Ulta Beauty Liquid Illuminator Swatch In Northern Lights

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Ulta Beauty Liquid Illuminator Swatch In Northern Lights

Greetings! Today, we are going to take a look at a Liquid Illuminator product by Ulta Beauty in a shade called Northern Lights. I have never tried Ulta’s own brand of makeup and have never felt inclined to, because the reviews that I have seen have always been fairly average. But, this illuminator was handed down to me from my sister, so swatch it we shall. Here we go:

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I have never used a liquid highlighter before, so I don’t know what I was expecting. But, I will say that the texture of this product was really, really thick. Of course, for swatchings sake, I always apply the products more heavily so it can be picked up on the camera. But, regardless of how much I put on, the highlighter felt cakey even when spread across most of the back of my hand.

I actually quite like the idea of this product, and the color and its namesake are kind of fun. But, I don’t think that a liquid illuminator will ever replace a traditional powdered highlighter for me. I can see myself applying this Ulta Beauty illuminator in really small doses around the corner of my eyes, but that’s about it. Anything else would look too unnatural for me, and I don’t like combining something so loud when my favorite thing to rock is a bold lip.

I can’t say that I would recommend the liquid illuminator, but I can see something like this being fun to use in a more costume style approach, so there’s that. Otherwise, I’ll be sticking to regular highlighters!

Would you ever use a product like a liquid illuminator? Do you prefer liquid or traditional makeup? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan22

Blush, Baby: Seraphine Botanicals Swatch In Happy Hibiscus Edition

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Blush, Baby: Seraphine Botanicals Swatch In Happy Hibiscus Edition

Hello, hello everyone and welcome to another edition of Blush, Baby! Today, we will be discussing a Seraphine Botanicals hue in Happy Hibiscus. With all of these new shades of blush that I got from my sister, I will never be without color in my cheeks! Take a look at Happy Hibiscus and let’s get to it:

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I can easily say that this color is definitely more of a shade for my sister than for me. Kristen is a tan goddess and the browns, purples, and oranges with a more “baked” appearance all look awesome on her. Happy Hibiscus is an interesting shade, because I can see undertones of all three of those mentioned colors mixed in to create this hue. And, of course, a little shimmer never hurt anyone, either!

Despite Happy Hibiscus being a more “Kristen” blush, I can see myself wearing it during the colder months for a more dramatic look. And, it will be nice in the summertime if I ever manage to catch a tan instead of just burning and going back to pale. But, let’s all be honest, that is never going to happen! -___-

What colors look best with your complexion? How does you and your sister’s or best friend’s taste in makeup differ? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan21

Saying Goodbye To The Things That Bring You Down

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Saying Goodbye To The Things That Bring You Down

Nobody’s perfect. For some people, this isn’t a big concern. They do what they want, and their flaws are just part of who they are. For most people, however, these flaws have a detrimental effect on their well-being. Sometimes it’s physically, at other times it’s mentally. Whatever form it takes, it robs us of our contentment and enjoyment. The good news, is that with a little bit of self-analysis, we can identify these obstacles and then remove them altogether. Below, we look at some common damaging areas of a person’s life, which you can then work on saying goodbye to:

The Negative Side of Your Mind:

Of all the things that can make a person miserable, none is quite as damaging as their own mind. Everyone – absolutely everyone – has that inner critic inside of them. It’s the voice that says you’re not good enough, that you’ll never reach your goals, and that any success you have had hasn’t really been earned – you were just lucky. There are ways to silence this voice, but it’s just as effective to identify that voice, and remind yourself that it’s not real. Try talking to yourself as you would talk to a friend and see the changes that come with it.

The Non-Stop Life:

There are a lot of benefits to living in the 21st century, but these benefits have come at a cost. There are more stressed, depressed, and all-around dissatisfied people than ever before. While there are many reasons for this, one of the main causes is that we’re always connected, always moving somewhere, always doing something. We don’t take enough time just to sit back and relax. If it feels like you’ve got no time for yourself, look at making some changes. For instance, you might be spending an hour or more on your laptop each evening. Cut that time out, and you’ll have wrestled back some time, during which you can relax.

Too Much Partying:

Everyone likes to cut loose and have fun, from time to time. But if you’re “cutting loose” every other night, then it’s possible that you might have a problem. Many people go through a phase of drinking too much on consecutive weekends, but if you’re struggling to leave that lifestyle behind, you might have to take more drastic action. Whatever substance you’re taking, be it alcohol or drugs, you’ll need to educate yourself before you try to make changes; it’s much easier to succeed if you have as much information as possible. Speak with friends, take a look at this guide to withdrawal symptoms by Amethyst Recovery Center, and try to replace your vices with more positive changes. If you’re still struggling, get in touch with the experts and get professional help. You’ll feel physically and mentally better once you’ve changed your ways.

Troubling Relationships:

Everyone needs to have people in their life. If everything’s working as it should, these friends and family members should lift you up and support you as you strive to achieve your goals. However, it won’t always work that way. There are some people who enjoy bringing others down. It’s worthwhile, from time to time, to take a look at your relationships and make sure that they’re as loving and caring as they should be. If someone’s making you feel bad, then it might be time to cut them out of your life.

Life Regrets:

Nobody gets everything right in life. No matter what path you take, there will always be that sense of “what if I had done something different?” It’s inevitable. Some people take this feeling for what it is, and move on pretty quickly. Other people dwell on the topic too long, and end up miserable. Don’t overthink your life choices; they’ve already been made, and there’s nothing you can do to change them now. Enjoy what you have. There’s every chance that you’d be having the same thoughts if you had actually made the choices that you’re now thinking better. Remember, the grass is rarely greener on the other side.

2019 is officially here and cutting out all of the negativity is the best way to live your best life this time around!

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