Take a peek inside my makeup bag and find out some of my favorite beauty products. I also share some of my secrets for working out in hotel rooms and making my own DIY beauty products.
1. Makeup Eraser: The Makeup Eraser is a gentle cloth that removes makeup with just water. It is easy to use and a great way to save money on makeup removers, makeup wipes, and anything else you might use to remove your makeup.
2. Morgan Taylor Nail Lacquer: This is a new nail polish brand I discovered. The line boosts over 100 shades and is free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, and DBP. Some of my favorite shades are In the Nude, Heaven Sent, and Gotta Have Hue.
3. Hot Body Year Round by Casey Ho: When I travel, it is challenging to workout at some hotels. Casey’s fitness channel on YouTube, Blogilates is a great resource to workout in hotels or at home. In her new book, Casey shares workout routines and recipes for each season. Her recipes are easy to prepare and healthy.
4. Masters Brush Cleaner and Preserver: This is the brush cleaner I use. It gets the brightest red lipstick out of my lip brushes. To use, rinse brush in warm water. Swirl in cleaner. Work into a lather. Rinse and repeat as needed.
5. Harry Josh Hair Dryer: Harry Josh is a celebrity hair stylist. I use this hair dryer when I travel. It has a 2,000-hour motor, and it’s smaller than most hair dryers. It is expensive, but I think it pays for itself quickly when compared to the cost of a salon blowout. It cuts down my drying time, which is great for me when I travel. I love the ion button to keep frizz under control, and the cool shot button to seal my hair. The dryer comes with a two-year warranty.
6. Gorgeous for Good by Sophie Uliano: Sophie’s popular website provides in-depth articles, reviews, beauty picks, recipes, and more, covering the latest beauty trends. The book is a great resource for understanding beauty ingredients. She also shares recipes and DIY projects to make your own skin care products.
7. Wedderspoon Raw Manuka Honey: I love using this product as a face mask and cleanser. The mask draws and lifts out debris, toxins, bacteria and impurities from the pores, preventing and reducing acne and blemishes. It promotes healing of broken or damaged skin and prevents scarring, gently exfoliates and resurfaces with natural lactic acid, and leaves the skin pH balanced and soft.
Apply a generous amount to clean, dry skin and leave on for at least 10 to 20 minutes. For increased penetration, apply a warm wet steam towel over the mask. Remove with warm water and facial towel. For everyday cleansing, apply to wet skin. Massage for 1-3 minutes. Remove with a warm wet facial towel.
Wedderspoon’s Raw Organic Manuka Active Honey is sourced from the remote pristine areas of New Zealand’s South Island. Not all manuka honey is created equal! Only high OMA (Organic Manuka Active) ratings have the high antibacterial elements that are most beneficial. OMA 16+ is the highest naturally occurring active and is optimal for topical skin care applications. Each batch of Wedderspoon Manuka Honey 16+ is sourced and tested for its higher pollen count, live enzymes, antioxidants and various phytochemical components.
8. Skinny and Co. Peppermint Oil Pulling: I use coconut oil on my face, on my skin and in my cooking. Recently, I started ‘oil pulling,’ which is when you swish coconut oil around in your mouth for 20 minutes. It’s great for oral health and making your teeth white. It can help clear up your skin as well. Dentists recommend using raw, alkaline coconut oil like Skinny Coconut Oil. The purer the coconut oil, the more effective it is in pulling bacteria and disease-causing germs from the mouth. The majority of coconut oils on the market claim to be “cold pressed,” but are actually heated prior to the pressing process. This extracts more oil from each individual coconut, yet raises the temperature over 120˚ F and destroys nutritional value. Skinny Coconut Oil uses a patent-pending Nutralock System to make the only raw and alkaline coconut oil on the market today. This internationally exclusive extraction uses no heat to extract, rather cooling the coconut to release the oil. Skinny Coconut Oil is the closest you can get to a raw coconut. Just open the jar, and find out why so many people are making Skinny their coconut oil!
9. Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Skin Clay Mask: I use this mask before a special event. It lifts, smoothes, brightens and tightens pores for a flawless makeup application.
10. Beauty Chef Antioxidant Inner Beauty Boost: I love the Beauty Chef’s products. The Beauty Boost works from within to repair and protect the skin from free-radical damage and ageing. It helps to boost the skin’s firmness and reduce fine lines. It is made with organic ingredients that are bio-fermented and packed full of enzymes. The supplement is concentrated to work hard within the body. Papaya leaf, pomegranate and green tea help to balance the body with prebiotics, probiotics and antioxidants. The immune boosting properties are immense, so it will help to rid the body of any common viruses. This product is gluten, dairy and sugar-free. It contains no artificial colourings, flavourings or preservatives.
11. Shu Unerma Essence Absolute: This product is amazing. I use it to moisturize my dry hair and add shine. It absorbs quickly without leaving my hair oily.
12. Dex Body Glow Sunless Tanner: Most self-tanning products smell bad and do not look natural. Dex Body Glow is a misting spray that covers your skin evenly. The tan takes a couple of hours for the tan to appear on the skin surface, and will continue to darken for 24 to 72 hours. It will fade gradually after a couple of days. Carrie Underwood uses Dex Body Glow.
What are your favorite makeup tricks and tips?
I went through a Manuka Honey phase when I was trying to clear up my acne. In the end it didn’t really help with that but my skin always felt super soft!
The one I purchased from Trader Joe’s did not help with acne. It had 9 omng’s, but I like to use it on mosquito bites. It helped stop the itching. I found out about the higher oma of 16+ from Wedderspoon. like to use it as a fask mask after a long day flying on airplanes to kill bacteria which can cause pimples. I do agree with you if the acne is from an allergy, hormones etc., it will not really correct that type of issue. My cystic acne improved when I changed to a gluten-free lifestyle and cut back on dairy.