5 ways to spend those lazy summer days

Summer is officially here! The sun is shining, the weather is beautiful and there's tons of time to do anything your little heart desires.

Here are my personal favorite activities for those lazy summer days:



1) Catch up on your reading
This is especially great on rainy days. I love to curl up with a good book and spend a good afternoon away in another world.



2) Give yourself a manicure/pedicure
Nothing says summer like a bright pink polish on my toes. It brightens my day every time I see neatly polished toes, especially since most of us live in sandals or flip flops during the summer.



3) Sunless tanning
I'm a big fan of sunless tanning, or anything that doesn't damage my skin. Take the time to apply a sunless tanning product that makes your skin glow and look healthy throughout the summer.



4) Get Active!
Yes I hear those grumbles but take the time and do something good for your body. Attend a group exercise class like Zumba or Pilates, and it will not only boost your confidence but give you more energy to enjoy outside activities. Added bonus : your body will thank you on those bikini days.



5) A New Hobby
We all know those summer months go by very slowly when you have nothing to do so why not find a new hobby? Maybe this will be the summer when you find out you are great at oil painting or maybe even an amazing tennis player!

What's your favorite summer activity?



Mama Mio : Summer Confidence Challenge

I first saw this on Fleur De Force's blog and I thought this was an amazing challenge for all us girls this summer! The dreaded summer reveal is now here and we need a little boost in confidence to get us into those teeny bikinis, pretty sundresses, and short shorts.

Mama Mio has set up a confidence poll, which scores your body confidence out of 50. They've also set up an confidence challenge on twitter and facebook where they set up challenges every week to help build your body confidence. The challenges run all summer long ending the last week of August, when you will be asked to fill the confidence poll once again to see your progress! You're also entered in for a chance to win £1000 holiday voucher with Kuoni.

Mama Mio has a line of products to get you beach ready and your body toned. I'm a little skeptical myself but I find their challenges very interesting and a wonderful way to get motivated for summer.

Are you going to enter the challenge?

Mario Badescu Drying Lotion

We all get it more than we'd like and want it to disappear immediately...Blemishes. I have been searching for a product that will do away with these unsightly creatures, and do it in a relatively quick manner, which is why I was ecstatic when I found the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion.

I'd never seen a product like this one before and one that actually yields results. It comes in either a plastic or glass bottle, depending on what you like best. It is an acne spot treatment that dries pimples quickly. The contents are a pinkish bottom (Calamine) and a yellowish top layer (Salicylic Acid).

To use:

Just dip a Q-tip all the way down to the pink bottom and then pull it out carefully. Apply it to the affected area and let it sit overnight. The next morning...was off with a cleanser and Voila!!!! Blemish is not only diminished but is no longer red and inflamed yay! Exactly what I was looking for. The second night I applied it again, even though a lot of reviews I read said not to...well I was pleasantly surprised. The ugly monster was gone! I must say although it is an amazing product for getting rid of pimples and blemishes, it did dry out my skin a little (yes, I know that's how the product works). So I recommend moisturizing plenty when using this product.

A little tip : Do not shake the bottle! It is most effective when the two do not mix while in the bottle. I had a mini anxiety attack when the girl behind the counter tossed the bottle into the bag. Eek!!!

Mario Badescu drying lotion is my hero!

Have you tried this product?

Review : Essie Smooth Trick Deep Conditioning Cuticle Oil

Price :
$7.75

Where to buy :
Target, Walmart

After years of manicures (they cut my cuticles!) and nail biting (kicked that habit a while back...but still suffer the consequences), my cuticles are unfortunately destroyed! Recently I decided there was something I needed to about these unruly little monsters, so I decided to buy this "miracle product" everyone talked about. I had high hopes for this product especially since it's been raved about time and time again on youtube. I can't say it the amazing product everyone claims it is because it doesn't do the trick for me. 

I must say, the packaging is well designed. It has a pointed end, like that of a pen, that gets in the curves of your nails to deliver the most product to the cuticle area. Also, the formula is oily but not overly greasy, which is a plus in my opinion. Unfortunately, the "smooth trick" only lasts for about a half hour. The next day, my cuticles are back to looking less than desirable.

Overall, the idea is headed in the right direction but the formula just doesn't cut it for me. So again I'm in search for something that will actually work for my horrible cuticles.

Likes :
Packaging, not overly greasy

Dislikes :
Does not smooth my cuticles

Rating:

 

Have you found your cuticle "miracle worker" ? Do tell!

Brittanylovex's MAC giveaway!

Blogger Brittanylovex is hosting an amazing MAC giveaway! You get your choice of any MAC lipstick and eyeshadow!

http://brittanylovex.blogspot.com/2011/05/mac-giveaway.html

There are many ways to win so head over to her blog and enter!



Check out this blogger!

I love running across amazing new bloggers, especially those as creative as Lauren of My Closet in Sketches. That's why I thought everyone should know about her. All her posts have amazing sketches and awesome commentary to go along with it. It's absolutely a pleasure to read her blog, it's eye candy to my newbie blogger eyes.

Fashion is the main focus of her site but on two occasions she wrote...sketched... wrote/sketched about her makeup routine and her skin care. Believe me after one of her posts you will be addicted! I can't rave enough about this lovely lady, so I will let her work do the talking.

Skincare Post :

My Closet in Sketches - Skincare Post

Makeup Post :

My Closet in Sketches - Makeup Post

Aren't these amazing!!! I wish I had an ounce of the creativity she does. 

It's your turn! What amazing/creative bloggers have you discovered recently?

Moisturize In the Summer

My favorite time of the year is back! It's finally summer! Skincare is very important during this season especially since we love going outside and basking in the sun's warm rays. We are reminded all the time about sunscreen, which of course is so very important, but what about our moisturizer? Most of us toss our moisturizer aside because we think it makes our skin look greasy in the summer and just smears everywhere. However, your skin requires moisture in the summer as much as in the winter months. Here are a few reasons why :

1) To control excessive oil
Yes this is true! It seems contradictory but if you don't moisturize your skin in the summer months, your skin with try and compensate by creating more oils, making it more difficult for skin to breathe. This excess oil can accumulate and clog your pores and takes away that natural glow, making your skin look dull and lifeless.

2) To prevent aging
Harsh UV rays from the sun can harm our skin and cause premature wrinkles and fine lines. Moisturizer prevents this especially if it has at least 15 spf added to the formula.

3) Protects from Environmental Damage
Moisturizer acts like a protective coating on the skins surface which prevents from harmful accumulation of dirt and toxic particles on your skin. It also prevents from clogged pores and then the formation of unsightly blackheads and acne inflammations from flaring up.

What to use?
For the summer months I like to use a light weight moisturizer that won't clog my pores. I like the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing lotion in level 3 for oily skin.

I also love the Origins VitaZing moisturizer. It acts like a tinted moisturizer, evens out my skin tone and has SPF 15!

For a refreshing night moisturizer I use the Korres Rose moisturizer. Soothes my skin after a hot day my skin looks bright and fresh for the morning.

Also remember to keep hydrated with lots of H2O to keep your skin healthy and glowing in the summer months and have tons of fun in the sun!