Vintage fashion inspiration

Who doesn't need some fashion inspiration once in a while? I certainly do! and my place to find such is usually Pinterest! So, today I'm sharing some Vintage fashion inspiration and ideas for spring or summer. These are from my very own closet and some from my sister's, since she loves all things vintage even more than I do. 

Investing in a simple white lace dress is something I recommend. To add a vintage vibe to your outfit you can add a vintage brooch, vintage earrings or a fun belt. A good place to find vintage jewelry is at local thrift shops, garage sales or estate sales.

If you can't find authentic vintage brooches, you can always find some that are vintage inspired, such as the ones pictured above, aren't they lovely?

Pink is definitely the color of the season, with all the Barbie movie mania going on.

These are some of my favorite authentic vintage earrings that I personally own. They're just so classy and elegant. I must say they are quite big though but gorgeous non the less. I'm sure I spend more time looking at them than wearing them, because they are indeed so aesthetically pleasing to observe.

There's something about white and ivory lace dresses that is just magical, I can't even explain it. Its the texture of the fabric, the soft and romantic look, along with the little details such as pearly buttons or bows. Its just so dreamy like being in another time and place in history.

I hope you all enjoyed this visual post on vintage fashion inspiration !!

The easiest skin care routine

 When I was younger, I felt insecure and lost when trying to start a skin care routine of my own. Going beyond my teens and into my adulthood, I wanted to take proper care of my skin. So today I'll share a very simple and easy skin care routine that anyone can follow as well as some product recommendations. The following is an AM beauty routine.

I'll also include in this post some product recommendations of products I've actually tried myself and have liked. Most of these products are quite affordable, bought at local drugstores or on amazon. So with that being said let's dive right into the easiest skin care routine.

♡1. Find a facial cleanser that suits your specific skin type. Have in mind the common skin types which are: normal, combination, sensitive, oily and dry, make sure to find which one you have. Finding a facial cleanser that is made specifically for your skin type is a very important step. 

 Some facial cleanser recommendations : 

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser

CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser (for normal to oily skin)

Neutrogena Ultra gentle daily cleanser

 ♡2. Using a toner will help get rid of any remaining residue left on the skin by makeup, sunscreen, dirt and oil. A lot of people like to skip this step in their skin care routine, feel free to do so if it feels right for your skin. Every body's skin is different and there is no rule set on stone that you must use a daily facial toner. 

Some toner recommendations. If you have oily skin like me you can try a witch hazel or salicylic acid toner.  These are astringent ingredients which help remove excess oil from the skin as well as tighten pores. You can also chose a toner with anti aging properties that include ingredients such as green tea.

ISNTREE Green Tea Fresh Hydrating Face Toner

♡3. Choose an SPF product, in the form of a moisturizer, cream or gel. Always wear sun protection before heading out the door, this way you will be protecting your skin from the sun's harmful effects as well as protect your remaining collagen. 

Some SPF product recommendations.

CeraVe Moisturizing Lotion SPF 30

Olay Complete lightweight day lotion for sensitive skin SPF 15

For your PM routine, you will follow the first two steps of this routine, for the third step you will skip the SPF and use a facial moisturizer. 

Choose a moisturizer once again that suits your skin type. For sensitive and dry skin a cream moisturizer may be more suitable since its heavier. For combination or oily skin make sure to choose a moisturizer that is oil free and non-comedogenic, meaning it won't clog pores.

Moisturizer recommendations: I have oily skin and my nighttime moisturizer is coconut oil, its supposed to be non-comedogenic meaning that it won't clog pores. I've also used in the past glycerine mixed with water, this one was much more hydrating but gave me breakouts when used too often.  

Eucerin Q10 anti-wrinkle face cream

Grape seed oil

In a few words this an easy and very basic skin care routine, nothing fancy or complicated. There are indeed more complex and lengthy skin care routines consisting of 5 or 12 steps or even more. In a future post I'll dive into how to add a fourth step to this 3 step routine, it will be on exfoliating, which is also a very important factor to have healthy skin, but not a step to be done daily.

I hope this article will be helpful in your journey to create your own personal skin care routine. Feel free to explore and try out different products until you find those that suit your skin the best. Don't forget to makes sure which skin type you have before starting. Below is a small reminder of the skin care routine outlined in this post, feel free to print it to keep as a reminder.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post, I was not payed by any company or service to recommend any product. This post is based on my personal opinion and experience. 

Prevent broken capillaries on face

Many women, including myself, have broken capillaries on the face also know as Telangiectasia, which is their medical term. Some may have them only on the side of the nose and bottom of the nostrils, others may have them on the cheeks and chin area as well. There are many reasons why broken capillaries manifest themselves in the delicate facial area and some of these are: Alcohol consumption, Changes in pressure as well as changes in weather, environmental irritants, genes, injuries, rosacea and sun exposure. But if you have broken capillaries on your face don't lose hope, because theres a few things you can do to prevent the formation of more broken capillaries. That is what we will consider in this post, and in a future one we will see the various options to treat and eliminate broken capillaries.

Go gentle on exfoliations. One of the causes of broken capillaries is injury to the skin, this can be by picking on a pimple, squeezing out blackheads and also due to over exfoliating your skin or using harsh scrubs to do so. So if you are going to exfoliate your skin it is best to seek a gentle exfoliant made with fine grain or a chemical exfoliant, that dissolves all the gunk in your pores with out having to scrub harshly.

Apply sunscreen everyday. If you have broken capillaries on your face, you need to protect your skin from further damage and one way of doing so is by wearing a sunscreen of at least spf30 on a regular basis. According to Dr. Fusco, the sun's UV rays not only cause damage but also can thin the delicate walls of blood vessels, making their appearance more noticeable.

Strengthen those weak capillaries. One great ingredient to do so is Vitamin C in the form of a serum, which will not only strengthen the capillary walls but will also soothe redness, just make sure to use a stable formula that will not irritate or sting your skin. Take into consideration Celebrity esthetician Renee Rouleau's favorite form of Vitamin C to apply topically which is magnesium ascorbyl phosphate. It is also recommended to take Vitamin C with bioflavonoids on a daily basis at a dosage of 1000 milligrams. It is believed that taking them internally can prevent bruising and also prevent capillary walls from becoming fragile.

Avoid extreme temperature changes. The sudden and extreme change in temperature can affect your delicate skin, so be careful to protect your skin, not only in the summer but also in the harsh winter months. According to the skin nerd it is in winter when broken capillaries are more common to appear, but why is that? well when a sudden temperature change occurs the body works harder in order to regulate its own temperature, therefore blood vessels constrict as their solution to maintain body heat. So if you go from a very cold environment to a nice and warm heated area indoors, your poor capillaries suffer from all this pressure of going from being constricted one minute to being dilated the next minute, and in turn this causes damage.

These are just a few basic tips on how to prevent further broken capillaries from forming. As you can see just a few lifestyle changes can really make a difference in your skin, if you are constant with them. I truly believe prevention is much better than just treating the underlying symptoms, in order to maintain a healthy complexion.



                                                                Sources:

medicalnewstoday.com

marieclaire.com

byrdie.com

theskinnerd

Beauty hacks

Every now and then, I like to discover some beauty hacks that I must say, make my life much easier. I've certainly invented my own and I'm very sure other people have come up with the same or similar ones. In any case I sure love beauty hacks and take notes of those I find online, in books or in magazines. So here below is a list of some of my most favorite beauty hacks.

Baby powder for oily hair. This beauty hack could easily substitute the so called "dry shampoo". For all those times when you don't have time to take a shower, but your hair is looking oily, and you don't have any dry shampoo or don't know it exists (this was me). This is when having baby powder comes in handy, just sprinkle sparingly and remove any excess, before heading out the door. It also makes your hair smell good.

White shimmery eyeshadow for under eye circles. One day, while trying to simplify my beauty routine, I discovered a little beauty hack, which has worked wonders for me. Applying white or translucent shimmery eyeshadow on my under eye circles instead of heavy duty concealer. My eyes looked more refreshed and with a little illumination or subtle sparkle. For this hack, I recommend using a slightly shimmery eyeshadow, and to blend carefully, also keep in mind that for this hack "less is more".

                         

Concealer or foundation to brighten and lift brows. I've seen a lot of products for highlighting under the brows for a lifting effect. I find the same result can be achieved with a bit of foundation or concealer, applied under and above the brows. Sometimes I use either foundation or concealer for this, and it truly gives my brows a lift and gives them a clean and polished look.

Clear nail polish to seal cheap earrings and prevent allergies. If you really want to wear some cute earrings but your ears are sensitive to other materials that are not real gold or silver. This is when you can try this hack, just seal the earring wire with clear nail polish, to prevent the material from directly touching your ear's sensitive skin, and therefore prevent allergies.

Eyebrow powder added to hairline to conceal thinning hair. When my hair started thinning and my scalp looking a bit baldy in certain spots, I quickly came up with a cheap quick fix. I decided to add some of my dark eyebrow powder to my hairline, to cover those small patches of thinking hair. I can say that it really helped and looked natural. So I recommend that If you are going to try this beauty hack, make sure that the brow powder you use matches your hair color.

These are just a few of my favorite beauty hacks, I hope these fun ideas can be helpful and serve to simplify your beauty routine. And now a question to all the readers ... What's your favorite beauty hack? feel free to comment on the section below. 

Castor oil for hair growth

Scalp tonics, shampoos, vitamins, all specialized in hair growth, yes I've tried many of them some giving me few results or satisfaction others offering none. And I must say, my second biggest concern after hair loss and thinning was the price of these products which were not always budget friendly. Soon my mission became clear: finding a product at an affordable price, that also gave me results for hair loss/thinning.

There comes an age when we, as women may experience hair loss/thinning, it could be due to different reasons some include, diet/nutrition, stress, medications and so on. I believe in my particular case it was due to stress and a poor nutrition were I don't consume enough vegetables or fruits on a daily basis. But whatever the reason of your hair loss may be, one thing is certain, hair loss/thinning can make the sufferer feel dissapointed and sad. 

Today I want to share a product I've been using for my hair loss/thinning and which is giving me positive results it is Castor oil. I did my personal research and found out Castor oil is effective to grow new hair, at first I didn't completely believe it, but it didn't hurt to give it a try. I bought a 4 oz. Castor oil bottle on Amazon for only $7.02 USD the brands name is Heritage store.

                      

I started using this product in May of 2017, so its been about 10 months already. After the first week of using castor oil on my scalp is when I started noticing some baby hair, I was very pleased and happy. And as the months have passed I,ve continued seeing baby hair emerging. I think my thinning hair makes it look like I'm balding a little which is not exactly the case.

But anyways now I want to mention the way I use this product for maximum effect. I usually rub the Castor Oil into my scalp with a gentle massage, I divide my hair in sections with a comb to do it. Then I leave it overnight and take a shower the next day, with two shampoo rinses to make sure the oil washes off. Since Castor oil can be quite messy and sticky, when I sleep with it I use a clean towel over my pillow, so I won't get oil all over the place.

One very important point to remember when starting any treatment is to be consistent and patient in order to see results. It is also important to take into consideration to what extent is your hair falling, is it in a mild, moderate, or severe form? And seek medical advice to rule out any other possible health problem that may be causing hair loss.

I hope this post was helpful and informative to those of you out there who seek a natural and affordable treatment for hair loss or hair thinning. It is my deepest wish that nobody has to deal with this annoying problem of hair loss. Feel free to comment on the section below, on any advice or tips to combat hair loss.