All posts in: Beauty For Breakfast

23 Apr 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 30

Right time. Right place. This was a product that fell into my lap when I needed it the most. As part of the package in which Ashley had asked me to be one of her bridesmaids, she included this berry smelling hand lotion from Castabel Porto. This brand was new to me, but we’re a sucker for berry anything. Since I moved to the Bay Area, my hands often started feeling more dry around the late fall / winter season so after trying this out one morning, I started making this a part of my routine. After doing my makeup, before heading out the door to work, I would squeeze a little bit of this onto my hands and jet off. The berry scent is delicious and so good you’ll become obsessed with it. Also, how cute is the geometric packaging?! If I know Ashley, then it’s likely this came from Nordstrom, but otherwise I’m not sure where I’ll be getting my refill down the line!

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22 Apr 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 29

When I included my new Clinique moisturizing lotion in my Instagram story, it didn’t take long for some of my friends to raise their hand to tell me they were using the same product. I think most can agree that the facial lotion you use on a day to day basis is a product that is near and dear to your heart. You’re often not shopping for a different product to use in place of it because once you’ve found the one, there’s just no reason to test drive any others. I had been using Olay since high school, but when I had the opportunity to try out Clinique’s, I had to take my chance on it. It felt so easy to use this product. It kept my skin moisturized all day and it felt like it really took ahold of my makeup and foundation making it the best primer. Note: we don’t use primer. My one tip is that you should use just what you need. For me, that’s two little pumps. I have found that using this in excess can sometimes be a little bit annoying and leaves you more greasy than moisturized so it’s best to test it out a few times on yourself to see what works best!

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16 Jan 2017

Beauty for Breakfast pt. 28

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When I received my package from Alison Brod Marketing + Communications a couple of months back, this June Jacobs lip renewal was the first item I made a beeline towards. If I had to pick one beauty/skincare product to use for the rest of my life, it would have to be some sort of a lip protectant. I’ve been suffering from chapped lips since I was a kid so I never leave my house without protection. For years, I’ve been relying on vaseline (tube form) and because I go through so many of them or lose them often, I typically have to buy three at a time to stock up and have back-ups. Whichever skincare product is your immediate go-to, you know that you don’t want to live without it as your body will ‘suffer’ if you can’t use it daily, whether it be a lip protectant like me or cbd body butters to calm your sensitive skin, you’ve got to find ways to get it whenever you can, or at least find a dupe that works.

I love the packaging of this tube, but the product itself, even more. First off, it’s SPF 50, which is higher than the vaseline I use and any other lip product I have ever owned. You won’t ever have to worry about being in the sun when you have this on you. With the lip renewal, you can feel your lips being rejuvenated almost instantly after you apply because of it’s moisturizing effect. It also leaves behind a minty fresh feel as well, which is always a plus! Over the last couple of years, there was a trend with lip balms that you had to apply with using your finger and those never sat well with me. I definitely prefer using a tube (like this one!) when possible because it’s easier for on-the-go situations, is cleaner, and overall just more hygienic. My one tip when using this lip renewal though is that it’s quite powerful. That’s not a bad thing; it means it is doing its job. It lasted me three hours without having to re-apply, but during this time, I could feel my lips sort of trying to rid itself of the chapped skin it didn’t need. This irritated my lips a little bit and I found myself touching my lips more. If this happens to you, one thing I would advise is to put on vaseline or another lip moisturizer before applying this lip renewal on top. Together, they make a pretty perfect combination!

Interested in learning more? Visit June Jacobs.

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01 Jan 2017

Beauty for Breakfast Returns

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We had announced that we were taking a break from Beauty for Breakfast on Yow Yow! not too long ago, but we’re taking it back! I’ve been doing a lot of work on my Instagram lately both with my feed and stories, but we’ve missed writing more detailed reviews on Yow Yow! which we can’t always do on Instagram. In 2016, I’ve had a lot of fun playing with and experimenting with different beauty products and I think that sort of began when we decided to adopt a “facial for every season” regime.

Our favorite so far? Every kind of mask, but especially the sheet ones that make us look like Kevin Bacon in Hollow Man. I was just coming back from a busy fall travel season for my job and my face felt like it been wrecked. When I travel, I can’t always bring all of the products that I would use on any normal day and rely more heavily than I would like on hotel products. We all know that that’s sort of a gamble! Waiting for me at the office when I returned was this amazing package from Alison Brod Marketing + Communications filled with all of the goodies you see above. It’s been a couple of months and we’re still trucking through them, but loving every second of it. There’s a mixture of items in this bunch including, lipstick, lotion, fragrance, masks, moisturizer, etc. and it’s been keeping us busy. To revive Beauty for Breakfast posts, we’ll be including reviews shortly on all of the items we’ve been trying.

Thank you so much to Alison Brod M + C for helping us get our beauty routine back on track!

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10 Sep 2016

Beauty for Breakfast Has Moved

Hey all!

Since we weren’t able to keep up with Beauty for Breakfast that much anymore on the blog, I’ve decided to move it over to Instagram Stories! Every day for the last… mmm 15 or so days, I’ve been taking a product from my morning routine and talking about it for 10 seconds. As you can imagine, this took some practice to get it down and sometimes we have to do a couple of takes. Other times we talk about the product in 3-4 installments! It has been a really fun series for me on Instagram Stories. I know some of you have been following here on Yow Yow! too though. Don’t worry – you haven’t missed anything. I’ve basically only gone over all of the ones on Stories that I’ve written posts about here.

Additionally, we will also be doing “Beauty Before Bed!” to discuss the products that we use at the end of our days. We haven’t gotten to that series yet, but we’ll be there soon!

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12 Jun 2016

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 27

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When it comes to scents, I can never really make up my mind. The last time I did have a signature scent, it was Coach! But then it got discontinued, which is why we found ourselves back at Sephora again trying a dozen samples and trying to put our finger on the next purchase. I was between Chloe’s Love Story and one other one that I can’t seem to remember right now, but what I love about “Love Story” (besides the fact that it reminds me of that Taylor Swift song) is that it’s very light, romantic, and has just a hint of fruitiness/floral. Fun fact about myself: Unless I absolutely can’t live without the scent, I always buy it in rollerball form. Why?

They actually last a very long time!
If you get tired of it eventually, you know that you can always buy another one after
They’re more inexpensive, but more bang for your buck (at least in my opinion!) They are usually between $18-$22.
Super easy to put on. Pretty straightforward. I don’t even have to explain this to y’all.

So this is what we’ve been wearing since January and we’re pretty much in <3 with it.

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04 Jun 2016

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 26

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Going home for the holidays means a lot of things, but one of the best parts is acquiring all of the beauty products that Mom could do without. What would she do without me? Everything would just go to waste! To be honest, in our mid-20’s I still don’t know what I’m doing with most of my products, but I think it’s all pretty good for experimentation and I’m sure someday I’ll find a use for it. The good thing about my mini haul from this past December is that I use all THREE of these products all of the time.

I know that tube of Lancome mascara is small and very clearly a sample, but it’s gotten me through some tough times and is still functional 6 months later… though I think that means we’re close to the end with this one.

I purchased my Bare Minerals lipstick on the right solely for our holiday party last December, but still am very much in love with it. The color is perfect for a night out and glides on so smoothly. I’ve previously found that I get pretty bored with most of my lipsticks, but not this one.

The palette in the middle is also a sample from Lancome. It features powder for contouring, blush, and a highlighter and since this was my first time using it, I definitely had to look up a tutorial online for how to incorporate the three when using it. I still don’t even know if I’m doing it quite right, but A+ for effort…? I usually save this for an evening look, but there are times when I find it to be daytime appropriate. This shade of blush is a very pretty coral pink and ideal for any sun-kissed glow. The highlighter…well, we’re still trying to figure that one out!

Lancome Definicils Mascara in Black – $27.50

Lancome Blush Subtil Palette in 126 Nectar Lace – $43

Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick in Live Large – $18

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11 Dec 2015

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 25

It was just last week that I was talking about how in 2015 I was starting to develop a better skin routine for myself and one of those things that I’ve been using is Simple’s cleansing facial wipes. For years, in college and in high school, I would try a number of different cleansing facial wipes, but none of them really stuck. It takes some serious discipline to wash your face every night. I know it’s embarassing to admit, but for the longest time, I would just go to bed with all of my makeup on and convince myself that it would come off in the shower the next morning. What’s really awful about that situation is that everything that builds up during the day and your makeup get onto your pillow and it’s a disaster. I’m almost convinced that it’s one of the reasons why a) my skin breaks out and b) I have to wash my pillow cases so often.

For the last couple of years, I’ve been attending the Grace Hopper Conference and every year we get a pretty nifty swag bag that included these wipes. It was a couple months after I got back, but I found an opportunity to try them and fell in love. If i could, I would order these in bulk and just keep them stocked in my closet so that I have them forever. Whether you’re on the go and traveling or using them at home, they are so easy to work into your skin routine. I like to use them at night right before I go to bed and after a pretty thorough wipe down of the face, I splash some water over it to get rid of any extra residue or build up. The best part about these packets is that they come with a few wipes. When you open the packet (in the front where the text is) you can close it back up to make sure that the rest of the wipes stay hydrated and fresh!

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03 Dec 2015

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 24

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Fall in the Bay Area has been completely unforgiving to my skin this year. I’m not sure if it’s just the way my skin is reacting to the environment around me or if it’s because I’ve been under a little bit more stress than usual, but my skin has taken a turn for the worse. In 2015, I unofficially made it my resolution to do a better job of taking care of my skin and keeping myself hydrated, but turns out drinking 7 glasses of water a day is a tougher challenge than you might think. Since that’s something I’m actively trying to improve, trying to hydrate the rest of my skin is another thing I needed to tackle.

After having one of the best facials ever at the Monterey Plaza Hotel this past summer, I decided that I would pamper myself with a facial once a season just to refresh everything and get it all on the same page. Additionally, I’ve been using this Mario Badescu Enzyme Revitalizing Mask on a weekly basis. Instructions suggest you use it 2-3 times a week for 20 minutes, but since I have pretty sensitive skin, I didn’t want to overdo it and am only using it once a week. As a mask, I apply it pretty lightly and take it off right at 20 minutes – only using it in the evening right before bed. Afterwards, I have to try really hard to not touch my face at all. In the end, it leaves my everything feeling pretty relaxed, moisturized, and fresh! I think the scent helps with that part though. 🙂

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09 Jul 2015

Beauty for Breakfast Pt. 23

When Sugar reached out to me to see if I would be interested in trying their line of eyeliners, I was thrilled. While I love the ones that I use currently, I’m always looking for a new one that might be a better fit. Currently, I’m using Stila on my bottom and a retired style by Physician’s Formula that I have to order through Amazon because they’ve discontinued them in stores. As you can imagine, it makes things difficult. I thought I’d only be sampling just one eyeliner from Sugar, but I was happy to receive three in my package from them! The first one that I tried was the one that I was most excited about – a matte black liner called “Come Hither.” V. seductive. What I liked about this was that the tip was very soft, gentle, and made a visible line when using it even for the first time. What I’ve come to find in eyeliners is that the first time is never the greatest because sometimes it takes some getting used to. “Come Hither,” however had that worn in type of a feel which made for a seamless application. The only downside to this one was that I would go about my day and when I went to the bathroom and was at the mirror, I was noticing that the top liner was leaving an imprint on my top lid! The worst 🙁 However, this happens to me a lot (except for Physician’s) and it’s really challenging for me to find a liner that doesn’t do this. I’ve read that I might just have sweaty eyelids. If that’s the case, then it’s not Sugar’s fault at all.

The second liner I tried was Entice – a standard black liner. It had a thinner tip than “Come Hither” and because of that, application was a little bit harder. I think this is the type of eyeliner that might need to be worn in a bit because it also didn’t appear as clearly as “Come Hither.”

For a day when I was feeling a little bit riskier, I tried “Hypnotize” – the bright blue! I realized because of my eyeliner eyelid stamp problem, using it on top wasn’t a good idea so this week, I tried it on the bottom. It’s subtle enough in that it shows some color, but doesn’t make you stand out like a sore thumb or that I’m my 14-year old scene kid self again. I’ll definitely keep it around for those nights when I feel like having just a hint of blue.

I’m determined to make “Come Hither” work for me so I’ve even tried doubling up on eyeliners recently. You might say it’s repetitive, but the line that I get from this one is just too good. First, I’ll use “Come Hither” on my top and then wait some time and put on Physician’s Formula’s eyeliner on afterwards to set it so that it doesn’t smear on my eyelid. This tactic has been working pretty well so far! I’m pretty impressed by Sugar though and I’m so excited to be venturing into new brands these days.

This is a sponsored post