Summer Beauty Tips (Combination Skin, Wavy Hair)

Hi everyone! Hope you guys are staying cool this summer. It’s been extremely hot and humid in the south for the past few weeks. It was over 100 degrees for the past 2 weekends! My acne-prone skin tends to break out more in this type of environment. Not only that, my hair becomes quite frizzy with all the humidity in the air. I’m going to share some of my tips on how to keep our skin and hair under control. (All the products that I mentioned are linked to an online source where you can purchase them.)

For the skin:

• Skip the foundation and go with a BB cream (more coverage) or tinted moisturizer (less coverage). The last thing we want is heavy makeup in this hot weather. Many BB creams and tinted moisturizers also contain sunscreen. This can cut down the number of products you apply to your skin without sacrificing sun protection. I like to use the Skin79 Super+ BB Cream (pink label).
• Use a toner every night. Summer is the only season that I use a toner regularly. It takes off whatever makeup your makeup remover and/or cleanser failed to remove and tightens your pores. I prefer using a toner that contains acne medication. I like the Biore Triple Action Astringent (recently repackaged as Biore Blemish Treating Astringent).
• After the toner, apply a thin moisturizer. Just because it’s summer and your face is more oily than usual doesn’t mean you should skip out on hydrating your skin! My favorite daytime moisturizer of all time is the Olay Complete Lotion. At night time, I like the St. Ives Collagen Elastin Facial Moisturizer. Both products very light-weight and perfect for summer.
• Use a mud/clay mask once or twice a week! I love the c. Booth Deep Cleansing Volcanic Mud Mask.
• Change your pillow case and face towel every week. This tip is applies to all seasons.
• Get your hair out of your face. The oil and dirt in your hair can easily cause breakouts on your forehead. Even if you don’t like pony tails, you can still get your hair out of the way by braiding or clipping them.

For the hair:

• At night, towel dry your hair and apply a hair oil/serum to the ends. My favorite is the Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. It’s a super hydrating serum that’s perfect for wavy or curly hair. I have noticed that my hair is less frizzy in the morning if I use this product at night.
• In the morning, use a leave-in conditioner to tame the frizz. I really like the John Frieda Secret Weapon Flawless Finishing Creme and Garnier Leave-In Conditioning Cream.
• Every time I get out of the pool, my hair becomes extremely tangled. Pool water tends to dry out my hair so I like to use a hydrating deep conditioner to replenish the moisture. The Aussie 3 Minute Deep Conditioner is a wonderful option.

Photo credits: Polyvore

Do you have any special beauty tips for the summer? Share them in the comment area!

-Karen

Summer Outfits #1-5

Hello everyone! I’m back from my trip to the midwest. I had a good time visiting old family friends in the town that I lived in 10 years ago. I thought it’d be fun to do a fashion post on some of the outfits that I wore this week. (Click on the thumbnails to enlarge the pictures)

Outfit 1 (top left): This is the outfit that I wore on my flight to the midwest. Since it’s usually cold on the plane, I also wore black leggings. I love the large puffy sleeves on the top (asos) and the vibrant colors of the skirt (Forever21).

Outfit 2 (top right): I’ve had this white dress forever! It was actually my junior marshall dress back in high school. lol But I’ve only worn it a few times so far because it’s rather thick for a summer dress. It’s perfect for 70-80 degrees weather. The dress is from Target and the little cardigan is from Kohl’s.

Outfit 3 (center): I bought these 2 pieces at a store called Christopher & Banks during my trip. The shirt has a really interesting texture and I love the bright fuschia color. The skirt is really cute and super comfortable.

Outfit 4 (lower left): Another dress that I’ve had for a while but rarely wear… I got this dress when floral summer dresses first became really popular (and long before maxi dresses were trendy). I remember that I wanted to trim this dress to knee length because nobody else was wearing maxi dresses >.< haha I’m glad I didn’t end up doing that! This is one of the few boho style outfits that I own. I think I got both the dress and the cardigan from Kohl’s.

Outfit 5 (lower right): I love the neckline and the print on this shirt (Macy’s). I paired this top with a simple black maxi skirt (not sure where this was bought). It’s a great outfit for shopping and plane rides.

I hope you all enjoyed this post! Have a wonderful weekend!

-Karen