Wear it Wednesdays: Dry Shampoo

Hi beauties!

I'm back to the writing grind with a quick post about dry shampoo.

I used to be the kind of girl who shampooed her hair daily. Seriously, every single day. I remember in my senior year of high school our hot water heater broke and I begged my father to let me stay home rather than face a day of school with unwashed hair. My hair is fine, but does tend to get oily rather quickly. With the myriad of articles and posts suggesting that shampooing daily is actually super damaging, my curiosity was peaked. The problem is, that I really cannot stand the feel of dirty, greasy hair. So I set out to do some research on dry shampoo. While I personally am not convinced that it is indeed a beauty sin to lather up each day, I do know that I then heat style my hair daily and that definitely takes a toll on my hair. In an effort to achieve longer, healthier locks I took to the store to stock up on dry shampoos.

The problem was, I didn't really know how to use a dry shampoo and the result was that I hated it and went right back to shampooing daily. When I was forced to chop my locks for the health of my hair, I knew I needed to do something to help keep my hair health and perhaps to help it grow. And I went right back to trying dry shampoo.

I found a method that works for me, and I now only wash my hair every other day. I love the way my hair feels healthier from reduced stress of styling and possibly shampooing. Dry shampoo is probably a complete no-brainer for most people, but I am seriously not even remotely good with hair or hairstyling, so it took me some major trial and error to get it right.

I personally love the Batiste brand of dry shampoo. You can pick it up at Ulta beauty stores or Walgreens.
It's also available on Amazon.com, but I would be careful when buying it that you don't end up over paying for a can. It retails for $7.99 at Ulta and $8.99 at Walgreens. You can also score cans at T.J. Maxx for about $5.99.


My first few tries with dry shampoo were unsuccessful because I was terrified of the white cast that everybody warns against. However, it is nearly impossible to use a dry shampoo without this effect. What I do is spray my hair liberally, and this will mean that you see white in your hair where the dry shampoo was applied. I then throw on my shower cap and shower. If I've already showered for the day, then I'll put my hair up and off of my face and let the dry shampoo sit for 10-15 minutes. Giving the dry shampoo time to sit was the part of using it that I had been missing at first. When you allow the dry shampoo to sit, it gets a chance to fully absorb the oils and makes the white cast nothing to worry about. Once my hair is back down, I work my hands through my hair and over my scalp as if I were using regular shampoo. This helps to distribute the product, and a scalp massage always feels nice. Next, I brush out my hair to ensure that there is no white residue left behind and I'm good to go.

I love this so much, and the time that it saves me each day, that I am seriously considering attempting to go from shampooing every other day to going two days in between shampoos. I've also been playing around with baby powder as a dry shampoo. So far, I've had pretty good success with that as well.

What are your favorite second day hairstyles?

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Wear It Wednesday: Spring Trends Edition

Here in Iowa, we keep getting teased with 50 degree days full of sunshine only to be taken back to 30 degree weather with a bit of snow. Even though spring has not decided to stay here yet, I am so excited for the warmer weather. With that in mind I decided that for this Wear It Wednesday I offer some suggestions as to how to wear this year's beauty trends for spring.

This year, bold colors seem to be taking the place of softer pastels. Two of the more prominent colors this year seem to be orange and blue.

Orange

The runways of Rag and Bone, Creatures of the Wind and Suno for the Spring 2014 collection all featured this hot, citrus color. Both Rag and Bone and Creatures of the Wind featured a bold orange lip. I think the look is amazing, but not something that I would be able to rock during my day to day wear. Suno featured a more wearable (for me at least) orange nail. If you want to wear this spring trend, consider Chanel Rouge Allure Intense Lip Color in Incandescente. A more budget friendly option is the Revlon Colorbust Matte Balm in the shade Audacious. To wear this trend in a more subtle way, paint your nails with a bright orange like Orly's Orange Punch nail polish.



Blue

While Radiant Orchid is the 2014 Color of the Year, Dazzling Blue is the color that Pantone has picked for spring 2014. There are tons of ways to wear blue and one of my personal favorites is on the eyes. Don't worry that blue eyes belong in the 80s, there are several ways to make this look modern. My personal favorite way to incorporate some blue into my eye looks is by using eyeliner. I like to pop this color on my waterline for a surprising peek of color. My current favorite waterline liner is Rimmel's ScandalEyes in Light Blue for a daytime look and in Deep Blue for a darker, nighttime look. These eyeliners are incredibly creamy and perform like a high-end pencil for a serious fraction of the cost. If you want to wear this color on your nails consider OPI's Dating a Royal or Essie's Butler Please. These cobalt blue polishes are fun and fresh for this spring.


Let me know what other trends you are excited about trying this year!

Wear it Wednesday: Lip Liner

Today on Daily Beauty I'll be giving you some tips on wearing lip liner (thanks for the idea Caitlyn!).

Every time I go to apply my lip liner I find myself thinking of the movie Legally Blonde. "Elle, I'm having some real trouble with this whole lip liner thing..." Such a fun movie!

Lip liner, particularly darker shades, were huge when I was growing up in the early/mid 90s and I personally was never a fan of the look of sharp, dark edges with no lip liner in the center. With that first impression of what a lip liner looked like, it was a few years into my makeup exploration that I even bought one. I guess that I never found myself terribly impressed with lip liner and it's only in the past year or so that I've made a point to try quite a few brands and experiment with application.

One of the reasons I started looking towards lip liner is that as I approach 30, I find my lips have less natural definition and the lines are a bit softer when I'm wearing gloss (which I prefer hands down to lipstick). It is not necessarily an issue of bleeding, but things don't look as defined as I would like. So I thought that I would give the whole lip liner thing another go.

The first tip that I have is to skip applying foundation of concealer to your lips before lining your lips. I totally understand the theory behind doing this:  it makes your lips more of a blank canvas when it comes to what you place on top, however, there is a reason I suggest you start leaving your lips blank. If you purposefully apply foundation or concealer all over your lips once you apply your lip product, the foundation or concealer may start to migrate and make your way to the corner of your lips. And that white looking build-up in the corner of your lips? Probably not the look you were going for. It is normal for some foundation to make it's way to your lips when you apply foundation, my suggestion is to simply skip adding more product.

Next, for the majority of lip looks, I suggest picking a liner the shade of your lips or a tad lighter. With the end of the 90s came the end of visible lip liner being a desirable effect, so stick to natural looking shades for your complexion. 99% of the time I wear the NYX lip pencil in Pale Pink. I raved about it in my Favorite Friday post. For me this is the perfect everyday shade. It gives just a hint of natural pink color to my lips, but it does not interfere with other gloss colors I want to wear such a peachy or coral shades. It's the perfect "my lips but better" shade.

The actual application is easy, though it does depend on the pencil you use. Some pencils glide easily across the lips while other might tug a bit. I find the NYX pencil tugs a bit, but the line of automatic liners from NYX glides easily. The pencil you use is all about personal preference. Make sure to start with a sharp pencil, as this makes application easier. First, trace the edges of your lips. If you are using a pencil for the first time, or even using lip liner for the first time, start with a gentle hand. You can always go back with more pressure, but it's hard to remove the color if you apply too much! I use short, quick strokes like I was filling in my brows, all along the edges of my lips.

Next, I fill in my lips with liner. There's a reason. Lip primers are great, but a lip liner can do the same job for you. I simply fill in my lips with liner as well, again using short quick strokes instead of one swipe across the lip. This gives my lips a natural look and helps the gloss I apply to stay put longer.

Lastly, make sure the edges are not too sharp looking. You want defined, pouty lips, not the 90s lip look. If you find the look is a little too sharp or harsh, simply take a cotton bud (Q-tip) and very gently run it along the edges of your lips. This helps to soften the overall look, while keeping your lips well defined.

I hope this helps you! Lip liner really can be a great tool in your makeup arsenal! Have fun experimenting with different looks and products!