Originally submitted at EyesLipsFace.com

Anti-aging formula combats premature aging and protects against sun damage while leaving skin radiant and moisturized. The tinted color evens skin tone for a natural look.

Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15

Great bang for the buck!

Pros: Noncomodegenic, Easy To Apply, Blends Well, Lightweight, Goes On Smoothly, Good Pigmentation

Best Uses: Light To Medium Coverage

Describe Yourself: Budget Buyer

Skin Tone: Fair

I bought this in Ivory. My husband and I recently took a weekend trip and I brought this with me on the trip instead of my usual foundation to save space in my make-up bag. It provided lightweight coverage, went on easily, and was surprisingly pigmented. I had it in my mind that this would either be too much of a moisturizer or too much of a foundation. Turns out it is perfectly in the middle which makes me very happy. I used this with ELF’s Mineral Booster and a little concealer and my skin looked good all day.

(legalese)

A few days ago I posted on Twitter that I wanted to leave body washes behind.

Three quarters of the body wash I use ends up going down the drain and, honestly, I was starting to get annoyed with trying to recycle the containers. The detergents in soap make it difficult to get completely rinsed from inside the bottle.

Speaking of detergents: if it takes forever to rinse out a bottle of soap then think what that detergent is doing to your skin. I’ve been researching the ingredients of soaps. Sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate (SLS) are the main foaming agents found in commercial soaps. BTW, they’re also found in toothpaste, shampoo, and laundry detergent. SLS is a common skin irritant.

Earlier this week, I ditched all of my soaps containing SLS. My research didn’t find any SLS-free body washes  so I set out in search of bars that wouldn’t leave me itchy. I found a few and now I’m test-driving them. They were inexpensive and so far they seem to be doing a good job. I’ve still been putting on lotion afterward out of habit but I bet if I skipped this step I would be fine.

And last week I began an experiment: I stopped washing my face. Yes, even as I type that I know how icky it sounds, but I was at my wits’ end because I’ve been having big skin problems on my face like acne, dry and oily patches, and redness. I think I can trace these issues to soaps among other harsh products that I’ve been using in an attempt to make my skin look better. My solution has been to use cold cream to clean my face, followed up with a very mild moisturizer (Oil of Olay Sensitive SPF 15). That’s it. No astringents, toners, acne treatments, eye creams or anything else. My skin look looks much better: my acne is clearing up; the dry and oily patches are gone. This is the best my face has looked in a long time. I’m not saying I’ve found a miraculous cure for my face. I still have redness from old acne and I could probably use an exfoliation but I see definite improvement. I’ll post an update soon so you hear about my progress.

Thinking back on the brands of soaps and body washes I’ve used over the years I can confirm that they have all contained SLS’s. Is it any wonder that I’ve  been suffering from dry skin? I was probably having a mild allergic reaction every time I showered.

Things are going well for me. I am finishing up my second semester at the University of Memphis. I have been going part-time for the past two semesters and decided to ramp things up and go full-time. If I do that and take classes in the summer then I’ll graduate in May 2012. That just seems totally unreal to me. I’ll actually be a college graduate! LOL

I don’t really have much else to talk about right now. Just wanted to let anyone who might look at my site periodically know that I’m still alive. I’m hoping to post more frequently but that doesn’t mean that I will. I changed the site’s theme today but I’m not too happy with it. I may change it to something else soon so don’t be alarmed.

My hubs has had AA since he was in high school and has been shaving his head for the last 10 years. In the years before he and I met I guess his hair had fallen out and grown back a couple of times and he was always self-conscious about his hair loss. The last time his hair fell out it just never grew back so he decided to shave away any remaining hair. I tell him often that I think he is beautiful – in fact I think he is more handsome WITHOUT hair!

Ms. Martell is such a beautiful girl, both when she is competing with or without a wig and her story is very inspirational. I saw her this morning on Fox and Friends and she was great. I can’t find a clip of that interview but she’s been on the interview circuit and I found a clip of her on the CBS Early Show. Enjoy!

I’m going to work as many hours as I can in the next few months until classes start back up again in August. Then I’ll be taking 3 classes at school and working part-time – my free time will be much better arranged than it is now because right now I don’t have a set schedule. Once classes resume in the Fall things will get settled down and I’ll get back into a routine again. Life will be swell. (Insert deep sigh here.)

So … I’m not going to end this post with promises of more frequent updates. Let’s leave things with a pledge that any posts I make between now and the beginning of classes in the Fall will be more meaningful and thoughtful.

Please take a few moments today to reflect on the brave men and women who have given their lives to allow us to live our lives in safety and freedom in the greatest country in the world.

Yay!

Things I’ll like about the new job (in case I ever forget!):

• I’ll get a 20% discount on (most) merchandise.
• The company is willing to allow me a flexible schedule to work more hours now and less when classes start back up in the Fall.
• Macy’s is one of the most widely recognized company’s in the world with a great reputation for quality.

I don’t want to be a retail sales associate for the rest of my life or anything but Macy’s is such a great company. I’m excited about working for them and seeing where I can go in the company. Once I graduate, my degree in Journalism could translate into a lot of different careers so you never know – in 2 or 3 years I could still be working for Macy’s in the corporate office.

Kind of makes me feel smart.

Do you remember that I went back to school? Well these last few weeks have been a little busy for me because they’ve been gearing up for the end of the semester which means that it’s time for final exams. I’m only taking two classes this semester so I only have to finals. I’ve already taken one and the other is this coming Tuesday. I’m feeling very unprepared for it but I think that stems from the fact that the professor takes himself way too seriously and feels it’s his duty to make his tests as difficult as possible. I know the material but worry about the format of the test – all essay – not my favorite. I have this weekend and Monday to study so hopefully that will help to build up my confidence.

I’m taking 3 classes next semester. That’s still considered part-time. One class is in my concentration – Journalism – and is a media writing class. The other two classes are an English Literature class and a French class. I’m not worried about the literature class but that’s mainly because I’m not sure whether it’s just a survey or whether there’s a lot of reading and paper writing involved. Maybe I should look into it more? LOL The French class is a fourth level class and I’m really nervous about jumping into it after not having had any French since 2003. Even though I took French all through high school and for 4 semesters at Purdue I barely remember any of it. I’m wondering if I’ll need a tutor. Wish me luck.

So you see, I’m still around. Just busy with classes. I have the Summer off from classes and plan to look for work to keep me busy. I’m applying for jobs but the job market is not looking too good around here right now. I’m trying to stay positive and I know that I’ll find something soon.