Alright friends, here’s the thing. I’m always overthinking blog posts, and they become thesis papers 80 times a human capacity to read by the time I’m done. And while I won’t ever stop providing well-researched information and educational content, I also just sometimes want a place where memories can be simple and live forever. So today we kick-off a new series: 5 Friday Favorites.
The goal with the series is to simply provide you with 5 things we loved this week. It could be products we’re using, services we can’t quit, or vacation spots we loved. Or maybe just a moment we spent playing a game together. Either way, we aim to capture glimpses of our life here on the blog rather than just on social media. And in doing so, maybe we’ll inspire you to find something you love, too! ♥
5 Friday Favorites: Stacy’s Grooming Edition
click the title or image to check out any individual item more
1 – Stacy’s Silk Pillowcase
I’m just as susceptible to internet-influencer peer pressure as the next person! After Danielle Walker shared about how she travels with a silk pillow to elongate her hair being done the day before, I was shook. Wha?! A pillow? I don’t have to wake up with a bird’s nest, I could maybe have the ever-illusive-sexy-bed-head? Well, friends, I’m here to tell you: the rumors are true. My curls are less tangled and my skin is happier since I starting using a silk pillow!
2 – LaVanilla Healthy Fragrance
You’ve heard me talk about how TERRIBLE the ‘fragrance loophole’ is with personal care products before. However, Lavanila is making a “healthy fragrance” without any “fragrance” on the label at all! I love both the Vanilla Grapefruit and Fresh Vanilla Lemon scents and can’t wait to give Coconut and Pure Vanilla a go.
NOTE: Many other influencers are sharing about a certain company with an appealing marketing and affiliate program. However, when I received my review pack I could tell there was something really “perfumey” about it that I hadn’t smelled in other brands. So I looked up the ingredients in the scent I liked. TWO of the first FIVE ingredients were registered as TOXIC on PubChem and EWG. The brand talks about their clean ingredients and sourcing – but the only way to know for sure is to check yourself. Some brands make one product that’s clean and great with another you may not want to use. Read labels and be your own advocate!
3 – Flawless Face Fuzz Groomer
Alrighty friends, here’s the part where I live up the blog’s title of being REAL. This little machine is new to me, but my sister has been using it for years and swears by it. As someone who takes way-too-close-up pictures and videos in bright light, I’ve been growing more self-conscious about the peach fuzz on the outer edges above my lip. It’s blonde and thin peach fuzz, just like the hair all over my face – but in light all I would notice is my “mustache.” My sister told me about this machine which does not “shave” your skin or remove the hair from the follicle (because threading HURT and irritated my skin). It has been great so far, I had NO irritation or weird re-growth since it just “trimmed” the hair versus removing it.
If you’ve got darker, thicker hair this may not be for you – but if you’re a middle-aged woman staring down some fuzz you’re not fond of, you may wanna check it out.
4 – Genny B’s Magnetic Magical Make-up Brushes
note: make sure to clip the 10% off coupon on Amazon if you’re gonna try these!
Ah! I love when my friends do or make cool things. And while I know a lot of people with incredible IP, not very many of them produce products. Which is why I’m SO excited about Genny B’s new Luxley brushes. While they had me at a small woman-owned badass making rose gold brushes, I fell in LOVE with the magical upright magnets. Seriously, these are SO cool and convenient. They live on my vanity and are just gorgeous! I especially love the tiny eyeliner and eyeshadow brushes – it’s so hard to get good tiny ones!
5 – Flawless in 5 Makeup Bundle from Beautycounter
Cue me reminding you about those way too-close up selfies in bright light.
It’s no new news that I’ve been using Beautycounter makeup for about 3 years – ever since I learned the skincare company I was using had greenwashed and was not ACTUALLY using fermented cod liver oil in their beauty balm. Once I switched skincare, however, it took much longer to finally transition make-up. I really didn’t want to give up my beloved department store versions. However, when I shared about my research findings on Why Cleaner Cosmetics Matter I became a full-fledged believer.
Did you know?
Inhaled powders and ingested products are absorbed much more than thru the skin. A study found Cadmium absorbed at .5% through the skin, but 60% internally. Nearly all makeup contains heavy metals, especially natural brands, since metals are in organic matter! The only way to know is to TEST. This is why I use Beautycounter; they test source ingredients, finished products, and batch test over time.
As someone with autoimmune and MTHFR, I cannot handle any additional toxins. These are some common ones found in makeup:
- ARSENIC: absorbed through inhalation and ingestion – causes birth defects, and is a carcinogen: lung, skin, liver, bladder, and kidneys, GI damage, severe vomiting, diarrhea, death.
- LEAD: absorbed through inhalation and ingestion – causes anemia, hypertension, kidney damage, miscarriages, disruption of nervous systems, brain damage, infertility, intellectual disorders.
- CADMIUM: absorbed through inhalation, ingestion and absorption through the skin – causes anemia, birth defects, impairment of pulmonary function, renal dysfunction, bone changes, liver damage (hepatotoxicity), kidney damage (nephrotoxicity), iron deficiency, oxidative stress.
Now, think about those things being absorbed ONE HUNDRED & TWENTY times worse than skincare! Finding quality cleaner cosmetics that perform like your beloved brand names is tough, but Beautycounter has been worn on the red carpet, featured multiple times on the Today show, and is award-winning by Allure, Cosmo, etc. it’s LEGIT: performs and is safer!
Which is why I’m sharing the Flawless in 5 make-up set, which is discounted 20% off when purchased as a bundled customizable set. And through February 20, 2018 you can also get a free retractable foundation brush (great for travel) with the purchase of it! With a 60 day no-questions-asked return policy, what do you have to lose?!
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