Seal of Approval

I'm going to start a new topic on my blog here, and I'm calling it my seal of approval. I know I've only been filling you all in on my school work so far, and I haven't had the time to set up any tutorials yet, but I do love all things beautiful, as well as things that make my life a little more easier, a little more beautiful. So, I'm starting this topic as a continuing addition to let the readers know what products I use and what I love!

 Let's start with Makeup. I've tried it feels like everything under the sun when it comes to makeup, especially on my face and certainly because I suffered from acne for a long time. My all time favorite face makeup HAS to be Bare Essentials, Bare Minerals. It doesn't smell, it comes in a million colors, it last for a long time, it's natural, and it's extremely complimentary on anyone's skin I've seen it used on! You can get it at Sephora, and Ulta, but I usually get it from QVC because my mom has been obsessed with QVC ever since I can remember, and when you order from there you can get it in kits for super cheap, it's a "Today's Special Value" all the time, and you can almost always do "Easy Pay". Well worth the $$

Let's take the makeup off and talk about face wash. Like I said before, I've suffered from acne for a long, long, long, long... time. It sucks, I tried everything, I tried pro-activ which worked for the first couple months, then my skin became immune and I had to take a break for a month and start it up again, I seriously did that for about 3 years. All the while taking a prescription anti-biotic (I tried a couple kinds actually). I also tried Neutrogena, Clearasil, St. Ives, Clean and Clear, Acne Free, Stridex, Aveeno, Oxy, Noxema, Olay, and L-Oreal.... just to name a few. Then I took the biggest step and decided to take Accutane, as a complete last resort. It was incredibly expensive, made me need Carmex glued to my hand, and I had to have my blood taken every month. I had to use a gentle face wash called CeraVe which I totally recommend, especially there moisturizing creme for extremely dry skin (it's the only thing that helped my accutane skin). I stopped my accutane about 2 months before I was supposed to because I just couldn't handle the effects and plus I completely suck at taking pills daily anyway. So, yes I got a high powered prescription acne treatment and it's still in my system, but  I did not get the fully intended effects from it. I still get zits every now and then, but nothing as bad as before. I know it's because of the accutane somewhat, but I totally give credit to this product: for killing my zits over night basically when they do show up. I swear by this stuff, it's so refreshing and makes my face smell great. The Body Shop's Tea-Tree Black-Head Exfoliating Wash. Yes! 

Now, for the nails! I love painting my nails, but they always seem to chip....the same day I paint them. They've come out with some super cute colors lately especially in the brand Essie (my new fav!). So I bought the colors I loved and began painting my nails, did 2-3 coats, then put on a regular clear top coat. Then my mom came to me and asked if I wanted to use this new top coat she bought that makes your nails dry faster. Sure, why not? I said. I used this Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, and oh my lord. It was A-MAZ-ING. 1st, my nails dried waaaay faster than usual, 2nd they had such a shine to them especially after 2 coats of it, that they looked as good as acrylic nails. 3rd, they didn't chip until at least a week later, when I banged my hand into something. Do you understand how amazing this shit is? You won't until you try it. Seriously. You can get it at Sally Beauty, not sure where else! I never go without this stuff.




These 3 items have been chosen out of my everyday routine, and I absolutely would not stop using them for anything! They definitely gain my