Category: Make up

Make your own dry shampoo so you can sleep-in during mornings!

~ Emmie ~ 4 Comments

Lazy is good.  It’s great actually.  When it comes to shampooing hair, there is nothing more healthy for your scalp and hair than skipping as many days as you can between shampoos.  The reason is simple.  Shampoos are harsh.  They strip away natural oils, you use a lot of friction to make them lather, and your hair (unlike a pair of distressed jeans), do not look better when they are put through the washer and dryer.  On the other hand, oily strands of hair do not look polished or pretty either.  A solution?  Dry shampoo.  When I use dry shampoo, I can go a up to a week between washing with a regular shampoo.  This is great in two ways:  It is healthier for your hair, and also it saves you plenty of time in the morning because you don’t have to shampoo and condition in the shower, and you don’t have to restyle/shape your hair again. I dust dry shampoo in my hair roots, and it looks as if I had showered and re-curled my hair! A handy and healthy short cut to clean hair.

So this is my hair after a few days without washing. Kinda gross and oily as you can see.
So this is my hair after a few days without washing. Kinda gross and oily as you can see.

The best part is it really isn’t cheating.  Your hair is actually getting cleaner with the use of a dry shampoo.  The reason is is that oily hair is a magnet for dust and dirt.  When your hair is oily, particles of dirt stick to it, making your hair more “dirty” as each day without a wash passes. Dry shampoo works by soaking up the oil, along with any unwanted dirt, then falling out of your hair.   So technically, a dry shampoo really does “shampoo” your hair and clean it.  It is not a cosmetic effect, it  cleans by absorbing grease and oil and it is not as “gross” as some people may think.

Doesn't my hair look a lot cleaner and better? It took two minutes with a dusting of dry shampoo.
Doesn’t my hair look a lot cleaner and better? It took two minutes with a dusting of dry shampoo.

How I use my own homemade dry shampoo is simple. On day 3 or 4 I dust in a thin amount of dry powder into the roots to mid shafts of my hair all over.  I actually use a blush brush and dip it into the bowl of dry shampoo and then brush it all over.  I like using a blush brush because there is more control, but you can also use a shaker type container to shake it in.  Then once applied shake and massage your head and hair so it can do it’s magic.   Then simply comb gently.  Thou’st ready to go out now!

Simple recipe for home made dry shampoo:

1 part cornstarch (absorbs oil like crazy)

1 part arrowroot flour (absorbs oil, but is softer in the hair)

1/3 part cocoa powder ( this ingredient is optional for those with darker hair)

Mix and blend all three powders until consistency is smooth and uniform.  I like to add jasmine and rose oil drops to make the shampoo smell amazing!

I keep my dry shampoo in a tin and dust it into my hair with a blush brush. So easy, and fast too!
I keep my dry shampoo in a tin and dust it into my hair with a blush brush. So easy, and fast too!

3 summer fashion hacks I just came up with, and am quite pleased with…

~ Emmie ~ 7 Comments

If you’re like me this summer, you don’t have an unlimited budget to spend on updating your wardrobe to follow all of the latest trends in depth.  Even with scoring cool stuff on sale, or by settling for the quality of cheaper stores like H&M or Forever 21, they don’t always suffice in delivering the goods you want fully.  There is always compromising and settling involved when trying to stay current while not breaking the bank!  It is hard, but these are a couple of tricks of modifying clothes that I’ve tried with some success.

My distressed denim hack:

The store I work for part-time, Smartset doesn’t have a jean that is distressed enough to follow this season’s line-up of sporting really wrecked-beyond-hope denim, so I can’t use my staff discount there to save.  My solution?  I had a pair of light greyish blue denim from Smartset last year that was just boring.  They had no distressing, and as a full-length light coloured pant,  they just kept getting gross and dirty at the ankle parts because it was a bit long.  This was not stylish or cool.  So I decided to cut them into crop pants and distress them myself.  I cut off the pant legs past the ankle, hand sewed some cuffs in them and then ripped the heck out of them with different denim distressing techniques I learned online.  I ended up really liking the casual undone look of them, and wrecking them gave me some therapy too!  I saw similar jeans to mine at Urban Outfitters later that week.  I was happy to say I may have saved about $70, doing it myself by recycling unwanted old jeans in my closet.

Feeling like I gave these jeans a face lift by cuffing them into crops and distressing them to fit in with current trends...
Feeling like I gave these jeans a face lift by cuffing them into crops and distressing them to fit in with current trends…

My Strapless Romper Hack:

Such a reasonably priced romper, made with cotton and even had cute pockets. The only down side was the fact that one pull down and I would be exposed...
Such a reasonably priced romper, made with cotton and even had cute pockets. The only down side was the fact that one pull down and I would be exposed…

Summer isn’t fun without a romper. Why?  Because you can do it all in a romper.  It’s a onesie made for adults!  For those of you that don’t know, a romper is basically a dress at the top, but instead of it turning into a skirt at the bottom, it turns into shorts, all in one piece.  It’s great.  Casual, super cute, and really comfortable.  You get to keep cool this summer, by covering just what you need to cover, and unlike short skirts, you won’t show everything when you move.  Rompers however tend to be expensive.  Don’t know why cuz they seem easy to make and don’t require that much fabric.  I however did find one at Forever 21 that was only $10!  Sometimes you can’t even get a tank top for that.  The one flaw with the romper I found was that it was strapless.  All of a sudden, summer care-free behaviour is restricted in this romper by the fear of it being pulled down by accident.  But it being only $10, I bought it, took it home and sewed on halter straps to keep it from falling down, making it much more functional, for no cost at all!  I even like the look of it with straps more than without!

After sewing on two pieces of drawstrings from another top. Not my strapless romper is functional as a halter romper. yay!
After sewing on two pieces of drawstrings from another top. Now my flawed strapless romper is a functional halter romper. yay!

Jersey Bodycon dress hack:

Jersey (t-shirt material) bodycon dresses are the best basics.  They fit your body well, can be dressed up or down, great for summer, and they hug your body and show off your feminine curves.  They also are an effortless way to make yourself look put yourself together in two minutes. Add heals and you’re ready for the club, wear with flat sandals and it’s a casual day at the cottage.  The awesome thing too is that because they are simple dresses made out of stretchy jersey material, they don’t cost a lot.  I recently snagged a nice floral bodycon dress from the Smartset were I work.  With my discounts and specials, I got it for only $15!  I was thrilled.  I could possibly match that price at some other discount stores, but the ones at Smartset were so much better quality, and the length was not too short.  The only problem was that the neckline I noticed was not flattering.  It barely scooped in the front.  I noticed it scooped a lot more in the back, so what did I do?  I carefully removed the stitches of the label on the back collar of the dress and then wore it backwards!  The scoop back became the front, and well, now I am liking it more.

This was originally the back of this fitted jersey dress. Just by carefully removing the stitches on the label in the back, I can now wear this with the flattering scoop neck in the front.
This was originally the back of this fitted jersey dress. Just by carefully removing the stitches on the label in the back, I can now wear the flattering scoop neck in the front.

Remaking clothes that you have or got on sale is great.  It saves you a money in the long run and more importantly, you get what you want for the price that you want it.  🙂  Let me know a hack that you have done to your summer wardrobe to make it your own!

Spring make-up trends from Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar: Less is more

~ Emmie ~ Leave a comment

There is no greater fashion authority than Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, at least that is what I feel.  These giants are the leaders of the industry and always know what will look high-fashion, and what will look pedestrian. Their knowledge includes hair and make-up.  However, I still get annoyed an any fashion authority because of how trends come in and out at a snap of the finger.  Or seeing trends that seem to mirror the things us girls were doing all along, but all of a sudden, it is accepted as stylish!  Read this spring’s Vogue and Bazaar articles and you will know exactly what I mean.

Trend 1: Bare faced, no make-up, fresh and clean.

This is a really really hard look to pull off!  That is why this trend is annoying.  Most girls are not blessed with perfect, glowy, dewy faces.  Believe it or not, this look actually takes work.  My suggestion to get this?  Use a heavy moisturizer, then thinly sponge on bb cream or foundation. Use face powder sparingly.  This is how I used to do my make-up for errands day or groceries.  Turns out it is now high fashion…who knew?  I think bare faced and no make-up looks best with clean flawless skin, and undone, unruly hair.

See how this look is done. It is unpolished in the face, so the hair has to match this to pull off this undone look.
See how this look is done. It is unpolished in the face, so the hair has to match this to pull off this undone look.

Trend 2: Air dried, slightly wavy hair bordering on bedhead…

This is a trend I’ve been rocking all along and feeling quite bad about its lazy look until now, that is.  Apparently, because Vogue and other sources say so, it is stylish now.  This look is one of my favourites in that it is effortless, and celebrates how hair looks naturally (aka kinda weird). No curling irons, hair spray or straighteners necessary.  My tips for getting this look?  After washing and conditioning hair, let it air dry until almost dry.  Then twist it up into one or several buns.  Let it dry some more.  Undo, and then blow dry the rest of the moisture out on low heat.  You should be left with barely there waves.  Finish with a moisturizing pomade on the midshaft and ends of hair.  Effortless and a bit messy.

See how the hair is a bit frizzy like it was air dried? Also there is a barely there wave. Super cool and effortless is the feeling.
See how the hair is a bit frizzy like it was air dried? Also there is a barely-there wave. Super cool and effortless is the goal.

Trend 3:  Liquid liner, thin and barely there

This one ties into trend 1 of having a minimal make-up look. What will spoil any “no make-up look” fast would be overly thick liquid lined eyes.  Even if you’re a natural beaut, the graphic nature of boldly lined eyes makes a make-up look stylized, planned and over done.  Get away with wearing bold liquid liner while still looking “au naturale” by thinly, and I mean thinly painting on the lines as close to the lashes as possible.  This way your eyes still pop, but it still looks as if you’re wearing little to no make-up.  A nice addition to this would be to skip lining the lower lid liner but to use a light to medium eye shadow to line the bottom lid softly instead!

I love the make-up on the top eyelid. So defined but delicate in the thinness of the black liner. Bottom liner is a bit harsh, though. Soften with barely there shadow.
I love the make-up on the top eyelid. So defined but delicate in the thinness of the black liner. Bottom liner is a bit harsh, though. Soften it by lining it with eye shadow instead.

 

In Summary:

Clean and fresh faced is in for this spring.  This is a hard look to rock, because too little make-up and a girl can end up looking slovenly, too much and the effect of being effortlessly pretty is gone.  What to do?  Take care of your skin, moisturize, and use your make-up sparingly.  This has been what I have been doing casually for a while now and it seems as if the fashion industry this spring is ironically jumping on this bandwagon of common sense.

This is my take on the spring trends. I try to keep it minimal with lighter eye shadows and soft thin eye definition. A nude lip pulls this all together.
This is my take on the spring trends. I try to keep it minimal with lighter eye shadows and soft thin eye definition. A nude lip pulls this all together.