Category Archives: Beauty

Beauty

The Eyes Have It: Best Eyeliner Kits

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Buxom Layer On the Gems Collection

Buxom Layer On the Gems Collection

As we all know, it is the holiday season and that means gift sets galore! While Muslims typically don’t have a holiday to celebrate around this time of year, I know that I definitely appreciate the abundance of gift sets. This is the time of year that I stock up on certain things such as perfumes and makeup brands because there are always great holiday deals.

One thing I am always a fan of is eyeliner. Even during the Prophet (saws)’s time, the companions used to enhance their eyes using kohl. I thought this was interesting. It does make sense since back during that time, the companions used to use perfume oils, apply henna, and even dye their hair! So beautifying the eyes is just one aspect of how they used to take care of the bodies that Allah (swt) gave them.

I know that some readers were bummed that the set I featured in the Deal of the Day was sold out, so I have TWO great eyeliner sets for you to try out.

The first above, is the Buxom Layer On The Gems Collection . For those of you who love colored eyeliner, this set has a nice mix of jewel toned eyeliners that are velvety smooth and glide on without too much tugging. I would recommend this as a starter eyeliner set for someone who wants to dabble in colored liners. The best part? It is $29. Typically, to buy each liner would set you back $56 if you wanted to buy all 4. So this set is a nice bargain if you want an array of eyeliners in your arsenal.

Urban Decay Eyeliner Set

The next set is Urban Decay’s Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencil Set . Urban Decay eyeliners are my absolute favorites because you can do a smoky eye in no time. I bought an eyeliner set for my younger cousin YEARS ago and she still LOVES it. (I warned her about infections for using a set from 2005, but she refuses to listen because it is THAT good). I hope that if you buy this set, you use it in a more sanitary fashion, but I promise you beautiful highly pigmented eyeliners that never fail to impress. That cousin of mine is KNOWN for her gorgeous peepers. For $59 a set, you get $152 worth of makeup! I know it is still steep, but these liners are not only creamy, but they are waterproof. So line your eyes and know that you are safe to cry if you want to (or take a dip in the ocean).

For my super bargainista hijabis, here is my absolute all time favorite:

L'Oreal Le Kohl Pencil in Carbon Black

L’Oreal Le Kohl Pencil in Carbon Black

L’Oreal Le Kohl Pencil is under $10 and you can use it to line your eyes, tightline in your waterline area, or even as a smoky eyeshadow. I use this pencil ALL the time. So there you have it. These are my top eyeliner picks for you. What is your favorite eyeliner?

 

 

Beauty

Savvy Hijabi: Deal of the Day

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As a busy mom, I find the first thing I neglect is myself when it comes to prioritizing my time. Well, Muslim moms should consider that spending a little extra time to look nice does make a difference for our husbands!

I knew I was getting bad when my Hubster would emphatically say how nice I looked if I put on a little Vaseline on my lips! I thought to myself it was time to put some effort in looking nice for both of us even with a full time job and a baby.

The good news is that looking a little nicer doesn’t have to take a lot of time either. Thanks to Tarte’s Carried Away makeup palette, I have everything I need to look a little more polished.

It has 24 full eyeshadows, 8 mini lipglosses, an Amazonian clay blush, a brush, finishing powder, and mascara.

The colors are all a nice neutral palette. I tried them all out and found that you can do an array of looks. From sparkly pastels to smoky eye looks, this palette can help you get the right look you want. I especially love how pigmented the colors are since as a woman of color, some lighter colors can fade out on my skin.

I love the finishing powder! It gives your skin a nice airbrushed look. Even if I have nothing else on, I still look well rested and glowy.

For $54.00, you are getting a whopping $512.00 value! I can tell you how I love a good bargain but this blew my mind away. You really do have a lot of high quality makeup for a great price.

The best part about Tarte cosmetics is that they are paraben and petrochemical free. They are also a cruelty free makeup line which means they don’t test on animals.

I think this palette may be sold out, but keep your eyes peeled for more Tarte deals soon!

Beauty

Oil Cleansing Method Review

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Source: oilyskinblog.com via Jayme on Pinterest

There has recently been a lot of buzz about the oil cleansing method among the hijabi set. The ever so lovely Amena Khan did a wonderful little video tutorial on the oil cleansing method, and I could not resist trying it! Yes, I know I am a sucker for all things beauty, but I promise you that this is definitely worth trying.

I have to say, I was already pretty happy with my cleanser (I used Chantecaille’s Rice and Geranium Foaming Cleanser) coupled with my Clarisonic face brush. However, I was being lazy with charging my Clarisonic and was just washing my face without the brush. Needless to say, I broke out on my face so I needed to change up my skincare routine a little.

It was just what I needed to try the oil cleansing method.

However, after reading a lot of blog posts about the oil cleansing method, I had a few takeaways. The first is that castor oil is the typical carrier oil for the cleansing method. However, if you have acne prone skin or sensitive skin, castor oil may not be ideal. I would say start off with castor oil, but tweak it to suit your own skin’s needs. The second is that you can use any mix of oils that work best for your skin.

The oil cleansing method is all about the idea that “like dissolves like.” This means that oil should dissolve the oil that is clogging your pores and the root of your bad skin issues. Remember, there are other things such as dead skin cells and bacterial inflammation that is also causing your skin issues. So the oil cleansing method promises to dissolve the stuff clogging your pores while avoiding harsh chemicals found in traditional face cleansers that can strip away your skin’s natural barrier of protection. I know from personal experience that stripping away my skin’s natural oils only forced my skin to produce more sebum (oil in the skin) and caused more breakouts.

I decided to try out two different combinations of oils. The first was 2 parts extra virgin olive oil, 1 part almond oil. The second is all almond oil and 2 drops tea tree oil. For now, I think the tea tree oil combination is working out better for me. My two pimples (I know, TMI!) started to calm down and I also noticed that the redness is going down a lot faster. As a woman of color, I also grapple with hyperpigmentation and scarring from acne as well. Well, I can honestly say that after trying the oil cleansing method, my dark spots are actually healing a lot faster than with any fancy cream (trust me, I tried MANY of these; including Clinique’s).

I think the true test is that I find myself really debating whether I even want to wear foundation or concealer because I feel like it masks my own natural glow!

The best part is that not only is the oil cleansing method natural, it is a heck of a lot cheaper than what I was spending on my original face wash.

If you are interested in the oil cleansing method, check out this great starter post on the oil cleansing method on Nature’s Nurture blog

Beauty

Perfect Foundation Match: Sephora + Pantone Color IQ

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20121107-155807.jpg Sephora + Pantone Color IQ station in San Francisco

Are you always searching for the perfect match in terms of foundation makeup? I know have! In fact, for me, searching for my HG (holy grail) foundation has taken years! It was actually easier to land my hubby than it is to find a perfect match for my skin tone with a foundation.

I tried the wide spectrum of Bare Minerals to Armani Luminous, and still no luck.

As a woman of color, I think it is quite challenging to find a foundation color that is not too chalky, but at the same time, not too muddy.

Well that is a thing of the past now! The geniuses over at Sephora seem to have a solution to the problem of finding the right color match in terms of foundation makeup. They have partnered up with Pantone to create a Color IQ.

What happens is this:

20121107-160418.jpgFirst, they ask you your makeup preferences. For example if you want full coverage versus sheer.

Second they take this amazing little scanner:

20121107-160644.jpg and they scan your face in a few different areas.

Since the skin color on our face varies in different areas, the machine then averages the skin tone of the various scanned spots to come up with the perfect match.

Finally, it pops up a list of perfect foundation matches for your skin tone. The lovelies at Sephora will then offer you samples of each foundation match to try at home. This allows you to find the best match for your own skin tone!

I think it’s brilliant! What about you? Have you tried this out yet? It’s only available in Sephora in NYC and SF for now, but I bet it will hit more stores soon.

Beauty

Beat Winter Skin Blahs

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20121107-083101.jpg Clockwise from left: Olay Quench body lotion, Frederic Fekkai PRX Reparatives hair mask
Winter is fast approaching which means that our daily skin care routine should change a little. With harsher elements such as cold air, frost, and even indoor heating, our hair and skin can take a beating when winter is in full swing.

Switching over to body lotions that are richer in moisturizers such as shea butter can help combat these elements by providing a barrier between your skin and the elements that can damage it. That is why I love Olay Quench. It absorbs fast, but it hydrates so effectively, even if your elbows look like elephant skin.

Now some hijabis (ahem me) are notorious for not taking care of their hair. But in the winter, I try to pay special attention to it because the cold air plus dry indoor heating seems to suck the shine right out. Using a hair mask helps bring that shine back. This one by Frederic Fekkai is especially nourishing and also feels super luxurious. This hair mask turns my straw like ends in to silky bouncy hair.

Finally, there is an old saying that you can tell a woman’s age by her hands. Well if that is the case, keep them guessing by using a hand cream. This L’Occitane hand cream makes my hands so soft! They sell two sizes so if you are not sold on hand creams yet, try the mini version and let me know what you think.

I hope that this post helps you survive the roughest of winters all while looking great.

Beauty

Beauty Subscriptions: Are They Worth It?

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Clockwise from top left: Birchbox, Allure’s Sample Society, Beauty Box 5, and Glossybox

As a self proclaimed beauty junkie, I noticed a trend. There are all sorts of new beauty subscriptions cropping up! Typically, a beauty subscription is a medley of different beauty samples shipped straight to your door for a monthly fee.

While some of you may scoff at paying money for samples that you can get at department store for free, one of the cool things about beauty subscriptions is that you can try new products that you would have never tried or selected on your own.

It’s like having a beauty editor pick out the coolest brands or products for you to try! Plus as a busy hijabi mom, I do NOT have the time and patience to wheedle with beauty counter ladies in order to score from free samples.

I would have never tried this highlighter called Mary Lou Manizer from The Balm if it did not come in my October Birchbox. NOW I am hooked on it. It helps me glow even when I am sleep deprived. So thank you Birchbox!

Here is a rundown of my top 4 beauty subscription picks:

Birchbox :

Cost: $10 a month

Pros: Comes with a wide range of funky beauty samples plus it comes with a freebie non beauty item. It is the cheapest subscription of the bunch too.

Cons: The caliber of some of the brands is weak. Also, they need to work out logistics with shipping on time.

Beauty Bar’s Sample Society With Allure

Cost: $15 a month

Pros: Beauty Bar teamed up with the famed Allure Magazine to create beauty boxes worth coveting. Also they sometimes throw in full size items! Also includes a subscription to Allure Magazine and a coupon to use on the site for a full sized item.

Cons: It is one of the pricier subscriptions.

Beauty Box 5

Cost: $12 a month

Pros: Their samples seem more generous.

Cons: The beauty brands they carry are not as well known or as prestigious.

Glossybox

Cost: $21 a month

Pros: Carries the most high end samples of the bunch. If you are into sampling luxe brands like Burberry Beauty, Carol’s Daughter, and Kinerase, then this is the box for you.

Cons: Most expensive subscription of the bunch.

There are plenty of other subscriptions like Ipsy, etc but I thought the four I reviewed above were my favorites. As for my true blue favorite, that is a secret! What is your favorite beauty subscription? And just so my male readers don’t feel left out, there are men versions of subscriptions too (like Birchbox Man). Let me know what your recommendations are.

Beauty

Perfect Red Lipstick For All Skintones

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One of the main fall colors when it comes to fashion has been ox blood and other deep jewel tones. But what about your makeup?

One of the best ways for tired moms to look refreshed without putting a lot of effort to their beauty routine is to brighten their lipstick with a bold red color. Just look at how stunning all of the ladies above look!

Now before some of you Islamic minded folks judge me for blogging about beauty, you can always choose to wear lipstick at home for your family instead of outside. In fact, looking nice for your husband seems to be a forgotten art form for busy moms like me, so it’s nice when I do actually make some effort once in a while.

Okay, now that we have that part out of the way, here are my tips and tricks for the perfect red pout:

Choose the Right Shade: Now if you are scared to wear red, just know that there are plenty of flattering shades for any skin tone.

For fair skin, reds with a hint of coral look lovely. Try Revlon’s Super Lustrous lipstick in Fire and Ice.

For medium skin, you are lucky enough to pull off a range of reds. I like the drama of MAC lipstick in Russian Red.

For dark skin, stick with deeper richer tones like a blackberry red. Try MAC lipstick in Ruby Woo.

Prep and Prime Lips: No one likes red lipstick on flaky looking lips. Make sure your lips are smooth and soft by putting on some Vaseline and gently rubbing a clean damp washcloth over your lips. It’s a cost effective way to prep your lips.

Line Your Lips: Lining your lips with a nude lip pencil helps prevent feathering and bleeding. It helps keep your red lip looking clean and neat.

Paint the Red On: For precise application, apply your red lip color with a lip brush.

Keep Your Face Neutral: Even if you are rocking this look at home, let’s keep it tasteful by understating the the rest of your face. Groomed brows, liquid eyeliner and no blush or an understated blush is all you need!

What are your tips for a perfect red lip?

Beauty

Skincare Basics

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Pssssst! I want to tell you all a secret. The secret to having unclogged pores and gorgeous skin. For years, I struggled with clogged pores, disastrous facials, and stress breakouts.

Finally, a genius at Nordstrom Spa used this miracle tool called a Clarisonic on me. While it felt nice, I was skeptical about if it would REALLY work. I mean it’s not a cheap tool that’s for sure.

I mentioned it in passing to my Hubby while I was pregnant, cranky, and complaining about hormone induced breakouts. So he surprised me with it (I think it was mostly to get a rambling pregnant lady to stop talking!)

It was the BEST present I have ever gotten (besides my daughter from Allah of course).

You can use literally ANY cleanser (drugstore, fancy pants, whatever) and it will clean all that gunk off your face, exfoliate, AND unclog pores.

So ladies, if you want to wear less makeup, invest in this. I know I sound like an ad, but trust me, Clarisonic did not pay me a dime for this post.

PS: At first, you may break out even more because using the brush causes more sebum to surface quickly. But stick with it, and you will see your skin improve.