The verdict is in....

WINNER!

As promised, I tried the Murad Vitamin C Home Infusion Facial Kit last night and while skeptical at first, I must say I do believe it works!

I tried this last night after my shower and it was very easy and quick once I got the hang of mixing the powder with the gel. There is a lot more powder to work with than gel so some of it did fly out of the bowl at first, I'll have to be more careful next time. I love the little brush that it came with too, it seems so 'professional'. The directions warn that you may feel a slight tingling feeling or heat so I was ready for the worst but it wasn't too bad. I only felt the tingling for a minute and it wasn't anything awful that I wanted to immediately wash off or anything.

It wasn't quite as relaxing as this...but for 10 minutes it was just fine.

You keep the mask on for 10 minutes but be careful not to touch your face during this time. It isn't one of those treatments that hardens or anything, it just stays wet and thin on your face. When the 10 minutes were up, I rinsed my face with warm water and then immediately began inspecting it in the mirror for these fab results I'd read about yesterday. Right away I noticed that my pores were visibly smaller. It was hard to tell on the brightness factor as I'd just splashed warm water on my face and my face was still a little flushed from that and a shower. My skin also felt very soft and smooth.

The Sensitive Skin Smoothing Serum is the finishing touch to this process and I was very pleased with it as well. Its just a clear gel that goes over your face and neck to, I assume, calm things down from the vitamin C treatment. You get quite a bit of the serum in the kit so I may keep using it in between 'treatments'.

I was so excited to wake up this morning and assess the 'brightness factor'. I examined my face closely and, to me, it did appear a bit brighter but I may have just been hoping for that. I do feel like my face feels more 'alive' though and that my skin looks really clear, soft, and smooth so I guess thats a plus. It might be the kind of thing that gets better the more you use it so I'll keep you updated on Round 2 in a few weeks. For now I am a happy girl though and feel that I have at least taken one step in taking better care of my skin!

Hope you all have a good weekend!

Wish me luck!

Well today after work I'm off to Ulta to purchase this:

Its the Murad Vitamin C Infusion Home Facial Kit - said to "Restore Clarity for an Instant Glow". Sounds good to me!

After debating for a few months on starting the process of getting facials regularly I started looking into at home products that could do the job and this seems to be the best of the bunch. (That I'm willing to fork over the money for anyways) I saw this at Sephora over the weekend and was intrigued enough to check it out online today at www.murad.com.

I read tons of reviews and everyone just seems to love this and has amazing results. Once again, I'm sold. The instructions seem pretty foolproof too. The kit comes with 2 pouches that you mix in the provided bowl with the provided brush. Brush the mixture onto your face. Let sit for about 10 min then rinse off and follow with the included skin smoothing serum.

I can't wait to try this - I'll be sure to post a review tomorrow!

I'm a big girl now!

I finally have real bedroom furniture! I am so excited to have a real grown up room! Before I moved I had been using the same dresser and one nightstand that I'd had since I was very young, probably about 4 or 5 years old. Lucky for me, my parents picked a very classic design and I was able to paint it and change the pulls through the years to get me through. However when I moved into this house I no longer needed the dresser because the closet came with all these built in drawers. I could have just used the nightstand in my room but I thought it was better to keep those items as a 'set' and move them into a guest room where they could be used together.

So, until yesterday my bedroom consisted of a bed and an entertainment center for my tv. And thats about it. For some reason I had the hardest time finding bedroom furniture! I think part of it may have been that I had my heart set on this:

I came very close to getting 2 of these at Tuesday Morning to use as nightstands - they were advertised for only $150 each - GREAT deal! Then I wavered, thought they were too trendy and didn't go that Tuesday so I totally missed my chance. And when that did not happen, nothing else would do.

While visiting every furntiture store within a 30 mile radius I also felt like it was so hard to see things in stores and imagine them in my room. Those showrooms they set up just have every single matching piece there together and its kind of overwhelming! Plus I didn't need the dresser and matching mirror, etc. I just needed 2 nightstands and a bed! I finally got over all of that, decided that the mirrored look probably would have been way too much, went to one final store on Saturday and found something perfect! It was delievered yesterday and I just love it. I feel like my room is a hotel now!

I'm also really glad I did not go with the mirrored furniture since apparently everything else in my room is shiny!

I really like these lamps - thanks Homegoods!

The picture above captured a very funny moment. That's Ellie pretty much throwing a temper tantrum in all my pillows. She is used to sleeping all day and lucky for me, my mom had been kind enough to come over and wait for the furniture delivery yesterday so she got there around 1 pm, totally cutting into Ellie's nap time. Then my brother arrived around 2pm and stayed until 8 pm closing in the bottom of my deck with lattice (see below), installing a fan on my screen porch, and hanging the lovely curtains you see in this picture. (THANK YOU!) Ellie, of course followed him around all day and by the time he left, she had just had it! As soon as he was gone, she jumped on the bed and started her little tantrum and then just passed out once she was buried in the pillows. This picture caught her mid-tantrum. Too funny!

The prior owners of this house had been nice enough to build this deck but not nice enough to really finish it off in any way. I am so glad to have this closed in because not only does it look nicer, it keeps Ellie from crawling around under there and running into who knows what! Steps, railings, and finishing touches to come - stay tuned!

Scented Handles?

A year or so ago I was buying razors and noticed that the ones I usually buy suddenly had the option of with or without “scented handles”. Maybe I just don’t get it but I’m not really sure why I would want to smell the handle of my razor or why I would prefer a scented handle over a non-scented handle. I go with the non-scented version. I have enough scents going on in my shower with shampoo, conditioner, face wash, shower gel, and the occasional sugar scrub, or facial treatment without throwing something else into the mix.
Yesterday I’m at the grocery store, buying a toothbrush this time, and see that there is something minty on the one I’m getting. They are also touting some ‘tongue refresher’ so I quickly assume that the plastic scraper thing on the back of the toothbrush must be mint flavored, drop it in my basket and head on my way.

Last night I open the new toothbrush package and am nearly floored by the minty scent. I look at the package more closely and it’s a mint scented handle! What does a scented handle have to do with dental hygiene? I read online that apparenlty its part of the new Colgate MaxFresh line and it is supposed to “enhance the brushing experience”. I don’t really get that. I’m hoping it will wear off over time.

This whole scented handle thing just baffles me. Who thought I’d have to look out for it in the toothbrush aisle? I guess I’m going to have to read the fine print a little better when purchasing any product with a handle. But for now I’ve got minty fresh breath and minty fresh hands…whatever plus that is supposed to be…

And on a sidenote, I am so glad Shawn Johnson won Dancing with The Stars! I had a feeling it might be Gilles after his stellar season but I think Shawn probably got more votes in the end. She has just been so good these past few weeks and her freestyle routine this week was so fun to watch. And I loved that she chose to repeat her dance to "Pretty Young Thing" as her final this week! That was by far my favorite dance of the season. She did such a good job and just looked like she was having so much fun out there.

I think Melissa pretty much sealed her fate with her freestyle routine. I think hers could be described as a 'halftime routine' at best. Not a good decision on her part but really who would have thought she'd make it this far anyways. After all she's been through, that girl's gonna be okay.... (and she looks AMAZING after all this dancing! Has anyone else noticed how she just keeps looking better and better from each week to the next?)

And YEA Shawn Johnson - she can do anything!

Product Review: MAC Lustreglass

Is it just me or does everyone else have multiple make up items run out at the same time? I am currently in need of blush, eyeshadow, bronzer and 2 lip glosses. Its fine if I have to buy one of these at a time but all FIVE! I’m trying to make do for now and get by with samples, etc but I think I am going to have to break down soon and get the lip glosses.

As I’ve said before, I am a sucker for a new product, a marketer’s dream, always willing to try something new – especially any sort of health/beauty product or make up. BUT over the years I have gotten much better about make up buys and have finally narrowed my lip glosses down to 2. These have been the only colors on my lips for a few years now and I just love them.

The first comes courtesy of my friend Lauren. She is a slave to MAC and happened to pick this up on a whim in the spring of 2004. At the time Lauren was coming to Houston quite a bit and we had regular weekend slumber parties. Because I saw her so often, I immediately noticed the new color she was sporting on her lips and had to try it for myself. I have to mention that Lauren and I do not have the same coloring at all. She has blond hair and blue eyes, I have dark brown (almost black) hair and brown eyes but I was sure this color would somehow magically work on me as well. And I was right! I LOVED it right away and bought it as soon as I could. It has also become a favorite of my friend Hailey, who does have brown hair and brown eyes like me, as well as several other people. This color seems to look great on everyone – if you’re looking for something new, check out MAC’s Decorative Lustreglass!

I know this picture looks like its a very grape-y purple gloss, but it is a very pretty color! Very similar to Clinique's Black Honey, its just got more of a 'kick'...

Once I fell in love with Decorative, I was looking for something a little more subtle and found Star Nova. This color is great for a lighter look; I find that I wear it at the office a lot and in the summer. Looks great with a tan!

Both of these products are from MAC’s Lustreglass collection and which I also think is just fantastic because the application wand has a little brush on the end of it instead of one of those sponge things. Not a huge deal but I highly prefer the brush. Lustreglass is pretty moisturizing, the color lasts a long time and its not too sticky. I’ve been running low on these items for a few weeks now, scraping the tubes for the last bit of gloss. I think today might have to be the day I restock…

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Hope everyone has fun celebrating!

Things I Love: Sally Hansen Salon Hydrating Foot Cream

I tried this the oher night and it is A-mazing! As you may know, I have been called ‘a marketer’s dream’ from time to time. If there is something new out there, chances are I’m going to try it, I get easily sucked in at the grocery store, ULTA, Sephora, whatever. I’m also an avid magazine reader so I’m always reading about the ‘best beauty buys’ and on the lookout to purchase them.

This product first crossed my eyes a few months ago in a magazine and I started looking for it from time to time at Target, ULTA, the grocery store. When I couldn’t find it there, I would try and remember to look at CVS or Walgreens whenever I happened to be there – still nothing. And lately this has been on some of the ‘best beauty buy’ lists in a few of my magazines and with sandal season fast approaching I was really on the hunt! I ran into Wal-Mart over the weekend hoping to find some bathroom accessories and while I was unlucky on my original mission there I did find this elusive foot care wonder!

I have only used this product once so far but let me tell you – it is fantastic! I woke up the next morning and it seriously felt like I had gotten a pedicure in the night. After just one use! I put the lotion on around 9 pm, with socks, and then took the socks off a few hours later when I was climbing into bed. I bet my feet would have felt even better if I had left the socks on all night!

Now if only you could put socks on and wake up with a polish change – that would be an amazing product! I highly recommend this one for those of you who are a fan of the ‘at home pedicure’!

Have a great weekend!