My Daily Skin Care Routine

Yesterday, while I was getting my hair cut, my stylist and I started talking about our skin care routine so I got to thinking about how much I like mine, which lead me to this post.

I didn't always like my skin care program, mostly because I didn't have one.  I only used face wash and moisturizer which was whatever was on the drug store shelf or some of the expensive department store brand.  My face was clean but my skin was still dull and I could start to see sun spots (yikes - no more tanning bed tanning, even though I use SPF moisturizer!) Then I turned 29 and decided I needed to "get real!"

I had used Mary Kay in the past and liked it but didn't really have a consultant.  Fortunately I met a great consultant local to where I live (and have since become friends, you can meet Kenzie at her blog 100 Pretty Broken Pieces) and she put together an awesome skin care program for me that combines Mary Kay skin care lines and targets my exact concerns! Dull skin, fine lines, a little bit of acne and dark under eyes...

Here is what she helped me come up with and I love it!

Listed in order of use:

1. Timewise 3 in 1 Cleanser for normal to dry skin

2. Even Complexion Essence to even my complexion and reduce redness

3. Timewise Repair Volu-Firm Lifting Serum to help firm my skin and reduce fine lines and wrinkles (my fav!)

4. Timewise Age Fighting Moisturizer for normal to dry skin

5. Timewise Repair Volu-Firm Eye Renewal Cream  to help firm and brighten my under eye area

Also, on alternating days, I either use the Mary Kay Microdermabrasion or the Even Complexion Mask. This has really helped to get rid of my sun spots and smooth out my skin.

I know that a skin care routine is pretty personal but the trick with a skin care program is to get it right for you - that's where Kenzie, my Mary Kay consultant came in.  The second most important thing is to be patient, you may not see instant results like we all hope for.  It took about 6 weeks or so for me to see results but I'm more than happy with them.

A great skin care program truly is the foundation for great make up and confidence!

Do you have a skin care program? What is it?

I'm linking up with for Random Wednesday at Because Shanna Said So!

This post reflects my own opinions. I was not paid by the Mary Kay Company to endorse this product. 

Red Lips, Yes Please!

Happy Valentine's Day!! Do you have any special plans?!

So, did anyone else notice all of the beautiful ladies at the Grammy's that had red lips?!  I must say, I was a big fan! In the spirit of Valentine's Day and because my Mary Kay Consultant gave me a travel size red lip-gloss, I thought I would try out red lips for myself!

Actually smiling is a lot easier than "smiling with your eyes" like I was trying to do in the first picture so you could see my lips! 

Shirt: Kohls (similar)

Earrings: Target

My red of choice is actually a gloss -NouriShine Lip Gloss in Rock 'N' Red.  There is also a darker shade called Red Passion that is also a Shimmer gloss.  I have not tried a red lip stick - any suggestions?!  What I do like about this lip gloss is that is actually stains your lips so that re-applying is easy-peasy!

The trick to wear red well is to moisturize your lips, apply a tick, even coat and get into the corners of your lips.  Click here for a great video tutorial for a classic red lip from a Des Moines, Iowa salon.

My Daily Makeup Routine

I would be liar if I said it didn't take me forever to get ready in the morning (or anytime really)... just ask my fiance! :)   To be more timely and productive per my new years theme, I decided I needed to make a few changes to my daily routine - starting with a simplified makeup routine.  I've eliminated bronzer, highlighter and minimized my eye shadow pallet to only one neutral color.  I've decided to save the extras for the special or important events.

Here is a look my favorite daily makeup products.

1// Mary Kay Luminous wear foundation

2// Covergirl Cheekers blush in Pretty Peach 150 (drug stores)

3// Covergirl Eye Enhancers eye shadow in Champagne 710 (drug stores)

4// CO Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine (You can find it at Bath & Body too)

5// Mary Kay Ultimate Mascara in black

6// Gel Eyeliner (You can use any eyeliner, I prefer Mary Kay, but they may not sell it anymore)

I prefer the gel eyeliner for my every day look because it looks more polished than pencil liner but pencil liner might quicker yet.  The Mentha Lip Shine is also an awesome fill-in as a chapstick!

I apply my makeup in that general order with the exception of putting on eyeliner before mascara.

I hope you enjoyed this quick little post.  Let me know what your everyday makeup products are, I might want to check them out! :)

I'm linking up today for YOLO Mondays!

Makeup Tip: Eyebrows

This makeup tip will rock your world!  Shaping your eyebrows is super easy and makes a huge impact on your finished look! All you need is the right color of eye shadow and an eyeliner/eye shadow brush.

Here are the guidelines for selecting the right eye shadow to shape your brows.

Here's how you shape your brows

Your brows show extend across the entire length of your eye.

Point 1 is where your brow should start on the inside of your yet.
Point 2 is the arch in your brow.  This should be over the center of your eye and should be the highest point.
Point 3 is where your brow should end, the outside of your eye.

In my case, I use Hazelnut and primarily need to fill in from the arch of my brow to the outside of my eye.  I actually need to extend my brows just a little bit because they get pretty light on the outside.

And your done!  Super easy with an instant difference!!

Here is what you need with links to the products!

Blonde Brow Pencil

MK Mineral Eye Color - Espresso

MK Mineral Eye Shadow - Hazelnut

MK Brush Collection

Mary Kay Specials ONLY for Design Your Dwelling readers! :)

DYD READER SPECIAL:  10% off your total purchase, use the DYD as your promo code. www.marykay.com/kenz.kral

FREE SHIPPING:  Automatic free shipping on orders of $20 or more!

*You wont see the discount when it's it your basket, Kenzie will apply it for you,make sure to use the promo codes.
**Orders need to be placed via the website and paid with debit or credit

Makeup Tip: Contouring, Highlighting & Blush

Did you know that the most appealing face-shape to look at is oval?  Neither did I until I learned about contouring and highlighting. No wonder Carrie Underwood is so dang beautiful!

The shape of your face doesn't really matter, you're still beautiful! :)

To create the illusion of an oval-shaped face you can contour and highlight, which isn't as hard as you might think it is - I'll share the "how-to."

What you need to contour and highlight: 

MK Mineral Powder Foundation \\ Mineral Highlighting Powder \\ Mary Kay Brush Collection

Contouring

Contouring makes your face look thinner by shading the outer areas of your face. Keep in mind that dark pushes in so to contour you should use a mineral powder that is a half shade darker than your foundation.

Remember I said that an oval-shaped face is the most appealing to look at?  The best way to determine where to contour is to create an oval shape with your hands on your face.

My face-shape is more square and I have a very distinct jaw line, so I need to contour, or shade, the area of my face that are outside of the oval.  This will be different for everyone so make sure to visualize the oval shape on your face.

Everything behind the arrow is shaded in with Mary Kay Mineral Powder Foundation because that is the area outside of the oval.

Remember, dark pushes in, making your face look thinner.  It's kind of like wearing black - it's a slimming color.

Contouring might not be an every-day thing, but maybe more of a special occasion thing!

Highlighting

Highlighting does the opposite of contouring. Highlighting helps to accentuate your features!  The areas on your face you want to highlight are the top of your cheek bones and your brow bone. 

The dots on her face represent the angle that you want to apply the highlighter to accentuate your brow bone and cheek bone.

Using the angled blush brush from the MK brush collection, sweep the mineral highlighting powder from your brow to the top of your cheek bone with a sharp v-shape.

The MK highlighting powder in pink stardust is like magic - one of my absolute favorite products.  It makes such an impact on your overall look by creating sharp features - I love it!  You can also use it as a straight blush or use the white shimmer to brighten the inside corner of your eye.

Blush

Finally, let's talk blush!  It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I started to wear blush regularly and now my make-up routine doesn't go without it.  My go-to blush color is Shy Blush.

To apply blush, start back by your ear.  Your blush should be darkest here. (Remember dark pushes in?!)

Think of an imaginary line from your nose to your ear lobe, blush should not go below that line or it will pull your face down.  Using your angled blush brush, draw a straight line to your cheek and then angle up in a v-shape to just below your cheek bone, just like the arrows show, and fill in your "v."    The blush will magically lay underneath the mineral highlighter.

Here is how your blush should look.  Darker by your ear, lighter on your cheeks.  Since you created a blank canvas with foundation, blush is how you bring color back to your face. Ultimately blush should give you a lightly flushed look.

Here is a look at the contouring, highlighting, and blush all together. (Sorry for the blurry picture...) 

This all sounds like a lot of work but its actually really simple and goes pretty quick once you get the hang of it.  

Here's the list of products I used to contour, highlight and apply blush.  All products are linked. 

MK Mineral Powder Foundation 

Mineral Highlighting Powder 

MK Mineral Cheek Color in Shy Blush

 Mary Kay Brush Collection

Mary Kay Specials ONLY for Design Your Dwelling readers! :)

DYD READER SPECIAL:  10% off your total purchase, use the DYD as your promo code. www.marykay.com/kenz.kral

FREE SHIPPING:  Automatic free shipping on orders of $20 or more!

*You wont see the discount when it's it your basket, Kenzie will apply it for you,make sure to use the promo codes.
**Orders need to be placed via the website and paid with debit or credit

Tomorrow: Eyebrows

Makeup Tip: Applying Foundation

Welcome to my short blog series filled with makeup application tips courtesy of of Mary Kay and my awesome consultant, Kenzie! This quick series will cover foundation application, highlighting and contouring, blush, brows, and eyes and the best part is that Design Your Dwelling readers will receive an offer that is just for you!  It's going to be fun!

To start, let's talk foundation.  I never used to wear foundation because I hated feeling like I had all sorts of makeup caked on my face but once I learned how to apply it correctly, it all came together and now I don't mind wearing foundation.  Did you know that foundation is also part of a skin care routine?!  Yep - it's another form of protection for your face from the environment.  Crazy!

Here is what you need to perfectly apply foundation:

Foundation Primer with SPF 15 // Liquid Foundation Brush // TimeWise Liquid Foundation

Start by applying a small amount of foundation primer to your face.  The primer helps to fill imperfections and  extend the wear of your foundation.  The primer truly does work, I was too lazy to wash my face before bed and no foundation wore off onto my pillow - AWESOME!

Next apply foundation (I use beige 4 in luminous wear) in four spots on your face as shown below.

(By the way, this is my "before" picture.  I'm not wearing any foundation and I have to admit my skin looks pretty good.  Kenzie helped me with my skin care program and I love it! )

Next, use the foundation brush and start applying the foundation from your nose to the outer parts of your face.  If you use the primer, you wont need much foundation.

Unfortunately I didn't take an after picture. :(  I will tell you that starting with a perfect, blank canvas is awesome and definitely helps increases my confidence because I feel like my whole look is pulled together perfectly!

Here is a quick reminder of the products I used with direct links to the product!

Foundation Primer with SPF 15 

Liquid Foundation Brush

TimeWise Liquid Foundation

Specials ONLY for Design Your Dwelling readers - that's you! :)

CYBER MONDAY SPECIAL:  Buy 1 item, get 1 item HALF OFF by shopping on her site: www.marykay.com/kenz.kral  use MONDAY as your promo code. (Cannot be combined with DYD reader special.)

DYD READER SPECIAL:  10% off your total purchase, use the DYD as your promo code. www.marykay.com/kenz.kral (Cannot be combined with cyber Monday special)

FREE SHIPPING:  Automatic free shipping on orders of $20 or more!

*You wont see the discount when it's it your basket, Kenzie will apply it for you,make sure to use the promo codes.
**Orders need to be placed via the website and paid with debit or credit

Tomorrow: Contouring & Highlighting