August Favorites- Beauty, body, and blemishes!

Ah, August. 

Your passing is bittersweet. For while you mark summer coming to an end, you leaving also means school begins and my birthday arrives! This month gave me a lot to think about, and many items to review for your reading pleasure. 

Rave- Pretty Coral Blush ($27- Bobbi Brown)
I held out on buying this because I thought 'who needs more than your basic pink blush?'... I clearly was suffering from an illness because I was SO wrong. First off, if you wear makeup you need to have at least two blushes in your arsenal. One with shimmer and one matte. I usually wear Nars Deep Throat, but now that I own Pretty Coral I have worn it every day since. It is perfect for summer, and will transition well into fall. It can even be blended with other colors to match the season, it is all around such a flattering color for my pale pinky toned complexion. 
If you want to see the blush in action, it is featured in my 'summer nights' outfit/makeup look here!



Read- The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion- $8.99 on the Kindle
I ate this book up, it is the perfect summer read. Simsion puts an entertaining spin on romance as you read about the life and love of the "oddly charming, socially challenged genetics professor, Don"

The art of love is never a science: Meet Don Tillman, a brilliant yet socially inept professor of genetics, who’s decided it’s time he found a wife. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which Don approaches all things, he designs the Wife Project to find his perfect partner: a sixteen-page, scientifically valid survey to filter out the drinkers, the smokers, the late arrivers. 

This book is valid to everyone seeking 'true love'. Hence, valid to everyone. This book was not only funny but thought provoking and well written. Looking into the mind of someone so painfully logical (and probably diagnosable) was really interesting and entertaining, I loved it more with every page. 


Random- Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo- $22.54 for paperback on Amazon
Eating clean and healthy can be hard, but also so rewarding and fun. I LOVE this cookbook/ paleo lifestyle guide. She explains every ingredient, the benefits of being paleo, and how each food can affect your body. I really understand what I'm making and how each change can be more clean and healthy for my body. I'm definitely not a paleo diet model... but it can be fun to try something new. 

Lettuce wraps with quinoa and chicken

Cobbler with blueberries and peaches

Repurchase- Neutrogena rainbath shower gel- $10 on Amazon
This is an oldie but a goodie. It is refreshing, clean, not to girly or sugary and lathers amazingly well. My grandma of all people always has this, and it reminds me of her. It is a perfect body wash to switch out to when you want something different or new! I even use it for my face as a cleanser/makeup remover, its that great. 

Reject- Dolce Vita 'Fray' Sandals - purchased for $130. These sandals are now on sale for $64, and I can tell why. They look cute at first glance, but after I wore them a few times I started noticing problems. They stretched in odd places, the color faded, and after only having them for a few months, a strap frayed and a button broke- causing the gladiator straps to totally unravel. They were able to be returned in full to Anthropologie, but it wasn't even worth getting them replaced. Boo. 

Instead I got the this Topshop sandal! Oooo so trendy.

Recent- The Power Peel- Ole Henrickson - $16 for two treatments
This ish is bananas. I love it. Sephora describes this treatment as a 'microdermabrasion and acid peel system' that is supposed to do all kinds of lovely things to your skin from reducing fine lines, minimize pores, and lessen discoloration. That is what I am after. I have fairly sensitive and pale skin, and any cut, zit, or bruise leaves a pretty dramatic mark on my skin and almost always scars. I have only done two treatments (one week apart) but I am already hooked. My skin not only felt amazing right after, but also was brightener and softer for a few days after. It is a bit pricey, but I feel more confident that this will get the job done, and that is what counts. 

Step 1: Scrub a dub 

Almond scrub smells amazing and has just the right amount of grit and cleanser to get all your pores open and clean. 

Step 2: Burn baby burn

Now that your face is clean and ready, this lemon acid peel does burn (avoid your lips and eye area!!) but it is nothing you can't handle for 2 minutes. The pain means it's working?

Step 3: Sweet relief

The last step with chamomile and primrose oil goes right over the lemon peel, and calms and soothes the skin. It will set and harden for about 15 minutes, and then you wash off like any other traditional face mask. I'm hooked!

Saying goodbye to August, and hello to September! 

With love and the letter 'R',

Sarah Belle