Beauty Crown Awards 2013: Week 1 Personal Care Products

Hello beauty lovers I am back with another post and this is my first installment for the Beauty Crown collaboration!

The Beauty Crown Awards are a yearly favorites collaborative effort including beauty bloggers around the globe. The Beauty Crown Awards were created by Lily from Beauty with Lily Liz from My Pretty Obsessions, Jackie from Five Two Certified, and Shalunya from Shalunya & Boyet. We felt that a collaborative effort from a large number of beauty bloggers would be much more interesting to our readers and would garner more attention. The Beauty Crown Awards are a 5 week event with each week covering types of products.

Week 1 - Personal Care Products - Dec 2 - Dec 8, 2013

Week 2 - Facial Products - Dec 9 - Dec 15, 2013

Week 3 - Lip & Nail Products - Dec 16 - Dec 22, 2013

Week 4 - Eye & Misc Products - Dec 23 - Dec 29, 2013

Week 5 - Facial Care Products & Tools - Dec 30 - Jan 4, 2014

Week 1 of the Beauty Crown Awards covers Personal Care Items. Below are my Week 1 Selections:

HAIR

Shampoo

Conditioner

Hairspray

Styling Product

Hair Mask

SCENTS

Body Mist

Perfume

SKIN CARE (Non-Facial)

Body Wash

Bar Soap

Body Scrub

Moisturizer

Hair Removal

This week is focusing on my favorite personal care products (: so let's get started!

Hair!

Shampoo!

I have been using this shampoo for about a year now and I am so in love with it. When I first started using it I was not sure what the whole natural thing was about but I am really happy that I found this line because it has helped my hair so much and it smells amazing! Click here to see my full review (:

Conditioner

So I just started using this conditioner because I had heard really great reviews on it so I decided to give it a try. And I really love this conditioner. It makes my hair really soft and it moisturizes it really well. Also since my hair is colored it keeps the color from fading.

Styling Product

I started using this product a few weeks ago and really love it. It moisturizes and sets my curls but it also keeps them from shrinking. Another thing is that it does not weigh my hair down. Also because it is so thick I do not have to redo my hair ever single day I can just apply a good amount one day and then the next few days I just add water to activate the product (:

Hair Mask

This is my favorite hair mask in the whole world (: I love the way it makes my hair feel and look after I use it. It is really thick and the scent is really great. I usually use this on my hair twice a week in order to keep my curls moisturized. If you want to see my full review on this product click here! Also click here to see how I apply the treatment to my hair!

Dry Shampoo

So my best friend in the whole world works at on of Paul Mitchell's salons and he is so amazing that he got me this for my birthday. I have used it ever since because I really feel like it get the roots of my hair clean for those in between wash days since I only wash my hair once or twice a week. All I do is spray it on my roots and fluff my hair and voila! (:

Skin Care! (Non-Facial)

Body Wash

This is my favorite body wash of all time! I got a sample of it in my iFabbo goodie bag an I loved it so much that I went and bought the full size once I ran out. The smell is so wonderful, it has coconut in it so it is going to be amazing anyway, and it gets my body clean without making it feel dry and tight (: Plus it has no sulfates or parabens! It does not get any better than that! (:

Body Scrub

So the body scrub that I use is actually a DIY that I make myself (: You can check out the recipe for that here (: I like using this scrub because it is all natural and I know there are no chemicals added and no processing involved (: plus it makes my skin feel really good.

Body Lotion

I started using this lotion about 6 months ago and I have been using it ever since. This lotion has a really great smell, it reminds me of flowers. The best thing about it, besides the price which is a startling $6.49 at Target, is that it is thick and it really moisturizes my skin. 

Well guys that is it for this post!

What are your favorite personal care products? Let me know in the comments or leave a link to your beauty crown post!

Be safe and I will see you in my next post!

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Winter Beauty Essentials (:

Hello beautiful people! (: So this post is going to be all about the beauty essentials for winter. Obviously this are only things I consider essential please do not feel compelled to go out and buy something you do not need just because I say it's essential (: be true to you!

Okay lets get started (:

Starting with skin:

#1 - Humidifier

I actually had one of these before but I had to give it up when I moved because...well I needed the money at the time. But the thing about them is that they spew out steam and that creates moisture in the air around you which is really good because in the winter time or when it is really cold there is not a lot of moisture in the air and your skin can get really dry (not good). So what I did was in the morning before I left for school and at night before I went to bed I would just turn in on for about half an hour and just soak in the steam, that is it (: And there are some really cute ones (: mine was pink and it was only about $30 at Wal-Mart.

#2 - Good moisturizer

I know that we all have our go to moisturizer that we use all the time however you might want tot consider changing up your moisturizer for the winter time. The reason for that is because in the winter your skin may need a bit more moisture because the air can be very drying. You might want to consider getting a moisturizer that is a little thicker or specially formulated for winter time. Right now I am using the DermOrganic Facial Moisturizer along with my PRAI Beauty Triple Matryxl Serum which I apply first

#3 - Moisturizing lip balm

This is super important because usually the first thing to dry out on your face is your lips which is why you really need to pay special attention to them. There are so many lip balms out there all you have to do is find one out of the million that suits you the best. Personally I love Burt's Bees Hibiscus Tinted Lip Balm, it moisturizes my lips and it gives some color (: you can see my review for that here!

#4 - Gentle face wash

Okay so this is something I just started doing because I realized that my skin was getting drier than usual and I could not figure out why, then I really thought about it. A face wash that works for you in the summer may be too harsh for your skin in the winter and it can cause your skin to dry out faster and much worse than normal. Try cream cleansers instead of actual face washes. Lately I have been using the two products from the Dermalogica skin care line: the pre cleanser and the daily microfoliant. However, I have also been using the Clean&Clear Deep Action Cream Cleanser (there is also a review on that product on my blog and my YouTube channel) and they have both worked well for me.

#5 - Water!

I cannot express to you guys how important it is that you drink a lot of water not only in the winter but in general because it will help your skin and hair and your overall health so much! Technically you are supposed to be drinking half of your body weight in ounces every single day. So in my case that means I have to drink five 16oz bottle of water every day. Click here to see my tips on making drinking water easier! (:

Moving on to hair:

#1 - Good deep conditioning treatment

Keeping your hair moisturized in the winter is so so important because when your hair dries out that is when you get split ends and your hair starts breaking off so you want to invest in a really good deep conditioner and use it at least once a week or if you're like me with curly hair I would even venture to say twice a week because curly hair tends to be drier than other types of hair. I am a deep conditioning freak and I have tried so many but the one that I love right now is the Shea Moisture Deep Treatment Masque (there is a review on that product on my blog as well). Or if you do not want to go out and buy a deep conditioner you can also make your own with coconut oil, honey and egg (there is a tutorial on DIY deep conditioner on my blog)

#2 - Go to protective hairstyle

This is important too because not everyone knows what a protective hairstyle is and what it is for. Basically a protective hairstyle is any hair style that keeps your ends from being exposed to the elements. Number one is obviously the cold winter air. So you want to use this whenever you feel that your hair is too dry to be exposed, like in between deep conditioning treatments. Buns are the number on protective hairstyle but braids can work as well. Usually what I do is a braided top knot; I just secure my hair into a high ponytail, braid it into one large braid and wrap it around into a bun making sure I tuck my ends inside and secure it with bobby pins. It's really quick and simple and takes about five minutes. I have a post of my favorite protective hairstyle here! (:

#3 - Good leave in

Now this goes hand in hand with deep conditioning. After you condition your hair you must apply a leave in conditioner, this will keep your hair from getting dry throughout the day especially in the winter when you should be moisturizing your hair everyday. Right now I am using the Generic Value Products version of Paul Mitchell's leave in conditioner (there is a review for this product on my blog)

#4 - Nourishing shampoo or cleansing conditioner and dry shampoo

Okay this is super important so I want you guys to really pay attention (: You should only be washing your hair every two to three days at most. I only wash my hair twice a week and I always deep condition after each wash. DO NOT....I repeat...DO NOT wash your hair everyday especially in the winter. I know some girls do because their hair is really oily but there are other alternatives to washing your hair everyday. You could invest in a dry shampoo which I recommend and that can hold you over in between washes. Or you could get a cleansing conditioner which still cleans your hair but it will not strip the natural oils from your hair. That being said you should also find a nourishing shampoo, one that does not have sulfates or parabens or silicones as these can dry out your hair in the colder months. I recommend the Organix line they have a bunch of really great nourishing shampoos and serums.

#5 - Anti-breakage serum

I find that using some kind of serum after your leave in conditioner keeps my hair looking moisturized longer, almost like it's sealing in the moisture. So I recommend getting either an anti frizz serum, the one I am using now is by Garnier Fructis, or an anti breakage serum, the one I use is by Organix (there is a review on this product on my blog).

This is new for me but we are going to go on to fashion now:

#1 - Warm clothes

Warm clothes are a good idea in cold months for obvious reasons but keeping your chest and back warm can keep you from catching colds. Try and get some nice, warm sweaters and scarves to keep the flu virus away (:

#2 - Raincoat

Depending on where you live a raincoat is a necessity. Living in California the weather is basically in a flux so we do not know what is gonna happen until it happens but I always keep my raincoat in my car just in case it does rain. Make sure you get one with a hood that has fur around it, that will keep water droplets from getting into your eyes.

#3 - Rain boots

Rain boots go hand in hand with raincoats (: I keep these in my car as well along with a fresh pair of socks for those days that rain catches me by surprise.

Well guys that is it for this post! (:

What are your winter beauty essentials? Let me know in the comments below!

Be safe and I will see you in my next post! (:

Lets be friends!!

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REVIEW, PHOTOS AND SWATCHES: Paul Mitchell's Generic Leave - In Conditioner!

Hello beauty lovers this is going to be a review of one of the products that I mentioned in my September favs (:

Paul Mitchel Generic Leave-In Conditioner

So I was at Sally's and I was looking for a new leave in conditioner and I came across this product. I absolutely love Paul Mitchel I just do not love the price so when I saw that there was a generic version of Paul Mitchel's The Conditioner I had to snatch it up!

So the first thing I noticed about this product was of course the packaging. The bottle is a very bland white bottle with black lettering, nothing particularly special or interesting but I digress.

This leave in conditioner has a different consistency from what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be thicker but instead it is a bit more watery, not so much but it's definitely not as thick as I was expecting.

Another thing I noticed at first was the smell, it's nice (: Since I really like my hair to be fragrant I was happy that this conditioner did not have a weird smell.

I did take a moment to look and the ingredients and noticed that they are identical. Because of this I was expecting this conditioner to act the same as the brand name Paul Mitchell product. It did for the most part I was pleasantly surprised.

So the way that I use these leave in is that after I deep condition my hair I take a medium sized amount and rub it evenly through my hair before taking my paddle brush and coming it through. Then I use my anti frizz and breakage serums on top of that then I style my hair as usual. Then for my second and third day hair i just take some of the leave in and crimp it onto my ends and in my roots for some volume and moisture (:

Now my honest opinion about this conditioner is that it was good but it really did not amaze me. It did give my curls some nice definition but I feel like it did not moisturize it as much as I would have liked.

I might purchase it again just to hold me over until I can find another leave in that I want to try

Okay guys that is it for this post!

Be safe and I will see you in my next post (:

Lets be friends!!
http://glipho.com/ebonyjaybeauty

https://www.facebook.com/ebonyjaybeautymyway

http://pinterest.com/mynameisebonyj/

http://ebonyjaybeauty.tumblr.com/

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