Q-TINE BEAUTY: TIPS TO BOOST YOUR SPIRIT

Lifestyle

Apr 1

Okay, we’ve all thought it…. THIS SUCKS! It is so easy to fall into a depression during these times, but one thing is for certain - we control our OWN happiness. I am a habitual beauty-routine type of person. I get a gel mani EVERY two weeks. I get a blow out EVERY WEEK. Lashes, every 2. And I felt (like all of you) like a troll the past two weeks. Haha. But hey, I tried a few of these tricks I’m about to share with you, because I wanted to find out which gave me the most feelings of a boost of confidence and productivity.

Plan these tips out over the course of the week to give yourself something fun to look forward to.

1.Self Tanner

I am a huge believer that a little tan gives a boost of confidence. I exfoliated and shaved the night before, and in the morning when Kai took her first nap, I applied St. Tropez 3 hour tan to my arms, chest, legs, and stomach. Guess what, I didn’t even care if it was blended properly… I didn’t even apply it to my back- because I don’t see my back - and nobody else will either HAHA.

Don’t stress yourself out over the perfect quarantine tan. Trust me, that it will give you a boost of happiness! *Here is a fun tip for self tanner on the face - apply tanner as you would bronzer (with a makeup brush), along the perimeter of your face, forehead perimeter, the hollow of your cheek bones, and underneath/along your jawline (blend down your neck). This gives a really natural little glow to the face, while naturally contouring as well. Once Kai went down for her second nap, I took a nice shower to wash it all off and boom, pretty glow.

2. Do a Deep-Moisturizing Hair Mask

I’ve been paying attention to recommendations by my fellow beauty peers. My friend Ashley Daviston (a stylist at Salon by Dominic) recommended Wella Fusionplex Mask (purchase on ulta.com) and it smells amazing!!

3. Blow out!

Give yourself an easy at home blowout with the Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer Hot Air Brush - Black.

O.M.G. I don’t think you guys know how curly my natural hair is, or how much I have. Let’s just say it takes me 20 minutes to brush my own hair. HAHA I kept hearing about this brush-blow dryer from a lot of my hair stylist friends. I finally tried it myself and I am in AWE! I was able to do my own hair start to finish in record time!

I am on day 3 or 4 now (who knows what day is it, because I’ve definitely lost track), and my hair still looks great. BUY THIS NOW!

4. Remove your gel polish

YouTube for tips on how to do this without hurting your nail beds. Do not peel off if you can help it! And start a conditioning treatment. I purchased OPI Nail Strengthener, and so far it’s been great.

I plan on taking this time to really give my natural assets a good healthy break. Let’s make the most out of this time where barely anybody will see us by using treatments to strengthen what we already have!

4. Lashes

Which brings me to my next…. Guys, LASHES (cue tears). This is the HARDEST thing to give up. I am looking quite sparse at this point. Here are my plans and tips for transitioning out of lashes for the quarantine.

First, I am going to be taking this time, just like you all, to give my lashes a much needed break.

We typically recommend 8 weeks as a good lash break, especially when you’ve been getting them for years. Now is the best time to just get this out of the way. Please do not remove your lashes, let them come out on their own. Use mascara over them, wash them more frequently. They will come out, just please don’t force them.

I have brought professional strength remover home from the studio (for when the time comes), and I will try to record a video on how this can be done at home. The biggest issue with ordering pro-strength is it burns VERY badly if it gets into the eye. I don’t necessarily want to recommend this to you unless I feel confident that you won’t hurt yourselves. So, please stay tuned for my experience with this!

Here are some more steps I have taken to prepare myself for my lash break…

I have purchased Rodan & Fields Lash Boost. It is a bit expensive, but the best I have found to work any time I have taken a lash break. It gets my lashes back to their natural state as quickly as possible.
I’ve also purchased some new mascara to try. I have always been a fan of IT Cosmetics Mascara, so I purchased their Tightline Primer, and Lash Blowout Volumizing Mascara. I’m not really looking forward to putting it on and taking it off every day… So most days I will probably just use Lash Boost and call it a day. HOWEVER, if it makes you feel better looking in the mirror to have some type of lash there, I highly urge taking this step of using mascara every day for that little confidence boost.

Whatever you do, don’t beat yourself up! When we don’t feel our best, we tend to give in to negative thoughts a bit more. Let’s not let that happen! Do one thing every couple of days for self care that make you feel good to be you. It can be as simple as taking a shower and doing your makeup for the day. We need the “small things” in times like these!

Take care, and be well. We can’t wait to see all of your beautiful faces when this is over!