An Inside Guide: To Looking Refreshed

I swear that no matter how well Adelyn sleeps through the night I always feel tired. The girl sleeps an average of 12 hours a night (I KNOW!), and I don’t lack sleep either, but every morning I look in the mirror and swear I look a solid 10 years past my actual age. Ew.

I’ve never really had a problem with dark circles under my eyes, but that delicate skin gets so.puffy on me when I’m tired. I remember being 21 (heck, I remember being 27) and going to work off just a couple hours of sleep and still looking refreshed even if I didn’t feel it. Well my friends, those days are long gone.

The truth is I don’t really know if it’s because I’m a mom or just because I’m {it hurts to even write it} getting older, but I just don’t naturally look refreshed anymore. Luckily for anyone else out there like me, there’s an over abundance of beauty products on the market to help us out.

But which ones actually work? And which ones are right for me? How can I look refreshed even if I don’t necessarily feel like I am?

Below are my current secrets to look refreshed every day. Unfortunately we’ve covered the topic in past posts that I talk A LOT. I’m notorious for pointing out my flaws that I perceive as obvious (I’m sure it’s some type of a self-preservation strategy), so I tend to provide an explanation about my appearance to people I see when I feel less then refreshed, counteracting the efforts I took to make sure I looked refreshed! Some day I’ll learn, I swear…

Anyway, the best part about my morning routine is that I do NOT like spending very much time getting ready. I know, I know, I’m like a walking oxy moron. I want to look cute but also want to spend as little time as humanly possible on the process. But I seem to have it figured out {most days}!

I spend roughly five minutes on my makeup every morning, then an estimated 10 minutes on my hair. Add in washing my face, brushing my teeth, showering (I only wash my hair two-ish times a week so showering is a short process) etc., I spend about 30 minutes in total getting ready each morning .

FIRST

I wash my face and brush my teeth immediately when I wake up. Blame it on all the Neutrogena commercials, but I’m a firm believer that the splash of water does wonders, especially if it’s a little colder than your liking. Something or another about it causes your blood vessels to contract and tighten…

SECOND

Caffeine. Coffee, tea, SOMETHING. {Preferably not soda or an energy drink because of the sugar content...I’m also a firm believer in feeling better when your actions are healthier.} I never used to drink coffee. I mean NEVER. And while I still don’t drink a lot (I’m lucky if I finish one cup), it’s enough to give me a little morning jolt to get moving. I usually save my tea for the afternoon nowadays.

THIRD

Makeup. I can’t leave the house without some type of makeup on for a lot of reasons, but the main reason is that my eyelashes are so.blonde. Without at least a little mascara I honestly look like I don’t even have eyelashes. It’s just straight up embarrassing.

Here are the items currently in my bag:

1. MAC Pigment Shimmer Shadow. Shimmer shadow seems to come and go every couple of years, so I’m actually returning to this product from a couple years ago. With MAC you can shop by the finish of the shadow, so go with anything other than matte to get more of the shimmer effect. My eyes are so blue that I like to create a little dimension by adding gold or bronze from the MAC shadow line. If you’re one of those big brown-eyed girls I just flat out envy your ability to go with all light, natural tones and still have a POP to your eyes!

2. L’Oreal Infallible Gel Liner. Guys. This stuff is so.cheap and SO.AMAZING. I’ve tried countless eye liners from pencils to liquid, to drugstore to high-end to even items from those pyramid scheme companies that guarantee them. No matter what all of them smear at some point throughout the day unless it’s waterproof and waterproof varieties always make my eyes itch. Not this stuff. This goes on SO easy, so smooth and stays in place. Then it washes off with soap and water without any struggle. I’m telling you, this eyeliner is a godsend. Spend the $10. Try it. Love it. Thank me later.

3. Smashbox Photo Op Eye Brightening Mascara. There are a lot of really good mascaras out there, and truth be told I’m not extremely picky when it comes to this. As long as the brush is full like this one I’m usually satisfied, but I will say that I tried this off a sample sent to me and I do love it. I have pretty long eye lashes naturally, so I never really know how to take the “lash extender” claims on products, but this is what I use now and I definitely like it.

4. Fake Up Concealer. So I got this stuff when I sampled Birchbox, and while I really didn’t end up loving Birchbox, this was a takeaway I’m so happy to have received. The skinny on this product is that there’s an ultra-hydrating ring around the concealer itself, so it automatically is applied to your skin when you use the stick. Our under eyes NEED hydration and this is the very first concealer I’ve actually been able to tell a difference with when I use it. Remember: your concealer should always be one shade lighter than your skin color. Brighten up those pretty eyes of yours!

5. L’Oreal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Cream. Trust me, I can’t believe I have TWO drugstore items in my list either, but again, L’Oreal strikes it big with this one. Once again, at $10 this product was created to prime/smooth your skin’s texture, hydrate AND create an even looking complexion. And it lives up to all of those promises. Good job, L’Oreal, you’ve really upped the ante with your beauty line.

6. MAC Prep + Prime Transparent Finishing Powder. I think this is the only item that’s always a constant in my makeup bag. It gives you that final matte finish and successfully seals your makeup to last for the entire day. I love this stuff and really don’t ever plan on veering away from it.

HELP!

Ok, so here’s where my part ends and where I need your help. Since going ombre with my hair I absolutely have to color in my eyebrows. But there’s one problem: I’ve literally never done anything with my eyebrows before! My girlfriend colored them when she did my hair, but my eyebrows are so blonde that the color from them is already long gone.

So blonde is actually an understatement when referencing my eyebrows. They’re literally transparent. Now that I’ve seen what they look like darker I’m obsessed with how much actually seeing my eyebrows does for my entire face! Right now I’m just stumbling my way through penciling them in, but I could so use some good tips on making my blonde brows look amazing in a darker color that doesn’t include dying them every week.

Comment below with suggestions or my contact page goes right to my email so send me suggestions that way if you prefer!

TIA!