Have you ever had one of those nights where you just can’t seem to fall asleep? Despite your best efforts, you end up tossing and turning all night and your quality of sleep suffers as a result. While I can’t give you a magic formula to make you fall asleep, there are a few things you can do to help you fall asleep and avoid sleepless nights.
Here are five things to do when you just can’t fall asleep at night:
Long ago, I would have never considered a face oil for my skin care routine. To me, it was just one more step to needlessly add onto my already long list of things to do both day and night. Additionally, I used to have combination skin and felt that using a face oil would make my face as slippery as a Slip 'n Slide, which of course was just naivity and there's more on that at the bottom of this post.
Over time I have learned to love face oils, and once I discovered just how wonderful they are, my skin improved considerably.
All of these oils are carrier oils. A carrier oil is used to carry other oils to your skin. You can use them alone or mix them with other essential oils, such as grapefruit essential oil, to create a product that is just right for you. They can be used to create creams, lotions, or serums. I prefer to use a serum because it uses a higher concentration of quality ingredients which means that delivers nutrients deeper into your skin. A little serum goes a long way so your ingredients will last longer.
For younger looking skin you should apply face oils each evening. It’s best to cleanse your face first. Then, dab a few drops on your fingertips and apply to your face. Once the oil is rubbed in you are good to go. There is no need to wash the oils off. You may not notice a difference overnight, but over time you will see the benefit of using face oils every day.
And if you have oily or combination skin, you can still use a face oil. It's a myth that you cannot or that it will make your face greasier. It may just help to balance your skin and you will find that your skin produces less/just the right amount of sebum.
Have you ever used face oils? Which combination works best for you to keep your skin looking youthful?
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If we aren’t being bombarded with news of which (already youthful) celebrity is getting plastic surgery or being injected with Botox, we’re being fed images through beauty and fashion magazines, Hollywood, and most of all these damn filters on our social platforms, that youthful skin is IN and the real you is OUT.
So how can we keep up when we certainly aren’t getting any younger, but don’t want to resort to needles and going under the knife?
Anxiety affects all of us at one time or another. For some, it creeps up in middle school when we are given a major assessment. For others, it appears suddenly when we bring home our sleepy newborns from the hospital. Anxiety takes away our peace and leaves us feeling broken.
Thankfully, there are some things that we can do to help alleviate the weight of anxiety.
To be clear, I'm talking anxiety from everyday stressors. As someone who holds a Bachelors Degree in Psychology, I absolutely recognize that an anxiety disorder is a major mental health issue that should be addressed by a psychologist/psychiatrist.
I first discovered essential oils in my early 20's (so 20 something cough cough years ago.) A good friend of mine had cancer and in order to relieve headaches after chemo and to destress, she would rub eucalyptus oil on her temples then down along her cheek bones to her sinuses and back to the temples. Curious, I asked her if she could try it on me. I was surprised at how well it worked. She gave me the bottle, which I still hold onto since her passing, as a reminder of that day.
When formulating A Girl's Gotta Spa! bath and body products, adding essential oils were an obvious choice. I truly believe in their benefits.
Essential oils can be used for everything from medical ailments to keeping bugs out of your home. I personally love them to help me sleep, focus or destress from daily anxiety.
I've rounded up 5 essential oils that can help aid in reducing those every day levels of anxiety:
When placed in a diffuser, Lavender Oil has a calming effect on those who inhale it. This is a great essential oil for relaxation.
Frankincense Oil is known for its natural anti-depressant properties. This is a good essential oil to keep on hand if you suffer from anxiety attacks.
Chamomile is known for its ability to reduce stress hormones (we use chamomile in our plant-based body wash.) It’s also a wonderful sleep aid.
Oranges are good for more than just your daily vitamin C intake. Orange Oil has a positive effect on people in stress-inducing situations. It's an uplifting oil and a great way to wake up your senses and/or boost your mood. You'll find this essential oil in our rollerball perfume and bath and body products for this very reason.
Ylang Ylang Oil is a great oil to use topically. When applied with a carrier oil to the skin, it will leave you feeling calm and relaxed.
There are several ways that you can use these essential oils to aid in reducing anxiety, such as placing them in a diffuser or by using a portable diffuser, such as the kind from Corked. There's aromatherapy jewelry that can be worn all day and roll on applicators you can apply directly to your palms and breathe in. It's become easier than ever to find a way to incorporate essential oils into your lifestyle.
If you’ve ever used essential oils to reduce anxiety or another ailment, I’d love to hear about it! Please leave a comment below!
Subscribe to A Girl’s Gotta Spa! beauty blog. Watch our reviews on YouTube, see our pins on Pinterest and check us out on Instagram. Got a Kindle? We’re on Kindle too! Or check out our natural bath and body line!
Our debut roll-on perfume was Arise. Arise is about strength and the fortitude to rise up from a difficult situation. Looking to carry on that same sentiment and power of Arise, I knew that our next rollerball perfume had to hold the same weight.
I'll be honest, it's difficult naming a perfume. We went through at least a dozen names over the course of a few months, but none seemed to fit right. I was starting to panic since the packaging design had a deadline. Then I was reading an article and one word popped out at me.
(Sneak peek at our new perfume sans label on the perfume, which is not quite complete yet)
Soar is a smoky fragrance made sexy and mysterious by way of fig, spice, amber and white musk*. We continue to carry into this next perfume our citrus notes of lemon and orange that you find throughout all A Girl's Gotta Spa! products. We put a feminine touch on it with floral notes of geranium and rose absolute. While ginger gives it an exotic angle, green tea helps to lighten the heaviness of this scent making it crisp. Here are the notes in order: Meyer Lemon, Wild Orange, Ginger, Geranium, Rose Absolute, Green Tea, Fig, Spice, Amber, White Musk The color for Soar is akin to Pumpkin Spice, just a slightly lighter hue. This perfume is warm, so I felt the color should be as well. For the font, we went through many versions until we settled on a strong and powerful S font and a variation of the font we used for Arise with the oar. I've gotten quite a few comments about the spacing between the a and r - this was not a mistake, as I like how it appears the r is about to take off in flight. It seemed fitting for the name. Soar comes in a glass bottle with a silver rollerball and brushed silver cap. It is vegan and cruelty free. It's available for pre-order now and will begin shipping at the end of September. Click here to purchase: Soar Roll-On Perfume Sign up for our product newsletter: http://eepurl.com/ODuT1
There's big news here at A Girl's Gotta Spa! Our brand recently joined Amazon Indie Beauty and I am stoked!
The beauty space is vast and it is so hard to compete for eyeballs when you don't have the big marketing budgets that large brands do. Being a small business means having to find creative ways to get the word out about our super fab, cruelty free products. So the opportunity to be featured on Amazon's curated Indie Beauty page is a big deal! I'm still rubbing my eyes expecting to wake up from this dream.
If you are an indie beauty supporter - thank you! Brands like us know who each of our customers are by name and we are so grateful for you.
So if you're shopping Amazon, please pop over to Amazon's Indie Beauty featured brands and click through to see all of the brands, including ours, ready to offer you top notch beauty products!
P.s. While our rollerball perfume is waiting to also be included, you can find it here: https://amzn.to/2vOFzNp
To stay in the loop regarding our bath and body line and perfume, please subscribe to our mailing list. Please also see our list of retailers.
With age comes thinning brows, and I fully admit, I've considered microblading to help me tackle this issue.
Prior to its popularity making it more main stream, it was just know as semi-permanent makeup and was often found on the menu at your local spa or esthetician's salon. But we are all obsessed with our brows - having full, perfectly arched brows is the holy grail and this has prompted stand alone brow bars to pop up across the country. While so many people are intrigued to have it done, many don't actually understand what is involved or what microblading really is.
Microblading is a semi-permanent procedure (similar to tattooing) that uses a special tool to create hair-like strokes on the brow line that give the appearance of thicker, fuller brows. Kait Paige, microblading expert, at Boom Boom Brow Bar (30 Greenwich Avenue in NYC), outlines the 6 most asked about questions for us below:
Who should get microblading?
Those who want to redefine their eyebrows by filling in gaps, finessing the length, width, density and color, and it’s great for sculpting a beautiful arch. It looks completely natural.
What is microblading?
A temporary pencil is first used to map out the shape of each brow. Then, a topical numbing cream is applied and a special microblading pen is used to draw on semi-permanent individual fine strokes of color on the skin that look like natural hair.
Does it hurt?
The pain can be similar to waxing, threading or plucking, but the numbing cream reduces discomfort.
How long does it take?
Approximately 1.5 to 2 hours for the first service, and a 1 hour 15 minute touchup is required after 6 weeks.
What is the maintenance?
The area must heal, peel and fade which takes up to 10 days; Do not touch the area, except to clean and dab with a damp cotton to prevent scabbing; Apply oil Vitamin E to area to promote healing and retain pigment; No makeup, tinting of lashes/brows, sun, soap, sauna, steam, Jacuzzi, swimming for 10 days; Once healed, wear sunblock to protect color; Do not use products that contain AHA’s, Vitamin A, Retinol, glycolic or lactic acids – pigment will fade.
How long does it last?
1 year - excessive sun exposure, exfoliants, oily skin and smoking tend to cause fadage earlier.
You can schedule an appointment with Kait @ 516-972-7406, follow her on Instagram @kaitpaigebeauty. The cost for microblading with Kait is $500 and includes one time touch up scheduled 6 weeks after initial service (for maximum results.) Have you had microblading done? What was your experience like? Subscribe to A Girl’s Gotta Spa! beauty blog. Watch our reviews on YouTube, see our pins on Pinterest and check us out on Instagram. Got a Kindle? We’re on Kindle too! Or check out our natural bath and body line!
Disclosure: This post is Sponsored by Trophy Skin. All opinions on their RejuvaliteMD are my own.
As a mom, I sometimes feel guilty to take a moment (or 2 or 3) for myself. However, in order to really have my act together, it's a necessity. Mind, body - and skin!
About a month ago I wrote about taking 5 minutes a day to myself to focus on my skin and minimize the appearance of wrinkles with Trophy Skin's, RejuvaliteMD. This is a follow up post to show you how, even just a few minutes a few times per week, can make a big difference. I even surprised myself when I put my before and after pictures side by side!
It's funny the things you learn when you decide it's OK to take time for yourself - some things I learned were:
I'll be honest, I was skeptical that I would see a difference in my skin for what would add up to be about 20 minutes per week using RejuvaliteMD. Relaxing on my bed as the red light therapy went to work felt way too easy. The time went by in a snap and all that was required of me was to make sure my face was cleansed before using it.
Since I look at my face daily, it's hard to notice changes that slowly evolve. Which is why when I placed the two unedited photos of before and after side by side, I was pleasantly surprised at the difference, mainly how the fine lines that seemed to be stacked vertically down the side of my cheek, had disappeared. Seeing the difference has encouraged me to keep going - not that I really needed a reason to take that little bit of me time daily.
Right now Trophy Skin is offering A Girl’s Gotta Spa! readers a 15% off discount on any item from their store. This is in addition to also receving free shipping to any U.S. address. Use GOTTASPA at check out. The promo code expires on June 30, 2018. There is a 60 Day Guarantee on all items purchased on TrophySkin.com.
If you've used RejuvaliteMD, what differences did you notice in your skin?
Subscribe to A Girl’s Gotta Spa! beauty blog. Watch our reviews on YouTube, see our pins on Pinterest and check us out on Instagram. Got a Kindle? We’re on Kindle too! Or check out our natural bath and body line!
That sour little fruit has a lot of amazing skin care benefits. Bright and colorful, lemons will do wonders if you are prone to blemishes, is great to detox and is refreshing and brightening to your skin.
The thing is, I hadn’t really known all of the benefits (with the exception of lightening my hair in the summer) until a few years ago I made the switch from flavored water to spring water with fresh lemon in it.
While switching up how I was eating, it was suggested to me that my favorite Pure Life flavored water may be preventing my weight loss (preservatives, etc.) It was recommended that I opt for regular spring water and add fresh, sliced lemons to it.
I’ve always drank a lot of water, with my only downfall being 2 cups of ice coffee in the morning, but never added fresh fruit simply due to the wait time for it to diffuse. (I am a want-it-now kind of girl.) About 3 months into drinking strictly fresh lemon in my water I noticed that I hadn’t gotten a blemish the entire time.
This is highly unusual, especially since I am prone to them at least once a month (if you know what I mean!) Also, because sometimes I don’t follow my own advice and end up forgetting to wash my face before bed forever clogging my pores.
I’m very good about a daily skin care routine (exfoliate, serum, moisturize, etc.), but not so good around 10pm when I’m tired (especially on weekends.)
So now 6 months into doing my usual skin care routine and drinking a lot of fresh lemon water, I have been blemish-free the entire time. In fact, when I just had a facial at The Lodge at Woodloch, the esthetician told me that I didn’t really have much congestion in my pores. Score! 
Lemon essential oil is amazing as an ingredient in skin and body care products too. It serves as an antiseptic, is cooling to the skin and is also quite a way to wake up your senses with its invigorating fragrance.
In fact, it’s part of A Girl’s Gotta Spa! Energizing Citrus body wash, body lotion and salt scrub. With antioxidants and minerals like calcium, magnesium, Vitamin C and potassium, your skin will reap the benefits when applied topically as part of a skin care product (I never recommend applying the essential oil alone to your skin as it can cause photodermatitis.) Of course, it also has wonderful health benefits when consumed via a healthy diet.
When applying products that contain lemon in it, just be sure to wear a good broad spectrum UVA/UVB sunscreen, as you may burn a little more easier than others when exposed to direct sun light.
Also, in case you were wondering if lemon juice can fade acne scars, this is a great post to read: Does Lemon Juice Fade Acne Scars?
The one downside is that citric acid is very harsh on your tooth enamel. Definitely make sure you brush your teeth with a flouride toothpaste twice per day. Wait at least 30 minutes after drinking or eating fruit, as this is when your teeth are most vulnerable. 
With the makeup world filled with so many forms of highlighters (liquid, powder, solid sticks & now jelly), we can question: Do they all offer similar looks? Do we apply them in the same manner? How do I achieve the best results? What shades should I use? If you are looking for more ways to apply your highlighter, trust us you’re not alone. You and a million other women out there have sat in front of a mirror with their highlighter in hand and thought to themselves, what now?
Nuest Cosmetics has come up with 10 Things to Know About Highlighting Your Face & Body using their newest form: the jelly highlighter! Available in 5 shades, Pink Luster, Metallic Bronze, Gold Rush, Ruby Kiss & Twinkle Star, the range of Nuest Cosmetics’ Magical Jelly Highlighters will help create your own personal glow.
1. Want a Natural Look?
For a simple, natural look, moisturizer is your best friend. Apply your favorite and allow it to set in. Then, apply a small amount of Nuest Magical Jelly Highlighter to key areas such as under the brow bone or diagonal along the cheekbone. This will give you a dewy finish that catches the light in a subtle, yet natural way. Twinkle Star is best because it has just enough pigmentation which is perfect for a natural glow. Nuest jelly highlighters set like powder that will resist fading, rubbing off or moving.
2. Opting for Full Glam from Head to Toe?
Nuest offers many options. Their jelly highlighters may be mixed with your favorite moisturizer or foundation for an all over subtle glow. Next, you can add additional highlighter using their Silisponge or your fingers and begin dabbing the top of your cheek and brow bones. Accentuate your cupid’s bow, down the center of your nose and on the tip of your nose, plus, around your temples. For added glimmer, dab a small amount to your shoulders, upper chest area, arms and even your legs. For a softer shimmer you can mix a jelly highlighter with your favorite body moisturizer. Their Gold Rush is perfect for that royal glow.
3. Want Your Eyes to Look Larger?
Emphasizing the size of your eyes is easy! You want to apply highlighter just under your brow bone, but above the crease in your eyelid and then dab a small amount in the center of your eyelid. Gold Rush or Twinkle Star are a favorite eye opener.
4. Want your Face to Glow?
Apply a small dot of highlighter in the center of the apple of your cheek over blush and blend in a circular motion. Pink Luster or Ruby Kiss will add just the right hint of blushing glimmer.
5. Need to Re-Shape Your Nose?
Apply highlighter along the bridge of your nose and gently blend foundation or contouring cream a shade or two darker than your natural skin tone on the sides to make your nose appear to be slimmer or hide flaws. Twinkle Star is best since there is less color pigmentation which will not interfere with your contouring.
6. Want to Look Refreshed?
Just add just a pinch of highlighter to the inner corner of your eyes to brighten up an otherwise dark area. Then, apply a small amount in the center of your eyelid to add brightness. We recommend Gold Rush to wake up your look like the morning sun.
7. Want Your Cheekbones to Pop?
Apply highlighter on the cheek bone in a diagonal line from just beneath the center of your eye socket up towards your hairline and blend with a Silisponge. Pink Luster or Twinkle Star are the perfect shades to catch the light. The glimmer of the highlighter, will give your cheeks a pop and glistening glow.
8. Give You Lips for Days?
Applying a little bit of highlighter to your cupid’s bow using a concealer brush. Also, you can dab a small amount on your bottom lip right in the center or add a jelly highlighter over our favorite lip gloss or lipstick for a real statement. Try Ruby Kiss to achieve those kiss-able lips.
9. Would You Like a Summer Glow for Face AND Body?
Without having to bake in the sun, simply add our Metallic Bronze to your foundation or moisturizer and apply on your face. Use our Silisponge to create that perfect blend. Feel free to add it to your body moisturizer for an all over summer glow.
10. What Areas Can You Highlight?
Highlighting can be done anywhere you would like to accentuate - besides the traditional cheeks, eyes and lips. You can go beyond and add jelly highlighter to your body lotions to add shimmer to our shoulders, legs and arms. You can even contour or add glisten to your chest when wearing a strapless or plunging neckline. Contouring your knees or legs are an option as well especially during the summer months. Simply dab a small amount to the center of your knees or a horizontal line down the front of your calves.
Nuest Cosmetics are vegan and cruelty free. Check them out at www.nuestcosmetics.com.
Subscribe to A Girl’s Gotta Spa! beauty blog. Watch our reviews on YouTube, see our pins on Pinterest and check us out on Instagram. Got a Kindle? We’re on Kindle too! Or check out our natural bath and body line!
A GIRL'S GOTTA SPA!® began in 2005 as a beauty blog. Here you'll find informative reviews and helpful articles.
