When It's Necessary to Make a One-Time Exception

Hello - I generally don't do this, but today I'm sending you over to my other blog to read what I wrote.  I realized that I would be writing pretty much exactly the same thing here, so just decided to link to that post (because, laziness).

I hope you enjoy it, and have a lovely weekend!

How I Changed the Way I Washed My Face

Hello and Happy Labor Day!  Though it's kinda weird this year, like so many other holidays have been.  But in any case, I hope you have a good day wherever you are and whatever you have decided to do ... or not.

At the beginning of the summer, I went to wash my face one morning and realized that I was out of the cleanser I generally use, and have used for years.  Generally, I'm more on top of things, but like so much else that has fallen through the cracks, my ability to pay attention to those kinds of things and be prepared before it happens had failed.

I knew that regular soap didn't feel good on my face, and that it also made it feel really really dry.  So that morning, I turned on the cool water, and just wet my washcloth and "washed" my face three times in a row, with a rinse in between.  Then I did my usual sunscreen, etc.  It actually felt better than when I would use the cleanser.

After some thought, I decided to try an experiment.  I mean, I was going to be home anyway, and so if things didn't go all that well, it's not like I'd have to go to work or whatever anyway.  I gave myself a week to try it to see if anything was different.

Here was the plan:  In the morning, I would do the washcloth-and-cool-water wash, followed by sunscreen, etc.  Then at night, I would use my aforementioned cleanser (which I had replenished after a trip to CVS), moisturizer, etc.  The idea behind it was, how "dirty" did my face get overnight, when all I was doing was sleeping?  Why did I need to use cleanser at all in the morning? 

Now that it's been months instead of just weeks, I'm very happy to report that my skin actually looks better than ever!  My new routine seems to have worked well enough that I don't have as much redness overall (I suffer from rosacea), and my skin is smooth and brighter, I swear (or I am really good at convincing myself of this).  

Now, please note that if I have done a morning workout, or been working around the garden or house first thing in the morning, I do use cleanser when I wash my face - but that's because I have been sweating, or been outside, or been moving dirt/dust around, and I want to make sure any of that kind of grime gets washed of completely.

And it may well be that once winter comes, I'll want to do something else for extra moisturization, I'll have to see.  But for now, my simplified face-washing is doing the trick better than I could have anticipated!

(Not me.  Not even close!)

I Almost Bought Some Stuff, But Then I Remembered ... Masks

Yesterday, I was staying in the house if at all possible because it was too hot and too humid for me to be able to stand being outside.  This is not unusual during the summer, but I was in one of those moods where I just didn't feel like doing anything even though I tried to start a couple of times and almost immediately stopped.

I was scrolling through Instagram, and saw an ad for Wander Beauty.  I've heard of the company, but not paid a whole lot of attention, but because I was feeling both bored and lazy, I decided to check out their website.  I admit to thinking makeup is fun, and even though I don't wear a lot of makeup, I wear some and I'm always on the lookout for good products that are also cruelty free.  It helps if I think they are reasonably priced as well.  Anyway, after poking around on the site, I saw some things I thought looked really nice.  Then I remembered that I had a Sephora gift card for about $100.00 that was from returning a bunch of stuff that one of my sisters sent me for Christmas that I knew I would never, ever use (she spends a ridiculous amount of money all the time on cosmetics ... but again, she also shares it with me sometimes!).  So I thought, well, go look and see if Sephora had any of the Wander products I was thinking of trying.

I considered the powder foundation:

I had also read that their On-the-Glow Blush and Illuminator was nice:

I'd also heard good things about their Unlashed Volume and Curl Mascara:

So I was thinking, well, maybe I should try them all, since I have the gift card with all of that money on it, and I would be spending my sister's money instead of my own.  That seemed like a brilliant idea!

Oh yeah, except for the pandemic.  And mask-wearing, which will be required all day, everywhere in the building (and on the way back and forth from work) once I go back to work.  Anything I'm wearing on my face would a) be mostly hidden by the mask, and b) rub off on it anyway.  

I'm glad I thought of it before using my gift card.  Because $100.00 is a LOT of money, and though I'm more than happy to use the gift card, I'd rather wait until it makes sense to use it.  It has no expiration date, so I don't need to worry about not being able to use it at some point, either.

You may be wondering, did I buy anything at all?  I did.  I purchased a mini size of the mascara, which was $12.00.  And I just went ahead and paid for it myself, because it hardly seemed worth using part of my gift card for a mini size of something I wanted to try anyway.  

So I'll be wearing my moisturizer and sunscreen under my mask, but at least my eyes will look good.  😊

The Really Important Things

I saw this on Facebook the other day, and thought it was worth sharing, particularly since it talks about something that people are especially worried about in the summer - how could I possibly wear a swimsuit in public if my body is not perfect?

"Three good friends went for a swim.
The one who was fat wished she was thin.
The one who was curvy wished she was clever.
The one who was clever wished she swam better.
The really great swimmer wished she was witty.
The one who was witty wished she was pretty.
All three friends thought the other two were just fine.
If only they could let their own bright light shine.
So throw on your swimsuit if you're fat or you're thin.
Enjoy fun and friendship .... love the skin that you're in! "

Gorgeous painting by: Watercolours by Rachel

Everyone Needs Sunscreen

GAH.  I know it's been way too long since I've posted here, though I think there are so few people who follow this blog, maybe it doesn't matter.  Anyway, I'm gonna try to be here more regularly.  Especially since most of the stuff I like to talk about  here is not of interest to most/any of the followers of my other blog.

Anyway, today's topic is sunscreen.  And I don't care who you are, you should be wearing it - ALL YEAR ROUND.  Not necessarily on your entire body, unless you live somewhere where you are wearing what I think of as summer clothes all year round.  But at a minimum, you should always wear sunscreen on your face.  Which can be tricky, because I know that a lot of people think of all sunscreens as greasy, smelly, liquid-y stuff that stays white on your skin. 

So let me tell you about my favorite face sunscreens.  These are my go-tos, particularly because they also happen to be cruelty-free.  Both are pricey from the standpoint of those you can get at a drugstore, but they are actually excellently priced per use, making them worth it.  I wear sunscreen every single day, and both of these can last me 4-6 months per container.

First up:  Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen SPF40

This stuff is great!  When you first squeeze some out of the tube, you might think, "Uh oh, this feels greasy," but trust me that is not the case.  Once you smooth it onto your face, it truly disappears, not just from sight so to speak, but it makes your skin feel very smooth like you did nothing.  I have not been able to determine any scent, and from my experience, it stays on all day.  It even gets along with foundation, etc., that you may or may not wear.  It contains no oil, and according to the packaging, primes your face as well (I'm sure it does, that's just not something I'm too worried about).  

You can get Unseen Sunscreen from the Supergoop website, but also at Sephora, and stores like Nordstrom, and Madewell.  I know that at Sephora, you can return something if you don't like it/can't use it, so in that case you wouldn't be stuck if for whatever reason it's not to your liking.

My second recommendation is the Invisible Shield Daily Sunscreen SPF35 from Glossier:  

I first heard about this one from one of the people on a knitting podcast that I watch!  They were all talking about some of their favorite things, and one person recommended this.  This is more of a gel, and has just the slightest scent, which disappears almost immediately.  It spreads onto your skin and stays put without feeling like you just slopped stuff onto your face.  It also works well with makeup, if/when you wear that.  As far as I know, it's only available online from the Glossier site, but especially these days when none of us can go out shopping, that's a bonus!

Anyway, I hope this is helpful information for you.  I've spent years trying to find face sunscreens that I just really liked, and in both high end and low end pricing ranges, these two are the winners as far as I'm concerned.

As I said above, I really do want to try to be here more often, so hopefully I'll see you again soon.  In the meantime, I hope that you and yours are doing well and staying safe.  Take care.

When Fast Fashion Becomes Slow Fashion

In the past few years, there has been a lot of writing about fast fashion, and the problems behind it.  Things like sweatshop-like conditions of the workers, the fact that so much is discarded so easily by consumers who are no longer interested because it's no longer trendy, etc.

I will admit that if you looked in my closet (and please don't it's a mess right now), you'd see some fast fashion items there.  Like most people, I love a bargain, and I'm also a sucker for certain things, so when the combination hits, and I have funds, I'll buy it.  I will admit here that 99% of the time, I don't absolutely need it. 

Having said that, I did learn a while back that with things like clothing, shoes, coats, etc., the adage "you get what you pay for" is very often true.  Which is why, when I am able to do so, I will make an investment purchase (hopefully on sale, but not always), because I know the item will be a) something I will wear repeatedly, and b) something that is made well-enough to last more than one season/year/vacation/whatever. 

But truth be told, I also always wear just about whatever I own to death.  And in some cases, well beyond said death (hello, torn and frayed jeans that are just perfect for walking the dog at 5 a.m.). 

Recently, I've come across a video podcast, called What Kate Finds.  Kate is a young woman with young children who lives in Michigan, who apparently used to buy things all the time, like crazy.  I have not watched every single episode, so I am not completely sure what started her plan, but for the year 2019, she is doing a "5 buys" every month.  Basically she set down some rules/goals for herself and each month she allows herself to buy only 5 things (clothing, accessories, etc.).  She then does a review at the end of each month.  It's been interesting to watch, and also interesting to hear her say how it has changed her.  In that she has realized that she doesn't need to buy everything she likes just because she likes it, and also that it's important to realize where things come from, who makes them, etc.

In one episode, she said something that really resonated with me.  She had used one of her "5 buys" for a shirt from H&M.  She acknowledged that it was fast fashion.  But then she pointed out that a lot of things in her wardrobe that could be considered fast fashion turn out in fact to be slow fashion - in that she will keep it and wear it for longer than it is probably even intended to be worn.

Which made me think - no, it's not the exact same thing, but a lot of my fast fashion purchases have turned into slow fashion as well.  I have summer t-shirts that I've had for longer than five years, I have a few dresses that are easily 10+ years, and on and on.  I will admit that I probably didn't give much thought to how they were made, where they were made, where the materials originated, etc., but after listening to her podcast, I have to say that I feel a bit better about having them.  They may have been made and purchased NOT to last, but they have lasted for me longer than their intended lives.  I know - it's still fast fashion, but at least I haven't already tossed the stuff aside because why would I wear something I wore last year?

This is a topic that really interests me.  If it interests you as well, one of the people who writes in an understandable and approachable way about it frequently is Sophie Benson.

Financial necessity required me to buy things that were cheap for most of my life.  But I got used to taking care of things so that I could get every last bit of use/wear out of them. 

It's worth putting some things into perspective, or you can get into a vicious circle and even make yourself feel incredibly guilty.  I'm glad that Kate mentioned this in her podcast, or I'm not sure I would have ever gotten there myself.  Do what you can, and you'll be fine.  Each person needs to be responsible for themselves first.

The Planet and I

Have you gone green?  How do you feel about the Green New Deal?  Do you think climate change is real?  How do you get along with the planet?

I try on a regular basis to 'do the right thing' as they say.  I recycle (according to friends and family, I'm a 'recycling Nazi'), I signed us up to receive a compost bin which is picked up and emptied weekly, I try very hard to keep plants and trees alive, and not to waste food or water.  

I have a LONG way to go, though, before I can even get a "good" grade, and I have been trying to be more conscious of my behavior.  Having said that, I am a person who uses things until they either fall apart, or are otherwise no longer usable.  I've always been that way, mostly due to growing up in an atmosphere of uncertain finances.  We wore our clothes and shoes as long as they could last.  I think those habits are hard to break, but it's also hard to start new habits.

We have a lot of plastic food containers (mostly those Rubbermaid ones you buy in packages of 6 or so).  They are all near the end of their useful lives, and though it pains me to get rid of them, and add more plastic to the recycling bin, at least I can recycle them rather than just toss them.  Of course, then the question becomes how to replace them - buy the glass containers that are heavier, but will likely last longer?  Look for something better?  It's overwhelming a lot of the time, but I also know that I just need to do my research and make a decision and that will be the best decision for me.  And hopefully, it won't have an adverse effect on the planet in the long run.

I really enjoy looking to see what people post on Instagram, and I'm not sure how I found the account, but for the last couple of years, I've been following Sophie Benson.  She is a writer and fashion stylist who is incredibly eco-conscious and thoughtfully informed.  Through her and her Instagram posts, I've become so much more aware of how the fashion and beauty industries are some of the worst offenders to the environment.  She writes in a straightforward, easily understandable manner, and is able make it seem like a regular person is talking to you, not lecturing you.  Her article last year about purchasing and wearing/using second hand animal products (she is a vegan), and the follow-up, were very thought-provoking.  I really suggest following her on Instagram, even if you don't care about the fashion-y posts, as she links to the articles when she has written something.

Thanks to her, and just a better overall awareness, I feel a bit better informed about what products I buy to wear and to use.  I still have plenty to learn and new habits to turn into old ones, but I feel like it is all doable.

It has to be, right?