Thoughts
For the next 2 weeks I’ll be participating in Bliss & Aveeno’s Beautiful Change Challenge. It includes a series of four challenges focused on renewing and revamping my beauty routine.
*scccreeeetttcchhhhhhh*
Hold up.
My beauty routine? I’m pretty sure most of you know I don’t have one. But a big part of my life right now is figuring out who I am and want to be outside of being a mom. Now that I’ve officially graduated from “new mom” status, it’s time to remember what it’s like being a wife, friend, and late 20-something girl. It’s the little things that make a difference. They’re also the easiest to let slip away. I’m perfectly comfortable letting my neighbors see me at noon in my pj’s or going to the grocery store without a stitch of make up on, but it’s also nice to feel cleaned up and pretty and put together. Sometimes taking a few minutes to pull yourself together is all it takes to make you feel like you can tackle the world…or at least the day.
The first task bestowed upon the participants for the Beautiful Change Challenge is to focus on cutting down the time you spend primping in front of the mirror in the morning and spend that time on something more productive, like heading to the gym, making breakfast, or simply catching a few extra zzz’s. I’m going to redefine the challenge just a bit: GET a morning routine. A 3 minute morning routine. 3 minutes I can spare- the rest of the time I can continue to use more productively.
I leap reluctantly crawl out of bed before the sun even thinks about making an appearance in the morning, awakened to the sounds of a baby crying for his mama. From that moment until his morning nap 3 or 4 hours later, it’s all about him. I nurse him, then make and feed him breakfast. Change his diaper, get him dressed. Play with blocks, read books, give him a snack. And so on and so forth. On school days I consider myself lucky to make it to drop off wearing a snot-free, clean hoodie.
But since I’ve given up being a martyr mom and not taking time for myself, I’m also challenging myself to put myself together for the day- before the day is half over. It doesn’t need to be more than 5 minutes, but brushing my hair, swiping on my favorite BB cream and some mascara, and putting on clean, non-pajama clothes will be a big change for me- a good change, I’d say. 
A note from a Aveeno, the sponsor of the Beautiful Change Challenge:
Now, it’s actually healthy to wash your hair every day. AVEENO® PURE RENEWAL lets you renew your hair to its naturally balanced state daily. Unlike ordinary shampoos, these sulphate-free formulas have Balancing Seaweed Extract; bringing hair back to its naturally healthy, most balanced state with each wash, for beautifully healthy-looking hair.
Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Aveeno via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Aveeno.
Do you take time to put yourself together in the morning? What does your morning beauty routine look like?
Products
Last week I mentioned I was worried about my 6 month old rubbing {and licking} my face when it had potentially-toxic products on it. I’m not sure there’s anything I really want him smothering himself in, but I was pleased when a box of eco-friendly beauty products arrived on my doorstep this week. As part of Bliss’ Beauty Board, I was sent a selection of products from eco-friendly companies to review. I’m no beauty expert {clearly} but here’s my take on the contents of the beauty box. {If I was able to find a rating from the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Database, I provided it.}
EWG Rating: 6
Aside from our beach trip, I haven’t spent much time in the sun this summer, so I didn’t think I’d find this hair-repair mask all that beneficial. However, my hair is kind of a total mess from wearing it piled on top of my head every night for the last six months so a wide-awake baby wouldn’t try to eat it during midnight feeding sessions.
I used this in place of my conditioner when showering the other day. I was pretty much shocked when my hair ended up silky, silky smooth and tangle free. Sun damage or not, my hair needed some repair and this tub of yellow goop was apparently the answer. 2 days later and my hair is still soft and shiny. Yes, that means it’s been two days since I’ve showered. Deal with it.
This is a dry oil for body, face, and hair that smoothes, moisturizes, and illuminates. This stuff smells delicious. It spilled in the box during it’s postal journey and the scent leaked out of the box as soon as I opened it. Talk about aromatherapy. I tend to use coconut oil or sesame oil as a moisturizer, so the idea of using an oil wasn’t new to me. I loved how fast it dried- it wasn’t sticky or messy at all and I could immediately get dressed.
EWG Rating: 3
Paraben, fragrance, and oxybenzone free.
This might be the most pleasant surprise in the box. Not because it smells divine, but partially because it smells like absolutely nothing. It’s so hard to find a low-toxin sunscreen that doesn’t have that horrible sunblock smell. You know what I’m talking about. My search for a safe sunscreen started in the early days of my pregnancy and I never found a perfect solution. This will definitely be added to my overflowing bag of sun protection.
The smell of this “herbal recovery” revitalizing mask alone is a reason to use it; it reminds me of my grandmother. In a good way, not in an old lady way. The mask is smooth and light, not hard or cakey. It was more of just a cool gel, not so much a “mask”.
Paraben, phthalate, gluten, and synthetic color free.
I’ve mentioned smell a thousand times already {and I’m probably going to use it again} but this smells light, fresh, and citrus-y. Yum. It does a good job providing light texture, but I think I have way too much hair for this to really make my hair look “beachy”. If you have finer hair, or not so much, this would be great.
Last time I talk about smell, I promise. The “stress-relieving aroma” of lavender and sage is exactly that: calming and relaxing. The lotion feels great going on- light, smooth, and creamy, but left a bit of a sticky feeling for awhile after application. Once it really soaked in it was fine, but I wasn’t a fan of the sticky tightness it initially caused.
EWG Rating: 4
Prescription strength antiperspirant with moisturizers. Deodorant. What can you say about deodorant to make it glamorous? Not much. But this stuff keeps you so fresh and so clean, clean. It’s much less goopy and sticky than other “clinical strength” antiperspirants I’ve tried in the past. I’ve reviewed Dove deodorant before here.
Prett—y. A combo of highlighter and bronzer in one lets you look kissed by the sun without the nasty side effects. I’m a little pale for the bronzer, but the highlighter side is fun. I love that both products are in the same container to help simplify your beauty routine {and your make up bag}.
Do you look for eco-friendly or non-toxic products for your beauty routine? What are your must-have products?
P.S. Who’s stoked about the start of the Olympics?!!
Note: I was sent these products to review for free. Links are affiliate links, meaning purchases made from them help support me. If you’d prefer that didn’t happen, just Google the product name instead of clicking the link.
