Beauty Junkies CAN Travel Light!

Leave those train cases at home! With a few of tips, we Beauty Junkies won't have to sacrifice any part of our makeup regimen when we travel. I remember the days when airlines allowed each person 3 pieces of luggage and 2 carry-ons. Now, we're restricted to 1 suitcase under 50 lbs. Anything over 50 lbs. costs extra. With all our skin care and makeup that won't even fit on our vanities, how do we choose what to bring? I hope this short video will help. Happy Travels!

Marissa's Pick of the Week - Double Duty

Double Duty Strengthening Base & Top Coat (average MSRP, $5.00) by Sally Hansen is the best top coat I've ever used. My polish usually didn't last for more than a week without chipping, but this has helped my nails survive cleaning and making jewelry for over 2 weeks. It's also a money saver because it's a strengthening base coat.

Marissa's Pick of the Week- Moisturize Your Stress Away

YES! YES! AND YES!!! Clinique's Superdefense Triple Action Moisturizer had everything i wanted in a day cream. Then they went and changed it on me...for the better! The original formula launched back in 2005 when I was a proud lab coat wearing skin care geek. Since then, I haven't tried a moisturizer (almost a dozen) that I liked better. I loved it it because I was a fresh faced 20-year-old concerned with preventing skin damage and signs of aging such as fine lines, age spots and loss of radiance. The original formula was a skin care technology break through, offering broad spectrum protection and pollution filters in 3 formulas for different skin types.
Jammed packed with potent antioxidants, Superdefense shielded you from UVA (aging) and UVB (burning) rays with an SPF of 25 (the highest SPF I had seen in a basic daily moisturizer at the time), and had IPF (Immune Protection Factor) technology.
At the time, most moisturizers with SPF only protected you from UVB rays, leaving your skin vulnerable to the harsh effects of UVA damage. Remember that UVA are the sun rays that age your skin. It attacks the layers of your epidermis that can attribute to age spots, wrinkles, and The Big "C." Yes cancer. The Langerhans cell, which identifies skin cancer cells, is a big fat target without UVA protection. Can't get much better than that! But wait...
The new formula IS better than that! This amazing face armor, now called Superdefense SPF 25 Age Defense Moisturizer ($42.50) does all of the above PLUS battles emotional stress damage and repairs signs of aging. How? I don't know. That's the stuff only Clinique people know, but it's pretty awesome!

Marissa's Pick of the Week - Brush Savers

I love, love, love The Brush Guard! ($5.50 per pack) They help to expand the life of your cosmetic brushes by preserving its shape and allowing upside down dry time (!) after washing.
Caring for your makeup brushes the right way can save you hundreds of dollars in the long run. The most important thing to know is how to wash them. Use baby shampoo, antibacterial dish soap, or makeup brush cleanser to thoroughly cleanse each bristle until water runs clear. Never leave your brushes to dry standing upright. This can cause water to drip back into the ferrule (look at the diagram below), loosening the glue that holds the hairs together. The result? Your $50 powder brush starts balding. Until I discovered these money savers via Michelle Phan, I laid my brushes flat to dry.

To use, slip the appropriately sized Brush Guard over your cleansed brush extending the tube about 1/2" over the bristles. Place the brush upside down in a cup over night. When your brush is dry, slip the tube off (upwards, not down the handle) and your brush is good as new!

If you can't purchase brush guards right away, you can do wonders with rubber bands! :)

Marissa's Pick of the Week - Nail Art Pens!

Since I'm currently between jobs, I've been a little less into makeup and more into nail art. As a true beginner with no knowledge of anything that had to do with nails, I swiped a couple of Nail Art Pens by Sally Hansen. You can pick these pens up at drug stores and beauty supply stores for an average price of $6.99. They come in 8 colors and dry fast. It takes some practice to draw designs that actually look good. I started off horrible, but now I'm kind of good. Well, good enough to not have to go to a salon and pay 3 to 4 times more than a couple of these pens cost. This picture shows the first batch of nails I'm not embarrassed to show. Hopefully with enough practice, other people will want me to do their nails for them!