How to Treat Sunburn

The skin on my arms is peeling from a recent sunburn.  I have like a dozen bottles of sunscreen (okay, a little exaggeration) and I am always reminding people to put on sunscreen, yet I got burned, how ironic.  What happened was, we were at the beach and I was busy putting on sunscreen for my daughter.  It is so hard, toddler does not like to sit still and what not, so next thing you know, I completely forgot to put some on my arms. The bad thing about sunburn is that by the time I realize, it is too late.  Anyway, it prompt me to write this post, what to do if you got burn.

1.  Once you realize you are getting burn (skin turning pink or feeling uncomfortable), immediately get out of the sun so you don't get burn even more.  If you can't get out of the sun immediately, another option is putting on protective clothing and hat.  You are also probably dehydrated as well, make sure you get plenty of fluid.



 2.  Cool down the inflammation with cool wet towel.

3.  Sooth your skin with aloe vera.  I know not everyone have an aloe vera plant laying around so the next best thing is a moisturizing cream or lotion.  I'd recommend Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion because it contains oatmeal which is great for soothing and protect your skin.

4.  I personally have not try this myself but according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, you can take ibuprofen or Advil to relieve swelling and redness.


Enjoy the rest of your summer and hopefully you won't need treatment for sunburn :)



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5 Easy Ways to Style Short Hair

Last year, I took the plunge and got myself a pixie hair cut (see above).  There is something about chopping all your hair off that just make me feel liberating.  As much as I love it, after a while, I started to miss my long hair.  That is what I have been doing this year, growing out my hair again.  I like my hair either really short or long, but just short can be blah.  It is like there is not much you can do with it and it is not quite as chic as a pixie.  I have come up with a few different ways to style it to help ease the boredom.

1.  Flat Iron : it helps make it look more polish and defrizz.

2.  Clip It Up:  Clip it up to the side using a pretty barrette.

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3.  Headband:  Putting on a headband is such an easy way to spice thing up.  You can go girly with flower and lace or modern with leather.

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4.  Wave:  This has got to be my favorite, I tried it for a party and it turned out great.  Make sure you use a curling iron that is no larger than 1 inch since you do not have much length to work with.  If you have natural wave, you can skip the heat and do a beachy wave instead.  After you wash your hair, apply mouse or spray gel and crunch it from the bottom up using your hand.  Let it air dry.

5.  Give Yourself a Bang:  Last but not least, bang is a great way to update any hairstyle without really cutting it. 

If you have any other great idea on how to style short hair, I'd like to hear from you.

The Balm Balm Shelter Tinted Moisturizer SPF 18 Review and Swatches

The Balm claims that their Balm Shelter Tinted Moisturizer SPF 18 is weightless and silky smooth and I totally agree.  During colder months when my skin was drier, it did not cling to dry patches and accentuate them.  Instead it goes on smoothly and give me a bit of a glow.  In warmer month, it feels light and comfortable, does not melt off.

I love that it is so smooth and easy to blend, I can use my fingers and quickly apply this, it is also fool proof.  I tried it with both stippling and kabuki brush and it works find.  With a stippling brush, you have to buff it in rather then stipple because it is too thin for that. 

Shade:  Light

 Before and After

From the picture above, you can see that the coverage is definitely sheer to light coverage, you can build it up, but not much.  It "blurs" out imperfection, but you can still see my mold and some freckles.  Overall, it gives me my skin but better look, very natural.  Any blemish or serious redness will need a concealer.  However, I did not love this tinted moisturizer for it coverage but rather because it is "no fuss" base makeup, if I have a bad skin day, I don't need to worry about it making me look worse or covered up.

Price: $25 for 2.15 oz or 64ml  (tip: sometime Hautelook carries this for half off)

Overall Rating:  4.5 out of 5


Disclosure: The products being review was purchased by me. 

TOTW: Lemon (or Lime) Foot Scrub

The acid in lemon or lime juice is a great natural exfoliant.  You can soak tired feet in warm water, then rub a piece of lime all over, massage a bit, then rinse.  Afterward, apply foot cream and cover feet with cotton socks for extra softness.

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TOTW: Decrease Puffiness

Place sliced cucumber or cold tea bags over the eyes to sooth and decrease puffiness.

Clinique Age Defense BB Cream SPF 30 Review and Swatches

 

Clinique Age Defense BB Cream contains antioxidants for prevention and SPF 30 for sun protection.  This BB cream contains both chemical and physical (both zinc and titanium dioxide) sunscreen ingredients.  There is no specific on what kind of antioxidants is in this but this is not a big deal for me because I don't rely on makeup as a source for skin nourishment.  It comes in 4 shades, 01 through 04, with 04 being a new release for golden or deeper complexion.   

Bare Skin (R) Clinique BB Cream in 02 (L)

I am NC 20 and I am using shade 02, which is describe as Very Fair to Moderately Fair with Golden Undertones.  As you can see from above, it gives me a nice dewy, natural finish.  Cover up pretty much all of my redness and you can only see a little bit of freckles.  I would say this BB cream is light to medium coverage that can be build-able.  It is also very easy to apply, I can quickly apply this with my fingers and there is no cakiness.  Overall, I like this base makeup very much. 

Price:  $37 for 1.4oz

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5


Disclosure: The products being review was purchased by me.