Chicisms - Part 11

Beauty Review: Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment

For beautiful, chapped-free lips, lip balm (and a lip scrub) is a necessity. But with countless lip balm brands out there, from Chapstick to Nivea to Burt’s Bees, it can be difficult to find a lip balm that’s great for you. Luckily, I’ve found a lip balm that I’ve fallen in love with, and I know you will too!

Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment is the perfect lip balm.

I received this as a birthday gift from Sephora (if you don’t know about the birthday gift and love Sephora, sign up to be a Beauty Insider — it’s free and once you accumulate points, you can begin receiving Beauty Insider gifts and a special gift on your birthday!) a few months ago. In the package were two mini Fresh Sugar Lip Treatments: the original – Sugar, and another in Rosé.

Sugar is a clear, not tinted, lip balm while Rosé is tinted a beautiful strawberry red. It has SPF 15 and is made of real ingredients: sugar (prevents moisture loss); a blend of moisturizing oils: meadowfoam seed, black currant, seed avocado, and jojoba; grapeseed polyphenols (protect, smooth, soften); and Avobenzene and Octinoxate (SPF UVA/UVB sun protection).

The lip balms have an extremely light scent citrusy scent and glide on super smoothly. Rosé adds beautiful, light color to your lips. However, the color doesn’t last very long and is extremely sheer so if you’re looking for a hint of color on your lips, this is perfect. If not, it’s better to wear the fresh Sugar lip treatment (pictured on the left – clear in brown case) and use your favorite lipstick over.

I love, love, love this product and definitely suggest you try it.

You can find the full-size of this product at Sephora for $22.

Leila2019-01-10T09:12:08-08:00January 9th, 2013|Categories: Lifestyle|Tags: beauty review, fresh sugar lip treatment, lip balm|0 Comments

4 Winter Skin Saving Tips

With the crisp cool air outside and the heat blasting inside, skin gets tight and dry – meaning it’s calling for some TLC, more than it needs in the warmer months. To keep your skin looking radiant this winter, follow these four simple tips:

1. Stay Away From Hot Water. Though you may want to turn up the heat in your shower and bask in the warmth after a long day, try not to. Hot water dehydrates the skin so it’s best to stick with warm water when taking a shower, bath, or when washing your face and hands. However, if you really can’t leave your hot showers, try to limit the time spent in the shower.

2. It’s Still Sunny in the Winter. It may seem like a summer-only product, but sunscreen of at least SPF 30 is important year round.

Apply it every day to protect your skin from the sun’s harsh rays. Try Neutrogena Ultra-Sheer Dry Touch Sunblock (This is my absolute favorite sunscreen. It’s not oily, doesn’t make your skin break out and has UVA/UVB protection).

3. Exfoliate. Use a light exfoliator twice or three times a week in the winter to slough off dead, dry skin.

Exfoliating helps moisturizer do its job well. For a budget-friendly exfoliator that does its job, try St. Ive’s Fresh Apricot Scrub.

To exfoliate your lips without spending money on a lip scrub, you can simply brush your toothbrush softly over your lips, as if you were brushing your teeth. Do this once a week and your lips will be super smooth!

4. Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize! According to KeSARI Beauty Creative Director Richa Purohit, you should look for “oil-based moisturizers with vitamins C and E.” These types of moisturizers will lock in moisture better than water-based moisturizers.

If you have problem skin and are worried about oil-based moisturizers clogging your pores, opt for a lighter lotion. Make sure to moisturize right as you get out of the shower so that you lock in moisture.

Don’t forget to moisturize your lips with a great lip balm! Try Aveeno Ultra-Calming Daily Moisturizer with SPF 15 or Bliss Triple Oxygen +C Energizing Cream. As for a lip balm, I’m currently loving Burt’s Bees Beeswax Lip Balm because it’s all natural, has vitamin E and peppermint, and is really soothing my lips.

Have a wonderful winter!
xo, Leila

Leila2018-02-16T20:32:34-08:00January 8th, 2013|Categories: Lifestyle|Tags: skin saving tips, skincare, winter skin|0 Comments

And Here’s To Another Year

2012 was a wonderful year but it’s time to begin a new one and start fresh!

This year was only the beginning of chicisms so I hope to see you in 2013 where there will be more blog, fashion, and style posts on chicisms! Thank you all for the love!

I hope you all have a very happy new year!

Leila2018-02-16T20:32:46-08:00December 31st, 2012|Categories: Lifestyle|Tags: new year|0 Comments

The Best Last Minute Gifts for Everyone On Your List

You’ve made your list, you’ve checked it twice, but have you crossed anything off of it yet? With a few days left before Christmas, it’s time to get those gifts for all your friends and family! Below are the best last minute gifts for just about everyone on your list:

Clockwise, from left to right:

iPhone Olloclip – If you know someone who loves taking great photos and has an iPhone 4/4s, this is the perfect present. The Olioclip is a 3-in-1 attachment lens for the iPhone 4/4s with a fisheye, wide angle, and macro lens. Get it from Neiman Marcus for free rush delivery (with promo code “NMQUICK”) and returns.

Azure Jeweled drops – No one will ever know these gorgeous earrings were $26. Find it on BaubleBar and receive free shipping and get $10 off when you create an account. You can also create a $50 gift set, here, that includes your choice of carrying case filled with an Essie polish you choose with a matching bracelet, and two more bracelets of your choosing.

Diptyque “Baies” Scented Candle – Give your friend a luxury scented candle from Paris. “Baies” is a candle scented like a “bouquet of roses and blackcurrant leaves” according to the description at Nordstrom.

Boo – the World’s Cutest Dog – Who wouldn’t want this little sweetheart pup? Everyone loves Boo. Get it from Amazon for a better price than other retailers. Click here to take a look at their holiday shipping dates and cutoffs.

Milly geometric print iPhone 4/4s case – For the fashionable woman, nothing else is better than a stylish phone case. Get it from Saks Fifth Avenue for free shipping and free returns with code “holiday” in checkout. You can also request a free gift box and bow in checkout. Order before the 22nd, 4pm EST to get it on time!

Bormiolo Rocco “Giara” bottles – These colorful bottles are a perfect add to anyone’s home for use in the kitchen to hold water or other liquids, or as decor to hold flowers. Find them at Bloomingdales and receive free shipping through 12/20.

NYC Globe – This musical globe features NYC’s landmarks. It’s perfect for the man or woman in your life who loves to travel or just loves NYC. You can also find more musical globes featuring other American cities like Dallas, Boston, Chicago, and more. Find them here.

Leila2018-02-16T20:33:01-08:00December 20th, 2012|Categories: Lifestyle|Tags: gift guide, holiday, last minute|0 Comments

Crafty Chic: DIY Gift Bows

Wrapping a present is no big deal; how it’s decorated (bows, ribbon, writing), on the other hand, sometimes can make the present. Bows, especially, are attention grabbers and while you can always go out and buy a great bow, why not make one instead? When wrapping presents, there are always scraps that we end up throwing away, but you can use those to make bright, fun bows to add to your gift!

What you’ll need:

Scraps of wrapping paper (I used reversible wrapping paper. You can find some here on Amazon, here at Target, and here at Vera Bradley.
Scissors
Tape

Steps:

1. Take your scrap of paper (ideally about 5 or 6 inches long) and fold it in half.

2. Make cuts up through the paper, stopping at about a 1/2 inch from the folded edge.

3. Then, open your strip of wrapping paper. Just as you would curl a string of ribbon with a pair of scissors, begin curling each strip with your scissors. Try not to pull too hard on each strip as you curl it so you don’t rip strips off, but don’t worry if you rip a few. The bow will still be pretty!

4. Fold your curled paper back in half to the way it was. Then fold it in half once more.

5. Repeat steps 1-4 with more scraps of wrapping paper about 4 or 5 times (and even more if you’d like!), depending on how big and bouncy you want your bow to be. Put all your curled pieces together, bottoms (folded edge) facing downwards, to help determine whether your bow is big and bouncy enough for you. If you’re not fully satisfied, keep adding more curls and scraps. If you are happy with it, move on to the next step.

6. Arrange your curled pieces of wrapping paper scraps however you like to make sure it looks great when you put it together. When all the curled scraps come together as a bow, as they should, tape the bottoms together. Make sure that they’re securely taped so that you don’t get pieces of curls flying out! And there’s your bow!

7. Now that your bow is finished, tape it onto the gift and admire your handmade bow!

Leila2017-04-17T15:28:19-07:00December 19th, 2012|Categories: Crafts|Tags: crafty chic, diy|1 Comment