Bobbi Brown's Makeup Manual has a section in her book that provides readers with great tips on living a healthy lifestyle. She states how this healthy lifestyle directly impacts how you look and feel. There are certain nutrients that are important for maintaining healthy skin, hair, and nails. These nutritents include vitamin A, B, C, D, E and healthy Fats. If you're like me and is not a fan of taking vitamins in the pill form, you can get your vitamins in the foods that you eat.
Down below are the different vitamins and a few examples of foods for each:
Vitamin A
- raw carrots
- sweet potatoes
- cantaloupe, apricots, and mangoes
Vitamin B
- whole grain cereal
- berries
- green leafy vegetables
- eggs
- soy beans
Vitamin C
- oranges, grapefruits
- spinach, broccoli, tomatoes
Vitamin D
- fish oils (salmon)
- milk
- mushrooms
- yogurt
It's a pink peachy color with golden undertones. So not only is it a blush, it can also be used as a bronzer.
It's a soft, sheer powder blush that doesn't feel heavy on your skin. It's perfect for the day and night. I'm pretty much in love with this blush and haven't felt this way about a cosmetic product in a while. With a name like Orgasm, how could this blush not be magical.
A lot of buzz has been swarming around a new songstress who goes by the name Beasle (no last name necessary). I've read great things about her on Twitter, Facebook and have even heard rave reviews from my own home. So, when a video of one her recent performances popped up on Facebook I had to see what all of the hype was about. Needless to say I was impressed, specifically with her rendition of "I'm Going Down". I'm going to go out on a limb and say her version is up there with Rose Royce, Mary J Blidge, and Tamera Mowry. Yes, it was that good! Check her out below:
October 15th marks the day the famous twins were born. People have been BUZZaring about Dee & Ricky for quite some time. I became familiar with the pair when their famous Lego accessories hit the runway for Marc Jacobs and were found in the pages of Teen Vogue. I love that they're creative, but I enjoy their personalities more. They have an "I don't care what you think, I'm cool" attitude and it suits them well. So, Happy Birthday to Dee & Ricky! I doubt they'll see this. But who knows maybe a few more people will know of their existence :D.
Working in retail is very interesting. Before I applied for the job of sales associate I didn't know it really meant "personal cheerleader".
I spend a lot of time in the fitting room. I grab different sizes, fold clothes and organize "go backs". But, I spend even more time giving thumbs up, smiling, and throwing out reassuring compliments. Boy is it exhausting!
Too many women are not happy with their bodies and it's evident when they enter the fitting room. Those mirrors can either be therapeutic or invoke disastrous words. It's either "That doesn't look good on big girls like me, maybe on you". "My boobs are too big". or "See I need a but like yours". Yes, these are actual quotes that I've heard over a five month span. I find it unsettling, because these ladies are gorgeous. But, they don't appreciate how they were made.
Attention, beauty comes in all shapes, sizes, complexions, and ages. I'm sure it's normal to go through that "I'm not cute stage" because I've gone through it. But, snap out of it and turn that feature that everyone teased you about into your uniqueness. Because, after all we're not all meant to look alike.
If you're still feeling uncomfortable in your skin follow these steps. I'm no expert, but I believe they're real confidence boosters.
1. Smile. I'm not sure what it is about a smile that does the trick. But I've never met a smiling person that was not pretty. They just seem friendly and likeable. And when you smile you become memorable and get a lot of attention. It's true. There was an experiment conducted by students. The more they smiled the more the teacher looked their way and favored them. Besides, who wants to be around someone who's constantly frowning.
2. Be Healthy. Exercise and drink as much water as you can. Tyra, yes we're on a first name basis, taught me to how to get the proper water intake. "Divide your weight (in pounds) by two. The resulting number is the number of ounces of water you need each day". Were you aware that humans are made up of 75% of water?
3. Take Care of Yourself. Although I'm sure a small percent of the world like Aishwarya Rai can roll out of bed and turn heads in a positive way. Most of us cannot, let's just be real. And there's nothing wrong with that. Just take time to comb your hair, wash your face, stand up straight, even wear a little makeup. My personal favorite is wearing something nice. A great outfit just does something special. Just think, why is fashion so important? It makes one feel and look beautiful.
4. Don't be Conceited! Attitude is everything. If you know you're beautiful then you'll walk and speak like you are and everyone will notice. But, don't become overwhelming. No one is better than the next, and screaming your beautiful while putting others down is just annoying. And frankly, ugly :D.
5. Get Comfortable in Front of the Mirror and Believe in Your Beauty. Kurt Vonnegut said, "We are what we pretend to be, so be careful what you pretend to be". In other words you can be whatever you want. In this case it's beautiful. Say it out loud and actually believe it. And yes, the "American Standard of Beauty" does exist. But, if you're not celebrated here, your look is definitely coveted somewhere in the world and it's warming to know that.
Keri Hilson inspired this post. She's bold and unapologetically announces her beauty. Every girl needs to listen to this song and make it their anthem.
New music is pure bliss. I'm currently listening to Songs About A Girl Vol. 1 by Paris. It's a mix of R&B, Pop, and Hip Hop. So far my favorite song is "Beatin' Like A Drum". This mixtape has a lot of songs worthy of being left on repeat!
Today is "Happy Black Girl Day", the internet holiday started by Sister Tojldah. I love the concept of "Happy Black Girl Day" and I also love that a lot of its supporters on Twitter have amazing natural healthy manes.
The time, money and thousands of different hairstyles we create for ourselves confirms that hair is a big part of our lifestyles as Black women. When it comes to Black hair we're almost like Zebras. We're all the same. But we all have different hair textures which results in different styles. The style I see the least and seems to get a bad rap is natural hair.
Although I personally love it, I will admit that I frequently dabble in the use of a hot comb, weave, and in my younger days braids.
I recently went natural and even though it was only for a few hours I loved every second of it. I felt free when my hair was in its natural state and missed my curls after they were straightened.
There's controversy surrounding natural hair. But it is beautiful. Since "Happy Black Girl Day" is here there's no turning back. This is the perfect opportunity to celebrate Black hair by shining light on those who wear it well. If you have any questions or the slightest bit of interest in natural hair KimmayTube should serve as a great catalyst.
It's obvious Ataui Deng is striking. So much so that I blogged about her a few months ago. Little did I know the pictures posted at TBC would serve as inspiration for an amazing piece of work by Leigh Viner. She has an etsy shop, so feel free to visit!
Being a writer/reporter is big fun. One, you get published. Two, you get to meet interesting celebs and three you get great swag.
The most useful item I've received was from PETA's 30th Anniversary. Out of all the things that were packed in the gift bag "Yes to Carrots: C Through the Night Moisturizing Cream" ranked the highest.
Once it's applied, the paraben free cream makes my dry skin feel like silk. It has a thick non greasy texture which allows me to use it during the day and night. And I can't get enough of the floral scent which reminds me of fresh Jasmine's.
If you're looking for a new night cream for a reasonable price ($14.00) try "Yes to Carrots".
I love Facebook. When a user isn't allowing their own privacy to be invaded it can really be useful. The Social Network is where I discover new music, funny videos, world news and pretty much all things relevant to my generation. Today I stumbled across a status from one of my artsy friends. It was centered around her new found love for Camila do Rosario. One response went something like this "just fell [in love]? sheesh catch up".
I don't like being the last person to hear about exciting news; so I had to figure out who this girl was and quick. Turns out she's a fashion student and a very innovative artist who is based out of Florianopolis, Brazil. If you're like us and our late friend from Facebook we've got a lot of catching up to do. Without further ado meet Camila do Rosario:
The Buzz around the viral neck of the woods is about Vashtie Kola and her Air Jordans. I love it, because I love Vashtie. The first time I saw her, online of course, was on the arm of my teenage crush Pharrell Williams. I don't know about Pharrell, but I remember she was wearing an electric teal dress embellished with fringe tassels. My first thought wasn't "Who is this girl with my boyfriend-in-my-head?". Because one that would be psycho and two for a few seconds Pharrell was irrelevant. I simply thought "Who is this girl?". Shortly after, my Vashtie fascination began. She's cool for so many reasons, but here's a few if you're totally unfamiliar with her.
She's a tomboy. It's very hard to pull off the dressing down thing. And Vashite does it like no other. If you Google her, more than a few images will come up where she's wearing a basic hoodie, t-shirt, and jeans combination.
"She got her own". Video director and owner of the clothing line Violette. Vashtie is what most would call an independent woman. I find this admirable. Before she and Pharrell were an item, she was in the process of making a name for herself. See her work for Justin Bieber here.
The girl has great taste in movies. Before I knew who the ladies of Grey Gardens were she declared their documentary as one of her favorites when she used it as an ad for her clothing line.
She throws wildly popular parties in NYC. Both Open which she throws with Q-Tip and "1992" which is thrown with her best friend bring out the greats like Maxwell, Kid Cudi, Mick Jagger, Patrick Ewing and more. Isn't name dropping great :)!
She's the first woman to design a pair of Air Jordans. On Dr.Jays.comVashtie mentions "Growing up in the hood. Nikes were king, but Jordans were a whole other level. They were so expensive and their price made them out of reach as a poor kid. As soon as I got old enough to afford them, I went in!".I think pining for a specific item, buying it, and then later creating your own defines success.
If you think I left out any reasons that validate the Downtown Sweetheart's coolness feel free to add on.
Lately, I've been perplexed with the question "What should I do with myself?". I've just finished an amazing yet rigorous five month internship at Vogue and my undergraduate career is complete. Other college graduates have shared stories of their summer boredom with me, but I just blew them off. I live for sleep-in-days, so I honestly thought anyone who takes having nothing to do for granted is insane. I quickly found out that watching re-runs of "The Bad Girls Club" gets really old. I was craving a task to get my mind off the fact that if I don't find a stable job soon I'll be the female version of Tyrese's infamous character Jody.
So, I took it upon myself to try to get in touch with my roots. Specifically my homemaker roots. Before someone had the genius idea of wanting to work and fight in the military, us girls had to learn important life skills such as cooking, cleaning, sewing, being creatively submissive etc. I decided I wanted to incorporate a few of those gems, sans being creatively submissive, in my life.
Here's my progress over a two day span:
My sister's friend just had a birthday. Without her permission I decided to wrap the gift. Yes I even sewed the button on top. I have a lot of time on my hands people!
I call these little mini bad girls "Strasberry Cream Cheese Cupcakes". Not only are they adorable they taste good too. And yes, I made these while wearing heels and a cute little apron. I just felt like it was appropriate.
So to my college graduates, what have you been doing to kill the boredom? While YouTube videos are mildly amusing, they don't count :).
She's a tomboy. It's very hard to pull off the dressing down thing. And Vashite does it like no other. If you Google her, more than a few images will come up where she's wearing a basic hoodie, t-shirt, and jeans combination. 
"She got her own". Video director and owner of the clothing line Violette. Vashtie is what most would call an independent woman. I find this admirable. Before she and Pharrell were an item, she was in the process of making a name for herself. See her work for Justin Bieber here.
The girl has great taste in movies. Before I knew who the ladies of Grey Gardens were she declared their documentary as one of her favorites when she used it as an ad for her clothing line. 
She throws wildly popular parties in NYC. Both Open which she throws with Q-Tip and "1992" which is thrown with her best friend bring out the greats like Maxwell, Kid Cudi, Mick Jagger, Patrick Ewing and more. Isn't name dropping great :)!
She's the first woman to design a pair of Air Jordans. On Dr.Jays.com Vashtie mentions "Growing up in the hood. Nikes were king, but Jordans were a whole other level. They were so expensive and their price made them out of reach as a poor kid. As soon as I got old enough to afford them, I went in!". I think pining for a specific item, buying it, and then later creating your own defines success. 
