Product Review - Urban Decay Naked Skin

I received a sample of Urban Decay's new foundation with my last order from their website. I currently use Mac Pro Longwear Foundation and love it.

Since I'm so in love with the Naked eyeshadoew palette, I figured this would be a good option should I ever abandon my Mac foundation.

I really liked the way this felt on my skin, it was very smooth, not heavy at all. It helped even out my skin tone (as foundation should) and did cover my blemishes, but I still had to use concealer on one spot. They offer a variety of shades, the one I tried matched my skin very well.

I will definitely buy UD Naked Skin in the future, it is fairly priced at 38.00 USD and the bottle will last awhile.  This is how it looked on my skin.

My bedroom has the best lighting, so thats why this picture is lying down.

Overall, I give this 4 out of 5 stars. It was relatively weightless, but if I was having a lot of break-outs I would need better coverage. It was very comparable to the MAc foundation I wear, but a lighter option.

Urbandecay.com

Juice Cleanse Follow-up

Coming off of my juice cleanse, I decided to keep eating the same fruits and veggies I had been juicing, just in solid form. This was to continue to cleanse my body and boost my immunity. I kept animal products to a minimum, I probably had a bite of my son's organic chicken, and that was it for the week. I do admit to indulging in a mini cupcake, I felt I deserved it. ;)

Unfortunately, I had to have a procedure on my digestive system for a previous issue (one I mentioned in My Juicing Journey), it had nothing to do with the cleanse; just a timing coincidence. So I couldn't really stick to my plan of "vegan week", I had to fast pre-op, and be on a clear liquid diet 48 hours post-op. I'm still on the liquid diet and it's torture!

I'm sorry for the disappointment, since I didn't post meals as promised. Another time, my dear readers, another time. However, I have lost another 3 lbs this week, so it wasn't a total waste! (Although I'm pretty sure the fasting/liquid diet combo had something to do with that!)

The juice cleanse did get rid of my dry scalp issues, and a scar I had on my knee (it's at least 10 years old) that was yellow and gross looking, it's now moisturized and blended into my skin more. No matter how much I moisturized before, it stayed gross, therefore, I believe getting concentrated nutrition via juicing helped heal it from the inside. I was very pleased! Good luck to all who attempt a juice cleanse!

Facebook Contest Update

Hey guys, don't forget about my FaceBook giveaway! As soon as my fan page (www.facebook.com/ClusterFudge269) gets to 100 likes, I'll be giving away a $25 gift card to Amazon or ITunes, winner's choice! Even if you're an occasional reader, it only takes a few minutes to "like" me and you'll get updates for each new blog, along with random facts and quotes! Plus, if you win, it's free money!

My Juicing Journey

     I decided to cleanse my body via juice fast. One of my friends had just completed one and lost about 11 pounds, on top of that his skin looked amazing! I was so jealous of this man's supermodel-like skin! I had to do this. I don't have an issue with over-eating nor am I opposed to healthy food, I love it. The main reason I wanted to do this cleanse is to boost my immunity, get that dewy skin, and lose the last 5 pounds of baby weight.

     I weighed every morning, so the weight difference is from the previous day, not overall.

    I recommend researching juicing before starting a cleanse. I did, but I also found out some things along the way than would've helped to know ahead of time. If you have any health issues, check with your primary physician. This is my personal experience, it will not be the same as everyone else's. A good place to educate yourself on juicing is The Juicing Book.

    Let me take you on my journey...

DAY 1:   My first juice is carrot, kale, and spinach, from the Health Food Center. It's quite delicious. I drank about 8-10 oz for breakfast, along with a cup of coffee. I'm not giving up coffee because it has 0 calories (I drink it black) and gives your metabolism a temporary boost. After drinking all of that, I felt as though I had eaten a stack of pancakes! I was so full, like I had over eaten, but it was just because I had consumed so much liquid. 

    The first day really wasn't hard, the only negative was feeling nauseous. I have a health condition that gives me daily nausea (no it's not pregnancy) and it was just worse than normal. Otherwise, it was pretty easy, I didn't feel hungry.

DAY 2:  Morning weigh-in: Difference (-).8 lbs
    I started the day off with cucumber/apple juice, it was a refreshing breakfast drink.

    5pm - Oh God, I'm so fucking hungry!! I made the mistake of drinking cucumber, mango, and celery before work and not following up with another juice until 9 hours later. I do NOT recommend that. I didn't mean to go that long, that was stupid. Being on my feet, I was burning calories that I hadn't consumed, so it made me feel weak and dizzy. A juice fast should not make you feel that way, starving yourself, however, will. Do not starve yourself. 

    When I did "eat" again it was watermelon, apple, and spinach. It was so wonderful, not just because I was so hungry, but because it was a great combo. I have learned from my mistake and will NOT make that same one again. I also learned that you're supposed to juice watermelon by itself. Oops.

DAY 3:   Morning weigh-in: Difference (-) 2.2 lbs
    Today was planned much better than yesterday. I had apple/spinach juice for breakfast and I'm about to make broccoli, celery, and spinach for lunch. I haven't been hungry today, although I've had horrible gas. Not like machine gun farts, but just painful stomach gas. I have yet to evacuate my bowels...I need to get some beets.

OH MY GOD, I would give anything to fart right now! This gas is horrible.

  As I mentioned before, I have digestive issues, I had to eat a plum because it's not normal to go that long without dropping a deuce during a cleanse. The fiber from the fruit in its natural state took care of my issue. I may have to eat a piece of fruit every other day during the cleanse to aid in digestion. If you have a healthy digestive system, you should be fine with a normal fast. My body, however, refuses to be normal.

    I made celery, broccoli, and apple juice for dinner; I added a clove of garlic for the health benefits...it was disgusting. I couldn't even down it holding my nose. I almost threw up, so I had to dump it out after about 2 oz.

   My kitchen sink had a clog in it this evening, so I couldn't juice (because I would need to wash the juicer immediately after). I ate an apple to hold me over. Eventually, when the sink was fixed, I remade  the celery, broccoli, and apple juice, sans the garlic.

DAY 4: Morning weigh-in: Difference (-) 1.2 lbs
     I had watermelon by itself for breakfast. I'm definitely making sure to eat more veggies than fruit, but watermelon is best to juice by itself, and I wanted a treat. I juiced the rind also because it holds nutritional value.

    For lunch, I made broccoli, apple, and mango juice for lunch. I was running low on produce, so I had to use two fruits. I'm trying to drink mostly vegetables, but I didn't have much of a choice.

   I made a trip to the grocery store to stock up on my veggies and greens. I finally got some beets in the hopes that that will keep me regular during this fast, I would hate to have yesterday's issue. I will be drinking beets tomorrow, but please read this info on beets before juicing them. DO NOT DRINK BEET JUICE BY ITSELF. ALWAYS MIX IT WITH ANOTHER VEGETABLE OR FRUIT. For dinner I made my first love of the juicing world, carrot, kale, and spinach. I used less carrot than the Health Food Center, and I liked it. I enjoyed the sweetness of the carrots, but having it not so sweet (especially after having so much fruit today) was refreshing.

DAY 5: Morning weigh-in: Difference (-) .2 lbs
     My morning juice consisted of beets, apple, and cucumber. I rather enjoyed it. I had beets in all three of my juices today, but I have yet to see the "miraculous" cleansing powers of beets (I'm talking about poop).

DAY 6: Morning weigh-in: Difference (-) .4 lbs
     I have decided to transition to solid foods early. In the last week, my bowels have moved once. This is not normal and due to my digestive issues, I need solid food. I am choosing to juice twice a day and eat once. I had a salad of beet greens, spinach, and kale for dinner. It was so good! I love greens and I plan to eat mostly raw vegetables and fruit this next week after I go back to solids. I will limit, if not exclude animal products, mostly meat (not that I eat that much of it anyway).

    Over the past six days I have lost 4.8 lbs, I'll just go ahead and round that up to 5. I am happy to say I'm back at my pre-pregnanacy weight! All of my blemishes have come to the surface, so I expect my skin to clear up in the next few days. Next week I will give an update on the transition week, with weight loss and meals. This was my personal (very personal with the poops) experience with juicing, I recommend it to anyone who wants to rid their body of toxins, clear their skin, and lose some water weight and bloat. Your experience will not be the same as mine, it may not even be close, but I hope I gave some insight to the world of juicing.

                                                                      :)

Practice Safe Sun

In the midst of summer, and all year around, it's very important to practice safe sun. Even if you are not fair skinned, you can still get skin cancer and age prematurely. So keep these tips in mind:

Wear sunscreen. I know so many people hate applying sunscreen, but even if it's SPF 15, apply it. I am amazed at how many people will risk skin cancer for a tan. Wear make-up or moisturizer that has sunscreen in it if the extra step is so difficult. You can still get some "color" wearing sunscreen, but it's never smart to risk bare skin in the sun.

Dress to protect yourself from the sun. Wear a visor or hat to help cover your face if you're going to be outside for awhile. Wear linen or another light material to help cover your skin without over heating.

Stay away from tanning beds. These are HORRIBLE for you! Just stay away!! (By the way, most tanning salons don't change their bulbs as often as they should, so you're getting about half to one fourth of the power you're paying for.)

If you have to have a tan apply a gradual self tanner or take some tips from this video on application. This is Lisa Monique from The Lisa Monique Blog, she has guest blogged for ClusterFudge in the past.
Self Tanner Application

Wear sunglasses every time you're outside. It's not just a fashion statement, it protects your eyes and the skin around them. Crows feet will stay away from you much longer if you're a regular with the shades.

These are just a few easy tips to help preserve your skin. As I've mentioned before in my review of Origins A Perfect World Moisturizer, women's skin starts to age at 23. Not at 43, 53, or even 33, but at 23 years old your skin decreases elastin and collagen production. Prevention is the best weapon when fighting aging. You may not think your skin is getting any damage, but you will find out soon enough; even freckles are sun damage. Those "angel kisses" were actually from a star, the biggest star in our galaxy, the sun. Believe me, 65 year old you will thank 25 year old you for being smart. :)

Product Review - Origins A Perfect World Moisturizer

On Earth Day, I received a tube of Origins A Perfect World Age-Defense Moisturizer with White Tea from Sephora.

 I have used some of Origins face wash before and loved it, so I was excited to try this moisturizer.

Besides quality products, Origins is known for being very eco-friendly. They will recycle your old product containers for you if you take the empty ones back to an Origins location; this particular product's tube is made from 30% post consumer products, and the cap is 100% recycled plastic. It's also made WITHOUT: parabens, phthalates, propylene glycol, mineral oil, PABA, petrolatum, paraffin, DEA, synthetic color, synthetic fragrance, or animal ingredients. So in short, it's good for you and good for the planet!

They have two formulas of this particular moisturizer, one to prevent aging, and one to correct it. I chose the age-defense (prevention) formula because I am currently not sporting any wrinkles. However, prevention is very important because, unfortunately, women's skin starts to age and decline in elastin and collagen production at the ripe old age of 23. Yes, 23 years old. So naturally, since I'm on the downhill slope, I'm trying to keep my skin beautiful as long as possible.

I've been using this moisturizer for a little over two months now and I love it. My skin is smooth, but not greasy, even with sunscreen in it. (Safe sun is another important element in preventing wrinkles and other uglies in your future. This formula has SPF 25.) The full size product is around 40.00 USD and I believe it is worth it, especially since the 1.7 oz tube has lasted me so long. I use it everyday and I'm probably about 1/4 of the way through the tube, so it will probably last me six months total. I'm giving this 4 out of 5 stars. Get yourself some today!!

Here is Sephora's Origins page.

Easy Ways to Get Your Kids to Eat More Fruit

Some kids have no problem eating their fruits and vegetables. However, some little guys are just picky eaters. I'm very lucky because my son loves fruits and vegetables, but I use these tricks to change it up, or for days when he just wants to throw everything on the ground (because apparently, when you're a toddler, that is the biggest adrenaline rush).

Option 1: Puree as a yogurt topping.

I love this because it is so quick and easy! Take your baby/toddler/kid's favorite fruits (or whichever ones you're trying to get them to eat) and puree them in a blender. My son's favorite is plum and blueberry. I used one plum (peeled and pitted) and a handful of blueberries. After pureeing them, I mixed them in with his yogurt. He loved it!

Option 2: Make a smoothie.

Obviously, I'm not serving my one year old a smoothie in this glass, it was just prettier than a sippy cup.

This is just as simple as the first option. Take 2-3 different fruits and put them in the blender with enough of your child's milk to make it smooth. If you have a baby, use breast milk or formula. (It's best to wait until a baby is at least 6 months old before introducing solid food.)  This is the milk I use:

Some good fruits to use are berries, plums, peaches, bananas, oranges, and other easily blend-able fruits. Apples work, but they're harder to blend because they become apple sauce, more than juice. I use frozen strawberries so I don't have to add ice (just look at the ingredients and make sure nothing else is added).  Remember to feed age-appropriate fruits. For example, it's best to wait until after one to introduce strawberries or blueberries because the seeds can be harder to digest. These are my son's favorite fruits:

Bananas, plums, and blueberries.

For this example I used strawberries and raspberries.

I fill the milk about a third of the way up the fruit.

Blend until it looks like this:

Yummy! Pink goo! (It's prettier in person)

An added bonus of the smoothie option is you sneak more milk in! My son LOVES these and gets excited when he hears the blender. A healthy baby is a happy baby!

That face says super healthy to me!

I hope your baby or toddler enjoys these as much as mine has!