Hair
1. Hair growth:
For longer hair, I use "wild growth" hair oil. It's made out of about 7 different oils and vitamins important for hair growth. I came across this a few years ago while staying at a friends house during cheer camp. After about 2 months my hair had grown 5 inches!
2. Manageability:
For softer more manageable hair (curly), condition or co-wash your hair with Herbal Essence's "Hello Hydration" conditioner. This works wonders if you have very thick curly hair like myself, its about 5 bucks and it smells amazing!
3. Softer curls:
If your hair is curly like mine you probably have the issue of your curls becoming dry and or frizzy once they've dried. For my curls, I find they look and feel best when I apply extra virgin olive oil to my scalp and hair along with my conditioner, put on a plastic shower cap, and sit under the dryer for 5-10 mins and rinse. I don't do this every time I wash my hair, but every couple of weeks does the trick! Just make sure you thoroughly rinse your hair so that you do not have product build up.
4. Healthier lashes:
For stronger healthier lashes, apply a little vaseline to your lashes every other day by simply wiping it on your eye area. This keeps lashes from becoming brittle and shedding a lot.
Skincare
1. Breakouts:
To get rid of random breakouts or keep from getting them, I use a bar of dial soap or face-wash that contains salycic acid (i.e. noxzema). It gives your skin a deep clean and dries out acne that you may already have on your face. This is great for people who wear foundation daily. Be sure to moisturize your skin well after since both of these can be very drying!
2.Makeup removal:
One of the reasons I despise wearing makeup is well...simply because i'm really lazy and after being in class and work all day the last thing I feel like doing is spending 20 minutes to wash pounds of makeup off. To successfully remove a full face of makeup, or hard to remove eyeliner or mascara, try using lotion along with a little water. This completely removes makeup and moisturizes your skin at the same time.
3. Moisture:
I have very sensitive combination (oily/dry) skin so I've tried many products to meet my skincare needs. After washing my face at night I apply shea butter to my entire face. It's very important to moisturize your skin at night so that your skin is able to soak all of the oils/vitamins (which is also great for dark spots), that way in the morning when you wake up your skin is supple and glowing. In the morning, I use my L'Oreal 48 hour moisturizer after washing my face with water or St. Ive's apricot face-wash.
4. Healthier looking skin:
Staying away from makeup with parabens is crucial if you have sensitive skin. Parabens are known to sometimes clog pores and cause breakouts. I love Physician's Formula "bronze booster" bronzer and Maybelline's "dream matte" foundation (not sure if it's paraben free but it doesn't cause me many breakouts).
5. Baby soft skin:
Just like your lips get chapped and you rub the dead skin off, our body is the same. I have very dry skin so using a sugar body scrub works wonders for me. Body scrubs remove all the dead skin from your body, add moisture, and give you a nice glow! My personal favorite is Tree Hut's "shea sugar body scrub" in Brazilian nut. It smells amazing and works great!
6. Water:
drink WATERRRRRR. It's soooooo important, none of the other things I've listed matter if you're not drinking enough water! In high school I ran track and cheered so I was always drinking tons of water, everyone thought I was wearing makeup because my skin was so clear! Have a glass or bottle of water when you wake up, a couple more throughout the day, with your dinner, and before going to bed. I guarantee you'll see a difference.