Simple, Beautiful Style

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SchwarzkopfGliss #blissofGliss #CollectiveBias

These days I am consumed with work and mom life. My day-to-day look must be simple, but I still like to feel beautiful. I don’t get properly dressed and do my hair every day. There are definitely lots of messy bun/yoga pants days, but I do like to step it up a few days a week, especially if I have something social planned.

Feeling beautiful and caring for ourselves, isn’t always easy, but it is important. When we do not take care of ourselves, we fall apart. Our health suffers and our mind suffers. We run ourselves ragged trying to do everything, and be everything, for every one; and even if that works for a little while, eventually, it always falls apart.

Sometimes we think that by neglecting ourselves, we are serving others; but that is not the truth. When we are broken, the love and the care that we give to others is inadequate at best. You cannot serve from an empty vessel. I’ve written more on this subject of self care previously and you can read it here. But today I am going to talk a little bit more about my own self care beauty routines.

I don’t have the luxury to spend a couple of hours getting ready like I did when I was younger. These days, simple and beautiful are my goals. One of the things that has always been a challenge for me is dealing with my hair. I have thick, wavy hair that is very frizzy when left untreated. That means it needs heat (blow dryer, straightening iron, or curling iron) to look good and everyone knows that heat = damage.

That’s where Schwarzkopf Gliss™ Ultra Moisture products come in for me. My hair tends to run very dry and Gliss is one of the few products that makes my hair feel soft and beautiful after each wash and style. Hair loses Keratin over time, especially when you use heat products like I do. Gliss replaces the Keratin that gets lost while styling for re-gained strength and smoother hair. The patented technology repairs up to 10 layers deep, replacing lost Keratin for beautifully strong & smooth hair.

Since my hair is naturally dry, I only wash it once or twice a week. With each wash, I use the Schwarzkopf Gliss™ Ultra Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner. Then once a month, I add the Schwarzkopf Gliss™ Ultra Moisture Anti-Breakage Treatment to my routine. These products are so important for keeping my hair healthy, Gliss detects even the smallest damages inside of hair cells and precisely adjusts to its shape. Isn’t that incredible? Science meets beauty. Gliss is an everyday shampoo (not just an SOS when hair is damaged). Since we’re all losing Keratin all the time, using Gliss regularly is a great way to keep hair healthy and prevent damage.

To get back to my simple, beautiful style, I thought I would share a little rundown of my “Getting Ready Routines” along with some tips on how I blow dry my hair to take it from wild to sleek. I’ve also included a couple of before and afters to show you my simple hair styling and makeup routine results.

My getting ready routines go like this.

HAIR

First I shower and use my Gliss products. I usually take a shower the night before I plan to blow out my hair. It is so thick that it takes hours to dry. I let it dry overnight and blow it out in the morning once it’s dry. It saves me a lot of time and effort this way.

I find that having the right blow dryer and round brush are critical to seeing a sleek end result. Experiment with different tools until you find what is right for you.

When I am ready to blow out my hair, I separate it into sections. I clip a large section on top of my head — look at that wild top knot(!) — and pull down small sections at a time to blow smooth.

While I am blowing my hair out, I take one small section at a time and wrap it around my brush, I apply heat with the blow dryer and keep the brush and the blow dryer moving down the length of my hair. My goal is always to smooth and shape the hair with as little heat (and damage) as possible.

Here are a couple more shots of my hair after my blow out–so smooth and shiny.

MAKE-UP

My make-up routine is just as simple as my hair routine. I basically run through 6 or 7 steps depending on how much time I have. Concealer, foundation, eye shadow, blush, highlighter, mascara, eye brow pencil, and lip gloss. Many days, I don’t have time for even that, so I stick with a more basic 4-step routine of concealer, mascara, eye brow pencil, and lip gloss.

At the end of the day, what is important is that you feel beautiful. For me, taking thirty or even ten minutes to get ready for my day lifts my confidence so much. I have friends who are beauty bloggers who literally spend hours each day on hair and makeup, and you know what, I love that too. I have other friends who go “au naturale” every day and are glowing in their natural beauty. Ultimately, we each have to find what works for us, what makes us feel good, and we have to own that. Confidence and self-love are the most beautiful qualities a person can have.

If you’d like to try out Gliss products, you can find them in your neighborhood CVS in the hair care aisle. There is currently a promotion in place from March 11th through the 17th where Gliss will be on sale for 2 for $10–buy one get one free! Now is the perfect time to treat your hair to a new routine. You can learn more about Gliss on their website and can follow along on their Instagram, too.

Have a beautiful day, friends. Thank you for reading. xo