I have a few Wellness Updates for you today!

I wanted to talk a bit about skincare for today’s Wellness post!
I have been taking skincare more seriously for the past 2 years or so, and my interest was mostly brought on by the emergence of my melasma, which has been an ongoing struggle.  As someone who always loved to be in the sun and get a tan, I have realized it gets REALLY bad really quickly with my sun exposure.  I don’t think the dark spots will ever go away fully (unless I do seriously intense treatment, that then any sun exposure can reverse, so it’s just not worth it).

I started using Rodan and Fields over a year ago and have seen a huge huge improvement.  I also have gotten much better about keeping my face out of the sun, wearing hats at the beach, and wearing 50+ SPF on my face.
But still…. the sun finds a way to get there!  Sometimes I’m great with a floppy hat, othertimes just a baseball cap and then parts of my face are in the sun, and sometimes no hat and it’s just gonna happen.

I have been curious about other skincare treatments but so many of them are too scary…
….like laser treatment that would keep me looking crazy for a few days after…..  I think we all remember Samantha and her chemical peel that led to her wearing a black veil to the book launch (ps…. Kim Catrall has offically lost it)

…..to treatments that my dermatologist recommends and sound incredible, but they are just way too expensive for me to be able to afford.

BUT something that seemed doable and affordable was Dermaplaning.

Dermaplaning : AKA shaving your face with a realllll close shave.

I’ve got to say, Caroline Manzo was on to something all these years with shaving her face.  I remember thinking this was the most horrifying thing in the world and simply insane – but hey! She should have named it and mass marketed it apparently!

I had heard about dermaplaning awhile ago but never had really considered it because I just assumed that hair would grow back thicker or darker.
gross but true story : when I was little and wasn’t allowed to shave yet, but I was jealous that my older sister was shaving, I shaved my toes and fingers because I knew it was a spot that wouldn’t get noticed and get me in trouble…… guess who STILL has to shave her toes to this day? TMI?
but I digress….
SO clearly from that horrific experience that I’ve had to deal with for the past 20 years, I feared that my blonde peach fuzz would grow back thicker and darker.

I had been assured by those that had dermaplaned before that it wouldn’t happen….. so I finally bit the bullet.

I tried to get pics, but with the things covering my eyes it was nearly impossible.
I snapped this lovely gem before the procedure for you though!

It didn’t hurt at all, but it is definitely a very, VERY sharp blade.  Around my nose it was a little sensitive because I think it was hard to get the best angles. It felt amazing afterwards. Your skin is as smooth as a baby’s bottom.

This is me in the car on the way home.  Don’t mind my beautiful brown spots.  For me, this is some seriously glowy skin.  And it got even better the next couple of days.  Your make up goes on so so smooth and you get that dewy look even without make up.
// SNAP PULLOVER // in all sizes in 3 colors – I’m in size S

I mean…..
I basically look like a bonafide J.Lo, don’t you think??

I learned a good tip from a friend.  Next time I will do it at the dermatologist most likely.  At a dermatologist office it is considered a “medical procedure” so you don’t have to tip which saves a good amount of cash!

OH.  And it’s been just over a month since I got this done…. so I am not as “glowy” as before, and I have peach fuzz back on my face.
BUT I wanted to make sure that I actually liked it and that it made somewhat of a difference before writing about it.
My co-worker commented that my skin looked different and that she couldn’t figure out what it was but that it looked great, so that made me feel like perhaps it was as noticeable as I was hoping it would be!
Even though it has been a month, my skin is still much smoother than it was pre-dermaplaning.  Peach fuzz has grown back but it’s much less and more fine than it was before.

They sell a bunch of at-home dermaplaning tools, but I have never tried them!?

They do have some that are as little as $5 and others that go up to $75.
OH. I do use a little shaver for my nose hairs.… while I’m sharing it all I might as well share that!
update: for the inexpensive Tinkle razors, people messaged that they are amazing!
make sure to check Amazon reviews for authentic razor – I have updated the link to what seems to be an authentic set!

Let me know when you’re ready for a beauty tutorial…. I’m totally an expert.

:: PINK SNEAKERS ::
I know I talked about athletic shoes and my hunt for sneakers on here for quite some time, so I had to share my final purchase. 
I am uhb-sessed with my new kicks.
After a huge debate, that included asking all of you for sneaker recommendations, you all recommended the following:

Nike’s have just never cut it for me.  When I jog or run they slip and never stay put.  I used New Balance a few years ago and liked those, but I have worn Asics for the past two years and figured I should probably just stick with those. But I was DESPERATE for a pair or blush or pink sneakers! All of the cute ones were brands I didn’t think would work for workouts, and I try to wear sandals when running my errands instead of sneaks so I didn’t want to spend money on a cute pair to not work out in.
ANYWAYS, when I finally came across these Asics I bought them immediately.

// ASICS // come in several color combinations
I am normally a true size 8, and my past Asics have been a size 8, but I ordered these in 8 and 8.5 to try, and the 8.5 fit much better.  So I suggest ordering one half size up.

:: Silk Pillowcase ::

Speaking of skin care, a silk pillowcase has been on my list for a long time.  But I wasn’t wanting to shell out the cash for this one.

I somehow came across this PJ Harlow set of 2 silk pillowcases for $32 on a flash sale and immediately ordered.  It took a couple of weeks for them to arrive, but now they are here and I couldn’t be happier!
they now are back to $64 for two, but that still seems to be the best deal I have seen! 
“They” say sleeping on a silk pillowcase helps with wrinkles, prevents those creases on your face from your pillowcase and also helps with your hair and prevents bedhead.

update : I found this set of two pillows on Nordstrom for $63!!

:: 31 Day Challenge :: 
Today marks day 23 on my 31 Day Challenge and so far, so good! I struggle the days that I workout in the morning to wake up, but once I am at the class, I am so glad that I got up and have my night time free (ya know, for important things like TV, TV, some instastories, TV, and food). Kip and I have been working out together on the weekends and making it to morning spin class so that makes it easy to have a set workout time for Sundays.  My clothes are fitting the best they have since Thanksgiving, so it’s definitely been successful in shedding the extra holiday love.  I haven’t been as great with getting to bed early, but I have read a few nights before bed instead of working on my laptop.  And I’ve tried a few new recipes, although not all have been ones worthy of sharing.
I’ll do a more in depth post on that when the 31 Days are up!