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Memorial Day Weekend Sales


Happy Memorial Day weekend! Your celebration might look a little bit different this year depending on your state orders. But regardless, the online shopping is still the same! So as always, I've rounded up a list of some of the best sites to shop. And the sales are even bigger this year!

Alo Yoga- up to 50% off
Ann Taylor- up to 60% and extra 70% off select sale styles
Anthropologie- extra 50% off sale styles
Athleta- summer essentials starting at $14.99
Banana Republic- up to 75% off everything
Baublebar- up to 70% off
Bandier- extra 30% off sale styles
Brooks Brothers- up to 70% off
Carbon38- up to 80% off
Gigi New York- 25% off with code "FAMILY25"
Kate Spade- extra 40% off sale styles
Loft- 50% off and 60% off for loyalty members
Loren Hope- 20% off sitewide
lululemon- up to 50% off
Milly- up to 80% off
Nordstrom- up to 60% off
Nordstrom Rack- dresses up to  70% off
Old Navy- tees, shorts, tanks and swim 50% off
Saks Off Fifth- 50% off jeans, buy one get one 50% off sunglasses, and extra 25% off clearance shoes and bags
Sam Edelman- 20% off sitewide
Sephora- up to 50% off select items
Sole Society- 50% off with code "SUMMERGO"
Tuckernuck- extra 25% off markdowns with code "BERRY25"
Ulta- daily steals up to 50% off
Urban Outfitters- extra 30% off sale styles

Thanks for reading!

Heatless Curls and Recent Beauty Buys


Has anyone else been doing all of the self care while working from home? I have been answering emails while doing hair masks (more on that for a future post), teeth whitening (with the kit from this post), and trying lots of new products. I actually think a good bit of the money I would normally spend on clothing and workout classes has definitely been going to the skincare and makeup departments lately. One of my favorite discoveries has to be robe curls. I saw this on both Instagram and TikTok and sort of thought it was too good to be true. This article tells you all about it and includes a video on how to do it. But you basically wrap your hair around a robe belt or towel, go to sleep, and wake up with curled hair. I tried it with dry hair and was shocked at how well they turned out!
This photo was taken just after I took it out in the morning, but I did not spray the curls and they surprisingly help up well. So this is sort of a game changer for me, no heat or hair products required! I think it is pretty similar to what I would get with a curling iron, at least on the lower layers on my hair. I did not get much curl out of the higher pieces around my face. But those pieces usually fall pretty quickly when I do curl them with heat anyway.

On to the skincare and makeup...
Re-orders and products I have already tried:
CeraVe zinc sunscreen- my pale self is all about a mineral sunscreen and this one served my well last year. So I just ordered 2 more bottles of it. It does leave quite a white cast on your skin, so I would not put it on my face, and it will make you look paler. But I think it works great for days at the beach, lake, etc. if you're covered in moles and paranoid like I am.
Elta MD tinted sunscreen- my dermatologist recommended this to me years ago, so I thought I would give it a try again to layer under foundation.
Sephora liquid eyeliner- I actually first discovered this through a campaign last year, and it's so great I had to get another one.
Olay Regenerist night cream- I will admit I went for this one because I have seen so much about this line of moisturizers from other bloggers. I got a trial size of the classic one and liked the results, but usually only apply it at night (I love the Origins Original Skin moisturizer for day time). So I went for the nighttime version in the full size.
Ella and Mila soy nail polish remover- I saw this on TikTok had to give it a try. It definitely costs a bit more than a regular nail polish remover, and takes longer to remove the polish. But it doesn't have a harsh smell and is supposed to actually nourish your nails.
Derma E BB cream- I wanted to love this, I really did. It has zinc sunscreen in it, costs quite a bit less than my other favorite BB cream, and is from a clean beauty brand. But they only have 2 shade offerings, and the "light" unfortunately looks a little orange on me.

New products I'm waiting to try:
Sephora Favorites Sun Safety Kit (sold out)- The link no longer works, but for $39 it is I think 1 full size and 15 trial size sunscreen products. I thought this was a great value and easy way to test out some pricey SPF options to see which ones I liked best.
St. Tropez self tanning face serum- I love their self tanning products for body, so I thought this could be a good option for my face. I almost went for the Isle of Paradise drops, but I read some reviews from some users with acne-prone skin that turned me away from it. I don't think my skin would react well to the coconut oil in them.
Megababe Rosy Pits deodorant- I've been meaning to try some aluminum-free deodorant for while now, so what better time than while quarantined? I've listened to quite a few podcasts with the brand's founder Katie Sturino, who is also an influencer and thought this could be a good place to start.
Mario Badescu rose water toner- I've tried the Pixi rose water toner that I initially really liked, but have been starting to question lately. I am about to run out of that one, so I thought I would try this one that has some witch to see if I liked it better.
Covergirl Clean Matte BB cream- I've heard some good things about this product lately, and like that a clean option is so affordably priced. So why not give it a try for only $10? It does not have SPF like most BB creams. But since I also recently bought a lot of SPF to layer under it, I thought I would try this as my "darker" (by that I mean, slightly less pale) summer shade.

Products recently sent to me I have loved:
RealHer "Eye Am Beautiful" mascara- I've said it before and I'll say it again, this is the best mascara I've ever tried!
RealHer "I Am Amazing" lipstick- this is a really nice shade of red and I love their positive branding that is different for each shade.
WinkyLux eyebrow pencil- I feel like some brow pencils I have tried go on thick and I have to tone it back and brush it out. That is not the case for this one, it fills in my brows so easily!
WinkyLux pH lip balm- these balms react to your pH and give a really nice subtle color.
WinkyLux hyaluronic acid moisturizing gel- I've been meaning to add some hyaluronic acid to my routine and this moisturizer was a very simple way to do it. Plus the packaging is really pretty!




Thanks for reading!

Fitness Friday 23


Week 7 of quarantine and my 2nd Fitness Friday post in quarantine, how are the home workouts going? You'll see from my schedule below, I was very motivated to move some weeks and struggling a little bit other weeks. We  have had some beautiful weather for walking around the neighborhood, but not having somewhere to go for a workout has kept me from exercising as much as I normally would some weeks. But I have been consistent with food for the most part, I just keep buying the same mostly healthy groceries and have picked up some takeout a few times.

Workouts
Week of 3/30-4/5
Barry's Bootcamp on Instagram Live (twice)
Ballet on Instagram Live with @isabellaboylston
Slider workout from @kirstygodso
Sculpt on Instagram Live with @savbutler
Flybarre on Instagram Live with @barretotable
305 Fitness on Sweatnet Charlotte (use code "STREAMFREE" for a free month)

Week of 4/6-4/12
Toned on Instagram Live with @fitatelier
Flybarre with @barretotable
Barry's Bootcamp on Instagram Live
 20 minute yoga from Yoga with Adrienne

Week of 4/13-4/19
Flybarre with @barretotable
Cardio Burner on SweatNET Charlotte
FlyFIT on SweatNET Charlotte
305 Fitness on SweatNET Charlotte

Week of 4/20-4/26
Core HIIT on SweatNET Charlotte
Jabs by Gina on @propelwater
Glute burn on SweatNET Charlotte
Neighborhood Barre on SweatNET Charlotte
Barry's Bootcamp on Instagram Live

Week of 4/27-today
Jabs by Gina on Zoom
Pilates with Greensboro Ballet (where I grew up dancing) on Instagram Live
Sculpt express on SweatNET Charlotte

Food

  1. Not much to report here. I mentioned my go-to quarantine foods in last month's version of this post, and not much has changed. I've sort of kept the same rotation of those foods I have already mentioned.
  2. But I have gotten back into some slightly healthier baking, like these flourless (non-refined sugar) peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and they turned out great!
  3. I also plan on making this chickpea cookie dough recipe I've seen going around this weekend.

Activewear



Thanks for reading!