bb – Life with Ariana

What I received in my Ipsy Glam Bag/// May 2018

May 22, 2018June 3, 2018Beauty, Ipsy Glam Bag4 Comments

Hi everyone, welcome back to my blog. It’s been nearly a week since my last post, which was more of a serious/personal post (thank you to everyone who read my posts and comments positivity to me, it meant a lot). Today’s post will be my awaited post on unboxing my May Ipsy Glam Bag.

This month’s Glam bag theme is “Go There”, it’s all about finding yourself in the midst of traveling. This month’s bag is adorable, the bag itself has vintage international traveling stamps, and not to mention that it’s great quality. I’m looking forward to trying these products out, so let’s get into the unboxing portion.

SL Miss Glam Pink Beauty Sponge ♥

This product is probably what I’m most excited for, it’s so cute and tiny. So far I have had nothing but good experiences with Slmissglam. As many of you know, the Original beauty Blender is my holy-grail, but I’ve also been loving the Real Techniques Sponge for quite some time now, and hopefully this could be a new contender!

Aphrodite Skincare Olive Oil Face Scrub

This is a new brand to me, however I did do some research about their company and I’m very intrigued by their products. Aphrodite Skincare are products that are handcrafted in Greece, a staple of most of their products is olive oil. The face scrub claims to be gently exfoliating and cruelty-free.

TonyMoly Painting Therapy Pack: Sebum Control Black Color Clay

So unfortunately, Tonymoly is not cruelty-free which is very unfortunate because I really do like their products, however I do not believe I will be using this product, because they do test on animals. I will probably end up giving this product to a relative of mine.

TreStique Mini Matte Blur Stick

I absolutely love the concept of this product, as an oily person, this would definitely come in handy. The product claims to be a blurring primer and shine eraser, I only tried this product in a small area of my hand so far, therefore I will need to use this one my face a few times in order to form an opinion. Their site claims that they do not test on animals, however I do not see a certification, so hopefully they are.

Huda Beauty Lip Contour in Trophy Wife

I was very fortunate to get this in my Glam bag this month, I have never tried any of Huda’s products however they are all very beautiful and this is a gorgeous color. I do not wear lip products often, however I will definitely give this one a shot.

Nyakio Kenyan Coffee Face Polish

This last product is a product that I got using my Ipsy points, and I am beyond excited to try this out. The product is certified cruelty-free, organic/natural, and fair-trade. This face polish exfoliates to give your skin a youthful radiant complexion, with the ingredient of Kenyan Coffee.

Hopefully you all enjoyed this post, I apologize for not blogging much, I am possibly going to take a week off from blogging until next week, just to clear my mind and focus on other things currently, I feel like the past few days I’ve been loosing motivation to write posts. Anyways I have started a Buy Me A Coffee page, this is to help support my blog, any donation is very appreciated, but do not feel pressured to donate. If you enjoyed this post then do not forget to like it and please subscribe with your email in the sidebar, to be notified of new posts through your email, (be sure to confirm subscription in email). Also make sure to follow me on my social media pages down below, I will follow back all other fellow bloggers!

much love, ariana. ♡

Check out my last post: Social Stigma of Mental Illnesses in Society/// Mental Health Awareness Week 2018

Connect with me on my social media: Instagram//Facebook//VSCO//Poshmark//Buy Me A Coffee//

How to Wash Your Makeup Brushes/Beauty Blender!// Step-to-step Guide

February 27, 2018June 3, 2018BeautyLeave a Comment

Hi friends! Now let’s admit, we probably all procrastinate on washing our makeup brushes… it’s probably the most annoying part about wearing makeup, am I right? I was pretty overdue washing my brushes, therefore I decided to make a post on how I wash my brushes! I will give you my step-to-step guide and tell you what I use. Onto cleaning the makeup dirties off my brushes.

What you’ll need:

Dish soap or Baby shampoo (only had dish soap)
A towel or rag
Paper plate
A brush egg (optional)
Any Brush Cleaner Sprays (optional)

Okay so once you have collected all the makeup brushes you plan on washing, decide which ones you will be washing first and maybe try washing multiple at a time for to go by quicker.

Using your brush egg, any other cleaning device, or hand; make sure to fully wet the surface and a pump of dish soap on the surface.
Make sure to wet your brushes with water for a nice lather when washing. (If you have a brush wash spray, I would recommend to spray onto the brush first, wet it, and then begin lathering).
Remember to wash your brushes in circular and up-down motions, so remove all dirt and build-up on the brush.
Once done lathering, rinse your brushes in the palm of your hand, again in circular motions to remove all soap leftover.
Squeeze all excess water from the brush, following it up by drying them on your towel/rag .
Place the clean brushes on a paper plate to lay overnight to air dry. Occasionally flip over to dry the other side. (never dry upwards, always downwards so that water does not ruin the interior of the brushes).
The next day, your brushes are super clean and good to use!

*Dish Soap/Baby shampoo work best to wash makeup brushes, because they remove dirt/oil, while leaving the brushes incredibly soft and in their best condition.*

Down below is a quick time-lapse, washing my Beauty Blender and eyeshadow brushes, click the links to see the quick video (also please excuse the quality, I am not the best at taking videos and I’m not sure what happened).

Washing my Beauty Blender

Washing Eyeshadow brushes

Link to Brush egg

Okay well that completes how I wash my makeup brushes, hopefully that was useful to you and gave you tips on how to wash your brushes! Do not forget to like and follow! Comment down below how you wash your makeup brushes! If you enjoyed this post then do not forget to like it and please subscribe with your email in the sidebar, to be notified of new posts through your email, (be sure to confirm subscription in email) also make sure to follow me on my social media pages, down below!

with love, Ari. ✨

Check out my last post: Battle of the Skin Cleansing Devices: Foreo vs. the Clarisonic!

Connect with me on my social media: Instagram//VSCO//Facebook//

Battle of the Skin Cleansing Devices: Foreo vs. the Clarisonic!

February 25, 2018June 3, 2018Beauty, Beauty Product Reviews2 Comments

Hello darlings, this post will be a little different from some of my other posts, however hope you guys find it as beneficial as I would. Today’s post will be the battle of the skin cleansing devices: The Foreo Luna Mini 2 vs. the Clarisonic Mia 1! I thought this would be a fun post to do, by comparing the two facial cleansing tools. I have had/used both of them and have a final preference. I find that there are both pros and cons to both of the tools. I will also be sharing my personal experience with the two tools, to hopefully give you an insight on which one I prefer.

Okay to begin, I was in middle-school at the time, and of course I was breaking out, my mom and I went to Sephora, and the worker recommended it to me, my mom purchased my first major skin tool, which had happened to be the “Mia 1 Facial Clarisonic”. My first time using this, was honestly pretty life changing, washing your face with a tool that did the work for you. I remember noticing a difference in my skin after a month. So overall my Clarisonic lasted me for a good amount of time, obviously replacing my brush head every few months, after about three and a half years or so, until the battery life permanently died, unfortunately. My Clarisonic did a great job of removing dirt on my face. After some time, I noticed that from using my Clarisonic every day, my skin was drying out, so I had to limit my use to every other day instead of daily. One thing that also happened to be a big pet peeve of mine, was the fact that the bristles never fully dried by the next time I would be using my Clarisonic.

Fast forward some years, to Christmas of 2016, where I received a “Foreo Luna Mini 2” for Christmas from my mom. Before Christmas, I remember debating if I should get the newer version of the Clarisonic or try out the Foreo, since it’s newer. Well after researching, I decided that I wanted the Foreo, (on my Xmas list). Again, this tool was revolutionary, I feel in love with it instantly and noticed improvements in my skin. Honestly my nose was such a huge improvement, my pores minimized and were more cleansed. One of my favorite aspects about the Foreo is that it is a 3-zone brush, with parts for deep cleansing, sensitive skin, and oily skin. Also it is a 2X T-Sonic Power with 8 types of intensities.

Okay so now that I told you about both of my experiences with the two facial cleansing tools, I am going to break it down now into the pros and cons and give you my overall opinion of which tool I believe is better or in this case the winner!

The Clarisonic Mia 1

*Pros*	*Cons*
Different types of brush heads available to suit different skin types.	Must replace brush head every few months.
Portable cases available for the Clarisonic.	A bit large, therefore not really travel sized.
\\No pro for this one//	Not cruelty-free 😦
Exfoliation feeling: You might feel a deep clean, because the bristles give you that feeling.	Not very hygienic: Once wet, the bristles take a full day to dry, and often there is a lot of build-up gunk.
Great for washing off makeup and cleaning your pores.	Can be very drying on the skin, would only recommend using once a day if not every other day.
Customizable options and a variety of colors are available.	With purchasing brush heads every few months, it can get expensive.
Battery life is supposed to last up to 24 uses.	When charging, it takes up to at least 24 hours fully charge, and often dies when using the Clarisonic.
The Clarisonic brand does sell their own facial cleansers to use with your Clarisonic.	Can be very harsh on the skin if using scrubs or other types of face washes.
The Clarisonic brand offers a brush head to use on your body as an exfoliation scrub.	Many users have said breakouts occur throughout the first week of using the Clarisonic since your skin is not used to it.

The Foreo Luna Mini 2

*Pros*	*Cons*
Designed for all skin types.	There is not different types of brush heads to change with.
Portable and travel sized! (Also there is a smaller one that is very compact)!	Not really a con, however they do not sell a portable case to put it in, (I usually just use a ziplock bag).
Cruelty-free! 🙂	\\No con for this one//
Very hygienic, since it is a silicone tool, this allows for no dirt build-up in between. Simply wash with hot water and soap, then air dry. Also it is dish-water safe!	\\No con for this one//
Deeply cleanses the skin while being very gentle.	No exfoliation is felt, since it’s very gentle, which some people dislike.
Pretty colors available, also saves you money since you do not need to purchase brush heads.	No customizable options available, (not a big deal).
Battery life lasts up to 300 uses! Not to mention that charging time takes only a couple of hours.	\\No con for this one//
Works well with all sorts of face washes, cleansers, scrubs, etc.	Only sells their cleansers in a gift set.
Helps clean the pores and reduces their appearance. (Especially on the nose, it’s way better than a pore strip!)	Designed to use only on the face, not the body.

With my chart of comparing the two, I am sure you can figure out which tool I believe is better, which is the Foreo Luna Mini 2! I have preferred this over the Clarisonic Mia 1. The Foreo does a better job for my skin and really has been improving my skin quality, while being cruelty-free! Both tools do their job, it’s up to you to decide what you’re looking for in a facial cleansing tool. I really hoped this post broke down the advantages and disadvantages of the two, and was informative to you. Please feel free to comment any other questions you may have. For more information on the products, check out their websites:

Foreo Luna Mini 2 $139
Clarisonic Mia 1 $129

If you enjoyed this post then do not forget to like it and please subscribe with your email in the sidebar, to be notified of new posts through your email, (be sure to confirm subscription in email) also make sure to follow me on my social media pages, down below!

xox, Ariana. ♡