{winter dry scalp}

I know I'm not the only one with some serious dry scalp right now...

With this dry winter air, I'm so good at lathering up my body in decadent body butter, and slathering my face with sweet night creams at night, and super duper moisturizer during the day time, but my scalp isn't getting much love... until tonight.

I decided to get my good ole' EXTRA VIRGIN COCONUT OIL and rub it all over my scalp.

{you can get this for $8.99 at amazon.com}

Start with a middle part, just using your fingers rub it right into your scalp, then get tiny horizontal sections and work your way down to your ears, then same thing through the back of your head towards the nape of your neck. It doesn't have to be neat, not at all. Then I added some extra through my ends and brushed the whole thing throughout. About an hour later I added some more to the extra dry spots (for me, it's right in the front, in my bang section). Then go to bed. 

Snooze, snooze, snooze. Wake up.

**big tip** Use a little shampoo WITHOUT WATER and rub it into your scalp, otherwise the oil and water will repel and you'll never get the oilyness out of your hair. Now, continue with your usual routine, and enjoy that hydrated scalp.

*in winter, or even summer if you're in the sun a lot, this isn't a bad idea to do once a month, or more frequently if you have super dry skin. And just because you get oily hair doesn't mean you don't have a dry scalp. A HUGE majority of the people who think they have dandruff actually have dry scalp; however, I am not a doctor. ONLY a doctor can diagnose you with legit dandruff, not your hairstylist and NOT Head & Shoulders.

{we're going to Paris!}

PARIS!!!!

Belated honeymoon, here we come!!!

The Husby and I are so excited, we will be there a total of 10 days (not counting travel days), so our first and last day will be both of our birthdays!

We're staying at the Moderne Saint Germain Hotel

Crazy excited. 

Also, I've downloaded the free app: Babbel. I love it so far, it's been pretty easy and interactive. It keeps track of your progress so you aren't relearning the same thing over and over. I guess we'll see how well it truly does in 90 days when we're strutting around Paris trying not sound like Americans. Ha, yeah we'll definitely sound like Americans, but hopefully this will help...

More to come on my new Paris addiction... including packing tips, skin care and makeup, etc.

Ok, I must go now to whip up some delicious Super Bowl goodies...

{bangin bangin bangs}

I love bangs.

Love them.

Mainly straight across bangs, there is something about them that is classy, sleek, and a little edgy.

I'm going to tell you what to ask your hairstylist for.

{if you don't take a picture, which you should}

Lea Michele at the SAG Awards

First off, love me some ombre, so pretty. Her bangs are just grazing her eyelashes, but since they aren't super blunt, and a slightly texturized through the tips they don't "feel" as long as they are and make them a bit more wearable if you're weary about making the cut.

Taylor Swift at the NRJ Music Awards

These are the bangs that everyone is loving right now. Clean, sharp, blunt bangs. I love them, they really bring out your eyes since they are framing them just perfectly. I tend to like these just slightly longer at the outsides, mainly for when you pull your hair up, it really softens the look and makes them a lot less 2nd grade. 

Kerry Washington at the Golden Globes

...and sporting a similarly shaped fringe...

Michelle Obama

These are a softer option, really great for people who want to slide them to the side once they grow a bit, and they don't want to stop back into the salon for a bang trim. They are quite textured through the ends, especially in the middle. So pretty.

Zooey Deschanel at the Golden Globes

You can't really talk bangs, and not bring up the queen of bangs, Zooey. I feel like we should be friends by the way. She usually wears her slightly curled and rounded under so there is tons of movement back and forth, side to side, and longer through the sides. You can also tell she has lots of medium/thick hair, so keep that in mind if your's is on the finer side.

*Things to keep in mind*

The appearance of blunt bangs, does not actually mean blunt, meaning cut directly straight across. Some slight point cutting will save the day, and even going in and doing some deep point cutting and texturizing the ends will save you from looking like this:

This is not desirable.

So ladies, who is your bang crush?

{Lush bath bombs}

For anyone who loves taking baths {aka everyone} you NEED to get some bath bombs from Lush! Lush is a company that has handmade products, all vegetarian, organic, natural and doesn't test anything on animals. They are a pretty amazing company, with products to match.

I looooove baths, love them, so anything to make them special is such a treat. It wasn't too long ago that I learned about Lush. {click here} I'm obsessed. 

The bath bombs are so fun, they even have some with glitter, flower petals, or party hats inside, which is so silly and awesome. They are full of essential oils, moisturizing butters, and mood enhancing fragrances. 

The sex bomb is my favorite: It has jasmine, clary sage and ylang ylang which are known to be aphrodisiacs  and the scent is amazing and so relaxing. And there's flower pedals which just makes you feel so glamorous and girly.

My other favorite is the winter bath. It has spicy ginger and clove bud oils, and I love love love ginger. It feels so soft and luxurious on on your skin. It has soy milk and is super moisturizing, especially on dry, winter skin.

They range from $4-8, and are totally worth stocking up on. They are also great for small last minute gifts, especially hostess gifts and girlfriend's birthdays -where gifts are totally unnecessary and so amazing to receive, and they are small enough to toss in a purse. {think bigger than a golf ball, smaller than a baseball}

I HIGHLY suggest getting several, and a few more ;)

{black eyeliner, a comparison}

So if you're anything like me, you've bought a TON of black eyeliner. Possibly you've learned the lesson...

Not all liners are created equal.

Especially for lining the water line (that area between your lower eyelashes and eyeball), you need a liner that is BLACK, without having to go over it 21 times. I drew all of my black liners on the inside of my arm, applying equal pressure, and going through each line twice. {I figured numbers would be easiest so they didn't get confused with one another.}

**in my opinion 3 & 4 are definite standouts as far as being the deepest black

1. MAC Technakohl Line Eyeliner Kajal: Graphblack $15

2. MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil: Engraved $15

3. MAC Kohl Power Eye Pencil: Feline $15
*this is a limited edition liner, available randomly in collections, & it is available right now in the "Stength" collection

4. Avon Glimmersticks Liqui-Glide: Black $7

5. Arbonne Eye Liner: Ebony $23
6. Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils: Zero $19
7. Ulta Eye Liner: Black $8
8. Bed Head: Black Smudgie $15
9. Laura Geller i-Care Waterproof Eyeliner: Black $18



Now let's do some testing....

TEST 1: Smudge test
I just smeared a (clean) finger over each row back and forth 3 times...

*4 maintained it's color the best, while 1 & 4 smeared the least



TEST 2: Water test
I used a foaming hand soap & water to go over the area, and pat dry with a paper towel.

*Now I think 2 & especially 3 stayed the darkest, and 4 is 100% gone, clearly 4 would never work on a waterline.

TEST 3: Dish soap & a scrub
I used plain ole' dish soap and scrubbed with a paper towel, and also dried with a paper towel.

*3 is the lone survivor of the test, and amazing for the waterline. And my skin and super sensitive & pink, haha.

These are just the black eyeliners that I happened to have, I know Urban Decay has a deeper black called Perversion  I just don't own it, and do this test for yourself and see how yours compare to each other, the results may surprise you!

{eyelash extensions}

This is my experience with eyelash extensions.

Overall: absolutely a fan, for me this would only be for a special occasion.

I went to Midwest Anti-Aging in Prarie Village, KS. I had a fabulous experience, it was a painless, relaxing process. I got them applied the Monday before my wedding, immediately after a stressful {tear inducing} phone call, so I went in splotchy and a little swollen. I wore face makeup, but no eye makeup at all. You basically just lay on a massage bed and close your eyes for an hour or so. It took around 45 minutes. They apply lash by lash to your natural lashes, not to the skin. 

Top left: no mascara, completely natural
Top right: just mascara
Bottom: fresh eyelash extensions, no mascara

The after care was quite easy, the only rule really was to not use waterproof mascara. I won't lie, I was a little paranoid to wash my face or put on eye makeup, but once I finally did (on the wedding day) it looked amazing!!

On the wedding day, mid putting mascara on, so status of mascara: unknown. haha.

Once they came off, for me they lasted right around 2 weeks, they just shed naturally. They didn't hurt at all, but I won't lie, I totally pulled the last few off because I'm impatient, and when I did I pulled out my lashes with them, duh.

Final thought: I don't think I'd get them again, I'll stick with false lashes; however, if you are a person who doesn't wear a lot of makeup and are wanting some extra day-to-day glamour these are amazing. I think the only way I'd get them again would be for a vacation, maybe a tropical one where I wouldn't even bother with mascara, but still wanted to look pretty. (Yes, I'd absolutely do it for that!)

{coast to coast challenge}

Hello pretties!

Today was my first voyage on a new fashion adventure called The Coast to Coast Challenge!!

I've seen it on Instagram and became intrigued, so I looked it up: http://coasttocoastchallenge.wordpress.com/

I was getting a little repetitive with my wardrobe, so this is might help me get out of my rut!! It's a twice a week "challenge". Each one is different, they post it the day before along with some inspiration looks following the challenge. Today was election themed: red, white, & blue. Easy enough for my first challenge.

Here was my look:

So my challenge to you is to join in the challenge! Take a picture of yourself on Thursday & put it on Instagram #coasttocoastchallenge.

You can also follow me on Instagram: SarahPurviance

xoxo: Mrs. P

...now back to watching the Election Day coverage...