Last week, I showed you what a typical day in my life looks like. Today, I wanted to expand on that story, and share how I put my best face forward with my daily beauty routine.  I’ve learned that if you want anything in life you have to work hard at it. That applies to your skin as well. Two ways I’ve found that are key is having a daily routine, and analyzing your skin problems each year.  Just as you change with every passing year, so does your skin. The struggle of acne in my teens and twenties has  been replaced with correcting the damage I did in those years; scarring and hours spent baking in the sun.  When sharing these struggles with StriVectin, we landed on their Brighten and Perfect line.  The line consists of three different products; a daily Intensive Illuminating Serum, a Radiance Refining Moisturizer, and a twice-weekly Instant Revitalizing Mask.  All are formulated to fade the look of dark spots, prevent excess pigmentation, brighten and even out skin tone.  I’ve been using the products for about thirty days now and the results are dramatic.

First up, the Intensive Illuminating Serum.  I’ve been using the Serum both day and night, and I must say this may be the hero of my story. Thanks to the Serum, my hyper pigmentation has begun to fade, and my skin is smoother and definitely has a glow about it. I feel it’s not only correcting my skin, but also protecting it from the day-to-day environmental factors I simply cannot avoid. Also with my sensitive skin, serums can sometimes wreak havoc on my skin, but I haven’t felt any negative effects with the Intensive Illuminating Serum.

Finding a moisturizer has always been one of the biggest challenges for my combination skin. I’ve been using the Radiance Refining Moisturizer day and night, and find it light, but completely hydrating. Plus, it doesn’t leave my skin feeling or looking oily.

Lastly, the Revitalizing Mask. While the Serum may be my hero product, I look forward to the twice-weekly Instant Revitalizing Mask the most. Those nights have become my detox, my good vibes, and my relaxation-in-the-form-of-a-mask nights. I draw a bath, pour a glass of wine, and completely zone out while I let the mask work it’s magic. The Revitalizing Mask instantly illuminates and evens out my complexion so much, that I try to always make “mask nights” the evening before a photo shoot so my skin looks light years ahead in front of the camera.

After thirty days, I can see a real difference in my skin tone and clarity. So much so that I won’t be stopping my new routine any time soon. Tell me; do you have a daily, tried and true, beauty routine? Truly, MKR
 

Recently StriVectin posed a question to me; how do I put my best face forward?  And I thought instead of simply answering the question, why not instead invite StriVectin to spend the day with me and actually see how I put my best face forward.

You see since leaving the 9-to-5 cubicle grind behind and becoming an entrepreneur, I’m in the spotlight more than ever.  A spotlight I didn’t fully expect, but had to get comfortable with real quick.  Because being an entrepreneur means being your brand every moment, in every aspect, in every scenario, of every day.  Whether meeting with design clients to pick out the perfect textiles, speaking at a conference, running around town preparing to host a dinner party, or on set for a photo shoot, my face has to often literally represent my brand.

I remember getting pictures back from one of my first photo shoots for Waiting On Martha.  The pictures were untouched (read: not Photoshopped) and high resolution.  Do you know what it’s like to have your face up close and personal on a 32″ screen?!  Well if you’ve ever looked into a magnifying mirror, it’s similar to that…only way more magnified.  You see every flaw.  Every single flaw.

My skin is something I’ve struggled with since I was a teenager.  And while it’s improved in my 30’s, it’s still a daily struggle.  Now instead of battling acne, I’m battling the repercussions of not taking care of my skin in my younger years: discoloring and uneven skin tone from baking in the sun and scarring from the acne of my teens and even twenties.  That’s where StriVectin’s new Intensive Illuminating Serum comes in.  It has truly transformed my skin and helped me feel more confident on and off camera.

I’ll be sharing my daily routine and all the details from my thirty-day skin journey with StriVectin’s Brighten and Perfect system next week, but until then, I ask you: how do you put your best face forward?  Truly, MKR

A few weeks ago during a trip to Sephora my good friend and beauty guru Jenn convinced me to leave my hot pink lip behind and venture into unknown territory.  I wasn’t feeling red (been there done that), I’m too pale to for a nude (or so I thought but I love this look), and purples were a tad too close to pink.  Then we spied the Pantone Collection and this years big winner Marsala, which I’d say is somewhere between a red, brown, and pink.  We snagged the lip stick, gloss, mascara, and nail polish then headed home to see if it had any chance of beating out my tried and true Tropical Pink.  

Truthfully I felt like I was transported back to the 90’s.  In fact I’m pretty sure this is the color I was obsessed with sophmore year.  It’s just not quite right for my skin tone, a bit too matte, and well not enough pink.  However I did end up loving the mascara (I wear a bordeaux mascara most days) and the nail polish.  So while I don’t think I’ll be wearing Marsala any time soon on my lips, I will say it’s always fun to tip toe outside your comfort zone.  Tell me, have you given the Pantone color of the year a try yet?  Truly, MKR

Photography, Kathryn McCrary  |  Makeup, Jennifer C. Nieman