I had a pretty significant acne problem throughout most of my teens and almost all of my 20s.  It’s only now that I’m 27 that I’ve managed to stop *most* of the acne…but the scars are still there.

So, I made it my New Year’s resoluton to figure out what I can do about the scars/residual pock marks (barring  major surgery and the chance for MORE scars).  After much reading and a bit of experimentation, I’ve arrived at a routine that is definitely helping to clear up my face.

• Drink more water.  This is SOOO crucial and often overlooked, but hydration from the inside is just as important as hydration from the outside.
• Get more sleep.  Your body needs it to repair. 8+ hours whenever possible.
• HD Scar Cream.  I initially tried Mederma and I couldn’t see any results, then I moved to a pure vitamin E oil and it made me feel kind of greasy and gross.  Cocoa butter was also on my list, but it made me break out like crazy.  HD Scar Cream is not the only good scar cream on the market, but it has worked pretty well for me and I’m definitely starting to see some fading.  You can get a free (pay S&H) trial to see if it works okay on your skin.  We’re all different so it’s lucky that you can experiment without spending too much.

My results so far have been a lot better than I expected.  I may still want laser resurfacing or maybe just a peel at some point, but by using gentler methods first, I’m hoping I’ll ultimately get better results with other methods, too (and they definitely won’t have to be so severe).

Has anyone else had any issues with acne scars in the past?  I know they can be super tough since they’re often older scars, but I’d love to hear about any successful methods you guys have used! :)

My little sister has always had issues with her eyelashes being a lot less substantial than she would like, but I never really knew what advice to give her to get longer (or thicker) eyelashes until I came across Lilash.  I don’t know why, but I just assumed that mascara was the only line of defense for making eyelashes longer.

If you think about it, though, it’s kind of silly to think there’s no way to get longer eyelashes.  Diet and overall health definitely factor into hair growth, and men who are bald can often restore their hair through treatment or dietary changes, so why wouldn’t there be something to help you grow longer eyelashes?

Anyway, I happened upon Lilash entirely by accident this week and I thought I’d just do a quick writeup because it looks like a really great product.  I know what I’ll be getting my sister when her birthday comes around in a couple months.  The before/after photo looked great:

So - my question to you, readers, is this: Have you tried Lilash?  What were the results?  Let me know in the comments!  Or, if you want to be our human guinea pig, click here and get your own!

I don’t keep a ton of cosmetics around, but I do like to keep what I have organized.  I’m currently keeping it all in a blue tackle box, but this Purple Makeup Train Case is incredibly cute (not to mention the fact that it’s $50 or more cheaper than nearly every train case at Sephora).

I also love that it’s not pink.  I do love pink, but I’ve acquired so much of it over the years that a purple train case would be a nice change of pace.

Purple Makeup Train Case
Price: $54.99
Keep your beauty supplies safe and handy in this purple makeup train case Cosmetic case features 4 extendable trays Makeup box is lightweight yet sturdy

I’m a huge fan of Philosophy products, and it’s rare that I make a trip to the local Sephora without trying out something new.  My latest find it Philosophy Cinnamon Buns Ultra Hydrating Body Souffle.  It’s actually been around for quite a while, but I’ve always favored Philosophy’s Gingerbread Man products so strongly that I’ve never tried the Cinnamon Bun fragrance.

That was a mistake.  Philosophy makes a mean Cinnamon Bun scent, and I’ll definitely be getting this one again.

I can remember shopping with my mother and grandmother and aunts when I was younger, and the trips were never boring.  They were like those eccentric old witches who live together in the movies, except without any special magical powers (that I’m aware of).  These trips were some of my first times being exposed to groups of women, and certain things stand out…for instance, the time they spent an entire day pointing out “crepe-y cleavage”.

Now obviously, no one can avoid aging, and a little age is certainly no reason to start covering yourself up like a nun.  25-year-old men might be offended at a little 60-year-old cleavage, but they just need to get over that.  Anyway, I’ve never been able to look at crepe paper the same way, and I’ve never been one to neglect moisturizing my own neck and décolletage.

I recently got a chance to test out a sample of Clarins’ Super-Restorative Delletend Neck Concentrate, and I’ve gotta say, if anything will ward off the crepe-y cleavage, this stuff will do the trick.  At $97, it’s a little steep, but if it gets you a few more years of smooth cleavage, I’d say it’s worth it.

Super-Restorative Delletend Neck Concentrate
Price: $97.0
Dare to wear lower necklines! Bamboo, Sunflower, Pueraria Lobata, Parsley and Khaki Calyxes reduce wrinkles, smooth surface skin and promote a more even tone.

I keep strange hours most of the time, so I end up with puffy dark circles under my eyes more often than I care to think about.  If this were 1948, I’d probably just have to live with it.  Luckily, I’ve had my choice between dozens of products to help remove the under eye puffiness every morning.

Lately, I’ve come to rely on Orlane B21 Oligo Cooling Eye Balm.  It does the trick, plus  it makes your skin all cool and tingly when you put it on.  It also minimizes the appearance of any fine lines in your skin.  I usually have issues with new products because almost everything makes my skin break out, but this hasn’t given me any trouble at all.

Orlane B21 Oligo Cooling Eye Balm
Price: $43.0

If you’ve ever read the old Dr. Seuss book, The Sneetches, you might remember how, in the beginning, there were Sneetches with stars and Sneetches with “none upon thars”. Although it seems insignificant enough, the Sneetches were a lot like people, and they decided to elevate the status of the starred Sneetches while isolating the others. One day, a guy came to town with a Sneetch-starring machine and he offered to help the star-less Sneetches.

Of course, when the starred Sneetches saw this, they got their Stars removed to differentiate themselves again, and it became an endless circle of Sneetches giving away their money to have stars added and removed.

That’s kind of what plumping lip gloss reminds me of, even though I’ve never actually heard of anyone wanting smaller lips. Either way, though, Too Faced Lip Injection Extreme Advanced Lip Plumping Serum (a mouthful, for sure) definitely works. It burns a bit when you put it on, but that means it’s working, right? All I know is that I’ve never had any complaints when I hit the town with big, shiny, soft lips. That’s worth the $20-30 to me.

I’m not the kind of person who wears 30 different makeup products for a simple trip to the grocery store.  In fact, I’m not sure that I ever really wear that much makeup.  That aside, Benefit Cosmetics’ 10 bronzer and highlighter duo is one of the simplest, most idiot-proof makeup products I’ve ever seen.

The bronzer and highlighter duo comes with one very wide brush so you can grab both parts in one sweep.  The in-box instructions tell you exactly where to apply it, and after a single swipe, the look is perfect (okay, so you might rub it a bit to blend it in, but other than that, it’s a 1-swipe per cheek job).

I bought this product for a friend who hates makeup, and she loved it.  She held on to it for a couple months, and when she finally tried it, she immediately called me to tell me how totally awesome it was.  I was all like, “I know, I told you so,” and she kept going on about how she finally has cheekbones.  Sweet.

10 bronzer and highlighter duo
highlight and bronze in one sexy sweep