Good Morning Sunshine!

After three days of slow, painful, where am I? waking scenarios when my alarm went off to signal the start of my day (undoubtedly due to PMS), today's roll and stumble out of bed was not ideal but a welcome improvement! In honor of this, I decided to forgo my daily coffee and instead make a refreshing fruit smoothie to get my day started on the right path. As we all know, what we put in our bodies is just as important, if not more, than what we put on our bodies to keep ourselves young and beautiful.

Normally I just throw a banana, some berries, flax seed, and some vanilla soy milk in the blender and drink the result, no matter how good (or not so good) it tastes. Today I chose my ingredients with care:

1 banana
1/2 cup (approximately, I never really measure) of vanilly soy milk
6 pieces of frozen papaya (Trader Joe's has a huge selection of frozen fruit)
4 pieces of very ripe fresh mango (If you buy it pre-cut it saves so much trouble!)

Start at your blender's lowest setting, and every 20 seconds or so up the setting until there are no clumps of fruit and everything is blended together. Blending at a higher setting will give your smoothie a slightly foamy consistency, which I love, but if you don't just blend longer at a lower setting.

I forgot to add the flax seed today but a teaspoon of flax seed is always good! It was the best smoothie I've ever made for myself! The mango and papaya made it slightly tropical, which is fun for summer, and the vanilly soy milk added just the right amount of sweetness and flavor. A scoop of vanilla or coconut ice cream would make this smoothie an irresistible dessert treat (must try this next time!).

Bath & Body Works Sale! - and $10 off!

Bath & Body Works sale going on right now through the end of this week (some promotions end tonight, others end June 5, and others end June 7). Use this code 9543 to get $10 off any purchase of $40 or more through June 14, 2009.

The Bath & Body Works sale not only has great deals on lotions, and skincare in general, but there are some super sweet deals on things like room scents and sprays that I am always dying to try but not willing to spend so much money on. Select room sprays are only $3!!!

Also, and this pretty much goes without saying, Bath & Body Works products make great gifts! No one has to know you got their Enchanted Orchid Body Wash for only $5 (I won't tell if you won't).

I know this post is a little last minute, but if you are in need of new lotion or body wash definitely take advantage of this sale and the promo code above!

love,
iCandy

Reader Review: Tammy on Rimmel's Stay Matte Foundation

Name: Tammy
Website: http://lazybeautiful.wordpress.com/
City: Los Angeles, CA

Skin Type: Oily/Acne-prone
Skin Tone: Medium/Tan

Never leave the house without: Lip balm! I make my own. Also, Ben Nye Neutral Set face powder and Ecotools Recycled Aluminum Retractable Kabuki brush.

Summer Slim-Down Secret: 1. Drink lots of water. I highly recommend using a Sigg aluminum bottle. They save you money by not having to buy plastic water bottles all the time! 2. Take your vitamins. I love Centrum Chewables; they're so convenient and don't make me queasy! 3. Exercise (duh!)

Review: Rimmel's Stay Matte Foundation
I usually purchase my foundations from Sephora because I've never come across a drugstore brand that has not given me a bad reaction (and the color is never exactly right). I had been looking for a drugstore foundation to save some money, so when I saw the ad for Rimmel Stay Matte Foundation, I decided to give it a try. Target had it on sale for five bucks! Score! I got it in Sand, the darkest shade available. Let's start with packaging. Love it! It's compact, great for travel, and easy to see how much is left in the tube. Also, the tube makes it very sanitary because you don't have to pour it out or stick applicators inside to get the product out. The application? Smooth and blended easily, but sadly the shade ended up being a bit too light for my medium to tan, Asian skin. Also, it does not stay matte like it claims. I have very oily skin and I thought this would help keep shine at bay, but it didn't. It has very little staying power; I wore this with primer and it still faded within hours and made my face feel slick. Not a good look. The only good thing is that I didn't get any bad reactions. In fact, it helped clear up my little cluster of acne on my forehead! I returned it after a week and went straight back to Sephora. If Rimmel made this foundation with better staying power and more colors, I would give it another go. Until then, I'm sticking to Sephora for my foundation needs. I guess you really do get you pay for when it comes to foundation.

A thousand thank you's to Tammy for submitting her review, I was dying to know if this foundation was worth trying! Make sure to check out Tammy's blog at http://lazybeautiful.wordpress.com/.

iCandy at Beauty and The Blog

I was lucky enough to be a guest blogger for Sephora's Beauty and The Blog! Check out my top five can't live without beauty products (and find out my real name!) HERE!

Think I missed something? Let me know! I'd love to hear what you treasure most and could absolutely not live without in your beauty arsenal. I always welcome reader reviews and tips (comment or e-mail icandy.faceaholic@gmail.com), because for every girl that has curly hair, medium skin and an oily T-zone (like yours truly) there are dozens more who are opposite in every way who could benefit from a truly great product that maybe just isn't quite right for me. Don't be shy! Who doesn't love a little inbox love?
love,
iCandy

Philosophy at Sephora: Eye Hope

If you are as obsessed with beauty as I am (many have come close, but few truly are), you would know that philosophy's new Eye Hope™ Advanced Anti-Aging Eye Cream is now available at Sephora! If you didn't know, don't worry that's why I'm here.

For a while now I've looked for an eye cream that is made to fight wrinkles and dark circles and puffiness, because really, why can't I have my cake and eat it too? In a clinical study, over 80% of participants showed improvement in all four areas, fine lines, puffiness, smoothness, and dark circles. With antioxidants, shea butter, and beta glucan (known for helping skin maintain a healthy youthful appearance and elasticity) I could almost recommend this without trying it! Hey, I said almost.

If you have tried it, let me know what you think! I promise to try it as soon as I run out of my L'Oreal RevitaLift Eye Cream, which claims to do some of the same things as Eye Hope™ like reduce lines and puffiness (but doesn't take care of those darned under-eye circles). From my experience, RevitaLift gets an A+ as far as puffiness (even after staying up until 2 A.M. crying over a boy I was barely puffy when I got up at 8 to go to work the next day!). As far as fine lines, mine are still too fine to notice if it has made a difference of not, which could mean it's working, or it could just mean I am in my 20's. Either way, it's never too early to take preventative measures against wrinkles, because when it comes to wrinkles the only way to play it is no mercy!

Beauty Steal: Victoria's Secret Liquid Liner Pen!

I was almost ecstatic when I got home tonight to find a package from Victoria's Secret sitting on my step. Last week I ordered a Very Sexy liquid liner pen (normally $12 but on sale now for $5.99!) and I couldn't wait for it to arrive.

After trying my mom's ck Calvin Klein Electric Edge Liquid Eyeliner Marker Pen (what a mouthful!), I became mildly obsessed with the idea of a felt-tip marker as an eye liner pen. Simpler than regular liquid liner to put on, but sexier and more precise than a regular eye pencil, it is the best of both worlds!

While I was scoping out bathing suits at Victoriassecret.com, a quick look in the sale section revealed one very sexy liquid liner pen that is (as far as I can tell) identical to my mom's Calvin Klein Pen, at about 1/3 of the price.

After receiving and actually trying the product, it is as good, if not better than the Calvin Klein version ($18 at Sephora.com) the line is very thin and precise and barely smudges. It is perfect for creating that doe-eyed pin-up look! Pair this with Benefit's BADgal lash mascara and a sexy shadow duo such as Too Faced EyeShadow Duo which combines a darker, defining shade with a shimmery highlighter at Sephora.com.

Laura Mercier Face Polish

Going through my favorites on my Sephora Beauty Insider profile, I noticed that I had starred Laura Mercier Face Polish as well as Kate Somerville Exfolikate. Having recently used both of these products, I can now safely eliminate one from my wish list!

People say that first impressions are also the most lasting impressions, and with these two products that is definitely the case. Just price and quantity alone put Laura Mercier Face Polish far ahead of Exfolikate. At $30 for 3.5 ounces at Sephora.com, Laura Mercier Face Polish gives twice the amount of product for less than half the price of Exfolikate ($85 for 1.7 ounces)!

After using Exfolikate, it is obvious it is a high quality product made with some great ingredients such as fruit enzymes, but I am sorry to say that the results are just not worth the high price tag! It did help some of the "time-of-the-month" break-outs I had dry out, but the overall quality of my skin was not improved very drastically. Most importantly, the results of this product only lasted for a few hours. I didn't see any long term benefits that lasted after the immediate usage of the product.

To seal the deal, Laura Mercier Face Polish is the best facial scrub I have ever used, period. My skin has never been so soft! It is called a polish as opposed to a scrub and it really does feel as if I am polishing my skin, making it soft, fresh, and new. Just using this product twice a week I have seen a difference in the clarity and feel of my skin. My skin feels more supple even on days when I don't use it, and many of the tiny scars left by past blemishes have started to fade away. The reasonable price just seals the deal, I dare anyone to find a better exfoliator at a lower price!