Looking Good & Doing Good Just Got Easier - With Kayla

Written by @oohkayla

I think it is safe to say SUMMER IS HERE! Well at least not blistering freezing weather is here. Summer is not only time for fun but also time to protect yourself from head to toe, at this point almost everyone is aware that we need to take care of our skin and possibly go about using more natural products. But what about our hair?

Enter Love Beauty & Planet stage left! According to the brand’s site the company was founded on the idea that “looking good and doing good should go hand in hand.” Each product is made with the mentality of making you and the planet better. Love Beauty & Planet is currently available in drugstores making it very accessible to the average person selling body and hair products.

I received the opportunity to try their Murumuru Butter & Rose Blooming Strength & Shine. The mask comes in a simple 100% recycled material pouch with 1.5oz. I have used the mask multiple times and still have a lot of product left. The directions suggest using after shampooing, leave on for 2 minutes and rinse. You are also advised to avoid your roots- why? Because including your roots could lead to your scalp getting greasy and dirty sooner than it needs to- & nobody got time for that.

Personally, I haven’t been able to find a lot of “natural products” that work for my hair. This mask is cruelty free, vegan, no parabens & more- which led me to believe that it wasn’t going to work at all! However, after several uses I do like this hair mask. The subtle rose sent is amazing and although I don’t know a lot about Murumuru Butter I do believe it is helping to hydrate my hair. I am currently in the process of helping my hair get back on track- years of coloring and heat has done some real damage to my strands. 

After using this mask, I do find my hair is drying with less frizz and just overall looks healthier. I have a dry scalp and so most if my shampoos do an excellent job cleaning my scalp but then drying for the rest of it. I would recommend giving this brand a try. 

If you are considering trying natural hair products this is a great place to start, it won’t break the bank and you are still doing good even if you don’t wind up liking the product. I stand behind looking good and doing good at the same time. Having my hair look great while reducing my carbon footprint sounds like a win win to me.

Lazy Girl Body-care with Kayla!

Written By Kayla M

I am lazy! There I said it…. Admitting you have a problem is the first step right? As much as I love lathering my face in every moisturizer and mask I can get my hands on I have a hard time-doing that with the rest of my body. All the lotion commercials make it seem so glamorous and therapeutic to apply lotion after a shower-I however disagree completely.  But then the universe heard my dry skin prayers & I found the perfect lazy girl body product and my world changed. I came to possess the Moroccan Oil Shower Milk and Lush Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner.

The Morroccan Oil Shower Milk appeared, and I thought yass!! However, that feeling was extremely short lived. The product is described as “an argan oil infused milk that gently cleanses and hydrates.” The shower milk is essentially a creamier body wash than what is usually found in store, but it didn’t hydrate to the point where lotion isn’t needed. I truthfully didn’t find it to do much of anything. Although I find 6.7oz of product for $32 reasonable, I can’t justify any amount if the product doesn’t work for me.

I was disappointed and desperate for a lazy girl remedy. I remembered a sample of a Lush product from a couple of years ago. I was told to rub it on my skin while in the shower and rinse- then the heavens opened, and I cried joyous tears. It wasn’t until recently that I gave in and decided to just purchase the product for myself and I regret not having it in my life sooner. Lush’s Ro’s Argan was the answer, the jar contains 7.9oz of glorious rose scented body conditioner for $35.95. Besides being lazy I am also beyond paranoid about “smelling good” and up until Ro’s Argan appeared I was use to body washes and lotions having a great scent but not a lasting scent and most definitely not a scent that I could personally smell on myself.

I can smell Ro’s Argan on my skin all day!! But mostly importantly almost immediately after you rinse the product off you can feel how smooth, silky and hydrated your skin feels. The simplicity of the ingredients, the ease of the process and the effectiveness of the product makes me believe in miracles.Lush’s product is truly amazing-. A natural, animal friendly, good smelling, reasonably priced, product that actually works! Who knew that could exist.

I recommend anyone and everyone to try this, it is a terrific addition to your skincare routine. Remember your skin is your largest organ, I often find myself thinking it is okay to go H.A.M. with my facial skincare and then ignore the rest of my body’s skincare needs. Lush Cosmetic’s Ro’s Argan body conditioner has allowed me to begin a serious selfcare affair from head to toe.

As Is: The MPB Team Celebrates Women's History Month

These are not Before and After photos
Because I am myself regardless of the presence of lipstick
These are here and now photos
Because my mind is always present

These are not Natural versus Glam looks
Because there is nothing more glamorous than my bare smile
And applying mascara  comes naturally
I have got bigger battles started for me

I am told that I don’t need to wear makeup
While a woman next to me is told that with some blush, her eyes will really pop
The woman next to her is told she wears too much makeup
Neither of us is enough

We always seem to be too much
Yet never enough

Painted lips
Flushed cheeks
Contoured Jaw
Have never made me

I still look cute, tho.
And
I never asked you. 

-Danyelle Valentin (@bufferingbetty)
 

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Pepper B. 
Believes that she "came out for the womb" with a smokey eye. Leo with an Excessive Smoky Eye.

Pepper on Instagram

Source

My name is Pepper B! Beauty is like an accessory for me. I use makeup as an outlet to spice up the day but it doesn’t make my day. I thrive on having good skin so my favorite part of the day is taking my accessory off and wearing Bare Skin. I work in the beauty industry and it is very visual so I use makeup to polish up my look. I do believe that taking care of your skin allows you to have a better makeup application. I love myself with makeup but I love myself without makeup even more.  

“Without us there is no universe. People are drawn to chaos and controversy. They are afraid to put us in power because everything we touch we set on fire! We are resilient, trailblazers and life creators. The true definition of beauty & the beast. There is no recipe we just serve! I can try to define what it feels like to be a women but there aren’t enough words” 
- Pepper B 

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Deanna
Mantra: Follow your passion as this will make your dreams become reality! Giving you the most informational product review you'd ever want.

Deanna on Instagram

"Everything has beauty but not everyone sees it"

"The things you wear don't make you beautiful: they accentuate the beauty that is already there"

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Kayla
If it's skincare, she cares. Teaching all of the skincare DIYs

Kayla on Instagram

“Phenomenal woman, that’s me”- Maya Angelou

“I am a woman. I am clothes in strength & dignity & pride.” I first began to like “beauty” when I saw photos of my mom and aunts with amazing bright colors on their eyes- what I then learned was called eyeshadow lol. I loved how I had these beautiful women in my life & they could use these products to emphasize that and tell a whole new story of themselves. 

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Amanda
Awkward Tomboy Glow Queen Channeling Brooke Shields Circa Blue Lagoon

Amanda on Instagram

Red lipstick is my secret super power. It will help me conquer the world one day.I am very passionate about body confidence. 'Magic Makeover' is something I would do with my Mother (who I would call my Warrior Queen) who lost her battle 4 years ago [to cancer]. Making her feel beautiful would lighten up her day and I would love to make all of the warrior queens feel that way.

Source

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Danyelle
Doesn't send nudes. Lives in fuchsia lipstick + blush. Loves how her makeup looks but probably can't recreate it.

Danyelle on Instagram

After all those years as a woman hearing 'not thin enough, not pretty enough, not smart enough, not this enough, not that enough,' almost overnight I woke up one morning and thought I am enough" - Anna Quindlen

"If you retain nothing else, always remember the most important rule of beauty, which is: who cares?" - Tina Fey

The beauty industry has given more than I could ask for from lipstick. It has nothing to do with actually wearing makeup, though, of course, I love to indulge. I have found a side of myself that I knew was there but never gave room to flourish. If you ever have looked at a beauty blog and thought of it as vapid -first, of all, goodbye. But truly you don't understand the time and effort that went into a product  reveiw. The amount of research that goes into an informative post. Beneath it all is passion and a vulnerability that must be admired. To end Women's History Month, just remember that everyone watching you will have an opinion. None of them will matter more than your own. 

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Taylor
Boho Chic, Party Girl, + Sparkle. Knows what formula is definitely an all-nighter.

Taylor on Instagram

"They're Real & They're Spectacular"

Written by @oohkayla

One of the first “high end” mascaras I remember purchasing was Benefit’s They’re Real mascara. Benefit was actually one of the first brands I ever purchased from in Sephora, in truth they really are the brand that led to my obsession. Fast forward to also 10 years later and I have come to the conclusion that They’re Real mascara may be my makeup soulmate.

Dear They’re Real, I am sorry for the years I spend neglecting you, I was young and foolish and trust me it won’t happen again. Will you forgive me? Yours Forever, Kayla M

Like most people I am a real sucker for numbers and statistics, I can tell through the computer screen you are staring at this saying, “What does that mean?” You know when 3 out of 4 dentists recommend a gum? Or when 9 out of 10 vets agree on a cat food? And you go out and buy it just because almost 100% think it is good, that is being a sucker for numbers and statistics. Benefit’s website has them all over their site and after being reunited with my love, I have to agree with them. I apply 1-2 coats to my top lashes using the wiggle through technique. The wiggle through is when you move your brush from side to side as you are moving it up through your lash, I find it gives me the maximum effect and rids me of any small clumps that may have occur not that clumps happen often.

1 out of 1 Kayla’s recommend this to her entire tribe. The brush this mascara has seems pretty standard but it isn’t! Think Harry Potter wand and then add a little spiked ball at end that helps with those really tiny lashes as well as helping to separate overall. I personally have very small, scattered, “are they even there?” lashes and this works wonders. The mascara lengthens, separates and adds volume. But be warned this won’t provide the look of falsies but it will help the makeup lovers out there that need a good staple mascara, who have a hard time finding something that makes the smallest of lashes step into their power and you take home to meet your parents!

If They’re Real Mascara was a person they would be the best man and maid of honor at your wedding, the aunt who always makes the best mac n’ cheese, the little black dress that hugs you in all the right places.