Tomato Basil Creamy Vegan Pasta

In my quest to be a healthier, happier me, I have found many wonderful recipes I love that are healthy and very delicious. This recipe is one of my favorites and I love to make it as often as my family will eat it(which is quite often). This year we planted a garden and have been having lots of tomatoes that we don't know what to do with so this is my fall back. This recipe is courtesy of VeganYumYum.

Healthy Habits ~ Tomato Basil Creamy Vegan Pasta
Serves two

RECIPE:

• 1 Large, ripe tomato (2 cups roughly chopped, 1 1/2 cups blended)
• 1/2 Cups Raw Cashews
• 1 Tbs Tomato Paste
• 1/4 Cup Water
• 2 Tbs Olive Oil
• 2-4 Cloves Garlic, minced, optional (I always add it)
• 6 Ounces (ish) Whole Wheat Spaghetti (I used fettuccine in the photo but prefer whole wheat spaghetti)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 2-3 Tbs Wine or Water, Optional 
• 1-2 tsp Freshly Cracked, Coarse Black Pepper
• 1 Large Handful Fresh Basil Leaves, Chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1. Put a large pot of salted water on to boil.
2. Core the tomato, then roughly chop it. Add it to your blender, seeds, skin and all. Add cashews, tomato paste, and water. Blend until very smooth.
3. Add olive oil to large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and saute until golden, being careful not to burn. Once water is boiling, add pasta. Pour sauce from the blender into the saute pan and bring to a simmer. Add salt and let cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. If desired add wine/water to thin out the sauce (I recommend doing this). Taste and season more if necessary. Let simmer until pasta is finished cooking. Once pasta is cooked, drain. Add pasta to the saute pan with black pepper and freshly chopped basil leaves. Toss to coat. Serve immediately, garnish with more pepper and basil.

Cuts For A Cause

October is, as many people know, Breast Cancer Awareness Month and my friends over at Azalea Day Spa & Salon are doing a wonderful event to support this great cause. On October 18th you can get your hair cut at a discounted price and all of the proceeds go to the HUNTSMAN CANCER INSTITUTE. Space is limited so book your appointment today. For more information on this event CLICK HERE.

Lets all bring more awareness to this cause that effects so many of our friends and loved ones.

How to apply false eyelashes

Makeup Monday ~ How to apply false eyelashes

As a makeup artist I get asked a lot by my clients how to apply false lashes. For most people they don't really know where to start or how to choose the right lashes for what look they are trying to achieve. I suggest purchasing a few different kinds of lashes and trying them out to find what feels best and goes well with the look you want. There are different kinds of false lashes from dramatic to everyday wear. Here is a quick tutorial on how to apply everyday false eyelashes.

You will need: Eyelashes, glue, cotton swabs, tweezers and small scissors.

Start with finishing your eye makeup, including liner, before applying the lashes. 

Measure the length of false lashes to the outside corner of the eye before attaching completely with glue.

Cut lashes at the outer edge where longest length is. 

Remeasure to make sure lashes line up where you want them.

Add glue to cotton swab.

 Apply the glue to strip of lashes. Let glue sit for a few seconds until it is sticky but no longer super wet.

 Apply the lashes using tweezers to accurately line them up with the base of natural lashes.

Apply mascara to lower and upper lashes to incorporate natural lashes. Do not apply very much mascara, you want to avoid separating false lashes and clumping. 

 I hope this has been an informative post and helps answer some of your lash questions.

What's My Skin Type?

Skin Smart ~ How to determine your skin type

There are five basic skin types. It can be very difficult for most of us to determine which one we have. Here is a list of all five with symptoms that go along with each one to help you figure out which one you have.

Sensitive:
Skin gets red and irritated easily.
Reacts badly to harsh soaps, dyes, makeup, perfume etc.
Breaks out easily in rash or redness.
Sensitive to the sun.

Normal:
Doesn't feel overly dry or oily.
Able to use various products without any negative reactions(too dry, too oily, or turning red).
Smooth, clear, supple skin

Dry:
Feels tight and dry after washing.
Thin flaky patches.
Wrinkles easily.
Dull appearance.

Combination:
Areas of different texture and temperature.
Breakouts in areas and dry in others such as T-zone.
Random breakouts and feels dry.

Oily:
Breaks out easily.
Shiny, greasy feeling.
Skin feels thick and congested.


There are all kinds of different skin care regimens that are recommended for different skin types. Here are my recommendations for a good daily regimen to help you take care of your skin.


Sensitive Skin Care Regimen: Suggested Product
Cleanse with a gentle cleansing formula with no dyes or perfume. - Morning/Night

Tone the skin with a gentle toner to help close pores, balance and cool skin after cleansing.- Morning/Night

Exfoliate with a very gentle exfoliant, preferably a liquid or cream (nothing gritty). Do this a few times a week. - Night

If there is any needed treatment, such as a serum, it is best before moisturizer. - Night

Moisturize with an SPF during the day and a gentle moisturizing formula with no dyes or perfumes at night. - Morning /Night


Normal Skin Care Regimen: Suggested Product
If Skin is more normal/dry use a cream cleanser. If it is more normal/oily use a gel cleanser.- Morning/Night

Tone to help close pores and balance skin after cleansing. - Morning/Night

Exfoliate with a gentle exfoliant every day and a more aggressive exfoliation a few times a week. - Night

If there is any needed treatment, such as a serum, it is best before moisturizer. - Night

Moisturize with an SPF during the day and moisturizer/cream at night. - Morning/Night


Dry Skin Care Regimen: Suggested Product
Cleanse with a cream cleanser. - Morning/Night

Tone to help close pores and balance skin after cleansing. - Morning/Night

Exfoliate with a gentle exfoliant every day and a more aggressive exfoliation a few times a week. - Night

If there is any needed treatment, such as a serum, it is best before moisturizer. - Night

Moisturize with and SPF during the day and cream at night. - Night


Combination Skin Care Regimen: Suggested Product
Cleanse with either a cream or gel depending on what is most needed. - Morning/Night

Tone to help close pores and balance skin after cleansing. - Morning/Night

Exfoliate with a gentle exfoliant every day and a more aggressive exfoliation a few times a week. - Night

If there is any needed treatment, such as a serum. or spot treatment it is best before moisturizer. -
Morning/Night

Moisturize with an SPF during the day and moisturizer/cream at night. - Morning/Night


Oily Skin Care Regimen: Suggested Product
Cleanse skin with a gel or acne cleanser. - Morning/Night

Tone to help close pores and balance skin after cleansing. - Morning/Night

Exfoliate/Treat everyday as needed before moisturizer. If skin starts to dry out switch to every other day. - Morning/Night

Moisturize with an SPF during the day and a moisturizer for oily/acne at night. - Morning/Night


I hope that this is informative enough and has helped with some of your skin care questions. 

How To Clean Makeup Brushes

Makup Monday ~ Brush it off

    Women everywhere who wear makeup have their own way of applying their favorite styles. I prefer and recommend to use makeup brushes for your applications no matter what they may be.  From foundation to lipstick brushes are by far the best way get a good, even, well blended makeup application. The question is how often do you clean your brushes? Have you ever even thought about it? Well here are my quick recommendations for keeping those, usually expensive, brushes clean.

First off how often should you clean your brushes?
   Foundation brushes - Once to twice a week
   Finishing and bronzing brushes - Once a week
   Blush brushes - Once a week
   Eyeshadow brushes - Every two to three days
   Eyeliner/ Smudge brushes - After every use
   Lip brushes - After every use

Here are three different cleaning methods that I suggest.

   For quick on the go cleaning you can use sensitive non scented baby wipes. These are not an everyday or deep cleaning recommendation but they work great for travel.

 
 



   The second type of cleaning I recommend is a liquid brush cleaner which is good if you are only cleaning a few brushes at a time.

   The best deep cleaning method I recommend is using either a mild shampoo or a baby wash to really get deep down into the brush. You can also pretreat/clean your brushes by using olive oil to remove any stuborn,  waterproof makeup and recondition your brushes.

 







You can apply the cleanser directly to each individual brush or poor a good amount in the bottom of a glass.

 

Set brushes directly in and move them around to make sure each one has cleanser on it.

Fill glass with water and move brushes around to help cleanse the bristles.

Remove each brush one by one and clean on a paper towel until you no longer see color coming out of the brush.

Rinse all of your brushes as many times as needed to remove excess cleanser.

Remove any excess water from brushes on a clean dry towel.

Prop brushes up with bristles down to make sure all the water is out of the ferrule. The ferrule is the part of the brush that is inbetween the bristles and the handle. If you let water sit in the ferrule it can warp the handle  and loosen them over time. Because makeup brushes can be expensive it is always good to take proper care of them.

Healthy Habits ~ Carrot, Apple, Kale Juice

There are many things you can do to help promote healthy skin. One of those very important things is putting good things inside our bodies as well as on the outside. Juicing is a great way to incorporate fruits and vegetables without having to eat them yet still receive all of the nutritional benefits. Carrot, Apple, Kale juice is one of my favorite combinations that really packs a lot of nutrients in one little glass.

Kale ~ A lot of people don't know what kale is or why it is good for you. Kale contains LUTEIN, VITAMIN K, VITAMIN A, VITAMIN C  and CALCIUM.

 Lutein helps improve the health of your skin. 

Vitamin K gives your blood the ability to clot in order to stop the bleeding when your skin is cut.
Vitamin A helps promote healthy skin and good vision.

Vitamin C helps keep your body's tissue healthy, such as your muscles and skin, as well as helps your body fight infection.

Calcium helps promote healthy bones, is needed for contraction of muscles, the conduction of nerve pulses and many other processes in the body. 

Kale also include many other benefits such as manganese, copper, potassium, iron, magnesium, vitamin E, omega 3 fatty acids, vitamins B1, B2 and B3, protein, foliate and phosphorus.

Read more about the health benefits of Kale

Carrots and Apples have many of these same vitamins and health benefits and together they make one 

tasty juice.

1. Start off with the desired amount of fruits and veggies that you want to juice. I recommend four apples, two carrots and two leaves of kale. I had small apples so I used five, usually I stick to two apples to one carrot.

2. With juicing you don't need, or want to peel the fruit just cut them to the size small enough to fit your juicer. 

3. Put all fruits and veggies straight into juicer. It is best to juice a juicer for this, a blender will not extract the juice properly, leave too much pulp and make it too thick to drink. 

4. When juicing is finished you may need to mix it slightly because juice will be separated. 

5. Enjoy! This is one of my favorite juices and love to have it at least twice a week.

Happy Feet

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to my favorite salon and get a pedicure from my favorite Esthetician. I can now say that I have very happy pregnant feet that look and feel wonderful.

Thanks Holly at Azalea Day Spa & Salon for my cute toes.

Where do you go to get your toes done? If you haven't had a pedicure in a while, or ever, now is a great time.

Check out this awesome event this saturday to help support cancer awareness.

Natural Eye Tutorial

Make Up Monday ~ Natural eye tutorial

I have had a lot of makeup question while working in the industry and one of the most common is how to apply natural looking eye makeup. Here is an easy tutorial on how to apply everyday natural looking eye makeup. 

1. Start with clean dry eye

2. Apply concealer all over upper lid and under the eye to even out skin tone and prep the eye

4. Fill in brow

5. Line upper and lower lid about 2/3 of the way across.

6. Smudge liner to soften and blend it.

7. Apply a white liner under brow filling in to the crease and inside of eyelid. Apply white shadow over liner.

8. Apply natural gold shade starting at the outside of eye in crease and over liner to blend colors together.

Do not apply gold over the white making sure to blend.

9. Apply mascara