Glam Glow Review

If you've never experienced blackheads or acne, you're lucky. Fortunately, I was never plagued with acne in my younger years. I've had the occasional breakout that would last a few days and then disappear. However, I've always had blackheads. While makeup covers them, I always wished they would be gone, and gone for good. I've tried numerous products, from pore strips, to "blackhead clearing scrubs" and everything in between. While pore strips work, I've found that they only work sometimes. To me it seems like they only pull out recently formed blackheads and aren't strong enough to pull out the bigger, deep set ones. 

Recently, I've grown tired of cheap fixes and began looking deeper into the issue of getting rid of blackheads. Pinterest told me to extract them with a bobby pin (kinda works) and it also told me to scrub my nose with baking soda and water (burned like hell). In my investigation, I heard about the Glam Glow Super Mud Clearing Treatment, a mask that "sucks" out impurities from the skin. It's been described by many as a miracle product and has a 4.4 out of 5 rating on Sephora. A product of this magnitude comes at a price, though...a staggering $69. I've always been a girl that prefers quality over quantity but I wasn't so sure if I was ready to drop nearly $70 on this product. 

I found myself in Sephora yesterday and I asked one of the workers if she had any samples available of this product. She did not, but she gladly made me one! This morning when I woke up, I was like I gotta try this.  The mask is dark gray and has a few large particles of sea weed. The mask can be used all over your face or as a spot treatment. My forehead is pretty clear with no visible pores so I decided to focus the product on my t-zone and cheeks, especially on my nose. Once the mask starts to dry, it turns a lighter gray color and you can begin to see the mask drawing out the oil, dirt, and straight up junk out of your skin. Don't believe me? Examples to follow. 

These pictures were taken about 10 minutes after the mask was applied. I kept the mask on for a total of roughly 15 minutes. 

All those little "holes" in the mask are where oil and dirt has been vacuumed out of my skin. 

So what's my final thoughts on this product? 

I think it is awesome. I loved being able to see the results immediately. While it didn't remove all of my blackheads, it definitely removed a lot of impurities from my skin. When my sample runs out, I'm definitely buying the full size of this miracle product! 

*All opinions are solely my own and do not express the opinions of my employer or University. Glam Glow was not sent to me, I received the sample for free from Sephora. Pictures are my own.*

Be soft.

Getting hurt in life is inevitable. It will happen once, and then happen again. After being hurt so many times, I often hear people say "I'm used to it." 

To be honest, I'll never be used to being hurt. And I truly think it is sad that some people do get to the point where they're so used to being constantly hurt that they no longer feel emotion. So many people have described me as being a strong girl. While that may be true on the outside, they can't see or understand what I'm feeling on the inside, or even see me when things become too much to handle. While feeling helpless and upset isn't the best experience to go through, I never want to become used to it. 

Life is full of emotions. Some good, and some bad. But life is a test and our emotions are a lesson. Don't ever apologize for how you feel. Don't build a wall around your heart just so you don't shed a tear. Crying shouldn't be seen as a sign of weakness. Tears simply mean you're alive. Tears show that you've been too strong, for too long. 

It is truly a shame that people no longer make it a priority to treat people the best that we can. Life is rough, we all know that. So why try to hurt others when we know how hard living day by day is? We are confined by the walls we build around ourselves. I say, stop building. Be open. Don't become jaded and bitter about life. 

Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let the pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place. 

Respecting yourself

Respect. Next to love, it is what everyone wants. No one wants to be treated badly. But did you ever stop to think that a fraction of how you are treated depends on how you treat yourself. Don't get me wrong, I know I've talked previously how if people treat us badly, it does not mean we are bad people. While that is true, how we treat ourselves sets the standard for how others treat us. If you don't respect yourself, you can't expect anyone else to respect you.
 So what exactly does that mean to respect yourself? Remember in Mean Girls when Ms. Norbury says "you've got to stop calling each other sluts and whores. It just makes it alright for guys to call you sluts and whores" ? She's exactly right! I know you think it's funny to call your BFF a whore but would you really like it if a guy called you that? Uhm, no! But just by calling yourself that or allowing a friend to call you that makes it seem like a casual word instead of something I'd never want to be called. 

Another way you can respect yourself is to control your emotions. I know this is a hard one, especially if you're angry! Don't let your mood dictate your manners. This is something I've recently learned but I'm so glad I did! If someone is mad at you and is slandering your name and reputation, let them. They're making a fool of themselves anyway! A true lady wouldn't do that, only a child would. Handle your defeats, failures and short comings with the grace of a lady instead of the grief of a child. And frankly, if you feel the need to badmouth someone after they've hurt you, you've felt that way about them all along. Always remember, what Susie says of Sally says more of Susie than Sally.
In addition, a woman that respects herself would not lower herself to talk negatively of others personal problems. If you know about someones personal problems, they trusted you enough to tell you. By exposing someone else's problems, you're displaying that you don't respect your friend and that you also don't respect yourself. You should feel honored that your friend told you, and you really shouldn't betray her trust. However, maybe she did not want to tell you in the first place but your constant nagging made it impossible. Respect her and yourself to leave the issue alone if she wishes not to talk about it. 

Be modest! But don't confuse modest with dressing like this: 

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I'm not saying you shouldn't show skin at all, but keep it classy. Wearing super short shorts and a revealing top just screams: HEY, LOOK AT MY BODY, ONLY TALK TO ME BECAUSE OF MY BODY AND ONLY "LIKE" ME BECAUSE OF MY BODY. OH AND I LOVE ATTENTION. 

Just no. 

Gentlemen are few and far between these days. But that's because we don't make them rise to that level! Girls are so easy to give away so much, so easily, that guys don't have to work for it. Leave a little to the imagination! Focus on one body part to show off and downplay the rest. I don't know about you but the thought of a guy liking me for such a shallow reason just disgusts me! There is so much more to me than my body and I want someone to like me for my heart, not my appearance! 

Another tip, ladies, control your liquor. There's no issue with going out and having a good time, just make sure you're aware of yourself and who you're with. Sadly, guys prey on drunk girls hoping to hook up with them. Letting this happen just shows you don't respect that you deserve better than that. It is sad that guys take advantage of girls in this manner but its our job to put an end to that! 

In time I hope to continue on this topic in a separate post! 

Do you think self-respect is declining? 

4th of July!

Happy July, everyone! I woke up this morning and I was amazed that it is July already. I feel like this summer has gone by so fast! Thankfully, I have 2 more months left before fall semester starts. Although July has just started, it looks like it is going to be an amazing month! I have a few concerts to go to and I'm also seeing The Little Mermaid musical downtown! Of course, I'll do other things as well the rest of the month. :)

One of my favorite things about July is the 4th of July. I love watching and photographing fireworks, having cookouts, and going to our local arts festival. This year will be no exception! Here are some pictures I found that celebrate all things red, white, & blue!

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Patriotic funfetti cupcakes, just like I'll be making for my girls at work!

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Fireworks I photographed a few years ago on the 4th!

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Love love love sparklers!

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Love this festive mani! It celebrates the holiday without being tacky ;)