RADICAL SKINCARE


 Six weeks ago, I received my first bottle of Radical Skincare Advanced Peptide  Antioxidant Serum.

     I’d never heard of the company before but my curiousity was peaked when I’d found that their brand mission statement was… 

     “MORE HONESTY, MORE POTENCY, MORE PERFORMANCE.  STRONG SKINCARE WITH STRONG VALUES…….”  

     I was curious after reading about the company.


     I stopped using other serums, and used only the Radical Skincare Serum, so I could form an accurate opinion.  I would use my moisturizer on top, of course.

     I do have issues with redness so I was curious if the product work work for that issue, which it did.  I had a clean, natural even look to my skin without makeup, and there was a noticeable difference.

     The serum boasts 13 different ingredients that work together to give your skin improvement in every area.  

     


     I believe that it is best to save money, and refrain from $30 lip liners, to have more budget to apply to your skincare routine.  There is tons of expensive science behind certain skincare lines, and it only makes sense to spend the money on something that will actually make a lasting difference.  I’ve never known a lip liner to alter the course of a person’s life, but great looking skin is a must!

     In a society in which 30 year olds are running to get their face botoxed… it just is common sense to try to preserve what you have before it gets to that point!

Click the link above if you want to read more and learn about all the products that Radical has to offer!  Their site is great and I’m excited to try more from their line.

     As for my skin,  I loved the serum, see benefits and am hopeful that continued use of great products will keep me out of the plastic surgeons office as long as possible!  I think at this juncture, I’d prefer to invest in skincare, health (and handbags) rather than injections that will make my face look hard as a rock! (Injections are not in my budget, my husband would murder me! This leaves me with having to work with what I’ve got!

-SDS

-July 13, 2014

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CHEAP BIOTCH…THE $30 MAKEUP CHALLENGE

glam, blogger, beauty, fashion, Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston blogger, Luxor Living and Style, MUA, fashion, Profusion Cosmetics, Cover girl, NYC, NYX, ELF Cosmetics,

I got shocked lately, in trying to stick within my monthly Beauty Budget.  When I added up the cost of the products I used daily…I came to a conclusion…it’s expensive to be me. The other day, before purchasing yet another $30.00 tube of designer lipstick, I decided to  challenge myself and see if I could buy an entire arsenal for the same price.  Not only that, how would it look?

glam, blogger, beauty, fashion, Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston blogger, Luxor Living and Style, MUA, fashion, Profusion Cosmetics, Cover girl, NYC, NYX, ELF Cosmetics,

Back in the day, I was a District Manager for a retail clothing chain, and the chain also decided at one point to carry a small line of cosmetics, known as NYX.  Now NYX has added a longer list to their friendly priced products, so I decided to start with them for a  lip liner and lip stick.  The matte color shown here is Summer Breeze.      It has tons of pigment and is not so matte that it dries up your lips. I also chose the illuminator from NYX and was pleasantly surprised. It was more of a gold tone as opposed to a white so it looked more naturally dewy to me.

glam, blogger, beauty, fashion, Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston blogger, Luxor Living and Style, MUA, fashion, Profusion Cosmetics, Cover girl, NYC, NYX, ELF Cosmetics,

The ELF Cosmetics bronzer duo was fantastic, and was under $4.00 and I was not expecting much but it was fabulous! Look Ma, No lashes!  Being on a budget, I refrained from using false lashes and decided to try out New York Color Mascara.  Loved it!  I believe it was less than $5.00 as well, and that’s quite a savings compared to the designer $30 a tube mascaras out there! I will buy this again.

glam, blogger, beauty, fashion, Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston blogger, Luxor Living and Style, MUA, fashion, Profusion Cosmetics, Cover girl, NYC, NYX, ELF Cosmetics,

My personal theory is that by saving money on certain things, then there is a bigger budget allowance for bigger things, such as top of the line serums and moisturizers.  To me, this is where the money matters because you are paying for tons of research and better ingredients.  Moisture and repair is where it makes more cents to me to spend. Additionally, your technique of application has everything to do with how you turn out, as long as the product meets a certain standard.  The price friendly products above, all had decent features and benefits.

This was a helpful post to me, because it made me more mindful of the money spent on cosmetics in the past as well as what I will spend in the future!  Not only that, I pretty much look exactly the same as if I’d had on a $400 collection of products!

-SDS

-July 7, 2014

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LASH SEXY with Moodstruck 3D Fiber Lash

Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Younique, Cosmetics, Fiber Lash, Luxor Living and Style, MUA, Texas, Houston
vanity9
    I love the opportunity to try out and share the cool things that are out there in the beauty market!
 
   While I am a false eyelash girl, and it doesn’t bother me at all to throw on some quick lashes…there are a ton of ladies out there who do not at all feel comfortable wearing false lashes.  Some will glue hair to their heads and parade around daily in colored contact lenses yet false lashes are still viewed as a major no by some.
 VANITYFINAL@
 Good news for those gals who want major lash play without the drama of strip lashes… there is Moodstruck 3D Fiber Lash by Younique.
 
     I’d heard of fiber lashes before, but didn’t hold out enough hope to ever go purchase them.  A rep from Younique sent me some 3D Fiber Lash to try out, and yes….it was amazing! (I’d posted a closeup of the lashes on my Instagram  account earlier this week.)
 vanity4
    I work, (well one of my jobs anyway) in cosmetics so I know a lot of cosmetics people and everyone wanted to try the Moodstruck mascara.  It was amazing some of the results people got. (And no, you shouldn’t share macara but we are professionals, people!)
 
   Some people really do have trouble applying false lashes yet want the glammy, over the top lash look… so I feel this product is the perfect answer!
     If you want to learn more about Moodstruck by Younque, or any of their other fabulous cosmetics…click the link above to see and read about it all.  The link above goes to the site of Taylor Andress, an independent for Younique.  She’s very friendly and would love to help you with any questions.  
 
    I plan on trying more products from Younique!
-SDS
-July 1, 2014
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SIX SHOTS: MAY 2014

SIX SHOTS of the month

may, two thousand and fourteen

Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, beauty blog, Luxor Living and Style, Houston top bloggers, fashion blogs in Houston, style, hair, beauty blogs, MAC, white blonde hair, hair color

1.  You Tube
I finally branched out and committed to doing videos on my new YouTube channel.  It’s scary to make a video about things you may find fun or interesting and have to worry about being judged, but I’ve been inspired to continue and do it as log as I continue to enjoy it! Some of the emails or messages you get are so nice, that it becomes a great push to continue. I’m shy, so it’s like talking to people without having to talk to people… if that makes sense.

2. Pink

With other ventures going on and my focus being pulled in other areas, there hasn’t been as many fashion OOTD posts this past month.  I loved this one though, because I liked showing off my black silk dress that I got on the cheap and really do throw on occasionally as well as my new Kors pinky!

3. GLAMOROUSNESS

This was just a phone quicky of me and Bella after having our matching mani/pedis done that I’d posted on my Instagram account. Funny.

Studio Gear, beauty review blog, White blonde, hair, beauty bloggers in Houston, Luxor, cc cream

4. STUDIO GEAR AD

I was once an idealistic child.  During this time, I always thought it would be so neat to be an advertising executive and become the ideas person driving product marketing.  Because of this, I love endorsing products that I love .  I loved this Studio Gear Product and it was fun to get to merge media to build a strong visual for a product I like.

5.  ROAD TRIP

This month I was guilty of NOT dragging my Canon Rebel with me and therefore I did not take a lot of high quality photos.  I did, however, run away for a day, all alone to the L’Auberge Casino in Louisiana.  It’s only a little more than a 2 hour drive, it was a beautiful day, it was last minute, no one could come with me and I chose to live. Drive. Snack. Relax.  I sat outside by the pool for a couple of hours, checked out the glitzy shops, dove into a late night crab leg dinner, gambled lightly, drank 3 Red Bulls, and drove home.  I did discover that you could, in theory, drive your boat right up to the back of the casino, park, and go in.  I thought that was kind of cool. The “street style” shot of the old man going to dinner alone, was one of many I took of him.  I have a friend that loves really old men, so I was sort of stalking him and sending her funny pictures of this gentleman.  I’ve always been one to sneak away and road trip alone, am I the only one who does this?

Marilyn Monroe, MAC lip, lashes, MUA in Houston, white blonde, Stephanie Sjoberg, fashion bloggers in Houston, Houston

6. Make Up Artist

I was taking shots for my new vlog, my Where the Magic Happens Room Tour... and ended up with a few good shots that I actually like.  Lighting is so important in photography, especially since I don’t believe much in Photo Shop.  I look sort of like a glammy drag queen, but I am totally a queen.  I prefer taking shots of others, but it was a slow month.  

Bunny Yeager passed away this month.  Google her if you don’t know the name, but she was a woman who took tons of glam photos back in the day, and was also responsible for photographing some of the best shots of Bettie Page and published many books of photography.  She also did a lot of work for Playboy and loved making women look beautiful. She was responsible for a lot of self-portraits as well as discovering many other models.  I loved this woman’s work, and photographers today still try to emulate throw back shots in Betty Yeager’s retro style.  

I am hoping for more photos of others to share next month!


-SDS

May 31, 2014

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STUDIO GEAR CC CREAM Review!

Studio Gear Cc cream, Cosmetics, Review

the perks of

STUDIO GEAR CC CREAM

    As a cosmetics professional, I can’t tell you how many times I hear, “I want to look natural but perfect.”  What I’ve learned is that people are not always good at describing what they are looking for.  Another issue is that they look at media images and are wanting to obtain the natural perfection we see, not realizing how much lighting, makeup and photo shop it takes to obtain that “I just woke up this way” image.

     Studio Gear’s CC Cream is a great option for people who don’t like to wear makeup, yet want to look better.  It has natural looking coverage, SPF 20 and hydrates the skin, giving it the currently sought after natural, dewy glow.  

(sponsor)


     

     Studio Gear CC Cream comes in three colors, so I wasn’t sure the Linen color would match my pale skin, because when I received my sample from the company, it initially looked a lot darker than what I would wear.  Wow!  As I put it on, it changed colors to blend perfectly with my coloring!  I wore it for the past week, when I wasn’t looking for major coverage, but actually the coverage and evenness of skin tone was so amazing, that I added some blush, lip color and eye makeup, just to see if it could double as a full coverage, and the result is shown here!

Studio Gear, Cc Cream, blogger in Houston, Stephanie Sjoberg, Texas, Luxor Living

I love the fact that the cream is moisturizing my skin while preventing line and wrinkles, restoring skins elasticity while also brightening and illuminating!

(sponsor)


 

Readers of the blog can get a 10% discount on the Studio Gear

website if you click here! Studio Gear has a full line of fabulous cosmetics, so check out their site for even more fabulous products!

(Powered by BrandBacker)

-SDS

April 18, 2014

YOU MAY HAVE MISSED…..

Studio gear cosmetics, Luxor Living and Style, Houston BlogGlasses on Internoet, Stephanie Sjoberg,

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SIX SHOTS: MARCH 2014

SIX SHOTS

march, two thousand and fourteen

Houston bloggers, The Woodlands, Photography, Luxor Living and Style, fashion blogger, photo shoot Galveston beach, black feathers, model

1.  BLACK ANGEL SHOOT

     This entire month’s top six shots all come from a few trips to the beach.  The shoots with Jennifer went well, but click the picture above to see my favorite shots with her!

     

Guess, photo shoot in Houston, Texas girl, American girl, beach girl, Luxor Living and Style, photography in The Woodlands

2.  AMERICAN GIRL SHOOT

      The versatility of her look makes it fun to try new things.  Click the picture above to see the rest of this shoot!

Cathy Ireland, model in Houston, Luxor Living and Style, fashion blog, bloggers in Houston, Top Houston blogs, Galveston beach photo shoot, beach bikini

3.  BEACH SHOOT

     ….and then there’s bikini time.  In trying to keep it clean, we tried to stick to her sporty girl nature. Being glamorous while in bikini-state, and anonymous onlookers are gawking, was not making it easy for her! I learned a lot here.  You’ve got to take your time and not rush. And the damn sun! Never in the right direction!

lone surfer, surf in Texas, Luxor Living and Style, blogger in Texas

4.  ANONYMOUS SURFER GUY

     Anonymous surfer guy came out on a day I went to the beach for a picnic with my husband and Jazzy and Bella.  We get there, and the waves were choppy, it was dark and wet with black clouds over head.  I always appreciate a rebel, so I snapped this surfer who looks like he’s supposed to be behind the desk of the local insurance office.  He clearly ran away from work a few hours early to hit the very rare wave action.

Galveston, photos of Galveston beach, Luxor Living and Style, Texas coast storm, Top Texas bloggers

5.  ANONYMOUS BEACH BIRDS

     The birds were going crazy for what was left of our family picnic and the crazy, dark waters and winds were surreal. It was an adventurous feeling in the air.  Not quite the beautiful, sunny picnic weather I was planning on. Imperfectly perfect.


6.  BEACH INSTAGRAM

     So Instagram and camera phones DO have their place! These were phone shots from that day, and while they are not exactlyof Canon quality, they collectively merge as one to highlight our day! everything doesn’t make it to my Instagram, and Instagram doesn’t make it to the blog, but I wanted to share it here!

-SDS

-March 31, 2014

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