Clever Ways to Use Your FSA Funds

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Use your FSA funds for sunscreen & these other items before year end!
photo from http://www.oralabs.com/blog/wear-sunscreen/

For those of you with HSA or FSA funds, December 31 marks the, “use it or lose it,” deadline. If you don’t need an eye exam or new glasses, what do you spend those funds on?

DID YOU KNOW…

…that HSA and FSA dollars can, in most cases, be spent on sunscreen?

You’ll want to verify with your plan provider, of course, but yes – this is a viable option. If you have an FSA card, you can order FSA-eligible items directly with it; Walgreens has a whole section of their site dedicated to FSA-eligible items; otherwise you will have to check for your reimbursement process.

What better way to stock up on sunscreen for 2016? Most varieties are covered – sprays, traditional lotions, sticks, what-have-you. You may not be able to convince them to cover Coola or Supergoop (but I don’t know for sure that you can’t, either), but still. Stock up for 2018!

Other FSA Funds Neat-to-Knows

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Silkn Revit

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Silkn ReVitSilkn Revit, $99

This is a legacy post from earlier this year that I’ve added a little more meat to and cleaned up some sections for clarity.

Now that I’ve reviewed the microderm-like product that disappointed me, it’s time to talk about the one I dig! I got my Silkn Revit at Costco (who is seriously underrated for beauty finds, by the way) for $65, which is over a third off its retail price. Unfortunately, I can’t find this on Costco.com at the moment; I picked mine up in the warehouse. If I couldn’t find it on sale, I’d look at Nordstrom (what with their famous return policy as insurance against a major issue) or Amazon ($63 on 12/16/17!)

Every blog review I’ve read so far has been little more than a regurgitation of the marketing materials Silkn puts out. Cute…and not useful.

Ergonomics

This device is far simpler than the PMD device I tried recently. There’s a single button that turns on, increases suction, and turns off depending on how many times it is pressed. It is ergonomically-friendly, lightweight, and easy to hold.

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Tuesday Extra – The Humidifier

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The winter solstice is in two days and my hair is protesting by being static-y and my skin is parched. Let’s talk about my skin, my cat, The Sickness, and humidifiers.

So – about me: since I started using it a few years ago, argan oil hasn’t let me down. Four drops a night, historically, has been enough for my skin. As temperatures have plummeted and heaters have been on, though, my skin needs more. During the day on weekdays I’ve been cocktailing B-Hydra (came with my Come C About Me set) with C-Firma. On weekends, I’ve used a couple drops of argan in its place – but I was considering using a, “full dose,” of argan oil TWICE a day. That’s how dry my skin was getting – and yes, I’m staying hydrated!

As for my hair, winter means more blow-drying for me. I never blow dry without product (I’m finally nearing the end of my Paul Mitchell Super Skinny), so imagine my surprise when I ended up with staticky hair last Friday. I deep condition once a week so I didn’t think it was an issue – but this year, it evidently is!

Poor Little Cat

I’ve never understood how people could just not like cats. (Close friends who take time out of their day to read are probably laughing and shaking their heads, “Here we go…”) It literally does not compute in my brain the same way not liking ice cream or Cowboy Bebop don’t compute. So if you’re one of those people, sorry, but you’re going to suffer through a cat photo and a brief story.

This…

…is Taiga, and she is majestic but sensitive. Her stomach can get finicky if she eats too fast or if it is Tuesday or if Mercury is in retrograde. Unlike her sister but like me, her skin tends to get fussy and dry if humidity in our apartment isn’t up to snuff. Poor thing will scratch herself senseless trying to mollify her itchy, dry skin. It hurts my heart – after all, I can’t just slap some argan oil on her the way I can myself.

The Sickness

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They Want How Much? Lilumia Brush Cleaning System

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Lilumia Brush Cleaning System

The Lilumia Brush Cleaning System is far from new. At this point, they’re on the second edition of the device which is, apparently, slightly more effective. Unsurprisingly to me, it’s ending up in TJ Maxx marked down over 30% off retail.

What is the Lilumia Brush Cleaning System?

In short, it’s a washing machine for your makeup brushes. A lazy makeup lover’s dream. This system is to your makeup brushes what a dishwasher is to your plates and forks. It can hold up to twelve brushes at a time, descends into cleansing solution, and agitates against a small, nubbed plate.

At first glance, this sounds awesome. I don’t love washing brushes; it is a tedious, joyless chore on par with hand-washing dishes (#tinyapartmentproblems). My initial reaction? “Shut up and take my money!”

So What’s the Catch?

Well… there are a few.

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Three Unbelievably Great Drugstore Brands

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Over the last decade, drugstore cosmetics have made some major strides in competing with prestige performance. Some think this is due to the ownership structure in the beauty industry and the fact that many drugstore AND prestige brands share parent companies; others think it is due to the natural effects of trying to maintain a competitive edge. I know that it is both – but I’m not here to debate the why. I just want to talk about some great drugstore brands!

Maybelline & L’Oreal

…are owned by the same parent company, so I’m lumping them together especially since I’m talking about the same types of products. I’ve reviewed and REALLY liked both of their gel liners before (I do prefer Maybelline’s gel a bit more). Their cream and pressed-pigment shadows are jaw-droppingly good, especially if you can snag them with a coupon.

Although there are other concealers that undoubtedly outperform Maybelline’s Instant Age Rewind concealer., , they all take more work to apply and blend. I use it at least three days a week. The intersection of price, performance, and convenience is just right for me.

They haven’t made me a cult fan of other products yet, but I’ve been an adherent to L’Oreal Telescopic Carbon black for years now – and I’ve enjoyed other formulas from them too (like Million Lashes Excess).

Wet n Wild

Photo definitely not mine! It is from from BedlamBeauty.com, go show her some love.

My first memory of painting my nails as a kid isn’t accompanied by a color, but a brand. I remember clutching a Wet n Wild polish bottle not unlike the one pictured above by Nichole from Bedlam Beauty. Lacking dexterity, I tried and repeatedly failed to neatly paint my digits perched precariously over an old, tattered towel freckled with drops of dried polish. Better that than the floor, right?

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Refinery29 on Interview Makeup

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This is a legacy post commenting on Refinery29’s Interview Makeup article. My content has been given a facelift; it has been edited for clarity and ease-of-reading, but is ultimately the same. I winced as I re-read it and the article that inspired it. WTF.

The other day I was reading various beauty-related articles when I came across this one from Refinery29 discussing Skype or other video-call interviews. Seeing the title, I was intrigued – this could be pretty useful to a lot of people these days.

The Players

The Refinery29 article is filled with advice solicited from Michelle Phan, Nic from Pixiwoo/Real Techniques, and Deepica Mutyala; a blogger/vlogger I was unfamiliar with until I read. I’m not a regular Refinery29 reader, but was looking forward to the content.

Knowing Your Interview Audience

It starts off with sound advice from Mutyala – that you should understand who you’ll be interviewing with. Obviously, if you are interviewing in a traditionally very conservative field, like law, you need to keep your makeup understated and very safe. Advancing to the topic of lighting, she makes a point to share that thoughtful lighting is key to a web conference-style interview. It’s no secret that cameras tend to pick things up a little differently than our eyes tend to on our own – webcams, especially ones built-in to your laptop’s lid, are certainly no exception. Throw in a less-than-ideal lighting arrangement, and people could use some help presenting themselves professionally – so this is good stuff, so far.

Keep the Focus on You, Not Your Surroundings

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