ten must have beauty products - HG status

I've never been much of a makeup girl since I don't wear that much honestly. I'm pretty low maintenance when it comes to my hair and makeup especially since becoming a mom. However I'm a research and product freak-of-nature when it comes to skin care. I have very dry, sensitive and acne prone skin.....an awesome combo HA! We have a tight budget with my husband being a full time dental student, so I research A LOT before spending money on a product. Granted, there has been lots of duds of products I have used over the years. I'm going to share the 10 products that you will never see me without, they are well loved by lots of people and they work so good with my skin they have earned the title of holy grail. I also threw in a couple of makeup products, ones that I love and have stuck with over the years. 

 

1. Frank Body - creamy face scrub: Everyone needs a good face scrub to buff away dull skin. I love the natural ingredients used in this product and it seriously makes my skin BABY soft, even softer than my Clarisonic. I have yet to try their original coffee scrub, which I read some people use on their face. I liked that this product was marketed toward sensitive skin and it came in a tube so it was easy to use over and over. I use this scrub about twice a week in the mornings when I need an extra glow or need my makeup to glide on.

2. Ponds cold cream: This is just a classic product that has been used for generations. I use this every night to take my makeup off. This is the best thing for dry skin, I just massage this on my face and take a warm wash cloth to wipe off. I follow up with my DIY toner and facial cream (more info below), and goodbye dry patches and hello clean soft skin. If you have oilier skin, the Noxema cold cream is a great alternative. I love the eucalyptus scent but it tends to be more drying. 

3. Indian Healing Clay - face mask: This mask is no joke. If you need a powerful facial and some deep pore cleansing, this is your guy. I mix mine with some Braggs apple cider vinegar for extra benefits. Tip: mix the powder and vinegar/water in a ziplock bag. Just pinch the outside for easy mixing then you can turn the bag inside-out to apply and throw away when finished. Makes for easy clean up with no dishes to clean. 

4. Urban Oreganics - green tea facial cream: This may be my favorite product of all. I searched for years for a good facial cream for my dry skin. This is the only one that has worked for me. Goodbye dry patches...finally and no acne side effects. I love the natural ingredients, I love the consistency and I love the way my skin feels. It hydrates all night. I use this morning and night since my skin is extremely dry. 

5. Tinkle face razors: I'm not going to try to explain this one so I'll let Michelle Money do it. Just watch this video and TRY IT! No shame. 

6. Tubby Todd all-over ointment: I can't say enough good things about this company in general. I have tried EVERY SINGLE Tubby Todd product and I'm obsessed with them all. But that's for another post since I mostly use them on my son (he has severe eczema). And the mama products will be on my fourth trimester baby must haves post...stay tuned. Anyway back to the ointment. This is my favorite product of theirs and if you have eczema just go buy it right now. I get eczema patches on my upper arms and this stuff is the only product that makes them disappear. It's like magic. 

7. Urban Oreganics - Body Food: My second Urban Oreganics product, another great company to try all their products. I use the Body Food for a million things: cuticles, baby belly, dry spots, eyelashes, dry hands/elbows/feet. It's just a great natural body butter packed with essential oils....endless possibilities. 

8. Aromatherapy eucalyptus sugar scrub: I received this scrub as a gift and I quickly became obsessed. For those nights when you need some extra pampering and relaxation. 

9. Estee Lauder sumptuous mascara: Hands down best mascara. I have very long and very straight eyelashes. This is a drier mascara, so I feel it holds curl better than any other. It's also super build-able. One coat is all you need for everyday but for nights out you can do a few coats and it'll look like you have falsies on...no spider lashes or clumping either! I love that I only need one mascara for day and night and I can build it for how I want it to look. My grandma buys all Estee Lauder makeup and she gave me a sample of this to try about 10 years ago. I've used this every since, I usually buy sample packs off Amazon since they last forever and you don't risk the little tubes drying out before you can use it all. 

10. Anastasia dip brow: Just a great eyebrow pomade that lasts all day and the color is just right for me (I use the chocolate). Only complaint about this is it can dry-out quick.

 

BONUS: DIY toner: Click the link for the tutorial I followed to make mine, I only had tea tree oil on hand so that's the essential oil I used (great for fighting acne). Better than any store bought toner and super cheap! I like to buy the ingredients in bulk so I can make a lot of batches, the products on their own can be used for a bunch of different things as well, win win. 

Let me know if you try any of these products and what you think! What are your HG beauty products?