House Smelling Like Luxury! I found the Perfect (Low Cost) Dupe for Jo Malone's Candles.

Just the other day, I visited my local Aldi's grocery store.  It was supposed to be another uneventful trip where I picked up some avocados, leafy greens and maybe a few specialty food items.  Little did I know that this routine stop would land me the biggest find of 2018.

Aldi's is a cross between a low-cost Whole Foods and Big Lots.  Since they're affiliated with Trader Joe's, they often carry organic, healthy food options at a really affordable price. They also have this neat home goods section that stocks random household items on closeout.  Their inventory rotates quite a bit so if you find something you like, it's best to grab it.

Upon entering the store, I made a beeline for the home goods section to see if I'd run into something special.  Within moments, my eyes landed on a display of candles with cute little black bows on the lids. Instinctively, I picked one up to check out the branding.  I thought my eyes were deceiving me because, at first glance, it appeared as if I was holding a Jo Malone candle.  I inhaled the scent of the candle and confirmed that it was indeed the same fragrance of my favorite Jo Malone candle from years ago.  But the price was only $6.99!

What on earth was happening?

America's Next Top Model Runner-Up Reveals Her Favorite Beauty Supply Store Lip Gloss

My favorite Instagram lives are the ones where we tag along for an impromptu get ready with me.  Often, the person is just chit chatting while they execute their entire makeup routine.  Most of the time, we are given a glimpse into the raw, unsponsored, look into their makeup stash.  I've come across a few gems from jumping on these random lives.  One of my favorite mascara's, L'Oreal Telescopic was introduced to me via Kendra Bailey's live.  I talked about it in a previous Instagram Beauty Secrets Post.

Today, I want to share another product that I might pick up thanks to the recommmendation of former America's Next Top Model Runner Up, Tatiana Elizabeth.

How to Create The Glass Skin Effect for Summer

It wasn't long ago that I stumbled on a genius hack that allows us to instantly create a DIY shimmering body oil not unlike Fenty's Body Lava.  I've been known to make impulsive beauty purchases from time to time. But lately, I've been so impatient that I often resort to making a quick at home version compiled from what I already own.

Just this past week, I was introduced to a new skin enhancing product that I absolutely had to have.  It all started when I was tagged in the comments of a post on Instagram.  Little did I know that I was about to discover my newest favorite summer skin essential.

Ciara & Kenya Moore used the Law of Attraction Principles to Attract Their Mates. Here's How.

Recently, I came across two articles where celebrity women have mentioned using Law of Attraction techniques to find their husbands.  I'm going to try to tackle this topic in case someone came across their sound bite and wanted to know more about the process.

I'm no expert on using the law of attraction to attract one's ideal partner.  I was already married by the time The Secret movie came out.  But, I've studied the law of attraction over the years and thought I could provide some extra commentary on how to apply this law in dating and courtship.

Staring at a Screen Causes Weight Gain. Here's How.

One habit that I would absolutely love to change is my nightly routine of scrolling through timelines on my cell phone until I drift off to sleep.  And, every so often, I wake up and immediately grab my phone and catch up on what I missed during slumber.  When I do this, I'm guaranteed to stay up another 2-3 hours before dozing off again.   Even if I total 8 hours of sleep, I still don't feel as rested as I could because of the interruption.

I've heard a few sound bites here and there that we shouldn't check our phones before bed but I never quite listened.  I never paid much attention because I didn't fully understand why this habit was so damaging.  I'm one of those people who are motivated by avoiding negative consequences. Now that I have a better understanding of why screen light is so damaging, I'm fully committed to adjusting my behavior accordingly.

If you care about managing your weight, getting enough beauty sleep, and achieving optimal health, you definitely want to keep reading.

Let's Talk About The Ways to Treat Stretch Marks

I received a request to cover the topic of addressing stretch marks.  Since summer is on its way, I thought it now would be a great time to discuss.  Summer is all about being confident and, sometimes, visible stretch marks can interfere our confidence.  I believe that stretch mark management requires a comprehensive approach.

So let's talk about all the ways to avoid and treat them.

The Most Effective Life Hacking Experiments that Really Changed My Life

Over the years I've conducted a series of mini experiments that have served me very well.  Although some of them were meant to become life long habits, I still enjoyed the benefits of incorporating a new behavior even for a short period of time.  We're constantly receiving advice to incorporate various habits into our lives because of the potential benefits.

Sometimes, it makes sense to carry out an activity on a daily basis for a short period of time to accurately measure the impact of the new behavior.  This is what I'm referring to when I talk about carrying out an experiment. Once you realize the immediate impact of your behavior change, you can decide if the impact is enough to continue the activity.

I thought it would be a good idea to take a look back at my most amazing mini-experiments and share which ones had the most impact. Of all the life enhancing mini-experiments I've conducted over the years, these are my all-time favorites.

Abundance Spending// How to Spend Money in a way that Creates More Financial Abundance

Last weekend, my brother and I had a conversation that inspired this article.   He planned to withdraw a specified amount of money from his bank account to spend in a manner that created additional abundance.  As he talked about his strategy, I grinned from ear to ear.  I am not stranger to this method. In fact, I have been implementing the "spending for greater abundance" technique for nearly a decade and it has served me well.

Today, I'll share examples of how I implemented this strategy over the years along with the pitfalls to avoid whenever doing so.

Weekend Beauty // How To Turn Your Sheet Mask Routine into a Hydrating Facial

The weekend is here.  Saturdays are the perfect time to incorporate beauty related activities that we didn't have time to squeeze in during the week.  This week I came across a tip that I can't wait to try today.  It's a simple tweak to the way I traditionally sheet mask that can really pay off big time.

I stumbled on this idea after reading about someone's beauty ritual online.  The woman stated that she utilizes sheet masks specifically after a shower.

Why?

Sephora Stores Are Giving Out Free Hydra Facials!

Just weeks ago, I talked about how the Hydra Facial was, in my opinion, one of the most effective facials on the market.  Why? Because it's like getting two skin treatments in one.  First, your skin is manually exfoliated with the help of a powerful pen like suction tool. Once all of the dead skin cells are magically whisked away, your bare skin is primed and ready for the hydrating serums which seem to penetrate deep within the surface.

Days after a Hydra Facial, you'll stop randomly upon seeing the reflection of yourself in the mirror and wonder "what have I done differently to my skin?" Then you'll remember that you made the wise decision of treating yourself to a Hydra Facial and now you're reaping the wonderful benefits.

The only drawback to the Hydra Facial is the price.  A session can set you back around $100.00.  If you're not a celebrity, that's quite a lot of money.  You can slip that $100.00 back in your walled because today, I learned a way that we can enjoy this skin transforming facial free of charge.

This Smoothie Ingredient also Gives You Strong, Shinier Hair

A couple of years ago, I was really passionate about making my morning smoothies.  I saw it as the perfect opportunity to layer in a bunch of nutrient dense ingredients into one, easy to consume, beverage.  In my quest to make the most powerful smoothie imaginable, I was always in search of the next super-ingredient.  One of my favorites was hydrolized gelatin. 

Initially, I bought this gelatin because it provided so many beauty benefits. Plumper skin, thicker hair, longer nails, less cellulite to name a few.  When I incorporated gelatin in my smoothies, I realized that it kept me fuller, longer.  This is part of the reason why many claim that gelatin helps with weight loss.  But that's not the only reason.  Apparently, gelatin helps boost metabolism while activating hormones that suppress our appetite.

I could go on and on about the wonders of consuming gelatin. But today, I want to discuss how to incorporate it into our healthy hair routine.

3 Lessons I Learned from Hannah Bronfman's Night Time Skin Routine

I need to put some serious attention to my evening skin routine.  Now that I no longer deal with sporadic breakouts, I just don't feel the need to work as hard.  But this way of thinking is highly flawed.  Currently, my skin is doing ok.  But if I maintain a disciplined skin routine, I could take it from good to great!

Luckily for me, I stumbled on a video that provided some serious inspiration.  Beauty & lifestyle influencer, Hannah Bronfman gave Harper's Bazaar a glimpse of her current evening routine and I picked up a few tricks.  Let's discuss.

Alter Your Thinking, Alter the Course of Your Life.

I've been on a journey for personal development for many years.  Over time, I've learned quite a bit about how to motivate myself, set goals, and attract what I want.  But there's still one area that I wish to develop even more.  

What I'm referring to is having the ability to alter my way of thinking in order to create new realities.  Let me explain further what I'm referring to....

[Try This] Make Your Own Shimmering Body Oil for Summer.

When Rihanna posted a series of a few short videos on her Instagram promoting the launch of Fenty's Body Lava, everyone was filled with excitement and anticipation of what was to come.  Fenty made a strong entrance into the beauty space with its extensive range of foundations.  No one was ready for the yellowy-shimmery goodness of Fenty's Trophy Wife highlighter.

As Rihanna demonstrated the ease at which she illuminated her skin with the gold liquid, and we were all mesmerized.   Everyone couldn't wait for the launch.  One person, in particular, was so excited to create summer glowy skin that she developed a really cost effective and easy to dupe.

The Facial You Need, Even If You Have Flawless Skin

I've enjoyed various types of facials over the years.  Some were heavily focused on treating and eliminating my acne.  Others were meant to even out skin tone.  I've also experienced anti-aging facials meant to promote & stimulate collagen.

Having problematic skin means always looking for the next best thing.  Well, I'm here to tell you that even though I've tried a bunch of treatments, one stands out as superior.  What I love most about this facial is that it gives amazing results even if your skin is already flawless.

This is the Tea you should be Drinking for the Greatest Anti-Aging Skin Benefits!

One of my intentions for the year was to become a daily tea drinker.  I want to be one of those people who enjoy several cups of tea each day.  Having discovered the numerous benefits of drinking green tea, I decided that becoming an avid tea drinker would benefit me long term.

So far, I'm enjoying my new habit. I have to admit that I skip a few days here and there.  But, I'm ready to take my tea drinking routine way more seriously now that I learned of one type of tea that can help us stay young forever.

Hey! What's New?

One of my other side gigs is coaching others who want to positively impact their lives.  An exercise I like to do is a roleplay where we pretend that I am a close friend who they haven't heard from in a while.

Upon running into each other unexpectedly, I excitedly ask the person to tell me all about what's happened in their lives since we last spoke.  The purpose of this activity is to invite my clients to describe in detail, all of their intended manifestations.  The inspiration for this idea came from my own life experience. After meeting someone I haven't seen in a while, and being asked what' new, I really couldn't come up with any exciting to share.

That's when I came to the realization that I didn't have anything new to talk about because I wasn't up to anything. I was just allowing life to happen.

This "Smell Good" Detox Enhances the Scent of your favorite Fragrances.

As summer quickly approaches, one of the dominant thoughts that pops up in my mind is initiating a pre-summer detox process. Typically, as temperatures rise, our internal processes become more active. We sweat more in an attempt to try to keep cool. Our oil production increases causing a spike in breakouts. I try my best to take a proactive approach an initiate the detox before summer hits. This helps to spare me from unnecessary breakouts.

2018 will be no different! But, this time around, I want to heavily focus on enhancing my natural scent. My motive for this is because I find myself drawn to fragrances with extremely light, exceptionally natural scents. Unlike the fragrances of yesteryear, newly developed perfumes are often light and underwhelming. Like "no makeup, makeup," fragrances of today are designed to simply enhance our natural scent. Best of all, they collaborate with our natural pheromones creating our own alluring smell.

If you'd like to enhance your natural scent, here are some tips to incorporate into your regimen.

Activity Based Eating. The Strategic Approach to Indulging without Gaining Weight.

Working for myself from home has been absolutely amazing.  But, there is one drawback that was kinda unexpected.  If I'm not careful, I can easily pack on pounds that seemingly come out of nowhere. 

To get to the root cause of the issue, I did an experiment where I logged all of my calories and tracked my daily activity. Over time, I noticed patterns forming that served as information that I could use later on.  Once I discovered the pattern, I realized that I could eat pretty much anything I wanted without the fear of putting on too much weight. But this strategy only worked if I applied it strategically.

Recently, I reintroduced this principle in my life again and I quickly lost a couple of pounds.  Since summer is on its way, I thought I share this simple technique with all of you to help you reach your weight goals. 

[A VIBE] How I Manifested Thousands By Focusing on Raising My Vibration

Last month I wrote an article about how feeling amazing helps you to attract amazing results.  I'm happy to report that since publishing the article, I've experienced some wonderful outcomes from my efforts.  Financially, it was my strongest earning month this year and I've also manifested two unexpected, random checks.

Not a bad reward, for only having focused on feeling good.

So now that I'm getting a glimpse of the possibilities of maintaining a high level of vibration. I'm ready to ramp up my efforts even more.  This has now become my top priority.  Let's talk about the multiple ways to I'll supercharge my manifestation.