Leah Tackles

HAVE YOU BEEN CLEANSING YOUR FACE THE WRONG WAY ALL THIS TIME? | TUTORIAL: THE DOUBLE CLEANSE

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

A few weeks ago, I hit the big 3-0, and in anticipation of that milestone birthday I started researching a lot of skincare. I did two large skincare hauls (videos included at the bottom of this post) and since then have been testing out a lot of products. One of my favorite discoveries that I think everyone should know about is The Double Cleanse: The double cleanse is a Korean beauty technique that starts out with an oil based cleanser followed  by a foaming cleanser because you need two different formulas to completely and effectively cleanse your face.

What Does Oil Based Cleansing Do?

Gently draws out oil-based debris like makeup, S.P.F, and other pollutants.

Why Can’t I Just Use One Cleanser?

Water-based cleansers aren’t capable of removing oil-based debris because oil and water do not mix.
You are not doing any favors to your skin by not properly removing your makeup and oil-based debris on your skin, and this can cause breakouts. And when you only harsh cleansers they will strip your face of natural oils, and your skin will try to over compensate being dry (yes, even if you’re oily or combo skin and don’t seem dry!) by producing more oil.

My Routine

I use the Skin Fix Oil Based Cleanser and rub it onto my skin in gentle, circular motions before adding water. After I add the water I gentling rub it into my skin again to emulsify the product. Then I rinse the product off. The “oil” part of this made my combo/oily skin self nervous at first, but oil based cleansers are actually gentle and do wonderful things for oily or acne prone skin.

What Does Water Based Cleansing Do?

Gently draws out water-based debris such as sweat and dirt.

My Routine

After the oil cleanser is thoroughly rinsed off,  I use my Skinfood Egg White Pore Foam, with gentle upward circular motions and then rinse it off. I like to pat dry with a Kleenex Hand Towel or a clean washcloth (*Tip: Change out your washcloths daily to ensure that you keep your skin clear!)

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Have you tried any of the Korean beauty products? I would love to hear about them in the comments!

 

 

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BENEFIT GALIFORNIA BOXED BLUSH | YAY OR NAY?

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I hope that you are having a fantastic week so far! With summer right around the corner (at least this Michigan gal hopes it is right around the corner!) I thought it would be fun to try the *new* boxed blush from Benefit Cosmetics and share my thoughts with you.

 

Benefit Galifornia 

 

 

First Impression:

How gorgeous is this brush? It is definitely a super cute name and adorable packaging as I’ve come to expect from Benefit. The cardboard box is sturdy, has a nice sized mirror, and does come with a brush but I do not use the brush it comes with unless I’m in a pinch without my other blush brushes. This blush smells amazing, and reminds me of fresh peaches and summer picnic!  The  gorgeous blush with the gold glimmering sun is absolutely Instagram worthy. The glittery sun is stunning, but unfortunately is just an overspray on top so once you’ve swatched it that does go away, however the gold hints are in the actual blush.

 

 

Why I Love It:

This is a super pigmented shade that would work well on even very deep skin tones, is absolutely perfect for spring and summer, and even my very fair skin can wear it but do use a light hand if you’re very fair. I think this gives a healthy glow and just the right bit of shimmer.

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Will you be picking up this beauty? Let me know in the comments! Don’t forget to enter my beauty giveaway on my YouTube channel, too ; )

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HOW TO PRIME AND TREAT OILY SKIN BEFORE MAKEUP | FEATURING BENEFIT COSMETICS

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I have combo/oily skin, and my t-zone, my nose especially, tends to get very oily. One product that I’ve spoken about before is Milk of Magnesia which I do still like for special, all-day occasions, but as detailed in this post, the magnesium carbonate effectively break down wax esters which helps to degrease your skin but it has a high PH level. Because I do not use Milk of Magnesia daily, I am always on the hunt for ways to safely combat the oil.

 

Benefit Cosmetics POREfessional Line

Benefit Cosmetics the POREfessional Matte Rescue

This product intrigued me right away when it came out, but it took me a little bit of time to determine if I thought it made a significant different in helping me stay matte. This claims to keep your skin matte and to help minimize your pores. This should be used after cleansing and moisturizing. I have been using this product daily for several months now, and as an experiment skipped a day and definitely noticed that my skin was not only shiny faster, but my makeup didn’t stay as fresh looking for as long.

 

Benefit Cosmetics the POREfessional 

This has been a long time favorite product of mine and I always repurchase this primer. This product claims to minimize the appearance of pores, smooth fine lines, and help your makeup stay put, and for me this is absolutely true!

 

 

My Routine

After I cleanse and moisturize my skin I give my moisturizer a couple of minutes to skin in and then I apply Benefit the POREfessional Matte Rescue as the last step in my morning skincare routine. After the POREfessional Matte Rescue has a few minutes to sink into my skin I apply the POREfessional, concentrating on areas where I have large pores, which for me is my nose and the sides of my nose.

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What is your favorite primer? Let me know in the comments! Don’t forget to follow my Snapchat @LeahTackles to see my makeup, skincare, fashion, food, and family life every day ;  ) xx

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SUNDAY RILEY SKINCARE REVIEW

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I hope that you had a lovely weekend! I recently turned 30, and when my milestone birthday was approaching I made the decision to bump up my skincare. I have heard wonderful things about Sunday Riley, especially in the past year or so, and decided to finally take the plunge and try a little bit of this luxury brand for myself.

SUNDAY RILEY

 

 

ABOUT THE BRAND

Sunday Riley offers revolutionary formulas created to powerfully target treatment that work immediately and continue to work overtime.

GOOD GENES ALL-IN-ONE LACTIC ACID TREATMENT

 

 

Good Genes contains strong, purified grade lactic acid to help immediately exfoliate dull skin, plump fine lines, and with continued use battle hyperpigmentation and signs of aging. *Note: This is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) so please be sure to use proper SPF along with this to protect your skin from those rays!

MY THOUGHTS

Good Genes amazed me because my mild acne scars and other fine lines looked instantly plumped!! I have oily/combo skin and while this does take a couple of minutes to sink in, I didn’t find it to make me any more shiny than usual, and loved how much it brightened my skin.

LUNA SLEEPING NIGHT OIL

 

 

Luna is a retinol oil that boosts your skins plumpness, and improves the appearance of pores, wrinkles, and redness. This oil has german essential oils and blue tansy which help to balance the skin and offer soothing benefits while you sleep.

MY THOUGHTS

I apply Luna at nighttime after cleansing my skin. I absolutely love the bulb style and the blue/green color was a bit surprising at first, but actually makes it really easy to see when I have it rubbed in enough to be effective. This looks and feels so luxurious to use, and I really enjoy the scent but it is a bit strong if you’re very sensitive to smells. I do find that this takes quite a bit of time to soak in, so I try to make sure I have at least 15-20 minutes before I plan to actually crawl into bed because otherwise I would get the oil on my pillow. I once again noticed results right away! The morning after my first time using this I thought my skin looked so much better, more awake and just beautiful! I think this will be a product I continue to use for a very long time.

SHOP

You can purchase these products separately in two different sizes, or in a bundled set which is what I did.

 

 

SUNDAY RILEY GOOD GENES

SUNDAY RILEY LUNA SLEEPING NIGHT OIL

SUNDAY RILEY POWER COUPLE

 

If you enjoyed this post, please share it or “Pin” it to your Pinterest. Thank you for reading! xx

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TOO FACED CHOCOLATE BAR PALETTE FAVORITE SHADOW PAIRINGS, TUTORIAL AND GIVEAWAY

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I hope that you are all having a fantastic week so far. If you are a Beauty Insider rewards program member with Sephora then you may have seen that Too Faced Cosmetics recently had a 500 Point Perk that featured a mini limited edition palette featuring their Chocolate Soleil Bronzer and three colors from the Chocolate Bar Palette, a deluxe size sample of the Better Than Sex Mascara, and a deluxe size sample of Chocolate Melted Liquified Lipstick in Chocolate Honey.  The Chocolate Bar Palette is one of my favorites, so today I thought it would be fun to share three of my favorite shadow pairings from the palette. Be sure to check out my video at the bottom of this post and watch it on YouTube to see my swatches, tutorial, and to enter the giveaway to win your own set of the 500 Point Perk.

 

Too Faced Cosmetics Chocolate Bar Palette:

Champagne Truffle, Salted Caramel, and Semi-Sweet (the colors included in the 500 Point Perk):

Without Flash:

With Flash:

White Chocolate, Marzipan, and Creme Brulee:

Without Flash:

With Flash:

Champagne Truffle, Milk Chocolate, Cherry Cordial, and Amaretto:

Without Flash:

With Flash:

 

If you have this palette, let me know your favorite shades in the comments section of this post! Thank you so much for reading my blog and supporting me : ) Please subscribe! xx

 

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Damage Remedy+ Coconut Miracle Oil OGX Shampoo Review

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Hi there! Happy Monday! And HAPPY SPRING!

A couple of weeks ago I shared my all-time favorite heat protectant to use before heat styling (read it here), which just happens to be a drugstore product, and I thought I would continue my Leah Tackles Hair series with another drugstore item that is new to my rotation, but is so far holding its own.

Damage Remedy + Coconut Miracle Oil OGX Shampoo

Why I Love It

First of all, I’ll admit that the packaging was very enticing to me and once I smelled it I immediately tossed this coconut scented shampoo into my shopping cart. This shampoo has a blend of coconut oil, tiare and vanilla bean extracts to help give hydration to my color treated and heat styled hair.

My Routine

I always go at least every other day, and sometimes I go two days before washing my hair and so I  usually end up washing my hair three times per week. I use this twice per week and a purple shampoo for blondes on the third washing day each week.

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Have you tried OGX products before? Let me know in the comments! xx

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MY 30TH BIRTHDAY MAKEUP, HAIR, AND OUTFIT DETAILS!

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I hope that you are having a wonderful week! I had some questions about the makeup that I wore for my surprise 30th birthday party, so today I will be sharing all of my birthday deets with shopping links : )

 

 

MAKEUP

 

 

 

Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Lipstick in 1

Bobbi Brown Liner in Nude

Esteé Lauder DoubleWear Foundation in 1C1 Cool Bone

Kat Von D Lock It Concealer in White Out

Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder

Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder

Make Up For Ever Pro Sculpting Palette in 20

Too Faced Sweethearts Bronzer in Sweet Tea

Too Faced Sweethearts Blush in Sparkling Bellini

Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Champagne Pop

Too Faced Natural Eyes Natural Eye Palettte

L’Oréal Linuer Intense in Black

Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow in Taupe

Covergirl Clump Crusher Mascara in Black Water Resistant

Kiss Lashes

 

HAIR

TRESemmé Heat Tamer Leave-In Spray

L’Oréal Elnett Satin Hairspray

OGX Coconut Milk Anti-Breakage Serum

Batiste XXL Plumping Powder

Nume Curling Wand

OUTFIT

LuLus Dress

Just Fab Shoes

SHOP WITH ME

Shop Just Fab 

EBates

 

I hope that you found this helpful! If you have any questions, please let me know! I hope that you have a fabulous week! Thank you for reading and please subscribe! xx

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30 YEAR OLD CAKE SMASH SESSION! HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEAHTACKLES

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

Whelp, I am *officially* a member of “The 30s Club” and I am actually quite proud of my induction into this exclusive group! I am still on cloud nine after my amazing surprise celebration over the weekend thrown for me by my amazing husband with the help of my amazing friends. I wanted to commemorate this milestone birthday with something special, so I decided that just like parents hire photographers to capture their toddlers smashing their cake, that I would have my photographer (my hubs) capture my very own cake smash. Oh, I also added champagne because, #Thirty. I hope you enjoy these pictures and please feel free to “Pin” onto your Pinterest (just hover over any picture to click the “Pin” button or use the sharing buttons at the bottom of the post) to share the idea!

 

This is thirty ; ) And as of yesterday, LeahTackles.com is officially THREE YEARS OLD!  Thank you for reading! Please subscribe : )

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HOW TO PROTECT YOUR HAIR WHEN HEAT STYLING | DRUGSTORE REPURCHASE ITEM!

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I hope that you are having a fantastic week! LeahTackes.com (that’s the blog you’re on!) turns THREE YEARS OLD on Sunday! Which means I will also be celebrating a birthday ; ) so stay tuned for a post next week! I get a lot of questions about my haircare routine, and I thought that sharing one of my go-to repurchases would be a great place to start.

TRESemmé Thermal Creations Heat Tamer

 

 

Why I Love It

I have been using this heat protectant for years on a nearly daily basis for any heat styling that I do to my hair. I have included it in blog posts here and here but thought that it deserved its very own post because it is a must-have to me! This sprays out evenly and covers a lot of hair at once, so it’s easy to quickly spray into my hair even when I’m in a rush. The smell isn’t overpowering, but it’s a very refreshing fruity scent that I do enjoy. I never skip this step because I do curl my hair a lot, and also use a blow dryer and occasionally a straightening iron which all can be very damaging especially on my long, fine, color treated hair. Using this product guards against heat damage and friction from styling tools. This doesn’t make my hair feel sticky (my pet peeve is the nape of my neck feeling sticky!) or heavy.

Key Ingredients

This product has panthenol and glycerin which help to condition, biotin to strengthen, and cetylpyridinium chloride which give you the heat protection.

My Routine

I hold this several inches away from my hair and spray all over, focusing on the ends of my hair which tend to be dry. I style my hair as normal and then finish off with hairspray (shop my favorite is here) and a little oil on the ends (shop my favorite is here).

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TOO FACED MASCARA MELT OFF! DO YOU NEED IT? FOLLOW UP REVIEW

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I hope that you had a wonderful weekend! If you’re a regular reader of this blog or if you watch my YouTube videos then you know that I love wearing waterproof mascara to avoid makeup smudges and to hold a curl when I curl my lashes. If you wear waterproof mascara, you probably know that it is a huuuuge pain to remove! Today I want to share a product that I did a first impression video and demo on back in June of last year to let you know how it fits into my current beauty routine.

 

Too Faced Mascara Melt Off

 

 

First Impression and Demo Video

Follow Up Review

Do I use this every day? No, and I do find that it’s an “extra” step so I do not use this every day. I use the Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water (I use the one with the blue cap) on a cotton round held to my eye  to remove my eye makeup most days. However, I do like to use the Too Faced Mascara Melt Off a couple of times a week because the mascara builds up little by little when it isn’t completely removed. I LOVE the way my lashes feel after using this! My lashes feel super soft and completely free of any mascara gunk.

Do You Need This?

You could use other things to remove waterproof mascara and condition your lashes such as coconut oil, baby oil, petroleum jelly, or olive oil, but that is going to be a lot messier. I personally like this product because I can get the oil directly onto my lashes and not deal with the mess dripping on my face.

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