Beauty and Fashion

7.16.2016

Green Beauty: Tomato Toner for Oily Skin


Watch the Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWe6v4oI7Eg&feature=youtu.be

Update: You may notice some separation in the product. Just shake it before each use.

Before I started using natural products I found that toners and astringents can be very drying. Over drying your skin with alcohol-based products can actually increase the amount of oil your skin produces. Not only do these products not help but they’re also filled with toxic ingredients that aren’t safe for you or the environments. With some research I found that you can make your own toner with things you probably already have in your kitchen. 

Do you ever wonder why people put cucumbers on their eyelids at the spa? Well, cucumbers have soothing properties that reduce inflammation and puffiness on the skin. Cucumbers are also 95% water so they are a great hydrating product; especially in warm weather. Tomatoes are the key ingredient for this toner. Tomatoes have antioxidants that fight against cells that can damage your skin. Tomatoes are also acidic (don’t worry the level is safe for consummation and application) so it does a great job in tightening the pores that produce excess oils. It’s important to understand that you will never be able to close your pores and your body will always excrete oils, sweat, etc. It’s just that the larger your pores are the more oily your skin can get and the easier it is for your skin to be prone to breakouts. Tomatoes are also rich in vitamin A, C and K. Vitamins A and C are commonly found in acne products but they're added with a bunch of toxic ingredients so the purpose can be defeated. Now that you know about the health bit let’s get into the actual DIY!


 Ingredients (Sizing depends on how much you would like)

1 handful of grape tomatoes, ½ of a tomato or 2-3 slices of a tomato

3-4 slices of cucumber

½ cup of green tea (from a tea bag- don’t use a Snapple or Honest tea)

½ cup of apple cider vinegar

½ cup of water (to dilute the acidity levels)

½ teaspoon of lemon [or lime] juice*

These ingredients are customizable. Feel free to add rose water, tea tree oil, essential oil or witch hazel for a different effect. *optional


Directions - With A Blender

1.      Add wet ingredients into a blender and blend!

2.      Transfer into an oil bottle (mine is an old jojoba oil bottle from Trader Joe’s. You can also use a mason jar, soap dispenser, water bottle or anything else that can hold your toner.)

Directions -Without a Blender

1.      Diffuse cucumbers in 1 cup of water overnight. Because of this step you won’t need to add the ½ cup of water that I mentioned above.

2.      Add green tea bags into cucumber-water and warm. Let it cool down completely before moving to the next step. It should not be above room temperature at all


3.      Squeeze tomato liquid into the cucumber-water (if you have a strainer use that to avoid the seeds getting into your toner but it’s not a big deal if you don’t have one).

4.      Add ½ of apple cider vinegar and mix it all together (You can add any of the optional ingredients that I mentioned above)


5.      Transfer into a holder and enjoy!



Gross; I know but I wanted to show you guys that it really does a great job in removing excess dirt from your face even after you've washed it.

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Green Beauty: Tomato Toner for Oily Skin

7.16.2016

7.10.2016

Green Beauty: Activated Charcoal Mask with Minimal Products



Update: I recommend using this product and then exfoliating after. I've noticed that all of the product does not come off with just water. Working on some new variations to combat this. 

About a year ago I bought my first charcoal-based product. I didn’t do any research on it but all I knew was that it was supposed to detoxify my skin. It was natural too so I was sold. I purchased the activated charcoal face scrub from Onyae Naturals and although I haven’t repurchased in a while I absolutely love this product. I noticed that my skin would clear up when I used it about twice a week and it was then that I decided to do some research into activated charcoal (Onyae Naturals Activated Charcoal Face Scrub Review).




For one, this is not a new or innovative material. Activated charcoal has been around for centuries which shouldn’t surprise us folk that like raw materials. Just know that any natural or earth-based material has been around for ages and that our generation or the one before are not the first to find out about it or incorporate it into our lifestyles. According to this article activated charcoal can be made from bituminous coal, sub-bituminous coal, lignite coal, coconut shells, wood, etc.  More from this article:

Activated carbon is defined as carbon that has been heated or otherwise treated to increase its adsorptive capacity.
The key property of activated carbon is adsorption, which allows gases and chemicals to adhere to millions of microscopic pores on the internal surface area of the material. Adsorption should not be confused with absorption (spelled with a B). Adsorption is the adhesion of molecules from a gas or liquid (adsorbate) to a surface of a material (adsorbent). Absorption is the process in which a molecule (the adsorbate) permeates or is dissolved by a liquid or solid (the absorbent). So Adsorption is a surface adhesion phenomenon while absorption utilizes the total volume of the material to capture the absorbent.
“Activating” carbon is the process of making the carbon high in surface area to facilitate adsorption.
Adsorption opens a world of opportunity for industrial applications. Activated carbon is used to filter water, purify gas, and is even used as an ingredient in prescription medicines.


I know for a fact that I will be creating variations of these masks but I wanted to start off with something very simple.

Disclaimer: Activated charcoal powder is very fine and light making it the perfect product for a huge mess so be careful when opening the bag and transferring the charcoal. In case of a spill, hard surfaces will be fine after a quick wipe down with a non-toxic cleaner or plain water but fabrics can be trickier


Ingredients
Activated CharcoalAmazon
            Eye measurements: Use the amount you want depending on how many uses you want. I store mine for two weeks so I use about 4-5 spoonful’s.
           
Tea Tree Oil* – Whole Foods but can be purchased here
            1-2 drops
Sea Salt*
            A Pinch
Water
            Eye measurement but pour liquids in gradually. You should have more dry products than wet to avoid a very water-y consistency
*optional

Mix it all together and enjoy!




Green Beauty: Activated Charcoal Mask with Minimal Products

7.10.2016

3.23.2016

Fashion Feature| Taylor



Hey guys! My name is Taylor and my last name is super embarrassing so let's not. I'm a 17 year old aspiring model and makeup artist. I love eating and flickin’ my life away on Instagram. I'm currently a dance major at Repertory High School for Theater Arts.

1. What are your favorite stores or places to shop?
I love thrifting because vintage pieces are the dopest. Metropolis, Search and Destroy, and L Train Vintage are my fave thrift stores. I also love American Apparel, Urban Outfitters and Brandy Melville.

2. If you could have anybody's closet, who would it be?
This is so tough. It's a tie between Rihanna, Gigi Hadid and Kylie Jenner.

3. What is your "go-to" fashion piece or pieces?
My look is very “80’s soccer mom” so maybe a fly crew neck.

4. What are your essential fashion items?
Some dope sneakers. What's on your feet will always boost your outfit. You'll also never catch me without my Virgo necklace!

5. What's your current favorite fashion trend?
Faux fur coats! Especially the pink ones.

6. How would you [or others] describe your personal style?
Very vintage and spunky. I'm not scared to take risks with what I wear.








Fashion Feature| Taylor

3.23.2016

Fashion Feature| Diamond



1. What are your favorite stores or places to shop?
My favorite place to shop, because I love treasure-like hand me downs, is this local thrift store in my city Lowell, MA called St. Vincent. Or just any thrift store really. Although a good portion of my clothes are from there Forever 21, Target, Marshalls and Journey's (for shoes) are my other go to spots.

2. If you could have anybody's closet, who would it be?
It'd be a mix between Solange, Alexa Chung and Will Smith/Tatyana Ali (fresh prince era)

3. What is your "go-to" fashion piece and/or hairstyle?
It's hard to have just one go to hair do. I'm always switching my hair up whether it's box braids, my natural hair or weaves. When my natural hair is out I always do Bantu knot twist-outs and sport a cute fro. My favorite fashion piece would have to be my older sister's big faux pearl earrings that's she's never getting back (ha ha).

4. Based on the fashion, if you could live in any era [or any place] which one would it be?
A mix up between the elegant 50s-60s looks and the expressive 80s -90s looks.

5. What are your essential fashion items?
High-waisted bottoms!! You don't have to worry about a crack slip and they aligned nicely with curves.

6. Fashion advice or favorite fashion quote?
In whatever we wear I believe we should have J Alexander's voice in our head "walk like it's for sale and the rent is due tonight." Be comfortable in all things you wear, own it.

7. How would you [or others] describe your personal style?
If I had to describe my style I'd say it's a relaxed tomboy chic look. Comfort is a priority. Others say I dress pretty boyish. If I really think about it, more males ask where I get my clothes from rather than females which I'm not bothered by at all because after all I shop in the men's section and have borrowed my older brothers' clothes ever since I could dress myself. Growing up I was like Donny from The Wild Thornberry’s. Free. So that kind of stuck with me in a fashion sense.

8. Favorite thing about www.sarahfarma.com?
What I love most about sarahfarma.com is the free expression that it contains. The elephant in the room kind of topics are discussed such as race, sex and natural hair. This blog is very insightful and altogether a good read.






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Fashion Feature| Diamond

2.22.2016

Rocksbox| Margaret Elizabeth & Gorjana + Coupon Codes



We’ve heard of subscription services that offer beauty products, prom dresses, snacks and shoes. But what about the accessories? I mean, let’s be honest some mi rings or some arm candy can definitely do something to a casual outfit (and your Instagram fee). That’s exactly what Rocksbox is here for! They offer a subscription services with gorgeous designer jewelry (yes, designer – one of the designers sold out at Nordstrom).

As much as I rather shop in my fuzzy pink onesie sometimes it’s a pain in the ass. I am definitely the type of person that can fall in love with an item until I actually wear it – jewelry included. What I love about Rocksbox is that once you get your stylist-picked pieces you can rock it and style it however you want. If you like it you can buy it but if you don’t you can return for free and exchange it for something else. So how exactly does it work?




When you first sign up you’ll take a quiz that can sum up your style and from there you can choose from the entire inventory of rings, bracelets, chains, ear cuffs, earrings, etc. When you put things in your wishlist it helps the stylist know what to send you next. When it comes to jewelry, I really love gold and dainty pieces. I’ve already started getting into Boho-festival style so I’ve started putting related pieces in my wishlist for my next box! Another great thing is that you can get more than one box a month. Once you send back your box they begin working on a new one for you.








sarahbff6 – Sign up with this code
sfblogxoxo - Use at checkout for one month of a FREE service

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Rocksbox| Margaret Elizabeth & Gorjana + Coupon Codes

2.22.2016

2.13.2016

Fashion Feature| Aaliayah



1. What are your favorite stores or places to shop?
You’ll definitely catch me with a handful of American Apparel, Urban Outfitters, H&M and Forever 21 bags. These are a few of my go-to stores. For shoes I love Steve Madden, David Z, DSW and Adidas.

2. If you could have anybody's closet, who would it be?
I would definitely ransack Jelena Karleusa’s closet for sure. That woman is a fashion mogul. She’s my inspo and muse!

3. What is your "go-to" fashion piece or pieces?
I feel like I do minimalism well, so I’d have to say my go to’s would be distressed jeans, clean trainers or booties and a top or jacket that makes a statement.

4. What are your essential fashion items?
My staples are my moto jacket, my bomber and vintage Starter jacket, my black jeans and my trainers!

5. What’s your current favorite fashion trend?
I love the High and Low Mix trend which is basically a combination of something sporty or casual paired with something chic, edgy or luxurious. A perfect example is a band tee paired with a fuzzy faux fur cardigan, distressed jeans, Chelsea booties and a big edgy statement necklace.

6. How would you [or others] describe your personal style?
I would describe my style as wavering just because I go with how I feel that specific day. I’d say minimal some days and avant-garde the next.









Fashion Feature| Aaliayah

2.13.2016

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