Beauty Basic #1: Love the Skin You're in

I kind of think that this goes without saying, but nevertheless...

Treat your skin with the utmost respect!

I mean, seriously, you only get one. If you don't take care of it, you will regret it. Undergoing fancy medical procedures when you're 40 because your skin looks like it's 80 is not fun, chic, or affordable. Plus, procedures like face lifts, resurfacing, and laser treatments have long, painful recovery times.

So to keep things simple, just spoil the heck out of your skin now. It'll help you in the long run.

Need another good reason to keep your skin healthy? No matter how much makeup you use, it is almost impossible to cover up heavily damaged skin. Not to mention the fact that makeup can clog pores and agitate super-sensitive skin.

There are several things you can do to keep your skin healthy. Firstly, drink a ton of water! Water is the best treat you can give your skin. It makes it soft to the touch and gives it a healthy glow. Coffee and soda are not so good for your skin as they can dehydrate you.

Berries are also a great food to incorporate into your diet. The antioxidants found in berries have been shown to help flush out your system and the berries themselves contain great vitamins for your skin. I would highly recommend blueberries! Mix some with low-fat yogurt and some granola (for those of you who crave a crunch) and you've got a yummy, skin-healthy snack.

But if you're looking for a full-on skin care regiment, pull up a chair and get comfy. My routine is not exactly short, but it's as simple as it can get..

First, let me point out that while this skin care regiment works for me, it might not necessarily work for you based on your skin type. For the most part, I have normal to dry skin. Soo.. if you're someone with oily skin, the moisturizers I use could be too thick for your skin and could result in breakouts. In these cases, I will try to make suggestions for other skin types.

Before I brush my teeth every morning, I wash my face with Neutrogena's Oil Free Acne Wash (listed as $5.49 on the Neutrogena website). I really love this face wash because it has a very neutral scent -- good for guys and girls -- and doesn't strip my skin too much of it's natural moisture. Still, I find it very effective and my face always feels clean and smooth after using it.

I'll be honest.. I rarely use a moisturizer during the day on my face. I spend a lot of my time walking from class to class, and I feel that when I'm outside, my makeup tends to slide all over my face if I have a moisturizer on. However, during the winter, it is a necessity and I constantly reach for mark.'s Matte Chance Moisturizer ($16.00). This moisturizer is lightweight, so I really don't feel it on my face, yet I know it works because I don't get chapped skin.

I do recommend using a primer underneath your makeup because it forms a barrier between your skin and concealer or foundation. L'Oreal Studio Secrets' Magic Perfect Base (usually about $12) is extremely creamy so you only need to use a little bit at a time. This means that the tiny little jar it comes in can easily last you five months.

I cannot stress the next step enough: ALWAYS wear sunscreen. Find a good formula with little to no smell that is oil-free like Neutrogena's or even Copper Tone and wear it every day. Your skin will thank you by being firm and wrinkle-free when you hit your mid-to-late 20s. The sun can really damage your skin more than you realize, so sunscreen is always the way to go. Some foundation formulas contain SPF. Use these foundations if you don't want to put pure sunscreen on your face!

Depending on how tired I am at night and how heavy my makeup is, I may or may not reach for makeup remover before showering. If my makeup is extremely dramatic, I use Boots Expert Sensitive Gentle Eye Make Up Remover ($5.49 at Target) with a cotton ball allover my face before hopping in the shower. This is a formula that I find needs to be washed off quickly though, because it can feel rather oily on the skin.

If my day makeup is still on, and therefore not really dramatic I use Neutrogena's Oil-Free Acne Wash Pink Grapefruit Cream Cleanser to wipe everything off in the shower. It smells fantastic and has a very silky feel to it.

I'm a big fan of Bath and Body Works so I have like three of their shower gels in my shower at a time, and just alternate days with them. Definitely use a loofah in the shower to scrub off dead skin cells and keep your skin healthy looking. I'd recommend getting a new loofah once every four or five months because it'll lose its roughness over time, and then instead of scraping off dead skin cells, you're really just moving them around. Eww!

Just before I get out of the shower, I really love to use Neutrogena's Deep Clean Relaxing Nightly Scrub ($7.99 and yes, I clearly love Neutrogena). It removes any remaining dirt and smells so relaxing.. definitely the best thing to use before going to bed.

Immediately after showering, I'd recommend using a body lotion on your legs and arms to lock in moisture. For me, my legs and arms get particularly dry, but if you have other dry areas, use the body lotion there as well. At the moment, I'm loving Bath and Body Works' Dark Kisses, but since all of their scents are fab and I like to use them all, I'd recommend stocking up on their travel sized bottles ($5 or 3 for $10, but they also go on sale during the semi-annual sales). These travel sized bottles are also available when new scents are about to premiere and only cost $1 then!

When I do break out, I normally use Neutrogena's On-the-Spot Treatment ($6.99) before bed, before putting on concealer, and in the mid-afternoon. It's really important to not pick at pimples though, because they can easily get worse or start to hurt.

So that's basically how I take care of my skin. If you have any questions or want some beauty banter, leave a comment!

Welcome to beauty on the brain!

Where do I even begin?! First, I'd like to thank everyone who helped me along in the development of this blog. It took me a while to figure out exactly what I wanted to do, and you all were so helpful and patient. So, thanks!

For those of you who don't know me, let's go through some FAQ's so that you can get to know me and this fabulous blog =)

Who are you?
My name is Simone and I'm a college student in the southern United States. I'm not a makeup artist by any means, but I adore all things beauty and fashion related. I worked in fashion retail throughout high school and started my own cosmetic company last year.

So why are you writing this blog?
Maybe it's because the lovely people who work at my local Sephora know me by name or maybe because I'm the Imelda Marcos of lipgloss, but my friends of all ages feel that I'm the one to talk to about makeup. No, I don't know everything about cosmetics, but I'm happy to share what I do know!

What makes you different from other makeup blogs?
Let's face it... I am living on a college kid's budget. This means that my income goes to textbooks, cell phone bills, late night pizza parties, and lots of coffee. I don't have an extra $50 sitting around to buy a designer label blush. So I've had to learn how to buy makeup on a budget (read: for cheap!). And guess what?? It's not that hard!! As you'll see in this blog, I've found numerous brands and products that are complete dupes (or perfect copy-cats) for more expensive, upscale brands. Sure, there might be one splurge product featured once in a while, but for the majority of this blog, the cosmetics featured will be low-priced and widely available.

So strap on your beauty belts and let's get to work!