HAIR ACCESSORY SPOTLIGHT: SOIELI HAIR SLIP

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Hair accessories are timeless and a fashion statement that we can always get down with. You’ll always need something to pull your hair back during a workout class, or twirl into a bun when you haven’t had the time to wash or blow dry your hair. It’s time for you to ditch that lame elastic hair tie and give that messy bun or half pony some flair!

If you love unique and beautiful hair accessories as much as we do, then you’ll surely appreciate this wearable piece of art. Handmade in NYC, these hair ties by Soieli (pronounced Swa-lee) are individually hand-painted and made from 100% silk. The silk not only serves an aesthetic purpose, but it also helps protect your hair against breaking and damage. Unlike the eye-sore of elastic that hangs out on your wrist sometimes, these beauties are disguised as arm accessories that are sure to catch some compliments whether in or out of your hair.

Soieli is a New York-based hair accessory brand born out of the desire to make hair accessories as beautiful as jewelery. Designer, Founder and CEO Sonali Karmarkar; effortlessly marries fine art with fashion, transforming hair accessories into silk canvases for her art. Soieli weaves stylistic inspiration from the impressionist era with urban street art, creating a unique, wearable art piece perfect for the modern woman.

Soieli (pronounced swa-lee) comes from a swirl of the French words soie, meaning silk, and soleil, meaning sun. We strive to bring light into customers’ lives through beautiful hand-painted silk.

Soieli specializes in hand-painted silk hair slips that are not your average scrunchie. The brand’s name, Soieli, comes from “a swirl of two French words soie, meaning silk, and soleil, meaning sun,” reflecting Soieli’s mission to use hand-painted silk to bring light into people’s lives. Soieli aims to help busy women easily elevate their look through beautiful hair accessories for everyday elegance. Each piece is crafted and hand-painted in Sonali Karmarkar NYC studio as a wearable art piece, guaranteeing you a unique hair accessory that is literally made for you. Designed to promote hair health and prevent breakage, Soieli’s pieces are made from 100% silk and perfectly complement other products to care for curly hair.

  • Soieli comes in two different colors.

We love the signature Gold Water design, a blend of impressionist art and street art for a feminine meets urban look, which adds a beautiful gold iridescence to one’s locks. Pieces come in two sizes based on one’s hair thickness (yay hair inclusivity!) and are priced at $28 per piece.

FOLLOW @Soielisilk
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Why You’ll Never Have To Buy Another Makeup Wipe Again

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Removing our makeup isn’t the most fun part of our self-care routine, but it is absolutely essential! If you’re a lazy girl, you likely rely on makeup wipes or micellar water on cotton pads, and if you’re into skincare you probably start with a cleansing balm or oil before going in with your water-based cleanser. Well if we told you there was a much easier, more effective and cheaper way to get rid of your makeup you’d probably be interested, right?

Say hey to Face Halo, a double-sided cleansing cloth that looks like a giant cotton pad, but just add water, and the cloth will remove ALL your makeup, just like magic. Well, it’s not magic, it’s some pretty clever technology!

The Face Halo works like a dream, it can be reused hundreds of times, and costs $22 for three, which means it’s about to save you A LOT of money. We’re going to quickly break it down for you: A pack of 25 Neutrogena Makeup Wipes costs $6.50, so if you use one every day of the year, that’s around $95 on makeup wipes (plus a lot of waste), and you’re not even removing your makeup properly. If you’re using a cleansing oil, you’re probably spending around $20 (minimum) and you’ll likely use at least three in a year – you do the math!

Not only is it great for your bank account, but it’s also a savior for the environment too! Face Halo calculated that on average, women use two makeup wipes a day, aka 113 billion makeup wipes a year! That means to date, Face Halo has replaced up to 375 million single use wipes from going into landfill – pretty great!

Here’s the breakdown on the Face Halo, how it works, and why it’s now a staple part of our cleansing routine.

How Face Halo works: Face Halo uses special fibers that are 100 times finer than a human hair, which are able to reach deep into pores to remove and trap makeup. All you need to do is add water and gently wipe the Face Halo across your face and it will remove everything, from foundation and liquid lipstick to mascara and eyeliner.

Once you’ve used Face Halo, you should wash it with soap (a bar of soap is super quick and easy), and every week you can chuck it in the machine for a deep clean. It can be machine washed up to 200 times, which means you can use one cloth for a year without needing to repurchase another. Just a reminder you get three in a pack, so you’ll essentially spend $22 on a makeup remover that could last you two to three years – not bad!

What we thought: Until you use the Face Halo, you kind of don’t believe it can work, because how can water and material get rid of makeup? But trust us, those little fibers know what they’re doing! The Face Halo removed our cake face super effectively in the same way our cleansing oil does. It even removes all traces of mascara and eyeliner quickly and more efficiently than most cleansers we’ve used.

However, we did notice (especially as we wear a lot of makeup) that there was still a little makeup residue left over, so we do recommend a second cleanse with a water-based cleanser after you’ve used Face Halo. But considering we always double cleanse – no makeup wipe or cleanser is enough to remove all makeup and grime in one go – that definitely didn’t deter us.

After we used Face Halo and did our extra cleanse, we washed it with a bar of soap, which took us around 20 seconds to get it back to its bright white shade. FYI, it also comes in black, but nothing is more satisfying than seeing what comes off on the white version! It also works really well as a gentle alternative to a muslin cloth for removing mud and clay masks.

The Face Halo is super handy for when you’re gyming or traveling (especially if you have a carry on) as it’s lightweight and easy to use anywhere.

We also tried the new Face Halo Body, $22, which we loved for exfoliating our body. On one side it has an exfoliating fabric and on the other side, the classic Face Halo fabric to polish and refine the skin on your body. Definitely worth a try if you’re looking for a new exfoliator.

What we didn’t like: TBH, there’s nothing to dislike, it’s a good price for what you get and it’s super-efficient at removing ALL makeup. The Face Halo doesn’t have any skincare benefits (other than efficiently removing makeup), which is why we definitely recommend following with a cleanser that suits your skin type, which will be able to target your specific skin concerns.

The verdict: We’ve used our Face Halo every day since we got it. Sometimes it replaces our oil cleanse and other times we use our oil cleanser and then a water-based cleanser and use the Face Halo around our hairline and neck and to get the last traces of mascara from around our eyes. Overall, it’s fair to say we’ll be keeping these in our routine for a long time to come!

Shop Face Halo products here.

HAVE YOU TRIED @FACEHALO OR OTHER MICROFIBRE FACIAL CLOTHS?

SINGLE and HAPPY

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If you’ve just ended a long relationship or you’ve been looking for Mr. Perfect for far too long, there’s no better place to be right now.

Reminder: you have to stop wondering what to do with your life or how to spend your free time. Being alone doesn’t mean being lonely, and it gives you endless possibilities for discovering new dimensions of life and improving yourself.

There’s a time to be dating, and there’s a time to be alone. That doesn’t have to mean loneliness. Being single is all about being free and being happy. Let’s find out why.

Editor’s note: Although this article uses male pronouns, the advice applies to all sexual orientations and gender identities.

1. More me time

All this time that you used to dedicate to the thoughts of one particular man is now freed up and all yours. You can start new hobbies, focus on reading more, focus on your career goals, meet up with people that you haven’t seen recently, or just lie in bed and watch your favorite TV shows and relax all day, every day. Sounds like a great deal.

2. All decisions are in your hands

All couples can admit that, as a whole, they make most of their big decisions together. It’s not always nice having to agree on something just because your partner said so. You know the feeling … neglecting your needs and desires to satisfy your loved one is definitely not the best part of being in a relationship. So enjoy your freedom and make decisions on your own—no one is going to mumble about it.

3. No compromises

Relationships are built on compromises, and sometimes, there comes a time where you want to be free and not have to compromise with anyone. When you’re single, there’s no compromising about your love life, the way you spend your time, your hobbies, the people you see, where your finances go, and so on. You’re free to experience what you want.

4. Now’s the time … fill your passport

We all know traveling alone is an incredible experience, not to mention that, if you have a s/o, they’re not always going to want to come to all the places you want to go to. Problem solved. The best part of being single is that you can buy a ticket and go to any place in the world—and the only permission you need is your own.

For those of you recovering from a breakup, remember, you came to this world alone. At one point in your life, you never knew this person. So you can live without them and you will. And guess what? You will do just fine. Find your power, reach for life, and have fun again.
Dwelling on the past does not make space for the future. Sitting back and telling yourself “They really weren’t that bad” is the mind playing nasty tricks on you. If that happens, quickly call a friend and ask them to remind you of all the times you complained about your ex. That will help you squash that lie quickly.

I encourage you to find the courage to move on. A breakup creates space for something new. Let the newness of you in. Let whoever came to your life for a “reason” and “season” go. They have done their job. Now do your job and move on with the next exciting chapter of your life. Let the sunshine in.

THE MOST-ASKED BEAUTY QUESTIONS, ANSWERED

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For most beauty gurus out there, makeup questions start at an early age and only progress as one gets older; the fascination seems to never fade. And if you’re obsessees like us, beauty Qs come to our mind nearly every day when we apply our full-face beat. Ahead, we rounded up some of the most-pressing beauty questions and provided answers, all in one convenient place. Bookmark this page, and continue on reading!

Q: How Do I Apply Foundation Over Acne?

A: Before you apply your foundation, consider some color-correcting tricks to help neutralize your blemishes. If you have a fresh pimple that is very red, you want to neutralize it with a green color corrector. Use a small, stiff brush and tap the product directly onto the blemish.

Q: How Do I Wear Pimple Patches Under Makeup?

A: Apply your patch after skin care and be extra gentle when applying makeup on the patch area.

Q: How Do I Wear a Statement Eye and Bold Lip at the Same Time?

A: Ask yourself two things: 1) Can your face handle the look? and 2) will you be confident in something that dramatic? If the answer is yes to both, go for it!

Q: Why Does Makeup Pill?

A: One possibility is that the primer or moisturizer you use is affecting the adhesion of the makeup product to the skin and not letting it dry down and set.

Q: How Do I Glue Down My Brows?

A: Mastering the art of gluing down your eyebrows all starts with choosing the right product. There are two main products for gluing down your brows and the right one for you depends on how much you usually sweat. If you aren’t a sweater, using an Elmer’s Glue Stick will work perfectly, but if you tend to sweat more, you will need to use Pros-Aide Cream.

Q: How Can I Wear Lip Liner Without Lipstick?

A: If you’re looking to wear just lip liner as your lip color, you want to make sure your lips are prepped and ready for a pencil (as opposed to a creamier formula). The lips need to be well hydrated.

Q: How Do I Keep My Mascara From Smudging Under My Eyes?

A: Waterproof formulas dry to a matte finish and only move when in contact with an oil, so they are pretty much guaranteed to stay on the lashes and not smudge.

Q: What Is a Foundation Thinner?

A: Foundation thinners are typically colorless fluid mediums that you can mix with foundations, concealers, loose pigments and powders to create thinner versions of different products.

Q: How Do I Wear Colored Eyeliner on My Waterline?

A: You want a pencil that is extremely long-wearing, creamy and pigmented, which will do an excellent job of really filling in the delicate waterline.

Q: How Do I Apply Lipstick on Dry Lips?

A: If your lips are chapped, a lipstick with a creamy finish is ideal because it has the most oil in its formula. Avoid most older matte lipsticks as they tend to have a dryer formula.

Q: I Bought The Wrong Foundation Shade — What Should I Do?

A:It’s best to buy a lighter shade if you’re unsure of your correct color. If you did buy a foundation that is a little dark, try mixing it with a lighter color concealer. Also, its about to be 2020 which means there are tools out there that can literally help you find your correct shade.

Q: Should I Keep My Beauty Products in the Fridge?

A: The idea of putting your skin-care products in the fridge is popular right now, but we don’t really know whether colder temperatures are beneficial. Most products are formulated to be stable at room temperature. They may be able to withstand extremes in temperature — both hot or cold, but unless the formula has been tested, we don’t know the effect of temperature on the stability of the formulation.

Want to learn more answers to your beauty questions? Read them here!