Category Archives: Lifestyle

Make your AM Beauty Routine a Breeze, with 3 Simple Steps.

Getting ready in the morning can be overwhelming and easily skipped. When we throw ourselves together it’s common to feel less productive and lack self-confidence. Those are two traits that directly affect our success and growth in both our personal and professional lives. They are definitely areas we should all want to improve upon daily. So why is preparing ourselves to be our best version so hard? Check out 3 Simple Steps to creating a routine you look forward to and find out what you might be doing wrong…Linares_Home-39

STEP ONE: CREATE A SPACE THAT YOU LOVE

Finding a place in your home that is clean, bright, and organized is key. If you have the ability to set up your beauty area near a window that is ideal. If not invest in a mirror that has ample lighting and mimics the neutral tones of natural daylight. When choosing a surface to work on, consider something with storage so you can have everything you need with in arms reach.

Linares_Home-40

STEP TWO: DISPLAY YOUR DAILY PRODUCTS

It’s common to collect an abundance of hair and makeup products. To make your routine quick an easy only display the products you use on a daily basis. Store specialty items in a cool dry space. Also, check your labels for shelf life. Most hair products are only good for 12-24 months and makeup can range from 3-24 months. Do not hang on to something that is expired just so you can “use it up”. Old products breed bacteria, which is bad for your health and just straight up gross.

Linares_Home-55

STEP THREE: KEEP IT CLEAN

A clean space is inviting. If you consistently avoid cleaning up after yourself you will find you avoid the space altogether. If you don’t have a proper daily brush cleanser create your own by mixing water and rubbing alcohol equal parts with a few drops of lavender essential oil in a small spray bottle. I keep a clean washcloth in my space at all times. It’s great for cleaning my makeup brushes and wiping my hands after using haircare. Don’t forget to wipe your makeup containers off as well!

Linares_Home-56

**A pro secret from makeup artist Amber Perry, ” Bathe your brushes weekly in a blend of dish soap, olive oil, and water. The dish soap deep cleans and cuts the oil residue from the olive oil while the olive oil simultaneously acts as a conditioner for your bristles.”

These simple tips will keep your daily routine organzied and inviting! Start your week off right with making these adjustment to your space, you will be so glad you did!

Fall Must Haves all under $50

The challenge of shopping on a budget is so much fun! My friends at Here Today equipped me with a $50 gift card to shop for Fall. Here Today stores have everything from clothing and home goods to beer, wine, and a frozen food section. One stop shopping is my weakness especially when there are insanely good sales! Check out this impressive list of Fall goodies all for under $50!

img_3657O F F I C E  S U P P L I E S

Brown leather padfolio 3.99 compared to 9.99

2 Medium candles 1.99 each compared to 7.99 each

M A N T L E  D E C O R

Frame 1.49 compared to 9.99

Pumpkin 1.99 compared to 3.99

F A L L  F A S H I O N

Sweater T-Strap dress 1.49 compared to 36.00

Curved bar gold earrings 1.49 compared to 9.99

five pack crew socks 4.99 compared to 9.99

P E T  S U P P L I E S

Olive loves her cozy Fall blanket! It’s the perfect size for covering her crate for nap time.

Blanket .49 compared to 19.99!!

img_3646

D I N I N G  D E C O R

There’s nothing quite like the glow of candles to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside!

Dining table Statement piece 3.99 compared to 33.99!!

K I T C H E N  S U P P L I E S

This bakeware is perfect, unlike my attempt at Zucchini bread. Let’s just say I need a bit more practice in the baking department. haha!

Baking pan 4.99  Baking knife .99  Tea Towel 2.99

O U T D O O R  D E C O R

Mums for my mum!

three 8in Mums in purple, orange, and yellow 3.99 each

Needless to say, I saved big time on this shopping adventure! I can’t wait to go back for my holiday shopping! Thank you so so much Here Today!

3 Simple Steps to Setting the Perfect Table

    In my home, I love to create an inspiring atmosphere. I believe our surroundings directly affect our mood and behavior, therefore it’s important to adorn your space with things you enjoy! Here are my 3 Simple Steps to Setting the Perfect Table…

Linares_Home-30ONE: CREATE A BEAUTIFUL FLORAL ARRANGEMENT

One of the most simple pleasures in life is, ” stopping to smell the roses”. I love going to local markets like Fields Foods or Flowers to the People. When you support local flower markets you can expect a longer lasting- vibrant bouquet. Add a bit of sugar and vinegar to your flower water. The sugar nourishes the plants, while the vinegar inhibits bacterial growth. This beautiful arrangement lasted 2 weeks!

Linares_Home-25TWO: SET YOUR TABLE WITH SOMETHING SPECIAL

    When my grandmother passed away I inherited a few of her things. These two gold candle holders were hers and I absolutely adore them! She was one classy lady with great taste. I love having an heirloom around when making new memories with friends and family. It’s very full circle.

Linares_Home-23THREE: HAVE BALANCE

I love vivid colors however it’s important to maintain the right balance between colors and textures. My boyfriend surprised me with this cool table cloth. Clearly, he has great taste so lucky me. Ha! Since the table cloth has color and texture I wanted my plates to be simple. I’m a huge fan of white and gold. To bring out the blue in the cloth I added aqua blue wine cups, because who says you can only drink wine out of one type of glass?

Linares_Home-26

A great table should always be cheerful, warm, and inviting. Keep these three tips in mind when having your next dinner party or even if you’re dining alone 🙂

Now go set the table!

Linares_Home-20

 

 

A Parisian Salon Experience Part ONE

As a beauty professional I have been lucky enough to travel all over the United States and some parts of Canada. If time allows, I try to book a service in the best salon I can find in that particular city. I feel it is important as a service provider to experience what my clients experience. Being the client equips me with a different perspective and allows me to provide the most memorable salon visit. I love serving my clients! They deserve my absolute best 100% of the time!

My most recent trip was to Paris. This was my first time overseas and I truly had no idea what to expect. I had about 6 weeks to learn French which resulted in Bonjour, Bonsoir, and Merci Beaucoup. Due to my lack of the spoken language I became mute when meeting my cab driver. I literally forgot English and just used hand gestures. I’m sure I gave him a good laugh. Despite my poor French all of the Parisians I met were extremely kind and helpful! Thank god!

With the help of my amazing travel agency, “Limitless Planet” I was booked for a blowout & meeting with the owner at “L’ Appartement De Christophe-Nicolas Biot Trandline” before arriving in France.

art

The discovery of the salon occurred while scrolling through Instagram. Immediately I was drawn to the beauty of the salon’s architecture and vintage design. I could not wait to meet the person responsible for this inspiring space!

Upon my arrival I was greeted by a lovely woman by the name of Roxana. After taking my coat she guided me to a beautiful office where Christophe was working behind the scenes of his highly successful salon. It didn’t take long for Christophe to realize I only spoke English. I immediately felt terrible that I couldn’t communicate. Christophe was very polite about it and simply requested that Roxana be available to translate.

img_7840

Although an ocean and a language separate us, I was pleased to discover Christophe and I shared many of the same beliefs when it came to the beauty industry. The salon was designed as an art gallery home to hairstylists, colorists, estheticians,  massage therapists, dermatologists and even Tibetan masseurs. They cater to everyone from the average Parisian to celebrities. In such a beautiful space I wondered what the requirements would be to be a part of the Trandline team. His answer was simple and perfect in every way. To be a part of the Trandline team one must be a hard worker, this is someone who is not concerned with how early or how late they will be working. One must also bleed creativity and passion because without these traits the finished result would just be mediocre. So for all the emerging stylists out there reading this, never think you don’t have the “experience” to work in a salon as high end as this. It simply takes hardwork, passion, and ambition to make the cut. Everyone starts somewhere.

station

After our conversation Roxana took me on a tour of the salon and spa. She even shared their private styling room where Kim Kardashian had her hair styled the day before. The private styling room also had a private entrance for those high profile clients. I think my favorite feature of the entire salon was the variety of shampoo bowls. One style rotated up to the styling chair while the others were attached to reclining massage chairs.

Before handing me off to Vanessa who would be shampooing me, Roxana went through a series of questions on an iPad that would help determine the right products for my shampoo experience. This form of consultation is done with each client before any hair service.

Now, about the shampoo experience…it was perfect. I melted into a reclining shampoo chair until I was literally laying down. Vanessa manipulated my scalp working away every last bit of tension I had. This is where things got even better. While my conditioner was on she applied a damp hot towel around my hairline and at the base of my neck. I felt so pampered!

For my blow out or shampoo and brushing as the French call it, I was seated in front of a gigantic floor length mirror next to a gorgeous window overlooking the city street below. The natural light flooding in made me relaxed and thankful to be there in that very moment. Moise was my stylist. He was sophisticated, confident, and tailored. He was patient with my lack of French phrases as well. Due to the language barrier I did what all girls do, pulled out my Pinterest hair board! When I shared the image with him I could tell he loved it and we were good to go. It was so nice to sit back and let someone else take care of me for once! Moise used a ceramic round brush to wave my hair and finished with a bit of hair spray to froth it up. It was exactly what I wanted!

Of course I didn’t leave empty handed! On my way out I had the chance to play with the Terry makeup line. I love makeup lines that are actually created by makeup artists. They just get it. I picked up a eye primer, concealer, and lip cream all infused with my favorite plumping ingredient, Hyaluronic Acid.

    Viola! The finished result of my first Parisian Hair Salon experience.
img_8017

If you’re ever in Paris this is a must experience salon! To learn more about Christophe-Nicolas Biot and his salon visit their

website http://www.lappartementdechristophenicolasbiot.com

or follow them on Instagram @cnbiot_trandline

salon-des

 

Growing is Learning to juggle.

The past year has been quite a blur for me. I hired my first ever beauty assistant, bought a house, adopted a dog, started dating a great guy, took on a new role as a social media manager with Product Club in addition to teaching nationally, did some TV appearances as a Beauty Expert, all while running both my hair & makeup business and managing Thirteenth and Washington! Phew! I’m exhausted just typing all that!IMG_2755IMG_5403IMG_2514

With all that change there comes a learning curve. I call it “learning how to juggle”. I have had moments where I just wanted to quit everything but also moments of pure gratitude. For me doing hair behind the chair is just a very small piece to my big dream puzzle. I see so many people in all industries not just hair, literally going to “work” and then going “home”. That is honestly a nightmare.

I truly believe in order to live the life you want and have the experiences you want to have you must learn to juggle to keep it interesting. Do a lot of different things that challenge you and put you out of your comfort zone. It’s the only way to grow at a steady pace. Those folks going to work and going home have many plateaus and unfortunately for some their plateau is their whole life.

plateau.jpg

It’s important to take continuing education no matter what industry you are in. Davines has become one of my favorite brands to work with. They offer amazing classes that inspire as well as contest to push you to be your creative self. This past Fall I entered their Beauty Harvest contest because it looked fun! The idea was to create a look that incorporated the colors of Fall. So this was what I came up with…

IMG_1268

“Pumpkin Spice meets the Pink Lady Apple”

IMG_1272

ONE: This was SO much fun to do. It forced me to think of color in a different way. It made me better.

TWO: I freaking won 2nd place in a national contest! I literally did not expect to win anything! I was just excited to play around with some color and try something new. My grandpa always says, “You can’t win if you don’t play!” Those are words to live by.

If this past year taught me anything, it would be to keep on learning as much as my brain can handle! Which is a lot since my brain is huge. 😉