As you may be able to tell from my many health related posts about diet, exercise, and optimizing health, I am all about living a healthy lifestyle. I also believe that true beauty is on the inside, and it comes from happiness and confidence. Along with these, I believe that using natural home remedies to achieve the look of health is the best foundation to achieve outward beauty.  Although I am no expert in fashion, hair or makeup and I love to keep it natural and simple most of the time, today I am sharing a few tips and tricks I have picked up from around as well as my own make-up routine down below.
HAIR:

-Apply an oil mixture to your hair once a week to keep it strong, shiny, and long. Mix two tablespoons of almond oil with a few drops of peppermint oil; the almond oil will moisturize and strengthen you hair, while the peppermint oil will stimulate your scalp and improve blood circulation, promoting faster hair growth.

-Make sure that your shampoo is sulfate free. Sulfate will help to cleanse your hair and is included in most shampoos, but it is also a harsh chemical that will damage your hair, causing it to weaken and fall out.

-Spray rosewater on your hair once a week to promote growth.

-Vitamins: Biotin, Keratin, and Vitamins A, C, and E, are all beneficial for strong, healthy, long, shiny, moisturized, perfect hair!

-Wash with cold water and dry on a cool setting to prevent hair damage and frizz, and promote shine

-Squeeze out all water from your hair after shampooing to ensure the conditioner works at its full potential.

SKIN:

-Lemon is the most easily accessible, cheapest, and most effefctive way to overall  lighten and brighten your skin (face, underarms, etc).

-Cucumbers on your eyes for about 30 minutes will immediately reduce the look of dark circles.

-Chamomile tea or some toner on a cotton ball is perfect to reduce puffiness around the eyes.

-A turmeric and milk paste will even out skin tone and remove sun damage.

-Use an alpha-hydroxyl lotion to get rid of ingrown hairs after shaving.

-Vaseline and sugar on your lips will reveal softer, more supple, and healthier lips. Leave Vaseline on overnight for best results.

-Use a facewash that is natural and has essential vitamins, along with a facial scrub to exfoliate and remove dead skin cells. I use Aveeno Positively Radiant, along with its face lotion that I have found to immensely help even out skin tone and brighten my skin. (The same applies for body wash and moisturizer)

-Steam your face once a week before exfoliating, washing, and moisturizing, for best results!

-Leaving on a dab of toothpaste on your zit is the perfect overnight cure for acne.

-Applying a few drops of Visine or redness removal eye drops also removes the red out of blemishes.

-For dry skin, put lotion on your hands and feet and slip them into gloves or small bags overnight for a soft and fresh feel in the morning.

-Cocoa butter and bio oil after exfoliation are miracles to reduce the appearance of stretch marks (although, the older the stretch marks, the more difficult they can be to reduce).

-Drink a lot of water!!! This is the best way to prevent acne and promote clear and healthy skin!

TEETH:

-Flossing has been shown to be TWICE as effective as brushing alone; if you do not floss and your food is not completely removed, it will harden on to your teeth and build up layers of plaque that will be much difficult to remove later.

-For fresh breath, make sure to brush your tongue!

-After brushing your teeth but before rinsing out your mouth, take a few deep breaths with your mouth open to keep in the fresh breath smell for hours.

-Rub a banana peel on to your teeth for about two minutes. The minerals in the peel (such as magnesium, potassium, and manganese) will absorb into your teeth and whiten them.

MY MAKEUP ROUTINE:

I am not much of a make up person, and when I do use makeup I tend to go for very natural looks. I also try to use the most natural ingredients in combination with the most affordable makeup brands. A lot of my friends have asked me what I do for my makeup routine, so here is my basic routine as well as a few extra tips and tricks on how to get maximum results with minimal effort! The steps for each section of my face go in order of the ones I do most to least, so on the average day I do only the first few steps of each.

FACE:
1) Exfoliate, Wash, Moisturize
2) Dab a few dots of concealer under eyes and pat in.
3) Mineral powder foundation for a matte look.
4) Highlight only on cheekbones, and down the center of the face. (Also to eyelids for daytime looks)
5) Bronzer to contour and show off bone structure.
6) Light peach or pink blush on apples of cheeks.
7) BareMinerals Mineral Veil and/or a finishing spray to give a long-lasting and airbrushed feel.

EYES:
1) Primer and eyeshadow as desired (I usually don’t do this since the highlight already added shimmer).
2) White eyeliner in the corners of the eye for a bright open-eye look.
3) Darker eyeliner on the front and back of top eyelids, and bottom for a more dramatic look.
4) Two coats of two different mascaras, starting from the eye line, shaking and working upwards.

LIPS:
1) Vaseline (usually from the night before, or before beginning routine)
2) Lip color (I use the same color for liner and stain, but you can use lip liner as well)
3) Lip gloss (I use a clear shade, but a color similar to the stain is also nice).

NAILS:
1) Trim to desired length (The more often you trim,the healthier the are and the quicker they grow.)
2) File to desired shape.
3) Buff in a smooth, circular motion to remove ridges and bumps from surface.
4) Use a cuticle oil to strengthen nails  and promote growth.
5) Always use a base coat to prevent yellow color before applying the top color coats!

TIPS:
-Tie a hair tie on to your makeup brush to adjust the size instead of buying a new one.
-Apply TWO coats of DIFFERENT mascaras for optimal length and volume and shake the brush at the eye line in a back and forth motion.
-Use a powder on top of your moisturizer or liquid foundation to prevent oily skin and breakouts.
-Apply an extra coat of moisturizer on top of your finished look to ensure long makeup wear (and add a healthy glow).
-If you’re running out of mascara, hold the closed container under warm water for a few minutes to get a couple more uses out of it.
-Apply a shimmer to the center of your lower lips to create the illusion of full lips.