Do I have a treat for you guys! Lux Divine is back with another stunning piece that one of you lucky readers will be winning, a hand crafted brass druzy head chain. This piece is part of Lux’s new Celestial Light … Continue reading
Do I have a treat for you guys! My lovely family members, Mike and Rima Rothweiler, own Nothing Bundt Cakes bakery here in Albuquerque and they have been generous enough to give one lucky winner a coupon book that gives you a free bundt cake every … Continue reading
I’m excited about Gourmet Beauty’s new sponsor, Sent Her Way! The lovely Bryn Jurkens is the president of Sent Her Way and we went to high school together, so it’s especially fun to support her business! Here are the details … Continue reading
Happy Monday beauties! I seriously cannot begin to express how much you readers and supporters mean to me. I just started Gourmet Beauty in March and am beyond surprised and thrilled at how much my following has grown over these … Continue reading
I’ve fallen head over heels for Lux Divine Jewelry. These handmade, earthy pieces are glamorous and bohemian all at once. You can pair them with a preppy blazer or a hippie maxi dress and look stunning either way. Lux Divine has been generous enough to give one lucky Gourmet Beauty reader a handmade turquoise cuff! I won one myself on their Facebook giveaway and wear it every day. It literally goes with everything! Here’s the cuff I have:
Here are pictures of the actual cuff that one of you lucky readers will win!
This cuff can be worn on its own or stacked. Here’s how Lux Divine styles these cuffs (and a glimpse at their other handmade goodies!)
These cuffs are valued at $45 each and can be purchased directly here if you need one in your life right now! 
Below are the entry rules & guidelines. The contest will run from today through 5 pm Mountain Time on Tuesday 8/14/12. Lux Divine will select the winner based on the below guidelines and I will announce the winner on Wednesday 8/15! Good luck and thank you for reading Gourmet Beauty!
Giveaway Rules & Guidelines:
In order to enter the giveaway you must do EACH of the following:
**IF you don’t have a Facebook you can enter by doing the following:
1) Confirm you have liked both Gourmet Beauty & Lux Divine Jewelry on Facebook OR that you don’t have Facebook so you followed the alternate instructions
2) Tell us why you would like to win this cuff
3) sign your first name to your comment and your email address so we can contact you if you win!
This giveaway is for all my New Mexico followers! My favorite spa in town, Broadway Skin & Body Retreat, is giving one lucky Gourmet Beauty reader a 60-minute Cooling Facial! This gentle soothing facial is perfect for all skin types. It will cool you down from the tips of your toes to the tension points of your scalp. This summertime facial includes a cooling eucalyptus hand, arm, and foot massage while fresh cucumber slices energize and rejuvenate your eye area, decreasing the appearance of dark circles and puffiness. A gentle soothing gel mask is applied to the skin to calm, balance, and revive the complexion. The facial is a $75 value!
Below are the entry rules & guidelines. The contest will run from today through midnight Mountain Time on Thursday 7/19/12. Winner will be announced on Friday. Good luck and thank you for reading Gourmet Beauty!
Giveaway Rules & Guidelines
1) Confirm you have liked both Gourmet Beauty & Broadway Retreat on Facebook
2) Tell us why you would like to win this facial
3) sign your first name to your comment
The lucky winner of the giveaway is…Emily Petersen! Emily, please email me at aranthasgourmetbeauty@gmail.com with your address so we can send you your three lip balms right away!
Thank you so much to everyone that entered and everyone that reads Gourmet Beauty! I appreciate all of you! I have some more giveaways coming up so stay tuned for those.
I’m extra excited about tomorrow’s post! I have a beauty interview with one of my absolute favorite bloggers! Stop by tomorrow to check that out. Happy Tuesday everyone!
Happy Tuesday! Don’t forget about my amazing lip balm giveaway that started yesterday! If you haven’t entered already, go do it now! Also, voting has opened up for Albuquerque The Magazine’s Best of the City 2012. I would so appreciate your vote as best blogger. This is listed under the “People” category of the survey. Even if you aren’t from Albuqerque you can vote, and I’d just love it if you did! Here is the link to the survey. Please and thank you!
As a follow-up to my previous post last week about sunless tanning, here are my favorite ways to get a natural-looking, summery glow:
Airbrush Tan $35
Getting airbrushed is the best possible way to get a tan because someone is manually applying the product all over your body and making sure it’s evenly distributed. My best friend owns Broadway Skin & Body Retreat and gives fantastic airbrush tans using South Seas airbrush system. I’ve had many from her and it always turns out gorgeous. It lasts between 3-7 days, depending on the amount of activity, swimming, showering, etc. Also, keeping skin moisturized after getting the tan helps prolong the color.
Mystic Tan $30
Mystic Tan is another great way to get a safe tan. They have upgraded their systems over the last few years and the color is much more evenly dispersed. It’s nearly fool-proof, as long as you hold your hands out properly and use the provided barrier cream on your knuckles, wrists and ankles.
Image Skincare Body Spa Face & Body Bronzer Creme $26
This is by far the BEST tanning lotion I’ve ever used, and I’ve used a LOT. It has a light tropical smell and doesn’t have a strong scent like most tanning creams. It can be used on both face and body, unlike the other products I list below. It distributes gorgeous color that develops gradually. Image Skincare is a fantastic line of face and body products that can only be purchased through professionals. I buy mine at Broadway Skin & Body Retreat.
Jergens Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer $8.79
This really is an amazing product. It’s no wonder it continues to win beauty awards and fly off the shelves. They have different shades so you get the one that’s right for your skin tone and it provides gradual, buildable color. You don’t wake up tan after using it, but with regular use you can achieve the color you want and maintain it.
L’Oreal Sublime Bronze Self-Tanning Lotion $9.49
Before I discovered the Image cream, this was my go-to tanning lotion for deep color. First of all, it smells fantastic. It has a perfume-like scent to it that I love. It also has a bit of color to the cream itself and some shimmer, so skin is left with a beautiful sheen as soon you as you apply it. Like most tanning lotions, I have had a few mistakes with this but it was mostly user error. This is a fantastic product and it gives a pretty, natural-looking tan color to the skin. It also comes in medium and deep shades so you can pick the right color for you.
Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs Leg Makeup $12.79
While this isn’t exactly a self-tanner, it is an absolutely amazing water-resistent product that gives legs a natural tan color when applied. I’m totally hooked on this stuff. Any time I didn’t remember to put on tanning cream before wearing a dress I spray this miraculous leg makeup on and voila! Gorgeous, lightly tanned legs with an airbrush finish. Any scars, bumps,veins and discolorations are covered. It’s very natural looking yet it gives really noticeable and gorgeous color and coverage. It does have a bit of shimmer to it but you can only see it in direct sunlight. I use the light version but they have one for darker skin as well. It absorbs fast (within 60 seconds) and won’t budge until you wash it off with soap and a wash cloth or body pouf. Just spray it directly onto skin or to your hands (a little goes a loooong way) and then apply. Either way you do need to rub it in to get even coverage. You don’t just spray it and it’s done. Be sure to apply it BEFORE you get dressed. It will stain clothes and it’s not easy to get out. But seriously, go get some of this stuff. Now.
What are your favorite sunless tanning products?
I am so excited for Gourmet Beauty’s very first giveaway!!!! And what an amazing giveaway it is! I posted recently about my infatuation with Silly Lips Lip Balm, the deliciously scented, charmingly feminine, vintage-inspired balm that double as a gloss. Well, Silly Lips has been gracious enough to give one lucky Gourmet Beauty reader the entire collection of 3 lip balms! These are $12.50 each so this is a total value of $37.50. Read all about these amazing lip balms here. Below are the entry rules & guidelines. The contest will run from today, Monday 6/18/12, through Monday 6/25/12. The lucky winner will be announced on Tuesday, 6/26/12. Good luck and thank you for reading Gourmet Beauty!
Giveaway Rules & Guidelines
I recently won a Clarisonic Mia from the awesome online beauty boutique, B-Glowing! They have amazing giveaways and this was one of them. When I found out I won I starting screeching like a banshee and running around the apartment like a 3-year-old. Jon was really excited for me too, though he didn’t join in on the screeching. A lot of people have been asking me what a Clarisonic Mia is, so I thought I’d blog about this awesome skincare tool and my experience with it so far!
Clarisonic is a sonic skincare tool that gives more than 300 moves per second to gently remove 6x more makeup and 2x more dirt than cleansing with your hands. It also allows products to absorb and work to their full capacity and it exfoliates.
They have several different versions, the Mia being the smallest and least expensive. It’s travel-friendly, comes in 17 shades (mine is a lovely soft yellow) and it’s waterproof. It’s also gentle enough to use twice daily. I only use it at night, though.
I’ve been using the Mia for about a week now and I can tell the difference in my skin. My skin’s texture is smoother and softer and it has a radiance to it. This is probably due to the fact that it gently sloughs off dead skin each night that would normally dull my complexion. I’ve been applying either coconut oil or Argan oil nightly after cleansing with the Mia and I feel like it absorbs more thoroughly into my skin.
I’m totally hooked on the Mia and would suggest it to anyone. It’s $119. Clarisonic does have more advanced sonic tools that cost more and can be used all over the body, have multiple speeds, etc. Here is a chart that gives a simple comparison of the various options so you can pick the one just right for you.
Have you tried the Clarisonic?
