Morning Routine! :)

Blah it's about 5pm and I'm feeling SO tired, exhausted, and sickly. I don't know if I'm actually getting sick or if it's from my sleep deprivation. Or it could be from the 3 cups of coffee I've chugged today :X oops! I've managed to get a whopping NOTHING done today so kind of bummed about that, but going on a light jog right after this and hope to feel better after that and pow down on some more coursework and errands. SOOO excited for Pretty Little Liars and Ravenswood tonight though! I've waited so long for PLL to come back!
Anywhos, during my break I saw some great tips in my February edition of Fitness magazine on how to cut down on time from your morning routine was super inspired by the article. So I figured I should jot down a morning routine that will hopefully get me looking glam every morning. Here's my revised morning routine for post-7am workout mornings to get ready in a jiffy!

Step #1: Shower! 
I've pretty much stocked up high on my favorite body washes, the Bath & Body Works Shower Gels. They're super moisturizing and most of the time, I don't need to put on moisturizer once I get out of the shower.
For my hair, I like washing it after workouts or every other day with Pantene Classic Clean Shampoo and Pantene Smooth Conditioner (don't know the exact name, but it's something along those lines). The conditioner leaves my hair super duper soft and only costs like $5, love love love. I've also kind of converted into a morning shower-er since I love the refreshed feeling I get, kinda like I'm ready to tackle the day. Night showers are relaxing too, but there's just something awesome about morning workouts that gets my day kickstarted. I don't know, I'm weird I guess.
For face wash, I like to use the Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser in the morning because it leaves me with a nice, clean, tingly skin that feels super refreshing in the morning.

Step #2: Moisturize
Like I said, most days I don't put on a body lotion, but on days my skin is feeling parched, I either put on a body lotion or a body butter. Currently, my favorite body lotion is Bath & Body Works Body Lotion in Winter Candy Apple, but I kinda wanna swap it out for an unscented body lotion or even a lotion spray. I also have two body butters at the moment that I'm going through for the winter-spring season and they are the Lavanila The Healthy Body Butter in Pure Vanilla and the Bath & Body Works Body Butter in Warm Vanilla Sugar. I love both of the scents, but the Lavanila butter is super duper sweet and can be a little overwhelming sometimes. And I think they just discontinued the products at Sephora, so that's really sad :( However, to continue my vanilla body butter scent fix, I just bought the B&B Warm Vanilla Sugar butter when it was on sale post-Christmas. I've tried it at the store before and it smells diiiiiivine! Vanilla's definitely my favorite body scent since it can be worn at any season and isn't super overpowering, but yet really girly and fresh.
Anyway, enough about body lotions and smells. I also like to tone and moisturize my face after I get out of the shower. For toner, I use the Clinique Acne Solutions Clarifying Lotion and for moisturizer, I love the Aveeno Smart Essentials Daily Moisturizer with SPF 30. 

Step #3: Haircare
While my moisturizer is setting, I like to do my hair. If I have time, I try to blow dry my hair so I look more put together. I towel dry my hair until it's damp and spritz on my Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Healing Dry Oil and comb it through with a comb or my wet brush. I blow dry it using my Revlon hairdryer at the low setting to reduce frizz. If I'm reaaaally in a rush, I just set it to the high setting, but I try avoiding this if possible. Once dry, I put a dot of the Organix Coconut Milk Anti-Breakage Serum throughout my hair to provide shine and reduce frizz. Then, I pull my hair into a low bun so I can focus on mah makeup. Oh and I always make sure to wash my hands after I do my hair, because the products I use contain oils, which can cause breakouts if I touch my face after using them.

Step #4: Makeup Time
This, unfortunately always takes me the longest time. If I don't have time to do any makeup, I always make sure to dot on some concealer on my darkest spots. Right now, I'm using the BareMinerals Correcting Concealer in Medium Tan. If I have time, I dab on some BareMinerals Mineral Veil to set the concealer. Most of the times, I do this, grab a lipgloss, and run out the door.
Buttt, if I have time, I like to put some mascara, undereye concealer, highlighter/blush, and eyeshadow (in that order!). I'll do a separate post about quickie products, but some of my favorite grab&go makeup items are the Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint for Eyes in Fuller Fudge, Benefit Ultra Plush Lipgloss in Coralista, and any of the Revlon Lip Butter in Pink Truffle. I can either put them on in a jiffy without makeup or stow them in my bag to take with me to school and apply later. I'm trying to make more time in the morning to do my makeup, but this is always really hard for some reason :( I get too bogged down in perfecting my concealer, I think.


So that was a really detailed post, but basically, my routine can be broken down into:

1. Shower/wash hair and face
2. Skincare -- tone and moisturize my face and body if I need to
3. Hair -- blow dry, put anti-frizz serum
4. Makeup -- apply concealer, powder, mascara, blush/highlighter, eyeshadow if possible
5. Stash some to-go items in my bag for later

That's about it. Doing all 5 of these steps ensures that I look put together and fresh-faced for the day. Now if only I could fit into super clothes, I'd be a bombshell ;) jk jk, haha.