Medicine Cabinet Essentials

medicine cabinet essentials

Today’s post is a peek inside my personal life, including some of my most personal details. I’m sharing what is inside my medicine cabinet! We recently remodeled our master bathroom (post coming soon) and half bathroom and we put in medicine cabinets. Mike has always been a huge fan and I’ve never really seen the hype. Well I’m now converted and love my medicine cabinet.

My medicine cabinet essentials are now within arms length while getting ready. I don’t have to bend over to grab my cream or search through a drawer to find an eye cream. It’s all at eye level right in front of me. So let’s take a peek inside my medicine cabinet and all of my medicine cabinet essentials.

Bottom Shelf

medicine cabinet

This is my haircare and body care shelf of my medicine cabinet essentials. You might be surprised with some of the products I use because they aren’t overly fancy. Many are very basic!

Baby Cream

I’ve been using baby cream as my main body lotion since I was a baby. I love the smell and its gentleness on my skin. However, I don’t use this on Lizzie. I know it’s very ironic!

Donna Karan Deodorant

I’ve tried every deodorant under the sun and this is the best one out there. It has a beautiful scent and keeps me smelling fresh all day long.

Living Proof Dry Shampoo

I love that this brand offers travel sizes so you can test out products without fully committing. After using this I can say I like it, it has a strong scent, and works.

Living Proof Volume Blast

I bought this size to test it out and I’m glad I didn’t commit to a full size because it’s not good. It provides volume for about an hour and then it falls. I wouldn’t recommend this.

Big Sexy Hair Volume

This is my go-to for creating texture and volume in my hair. It has the perfect amount of grit to style your hair and keep it in place all day long.

Frizz Ease Secret Weapon

The holy grail of frizz products! I use this as a finishing cream on my hair, whether its straight or curly. It tames the wild hairs and provides an anti-frizz barrier that lasts all day long.

Tresemme Heat Protector

I blow dry and straighten or curl my hair daily so a heat protector is a must. This is my favorite and keeps my hair smooth and the ends less damaged.

L’oreal Elnett Hairspray

This spray is $15-$20 (depending on where you find it) which is completely crazy for hairspray, but it works so good. It has a flexible hold that doesn’t weigh my hair down or make my hair unmovable. It creates a natural look while holding my hair in place.

Second Shelf

beauty essentials

This shelf of medicine cabinet essentials is dedicated to my skincare routine. I’ve really defined it over the years and have found the best mix of products that work for my skin. While clean beauty is very important to me I do break the rules once in awhile. However, I steer clear of retinol. While the benefits are amazing I don’t enjoy how overly chemically it is. Plus I stopped using it when I was pregnant with Lizzie because it’s not good for babies and I realized if it wasn’t good for her, it wasn’t good for me either.

Isle of Paradise Tanning Drops

I started using these in the summer and they work. You can read my full review in this post here.

Edible Beauty Gold Rush Eye Balm

This eye cream is a thicker cream that I pat onto my under eye. It tingles a bit when initially applied. I find that it reduces puffiness and lightens up the dark areas under my eyes. It’s from an Australian company that uses edible ingredients in their skincare products. This product has the Clean At Sephora seal.

Skin Gym

I didn’t buy this, but it came in a Box of Style and I ended up using it and liking it. It’s not something I use every day and sometimes will go weeks without touching it. If you are looking for a tool like this I would use an ice roller. You can read about mine in this post here.

Counter + Charcoal Face Mask

I had a sample of this and was literally scraping the inside of the package to get every ounce out. In ten minutes this mask draws out all the junk from my pores. I love that you can see it working. While the mask goes from black to grey as it hardens you can see the impurities coming out of your pores.

Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel

This is a mini facial without going to the fancy salon. They actually use this at several Spa’s in Chicago. If it’s good enough for them then it’s good enough for me. You apply a thin layer on your face and let it sit for 10 minutes, rinse it off with water and your face is fresh and ready to go. It removes the dead skin cells and brings out a fresh layer of skin. I use this two times a week at night.

Skin Food

I read about this product in the Wall Street Journal. Yes, we still get the paper delivered to our house every day. The article mentioned it was the more cost-effective version of La Mer and with a $11 price tag they are right. It’s ultra-moisturizing and has a slight orange scent. Furthermore, It works magic in the winter to keep my skin fresh and lively.

Elemis Peptide Eye Recovery Cream

This eye cream really works wonders. It takes my sad and sagging eyes and brightens and tightens them up. I use this cream sparingly because it’s a bit pricey, just a tiny dot under each eye and I pat it in.

Beauty Counter Overnight Resurfacing Peel

This is a mini facelift in a bottle. I recently picked it up, after long debating it and I wish I got it sooner. All I need is two pumps at night on a fresh face. I smear it on my face and let it soak in for 3-5 minutes. After that, I apply all my other moisturizers. Overnight it works to correct your skin and give it a fresh glow. Consequently, I wake up with even skin and slightly tighter skin. They recommend using it 3 times a week. I’d love to use it every day though!

Countertime Tripetide Radiance Serum

Designed to increase skin’s firmness and reduce fine lines, it does so without any harsh chemicals. The main ingredient is Bakuchiol. Which has been shown to provide skin-care results that are comparable to retinol—without harmful side effects. I stopped using retinol when I got pregnant and decided to never use it again. It’s just too harsh for me.

Beauty Counter Counter + No. 1 Brightening Facial Oil

I never knew the amazing benefits of facial oil until I started using it. I use my oil at night, but have been told to use it in the morning. As a result, my skin is brighter and has a radiant glow after using this a week.

Beauty Countercontrol Clear Pore Cleanser

This one has tiny microbeads in it to exfoliate your skin as you wash. A little goes a long way with this facewash. It is clear, but it foams up a little and creates a thick wash when worked into your face. In summary, it cleans my face and leaves it feeling smooth.

Elemis Pro-Collagen Oxygenating Night Cream –

The formula is thick, but it goes on lightweight. The cream firms, smooths and replenishes my skin.

Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine

OMG this is the mother-ship! It’s pricey, but worth every penny! I can see a difference in my skin’s tightness since using it. It’s a lightweight cool feeling cream. I use about a nickel size every morning and it is amazing!

Top Shelf

tula skincare

My medicine cabinet essentials top shelf is made up of odds and ends that I might not use that frequently. It also serves as a testing shelf. If I’m testing a product out for the blog it lives on this shelf until I fall in love with it and then I’ll move it down (if I have room).

Madison Reed Hair Mask

This was a product I tested out and ended up loving. This hair mask deposits a small amount of color on your hair, but it doesn’t rub off on your towels or sheets.

Aquaphor

My secret weapon to smooth feet is aquaphor. I rub this on my feet and throw on a thick pair of socks and my feet are super smooth by the morning. It’s greasy so be sure your socks are thick and even set them on a blanket instead of your furniture just to be safe.

Tula Pumpkin Scrub

My new favorite exfoliator that I was testing, but fell in love with. This product is at a great price point at $34 and it smells delicious! It has just the right amount of grit to clean off the dead skin on my face. I highlight suggest this product.

Various Tula Products

I’m currently testing out a few Tula products. When testing products I only introduce one new product for a couple day while keeping my entire routine the same. If there are no reactions then I will continue using it. Right now in my testing bank I have The Cult Classic Facial Cleanser, X, Revive and Revitalize Eye Cream and Beauty Sleep Overnight Repair.

MAC Makeup Remove and Cleaning Pad –

These are the products I use when I clean my makeup brushes; cleansing pad and brush cleanser. You can read my tutorial on how to clean your brushes here.