Shower Essentials & Thoughts on Retouched Photos

New year, new blog strategy! Actually, zero strategy but I do want to document the products I use and thoughts I have, because there is no better place to get it all out. I looked back at pics from earlier in the year when my skin looked the best it ever has, and I honestly do not know what products I was using. A shame to not document and reflect on which products are the best performing, worth repurchasing and adding to the must haves.

So, I figured I would start with my shower products because I am loving the current routine. I am not swayed by Instagram as much as most, and the bar is high for any new product I try. The musts for any product I buy:

1 ) Must be clean or a brand that is making an active effort to remove nasty ingredients

2 ) Beautiful, neutral packaging

3) Be really effective in a noticeable way

For a product to fit into all 3 categories is rare! Some products check two of the boxes, but have ugly packaging (I am looking at you Kosa!)

My favorites right now:

Hair - Innersense was recommended by my stylist, who owns an organic salon. I love the packaging, the smell, the way it works. It makes hair super soft!

Face - I use Inika Cream Cleanser on days when I need exfoliation and Biossance Squalane & Amino Aloe Gentle Cleanser on days I don't have rough skin to deal with. Both work really well and keep breakouts at bay for me (I break out easily from products and these do not cause that issue)

Body - I have been using Rael Natural Foaming Feminine Cleanser for quite some time and I adore it. I freak out when I run low on this stuff!

Okay back to the other topic of my post, photo retouching! I have been spiraling hard thinking about photo retouching, how airbrushed and changed most images we view are, and how I feel about all that. Tsshe photo in this post was taken in my actual shower, after I took an actual shower. The water is all real (not for show) and I have removed nothing from the photo. I think for the most part, people retouch a photo to make it more appealing to other people. In the case of interiors, I use to photoshop off a random sock in the corner, or a chip in the paint. Why? I guess to make the pics more appealing to post? Is that even necessary, or wanted by my readers? Perfection?

I have not made any new year's resolutions yet besides one, I am no longer retouching any pics on this blog. What you get will be my actual home, my actual face, my actual travel pics. Authenticity and realness matters. I am not interested in fake, constructed photos that do not exist in real life? What about you, do you feel the same? Should people have to disclose when they have altered images so we know the difference between instagram and reality? I would say yes it is time for transparency, not I am curious what you all think!

Oh and I am no longer posting affiliate links, all the products I post I am sharing because I think folks will benefit from my research and I want to share what works! While I am still a LTK influencer, I am taking a hiatus from commissions and getting no kick back, just sharing what I love.