Basically, I’m trying out one of their regimen kits for 30 days (it started Monday) so I can tell you all how it works.

I’m trying the Naturopathica Normal to Dry Regimen Kit. It comes with products for washing, exfoliating, seruming (I made that word up) and moisturizing your skin with both an AM and PM routine.

I’ll tell you more about my experience with this toward the end of the 30 days, but here are some of my initial reactions:

• “Are some of these products really going to last 30 days? We’ll see.”
• “Hmm. My skin is soft.”
• “Yay! No allergic break-outs!”
• “Mmm, my face smells like tea.”

Intrigued? Come back in a few weeks for a full review.

While these books are normally $4.99 on Amazon Kindle, they’re now a part of the lending library. That means, if you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can borrow them for free.

Haven’t read them yet? Totally check them out!

And if you have read them, could you write a review on Amazon or Goodreads? I’m sorely lacking reviews, and I’d be eternally grateful.

Speaking of books…

Read anything awesome lately? Right now I’m reading The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff. It’s good so far!

What makes Bumping Adorables special? All of the accessories, whether purses, barrettes or bracelets, are made from my former fat clothes.

That’s right, I made items from the clothes that are way too big for me now after losing ~75 pounds. And I have a whole wardrobe I can make stuff with.

Right now, Bumping Adorables has denim purses from too-big jeans, as well as bracelets and barrettes from some old tops.

I’d say that’s some creative recycling! Check it out!

If you want to follow my ongoing weight loss, check out my Nutrisystem posts.

I hope you like what I made! And I plan to make much more in the future.

You can follow Bumping Adorables on Facebook and Twitter!

And, guess what? I’m opening up an Etsy store!

I can’t tell you everything now. It’s a secret. But I can give you a little sneak peek:

Oooh, mysterious!

The store opens Wednesday, January 17th. You’ll know more about it then.

Stay tuned!

There are lots of ways I track my fitness and weight loss. I use websites to keep me motivated. Since it’s January and this is the time of year when many jump on the fitness wagon, I thought I’d share my favorite fitness and weight loss websites, in no particular order.

Runkeeper

I like going for walks and bike rides, but it’s hard to track how well you did if you go purely by minutes. After all, that doesn’t take into account how far you went or the elevation change.

So, I use Runkeeper to plot out the walks and bike rides. You can use a map to draw out your route, even if it doesn’t follow a street and instead goes through a park. Then it tells you how far you went and how many calories you burned. (It does other stuff, too, but that’s what I use it for.)

Nutrisystem

Of course, I use the Nutrisystem website. I mostly use it to track my weight loss and to interact with the community.

If I ever have a question about Nutrisystem, whether it’s wondering about free foods or adding a bun to the flame-broiled beef patty, I ask the forums. And, FYI, you can be a member for free without even ordering their food.

Skinnyo

This website is solely for tracking your weight loss.

At Skinnyo, you can join “challenges” where you’re a part of a group and fight for top honors as the biggest “loser.” (I’m winning my challenge! Woo!) Every Monday, after I weigh-in, I go enter it in at Skinnyo.

Fitocracy

This is one of my favorites lately.

At Fitocracy, you track your fitness. Did push-ups? Enter it. Danced to a video game? Enter it. You earn experience as you exercise and level up, just like a video game. (I’m level 6!) They even have quests and achievements. You can also join groups for more motivation. Fitocracy is currently invite-only, but if you want to join, email me and ask for an invite code, and I’ll send you one if I have any.

Have you been using any awesome fitness or weight loss websites? I want to hear about it! Tell me in the comments.

Frankly, living in Montana means I miss out on all the cool beauty events. (sad face!) And there are even more in New York!

One cool event going on soon is the Hollywood Beauty Event. It’s a two-day thing on March 4th and 5th, 2012, at the Sheraton Universal Studios.

Why do I want to go? Because they have classes and demonstrations from makeup artists in the entertainment industry—artists that have done beauty for movies and shows and music videos…And they give free stuff to attendees. Everybody loves free stuff!

They’ve got speakers such as Tegan Taylor, Kiyah Wright, Megan Martinez, Art Anthony and Nolan Robert, to name a few.

Are you going to the Hollywood Beauty Event? If so, you totally have to tell me all about it.

By the way, you can win tickets to the event, too. Head on over to the LAGlow Facebook page for more details.

If you still have people left to shop for…you’d better get on it!

Here’s a consolidation of all of the holiday-related gift guides on Makeup Files in the last few weeks.

Last-Minute Beauty Gift Guide

• For the Holidays: LUSH Snow Fairy Gift
• For the Holidays: LUSH Snow Fairy Lip Tint
• For the Holidays: LUSH Australian Igloo Sugar Scrub
• For the Holidays: Victoria’s Secret Bombshell Seduction Eau de Parfum
• For the Holidays: The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover Kindle Ebook
• For the Holidays: POP Beauty Face Magnet Primer
• For the Holidays: Three Custom Color Specialists Daytime Drama Collection
• For the Holidays: POP Beauty Wonderland Fantasy Lashes
• For the Holidays: Bigen Semi-Permanent Hair Color
• For the Holidays: Murad Rejuvenating Lift for Neck and Decollete
• For the Holidays: LUSH Gorilla Perfume in Love and 1000 Kisses Deep
• For the Holidays: Earthly Elements Brazilian Citrus Body Lotion

There! Now you have no excuse not to get your friends and family something awesome.

Well, Suave is releasing a new line under Suave Professionals: Keratin Infusion.

These new products, like the Dry Shampoo above, have gold packaging to set them apart from the old line.

Keratin Infusion will offer:

• 30 Day Smoothing Kit
• Dry Shampoo
• Smoothing Shampoo
• Smoothing Conditioner
• Color Care Shampoo
• Color Care Conditioner
• Heat Defense Leave-In Conditioner
• Smooth & Shine Serum

The Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion line releases nationwide January and February 2012, and prices range from $2.87 to $3.49 per individual product and $10.98 to $12.50 for to kit.

And look out for my review of the Dry Shampoo, coming soon!

Why not me?

While I may not be able to gift these items to everyone in my “audience,” you can still see the products that I’ve been loving this year.

(Oprah, eat your heart out.)

Here are my favorite things, in no particular order.

Love Actually

I’m no stranger to the movie Love Actually. While I’ve liked it for years, I’ve basically been obsessed with it lately. I think I’ve watched it about 5 times in the last 2 months, including two nights in a row last week.

I love the Hugh Grant storyline (which is super sweet), and the Emma Thompson storyline (even though it’s really sad). Frankly, I love all of the interwoven storylines and characters. It’s a great holiday-themed romantic movie about all aspects of love, whether the beginning, the end, or love that never got off the ground.

“To me, you are perfect.”

Ebook Readers

I first got my Sony Reader PRS-505 3 1/2 years ago, and I’ve been using it ever since. I have a large library of ebooks all in one place. Yes, I even read Twilight on the thing.

I love being able to carry it with me and read whatever I want, whenever I want.

Since my reader came out, there have been a lot of new readers on the market. When my Sony Reader eventually dies, I think I might go for a Barnes & Noble Nook. Or maybe a Kindle. I can’t decide.

All I ask, if you get one of these, is to do what I did: supplement your book collection, don’t replace it. The physical book industry needs our help. I still buy new books from the store and even borrow from the library, in addition to reading digital books. Long live physical books!

SodaStream Home Soda Machine

I am in love with pop. Or “soda” for those not from the Midwest. I love the sweet fizziness. I like it better than any other beverage (except maybe 100% grape juice).

So, it was completely natural for me to get the SodaStream Home Soda Machine. Since I got it in August 2010, I’ve been drinking pop like nobody’s business (diet pop since I started using Nutrisystem).

My favorite SodaMix flavors are Diet Lemonade, Diet Caffeine-Free Cola and Diet Ginger Ale. Yum!

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

It’s time to let my nerd flag fly: I love video games.

No, you don’t get it. I LOVE video games.

And my recent obsession? Skyrim. This game came out less than a month ago and I’ve been devouring it ever since. It’s an RPG (role-playing game, just in case you didn’t know) that lets you do whatever the heck you want in this ultra-realistic, super large snowy and mountainous world.

Here’s a screenshot of the game showing the ultra-realistic world. Yeah, it really looks like that.

I like to roam around the world, stumbling onto and clearing out bandit-laden caves or looting ancient Nord tombs.

If you liked previous games in the Elder Scrolls series, like Morrowind or Oblivion, then you’ll want to marry Skyrim. I do.

What were your favorite things this year?

Although Jabot Cosmetics has been fictional on YR all these years, it’s has now been turned into a real cosmetics brand.

The first three products from Jabot come in a kit: Jabot Red Carpet Collection ($69.50 on HSN).

It comes with…

• Jabot Photo Ready Facelift, 0.9 fl oz. Gives immediate temporary face-lifting results to tighten, lift and firm your face. And it supposedly gives long-term benefits after continued use.
• Jabot Picture Perfect Eye Lift, 0.5 fl oz. Like the facelift, but for your eyes. Temporarily tightens, lifts and de-puffs the skin around your eyes.  Promises to minimize dark circles.
• Jabot Crushed Diamond Facial Resurfacer, 1.7 oz. Decadent! Exfoliates your skin to smooth, brighten and polish skin with diamond-shaped crystals.

I’ll be reviewing all 3 of these fiction-turned-reality beauty products soon. So, stay tuned!

(UPDATE! I’ve reviewed the Jabot Red Carpet Collection. Check it out!)

So, if you still haven’t read The Complete Eyebrow Guide or The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover, use the coupon code SSW25 to get both (or either) for 25% off.

That brings the original price of $4.99 down to $3.75.

This sale is good until the end of July.

And, as always, 50 Ways to Look and Feel Beautiful is FREE.

And if you’ve already read them, you should totally review them on Smashwords or Goodreads.

I hope you’re having a great week!

See, the Sephora Colorista Custom Makeup Palette comes with 40 eye shadows, 5 cream liners, 15 glosses, 4 blushes and 2 bronzers. And, best of all, each pan is magnetized. It comes with an empty compact so you can remove colors from the palette and take them on the go.

Cool!

Well, I have some news. Sephora has instituted a price cut for the Colorista Custom Makeup Palette. The price, once $36, is now $28. Nice!

Okay, now I have very little reason not to get this.

(Today’s my mom’s birthday. Happy birthday, Mom!)

Well, actually, this short book used to come bundled with The Complete Eyebrow Guide, but I decided to give it out separately now.

You can find 50 Ways to Look and Feel Beautiful on Smashwords. For free! (I was going to sell it on Amazon, too, but apparently they don’t let you list your books for less than $0.99. Boooo.)

Are you having one of those days? You just don’t feel very happy—and you’re not too satisfied with the way you look either. Even people with super high self-esteem have days when they’re feeling down.

That’s where the book 50 Ways to Look and Feel Beautiful comes in.

Wondering how to improve your beauty, with and without makeup? Interested in improving your inner beauty?

With this book, you’ll get…

• Ideas for new fashion statements
• Inspiration for feeling better about your life
• Powerful boosts of self-esteem
• Tips and tricks to make your hair, skin and makeup look better than ever
• Feel better about yourself and your unique beauty

And, best of all, it’s free!

50 Ways to Look and Feel Beautiful comes in these formats:

• Online (HTML)
• Online (JavaScript)
• Kindle
• Epub
• PDF
• LRF
• Palm Doc

Go ahead and download it for free!

Want to review my books on Goodreads?

I’ve recently become an official author on Goodreads. Basically, that means my regular profile turned into an author profile and is now connected to all of my books.

I know that some of you have read my books. (Whether The Complete Eyebrow Guide on Smashwords or Amazon, or The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover on Smashwords or Amazon.)

Could you be a doll and give it a review on Goodreads? Also, while you’re there, you should totally friend or fan my profile:

Trisha Bartle’s books on Goodreads

50 Ways to Look and Feel Beautiful

The Complete Eyebrow Guide

The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover

What a whirlwind of a day. I love you all.

Well, now I’ve decided to sell them on Smashwords as well!

What does this mean for you? Well, I’ll no longer sell them through e-junkie as a stand-alone PDF. Instead, if you don’t want the Kindle format, you can get a wide variety of other formats at Smashwords, such as EPUB, LRF, PDF and PDB. (You can even download samples on Smashwords, just like on Amazon.)

And, if all goes well, Smashwords will also send my books to the Nook, Sony and Apple ebook stores.

Cool, huh?

Also, I’m releasing a free ebook this week as well. I’ll let you know when it’s out!

In the meantime, here are the books I have so far:

With The Complete Eyebrow Guide, you’ll learn everything you need in order to get the best possible eyebrows for your unique face shape. Learn about how to find the best shape eyebrows, about eyebrow trends and how to pluck or wax those bushy brows.

You’ll also learn how to use beauty products to make your brows look even better. And if you’ve got a man in your life that’s sporting a unibrow, there’s even a section on men’s eyebrow maintenance.

Pick up The Complete Eyebrow Guide on Amazon or Smashwords for $4.99.

Want a better you, inside and out, in only 30 days? Just follow the assignments in The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover and you’ll see a difference. You’ll feel better about yourself on the inside and look even prettier on the outside.

Each day gives you in-depth tips for the subject of the moment. Do the day’s assignment to apply what you’ve learned. And if you’re feeling really brave, do the day’s extra credit as well.

Here are some sample days:

• Day 2: Finding the Right Foundation for Your Face
• Day 8: Find Out Your Season
• Day 11: Sculpt the Perfect Eyebrows
• Day 15: Get Rid of Negative Things in Your Life
• Day 27: Surround Yourself With People You Love

Pick up The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover on Amazon or Smashwords for $4.99.

Have a good day!

I mean, all the colors? Awesome.

Why do I bring this up? Well, Sephora has just come out with a new eye shadow palette for the summer. It’s called the Sephora Collection Colorista Custom Makeup Palette.

There are a couple of cool things about this:

• It comes with 40 different eye shadows in lots of great colors
• It has 5 cream eyeliners, 15 lipsticks and glosses, 4 blushes and 2 bronzers
• Each pan of color is kept in place by magnets, so they’re easily removed
• It comes with an empty, portable compact so you can snap in different colors to take anything from the palette with you on the go.

That last thing is what makes me really excited about this. You can just snap whatever 6 eye shadows, lip glosses or liners and 2 blushes or bronzers. And you’re ready for travel.

Ugh, that’s so cool.

And, it’s only $36. Yep, I totally want it.

Hey, if you’re gonna pick up this palette (or anything else from Sephora), check out this deal:

Awesome free lipstick.

I hope you’re having a great week!