A new job in a new town!

It’s been a long time since I’ve written. I was deep in thought, when last we spoke, about my decisions and what to make of them. As this quote says, my plan for my life did not work out as I had hoped and I was also wondering about my move into sales full time and if it was for me. Well, after much time, I have to say it most definitely is not! The life of a full-time sales person definitely was killing me. I’m an introvert by nature, and so much of sales is based on the extrovert personality. While I learned, adapted, and did well, I did nothing else outside of work and that was killing me slowly…

Flash forward to today. Today is one of my last days in Frederick, MD as I move to a new life and new path with the great company at Carmax. I’ve accepted a position as Art Director at the home office and start on Monday! So while I may have been doubting my desire to keep pushing on in graphic design with all this hardship and strife over the last decade, I can unequivocally say I’m on the right path and it’s all paid off! I’m so excited to be working with such a great company. The choice to take on sales primed me for what is next and got my foot in the door with a great business, great people, and amazing opportunities for growth.

To those that have supported me on my journey, I thank you. To those that didn’t understand, I wish you the best in your own personal journey. To those that became my dearest friends through all of this, words can not express what you mean to me.

Now back to packing! 😀

Crossroads are funny things…

Do you ever feel that when you are making forward progress, or you think it’s forward progress, that you’re back at a crossroads? I definitely do as I transition into my life at Carmax and my move to Frederick. I definitely feel more isolated than I did in the country and rolling hills where I used to live. Strange, isn’t it, to be surrounded by people and yet feel more cut off? Starting over in life is never easy. I’m glad I have several opportunities I’m working on right now, my business in skincare with Rodan + Fields (my skin has never looked better!), my part time job at the winery I love (hmmmm wine) and my new job at Carmax (is car sales really for me?), but sometimes I wish I just knew what to do next after my career in graphic design. What’s your mind working on today? Mine is on overdrive lately and I even dream about these decisions… 

Perhaps it’s time for a vacation… it has been about 10 years since I had one, or longer, and at least a year or two since I’ve gotten to enjoy the ocean even for a weekend… where would you go if you could duck off anywhere for the weekend? 

My 15 minutes of fame…

So those that know me, know I recently got to experience a fantastic trip abroad to Vienna, Austria. Well this was a whole exciting surprise for my uncle there, who was doing an advertising campaign with the tourism board of Austria and Jung v. Matt. They flew my Mom and Aunt (and me and my Dad) out to reunite with him as a surprise on for the last advent calendar spot in the campaign. See the video here!

We felt like rockstars for a few hours as they filmed us up to the reuniting with my uncle at the airport and we were given the royal treatment upon arrival at our hotel and given a fun night out at the pub from some of the guys who were on the video crew and were friends of my Uncle in town. We had an absolute blast, and I actually spoke on camera in a bit of CNN coverage by my new friend, Tracy. She was fantastic to talk to as well about my traveling santa uncle, and what it was like growing up with a personality like his!

One of my favorite parts of Vienna was… The people! They were so welcoming, so friendly and really took care of us while we were there. They made sure we knew where we were going, had directions to things, got to experience so many parts of the city, and kept checking in with us during our stay. A couple of friends of Santa’s even stopped by the night before we were leaving to say goodbye after they flew back from a weekend working/partying in the Alps just to see us off. I can’t thank everyone enough for all they did for us and are doing for my Uncle there. He has truly found a home in Vienna!

I also loved the architecture of all the buildings. It was just astounding to be surrounded by so many different styles and ages of beautiful artwork. Walking around the city I felt like I was in paradise. I really felt at home with the cobblestone streets, so many ways to travel around town (public transportation of every kind!), and so many TALL PEOPLE! It was wonderful. And of course, at this time of year, The Christmas Markets were also amazing! I really enjoyed the “punch” and all the crafts that artisans of every type made. We brought home so many treasures for ourselves and our friends and family… I only wish I had more money to bring even more home with me!

I’ll miss you Vienna and can’t wait to come back. Hopefully it will be soon! Thank you to everyone who made this trip so spectacular! We so appreciate you, your country, your city, and your hospitality. ❤

Location change, I’m moving!

So, with the new year, I’ve decided to go back to being ‘me’ on the interwebs. I’ll be posting on Mary Koster because R+F policies say I can only keep a blog if I get it approved through company appointed lawyers. So, the blog over there will truly be about me, my life, skincare, art and design, a little bit of everything or what one might call a ‘life’ – not just skincare, fashion and make-up! 😀

So, please join me there as I make the transition to writing again. Hopefully we’ll get to know one another better in the process and see how we might help one another in 2014! Happy New Year!

Happy New Year 2014!

The new year has inspired me to take back to writing. A few months back I learned I couldn’t have my GorgeousSkin4u site without going through company lawyers for my skincare business, so I stopped writing there. Not writing is definitely NOT what I wanted! So I’ve decided that I should go back to my roots and just be ME out there in the interwebs with my personal blog, just me.

To start with, let’s just say I’m not feeling 2013. It wasn’t a very good year for me and I’m not sure how to make my life better going forward. When people ask me what I’m doing, I share all the things I’m doing and it sounds insane. (2 businesses, part-time work, and more!) So I need more focus and less scatter, plus I need more honesty and more people to lean on. So if that’s you, please chime in.

So, what are your tips for finding your way in life after feeling so lost? Here are some reasons for feeling lost that you may identify with… But what shifts should we make to get out of the floating drift? I like some of the authors suggestions – do you have others?

 

Are you wasting your money on skincare?

The macro-e as a MUST for brides to be!

Recently, I headed to our company’s national tour event, Skinapalooza, talking about how to take care of our skin and have ‘safe sun’ out there this summer. One of the biggest take aways from that event was surrounding exfoliation (and of course sunblock, sunblock, sunblock!).

Did you know if you don’t regularly exfoliate that you are wasting your money? Why, you ask? Because you are applying products to dead skin cells more so than healthy new cells! With regular exfoliation, either with our very own macro-exfoliation tool or microderm abrasion paste, you can be sure to have the effects of your skincare regimen reach the live cells and help with cell turnover and collagen stimulation as expected! I tell ya, that put exfoliation into a whole new perspective for me! And for our brides to be looking to make sure they have healthy, glowing skin for their wedding day? Nothing could be better to help you achieve those results! (See article image attached from Modern Luxury Bride Magazine!)

However, for those with sensitive skin, exfoliation is probably not for you. Remember less is more when it comes to sensitive skin issues!

Skin is a beautiful thing, wear it well!

…and the Winner IS…

…and the Winner IS… Kathy Eichelberger! Congratulations Kathy on winning an entire REVERSE regimen from yours truly. I know you will just love it! If you know Kathy, or even if you don’t, please congratulate her in the comments below or on her facebook wall! Enjoy and we look forward to hearing about and seeing your fabulous results!

It’s my Rodan-iversary, which means a HUGE giveaway for YOU!

So this year/week is extra special, because not only is it my 2nd year in this fabulous business as a Rodan + Fields Dermatologists Independent Consultant (helping people look their best and change their lives with this business), but it was just announced that Rodan+Fields Dermatologists won the GOLD in the American Business Awards for 2013 (out of 3200 business nominations)! I’m just so darned tootin’ proud to be a partner with this amazing company where we are changing lives every single day! And to top it off, it’s been great to hear “you’ve changed my life” and “I love my skin now!” from my clients and business partners. Yeah, baby! That’s what I’m talkin’ bout! Helping people makes me SO happy.

To celebrate this 2nd year of growing it BIG, I am giving away ONE full REVERSE regimen (a $160 value) to one lucky subscriber and fan! Why might you want this, you ask? Well just look at some of these before and after photos below! The #1 cause of aging skin is sun damage – so why not turn back the hands of time by reversing that damage? This alone could take up to 10 years off your face in as little as 2-4 months! So, I ask you, who wouldn’t want that? (**Contest NOT valid for those outside of the United States. Sorry – we can only ship nationally! Soon, though!**)

I have one mandatory requirement: 1) sign up for my emails via the punchtab raffle giveaway!

Plus, to get more entries via Punchtab’s raffle by:

1) Visiting my Rodan+Fields Solution Tool and emailing yourself the results!

2) Liking my Fan Page on Facebook!

3) Tweeting about this Contest with hashtag #ReverseGiveaway (or via punchtab’s raffle giveaway options)

and/or

4) Answer a question about what your biggest skin concern is! (via punchtab’s raffle giveaway!)

Just leave me a comment as to why you’d like to win the regimen for fun to make sure I know you’ve entered and you’re off!

Punchtab Rodaniversary Giveaway App!

So what about us sensitive (skin) folks?

If you’re like me…you didn’t even KNOW you had sensitive skin, let alone what that means for how you’re supposed to take care of it. As I’ve been working in this business I have learned a lot of the do’s and don’ts to keep sensitive skin happy. One of the main things is to pay attention to triggers.

For me, it’s topical ingredients and sometimes metal or food, and always HOT water. (Coming out of the shower BRIGHT red is not normal, people!) For most people suffering with rosacea, psoriasis or eczema, our triggers are pretty similar, except for foods. To keep the moisture barrier (your skin) happy, here are a few tips:

1. Take cool showers (luke warm)
2. Make sure you wash with a gentle cream wash (non-lathering)
3. Heal the skin by applying a repair treatment followed by a moisturizer
4. And lastly, PROTECT the skin with sunblock every day (…see the info-graphic for why this is important!),

You also always want to be careful introducing new products (spot-test carefully!) or else you whole face could explode in a furious mess! (It seems to trigger me into cystic acne! yay!)

I hope this helps some of you out there suffering and clueless how to stop the cascading effect of the inflammatory reactions… say no to steroid creams long-term, and be aware of your triggers! If you want to try Soothe for you or someone you know, I’m happy to help you. Hop over to my facebook page and leave me a message or contact me through my website for my phone number!

What’s My Story?

More specifically, my product story…

I actually joined Rodan + Fields Dermatologists to start my own business knowing who they were (global leaders in acne care with Proactiv), but thinking I couldn’t use the products. I have crazy skin allergies and every regimen has a preservative that I have shown allergies to in the past with other products. I have even ended up in the ER with reactions to topical ingredients if that tells you how severe some of my allergies have been. (Yes, I’m that girl!)

I’m also allergic to benzoyl peroxide (the active ingredient in most acne meds) and have had acne since I was 10 years old. I thought no one could help me. My skin would peel from the extreme treatments dermatologists would try to get me to use, so we’d be out hundreds of dollars on things that didn’t work and were too harsh for my sensitive skin. I didn’t even know I had “sensitive skin” until I started my business with Rodan + Fields.

However, I jumped in before trying the products because I knew their reputation, knew that billions COULD use their products, and I thought to myself, “Why the heck not…even if I can’t use it, I know billions of other people will be able to so I should take a look at this business!” Well much to surprise, when I sent the high-resolution close up of my face to the nurses, they told me what steps to take and my acne CLEARED UP. I have never had more healthy, clear and radiant skin my entire life. So if they can help me, I feel like they can help almost anyone!

My before and after photos are in their latest testimonial pictures on their video here under the “Soothe” Regimen. (I’m actually the screen shot below too!) Take a look and you tell me! Now I’m happily on the Redefine Regimen and have not had any trouble since! I’m one happy girl!