While some beauty rules are meant to live by, like ones that rule out too-thick foundation and stiff helmet hair, but some were just made to be broken (or bent, at least!). Here are 5 beauty rules that can be ruled out, and how to break them effectively:

1) Smokey eyes are only for a night out.

The daytime smokey eye is going to be big for summer when paired with bronzed skin and pale lip. Opt for lighter colors than usual, bronzes and mid-tone gray for a softer light smokey for daytime.  For staying power, smudge an eye kohl on the lash line and layer with a matching shadow.

2) Allow a product at least six weeks before giving up on it.

If the product is causing redness, bumps, stinging or swelling: toss it! You know what your skin can handle, so why be miserable and wait it out?

3) Dark lips are only for winter

Berry and brick red lips aren’t just for the winter anymore. Just ask Rachel Bilson who was seen recently at a Philip Lim dinner rocking a dark lip. Move over hot pinks and bright corals, dark vampy colors are staying for summer.

4) Save the false lashes for a special occasion.

False lashes can be a great way to spruce up any look, whether you have sparse lashes or just want to add some drama. To avoid looking too over-the-top try individual lashes placed strategically on the lash line to add just a bit of oomph.

5) Get your hair trimmed every six to eight weeks to keep split ends away.

I got the a-ok from my wonderful stylist before adding this one. Truth is, not everyone needs that trim every 6-8 weeks. If you’re trying to grow your hair out longer, or have untreated hair it’s possible to go 10-12 weeks between trims. Just keep an eye out for split ends, which mean your due for an appointment.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past few months you’ve probably heard the buzz about a new product called the OraBrush. The OraBrush is essentially a tongue brush with claims to remove bad breath causing bacteria (which the company claims 90% of which resides on your tongue.) Now I’m not gonna lie, every once in a while I wake up with what I like to call ‘morning breath’ which I’m sure most people do. (right?) Which isn’t that big of deal if you plan on brushing your teeth right away, but what if you wake up to that someone special and they go in for a kiss? Do you keep a pack of gum by your bed just incase? Or wake up before they do and do a quick swish with mouthwash? (both of which, I admit, have done)

So I decided to give the OraBrush a shot, I didn’t have that high of expectations of it, I already had a pretty thorough oral care routine stemming from my days of braces. I of course brush and floss, mouthwash and to clean my tongue I usually use one of those tongue cleaner things that comes one the other side of some toothbrushes. So I wasn’t expecting it to have any added benefit, but it was free (just paid shipping) so why not try it?

The day I got it I tried it right away Read on for review

So over the holidays I was in desperate need of a root touch up and a micro-trim and unfortunately couldn’t get an appointment with my regular stylist whom I absolutely love  and fly all the way to Canada just to visit.

So anyway, I took a risk and went to a salon to see a stylist my friend recommended and suffice to say, wasn’t too pleased with the results (wrong color, way too dark and awful toner job) but my hair felt really healthy after she put this oil in my hair before blow drying. I wasn’t totally sold on it right away, as usually hair always feels amazing when you leave a salon so I skipped on buying it and made a mad dash to my regular stylist to see if she could save my hair from bad hair color hell (which of course she did and it looks amazing) and when she pulled out that same oil treatment and used it on my hair too, leaving it once again super soft, I knew I had to get ahold of a bottle of my own.

The price was a bit steep at ~$30 for a 3.4oz bottle but you only really use a little so it should last a while. I use a dime-size amount on damp hair before I blow dry, the company claims that it shortens drying time which I have noticed my hair dries faster but it could also be because I did get it cut shorter. It smells really, really good which, although not necessarily important, is something I really like in a good hair product. And it absorbs really quickly and is not greasy at all as some other oils can be (coconut or jojoba) which can weigh the hair down. But the best part is this leaves my hair really shiny and feeling super healthy, like I can’t even believe it’s my own hair after all the damaging things I put it through.

All in all, great conditioning product, leaves hair feeling healthy without weighing it down or leaving an oily residue.

Moroccanoil Oil Treatment (3.4 oz)

A recent trip to the eye doctor revealed some eye opening information (no pun intended). My eyes were slightly irritated and itchy. The culprit? Makeup.

It turns out that even though I religiously clean my contacts twice a day and never leave them in overnight, little particles had made their way into the lenses without my even knowing it. I was a tad sheepish when the doctor examined my eyes and could tell right away it was makeup, so I asked for some makeup advice for contact lens wearers like myself on how to avoid redness and irritation.

Some types of contact lenses are stickier than others -my beloved Acuvue Oasys lenses were on the sticky list. This means that they tend to attract makeup particles more than other lenses and it's harder to get makeup off the lens itself.

The best way to remove any particles of makeup from your lenses is to gently rub them before and after they've been worn. After you pour solution onto your hand, rub the contact lens in an up-down motion, then side-to-side and be sure to flip them over and clean the other side as well.

Read on for more tips