I'm single like a Pringle and I know a lot of people will be on Valentine's Day this year. However, that does not mean you can't go out and celebrate it with all of your fellow single ladies! I'm not a hater of Valentine's Day and I believe that everyone shouldn't be down in the slumps because they're "alone" this year again. This time of year is the perfect time for honing into ourselves and celebrating who we are. I know it sounds cheesey, but self love is so much more important and if that means sharing this day with family and friends, right on!
Recently, I have been wearing this extremely warm faux Old Navy dress coat. I was not able to find it online, but there are many online like it. I was looking for a coat like this that I could wear with dresses and long cardigans and it is surprisingly very warm. It has a zipper and pockets, too. It's probably one of the warmest dress coats I have ever owned.
This dress is perfect for this time of year because it is actually long sleeve. This Zara dress is so classic and embroidery is so popular right now. It is the perfect Gal-entine's night out dress. I love the detail and many colors on this dress.
I paired it with a very cute Urban Outfitters satchel bag and these amazing blue suede Zara boots that were on sale for only ten bucks. A major steal. I am just in love with these deep teal color and have never really worn this color on my feet before. The chunky heel makes it so easy to walk in them, too. I think these oversized shades really do and can block out the Valentine's Day haters. Ha.
If you're planning on staying in for Valentine's Day, by all means, you do you! I hope this motivates or inspires at least one person to still go out and have fun on this day full of love and sappy romance. It is never bad to celebrate yourself and to hone in self love! Look hot and be hot for yourself :) I know I'll be.
It's already February and I am still in awe at how fast the weeks go by. Time flashes! This week and next is midterms, so this will be the only post for this week and there will be one post next week, as well. Education comes first kids!
Over this past year, I have learned a lot about my routine and what I truly like wearing. I've come to realize that my makeup collection has significantly decreased. I only wear a couple face products and some products on my skin and hair. I'm embracing minimal makeup and it honestly takes so much time out of my morning when I have to put on makeup.
I have really been loving light foundations and tinted moisturizers on my face. I normally just apply it below my forehead, just because it gets into my lines and looks funny. The Bobbi Brown BB Cream has to be my favorite foundation so far this year. I have used it a bit in the past, but it's one that I grab regularly.
I have also been obsessed with Ouai's haircare line. The Texturizing Hairspray is the only wave texturizing hairspray that is so flexible and smells just like the beach. This is a hair product to splurge on in my opinion. If you're done with sticky hairsprays! For face cleansers, I am drawn to ones that are unscented and are great at wicking away oil, dirt, and makeup all at once. The Kiehl's Facial Cleanser is my go to in the shower and whenever I need a deep cleanse (which is always).
I have just discovered Milk cosmetics and am so intrigued. I got this little guy in a sample box and actually love it. This Blur Stick primer smells almost like candy, I can't describe it, but it's great. It glides on and leaves my skin really smooth and my makeup lasts really long when I put it on. Definitely will have to try out more in the future. Along with this primer, I have been trying out the Nars primer which has also really impressed me. No surprise because I love Nars so much!
I have also become a huge Origins fan and was in the search for a great charcoal mask. I found this travel-sized charcoal mask that is so great for clearing out pores and dead skin. My face always feels refreshed after this.
I also just got another Benefit They're Real and I swear, I have no idea why I stopped using it in the first place. It does all the things I want a mascara to do! I've tried many others and whenever I use Benefit's, I truly can't go back.
Something that I recently discovered from some Youtuber was that she was using only lip liner to fill in her lips. It gives the best, nude look! I tried out the Essence Lip Pencil in the shade, In the Nude. It is the perfect nude color and gives me the matte, natural lip I'm looking for!
I'm pretty sure that I have talked about all of these products shown above, but I'll write a little blurb about them as a reminder. Both of the Glossier products are amazing. I am truly in love with this brand now. The Cloud Paint in Beam is a versatile cheek and lip color that has vibrancy and warmth. It is so easy to blend and apply, too. The Balm Dotcom is just a great hand and skin salve for everyone, especially during these cold months.
I've also been drawn to Fresh products. They also remind me of Glossier in that they are minimal and really pay attention to the ingredients and quality of the products. The Fresh Lip Caramel I think cheats as being a lip balm, but I love it anyway. It literally tastes and smells like caramel.
I know that this year I won't be buying as much makeup because I have a lot that I already love, so I apologize in advance for a decrease in new makeup reviews or hauls. It isn't bad to just love what you already got! I will see you all next week with another post as I nestle down for my second college midterms. Woo. What's a product you can't ever seem to stop using?
Chicago is currently in the home stretch of cold weather, and that means I still have to keep up with my skincare and making sure my face doesn't dry up from the oppressive wind in the city. I feel like I have a stable routine—that is, I haven't really added anything new since before December. Some of these products are small samples and I think I'll have to purchase the full sizes once I run low.
This year, I have been putting way more focus on taking care of my skin. A lot of my money is probably spent on quality skincare products instead of makeup. I just feel like taking care of your skin and clearing it up means that I won't even have to think about covering it up with makeup to hide imperfections when there aren't any. If I was that blessed enough to have a regimen where I could literally wake up like a goddess every morning, I'd let you all in on a secret. However, that's sadly not the case for me.
So, the first product I have is one of two lip products I'm currently using. This one is the Fresh Lip Caramel and it tastes exactly like caramel and feels so smooth and hydrating. It's slightly tinted, which I actually love. I use this a lot for when I want to add a bit of color to my lips. If I'm really looking for something to repair dry lips, I am always grabbing for the Kiehl's Lip Balm #1. It's not like petroleum jelly or Vaseline, but it's more of an unscented salve. It's really good when none of your other lip products seem to be helping really chapped lips. For my hands, I've been reaching for the Kiehl's Creme de Corps and use it all over my body. I love it because it reminds me of a body butter. It isn't oily and is really rich. It feels super nice after you take a shower and shave everything! I've also become a lover of Glossier, and the Coconut Balm Dot Com hand and face salve is perfect for cracked anything. It smells delicious, too. I love the versatility of it.
On my face, I've still been using this Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum. I'll drip two drops on my cheeks and massage it in upwards to reduce lines and to energize my face! Whenever I wake up when I use this, my face immediately feels refreshed and really soft. I've never used Caudalie before, so I'm really impressed with this.
Under my eyes, I have been using the Tarte Maracuja C-Brighter Eye Treatment and I love it. It's so rich and moisturizing to prevent my eyes from feeling dry and look red. I definitely think Tarte has done a great job with some of the skincare they've come out with.
I want to be better with sticking to the products that I love and using them up until they're completely empty. It can be so hard because the temptation is insane. This year is going to be a year full of new discoveries, but I hope that when I find what works, I stick to it! What's a product that you stick to?
This past month I have finally caved in and bought some Glossier products to try out. I really haven't been buying new makeup, but I have been hearing a lot of great things about these products across the internet. I have been drawn to how minimal and sleek all of the packagings are. Glossier is one of those minimalist brands and I really appreciate it. For someone who doesn't wear a lot of makeup anymore, these products are more than enough.
The first product I bought was the Coconut Bomb Dot Com Universal Skin Salve. Now, I was never really a fan of salves or Vaseline type products, but this salve isn't as oily or sticky as some that I've tried in the past. I mostly use it on my lips, but this is really moisturizing on knuckles and elbows, too.
I especially love the coconut scent. I'm curious to try out the rose and the mint scented one. I have added this to my nighttime ritual and can't go to bed without putting a bit on! I think the size of this is perfect because a little goes a long way.
The last product I got was the Cloud Paint in Beam. I am really drawn to orange or coral shades for my cheeks, so this was a great purchase. I was always hesitant with cream blushes and pigments, but this one really blends in well and again, a small amount goes a far way. I kind of wished I bought the Puff shade, which is like a cotton candy pink. However, this one really brings warmth to the face and looks amazing with bronzer.
I sort of missed writing update posts and giving just a reflection of my week and what I've been doing. I love reading other people's weekly todo's and it's a nice reminder that we all have more things to do during the week and my life on the blog goes beyond the subjects I normally talk about. This week is actually very busy for me, so I've decided to limit myself to one post for the week to just focus on some priority work and school stuff. Here's my week recap:
I got to go home for a day and visit my pup! Normally, when I can make it home during the week on a Thursday because I've been blessed with no Friday classes, I get to take care of Cooper and hang out with him while my family is at work or school still. Which is fine by me!
Before I went back to school, I wanted to spend more time with my best friend and her little sister, Alyssa and Emily. My sister Emily and I are on the left. We went out to a "Sunday dinner," we call it. My favorite moments are when I can get together with all of my dearest friends and just catch up or chat about our lives. It might sound a bit sappy, but they're probably the best moments I have with them. We went to a place called HB Jones which is a hamburger/grill joint. I had a really yummy pulled-pork sandwich with tater tots! Nom.
One of my Christmas gifts this year was concert tickets to go see The Killers at the United Center downtown. I was super psyched when Brandon Flowers announced the Wonderful Wonderful tour, so this was a really memorable experience for me and my sister, who also tagged along.
I've listened to the Killers since middle school and remember using my little iPod Nano and skipping all of my songs just so I could listen to the Battle Born album whenever I was on the bus or in the hallway.
If the Killers ever decide to go on tour again or if they are coming to your area, I would highly recommend it because they put on an unbelievable show. Not only does Brandon clean up really well in an all gold tux, there was so much color and his voice live and high energy was so much fun to dance to.
The last day was a spa night in with one of my really good friends at school, Haley. We decided to go out to a really nice Sushi and Ramen place. This ramen was not your below-average college ramen. She got a spicy ramen and I got miso ramen, which was both a great meal to start the week off with. I usually treat myself to at least one good meal while I'm at school because our cafe food gets a little boring.
We went back to the dorms, ate chocolate, painted our nails, masked, and started watching my new binge-watched show, Teen Wolf. This show is so cheesy and the graphics are only semi convincing, but Tyler Posey and Dylan O'Brien eat my soul. Also, speaking of Dylan, is anyone going to see the new Maze Runner movie? I never read the books, but am really interested in seeing how it all ends. I thought the first one was good and the second one really surprised me with how intense it was. I guess I'll have to find out! How was your week?
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