Beauty Roundup

Every once in a while I like to do some sort of beauty post to share my current favorites. Although I have a few things that are tried and true, it is usually ever changing.

I know a lot of ladies are a sucker for trying new beauty products out- I am no exception. New things always seem to find their way into my cart, and onto my bathroom counter whether it be a new lip gloss, a hair product, or even something as small as a new makeup brush.

Here is a roundup of my current faves:

Neutrogena Naturals Purifying Facial Cleanser c/o

Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry (local gals, available at Midtown Hair Co)

Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick (Call the Shots)

Sally Hansen Nail Strips in Side Swiped

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette

Neutrogena Naturals is like a breath of fresh air on my skin sometimes. Yes, I love the facial cleansers and whatnot that have all of that nitty gritty stuff that you can really feel cleaning all of the gunk off of your face. But sometimes, you just want something that is gentle, smells good, and gets the job done. That is Neutrogena's purifying facial cleanser. I feel like it really lets my face breath when I use it! Sometimes, with certain face washes, I feel like I have to swipe a makeup remover wipe after I wash my face-I don't have to do that after I use their facial cleanser! 

You all know how much I love dry shampoo, right? Because it saves me from having to wash and dry my hair a lot. I really despised blow drying my hair for some reason. I just think it's tedious, and I am not good at it- like I don't use a round brush, or probably even the correct brush for that matter. My hair stylist, Rebecca at Midtown Hair Company has been using their Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry on me the last few times I have been there, and I finally caved and bought my own at my last appointment. The awesome thing about it, is that it is sort of a primer for your hair. It helps protect it against the heat, and (this is the best part) it cuts down on blow dry time. YES!! (It really does, I am a nerd and timed it)

I had been looking for a new red lipstick for the fall. Not too bright, sort of rich in color, long lasting, and Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie was my fave. I love the color and the feel on my lips. It lasts a long time too, which is great for me-I am terrible at reapplying! 

I am not the best at keeping up with my nail polish, so I have always been a fan of Sally Hansen's nail strips. My most recent fave though is Side Swiped. It's a fun alternative to a french manicure or some other outrageous print that she (meaning Sally) has. I like that it lasts, and doesn't chip. I am known to leave my nail polish on until it is all chipped off, so something like this that doesn't chip is perfect for me! I paired the nail strips with her Nail Art Studs. 

Didn't quite turn out like the picture, but I tried! I tried to get all creative, but I am not the creative type! I will most definitely use them again- something fun to use to make an accent nail or something like that! There are also other colors and other fun nail art things!

I finally caved and purchased the Naked3 Palette. I have their original, and absolutely love it. When the three came out, I wasn't a huge fan of it, but it has grown on me over the last few months. Loving it so far, and already have a couple that have been my go-to, everyday shadows! 

As always, my most favorite is my Cover Girl LashBlast. Seriously, since 2008 it's been my favorite. I have tried others both equal in price and more expensive and I always find my way back to Cover Girl. I have had people ask me numerous times what mascara I use and my answer is always the same! 

What are some of your current beauty favorites? Would love to hear! 

Business Casual

This past week I had the privilege to attend an award ceremony for York City. There were over 40 individuals/businesses that were nominated for various awards. There are big, awesome things happening downtown, and to be apart of them and among some pretty awesome people is an honor.To love what you do for a living is a dream come true, but to do it in a place where there are countless others that share your vision, your enthusiasm and your love for the place you live, work, and play is pretty awesome!

Anyway, for this event I decided to toss on a dress from my store, add one of my favorite blazers and call it a day. It was easy, convenient, and perfect for the event. This type of dress is the kind that can be worn casually and dressed up. I've worn this with flat sandals and a denim vest and the of course with a blazer too!

These booties have been worth every penny. I have worn them so much, and with so many different things- my fave though is with skinny jeans, and with dresses (like below). I am telling you, boots like these are a great investment. The neutral color is so versatile, and they are pretty comfy too!

Outfit Details:

Blazer: LC Lauren Conrad for Kohls (similar) /// Dress: Elizabeth & West (see similar options below) /// Boots: Sole Society /// Clutch: Blair Ritchey ///  Watch: Target /// Bracelets: Stella and Dot, Stella and Dot,  Elizabeth & West (in store) /// Sunglasses: Kohls (in store) 

SHOP SIMILAR DRESSES:

Hair Hacks for the Lazy Girl

So last week, I was perusing Pinterest (I feel like that could be added to the How to be a Basic Bitch list), and I stumbled on 26 Lazy Girl Hairstyles. Seeing the words lazy and hairstyles grabbed my attention, because if there is one thing (ok, one of many things) that I can be lazy about it's my hair.

Not that I don't like to look put together, I just like to sleep a few extra minutes in the morning. Anything I can do to cut corners in the morning is great in my book, whether it be something with my hair, or makeup. I am not above eliminating something from my morning routine just so I can add an extra 5 minutes of laying in bed. (#ThisIsMyRealLife)

I tried a few (like less than five, because even some of these were not lazy enough for me) of those to see if they really worked. I can't tell you how many times I have tried something on Pinterest, only to have it archived in everyone's infamous 'Pinterest Fails' file. (Like this one...totally doesn't work)

This one is by far my favorite, and one that I have done multiple times since I have pinned it. I love curling my hair, but it always takes me forever to get it done- this cuts the curling time in half. Granted, my arms are burning by the time I am done, but it seriously works, and I love, love, love it.

Here is a step by step....

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I section my ponytail into about 4 or 5 pieces and it works just fine for me. A little hairspray and some teasing and you are good to go. I had every intention of having my husband take step by step pictures of me doing this, then I thought the chick in the pictures is much more easy on the eyes and she gets the point across!

My next favorite one is all about dry shampoo...love it, can't live without it, don't know how I survived before it. Typically, I use dry shampoo in the morning as I am styling (if you even want to call it 'styling') my hair. It's actually better if you apply dry shampoo at night as opposed to the morning. Who knew? I guess if you think about it, it totally makes sense, right? The dry shampoo works itself into your hair overnight, resulting in less oily hair, and more volume! I noticed a difference when I do that...I feel like I can get an extra day out of my wash. Typically I can go two days without washing my hair, but when I do the dry shampoo thing at night I can go three. Give it a try! 

This last one I have also done a few times...super easy, super quick and good for third day hair!

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I usually just use a couple of bobby pins instead of a big clip like the one pictured. The bobby pins seem to work just fine for me, but my hair is pretty fine. If you have thicker hair a large clip may work a little better for you! 

Hopefully you are able to give these a try and check out the other 23 hacks....anything to save a few minutes, right? Have a great weekend! 

Cozy Chevron

I know, I know...chevron is everywhere, and to some people it may be overdone. But when I was making my last inventory purchase for the store I couldn't resist this sweater. I had a thing for lightweight kimonos this summer (see here, here and here)...it's a little too chilly to wear them now, so this sweater is the closest thing I can get to it now. It's cozy, comfy, and looks great with head to toe black!

Which, surprisingly is a stretch for me- the whole head to toe black. I am funny when it comes to wearing all one color. For some reason I get weirded out when the black top and black bottom are not the same exact material or shade of black (this applies to any color, really). Call me crazy, but that's just how I am.

Outfit Details:

Chevron Cardigan: Elizabeth & West /// Dolman Top: Elizabeth & West /// Leggings: Old Navy /// Booties: Target (similar) /// Purse: Target /// Hat: Target 

This is My Real Life

What a world it is in the whole social media, blogging world.

I know I am not alone in this, in that I compare myself to others all.the.time. Like all the time. In just an every day, non social media world, we compare ourselves to others like its our job. It's crazy how much I do it, and I know other women have to be like me. I pass a girl on the street- I can't just think 'oh that's a cute dress!' I think- "oh that's a cute dress. I wish I had her legs. A dress like that would look terrible on me." Seriously! STOP IT, REBECCA.

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Add in social media and it's just a terrible disease. Everyone else's lives look so put together, and so fun 24/7. Add blogging on top of that and it's even more terrible. You see, as a blogger, you spend a lot of time reading other blogs, following other blogs, commenting on other blogs. That leads to constant comparison. At the top of my mind is always "ugh she has more followers than I do and she started blogging after me! Oh wow their picture got so many more likes on instagram than any of my pictures. What a great post idea-I'm such an idiot for not thinking of that! Why doesn't my living room look as pretty as hers does? That outfit looks a million times better on her than on me. There is NO WAY she looks that perfect all the time. No way!" (Seriously, there are some bloggers I compare myself to all the time and all I can think is that there is no way someone can look that put together all the time. All the time! How is that possible?!?!)

I could go on, and on, and on all day long about what goes through my head! The bad part is, is that it makes me think of what I don't have, what I wish I had, what I wish I looked like, instead of focusing on what I do have and what makes me, me.

Why does this happen???? Because we do this to each other. Right? All of our perfectly staged instagram photos, the perfectly tidy kitchen with the perfect instagram filter, or photo edits make everything look so perfect. It makes us think "well that just looks perfect. Why can't my desk look like that? Why can't my kitchen look like that?" Because their's doesn't either, that's why. We have to remind ourselves that these instagram photos, these blogs posts, or perfectly written facebook statuses are glimpses into someone's life. Just a glimpse. The picture is failing to show you the dirty dishes in the sink, the pile of clothes on the floor. But, in this day and age (does that make me sound old, saying that? Yep. I thought so...) that's what we love to see, right? We love the pretty pictures with the sparkles, and filters, and monogram everything.

Sometimes, when I see these perfectly staged pictures I have to laugh- it makes me think of this commercial....

Totally fitting, right? Looks are deceiving, aren't they? What would our instagram or facebook newsfeeds look like if we were all totally open and honest? As much as I am an open book on my blog, I am definitely guilty of posting (or at least attempting to) the kinds of pictures I know people will want to see. I'm sure you can admit to doing it to, right? 

My life is not perfect, it's not filled with monograms, and glitter and perfectly polished nails. I think we all could use a dose of reality! Here is where you come in (whether you have a blog or not)....I am starting a "movement" so to speak- a movement to start sharing the imperfections, realities, the things that make us human and not just a blogger, instagrammer, facbooker, or social media user with the perfect everything! 

Starting today, whether you are a blogger, have an instagram account, facebook, etc, share your reality, embrace it, be proud of it, be proud of you. Use the hashtag #ThisIsMyRealLife on all of your social media accounts, whether it be twitter, instagram, facebook, etc. 

I will start, of course- the picture above is my reality! The pictures I post on my blog are all carefully selected (I do have a "blooper" folder...my dad keeps bugging me to do a blooper post one day- I will one day!), but that picture is a definite depiction of my family, my 'photo shoots' and my life! I can't help but laugh when I look at it! 

Here is more of my reality....

-dishes in the dishwasher that have been washed twice, because it is easier to run them again with a few other dirty dishes rather  than unload, load some more and wash.

-dog hair on the floor, because with two children, and both working full time, cleaning the floor sometimes doesn't make the cut

-our laundry basket is always filled with clean clothes- we take what we need when we need it because sometimes that is easier than putting the clean clothes away. 

-my nail polish is always chipped...that's just the way it is.

-I don't iron, so my clothes are almost always a wrinkled mess.

-My home office is not a typical "blogger home office"

#ThisIsMyRealLife

What's your reality? What's your 'real life' every day? 

So let's see it....let's see your real life! Don't forget to use the hashtag #ThisIsMyRealLife