2017 In Review

As I'm writing this I'm wearing two pairs of socks, leggings and sweatpants, a long sleeve shirt and my boyfriend's cashmere sweater which is about two sizes too big for him, meaning it's about four sizes too big for me. It's a tiny bit cold out. (I just looked at the weather forecast and the high for the last day of the year is only -1. And that's without wind chill. Whyyyyyyyyyyy??) Even though I'm barely warm enough to move, I've been setting up my 2018 bullet journal and, in the process, taking a look back on my previous year. There have been quite a few highlights, so I thought I'd take a minute to share them with you lot!

In a lot of ways, 2017 was rough. The political climate was pretty horrid, so I did a lot of hunkering down and trying to find a balance between staying involved and protecting my own happiness. One of the greatest ways I could have imagined starting off the new year under the new administration was the women's march in January. Living in a conservative state when you don't agree with those politics can be hard, but seeing how many people showed up reminded me that there is still hope. 

On a brighter note, 2017 involved a lot of fun trips. I started April with a quick trip down to Kansas City and Lawrence for a bit of art, shopping and music. John and I saw the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, did a little window shopping around the Plaza and then headed out to Lawrence. In Lawrence we had some delicious pizza at Limestone Pizza, walked and shopped Massachusetts street, enjoyed some coffee and then indulged in a little nostalgia at the Newfound Glory concert at The Granada. On the way back home the next morning we couldn't resist a quick trip to Ikea to cap the whole thing off.

In May we headed to Las Vegas for a week with John's family to celebrate his parents' anniversary. I had never been before, but this was John's third time. It was certainly a sight to behold. Neither of us are really much for gambling so instead we did a lot of shopping, even more eating and enough walking to thankfully counteract all the other indulgences. Some of my favorites included Bobby's Burger Palace and the Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian.

Not long after visiting one of the most over-the-top, commercialized locations on earth, we took another trip to practically the polar opposite; Yosemite National Park. Technically we started with a few days in San Francisco, staying at Hotel G, a truly adorable boutique hotel right off of Union square. After a few days of seeing the sights (Tartine bakery was a favorite) we met up with my parents in Yosemite to camp for a week. The scenery was truly unbelievable. Be sure to check out the Vernal Falls mist trail and the Sentinel Dome hike.

Even back at home there were a lot of fun moments. It wouldn't be life in Lincoln, Nebraska without outings to Jazz in June, the Seward 4th of July festival, a few Husker events (some more notable than others -- hello, fifth volleyball national championship!) and, most notably, the total solar eclipse! I also spent a lot of time eating delicious food and enjoying the company of a lot of great friends, whether that be for birthday celebrations, anniversaries, housewarming parties or the annual Friendsgiving dinner.

In my personal life, I really dove into minimalism, financial planning, meditation, skincare and zero-waste ideas. I successfully Kon Mari'd my whole house (ignore the fact that I still have a whole big pile to try to sell or donate), I saved more for retirement than ever before and I've been working to cut down on how much waste I'm making. Next year I hope to improve on all of these things!

And then there are the things I unfortunately didn't capture on film that I truly regret. My brother-in-law graduating with his PhD in Music Performance, my sister dopey from painkillers after a successful foot surgery, celebrating John and I's one year anniversary, painting my house, getting a brand new roof, and finally pressing 'Buy Now' on two tickets to Europe for next spring. Regardless, this has been a fantastic year filled with great memories (maybe even a few bad ones, but that's life right?). I am ready for everything that next year brings, and I look forward to sharing those events here.


See you next year!

December Bullet Journal Spreads

December already?! How'd this happen?

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Happy December everyone! I think I'm finally done recovering from my week long food coma after attending 6 Thanksgiving dinners this year. Please don't make me eat turkey again any time soon, thanks. Now that all that eating is behind me it's time to start prepping for the next eating season, aka Christmas. With all the gift planning and holiday events, I think that December always ends up being the month where I rely on my Bullet Journal the most. Conveniently it's also the last month I use my Leuchtturm1917 notebook so I've always got a few extra pages to work with and try to use up. For my month overview this month I've used up two pages for the first time since last March, but I love how it turned out!

All the extra gift buying going on also means that my budgeting spreads are more important than ever. I gave myself a whole page for each paycheck this month because I'm sure they're fill up quickly. I'll record how much I get paid, then subtract half of my monthly fixed expenses, more for retirement savings (woo adulthood!) and then create my monthly budget from there. Here's to hoping I can try to stick with it...

Trying to retain a semblance of normalcy in December is probably just as hard as sticking to a budget, but I've got to try. I always set out a few goals for the month and write them down so I can check up on my progress each week. I've yet to decide what they'll be this month, but I'm sure they'll not be too ambitious. Maybe just 'Don't forget to sleep?'

While budgeting and sticking to a routine might be hard, it's definitely not hard to feel grateful during this season. I love spending time with family and friends and I do the most of it around this time of the year. This is the first time I've used two pages for my gratitude log but I'm certain I'll be able to fill it all up with no problem.

This is my favorite spread of the whole year! I had a single page version last year which I loved, so naturally this year I decided to just make it even bigger. I color in a light each day and use this as my own little Christmas countdown! Last year I used red and green for the lights, but I haven't decided what I'll do this year yet. It definitely builds my anticipation of Christmas morning up sky high and I love it.

Meal planning is always a big thing for me and is probably the only reason I ever manage to eat any vegetables, especially this time of year. I'm am even going to try to use my Bullet Journal as a grocery list this month as well, which is a first for me. We'll see how it goes. More than likely this pages will just end up saying 'Buy more pie,' repeated a few dozen times. 

This one is pretty obvious. With all my pie eating, I'll be making sure I get some good workouts in. If nothing else, it's a great way to stay warm when it's cold, dark and icy outside (I type this while it's actually currently 61 degrees out. Nebraska is a weird place. Tomorrow it'll probably be snowing or something.) I've left a lot of space because I like to record which lifts I do, how much weight and how many sets whenever I do weightlifting, and what yoga videos I do off of YouTube (P.S. everyone check out Yoga with Adriene. She's great!)

I had a lot of fun making all these spreads a little more elaborate than my normal minimalist style! I should be ready to hit the ground running at the start of this month with all these spreads. Hopefully I make it to the end of the month without losing my mind, just in time for the planning-obsessed girl's favorite time of the year -- the new year! 

An Accidental Mid-Season Haul

Some times I agonize over a big purchase. I break out the trusty Bullet Journal, weigh the pros and cons, hunt for the best price and then hem and haw a little more just for good measure. And then there are the times where I somehow spend a cool couple hundred dollars without meaning to at all...

My first shopping trip this weekend was actually pretty innocent. I started off with some light T.J. Maxx browsing before I went out to dinner with the boyfriend. Here are the first few things I ended up with:

Schmidt's Natural Fragrance-Free Deodorant

I've been trying to move toward products with less plastic in their packaging so this find really made me happy. The glass jar is much more recyclable and potentially even reusable! I already am using up a stick of their Bergamot and Lime scented deodorant which I've been liking, but the scent can sometimes conflict with my perfume and like a good French-cool-girl-obsessed woman, I aim to smell like my perfume and not a ton of other things. More than one reason to get excited about a deodorant!

Fownes Brother's Leather Gloves

Just this prior weekend I was doing a little Kon Mari on my winter accessories and I decided that out of the three pairs of gloves I had, I liked exactly zero of them. Now, living in Nebraska in November, you can't just get rid of them all, so I did keep one of the less offensive pairs that were better for doing outside work like shoveling. However, these really weren't smart enough for work. What I'm trying to say is that it was basically fate when I walked into the store to see a whole table of black leather gloves. These ones are supposedly made by a company that have been making gloves since 1777, so hopefully they are good quality. The best part about them is that they use U|R technology which allows you to use any part of the glove on your smart phone, and they're super accurate. Thank you you beautiful fashion-minded scientists.


Smartwool Hiking Socks

So the whole of my mom's side of the family has a thing with socks. I think we can all blame it on my grandparents who had us going on hiking trips with them from the moment we could be strapped to the back of another hiker. When you hike you need great socks, and once you're had great cushy, warm wool socks, you really don't want to go back. So yeah, yeah, these say hiking socks, but in reality they're probably gonna see more of the short trek to my fridge from the couch than actual trails.

That wasn't so bad, right? The only problem was that it kept going. Next up, a quick trip to the newly opened Dick's Sporting Goods store.

North Face Beanie

Seriously though, the Kon Mari method really makes you realize how much stuff you've had just because it's been around forever, not because you actually like it. That was definitely true for the tattered, pilling knit hat I had. Out with that, in with this store opening sale men's vintage-look cream beanie. On my tiny little head it's nice and roomie, and I love that it has the old North Face logo. Reminds me of the backpack I had when I was in first grade!

And then there was the fated trip to Marshall's. This is what really did me in...

Elizabeth and James Nirvana Rollerball Duo

Do I even need to explain this one? These scents are both amazing. I already own this exact set, but it's getting down to the very last few drops. These are perfect for throwing in your purse on a night out, or even just on a day full of errands.

Workshop Republic Clothing Chunky Knit Sweater

I have no idea if this brand is even sold outside of discount stores like Marshall's but I don't even think I care. I've been looking for a light colored, chunky knit, loose fitting sweater to break up the monotony of my mostly black winter wardrobe for several months now and I finally found one. Of course now that I'm itching to wear my new sweater, the weather magically warms up to 60-some degrees for this upcoming week. Thanks, Nebraska.

Calvin Klein Black Duffle Bag

This one is major. I've only been trying to find a durable, solid colored, minimally branded gym bag for the last year and a half, when my previous bag finally bit the dust. This one is perfect. It's got a strap AND top handles. It's got an inside zip pocket, two small open-top inside pockets and another zip pouch on the outside. And most importantly, it's all black. Lovely.

Even more Smartwool Hiking Socks...

Ok I have a problem. I bought all the plain ones the store had in stock. To be fair though, most of these are going to go to my mom and sister for Christmas.

Pendleton Throw

This is the truly random purchase. I saw this while wandering around in the Home Goods side of the building, where I shouldn't have even been as it's always so tempting. However, I'm so glad I found this. At this very moment I'm wrapped up inside of it and it's so gloriously soft and cozy. Not only that, but I'm also obsessed with the pattern. I'm looking to update my living room soon and this will definitely be part of my inspiration.

Meanwhile, there was actually one thing I actually did plan to buy:

Everlane Cashmere Crew Neck Sweater

I've been eying this one since last winter. This year I saved up the remainders of my weekly budget in order to get one and it finally arrived on my front porch this Friday. It's super soft and I absolutely cannot wait to wear it!

Lessons Learned From A Fresh Coat Of Paint

So, I've discovered a way to get a person to climb up onto a ladder many weekends in a row, two stories up into the air, and painstakingly paint lots of 1/4" wood edges. In fact, it's incredibly simple. All it takes is your friendly local contractor to drop by and give you what turns out to be an outrageously expensive quote for painting the exterior of your 100+ year old home!

Flash back to earlier this summer. While I should have been outside enjoying some peaceful relaxation in the sun (still slathered in sunscreen, mind you) I was instead getting more and more fed up with the flaking, who-knows-how-old paint job on all my window trim and the siding of the sun porch on the back of my house. When I moved in a few years back it was already starting to show some signs of sun damage and wear, but this year it had moved from something to deal with some other day to really just quite sad looking. It was time.

After almost a month and half of weekends filled with painting, I've learned a thing or two about DIY-ing your exterior paint job. Lucky for you, I'm generous enough to share my knowledge!

Don't underestimate the prep work. It might seem like the cleaning and scraping will only take a few hours, but believe me it won't. Even if you're only doing smaller things like window sills and not your whole house, the prep work can still easily take two days. Be thorough, don't rush it and do it right. You'll thank yourself later.

Get more ladders than you can shake a stick at. Short ones, tall ones, medium ones. You'll need them all. Especially if you've got an older home with windows at "non-standard" locations and heights, you'll find yourself maneuvering in all kinds of ways to get to where you need to paint. Best to have a sturdy platform when you're dangling halfway up in the air! It's even better if you can get ladders with platforms for holding paint buckets. For extension ladders, try sticking a pole or dowel through wrung and put a little notch in it. Now you can use that to hang a paint can from while you keep both hands on your ladder!

Choose quality paint. It might sting more when you're looking at the total at the register, but the better the paint, the fewer coats you'll need and the longer it lasts. I can't say enough about the Behr Premium Plus Ultra. It goes on smoothly and covers with as little as a single coat.

Good brushes make all the difference. I painted with all kinds of borrowed brushes this summer, but everyone that helped out was always fighting for the higher quality brushes. They don't leave as many streaks and the bristles don't fly all different directions after a few uses. Invest when you do your first paint job and if you clean them well they should last you a long time. My favorite brushes this summer were ones from Purdy.

Look out for sales. Good paint and good brushes aren't cheap. I lucked out and purchased all my paint from Home Depot in mid-summer when they were doing a $10 off per gallon promotion. All-in-all I saved about $120!

Custom color match if you can't find a premixed color. My local Home Depot paint department employees have basically been my heroes throughout this whole process. Not only are they very knowledgable about the paints themselves, but they're also willing to scrub a piece of dirty old brick until they can get just the right amount of space to scan for a color match. None of the made-to-look-like-brick colors matched my weirdly purply old bricks, but Ginger at Home Depot mixed up a match so perfect that I still can't quite tell where the sample she painted right onto the brick actually is.

Start early. Wake up early, beat the heat and...

Wear sunscreen.

A Cleansing Oil Worth Getting Off The Couch For: illi Total Aging Care Cleansing Oil

I am absolutely horrible when it comes to removing my makeup (and sunscreen!) at the end of the day. By the time I'm home from a long day at work I just want to become one with my couch, watch four hours of YouTube and then fall into a deep hibernation without having to ever move. I totally would too, if it weren't for those meddling skincare kids and their cleansing mantras always in the back of my mind. "Wash your face, or turn into some sort of horribly acne-riddled, wrinkle monster!" they say. "Stop being so lazy and take care of yourself!" And so I trudge upstairs and begin my nightly struggle to keep water from dripping down my elbows as I cleanse.

Until recently I didn't have much to say about my nightly cleanser. They were just... fine. Some came in cuter packaging (Heimish All Clean Balm, SU:M37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick), some made my face feel every so slightly too dry if I used it every evening but were otherwise great (CosRx Low Ph Good Morning Gel Cleanser), and some were just sort of unremarkable (Clinique Take The Day Off Balm). Nothing to write home (or to you guys) about. But then I met The One.

I bought illi Total Aging Care cleansing oil off Amazon on a whim after reading Fiddy's review over on Fifty Shades of Snail. (She's great, you guys should check her out.) She did not exaggerate. This cleansing oil is fantastic.

Let's start with hands-down the best part; the smell. Normally I'm not a big fan of fragrances. They tend to always go a little too far in whatever direction they're striving for, whether that be a florally, girly scent or a "we believe tea tree oil works miracles" smell. But this. How can I even describe it? It's natural -- florally but with a hint of something darker. Something that keeps your nose interested. Please don't ask me how many times I took a big long sniff of this product while attempting to write this. It's embarrassing.

But what's a great smelling product if it doesn't actually do anything? Luckily, this cleanser has none of the annoying traits of my previous cleansers. As a person with often-dehydrated skin, I find foaming cleansers a bit too harsh. The balms and low pH products I tried either stung my eyes a few minutes after using them or hardly could remove my mascara. The illi Total Aging Care cleansing oil has not once left me feeling too dry, doesn't sting my eyes at all, and completely removes my mascara and other makeup without having to tug at my eyelashes at all. It also emulsifies lightly when I add water so I can actually tell it's working and that it's all washed off.

Best of all, this product just feels luxurious without completely breaking the bank. I've had my first bottle for about half a year and it's still just under half full. I only use one to two pumps whenever I wash up, so it will go a longgg way. And sometimes, just to add a bit more pampering to my everyday life, I do a little facial massage before washing the cleansing oil off. The smell, the elegant packaging and the relaxing massage all add up to just about the perfect way to end a long day.

My Current Workout Routine

Earlier this summer I took an accidental exercise break. Well, really it was more of a break from the typical gym routine I was used to. I went on two week-long vacations and instead of body weight exercises after work in a gym, I was walking and hiking over 25,000 steps a day. When I came back it was definitely hard to go from fresh air and beautiful views (Yosemite National Park is amazing you guys) to a freezing cold, windowless gym. To top it all off, I had just wrapped up another round of Kayla Itsines' Bikini Body Guide. After almost two years of the same workout plan, I was getting a bit bored and feeling unmotivated. I loved Kayla's workouts, but now that I was at a comfortable weight and had a reasonable amount of strength built up, I wanted to add some more definition.

To give myself a kick in the rear and rededicate myself to my fitness, I searched out a new routine, with more weightlifting. I know that I am most motivated when I have a routine to conquer and a little external push that comes from checking days off a list, so pre-planning was essential. In the end I decided to take a little out of a few different guides to create my own unique plan. Here's what I ended up with...

Monday, Wednesday, Friday

A few years back, I had started Jamie Eason's LifeFit weightlifting plan but never quite finished it. But I distinctly remember how much definition I was starting to see in my arms, an area I had always struggled to workout properly on my own. So I looked it up again and I discovered that this time they even had a free app. That sorted that.

Jamie's plan has you lifting 4 to 6 times a week, which just wasn't realistic for me. I still wanted some workout variation so I wasn't about to devote every day of the week to this one style. Instead, I decided to just work my way through the program, but not at the same rate. I lift every three days a week and just pick the next workout on the list. So far, workouts have been broken up in muscle groups. One day might be legs, then the next chest and triceps, followed by back and biceps and finally, delts and abs. I'm already seeing that arm definition again, and I'm only a few weeks back into the program!

Tuesday, Thursday

When doing the Bikini Body Guides (BBG), two days a week were always reserved for LISS (low impact, steady-state) or HIIT (high intensity interval training) cardio exercises. I really liked this because it meant I could incorporate anything from a session on the bike at the gym while reading a book to a long walk around my neighborhood. I've kept these sessions in my current workout routine, and they remain pretty flexible. Sometimes I just do a quick 30 minutes of cardio at the gym, other times I might even design my own outdoor HIIT workout, or an old BBG workout might pop back in. The flexibility keeps me from getting bored and lets me choose a workout that feels right for my body at the time.

A beautiful evening walk on a path around the outskirts of the city.

Weekends

This is definitely the bonus workout category. I never plan formal workout sessions over the weekend, but a lot of times I just end up doing a lot of active recovery things. Chores, yard work, helping family with their projects, even sometimes just long shopping outings all totally count in my mind. And sometimes I'll find myself rolling out my yoga mat for a quick practice with a YouTube video. It's important to rest so your muscles can grow while they heal, but it's also important to remember not to turn into *too* much of a couch potato on your days off.

Ok, so maybe he was getting a bit more exercise in that I was but you get the idea. Somebody had to play with the dog!

Armed with a plan, I've got a renewed sense of commitment and I've been hitting the gym with a lot more motivation. Now let's go get sweaty!

Book Review: The Curated Closet - Anuschka Rees

If you're feeling like your wardrobe isn't quite right lately, buckle up because I'm about to tell you about a book that I'm pretty confident can solve all your wardrobe quandaries!

After a long, confusing link-clicking adventure through the internet, I somehow stumbled upon Anuschka Rees' book 'A Curated Closet.' When I first read about her book, I was just starting to learn about minimalism, intentional consumption and mindfulness. The idea of an intentional wardrobe really struck me so I immediately headed to my local library to pick up a copy and started scribbling down all kinds of notes.

'A Curated Closet' is all about figuring out your own sense of style, and then helping you to make that fashion dream a reality in a rational, organized way. Anuschka packed her book with tons of exercises, and being the nerd that I am, I followed each and every one. With her guidance I figured out that I had a huge discrepancy between what I actually wanted to dress like and what styles I tended to buy. I created my own style vision board, came up with some specific pieces and outfit formulas that represented that style and translated that into a concrete, prioritized list of items to buy. By the time I finished, I had done a lot of typing, a lot of Pinterest browsing and even more introspection.

I think this book is amazing. The way you present yourself to the world, and the way you feel inside those clothes are truly powerful forces. The difference it makes to feel good about something so necessary (unfortunately pants are still required in public...) isn't something to brush aside while citing fashion as 'silly,' or 'frivolous.' The clothes we put on our backs really do affect us. At the same time, we live in a world where our clothes are usually cheap, trend-driven and dispensable. It's hard not to be sucked in by the idea that clothing isn't worth anything. 'A Curated Closet' did a great job of reminding us what all goes into a garment, why we should value our pieces and how we can get back to making smart, informed choices about what we buy and why.

After reading this book and really taking to heart the planning techniques and structure Anuschka proposes, I can whole-heartedly say that I've had more days where I've left the house feeling amazing about my image than I've ever had before. The first season transition since I started implementing some of the lessons is just beginning and I'm armed with my short, well thought out list of pieces to be on the lookout for. I can't say enough about much this book has influenced my personal sense of style, the cohesiveness of my wardrobe and my relationship with the fashion industry. I highly recommend giving it a read before you head out on your next shopping trip.

Birthday Beauty Haul

As I'm writing this, I'm trying to come to terms with the fact that I'm now in my last year of my twenties. My twenties so far have given me new friends who now mean the world to me, added another decade of stories to existing friendships and, of course, included a fair share of late night bar hopping. I discovered makeup, skincare and style in my twenties, and I'm just now starting to feel like I'm really coming into my own, especially in these areas. For my last year before the big three-oh, I needed to hit refresh on my beauty routine and I took a huge jump in the right direction with my birthday haul! Let's take a look at my latest editions that are really helping me transition from the bolder, more made-up look of my younger years, to a more natural, carefree look.



Let's talk Glossier. Obviously it's not too groundbreaking to see a blogger gushing about their products, but guys... it's the real deal. I'm even obsessed with the pink bubble wrap bag it comes in! Thanks to my sister, I started off my Glossier collection (Let's be real, there's gonna be more coming -- I officially have the Glossier itch) with one of their makeup sets. I got the Phase 2 set which includes Bow Brow (in brown), the Generation G lipstick (in Cake), and the Stretch Concealer (in light).

Bow Brow is hands-down my favorite of the three products, but I love them all. I was afraid Bow Brow would be a bit like Benefit's Gimme Brow, which I really disliked, but it's nothing like it. Whereas I found Benefit's Gimme Brow to be gloopy and heavy, Glossier's Boy Brow doesn't leave you with too much product on your brow and instead just takes my light, almost invisible brows and turns them into real human eyebrows that stay put all day! The Generation G lipstick is pretty matte, so I definitely have been layering it overtop really moisturized lips, but the color is really nice for this late summer, early autumn time. Finally, the Stretch Concealer has been great on my dry under eye area, which is chronically dark. It brightens up the area but hasn't been slipping and sliding too much, despite having a really dewy, fresh finish. I'm really looking forward to using this in the winter when I'm living in an arctic tundra.

(P.S. If you want 10% off your first order, use this link when you buy from Glossier!)

Next up -- Becca. On the theme of moisturized and glowing complexions, I picked up two Becca products to help amp up my shine. Even in the summer I tend to have dehydrated skin even when I drink almost a gallon of water a day (what can you do?), so I need a little extra boost. The Becca First Light Primer is my attempt to cut the really yellow undertones of my skin, thanks to it's purple tint. So far it's felt really nice on the skin, but I'm still not really sure if it's having an effect or not. We'll have to check in again later.










I'm really late to the game with the other Becca product I picked up, the Shimmering Skin Perfecter Pressed Powder in the shade Moonstone. So far every morning when I've reached for this I've told myself I'll show some restraint today, but really I just go a bit mad with it, putting it pretty much all over my face. If you can't tell, I really like it so far.







This next one I blame entirely on the travel sized section at Sephora. Now, I have been meaning to pick this product up, but it wasn't on my birthday shopping list when I went into the Sephora. But just look at how cute this little Too Faced Hangover Rx Replenishing Face Primer is! It smells like coconuty summery goodness, and it has been leaving my desert skin feel like a rainforest. I already know I'll be back for a full size when I finish this up.






My final two newcomers are both here because of recommendations from Anna over at The Anna Edit. She's been featuring both of these a lot in her videos lately, and I'm a sucker for anything she deems worthy. First, my first purchase of a MAC product from Ulta -- the MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot in the shade Groundwork. I've just been smudging a bit of this over top some Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion, just using my finger and I've loved the results. No creasing, the color lasts all day and I've actually been wearing eyeshadow now that it only takes me about two minutes.




The other recommendation is the NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer in the shade Vanilla. To be honest, it doesn't take much to convince me to buy a NARS product because I'm still obsessed with their packaging, but the fact that this concealer is really creamy, pretty full coverage and a really nice finish (especially when I combine it a bit with the Glossier Stretch Concealer) helps me justify it a bit more. I'm thinking this is rapidly becoming a staple as well.









Now that I've got my face all slathered in new makeup, it's onto the hair bits. The weekend before my birthday I chopped off a good four inches of really sad, damaged hair. I'm feeling a lot lighter, bouncier and more playful now and I'm loving it. I have quite thin, stick-straight slippery hair, so when my stylist used the Kevin Murphy Powder Puff in my hair to give me a little grit and volume, I instantly fell in love. Thanks to my lovely boyfriend, I'm now smiling back at the little ball of magic powder every morning! (But really though, how adorable is the smiley-face pattern of the holes?)







Remember how I already cursed the woo of the travel sized section at Sephora? Well, I wasn't quite done explaining just how much pull it has on me. These days you can't spend more than two minutes on Instagram without seeing this super trendy brand popping up somewhere. It's Ouai, of course. Originally I just grabbed the Ouai Wave Spray, thinking I'd give that a go on my air dried shorter locks, but right next to it was the Ouai Morning After kit and of course I had to pick it up too. The kit includes the Dry Shampoo Mousse which I've been dying to try, the Styling Cream and the Rose Hair Oil. So far the Wave Spray seems to be my favorite, though I can't figure out how to get it to keep a hold for the whole day. Did I mention my hair looooves falling flat?? If anyone has any tips, I'm all ears.









All that shopping really left me worn out, so it's a good thing my long time friend picked me up a jar of the Herbivore Coconut Milk Bath Soak so I could draw a nice bath and relax. This has been really nice for those summer nights where you don't want to be too hot, but you just need a good soak. It smells amazing, and leaves me nice and moisturized. Bye bye lizard skin!