Minimalism and what it means to me.

Minimalism is something I learned about last year. I stumbled upon it right around the time I quit drinking. Once my body and soul felt cleansed, this urge came over me to get my physical surroundings in order. It started innocently at first, just with my book collection. I got rid of about 50 books out of the 200 plus that I had in my possession. I felt great! A few months later, that urge came upon me again and I went through them again. This time I was a bit more aggressive with about 75 books heading to the library. After the second run-through, I figured there had to be people out there who wanted to declutter their lives. That’s when I found the “Konmari” method – term coined from Marie Kondo who wrote The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up and Spark Joy. I can’t say it was life-changing because I was already headed down that route, but it was an interesting read nonetheless. I was a frequent reader of /r/minimalism and couldn’t get enough of decluttering videos on YouTube. Once I felt well versed on the topic, I went ahead through each individual category that Marie Kondo suggested, and began the task of decluttering my life.

I’ve decided to stop coloring my hair.

I’ve been coloring my hair for more than half of my life. I think I was 15 or 16 the first time I dyed it at home. I’ve colored it black, dark brown, burgandy, auburn, and deep purple. I had my hair professionally dyed at the salon once and only once. I was there for three hours. Three.

The last time I dyed it was last summer. It’s now reached that stage where I’ve got a solid 2″ of natural hair and the rest is a faded orange-y/brown. This is the stage where I’d normally run to the drug store, pick out a new box of dye, and get to work in the bathroom. But – I’ve decided to work on embracing my natural hair color. It’s been so long since I had a full head of it. It’s sad that it’s been so long since I truly saw me staring back at me in a mirror.

The truth is – I hate dyeing my hair. The chemicals smell awful, my scalp itches while it’s on, and it stains everything it touches! I can’t tell you how many t-shirts, towels, and wash cloths have been permanently stained. How can we forget? It costs about $10 every time I want to dye it. It’s not the most money I’ve spent on a beauty product, but it’s money spent nonetheless.

I’ve been working on envisioning my future self – my goals, my passions, my career, my relationships (especially the one with myself) and I just can’t see an older me with deep burgandy hair anymore. I want to live as naturally and freely as I can. I don’t want my mind wrapped around any preconceived notions of what beauty is. I haven’t started graying yet, but I don’t want to be afraid of it. There is far too much going on in this world to be fearful of, and my own natural beauty (or aging) shouldn’t be one of them.

Do any of you dye your hair? Are you thinking about giving it up? Let me know in the comments or shoot me a message!

Thank you for reading!

How to keep your headspace in the right place.

 

Happy Friday, everyone! In my last post, I mentioned my next post would include the days you should expect to see new content. Here it is!

You will see new content on Tuesdays and Friday’s, along with a Sunday weekly blog. Tuesday’s and Friday’s will be based on whatever topic I choose to talk about. Health, wellness, fitness, beauty, musings, etc.. Please feel free to offer up topics of conversation and don’t be shy.. join in on the conversation. Let’s help each other cultivate a space for positivity, love, and growth. Sunday’s will be my week at a glance. Any struggles, victories, or thoughts that made themselves relevant that week will be discussed. I welcome you to let us know how your week went as well!

Now on to Fridays topic of conversation. I hope you enjoy!

Holiday Makeup and Hair for 2016!

Baby, it’s cold outside..

It’s that time of the year when the cold weather apparel comes out and the glitz and glam side of makeup can be seen everywhere. I threw together this look that’s perfect for a daytime holiday party – or you know – going to the grocery store.  With a bit of of a deeper brown in the outer-v of the eye and a darker shade on the lower lash line, this could be taken right in to evening. I also decided to sport the new Gorjana Taner Toggle Lariat from this seasons FabFitFun box! Instead of looping it once, I decided to wear it as a choker. I like it a lot!

My list of products used are as follows:

1. Aveeno Clear Complexion Moisturizer 
2. Maybelline Baby Skin Primer 
3. Loreal Infallible Pro-Glo Foundation 
4. NYX Cosmetics Dark Circle Concealer 
5. Maybelline Master Conceal 
6. ABH Contour Palette
7. Too Faced Brow Envy Palette 
8. Lorac Unzipped Cheek Palette 
9.  MAC Ruby Woo Matte Lipstick 
10. The Balm – Mary Lou Manizer 
11. Coty Airspun Translucent Powder 
12. Morphe 350 Palette (several shades to create the eyelook) 
13. Butter London Iconoclast Mega Volume Lacquer Mascara (from FabFitFun box and I *love* it!) 
14. Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray 

In case you’re wondering I curled my hair using my Bed Head Curlipops 1″ Styling Wand. This is only my third time using it and I absolutely love how the curls come out on my short hair. I’d suggest purchasing this wand on Amazon if you’re interested because Ulta’s website currently has it for $29.99 as opposed to Amazon’s $17.99 (when I got it it was just $14.99!)

Also – I got my sweater at Marshalls a couple of years ago. If I remember correctly it was $19.99 and I got it in a 1X. I’ve decided that I don’t have enough of these chunky cozy sweaters in my life and may need to purchase more before the season is up!

I hope you all liked this holiday look! Let me know what your go-to looks are during the holidays including makeup, hair styles and clothing!

 

FabFitFun – The Winter Box for 2016

I am absolutely loving this FabFitFun subscription box. The full size products that come in each box are absolutely wonderful. That’s right – no more tiny tubes of shampoo and conditioner just hanging around for months on end. One person couldn’t possibly use the amount of small products I’d get from Sephora Play! and Ipsy (both of which I’ve cancelled). I did enjoy those subscriptions, but I felt like I was throwing away money for shit that I just wasn’t using. With FabFitFun, I can at least give the product a real try. I’m also pretty excited that it’s not all beauty related. Last month’s box was that adorable black travel mug with a cute saying on it: Joy comes in the morning. I actually really like using that cup for work mornings! Anyway – Let’s dive into this months box!

Autumn Ready with Adore Me

When the air turns crisp and the sun sets earlier, there is nothing I love more than hurrying on home, after a long day at the office, to get warm and cozy.

When I was approached by Adore Me and asked to pick my favorite style (along with autumn makeup trend) I knew exactly what my picks would be! 

My Nighttime Skin-Care Routine!

Picture this – I’m 2 1/2 beers in, I have gray sweats on, and a bowl of macaroni cheese is sitting to my right. I’m just the person you want to be getting any beauty advice from, right? Even if you don’t, just soothe my ego and stay a while. Grab a drink, hang out, and lets talk about skincare routines! 

Play! by Sephora August review!

Play! by Sephora

 

Good afternoon, everyone!

Well, it has been quite some time since I sat at this keyboard and decided to get a blog post up. I really need to get better at this whole blogging thing. It really is something I enjoy, but you all know how it is.. Life get’s in the way and sometimes it’s just not possible to get creative.

I decided my first post back would be something on my Play! by Sephora box that I got this weekend. Let’s dive right in!

Dusty Rose/Bronze Makeup

Hey everyone and Happy Easter!

It’s been well over a week since I’ve written anything – literally no explanation for it – I just haven’t written!

My 31st birthday came and went yesterday. My boyfriend and I had a lovely time in Newport, RI. It’s the first time either of us has been there and it was definitely an experience. Unfortunately, it rained quite a bit the second day we were there, but our activity planned for that day was to tour the Newport Mansions. Have any of you ever done that before? It was an absolute blast. A couple of the food places we tried out were incredible. Missions (a hot dog and burger joint) made the *best* hot dog I’ve ever had. Awesome spot if you happen to be in the area.

Surprisingly, I didn’t touch makeup the entire time I was in Newport. I brought all my brushes and products I thought I’d use, but we were walking around and being all tourist-y the whole time. There was no point in getting all gussied up!

Today I decided I wanted to try a pink eye look. It turned out to be a dusty rose/bronze look that I think works well for the transition from winter to spring! 

Warm Summer Makeup – Before and After

The weather has been slowly changing over from bitterly cold to pleasantly warm.

My creative juices have seriously been flowing for a more peach-y bronzed makeup look topped off with a nude lip.

I decided to do a pretty summer-look using my new NYX Wanderlust Go To Palette. This is also a before and after. I will list all products used to create this look and where you can purchase them. Enjoy!

Before

After

Products Used: 

1. Simple Replenishing Rich Moisturizer
2. Maybelline Baby Skin Primer
3. Covergirl Stay Luminous Natural Glow Foundation in 820
4. Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer in Light/Warm
5. Coty Air Spun Translucent Powder
6. NYX Matte Bronzer in Medium
7. Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso
8. Loreal Brow Stylist Definer in Brunette
9. Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter (to clean up the brow area)
10. NYX Wanderlust To Go Palette
11. The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer
12. Covergirl The Super Sizer Mascara
13. Velvet Teddy M.A.C Matte Lipstick
14. M.A.C Whirl Lip Liner
15. NYX Matte Setting Spray

Thanks for checking out my before and after summer-y makeup look! If you have any questions on any of the products used, please ask away! I love talking shop with like-minded makeup junkies!