Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Birthday Weekend!

Yesterday my sister and I celebrated another year of life as we turned 21!

All you US people know this is THE birthday around here for a lot of people as it signifies legal drinking age. 

Finer details aside, I think it's safe to say that we had a great time celebrating (:

Here are a few pics from our night... thanks for reading!


Me in the middle, Jacy (twin), and our friend from HS.


Tyler (boyfriend) and me


Sister and I mid-21 RUN!

Monday, June 17, 2013

Attention All Subscribers!

As many of you know, Google Reader is scheduled to be disabled sometime in the beginning of July.  As far as I understand GFC is still going to be around.

I personally don't use Google Reader, but many of you may.  In order to keep you all updated I do have a Bloglovin' page which you can subscribe to 


There is also a subscription button in my sidebar... 

Another option is to import all of your reading list at once with this link:


I would love all of you to make the move with me into a different reader-format.  I can imagine managing your own blogs as well as blogs you follow is a little messy and overwhelming, because it has been a for me (:

Hope to see you all soon!


Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Products I've Enjoyed Lately

Hello all you bloggers and blog lovers out there! It has been quite awhile since I've taken the time to make a post for you.  What is the reason for this, you may wonder?

I don't really have a good answer.  Last week I finished up spring quarter with a couple finals, spent a weekend away with my family, and transitioned pretty seamlessly into working full time!

I haven't been crazy busy, just going through a little period of change (:

SO, lets just jump right in here and get started with some things I've liked lately.  These are going to be random, I think.  

Not Your Mother's - Clean Freak Refreshing Dry Shampoo


For the last several months I have been a big fan of Dove's dry shampoo.  It smells amazing and it gets the job done.  The thing about dry shampoo though is... it runs out.  Omg!  So I picked this up on a whim at Ulta and so far I'm loving it.  It has a light citrus scent that quickly fades (which is better than smelling stink all day), doesn't show up super chalky white on my hair, and has a cooling feeling.  Overall, it's a winner so far.

Check out more on Not Your Mother's here.

Essie - Play Date


Uhhhmm, can you say gorgeous?  This color is amazing!  It's the brightest, yet softest purple tone, and I am in love.  My nails are slightly chipped in this pic -- two or three days into wear and tear on the polish.  I would recommend this color to anyone, its great.

Torani - White Chocolate Sauce


I told you this would be random!  Lately I've been drinking more home-brewed coffee and white chocolate gives it a little something extra.  It adds just a hint of sweetness and kind of tones down the bitterness of the coffee.  I found mine at the Fred Meyer in town, and you can probably find it at most major grocery stores.  

Side note: this brand of sauce is what we used at the coffee stand where I used to work.

Keds - Classic white


You can never go wrong with a classic!  Pretty sure I wore Keds in the 90s and my dad said his mom wore an identical pair back in her day as well.  I love classic Keds because they're simple, comfortable, and versatile.  The only downside is they're impossible to keep pristine white.

Small tip: try to spot clean your Keds as often as possible and don't over-bleach!  The bleach will eventually wear down & eat holes in the fabric.

L'Oreal Colour Riche - 550 Vagabond Mauve


L'Oreal took an interesting take on the name of this lipstick shade (...vagabond??...)  however I have found that I really enjoy this product!  This is the first L'Oreal lipstick I've tried and I was impressed with its smoothness, durability, and cute packaging.  I will definitely be purchasing more Colour Riche in the future. 

Thanks for reading loves!  Hope you enjoyed this little post (:

Thoughts on these products?

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Essie - First Purchases!

Being honest here - the only reason I know about Essie is because of Pinterest.  The wonders of Pinterest have enlightened me about soooo many things!  Especially beauty/style/nails, all that stuff.

I haven't gotten around to purchasing any Essie products until recently.  Because, well... they're spendy.  

Essie is carried at different beauty retailers like Ulta, Rite-Aid, our local Fred Meyer, but they're always eight dollars for a tiny little bottle.  I love beauty products including nail polish, but I find it difficult to regularly drop almost 10 dollars on one bottle.

That's where Amazon comes in!  Even with shipping Essie polishes go for around 6 dollars through these sellers.  I find that worth it.

Here are the few that I picked up

Come Here! - Resort 2013

A darker coral that leans towards red - super bright & gorgeous
Cab-ana - Resort 2013

This is a beautiful bright blue that reminds me of the ocean!

Barefoot and Topless - Spring 2011

A pink-toned nude that really looks a lot better in person! I think it would be flattering on many skin tones.


A Crewed Interest - Spring 2012


A very light sort of 'creamsicle' color. I could not get a clear picture of it! And my nails looks quite shabby here... oops!
Overall I really enjoy the quality of Essie nail polishes and they have an awesome range of colors to choose from.  I will definitely be picking up more.  Obviously I'm not a nail expert, but I wanted to share these with you anyway (:

What are your favorite colors from Essie?

Thanks for reading...  I really, really appreciate all your comments & interest!

Saturday, May 18, 2013

May IPSY Bag!

The time has come again, and I just received my May ipsy glam bag in the mail.  I peeked earlier on my online account to check out the products and I could not wait.  This month's bag is an all around winner. Yay!


Here's the little travel bag.  I like the chevron and the colors are perfect for spring.


I am a fan of Zoya so when I saw a full size bottle was included in this months bag I was ecstatic!  The color I received is Gie Gie which is a soft pink with lots of shimmer.


I have never heard of Juice Beauty before this month's bag, but I was interested to try it.  The lip gloss I received is in the color Champagne.  Juice is an organic brand, and as you may be able to tell from the picture the gloss has an unusual texture (chunky?).  However, it goes on smooth and isn't sticky at all.  There's not much in the way for color with this one but it gives a pretty shine to the lips.


The next product I received was St. Tropez Instant Glow body lotion.  Its a self tanning lotion that is meant for one-night use.  When testing this out I was shocked how dark the product is!  It's so brown it's almost black, but it goes on much lighter.  We'll see in time what the quality of the tan is.  I've been itching to try St. Tropez for awhile now, especially with warm weather coming.


This is one of those products I was sooooo thrilled to receive (:  I've wanted to try Macadamia forever since many people in the beauty community rave about their products.  However even sample sizes are pretty steep.  Can't wait to give this oil a go!


You can definitely see my finger print from my panicky swatching. Every bag has one disappointing item and this was it for me.  I received this Yaby concealer in the shade Honey which is about 10x too dark for my skin!  The texture is soft and it seems like it would be a good concealer, but I would look completely ridiculous to wear this out in public.  Oh well!

So that's is for this month's ispy!  
What are your thoughts on these products? 

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

How to Relax

All of us have things going on in our lives that make us want to pull our hair out at one point or another.  Those times where we feel like we're just going and going... the world is working against us... we can never catch a break.

As a college student I feel that often these days.  When I visited with my doctor today to for migraine medication, he said that "high achievers" like me often suffer from headaches and anxiety.

Well.  Good to know! (;

So how do you unwind from all this craziness?  Here's a few things I like to do when I'm overwhelmed.

Read a book - For fun!

What I'm reading right now
If you're a student this probably sounds like the last thing you'd like to do in your spare time.  Honestly though I have found reading to be one of the best anti-stress medicines.  It keeps your mind sharp, but also gives you a chance to escape to someone else's reality without breaking your bank or having to leave the comfort of your couch.  Pretty perfect.

Take a bath

Uh yeah... I wish this was my bathrom.
Maybe you left bath-taking behind with your toddlerhood but this is a tried and true relaxation favorite of mine.  At the slightest sign of stress in my life I hop in the bath.  That's really no exaggeration!  To compound these tips you can also read a book in the bath, which I did just the other night (:

Also...  Epsom salt


Adding Epsom to your  bath is another bonus.  I like using lavender scented salts that I pick up at Rite-Aid for a pretty cheap price.  It's a good alternative to pricey bath salts that don't really do anything for you.  Epsom salts are proven to help relieve stress, anxiety and muscle aches&pains.

Wear a face mask


I'm not sure how effective these actually are, I just love doing them.  They give me a little boost of refreshment after a long day.  These two are what I've been using lately.

Use a little heat

Oh look... the half ripped tag is still on.
The main place that I hold tension is in my shoulders/neck which gives me lots of little headaches throughout a typical day.  My mom used to run an independent business with her friend selling heatable sewn bags of feed corn (!?) called Heatable Huggables that got me hooked on using heat for my achy joints and such.  Now I use this neck pillow which I love.  It has aromatherapy too.

Treat yourself!

Sometimes you just need a little retail therapy.  If you're like me your obsessed with saving your money, but remember that money is made for spending.  Every once in awhile it's okay to indulge! 

What are your favorite ways to relax?

Sunday, May 12, 2013

This Weekend - Zoo Trip

Tyler and I just finished an eventful weekend!  We went to visit his family in his hometown for a couple of days, and visited the Oregon Zoo while we were there.  The zoo is one of my favorite places to go.  I love animals, and its such a fun environment (:

Here are a few pics from our trip.  Unfortunately the majority of my Saturday was taken up by another migraine, but we made the most of the time we got!

How was your weekend?

I loved my orange lip Friday!  Revlon Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti.

Sunset along the Columbia River

Mt. Hood in the distance

Goat


Two giraffe

Seal -- He was staring in this one spot FOREVER... !?


Very comfy bear (:


Tyler and I <3

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Plum Crazy!

Hello all!  Ever have one of those days where you find yourself infatuated with a certain shade, tone, color scheme?

I'm there today.  When I was younger (about 8-11) my obsession was purple.  Everything I owned needed to be any shade of purple if possible.  It was everywhere in my life for years, but slowly faded out as I reached junior high age.

Today it came back in full force.  And I'm loving it!


It made an appearance on my lips in Maybelline Colorsensational Vivids - 900 Hot Plum, which I reviewed here...


On my nails in Revlon Nail Enamel - 917 Plum Seduction (my cuticles are obviously NOT tip-top shape right now!)...


And my accessories in this infinity scarf I purchased from Rue 21.  If you aren't familiar with their stores, they offer extremely inexpensive options for clothing, jewelry, accessories, shoes etc.  I've found that I really enjoy their scarfs, and at around $8 apiece you can't really beat it!  The quality is acceptable so I find it worth it.

Hope you all are having a wonderful day <3

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

OOTD Shirtdress

Wednesday is one of my late-start days that I enjoy so much.  Nothing to do until noon!  However, today was an exception to that because I scheduled an appointment with the dentist.

Kind of a waste of time.

Funny story (or at the least just ridiculous), in the past three or so years I've slowly had my wisdom teeth grow in.  In compliance with my dentist's policy, I had each tooth removed separately only after they started causing me pain.  So much fun.  

So as I remembered it, I had my top two removed as well as the bottom right.  Strangely my bottom right extraction site started to reopen two years after my surgery.  I was so concernred!  This is extremely abnormal so long after extraction.

Today, I made the hour long round-trip freeway commute to the dentist.  I explained the problem to the assistnant and when he took a look he said (kind of confused) "well this is a whole other tooth!".

I had gotten my teeth mixed up ): this one was the one yet to grow in.  So after a five-minute tops appointment he sent me on my merry way with my next check up in November.


Anyway, now that I've got that off my chest, here is what I'm wearing today (:

Outfit: 
dress: Charlotte Russe
flats: Charlotte Russe
necklace: gift from Tyler (its a small diamond heart)

Check out Jacy's recent dress OOTD here!

It's hot here and for once not windy so I snagged that opportunity to wear this dress!  It's lightweight and kind of breezy.  The print is minimal - black & white floral, but I love the pop of color with the turquoise belt.

The weather has put me in the mood for keeping it simple, and sometimes you don't need a lot of pieces to look and feel your best!

What's your favorite warm weather look?

See you soon dears...

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Revlon Lash Potion First Thoughts

Okay... I got sucked in.

A few weeks ago I saw an advertisement for the new Revlon Lash Potion mascara and I could not resist picking some up.  I think I was more drawn in with the whole Emma Stone ad than I actually was curious about the quality of the product.  Well, it was a little of both I guess.

Anyway.

I picked up the non-waterproof version in 002 Black.  40% off all Revlon cosmetics at Rite Aid right now. Yeah!!

Simple but beautiful & fun packaging

I can honestly say that I was really impressed with this mascara!  My lashes are blonde, long, but extremely sparse so they clump SUPER easily.  Lately I've been using Maybelline The Falsies or Megaplush and I really like both of those formulas/brushes they are just very wet.

Lash Potion is a dryer formula right off the bat which I like.  Also the brush picks up every sparse lash I have, separates, and gives length.  I don't think the volume is amazing, but the fact that it's nonclumping gives it an A+ in my book!  I would say I'm far more impressed with this mascara initially than I have been with Benefit They're Real.  Which is supposed to be the holy grail of mascaras... (to some).

I was excited to see that the brush does not feature plastic bristles.  I don't really get along with most like that.

Hope this review was helpful in deciding whether or not you'd like to try Lash Potion as well... Companies sometimes throw so many new products at you at once it's hard to choose which ones are winners for you!

What are your thoughts on the Lash Potion mascara?

Have a wonderful day loves <3

Saturday, May 4, 2013

Liebster Award!



So, I've been neglecting blogging lately... SO sorry!!  

Today I logged on and found a wonderful surprise waiting for me. Steph has nominated me for a Liebster Award (: as well as my sister.  Truly, this made my day!

I've seen posts about the award floating around on different blog sites but I didn't expect to be nominated myself.  If you haven't heard, the Liebster is a sort of honorary award passed around to bloggers with under 200 followers.  

Here are the rules (which I stole from Steph's post!)

Liebster Rules

1. Each blogger should answer the questions the tagger has set for you.
2. Choose 11 new bloggers to pass the award onto and link them in your post.
3. Create 11 new questions for the chosen bloggers.
4. Go back to their page and tell them about the award.
5. Each blogger should post 11 random facts about themselves.
6. No tag backs!

Here are my nominees
Helena from Seaside Beauty
Renaaye from Miss. Renaaye.
Lizzie from ssycophant
Catherine from Chic. Classy. Cheap
Aynur from Filthy Fashion
Sarah from Sarah-Lou xoxo
Candance from just a dream.
Lex from Lex's Wonderland
April from Rustic Love

I tried my hardest to find those who hadn't already been nominated for this award, but if I got some repeats -- oops!  These blogs are some of my favorites and those who I think really deserve some recognition.  These ladies are all awesome in their own ways <3

11 Random Facts About Me

  1. My mom found my name in a romance novel called The Wolf and the Dove.  The main character's name was Aislinn. Mine is Aislyn.
  2. I was born and raised in a small town called Mossyrock.
  3. I've had two pets in my lifetime -- a hamster named Nibbles and a dog named Oreo.
  4. My family consists of my parents, Dave and Wendy, and my twin sister, Jacy. That's it (:
  5. I have never been outside of the United States, or farther east than North Dakota.
  6. Growing up I was a huge Harry Potter fan but was too embarrassed to tell anyone until college.
  7. My boyfriend and I met during my first quarter at my current university in philosophy class.  He purposefully signed up as my partner for a presentation so he could get to know me -- so precious.
  8. One of my obsessions is OTTERS (:
  9. I just got a smartphone a few weeks ago for the first time. 
  10. I didn't wear makeup regularly until I was 17.
  11. Most summers during my teen years you could find me at the lake with my sister and our best friend. I miss those times often <3

My Answers
  1. What inspired you/why are you writing a blog? I was inspired to write a blog after becoming interested with popular beauty bloggers/YouTubers specifically Zoella and Sprinkle of Glitter. They both got their start with blogs, and I thought it would be a great way to join the beauty community.
  2. What is your favorite past time?  My favorite past time is probably reading.  I don't do it often anymore, but I used to be obsessed with reading.  I'm talking sit down and read a book cover-to-cover in a single day, most days.  Unfortunately I have been slacking on reading lately, I think it's great thing to make habit of!
  3. What is your one true wish (come on, don't be embarrassed)? My one true wish is to be HAPPY when I "grow up".
  4. What can you never help splurging (cash or otherwise) on? Makeup. It's an addiction.
  5. What is your favourite Season/weather? Either spring or summer.  They're full of beautiful things.
  6. What is your biggest obsession? My biggest obsession probably be makeup right now. Could you have guessed (;
  7. Are you a sweet or savory? Definitely sweet. I think every tooth in my mouth is a sweet tooth.
  8. What is your favorite book genre? For the past few years I've been loving this kind of court room mystery type of genre.  Jodi Picoult follows this format, she's awesome.  Check her out if you get the chance!
  9. How would you describe yourself? I would describe myself as a college kid with a lot of learning to do and too many decisions to make.
  10. How would you describe your look? My looks is whatever makes me happy that day! (:
  11. What is your favourite color? My favorite color is any variation of pink.
Questions for YOU! 
  1. What has been your best experience as a blogger?
  2. If you could go one place in the world you have never been, where would it be & why?
  3. What's the first good memory that comes to mind when you think of your childhood?
  4. Favorite drug-store makeup brand/product?
  5. What are your interests outside of your blog/blogging?
  6. Favorite food?
  7. Who do you admire most?
  8. What was your best vacation?
  9. Favorite clothing store?
  10. What famous/iconic person would you love to meet (dead or alive)?
  11. Favorite genre of music?
I can't wait to see all your posts,  I'm so looking forward to it (: Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Monday, April 22, 2013

Shopping Spoils -- OOTD

Happy Monday everybody!  I'm back on schedule again after a wonderful weekend away.  If you're curious what the three of us got up to our time consisted of lots of chatting, a little shopping, and maybe a tad too much to drink... Or more than a tad (;

You'll probably never guess which store I found most exciting (Forever 21, what!?)

I've been trying recently to branch out a little with my style choices.  I feel that I live in jeans and that its been that way basically my whole life.  Style progresses with maturity, and because I've done a lot of growing up over the last few years I've pushed my fashion choices to do the same.

My goal this weekend: find something different.  Try something new.  So I did!



Outfit:
pants: Forever 21
blouse: Forever 21
sandals: Payless
necklace: Forever 21
bag: H&M

I had to take this in low lighting. I've been so busy today I didn't get a chance until 6 o'clock!  The angle is kind of awkward but I think you get the general idea.

I finally bought a "sock" for a sock bun.  I really like how it looks and its so quick and easy to use. The whole outfit comes off better in real life, promise (:

What do you think about the high waist trend? And tie tops? I've seen them everywhere!

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Weekend Antics!

I completely planned on posting yesterday but was too busy getting places. Jacy and I are spending the weekend with a friend so we're pretty occupied with catching up on lost time. 
I'm posting from my mobile Blogger so I'm not sure how this will be formatted. Yesterday I really liked my outfit/makeup/hair but didn't get a great pic.  I tried a bow-bun and looooved it even though I was skeptical.  


What do you guys think? Would you wear this style?

I'll be back in a few days! Have a wonderful weekend <3

Thursday, April 18, 2013

NYX First Thoughts

About a week ago Tyler coyly asked me, "would you like to buy some makeup?" 

Well, obviously YES was the answer.  He is really into buying records at the moment so he bought a few frames through Urban Outfitters, but needed to meet the minimum purchase for free shipping.  So I decided to help him out a little (:

I've owned a couple of Nyx products in the past and I liked them pretty well.  I've heard a lot of good things about their jumbo eye pencils and I already know I like their blush & lipstick.

So this is what resulted when Tyler told me he needed five more dollars to reach the limit...

L to R MLS15 Whipped Caviar, MLS13 Angel
 I love these matte lipsticks!  They are highly pigmented, go on super smooth, and have a nice even, matte finish.  They are slightly drying but its nothing a little balm/gloss can't cure!  They're better than most matte products in that regard.

L to R: 611 Yogurt, 605 Strawberry Milk
The texture of the pencils is amaaaazing.  I love how creamy and smooth they glide on.  Definitely won't tug on your eyelid during application!  They do require a sharpener.

TWBS01 Tango and Highlight
 I was really excited for this product.  I wanted a highlighter but not anything too light.  This highlighting bronzing stick is really beautiful on the skin and gives just a hint of bronze.

L to R: PB03 Angel, PB10 Sand
 I couldn't believe how finely milled these blushes were, especially Angel. They are soft, pigmented, and seem really blendable as far I can tell!  I haven't used them yet so we'll see (:

Now for swatches...
L to R: Angel, Whipped Caviar, Strawberry Milk, Yogurt

L to R: Angel, Sand, Tango and Highlight
I know Nyx products are really nothing new on the beauty scene but I'm just now getting around to really trying out what they have to offer.  So far I am pleased with the quality especially for the price.

What are your thoughts on these products?

Let me know in the comments, I love to hear your voices (:  Till next time!

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Summer 2013 Color Tattoos

Maybelline recently came out with a new collection of limited edition Color Tattoos for Summer 2013.  I stumbled upon the display with my sister during a recent outing and couldn't resist (limited edition... come on!)

We didn't pick up all six shades, just the four pictured below.  Jacy mentioned these in her "Lil' Haul" post which you can view here. The excluded colors are a yellow and green shade which I just wasn't too hot on!

There seems to be some confusion going around about what colors are available for the new collection and so on. Unfortunately, I'm not here to clear that up.  I couldn't find anything about the Summer 2013 collection on Maybelline's site... But here is what we have (:



35 Cool Crush

45 Lavish Lavendar

20 Waves of White

40 Seashore Frosts

L to R: Seashore Frosts, Cool Crush, Lavish Lavender, and Waves of White

I think these colors should be referred to as "The Mermaid Collection" because that is exactly what they remind me of.  They all have different base colors but with a beautiful sheen of blue/green/purple/copper.  Absolutely gorgeous and perfect for summer!

I think Seashore Frosts is a really interesting shade as its blue based but has a copper/green sort of sheen to it.  It didn't photograph really well but its very multidimensional.

 What are your thoughts on the new Summer 2013 collection?

See you soon (:
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...