What I Got for Christmas

Because my family is spread out, I'll probably end up with a part two of this because we haven't opened presents with my dad's side of the family yet. This isn't everything, but these are some of my favorite gifts I've received so far.

Kate Spade Gold & Turquoise Hoops

Tarte Stop & Stare eyeliner and mascara set

Tarte Thoughtful Treasures kit

Kate Spade Crossbody Bag

Express Houndstooth Infinity Scarf

Keurig K-Cup Carousel

Plus, I got a gift card to Ulta and one to Starbucks which I'm very excited about. My mom and sister and I also went after-Christmas shopping, so I now own a new pair of Lucky jeans and a down coat from Eddie Bauer.

What exciting things did you get for the holidays? Look for an announcement on Wednesday and part two of What I Got for Christmas coming soon!

The most wonderful time of the year

Hi guys!

I know this is really late, but honestly, my life hasn't been that exciting lately. I felt the need to update you all on what's been happening in my life this week, though, so here goes:

Our Box Office Manager came for a few days to set up next season in our system so we can sell tickets. It was really great to see him and spend some time with him. We didn't know each other well over the summer, but I always enjoyed spending time with him when he was around. Plus, it was nice to talk to someone who's in the same boat as me with stuff and to have someone else in the office.

On Wednesday night Ryan and I drove to Portland to see a TAM alumni in The Santaland Diaries which is based on a David Sedaris story, and it was hilarious. Dusty is ridiculously talented, and he knows who I am, so that was pretty cool.

I spent Thursday and Friday working on my Marketing plan, ad renewals, and our End of the Year video. I'm actually hoping for a snow day on Monday so I can just work on it from home instead of going into the office. Everyone says it's not going to happen though. Oh well. Only one more week!

Today I slept WAY in and then went to Ulta and Target to almost completely finish up my Christmas shopping. I still have to buy something for my dad's girlfriend, but that requires me getting to The Body Shop, and the closest one is half an hour away. I'll do that once I get back to Baltimore since we're not doing Christmas with them until my sister and I get to Florida after New Years anyway.

At Ulta I picked up Nail Envy for my mom and some replacement foundation and powder for me. I also caved at the last minute and bought myself a mini The Body Shop Satsuma body butter. Seriously, the scent is amazing. Then at Target I bought gift supplies (tissue paper, bags, cards), a frame for my aunt's picture, and some gloves and a headband because it is COLD here.

I'm looking forward to going home and getting some time to relax. Hope everyone's holiday season is going well!

Ulta and Drugstore Haul

I've gotten a lot of new products lately! It seems like my purchasing happens in spurts. I can go for a while without anything new, and then all of a sudden, I have a ton of stuff to try out! Some of this is from my Ulta excursion, some of it I got in a swap, and some of it I order from Elf!

1. Butter London - British Racing Green

Totally excited about this color. It's gonna be awesome for winter/the holiday season.

2. Nyx Slide On Liners in Brown Perfection and Jewel

I've been meaning to try these for a while, and I am not disappointed! The brown is more pigmented than jewel, but they're both gorgeous, last forever, and are super creamy. I definitely need to get all the colors!

3. Ulta quad in Illusion

Naked, Seashell, Mystique, Twilight (Top L, Top R, Bottom L, Bottom R)

I'm loving this natural quad from Ulta. I use Naked as a highlight, Seashell on my lid, Mystique in my crease, and Twilight in the outer V. 

4. Mica eyeshadow in Bronze

I haven't gotten to try this yet, but I'm quickly becoming obsessed with bronzes, so I'm very excited to give it a try!

5. Almay lip balm in Blooming

This is a beautiful "my lips but better" color, and it's not too sticky, which I'm pretty sensitive about.

6. Elf Matte Lip Color in Coral

Haven't had a chance to try this yet, but I love everything coral, so I'm not worried.

7. Elf brushes - Crease and Blending

         

New brushes! I'm really enjoying adding these into my make up routine. It's nice not using the same brush for everything!

8. Elf eyeshadow stick in French Lace

I got this to use as an eyeshadow base, and it's quickly becoming a must-have for getting ready!

9. Wet 'n Wild Megaprotein Mascara

Despite it's name, this mascara gives me a super natural look, so I'm really liking it. It has a little bit of a tendency to smudge, though, which I'm not a fan of. Plus, I love the packaging. This has inspired me to try more Wet 'n Wild mascara!

Tell me what new things you've been trying lately! Very soon, I will have a ton of nail polish to share with you! For now, though, I hope you have a fabulous weekend! 

Mall of Maine Haul

As a direct result of me picking up Alex from Portland, I ended up with a lot of time to kill between the time I arrived and the time he did. I spent said time in the Maine Mall which might've been a mistake for my wallet. You end up buying more than you would if you weren't just killing four hours.

Without further ado, here's what I got!

Forever 21

Bluey-purpley leopard print headscarf

Kaleidoscope headscarf

You guys know how I keep saying I'm gonna buy more of these. I just wish they'd had more selection.

Icing

Black and white chiffon headscarf

Blue, gold, and neutral thin headbands

In my defense, these were BOGO 1/2 off. I would've gone home with a TON more, but they were pretty expensive as far as headscarves go. They have some super cute ones though.

Ulta

Lee Stafford heat protectant spray

Foot repair balm

Butter London in Marrow - picture from All Lacquered Up

Honestly, I was really surprised at myself at Ulta. I had $100, but I guess since it was a finite amount (and not just my check account) I really wanted to make sure I needed everything I got. You could make a case for the nail polish not being a need, but really, it's me. 

So that's everything! Have you guys had any great hauls lately? What's your take on the headscarf trend?

Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike..

I survived my jam packed week! I tied up all my ends and even managed to have some fun!

Friday my mom's office was "working from home" because of all the Grand Prix stuff, so we went and got mani-pedis. It was glorious.

This was one of the best manicures I've ever had

The color is China Glaze's Turned Up Turquoise which is part of their neon collection. What I didn't realize is that it's matte! I'm really not a fan of matte nail polish, and a top coat fixed it right up, but I had no idea that it was matte to begin with. This is obviously another case of me not doing my research. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have the greatest formula. It's chipping like crazy, and I'm so sad!

On Saturday, my mom and I spent most of the day cleaning and packing. I'm taking a lot more stuff with me then I thought!

We also wandered down to her office to see a little bit of the Grand Prix.

Conference room view

Then we got sushi at a new place in the neighborhood. It was a long, but good day.

Yesterday I drove to my first destination, Deerfield, NH. I decided to break this drive back to Monmouth up into two parts because a) I hate that 10 hour drive and b) with Labor Day, traffic's gonna be awful!

So I only have a little over two hours left to do today! And now that I'm already in Portland waiting to pick up an actor from the train station, I only have one left! And I get some company, so that's nice.

Plus, I'm going to the Maine Mall to kill time. There's an Ulta. I have a $100 gift card from my birthday.

This won't end well.

Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer

What a week, y'all.

I have felt more worn down this week than I have all summer. It's probably a combination of personal things going on with me and yet another tech. Because of that, I had a very quiet Friday night. I spent it in my room, getting some much needed alone time, and I went to bed early(ier than I have been...) and slept for a solid 9 hours.

Most people went to the beach today, but I wasn't feeling an hour drive there, and given how late they got back, I'm glad I didn't go. Instead, Amadi, Beth, and I went to the library (when was the last time I checked out a book from the library?) and then ventured into Augusta to go to Kohl's, Ulta, and Walmart. I was actually very good and only picked up two more nail polishes I don't need.

After we got back, we went to the lake which was a GLORIOUS idea. It was so cool and sunny and lovely.

Then we came back and made dinner (pizza rolls and mac 'n cheese) and watched Tarzan and The Princess Bride while painting our nails. It's become a Monday night thing, and I'm seriously digging it.

This is my second to last tech, so I'm pushing through. Then it's just shows, shows, and more shows. August shall be an adventure!

Wild Butterfly Boutique and Julep goodies!

I've been meaning to do this post for a while because I wanted to give a shout out to two people. First, Brooklyn Burton who runs This Little Blonde for having the giveaway I somehow one at the end of May and second to Wild Butterfly Boutique for sending me this beautiful turquoise teardrop necklace after I won!

I had been admiring their necklaces for a while (and entering a ton of giveaways to win one) and I was so excited when I finally did! I've been loving statement necklaces lately, and this one is beautiful and a perfect addition to my (hopefully) growing collection. 

Julep was also having a sale recently, so I picked up a few polishes for only $4 each. 

They're so pretty!

I picked out Lucy, a "modern, dark burgundy creme": 

Renee, a "Spring lilac creme":

And Candy, a "Grape rock candy nail glaze" which, for some reason, I didn't realize looked like this:

Obviously I need to pay better attention, because what I wanted was a dark purple, not a sheer purple. I'm working on trading this for something else.

I also traded away some of my Ipsy and Target Beauty Box items to get Nan, a "Nantucket red creme":

In other nail news, I painted my nails for the first time since I've been here with "Love Song" from Nicole by OPI's Selena Gomez Collection.

It was a pretty enough color that I made it work, but the formula on this was awful! I ended up with two coats, one incredibly thin on and one thicker, kind of gloopy one. It self-leveled, but it was really annoying to work with, and you could definitely see the coats.

For accent nails, I used Ulta's Pinata Yada Yada which, as I mentioned here, I'm officially obsessed with. 

I'm now wearing China Glaze's Aquadelic with Pinata Yada Yada for accents. Beautiful color, super easy to work with, and bright and blue for summer!

What jewelry and nail polish have you guys been loving lately?

Toad Hall Adventuring!

Yesterday I had an unexpected day off, so my roommate Beth and our housemate Sara and I went on an adventure! First we went to Ulta. It was my first Ulta experience (despite wanting to go FOREVER) and it was marvelous. I wanted to buy the whole store. But I didn't! Instead, I got these things:

Back left we have the Ulta brand fragrance mist in Fresh Lilac (these were 2 for $10, so Beth and I each got one), to its right is the Joico Curl Activating Spray, and back right is the Alba Hibiscus Facial Toner. Then in front is a Revlon Lip Butter in Juicy Papaya (I've been looking for this one for a while) and the Ulta brand Brilliant Color lip gloss in apricot.

After Ulta we hopped over to Target because Sara wanted some sunglasses and a yoga mat. We ended up in the pajama/lingerie section, and somehow decided that we wanted to make pajama pants. So, we looked up the nearest Joann's and headed that way. We took way too long looking at fabric, but eventually we left with fabric, elastic, thread, and a pattern.

Which, after dinner and a movie, we took to the Costume Shop and made pants!

Sara and Beth hard at work!

The finish product! I'm on the right.

After we finished, Beth, Sara's roommate Amadi, and I watched Aladdin which was an awesome throwback to my childhood. Today I'm working on getting things done that have been on my list for a while. I finally cleaned by area, and I feel much better about things. I also Skyped with my former roommate Alissa for an hour and a half or so to catch up. Hopefully I'll have more theater things to report soon, but as of now, it's been pretty quiet. The Velveteen Rabbit opens this week though, and I think we're all looking forward to that!