Julep Maven Add-On and Last Day of July!

I blogged a couple days ago about the August Julep Maven boxes coming out, and I finally have some news on that front. I have received one of the two boxes that I ordered. Because I am new to the program, I get one free add-on, which I used up this month on this lovely beauty:

It's Melanie :) Melanie was in the IT Girl August Metallics/Chrome Box. It is gorgeous and it is on my nails right now. I just couldn't resist it.

Sadly, they ship the add-ons separately (although, I don't know why because they give you free shipping so they have to pay the extra shipping to ship them separately). Anyways, I should be getting my actual box in the next 2 days, so I'll make a post when I do :)
If you want to try Julep Maven boxes, but don't know if they are worth $19.99, try your first box for a PENNY with the coupon code: PENNY or COLORS2012 at checkout. Visit HTTP://JULEP.COM/?R=22336094 .

ALSO: I HAVE OFFICIALLY COMPLETED AN ENTIRE MONTH OF BLOGGING!!! I have to say that I am really proud of myself, and I give props to anyone who read all 31 posts. I do my blogging late at night, and I didn't think I'd make it some nights, but I got in every single post before midnight my time, even though the time stamps on these posts are hours different (they make me look like I do these posts at like 8pm! I wish!) Anyways, Thank you for reading every day if you did, and if you didn't, there is definitely lots to catch up on now! I don't think I'll continue to blog every day, especially since I'm going back to school soon, but I'm going to keep posting a lot, so you'll probably get a post every other day. I don't know the exact schedule yet of when I'll be posting, but you could get no blog post for a day or two, and then get 3 blog posts spaced out all day. I just don't know yet. I still need to plan out some content, so if you have any suggestions on things that you'd like to read about, let me know in the comments below! I'm going to bed now for some much needed sleep. Nighty night :)

Monday, July 30th Update!

The theater camp that I was working on ended on Friday. This means nothing to you all most likely, but it should. It means that I'm soon going to be going back to college, but that I'll have a bunch more time in the next two weeks to spend on my blog with you guys :)

The only thing that is really planned for this week in my social life is a nice dinner with some theater friends from high school. Nothing else too exciting. Oh my social life right now...

But I am going to be heading back to school very shortly! I've already done some school shopping, and I'm very excited already :) I do think I am going to go ahead with a college series for this blog. I think it will be fun, and for those of you excited about college or already in college, it could be helpful.

I also received some fun things in the mail today, and I'm ordering a couple things that should also be arriving soon, so stay tuned this week!

Have a great rest of the week, and thank goodness Monday is over!

Oh, Pinterest.

I caved and got a pinterest. I'd heard so much about it, but never actually got one until today. I can understand how it is addicting for some people, but the only thing that I've really found addicting is the DIY and Crafts section.

Can someone explain pinterest to me? Why do I want to spend time on that site, and what am I gaining by being on there? Oh Pinterest. So many questions...

College Series?

Hey readers! I was thinking about my blog today, and brainstorming ideas for posts, and I thought about doing a college series/back to school series for your all. I am really wondering if that would be something that you all would want to read or not? Please let me know. Also, if you are interested in that type of posts, what exactly would you like to know/see? I definitely want to do a back-to-school haul of supplies, because I LOVE shopping for school supplies. But maybe a packing for college post or something? Just let me know!

Also, I am open to any post suggestions for my blog! Please let me know what you guys would be interested in reading!

Eyelash Curlers-You Need One!

I'm going to be honest: I never understood the point of eyelash curlers. My eyelashes have always been fine without one. But, when I moved into college, my roommate had one, and she curled her lashes everyday. Her lashes always looks so much spring-ier when she did. So, I decided to try one out. Her curler was a Revlon curler. This is mine:

It's just the cheap brand that you can get at Target. I think it's kind of silly to spend a bunch of money on eyelash curlers. The cheap ones last just fine, and I've never had a problem with this one. It's also the perfect shape of my eye so I don't get pinched while I try to curl my lashes.

My point is this: you need an eyelash curler because it makes a big difference for your eyes, but don't get tricked into thinking that you need a super duper expensive lash curler. Just find one for a reasonable price that you like and that does the job without pinching, and you are good to go :)

Nail Polish Haul

These are the nail polishes I've picked up recently. I thought I'd share them with the nail polish addicts that read my blog :)

Sinful Color's Unicorn: I showed this one in a NOTD, but I thought I'd include it here since I did buy it recently. It was $1.99 at Walgreens.

Essie's Off The Shoulder: This is such a pretty pink. I've heard that people are having a hard time getting their hands on this one. I picked up the last one at my Target. I haven't tried this one on my nails yet, but it's going to be my next NOTD most likely.

OPI's Last Friday Night: This was from the Katy Perry collection from forever ago. I don't really know why it was still on the shelves at my Target. I've never seen this color in person because it was always sold out at Ulta when the collection came out. It was a lucky find, and I figured that if it was the only one, then it was fate. The sparkles mesmerized me as the polish threw itself into my cart, I swear.

That's all the nail polish that I've bought in the last couple weeks. I'm sure there will be more! I really haven't bought much recently, but there will be more hauls coming soon when I start to get ready to go back to college, rest assured.

August Julep Maven Box

Julep Maven's August box orders just closed for the month, but I wanted to know if anyone ordered a box, and which box you got.

This upcoming box is:

 METALLICS!!

These colors are beautiful, but I almost skipped this month. To be honest, a lot of these colors I've seen before. But then I found a box that I fell in love with.

Here are this month's box options:

American Beauty:

Dakota and Stefani

Boho Glam: 

Isla and Piper

Bombshell:

Kim and Harley

Classic With A Twist:

Alfre and Felicity

IT Girl:

Melanie, Sienna, and Harley

I won't tell you what box I decided to go with, but you'll soon see when I receive the box in the mail :) 

Note: All picture credits go to Julep Maven and their blog site. 

To get your box, visit: HTTP://JULEP.COM/?R=22336094

What colors are your favorites? Which did you order? 

Quick Note

I just got back from being with my friend from college who was visiting my home town and one of my friends who lives here in my hometown. I'm super tired, but I'm still going to post today!

I wanted to just talk about how important being with friends are. I know that I spend a lot of time and money on beauty products, nail polish, and bath products. I read a lot of blogs and watch a lot of youtube videos, educating myself as much as I can on the topics that interest me. These things mean nothing though, if we don't have friends to share it with, and I think I realized that most of all today. We went bowling today, and I really enjoy bowling, but I suck at it, but I realized that it didn't matter because my friends loved bowling, and I loved spending time with them.

The best gift you can give to your friends is the gift of your time. I was tired today after camp, but I still made time for my friends, and I think that is super important.

Just cherish the time that you have with your friends. You never know when you are going to be a cross-country drive from them, or not even have them in your life at all. The beauty videos can wait until later, but make your friends a priority.

Monday Update-July 23rd

This week is going to be an exciting week!

Today, Monday, I had a great surprise from one of my friends. When we were at the premiere of The Dark Knight Rises, we were talking about how amazing her costume was, and about upcoming premieres and costumes. We both agreed that we wanted to go to the Catching Fire premiere together. I told her I wanted to be Katniss and she and I began to plan out our costumes. Today, she came in to camp with a mockingjay pin that looks ah-may-zing! And the kicker is that SHE MADE IT herself! It was the perfect start to the week, even though today kind of sucked.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, I will get to spend the afternoon after camp with my friend from college who is in the area for the day (she lives 6 hours away from me). We are going bowling and then out to dinner! I'm so excited!!!

Wednesday and Thursday will just be regular old days, but Friday will be the last day of theater camp, at which point the kids that I've been working with will put on their play Friday night.

Saturday and on, I'll be packing back up for college and re-arranging my room before I leave. It will be a race against time, but hopefully I'll get everything done before I go back.

This past weekend has been kind of bad, though. I had my braces adjusted, and the rubber bands are killing me. But other than that, I can't complain. I have this week's blog posts all planned out (and I've been writing them ahead of time, to keep my sanity and to make sure they are up on time) so this should be an exciting week for you and I! Post down below with what you are up to this week!

NomNoms:Quaker Banana Nut Bread Soft Baked Bars

My latest snack treat: Quaker's Soft Baked Bar in the flavor Banana Nut Bread. Oh my gosh. This thing is amazing. It takes exactly like banana nut bread, but it's so much easier than baking bread. These little bars are a great snack, but they also work well as a breakfast. They are pretty big and really filling, especially since it's like eating oatmeal and nuts in the morning. I haven't tried any other flavors yet, but I'm sure these little bars will be moving in to college with me in the fall. Nom Nomssssss...


Disclaimer: The bar was sent in my free Influenster voxbox for review. The views expressed in this post are strictly honest and true, and I am not being paid for this review.

Nail of the Day

This is my nail polish of the day. I used Sinful Color's Unicorn and Julep's Daisy. Unicorn applied kind of sheer (to get it opaque took me 3 coats) and it applies a little streaky, but I think that's to be expected of a color that cost me $1.99 at Walgreens. And who doesn't want a color called Unicorn?! Daisy on the other hand applied perfectly opaque. I didn't have to go over the stripe a second time or anything. I can't wait until I get to paint this all over my nails! Daisy was one of the colors I received in my first Julep Maven box.

Overall, this is a really easy design, and it didn't take me too long to paint, so I'm very pleased with it!

The Dark Knight Rises-Day After Review

How was the Dark Knight Rises you ask? AMAZING!!!

Since it is still the same day of it's premiere, I thought that I would give you a couple of my thoughts devoid of any spoilers.

First off, I went to the midnight premiere with my friend. She loves the Batman franchise, whereas I was really just there for the fun of going to a premiere. That being said, I didn't know much about the Dark Knight trilogy, but the movie did a great job giving back story where it was needed. I had no problem understanding what was going on at all.

Also, to anyone who has no faith in Anne Hathaway as catwoman, you will be amazingly pleased. My friend that went with me didn't want Hathaway to play catwoman, but she told me later on that she felt that Hathaway had exceeded expectations and done an amazing job.

The movie itself was a little long (almost three hours) but I think it is necessary in order to set up the movie and complete the action. There was a lot of action, in general. I wasn't bored at any point, or feeling like they needed to speed things up. And the end of the movie is exciting, unexpected (for me at least) and the perfect ending to the movie.

If you get the chance, go see it. I haven't seen Magic Mike yet, even though everyone is raving about it, but I can guarantee that The Dark Knight Rises is much more worth your time and money (at least in my opinion).

I've only had about 3 hours of sleep because I went to the premiere, so I'm sorry that this isn't the most entertaining post to date, but by tomorrow, I'll start getting back on my normal kinds of posts :)

Favorite TV shows

Right now, I am probably sitting in line waiting for The Dark Knight Rises to premiere in theaters, so I thought it would only be fitting to talk about movies that I love today. Except that I can never choose what my favorite movie is. There are just so many movies, and it's so hard to just choose one.


So, how about I tell you my favorite TV show?

Picture from Castle's Facebook page

Castle, on ABC. If you've never heard of Castle (BLASPHEMY!!) then you need to. It's about a homicide detective (Kate Beckett) who works for the NYPD who ends up working with a mystery writer (Richard Castle) to solve cases. They work so well together, and it's a great show with great characters. You need to watch the pilot if you've never seen it before! Right now it is on break, but it will be back in the fall!


Castle is by far my favorite TV show, but I have SO many other favorites. And while Castle is on it's summer break, these are the other shows that I find myself watching: 

Big Bang Theory (that's a new favorite!)
Keeping Up With The Kardashians (and any spin off)
Bones

The Glass House (New favorite)
House (cancelled :()
Fear Factor
Glee
19 Kids & Counting
The Little Couple
Revenge
Greys Anatomy
Once Upon A Time
Big Brother
Covert Affairs
Royal Pains
Toddlers in Tiaras
Victorious (is that sad. iCarly is also pretty good recently...hey, it's summer and I'm bored.)
Dancing With the Stars (ONLY if Derek Hough is still dancing. If not, no deal.)
The Bachelor, Bachelor Pad
Switched at Birth
Ghost Hunters
America's Next Top Model
American Idol (ONLY Hollywood week. And last season they kicked off Colton and Skylar too early, so I'm still furious about that...)
Tia and Tamera
Wipeout
Make It Or Break It (Cancelled.)

I'm sure there are a bunch more shows that I'm forgetting, but as you can see, I have a TV problem. I clearly can't keep up with all of these shows. And, even if I listed a show as a favorite, it doesn't mean I watch it all the time. This list is definitely not in order of my favorites to least favorites, but it should give you all a pretty good understanding about the types of shows that I watch.

The nice thing about it too is that there are summers shows, and there are fall shows, and there are spring shows, so I'm not watching ALL of these shows at one time. But, a general rule is this: If Castle is on, I watch Castle, and nothing else. I don't miss Castle. Ever. Unless it's a dire situation. Or I'm dying. NEVER miss Castle.

If you are a fan of one or more of the shows I listed, please let me know! I also love show recommendations. I'm hoping to soon start watching New Girl and Game of Thrones. I've heard those are good ones.

If you are sitting in line waiting for the premiere of Batman, I hope you enjoy the movie!

I've Become A Maven!

A Julep Maven, that is. I received my first ever Julep Maven box in the mail a couple of days ago, and I was so excited. I love nail polish, and I love receiving mail, so you can only imagine how excited I was when I found out about this service.

If you don't know, Julep Maven is another one of those beauty boxes where they send you tester products each month, but becoming a Maven is so much better! First off, it's a nail polish sample service instead of beauty products. Also, you can skip a month whenever you want (and easily!), and those stupid style quizzes that lock you into specific products that are supposedly "tailored" to you (even though they don't know you!)? Yes, you still take the quiz, but you aren't locking into ANY products because of the style quiz. They give you your category, and that's the box/nail polishes they suggest for you, BUT if you like another box better, they let you switch for no charge!

I've always doubted these beauty boxes because I've always seen the boxes have bad months where the products that they give out are bad, or they have bad customer service, but from all of the reviews that I've seen, Julep Maven has greatly exceeded my expectations!

Julep Maven is $19.99 a month, but they have some great deals for your first box! At checkout, type in INTROPENNY and you'll get your first box for a PENNY. I did it, and it feels great to get your first box pretty much free!! Finding a penny on the ground is not worthless anymore because it can pay for your first box!

Now onto what's inside the box:

The box comes nicely packages when you open it. It feels like you are opening a present that you bought for yourself :)

I chose to go with the IT GIRL style profile, even though they said that I was the Boho Glam. I will admit though, that they really did peg the boho glam. I loved the colors that they offered in that box, but this is why It Girl was the one I wanted:

The polishes from L to R: Lily (fuchsia creme), Daisy (yellow lemon creme), and Sasha (cantaloupe melon creme)
Daisy is GORGEOUS! I've been wanting a bright yellow polish for a while and just haven't found one that I fell in love with, but I LOVE Daisy. Sasha is also so pretty! Lily is your average pink (it's pink even though it looks like a cranberry) but it actually didn't look as pretty online as it did in person. I bought the box for Daisy, and I wasn't disappointed (although, how could you be when you got the box almost entirely free?! I dunno...)
The box also comes with two toe separators for when you paint your toe nails. I didn't have any of these, so they will come in handy.

Overall, the products are beautiful (although I haven't tried them out yet), the box was presented beautifully, I received it very quickly, and I like that you aren't locked in every month to products/ a box that you won't like. Nail polish is SO hard to get for people because everyone likes different colors, but Julep Maven was smart to give you five completely different options and allow you to pick what box/colors you want.

This so far has been a great service, and I'm greatly looking forward to the 20th of this month, when I'll get to view the next box's items and select my August box!

To get your first box for a penny with the intro code INTROPENNY, go to

HTTP://JULEP.COM/?R=22336094

Disclaimer: I bought the box with my own money. I was not sent this box for free or for review. All opinions are my own.

Nail of the Day: Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color

This is my nail polish of the day. This is Sally Hansen's Magnetic Nail Color in Polar Purple. I received this in my summer influenster voxbox. Purple is my favorite color, so I knew that I HAD to try this out. I painted this on my fingernails last night, and then took the picture, which is why it isn't the best paint job. Whoops.

Anyways, onto the review:

Color: The color is beautiful, but it isn't anything super unique. It is however made unique by the magnet, and I think that is true to any magnetic nail polish. What I really loved was the each nail was unique with the use of the magnet, and I think it gave it a much more interesting look. My sister was even obsessed with checking out my nails, even though she is not remotely into nail polish. The dark purple that the magnet brings out is just super pretty.

Application: The polish is a great consistency. It doesn't streak, and is opaque in one coat. The picture above is only one coat. Because you have to use the magnet, it takes a couple of nails to get used to using the magnet and being speedy enough to allow the magnet to do it's magic, but the result is worth it.

Directions: These are the directions that come on the bottle:

Easy steps

STEP 1 

Shake and Apply 2 coats

STEP 2

Hold Magnet for 10 seconds over wet nail polish

Instant Attraction!

Let dry and seal with a top coat for extra shine

Each nail polish comes with directions, and I think this is what I had the most issue with this nail polish. The directions tell you to paint one coat, let it dry, and then paint a really thick coat and quickly put the magnet over top of the nail polish. I followed the instructions exactly as they were on the package for my left hand (because my dominant hand is my right) and it was a complete fail. The polish was too thick, and it wasn't drying like it should. I ended up having to remove all the polish and try again. I will point out in the polish's defense that I'm super impatient with nail polish, and it might have just been that I wasn't waiting long enough for it to dry, but I think it also wasn't drying properly in general. There was something wrong with the directions. The polish is completely opaque in one coat, and so I just used the magnet on the first coat instead of the second coat, as I was originally instructed. The design from the magnet was the exact same on one coat as it was two, and it dried perfectly with only one coat. I don't recommend two coats with this, or if you want to use two coats, don't do such a thick coat the second time around like instructed.

Dry Time: Dry time was average. You have to give it a couple extra minutes to set, I think because if you swoop in quickly to put a top coat on (like I do because I'm impatient with nail polish) then you are likely to smear the colors into each other. I did this on some of my nails, but it actually really looked cool like that.


Staying Power: In the first day of wearing this, I lifted up a table in camp the wrong way and chipped my nails. I don't fault the polish for this, and the only chipping that has happened since I painted my nails was on the nails that were chipped from the table. It looks like the polish doesn't chip for the first three days at least (unless you are like me and prone to bashing your fingernails into tables when the fold-able table slips out of your hands...)

Here are some more pictures that I took, trying to capture how shimmery and pretty this polish is (which was a fail. The best way to see how brilliant this looks in in direct sun light):

I really do love this polish. The color is gorgeous, and now that I know to apply it with one coat, it works like a charm. I would definitely purchase more of these, and in fact, I plan on purchasing at least the red one, and maybe the blue or silver as well.

The suggested retail price on these polishes is $9.99 and you can buy them at chain drug stores, food stores, and mass merchandisers nationally.

Disclaimer: This polish was provided for review in my Influenster Voxbox. All opinions are my own, and my reviews are honest, as you can see above.

Monday Update

I thought I would start doing a Monday Update. It can be about what happened today, what happened over the weekend, what is going on this week, or anything in general that I feel like sharing.

First off, my Julep Maven box came in the mail a couple of days ago!! I've already taken pictures of the products that I got, and I'm working on testing them out. There should be a blog post coming in a couple of days for that :)

Second, I burnt my foot today when I got into the shower. It still hurts, which is the only reason why I'm thinking about it. I think Monday Updates are quickly turning into "what random thought is on Katie's mind now?"

Third: This week, I'm going to the Dark Knight Rises premiere with a friend. I'm not a huge Batman fan at all but my friend is. I like Catwoman though, and my friends mean the world to me, so I agreed to go with my friend. I've only been to one midnight premiere before, and that was for Harry Potter 7 Part 2, and I just love the anticipation and excited feeling of midnight premieres. I'm actually really excited for Thursday night :)

Fourth: I'm tired, and I have a headache, but that isn't going to stop me from posting today (although that explains the lack of pictures for today's post...)! I'm super proud that I've kept up my goal of blogging every day in July. I just hope I can keep up with it in the next couple of days!

I think that will conclude the Monday Update. If you'd like, I can do sort of like a questionnaire every monday, and you can post questions down below :) I'd totally be up for that, and I think it's a great way to interact with you all!

Have a great night and I'll see you tomorrow with another post!

New Straightener!!!

I know I've been talking about hair a lot recently, but I'm just so into my hair. It's so long, so I can play with it a lot, and make it into so many different hairstyles. Hair has always been something that I've enjoyed switching up and perfecting.

My newest hair obsession:

A CHI Air. Oh yess. It's my new baby :) It heats up so quickly and does a great job when it's early in the morning and I'm in a hurry to get somewhere. It actually straightens my baby hairs instead of just "attempting" to straighten them.

This is my first CHI, which is kind of sad, I know. I just never could fathom spending $100 dollars on a straightener. I didn't trust the product. My best friend from college has a CHI and she used to straighten and curl my hair with hers before we went out for the night, and it did SUCH AN AMAZING JOB!!! I was blown away. And, to top it all off, my Revlon straightener was not doing that great of a job recently. Don't get me wrong, it still works, but now I understand why people pay such much for a CHI. It just seemed like every time I straightened my hair with the Revlon straightener, it would become frizzy so easily whenever I stepped outside, but now, my hair stays straight without any problem. My hair is also a butt-head to straighten, so it's nice that the CHI has no problem getting it straight the first time. It saves me a lot of time.

I still have my Revlon straightener, and have had it for about 4 years. I'm still going to keep it, even though I have my new CHI. The Revlon straightener will stay at home and be a backup just in case something happens with the CHI, but I doubt it will :P I'm still very happy with my Revlon straightener though. It's my ol' trusty. It's lasted 4 years and is still going strong (as strong as a $20 straightener can!).

I'm in love with this CHI, though. So much. If you don't already have one, check them out! I know the price tag can be ridiculous, but ULTA has them on sale sometimes. At least check it out. You might never go back to your cheaper straighteners ever again...

Katniss For A Day!!!

Yesterday, my friend and I were supervising some kids at camp, and while they were playing a game, my friend asked if she could braid my hair. Of course I said yes, because I'd never turn down how good it feels to have someone play with my hair! She mentioned that she knew how to do the Katniss braid, from the Hunger Games (Side note: If you haven't read the book or watched the movie go do it NOW! It's a great series and I'm a little obsessed with it!!!). Since I'm a huge fan of Katniss Everdeen, I asked her to do the Katniss braid for me. Here's what it looked like (at the end of the day, mind you):

This braid is SO pretty and super practical. I now understand why Katniss kept her hair this way in the Hunger Games. It keeps all of your hair out of your face all day, and it doesn't fall down at all. I am just in love with it.

I just wish I knew how to braid my hair this way! If you know how to do it, please let me know. I'm in love with it!!!

Bonus: It also looks pretty when you take it down at night :)

LOOK AT THOSE CURLS!! It's pretty braided and it's pretty when you take it out!!!
Sold on this braid yet?

I am. I felt like Katniss Everdeen for the day, which was nice, because it was a bad Friday the 13th. Can we pretend the braid gave me Katniss's strength throughout the day? Please?

Bath and Body Works Semi-Annual Sale Haul

Today, I thought I'd share with you all my haul from the semi-annual sale at Bath and Body Works. I bought a LOT of stuff, but it was all super cheap because of the sale! Here is the damage that I did:

Yeah, I have a serious addiction. Bath and Body Works support group, anyone? The saddest thing is that I took this picture and then realized that I forgot to include a couple of things, so my haul is even bigger than what I included here, not to mention the wall flower bulbs that I bought for my parents! Oh goodness...

Anyways, I figured I'd list off what I got for you all since there was so much to include in the picture!

Pocketbac Holders: Blue holder with a green handle, pink/white/yellow with a pink handle, yellow/white/green with a yellow handle, and a really pretty pale pink one that has little beads in light pink, orange, and yellow. 
Pocketbacs: Wildberry Dahlia, California Poppy, Papaya Melon Scoop, Pink Daisy (this one smells AMAZING!!!), and Lemon Sunshine Slush. 
I've made the mistake in the past of getting sugary food scents, and it makes me sick to try and eat with that smell on my hands, so I've opted for either fresh clean scents, or fruity scents. 
Mini Body Sprays: Wild Berry Tulips, Wild Citrus Sunflower, and Wild Apple Daffodil.
This entire spring line was amazing, which is why I had to buy one of each of the sprays, and I'm going to miss these scents since they have been discontinued :(
Mini Shower Gels: (2) Malibu Heat (which sounds kind of dirty, to be honest), and 1 Wild Citrus Sunflower.
Shower Gels: Butterfly Flower, Rays of Citrus, Wild Berry Tulips, Velvet Tuberose, Wild Citrus Sunflower (3), Wild Honeysuckle, and Enchanted Orchid.
Body Sprays: Wild Berry Tulips, and Wild Citrus Sunflower. I know I bought the minis of these, but these are now my go-to every day scents. I've made a nice dent in the Wild Berry Tulips, which is from my first BBW haul, and when I realized how much I liked it, I went back and got the minis. It's an addiction, I know.
Wallflower Refills: White Citrus and Fresh Cotton. I like my room smelling all nice and clean.
Foaming Hand Soaps: Fresh Picked Raspberries, Raspberry Pink Peony, Wildberry Hibiscus, White Citrus.
Deep Cleansing Hand Soap: Wildberry Hibiscus, Wild Honeysuckle, Tropical Papaya.


What I forgot to take a picture of: Scent portable refills in Fresh Cotton (they are odor neutralizing and go in my car. These keep my car from smelling like Chick-Fil-A when I bring it home in my car!), and a mini lotion in the scent Wild Citrus Sunflower. I wasn't joking when I said I loved the Wild Spring line.


Honestly, now that I look at it, it doesn't look like I did that much damage. I could have done a lot worse, and I used coupons on all of them. I also got 6 coupons for a free signature item with a $10 purchase, which is available to use in July, and a coupon for free shipping (although I usually don't order BBW online). All in all, it was a wonderful sale, and I'm looking forward to whatever BBW has in store for their fall and winter collections.

Bath and Body Works is a great company. I've never had any problem with them, and I'd definitely recommend shopping there if you get a chance!

Disclaimer: I purchase all of this with my own money. Bath and Body Works didn't pay me to show you all this nor are they paying me to mention them as a company. I get nothing from this haul except an excuse to buy more products...

I want to change my hair...

I've been wanting to change my hair up recently. It's super long, and I'm just bored with it. I'm a natural light brunette, but the sun naturally bleaches my hair a golden blonde.

Around a week ago, I posted that my friends and I dip-dyed each other's hair, and I think I'm going to keep doing that for the short-term, but I'm very much considering either a major haircut, or dying my hair.

I'm really looking for y'alls opinions. I'm for sure getting a hair cut because I haven't gotten it cut probably since last summer, so the ends of my hair are damaged and dead from heat tools. My hair currently is almost down to my belly button, which is pretty long for me (this length is in my natural hair. When I straighten it, it's even longer because my hair is naturally wavy).

If I don't do a drastic cut, I want to dye my hair. I would really like to go super dark (like a dark brown, or if not that dark, like a dark auburn), but my parents think that I'd look better as a blonde. If I went blonde, I'd go for a strawberry blonde, not like a bleach blonde.

Please leave a comment below if you think I should either dye my hair (and what color?) or get a major cut. :)

Nail of the Week

This is my nail polish of the week. I say "nail of the week" instead of "nail of the day" because I've had this color painted on my nails since this past Saturday, and it is now Wednesday night. I'm wearing Chinaglaze's Ruby Pumps with a basic red color on my accent nail.

I really judge nail polish quality on how long it stays on. I'm not the kind of person to repaint my nails every over day. I'm just too busy and too impatient with nail polish. I'm super happy with this nail polish because it has lasted me five days. As you can see, it has started chipping in the corners of my first two fingers, but that's to be expected after five days. I'm also REALLY rough on my nails, so for a polish to stay more than 3 days on my nails is a huge plus. 


This nail polish is gorgeous. It sparkles in the sunlight light a beauty, and I get a lot of compliments on the color because it reminds people of the Wizard of Oz. If you don't already have this polish in your collection, I really recommend getting it at Ulta, Sally's, or anywhere else that sells Chinaglaze polishes.

Mini Excitement

As I'm sitting here watching the season premiere of Covert Affairs (which is amazing so far!), I thought I'd tell you about what I just ordered: My first Julep Maven box.

If you've paid attention at all to my previous blog posts you'd concretely know two things:
1) Bath and Body Works is an addiction.
2) Nail Polish is pretty. I like it, and am addicted to it as much as Bath and Body Works.

Julep Maven is like the monthly beauty boxes except that it's a box of nail polish! I decided to become what they call a "Maven" by buying my first box. I'm super excited because I ordered it a couple of days ago and today received an e-mail saying that it shipped. I'll post pictures and the works when I receive it, for sure! :)

Have a great Tuesday! I'm going to go finish Covert Affairs and then go to sleep because I have to get up early in the morning for camp. I'm tired already just thinking about it...

Old Navy Small Haul

I just started working at a camp today, and let me tell you, kids tire me out!!! I got home and passed out on the couch before going out to dinner with my family. It's time for me to go to bed now so that I can get up early and go to camp again tomorrow, but I really wanted to get a blog post up today. I've been doing so well getting a post up every day, and I didn't want today to be any exception. So here it is:

As the title suggests, here is a small haul from Old Navy:

FLIP FLOPS!!!! I <3 Old Navy flip flops so much!! They are amazing, and they have never given out on me, but that being said shoes wear out, and every year I make it a habit to replace my flip flops. The treads on the bottom of the flip flops where down when you wear them as much as I do, and I find myself slipping on smooth surfaces in my flip flops when that happens. That being said, Old Navy is AMAZING because on certain days, they sell their flip flops for $1!!!! That's a SCORE! Last Sunday, they were having one of these sales, and I went with the intention of replacing my beloved black flip flops and maybe getting a pair of yellow. Sadly, they didn't have any yellow pairs in my size (My fault. I should have gotten there earlier than noon...) but I did find some nice flip flops! As you can see in the photo, I found a new black pair, a brown pair with the purple pop of color, a bright neon coral pair, and a grey pair with the silver thongs, which surprisingly is my favorite. They had just a basic grey pair, but I fell in LOVE with the silver on these. They look SO nice!!!

The only thing with Old Navy flip flops is that they don't have half sizes, which I think is pretty common on flip flops, so I suggest going a size up. I wear a size 8 1/2 in most shoes, but I go up to a size 9 (or what they consider a 9-10). They are super comfy and pretty easy to break in.

Old Navy also has some flip flop recycling days where if you bring your old flip flops in and recycle them, they will give you a new pair at a super discounted price. So, if you missed the sale, look out for that!

(I almost missed the sale. I saw a commercial on TV two days before the sale. Not very much warning, but I think it's intentional.) I couldn't pass up getting 4 pairs of flip flops though for a $1 a piece.

Let me know if you scored anything from the sale! And if you got the coveted yellow pair in a 9, I'm super jealous. :P

Purple Polish Obsession

I mentioned yesterday in my influenster box opening that the Polar Purple color that came in it was perfect for me because I love the color purple. I thought I'd touch upon that a little more and show you all how deep the obsession is...

Exhibit A:

It might be hard to see all of the different shades of purple, but these are all of my purple nail polishes. This is about half of my collection. There's clearly a problem with me...

Here are the polishes a little closer. Some of them still don't look that purple in the bottle, but they are a shade of purple on your fingers.

 (From left to right: China Glaze's Coconut Kiss, Joy, and Harmony)

  (From left to right: Gap's Violet, Ulta's Last Fling Before the Ring, Essie's No More Film, 

and NYC's 133A)

 (From left to right: OPI's Meet Me At The Star Ferry, OPI INK, and Nicole by OPI's Virtuous Violet)

My favorite, you ask? Definitely OPI Ink. It's name reminds me of the show LA Ink, which was on TLC for a while. It's also a polish that my sister gave me for my birthday, and it's SO pretty in the sunlight. It looks pretty dark on your fingers, but it sparkles this really vivid purple color in the sunlight. It's beautiful. 

My most worn color? GAP's Violet. This was a gift from a friend, and it is another vivid purple color. LOVE. I just wish it didn't chip so quickly. 

Most unexpectedly pretty? ULTA's Last Fling Before The Ring. This color looks NASTY on my toes, but SO pretty on my fingers. I just can't explain or describe how that's possible, but it is. 

Let me know in the comments what nail polish color it your favorite, what colors you LOVE wearing, and just for kicks, what your favorite color is :)

I Got My Influenster Summer Voxbox!!!

 I got my Influenster Summer Voxbox yesterday in the mail!!! I'm so excited!! Here is the box: 

(It's around 8pm here and the sun is almost set, so the lighting may be a little funky, but hopefully it's manageable!)

I've only had one day to kind of play with the products and try a couple things out, so here's what's in the box and my first impressions (from left to right):

Quaker Soft Baked Bar in Banana Nut Bread: This little bar looks SO good! I haven't tried it yet because I still needed to take pictures for my blog, but the minute I can, I'm going to chow down on that sucker!

Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color: The minute I saw this, I was ecstatic! My roommate introduced me to magnetic nail polish, and she bought hers from like $15. It wasn't the Sally Hansen brand, but it still looked really cool. The color I got was in Polar Purple, which is perfect because I'm obsessed with the color purple. I can't wait to try this out!

Sally Hansen Nails and Cuticles Hand Creme: To be honest, my first impression was that it smells like sunscreen. I'm not a huge fan of the smell at all, but I put it on anyways, and it's definitely moisturizing. The smell isn't too bad, so I'll still use it, it just isn't my favorite. I'm going to keep using it and see if I grow fond of the smell or not.

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30: Unlike the Sally Hansen Nails and Cuticles Hand Creme, this smells great! It's very tropical and girly, and it's perfect for the summer by the pool or at the beach. This is a 2oz bottle, and I don't know how long that will last, but I'm about to work at a summer camp, so I'll bring it along and see how well it works. I'm very excited for this, though.

Tampax and Always Radiant Collection: Sadly (or not so sadly, depending on how you look at it...) my period literally just finished (TMI? Ok.), so I won't be able to test these out for a couple weeks, but my first impression of these was positive. I liked that they came in the little bag, and that the bag doesn't say TAMPAX all over it. You can throw it in your pool bag or your backpack and be discreet about it. Also, they have redesigned the closures on the tampons, and it looks like they are going to be more sanitary to use. Overall, good so far! I'll test these out the next time mother nature graces me with my monthly gift :P

I'm very happy with this box. It was free, so it's kind of hard to NOT be happy with it, but the products seem promising, as well. I also love getting things in the mail, so I'd been looking forward to this voxbox since the moment I got the e-mail that I would be receiving it!

If you haven't heard about influenster, you can visit influenster.com to sign up! It's free to sign up, and what you do is you answer surveys about yourself so that they can put you in their demographics, and then from there, you earn badges that dictate which box would be right for you! You aren't necessarily going to get a box every time one is available, though. I've been a part of the site since April of 2012, and this was my first box. If you decide to join, just make sure that you unlock the badges that fit you, because from what I understand, that is how you begin to get boxes. Also, if you do receive a box, you have to agree to do a review of the products, not only on their site, but on any other media outlet (blog, youtube, facebook etc.) that you are a part of.

Comment below if you received a voxbox, if you are familiar with/have tried other Influenster voxboxes, or if you have tried any of these products before, and let me know what you thought of them!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!


Disclaimer: Influenster sent me this box for free so that I could review the products inside of it. All reviews are honest.

Pink Hair?!

Yeah, I dyed my hair pink. But not all of it, I promise!!! There's been a trend going around this summer where you dip-dye the ends of your hair. I've been seeing it all over a bunch of blogs and YouTube videos. My friends and I wanted to try it. So, during our last sleepover, we dip-dyed each other's hair. I chose to dye the ends of my hair Cotton Candy Pink (which ironically, the dye smelled like cotton candy. Not that I was smelling the hair dye or anything...)

This is the dye that we bought. My friends used a different brand because they wanted different colors in their hair, but I used the Raw Color in Candy Pink. I purchased this dye from Hot Topic, because I had heard that the dye wouldn't last for too long, which is honestly what I wanted. I've been bored with my hair, so I thought it would be fun to just play around with it, without it lasting 6-8 weeks like normal hair dye. The dye was $12.95, which I think is reasonable, and I barely had to use any dye for the ends of my hair. There is still plenty left!
Note: If you have dark hair, you are going to have to purchase a bleach in order for the color to show up. I don't have to because my hair is pretty blonde, but if you need to like my friends did, they sell it at Hot Topic. It's going to be $12.95 like the dye, but there's enough in the bottle to use on a lot of girl's hair!

Here's how my hair turned out:

The pink shows up a lot better in natural light, but it's not a super vibrant color, which I wish it had been. The dye has lasted about 7 washes (as I'm writing this). It's definitely faded the color, but there is still pink in my hair. Even though the color has faded, hair is naturally a golden blonde, so the ends of my hair now look a really pretty shade of strawberry blonde.


I do recommend dip-dying your hair. My friends and I had a lot of fun with it, and it was really pretty, and still is! Hot Topic has a bunch of colors, and it's an inexpensive way to spend a sleepover with friends! You and your friends could all agree on one color, and dye each other's hair. There's definitely plenty in the bottle for about 7 girls to dip-dye their hair!


Let me know if you try this trend out! I'll definitely be doing it again this summer.




Disclaimer: I bought the dye myself and my friends and I dyed our hair on our own. Hot Topic did not compensate me for this post, nor do they know it exists. All opinions are my own. 

Small Update

I just thought I'd do a small update for you all :)

I'm still on summer break, and while I've so far been doing a good job blogging every day in the last couple of days, I am about to start working at a summer camp. The camp only goes until 3pm every day, so I'm hoping that I'll still have plenty of time (and content!) to keep blogging every day :) I'm trying really hard, so I hope it pays off!

I also haven't yet received my influenster voxbox yet, although I should be getting it in the next couple of days because I've started to see people on YouTube receiving the box and making reviews. But the day that I get it, I'll be sure to show it to you all, and soon after get reviews of the products when I start using them.

I've got the next week's blog posts planned out, so be looking out for some fun things!

What's On My Toes?

 Happy 4th of July to all of those in the United States! In honor of the red, white, and blue colors, I thought I'd share the perfect red nail polish for all of your festive designs:

Introducing Ole Caliente by Essie. I really love this color. I bought it about 3 months ago when I was still in college, and have worn it on my toes ever since. It's the perfect red, and it stays on your toes without chipping for a while. What I especially love is that it's a super bright red instead of being a deep red, so it's perfect with a tan!


I used this with a pretty blue color from Revlon and a basic white polish to make some red, white, and blue nails for the holiday. If you see the polish, I'd suggest you pick it up! It's got a great formula, and is super pretty!!! I got mine at Target, but I know they have them at Ulta as well. 


Have a happy 4th, and let me know if you pick this color up!

Etsy Rings Are Pretty :)

Etsy is a really great website to get cute jewelry from. Recently for my birthday, I asked my mom to get me some specific rings from Etsy stores. My reasoning: I could wear them all the time and if I lost them or had them stolen, it was no big deal because they weren't super expensive. (Side note: I had a ring that I really loved stolen when I was in college, which was the whole reason why I wanted rings that were cute but not super expensive). These were the rings that I asked for:

The left most one is a gold copper double heart ring, the center one is an silver copper alphabet ring with my initial on it, and the last one is a silver ring with a gold flower and faux stone. What is really nice about these rings is that they are all adjustable, so you can wear them on any finger that you want. It also makes it super easy to buy as a gift, because you don't have to know your friend's ring size/worry about getting the wrong size ring. The downside to that is the rings can sometimes get caught on clothing or can get caught on things that you are carrying (I cannot count how many times these rings have gotten stuck on the grocery bags when I'm carrying groceries in from my car!) That being said, the rings are made of copper wire, and can be easily reshaped back into their original shape. 

They are super pretty though, and I highly recommend checking out the jewelry on Etsy. It's a little pricier than what you'd pay at Forever 21, but I think they are nicer quality pieces that will last a while! 

Because these rings are handmade, the sellers don't always sell the same things in their stores. I can no longer find the flower ring or the K alphabet ring on Etsy, but if you really like either of those, there are similar ones on the site. 

Here is the link to the listing to the double heart ring: http://www.etsy.com/listing/88987906/gold-wire-double-hearts-ring-heart-to (The same seller sold me the alphabet ring, so if you really want one, I'm sure you could contact the seller and see what they can do for you!) 

I'm a huge Etsy fan, and I hope you check out the website! 

PS: I'm not sponsored to talk about Etsy or the sellers. I just really like my rings and am planning another order from Etsy, so I figured I'd make a blog post about it!

Bath and Body Works Semi-Annual Sale!

The Bath and Body Works semi-annual sale is going on now and ending soon! If you are a bath and body works addict like me and need your monthly fix, I suggest hitting them up this week! I've done a lot of shopping there in the last couple of weeks, and I will be posting a haul from there, but I just thought that I'd tell you all that there is only one week of the sale left if you are interested!

Also, Bath and Body Works is doing a special buy 3, get 3 free of their signature collection. They've never run a buy 3 get 3 free during their sale, and they don't do this kind of a discount on their signature collection often, so if there is something that you wanted that wasn't part of the sale, head over their now!

You can also shop the sale online at bathandbodyworks.com :). Enjoy!


I've got lots of posts coming up for July so stay tuned and please subscribe to my blog! Thanks :)

Summer Influenster Box!!!

I just thought that I would update you all and let you know that I got contacted by Influenster to receive their summer voxbox! I'm super excited to get it in the mail (getting anything in the mail is exciting when you don't get much mail like me! :P) and I'll post pictures and do reviews when I receive the box!

In case you don't know about Influenster, it is an online site that sends out free products to people for review. All you have to do is sign up and take some quizzes. You won't always get a voxbox, and you have to be selected to receive them, but they are completely free, which is exciting and fun! I think it's a great way to try out new things, and all you have to do it give your honest opinion of them, which is great! If you don't already have an influenster account, you need to make one! Just visit: http://www.influenster.com/ :)

I'll let you all know when I receive the box! It should be coming in a week or so!

Oh, and happy July 1st :)