Put A Bauble On It!

Lets talk statement pieces, shall we? Statement pieces vary from jewelry, blazers, shoes, anything really that just adds a big pop of "WOW!" to your outfit. Statement pieces are usually something that are worn with an otherwise fairly simple outfit to dress it up or make it stand out a little bit more. 

I've been a big fan of bright colored scarves for years now and usually used those as a simple statement piece. I've always wanted to dabble in statement coats/blazers but here in California, we just don't have the type of weather that justifies spending loads of money on brightly colored outerwear (to be honest, we are actually in the middle of a drought!). 

Anyways, I've always heard of BaubleBar from different YouTubers including Ingrid (missglamorazzi) and Elle (allthatglitters21) and many, many more. Anyways, I was going to a Christmas dinner in December and did not want to buy a new dress--lets be honest, buying new dresses can be really fun, but a lot of work. Usually with buying a new dress you then need new shoes, sometimes even a new jacket. I just did not have the energy to go through all of that and to be honest, I really do not need another dress hanging in my closet. Really. 

I decided I would wear a Target dress I picked up for my 21st Birthday and finally buy my first Bauble to dress up the outfit. Upon logging into the website, I was immediately overwhelmed. All the sparkle, all the silver, all the dazzle, ahhh I was drooling! I spent a good hour searching all the pages over and over again tying to decide which ones I wanted. I finally decided on the Marine Contessa Bib. Unfortunately due to the holiday rush, I wasn't able to get this piece before my party BUT I did get it a couple days down the road and it is my most worn Bauble. It is so beautiful and versatile, and a great pop of Bling and Blue. 

The next day (I showed my mom the site the day before to ask for an opinion on which one to order), my mom selected a bunch to order for her and I as gifts to each other for Christmas. I was ecstatic because there were so many I wanted to badly. I even got my friend aboard the Bauble Bandwagon and she was going crazy, too. 

My first pick was elegant Silver Dame Necklace that feature only clear gems on a silver backing that dangles down your decollate. I love to wear this one with simple tees as a way to dress up a simple shirt and sweater outfit. Perfect for those days when you have work and then a nice dinner to head to after, this piece will take you straight from day to night!

Next was a pick from Missglamorazzi's BaubleBar collection. I was originally super drawn to this piece because it seemed so whimsical and the blush-coloring of it was really alluring. This Rose Dandelion Bib is great for spring and summer.

Upon receiving the Rose Dandelion Bib I noticed that one of the small stones was missing. DO NOT REMOVE THE WHITE TAG UNTIL YOU MAKE SURE ALL THE STONES ARE WELL IN PLACE. I shipped it back and had a really fantastic customer service experience. BaubleBar has a very personal and professional business team that is very committed to good customer service. When they shipped me the repaired necklace, they sent an "extra bit of sparkle" for my troubles.

I'm not sure what the name of this bright pink fringe piece is but I can't wait to wear it with some matching lipstick and nail polish!! 

Now onto Buried Baubles...the reason my Bank Account cries at night in solitude while I sit in bed wearing my finest Statement Necklaces. BaubleBar releases a Buried Bauble every Monday and Friday by sending out an email with clues to lead you to the treasure. The Buries Bauble is marked down to either $10 or $20, usually about half off a Bauble!! Who can pass up that offer??

My first Buried Bauble was this Pastel Pinwheel Collar in the color "Ivory". It has a mix of Ivory and Mint on a gold backing that is just absolutely stunning. I paired this with a neon yellow shirt the other day and LOVED the combination of Pastel and Neon. Can we make that a thing??

The second Buried Bauble I purchased was this Mod Lizzie Collar in "White" and OH MY GOODNESS, this is more gorgeous than I could have ever expected. I have to say, I would recommend this Bauble to anyone that didn't know which Bauble to pick. The stones are iridescent and so shiny. I also like that the chain is a little thicker than the others making the gold on white really stand out. If you don't know which one to pick, pick this one. (It's kind of similar to the Rose Dandelion Bib, but more chunky and shiny). 

The other great thing about BaubleBar is getting everyone hooked on it! Borrowed Baubles are always fun.

I especially love to borrow my mom's Tortoise Deco Strand...

You can accumulate points with each order which are redeemable as money towards your BaubleBar purchase, and by referring someone by email, you can gain 150 points! So, if you are interested in BaubleBar, definitely check it out! The best part? If you leave me your email address, I can invite you and you can get 15% off!

Faded Purple Lip Tutorial

Hey Everyone! Late last night I posted a super quick and easy tutorial on this faded purple lip look. I have been wearing this A LOT lately and keep getting compliments and questions on what color I am wearing. If you are interested, be sure to check it out and subscribe to youtube.com/beautyandblogging

Oh, Sorry I'm "Fashionably" Late...

So, this post is coming completely out of the blue and was inspired by an article I read this morning on my way to class on the light rail. It was actually quite funny because I usually arrive at school with at least a half hour to spare because I like to be sure I am in my class room on time. I do not want others to wait on me and I want my teachers to feel that I am engaged in their class and care enough about their time and efforts to at least be there on time. This particular morning I was "running late", which, by my standards, means I was going to be at school with only 15 minutes to spare. Nonetheless, I was experiencing a racing heart, increased blood pressure, and irritability because I really hate being late. I remembered how I took extra time this morning to pick out my outfit, change my lipstick, and create a more elaborate eyeshadow look. I was, by definition fashionably late.

Ughhh, those words make my blood boil. The article I was reading can be seen here by the Huffington Post, written by Greg Savage, and basically he is making a point saying that "fashionably late" is just an excuse for people who lake respect for others or have no manners. Ain't that the truth. The very expression "fashionably late" makes a statement that you don't mind making others wait on you, just as long as you have the perfect shade of red lipstick and a triple-foam latte in your freshly manicured hand. 

I'm not saying I'm perfect, I am a human and I do run late from time to time. Sometimes there are accidents that happen or other things that cannot be avoided that make you unavoidably late, I completely understand that. What I don't understand is when my time and efforts are not taken seriously and I am left waiting 15 minutes for you to show up to coffee. Also, your text that tells me you will be there in 5 minutes means nothing to me, because by 5 minutes, you really mean closer to 10 I am sure, which means I could have deposited my check at the bank before I met up with you. I am a busy individual, I'm sure you are a busy individual, lets all be adults and take each others loaded schedules seriously and just BE. ON. TIME.

Try to put it into perspective this way; we have all experienced that doctors visit that they advise you to be at 15 minutes early, yet don't even take you back until nearly half an hour after your scheduled appointments. By that time, the person before you is likely running late, you are running late, the person behind you is kept waiting and will be running late, it's a slippery slope! The excuse that the doctor is "very busy" means nothing to me because we are all very busy and the last place I want to spend my non-busy life moments is in a germ ridden waiting room with a crying child, a cell phone talker, and two gossiping receptionists. 

As a college student, I loathe when I arrive to class perfectly on time (even with time to spare!) and people walk in late because they were busy printing out the assignment that was assigned a week ago, but they chose to print out two minutes before class. It goes along the same lines as procrastination, which is another thing that makes my head spin. What about on days of tests when you are in your chair waiting to be given the test that kept you up for the past three nights studying and your teacher says "I'm going to wait five minutes for the rest of the class to stagger in". How about no we just start the test and when they show up five minutes after class starts, they can just lose those 5 minutes off their test because CLEARLY they found that smoking their E-Cigarette was far more important than their awaiting exam. I find that these tend to be the same students that you are assigned to do a group project with and they continually arrive to group meetings tell you that they haven't yet written their section of the speech on an index card, but it will for sure be done. Please, do not waste peoples time with this kind of bull crap! Have your stuff written, ready, and rehearsed so you can practice together as a group and dominate the speech! Those of us who are ready do not want our grade to suffer because you procrastinated. We are all students, we all have full schedules with lots of classes, many of us also work on top of all that school work, so the least you can do is pull your own weight and do not make others wait on you. 

This looks like it took a turn from being about lateness to procrastination, but they both seem to be knots in the same string to me and they are both huge pet peeves of my own. Oh, but one last piece of lasting advice: If you're going to be late, and you bring everyone coffee, you are no longer late ;)

theBalm "Vanilla Oil Absorbing" Face Moisturizer Review

Hey Folks! Maybe you recall a few months ago I did a post about a haul from a few brands on HauteLook; one of said brands being theBalm Cosmetics. I have several rave reviews for many products I have tried from theBalm, but I haven't really ventured into their skin care line. Actually to be honest, I didn't even know they had a skin care line! Most YouTubers that I watch that use theBalm mention how wonderful their blushes and their eyeshadow palettes are, but I've never heard anything about their skin care line.

Well, today I was getting ready and I hit that dreaded point in my daily moisturizer where I have to pump to top several times just to get the tinniest bit of product to come out. "Oh No" I think, "I'm getting close to running out!" It is at that moment that I know that the product I am using is Holy Grail product. Sometimes it gets exciting getting to the end of a product, especially if you have your eye on something else or if you really didn't like the product much to begin with. I really hadn't even given my daily moisturizer much thought, until this morning when I was frazzled at the fact that I am almost going to be throwing this bottle into my "empties" collection. 

theBalm White Tea Vanilla Oil-Absorbing Face Moisturizer is honestly AMAZING and highly underrated. Also, quick point off topic, when I tweeted to the company today that I think this product is amazing, they favorited my tweet! I absolutely love when a company is actually interactive with their social media community, I find it makes me want to keep purchasing their products and communicating with them. Anyway, I have in the past used Bobbi Brown Oil Control Lotion and I found it to be nice, but never repurchased. I like the scent of it although it irritated my skin in the slightest way because of the Seaweed Extract; I think it was the scent caused my sensitive skin to turn bright red. With this Oil-Absorbing lotion from theBalm, I find that I do not need to blot or touch up my face with powder all day. My skin is combination to Oily, but can have extreme dry patches, very acne prone, and extremely sensitive. I don't find that this lotion is too drying on my skin when it is drier and I find that it has held up in even the hottest weather conditions I've been in--Reno, Anaheim, Canyon Lake, Sacramento, you name it. The scent on this is absolutely lovely. It is very natural and subtle. I hate when things are labeled "unscented" and it smells like a scent of "unscented" (does that even make sense? is it just me?). This smells like the ingredients in it without added perfumes. I also like that it isn't a "matte" formula, it makes the skin look so much more natural and radiant. It also has not caused me to break out and it is paraben free, cruelty free, phthalate free, and synthetic dye free. 

Another great thing about this product is, and I kid you not, but there are some days where I put this on with my Tarte Maracuja C-brightner eye treatment and feel totally comfortable and beautiful walking out the door without a trace of make up on. It makes the skin look so fresh, clean, and bright. 

The packaging is gorgeous glass and looks very high end if you ask me, and the pump detail is nice too. The best part? This product is only $20! Which is a steal if you ask me as you could easily go to Target and find an Aveeno moisturizer that isn't half as lovely for $15 or more dollars! 

All in all, it is easy to see that I really love this product, even if it wasn't so obvious to me before I nearly ran out, I now see that I am going to need to order this stuff in mass quantities because I never want to be with out it. If theBalm was ever to stop making this, I honestly do not know what I'd do. I find it to be a really unique product that is highly underrated. 

As I always recommend with theBalm products, keep your eye out for them on Hautelook, I think I got this moisturizer for only $10 when it came around! 

Shimmering Amber Eye Tutorial

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One Direction Style Steal!

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Get Ready With Me|very NEUTRAL everyday make up

Here is another "Get Ready With Me" video! This one is going to be an extremely neutral look that is perfect for work days. I hope you guys enjoy it =]

Also, sorry for no voice over, I've lost my voice this week so I didn't want to annoy you guys with a raspy sick voice.
If you have any suggestions for future videos be sure to let me know in the comments below! I'd love to consider them =]

Michael Todd Antioxidant Toner

Hey guys!! I wanted to give a review on the third Michael Todd Toner that I've tried. Michael Todd true organics has 3 toners and now that I've tried all 3 Ivan confidently say that the Cranberry Antioxidant Toner is my favorite! It is supposed to be hydrating and have anti-aging benefits. I like using anti aging products when possible just as preventative measures for wrinkles an dark spots. This toner really is hydrating too; I find that my skin look more radiant and plumper when I use this toner. I think that this toner in comparison to the Algae toner and Lemon toner has more benefits and has the same benefits that the other two offer. It is more hydrating than the Algae toner and is quite brightening, very comparable to the Lemon toner. It smells fresh and clean and makes your skin feel extremely clean. 

In conclusion, this toner is AMAZING. As a self proclaimed toner snob, I think this one is the greatest daily toners that I have tried. I highly recommend all 3 of the Michael Todd toners, but this one is my absolute favorite. 

Get Ready With Me! Radiant Skin For Fall

Hey Everyone! Sooooooo, this happened! I uploaded my first Youtube Video! It's just a simple get ready with me, but it took a lot of time and it's reallly out of my comfort zone, but I'm also really excited about it! I hope you enjoy it =]


PS A HUGE shout out to Casey Abrams, I love this song so much, you guys should totally check out the rest of his album =]