July 2014 Favorites

I refuse to accept the fact that July is over. Like really, August, why such a rush? I can't believe we're creeping into the last month of summer but that's all okay because that just means it's time for July Favorites!

Hmm, nope, still not okay with it being August but the show must go on.

Beauty
July was the month of brand new beauty favorites which is probably a lot more exciting for me than you but I've got some great stuff to review so let's get to it.

My first favorite is something that I knew would be a favorite before I even bought it.
I discovered this perfume when I got a sample of it from Sephora. As I dabbed the little sample on both my wrist I was floored. "Oh my gosh, this is what I want my signature fragrance to be!" was my first thought, no joke. I made my friend L try it and he said the cutest thing, "Mmm, that's what I smell when I think of you. You must have worn that for years." 
First of all, that's precious. Second, I've never even heard of this perfume before now. Third, I must buy it immediately.
So that's exactly what I did and I must say that Clean Skin is officially my new favorite perfume ever. 
It smells amazing and I love that the .5oz is perfect to throw in my bag and go. Sephora's site describes it as a "This fragrance captures the delicate scent of bare skin. Hints of dewy flower petals wrap around notes of pure creaminess and warm musk to evoke the simple scent of touchable skin. Enticing, fresh, pure: clean skin at its best." And I completely agree.




If you've read my Sephora, Lush, & More Haul then you know that I recently picked up the Mask of Magnaminty from Lush. 
I love this mask. 
It smells beyond amazing and is really invigorating. 
It's marketed as a cleanser but it's also a really great exfoliator because of the ground aduki beans in it (which sounds a lot fancier than it actually is). 
Overall, I think this is a really great mask if you have problems with breakouts and stuff or just really like the smell of peppermint like I do.

This next product is a holy grail item of so many beauty gurus on YouTube that I just had to get my hands on it. It's the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. I've always had problems with my brows and to be perfectly honest I've just taken the road of ignoring them and hoping they get better, until recently. I say that because I recently discovered that I am a self-proclaimed pro at eye brow waxing. How did I discover this? Well, my roommate decided to purchase an at-home brow waxing kit. She was so afraid to try it herself that I said I would do it with her since my brows are crazy already. I was pretty proud with the results and she was even so impressed that she had me do her's too. 

So now that I've been doing my brows my self and keeping up with them pretty good I've been looking into products that are made specifically for brows and that's how I came across the Brow Wiz. 
Now, I have black brows...like no joke, I have naturally medium blonde hair and coarse black brows. It's awful. So in order to lighten them up a bit I use the Brow Wiz in Medium Brown mostly because that's the lightest shade above blonde that doesn't have reddish/auburn shades in it. 
The super thin pencil makes your brows look so natural and the spooly on the other end is so handy and really great at setting your brows in place. Definitely a holy grail item for me too.
While shopping on Sephora's site I was like $15 away from free shipping so I decided to go ahead and treat myself with a fun new product (even though shipping is way less than $15 and I actually ended up spending more money but hey, it was a treat). I decided to grab the Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil in Endless Guava because it looked like a great product for summer. I had a really difficult time trying to decide between Endless Guava and Limitless Pink which is a medium pink that is more in my comfort zone but I am so glad that I chose "vibrant poppy pink" shade. I really thought I would use this as a lip color more but it has been my go-to blush shade this month and I definitely see myself using it well into the fall. I love how creamy and blendable it is too.

Music
For all my music favorites for this month check out my What My Ears Are Loving post because there was just too many faves to mention. 

TV
If you've been paying attention to this blog at all this month then you would have realized that I have been even more of a television junkie than usual. Aside from Finding Carter and Project Runway, I have been binge watching my way through 2 seasons of The Mindy Project and caught up on Witches of East End before the second season premiered.

I am counting down the days until September 16th when Season 3 of The Mindy Project premiers because I cannot wait to see what happens between Mindy and Danny. There's just so much I can say about this show that I don't even know where to begin. Mindy Kaling as Dr. Mindy Lahiri is absolutely hilarious! I love that she showcases that you can indeed be an intelligent, successful working-girl type but also harbor a love for all things pop culture and maintain a killer fashion sense without losing any of that intelligence (as so many may think is the case). I could go on and on but I'll just suggest that you go ahead and watch it because it's amazing and laugh-out-loud funny.

 I have had an obsession with witches (entertainment purposes only) since the Sabrina the Teenage Witch movie...and yes, it was a movie before it was a show, it even stars a curly haired Ryan Reynolds (for more fits and giggles you should really see Sabrina Goes to Rome and Sabrina, Down Under). That obsession carried through to my adult life making it impossible for me to ignore various incarnations of witches in pop culture, don't even get me started on how much I loved AHS: Coven. That brings me to Witches of East End. I loved the first season of this show and even rewatched it on Hulu this month. I just love the idea that the show centers around 2 young witches that have been cursed to be reborn after they die leaving their mother immortal and their aunt being able to turn into a cat and deal with the nine lives that comes with that fate. I just love the whole premise and the cute boys don't hurt.
You can join me in watching The Witches of East End every Sunday at 10 pm on Lifetime.





Book
I fell into such a reading slump between June and July (I blame Chelsea, Chelsea. Bang, Bang. Which I have been trying to read since Spring Break '13 and just recently finished) but one night, after watching tons of The Mindy Project, my friend suggested that I check out Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?
I downloaded the book to my Kindle app on my iPad and headed out to the pool. It got to the point that I was getting my neighbors to peek over the hedges to see what I was laughing about all by myself, it's that funny. I loved how relateable everything was and especially enjoyed the walk down her own childhood/teenage/twenty-something memory lane struggles...because we all have them, we might as well laugh about them. Throughout the book you start to see lines that parallel The Mindy Project and I really liked that because it made the show more realistic for me knowing that she pulled stuff from her own life. 
I ended the book thinking, "Wow, she's worked so hard to get where she is I hope she only keeps going and gets even more successful." Uh, that's the definition of girl power and women supporting each other if you ask me. I highly recommend this book as a feel-good, laugh out loud read. 


Randoms
Just a heads up, all of my randoms for this month are totally food related...but that's okay.
I am a huge snacker. I love to just snack around but this month I've really made more of an effort to eat healthier (more on that later, though) so I've been loving finding healthier snacks to help me through my snacking moments. 

I discovered these Bare Crunchy Coconut Chips while out shopping one day because I'm a sucker for anything coconut. I picked up a bag of the Show Me The Honey kind and devoured them in like a week and decided to go back and pick up one of each different type. 
The Honey flavored ones are my favorite but the Simply Toasted ones are great and the Sweet 'n Heat kind tastes like a southern bbq chip so y'all know I love those too. Like I said, I love anything coconut and these are simply that...all natural coconut slices with various flavorings. What's not to love?

I grabbed the Cookies & Cream Special K Pastry Crisps while I was a the grocery store earlier this month and as you can probably tell by the picture shown here I went back and grabbed some Chocolately Caramel flavored ones too. 
I was really missing sweets and cookies after of couple of days of my healthier eating routine but these things really came through. 
Only 100 calories for 2 candy bar sized "crisps" seemed like a pretty good way to curb my cookie cravings. I really enjoyed these two flavors for two reasons, 1. they taste good! Seriously they definitely don't taste like diet anything and they're as close to a cookie as I'll let myself get right now. 2. They seriously helped me feel like I was having an indulgent snack without being too indulgent. 

If you know me at all then you probably know that I am a HUGE tea drinker. Sweet tea, fruit tea, green tea, herbal tea...you name it, I love it. So when I picked up a box of Lipton Earl Grey Black Tea (the same day I got my Coconut  Chips actually) nothing was out of the ordinary that is until I made my first tea from the package. Holy smokes this stuff is amazing! 
I've drank Earl Grey before, in fact it's what my friends and I used to order from the coffee shop on campus whenever we'd meet up before heading to the library, but I've never had Earl Grey like this before. Not only does it come in those really fun pyramid shaped tea bags but it is jam packed with amazing ingredients. 
Confession: I went through 2 boxes of this stuff in July alone. If that's not proof that it was a favorite then I don't know what is.






Now for my...
Not So Favorite
We'll just call this section The Southern Girl and the Never Ending Cold Front vs. The British Heat Wave.
Is it just me or was Snow Miser and Heat Miser fighting for Christmas in July?

 It's like July forgot what season it was in and started to spazz out. I mean I spent the majority of my time in sweatshirts and long sleeve tees this month while listening to all my favorites Brits on Twitter and YouTube talk about the boiling heatwave they were experiencing. What?! 
You took our weather, Britain! Let's hope you give it back before summer officially ends.







I hope you've enjoyed this look into my favorites for the month of July.
Leave a comment below letting me know your favorites or not so favorite for this month.

until next time.
xo
Merisa 


PS: I'm not entirely sure why but this took me like a week to write, throwing everything else off schedule so I'm so sorry but I hope you've enjoyed it nonetheless. 

Sephora, Lush, and More Haul!

Something happened a few weeks ago.

I took a look around and realized that I had not spent a dime on anything other than bills and absolute essentials in over a month...and well, that's just no fun. So, I decided to splurge a little and treat myself.

I thought long and hard about what I wanted to spend my money on and after filling "dream carts" on like 8 different websites I decided on Lush.

And as you may or may not know (I did not)...Lush products are made in Canada, freaking British Columbia, Canada which is on the west coast aka really far away from me. So as I waited for my package to arrive I started to get kinda antsy. One thing lead to another and I found myself clicking the checkout button on Sephora's site. 

Unfortunately, for my bank account, it does not end there...

I was just minding my own business, checking my email when I stumble across one from American Eagle and rather than just delete it, I was caught by the promise of a major sale.

All of their clearance was now 50% off as part of an extended Fourth of July sale.

"Let's just give it a look," I tell myself.

Like an hour later I was staring down the words "Your order is being processed" on my screen. Uh oh. 

That's okay though because we're just gonna say this post makes it worth it.

When my package from Lush finally arrived I was so excited I ripped into it immediately, 

as you do.

I picked up the Mask of Magnaminty, Pink Bath Bomb, Superworld Unknown solid perfume, and the Dorothy bubble bar which was so cute I just had to use it ASAP. The Mask of Magnaminty has been on my Lush Wish List for a long time just because it's billed as the "ultimate face mask" and I can see why. So far, I've used this mask all over once and as a spot treatment on blemishes twice. It seems to work better than some drugstore masks that I've tried which is good because I was worried about the small size of the tub compared to bottles that those masks came in considering the price. But with 4.4 oz fitting inside such a compact container, I'm definitely getting my money's worth. It smells heavenly and I love that it can also be used to exfoliate naturally because in case you didn't know microbeads used in a lot of drugstore exfoliates are actually harmful to the environment (Read More about it in this article from Refinery29).

I can't wait to use the Pink Bath Bomb because it was inspired by Audrey Hepburn and is meant to smell of vanilla and tonka bean which to me just spells "relaxation."

Superworld Unknown was such a hard pick for me. I knew that I wanted to try a perfume from Lush and I figured a solid perfume would be a good way to go but I was so scared about picking one from description alone. "This scent is a merry-go-round of sensory experience. Sweet neroli and cocoa bring fluffy pink cotton candy to mind, while rose and sandalwood keep your feet on the ground," seems promising enough right? I was intrigued by the thoughts of fluffy pink cotton candy because that's what Paris Hilton's Can Can brings to mind and I absolutely loved that scent when I was younger (no shame) and I know that I like rose and sandalwood so might as well give it a try. Well, I've used it quite a bit (I even have it on now) and honestly, I still don't know how I feel. I don't know where they get cotton candy from but it does remind me of a day spent outside at a fair possibly. 

I do like this scent for just wearing around this house during my lazy days though. I don't know if that says a lot in it's favor.

How cute is this Dorothy Bubble Bar?! Bubble Bars have got to be my favorite products from Lush and this one was no exception. I loved how soft my skin felt after I pulled myself from the bath (because I definitely did not want to get out) but I always seem to mess up with the bubble making process of using a bubble bar. I didn't experience the fluffy clouds of bubbles or the vibrant blue water that was promised. :( 

While looking through Sephora's site I decided to just break down and pick up some products that I have been pining over for quite a while. I. Regret. NOTHING.

I had heard really great things about the Origins Active Charcoal Mask but I wasn't totally prepared to pay $24 for a face mask. Well, the Sephora gods shined down and I discovered that the same mask could be purchased in a sort of sampler pack of 4 individual mask pods. I love the way this masks feels on my face but I'm not entirely sold on the idea that it is actually drawing impurities out of my skin but I have only used one pod so far and I will be sure to keep you updated as I test it further. We all know how much I love my multi-purpose rose salve and seeing as my tin was getting dangerously low I decided to try out the Smith's Rosebud Salve since it was the same price as the CO Bigelow Rose Salve that has popped up in so many posts before. I'm still working on my last tin so I haven't actually tried this one yet but I did discover that Smith's only features 3 ingredients while CO's has quite a few and some that are those scary unpronounceable kind.

So I just decided that the next 3 products will most definitely be apart of my July Favorites so all I'm going to say about the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz, Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil, and Clean Skin perfume is that they are life changing and most definitely worth the splurge. Keep a look out for a more in depth look at all of these products very soon. 

Like I mentioned before, I just couldn't stay away from the epic deals of 1/2 off clearance items on American Eagle's website. I got all of the items pictured below plus 2 shirts (I forgot that they were in the wash, oops) for under $30! That's crazy! Who doesn't love a good yoga pant style legging? Definitely not me and I have been looking to try out a printed legging so I thought these cool grey ones would be a pretty safe option. Yes, that is underwear you're seeing (fresh from the package, don't worry). I'm not entirely sure why I chose to include them other than the fact that I did purchase them at the same time so they are technically a part of this haul but I love Aerie undies and the lace band makes them super comfy fyi. Sunglasses are an obvious summer staple but a sunglasses case is something that is essential but not often thought of so I just had to get my hands on this soft gold pouch. I especially love how it matches my beloved Kate Spade bag. I'm a sucker for neon pink and I just thought this neon tassel necklace was such a fun accessory for summer. 

I hope you guys have enjoyed this look into my spending habits. ;)

Leave me a comment below letting me know what you've splurged on recently or what you're saving up for, I'd love to hear it!

until next time,

xo

Merisa

May Favorites 2014

Hey guys!

So I know I'm a little late to the game on this one (mostly because I attempted to do a video instead of a post but that was a major failure, don't ask) but I really wanted to go through my monthly favorites for the month of May really quick because honestly, I miss blogging and I miss monthly favorites so let's get to it.

Beauty Favorites

Golden Magnolia Sun Body Cream

What is my number one rule, children? That's right!

Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! 

So it should really come as no surprise that one of my favorites this month would be a body cream. Between swimming, tanning, and just being outdoors in general my body gets super dehydrated going into summer so I recently stocked up on some essentials at Bath & Body Works. I picked up the "Golden Magnolia Sun" Triple Moisture Body Cream because it just seemed fitting considered the title of this blog. The scent is so fresh and can only be described as "pretty" even the description on the back sounds pretty. 

"Golden Magnolia Sun is a luminous blend of pink magnolia, golden apricot, and sun-kissed peony, blooming with a touch of sensual vanilla and cassis nectar. 

I don't know what half that stuff should smell like but together it is heavenly. 

L'Oreal Paris Sublime Bronze Mousse

My name is Merisa and I am officially a self-tan junkie. 

May marked my first month tanning bed free.! Yay! I finally understand that tanning beds only cause harm, thank you, thank you. *bows graciously accepting imaginary applause*

Anyway, I needed to find a way to get that golden glow that I was missing so much. That's when I started trying out a ton of self-tanning products from high end to drugstore brands. I picked up the L'Oreal Paris Sublime Bronze Tinted Self-Tanning Mousse because it actually came with a sample of L'Oreal's new sunscreen that I really wanted to try (I'm picky about sunscreens). I wasn't expecting a whole lot because I was so set on trying the St. Tropez Mousse but I tried it out anyway.

Let me just say that I was hooked after the first swipe of my tanning mitt. 

I LOVE this stuff. It delivers wonderful color immediately while only taking a few hours to build up to an even better warm toned glow. Application is super easy and one pump of product goes a long way with no streaking at all.

I'm planning on doing a whole self-tanning post later on this month so keep an eye out for that for more info on this product and more.

Derma E Microdermabrasion Scrub 

I received this product in May's Ipsy Glam Bag (which I will be posting about very soon, I promise!) and I was immediately shocked by how much product came in the sample. At 1oz. of product it holds 75% more than the microdermabrasion scrubs I received with Birchbox (if you don't know how I feel about that then check out this post). I have become so obsessed with microdermabrasion scrubs lately that it's practically the only scrub that I let touch my face. Oddly enough, I really like the scent of this product (usually these types of products are more chemically smelling but this one has a lemony scent) and love the thick and creamy texture. I little product goes a long way so I expect this sample to last a long time. Overall, a huge thumbs up to Ipsy yet again!

LUSH Popcorn Lip Scrub

Keeping with the theme of scrubs, I picked up this lip scrub during a shopping trip in late April and feel in love! This product quickly became a staple in my nightly routine as it is super easy to just dip your finger in the sweetly smelling pot, dash a bit of scrub across your lips, and enjoy! After rubbing the scrub between my lips it almost seems like a reward to take it off. Seeing as it is made with fresh, edible, vegan ingredients the scrub is completely fine to just lick off you lips (my favorite part) and I love the sweet and salty, kettle corn combination. I already can't wait to try the other LUSH lip scrubs. 

Essie Nail Polish

I know it's technically still spring but for me as soon as the temp gets above 75 I'm ready for summer which means I'm in need for a summer nail polish. That's when I hit up my handy dandy box of polish (which is a lot bigger than I ever care to admit to) and found this polish which I've had for ages. I don't know if it's my awesome tan (thanks, L'Oreal) or what but Essie's Mod Square definitely hit the mark and is my new go-to polish for summer. 

These next two products go hand in hand...

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Treatment Concealer

Real Techniques  Expert Face Brush

You've probably heard me gush about the Instant Age Rewind before just as I've heard countless beauty bloggers go on and on about it but let me just say that it is totally worth the hype! I have the neutralizer shade which I'm not too big on really and would probably pick a different shad next time but I have yet to find a concealer that covers my monster under eye circles as well as this sucker does. It has a super lightweight, creamy texture that doesn't crease but with high impact coverage that can even tackle blemishes and redness too. I really enjoy taking the Expert Face Brush and blending it in after I've used the brush to apply my foundation because I'm not too big on the shade but the formula is out of this world and I pray Maybelline never changes it.

Everything Else

Pinch Provisions Minimergency Kit

Let me just say that every girl needs one of these bad boys in her bag at all times!

I had a lot of events in May and I cannot tell you how many times this little emergency kit came in handy. It has everything a girl could need in a cute little case. From breather freshener, hairspray, clear nail polish, nail polish remover, deodorant, aspirin, a sewing kit, the list goes on. My favorite might just be the unbelievably good tasting/smelling mini lip balm. In my personal opinion this product is worth the $16 price tag from Sephora just because it is so hassle free. They come in a variety of colors and there are even kits for brides and bridesmaids, perfect for wedding season.

Lilly Pulitzer Ear Buds

I've had these for quiet awhile as I picked them up during either the End of Summer or Winter sale on Lilly's website, I can't remember which but they have come in super handy during the month of May. I would just throw the buds in their handy little pouch then in my bag they went with me to the library, my Editing & Design class, and even the pool most recently. I love how I don't have to worry about my headphones getting tangled or broken because of the soft case and I especially enjoy the print on the ear buds. Definitely something to keep an eye out for during Lilly's upcoming End of Summer Sale.

Lilly Pulitzer Inspired Home State Print

There I was just minding my own business, scrolling through Instagram when I notice an anon-account I follow posted a picture of these Lilly Pulitzer Inspired Home State Prints (I believe they were Alabama and South Carolina) and I just had to have one. I commented on the picture asking if they could possibly do a print of Kentucky and got an immediate response saying yes so I hopped over to Etsy, messaged the shop setting up a custom order, greeted again by an immediate response, and had my print customized and ordered within a day. The print is from LWCDesigns on Etsy and I have to say that not only was I super impressed by how quickly they operated (I received my order days before another order I placed with a different shop a week earlier) but also the value of the print compared with the price. At only $6 ($9.50 with shipping) I was totally impressed with the overall experience. The print came framed and everything!

I highly suggest you head over to LWCDesigns right now to check out some of their other amazing products and check them out on Instagram as well!

Books

You might recognize these books from my What We Love Wednesday Haul post back in December and I hate to say it but I'm just now getting around to reading them and by reading them I mean blazing through them. Seriously, I believe I finished the first three books in a week. 

I'm not going to give too much away but I am completely and utterly obsessed with The Mortal Instruments Series, so much so that I actually can't bring myself to finish reading the fourth book in my box set until I have the last two books (the last of which was just published a week ago) ordered and on their way. I've spent my days on a float in the pool with these books glued to my hand, I just can't put them down. 

Music

"First things first, I'm the realest!"

If you haven't heard of Iggy Azalea than you must be living under a rock because she is everywhere at the moment. I've had a strange fascination with Iggy ever since she came out with "'Work" last year and I am so excited that she has found success with "Fancy" which you can see the video for in my last What We Love Wednesday post. She recently released her album, The New Classic, and it has been at the top of my Spotify playlists all month. She also became the first artist since The Beatles to remain at the No. 1 & 2 spot with their first Billboard Hot 100 entries with "Fancy" and Ariana Grande's "Problem" which she features on.

Also, she teams up with Rita Ora for her next single "Black Widow" which is probably my favorite song off the record, go check it out!

TV

So MTV might not be the same music television we grew up with but that's not stopping them from delivering on some great tv still. I'm sort of obsessed with their new show "Faking It" which is a kind of crazy show of two high school best friends who fake being lesbians to get in the "in-crowd" but the writing is fantastic and I love the quick wittiness of the characters, especially Gregg Sulkin's British-but-trying-to-be-American accent. 

Magical Moment

My magical moment of the month is a no-brainer...I graduated from college this May!!!

It's been quiet a journey but it was well worth it in the end and I can't wait to see what this next month has in store for me as an official college graduate! That's fun to say!

I hope you enjoyed this look into my monthly favorites!

Comment below with some of you favorites from May and be sure to let me know what your Magical Moment was!

until next time, darlings.

xo

Merisa