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NEW YEAR- 2017 Resolutions

The holidays were insane this year. Christmas was fantastic! I loved getting to spend time with family and friends, and really unplug for a week. On New Year’s Eve my boyfriend and I went to a wine and painting night and had a great dinner. New Year’s is our anniversary, and even though I had a cold and wasn’t feeling well, we still made the best of it!

I couldn’t be happier to be in a new year. Like everyone does every year, I’ve made a few resolutions:

-Be more health conscious. I’m working on eating better, and pushing myself to get back to the gym. I have some exciting things coming up this summer, and I want to be in better shape!

-Be more organized. I’ve been ordering pieces off Amazon to clean up our cabinets and closets – I want to declutter my life and make things easier.

-Take more risks. I’ve always been pretty cautious with the way I run my life, but I want to branch out and and take chances in all facets of my life.

What are your goals for the New Year?

Blogmas Days 14-20 Subscription Box Madness

So I’ve failed my goal to blog daily – but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been on my mind! Lately my doorbell has been ringing with all my Black Friday purchases.

Thanks to Black Friday I scored so many deals, and wound up resubscribing to many of the boxes I once loved. Who doesn’t love a deal?!

In the madness I am now receiving the Gluten Free Love with Food box, PopSugar Must Have, Beautycon BFF, and the Rachel Zoe Box of Style.

Is it bad that I loved them all this month?

The Beautycon BFF box was curated by DulceCandy and had the following products:

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-Ali & Jay $50 Gift Card

-Artist Couture Illuminati Diamond Glow Powder

-Biobelle Botanic Fiber Facial Mask

-ColourPop Beautycon Exclusive Lipstick

-Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water

-Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Intensive Exfoliating Treatment

-L’Oreal Paris Voluminous Lash Primer and Feline Mascara

-Luxie Beauty Rose Gold Tapered Highlighting Brush

-Rimmel London The Only 1 Surprise Lipcolor

-Skinvolve Body Karate Cream

-Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzer

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This was a mixed bag, but overall pretty good. I have several of these products already, but the new ones I’m exited to try!

The PopSugar Must Have box contained:

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Odeme Catchall + Ring Dish

Baublebar Snowfall Pendant

Mane Message Date Night Bobby Pins

Winky Lux Lip Pill in Bunny

Sisters Gourmet Baker’s Dozen Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix

Dessange Professional Hair Luxury Color Restore Color Protecting Top Coat Serum

Several of the items in the box will be great for gifting this season!

The Rachel Zoe and Love with Food boxes don’t come with cards, but I’ve included photos of them below. The Gluten Free Love with Food is literally the box I look forward to the most, as it brings forward new brands I’ve never tried. The Rachel Zoe box is new to me, but the necklace they included this season, is LOVE!

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Blogmas Days 7-13 Bite Beauty Lab Review

Well, my hopes of keeping my blog going daily through December vanished. Last week we had a massive event at work, which was the kick off to my hectic week. The next night we went out with friends to see Christmas lights. Followed by another work event the next night, and so on. You can see where this is going.

One of the things we did this past weekend was take a trip into NYC, where we had a jam packed day. We started off the day at the Bite Beauty Lab. This is a store where you can go in and create a customized lipstick. There are two different options when you go in – pay $55 for a less customized option with one color and fragrance OR pay $150 for 2 customized colors/fragrances. I did the cheaper option, and it was SO COOL. There are probably 50 different colors to choose from, and they let you try on as many as possible within your allotted timeframe. (OH and make an appointment!!!) I picked two colors and paid $80 for both. Once you pick the colors you can also pick the finish as well – I chose matte. You then pick the scent. After all of that they spin and then freeze the lipstick. 10 minutes later – you’re ready to go!

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I had a great staff member helping me – she was so helpful! If you can, definitely give this a go – it was so much fun.

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The left one is a lighter nude, and the right one is a berry color. The lighting doesn’t do it justice!

Blogmas Day 6 – Influenster & Q-tips

Several months back – like back in March – I received the Influenster Glam Voxbox and I never wrote a post about it. Strangely enough though I use two of those products in my daily life and love them. Thinking about that today, I really wanted to go back and revisit my box and chat about the products I received.

I received a pack of Venus razors and shave lotion which was great because I can always use those. There was a can of Not Your Mother’s dry shampoo, which is ok, but def not my favorite product in the box. Cutex Advanced Revival Nail Polish Remover and Pads were also in there, and I plan to use those for future at home pedicures. There was a sample pack of SheaMoisture which is in my arsenal to try shortly. But the BEST discovery of all time in this box was the Q-tips beauty rounds. Never did I think the simplest little thing would rock my work. They are sewn shut at the ends so you don’t get little fuzzies everywhere and they are thick and durable, and last with any product. I have repurchased numerous times and am thrilled I received this box for that one discovery alone.

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Blogmas Day 5- Swamp Queen Palette

Several months ago I was so sad to find out that the Swamp Queen Palette was sold out EVERYWHERE. I wound up buying it on ebay (I know this is bad) but couldn’t have been happier when it arrived. Back in November I heard the great news that it was back in stock! It was heavily promoted during Black Friday, and while I’m sad I missed the sale, I really need this in my life!

The different hues of purple were really what drew me in and made me fall in love. I can do a full face with this – contour, blush, eyes and not have to look at anything else. I’d love to hear how everyone uses this palette, especially for eyes! Any tips and tricks are welcome!

Blogmas Day 4 – Tartist Pro Glow

Sometimes in the winter makeup is my favorite accessory. With chunky sweaters and boots, and being bundled up, makeup can warm up these oversized comfy outfits and top off your style bringing together your outfit. On days like today when I barely wanted to get out of my pajamas, I was able to just sit and play with some of my new products.

One of the things I picked up in the Tarte Black Friday sale was the Tartist Pro Glow palette. Did I need another palette? No, not really. This one is absolutely beautiful though and it is incredibly pigmented. I dipped the brush in the color “sculpted” one too many times and wowza, I sure had to soften that look. I like the formula a lot – it is almost creamy and blends pretty well. Its too early to tell if it will be a daily staple, but first impressions are all positive! I do know though that I can’t use all of the colors because they are too dark, but I’m hoping to make as many as possible work for me!

Have any of you used this product?

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Blogmas Day 3 – Le Volume de Chanel Mascara

This past week has been a little hectic for us – we’ve been to 2 different weddings, both had crazy weeks at work and a million social engagements. It’s been so fun though and I’ve especially loved changing up my beauty routine for the weddings and playing around a bit. While in Macy’s the other day I decided I wanted to try out one of the Chanel mascaras. The sales associate and I agreed on one of them that would be best for me, I purchased it and happily headed home. Unfortunately she put the wrong version in my bag! After some research though I decided I might actually like it and decided to give it a chance. I don’t just like it, I LOVE it. I have very long lashes to begin with, and I needed something that wouldn’t clump and would make them super feathery. This does all that and more – much to my surprise. I own nothing from Chanel and decided to buy this on a whim, and I’m so glad I did. The picture below is us at the wedding tonight. I wish I have a better one of my eye makeup!

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Blogmas Day 2- GIFT GUIDES

Is anyone else out there as stressed as I am about Christmas shopping? For some reason I feel as though this year things are tougher than ever. So every time I come across I blogger/vlogger I follow that has put together gift guides, I screen shot them! While I have my own ideas too for some things, I thought it might be fun to put my screen shots together for a comprehensive look at what people are gifting. Let me know what other bloggers have great gift guides!! (P.S. Jillian Harris’ blog is AMAZING!)

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Moving…

So much has gone on this year, it is certainly one of change. A few months back my boyfriend and I made a really big purchase… we bought a condo. We looked only looked at two places, and fell in love with the first one. We hadn’t even been planning to buy anything for at least 6 more months, but we couldn’t pass this up.

Moving has been the slowest process for us. We had a long wait before closing and then decided to move in slowly because I wound up working almost every weekend in September. I’m still bringing things over from my parents house almost two and a half months later. But we did it! And we’re proud of our little space. I plan to do some posts on how I was able to find everything we needed at a very low cost and in great packages.

Does anyone have any tips for where to find great prints for the walls? We desperately need to decorate the walls, but I don’t want to pick just anything. I welcome all suggestions!

Love With Food Gluten Free Review – February 2016

I may have said this before – but I LOVE love with food. I wait patiently each month for my gluten free box to arrive at my door. They have such great brands that I can always find something to enjoy in each box. This month was no different. I literally tore open one of the items the second I saw it. Note the chip clip on the popcorn…

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So what did I get this month?

-Stellar Strawberry non-dairy fruit and veggie blend by Ruby Rocket’s

-Strawberry Shortcake Flavored Instant Oatmeal by Bakery On Main

-Cookies by Labrems Bakery

-Organic Rice Vermicelli Noodles by Explore Asian

-Dark Chocolate + Bing Cherries Popcorn by 470 (AMAZING!)

-Google Grape Organic Lollipops by Yumearth

-Maple Sugar and Sea Salt Pumpkin Seeds by Super Seedz

-Plaintain Stips with Sea Salt by Artisan Tropic

-Gluten-Free Mini Honey Grahams by Pamela’s Products

-Saladpower by Allinone Vegetables

-Savory Bar by Mediterra

GabGoesGlam

Beauty. Lifestyle. Fashion.