healthy food ideas

Hi hi hi! This post has been a long time in the works, and I'm so sorry it's taken me ages to finally write it. I have not yet mastered the art of cooking, but I am working on it and have managed to create a few really delicious meals and snacks that are healthy and good for you.

Hummus

I am so obsessed with this hummus recipe - I love it on bagel crisps, vegetables, and sesame crackers. It's so much cheaper and healthier than buying it from the store as it's not loaded with preservatives! By the way - I normally cut this recipe in half.

Ingredients: 

• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 cups canned chickpeas (save the liquid to add later)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/3 cup tahini (sesame paste)
• 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
• 2 tablespoons chickpea liquid
• 8 dashes hot sauce

Using a food processor, mince the garlic cloves. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until the hummus is coarse.

Tomato Basil Pasta

This pasta requires so few ingredients and is so easy to make! It's light and refreshing and also delicious. I didn't really use any specific quantities of the ingredients, I saw a picture on Tumblr and just tried to recreate it myself. Feel free to get creative!

Ingredients:

• Diced tomatoes
• Basil
• Mozarella
• Angel hair noodles
• Olive oil

In one pan, add about a tablespoon of olive oil and cook the diced tomatoes on low heat until soft and the juice has mixed with the olive oil. In a pot, boil water and cook the noodles. Drain the water, mix the tomatoes and olive oil to the pasta. Add a few leaves of basil, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella and enjoy!

 

All the other options I'd like to share don't really require recipes, but if you'd like details on how I make them, feel free to ask!

Egg white omelette with sliced red peppers, water with strawberry ice cubes

Raspberry and cucumber water

 

Mixed greens salad with cucumbers, peppers, carrots and chick peas

My favorite food ever - whole wheat bread, peanut butter and sliced bananas

These are just a few of my favorite meals and snacks; the others aren't really photo-worthy (sliced fruit and Greek yogurt, scrambled eggs, steel cut oats, etc) but I thought these were a few great starters. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask! :)

diy body scrub

Hello everyone! The last month has been a whirlwind of studying and exams but now I am finally home with a few weeks before I begin my internship, so I am back to blogging here hopefully more often than I even was before!

I want to share a DIY body scrub recipe with you all that has changed my life. I am not usually one for DIY beauty products, but lately I've been trying to save a bit of money where I can, and I certainly don't need to be spending a ridiculous amount of money on body scrubs. So I looked up a few recipes, combined a couple of ingredients, and have made my own body scrub that has changed my face and my skin! The smoothness is unbeatable, and the ingredients are naturally beneficial. (I would add a picture, but honestly it looks a bit like vomit. Oops!)

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup of olive oil
• 1/3 cup of brown sugar
• 5 or so drops of vanilla extract

Mix all of these ingredients in a bowl with a spoon until it becomes a paste. It will smell a bit odd thanks to the olive oil (but that's the magic ingredient!).

For your face: Wet your face with lukewarm water, then scrub in small circles for about three minutes. Let the scrub sit for another two, then wash off with lukewarm water. Pat dry with a towel. If your skin feels a bit oily, that's because you've just scrubbed it with oil! Eventually the oil will sink in and really moisturize your skin.
For your legs: (I use this instead of shaving cream - its moisturizing effect is unbeatable!) After rinsing your legs, scrub with your fingertips in an upward direction. Rinse the scrub off and shave your legs. Use the scrub again, and then shave your legs again. (Twice? Yes, twice - the first time removes the hair, the second time removes the dead skin, which gives that super-smooth feeling.)

After using this scrub, my face feels incredibly hydrated (I definitely needed it after ten hours on an airplane), and my legs feel super smooth and luxurious. I plan on using this on my face 1-2 times a week and every time I shave in replacement of an expensive shaving cream. Can't beat the hydration and smoothness for summertime skin!

Next post: healthy snacks and meals!

small healthy habits

Hello everyone! I receive lots of simple questions about how to develop healthier habits quite regularly, so I figured I'd write a small post about how to change a few basic things in your life to be just a little bit healthier. Some of these things might seem like common sense, but that doesn't make them any less important!

1. Cut out liquid calories.

• Unless you are drinking 100% freshly squeezed juice, eliminate all "fruit juice," fruit water," or "fruit tea" that comes in a can/bottle/whatever. Minute Maid, Juicy Juice, Ocean Spray, AriZona, Vitamin Water, whatever the brand. Basically get rid of colored liquid. Goodbye. The packaging may make it seem healthy (as most packaging tends to do) but these drinks are often LOADED with added sugars. Natural sugars in freshly squeezed juice is obviously fine, but any added sugars are just going to sneak up on you and ruin your drink. So double check the sugar content and if it seems unnaturally large, check the ingredients.
• Abandon your beloved daily caramel macchiatos/vanilla lattes/frappucinos, or order them skinny/sugar free. Again, loaded with sneaky sugars. I was STUNNED at the amount of sugar I was consuming in a simple soy vanilla latte, and I switched to skinny in a snap. It's a known fact that a lot of Starbucks' fancier products are full of sugar, but pay attention. Ask for sugar-free syrups and sweeteners, or better yet, just order plain coffee or tea. Sugar free usually means chemical full. (This is so hard for me - I am addicted to caramel macchiatos.)
• Soda/pop. Need I say more? STOP DRINKING IT! It's disgusting and either loaded with fats and sugars in the regular versions, or chemicals in the "diet" versions. Just ditch it. It's gross.
• Drink water, tea, coffee, or fresh squeezed juice. This is all you should drink ever. (Green smoothies are ok too, but only homemade ones.)

2. Get more sleep and wake up earlier.

• Getting more sleep just makes you a happier person! I know the internet is most interesting at night (does anyone actually know why? It's so true) but if you go to sleep even an hour or two earlier than you're used to, I promise you will feel better in the morning. Getting up will be so much easier.
• That being said, for the past few months I have been waking up much earlier than necessary (between 6 and 7 AM), even on days when I don't have class till 1 PM. Sometimes I make it to the gym, and sometimes I don't, but either way I am much more productive. I am able to eat breakfast and lunch at the appropriate times, and I simply have more energy in general. It's so magical. I know it sounds like quite a nightmare, but I swear by it. Even giving myself more time to relax makes me feel healthier.
• Getting more sleep and waking up earlier will help you form a routine. Routine is so important when committing to a healthy lifestyle. If you don't stick to something, you'll never form a habit out of it. If you make the most out of the hours in the day, you're going to have more chances to make healthy choices. 

3. Plan your meals and snacks.

• People often ask me how I manage to eat healthy all the time (I don't eat healthy ALL the time guys! I'd say about 80% of the time) but my secret is easy: I plan my meals and snacks the night before.
• It might seem like a tedious waste of time, but it makes it SO much easier for me to just make healthy food rather than standing in my kitchen and staring at all the food available. If I just go straight into it knowing what I'm going to make, it makes it a lot easier for me to not even have time to think about switching to an unhealthy option!
• I also just like researching healthy snacks and meals online, and then I get so excited to make them the next day. Doing research can be fun! If I find a snack or meal I want to make, I write it down on a sticky note and put it in my kitchen so it's right there the next day before I go to the grocery store to pick up ingredients or before I start rummaging through my cabinets. It's a little reminder that helps me stay on track.
• Planning also helps make solid habits. It takes about three weeks for a habit to form, so if you start planning and stick to that plan, you're also making a habit out of eating healthy! Win-win.

What other little health tips/habits do you swear by?

review: rimmel stay matte powder

Hello everyone! Sorry I am the worst blogger on the planet (alternatively: sorry school is sucking my soul out!). No time for explanations, I am here to review Rimmel Stay Matte pressed powder! I recently left my Benefit powder on an airplane and I was so gutted about it. (That powder was amazing. I highly recommend it.) Right now I am trying to save my money for Ireland this summer so I needed a fairly priced powder, so obviously Tanya Burr's cult favorite Rimmel Stay Matte was the obvious choice.

Now I am a bit of a makeup snob simply because I really care about my skin and putting good quality products on it and have always been a bit wary of drugstore makeup just because I am afraid of breaking out. I also prefer loose powder to pressed powder because pressed powder doesn't seem as.. powdery? I am already sick of the word powder. However, the Benefit powder was pressed too and I think after using the Rimmel I am a converted pressed fan! I absolutely love this powder!

I picked up this powder in 001 Transparent (which is the shade that Tanya uses - I just trust her and also I'm white as fuck so.) and the shade is perfect on my skin! The powder itself feels incredibly light - I hardly feel like I'm even wearing anything over my foundation or alongside my blush/bronzer, and to be honest I definitely could feel my powder when I used the Benefit one as well as the loose Korres powder I was using before. Here's how it looks on my skin:

The shine on my jaw is completely reduced, and the light blush I was wearing this day was hardly affected by the application of the setting powder. I love how my skin looks like it's glowing! (Or maybe that's the lighting in my bathroom... let's just go with the first one.)

This pressed powder is easily applied with a fluffy powder brush (I just use a Sonia Kashuk brush from Target) and dust it all over my face to set my foundation, particularly on my chin, T-zone and jawline to get rid of excess oil. Setting powder is a pretty basic product, but I think in order to find one that works for you, you have to test a few out! My favorite things about this product are definitely: 

1) the low price - this was around $6 as opposed to $20 for the Benefit and $35 for Korres.. will never pay that much for a foundation again! 

2) the transparent color - this really is a colorless product though the packaging makes it look like it's taupe or light brown. It's clear!

3) how light it feels on my skin - it's winter, so my pores are overworking and my skin is more oily that usual, but this powder soaks it right up and I don't even feel a thing!

The only thing I'm not a fan of is the packaging. I know it's a drugstore product so it's not of the highest quality, but the plastic cover doesn't stay on too well and when I put it in my makeup bag and carry it around with me during the day, sometimes I'll open my bag up to find the cover has fallen off at some point. However for the price I paid and the quality of the product, I am super impressed and can see why someone like Tanya Burr who has the whole world of makeup at her hands would choose to show this pressed powder in her videos! It's super cheap, super effective and looks absolutely great all day long. 

30 day challenge days 26-30

I know I've been horrible at this challenge and I do apologize! Here are the answers to the last four days of the challenge.

Day 26: Your week in great detail.

Sunday: Ah.. St. Patty's Day! Can't even really call it St. Patrick's Day to be honest because I think St. Patty's Day is an entirely American-created holiday in itself. My friend and I were up and ready to go at 11, which honestly is so pathetic if you really think about it, but hey. I don't mind being sober by 5 PM! Anyway we did a power hour to some douchey frat music and pretty much spent the entire day gallivanting around our apartment complex with some friends and just dancing a lot and it really wasn't too special, just standard fun!

Monday: Despite having the standard headache, I made it to my econ and political analysis classes. I went to the library around five and wrote an abstract for paper I haven't even written or done any research for yet.. whoops. It's about Lithuania's transition from being a Soviet satellite state to a democracy and honestly I think it will be really interesting to write.. when I get around to it. The rest of the night was dedicated to doing a bit of econ studying and going to bed early! Love it when that happens.

Tuesday: Had three classes on Tuesday - poly analysis lab, history of genocide and Russian politics. Tuesdays are just really long and to be honest nothing that interesting even happens in my classes that I could write about here! But Tuesday is Chipotle and Pretty Little Liars night and that was definitely exciting. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone but I personally don't think ~the person~ who turned out to be good is good - we've been fooled so many times!

Wednesday: Wednesdays are my longest days for sure. I have class from 10:20 - 4:20 and the day just drags on and on and on. I got Starbucks though which was lovely and always makes me a bit happier, as cliche as it is. I ran into a few old friends which happens not too often on a campus of 47,000 people! I love seeing people I don't get to see too often. I meant to go to the library after my last class but honestly I was so damn tired I didn't make it there. I made myself dinner for the first time this week (and I don't mean a bowl of cereal) and went to bed around 10, which was lovely.

Today: Woke up with a lovely case of the stomach flu! :( I didn't go to either of my classes and I've spent the majority of the day sleeping so I don't throw up (sorry, TMI) and now I just have a massive headache and want to go back to sleep. :(

Day 27: This month in great detail.

This month has been actually pretty uneventful. The first week of March was spring break which I spent home in Germany with my family, just relaxing and spending time with friends and my family. I could tell spring was already coming around there, but here in Michigan we've had snow consistently for the entire month (and I'm not complaining - I love snow!) The past two weeks have just been pretty intense school wise. There's only about five weeks left of classes, which is absolutely insane. I've also been getting excited for my big move to Dublin for the summer... I can't believe that's actually happening. I've been thinking about starting a blog for it, but who knows if I'd actually keep up with it. I do have plans for a personal journal and since I came up with it I haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

Day 28: This year in great detail.

Wow I'm really glad there have only been three months this year or this one might get out of hand! January brought the start of a new semester with classes I like MUCH more than my classes last semester. I also went to the Ed Sheeran concert which absolutely changed my life and I have thought about it every day since. February was bitterly cold and boring, and to be honest this year has been quite that so far! But I'm not complaining - it's been boring in a good way. Nothing too incredible has happened, but at the same time nothing bad has happened either, so three months in I can be pretty thankful for that. I get to see my family in less than a week as they're coming to visit the states and seeing them twice in one month is the biggest blessing I could ever have, so that will be the best thing to happen to me this year probably. I think easy going time is just time for me to get prepared for the insane summer I'm sure to have.. yikes!

Day 29: Hopes, dreams, and goals for the next 365 days

• Enjoy living in Ireland to the very last day
• Gain experience and insight about my career path while working as an intern
• Try to see all the good things about eventually no longer living in Europe as of August
• Keep up my healthy habits (working out, eating healthy, minimal alcohol etc.)
• Save as much money as possible 
• Spend as much time with my family when they move back to Michigan
• LEARN TO DRIVE! Preferably before my 21st but we'll see about that...
• De-stress, de-clutter, and cut out any toxic relationships in my life
• Be very, very happy - just like I am now :)

Day 30: Whatever tickles your fancy

I don't really have anything tickling my fancy today but this is the end of the challenge! I actually really loved doing this - even if I couldn't stick to it to the day. I especially loved this last set of questions as it made me think about this year so far and how I want to spend the rest of it. I think it's always good to take time to reflect and prepare, and I think I should do it more often.

self love

Hello everyone! This post has been in the works for a long time now and it's something I've shared bits and pieces of over the course of the last year, but I've finally made it all one post and am excited to share it with you now. It's going to be a bit long, so bear with me!

I have always been a small person. I am short - five foot two and a half, five foot three on a good day. Growing up, this made me incredibly sad. In the second grade, I came home from school one day and cried the afternoon away because I was the smallest in my class and one boy told me I was going to have midget babies. Bit harsh for a second grader. In middle school, my best friend hated her body and was constantly trying to watch her weight and she would nag me for how skinny I was. Truthfully I wasn't skinny, I was merely average weight for my height and she was quite a bit taller than me, so I suppose I looked very skinny to her. This was in middle school, so we were maybe 12 or 13 years old. I remember coming home from school and looking in the mirror and wondering why I didn't see anything wrong with myself - and how horrible is that? I was being put down by her because I was okay with my body. I would look in the mirror and wonder why I never put on weight, wonder why my best friend thought she was so hideous when I thought she was beautiful, and mostly I just wondered if maybe there WAS something wrong with me and I was just missing it. Despite this, I had pretty high confidence in middle school and the first years of high school, and during a time I know a lot of girls go through phases of self-hate, I just never paid that much attention to my body or how it looked.

After I moved to Germany at age 15, I was in a relationship for the entirety of junior and senior year save maybe three months in between two boyfriends. This meant that I had someone by my side for nearly two whole years telling me I was beautiful every day and insisting there was nothing wrong with me on the rare occasion I pinched a bit of belly fat or ran my fingers through my unruly hair. Both boys I dated in high school were too good to me; they both loved me probably more than I deserved and I was and am still very thankful for that. During this time, I still felt pretty good about my body (good meaning I didn't feel bad); what I'm trying to say is I honestly never paid any attention to my weight or anything like that. I played soccer so I was pretty active, but I also was able to eat a lot of food and drink alcohol as well and nothing ever happened to me. I was also surrounded by girls who were less than interested in how their bodies looked. I was never put down as I had been in the states for my small stature. My friends just seemed to care about things other than their bodies or their weight. I was never exposed to the self depreciating culture that surrounds high school girls in the states. I had no one to impress - I didn't know I needed to impress anyone, to be blunt. I just never knew any of this even existed except in the media, and even that I rarely saw anything that related to me or my body.

Then I moved back to America. I was quickly thrown into a whole new way of life unlike anything I'd ever experienced. (Here I interject that I grew into an adult in Germany and much of my way of thinking and perceiving was solidified there, even if it was only two and a half years of my life. Feel free to assume that because the majority of my life has been spent in America I should think like an American, but I don't.) Two and a half years was a long time for me to miss, more than I had expected. Suddenly I found myself in a whirlwind of habits like tanning, highlighted hair, minimal clothing, and lots of makeup, so many things that aren't necessarily wrong but things I was just not used to at all. It didn't take long for me to fall into the patterns of American college life and the partying that comes along with it, and the mixture of binge drinking and disrespecting my body began to take its toll. I lost sight of myself.

During Christmas of 2011, for the first time in my entire life I began to hate myself. No one told me I was fat. No one rejected me openly or talked shit behind my back (at least if they did I know nothing of it). I was receiving more male attention that I knew what to do with, but for some reason I simply looked in the mirror one day and hated myself instantly. This terrified me - for so long I had been so comfortable and so happy and how could I have been, when I looked like this?! All I could see was fat, everywhere, I couldn't believe how fat I'd let myself get. (I had gained probably about fifteen pounds since I started university, so I weighed around 140 lbs.) I'm honestly not sure whose expectations I thought I had to live up to or whose standards of "beautiful" or "perfect" I was trying to measure up to, but it did the trick. I felt an insurmountable pressure to be skinny and I didn't know where it was coming from or why. I began eating less and working out more, and not in the healthiest of ways. I became a vegetarian in April 2012 at first with no reason really, but eventually I figured it was a way to mask that I was eating less and no one would question it.

In May 2012 I was not significantly skinnier (or happier, really) and I was eating only foods I thought were healthy - mostly fruits and vegetables, eggs, some whole wheat products, and really not much else. I was terrified of eating anything that wasn't healthy by my standards. I was displaying signs of orthorexia nervosa - something an anon on Tumblr alerted me of, but I didn't think I could have an eating disorder. (And I didn't in the end, but the thought was always in my mind.) I went to the gym one morning with my best friend and while doing my normal elliptical routine, I began to feel very sick and I had to run out of the room to the bathroom. I barely made it in before I fell to the floor, collapsed in exhaustion. Luckily one of our friend's moms was there and she saw me go in and followed me, then helped me regain a bit of consciousness and called my mom. I was incredibly embarrassed when I realized what had happened, and I just didn't understand why my body would do this when I had been working so hard to make myself "healthy". My mom was incredibly upset and tried to make me eat meat again, thinking I just wasn't getting enough protein. I skipped my period in May and June as well and for the first time in six months, I finally started to realize what I was doing to myself. During this time, I lost hardly any weight - maybe 5 lbs. - because I was destroying my metabolism by not eating enough calories to get my body through the day.

In the months of June and July, I travelled all over Europe, to Paris, Belgium, Italy, and Amsterdam. I tried to focus more on having fun with my friends rather than fretting about my weight, and for a while I was pretty content. However August was hardest of all the months - for some reason, I was just an emotional mess. I was back in the states again, and I immediately felt the pressure return. I was terrified of going back to school and letting people see how my weight had gotten out of control (it hadn't - I weighed about 135 lbs at this point, so it was all in my head) and I would text my best friend the most horrible, depreciating things about myself only to shake my head and text her again, telling her not to worry, that I was fine. I refused to shop with my mom and when she forced me to go, I would cry in the dressing rooms as I looked at the sizes of the clothes I was fitting into (size 4.. so obviously I was just insane). I was exhausted, I was unhappy, and most of all, I was unhealthy. I knew my best friend was worried about me and wanted me to get help but I insisted nothing was wrong. I don't know what I would have done without her honestly, she kept my feet on the ground through everything.

Around my birthday in September, I began to realize how crazy and messed up everything I'd done to myself was. Earlier I mentioned standards of beauty and perfection - I kept wondering WHO I was trying to impress, who I was trying to live up to. All the time I'd spent trying to perfect myself hadn't made anyone like me more or less. No one had honestly noticed the changes in my body - no one but me. I had a revelation in the middle of October, and it went a little something like this: no one matters but me.

No one matters but me.

I realized that I had a choice. I could continue to hate myself, to cry myself to sleep, to work my body into exhaustion, to deprive myself of food I loved. Or I could appreciate my body for every single thing about it. Suddenly, my opinion was the only one that mattered. I hadn't been trying to impress anyone in particular - I had been trying to impress everyone. Once I realized that I didn't owe anyone anything, I could feel my old self start to come back. This was a very private thing, as had been my phase of self hatred. The people I am closest with at university have no idea that I went through any of this at all. I started eating more, still healthy foods but enough to actually satisfy the needs of my body. I began treating my workouts as something fun, something to make me feel alive again. I started dressing exactly how I wanted to instead of like every other clone on my campus, and I finally began to see the bits of me that had escaped for so long, the girl from a long time ago who once had understood that nothing was wrong with her.

Nothing is wrong with me. I am not skinny, and I am not fat. I am not perfect. In this realization, I am happy. My appearance is the last thing I worry about as it relates to impressing anyone else. I dress how I want for me. I wear makeup for me. Everything I do is for me. I have worked so hard since August to fall back in love with myself, to see the me that my ex boyfriends tried so hard to get me to see, the me that my best friend loves and supported through all of my bullshit self-hatred, the me that my parents are so proud of. Absolutely nothing is wrong with me. I am amazing. I am beautiful. I am strong. I am smart. And you know who made me believe that? Me. No one else had to tell me, and no one else will ever have to tell me what or who I am, because no one has that right. I am the only person who has the right to decide who I am. This is not arrogant or conceited, and if it is, then I am proudly arrogant and conceited. I would rather be that than allow myself to let the petty opinions of others break me down ever again.

Not all of my days are perfect now that I have finally accepted myself. I still have insecurities, but I know that their roots and remedies can only come from within me. I wake up every single day thinking about something other than my weight or what I'm going to eat or who's going to notice my stomach fat or the size of my arms. I worry now about what sort of things I'm going to bring to the world, whose face I am going to put a smile on, or whose words I am going to hear and how they are going to change me. Once I realized that the only person who I owe anything at all to is myself, I became a truly happy person. I couldn't have done it alone, and I will forever be in debt to my best friend and my parents, who know me better than I know myself. And not all of my days are sunshiney, but I know better than ever that the only way to improve what needs to be improved can be working my way up towards positivity, rather than grinding and tearing myself down. I'm done with that. I nearly ruined myself, and I won't ever let it happen again. The only person I owe anything to is myself. My self worth is determined by how I treat myself, because how I treat myself is how I want to treat others, and I want to do that with the most respect and love possible. I think I deserve the same.

travel tips!

Hello everyone! This post has been a long time coming and I have debated whether to do it in blog form or video form, but I figured a blog post would be best so that you can have it handy when you need it instead of rewatching a video when you need to hear some travel advice!

I travel to Europe and back about four times a year and have done so for the last three years. Over this time period, I have flown mostly by myself (sometimes my dad joins me), which means I've had to learn how to handle big airports, short layovers, and jet lag all on my own. I have mastered the art of packing though I do still tend to overpack (I just like to be prepared!), and overall I've learned how to make long airplane journeys quite enjoyable. I hope these tips are helpful and if you have any specific questions, please never hesitate to ask!

SMART PACKING 

Packing is such a drag. I used to get so excited packing for trips, but that would wear off after about five minutes because I had no idea what to bring or how much I should bring. Here are a few tips to make your packing experience easier.

• This might seem like a no brainer, but always check the ten day forecast of wherever you're headed. The weather is always subject to change, but you definitely want to be prepared going in.
• Pack layers, no matter where you're going. For trips that are at least a week long, I always have two pairs of jeans and leggings, a small variety of sweaters (thin and thick sweaters as well as a cardigan or two), at least 6 tshirts/regular everyday tops, plenty of underwear and socks, and one or two nicer outfits if I go out with friends. I also pack one pair of black flats, two pairs of leather boots, and maybe my Converse if they'll fit. Also scarves! Scarves are a great way to warm up an outfit if it's a bit chilly. You can never go wrong with having scarf options. (Obviously summer packing is different and much lighter - dresses, shorts, sandals. Easy.)
• It always helps to be prepared, but try not to overpack. This will only cause you problems when checking your luggage as overweight bags will cost you at least $25 depending on the airline, and it also makes it a hassle to choose what to wear and when you have to pack up to leave. If you're vacationing, you don't want to waste any precious time choosing an outfit or packing!
• This will sound silly, but the best way to save room in your suitcase is to roll your clothes up like little burritos. Fold tops in half vertically, and then just roll from the top down! You'll thank me later.
• Put all liquid things in plastic bags, even if you're putting them in your checked luggage. No one wants to open their suitcase to a spilled nail polish or a shattered perfume all over their clothes! Luggage does get shifted during a flight, so be cautious and careful.

WHAT TO BRING ON THE FLIGHT

You don't need everything in the world, just enough to keep you busy! This list is for long flights (8+ hrs) but feel free to add/delete anything to make it fit for you.

• iPhone/iPod (I know this is a given... but just in case.)
• Wallet/credit cards/extra cash/passport (duh.)
• A water bottle (maybe it's just me, but airplane water grosses me out. You'll have to wait till you're through security to do this, but don't forget!)
• Granola bars/any other snack you might like (I hate airplane food and try to eat as little of it as possible. You can bring packaged food through security, and any food you buy in the terminals is fair game to bring on the flight. Sometimes I bring Starbucks!)
• Magazines or books (or both! I spend a lot of time on flights reading and it helps make me tired so I fall asleep easier.)
• Contact solution/contact case/glasses (I always have this with me because I absolutely cannot sleep in my contacts and prefer to wear my glasses on a flight anyway.)
• Headphones (you DON'T want to be without your own pair.)
• Hair ties/bobby pins (airplanes are super dry. I promise your hair WILL get static-y. How do you even spell staticky? Is that right? Anyway, my hair becomes a mess and I almost always put it up.)
• An extra pair of socks (airplane floors are cold!)
• A scarf (again, cold.)
• A pen (you never know when you may need one, and when you're traveling back into the US you will need one to fill out your border control slip.)
• Makeup essentials (for me, this consists of mascara, an eyelash curler, hand lotion, chapstick/lip balm, and a vitamin c serum to moisturize my skin after the dry airplane air destroys it.)
• Put all your liquids in a plastic ziploc bag and keep them there because you'll need to put them in a separate bin when you go through security.

HOW TO NAVIGATE THE AIRPORT/FIND YOUR GATE

Airports are huge and daunting and flights get cancelled and gates get changed! Be prepared and on time.

• Give yourself plenty of time. The typical rule is that you need to be at the airport an hour before a domestic flight and two hours before an international flight. This is usually a good time frame for me. If you're flying for the first time by yourself, maybe add an extra half hour to be safe.
• I am just this sort of person by nature, but I plan ahead. Before I flew alone for the first time I found all of my flight information online, wrote it down on a sheet of paper, and put it in my wallet. Usually you won't know your flight's gate until you check in and receive your boarding passes, but write it down once you have it. 
• Airports are big. Don't be afraid to stop at the large maps that are everywhere or to ask someone for help. The LAST thing you want to be in an airport is lost, especially when you're pressed for time. Ask for help if you need it! Usually airports seem more daunting if you are already afraid of being late, so be prepared and find your gate before you have a meal or do a bit of shopping.
• Once you are at your gate, find out what your boarding time is, and if you have extra time to go exploring, make sure you're back at least ten minutes before you're supposed to board.

HOW TO BATTLE SECURITY

Security is easier than you think. Don't complain about it - it's necessary. But it can be painless and quick if you know what to do.

• Find the shortest line - this is usually the the one without old people or big families. Maybe that's profiling, but I don't care. It's true, they're the slowest! Find businesspeople and get in their line. They're well dressed, they know what they're doing, and they'll move fast.
• If you're flying out of America, you always have to take your shoes off. Do it. Don't complain. (The reason I keep saying this is because NOTHING is more annoying than people who don't listen to airport security officers. They are trained and if they tell you to take your shoes off, there's a reason.)
• Take off your jacket/sweater that may resemble a jacket, your belt and empty your pockets. Usually jewelry gets through okay (I never take my watch, rings or necklace off and it's never a problem.)
• Take your laptop out of your bag and out of its case if you have one.
• Put your liquids front and center where the officers can see them. They're super serious about liquids and it makes everything easier if they can see yours, then they won't ask you a million times if you have any.
• Move as fast as possible, but don't forget anything!
• Don't ask questions unless you are really unsure of something. Don't ask WHY you have to empty your pockets or WHY no one told you to put your liquids in a plastic bag. I'm telling you right now, so you DO know! Just do what the officers tell you. They're in charge and there for your safety.

GENERAL TIPS

• Wear comfy clothes. My standard travel outfit is leggings, a big comfy sweater, a scarf, and tall leather boots I can get on and off easily.
• Pack your carry on luggage the night before.
• Get lots of sleep and eat a good breakfast.
• Focus. If you're prepared, on time, and well packed, you have nothing to worry about. Focus on getting to your gate, having everything you need at hand, and being on time.
• If you need help, ask. Airport staff is generally very helpful and they know exactly what you need.
• RELAX! Unless you are lazy and unprepared you are going to be FINE! You WILL get on the flight if you pay attention to the announcements and you know where you need to be at what time. I find flying on my own to be very relaxing and enjoyable because I feel independent and great when I get shit done. Flying is no joke, and you have to be focused and attentive. You can do it! Don't be worried. Being stressed will only make it more difficult.
• Have fun! Isn't that what everyone says at the end of a how-to post? I mean it. You're going somewhere probably very exciting! Don't be worried. Be excited and have a great time. :)

review: sin by NARS, brow zings by benefit, bumble & bumble shampoo and clean on me by soap & glory

Hi!!! I won't waste time introducing these products because you can read all about them in the post below this so I'll get right to the reviews!

1. Brow Zings by Benefit, $30

The brow zings kit comes with an angled brush for wax application, a blending brush to apply the filling powder and a pair of tiny tweezers. I have had my eye on this for so long because I've been using a matte shadow and it just wasn't doing the trick. After one application of this product, I think my eyebrows look so much more natural and shaped! Here are a few pictures:

As you can see in the photo before, (also I have no idea why my eyes look different in these pictures? maybe the light idk) my eyebrows lack a bit of shape, so I was able to use the wax just in the curve and their shape improved entirely! The filler makes the color look nice and natural in my opinion, and overall I am very impressed with this product. I think I could have gone with the medium shade but I didn't want to go TOO dark and I think the light works just fine on me!

2. NARS blush in Sin, $29

Sin is described as a "berry tone with gold shimmer" but I have found there is significantly less gold shimmer in Sin than in Orgasm for example. I was a little afraid to try this shade because my skin tone is so touchy and I can never be quite sure what will look nice on me, but I am actually in love with this blush, I only wish I'd tried it sooner! The tone will be perfect for nights out paired with bronzer as it's a bit dramatic but can be toned down when only a little is applied. I think this is a very versatile shade that could dress up a simple winged liner or brilliantly compliment a smokey eye. After a few more weeks of wear I might announce this shade as my all time favorite over Orgasm, I actually couldn't be more pleased with this product! Later tonight I'll be uploading a video review of these products where you can see me wearing Sin - the light was a little harsh when I took these pictures.

3. Clean On Me by Soap & Glory, $5

I am so excited to review a Soap & Glory product! This shower gel is actually excellent. I used just a little bit and it was enough for my entire body which makes me very happy - I sometimes find I have to lay on the shower gel and then I waste an entire bottle and that's obnoxious. The scent is citrusy but I'm not sure if it's on purpose or not - but it smells so clean, true to the name! My skin actually felt incredibly soft after I'd dried off which I wasn't expecting but am so pleased about. I can't wait to try more Soap & Glory products this summer!

4. Bumble and bumble gentle shampoo, $8

Everyone has heard of the wonders of Bumble and bumble but no one is quite willing to shell out $50 for a set of shampoo and conditioner. However when I saw this tiny bottle for $8 I thought what the hell, why not. It's winter and my hair could always use a little extra love. And oh wow do I love this shampoo. My hair feels SO CLEAN! I wish I had something more exciting to say but honestly this just gets the job done. It doesn't feel like it's trying too hard with lots of bubbles and lather, it does just what it should and smells like you're being treated at a high class salon. If I am ever in possession of enough money and have the luxury of purchasing the full size bottle of this, I most definitely will. I'll be using this when I'm home for spring break just to treat myself because it really does make you feel spoiled in the shower. Wish I'd picked up the conditioner too!

valentine's day presents

My mom sent me a bit of spending money for Valentine's Day with a note that said "DO NOT SPEND ON GROCERIES!!" so I was like, okay Mom. I won't. I'll go to Sephora instead.

1 Soap & Glory Clean On Me shower gel

2 bumble and bumble gentle shampoo 

3 NARS blush in Sin

4 Benefit Brow Zings brow shaping kit

I have been absolutely lusting over Benefit's Brow Zing kit and with a bit of help from Hayley I finally purchased it! I am so excited to try it out tomorrow, you have no idea. I've been using a matte shadow to fill in my brows and as a big fan of eyebrows this will just no longer do. I also have been using NARS Orgasm blush for over a year now and really needed something new that I'm hoping will bring out the olive tones in my skin, so Sin was a must! The Soap & Glory and bumble and bumble products were a bit of an afterthought as I stood in line and saw them both. I saw loads of Soap & Glory products in London and was so disappointed in myself for not picking any up when I had the chance, but a friend who works at Sephora has just told me that they'll be picking up the entire collection in 2 months' time! YAY! Also I lust over bumble and bumble shampoo pretty much every time I come in contact with it. I once got free bottles of shampoo and conditioner when I had my hair done once and haven't been able to bring myself to buy $50 worth on my own money, but this little bottle was ideal. I'll be spoiling myself with it over spring break (and tomorrow, so I can do a review!) Full reviews and photos will come tomorrow after I've tested everything out! Can't wait!

sephora beauty rewards

If you are reading this I'm going to assume you're (probably) interested in makeup, and if you're interested in makeup you HAVE to have a Beauty Rewards card with Sephora! It's completely free to sign up, you collect points when you purchase something online or in the store, and you can redeem those points for other products. It's the circle of life, I swear. Recently I redeemed my Beauty Rewards points for a few brand new items that I'll be reviewing as soon as I get my package in the mail. The point of this brief post is that everyone should have a Beauty Rewards account with Sephora; I have had nothing but good experiences with the program and I always receive the best freebies! For my birthday I was sent two Fresh lip balms for free that are regularly $22.50 each - an incredible present. If you sign up for the program I promise you won't regret it - all you have to do is give the sales rep your email when you purchase something in the store or sign in when you shop online and the points are automatically added to your account. So worth it! Happy shopping!

twenty-five things about me

hello hello! i was just reading a few other blogs, namely louise's, and (sorry i'm too lazy for capital letters today) realized that while i tend to post lots of bits about who i am and what happens in my life, i've never really sat down and written anything extensive about myself. mostly because it feels narcissistic, but whatever. i figure someone might be interested in reading this, because i certainly am always interested in hearing what people have to say about themselves. i find i learn a lot about people just by how they view themselves. so i will now list twenty-five random (or maybe not so random) things about myself that you might already know or maybe you don't!

hello! i've added a standard photo of myself. here you go.

1. my heritage is english, dutch, and puerto rican. (sprinkled with german and irish.) what this really means is that i'm american!
2. i was singing before i could speak, and i don't know if i'll ever give up on my dream of singing.
3. my favorite color is green because it's the color of the earth and of life and it always makes me feel a little happier. :)
4. i am a mountains over beach, winter over summer sort of person.
5. i almost always have rainymood.com open on my computer (sometimes even if it's raining!) because it's so calming.
6. i am a virgo and coincidentally very, very true to my sign.
7. growing up, around age 8 or 9, i was obsessed with sweden. i read a million books on sweden and dreamed about moving there and marrying a swedish man and having blonde swedish children. i'm not quite sure what it was about sweden, seems a bit weird now, but i caught the travel bug very early in life.
8. i compulsively make lists on my iphone. to-do lists, grocery lists, get-your-life-together lists.
9. my favorite food is whole wheat toast with peanut butter and sliced bananas on top.
10. my best subjects in school were history and english.
11. i drink a lot of tea.
12. my favorite makeup product is lipstick. i feel bold and badass when i wear it and i hardly know anyone else who wears it, so it makes me feel like i stand out.
13. i am a harry potter enthusiast. (that is an understatement.)
14. i quite enjoy being alone, and the only people i really unconditionally want to be with are my immediate family and my best friend. i would be just fine without constant human interaction (not to say that i don't like it, because i do!)
15. i. hate. hot. weather!!! to me this is anything above 70. it is so uncomfortable and i would much rather be indoors if it's hot outside.
16. my favorite tv show is the office and i quote it on a daily basis.
17. my eyes are big and blue and my favorite physical thing about myself. this might be why i love makeup so much - i love making them stand out.
18. i am very, very into history. this could be a lot more detailed, but i'll leave it at that.
19. i hate small talk. i understand its point, but i just hate it. i would much prefer to talk about random, important things with a stranger than uninteresting, filler things with people that i know.
20. i'm very confident, and i think it's for the right reasons. i try really hard to help people see why they should be confident too.
21. i think all sports are pretty uninteresting except for soccer which might be the most interesting thing on the planet.
22. i can't wait to have a family and a house of our own to decorate. i spend a lot of time decorating my future home inside my head.
23. i was raised catholic but now don't really identify with any specific religion.
24. my dream vacation is alaska, northern canada or scandinavia - anywhere i can see the northern lights.
25. this took me a really long time to do, because i don't have a lot of secrets and i don't think there are a lot of things that people don't know about me. i'm very open!

right, well, if this was interesting to you, i encourage you all to do the same! it took me a while to think of things, but it's sort of fun trying to rack your brain to find interesting bits about yourself. x

ed sheeran!!!!!!! + other stuff

So last night I was lucky enough to see Ed Sheeran play at the Fillmore Theater in Detroit! Ed Sheeran has been my favorite artist for about a year and a half now; I went to the show with my best friend Michelle who actually introduced me to his music the summer before last! Anyone who's ever heard of him knows how passionate and well written his songs are and how he just does not hold back in anything, and I'm so happy to say that he doesn't hold back when he performs either. His whole show was so up close and personal - it felt like we were the only ones in the room. He has the ability to silence the entire theater (which he did, and that's quite a miracle seeing as most of the people there were 13-17 year old little 1D fans) and just sing, even without a microphone. His talent is so raw and inspiring and I wish that every artist out there did what he did. Ed is so unapologetic about who he is - he refuses to change because he's in the music industry and seeing him live just reaffirmed that he is so unique and talented and I'm most definitely rambling. Overall it was easily the best show I've ever been to and definitely the most personal show I think I'll ever attend. If you ever get the chance to see him live, take it! We waited in the freezing cold for 1.5 hours (I couldn't feel my feet and my hands were shaking by the time we got inside) but I would have stood out there all night just to see him. Such an incredible performer!

Eeeekkk! We were so close too. He's so beautiful *_*

 

Roadtrip weeeee!

Today Michelle and I went to our favorite mall and I accidentally spent WAY more money that I should. Do not be like me! Do not get into the habit of falling in love with expensive makeup!!!!

 

This is so naughty. I am ashamed of myself. Not really though.

Finally gave in and got myself a little Laguna bronzer! This mini duo set was perfect for me because I've hit pan in two spots on my Orgasm blush and I know it's going to crack soon so I figured why not get a little extra? I'm so excited to try out the bronzer and see if it lives up to the hype! I also picked up another They're Real! mascara because mine is about three months old now and you know the rules - time for a new one! From Lush I bought a Butterball bath bomb and I'm so excited to use it, I have the apartment to myself this weekend so I think I'll pop in Love, Actually and have myself a nice little relaxing bath :) How was your weekend?

jan/feb wishlist

 

1 Benefit Browzings Brow Kit, $30. 2 NARS Laguna Bronzer, $34. 3 Lush BB Seaweed Face Mask, $6.95. 4 MAC Archie's Girls Collection, not yet available. 5. Benefit Dandelion Brightening Face Powder, $28. 6. Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette, $27.

Ooh, this makes me feel like such a glutton as Christmas isn't even a month past yet!  I spent most of my Christmas money on clothes while in London and though I'm very glad I did, I never usually do that - I always spend my money on makeup. I'm just really bad at clothes. That's my sister's area of expertise! Anyway, these are just a few products I really have my eye on and may not be able to resist picking up this weekend. 

1 The Browzing Kit is one I discovered at the Benefit shop in Covent Garden and was too poor after a day of shopping to collect, but I am so desperate to have it! The little brushes seem so ideal. 

2 NARS Laguna Bronzer - I know, I know, it's a must have! There are a few products I just KNOW I should have but don't, and this is one of them. I must admit I don't know how to properly use a bronzer, so if I do pick this up I'll have to have someone in the store show me how to use it! I am helpless. 

3 The Lush BB Seaweed Mask caught my eye because January is the absolute worst month for my skin and this mask has amazing reviews on the website. I need something to moisturize and scrub away the rough spots on my face. 

4 The next product on my wish list is one I am SO excited about - MAC's Archie's Girls collection! When I was young, my grandparents took my cousins and I on a roadtrip to Virginia and we read Archie comics the entire way. I'm not actually sure if the lipstick pictured here is real or not as the collection isn't available yet but I am so sure I will be picking up lots of products from this collection!

5 I don't know about you guys but I absolutely adore Benefit's line of boxed blushes/powders. I already own Sugarbomb but I definitely have my eye on this little one called Dandelion. I love the soft pink tone and think it will brighten up my horribly pale winter complexion.

6 Last but not least I don't think I can walk away from Sephora this weekend without the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette. I am the biggest fan of the Naked palettes and I just simply need to complete my collection. Though I enjoy wearing the shimmery shadows in the other two Naked palettes, I definitely would love more matte shades and that's just what this palette provides, and for a really great price in my opinion!

So there's my beauty wishlist for the early months of 2013 - what's on yours?

i'm sorry!

Sorry for being such a horrible blogger - I had a bit of a mishap over the weekend involving my iPhone and a sink. Needless to say, I was a grumpy gills all weekend until after 24 hours in a bag of rice my beloved phone has come back to life! I know it's so ~first world white girl~ of me, but my phone is my lifeline. If I couldn't call my mom every day I would lose my shit! So I'm very glad it's working again, and even though it seems to be functioning I'm going to replace the battery this weekend just in case.

That being said, I'm going to the Ed Sheeran concert on Thursday and will definitely be blogging about that afterwards! But in the meantime, any suggestions for my next post? Leave me a comment or message me on Tumblr - I'm lacking inspiration and would love to hear some suggestions :)

what's in my bag

Sooorrryy I know I said I'd have this up yesterday but I was SO busy laying around being lazy and doing nothing and I just never got around to it. So at long last, here it is - what's in my bag! I change bags quite often when I'm at school so the bag I'm currently using isn't pictured because... there isn't one specific. I took all of this stuff out of my most recent bag (a large Longchamp Le Pliage tote) and here was the grand result!

 

At the top I have a George Gina & Lucy wallet that I received for my 17th birthday, which makes it a little over three years old but honestly it has weathered the storm very well and I haven't found another wallet that I love as much or would be as sturdy and useful. It also fits my passport which for me is a huge bonus and hard to come by! Next to my wallet is a little package of tissues my mom sent me in a care package. Germans love these little packages and this particular one has little houses and snowflakes on them - so cute :) I have a Marie Claire magazine underneath all the nonsense there - I ADORE Marie Claire, I think it's the best magazine for women, especially those with a relative interest in fashion like me. It's less serious (fashion wise) than Vogue, and also has a ton of interesting, relevant things about women. And I have a huge girl crush on Gwen Stefani.

I always keep an eyelash curler with me as I have short stubbly straight eyelashes (the absolute worst) and find that they need to be recurled basically always. I have iPhone headphones, a pen, some Ricola cough drops, a bobby pin and a hair clip - all of which I think are essentials. I use all of these things over the course of a day so they're always with me!

My mom got me the most adorable little nail file kit (the polka dot looking things). You just break one off when you open it; it's the handiest thing ever! I keep Altoid Smalls with me a lot too - the big ones are too strong for my taste so I like the little ones better. I also have basically every lip product known to man with me at all times - Burt's Bees, Urban Decay Lip Junkie, Fresh Sugar Tint, Blistex and a MAC lipstick - this one is Hangup! I also always keep setting powder with me (I am a huge fan of Benefit's at the moment) for those "just in case" moments. Last but not least I've got my trusty Ray Ban Wayfarers that, if anyone is thinking about buying a pair, have been one of the best investments of my life. So worth the price and absolutely timeless! I've had mine for two and a half years and they still feel brand new.

What's in your bag? Any essentials I've missed? Let me know!

top 4 makeup products, like ever

I went a little edit/bokeh crazy, but it's Friday and I have no classes so I figured I'm quite happy today. Anyway, these are my top four makeup products of all time. These are the products I want to buy in bulk so that if their makers ever discontinue them, after picketing at their headquarters I will go home to about ten of each because I'm pretty sure I couldn't live without them. I am dramatic!


1. Lush Sweet Lips Lip Scrub - $10
I am obsessed with this lip scrub because I have very dry skin/lips/self in general. I was skeptical at first because exfoliating products don't tend to always do their job very well on me, but I have found that if I use this before bed, my lips are so soft and smooth and lipstick ready the next day! I never see anyone mention this when I read reviews of this product, but I also have found if I scrub my lips right before I'm about to leave the house and I'm in a rush, it gives my lips a little bit of color too so I don't even have to apply lipstick if it's not really that kind of day! (It's never that kind of day... but just in case.)

2. NARS Orgasm Blush - $28
This is the first blush I ever purchased and it is likely to be the last. As seen in the photo, I've hit pan and will probably need to buy a new one soon. My skin tone is really weird - I have a mix of Puerto Rican and Dutch/English skin, making for a weird pale but olivey tone. It is likely that didn't make any sense at all. What I mean is that I have trouble finding a blush that doesn't make me look like a gogo dancer, but this blush has flicks of gold to compliment its rosey pink color and it really brings out the tone of my skin. I have yet to find anything that looks as natural and beautiful on my skin as this blush, and for the price (yikes) I think it's totally worth it.

3. Benefit They're Real! Mascara - $23
My lovely little sister was blessed with the thickest, longest, most voluptuous eyelashes I have ever seen. I, on the other hand, have stubbly, nearly invisible little wannabe eyelashes. I am probably going to sound a lot like a commercial, but this mascara actually makes me look like I have real lady eyelashes! The bristles on the wand are very small and firm, and the (is it liquid? What IS mascara?) product itself is very thick and I actually don't even know how it does what it does. I read blogs upon blogs absolutely raving about this mascara and for the price I was nowhere near convinced until I tested it one day and had to have it. If you have not yet fallen in love with a mascara, I am certain this is the one for you. It is the one for everyone. I get compliments ALL the time. I even prefer this over Dior Blackout (which is amazing because I loved that mascara, but will never go back after using They're Real!) This is the product out of these four I am definitely going to buy in bulk. (I should also mention that I am new to Benefit products but they are already my favorite - amazing packaging and incredible products.)

4. Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Original - $20
This is a product I would never ever think I would need. Before I got really into makeup I didn't wear eyeshadow really at all, so when I purchased the Naked palette and it came with a sample of this product, I was very confused as to why I needed to "prime" my eyes. Like bottom lash mascara and highlighting products, I just thought it was a bit superfluous - until I tried it. My eyeshadow would be nothing without a good primer. I have had the same tube of primer potion for about 10 months now because all it takes is just enough to cover your lid (a little bit goes a long way) and again, I apologize for sounding like an advertisement, but it seriously makes all the difference in application and stay of any eyeshadow I choose to use. Absolutely couldn't complete my look without it.

ootd 8 january

These will not be happening as much as I'd like because as is apparent in the picture, I have no good place to take these pictures and my mirror is from Target so don't judge me and don't even talk to me about how unflattering of my legs this is ok~

Dress and tights from Topshop, boots from Steve Madden

internet friends

I have had a Tumblr since 2009 and since then I have met so many amazing people through blogging there. When I was growing up, the internet was relatively new and there were definitely things to be worried about - creepy men on MySpace, that sort of thing. But despite having friendships with people who turned out to be, in fact, posing as someone else, I have managed to meet some of my best friends. It's insane that a website could bring me to people from Canada, Massachusetts, Virginia, Holland, England - the list goes on. I haven't met everyone from Tumblr that I'd like to, but I've been lucky enough to meet a few people and it might seem weird to people who don't have internet friends, but to me it's an amazing way to meet people from around the world who share your interests and, if you're lucky, have put a real, honest version of themselves out there.

If you have friends from Tumblr, YouTube, Blogspot, wherever, and you trust that person and are sure that they're real (seriously, be sure, okay?) I highly recommend meeting them in person. It's likely that it will feel like you've been friends for ages, and I can honestly say my friends from Tumblr are easier to be around than my friends in real life sometimes.

These are just a few of my internet friends - I've been lucky enough to meet Ryan twice (once in Stuttgart where I live and once in Amsterdam where she lives, top left and bottom right), Anna in Virginia (bottom left) and Dacey (this was actually today! Top right) at my university today. I have felt so at ease meeting my internet friends and while it definitely seems a bit weird to the people in my life who have never done it before, I would always be up for meeting up with someone I've connected with on Tumblr. These people are some of my best friends and I'm so glad I actually have taken the leap and met up with some of the most wonderful people I've ever met!

naked vs. naked 2

This post is very near and dear to my heart because if it were not for my beloved Naked palette I would know nothing about makeup and a very vital part of me would be missing! That sounded a lot better in my head. Hm. What I meant to say is that my interest in makeup has grown exponentially over the last year since I purchased the Naked palette on a very frivolous whim and I have fallen very in love with makeup since then. I received the Naked 2 palette for Christmas this year and I can't say that I like one better than the other, but I do want to compare them so that anyone who reads this can decide which they would rather have (or if you're like me, you can't resist and you need both!)

These palettes are especially good for me personally because 1) I am extremely conservative in both clothing and makeup. I hardly wear any bright colors or patterns ever and the neutrality of these palettes is exactly what I'm looking for when I apply makeup, and 2) my eyes are very, very blue, which is brought out even more by the colors in these palettes. I tend to avoid colored eyeshadow and I have found endless ways to bring out my blue eyes without feeling like I'm wearing too much makeup.

 

I'm not sure how important packaging is to everyone, but to me it's very important because I travel quite a lot! The original Naked palette has a magnetic lid and snaps together quite easily (clearly mine has been loved... a lot), while the Naked 2 actually snaps together with little.. snaps? I'm not sure what to call them, but yes well it snaps into place and for me personally is a bit harder to close. I understand the protection value in the harder case of the Naked 2, but I actually prefer the softer magnetic packaging on the original palette. I am very careful with my makeup and pack it very delicately in my suitcases, so I never have any problems with the magnetic top coming open or anything like that. It's a bit lighter and feels more... art-y? I'm not sure. Either way, the Naked 2 is much more protected than the Naked but for me there's no real reason for it. I guess it's to each their own!

Naked: As you can see here I have absolutely loved the shit out of this palette! The colors are all so vibrant and pigmented and as a beginner, I was just stunned and had no idea what to do with all the magical options. So I began watching tutorials and learned the basics of applying this palette and have found it to be quite versatile. I tend to use Sin most on my lids (as you can see I've hit pan there and am in desperate need of a new one!) with Toasted on my crease and/or outer corners, and Virgin is the best brow highlighter I've ever come across - it blends so well with any lid and crease shadows you choose. This palette is very glittery/shimmery, which is obvious seeing as only two of the shades are matte (Naked and Buck). I love shimmery eyeshadows, but I've found that Sidecar is especially glittery and I really only use it on special occasions. The combination of Gunmetal and Creep make for an excellent smokey eye and while I'm normally a bit too nervous to try it on myself, it has looked wonderful on a few of my friends when we go out. I tend to do my friends' makeup when we go to parties on the weekend, and we all have different colored eyes which makes for lots of fun for me! Smog, Darkhorse and Hustle in any combination look so beautiful on green eyes while a thorough application of a mix of Sidecar and Hustle on the outer corners with Virgin on the inner corners really brings out brown eyes. Overall this palette is an essential part of my makeup collection, and I already know I'm going to use it until it's absolutely gone! I'm thinking about buying another just in case. If you're a beginner to makeup, this palette is so easy to use and so versatile, you might just become as addicted as me!

Naked 2: I was so excited to get this for Christmas (because I picked it out myself.. shh!) and I basically have not put it down since the 25th of December. This palette has a more silvery/grey sort of theme as opposed to the original Naked which I tend to see as more brown themed. While I think the original Naked is great for beginners, this palette has a lot more obvious lid + crease combinations, which is what I really started off teaching myself as it's pretty essential! Anyway, the combinations are pretty obvious - I've loved pairing Bootycall and Chopper, Suspect and Snakebite, Verve and Pistol, and YDK and Busted. It annoys some people that they aren't in a specific order color-wise, but I liked how when I opened it I immediately knew what I wanted to do with it. I feel like it's a nice continuation of the Naked palette - more of what I love! I'm so excited to try this palette out on my friends whose eyes are different colors than mine to find what brings out greens and browns more as opposed to my blue eyes, which are brought out best by metallics like Half Baked and Verve.

So to finish up, I actually could not be forced to say which I like more. Both come with a brush (the original with a standard shadow brush, the 2 with a double ended brush - one side with a shadow brush, the other with a blending brush) and I prefer the Naked 2's brush much more! Two brushes in one - I am sold. I loved that the original Naked came with a sample of the Primer Potion because I think primer is SO essential for eyeshadow application and I couldn't live without it. I do love the lip gloss that came with Naked 2, but the primer is just so much more useful and beneficial to really utilizing the palette. I am more used to the original Naked, but the Naked 2 is just as lovely! I love the matte black shade in Naked 2 (Blackout) as opposed to the shimmery black in Naked (Creep), but I prefer Virgin in Naked to Foxy in Naked 2. So I think the two palettes balance each other out very well and I have absolutely no problem mixing the colors together, there are still lots of things I haven't tried! I know that some colors are quite similar (Snakebite and Smog, Toasted and YDK, Hustle and Busted) but actually in the application they're rather different and bring something new to your look. I wouldn't let that set you off buying both, because it's nice to have some colors that are similar when the rest are quite different!

I know this is very lengthy but when I read reviews of makeup I like them to be detailed and relevant to what I need to know, so I hope this has given you a bit of insight about the two palettes and that you choose which caters more to what you're looking for (like I said before, maybe it's both!) I hope to get around to showing my favorite looks using these palettes, and if you have any suggestions/questions, comments are always welcome!