A rainy Saturday calls for cozy blankets and warm drinks!

It's a cold and rainy/snowy day here in Minnesota. And one of my fave things to do when it's craptastic out is to snuggle on the couch with a book, a couple of dogs and something warm to drink.

So I thought I would share a few of my fave teas with you today. I am normally a coffee drinker in the morning and I am not really a fan of hot chocolate so tea is my warm bevvie of choice.

Left to right are my breakfast tea from Archer Farms (Target), which I like to drink in the afternoon if I need a pick me up. I drank this in lieu of coffee when I had the flu because the scent of coffee made my belly curl.

Next up is my nummy Pomegranate and Raspberry tea, which I LOVE! I also bought this at Target, it reminds me of summer with it's fruity aroma and tarty taste.

Then I still have a leftover box of Sugar Cookie tea that I bought around Christmas time. It really does smell and taste like a cookie.

And finally is my Well Rested tea from Trader Joes. I am normally a big fan of the Sleepy Time Tea from Celestial Seasonings, but my momma took me to Trader Joes where I found this. And honestly, it's pretty much the same thing. I like the Sleepy Time brand better because it has a Vanilla flavor option and I love anything vanilla flavored/scented. Obvs I only drink this at night, because it really does make me tired.

I usually add Almond Milk to my tea because plain tea is weird to me. EXCEPT for the pomegranate-raspberry one, that tastes amazing all by it's little self.

How do you like to spend yucky days? Do you have a fave hot drink?

Tried and True: Cover Girl

Most of us make-up wearing peeps have probably tried CoverGirl make-up. A lot of us probably started with CoverGirl in high school (I did! EVERYONE had those compacts in their jeans and we used to put the clean foundation on, on the bus ride to school every morning!). 

Over the years this has been one brand (along with Revlon) that I return to again and again. And in the last 5 or so years they have really come out with a butt load of amazing new products. If you haven't tried the CoverGirl Outlast mascaras, go do that when you are done reading this post. 

So in the last several months, CoverGirl has launched several new products and revamped their packaging on a lot of old favorites. I know a lot of people don't care for the way their face products smell, BUT I personally really like it ;-) It smells like Noxema to me and that brings back happy memories for me.

Below are a few of my fave new things and one oldie but goodie!

I will start left to right here. SO the first product I want to talk about is a new foundation that is pretty much the bomb dot com. It is the new CoverGirl Outlast Stay Fabulous 3 in 1 Foundation. It says it's a primer, concealer and foundation all in one. AND IT HAS A PUMP (Dear Revlon, is that so friggin much to ask?!?) I love the pump because I can pump the product onto the back of my hand and dip my brush into it or dot it right on my face and blend. This foundation does not have a smell, and I wear it in the shade Classic Ivory (which I have worn since HS, sadly I have never really been tan). This foundation also has an SPF 20 in it. Which is awesome, but wouldn't photograph well with that high of an SPF - just a little tip. Any-hoo, I love this, it covers well and I really only use under eye concealer and a little powder on the nose and SHAZAM, hello gorgeous!

Speaking of concealer and powder, the other products pictured here are the Olay & CoverGirl Simply Ageless Eye Concealer, CoverGirl CLEAN Pressed Powder and the Olay & CoverGirl concealer balm. Love the powder, always have. I wear it in Classic Ivory as well and I think this is one of the best drugstore powders on the market. As for the Olay & Cover Girl products, OMG, this stuff is the shiznit. The under eye concealer makes the Maybelline one with the sponge on it look like child's play. PLUS it has amazing Olay skin care technology to help get rid of those dark circles. And the concealer balm is so frickin fabulous I can't even tell you. It's creamy enough to put under your eyes, but also works well on any other imperfections you may have going on.

Also really loving the new CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Polishes! I have Forever Festive (red), Pink-finity (baby pink), and Non-Stop Stone (gray). LOVE these! They last a long time and are pretty opaque. I am currently rocking the pink and gray shades.

I can't get this effing pic to lay right, sorry about that. BUT this is the new CoverGirl Lip Perfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in Ballet Twist. A very light, everyday nude color that will go with so many looks. It's self sharpening so you just twist the silver part up and it's so easy to apply. Also, in terms of jumbo pencils, this one is really moisturizing! It must be the balm part.

So that's it, I hope you enjoyed this! Have you tried any of CoverGirl's new products? What are your faves? This is probably my fave drugstore brand. If I could only buy one brand from the drugstore I would have to pick CoverGirl.

Other CoverGirl faves:
- Outlast Mascara (orange tube)
- CoverGirl Cheekers Blush (warning these have the Noxema smell so if that bothers you you may not like these)
- Perfect Point Plus Eyeliner in Onyx (works great on the water line!)

A couple of disclaimers:
1. All products listed above were purchased with my own hard-earned $$, this is not a sponsored post.

2. I purchased the products above over the course of about 3 months or so. You can score some really great coupons in your Sunday paper :-)

The Clarisonic - Life Changing Skin Care

This simple little tool has changed my life. And mostly I mean my face. If you have never seen one of these before, allow me to introduce you. Blog reader, meet the Clarisonic Mia. She is amazing and powerful and has made my skin more incredible than it ever has been.

I had been wanting one of these little babies for some time, and had done quite a bit of research about it. Then, about two weeks or so ago I went in for a facial and asked the lady there a crap ton of questions about it. I have heard they are amazing and I have heard that the Clarisonics are bad for your skin, so I wanted her expert opinion. And she told me a million zillion different reasons why I should have one and broke down all the different models for me.

So after additional research and based on the advice of the woman at the spa I settled on the Mia. It only has one speed and I was able to score a pretty sweet deal on Amazon. Normally these run $120 and up, but I found mine for under $100.

It comes with a sensitive brush head and a charger. The clear plastic thing is the cover for the brush head so it doesn't get all smooshed up in your bathroom. The charger is like a magnet that suctions on to the base of the handle and you do have to charge it for 24 hours before you use it the first time.

I use it with my normal cleanser, which BTW, is awesome. And because the Clarisonic cleans my face 6 times more than regular washing alone, sometimes the brush head looks like this:

It kind of has a brownish pink stain to it, and that is all of my foundation, bronzer and blush. Yick! You are supposed to wash the brush head once a week with warm soapy water and let it sit so that the brush head stays nice. And you can order additional brush heads on the Clarisonic website or on Amazon.

So what has this done for my skin? Well it has made my skin much more smooth, shrunk my pores a little bit, and has started to get rid of the gross and disgusting milia (which are calcium deposits that look like white heads but are not). It has also noticeably changed the way moisturizers and make up absorb on my face and as a result I use less foundation.

I also really look forward to washing my face every night! You push the gray button and the brush works it's magic for 60 seconds. Spend 20 seconds on the forehead, and 10 seconds on each cheek, your nose and chin. Then after 60 seconds the Clarisonic shuts off and you rinse off the brush and rinse your face. And then you can hear angels sing and the clouds part and you revel in the awesomeness of the Clarisonic Mia.

There are several other models and colors available. You can check them out here.

Do you have a Clarisonic? Do you want one? I would love to hear your personal stories and comments down below.

Also for those wondering, I have super dry skin. I use creams on my face for day and night and usually have to add more to a couple of spots, but the Clarisonic has helped with that a lot and has gotten rid of some dry patches I had. Also I am over 30 so being proactive about anti-aging and preventing wrinkles is VIP to me.

Lime Crime Haul and Mini Review

Wow, long time no blog huh?!? There's no excuse for it really. I dropped the ball during Fall Fashion Week, and am just now picking it back up again. I hope you stuck around and I hope the newbies enjoy!

So for my first blog in 100 years, I am sharing a mini haul I purchased from Lime Crime. For those of you who haven't heard, Lime Crime is a make-up brand based out of California, (you can check out their site here). And they are amazing. The packaging is purple and it has a unicorn on it. DO I even need to go further? I mean seriously look at the friggin purple box for crying out loud! It's amazing.

I first heard about Lime Crime on Nicole Guerriero's YouTube channel which you should totally check out because she is amazing and gorgeous and hilarious. So I went to the Lime Crime website to check them out and was supes impressed.

They are known for their eye primer, called Shadow Helper. And their super opaque lipsticks, that come in a variety of amaze-balls colors.

A couple of weeks ago I got my tax return and decided to save some of it, pay some bills and treat myself to a couple of fun things. So I went right on over to the Lime Crime site and ordered two products. The box above is what came in the mail, and I received it within three days of ordering (which in my experience, is super-de-duper fast!).

So here's what was in the box:

I decided to get the Shadow Helper, since that was their #1 guy, and I needed some new primer anyway. I haven't tried it yet because it came after I did my make up for the day. BUT I will do an update and let you know :-) Have you tried it? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

I also ordered one of their lipsticks in Glamour 101. And um guys, this color has changed my life. For real, in one afternoon this tiny tube of awesomeness has change my life. It is gorgeous! And it smells like vanilla, and I feel like Marilyn Monroe when I wear it. Here's a swatch:

It's pretty true to the color in the tube, which is why their lipstick is so awesome. It's a dark, brick red color that I feel would be pretty flattering on both warm and cool skin tones. And I am paler than death and it still looks good on me! This color reminds me a lot of the Revlon Lip Butter in Red Velvet but better.

So that's it. Whew! First blog back done! I hope you enjoyed this and know that I am posting another one tomorrow ;-) And I hope to have myself on a three days a week blogging schedule. If I don't, let me know haha!

Here is pricing and other info:

Glamour 101 Lipstick $15.99 (Vegan and Cruelty Free!!!)
Shadow Helper $16.99 (0.35 oz, also VEGAN and cruelty free!)

They also have Zodiac Glitter, which I am dying to try! If you've tried any Lime Crime products, let me know your thoughts in the comments below!