Everything Happens for a Reason

Ok time to get a little deep on the blog. Do you believe in coincidence? I don't. I strongly believe that everything happens for a reason. Sometimes you don't know why, and sometimes it takes for freaking ever to determine what that reason is. But ultimately I do not believe that things are random.

Take one example. Back in 2002 I went to college and met some extremely awesome people. I didn't know it at the time but one of them would be responsible for introducing me to Tony. It took four years for the timing to be right, but here we are nine years later and still going strong.

Another example, taking a chance on a business opportunity with mark. (now under Avon) allowed me to make some really awesome friends I would never have met otherwise and that has led to not only some amazing friendships but through that network of friends I was introduced to more business opportunities and new networks of people. And this blog.

It's really crazy how things are all connected, even when you can't see it right away. Especially the smaller things. If you would have chosen to sit somewhere different or take a different route to work; all of those little things can lead to something that could have completely changed your life. It could be something as small as a shittier commute by taking a route that had unexpected road construction, or by introducing yourself to someone at a networking meeting who ends up becoming a co-worker down the line. Crazy.

Sometimes things happen that are good, and some things that happen are extremely shitty. But all of those things are there to teach you something and make you stronger and wiser for what is yet to come.

I'm sorry if that is too deep or vague or weird; but I was just reflecting on my life lately and feeling really awesome about how things are going and grateful for all of the lessons I have learned (good and bad).

What are your thoughts on this? any strange "coincidences" or choices you want to share?

Fall Scents - Bath and Body Works

As mentioned in my previous post, fall is my favorite time of year. I especially love the smells of fall. Pumpkin, spice, cinnamon, etc. I love it! And one of my fave places in the world is Bath and Body Works. I have been a fan of theirs since the first one opened up in the Lawton Mall in Oklahoma and changed my world forever (not a lot happened in Lawton, so this was literally life-changing at the time).

So today, I wanted to share with you a few of my favorite things I like to get this time of year.

Before we get started, I want to point out a couple of things:

• Try and wait until the candles are two for $22 this happens several times a season.
• Wall flowers are ALWAYS 6 for $24 or cheaper, but don't get duped by the two packs, if you do the math they are not always cheaper than buying them individually. 
• Bath and Body Works gives out coupons like nobody's business. Use them.
• Retail-Me-Knot ALWAYS has discount codes for shopping online at B&BW's website. You can download the app for free. I use this when I shop anywhere because they almost always have some sort of discount code going.

(excuse the non-fall candle hiding in the background - it's Cinnamon Sugar Doughnut if you're wondering)

I freaking love candles. I always have, and then I had a slight obsession with the movie The Craft and they were always burning candles for some sort of magical purposes and my love for candles has just intensified. I used to have like 20 of them in my room in high school, kinda weird I guess. And yeah,  I happen to think that Bath and Body Works has some of the best ones. My favorite scents in fall are Leaves (classic cinnamon-y scent), Marshmallow Fireside and then the Pumpkin ones. Here I have Sweet Cinnamon Pumkin and Pumpkin Pecan Waffles. One year they had a Pumpkin Latte scent and I LOVED IT, but I haven't seen it the last couple of years. 

I also picked up wallflower refills in Leaves. I have these all over my house and they typically last at least a month if not slightly longer (it usually depends on the size of the room they are in). 

And finally, I needed more hand sanitizer so I purchased their Autumn Scents pack for $5 (making these $1 each). My favorite so far is Fall Lakeside Breeze. It smells divine (as far as hand sanitizers go).

So that's it for today's post. What are your fave fall items to pick up from Bath and Body Works? What was your first scent you ever bought from them? Mine was Sun-Ripened Raspberry and then I was hooked on Juniper Breeze for awhile. 

Bye Felicia!

I am a make-up hoarder. Well, kind of. I really like make-up, so I tend to buy it a lot. It's like...a hobby. People ride bikes, collect comics and stamps, I collect make-up. Or I used to.

A couple of  years ago I really felt pressure to buy a lot of the new make-up items, mostly from the drugstore, in order to make sure I was trying the latest and greatest and providing my readers with reviews, swatches, etc. I had So. Much. Stuff. Too much actually. And it was really stressful to me to have all that stuff that wasn't getting used and wasn't being enjoyed.

But then over the course of the last couple of years, I realized two things:

1. Not every new product that comes out will look good on or work for me.
2. If people want reviews of every damn new product that comes out, there are already 400 bagillion blogs and videos out there with that info (I'm lookin at you YouTube).

So what does that mean?

I cleaned the shit out of my stash. I mean that literally and figuratively. If the product didn't look good on me, or wasn't something I used a lot I got rid of it. I didn't just throw it away (unless it was expired). I returned a crap ton of stuff to Sephora and Target, and gave away BAGS of make-up to friends and family (you're welcome Jen and Laurel!). And now what I have left is a stash of my most favorite and most used make-up.

This is not to say I don't still fight the urge to buy (or at least want to buy) all the new things. I just don't give in. [Note - to be clear, I NEVER actually bought ALL the new things.] I really think about whether or not I need a sixth foundation in my drawer, or another dark red lipstick in my purse. Most of the time the answer is no. I try to limit myself to picking up new items either, when something runs out that I don't already have a replacement for, OR a couple of things for each new season.

I have gotten to the point this year with make-up (and other things in my life) that if it's not working for me, then it's done. I am done hanging on to stuff that I won't use. I don't care how trendy it is or how much someone else says they love it. I am not a YouTube Beauty Guru (and that's okay - I love them, I'm just not one of them!), I don't have millions of followers and an endless supply of cash and sponsor-ships to try out every new beauty item under the sun. I am done trying to be something I am not, it's exhausting and expensive and stressful and just plain shitty. I am who I am, and I think I am pretty awesome.

Have you every had one of these "epiphany-style" moments? What was it?

Fall Favorites

Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the changing colors of the leaves, the crisp cool mornings, snuggling into warm fuzzy blankets and sweaters. I love football and Fall TV (Empire and Sleepy Hollow are my faves!) So for this post I wanted to share with you a few of my favorite fall "things".

1. Orange and gold. Pumpkins, leaves, nail polish, everything this time of year is some variation of orange and gold. I love how rich it makes things look (not like money rich), it's just the best.

2. Cinnamon and pumpkin scented everything. My house never smells better.

3. Family time. I have the best memories of fall as a kid and this time of year always makes me feel nostalgic for those times. But fall means the beginning of the holiday season and some of the funnest times you will spend all year with your fam.

4. It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown! The best fall/Halloween movie. Ever.

5. Halloween - I love to decorate for it, celebrate it and just everything.

6. Boots! I love boots! And scarves. Fall fashion is so comfortable and I love the chunky knits, the fleece lined things, everything is just so cozy and COMFY.

7. The September Issue. As in Vogue. I seriously wait all year for this to arrive. I look at it probably 100 times and tear out pages of clothes, hair, anything that inspires me for season and I try to re-create looks with things I already have or identify (much cheaper versions) pieces that I want to buy for my fall wardrobe. Burgundy knee-high boots and plaid everything made in this year (thanks JustFab and Target!) but I am huge fan of plaid anything all the time, not just this year.

8. Baking. Is there any time of year that has better baked goods than fall? The answer is no. Pumpkin pie, pumpkins seeds, cinnamon cookies, banana bread. Bam.

9. Bonfires. Sure summer bonfires are great, being at the lake/beach, blah blah blah. But fall bonfires smell better, they burn brighter, AND there are no bugs. No bugs. #winning

10. Fall folklore and rituals. So interesting. Preparing for the fall solstice, All Hallows Eve, Day of the Dead, all those things, fascinating.

What's your favorite thing about fall?

Hi, I'm not dead.

Eight months.

That's how long it's been since my last post.

(Dahlia isn't impressed either.)

Some of you are going, "I know!" and some of you are thinking, "Who is this bitch?". Yeah, it's been awhile. Life happened, I left this blog in the dust and just didn't really feel like doing anything about it. Lazy? Kind of. Rude? Maybe. But I am really hoping to be back on track with things and move forward from here.

Part of why it's been so long is I just honestly haven't felt all that inspired by blogs lately. It seems like the same old same old crap content everywhere. And I just felt really blah about my own blog. I felt like I was trying to be and keep up with someone I'm not. I am not a professional blogger. I do not want to forgo sleep and snuggles with my fur babies to write a post for you. Sorry. And then I just got really crabby about the whole blogging thing in general. So I stopped.

But now, I want to get back in the game and take this blog in a bit of a different direction. I want you guys to feel like we are BFFs sitting down to a glass of wine and I have something fun (and maybe sometimes it won't be so fun  - not everything is unicorns and rainbows) to share with you. I want to take a look at other areas of my life and share those with you as well. Beauty will likely still be the main focus as it's something I really enjoy and like to share my opinions on, but it can't be the only focus. I bored myself, so I hope I didn't bore you.

Some of the things that have been going on since my last post:

- I lost 20 pounds, maybe you want to hear about that?
- I switched jobs.
- One of my dogs had ACL surgery.
- One of our chickens was brutally murdered by a hawk/owl/chupacabra/alien.
- Tony and I celebrated our 9 year anniversary.
- I was in a fashion show and made some kick ass new friends.
- Other shit I can't remember; it was eight months guys. Jeez.

As soon as this post is done, I am going to write up several more so that I have more consistent stuff for you.

Quick question. If you have a blog/website/whatever, how do you stay motivated to keep posting content for your readers?

Order of Application According to Mel

Hi Lovelies!

Today's post is all about the order of application. Beauty product application that is. There are so many products out there, and it can be really frustrating when you apply something and you aren't getting the end result you wanted. Part of that could be due to application error, or it may not be the right product for you. But, the order in which you apply your make-up can really make a difference in how products work with each other to give you the end look you really want.

What follows below is MY order of application. I have been wearing make-up since I was 5 (seriously, Tinkerbell make-up was the bomb), but truly wearing makeup since I was 14. My application techniques (hello foundation brush!) and the order in which I apply them has changed quite a bit in the last 20 years.

Alright, first thing's first: skincare. Wash your face, apply treatments, serums and eye cream and then moisturizer BEFORE you put any amount of makeup on your face. You should ALWAYS start with a clean face.

Next, primer. There are a ton of different face primers out there, and I will be doing a separate post on that later, but now is the time to prime. There are brightening, pore minimizing, hydrating and other types of primers out there, but generally speaking a primer is going to help your make-up last longer, and provide a sleeker canvas for your make-up.

Now it's time for foundation. This is where you really need to assess the make-up you are about to apply and take note of cream and liquid products vs. powder. In basic terms, you can layer liquids and creams on top of each other, but once you apply a powder you are done with liquid/cream. So, if you are using a liquid foundation, creamy concealer and then powder to set your make-up, the blush and bronzer all need to be powder. If you use powder foundation and concealer (ex. mineral make-up) then proceed accordingly. Does that make sense.

For me I use liquid foundation 99% of the time so I apply my foundation first. I dab on a few dots on my cheeks forehead, nose and chin. Then I use a brush to blend it all together. I apply the heavier amounts towards the middle of my face and blend out.

Next I add under-eye concealer and cover up any blemishes or spots. Applying your concealer after your foundation was weird to me as I always did it the other way around. But if you are going to spend all that time covering things up, the last thing you want to do is rub over that with something else. This has made a huge difference for me, especially in covering up blemishes.

Now I will set my concealer with a translucent powder. If I am doing powder blush and bronzer I will also apply powder to my nose, chin and forehead to keep those areas from getting shiny. If I am doing cream bronzer and blush I will wait to powder those areas until after those products are applied.

Applying cream over powder gives a cakey look that I am not in to.

Now I will contour my face. I do a little on my cheeks, nose and forehead. Then I do bronzer on my cheeks, forehead, nose and chin. Next I apply blush to the apples of my cheeks and blend back towards my hair line. And finally, I apply highlighter to the tops of my cheeks.

After that is done I move on to brows. I don't like to do my brows until after all of these steps are complete because I don't want to accidentally brush over my brows and mess that up. So I usually use a pencil or a pomade product for my brows and once those are done, its time to move on to eyes!

Eye primer is the first step in your eye shadow game. You can use concealer, a cream eye shadow or an actual eye primer. Using a primer before eye shadow will help make your shadow last longer, prevent creasing and can help colors appear brighter and truer to what they look like in the pan.

I am not going to get into application of eye shadow as that really depends on the look you are going for, but once your eye shadow is done it's time for eyeliner.

There are tons of different forms of eyeliner, powder, gel, liquid, pencil, etc. Whatever you prefer now is the time to apply it. If you are doing a liquid liner, I like to let that set a few minutes before applying mascara.

Whew, we are almost done.

Now that your eyeliner is applied and dry, you can curl your lashes if you want. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't Curling your lashes while your eyeliner is wet will likely cause the eyeliner to move or rub off onto the lash curler so that's why I recommend you wait to let it dry. And once they are curled (or not) you can apply mascara.

Do not pump your wand into the mascara tube. This will cause clumping by pushing air back into the tube and will result in your mascara clumping on your lashes and drying it out faster. So if you need more mascara on the wand swirl it gently in the tube (kind of like you are scraping the sides of the tube). One coat of mascara is generally sufficient (depending on the look you want).

Now if you wanted to, you can apply false lashes. You may need to touch up your eyeliner at this point and if you are adding lashes I always go back in with a quick coat of mascara to kind of make your lashes mesh better with the falsies.

Now that you are done with eyes and face, it's time for lips. If you are going all out, you can apply concealer over your lips to prep and prime them for lip color application.

First apply lip liner. The lip liner should either match your lip color or the color of the lipstick you are applying next. Leave the brown lip liner and light lipstick in the 90's where they belong. It's not 1994, you are not Kim Mathers, let it go. Also, do not over line your lips. Follow your natural lip line or just slightly outside of it.

Apply your lipstick straight out of the tube, or using a lip brush or your fingers (this is better for darker colors so you don't get it all over the place). And then blot. And by blot I want you to take your index finger and (in a non sexual way) stick it in your mouth and close your lips around your finger and pull your finger out. Any excess lipstick will now be on your finger and not on your teeth.

Finally if you want to add a lip gloss to the top of your lipstick you can add that now.

Good grief that's a lot of steps! For a final, final touch, you can add a make-up setting spray at the end that will set your makeup and help seal it in to last for the day.

I do not use all of these products on a daily basis, and sometimes I have even more steps if I am going all out for a really dramatic or specific (Halloween) look. It just depends.

I know it seems like a lot, but this all can really be done in 5-10 minutes once you get your routine down.

Do you have a different order of application or other tips? Leave it in the comments section below!

2014 Best In Beauty

Hello Lovelies! It's time again for my annual "M" awards! I am going with "M" because it's by first initial and because it's mostly for make-up. And because it just came to me. I really tried to streamline things this year and not award something in any category that I didn't feel was really outstanding. This is not to say that other products I raved about in 2014 weren't awesome, but as I thought back over the year and thought about truly stand-out products this is what I came up with. And I know I chose wisely because all of these products were either in the bathroom or in my purse and not in my master make-up stash. So go grab a bevvie and a snack and settle in, here we go! 

And the first M award goes to, red lips! Any brand as long as they're red. I have had a long standing, love-hate relationship with red lips, but 2014 was the year I finally embraced them and learned which hue of red works best on my skin tone. As one of my boss ladies always tells me, I really have the Wednesday and Mortitia Adams look and it turns out deep berry-reds and brick reds with hints of burgundy and definitely on the cool side pretty much rock my lip world. Some of my faves here are Lime Crime's Glamour 101, Mac's Russian Red and Ruby Woo, Maybelline's Deepest Cherry and Divine Wine, Revlon's Red Velvet and NARS Olivia and Dragon Girl. I forgot to throw in my NARS Audrey lippie (it's buried in my bag right now). And on a side note, if you ever need to put on a lipstick that will take you from ho-hum to the baddest mama-jamma, it's Dragon Girl. The name alone implies a level of bad assery that the average lipstick just can't compare with. 

And the M award for best cheek products is a three-way tie! Milani blush in Luminoso is pretty much all I wore from May until yesterday because it's so awesome. I got it at CVS and there is so much product in here, I don't know if I will ever hit pan! My NARS palette from last Christmas (2013) also got a lot of use. I hit pan on the bronzer and used the darkest one (Dolce Vita I think?) quite a bit this fall. And in the back are my Makeup Geek blushes. Makeup Geek isn't done in this post (hint hint) but peeps I'm tellin ya to get your booty over to Marlena's website and YouTube channel and get yoself some of her products. At $9.99 a pan it's cray.

Drugstore lovers unite! The next M award is for face products and everything here can be procured at your local Target and CVS. The Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid Touch foundation is out. of . this. world. This bottle pictured here, is empty. Empty people. I used it that much. It's a light weight medium coverage foundation that is essentially pure foundation awesome in a bottle. Next up is the E.L.F. HD brightening concealer. This is the shizz under your eyes. It's $3 and this is my second tube. Guys, this is pretty major on the makeup commitment scale for me. Just understand that for a second. My other loves in this category are the Sonia Kashuk contouring stick and the Milani eye brow pencil. Both products blend to perfection and last all day. Love them.

The M awards for eyes go to two brands, Makeup Geek for the stellar eye shadows, pigments and gel liners and YSL for mascara. These shadows are $5.99 each and like $6ish for the pigments and liner. They last all day, blend like a dream, are so affordable its almost criminal and the color selection and color payoff is amaze-balls. A-maze balls. Not to be forgotten in this picture is the mascara of the decade people. It is the Babydoll mascara from YSL. Yep, it's pricey, no getting around that. But it is LIFECHANGING. Volume for days and length to match. Completely worth every lash-tastic dollar. 

The first-ever M award for brand of the year goes to, drum roll please, MAKEUP GEEK! Guys, for serious, go check this brand out! These shadows are better than Mac, cheaper than Mac, and have way cooler names and color pay-off than any Mac product I have ever tried or owned. The new foiled shadows are cray-cray pigmented. And the blushes are beautiful, last all day and are talc free. I just seriously can't say enough about this brand. I haven't tried everything they have and I am sure there are duds in there (as there are with every brand) but the quality of the product for the price point is amazing. The website is easy to use, out of stock items come back fairly quick and shipping costs are very reasonable. Try it. Now. Go ahead, I'll wait.

Alrighty then. moving on to M awards in the hair and skin care category! Many of you will not be surprised that the Tangle Teezer is getting an award. I have raved about this and bought this for a great many of you for birthdays and such. Guys and girls with long and medium length hair, you need this. NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED IT. Target carries them and be sure to get the Tangle Teezer brand. I have had people tell me they use this on their kids' hair and it's the only way the kiddos can handle have their hair brushed. 

The Aussie 3-Minute Miracle Moist conditioner is the best leave in treatment/daily conditioner of all time. This isn't what I consider a hair mask, like the L'Oreal one I raved about and still love. This is a conditioner. And I use it daily. Also, it's $3. Yeah. Three effing dollars. My hair is so soft and shiny and smells so good after I use it. 

Batiste dry shampoo for dark hair is a life saver. I do not wash my hair every day. I usually wash it two or three times in a week. And I would be S.O.L. without this product. It smells good, doesn't leave a white cast on my dark hair and it really gets all the oil so I don't look like a Nirvana groupie (not that that's a bad thing, I love them. Just not the greasy hair that goes with them).

Skin care award winners are an oldie but a goodie and a new product taking the beauty world by storm. The Smith's Rosebud Salve has been around a long time and for good reason. I use this stuff day and night and it can be used on your lips, cuticles, dry patches on your face, etc. I even used some of this on my dog's feet once (she had her own tin that was used only for her feet, just FYI). 

The Glam Glow Thirsty Mud is another life-saving beauty product. It's mask that can be worn for 20 minutes or you can sleep in it (which I do) and it really helps to hydrate your face. I have dry skin anyway but through Minnesota winters, I get alligator-dry skin and this has saved me! This is spendy too, but I'm telling you it's worth it. Bonus: it smells like coconut! Just be sure that when you sleep in it, that you wash it off in the morning, you can't put makeup over this. 

And last but not least, the MVP M award is going to Zoya Nail Polish Remover. This stuff. OMG this stuff. It smells nice (not like I want to bathe in it, but it doesn't stink and make you high like normal nail polish remover), like lavendar or something. And it removes the reddest, glittery-est nail polish like nothing. Guys, if Beyonce were a nail polish remover, she would be this one. Yeah, I went there.

I have a couple of other honorable mention products but I will do a separate post on those soon! Tell me in the comments what your best in beauty products were this year and if you have tried any of the ones I mentioned.