March Favorites

Hello all!

I hope everyone had a lovely month! Is it starting to feel like Spring where you are? New York is only just starting to warm up!  It was snowing less than a week ago, but we finally got above 60 degrees! It's amazing what warm weather can do to lift your spirits!

I honestly don't have a lot of favorites from March.  I was mostly using the same products as in February, so this post should be short and sweet!

First up are my new backpack and water bottle.  The backpack is from a brand called Tumbuk2, which is located in San Francisco (yay for a piece of home!).  The factory is actually right next to where my old chiropractor is located!  I have been looking at getting a book bag slash dance bag from Tumbuk2 for ages, and I finally found the perfect one!  Not only did it meet my needs perfectly, it was on sale for almost $100 off!  Now, it was still a bit pricey, but there is a lifetime warranty on the bag, and it's incredibly well made; I can see myself having this bag literally for the rest of my life.  If you follow me on Instagram (@kathleendahlhoff), you will have already seen a picture of it.  The water bottle that I got at the same time is a super basic Nalgene, but it's 48oz! It has really helped me stay hydrated!

My next favorite is an accessory! Now, I don't usually have accessories as favorites because apart from my rings, I don't really wear much jewelry, but OH MY GOSH I am in LOVE with this watch from Ann Klein!  The band is a gorgeous blush leather, and the hardware is rose gold.  It's very hard to see in the picture, but the face of the watch is actually a pink-toned mother of pearl.  It is so classy and delicate, and it goes with everything!

Moving on to makeup! As you may or may not know, Nars Cosmetics recently came out with a new foundation, called the All Day Luminous Foundation.  It is their first ever full-coverage foundation, and it has a satin/matte finish.  Let me just tell you, this foundation is a GAME CHANGER.  I love the Nars Sheer-Glow, but with the humid summer months coming up, I wanted to find something that was less dewy.  Boy did I find that with this foundation!  Unlike the Nars Sheer-Matte foundation (which I believe has been discontinued), the Luminous is incredibly blendable and buildable, without being patchy!  I personally have been loving just adding a pump to my moisturizer and making my own tinted moisturizer!  I have also been mixing it with my Sheer-Glow, as it is still a bit dry in the city.  Long story short, I highly recommend!  I have been wearing the shade Mont Blanc.

My other makeup favorite has been a Burberry Soft Satin Lip Cover in the color No. 23 English Rose.  Remember when I said that my YSL Rouge Volupté Shine lipstick in the color No. 9 Nude in Private was my perfect nude lipstick?  I LIED.  This is my perfect nude!  Its more of a cool tone, and the finish is less glossy, which I love.  I also love that regardless of whether my lips are in good shape or not, this lipstick looks flawless and has incredible staying power.

My final favorite (told you it would be short!) is a nail polish from Victoria's Secret in the color "Steal the Show."  I don't often wear shimmer nail colors, but this one has been absolutely lovely, and had very good staying power!

I hope you enjoyed this month's favorites! Let me know if you have tried any of these products before, and whether you liked them!  Also, comment some of the things you loved during the month of March!

-Fly high, little birds!

xxx

February Favorites

Hello all!

February is weird because it always feels so much shorter than the other months, but in reality, it is only (usually) two days shorter.  Funny how that works.

The weather has been absolutely miserable here in NYC.  This California girl is seriously struggling!  I get up early in the mornings and have to go outside when it is usually the coldest, and I literally have to pause for a moment every time I'm about to go outside, just so that I can mentally prepare myself!  Even my friends from Canada are complaining about how bad this winter is, and they really know what they're talking about!  Spring can't come soon enough.

As I am writing this it is currently blizzarding right outside my window.  Its all fun and games when I don't plan on going outside, and I can just watch the snow swirling around, but then I think about all the errands that need running, and I cringe!

Alright, enough of my whining!  Here are some of the things I have been loving this past month!

First up is this massive bottle of hand-sanitizer.  With this cold weather comes cold and flu season.  Now, I started the year by having a cold, the flu, and strep throat all at once.  I am not about to get sick again!  This has been incredibly hand-y (bada-bing! Excuse me, I think I'm punny).  It smells like the cucumber melon scent from Bath and Body Works.  I just bought it at CVS for $2!

 My next favorite was a total impulse buy.  I have heard so many wonderful things about Emma Hardie, and Feel Unique was having a sale on the "starter kit," which came with a cleansing cloth, a moisturizer, and my favorite, the Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm.  Oh. My. Gosh.  This product is life changing.  My face has never felt more clean!  I use it before my evening shower to remove my makeup.  My skin loves me!

Another part of my Feel Unique purchase came in the form of this Zoella makeup bag.  My well-loved Burberry The Beat makeup bag was completely destroyed, and I seriously needed a new one!  The colors on this one are beautiful, and I love the inspirational message that Zoe put on the bag.  It is a message that I have recently really tried to embrace!  One never knows where an opportunity will present itself!

I didn't realize that all of my purchases from Feel Unique ended up in this month's favorites!  This was a limited edition travel Tangle Teezer that I seriously love!  I have always loved my regular one, but the travel sized one is perfect for a handbag, because it's smaller and it has a cap on the bristles to keep it from getting dirty. Also, I honestly can't resist a good union jack print. #britishwanabee

My next favorite is born out of my serious need for spring!  It is the Honeysuckle Wallflower from Bath and Body Works.  We aren't allowed to have candles in our dorm rooms, so this is the closest I can get to feeding my candle addiction!  It smells absolutely gorgeous!

I have a plethora of perfume samples from my many years as a Beauty Insider with Sephora.  Basically for every online order, you get three free samples.  I made it my goal this moth to use as many of my samples up as possible!  My favorite was definitely Dior's Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet, by a long shot!  I might get the full size as my spring/summer fragrance!

I've had this next favorite for a while, but I started using it regularly this month.  It is the Amazonian Clay full coverage airbrush foundation from Tarte, and it's great! I wear the color 'fair honey,' if you're curious.  I was originally using it as a setting powder, and I didn't really care for it all that much.  However, as soon as I started using it by itself I fell in love!  It has build-able coverage, and it looks incredibly skin-like when applied.

Back to an old favorite; Mac's Well Dressed satin blush.  It is perfect when I am very fair.  I think I have used it every day!

My final February favorite is very random.  Coming from California, I am very used to having marvelous local produce all year round. However, out on the east coast, there are actually seasons, so local isn't always an option, nor is heirloom.  However, I have found this lovely brand called Gotham Greens that produces excellent lettuces in Brooklyn!  I am absolutely head-over-heels in love with their Red Oak Leaf Lettuce!

Whelp, here ends my favorites from the past month! Hope you enjoyed it, and please be sure to let me know what you have been loving in the comments!

-Fly high, little birds!

January Favorites

I cannot believe that January is over already!  I started this month back home in San Francisco, and I finished it here in Manhattan.  January is always a bit of a monotonous month.  The holidays are wrapping up, people are going back to school and their jobs.  To be perfectly honest, there isn't much to look forward to, and it's cold!  I found myself curled up reading a book most of the time!

You will see from my post that a lot of this month's favorites are conducive to being chilled out indoors.  I am a California girl who doesn't particularly care for the below freezing temperatures that have been the norm in NYC this month!

My first favorite this month is tea.  Earl Grey, to be more precise! There is really nothing better than a warm cuppa and a soft blanket when there is a blizzard outside!

#ravenclawpride

As I said, I have been curling up with a lot of books this month.   However, my favorite has got to be Tam Lin by Pamela Dean.  This book is actually the reason that my sister decided to go to a small liberal arts school, as it is set at a liberal arts college in the midwest in the 70s.  It is a modern retelling of an old Scottish folk song by the same name.  The original song begins, "I forbid ye maidens all that wear gold in your hair to travel to Carterhaugh, for Young Tam Lin is there..."

I have not just been sitting around reading books, however!  I am working on some pieces of my own writing, for which this Kate Spade notebook (a gift from a friend) has been incredibly helpful!  It is always nice to carry around something that I can jot notes down in when inspiration strikes!

Since I didn't start back at dance officially until the 20th, I spent a lot of time at the gym to keep myself in shape.  I have to take very good care of my feet because they are quite literally my livelihood!  I only recently thought to put my orthotics in my Nike Free 5.0 running shoes, and to be perfectly honest, I don't know why I didn't do this sooner! My knees are less ache-y, and all of my discomfort that I generally have when I exercise has disappeared!

My next favorites are hair related.  I mentioned in my last favorites post that I had recently run out of all of my skincare products.  Well, the same thing happened with my hair products!  I repurchased one of my old holy grail products, the Blue Malva shampoo from AVEDA.  I honestly don't know why I stopped purchasing this!  It smells amazing, and it gets rid of brassy tones in any hair color!  I tend to wash my hair ever day because dancing makes me seriously sweaty, and this shampoo is gentle enough where I can use it daily, but strong enough where I feel like I am getting a really satisfying wash!

My next hair favorite is the Macadamia brand Deep Repair Masque.  I bought a couple sample packs because I didn't want to shell out money on the larger size without knowing whether I liked it or not.  Well, I don't like it.  I love it!  I use it twice a week, and I seriously think that my hair has grown since I started using this product!  I have also gotten a lot of comments about how shiny and luscious my hair looks! It might be too heavy for the summer, but I am loving it for the winter!

I haven't been doing much in the way of makeup.  What's the point, when I'm mostly inside by mylself?  However, when I do go out, I have been loving the Holika Holika brand BB cream with SPF 30.  I have the "clearing" one, which has tea tree oil and sebum controlling powder.  This is probably the best BB cream I have ever used!  The coverage is better than some foundations I have used, and it seriously lasts ages!  The best part? It was only $7!

I have also been loving the Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural lipstick in the color N9 Copper Pink.  This was a birthday present from Sephora, so it is just a mini.  It is very close to my natural lip color, so when I just want a little extra definition, this is what I go for.  A great drugstore dupe for this color is actually the Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in the color 637 Blushing Nude! (Make Up Forever- $20 Revlon- $7).

My last favorite this month is the Vine app.  I honestly don't know why I haven't gotten into Vine sooner, but I am hooked!  I think I spent two hours straight watching six second videos of Thomas Sanders and Arielle Vandenberg! I have no shame!..... OK, maybe I have a little shame...

That is it for this month's favorites!  If you liked it, let me know in the comments below.  What have been your favorites this month?

-Fly high, little birds!

December Favorites

Happy New Year!

I seriously cannot believe that it is already January! Where did December go?  My time back home was certainly not long enough!

Here is what I have been loving this past month.

I ran out of a lot of my everyday products, so I used this opportunity to try some new things!  First up are the Aveeno Clear Complexion Daily Cleansing Pads.  My sister had forgotten to bring her face wash when she came to visit, so she ran to CVS to grab something easy.  She grabbed this, and I'm so glad she did!  I always thought that these pads were kind of like fancy-shmancy make-up wipes, but boy was I wrong!  You get your face wet, then you use either the exfoliating side or the smooth side of the pad to cleanse your face.  It works up a lovely lather that makes your face feel super clean! When you're done, you just throw the pad away!

My second favorite is another face product.  My face has been surprisingly clear as far as break-outs go, but I have awful red spots from the scarring.  I don't pick at my face or anything, but any blemish leaves a red spot that stays for ages!  Enter Kiehl's Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution.  My scars have improved tremendously!  The reason I have been so dubious to purchase this product has been the price, but from what I can tell, you get your money's worth!

My last favorite treatment product is the Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief.  The one I have is the oil free one, and let me just tell you, my face is in LOVE!  I generally try to avoid anything that is supposed to be intensely hydrating, because I either end up looking like an oil slick, or it breaks me out.  This product, however, has been my skin's savior this past month!  It absorbs quickly, and it's the first gel moisture product that hasn't left my skin feeling tight after using it!  Bravo Clinique, bravo.

My next favorite is a bit random, and a bit weird, but whatever. It's deodorant.  I have started buying men's deodorant because it is so much cheaper than women's.  I have have been loving Old Spice's Hawkridge deodorant and antipersperant.  It smells amazing, and works.  'Nuf said.

My new favorite foundation is the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in the color 'Deuville.'  I talked about it in my Sephora haul post, so I won't go into too much details about it here.  Basically it's amazing.

My other makeup favorite this month has been Tanya Burr's Lipgloss in the color 'Chic.'  It is a perfect neutral shade, and I just love it a lot!

I actually have two favorite movies this month.  One has actually been around for ages, but I only just saw it for the first time this month... and then proceeded to watch it another three times!  It is Nowhere Boy, the movie about John Lennon with Aaron Taylor Johnson *swoon*.  I thought it was incredibly well done, and it helped me choose my favorite song of the month; an early recording of the Quarrymen (the Beatles before they were The Beatles) singing "In Spite of All the Danger."  I will link a recording of it in the movie caption.

"In Spite of All the Danger"

My second favorite movie this month was The Imitation Game, with Benedict Cumberbatch and Kiera Knightly.  IF THIS MOVIE DOES NOT WIN AN OSCAR I WILL BE SO UPSET!  I don't want to give away any spoilers, but basically it is based on the true story of Alan Turing during World War II.  It's still in theaters, so if you can, go see it!

My book favorites this month have been a series of books by the author David Eddings.  They are some of my favorite fantasy novels I have ever read.  I just can't put them down! I completed all of the books below in just a matter of days!  They are essentially a good vs. evil type series, but the writing is beautiful, and the world that Eddings creates is so incredibly intricate and realistic.  He makes magic seem plausible. I love them!

Last but certainly not least, my people favorites are my friends who I got to visit while I was home: Lacey, Alex, Wei-Wei, Aaron, Max, Christopher, Eri, Shion, Kevin, and several others.  They make me so happy, and they inspire me everyday with what they are doing <3

What have been some of your favorites from the past month?

-Fly high, little birds!

Skipping Ahead: Blogmas Day 19

Whelp, looks like Blogmas was a fail! I have had finals, so my time has mostly been consumed by studying and sleep.  However, TODAY WAS MY LAST FINAL!! Sooooooo you can expect to see me back here for the remainder of Blogmas!

To say, "I'm sorry," here's a piece of fanart from the wonderful viria, depicting my OTP, James Potter and Lily Evans.  Yes, I'm a geek. So sue me ;)  I will link viria's page in the caption, I highly suggest checking it out!  The art is beyond amazing!

James gives Lily a lily while under the invisibility cloak viria13.deviantart.com

 

Who is your OTP?

-Fly high, little birds!

November Favorites: Blogmas Day 1

November is already over, and you know what that means......... CHRISTMAS IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!! (Or whatever holiday you celebrate (:)

I cannot wait to experience my favorite time of the year! But first, let me share my favorites from the past month.

First off, I have been LOVING the Soap&Glory range!  Its an old favorite brand of mine, and I have rediscovered some of my ol' go-to products, like the Scrub of Your Life lathering body scrub!  This product is wonderful because it is both a scrub and cleanser in one, and for all those lazy people out there *violently raises hand* this product is a dream! It is in Soap&Glory's original Pink scent, as is the Righteous Body Butter and the Hand Food. <3

Soap&Glory from Sephora

Since I have been using the Soap&Glory products a lot, I have loving wearing Chanel's COCO Mademoiselle fragrance, which pairs gorgeously with the Righteous Body Butter! I love wearing sweet, crisp scents in the Autumn, and this Chanel is perfect!

COCO MADEMOISELLE

Moving on to face care, I have been loving my Nivea Milk & Honey lip balm. It smells heavenly, and is a treat for the lips in this NYC weather!

Also for the lips, I have been loving my limited edition NARS Audacious Lipstick in the color Charlotte.  It is a gorgeous oxblood burgundy color that has been perfect for fall!  The pigmentation is excellent, and its staying power is amazing! I only need a few touch-ups throughout the day!

NARS lipstick Charlotte

My favorite candle this month is, without a doubt, the Marshmallow Fireside candle from Bath & Body Works.  I am one of those girls who loves a good oriental scent, but also loves a sweet scent, and this is the perfect combination of the two!  Bath & Body Works provides the description, "Get cozy by the crackling fire with a fall perfect blend of marshmallows, smoldering woods, and warm vanilla."  Good enough to eat!......... but don't do that........ ew.

Marshmallow Fireside Candle

This is a rather random favorite, but I'm putting it in anyway; gummy Melatonin from VitaFusion.  I have a hard time falling asleep, and while melatonin doesn't always do the trick, it does help! Not only are these gummies delicious, they are also sugar-free! Just what a ballerina like me likes to hear.

My favorite tv show this past month has definitely been Teen Wolf.  I think I finished 3 seasons in a matter of 2 weeks!  On a similar note, my favorite human this past month is Daniel Sharman, who is on the show.  I have one word for you. CHEEKBONES. That is all.

I hope you guys enjoyed my November faves!  I'm hopefully going to be blogging every day this month, so make sure you tune in :)

What's your favorite part of the holidays?

-Fly high, little birds!

Fall Day in NYC

Hello everyone!

I have been loving living here in New York City!  With dance and school, I don't really get out into the city that never sleeps, but yesterday I finally had some free time.

I'm getting to experience one of my favorite cities during my favorite time of the year, and it is glorious!  I spent nearly 7 hours outside yesterday, just walking through Central Park, and window shopping on 5th Ave!

Tiffany's & Co. looking festive

s

Tommy Hilfiger is ready for Christmas!

Columbus Circle

Central Park Bridge

Don't the leaves look good enough to jump in?

Peaceful path through Central Park

An obscured carousel in Central Park

Main pathway, Central Park

Going to the fountain

Cutie!

Contemplating crunching leaves.

My look of the day. I'm wearing Tanya Burr's Vampire Kiss lipgloss, and my hair was inspired by Zoella's milkmaid braid.

 What is your favorite time of year?

Fly high, little birds!