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!

Makeup Look Of The Day: Blogmas Day 7

Just as I said in my post from yesterday, I created a makeup look from my Sephora purchases!  I'm really happy with how it turned out, however I couldn't seem to get a good picture of the eyeshadow.  We'll just have to make do with the full face!

I am wearing NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in the color Deuville.  This foundation is beautiful! I have particularly oily skin, so I've always been a bit cautions about trying anything with the word "glow" in it.  However, with some setting powder, I had absolutely no trouble!  My face looked raidiant without looking like an oil slick.

For my countour/bronzer, I am wearing The Body Shop's bronzing powder in the shade fair matte.  For my blush I am wearing Mac's Poweder Blush in the shade Well Dressed. This is a very pale pink satin blush that I really love wearing when I'm very pale.  The satin finish gives a subtle glow that makes wearing a highlighter completely unneccessary!

For my eyebrows I have used Laura Mercier's Matte Eye Colour in the shade Cafe Au Lait.  This is a great multi-purpose product that I will often use on my lids as well as my eyebrows.

On my eyes I am using the Too-Faced eye primer in the shade Champagne.  This wakes up the eyes wonderfully, and is a great lazy girl cosmetic item! I will often use this on its own when I am rushing out of the house.  However, today I am also using my eyeshadow purchase from yesterday, Sephora's Mirror eyeshadow in the color Lunar Eclipse.  To line my eyes I again took a little bit of the Cafe Au Lait on a thin liner brush.  To finish, I used Dior's Diorshow Iconic Overcurl Mascara (what a mouthful!).

On my lips I used the Sephora lip liner from my purchase yesterday, Real Red, and for my lipstick I used Mac's retro matte lipstick in the shade Ruby Woo.

I hope you have enjoyed this post! Let me know what you think of this look in the comments below.

-Fly high, little birds!

Holiday Shopping: Blogmas Day 6

Today was a bit rainy in the city of Manhattan, which means that everyone was clamoring for the shops (including myself!).  In an attempt to get some of my shopping done without becoming too overwhelmed, I decided to go to only one place.  Any guesses?

If you guessed Sephora, then you would be right!  While I can't show you everything I got quite yet (some of them are presents, don't ya know), I will show you the few things that I have been lusting after for ages!

I finally ran out of my Superbalanced Foundation from Clinique, so I decided to replace it with the cult favorite, NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in the color Deuville.  Can I just say, there's is definitely a reason that this is a go-to for so many!  I can't wait to give you guys an update on it once I have a chance to try it out for a couple weeks!

Like many people, I am a huge fan of the statement lip, and I especially love a good red around the holidays!  However, I sometimes have trouble with the staying power of the color.  This is why I decided to dive into the realm of lip liners!  I didn't want to go too fancy yet, because I'm first starting out, so I got the Sephora brand Nano Lip Liner in the color Real Red.  Its a gorgeous color, and I'm very excited to try it out!

Last but not least, I bought a new eyeshadow for the holidays.  Unlike some people, I do not have an averse reaction to wearing glitter on my eyes, so I decided to take advantage of that fact!  I bought the Sephora brand Colorful Mirror Eyeshadow in the color Lunar Eclipse.  It is a gorgeous pewter that can either be really bold, or blended out for a lovely sparkle that brightens the eyes!

I was thinking of posting a makeup look with these new items.  Would you like that? Let me know!

-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!

Welcome to the personal blog of a ballet dancer living her life.  I will use this space to share photos, beauty looks, food pictures and recipes, and anything else that strikes my fancy.  Fly high, everyone!