Woah, It's The Weekend Already!

While brainstorming blog post ideas, I was thinking what I wanted to say for my weekly wrap-up post. Wow, Friday's so far from now, I thought.

Much to my dismay, it was already Thursday!

And now it is Friday! The weekend is upon us! Well, in a few hours, at least.

This week went so fast, I can't even believe it. I live for fast weeks like this, but I didn't even realize it was happening in the moment! I had after-work stuff every day this week, which is very rare. You guys will see it all in my vlog on Monday. :)

The weather here also lost its mind. It was over 90 DEGREES four days this week. This is a huge shocker because it's hardly been above 70 degrees all year.

I've been in an event planning frenzy because in a few weeks, my sister is graduating from high school (what!?!) and in a few more weeks, I'll be turning 24 (WHAT!?!?). I can't wait for both, but I know they'll be here before I know it. This year is flying by and it's kind of scary.

For my birthday party, I bought this dress from Nordstrom. I'm going for a sophisticated, yet laid back look this year. I made reservations at one of my favorite spots in town that has amazing drinks, live jazz music, a dark and mysterious vibe; seriously perfect. But this place is IMPOSSIBLE to get into without a reservation on weekends, so I made the reservation a month in advance and we're in. :) Miraculously, I found a great deal on Groupon for $80 worth of food for $48 at the restaurant, plus I used the code WELCOME to get $10 off my first purchase, and Ebates was 6% cash back AND I had a "special offer" from Ebates that I'll get $10 bonus cash back on a Groupon order over $25. WTF!?! So basically my birthday meal is turning out to be perfect: amazing food, great friends, AND practically free (minus drinks). Hahhaha I can't help but laugh at how insane it is.

Another blog post, another meme....

Have you guys seen any good movies lately? Two weekends ago, we saw the new Captain America movie, and this weekend we hope to see the new X-Men movie. I love the X-Men movies, so I can't wait to see how good this one will be! Also, not sure if Zootopia is still in theaters, but I highly recommend it! So cute and inspiring. :)

Picture credit: makeupandbeautyblog and Tarte Cosmetics

Two Tarte palette announcements:
         - One of my favorite palettes, Tarte Energy Noir, is on sale at Sephora for only $26! This is a total steal, because I thought the original price wasn't bad! If you've been wanting this palette, I'd buy it because I'm not sure if they're discontinuing it or not. :(
         - I pre-ordered Bunny's (grav3yardgirl) palette--Swamp Queen! Boy, it's beautiful. I love Bunny and I've really loved the products I've tried from Tarte and the colors really spoke to me. It should arrive today! I cannot wait!!!! I'll definitely be doing a Get Ready With Me using it this weekend. <3 It's currently sold out on Tarte's website, but I'm sure Bunny will let us know when it'll be back in stock!

And in American, we celebrate Memorial Day this weekend. Now, it is not just about the extra day off (YAY!), great sales, family picnics, or the first dip in the pool for the summer. Those things are awesome and should be appreciated too, but remember the courageous men and women that have lost their lives serving our country. Thank you to everyone reading this who has served our country, as well as anyone whose husband, boyfriend, son, wife, daughter, girlfriend, mother, father is currently or has previously protected our country. Gratitude for your service cannot be put into words.

Welp, I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! Let me know what you're up to :)

Thanks so much for reading, and I'll talk to you soon!

xoxo,
Megan

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NEW Nordstrom Rewards + Nordstrom's Half Yearly Sale

I absolutely love Nordstrom, and choose to purchase from them over other retailers on a regular basis. Their customer service is amazing. Returns couldn't be simpler. They're always been helpful and responsive any time I had questions. Three free samples with any beauty purchase online. The selection of brands and products is mindblowing.

So, it's about freakin' time that Nordstrom rewards us for the money we spend there! They just announced Nordstrom Rewards, which gives everyone the ability to earn points from their purchases, not just Nordstrom credit or debit card holders.

THIS IS AMAZING NEWS, PEOPLE! Because 2,000 points gives you a $20 Nordstrom Note (aka gift card) (aka FREE MONEY!).

The deets on Nordstrom Rewards:
- It is absolutely free to sign up!
- You get 1 point per dollar spent (Nordstom card holders get 2 points per dollar spent, for reference)
- Points are earned at Nordstrom stores, Nordstrom Rack stores, nordstrom.com, nordstromrack.com, and Hautelook
- When you reach 2,000 points, you are issued a $20 Nordstrom Note
- You can spend your much-deserved Nordstrom Notes at any of the above places; and you can spend them on ANYTHING there!
- Reward points expire 3 years from the date earned
- Nordstom Notes expire 1 year from the date issued

If you haven't signed up for Nordstrom Rewards, you should! (Click here to sign up) Especially since the Half Yearly Sale is going on right now!

Now, I haven't been shopping too much this year (I still have a $50 Nordstrom gift card from Christmas--what!?!), but I am so stoked about the Half Yearly Sale. It has already started, and goes through June 5. There are so many things on sale, I hardly know how to contain myself! Unfortunately, not too many beauty products (or maybe that is fortunate for us beauty addicts?).

Here are some of the things in the sale that have caught my eye:

I bought the Ivanka Trump Boni heels in Nude and Black because I've been desperately needing classic pairs of heels, and the Donna Morgan Gia slip dress in Navy. I think the Donna Morgan dress is supposed to be a wedding dress (!?!), but I thought it had an amazing laid back, yet sophisticated vibe for any day of the year. I plan on wearing it for my birthday party this year, which I cannot wait for!

Let me know if you are shopping this sale too, especially if you're trying to rack up those Reward points ;)

P.S. Nordstrom is also having 6% Cash Back on Ebates!

Ongoing Wish List

I have wish lists all over the place--in my Moleskine, on Post It notes, in my Wunderlist app, in my head! But I thought it would be cool to have a visual wish list, so I can see all the things I think I want--and probably will talk myself out of buying most of them. :)

This will be an ongoing, ever-changing wish list.

If you've tried any of the products on my list, please let me know what you think about them! Your feedback has helped informed my shopping decisions so many times, and I really appreciate your honest opinions.

What's on your wish list right now? :)

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Time for a New Cleanser

It's pretty amazing that I'm actually in need of a new cleanser. As in, I've used up (almost) all of my others.

Pinch me! This can't be real! *gives self pat on the back* *high fives self* *jams out like that saxophone guy I saw online*

This guy!

The reason I say almost all of my cleansers is because I use different cleansers for different cleansing needs (which you probably know if you read my cleansing routines post).

I still have too many makeup remover cleansers (I literally have enough for several YEARS), and I'm working on the Elemis Tri-Enzyme Cleanser in the shower. What I'm in need of now is a new morning and 2nd cleanse cleanser. I typically use the same cleanser for both morning and my second cleanse at night because I'm in the use-it-up mindset and don't want any one product hanging around for too long in my stash.

So I wanted to know what your favorite morning and second cleanse cleansers are, as well as share my short list of cleansers I may buy next.

My requirements for a morning or 2nd cleanse cleanser are:
- Oil, balm, or cream (aka anything non-foaming)
- Must rinse clean and leave no residue! (This has proven difficult to find in the past, especially with balms--I'm looking at you, Boots Botanics Hot Cloth Cleanser)
- No mineral oil or silicones
- Typically mid-to-high end price point, but would love to find a drugstore gem!

Am I asking for too much? I've enjoyed trying out various cleansers over the past year, but haven't found many that I really love. And, of course, the ones I love are hella expensive from Tatcha and Omorovicza.

Here are some cleansers that have intrigued me lately:

Please let me know your favorite cleansers for the morning and second cleanse, especially if we have similar taste in skin care. :)

Thank you in advance!

xoxo,

Megan

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Yay, It's the Weekend!

This week was a pretty awesome one. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but nothing went terribly wrong, so that makes it a victory!

Busy at work, but very productive and it went by quickly (love when that happens)!

The weather had its ups and downs, but overall it was warmer and sunny at least a little bit each day--it's funny how I'm happy when it reaches 70 degrees and it's MID-MAY! I should be complaining about how ungodly hot it is by now; but I guess I should shut up and appreciate the unseasonable weather. :)

The Family got cancelled. :( Just as it was getting good, too! I have hope that Hulu picks it up, but unfortunately too many good shows have been cancelled within the last year and they can't all be saved. (RIP Backstrom, wahhhhh.)

I'm sorry, it seems like all the pictures on this blog are memes.

BUT, Blindspot is KILLING IT. One of the smartest, most engaging shows I've ever watched--and I've watched a lot of great shows. I can't wait to see what season 2 brings us! If you missed the season finale, DROP EVERYTHING AND WATCH RIGHT NOW.

If you're a serial snooze-button-overuser/lazyass like me, I would recommend trying this "life hack" I saw on one of Amelia Liana's videos. She showed that she sets her alarms 2 minutes apart so she doesn't fall back asleep for too long between each snooze. Even though I got an iPhone a few months ago, I still use my old Android phone as my alarm clock because I love the alarm clock app I use (Alarm Clock Extreme Free). The reason I love it is because I have to solve a math problem (very easy addition or subtraction because I can't think in the morning) to turn off the alarm. ANYHOW, I set the snooze to 4 minutes apart instead of 10 like I had before. I am going to try to do 3 minutes, then 2 minutes to really get my butt moving. I've even been waking up early enough to do my makeup leisurely! Life changing!!!

I've been itching to shop a little bit lately and have been falling into old habits of filling my online shopping cart with the stuff I want; searching for things I haven't heard of or tried before. But I've been mixing it up and after filling my basket with all sorts of random stuff, I go through each item and think to myself why I don't need it. I chuckle to myself about my impulsiveness and move on to something more productive.

This sums it up.

If you want to see what else I've been up to this week, check out my vlog :) I'm going to have a separate vlog for this weekend because I'm going on a weekend trip and will hopefully have more exciting things to share with you than normal! ;)

Thanks for reading. I hope you had a fantastic week, and an awesome weekend!

xoxo,
Megan


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My Cleansing Routines

I try not to think of myself as a high-maintenance person, and I don't think I am in general, but when it comes to skin care... boy, am I needy. I love skin care, as I'm sure you know if you watch my videos, but we will dive deeper into my infatuation throughout future blog posts.

For today, I wanted to chat about cleansing!

Cleansing may not be the most exciting part of skin care to me, but I also find it to be one of the most refreshing and relaxing parts of my routine.

Now, I told you I was high-maintenance when it came to skin care, and you will soon see why. I have specific types of cleansers I like for the different times I'm washing my face. Because I have different needs for my various cleansing routines, I typically am working on a few cleansers at once and they all serve different purposes for me and my skin.

The cleansers I'm currently using

The Body Shop, Elemis, Tatcha, Derma E

Here are my four cleansing routines and the products I love best for each one:

Morning cleanse:
Purpose:
Take off any sweat or dirt my face collected over the night (ew)

Formula:
Typically a light balm, oil, or cream
Easy to rinse off and doesn't leave a residue

Example:
Tatcha One Step Camellia Oil Cleanser

First cleanse at night:
Purpose:
Remove makeup, sunscreen, dirt, etc. from the day

Formula:
Oil or balm (9 times out of 10, I use an oil)
Always something inexpensive, but effective (Why waste my expensive oil cleansers on makeup removal?!)

Examples:
The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil
Clinique Take The Day Off Balm

Second cleanse at night:
Purpose:
Now that the makeup is off my face, it's time to actually clean my skin

Formula:
Balm, oil, or cream
Typically a nicer, more expensive product

Example:
Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm

Shower cleanse:
Purpose:
Deeply clean my face, neck, and chest

Formula:
Gel or liquid (I've been getting away from foaming cleansers, but this is the only step I may use one, especially since I keep my Clarisonic in the shower)

Examples:
First Aid Beauty Deep Cleanser with Red Clay
Elemis Tri-Enzyme Resurfacing Facial Wash

*Note: When I shower at night, I do my 1st cleanse before getting into the shower to remove my makeup. (Sometimes I forget and come out looking like a raccoon/goth kid with my mascara running down my face.)
Also, I typically only wash my face in the shower once or twice per week. I have recently started to wash my face with my 2nd cleanse products after getting out of the shower because I don't like to use foaming cleansers too often.

I hope this was a fun and informative post for you guys! I'm really excited to get into more detail about skin care on my blog than I typically do in my videos.

Do you have multiple cleansing routines like me, or do you use the same cleanser or two for all of your cleansing needs?

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The Most Beautiful Place I've Ever Been

In 2008, my family and I took a trip to Arizona.

My parents had gone the year before and fell in love with it. The four of us went the following summer and it truly took my breath away. Yes, it is hot as hell in Arizona--the only solace is there is hardly any humidity. But still, 100 degree weather every day isn't my ideal living condition.

Despite the melt-your-face-off, why-even-bother-with-makeup weather, Arizona is like no place I've ever been, and probably like no other place I'll ever be.

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The red rocks in Sedona are something so magical; so unreal; so sent-from-heaven that it's hard to believe you're still in the States. The deep, burnt red color in contrast to the bright blue sky is breathtaking. These pictures don't do justice to the pure enormousness of these rocks--they totally encompass you when you're there.

This is the Chapel of the Holy Cross, which is built within the rocks.

We also went to the Grand Canyon.

If you've never been to the Grand Canyon, add it to your bucket list. You could truly stand or sit in awe all day, gazing out into the canyon, and never get sick of the view. Like the red rocks of Sedona, the Grand Canyon is indescribable; truly one of God's great gifts.

This picture doesn't even look real to me.... and I was THERE.

My other favorite sight in Arizona is the night sky.

The sky seemed 10x bigger in Arizona than it does anywhere else. The ultra-clear night sky is perfect for star gazing, and we spent some time star gazing with an astronomy group (???) while we were there. Sounds totally lame, but it was AMAZING.

Every star shone so bright, and the vastness of the sky made me feel so small in the best possible way. It was a very grounding experience I will never forget.

Don't ask why I wore jeans in Arizona in the SUMMER; I'm wondering the same thing.

It's almost been ten years since I went, which doesn't even seem possible, but I have every intention on visiting again within the next few years. I cannot wait to see these sights again; there's truly nothing like it.

What is the most beautiful place you've ever been?
I can't wait to Google all the places you tell me about and bask in their beauty!

(All of the pictures in this post were taken by me in 2008.)