Thanksgiving day, we welcomed our daughter, Josephine Robin, into the world! I tried to take notes during labor and wrote up her birth story when it was fresh, but haven’t gotten a chance to post it (#newmomlife). This is going to be quite long, since Josie’s birth was anything but straightforward. Luckily, the birth was the hardest part and she’s an actual dream baby (so far!), but more on that later.

Right before Thanksgiving, we met with our RE for a follow up appointment to discuss our test results and diagnosis and go over an IVF treatment plan. We decided that based on our results, we would go straight to IVF. There are a couple of less expensive and less invasive (and less successful) treatments that we could have tried first, but given the length of time we’ve been trying and the fact that our insurance coverage is great, we’re pulling out the big guns and going for it.

I left off our fertility story after we made our first appointment for a visit to a Reproductive Endocrinologist to figure out why we weren’t having any luck trying to conceive and what our possible options are moving forward. We chose Boston IVF/IVF New England, which used to be two separate organizations, but have merged into one. It’s honestly a bit confusing since there are so many office across Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, etc.

It can be relatively taboo to talk about fertility. I know for me at first, knowing we were having trouble getting pregnant felt like a personal failure, like I’d done something wrong or was somehow defective. Then I started thinking about it as any other health issue that you can’t control – acne, crooked teeth, nearsightedness, being left-handed (just kidding), and suddenly it didn’t seem like such a big deal. No one can control those things, and people use medicine and technology to fix them all the time.

Thanksgiving day, we welcomed our daughter, Josephine Robin, into the world! I tried to take notes during labor and wrote up her birth story when it was fresh, but haven’t gotten a chance to post it (#newmomlife). This is going to be quite long, since Josie’s birth was anything but straightforward. Luckily, the birth was the hardest part and she’s an actual dream baby (so far!), but more on that later.

Right after retrieval we were told that they had managed to collect 24 eggs. This seemed like a great number to me, and we expected to get a good haul as I was young and had responded to the medication well. Twenty-four seems like a huge number, and comparably it is, but during each stage of development, you can expect about 30% drop off. So from our 24 retrieved, not all would fertilize, and not all of those would develop, and not all of those would reach the 5-day blastocyst stage which is what’s required for transfer.

At the end of your stim phase, you’re given a different medication called a “trigger shot”. This is administered exactly 36 hours before your egg retrieval is scheduled and lets your ovaries know that it’s time to mature the eggs and prepare them for release. Before they are actually released, the procedure is performed to aspirate each of the eggs out of their follicles. The follicles have grown to be about 20mm at the largest, and usually at least 14mm if they are containing a mature egg, and they’ll continue to grow after the trigger shot, but the eggs themselves are still microscopic.

After our first IVF cycle failed, we met with our Reproductive Endocrinologist to follow up on how the cycle went and what our next steps were. We were very much on the same page, we were happy with how our cycle went right up until the negative pregnancy test. My response to the medication, egg retrieval, fertilization and maturation of the embryos was all pretty much textbook. We feel very lucky to have had such a positive experience.

Right after retrieval we were told that they had managed to collect 24 eggs. This seemed like a great number to me, and we expected to get a good haul as I was young and had responded to the medication well. Twenty-four seems like a huge number, and comparably it is, but during each stage of development, you can expect about 30% drop off. So from our 24 retrieved, not all would fertilize, and not all of those would develop, and not all of those would reach the 5-day blastocyst stage which is what’s required for transfer.

First, our medication arrived from a special fertility pharmacy. It arrived in an insulated box I could almost fit in. Needles and syringes and everything. The nurse warned us that the box would be big when she taught us how to administer the medication at our last appointment. It was still pretty overwhelming. Our box had several medications in it, some of which needed to stay refrigerated. According to my research, the first IVF cycle can be “diagnostic”, meaning the doctor will see how you respond to a standard dose and if you need to change dosages or protocols in a future cycle, you can adjust to try for a better outcome, meaning more mature eggs that fertilize normally.

As I said, a lot has happened in the past year, including a big life change for us: Matt and I closed on the purchase of our first home! It was a tedious process, and it took a while for us to find the right place and then have an offer accepted, but we’ve been living in the new digs for a few weeks and absolutely LOVING it. It’s such a different feeling to live in a space that you own rather than rent, and we’re finding ourselves taking a lot more care in maintaining, decorating, organizing, and settling in than we previously have.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

I talk a lot about my superficial side interests here. After all, this is a beauty blog! But most of my day, whether it’s surprising to you or not, is spent working as a software engineer. I got into software and programming and computer science relatively late in the game. I didn’t even consider it as an option and I wouldn’t have studied it at all if I didn’t need to complete an introductory CS course to complete my math major in college.

I’ve taken a bit of a break from blogging, but I have a lot of fun content ideas so I’m trying to get back into the swing of it! Yesterday was my 27th birthday (#old). It was a fantastic, relaxing, celebratory day and I documented the whole day via snapchat story! /uploads/2016/01/IMG_0910.m4v We kicked off the day at Tatte for breakfast, where I had their amazing Shakshuka. After a few hours at work (where my amazing coworkers gifted me flowers and cupcakes!

Sorry for my absence here on the blog! I decided to take Thanksgiving week and unplug and relax. We had a bit of a whirlwind week. We left Boston on Sunday and drove two hours out to visit my brother in Connecticut. He was hosting a “Friendsgiving”, so we spent a few hours there eating and hanging out before hopping back in the car for another 3 hour drive to my parents in New Jersey.

Five of my favorite sites to shop online! Black Friday is coming up and with more and more stores announcing that, as a courtesy to their employees, they won’t be opening their doors, online shopping must be the answer! These are sites I love to shop all year round. True&Co. Shopping for bras is almost as bad as shopping for jeans, but True&Co makes it easy. You fill out a short quiz on how things usually fit and how they feel and they’ll build a customized shop with suggested sizes.

Keeping with the video theme of the week (it wasn’t on purpose, it’s just worked out that way!), here’s another one for you: Daisy and I were lucky enough to see a preview screening of the movie Brooklyn last week. The movie was beautiful and has gotten lots of great critical acclaim. It tells the story of Eilis Lacey, a young girl in Ireland who’s having a hard time thriving, so she moves to Brooklyn to pursue a better life for herself.

It’s a video kind of week here on the blog, but I can’t resist sharing this adorable video. Adorable interview with French father and son regarding the recent attacks Seriously, my heart is melting. It’s been a heavy week, with so much tragedy all over the world. There’s something so inherently French about seeing the beauty in the world and letting it protect you from the “really really mean” people.

Something I’ve been loving lately: watching YouTube videos while I run on the elliptical. I’ve always been a big fan of watching makeup tutorials and beauty related videos on YouTube. Lately though I’ve been super busy and haven’t caught up on my subscription feed. So I’ve combined it with my workouts! Something about watching hauls and tutorials and favorites while working out is really fun and oddly motivating for me. A few good videos makes the half hour or so really fly by.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

My bachelorette weekend was just about a year ago in New York City. I was living there at the time, and it was fun and central to all of my friends, so I kicked Matt out for the weekend, we all piled into my friend Vincenza’s East Village apartment, and settled in for #AVERYcrazyweekend. Sam, Me, and Daisy at my Bachelorette in 2014 I wasn’t blogging at the time, so I figured a year later is a good time to recap the weekend, right?

We are big Ikea shoppers. When we were moving in and getting settled, we were making multiple trips a week. It got to the point where we were a bit burnt out (and couldn’t even LOOK at another meatball) so we haven’t ventured out for a while. But today we felt the need for a shoe rack, so we hopped into the car, braced ourselves, and headed into the showroom.

We finally broke down and bought a Sodastream. It’s life-changing. Got into the Halloween Spirit by catching up on American Horror Story: Freakshow after it was released on Netflix. Liked it way better than Coven, but Murder House is still my favorite. Have you been watching Hotel? I want to wait until it’s all been aired so I can binge watch it! These J Crew Factory sweatpants are super comfy, but the skinny cut feels slightly more stylish than your old sweats, even for just lounging around the house.

Five moments from the Wellfleet OysterFest! These lovely shuckers from Sheila’s Oyster Farm (not pictured but present: Sheila herself) This awesome band that managed to change Ring of Fire to Ring of SNOW when it started to flurry (and it even still rhymed!) This handsome man on the beach! This group’s oyster shell mountain. We’re going to go head to head in oyster shell construction next year. I think we can take them.

Columbus Day weekend marked the two-year anniversary of the night Matt and I got engaged. It was a very simple proposal, just in our apartment with a ring in a glass of champagne (cheesy but classic!), followed by the most amazing meal we’ve ever had at Daniel. We did a late seating and chose the 6-course tasting menu with wine pairings so it was quite late and we were quite drunk when we finally made it out of the restaurant.

Beautylish is the exclusive retailer of Bioderma (cult favorite French micellar cleansing water) in the US and they just debuted a 500mL bottle with a pump top! Speaking of beauty e-retailers, Birchbox is launching their own makeup line. We’ve been indulging in affogatos for dessert. And breakfast. And anytime throughout the day. It’s fine. (P.S. You don’t even need to click through to that recipe, it’s literally just ice cream and espresso!

My new favorite pizza topping (pair it with Italian sausage – YUM) Returning home from San Diego to all of the snuggles from this handsome (yet suspicious) fella I’ve also been living in that white sweater from Madewell. It’s now sold out, but I’m eyeing this one next. So much lust for the new Everlane Petra Backpack in leather. Unfortunately it won’t fit my laptop, so not the most functional for me, but so beautiful.

Ok, there’s a theme for this one… It’s my five favorite Instagram accounts featuring cats. I’m sorry. I feel like it was only a matter of time. But it’s happening. @adventurecatsorg – One time, we took Bisous outside. He refused to get out of the cat carrier. A photo posted by Adventure Cats (@adventurecatsorg) on Sep 21, 2015 at 5:05pm PDT </blockquote> @hellokitty – I mean, has Kim ever posted a photo of herself made out of spam?

Happy Friday! What have you been loving this week? My picks below! Madewell v-neck pocket tees are the best closet staple (and on sale!) I’m stocking up on fall colors, like Compass Gold (below). Glamour Magazine’s Lipstick Index tracks social media beauty posts to find out what’s hot. So cool to see a real time indicator of beauty trends! This tilapia recipe is the best I’ve found. We paired it with wild rice and roasted broccoli for an easy weeknight dinner.

What’s on my desk? Here’s a peek at the essentials I like to keep on hand at work. Hand cream – Industrial, generic, anti-bacterial office bathroom soap is a dry hand nightmare, especially in the winter. I keep Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream at my desk. I got a sample of this cream and loved it so much I went out and bought the full size. The scent is light but lovely, and the cream itself is thick and luxe, so a little bit goes a long way and the $40 tube lasts a long time.

Standard blog practice: on Fridays we wear pink do round ups of things we love. So let’s do it then. Rediscovering Twitter – I got so into it when I first joined circa 2010 (omg has it been that long?!), and then kind of fell off the twitter bandwagon. But I’m back on and tweeting, mostly because I found this hilarious account. Follow me? @avery_alina Wifelife.co – I just discovered Rhian HY’s blog and admire her passion for vegan and cruelty free products.

As I’ve mentioned 12059 times, Matt and I have been trying for an “industrial chic”, “indoor jungle” theme in our new apartment. Meaning we’re going for lots and lots of plant life. We’ve accumulated lots of smaller plants over the years, most of which made it with us from NYC, but wanted a few bigger anchor plants to pull everything together. We picked up a few from Ikea and Home Depot but we hit the jackpot when we finally ventured to Mahoney’s Garden Center.

Ikea. Affordable, extensive, intimidating. It’s a bit overwhelming to navigate the showroom and the website can also be tricky. But after countless trips and never-ending browsing over the past few months, I’ve pretty much become an Ikea expert. Here are some of my favorite pieces. 1 – INGEFÄRA – Terracotta plant pot with saucer. We love the neutral, earthy, clay shade and these are functional and affordable. Great for both indoors and outdoors.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin Just a post to let you know you can follow me there! Since this isn’t a super exciting post, here’e a picture of my cat.

Part of my inspiration to write about what we miss from NYC was that Matt has been requesting that I make bagels for weeks. Probably because we haven’t found a decent place to get one in Boston. It was his birthday this week and I had the morning off (#labordayweekend!), so I decided to dig out my tried and true bagel recipe and get boiling. Bagels sound impressive when you tell people you made them yourself, and they take a good amount of time to prepare from start to finish, but it’s so worth it and actually pretty easy.

We officially moved to Boston in May, meaning we’ve been living in Beantown (is that a thing?) for almost 4 months. And we love it. There are a few things we miss about NYC, but so many more things that make living in Boston perfect for us. For example: NYC has way better public transportation. The NYC subway system is one of the best. It’s extensive, fairly reliable, and people (generally) understand how to use it.

Summer movies are always some of my favorites. And going to see movies in theaters is one of my favorite “Date night” activities with my husband. We always share a popcorn and a soda and, if we’re up at the new AMC Assembly Row, try to get the seats that fully recline. Also, if you haven’t been to that theater, GO. IT’S AWESOME. THERE’S A BAR. There are the typical summer blockblusters that always get major press (Hello, Jurassic World!

After four years, three apartments, two jobs, and one crazy cat in NYC, it’s bittersweet to announce that I’m moving! Matt and I will be packing up and shipping up to Boston starting next month. I came across an amazing opportunity to work at a very early start up (more to come on that later!) and we jumped at the chance for a change of environment. I’ve had an incredible experience working at Birchbox these past 2+ years and I’m sure they will continue to produce outstanding experiences, content, and products.

A few years ago, I got the worst highlights of my life. It was a “deal” that I got sucked into, ombre was at peak trend levels, and this junior stylist talked me into “ombre blonde highlights” which was basically orange streaks that started halfway down the length of my hair. It was the worst hair experience of my life, despite having been experimenting with various bangs for over a decade!

My makeup routine lately has been pretty simple and straightforward. Base, brows, lashes, lips and I’m out the door. I’ll do a bit more bronzing, concealing, or contouring here and there, but overall it’s a streamlined process. Since I’m using fewer products however, I am a bit more focused on getting the most out of them. When it comes to lip color, I like to put it on in the morning and forget about it until maybe after lunch, so a long-wearing lip is a must and these three formulas have been my go-to.

It’s been a MINUTE since I’ve been inspired/able/focused enough to crank out a blog post. So much has happened in the past year (seriously? it’s almost been that long?!) but I haven’t been able to sit down and synthesize it into words, so we’ll start with something simple. Back in November, I found a new favorite foundation. It was a product I’d seen around but had never given it a try, and after one application I was hooked.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

Conveniently, my dad is a photographer. My best friend is getting married next month(!), so he made a trip up to Boston to do a pre-wedding/post engagement shoot for them. Matt and I tagged along since we never actually had proper engagement photos taken and a few good couple portraits are always nice to have. Our first anniversary was back in March, so we’ll call this an anniversary shoot 🙂 We posed in Beacon Hill, borrowing a few of the more picturesque doorways and stoops, and then headed to the public garden.

There’s no denying that it’s starting to feel like spring in the northeast. Especially with the time change, everyone is starting to feel that springtime bug. I downsized my wardrobe back in the winter and have mostly stuck to a smaller collection of things that I love since then (with the exception of buying all of the activewear to avoid all of the laundry!) Lately, I’ve been starting to add in a few key pieces to update my wardrobe for spring.

When I lived in NYC, there was a joke about the first warm day of the year and all of the New Yorkers baring their pasty white legs for the first time since the previous summer. Today it’s about 70 degrees in Boston, and in an effort to prevent being one of those jokes, I broke out the self-tan. I’ve done a post on my favorite formulas before, but like most women, when it comes to cosmetics and body and skincare I’m always on the lookout for something better.

I’ve made a few lifestyle changes over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had unexpected results. I made the decision at the end of December to get in shape. I set some goals and figured out a way to achieve them the old fashioned way: exercise and nutrition. What I didn’t expect was that it would have a profound effect on my skin. Seriously, my face has never been so even or clear and I think it’s a direct result of my healthier lifestyle.

The theme for this month’s Play! box is: No Appointment Necessary. The idea is that with these products, you can achieve “salon” results at home. I actually love trips to the salon. A little time to myself to get pampered, relax, and leave looking and feeling my best is always welcome, but at the same time, my schedule and budget doesn’t always allow for frequent facials or blowouts, so an at-home, DIY option is a great alternative.

It’s that time again! My Sephora Play! November box has arrived! The Sephora Play! boxes have been steadily improving, at least in my opinion. Here’s a look at November’s box. This month’s theme is “The Exclusives”, meaning products that are exclusive to Sephora. At first glance, some really great things in here! Bite Beauty products are some of my favorites. This is their High Pigment Lip Pencil in Rhubarb, which is an intense dark pink, described as “plum rose”.

Ok, the video streak has ended. Instead, I offer you a review of another product I picked up during the Sephora VIB Rouge sale. I actually bought a number of things online, and two in store, but wanted to give them an honest and thorough trial before blogging them. One that’s impressed me right off the bat: The Viseart Neutral Matte Eyeshadow Palette. It’s safe to say now that this palette and I are getting along great.

Something I’ve been loving lately: watching YouTube videos while I run on the elliptical. I’ve always been a big fan of watching makeup tutorials and beauty related videos on YouTube. Lately though I’ve been super busy and haven’t caught up on my subscription feed. So I’ve combined it with my workouts! Something about watching hauls and tutorials and favorites while working out is really fun and oddly motivating for me. A few good videos makes the half hour or so really fly by.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

Hairspray, spray tan, face mist, even spray bronzers and airbrush foundations…. the beauty world is no stranger to spritzes and sprays. But a spray manicure? Nails Inc, leaders of nail polish innovation, are coming out with a line of spray on nail polishes. It looks like an aerosol can that you can spray onto your fingers, then wash off the cuticles, leaving color only on your nails. There’s also a 2-in-1 base and top coat (top spray?

Bite Beauty has been doing something really fun this year. Each month they have been releasing a new shade of Lip Lab Limited Release Crème Deluxe Lipstick. The shade is usually very on-trend and appropriate for the month or season and usually very high impact; they haven’t yet released anything remotely nude or neutral. I love the Bite Beauty lipstick formula, and I love the idea of a seasonal collection, but none of the shades really spoke to me until November’s.

I did a decent amount of shopping during the Sephora VIB Rouge sale this weekend, mostly online. I did pop into the local store though to purchase a few essentials. First, a repurchase. Gimme Brow is a staple of mine and (in my opinion) the best product that Benefit makes. It’s a tiny brow gel with fibers that really helps to make your brows look fuller and darker as well as holding them in place.

Five products to pick up at the Sephora 20% off sale! Nothing really kicks off the holiday season like the annual Sephora sale. VIB Rouges save 20% with code ROUGE20 this weekend, and next weekend VIBs join in! Here are my picks: Christophe Robin Cleansing Purifying Scrub – Obviously. This will change your life. Or at least your scalp. Caudalie Beauty Elixir – A classic and my favorite face mist ever.

My bachelorette weekend was just about a year ago in New York City. I was living there at the time, and it was fun and central to all of my friends, so I kicked Matt out for the weekend, we all piled into my friend Vincenza’s East Village apartment, and settled in for #AVERYcrazyweekend. Sam, Me, and Daisy at my Bachelorette in 2014 I wasn’t blogging at the time, so I figured a year later is a good time to recap the weekend, right?

I feel a bit bad blogging about this as it’s currently sold out, but the individual products are all still available, so I thought I’d chime in on them anyway. I purchased the Birchbox Color-Treated Hair Collection for $18 ($30 value). It contained 5 products for color treated hair. I’ve been dying my hair for about 2 years, and dying it red for about 18 months, so I am all too familiar with the perils of fading hair color, and like most women, I’m constantly on the search for the perfect products to maintain vibrant and true color, while also leaving my hair manageable and smooth and hydrated and shiny, while also repairing any existing damage and preventing future breakage.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… As the weather gets colder, leaving the house with wet hair is not an option. I also hate to sleep with wet hair (damp hair + warm head + pillow = gross things growing where you put your face), so drying my hair is pretty much a necessity. While I’ve been #blessed with hair that dries pretty straight and smooth, I’ve always been thrilled with how my hair looks when it’s blown out at a salon and have dedicated hours and hours to replicating those results at home.

The NARS x Steven Klein collection launched with a bang. The suggestive images on the packaging along with the value and novelty of new holiday sets put the beauty world into a bit of a frenzy. The collection is massive and not all of it appealed to me, but when I saw this adorable lipstick set in Sephora I knew I had to have it. The Killer Heels Lipstick Coffret shades are mostly classics from the NARS lipstick range, but in mini sizes.

This month’s Sephora Play! box theme is “Secrets to Dewy Skin”. Before I get into the specific products, I’ll mention that compared to last month’s disappointing assortment, I thought that this box was much improved. First, a Sephora sheet mask in Pearl. I also received a sheet mask in my Birchbox, which isn’t surprising as they’re very trendy currently. This one promises to be perfecting and brightening. I can’t say whether or not it works, but I am interested in trying it.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

Beautylish is the exclusive retailer of Bioderma (cult favorite French micellar cleansing water) in the US and they just debuted a 500mL bottle with a pump top! Speaking of beauty e-retailers, Birchbox is launching their own makeup line. We’ve been indulging in affogatos for dessert. And breakfast. And anytime throughout the day. It’s fine. (P.S. You don’t even need to click through to that recipe, it’s literally just ice cream and espresso!

In case you haven’t seen, they recently announced the Allure Best of Beauty Winners for 2015. Brace yourselves before you go look up all of the products though, as the list is quite long. There are about a million categories, and then winners are chosen across mass and prestige products, so there are quite a few winners. Obviously I haven’t tried all of them, but a fair few have made their way into my bathroom or vanity, so I did a bit of the work for you.

This month’s box was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, one of the samples leaked so the whole thing was a bit messy inside, which led to less than fantastic photos, but you’ll get the idea! First, the prime offender, Number 4™ Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil. Ok, ignoring the fact that this has the longest name ever and spilled all over the place, I really like it. It smells amazing.

I woke up to the sound of the rain on the roof this morning. As lovely as that sound is, a rainy day is not the most encouraging after a long weekend! But it brightened up a little bit when I threw on my favorite rainy day outfit. Obviously, I started by not washing my hair, and instead applying a healthy amount of Bumble and bumble’s Pret-a-Powder. For my outfit, there’s nothing cozier than an oversized sweater, and pairing it with sneakers can still be chic if you choose metallic or printed low tops, which look perfect with ankle length jeans.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… A lot of people struggle with how to wear makeup with glasses. There are plenty of videos on youtube that will break down exactly what (and what not) to do, but as a long time glasses and contact lens wearer, this is what has worked for me. Really go for it with your lipstick. You’ve got frames adding weight and drawing attention to the top of your face, so a bright lipstick can balance that out and make your face look more like a face and less like just a pair of lenses.

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

As I mentioned on Monday, I’m in San Diego this week. Which means a few long flights and a week in a hotel. Of course, I brought my usual makeup, most of which will be in my September Favorites soon, but there are other specific bits I make sure I have to make traveling a little easier. Ok, let’s get this out of the way. The R+Co Dry Shampoo Paste. Seriously, Alina, enough.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… Dry shampoo is seriously a game changer. Not only does it let you go longer between washes, something that’s not only great for your hair and scalp but down right convenient, but it also gives your hair more volume and texture. The quick and easy way to apply it is just to sprinkle or spray (or scrunch if you’re opting for this paste) right onto the sections of your hair that need a pick me up to absorb grease and refresh your ‘do.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

What’s on my desk? Here’s a peek at the essentials I like to keep on hand at work. Hand cream – Industrial, generic, anti-bacterial office bathroom soap is a dry hand nightmare, especially in the winter. I keep Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream at my desk. I got a sample of this cream and loved it so much I went out and bought the full size. The scent is light but lovely, and the cream itself is thick and luxe, so a little bit goes a long way and the $40 tube lasts a long time.

If you had asked me a year ago how I felt about hair paste I probably would have responded: “Hair what?!” But they have become part of my regular hair care and styling routine, so I thought I’d give a quick rundown on my favorite products and how to use them. The newest and probably the star of the show: R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste I feel like people are just coming around to the idea of dry shampoo, and now you throw a paste version at them?

And by grown ups I mean adults. As in these are (subtly) NSFW. Sara M. Lyons is a self described “professional weirdo” and has a line of nail decals that are 1) awesome 2) playful and 3) not for the faint of heart. They’ve been featured in NYLON magazine and on Refinery29.com, Buzzfeed, and the Beauty Department. And now averyalina.com (every artist’s dream). Sara’s nail decals are like tiny temporary tattoos for your nails.

It’s September. It’s fashion week. So it’s fall, right? I mean, kind of. Temps are definitely cooling down, but it’s still sunny and relatively warm (this is Boston after all!) I’m dying to get back into tights and booties and leather jackets and scarves, but it’s still much too summery to dive into full on fall outfits. So how do you transition to fall while still staying weather appropriate? Easy. Switch up your nail polish!

I’ll admit, I do find the Kardashian’s style inspiring, especially Kim. They get a lot of hate on the internet, but there’s no denying that they’ve used what they have to get what they want and I can’t fault them for it. Why are they in the news this week? Three of the Kardashian sisters have launched new beauty and fashion websites, promising makeup tutorials, truth revealing articles, and leads on where you can find the extensions they wear or the products they use to look super glam all of the time.

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

I spent the long Labor Day weekend saying so long to summer in Cape Cod. We had a super fun girls weekend (#girlstrip!) drinking Bud Light Limes and frozen mudslides, eating lobster, and enjoying the last bit of summer. Spending a lot of time out in the sun and consuming a heavier than usual amount of alcohol can be really taxing on your body, so here are the steps I took to make sure I made it out of the weekend in one non sunburnt piece.

Strobing. So hot right now. If you haven’t heard (I’m sure you’ve heard), “strobing” is using intense highlight to contour the face, rather than trying to blend a darker color and create a shadow. Instead of creating depth, you create height and volume (yes we’re still talking about skin, not hair) by extreme highlighting. While this is a great look for photos, strobing, like contouring, is not the most natural look in real life.

I’ve introduced a number of new products to my routine over the past few weeks. I’ve been absent from blogging (I’m so sorry!) but not from beauty, obviously. I’ve noticed that while my new go-to products work great on their own, sometimes you hit a combination where it seems like two (or sometimes three) products were meant to be used together. Here are a few of the best combinations I’ve found.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

I have been shopping lately. Between the Sephora VIB Sale, the dwindling days left I’ll be eligible for my Birchbox employee discount, and just general excitement for the spring season, I’ve picked up quite a few bits and pieces here and there. I decided it’s better to break it up a bit instead of having one monster post. Which is extra bad because soon I’ll have to pack up everything I own, so I’ve also been trying to use up my current stash as much as possible (aka apply self tanner daily).

It’s that time of year, when the temperature surges above 50 degrees and the bare legs are set free. Except most of those bare legs haven’t seen the sun in literally months and are looking a bit sickly pale. I never really got into the whole self tanner thing until recently, but now I consider myself fairly well versed in the application, formulation, and other aspects of becoming sunlessly bronzed.

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I mentioned in my previous Kiehl’s Haul that the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my favorite cleanser ever. And it is. I thought I’d do a little rundown of products I feel similarly passionate about. Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, $4.99 on Amazon for .5 oz. Okay, just now creating that link I realized how much cheaper this is on Amazon than Duane Reade and now I’m kicking myself for ever paying more for it, especially since I’ve gone through like, 5 bottles since I discovered it a few years ago.

I haven’t worn an actual foundation in months. Lately, I’ve preferred to create my own skin perfecting combination of products in the morning. It’s not an exact science, but the strategy is to really look at my skin, decide what it needs to look its best given its current starting state, and do that. Depending on if I’ve self tanned, or am suffering a breakout, or dryness or discoloration, I’ll mix together various products to try to balance and perfect my skin.

One of my favorite things about having brown eyes is that they are incredibly neutral, and allow for lots of experimentation with different eyeshadow colors. Here are a few I’ve tried that I wouldn’t expect to work, but found surprisingly beautiful. Of course, these are shadows where I found the quality to be impressive, too. Clinique All About Shadow in Black Honey I have this in the single, but can’t find it on Sephora.

I pulled a very #basic move this month. Right after my wedding, I dramatically cut my hair. My husband sometimes refers to it as “wife-ification”. You know, when you get married, cut your hair short, and then start wearing mom jeans. I’m not all the way there yet, but perhaps I do sense a high waist, tapered leg, light wash in my future? Anyway, I’m really happy with the shorter length.

Kiehl’s recently had a gift with purchase promotion that I found too compelling to pass up. In order to celebrate Healthy Skin Week, which I don’t think is a real thing, but okay Kiehl’s, they offered a complimentary bag of deluxe samples with any $65+ purchase. There was also an option to upgrade your gift to also get a free full-size Ultra Facial Cleanser with a $100+ purchase. You probably don’t know, but the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my HOLY GRAIL cleanser OF ALL TIME.

A few years ago, I got the worst highlights of my life. It was a “deal” that I got sucked into, ombre was at peak trend levels, and this junior stylist talked me into “ombre blonde highlights” which was basically orange streaks that started halfway down the length of my hair. It was the worst hair experience of my life, despite having been experimenting with various bangs for over a decade!

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

I feel a bit bad blogging about this as it’s currently sold out, but the individual products are all still available, so I thought I’d chime in on them anyway. I purchased the Birchbox Color-Treated Hair Collection for $18 ($30 value). It contained 5 products for color treated hair. I’ve been dying my hair for about 2 years, and dying it red for about 18 months, so I am all too familiar with the perils of fading hair color, and like most women, I’m constantly on the search for the perfect products to maintain vibrant and true color, while also leaving my hair manageable and smooth and hydrated and shiny, while also repairing any existing damage and preventing future breakage.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… As the weather gets colder, leaving the house with wet hair is not an option. I also hate to sleep with wet hair (damp hair + warm head + pillow = gross things growing where you put your face), so drying my hair is pretty much a necessity. While I’ve been #blessed with hair that dries pretty straight and smooth, I’ve always been thrilled with how my hair looks when it’s blown out at a salon and have dedicated hours and hours to replicating those results at home.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

This month’s box was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, one of the samples leaked so the whole thing was a bit messy inside, which led to less than fantastic photos, but you’ll get the idea! First, the prime offender, Number 4™ Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil. Ok, ignoring the fact that this has the longest name ever and spilled all over the place, I really like it. It smells amazing.

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

As I mentioned on Monday, I’m in San Diego this week. Which means a few long flights and a week in a hotel. Of course, I brought my usual makeup, most of which will be in my September Favorites soon, but there are other specific bits I make sure I have to make traveling a little easier. Ok, let’s get this out of the way. The R+Co Dry Shampoo Paste. Seriously, Alina, enough.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… Dry shampoo is seriously a game changer. Not only does it let you go longer between washes, something that’s not only great for your hair and scalp but down right convenient, but it also gives your hair more volume and texture. The quick and easy way to apply it is just to sprinkle or spray (or scrunch if you’re opting for this paste) right onto the sections of your hair that need a pick me up to absorb grease and refresh your ‘do.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

If you had asked me a year ago how I felt about hair paste I probably would have responded: “Hair what?!” But they have become part of my regular hair care and styling routine, so I thought I’d give a quick rundown on my favorite products and how to use them. The newest and probably the star of the show: R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste I feel like people are just coming around to the idea of dry shampoo, and now you throw a paste version at them?

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

I spent the long Labor Day weekend saying so long to summer in Cape Cod. We had a super fun girls weekend (#girlstrip!) drinking Bud Light Limes and frozen mudslides, eating lobster, and enjoying the last bit of summer. Spending a lot of time out in the sun and consuming a heavier than usual amount of alcohol can be really taxing on your body, so here are the steps I took to make sure I made it out of the weekend in one non sunburnt piece.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

I have been shopping lately. Between the Sephora VIB Sale, the dwindling days left I’ll be eligible for my Birchbox employee discount, and just general excitement for the spring season, I’ve picked up quite a few bits and pieces here and there. I decided it’s better to break it up a bit instead of having one monster post. Which is extra bad because soon I’ll have to pack up everything I own, so I’ve also been trying to use up my current stash as much as possible (aka apply self tanner daily).

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I pulled a very #basic move this month. Right after my wedding, I dramatically cut my hair. My husband sometimes refers to it as “wife-ification”. You know, when you get married, cut your hair short, and then start wearing mom jeans. I’m not all the way there yet, but perhaps I do sense a high waist, tapered leg, light wash in my future? Anyway, I’m really happy with the shorter length.

My makeup routine lately has been pretty simple and straightforward. Base, brows, lashes, lips and I’m out the door. I’ll do a bit more bronzing, concealing, or contouring here and there, but overall it’s a streamlined process. Since I’m using fewer products however, I am a bit more focused on getting the most out of them. When it comes to lip color, I like to put it on in the morning and forget about it until maybe after lunch, so a long-wearing lip is a must and these three formulas have been my go-to.

There’s no denying that it’s starting to feel like spring in the northeast. Especially with the time change, everyone is starting to feel that springtime bug. I downsized my wardrobe back in the winter and have mostly stuck to a smaller collection of things that I love since then (with the exception of buying all of the activewear to avoid all of the laundry!) Lately, I’ve been starting to add in a few key pieces to update my wardrobe for spring.

It’s that time again! My Sephora Play! November box has arrived! The Sephora Play! boxes have been steadily improving, at least in my opinion. Here’s a look at November’s box. This month’s theme is “The Exclusives”, meaning products that are exclusive to Sephora. At first glance, some really great things in here! Bite Beauty products are some of my favorites. This is their High Pigment Lip Pencil in Rhubarb, which is an intense dark pink, described as “plum rose”.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

Bite Beauty has been doing something really fun this year. Each month they have been releasing a new shade of Lip Lab Limited Release Crème Deluxe Lipstick. The shade is usually very on-trend and appropriate for the month or season and usually very high impact; they haven’t yet released anything remotely nude or neutral. I love the Bite Beauty lipstick formula, and I love the idea of a seasonal collection, but none of the shades really spoke to me until November’s.

The NARS x Steven Klein collection launched with a bang. The suggestive images on the packaging along with the value and novelty of new holiday sets put the beauty world into a bit of a frenzy. The collection is massive and not all of it appealed to me, but when I saw this adorable lipstick set in Sephora I knew I had to have it. The Killer Heels Lipstick Coffret shades are mostly classics from the NARS lipstick range, but in mini sizes.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… A lot of people struggle with how to wear makeup with glasses. There are plenty of videos on youtube that will break down exactly what (and what not) to do, but as a long time glasses and contact lens wearer, this is what has worked for me. Really go for it with your lipstick. You’ve got frames adding weight and drawing attention to the top of your face, so a bright lipstick can balance that out and make your face look more like a face and less like just a pair of lenses.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

My makeup routine lately has been pretty simple and straightforward. Base, brows, lashes, lips and I’m out the door. I’ll do a bit more bronzing, concealing, or contouring here and there, but overall it’s a streamlined process. Since I’m using fewer products however, I am a bit more focused on getting the most out of them. When it comes to lip color, I like to put it on in the morning and forget about it until maybe after lunch, so a long-wearing lip is a must and these three formulas have been my go-to.

When I lived in NYC, there was a joke about the first warm day of the year and all of the New Yorkers baring their pasty white legs for the first time since the previous summer. Today it’s about 70 degrees in Boston, and in an effort to prevent being one of those jokes, I broke out the self-tan. I’ve done a post on my favorite formulas before, but like most women, when it comes to cosmetics and body and skincare I’m always on the lookout for something better.

The theme for this month’s Play! box is: No Appointment Necessary. The idea is that with these products, you can achieve “salon” results at home. I actually love trips to the salon. A little time to myself to get pampered, relax, and leave looking and feeling my best is always welcome, but at the same time, my schedule and budget doesn’t always allow for frequent facials or blowouts, so an at-home, DIY option is a great alternative.

It’s that time again! My Sephora Play! November box has arrived! The Sephora Play! boxes have been steadily improving, at least in my opinion. Here’s a look at November’s box. This month’s theme is “The Exclusives”, meaning products that are exclusive to Sephora. At first glance, some really great things in here! Bite Beauty products are some of my favorites. This is their High Pigment Lip Pencil in Rhubarb, which is an intense dark pink, described as “plum rose”.

Ok, the video streak has ended. Instead, I offer you a review of another product I picked up during the Sephora VIB Rouge sale. I actually bought a number of things online, and two in store, but wanted to give them an honest and thorough trial before blogging them. One that’s impressed me right off the bat: The Viseart Neutral Matte Eyeshadow Palette. It’s safe to say now that this palette and I are getting along great.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

Bite Beauty has been doing something really fun this year. Each month they have been releasing a new shade of Lip Lab Limited Release Crème Deluxe Lipstick. The shade is usually very on-trend and appropriate for the month or season and usually very high impact; they haven’t yet released anything remotely nude or neutral. I love the Bite Beauty lipstick formula, and I love the idea of a seasonal collection, but none of the shades really spoke to me until November’s.

I did a decent amount of shopping during the Sephora VIB Rouge sale this weekend, mostly online. I did pop into the local store though to purchase a few essentials. First, a repurchase. Gimme Brow is a staple of mine and (in my opinion) the best product that Benefit makes. It’s a tiny brow gel with fibers that really helps to make your brows look fuller and darker as well as holding them in place.

The NARS x Steven Klein collection launched with a bang. The suggestive images on the packaging along with the value and novelty of new holiday sets put the beauty world into a bit of a frenzy. The collection is massive and not all of it appealed to me, but when I saw this adorable lipstick set in Sephora I knew I had to have it. The Killer Heels Lipstick Coffret shades are mostly classics from the NARS lipstick range, but in mini sizes.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

This month’s box was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, one of the samples leaked so the whole thing was a bit messy inside, which led to less than fantastic photos, but you’ll get the idea! First, the prime offender, Number 4™ Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil. Ok, ignoring the fact that this has the longest name ever and spilled all over the place, I really like it. It smells amazing.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… A lot of people struggle with how to wear makeup with glasses. There are plenty of videos on youtube that will break down exactly what (and what not) to do, but as a long time glasses and contact lens wearer, this is what has worked for me. Really go for it with your lipstick. You’ve got frames adding weight and drawing attention to the top of your face, so a bright lipstick can balance that out and make your face look more like a face and less like just a pair of lenses.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

Strobing. So hot right now. If you haven’t heard (I’m sure you’ve heard), “strobing” is using intense highlight to contour the face, rather than trying to blend a darker color and create a shadow. Instead of creating depth, you create height and volume (yes we’re still talking about skin, not hair) by extreme highlighting. While this is a great look for photos, strobing, like contouring, is not the most natural look in real life.

I’ve introduced a number of new products to my routine over the past few weeks. I’ve been absent from blogging (I’m so sorry!) but not from beauty, obviously. I’ve noticed that while my new go-to products work great on their own, sometimes you hit a combination where it seems like two (or sometimes three) products were meant to be used together. Here are a few of the best combinations I’ve found.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I mentioned in my previous Kiehl’s Haul that the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my favorite cleanser ever. And it is. I thought I’d do a little rundown of products I feel similarly passionate about. Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, $4.99 on Amazon for .5 oz. Okay, just now creating that link I realized how much cheaper this is on Amazon than Duane Reade and now I’m kicking myself for ever paying more for it, especially since I’ve gone through like, 5 bottles since I discovered it a few years ago.

I haven’t worn an actual foundation in months. Lately, I’ve preferred to create my own skin perfecting combination of products in the morning. It’s not an exact science, but the strategy is to really look at my skin, decide what it needs to look its best given its current starting state, and do that. Depending on if I’ve self tanned, or am suffering a breakout, or dryness or discoloration, I’ll mix together various products to try to balance and perfect my skin.

One of my favorite things about having brown eyes is that they are incredibly neutral, and allow for lots of experimentation with different eyeshadow colors. Here are a few I’ve tried that I wouldn’t expect to work, but found surprisingly beautiful. Of course, these are shadows where I found the quality to be impressive, too. Clinique All About Shadow in Black Honey I have this in the single, but can’t find it on Sephora.

As I said, a lot has happened in the past year, including a big life change for us: Matt and I closed on the purchase of our first home! It was a tedious process, and it took a while for us to find the right place and then have an offer accepted, but we’ve been living in the new digs for a few weeks and absolutely LOVING it. It’s such a different feeling to live in a space that you own rather than rent, and we’re finding ourselves taking a lot more care in maintaining, decorating, organizing, and settling in than we previously have.

We are big Ikea shoppers. When we were moving in and getting settled, we were making multiple trips a week. It got to the point where we were a bit burnt out (and couldn’t even LOOK at another meatball) so we haven’t ventured out for a while. But today we felt the need for a shoe rack, so we hopped into the car, braced ourselves, and headed into the showroom.

As I’ve mentioned 12059 times, Matt and I have been trying for an “industrial chic”, “indoor jungle” theme in our new apartment. Meaning we’re going for lots and lots of plant life. We’ve accumulated lots of smaller plants over the years, most of which made it with us from NYC, but wanted a few bigger anchor plants to pull everything together. We picked up a few from Ikea and Home Depot but we hit the jackpot when we finally ventured to Mahoney’s Garden Center.

Ikea. Affordable, extensive, intimidating. It’s a bit overwhelming to navigate the showroom and the website can also be tricky. But after countless trips and never-ending browsing over the past few months, I’ve pretty much become an Ikea expert. Here are some of my favorite pieces. 1 – INGEFÄRA – Terracotta plant pot with saucer. We love the neutral, earthy, clay shade and these are functional and affordable. Great for both indoors and outdoors.

After four years, three apartments, two jobs, and one crazy cat in NYC, it’s bittersweet to announce that I’m moving! Matt and I will be packing up and shipping up to Boston starting next month. I came across an amazing opportunity to work at a very early start up (more to come on that later!) and we jumped at the chance for a change of environment. I’ve had an incredible experience working at Birchbox these past 2+ years and I’m sure they will continue to produce outstanding experiences, content, and products.

It’s been a MINUTE since I’ve been inspired/able/focused enough to crank out a blog post. So much has happened in the past year (seriously? it’s almost been that long?!) but I haven’t been able to sit down and synthesize it into words, so we’ll start with something simple. Back in November, I found a new favorite foundation. It was a product I’d seen around but had never given it a try, and after one application I was hooked.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

I’ve introduced a number of new products to my routine over the past few weeks. I’ve been absent from blogging (I’m so sorry!) but not from beauty, obviously. I’ve noticed that while my new go-to products work great on their own, sometimes you hit a combination where it seems like two (or sometimes three) products were meant to be used together. Here are a few of the best combinations I’ve found.

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I haven’t worn an actual foundation in months. Lately, I’ve preferred to create my own skin perfecting combination of products in the morning. It’s not an exact science, but the strategy is to really look at my skin, decide what it needs to look its best given its current starting state, and do that. Depending on if I’ve self tanned, or am suffering a breakout, or dryness or discoloration, I’ll mix together various products to try to balance and perfect my skin.

It’s been a MINUTE since I’ve been inspired/able/focused enough to crank out a blog post. So much has happened in the past year (seriously? it’s almost been that long?!) but I haven’t been able to sit down and synthesize it into words, so we’ll start with something simple. Back in November, I found a new favorite foundation. It was a product I’d seen around but had never given it a try, and after one application I was hooked.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

I’ve made a few lifestyle changes over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had unexpected results. I made the decision at the end of December to get in shape. I set some goals and figured out a way to achieve them the old fashioned way: exercise and nutrition. What I didn’t expect was that it would have a profound effect on my skin. Seriously, my face has never been so even or clear and I think it’s a direct result of my healthier lifestyle.

The theme for this month’s Play! box is: No Appointment Necessary. The idea is that with these products, you can achieve “salon” results at home. I actually love trips to the salon. A little time to myself to get pampered, relax, and leave looking and feeling my best is always welcome, but at the same time, my schedule and budget doesn’t always allow for frequent facials or blowouts, so an at-home, DIY option is a great alternative.

It’s that time again! My Sephora Play! November box has arrived! The Sephora Play! boxes have been steadily improving, at least in my opinion. Here’s a look at November’s box. This month’s theme is “The Exclusives”, meaning products that are exclusive to Sephora. At first glance, some really great things in here! Bite Beauty products are some of my favorites. This is their High Pigment Lip Pencil in Rhubarb, which is an intense dark pink, described as “plum rose”.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

This month’s box was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, one of the samples leaked so the whole thing was a bit messy inside, which led to less than fantastic photos, but you’ll get the idea! First, the prime offender, Number 4™ Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil. Ok, ignoring the fact that this has the longest name ever and spilled all over the place, I really like it. It smells amazing.

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

As I mentioned on Monday, I’m in San Diego this week. Which means a few long flights and a week in a hotel. Of course, I brought my usual makeup, most of which will be in my September Favorites soon, but there are other specific bits I make sure I have to make traveling a little easier. Ok, let’s get this out of the way. The R+Co Dry Shampoo Paste. Seriously, Alina, enough.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

I spent the long Labor Day weekend saying so long to summer in Cape Cod. We had a super fun girls weekend (#girlstrip!) drinking Bud Light Limes and frozen mudslides, eating lobster, and enjoying the last bit of summer. Spending a lot of time out in the sun and consuming a heavier than usual amount of alcohol can be really taxing on your body, so here are the steps I took to make sure I made it out of the weekend in one non sunburnt piece.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

I have been shopping lately. Between the Sephora VIB Sale, the dwindling days left I’ll be eligible for my Birchbox employee discount, and just general excitement for the spring season, I’ve picked up quite a few bits and pieces here and there. I decided it’s better to break it up a bit instead of having one monster post. Which is extra bad because soon I’ll have to pack up everything I own, so I’ve also been trying to use up my current stash as much as possible (aka apply self tanner daily).

It’s that time of year, when the temperature surges above 50 degrees and the bare legs are set free. Except most of those bare legs haven’t seen the sun in literally months and are looking a bit sickly pale. I never really got into the whole self tanner thing until recently, but now I consider myself fairly well versed in the application, formulation, and other aspects of becoming sunlessly bronzed.

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I mentioned in my previous Kiehl’s Haul that the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my favorite cleanser ever. And it is. I thought I’d do a little rundown of products I feel similarly passionate about. Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, $4.99 on Amazon for .5 oz. Okay, just now creating that link I realized how much cheaper this is on Amazon than Duane Reade and now I’m kicking myself for ever paying more for it, especially since I’ve gone through like, 5 bottles since I discovered it a few years ago.

Kiehl’s recently had a gift with purchase promotion that I found too compelling to pass up. In order to celebrate Healthy Skin Week, which I don’t think is a real thing, but okay Kiehl’s, they offered a complimentary bag of deluxe samples with any $65+ purchase. There was also an option to upgrade your gift to also get a free full-size Ultra Facial Cleanser with a $100+ purchase. You probably don’t know, but the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my HOLY GRAIL cleanser OF ALL TIME.

Ok yes, a wordy and bold title, but Nippies have literally changed my life. First, we’ll acknowledge that I have very little going on in the chest department. It’s a blessing and a curse, but it is what it is. Recently I started embracing my shape and choosing unlined bras and bralettes rather than the hefty push-ups I favored throughout my teens and early twenties, but I couldn’t take the plunge and go completely braless.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

There’s no denying that it’s starting to feel like spring in the northeast. Especially with the time change, everyone is starting to feel that springtime bug. I downsized my wardrobe back in the winter and have mostly stuck to a smaller collection of things that I love since then (with the exception of buying all of the activewear to avoid all of the laundry!) Lately, I’ve been starting to add in a few key pieces to update my wardrobe for spring.

It finally snowed in Boston. I’m anticipating a lot more snow this winter and the novelty has already worn off, but like my rainy day style, there’s something kind of magical about cozy snow day outfits. I’m fully embracing “athleisure”, and since becoming _actually _more active, I’ve been working a lot more active wear into my daily wardrobe (more on that later!) I’ve been obsessed with leggings from Beyond Yoga recently.

Five pieces I’m wearing to my husband’s company holiday party tonight! I wanted to look like myself, and not like I tried too hard, but also stylish and festive. Also, I’m heading there straight from my own office, so I wanted my outfit to be mostly office appropriate so I wouldn’t have to worry about changing. Here’s what I ended up with! I bought this Michael Kors blazer months ago from Everything But The House, which is an estate sale website.

I’ve been a Rocksbox subscriber for almost two years now. If you don’t know, it’s kind of like Rent the Runway meets Birchbox meets Stitchfix… for jewelry. You sign up for $19/month and fill out a style profile. A stylist will hand-match you to three pieces of designer costume jewelry, meaning no diamonds or platinum, but quality pieces that won’t turn your skin green or fall apart and plenty of sparkle from well-known names like House of Harlow and Gorjana.

Let’s talk about the J Crew Downtown Field Jacket. You might not know it by name, but chances are if you don’t own this jacket, you know someone who does. It’s a classic in every way: cut, color, fabric. It’s simple, but the gold tone hardware and slim but structured shape make it a perfect fall jacket. The only problem is everyone else seems to think so, too. So how can you style it to stand out from the crowd?

I woke up to the sound of the rain on the roof this morning. As lovely as that sound is, a rainy day is not the most encouraging after a long weekend! But it brightened up a little bit when I threw on my favorite rainy day outfit. Obviously, I started by not washing my hair, and instead applying a healthy amount of Bumble and bumble’s Pret-a-Powder. For my outfit, there’s nothing cozier than an oversized sweater, and pairing it with sneakers can still be chic if you choose metallic or printed low tops, which look perfect with ankle length jeans.

My new favorite pizza topping (pair it with Italian sausage – YUM) Returning home from San Diego to all of the snuggles from this handsome (yet suspicious) fella I’ve also been living in that white sweater from Madewell. It’s now sold out, but I’m eyeing this one next. So much lust for the new Everlane Petra Backpack in leather. Unfortunately it won’t fit my laptop, so not the most functional for me, but so beautiful.

Shopping for jeans has always been bittersweet for me. Sweet because: new jeans! Bitter because: the fitting room (and the price tags). It’s been a long time struggle until recently. I magically found a pair of jeans that fit perfectly on sale at Intermix about three years ago. They were the J Brand 835 Mid Rise Capris (yes, capris, I have short little legs) in Misfit. The length hit me right above the ankle, which is perfect for wearing with ballet flats or heels or even sneakers.

I’m in San Diego this week for work, so it’s a lot less like fall all of a sudden, but I’m sticking with it anyway. And what says fall fashion more than wearing leather? Well constructed leather pieces are perfectly structured but soft, sleek but warm, and classic but versatile. I’ve been accumulating leather (and leather look) pieces for years and decided that last week I’d honor the onset of fall weather with one whole work weeks worth of outfits styled around key leather pieces from my wardrobe.

Happy Friday! What have you been loving this week? My picks below! Madewell v-neck pocket tees are the best closet staple (and on sale!) I’m stocking up on fall colors, like Compass Gold (below). Glamour Magazine’s Lipstick Index tracks social media beauty posts to find out what’s hot. So cool to see a real time indicator of beauty trends! This tilapia recipe is the best I’ve found. We paired it with wild rice and roasted broccoli for an easy weeknight dinner.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

My relationship with running has always run hot and cold, but this time I’m committing. My husband is the kind of runner who can do nothing for months and then decide to go out and run 5k without blinking an eye. I require a little more training. I registered for the Cambridge Half Marathon in November along with my husband, my brother, and a few other friends. So far I’ve been training for a little over a week and can run just under 6 kilometers in half an hour.

I spent the long Labor Day weekend saying so long to summer in Cape Cod. We had a super fun girls weekend (#girlstrip!) drinking Bud Light Limes and frozen mudslides, eating lobster, and enjoying the last bit of summer. Spending a lot of time out in the sun and consuming a heavier than usual amount of alcohol can be really taxing on your body, so here are the steps I took to make sure I made it out of the weekend in one non sunburnt piece.

There’s no denying that it’s starting to feel like spring in the northeast. Especially with the time change, everyone is starting to feel that springtime bug. I downsized my wardrobe back in the winter and have mostly stuck to a smaller collection of things that I love since then (with the exception of buying all of the activewear to avoid all of the laundry!) Lately, I’ve been starting to add in a few key pieces to update my wardrobe for spring.

Hairspray, spray tan, face mist, even spray bronzers and airbrush foundations…. the beauty world is no stranger to spritzes and sprays. But a spray manicure? Nails Inc, leaders of nail polish innovation, are coming out with a line of spray on nail polishes. It looks like an aerosol can that you can spray onto your fingers, then wash off the cuticles, leaving color only on your nails. There’s also a 2-in-1 base and top coat (top spray?

And by grown ups I mean adults. As in these are (subtly) NSFW. Sara M. Lyons is a self described “professional weirdo” and has a line of nail decals that are 1) awesome 2) playful and 3) not for the faint of heart. They’ve been featured in NYLON magazine and on Refinery29.com, Buzzfeed, and the Beauty Department. And now averyalina.com (every artist’s dream). Sara’s nail decals are like tiny temporary tattoos for your nails.

It’s September. It’s fashion week. So it’s fall, right? I mean, kind of. Temps are definitely cooling down, but it’s still sunny and relatively warm (this is Boston after all!) I’m dying to get back into tights and booties and leather jackets and scarves, but it’s still much too summery to dive into full on fall outfits. So how do you transition to fall while still staying weather appropriate? Easy. Switch up your nail polish!

I mentioned in my previous Kiehl’s Haul that the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my favorite cleanser ever. And it is. I thought I’d do a little rundown of products I feel similarly passionate about. Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, $4.99 on Amazon for .5 oz. Okay, just now creating that link I realized how much cheaper this is on Amazon than Duane Reade and now I’m kicking myself for ever paying more for it, especially since I’ve gone through like, 5 bottles since I discovered it a few years ago.

When I lived in NYC, there was a joke about the first warm day of the year and all of the New Yorkers baring their pasty white legs for the first time since the previous summer. Today it’s about 70 degrees in Boston, and in an effort to prevent being one of those jokes, I broke out the self-tan. I’ve done a post on my favorite formulas before, but like most women, when it comes to cosmetics and body and skincare I’m always on the lookout for something better.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

What’s on my desk? Here’s a peek at the essentials I like to keep on hand at work. Hand cream – Industrial, generic, anti-bacterial office bathroom soap is a dry hand nightmare, especially in the winter. I keep Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream at my desk. I got a sample of this cream and loved it so much I went out and bought the full size. The scent is light but lovely, and the cream itself is thick and luxe, so a little bit goes a long way and the $40 tube lasts a long time.

I spent the long Labor Day weekend saying so long to summer in Cape Cod. We had a super fun girls weekend (#girlstrip!) drinking Bud Light Limes and frozen mudslides, eating lobster, and enjoying the last bit of summer. Spending a lot of time out in the sun and consuming a heavier than usual amount of alcohol can be really taxing on your body, so here are the steps I took to make sure I made it out of the weekend in one non sunburnt piece.

It’s that time of year, when the temperature surges above 50 degrees and the bare legs are set free. Except most of those bare legs haven’t seen the sun in literally months and are looking a bit sickly pale. I never really got into the whole self tanner thing until recently, but now I consider myself fairly well versed in the application, formulation, and other aspects of becoming sunlessly bronzed.

When I lived in NYC, there was a joke about the first warm day of the year and all of the New Yorkers baring their pasty white legs for the first time since the previous summer. Today it’s about 70 degrees in Boston, and in an effort to prevent being one of those jokes, I broke out the self-tan. I’ve done a post on my favorite formulas before, but like most women, when it comes to cosmetics and body and skincare I’m always on the lookout for something better.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

I’ve introduced a number of new products to my routine over the past few weeks. I’ve been absent from blogging (I’m so sorry!) but not from beauty, obviously. I’ve noticed that while my new go-to products work great on their own, sometimes you hit a combination where it seems like two (or sometimes three) products were meant to be used together. Here are a few of the best combinations I’ve found.

I talk a lot about my superficial side interests here. After all, this is a beauty blog! But most of my day, whether it’s surprising to you or not, is spent working as a software engineer. I got into software and programming and computer science relatively late in the game. I didn’t even consider it as an option and I wouldn’t have studied it at all if I didn’t need to complete an introductory CS course to complete my math major in college.

Happy Friday! What have you been loving this week? My picks below! Madewell v-neck pocket tees are the best closet staple (and on sale!) I’m stocking up on fall colors, like Compass Gold (below). Glamour Magazine’s Lipstick Index tracks social media beauty posts to find out what’s hot. So cool to see a real time indicator of beauty trends! This tilapia recipe is the best I’ve found. We paired it with wild rice and roasted broccoli for an easy weeknight dinner.

What’s on my desk? Here’s a peek at the essentials I like to keep on hand at work. Hand cream – Industrial, generic, anti-bacterial office bathroom soap is a dry hand nightmare, especially in the winter. I keep Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream at my desk. I got a sample of this cream and loved it so much I went out and bought the full size. The scent is light but lovely, and the cream itself is thick and luxe, so a little bit goes a long way and the $40 tube lasts a long time.

After four years, three apartments, two jobs, and one crazy cat in NYC, it’s bittersweet to announce that I’m moving! Matt and I will be packing up and shipping up to Boston starting next month. I came across an amazing opportunity to work at a very early start up (more to come on that later!) and we jumped at the chance for a change of environment. I’ve had an incredible experience working at Birchbox these past 2+ years and I’m sure they will continue to produce outstanding experiences, content, and products.

I’ve made a few lifestyle changes over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had unexpected results. I made the decision at the end of December to get in shape. I set some goals and figured out a way to achieve them the old fashioned way: exercise and nutrition. What I didn’t expect was that it would have a profound effect on my skin. Seriously, my face has never been so even or clear and I think it’s a direct result of my healthier lifestyle.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

I have been shopping lately. Between the Sephora VIB Sale, the dwindling days left I’ll be eligible for my Birchbox employee discount, and just general excitement for the spring season, I’ve picked up quite a few bits and pieces here and there. I decided it’s better to break it up a bit instead of having one monster post. Which is extra bad because soon I’ll have to pack up everything I own, so I’ve also been trying to use up my current stash as much as possible (aka apply self tanner daily).

I’ve made a few lifestyle changes over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had unexpected results. I made the decision at the end of December to get in shape. I set some goals and figured out a way to achieve them the old fashioned way: exercise and nutrition. What I didn’t expect was that it would have a profound effect on my skin. Seriously, my face has never been so even or clear and I think it’s a direct result of my healthier lifestyle.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

I’ve made a few lifestyle changes over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had unexpected results. I made the decision at the end of December to get in shape. I set some goals and figured out a way to achieve them the old fashioned way: exercise and nutrition. What I didn’t expect was that it would have a profound effect on my skin. Seriously, my face has never been so even or clear and I think it’s a direct result of my healthier lifestyle.

Since I’m leaving NYC and my current job, my coworkers and I went out last night for drinks to celebrate and say goodbye. And when I say drinks I mean… Vodka sodas, and picklebacks, and fireball shots. Let’s just say my skin (and the rest of me) was not quite its vibrant glowing self this morning. Luckily, I’ve developed a routine to get myself back to radiant (or at least fake it!

I have been shopping lately. Between the Sephora VIB Sale, the dwindling days left I’ll be eligible for my Birchbox employee discount, and just general excitement for the spring season, I’ve picked up quite a few bits and pieces here and there. I decided it’s better to break it up a bit instead of having one monster post. Which is extra bad because soon I’ll have to pack up everything I own, so I’ve also been trying to use up my current stash as much as possible (aka apply self tanner daily).

The theme for this month’s Play! box is: No Appointment Necessary. The idea is that with these products, you can achieve “salon” results at home. I actually love trips to the salon. A little time to myself to get pampered, relax, and leave looking and feeling my best is always welcome, but at the same time, my schedule and budget doesn’t always allow for frequent facials or blowouts, so an at-home, DIY option is a great alternative.

It’s that time again! My Sephora Play! November box has arrived! The Sephora Play! boxes have been steadily improving, at least in my opinion. Here’s a look at November’s box. This month’s theme is “The Exclusives”, meaning products that are exclusive to Sephora. At first glance, some really great things in here! Bite Beauty products are some of my favorites. This is their High Pigment Lip Pencil in Rhubarb, which is an intense dark pink, described as “plum rose”.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

As I mentioned on Monday, I’m in San Diego this week. Which means a few long flights and a week in a hotel. Of course, I brought my usual makeup, most of which will be in my September Favorites soon, but there are other specific bits I make sure I have to make traveling a little easier. Ok, let’s get this out of the way. The R+Co Dry Shampoo Paste. Seriously, Alina, enough.

As you’d expect from a beauty sample hoarder and Sephora fangirl, I signed up for the Play! box as soon as it was available. Let’s take a look at what’s inside: My overall impression: This is a bigger box than you’d expect from Birchbox or Ipsy, with deluxe samples, good variety of color, skin, and hair care, and well-known brands. It’s also a great value for $10. So the first impact is a good one, but looking closer….

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

I’ve taken a bit of a break from blogging, but I have a lot of fun content ideas so I’m trying to get back into the swing of it! Yesterday was my 27th birthday (#old). It was a fantastic, relaxing, celebratory day and I documented the whole day via snapchat story! /uploads/2016/01/IMG_0910.m4v We kicked off the day at Tatte for breakfast, where I had their amazing Shakshuka. After a few hours at work (where my amazing coworkers gifted me flowers and cupcakes!

Sorry for my absence here on the blog! I decided to take Thanksgiving week and unplug and relax. We had a bit of a whirlwind week. We left Boston on Sunday and drove two hours out to visit my brother in Connecticut. He was hosting a “Friendsgiving”, so we spent a few hours there eating and hanging out before hopping back in the car for another 3 hour drive to my parents in New Jersey.

For today’s Friday Five: Five products I keep in my purse (well, today). I’m known for hoarding makeup in my purse and carrying it around with me everywhere. Which is crazy because 1. I never really use it, and 2. it makes my bag super heavy. The other day I had a handbag clear out and stripped down to just the on-the-go essentials. Here’s what I kept: First: a rollerball of Balenciaga’s Rosabotanica.

My bachelorette weekend was just about a year ago in New York City. I was living there at the time, and it was fun and central to all of my friends, so I kicked Matt out for the weekend, we all piled into my friend Vincenza’s East Village apartment, and settled in for #AVERYcrazyweekend. Sam, Me, and Daisy at my Bachelorette in 2014 I wasn’t blogging at the time, so I figured a year later is a good time to recap the weekend, right?

Five moments from the Wellfleet OysterFest! These lovely shuckers from Sheila’s Oyster Farm (not pictured but present: Sheila herself) This awesome band that managed to change Ring of Fire to Ring of SNOW when it started to flurry (and it even still rhymed!) This handsome man on the beach! This group’s oyster shell mountain. We’re going to go head to head in oyster shell construction next year. I think we can take them.

Columbus Day weekend marked the two-year anniversary of the night Matt and I got engaged. It was a very simple proposal, just in our apartment with a ring in a glass of champagne (cheesy but classic!), followed by the most amazing meal we’ve ever had at Daniel. We did a late seating and chose the 6-course tasting menu with wine pairings so it was quite late and we were quite drunk when we finally made it out of the restaurant.

Summer movies are always some of my favorites. And going to see movies in theaters is one of my favorite “Date night” activities with my husband. We always share a popcorn and a soda and, if we’re up at the new AMC Assembly Row, try to get the seats that fully recline. Also, if you haven’t been to that theater, GO. IT’S AWESOME. THERE’S A BAR. There are the typical summer blockblusters that always get major press (Hello, Jurassic World!

Peppermint bark is one of those seasonal confections that looks really impressive and makes a great gift, but is actually really easy to prepare. I make a batch every year and every year it’s a bit different. For our Holiday Sweater party this weekend, I used a new recipe that layers a chocolate ganache between white chocolate for a softer bite. It feels very festive and who doesn’t like chocolate and peppermint?

Keeping with the video theme of the week (it wasn’t on purpose, it’s just worked out that way!), here’s another one for you: Daisy and I were lucky enough to see a preview screening of the movie Brooklyn last week. The movie was beautiful and has gotten lots of great critical acclaim. It tells the story of Eilis Lacey, a young girl in Ireland who’s having a hard time thriving, so she moves to Brooklyn to pursue a better life for herself.

My bachelorette weekend was just about a year ago in New York City. I was living there at the time, and it was fun and central to all of my friends, so I kicked Matt out for the weekend, we all piled into my friend Vincenza’s East Village apartment, and settled in for #AVERYcrazyweekend. Sam, Me, and Daisy at my Bachelorette in 2014 I wasn’t blogging at the time, so I figured a year later is a good time to recap the weekend, right?

I’m all about easy weeknight dinners, and this southern inspired Shrimp & Grits took literally minutes. Precooked frozen shrimp is one of my favorite food hacks. It requires literally no preparation other than running under cold water for a few minutes. It’s great with cocktail sauce at parties (make your own by mixing ketchup and prepared horseradish), in pasta, on salads, or with grits and okra like we had last night!

We decided to buy a 5 lb bag of carrots at Whole Foods (because why not, right?), so get ready for a lot of carrot related food posts. Starting with these muffins. I knew I wanted to make a form of carrot cake because 1) SO MANY CARROTS and 2) our new food processor can shred like a champion. So I searched for recipes using my usual technique and ended up with this one for Gluten-Free Vegan Carrot Apple Muffins.

Beautylish is the exclusive retailer of Bioderma (cult favorite French micellar cleansing water) in the US and they just debuted a 500mL bottle with a pump top! Speaking of beauty e-retailers, Birchbox is launching their own makeup line. We’ve been indulging in affogatos for dessert. And breakfast. And anytime throughout the day. It’s fine. (P.S. You don’t even need to click through to that recipe, it’s literally just ice cream and espresso!

My new favorite pizza topping (pair it with Italian sausage – YUM) Returning home from San Diego to all of the snuggles from this handsome (yet suspicious) fella I’ve also been living in that white sweater from Madewell. It’s now sold out, but I’m eyeing this one next. So much lust for the new Everlane Petra Backpack in leather. Unfortunately it won’t fit my laptop, so not the most functional for me, but so beautiful.

Matt and I are both huge fans of pie (fun fact: our wedding was on Pi Day – 3/14/15). His favorite is pumpkin, and I can’t get enough blueberry, and we both agree: pecan is also at the top of the list. But really you can’t go wrong with any flavor. My easy pie making secret is to buy the pre-made rolled up pie crusts from the grocery store. I always get better results from the Pillsbury brand crusts rather than generic, but you can stock up when they’re on sale and keep them in the freezer for emergency pie situations.

Happy Friday! What have you been loving this week? My picks below! Madewell v-neck pocket tees are the best closet staple (and on sale!) I’m stocking up on fall colors, like Compass Gold (below). Glamour Magazine’s Lipstick Index tracks social media beauty posts to find out what’s hot. So cool to see a real time indicator of beauty trends! This tilapia recipe is the best I’ve found. We paired it with wild rice and roasted broccoli for an easy weeknight dinner.

Moule-frites is just a fancy French/Belgian way of saying “mussels and french fries”. During an excursion to Whole Foods (we tried out the new one in InkBlock and omg it’s enormous) we discovered some Maine mussels and thought, well why not? We looked up a recipe for a white wine broth that seemed reasonable and bought a regular old potato for frying. For the mussels: Ingredients: 2/3 bottle dry white wine (we used the Three Wishes Pinot Grigio from Whole Foods because it’s about $3) 4-6 tablespoons butter One onion 4 cloves garlic Dry and fresh herbs to taste (we used fresh basil and dried cilantro because… well, that’s what we had) 1 pound fresh live mussels Bring the wine to a simmer with the butter, onion, garlic and herbs.

Earlier this week, I was feeling inspired by this recipe from one of our favorite celebrity chefs, Daniel Boulud. Except we had approximately none of the ingredients and it looked far too time consuming for a regular weeknight. So instead, I cooked up what we had on hand to create a dish that Matt has cited as his favorite ever. The highest praise! Just kidding, he says this about everything I cook; it was part of our marriage vows.

Part of my inspiration to write about what we miss from NYC was that Matt has been requesting that I make bagels for weeks. Probably because we haven’t found a decent place to get one in Boston. It was his birthday this week and I had the morning off (#labordayweekend!), so I decided to dig out my tried and true bagel recipe and get boiling. Bagels sound impressive when you tell people you made them yourself, and they take a good amount of time to prepare from start to finish, but it’s so worth it and actually pretty easy.

Peppermint bark is one of those seasonal confections that looks really impressive and makes a great gift, but is actually really easy to prepare. I make a batch every year and every year it’s a bit different. For our Holiday Sweater party this weekend, I used a new recipe that layers a chocolate ganache between white chocolate for a softer bite. It feels very festive and who doesn’t like chocolate and peppermint?

I’m all about easy weeknight dinners, and this southern inspired Shrimp & Grits took literally minutes. Precooked frozen shrimp is one of my favorite food hacks. It requires literally no preparation other than running under cold water for a few minutes. It’s great with cocktail sauce at parties (make your own by mixing ketchup and prepared horseradish), in pasta, on salads, or with grits and okra like we had last night!

We decided to buy a 5 lb bag of carrots at Whole Foods (because why not, right?), so get ready for a lot of carrot related food posts. Starting with these muffins. I knew I wanted to make a form of carrot cake because 1) SO MANY CARROTS and 2) our new food processor can shred like a champion. So I searched for recipes using my usual technique and ended up with this one for Gluten-Free Vegan Carrot Apple Muffins.

Happy Friday! What have you been loving this week? My picks below! Madewell v-neck pocket tees are the best closet staple (and on sale!) I’m stocking up on fall colors, like Compass Gold (below). Glamour Magazine’s Lipstick Index tracks social media beauty posts to find out what’s hot. So cool to see a real time indicator of beauty trends! This tilapia recipe is the best I’ve found. We paired it with wild rice and roasted broccoli for an easy weeknight dinner.

Moule-frites is just a fancy French/Belgian way of saying “mussels and french fries”. During an excursion to Whole Foods (we tried out the new one in InkBlock and omg it’s enormous) we discovered some Maine mussels and thought, well why not? We looked up a recipe for a white wine broth that seemed reasonable and bought a regular old potato for frying. For the mussels: Ingredients: 2/3 bottle dry white wine (we used the Three Wishes Pinot Grigio from Whole Foods because it’s about $3) 4-6 tablespoons butter One onion 4 cloves garlic Dry and fresh herbs to taste (we used fresh basil and dried cilantro because… well, that’s what we had) 1 pound fresh live mussels Bring the wine to a simmer with the butter, onion, garlic and herbs.

Earlier this week, I was feeling inspired by this recipe from one of our favorite celebrity chefs, Daniel Boulud. Except we had approximately none of the ingredients and it looked far too time consuming for a regular weeknight. So instead, I cooked up what we had on hand to create a dish that Matt has cited as his favorite ever. The highest praise! Just kidding, he says this about everything I cook; it was part of our marriage vows.

Part of my inspiration to write about what we miss from NYC was that Matt has been requesting that I make bagels for weeks. Probably because we haven’t found a decent place to get one in Boston. It was his birthday this week and I had the morning off (#labordayweekend!), so I decided to dig out my tried and true bagel recipe and get boiling. Bagels sound impressive when you tell people you made them yourself, and they take a good amount of time to prepare from start to finish, but it’s so worth it and actually pretty easy.

Ok, the video streak has ended. Instead, I offer you a review of another product I picked up during the Sephora VIB Rouge sale. I actually bought a number of things online, and two in store, but wanted to give them an honest and thorough trial before blogging them. One that’s impressed me right off the bat: The Viseart Neutral Matte Eyeshadow Palette. It’s safe to say now that this palette and I are getting along great.

I feel like I JUST got my October box, but none-the-less, my November Birchbox has arrived. I’ll say it now – I’m THRILLED with this box. November’s theme is “Feeling Fancy” and I definitely am with this box. I love the cool floral pattern and the metallic copper logo is gorgeous. This is one of my favorite box designs so far this year (after the Rifle Paper Co box of course)!

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

I used to work at Birchbox. Which was really cool but also it kind of ruined the experience of getting a Birchbox. I knew way ahead of time what the product assortment was for the month and even what was going to be in my box. The delight was still there, but the surprise was lacking. Since I left back in May it’s been a lot more exciting to get a monthly box.

One of my favorite things about having brown eyes is that they are incredibly neutral, and allow for lots of experimentation with different eyeshadow colors. Here are a few I’ve tried that I wouldn’t expect to work, but found surprisingly beautiful. Of course, these are shadows where I found the quality to be impressive, too. Clinique All About Shadow in Black Honey I have this in the single, but can’t find it on Sephora.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

I haven’t worn an actual foundation in months. Lately, I’ve preferred to create my own skin perfecting combination of products in the morning. It’s not an exact science, but the strategy is to really look at my skin, decide what it needs to look its best given its current starting state, and do that. Depending on if I’ve self tanned, or am suffering a breakout, or dryness or discoloration, I’ll mix together various products to try to balance and perfect my skin.

As the weather gets colder and suntans fade, you’re going to want to make some changes to your routine. Here are a few updates I’m making: The other day, it was pretty clear that it’s no longer acceptable to go outside with wet hair. You could catch a cold (or freeze and damage your tresses)! So I’m pulling out the blowdryer more often, and shampooing as infrequently as possible to make those blowouts last.

What’s on my desk? Here’s a peek at the essentials I like to keep on hand at work. Hand cream – Industrial, generic, anti-bacterial office bathroom soap is a dry hand nightmare, especially in the winter. I keep Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream at my desk. I got a sample of this cream and loved it so much I went out and bought the full size. The scent is light but lovely, and the cream itself is thick and luxe, so a little bit goes a long way and the $40 tube lasts a long time.

This month’s box was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, one of the samples leaked so the whole thing was a bit messy inside, which led to less than fantastic photos, but you’ll get the idea! First, the prime offender, Number 4™ Lumiere dhiver Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil. Ok, ignoring the fact that this has the longest name ever and spilled all over the place, I really like it. It smells amazing.

Before we get too far into October and this becomes irrelevant… I don’t know if I’m going to do monthly favorites. It feels a little repetitive since it’s rare that I find anything life changing, but I haven’t listed my general favorites since my holy grails, so I thought now could be a good time. Here’s what I’ve been loving lately, my September favorites! Again, the R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

I’ve introduced a number of new products to my routine over the past few weeks. I’ve been absent from blogging (I’m so sorry!) but not from beauty, obviously. I’ve noticed that while my new go-to products work great on their own, sometimes you hit a combination where it seems like two (or sometimes three) products were meant to be used together. Here are a few of the best combinations I’ve found.

How-two: 2 easy steps to doing something just a little bit better… A lot of people struggle with how to wear makeup with glasses. There are plenty of videos on youtube that will break down exactly what (and what not) to do, but as a long time glasses and contact lens wearer, this is what has worked for me. Really go for it with your lipstick. You’ve got frames adding weight and drawing attention to the top of your face, so a bright lipstick can balance that out and make your face look more like a face and less like just a pair of lenses.

Ok yes, it’s insane that “holiday” sets are being announced (and even released!) in September. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wishlist the crap of them. Holiday Beauty sets have some of the coolest limited edition shades and products, usually at an incredible value. Here are my picks (so far) for this year! First, these Guerlain Snowflake Meteorites: Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges – $80 OMG if that’s not the most perfect winter makeup ever.

It’s March favorites time, but I just posted a Holy Grail list, so instead I’m going to post about the things I’m looking to maaaaybe pick up in April? The Sephora VIB sale is coming up, right? Hmmm… Surratt Artistique Blush The who Surratt line is new at Sephora this week. I have heard great things about the collection but it hasn’t really been accessible. Until now. The blush shades I’m looking at are **Grisaille, **a contour shade, Guimauve, a “marshmallow pink” (pictured above!

I mentioned in my previous Kiehl’s Haul that the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser is my favorite cleanser ever. And it is. I thought I’d do a little rundown of products I feel similarly passionate about. Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat, $4.99 on Amazon for .5 oz. Okay, just now creating that link I realized how much cheaper this is on Amazon than Duane Reade and now I’m kicking myself for ever paying more for it, especially since I’ve gone through like, 5 bottles since I discovered it a few years ago.

It’s that time of year, when the temperature surges above 50 degrees and the bare legs are set free. Except most of those bare legs haven’t seen the sun in literally months and are looking a bit sickly pale. I never really got into the whole self tanner thing until recently, but now I consider myself fairly well versed in the application, formulation, and other aspects of becoming sunlessly bronzed.