Making a Statement

I tend to wear delicate jewelry on a daily basis, but I love mixing up basic outfits with big, bold pieces. Lately I've been reaching for statement necklaces more and more and I thought I'd share a few of my favorites with you.

This evil eye necklace from Baublebar is one of my all time favorite necklaces. This was definitely the priciest as I think I paid around $40 for it (after using a coupon code), but it doesn't tarnish and I've worn it so much it was totally worth it. They don't sell this exact one that I could find anymore but a similar one can be found here.

This one is another favorite. I purchased this from Jewelmint on sale for $15 (most of their items are around $30). I have so much jewelry from Jewelmint; they are really affordable for the quality and they often have sales. You can find this necklace here.

This was the first ever statement necklace I owned and it was given to me for my birthday by a dear friend of mine. I love the beading and the rose gold detail; it's absolutely perfect with a tee shirt and jeans. You can find a similar style here.

This necklace wasn't more than $10 from Amazon and I love it. The quality isn't as good as some of my other necklaces but it's super fun and the pinks and blues are a gorgeous combo for Spring and Summer. You can find this necklace as well as a bunch of other styles here.

This last necklace is one I've worn on the blog before in an outfit post here. Because it's gold with a simple sea foam green stone it's incredibly versatile. It can be dressed up or down and I love the Egyptian feel to it. I bought this from Forever 21 a few years ago, but you can find a similar one here.

What are some of your guys' favorite statement pieces?

In The Nude

Don't worry, I'm not going nude to make a statement in this blog post or anything like that. I shudder at the thought of baring anything more than some extremely pale legs...but I digress. What I'm talking about is lipstick. I've always kept my lipsticks helter skelter but this weekend I thought, why not coordinate by color? That way if I want to wear a red, I can look at all my reds, etc, etc. Besides realizing that I have far too many lipsticks than any human being should own, I also remembered that I am a huge fan of nudes, which more often then not get shoved aside as I'm blinded by all the pretty pops of color. So today's post is dedicated to some of my favorite nude lip colors, in the hopes that I reach for them more often.

 I love this e.l.f. Jumbo lip pencil in the shade Coco Loco. Even better is that it's on sale right now for .99 cents on the e.l.f. website here. I kind of want to go and buy the entire stock up because it's that good. It's a sheer nude-y pink color and has that minty feel which is so nice for dry lips. It's nice for those days when you want minimal makeup and just a little color on the lips.

You should already know by now that I am a huge fan of NYX lip products and this butter lipstick in Snow Cap is one of my faves. It's a pinky nude and it's really pretty with a dark smokey eye. You can change up the color by wearing a pink lip liner for a more pink look or a peach or nude lip liner for a more nude look. It's super versatile and one of my favorite lipsticks.

Everyone has their perfect nude and this one is it for me. It's not too brown, it's not too pink, it's just a nice nude. It's a Lancome Color Design lipstick in the shade Natural Beauty and it is literally just my perfect nude.

This e.l.f. lipstick is from the $1 range and it's in the shade Fantasy. It's a deeper brown nude and it is super duper pretty on the lips. This is a perfect everyday kind of lip color.

I literally could not decide between these two so I put both in. The top shade is NYX soft matte lip cream in London which is a brown nude and the bottom is in Stockholm which is a pink nude. Obviously, when it comes to nudes I like both brown-y and pink-y tones. The only thing I will say is this isn't my favorite formula. The colors are gorgeous so I deal with it, but I have a hard time with mattes and these can be drying so just make sure you exfoliate your lips before wearing!

I could go on and on as I have a million lip products but these are definitely the tops when it comes to my nude collection. What are some of your favorite nude lip products?

*side note, I am terribly sorry about my weirdly tanned hands. No, I do not fake tan, but I do wear gloves when I ride my bike so I always get weird tan lines.

My favorite makeup removers

I pretty much wear a full face of makeup every day...which means every night I have to take it all off. I'm pretty lazy busy, so when it comes to removing makeup, the quicker and easier the product, the more I like it. Here are my favorite makeup remover products at the moment; be sure to share yours with me in the comments!

I love the elf lotion wipes for removing makeup. They do have actual makeup removing wipes that are just as good, but these ones feel less harsh to me. I especially love the coconut scented ones! The elf eye makeup remover pads are great for days that I just wear mascara. I can just wipe my eyes off, use my cleanser and I'm done. Both are super affordable which makes them all the more awesome in my book.

I love Lancome's Bi-Facil makeup remover. I use a big cotton pad, pour a tiny bit on and wipe my entire face. It is a little on the oily side but that makes it super effective as far as eye makeup removal goes and a little goes a long way.

I love the Botanics hot cloth cleansing balm when I'm wearing waterproof makeup or a lip stain or something equally difficult to remove. You massage a little of the balm on your entire face, wipe it all off with a hot muslin cloth and you are good to go. This one happens to be 97% organic and has rosehip, which is said to hydrate the skin as well as combat signs of aging.

Remember to share with me what makeup remover products you are loving down below!

Antelope By Moonlight

Every year around the 4th, Antelope Island has a cycling event during the full moon. People get dressed up, deck their bikes out in lights and ride, literally, by the light of the moon. Each year there is a theme; this years was Back to the Future. There were so many people dressed as Doc Brown, it was hilarious seeing all the crazy white wigs being shoved under a helmet. I was fortunate enough to ride it again this year and it was so much fun!

 

Unfortunately my hubby didn't get to ride this year as he is nursing a knee injury but he still came for support and (lucky happenstance) to snap some great pictures! It is so cool to see all the lights dipping up and down the hills as your riding, it's such an awesome experience!

What fun things are happening around your town right now?

Friday Fashion : Red, White and Blue

Happy 4th weekend you guys! I am such a huge holiday person, part of the fun of any holiday is finding a fun outfit. I hope you guys all have a fun, safe and fabulous holiday weekend!

 This tank top is perfect this time of year. It's breezy and cool and the black is a split style so it's perfect for the heat. I throw a bandeau top underneath so it's still really light and airy. Perfect for a BBQ, or hanging out at the park waiting for fireworks. I got it a couple of months ago from Walmart for about $8 so it was a real steal.

 The print on this top is seriously my favorite. I love the paisley print with the subtle day of the dead skulls.

These shoes are by the brand Qupid and so comfortable. I have a ton of shoes from this brand and from heels to boots they are all super comfy and cute, on top of being super affordable.

What are you guys wearing when it's super hot outside?

One thing in, one thing out...and other musings (on getting older)

The older I get I look back on all the things I thought about people my age when I was younger and I just didn't have a clue. I remember my mom forgetting things all the time and I would be like "Why mom? It's important, why can't you remember?" These days I feel like every time I learn something new, I forget something I've known for years. I keep having to ask my husband whether our weather is in Degrees or Celsius. This is so bizarre to me but in my head I just can't remember it even though I've known it all my life. Does this happen to anyone else or am I just starting to go mad?

On that note, I find that the older I get the more I hesitate to learn. This is frustrating to me because I have always been someone who loves learning. Anything and everything. I find now if I'm not interested specifically in something I just don't want to deal with it. I feel like I have so little time to learn the things I need to that I don't want to learn anything more than I have to. This is such a terrible rut I'm trying to claw my way out of!

Something that I've been thinking about a lot recently is how the older I get, the more scared of everything I get. My mother tells me this is natural. She claims that eventually I'll get to the point where I won't worry again, but I feel like my life can easily be stunted if I don't check myself. When I was younger, I would do things without worry or care. Now my mind always seems to fast track to worst case scenario. If my husband goes out biking by himself my "be careful!" send off turns into worry and thinking that maybe I should have gone just in case. I can no longer do anything without thinking about the end result, which in turn leads me to saying "no" more often than I would like.

On the flip side, these recent years are the first time in my life I've felt secure in my own presence. I'm happy with who I am, how my life is, the people in my life and so on. It's the first time I can confidently voice my opinions without feeling the need to apologize, I can do whatever I want to do without concern about what others might think of me and I can feel completely settled without feeling stagnant.

I'm a big fan of Ted Talks and I love Laura Carstensen's talk on happiness. Maybe my mom knows what she's talking about after all...

*Note: this isn't me saying "oh gosh, I'm old." It's just things that I've noticed I've felt as I've gotten older.

Makeup Revolution - I Heart Makeup Naked Chocolate Palette

I ended up loving this palette so much that I felt it deserved its own post. The original Makeup Revolution Palette in I Heart Chocolate was meant to be a dupe for Too Faced's Chocolate Bar, but Makeup Revolution did two other palettes in the line, a Naked Chocolate and Death By Chocolate Bar. I chose the Naked Chocolate Bar because I am a huge fan of golds and neutrals. After using this palette I am seriously tempted to get the other two; the quality is amazing, the shadows are super buttery and blend-able and the staying power (I always use primer) is fantastic. Also, if you know me, you know I'm a sucker for collections. At $12.53 a palette (USD) they are a great bargain!

Top Row 

Middle Row 

Bottom Row

I love that this palette is a mix of matte and shimmery finishes and that there are a couple of cool tones thrown in for good measure. The last shade on the bottom row makes a gorgeous inner corner and highlight shade. Since it's so versatile, this palette is great to take with you when you travel because you can do a hundred different looks with it. I definitely heart this palette (see what I did there?) You can buy it here.

Have you tried Makeup Revolution? What's your favorite palette at the moment?