This Is My Now: March 2012

Monday, March 26, 2012

Monday FUNday

Happy Monday all! I did quite a bit of cleaning, purging, and rearranging this weekend! As I will be moving in about 2 months, I'm tryin to get rid of all the clothes/beauty products/random things that are just taking up space. I really don't want my new place to be full of clutter. Plus, packing unused things is pointless!

That being said, I was really given the chance to asses what clothes and beauty products I do have and what I need to buy. For example, I have a million and one eyeshadow palates that I never use! But I can't seem to find my eyelash curler? Over the next few weeks I'm going to try and stock up on practical, everyday items for my beauty routine. In general, I Pretty happy with my makeup routine, but I want to add a few things that I think will really enhance my everyday look!

1. Eye lash curler. Who doesn't love thick, voluminous lashes? Gorgeous lashes are my favorite part of my look, therefore I need to invest in a GOOD eyelash curler! I've done a bit of research and here are the top ones I'm considering: Shu Uemura, Sephora Mini Heated Eyelash Curler, Laura Mercier Eye Lash Curler

2. Brow Powder. I've tried an eyebrow pencil before but the look was way too dramatic for me. I do think that my brows need to be filled in, especially with my darker hair. I've heard good things about Anastasia Brow Powder and Smashbox Brow Tech. I've been very pleased in the past with LORAC products, so I'm also curious about LORAC Take A Brow.

3. Eye brightener. I typically wear a light eyeshadow, liner, and mascara- I'm not one who uses a lot of eye shadow on a regular basis. I think that an eye brighter would really help enhance my natural makeup.

4. Conclear & Powder. Back in the day, when my acne was really bad, I used these two products like crazy! As my skin got better, I started to shy away from everyday use. For the past 3-4 years, I only use a bronzer and blush. For the most part, my skin has a very even complexion, minus a few spots buttt I think it's time for me start covering up my small imperfections. I also used my sisters conclear and MAC powder this weekend and LOVED the results. I honestly have no idea on where to start with brands, please give me some advice!

I'm going to keep this list on hand so when I have a moment to do some shopping, I can pick these items up and start "enhancing" my everyday look! I recently got Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser and am SO excited to give it a try! I've heard so many great things about it- I'll report back!

And because a post without pictures is so blah, I'll leave you with a few pics from the past week!

Thanks for reading! Happy Monday!

Andrea

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Making a House a Home

At this moment, I have lived in: my childhood home, a house we moved to mid high school, the college dorm for a year, my first off campus ~~house~~ shack, an apartment for two years, and I am now back to the house we moved to during high school. In about two months I will be moving for graduate school, thus adding another place to the list.

I have come up with quite the list of DIY projects that I need to get started on ASAP so that I can make my future apartment a home. Most likely, I will be in the new town and home for at least 4 years. There's been brief talk that at some point during the first few years, my fiance will have an opportunity to be in the same town as me! (We are about a year into long distance and have at least another 2). I really want to make the apartment our home. I understand that for the majority of my time there, we will not be together, but something about the idea of starting a home together makes the years of long distance a little more bearable. I love the idea of working on the projects together; I will feel surrounded by him, our love, and memories whenever I'm in the apartment. I also think it will be really neat to have these fun little projects to hold onto throughout all of time, reminding us of where we started out.

Here's the list of DIY projects I want to create:

Magnetic Cooking Sheet- great for posting menus, lists, cards, etc.

Monogramed Plates

I will be putting the letter B on our plates as well :)

I have accumulated quite the cheap vases/glassware from Goodwill which will be perfect for this!

Canvas, stickers, and paint. Simply put the stickers on. Spray paint.

Remove the stickers. The possibilities are endless.

I might do a simple design with the buttons or stick to the letter B...

...we shall see!

My fiance will definitely be helping me with this one! I think this will be a great piece in the apartment, and on a student budget I'd rather put the money into bigger pieces of furniture.

Cake stand! Perfect for desserts, knick-nacks, things in the bathroom or kitchen that clutter.

All Images via pinterest.com

Thanks so much for reading! I'm happy to report that my motivation has begun to return- woohoo! Happy weekend all!

Andrea

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Motivation... Come back to me!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Today is the first day of my work week, and I only have two left! Ya'd think with my short work week, I'd be able to find the motivation to get everything accomplishes... But my motivation for everything productive is seriously lacking. With my 24 hours of driving in 3 days plus spring allergies, all I want to do is sleep!

I'm making a public to-do list in hopes that announcing everything can help me hold myself accountable! Readers, please also help me out: ask me how I'm doing, send a positive thought my way, anything to help me out of this slump!

My To-Do List:

1. Clean out my closets/put away winter clothes. I've been putting this off because our weather has been so back and forth, but even then, my thick sweaters, gloves, and winter scarves can be put away! During this process I really need tO do some purging! I will be moving to an apartment in June and really don't want to fill it up with things I don't use or wear. However, I have a really hard time letting to of things. I'm always worried I'll need something for a "potential/might happen" event. How do you all get rid of things? Any suggestions on letting go?

2. Continue researching Graduate Schools! I will be starting school in August, but I have yet to choose where! Thus far, I've been accepted to 4 programs (and wait listed on another). I've visited one and will be visiting another on Friday. I'm not sure I'll have time to visit the remaining two, but I don't want to necessarily count them out. I need to start doing some more in depth research of the curriculum, costs, etc. Obviously this is a huge life decision, and I have less than a month to make my final decision. Procrastion is not an option here!

3. Exercise & Meal Plan. Beginning in January I made a life change. I decided to stop the yo-yo dieting and unenjoyable exercise. I am eating healthy and fueling my body the correct way, instead of dieting. I have allowed myself a cheat day- Saturday- in which I don't feel guilty about going out to eat AND ordering dessert. Knowing I have this makes getting through the weeks and cravings so much easier. In addition, I started attending exercise classes at the YMCA. Typically I'd do 30-45 mins on the elliptical/track/treadmill but I never really looked forward to it or felt bad about missing a day. Since I started the classes, I look forward to working out and am actually disappointed if I miss a class. Unfortunately, having a week off of work and being in TN, I didn't eat well or really exercise. Combined with my lack of motivation, I've been slacking! I need to get myself back in gear! Everything in life is so much better when I'm feeding my body with the right foods, exercising&stretching and feeling confident.

4. Put more effort/energy into myself on a daily basis. I have gotten extremely lazy in the mornings. I wake up, throw something on, and don't look back. And then mid-day hits. I see myself in the mirror and it's not pretty! I've been feeling blah in a lot of aspects of my life, but when I'm dressed and feeling pretty, I seem to accomplish more. I'm going to try and plan my outfits out the night before, when I have a little more energy, and hope that helps!

That's all I have for now. I'd love to hear any suggestions! Fingers crossed that I can get the ball rolling again!

Thanks for reading,
xo Andrea

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Here we go... Again!

Hi there,

When I first embarked on the blogging journey I did not take into account my other life commitments and unfortunately blogging got away from me. I was working 2 jobs, beginning a long distance relationship, studying for the GRE and applying to Graduate Schools. As of now I am working one job, am "dealing" with a long distance relationship, and have been accepted into multiple Graduate Schools. With my new found free time I am going to start blogging again!

This past week, my dad and I drove to Knoxville, TN (8hrs) to look at the University of Tennessee! I must say that I am in love with the town and the university! I completed my undergraduate degree at a school of about 5,000 students, so UT is huge to me! Fortunately, if I choose to attend school there, all of my classes will be in ONE building. Sports and team spirit was severely lacking during my undergraduate years, therefore it would be so fun to attend a school where students take pride in the University! Here are some pictures from the trip:

Starting the 8hr drive with my morning smoothie!

Rest Stop in Kentucky! Loved it!

Here we are! Knoxville, TN!

The first full day of the trip, my dad and I spent close to 8 hours looking at apartments! It was exhausting, but I finally have a list of potential new homes! Here's what I wore during the day; it was about 80degrees in TN during out trip.