Ipsy December Review

Happy Thursday!

Today was a great day because not only did I get out of work early but we had our food tasting with our caterer that we officially booked! 

Today I am going to review some of the products I used in Ipsy's December glam bag.

This month's glam bag was designed by Forever 21. 

The only product I haven't used yet is the intimating brown lip paint. 

Be a Bombshell in Submissive is an eye base that I actually have now rotated into my daily use. This stuff reminds me of Mac's paint pots (which I love) but this would only run you $12. This definitely keeps my eyeshadow on all day. I highly recommend!

I also have not used the Morocco Hair Spray. 

On the left is Temptu's S/B Highlighter in Pink Pearl. This is such a pretty highlighter, I've used this a couple of times now. It just makes my skin have a glow to it, rather than a pale dull look. 

The middle is J.Cat Wonder lip paint. I'm assuming this product is like OCC lip paint. I have put this on my lips but am afraid to go in public with it!

The swatch on the right is the Elizabeth Mott glitter liquid liner. Once my Elf liquid liner ran out I went to this to substitute. At first I loved it, but after using it for over a week I noticed it became flaky and didn't have the lasting power that the Elf liquid liner did. I would recommend this for a night out, not for a day's wear. 

Overall this month's Ipsy bag was better than I expected. I love when I get to try new products and want more of it. :)

Have a great night!

Wedding Wednesday: Picking a Rehearsal Dinner

Happy Wedding Wednesday!

I have been doing a lot of planning for the wedding, it's so exciting!

This past Sunday we met with a caterer and have a food tasting tomorrow (yum!) so I'd like to share this next week once we do our tasting. Today I'd like to talk a little bit about choosing a rehearsal dinner. 

For me, I want something that is close to our venue and close to the hotel where guests will be staying. Luckily where I'm having my venue, there is a ton of good dinner spots. We are going to be having close to 30 people at the rehearsal dinner so we definitely need a room. We decided that we are going to be trying a bunch of different places before we decide on one since we have this month to pick a place. 

This past Sunday we tried our first one.

Unfortunately, the food isn't that great, but the upstairs room is perfect for what we need. It overlooks the city and it has it's own bar for our use, and upstairs bathrooms so none of the guests would have to leave the room to go into the restaurant. It's the perfect set up for what I need although I would like if it was a bit nicer inside. 

This place brews it own beer!

On the left is the bar that our party can utilize while there, and on the right there are windows overlooking the city. 

I am not a fan of the tables and chairs but with some linens I think it would look a little better. 

Downstairs where we ate they have huge "tanks" making beer. I liked that a lot. 

I'm still undecided on how I want the place to be. I guess I am trying to lean towards what the guests would want, but I'm not really sure. I also don't know if it's a good idea to have an open bar the night before the wedding. I really really don't want people drunk or hung over on the day of our wedding.

This place is an option but I don't know if I'll go with it.

This weekend my brother is coming to visit so we will be trying another place to eat. Wish me luck! 

Have a great night!

Elf Products I'm Loving

Happy Tuesday!

This post has taken me so long to write up that the products are already gone and I need to repurchase! But that's ok, because they're so cheap I don't mind!

I randomly decided one day to try Elf's waterproof liquid liner, I figured this would last me about a week, but it's actually lasted me 2 months! I was amazed at how much product was in such a small container, and it was only $1! The staying power of this liquid liner is amazing and it doesn't flake off like the liquid liner I'm using now(Elizabeth Mott). The application was a felt tip that was real simple to work with. I cannot stress how much I loved this product. I need to go out and buy 5 more!

Another product I am loving is Elf's Volume Plumping Mascara. This was from their professional line so it was $3, but $3 is a steal for mascara now. Even a drug store brand can run you up to $12. 

I picked this up because I was in need of a new one and I figured why not? 

I have been using a sample of Urban Decay's Perversion I got with a recent Ipsy bag and decided to go back to Elf. The UD left me with raccoon eyes by 9:00 in the morning.

I wouldn't say this mascara gave a lot of volume, unless of course you put a couple of coats on, but it definitely gives me length and doesn't flake or transfer on my skin. 

If you're looking for two cheap products, I highly recommend them. I've been using them for quite some time now and plan on repurchasing!

Have a great Tuesday night!

Weekend Recap: Outfits, New Years Eve, Meeting with our Caterer

Happy Monday!

I'm sure it's back to the grind for most of us, unfortunately. 

I'm ok with it, I like the feeling of a fresh start. I felt very motivated at work today!

New Years Eve this year was even better than last year! 

We headed to Philadelphia again to celebrate, just like last year, but this time we actually went out. We went to Sugar House Casino where they had a big party and fireworks to end the night. 

Some highlights from the night:

My outfit was pretty basic, I didn't have much time to pick one out since we planned this last minute. 

Red blazer: Old Navy/Sequin top: Forever 21/Faux leather leggings: Lauren Conrad(my 2nd time wearing them! Go me!)/Makemechic.com boots/Michael Kors watch

I was jealous of everyone's "Naked on the Run" instagram pictures, I decided to jump on the bandwagon. Even though my fiance thought I was weird, he was happy to help. Haha

At SugarHouse casino we tried eating at Refinery but it was blocked off, so we decided to eat at this low key restaurant, Jacks Sandwiches & Sweets and Oh-My-God, it was delicious! I got a turkey hammy and it was so good! 

My nails for the evening, nothing fancy, and a horrible attempt at "2015" 

This was Refinery, as you can see it was way too packed. 

The fireworks lit up outside behind the bridge. It was such a pretty back drop. 

As you can see, he's tired. Haha. We did it though! That's how you know you're getting older, when you can't even stay up past midnight. Haha. 

New Years Day:

Kohls sweater/TJMaxx tank/Old Navy Jeggings/Alloy over the knee boots. 

New Years Day we went shopping at the Philadelphia Premium Outlets. I'm beginning to love that place more than King of Prussia, shocker, I know. 

Saturday, I lounged around all day. After the holidays I needed a little break. So I have nothing to share but that I finished a season of My Fair Wedding. :)

Sunday:

We met with our potential caterer at a local bookstore and my fiance picked up this vanilla bean cupcake by Cheesecake factory. Looks so good!

I went with my list of questions to ask the caterer. More on this later.

Afterwards we went to a potential Rehearsal Dinner place, more on this later as well.

Have a great Monday!

Sunday Wish List

Happy Sunday!

Today we had a very successful meeting with our caterer. We even have a food tasting this Thursday! We are so excited. Our families will be driving up as well to try the food. But more on this later. 

Today's Sunday Wish List will be short because there isn't much I want, especially after the holidays!

Here's a few items I've been pinning:

I've been thinking a lot about our wedding registry lately and would really love a Kate Spade dish set. 

You can find them here

I really love these feather earrings, but definitely don't need them, but I think they're cute!

Unfortunately, they're no longer available, but you can search other jewelry on this website here

In New York we stayed at The W and they had Bliss products to use and I fell in love with this scent, Lemon and Sage. I love how it smells clean and refreshing, it definitely gives you that clean feeling! Plus this small set is only $10! You can find it here

I'm going to be taking down our Christmas tree today. I usually like to take down all our decorations by the 1st of January, but since we went to Philadelphia I didn't have the time. 

When do you typically take down your Christmas decorations?

 

Happy 2015!

Happy New Year!

I just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year! 

I can't believe 2014 was here and now gone. It amazes me how fast time goes by. 

2014 was a good year for me, although I've had my ups and downs, but overall 2014 was very good to me. 

In 2014 we did a lot of planning for the wedding, and as 2015 comes in, we are full throttle as our wedding is only 6 months away. We are beyond excited for our wedding and it's literally everything we talk about. And literally everything we watch on TV just to get some ideas for our own wedding. 

Not only am I excited for our wedding but after the wedding comes the honeymoon. And we both agreed we want to go somewhere new. We've never really been outside the country other than on the cruises. We both have never flown before, so this is a must for me and something I'm really looking forward to. 

After the honeymoon we're planning on moving back home. I say planning because you never know what can happen. We want to find our own home, and we're actively looking at what we can afford and where we can afford it. Which is a HUGE deal, moving from an apartment to our own home. We are beyond ready for it, we've been living in our own apartment for over 4 years now, so we are ready! 

2014 was great and I hope it was for you as well. 

Bring on 2015!

Ulta Haul: Naked on the Run, Smashbox, Tarte & More!

Happy Tuesday!

Last weekend I decided to use my 20% off my entire purchase coupon for Ulta. 

I was excited to use it because this 20% off coupon included prestige brands and I've really been wanting the Naked on the Run. I also had $11 off my purchase because of my points balance so I decided to use that on my purchase as well. 

I have been wanting this brush forever! I finally decided to just do it. It's the Tarte Slenderizer, it's a contouring brush. I thought this would be helpful when I'm trying to contour my makeup. 

Can we just take a moment and marvel in this brush's beauty?

Just a moment. 

I love the angle of this brush and it's going to be perfect for my cheeks. 

I also picked up some of NYX's Halloween lashes. I plan on using the ones on the left New Years Eve. 

These two items are just repeats, I needed another liquid liner, and needed more concealer. I cannot break my habit of this concealer, I love it so much!

I seem to break out a lot, so I thought this NYX Wonder Pencil Concealer would be worth a try. Plus it was super cheap so I figured why not? I thought maybe a pencil would be more precise in covering up blemishes then a fluffy brush!

I travel a lot from home & my families house, and going different places so I'm giving this Smashbox travel brush set a try. It was on clearance for $8.97! I don't know what the brush on the right does, does anyone?!

 

 And last, but certainly not least, is the Naked on the Run. 

I'm justifying this $54 purchase because I know I'm on the road a lot and going different places and I love how this has neutral shadows in it, blushes, lip gloss, eye liner AND mascara. I literally will not need to bring anything but this palette. My fiance & I are heading to Philadelphia to celebrate New Years Eve tomorrow so I am going to test this palette out and will report back!

Have you made any recent make up purchases?