Blogmas, Day One: November Favorites

On the first day of Blogmas...just kidding! For those of you who don't watch YouTube, Vlogmas is something that YouTube gurus started a few years back, vlogging every day from December 1st through the 25th. It is most definitely one of my favorite parts of the holiday season because you get to see how everyone prepares to celebrate Christmas and generally gets me pretty pumped for the season as a whole.

Today, for my very first post of the month and of Blogmas, we're talking November Favorites. If I'm honest with you...and I always am, I really didn't discover a whole lot of new things this month. November was kind of just a flyover month for me this year. I barely wore makeup, stuck to my winter standby clothing choices and generally kind of mucked through the month at work. But for the very few things that did become favorites this month, I thought that I would put together a little blog post and share them with you. This is going to be super quick, I promise.

Makeup

Sigma Beauty Finishing Touch Eyeliner. I saw this on one of MakeupbyTiffanyD's favorites videos early in the fall and was instantly intrigued by the slightly pink tight line pencil so, naturally, I HAD to order it. 

I'm sure for most makeup mavens (and by that I mean any woman in the world who spends more than 5 minutes of slap-dash on her face), this is a last step in a full on smoky eye look to brighten up the lower lash line and balance out the darkness of the upper eyelids. I, on the other hand, laziest of makeup wearers prefers to use this as a tool to make me look more awake all the time. 

It's pretty rare that I wear makeup to shipment shifts at work because, really, who needs a full face on at 7 am when I won't be seeing customers, but when I do, this is a must-have to make me look like I'm actually alert. You just pop a little bit on your waterline and bam! Instant eye brightening and fake awakeness. 

Sigma F35 Contour Brush. Another YouTube discovery, MeghanRosette talked about this in her November favorites...last year. Initially I thought, contour schmontour. However, in my lazy ass makeup routine, taking the time to contour my cheeks a littl but does actually make a huge difference in my face. I'm still looking for my ace contour product, but thus far, this little brush couldn't make the whole thing more easy if it tried. 

Food

Just as a heads up, all of my food favorites were discovered at the very end of November and they come from Trader Joe's because Trader Joe's, and not Whole Foods, is the mothership.

Trader Joe's Candy Cane Green Tea. This is seriously the best tea ever. First of all, it has a narwhal on the packaging ("Bye Buddy, hope you find your daaaad.") and a really cute little Santa polar bear which is undeniably cute. But most importantly, it is SOOOOOOOOO good! It's minty without being too minty because it's balanced out with vanilla and some other delicious holiday flavors (at least according to the packaging. I really just taste the peppermint and vanilla). I will literally drink at least 3 cups of this each day and have since I got it.

 

Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Minty Mallows. This was a horrible mistake. Horrible, horrible, horrible. My mom and I picked these up for snacks on our Thanksgiving trip out to the North Coast and I am obsessed with them. I love dark chocolate as a rule and for whatever reason lately, I've been really liking marshmallows even though I never have previously. So when I saw the box sitting on the shelf, I ran for it and threw it in the cart. Now I'm thinking I'm going to have to be making a trip to Trader Joe's just to stock up on these. 

Random Favorites

Starbucks Travel Mug. This is part of the Starbucks Holiday collection and when I saw it on the website, I had to have it. I love the metallic flecks all over. They kind of remind me of mermaid scales. I mean, it's a travel mug. There's not much to say. It keeps my drink warm and holds my Trader Joe's tea when I have my second cup of the day. 

The Cousins O'Dwyer Series. When I was graduating from high school in 2009, Lifetime did a set of movies based on Nora Roberts books and I loved them. A few months ago I got a hankering to watch one of them and, after needed to download the second and third books as well, which I did, in the parking lot of the Fort Bragg Starbucks yesterday morning. According to my Kindle Fire, I have 50 minutes left in the second book and will be starting the third one this evening. 

Other than making me feel like its about time I got into a relationship, the book series has been such a great escape and a really good read. I honestly wish there were more books. But for right now, I think I'll content myself by discovering what happens at the end of the second book and start the third. 

doing so decided to look her up on Amazon where I found a series about Irish cousins with a bit of magick going on. Needless to say, as an Irish girl and a big fan of all things magical, I bought it. Aaaaaaaand then forgot all about it until I charged up my Kindle to take with me to Thanksgiving and saw it in my carousel. Soooo I started the first one...and devoured it. Which meant that I

Anyway, guys, that's Blogmas, Day One done. Told you I had very few favorites for last month and I wasn't lying. 

Cheers, and see you tomorrow!

My Winter Wishlist

So my last couple of posts have been just quick, little all text guys because I had some thoughts rolling around or I needed to update you on the awesome opportunities I've been afforded lately. Now, I thought that I would put together my Winter Wishlist post to follow up my Fall Wishlist that I did a month or two ago.

Now that it's finally cooling down here (I mean really, 90 degrees into the middle of October?!), I've started shopping for more wintery clothing since once it does cool down here, it cools down. Here are a few of the things that I've pinned for my winter wants. Most of these I've actually purchased already because I just couldn't wait. Don't be alarmed that they're mostly from The Gap. I just spend a crap ton of time at Gap and see things I want to buy while I'm at work. No big deal.

Barbara Quilted Rain Boots, Target $39.99

Where I live, we don't get snow at all. But we do get torrential rain, which means that rain boots are a definite necessity. I have a pair of bean boots already but those aren't exactly the most universal of shoes for cold weather so I picked these up at Target. They're super nice looking with the matte texture of the boots and the quilting gives it an extra touch. The only thing to keep in mind is that the sizing is ridiculous. I wear a size 9 normally and I bought these in a 7. No idea how that's a thing. But make sure you size down if you decide to pick them up. 

Black Leather Slip On Sneakers, Gap $49.95

I got these for myself since my trusty Vans have started to fall apart. They won't be the best choice in the rain, but if the drought conditions continue, I don't suppose I'll have to worry about that. They're very comfortable and fit true to size although they only come in whole sizes, so keep that in mind when you're picking them out.

Super Skinny Khakis, Gap $59.95

We got these in at work last week and I am absolutely obsessed with them. They are so soft and comfortable and the fit makes your butt look amazing. I am so excited to get them! They'll go with so many things, and especially for the holiday season, they're going to be perfect. 

Always Skinny Distressed Skimmer Jeans, Gap $69.95

Lately, I've realized that my jeans are either really old, don't fit or, with the last couple of pairs I've bought, are odd colors. I just want a pair of throw on blue jeans that I can wear all the time and I think that's what these are going to be. The fit is really nice (Always Skinny is my favorite cut of our jeans) and I really like the distressing being not at the knees because I always end up ripping huge holes in the knees of my jeans when they're already distressed there.

Marled Raglan Sweater, Gap $44.95

I bought a sweater from work that is literally identical to this as far as the fabric is concerned, but has no pockets. Not gonna lie, I'm a little pissed mine doesn't have pockets on it, but I'll live. I love the navy/white marled look of the sweater. I don't have anything like it in my wardrobe. 

PrimaLoft Luxe Floral Puffer Vest, Gap $52.99

This guy is actually marked down online but not in stores which I find very annoying. But I'm in love with the print on this thing. It doesn't look at all like a traditional puffer vest to me so I feel like I need it in my life. 

And there you have all of the things that I want for the winter time here. Stay tuned for a couple more Fall posts this week and check out my first official food post over here on Eat. Drink. Adventure.