Give Me The Fall Lips

Like most people, Fall is my favorite season of the year! However, I live in Southern California… which means I have to fake Fall until it decides to show up.

As soon as September hit, I began to dream of the seasonal makeup, clothing and eventual weather changes. The weather will catch up soon enough, but in the mean time I wanted to share the seasonal lips that I am so excited to finally wear!

P.S. Yes, my lips are naturally crooked and no, my lip color application is not always on point. 😛

^ColourPop – Ultra Matte Lip in Trap.
Trap is most definitely my current favorite lip for Fall/Winter. The ColourPop Ultra Matte formula is amazing. It goes on extremely smooth and opaque, dries in an instant and lasts like a dream! I cannot wait to purchase more colors… did I mention that they’re only $6.00??

^ColourPop – Lippie Stix in Grunge.
Another stunner from ColourPop. Grunge is such a unique and lovely color for the upcoming seasons!

^MAC – Satin Lipstick in Faux.
This is actually one of the shades that I tend to wear all year. It’s easy to pack on the layers for a lovely Fall nude or sheered out in the Summer!

^MAC – Satin Lipstick in Viva Glam II.
This shade is similar to Faux, but I love that it’s a pinch deeper and more brown. Definitely a staple for me during the seasonal months.

^Maybelline – Color Sensational Matte Lipstick in Divine Wine.
The good ol’ deep wine lip is always the key to a successful Fall makeup look. Maybelline’s Color Sensational line is by far my favorite drugstore lipstick brand.

^Jeffree Star – Velour Liquid Lipstick in Anna Nicole.
I love a good matte orangey red for the transition of the seasons, doable in the Summer and lovely in the Fall. Jeffree Star Cosmetics is continuing to come out with additional colors that will be phenomenal for the seasonal months and I cannot wait to get my hands on more shades!

^NYX – Soft Matte Lip Cream in Monte Carlo.
NYX is another one of my favorite drugstore brands, the lip creams are so comfortable on the lips! I love this shade because it’s a lovely berry color that isn’t too hardcore and very wearable.

^MAC – Lip Pencil in Stone.
This may not be a popular choice, especially for those with fair skin… however, I like to play up my fair skin and giving myself the “almost dead” lip look when I’m feeling adventurous. In addition, this color is now an actual MAC lipstick, which I need to purchase.

Trust me when I say that choosing these few products was a challenge. There are so many gorgeous shades to wear during the Fall, the possibilities are endless! What are some of your favorite shades to wear on your lips during the Fall (or any time!)?

BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream Review

I’ve been in the market for a new tinted moisturizer. When I walked into Ulta, the first thing I saw was the BareMinerals goodies at the front of the store. I don’t have many BareMinerals products, so I figured it was worth a look. I noticed the Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream and was immediately intrigued, especially when I saw the color Opal. As someone with very very fair skin, I have a hard time finding foundations, tinted moisturizers, etc., mostly because nothing is ever pasty white enough! However, Opal blended so perfectly into my milky white hand that I knew I had to try it.

My skin is quite dry and it can be sensitive, if there’s fragrance, alcohols or some other funky ingredient, I will likely break out. So, being fair with dry, sensitive skin can make for some challenging beauty product shopping!

I wanted to provide a thorough review on the product, so I will be giving you my first impression of the application, the wear throughout the day and how my skin reacted after a few days of use.

My initial reaction to the squeezing the product onto my hand was that it has an almost whipped, fluffy texture. Not your typical liquid tinted moisturizer, but I thought the texture was nice. I applied the product with my fingertips, as suggested on the label and I can best describe it as a “cool” feeling on the skin. First, I applied about a pea sized amount of product onto my skin, but because my skin is so dry… it drank this stuff up immediately. Basically, if you have dry skin, you better apply quickly!
I ended up applying a total amount of product that was about the size of a kidney bean.

On the left, I am bare faced (with the exception of mascara) and on the right, I am wearing the BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream. You can see that the texture and tone of my skin is more even.

My skin tone was noticeably more even and my skin texture was much smoother in appearance. There was also a lovely, healthy glow to my skin. The product claims to be good for all skin types and I can definitely see that as a possibility. However, I would keep in mind that the coverage is very minimal. I have relatively good skin that doesn’t necessarily require a lot of coverage, plus I generally prefer a more natural coverage and finish.

I completed the rest of my makeup and didn’t bother applying any sort of finishing powder because I have such dry skin and there was no way I was going to cover up this lovely glow I had going on! I periodically checked to see how well my face was holding up and I can honestly say my face never went dull or blotchy. Even as the product slowly began to fade away, my skin tone and texture continued to look smooth all day and I could not be more pleased!

After a couple days of wearing this product, I started to notice tiny little pimples that seemed to appear in sad clusters on my chin and cheeks. Obviously this was very disappointing, but I continued to use the product for the sake of science! I gave it a week, yet the tiny pimples remained and continued to happen. I wanted to make sure that it was the tinted gel causing this, so I stopped using it for one week… and they went away.

It’s safe to say that I will not be purchasing this product again, as my dry, sensitive skin did not fare well after daily use. However, I still recommend the BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream to those who do not have such sensitive skin. It provides a lovely natural finish, evens out skin tone and lasts well throughout the day.

With that being said, does anyone have any tinted moisturizers/BB creams/CC creams that are a must try?! I’m still on the hunt! 🙂

Orange Tofu Stir-Fry

It was one of those “what random stuff can I throw together for dinner/I need to go grocery shopping, but don’t want to” sort of days. I peered into the fridge to take inventory and discovered some extra firm tofu. I have no idea what I bought this for originally, but it’s what worked for this meal in particular! I grabbed the tofu, some veggies, rice and an unopened orange sauce. Voila! I shall create an Orange Tofu Stir-Fry!

Ingredients:
• 1 14oz package of extra firm tofu
• 1 broccoli head
• 1 handful of baby carrots sliced up
• 1tbs of sesame oil
• 1 cup of dried white rice
• Orange sauce (or teriyaki, if you prefer!)
• Salt n’ Pepper to taste (optional)



Preheat your oven to 400F.

While your oven is heating up, remove the tofu from the package, wrap it up in a clean dish cloth or thick paper towel and weigh it down with a book or heavy pan. This will help dry up the tofu a bit.



Now that the oven is at 400F, slice up the tofu into cubes or strips.



Place the cubes or strips onto a cookie sheet with parchment paper and then bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, turning once half way through baking. This will further dry out the tofu. Drying the tofu makes it more porous, which will make soaking up flavor easier.

Once the tofu is finished baking, set it aside to cool, while you get to cookin’ on the other goodies.



Cook your rice as directed on the packaging.

Then heat your sesame oil over medium heat.

While the oil is heating up, chop up your broccoli head and carrots.

Toss the broccoli and carrots into the oiled up pan, sprinkle with salt n’ pepper (if you want) and cook for a good 5-7 minutes.



Now throw the tofu into the same pan and mix everything well.

Pour the desired amount of orange sauce into the pan and make sure everything is evenly coated and continue to cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.



By the time you’re finished cooking the veggies, tofu and sauce, your rice should be done. Place your rice and tofu stir-fry into a bowl or on a plate and enjoy!

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Shimmering Skin Perfector – Champagne Pop Review

I have been mildly obsessed with Jaclyn Hill for a couple years now. The moment she announced teaming up with Becca Cosmetics to create Champagne Pop, I cried tears of glitter and joy. I counted down the minutes until it was available for purchase on Sephora.com and it was mine!

Jaclyn explained that a big part of the inspiration behind Champagne Pop was her sister and how challenging it was for her to find a highlighter that paired well with her milky white skin. As someone that glows white all year long, I was over the moon. I’m down with my fair skin, but I longed for a highlighter that would actually show up the way that a highlighter is supposed to! Champagne Pop does that.

I couldn’t have opened this product any faster. It was even more beautiful than I imagined. It’s the perfect combination of champagne and rose gold, definitely a must have for any skin tone (especially the pale ladies!).

If you have ever tried out any other Shimmering Skin Perfector from Becca, it is the exact same buttery, soft formula. Although this product is a bit pricey, a little bit goes a long way. I basically just tap the product with my brush and that is more than enough to highlight both cheeks. Obviously if you want something a wee bit more dramatic, pile this lovely product on!

I could not be happier with Champagne Pop. Not only do I finally have the perfect highlighter for my complexion, but being able to be play a small part in supporting someone I’ve admired for years makes this a perfect product.

Salsa Verde Crockpot Chicken

Salsa Verde Crockpot Chicken is a staple meal in my household. I first got the idea from an old friend of mine that came to work one day with some leftovers. As soon as she reheated it in the microwave, I had to ask “what is this glorious smell?!?!” She went into detail about the ingredients that she threw together in her saute pan and I knew immediately that I wanted to create it at home; however, I’ve done some tweaking over the past couple years and I have now perfected the recipe to my taste.

What’s even better about this recipe is that it is quite healthy and versatile! I typically serve this meal as a bowl, which includes quinoa and lettuce. But again, you can switch it up to your liking, it’s great on it’s own, in a wrap, with rice or in a salad.

Ingredients (4 servings):
• Two boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Your favorite jar of salsa verde
• Ground cumin
• Cayenne pepper
• 2-3 Garlic cloves, minced
• Oregano
• 1 cup of plain greek yogurt or sour cream (I used greek yogurt)
• 1 15oz can of beans of your choice (I typically go with black beans or great northern beans)
• Fresh cilantro
• Lime



To get started, bring out the ol’ crockpot, place the chicken breasts into the crockpot and pour the salsa verde over top until the chicken is covered (leave some leftover salsa verde to drizzle on top in the end!). Now sprinkle your desired amount of cumin, cayenne pepper, garlic and oregano on top of the salsa verde dressed chicken.

Turn the temperature on high for 3.5 hours or on low for 6 hours.

This is when your house starts smelling incredibly good.

Now that the chicken is cooked through, open up the crockpot and use two forks to shred the chicken.

Mix in the greek yogurt (or sour cream) and the can of beans (drained and cleaned). Stir everything up nicely and then place the lid back on the crockpot to cook on low for another 15-30 minutes. Use this time to prepare the other parts of your meal (this is when I cooked my quinoa, washed the lettuce, etc.)



Once the salsa verde chicken is ready to go, I placed the deliciousness into a bowl along with freshly cooked quinoa, lettuce, fresh cilantro and freshly squeezed lime juice.

This recipe also makes great leftovers that will last in the fridge for about 3-4 days in tightly closed tupperware. Enjoy!

Current Skincare Musts

I’ve been struggling for years to find the perfect products for my skin. My skin is very dry and quite sensitive. Most products, whether they are high end or from the drugstore, tend to cause a breakout, extra dryness or general irritation.

Luckily, after years of money down the drain, pimples on my face and wasted products, I have found the products that work best for me!



• Makeup Remover Wipes – Everyone Face Remove Towelettes are by far the best makeup remover wipes I have ever used. The only store that I have found them in is Sprouts. They are so gentle, yet remove all of my makeup and I see a noticeable difference in my skin. The texture of my skin is better, it feels cleaner and I have much fewer breakouts (if any, these days!)
• Facial Cleanser – Lush Ultrabland is my boo. This is definitely made for someone with dry, sensitive skin. It has all kinds of good, simple ingredients and it leaves a lovely moisturizing effect on the skin once it’s wiped off. Now, I see this being a problem for someone with oily skin, but for my parched face, it works wonders. My skin is left feeling clean and moisturized after every use.
• Exfoliator – Benefit Cosmetics Refined Finish Facial Polish has been great to me. I know what you’re thinking… dry and sensitive skin doesn’t need a bunch of little rocks scraping against it! However, I still think a good exfoliator is important in anyones skincare routine. I only use this once or twice a week and although it has a light fragrance, it has not irritated my skin at all. I am thinking of venturing out and trying a new exfoliator, not because this one hasn’t done well, but it is a bit pricey and I don’t like fragrances in skincare. Any suggestions?
• Outbreak Emergency Treatment – When it comes to the random hormonal blemish or two, I turn to Acne Free Terminator 10. This stuff will bleach your hair, it’s so strong. Would I ever recommend spreading this all over your face? Hell-to-the-nah, but it will make a big difference in the life of an odd zit.
• Moisturizer – Probably the most important to anyone with dry skin, First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream will be a lifelong friend. Until the day I tried Ultra Repair Cream, I never experienced a moisturizer that sunk in, did not irritate my skin and actually improved the quality of my skin. It’s good for the face and body, it’s a lovely thick creamy moisturizer and I am mildly obsessed with this product. Plus, I am prone to eczema and I had a tiny bit under my eye (I know, ew) before I used this product and Ultra Repair Cream cleared it right up!

Benefit Cosmetics – Roller Lash Review

As a woman with less than impressive eyelashes, I love a good mascara. Anything that will add some color, length and curl to my blonde, short and straight-as-a-board lashes is well worth it to me.

I’ve tried countless mascaras throughout the years, some have done wonders for my lashes, others… not so much. My absolute favorites are Smashbox Full Exposure, L’Oreal Voluminous and Benefit Bad Gal Lash. I tend to go for a more dry formula with mascaras.


When I heard the news that Benefit had a new mascara coming out that was designed to curl the straightest of lashes (like mine!), I could not have been more excited. I immediately purchased a tube of Benefit’s Roller Lash and was gushing over the great packaging, I’ve always been a huge fan of Benefit’s packaging. From the photos online, I was excited to see that the brush was on the smaller side, and I could only hope that when I twisted that lovely pink roller top off… I would see a nice, dry formula. The mascara clung so nicely to the brush, without globs or excess product. It didn’t appear to be overly wet or dry, so I wasn’t disappointed. I did my every day eye makeup, but decided not to wear any eyeliner, so my lashes don’t appear thicker at all. In addition, I decided to go without my eyelash curler because I wanted the full effect of the mascara to shine through in my review.

I really felt the grip of the brush as I ran it through my lackluster lashes, which made it super easy to just dig in at the root, coating every lash. I put a total of two coats on and I noticed that the curl, length and thickness that I achieved after first putting the product on had lasted all day long. However, I did notice that my eyelashes felt a little “heavy.” As a contact lenses wearer, my eyes seemed a bit uncomfortable throughout the day, not enough to stop me from wearing the mascara, just enough to notice a difference. At the end of the day, it wasn’t as easy to take off as my typical go-to mascaras, but I suppose that’s the price you pay when a mascara actually holds up for an entire day.



Overall, I’ve been enjoying this mascara quite a bit! It gives a very noticeable oomph to my lashes and I love that it lasts all day long. Would I repurchase? I’m not so sure. I want to continue to use it and see if the discomfort subsides. If I’m going to spend $23 on a mascara, it better rock my world and change my life for the better! Have any of you tried this mascara? I’d love to hear other opinions! 🙂

Chewy, Buttery Chocolate Chip Cookies with Walnuts

I’ve baked plenty of cookies on this blog and when I had the craving for some chocolate chip cookies, I was about to whip up my staple White & Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip cookies. The thing with these cookies though? They’re a more cakey consistency, which I love, but sometimes you just want an ooey gooey, chewy cookie… So, I decided to modify my recipe a bit and hoped I would get the cookie that my heart desired. I tried, I succeeded! Now I will share this modified recipe with you.

First, I knew I just wanted one chocolate (semi-sweet chocolate) and I dug out some walnuts from the pantry. Swapping out the baking powder for baking soda was a must for that soft n’ chewy consistency. Then, in my last stitch effort to get it right, I modified the sugar amounts a bit. My original recipe called for equal amounts of white and brown sugar, 1 cup each; however, I figured more brown sugar and less white sugar would definitely create that perfect cookie for me!

A few scribbles in my recipe book and I was ready to get down to cookie business.

The ingredients for 36 cookies:
• 1 cup of butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cup of packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup of white sugar
• 1 tbs. vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups of flour (I used all purpose)
• 1/4 tsp. of salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. of baking soda
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts



In a large bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking soda. Set the bowl aside.

Cream together the two sugars and your softened butter. I used a standing mixer and had it on low/medium speed for about 2 minutes.

Pour in your vanilla extract and beat in one egg at a time, making sure you do not over beat the eggs.

Add about 1/4 of the dry ingredients into the creamy mixture, then beat until almost incorporated, then repeat with the 1/4 of the dry ingredients and so on. Once you have poured all of the dry ingredients into the creamy batter, stop beating once all of the ingredients are just combined. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure a consistently combined mixture.

Now put some plastic wrap over the bowl that contains the batter and place into the fridge. This will create a firm dough that will be easy to roll and will keep the dough from flattening in the oven. Keep the dough in the fridge for about an hour, but you can keep them in the fridge overnight as well, if you forget about the dough or get distracted by other things (like I did…. oops).



Alright, the dough is firm and ready to roll! Preheat your oven to 350F.

Lightly grease a cookie sheet or use parchment paper.

I rolled my dough into 1-1.5 inch balls and spaced them about 2 inches apart from one another.

Pop them in the oven for 10 – 11 minutes, you will see that the bottom edges are a lovely golden brown.

Take the cookies out, allow them to cool and you have some delightfully chewy, buttery chocolate chip cookies.

Quora seems to think these are puppy friendly… they’re not.

I believe I may retire my old recipe and stick with this one! I hope you enjoy them as much as we did. 🙂

Lasagna Rollups With Meat Sauce

The beauty of cooking is experimentation. Grabbing ingredients you know/think/hope will work together in a perfect, harmonious dish is my favorite part about cooking! Sometimes you create a masterpiece that will be dubbed a new household staple or the dish that you always have to bring to special occasions. There are also plenty of times that the experimentation did not go as planned, but it was just in good fun and you learned a thing or two.

Yeah, sometimes I just don’t want to do any of that… Whenever I want to try something new, without having to think too hard or waste ingredients for the sake of experimenting, I check out my cookbooks and Pinterest. This was the case for this weeks dinner! I took a gander at my “Stuff For My Belly” board and came across some Spinach Lasagna Rollups. I hit the jackpot. I made this a few months back and they were so simple and delicious, but I wanted to mix it up a bit this time. This was a great vegetarian recipe, but I wanted to beef it up a bit…. get it? Beef!



I started off by preparing my homemade marinara meat sauce and then I got the roll up ingredients together.

The Ingredients:
1 lb. lasagna noodles
15 oz. ricotta
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1 large egg
Salt and Pepper to taste



Preheat oven to 400F.

Cook the lasagna noodles as directed on the box.

Once the noodles are cooked and you’ve strained them, the faster you get the noodles lying flat, the less likely you’ll be stuck with funky/creased noodles. I laid my noodles onto some paper towels to help them from sticking to the countertop.

I axed the spinach for the rollups all together. I combined the ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan and 1 large egg in a bowl, then evenly and thinly spread the mixture on each cooked lasagna noodle.



Then you simply roll them up, seam facing down. Then I sprayed my glass baking dish with some Pam and plopped the rollups onto the dish.

I evenly coated all of the rollups with my sauce. Make sure to cover all of the rollups, including the edges, as this will ensure the noodles stay soft while they bake.



Place the dish into the preheated oven and cook for 30 minutes. Serve them hot and they keep up very nicely in the fridge for a few days!

A Lovely Day in New York

Considering I have been to New York before, I have already done the tourist bit that included the 9/11 Memorial, Time Square, Statue of Liberty, etc. Now whenever I make the trip, I just do little things that I would do if I lived there.

My most recent visit was in the dead of Winter, which means I did not ride a bike around the park or sit at a lovely patio seated restaurant; however, I thoroughly enjoyed grabbing a cup of coffee while walking through Central Park, catching a movie, shopping and enjoying the museums.

On this particular day, I met up with Chris during his lunch break and we briefly walked through the park to check out the ice rink. The skyline, the snow, the people, it was perfect.




I mentioned in a previous post that I was hoping to do Winter Outfits of the Day in New York… but, I don’t think I realized how cold it would be. Yeah, there was no way I would be fashionable over warm! So, this is as stylish as I could get. Keep in mind that this was probably the warmest day during our trip, so everything before/after this was quite bundled up.




When he went back to work, I was on my own. I continued to walk through the park, enjoyed some Birch coffee and then made my way over to the Shops at Columbus Circle. This place had some great shopping and dining options. Everything you needed in one lovely shopping center. I was happy to see that one floor would have high end shops, such as Michael Kors and Coach, but then you had the more affordable shops like H&M and J Crew.
I so badly wanted to grab lunch at Bouchon Bakery, it smelled soooo good and looked like my sort of place… but it was packed, so I moved right along. I knew I wanted to catch a movie afterward, so a pretzel at the movie theater would hold me over until I decided on a nifty lunch spot.



Then it was on to the movie theater to see “The Theory of Everything”… great movie. Highly recommend, if you haven’t seen it already.



After my movie, I grabbed some lunch at Melt, which I gave a review of in my Food in New York post. In case you don’t feel like clicking to read, I had a maple bacon grilled cheese with tomato soup and it was grrrreat!

Anyway, it may not seem like much… but I can honestly say it was my favorite day during our trip to New York. I was able to spend some time with Chris, had some glorious coffee, walked through a snow filled Central Park and spent some alone time with shopping and a movie. What did one of your favorite days include?