New Layout!

A new Layout has appeared! It took me a while to figure out how to do the layout so, if you were on when any of that chaos was going on, my apologies!! But I love this new layout and let me know what you think, it you hate it, love it, or don't really care. ha ha

While I Procrastinate....

With two weeks left of classes and all my teachers piling on homework, I have been procrastinating like crazy! Research paper next week, Analysis Paper on wednesday and exams next week. But anyways, as my list goes on, I am dreaming of my 6 week vacation from college in two weeks and I am so excited to begin my booklist that I have been longing to read for months!












I started reading The Art of Racing in the Rain a while ago but as school started to kick in, I never really got to finish it.  This is a really comical book about a family through the eyes of the family dog.  From what I've read so far, it is so good and I think it is definitely going to make me cry in the end.


I am a HUGE fan of Nicholas Sparks books and I have read almost every single book of his and practically all of them have made me cry and I love books that do that just are amazing every time. So I am super excited to read his new book!


The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest is part of this murder mystery
series and I have watched the last two movies that have been made
from the books.  The first movie "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" was really good and I have really liked the series so far, so with more time on my hands in this winter break, I have decided to pick up the third book and I am super excited to read it.

These are only 3 of some other books that I really want to read over spring break, but these are my top books that I want to read so I will leave you with that!

:)

Bath and Body Works Candles!

Thanksgiving is now over and a couple of days with the family always gets a little tiring, but I was so happy to see them anyways! I wasn't able to do black friday, but I did get in on some good deals at Bath and Body works and I couldn't be more excited!  I have always wanted candles and I think they are the classiest touch to a house but I've always been that worry wart that is so afraid its going to burn the house down. With all fears aside, I took the deal of 50% off candles and got the candle for Forever Sunshine and Fresh Linen! These are two very different scents, Forever Sunshine is a very fruity, citrus-y scent and I love it,  Fresh Linen is such a clean smell and I think this would be a perfect scent for when you are just relaxing and laying in bed. I am so happy with my purchases today, and normally these candles go for about 20 dollars so to buy 2 at 50% off, its like your getting one for free, which is always great in my book!

I have Forever Sunshine Burning in my bathroom and it is just emanating throughout the entire house! YAY

Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pie!

Thanksgiving is Tomorrow! I couldn't be more excited to see my entire family tomorrow and I love baking and making sweets all the time! So I decided to try and make pumpkin pie completely from scratch and it was a success!!! I don't want to toot my own horn, but I can cook pretty good but I get a little lazy when it comes to time aspect so whenever I do cook, its always fun to see the results.
So here is the recipe! :)

Ingredients:
2 cups of Pumpkin Puree, 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar, 1/3 cup white sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 eggs plus yolk of third egg, 2 tsp of cinnamon, 1 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/4 ground cloves, 1/2 tsp of lemon zest, and 1 pie crust.

How to make Pumpkin Puree:
Buy a regular pumpkin at any of your local grocery stores, cut off the stem and scrape out the insides and cut into sections (the part of the pumpkin you carve), steam in a double steamer for about 15 minutes until it is really soft, scoop the pulp from the skin. Put the pulp into a blender and blend until smooth.


















Cooking Instructions:
1. preheat oven to 425 F;
2. Mix sugars, salt, spices, lemon zest in a large bowl. Beat eggs, add.  Stir in pumpkin puree and cream. Whisk together.
3. Pour into pie crust, bake at 425 F for 15 min. After 15 mins reduce temperature to 350 F. Bake 40-50 minutes.
4. Cool for 2 hours
5. Add some delicious whipped cream when served!

Enjoy! 

What I am Thankful for!

Thanksgiving is tomorrow and I thought I would do a post in honor of it! Every year my entire family always gathers together and goes to Sedona, Arizona for thanksgiving and this year will definitely be more bittersweet because a couple months ago my grandma passed away and it was her that would really always bring us all back together every year and even though she wont be with us in person, I really believe that she'll be with us in spirit watching over each and every one of us.

So to actually get into it, I am thankful for my entire family, I have a really big family so I am so thankful that I always have someone to call if I need a bit of adult advice, I am also thankful for all my younger cousins that always put a smile on my face when I see them and I am truly thankful for my parents! They have supported me through everything and I am really lucky to have gone through every situation with them, especially my mom.  I have seen her work so hard throughout her whole life to give me a better life and I am truly thankful for that.  I am also so grateful for my friends!, I could not go without mentioning them, I am so grateful for the friends I have, they are so amazing and in everything I do they support me and they push me to step out of my comfort zone and be a better person, and I know I could not live without my best friend who I consider my sister from another mister, Breanna! I hope and pray she will always be in my life because she is one person I truly could not live without!!!  

Other than family, I am thankful for the fact that I am able to go to a good college and be able to study a major that I am fully invested in, I am thankful for this blog, this blog gives me such a creative outlet that I really never had before and its really amazing to hear feedback from readers! so I am truly grateful this year and every year before this!

I know this really doesn't have much to do with beauty or fashion but thanksgiving is tomorrow and I will be heading to see my family soon enough so I am a big ball of excitement and I just wanted to share it!









HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

A Girl Can Dream ;)

Christmas is rolling around the corner, and still living with my parents, they always ask me what I want, but with more realizations on what the value of a dollar really is, I always like to keep my suggestions on budget, but it never hurts to dream for the finer things in life haha.  So here are some things on my
too-expensive-to-ever-have wish list.

Christian Loubiton Boots

           
Chain Shoulder Biker Jacket

 

Faux Fur Gilet

Well This is hardly everything that I could think of but I've been thinking about doing a fun little post on what I could never afford for a while, so here it is LOL! I've really been loving everything that I just showed; though it does not really follow the style of San Diego or the weather so I don't really see these kinds of pieces in my closet, but soon enough when I move to Los Angeles!.... eventually ;)

Current Obsessions!

Starting into this blog, it has brought my likes, dislikes and obsessions to a new light.  Before, I knew what I liked and disliked fashion wise, but blogging has opened up a new world like make-up, reviews and hauls! Anyways, recently I have had a current obsession over watches.. I know a lot of people under the age of 30 don't wear watches because they have their phone right on hand so it's not that necessary to carry one but in my opinion watches can be a really cool accessory to have and they can make great jewelry statements!

In my last Haul Video I talked about this Teal Watch from Francesca's Collection and I love this watch!! I gave it as a present in white to one of my good friends and she loved it. It can be a great stocking stuffer for Christmas because these watches look expensive but are quite the opposite.

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1. The first watch comes in the colors Teal, Black, Navy, Purple, Beige and White and they will run you about 18 dollars.

2. The Second watch is something that I have my eye on for Christmas, it really is a timeless piece that can go with any outfit because of how neutral and vintage it looks. This watch will run you about 18 dollars as well.
3. This last one caught my eye just because of its vibrant color and how eye catching it is! the gold is not my favorite, but it definitely works well with its color. I also really like the three different clocks within the watch too! This particular watch comes in the colors Green, Yellow, Blue, Pink, Orange, Purple, Red, Teal, Black, Beige and White. Theres is a massive variety in colors for this one and this watch will run you about 20 dollars, so definitely not a budget breaker comparing to what other watches can cost.

Now another obsession that is not even close to recent is boots! I've always felt like boots are the best way to stay comfortable and fashionable at the same time! I feel like there aren't a lot of pieces of apparel that do that, so boots are just my favorite staple item.  The only reason I am mentioning boots right now is because my favorite pair of boots are in not in good shape at the moment and would probably cost more to repair than to just get new ones; so recently I have had my eye out for a new pair!

1.I just saw these online and I have fallen in love! The different colors work so well and I love that they look like riding boots! I feel like riding boots are so chic and comfortable, and are always a good investment because of the longevity! These boots are from ModCloth and I might just order me a pair soon!  :)

Now before I turn this into an million page current obsessions essay, I have two last things that I have really been loving, the e.l.f cosmetics stipple brush and my N°7 Tinted Moisturizer from Boots and Target!  This moisturizer gives the perfect tint to my face and it looks like I got the perfect tan in the middle of winter! I love it so much and the Stipple Brush really gives an even coverage so it always looks natural. (why did I never have this before?!?!)

     

xoxo

Nicole

The Long awaited Haul is Here!

Here are the links to the products mentioned:

1. e.l.f. cosmetics
2. Francescas Collection watch
I really think you should check out the website as well, I am really loving the other accessories shown on the website!
3. francescas collections

Again if you have any suggestions for future blog posts, please leave a comment below!
mucho love,
        Nicole

Just Half of the New Haul!

I've been feeling really bad for my completely obvious neglect for the blog recently, I really wanted to do a follow up on the blog post (here) "Haul coming up soon" in one post all together, but unfortunately the eyes lips face (e.l.f.) company takes a bit longer to ship than amazon. So I thought I would do a little review on 2 products that I have been using quite a bit lately.

The Power of Plants BOTANICS In Shower Facial Polish
          I talked about this in a video haul about a week ago and I said I would do a full review once I really started using it and I absolutely love it! I don't really have acne prone skin, but its really helped clear up and soften my skin a lot more and I use it everyday in the shower but its a quick and easy little facial every morning and my skin really always feel refreshed after each use! This is a product that I know I will really love for a really long time, its about 7.99 at Target so its very inexpensive. Love it!

Now the other products I mentioned in the Coming up Haul post a couple days ago, the e.l.f. products are taking a bit longer than expected so I decidedto just do a review on the The Super Quick Liquid Eyeliner EX that I got from Amazon:

The Super Quick Liquid Eyeliner EX
          This liquid eyeliner is a GODSEND!, I absolutely have fallen in love with this eyeliner, I haven't  used a liquid eyeliner before just because I have a really shaky hand and I'm always afraid it'll look silly but this eyeliner has felt pen type feel, so its really steady when applying it! I love the it finishes it stays an for the entire day and its not hard at all to get off so overall I really love this product and well worth the 20 dollars I spent because of shipping! If you can find this at any asian stores I recommend you buy it, it is really so amazing but if you can't you can look on google shopping and there are a lot of places that you can buy online too!

Winter Accessories: Winter Beanies and Scarves

With this sunny weather coming back to San Diego, it is making me long for the days where the weather is chilly so I can layer up. With this longing for cold weather, I have been looking at accessories to layer up and I recently rediscovered beanies! Beanies are the cutest way to look a bit more in the winter season even if its not in the coldest temperatures.  I really like how Forever 21 styled this look because, anyone could really just roll up their sleeves and you don't have to burn to death when its warmer than 70 degrees ha ha.
I really love this one that I found on forever21.com or this grey beanie from H&M but I really like the slouch of the beige beanie and the little pom pom too!

     

scarves are another guilty pleasure of mine, I absolutely die for scarves! I love thin ones, thick ones, textured ones and really soft ones! When I was browsing around the forever 21 store, I found some really textured scarves that had a really thick fabric and I fell in love! 

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3

1. Beautiful Floral Border Print Shawl

2. Border Print Shawl

3. Floral And Paisley Scarf

Even with this 80 degree weather, I still dream of the cold days where I get to bundle up!

Cold 50 degree weather, can you please come now!  Hope you like this little accessories post! 

mucho amor!, 

nicole

Haul Coming up soon!

I've been running a little low on cash and been kind of browsing around and looking for good product for less, and I've come across some that have had a lot of great reviews!  Right now I've been looking a lot on Target.com in their beauty section to find good cosmetics for less. Target sells numerous brands but I was looking particularly at the brand e.l.f and their brushes.  I have recently started getting into makeup and how it can really enhance someones beauty; with this new interest in cosmetics I've also been experimenting with how to create a flawless looking face without caking on the makeup.
So anyways while browsing on e.l.f website I found some really good brushes, a mineral translucent powder for a finished touch after I've put on my makeup, and a powder consisting of four colors, the colors are meant to be blended together as the Blue neutralizes orange, the Green neutralizes red, the Pink neutalizes grey and the Yellow brightens and neutralizes red and they are supposed to get rid of any imperfections. 

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Now I know that most of these brushes and products are for people that are just getting started, but that is really what I am doing, just getting started with makeup ha ha! Now I will be putting up a haul and a review on how I like them so I should be getting these products soon enough! :) 


Onto Target's Boots collection, even though I got two products already, the cleansing wipes and the shower cleanser, I decided to get the No7 Tinted Moisturizer in medium and the comments I saw under the product pretty much all said that this was better than the Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer so I am super excited to try this out because I really needed something with sheer coverage but also moisturizes and doesn't look "caked" on. 

Another item that I just purchased online is the SUPER QUICK Liquid Eyeliner Ex, and normally I really don't like buying things online but I was looking at missglamorazzi youtube channel and she showed this eyeliner and was basically raving about 

it because of it's precision and how easy it is to apply so I decided to try it!

10. Now, missglamorazzi was able to buy this product in an asian cosmetics store but I had to buy this eyeliner online at sasa.com for about 10.00 dollars but the shipping can be pricey at 15.00 so whether this eyeliner is really worth 25 dollars,  I will do a review when I get the product in the mail!  Also before I forget, e.l.f is doing a sale even with their already low prices! 

50% off insider favorites when you spend more than $25 using the code "faves" during checkout AND 25% off brushes when using the code "brush" during checkout! if you don't have any brushes or need new brushes, I heard very good reviews so why not try something new! I will do a review once I get them in the mail, SO EXCITED!

The products listed:

1. e.l.f. Essentials Blushing, Bronzing and Blending Brush  $1.00

2. e.l.f. Essentials Blending Eye Brush $1.00

3. e.l.f. Essentials Foundation Brush $1.00

4. e.l.f. Essentials Eye Shadow Brush $1.00

5. e.l.f. Essentials Concealer Brush $1.00

6. e.l.f. Studio Stipple Brush $3.00

7. e.l.f. Mineral Booster $5.00

8. e.l.f. Studio Complexion Perfection $3.00

9. Boots No7 Soft and Sheer Tinted Moisturizer - Dark (1.69 oz.) $11.99

10. SUPER QUICK Liquid Eyeliner Ex $10.70 (but 15.00 with shipping)

missglamorazzi youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/missglamorazzi

Firework

While sitting here waiting for my GE writing class to start, I was just listening to my ipod and then came this this new song by Katy Perry in my shuffle playlist called Firework and I am absolutely in LOVE with song because I feel like it has such a beat and a catchy tune but in my opinion the best is that I it has such an amazing message.  If you haven't already heard it, it talks about kinda of letting loose and being free even when you feeling like theres really nothing important or you don't want to step out of your comfort zone. You know, I think everyone can relate to wanting to stick to their comfort zone and wanting to keep this routine life.  I know this because I have a massive amount of personal experience in not stepping out of my comfort zone and I just think everyone needs at least one of this kind of song to remind them that stepping out of their comfort zone can be an amazing thing. So, as of now, waiting for class to start, as spontaneous as it ma seem, I vow to step out of my comfort zone at least once a week and create new experiences and memories.

This may sound so random just because of a song, but everyone needs a little random and some new experiences to keep life interesting, not routine and hey if you want to vow with me, leave a comment below and we can blog about each new experience! I'm excited and I would to hear your experiences too!

Here are the lyrics:
Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting throught the wind
Wanting to start again

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards
One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under scream
But no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that tehre's still a chance for you
Cause there's a spark in you

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gunna leave 'em fallin' down-own-own

You don't have to feel like a waste of space
You're original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you're reason why all the doors are closed
So you can open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow
And when it's time, you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on slet your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gunna leave 'em fallin' down-own-own

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It's always been inside of you, you, you
And now it's time to let it through

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on slet your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gunna leave 'em goin "Oh, oh, oh!"

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon