Oh brushes, how I adore thee

Does this look like too much?

I remember when I very first started wearing makeup.  It was such an exciting event for me...I'll never forget it.  My mom wasn't too pumped, it took A LOT of convincing for her to let me get a compact of powder and some lipgloss.  "You don't NEED it", I remember her saying.  I was in 6th grade, in my mind I absolutely needed it.  I had shine on my nose by the end of the day and desperately wanted to keep up with the girls in my class that had already moved onto the "I love eyeliner phase" that also closely resembled a racoon...no judgement, I think every girl goes through that phase at some point.  It might not be with eyeliner, maybe blush or lipstick in a horrid shade.  Anyway, I was excited.  I ripped open that compact as soon as we got in the car and swiped some across my "shiny" nose.  My best friend at the time, Noelle, was with us.  I turned and said, "can't you see the difference?!" to which she shrugged and said, "eh, not really".  Oh, but I could totally tell.  

That might have been a defining moment in adolescence for me, but my journey with makeup had just begun.  I studied (and still do) magazines, since blogs weren't really a "thing", yet.  Anything that I could get my hands on that showed me how to create the best look for me, I devoured.  I discovered I was a "deep winter" at a woman's expo and what color coordinated best with my skin...are you old enough to remember the seasons?  (the principles are still around, check out The Chic Fashionista for your coloring)

Fast forward about 9 years.  I had graduated from that little compact and was in full-blown makeup mode.  I had mastered eyeliner and blush and the smoky eye was slowly becoming something that wasn't just for prostitutes ladies that weren't very respectable.  I visited the MAC counter on a regular basis, just to look.  So many pretty colors.  So many options...and WAIT, so. many. brushes.  Brushes?  I had't even really thought about that.  I had a few from the drugstore and, of course, the little cheap brushes and applicators that came with some drugstore makeup.  After having my makeup done with the soft little brushes from heaven (another way I learned tricks), I knew they would be my game changer.  Boy, were they ever.  I asked for brushes for Christmas that year.  My mom delivered.  I now had the basics, but I craved more.  Needless to say, over the years, I've found my tried and true faves.  The blush brush I bought about 10 years ago is still kickin'...I may be replacing it soon for a fluffy, uber soft option...not because it's busted- I'll still hang onto it in case of emergency.

How do I still have a blush brush that's 10 years old? Actually, it's closer to 11 or 12, but doesn't really look a day over 2.  The answer is two part.  First, I invested in a quality brush.  The MAC 116 blush brush is a $35 brush.  I want to say, it was $28 when I bought it.  Why I remember that, I don't know.  Ask me what I had for breakfast yesterday...I can't tell ya.  Second part is I take care of my brushes.  They have their own place in my travel makeup bag and their own place on my sink in a cute mason jar.  They also get a bath at LEAST once a month.  This isn't as often as it should happen, but it happens and that's the important part.  

I used to use baby shampoo on them, but have since moved onto using castille soap.  I use castille soap for everything (homemade foaming hand soap).  Dr. Bonner's is my favorite, but there are a few emerging brands that might be just as great.  I don't like to soak them in a glass like you may see on some blogs.  I prefer to use my hands and work the soap into the brush and lather it up like a tiny little person.  Warm water works best for me and I rinse till the water is clear.  Typically, I make a whole ritual of it and lay out a nice clean hand towel for them to air dry on.  I washed my new IT foundation brush today and "shook" it out in the shower after I washed it, to try and get as much water off of it as possible.  It's now ready for tomorrow and I know that it'll work even better now that it's clean again.  

One way I know that I need to clean my brushes is if I start to get little breakouts that have no explained reason.  Brushes can harbor bacteria and then you're just spreading that all over your face!  Ew.  Keep 'em clean ladies!  Thank you for humoring me as I rambled on about makeup brushes.  Do you have a favorite brush?  Have you cleaned it lately?? hehehe...I bet you will now!

Five Things that I'm OBSESSED With Lately

There are phases that I go through, and I'm sure I'm not alone, where I have what seems like a long list of "must-haves".  I don't know if it's the fact that spring is upon us...hopefully soon...or just because I'm a product and trend junkie, but I have a new list of loves these days.  In no particular order, here's what I'm lusting after RIGHT NOW.

1.  Coffee...because, duh.  (if you follow me on Instagram, you already know this) Let me clarify, though.  NOT just any coffee.  Fresh, coarse ground, French pressed, delicious coffee.  Have you tried a French press before?  For me, it was life changing.  Now that I have the hang of it and what ratios are best, it's the only way I love it brewed.  Do I still use my beloved Keurig, yes...just not as much.  On the weekends, the Mr. prefers the press.  "Do you want coffee?" (this is such a rhetorical question in our household, but asked anyway) His response is always the same, "are you using the press? then yes!"  For those interested, I use this method.  There's plenty of opinion on ways to use the French press.  AND, did you know that if you enjoy coffee inside of Starbucks vs the drive thru, you can request a French press?  Pretty nifty.

2. The bootie.  Notice I spelled that with and "ie" and not "y".  Booties. Shoes, y'all.  Super cute with dresses, skinny jeans, and if you're brave enough (I have a friend who is), shorts with tights.  I was cleaning out my closet and organizing my shoes the other day and thought actually said out loud, "man, my spring/summer shoes have a lot to live up to." This past fall and winter, I collected quite the collection of booties.  Wedges, chunky heels, hidden wedges, you name it.  Now, looking towards spring, I'm on the hunt for a peep-toe bootie.  So. Cute.  Combine it with the still popular greige and you've hit the motherload.  BTW, flatforms and block heels are on trend for spring.  I don't know if I can rock flatforms...they're a little too 1999 for me. Eh. 

3. Cloth Napkins.  Weird thing to put on the list, right?  Well, it's because my Pottery Barn spring catalog is full of supercute options.  Normally, I get them from Pier 1, Target, or World Market...all on sale/clearance, of course!  I love that I don't ever run out of napkins like I used to with paper napkins.  Plus, it's way better for the environment and they just work better! I have quite an eclectic collection that started with a sweet friend sending me a vintage set.  Now, our napkin stash is split between two drawers in our kitchen.  I'll retire a few pretty soon and let them become cleaning rags or let the girls have them for tea parties. LOVE these for Easter/Spring. 

4. Lorac Pro Palette 2.   You know I couldn't list my faves without throwing some makeup in.  Ask my bestie, Jess...I had been obsessing for weeks researching all the different popular palettes that are out right now.  I decided after MUCH deliberation, to go with this one.  It's gorgeous.  Seriously.  I like that it's not one that geared towards any certain eye or skin color.  I watched a slew of YouTube videos of vloggers who raved about it.  I tried to find mostly brown-eyed gals, like myself, but there were plenty of blondies with baby blues, a couple redheads, and the rest of the gamut.  Gorgeous.  It was a Valentine's gift from the Mr. and I have played with it every day since!  Bonus- it comes with an eye primer that is legit.  Perfect peepers, allllll day. 

5.  Poshmark.  Have you heard about Poshmark?  It's pretty flippin great.  I've used it on and off over the past year or so.  It's kinda sorta like eBay, but better.  I scored a pair of $230 Current/Elliott jeans for spring for...$35.  No lie.  They are in near perfect condition, whaaat??  The cool part is that you can quickly sell using the smartphone app, then use your earnings to buy from others.  I'm not getting paid to give it a shout out, I'm just happy to not have any buyer's remorse! Maybe I'll find some of those booties listed above...hmmm...

FYI, I could've easily written a short novel (and maybe I did here) about what I'm loving right now...but I'll spare you.  What are you loving right now?  Anything on my list?  I wanna hear it!!

**a few goodies who didn't make the cut for the blog, but are still on my list: thuglifeshirts.com - I want about 72.8% of them; CC creams - I use and love both Younique & Smashbox; lipgloss - oh the obsession, I have about 40ish tubes...that's a whole other blog in itself; last but not least, all of my Young Living essential oils.  There's an oil for everything, people, no lie.**