This is going to be the first of (hopefully) many posts on some of my reflections of my favorite things of the month! I love reading posts from other bloggers about what finds they loved, so why not join in the fun?
Makeup:
Maybelline’s Colossal Mascara:
I totally second Amanda on this one! This has been my go-to mascara for about a year now, and I LOVE it. I need to curl my lashes because they are stick straight (my Asian side saying hello), and this mascara doesn’t weigh them down and makes them look ridiculously long. Even my “Better Than Sex” mascara from Sephora can’t hold a candle to it!
Smashbox’s Bronze Lights (in Sun-kissed Matte):
This is a more recent buy of mine that has become a staple in my makeup bag and that I’m absolutely in love with. I got it at Sephora when I was vacationing in Hawaii and love how it gives me a very natural and, well, sun-kissed look without making my face look cakey! I don’t like wearing foundation in the summer because of the heat, so my go-to look involves a quick brush of this powder, a dab of blush, and some mascara. Voila! I’m good to go.
Jergen’s Natural Glow Moisturizer:
Okay, I lied, my morning routine also involves moisturizing my face pre-makeup. This lotion evens out my skin tone and makes for a wonderful base for my Smashbox bronzer. Love it!
Brushing with Baking Soda:
I know, I know, this isn’t the best for your enamel if you do it too often, but my dentist instructed me that every so often wouldn’t do any damage. I don’t use whitening strips because I have sensitive teeth, but about once or twice a month I brush my teeth with a mixture of water and baking soda. Baking soda is mildly abrasive and can help remove surface stains on your teeth and is a heck of a lot cheaper than the $40-80 kits you find at the drugstore.
Fitness:
iPhone Apps:
I mentioned this before in a separate post, but I’ve been loving my iPhone apps as resources when I’m at the gym! My two favorites? Zombies, Run! and Nike Training Club.
DIY Non-Slip Workout Headbands:
I’m still so obsessed with these headbands. These are the first headbands I’ve ever worn that stay put without endless amounts of bobby pins (I always thought I had a weirdly shaped head!). I love not having to readjust them mid-workout or deal with pins poking stabbing me.
Recipes:
Lemon Shrimp Orzo:
I prefer lighter dishes in the summer, and this Lemon Shrimp Orzo recipe is one of mine and Kyle’s favorite (he actually had leftovers of it today for lunch)!
Kabocha:
I’ve been eating roasted kabocha like a madwoman lately. It also provides me with an alternative workout just trying to cut it open and slice it. I honestly break a sweat trying to crack those things open, but it’s so worth it! Some fun facts about kabocha:
- “Kabocha is like butternut squashe’s sadly underappreciated sister. A single cup of kabocha has forty calories compared to butternut squash’s 60, and has less than half of the carbs of butternut squash (7 grams vs. 16 grams). But, it tastes better… the perfect substitute.”
- It’s a great source of beta-carotene (which your body converts to vitamin A). A single serving has 70% of your daily recommended amount. This means your eyes, skin, hair, and white blood cells will thank you!
- Fiber. YAY POOP.
- You don’t have to peel em’. When they cook, the peel softens and is so, so, so delicious with the creamy fleshy part on top.
Dark Chocolate Avocado Truffles:
I still can’t get over the Dark Chocolate Avocado Truffles I made a few weeks back. They’re seriously unreal!
Blogging Related:
I made the switch about a month or so ago and haven’t looked back. It gives me SO much more freedom with my blog’s appearance and different plugins, as well as letting me monetize the site. While I certainly don’t blog for money, being able to advertise pays the cost charged by my self-hosting site several times over. (And I’m a poor college student, so it pays for my Starbucks haha!).
I was thinking about writing up a post about becoming self-hosted and what I’ve learned from it if anyone would be interested! Just let me know!
Picmonkey:
I’m sure most of you guys know about picmonkey already! I just recently used it to create my blog header and love playing around on it to make graphic images for my workouts and recipes.
That’s all I can think of for the moment!
Question: What are some of your favorite things that you tried/experienced/made in August?
xo Christine
I love these posts. I always find such good product suggestions. I’m looking for some non slip headbands I always thought there was something wrong with me cause I always had to bobby pin them, too.
Glad you liked the post!
I love that Maybelline Mascara too but my favourite is the Rimmel Green one at the moment..I can’t remember what it’s called but its so good!
booo hooo!
I’m addicted to kabocha as well..I went to go and try and buy some more yesterday but my store had sold out
Oooo I’ve never tried that one! Ill be sure to grab one next time at my local drugstore. I’m always on the hunt for a great new mascara :).
BOO what a bummer! :'(
I love reading these kind of posts, and this is one of my faves so far. I had no idea baking soda could be used that way, very interesting. And I can’t wait to try out the zombie run app, which I just bought a few days ago. The headband is really cute and I’m definitely making those truffles in the near future. Dark chocolate and avocado? Simply genius! Congrats on getting self hosted, I just did last week and the past week has been quite the whirlwind. Still figuring things out so I’m really looking forward to your post on it. Lastly, picmonkey really is so amazing and perfect for a techno challenged person like me. I’ve never been able to get how photoshop works. 😛
Awww, you’re making me blush ;). It works really well (at least for me)! Hahah it’s a ton of fun. You can set a playlist so the time goes by really quickly in-between the commentary and your music playing. Let me know how you like it!
You’d be suprised at how perfectly the avocado blends in with the chocolate. It’s SO delicious and creamy :).
I agree with picmonkey haha! It’s so easy to use
I bought an avocado purely to test out your recipe- still sceptical but I have no doubt it’ll work. I’d love it if you did a post on going self hosted- I’m in the process of considering it but am clueless! Hope your having a great weekend pal!
Woohoo! I’m sure you’ll be blown away too! You can’t taste the avocado and it makes it so creamy (the fat in it replaces heavy cream). Let me know how it goes!
And I’ll be sure to write a post on self-hosting within the next couple of days for ya!
I love the look of your blog updates and PicMonkey is awesome!
Thanks, Kim! Picmonkey is definitely one of my favorite blogging tools
I love favorites posts, I definitely hope you keep them up! I just recently discovered picmonkey but I haven’t figured out how to use it yet, haha. I definitely can’t wait to experiment
You’ll pick it up in no time! If you want, I know of some pretty helpful tutorials that I could link to you :).
Love these posts! I really want to try making my own non-slip headbands! I’m glad to hear you are glad you moved to self-hosting. I’m seriously debating making the change this weekend – ahh! Do you mind me asking who you host through?
They’re actually pretty easy! Do you have a sewing machine :)?
I’m not oging to lie, when I first made the switch, I felt a little overwhelmed trying to figure everything out since it was all so new! It took me two days to really get my site together and understand how everything works- it’s definitely something you should do over the weekend when you have the time! I explain a little about it here: http://sub.apple-of-my-eye.com/my-favorites/ :). If you EVER need any help with making the change or have questions, let me know!
These posts are so much fun! I haven’t done one, but I bet it’s a lot of fun to look back and see what you used to like.
I kind of want to try the baking soda thing… just because, why not?! And your teeth are so pretty, it must do some good!
I can’t believe I didn’t get to have ANY kabocha this year. A sad year indeed!
I would love to read the self hosted post!
totes checking out that bronzer! And ahhhh I can’t find kabocha anywhere and it’s killing meeeee. I need it!
I always love reading about what other people are loving as well – such a great way to get ideas for some new things to try. And that mascara – gah! Love of my life.
I love picmonkey too! I would love to see a self-hosting tutorial, I’ve been super lazy and putting it off cause I’m afraid to mess it up!
Pleeease do a post on being self hosted! I’m looking into it and I have ALOT to learn!
I LOVE Maybelline Mascara too .. no matter how many other kinds I have tried, Maybelline will always be my favorite.
Nice post! And as a matter of fact , i would definitely like a post about self-hosting. I just started blogging ( very recently) , and maybe in a couple of months if blogging still is such fun I would love to self-host ! Please, tell me all about it :). Also, the avocado truffles look very tasty, definitely need to try them!
Hey, love! I nominated you for The Versatile Blogger Award 😉
http://imthelittlemissfit.wordpress.com/2013/09/01/the-versatile-blogger-award/
I looove using PicMonkey!! It’s so much fun :))
These are the best kinds of posts! So fun to read (and write) hey?! I use that mascara too – I used to spend so much money on more expensive brands but Maybelline is just as good!
I’m always afraid to use tinted moisturizers or bronzers. It has a tendency to look so unnatural, especially up here in the great white north where everyones skin tone is translucent. Haha!