Hellooo, it's October. Not quite the ideal fall weather yet here in New York, but the mornings and nights are getting chilly with crisper air, so that means fall is officially starting. It's no secret that I love fall. As my mom says "it's my season". It's such a cozy time of year. Bundling up, spending time with loved ones, sipping hot tea, and the warmth of fall colors all around you. I'm really sad that my fall is going to be super busy with heavy rotations, but I'm trying to have some fall fun in the bits of time I have off. But as a tradeoff, I'll have a lot of free time during the Christmas/winter season, which I'm very happy about. I also have real Thanksgiving plans this year unlike last year. I'm going to one of my best friends' house for Thanksgiving dinner and then planning on hosting Friendsgiving at my place on the Saturday after.

Moving on to fall favorites, you'll notice that a lot of these are more lifestyle favorites. I've gone through a bit of makeup breakup in the past few months. I just haven't felt like wearing makeup and have been going bare faced to work most days. Working on changing that, but for now these are the things I've been calling my true loves this end of summer/fall season.

NARS Blush in 'Sin' - plummy-golden blush that's perfect for autumn looks

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Blush in 'Flushed'  -- a brightening, beautiful coral-pink blush perfect for days you need a little pick me up.

ColourPop Pressed Powder Shadows in 'You Know The Drill', 'Wake Up Call', 'Bel Air' -- creamy, beautiful, blendable, richly pigmented, and only $5 a pop. Enough said. My two favorite mattes are "Wake Up Call" and "Bel Air" which work great as transition shades or even by themselves for a soft everyday look. "You Know the Drill" is a beautiful champagne-rose gold that is the perfect shimmery shade for everyday looks. I never get complimented on my makeup, but whenever I wear this shade I get multiple compliments a day, no joke. 

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in 'Radiant Light' -- you guys know I'm not a highlighter fan but this highlight just lifts up the cheeks for a very subtle, office-appropriate glow

OGX Thick and Full Biotin & Collagen Shampoo and Conditioner -- I've only used these once but I'm already obsessed. Even after one use, my hair feels so much stronger and fuller. I can't wait to see how this fixes my hair with continued use.

OGX Nourishing Coconut Oil Weightless Hydrating Oil Mist -- coconut oil has a bad reputation of weighing down hair. This product, however, adds a ton of shine to hair, but is uber light and smells amaaaazing. Another fave OGX product.

Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte & Maple Pecan Latte -- what's a fall favorites post without some sort of Starbucks drink? This year, both the classic PSL and the new maple pecan latte have been my favorites. The maple pecan latte sounds like it would give you a toothache, but it's a very warm blend of spices and nutty flavors with just a hint of sweetness. Really a must try this fall season! 

Spotify Autumn Acoustic Playlist -- Guys, I have to say that subbing to Spotify Premium is one of the best investments I make each month. This month I have been obsessed with the "Autumn Acoustic" playlist. I listen to it constantly when I'm at my desk just internet surfing or catching up on work. It's a super relaxing playlist full of acoustic indie tracks, and feels absolutely heart-warming on cold fall mornings and nights.

Bath & Body Works 3-Wick Candle in 'Pumpkin Pecan Waffles' -- Each year I have a favorite BBW candle and this year, Pumpkin Pecan Waffles take the prize. Smells like a bakery inside your house and has a very strong throw!

Half Baked Harvest Cookbook by Tieghan Gerard -- Last but certainly not least is this cookbook...aka my new obsession. I'm trying to get into cooking and healthy eating, but I can't stand a lot of "diet" blogs because they make such bland, disgusting food. Enter HBH. She has so many recipes that are easy to make, easy to add vegetables to/customize, healthy but still delicious, and best of all they're very comfort-type of foods, which are my favorite. The way she presents the recipes is perfection. I kid you not, every recipe I try off her book or blog turns out delicious. If you're like me and want to start eating healthier, but still want flavorful, easy to make food, go check out her blog and buy her book. Best $20 ever spent.

Favorites | February 2017

I can't believe it's been like a month since I last blogged. Surprise surprise, this year is flying by and I still haven't adjusted to the fact that it's 2017. January whizzed by in the ED, and February whizzed by in Step 3 study land and vacation. Not sure if I've mentioned this in my last post, but for the past two weeks I have been in Dubai and India with my mom for a bit of sightseeing and catching up with family. I'm planning on writing a separate blog post this upcoming weekend for my travel experiences and photos. For now, let's just say it was a really nice trip and it sucks to be back and have a rough three months to look forward to. The only good thing is that this week is going to be fairly light since I'm on nursery night shift for the next four nights and then I'm on my golden weekend with three days off. So nice slow transition back to work life until my next easy block in three months. I also have my eye appointment this week which I'm nottttt looking forward to.

Alright let's get to some favorites for this month. Sorry it's a tad late, I'm trying to post favorites at the end of each month, but I didn't have my laptop on this trip and it's really hard blogging on an iPad! Not too many favorites this month since I haven't had too much time to try out new products, but all o these are really amazing products nonetheless.

Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette, Nougat

I've been on a cool-tone rampage this month. I've also been playing a lot with my Chocolate Bar palette, especially with the cooler shades like Nougat, Puddin', and Rum Raisin. Of all three, I think Nougat is definitely my favorite. It's a beautiful matte dirty pink sort of shade that's a lighter brown with a hint of pink-mauve undertones. Really unique shade, at least in my makeup collection. And of course, the quality of these shadows is superb and they all blend beautifully. 

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Half-Baked

How's this for a makeup throwback. I dug this out of my eyeshadow drawer and have been wearing it quite a bit this month. I used to think this was way too bright of a gold, but I wore it this past month and I loved how it made my tired-sunken eyes pop.

L'oreal Voluminous Volume-Building Curved Brush Mascara 

The L'oreal Voluminous Mascara is at the top of my holy-grail mascara list. However, I usually go for the straight brush. While shopping at Ulta a couple months ago, I accidentally picked up the "Curved Brush" version. I didn't even know they made this mascara with this type of brush. But lo and behold, this ended up being a happy accident since I fricken love the curved-brush version of this mascara...even more than the original! The curved wand boosts up my lashes and makes them look more curled and fuller than with a straight wand, so this is definitely a must-try mascara. 

NYX HD Blush in Pink The Town

This has been my go-to blush this month. It has an interesting finish, it's mostly matte but has a hint of a satin-sparkle finish if you look at it carefully. The color is pretty ordinary but nevertheless it is a brightening peachy-pink blush without making your face look like a disco ball.

Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Cream Cleanser

I wanted to switch things up with month and try a new acne-specific face wash. I really like Neutrogena products and I decided to try the orange-colored tube of acne face wash from the sea of Neutrogena acne face washes they had at Ulta. I think it's reduced the number of fresh acne spots that have cropped up on my face this month, but I'm going to test out it for another few months before the final verdict is out on that. But like other Neutrogena face washes, it has menthol that makes your skin tingle, has a faint cucumber scent, and it did not cause me to have an adverse reaction.

Ulta Fall Haul ♥

Did I need new makeup? Definitely not. But I couldn't resist! I was going through my makeup collection the other day and realized I hadn't gone makeup shopping in months. Seriously, I think the last time I bought new makeup was back in December. So naturally, I felt like I needed some new goodies to play with, and rushed out to Ulta. None of the products I got are new or limited edition. Drugstore brands haven''t really come out with exciting new collections this fall. So I decided to pick up a few things I've had my eye on for the past few months.

Makeup Revolution Iconic 1 Redemption Eyeshadow Palette -- This palette is a dupe for the iconic Urban Decay Naked Eyeshadow palette. I lost my UD palette a few years ago at a hotel, but cringed at the thought of shelling out another $50 to purchase a new Naked palette. When I saw this palette at Ulta for $7, I knew I had to get it. The colors seem identical to the UD Naked palette, and the reviews on these look excellent too. Expect a blogpost with this soon if all goes well.

Almay Smart Shade Lip Butter in Berry Medium -- Back about five years ago, I was obsessed with the Revlon lip butters. Last year, their sister company Almay released their own line of lip butters. I owned every single color in the Revlon lip butter line and thought nothing could come close to their formula...but I was mistaken. The Almay lip butters are so much creamier and apply seamlessly on the lips. I already own two colors in this line, but picked up this gorgeous berry shade for the fall and winter season. As with the Revlon lip butters, my favorite part is that they are the perfect consistency between a lipstick and tinted lip balm, and are not too sheer but not too opaque either.

Palladio Shadow & Liner Herbal Crayon in Iced Coffee -- Palladio is another makeup brand that is new to Ulta. The crayons were on sale at Ulta, so I decided to pick one up and try it. The color is a cool taupe that I think would look pretty as a liner brighten up the eyes on a no makeup day.

NYX Cosmetics Hot Singles Eyeshadows in Sex Kitten and Gold Lust -- NYX makes some of the best drugstore eyeshadows. This particular formula is one of their older ones, but is my preference over their newer Prismatic eyeshadows. Mainly because I can depot these and pop them in my Z-palette. Second because the packaging and product is more sturdy. I picked up these two shades because they're gorgeous, everyday colors that make an essential addition to my Z-palette.

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Blush in Flushed -- How gorgeous is this blush. Such a beautiful bright, watermelon pink color that's like a mattified version of Benefit's Bella Bamba. I definitely don't have a color like this in my collection, which is why I had to get my hands on it this fall. It would make a gorgeous color for the summer, but I could also see it giving that just-came-out-of-the-chill flush to the cheeks.

Nivea A Kiss of Milk & Honey Soothing Lip Care -- I have no shortage of clear lip balms. In fact, I have an embarrassing amount compared to how often I actually remember to apply lip balm. But I was shopping at Ulta, and I couldn't help but pick this baby up. It's one of my favorite lip balms out there. The scent is uber yummy and cozy, and the most hydrating balm I've ever tried. I prefer it to the EOS lip balm, Chapstick, Burt's Bees, etc.

Soap & Glory Rich & Foamous Body Wash
Soap & Glory Smoothie Star Body Milk Lotion

I swear I had no intention of picking up this product when I first stepped foot in Ulta. But of course I was perusing the aisles, saw that Soap & Glory products were buy one, get the other half off and had to get this. I hate the classic S&G scent. Most people love it, but it makes me nauseous. So I thought no way in hell will I ever use any S&G body products. But I was wrong. I am obsessed with their Smoothie Star line. It smells like oats, almonds, and brown sugar...the most cozy, comforting scent for winter time. Luckily, winter also happens to be the season when my skin becomes parched and cracked and in desperate need of body lotion. I used to get the Bath & Body Works body lotions and butters, but they're all so richly scented it's sort of become off-putting to me. So I decided to try the S&G body lotion this winter because of the pleasing scent, the fact that the lotion comes with a pump ( I hate greasy lotion hands), and of course the cute pink packaging. As I was picking up the body lotion, I of course decided to get the body wash with the same oatmeal sugar scent. Cannot wait to use these babies this winter <3

Target Spring Beauty & Accessory Haul

Hey everybody. Sorry for the lack of posts! I know I'm done with surgery but things have still been a tad crazy. I've been feeling mega mega tired lately even though I've been getting a full night sleep, relaxing when I can, and drinking coffee. I have a hypo-functioning thyroid gland but I know that's not the problem since I've been taking my medicine religiously. I think my recent lethargy has been coming from my recent weight gain. I've been meaning to take charge of my body and start shedding some pounds, but it's very very frustrating when you're tired all day, work all day, and then come back and are tired. I know something's got to change and I will double my efforts starting tomorrow.

But anyway, this Sunday instead of a $10 sunday post as usual, I figured I'd do a post from my recent Target shopping trip. I went there to pick up a few things I needed like eye makeup remover and a new mascara, but came out with a bit more. Now most of the beauty products above came from Target's clearance section, believe it or not! For those of you who may not know, Target occasionally cleans out their beauty section and starts off by putting discontinued items on 30% off, then 50% off, and finally 70% off. When my shopping trip occurred, everything had been on 70% off. Of course most of the good stuff had been picked over, but I still managed to nag some goodies.

First things first, what I actually went into the store for -- the all-new CoverGirl Full Lash Bloom Mascara. My old mascara is now 4 months old and is getting mega dry, so it was time to get a new one. I love CoverGirl's Original Lash Blast, so I decided I'd give their new formula a shot. The packaging is beautiful and I cannot wait to try it out!

Next, I needed some of my trustworthy Neutrogena Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover. It's what I've always used to get my eye makeup off and it does it beautifully. On the same note, I also picked up a pack of my favorite Simple Cleansing Wipes. If I haven't already mentioned this in a blog post before, these babies are the secret to my recently-breakout free skin. Ever since I started using these at night to get rid of my makeup, my breakouts have gone down by I'd say at least 70%. It dutifully removes all traces of makeup and dirt from your face at night and I usually don't even need to wash my face afterwards (even though you should I guess...).

Next, I picked up the ELF Eye Shadow Brush. I've been using the heck out of my other flat eyeshadow brush lately, so I wanted to add another one to my collection. The other one I use I believe is the Up & Up Smudge Brush, but I couldn't find it in the store so I thought I'd give the ELF brush a shot since all the ELF brushes I've tried so far have been amazing.

Now I'll get to my lovely clearance goodies from Target! On the top left, you'll see some of the KISS Nail Dress kits. I don't know the name of the particular design I got, but it has a ton of silver and gold sparkle. I don't like to wear nail stickers too often, but at the price of $1.50 I really couldn't say no. I think it's going to be a fun little bling bling for the summer. Another nail product I picked up was the Sally Hansen Triple Shine Nail Color in Dream Sequins which was also about $2 after sale. It's a beautiful rose gold sparkle finish and I cannot wait to use this upcoming spring season! I hope it can be worn on its own, but I think it would look really nice on top of a baby pink or an opaque pink nail color as well. And lastly, I saw one of my favorite products in this haul -- the CoverGirl LipSlicks Smoochies Sizzle Gloss in Make It Sparkle on sale. Reduced from $6 all the way to $1.50! I love love love these glosses. They're very kiddish, but they are super gorgeous, sparkly, and smell like fruit. They are my favorite lip glosses to wear in the summer, especially on vacation or just a fun day outing. Their scent is what gets me every time -- they smell like watermelons and just scream summer to me. Cannot wait to bust it out this coming season! :)

And very very lastly, as I was getting ready to check out I figured I would get check out the jewelry section since I needed a new pair of studs. Luckily I was able to find one with both diamond studs and pearl studs, two of my favorite everyday earring types.

Well there you go that is it for my lovely Target Spring haul.