Some Good Books.

Hi everybody, hope you're all doing well! I'm currently writing this blog post while in bed listening to Ed Sheeran, so I'm doing well!

Today I wanted to share with you a guys a couple of my book recommendations, because while I love to read, I don't get a lot of time to read, especially in the spring and fall. Winter is the perfect time! 

It's Kind of a Funny Story

Ned Vizzini

I'm currently rereading this book. It's all about a guy named Craig, who suffers from depression, and in the beginning of the book, tries to kill himself; however, he actually ends up checking himself into a hospital instead. I remember liking this book a lot. It talks about mental health and it's disorders in a funny, yet sensitive way. I don't think the issue of mental health disorders is stressed enough, so it's interesting to see how other people view things like depression and anxiety, especially because I suffer from them myself. This book isn't in the least bit boring, and it's a nice, fairly easy read. I think this book would appeal especially to teenagers, but adults would probably enjoy it as well. 

Paper Towns

John Green

I'm really excited to talk about this book, because it's one of my favorites! Quentin, or Q, is hopelessly in love with his neighbor, Margo, who is fascinating. One night, Margo takes Q out on an adventure to reek a bit of havoc in Orlando, their hometown. Q finally thinks he'll get a chance with Margo after that night, but the next day, he discovers that she has disappeared, and no one seems to know where she might be. Q and his friends spend the rest of the book searching for Margo, discovering not only where she has been hiding, but what she has been hiding. This book was honestly hilarious, and made me laugh out loud both times I read it. It also made me cry. John Green has a really good way with words, and I prefer this book over The Fault in Our Stars, so definitely give it a read!     

Everything is Going to be OK

Various Authors

This is the cutest, most uplifting little book I've ever read. It's filled with positive pictures and artwork that will surely provide as a nice pick-me-up when you're feeling a little down. I keep this on my bedside table and find myself picking it up quite often, just to pep myself up. I purchased this book at a coffee shop in Oregon, but you can get it at most places. Anyone would enjoy this book, and it would serve as an awesome gift!

Pleeeeeeeaaaasse leave me your book recommendations, because I'm always looking for something new to get lost in! :)   

-Emily 

 

Holiday LUSH Items.

Hi everyone! Happy Holidays! I know I'm a little late for Christmas, but I wanted to post this anyway.

Over the last couple months, my LUSH collection has been growing. Today I'm going to share with you guys some of what I bought (not including Golden Wonder, forgot to get a picture of it)! Hopefully with the buy one get one free sale they're doing, you can still get your hands on some of this stuff!

So White bath bomb

 The first thing I bought was the So White bath bomb. This is such a nice bath, it smells like fresh apples, and has a light pink interior that fizzes away nice and slowly. Maybe my bath bomb was just a little funky, but I noticed that the interior fizzed away especially slowly, almost fizzed away until I was finished with the bath, which I didn't love, but didn't mind too much.

Father Christmas bath bomb

Ahh this bath bomb was SO fun!! To me, it smells a little like muted Snow Fairy and Candy Mountain, so it's very sweet, but not overpowering. This fizzes out to reveal a very intense green inside, which is so awesome!

Snow Fairy sparkle bar

 Now onto the Snow Fairy sparkle bar. Now to be honest, I don't really like the smell of Snow Fairy shower gel, it's waaaaaaay too sugary for me, but this massage bar was actually O.K.! It's very moisturizing, and has lasted me a really long time. I've used it for over a month, and still have a majority of it left! I know last year, this bar was a very intense pink, but this year it's a nice baby pink, and doesn't leave your skin colored pink.

Candy Mountain bubble bar

GUYS THIS ONE IS AMAZING. The smell, I can't even describe it to you, it's so lovely! I love this bubble bar, because not only does it produce a mountain of bubbles, but the water is left a very pretty, shimmery, light pink color. This is a MUST buy, especially for this time of year.

Have a lovely rest of your day, guys. :)

-Emily

Missing Duluth.

Happy Saturday everyone! Or at least it’s Saturday here…anyway, hope you’ve all had a good past week, and a good Thanksgiving! I spent it the way I always do, with my family down at my great aunt and uncles farmhouse.

With my blog, I like to kind of alternate beauty and life-related topics, and since last week I did a little fashion haul, I thought I would share some pictures of a little day-long adventure I went on last month. I was thinking about this day a couple days ago, and I miss it so much. Here are some pictures of my little day-long trip to Duluth, so enjoy :-)

Lake Superior was so beautiful this day. It's weird because this totally looks like a scene you'd find on the East Coast.

The waves were huge, at least compared to what I've seen!

I live for this kind of weather, cloudy and windy and a little chilly. Love love love.

Only a little windy...haha. This was before I chopped my hair!

We went to a state park nearby, and I died a little bit. So beautiful.

I believe this was called Silver Creek because of all the rocks making the water appear silver.

I live for these kind of adventures. We've all got some wanderlust in us, I believe, but I've got enough for the whole country, I swear. Something about exploring the unknown and being outside just puts me in the absolute best mood, a mood I didn't even know was possible. If you've got time, go explore some place new. I promise you will not regret it.

-Emily

Oops, I Bought Things...

Hi guys, how are you all? I realized I forgot to post my Life Update, so you guys are getting two posts today!

I realized one thing I haven't done is a clothing haul. So the other day I was at the mall and bought a few things (naughty me, I seriously need to stop spending so much money). Here they are!!

Velvet Dress from Forever 21

The first thing I got was this (couldn't find the exact dress online, but this one is close!) velvet dress from Forever 21 in this beautiful burgundy color (my favorite color, especially for fall and winter!). This dress isn't too short, but it's so soft, and I think it would look great with some over-the-knee black socks or some black tights.

Sweater from Forever 21

Next, I got this rust-colored knit sweater, also from Forever 21. This sweater is crazy soft, and it's so flattering. I thought the rust color might be hard to match things with, but it's actually very easy, and I think anyone could rock this color.

THESE ARE MY FAVE- Sperry Boots

Okay, these boots are amazing. They were purchased at Nordstrom's, but are the Sperry Top-Sider brand. They're are the most comfortable boots I've ever owned, and they keep my feet so warm. They actually are lined with polar fleece, I believe, and are waterproof as well, perfect for snow and slush! I love these so much because they are practical while still being so so so cute. 

Nail polish from H&M

Lastly, I got this beautiful nail polish in the color 'envy'. Unfortunately, I couldn't find this one online, but the color is beautiful and perfect for this time of the year! It's very evergreen-y and subtle, but you don't need to put more than 2 coats on, which I love!

Well guys, that's all I bought for clothes and such! I did get some LUSH things though...;). Let me know what you'd like to see for my next post! Love you all.

-Em

Little Life Update.

Hi everyone, how are you all? I've missed you.

I don't have a ton of time, but I wanted to sit down for a little moment to update you all on my life at the moment (don't worry, it's good stuff!)

Back in September, I auditioned for our school's pit orchestra for our fall musical "Footloose," and I got in on clarinet and tenor saxophone. It's been the best time, but boy is it time-consuming! Several rehearsals a week, and this past week we had a couple 7 hour rehearsals to get ready for the show. Sadly, we only have 3 performances left :(, but it's been the time of my life, and although I'm sad to be almost done with it, I'm excited that I'll have more time to spend with you guys blogging and chatting.

When I'm not practicing for the musical, I'm trying to get all my homework done. AP classes are tough, I'll tell you that. I don't regret taking them, but they've been a little more difficult lately, especially since I don't have much time to study.

As you can see, things have been hella busy, but I'm so happy at the moment. I don't think I've been this happy for this long in a very long time, and I love that. I'm getting to cut down on meetings with the therapist more, and my doctors visits are a lot less often as well, which is awesome.

Anyway, we're supposed to get a gigantic snow storm early tomorrow morning and into Tuesday (eeeeeee!!), so it would be really nice to have some extra time to blog for you all! I've got some new LUSH products, and lots of other ideas for posts. Anyway, I love you all, have a wonderful rest of your night ♡.

-Em

Little Autumn Adventure.

Hi everyone, how are you guys all doing? I’m doing pretty well! School is going pretty well, taking two AP courses (college-level courses) is kind of hard, but I’m getting good grades and still managing to take care of myself. How is school for you guys?

Last weekend, I went down a couple hours south of where I live, and went on a really nice hike. Here are some pictures from that little adventure. :-)

The view was really gorgeous; you can actually see Wisconsin from across the river!

A lot of the trees hadn’t quite changed color yet, but every once in a while, I’d stumble across one. This one in particular was incredible.

I just thought this shot was cool; this was the trail I hiked on. Almost no one else was hiking, so it was really nice and serene.

Some of the leaves were huge compared to my tiny head, haha.

Hope you all have an amazing week, you 100% deserve it. Oh, are you guy excited about the new Zoella beauty stuff? I’m so happy for her, she’s come so far. I really want to try the bubble bath in particular, because especially in the fall, I love a good bath. What would you guys like to see for next week? Leave a comment and let me know :)

xoxo

-Emily

A Couple LUSH Treats.

Hi everyone, how are you all? If you've started school, how's it been for you so far? So far I'm enjoying my classes quite a bit, I just really hate getting up early (I think we can all relate to that...). 

Today's post is gonna be just a little one, because last week's post took so long for me to finish. So I went to LUSH a week or so ago (surprise surprise), and picked up 2 things that I have never tried before!

Blackberry Bath Bomb: $6.35

The first thing I picked up is the Blackberry bath bomb, because I looooove a good bath bomb! I was drawn to this one mainly because of the color, I can only imagine what this will look like in the bath. It smells sweet, but also a little citrus-y, and like berries. The smell is very energizing, I would say! I think I'm going to try this bomb out tonight :))))))

The Comforter Bubble Bar: $10.95

The next and last thing I got is the Comforter bubble bar, and as you can see, I've already used some! I felt so guilty using this the first time because just a little bit (approx. 1/5 of the bar) makes a HUGE mountain of bubbles!! And oh my word this scent, it's incredible. It smells so sweet and yummy and like candy. Also not to mention this bubble bar is gigantic. It's a little more pricey than other LUSH products, but it's worth every penny, and I am certain I'll be repurchasing this!

Hope you all have a lovely, lovely weekend and upcoming week :-) xoxo

-Emily

My Favorite Fall Lipsticks.

Hi everybody, how are you all? Hopefully you’ve had a great day, or are about to have a great day, because you deserve it.

Today’s post is going to be a little lengthier, as I am going to attempt to do my first comparison between two makeup items: lipstick. For summer, I like to either go all-natural, just a bit of my EOS lip balm, or I like to go for a sheer peach-y color, as I feel like it goes well with my skin tone and looks nice and fresh; however, in the colder months, I much prefer to wear darker lipsticks. I feel like they look more festive, and they’re so fun! Today I will be reviewing and comparing/contrasting two different, fall/winter lipsticks. Enjoy!

The lipsticks I will be reviewing are the Rimmel Kate Moss in # 107, and the Clinique Different Lipstick in “A Different Grape.” The Rimmel lipstick goes for about $4.99, and the Clinique goes for $16.00. So you can see we’ve got a cheaper option, and a higher-end option.

Rimmel Kate Moss in 107

Clinique in "A Different Grape"

All right, let’s talk about the packaging a tiny bit. I personally think both exteriors of the products look very sleek. The Rimmel lipstick has a bit more of a matte-like finish on the lipstick container, while the Clinique is more slippery. I like that both are nice and light colored, so it’s easier to find them in a dark purse.

In these next paragraphs, I’m going to cover color, formula, and wear length.

                                                                                       

Rimmel lipstick

The Rimmel color I would describe as a deep, festive red color. You might recognize this as the lipstick Zoe from Zoella uses! This lipstick is a bit more cool-toned, so that’s going to make your teeth look super white! Also, I really like this, because it seems to look good on most skin tones. I’ve got fairly neutral skin, so I think this would work well on anyone. The formula is awesome. It glides on soooooo easily, and it isn’t sheer, so you don’t need to apply several coats to get good color payoff. It feels soft, and looks matte on the lips. Some might not like that, but I really do. Now onto the wear length. I’ve worn this lipstick several times throughout the day, and even out to dinner. I find throughout the day, not eating, my lipstick lasts forever. I don’t need to stop to keep applying it. As and example, if I was out walking for maybe 3 hours, I probably wouldn’t need to reapply my lipstick, but that’s also a personal preference, some people like it to look more fresh. As far as eating, I do notice it can get on my water glass and a little on my food, but it isn’t a big deal for me, I just reapply it after the meal.

Clinique lipstick

I would describe the Clinique color as a deep, wine, berry color. I think it has slightly less red in in it compared to the Rimmel color, but it’s definitely got more blue and purple in it. I think this color is also a cooler-toned lipstick, but again, I think it could look good on anyone. The formula of this lipstick, is very similar to the Rimmel one; however, it is quite a bit more sheer. Some people might like that, how you can layer it depending on what look you want to go for, but I find it to be not as convenient. When I go for a darker lip, I like it to be bold, not somewhat bold. So the color payoff is not as good as I usually like, but it’s still fairly nice. Also, this formula is not matte, it has more gloss to it, which can look very pretty. It also feels more glossy and silky when applying it to the lips. As far as wear length, it is about the same as the Rimmel lipstick, but there are a few differences. The main one is because of the shinier formula, I believe that the lipstick slides off more easily, and will need to be reapplied more often than a matte formula would be. This also means it’ll probably leave more lipstick on your glass or food, but if you like the look of glossier lips, it won’t be too big of a deal.

 

From left: Clinique, Rimmel

All in all, I am more likely to repurchase the Rimmel lipstick. I like the matte formula, and the price is really great. If I were to be gifted a Clinique lipstick, though, I would be more than happy!

I think bold, dark lips look awesome with a simple eye look. Maybe winged eyeliner and a bit of mascara (okay, I’m thinking specifically of Zoella haha…she’s so gorgeous). You want to make sure your makeup is balanced, so if you go heavy on the lips, I think it looks best to go fairly simple on the eyes, but make sure you have a nice brow look!

Anyway guys, I really hope you liked this post. I’m sorry it was so wordy! Pretty please leave me a comment telling me what your must-have lipstick is for the colder months, because I can always use more! Suggestions for next weeks post are also always welcome. :)

Love you all so much,

♡ 

Em

**Quick tip! I think I mentioned this in my skin care post, but coconut oil works wonders for removing lipstick.