Fabric hoarding

 

I love to quilt.  It is so relaxing and therapeutic for me.  I don't usually have time to quilt, but in my dreams I do.  I have a really large collection of fabric.  I have been stashing away some of my favorite low volume (light colored) prints.  I have seen some gorgeous low volume quilts that make my heart sing (yes, I am aware I'm a super big dork).  One day I will make one.  In the meantime, I like to just admire this nice stack of cotton fabric.  Seriously, it makes me happy.

 

Can't you just picture a gorgeous quilt made from these fabrics?

 

Some of my favorites.  I've got chevron, mustaches, polka dots, little birds, etc.

 

So cute. 

 

One day I will have a finished quilt to show you all.

 

Do you quilt?  I would love to see some of yours!  Or just some of your fabric :)

 

Glossybox May 2013

OMGoodnes!  My Glossybox finally arrived today!  I have been waiting FOREVER.  I love, love, love the box.  But the super slow shipping was making me very, very sad.  I just don't have the patience to wait when I know there's something super fun coming in the mail for me.

So here's my very first glossybox review!

Outside packaging.  Doesn't look thrilling.  Thrilled me....

So here's the inside box.  I love the inside box.  It's so pretty and pale pink and can definitely be used for a gift box in the future.  The box comes with a cute little beauty magazine.

 



 

First look inside the box.  Please just look at how cute the inside of the box lid is.  I love cute things.

 

Ok, here we have the card that shows what all is in the box. This month's theme is A Year of Beauty to celebrate glossybox.  Happy birthday.

 

There's also a coupon for a free trial size spray gel with the purchase of a larger one from Sebastian.

 

And there's a little business-card-sized card for a free wax at European Wax Center.  This would normally be a knock-your-socks-off offer for me due to the fact that I have extremely large eyebrows.  Very thick, caterpillar-ish.  Here's the sad part, I live in the mountains far away from regular civilization (seriously, two hours away from the nearest Target, mall, Safeway, etc.) and clearly don't have one of their fancy shmancy waxing centers here. 

 

Just look at it all.  Fun.

 

So here we have some nice samples.  The one on the left is from etre belle (say what?) and it's a collagen and aloe vera hydro mask.  This promises to reconstruct and moisturize and provide skin with an extreme moisture boost that improves elasticity and promotes hydration.  I can use all of that for sure!

 

The little red packets are body lotion and exfoliating something or other from the European Wax Center.  These will not go to waste!

 

Next up is an eye liner pencil from Xtreme Lashes.  This is the color black pearl and it seems to have a really nice purple-ish tint to it.  It glides on SUPER smooth, just as it says in the description.  It's a gel liner that sets quickly and lasts all day.  I do not usually use eye liner but I will definitely be giving this a try!

 

Now we have a cute tiny sample of Epionce intense defense anti-aging + repair serum.  This is a complete multivitamin for your skin.  It helps stimulate skin rejunivation to reverse and prevent the visible signs of aging using the powerful botanical sources of Vitamins A,B,C,D, and E.  I can't wait to give this a try.  I'm starting to look old.  Sad face.

 

The little cute black thing on the right is an eye / lip liner sharpener. That's rad because I have never owned one and have thrown out liners when they need to be sharpened.  Shame on me.

 

Alrighty. Moving right along.  Next is a cute little trial size of Sebastian volupt spray.  This is a volume-building spray gel with the cushion particle technology (yep, I know what that means) that best combines full volume and sensual softness.  I'm pretty excited about this. I have some natural curl and I do like to scrunch it sometimes.  I also have thick hair and lots of volume, so this will be fun to add even more craziness to my hair!

 

And this is definitely my most favorite thing in the box!  It's a solid perfume stick by Nicka K New York.  It's scent is called Dream 42 as far as I can tell.  It has a nice citrusy smell.  Something I wouldn't have chosen for myself, but once I put it on I loved it!  I will be putting this in my purse immediately.  It is packaged in a beautiful boutique packaging.

 

All in all, my first glossybox was a true success!  Totally made my day.

 

Do you subscribe to glossybox?  If so, what did you think of this month's box?  What was your favorite item?  And what different items did you get compared to my box?

Free Julep Box Coupon Code!

Julep is a nail polish subscription box service.  They have such great colors and each month the selection changes.  One thing I like about Julep is that you can preview the nail polish choices for that month and choose to order one of the sets or skip the month.  It gives you a bit more freedom in ordering the box.  I just ordered my very first box!

I'm stoked. I got a FREE...yes, folks, I said FREE Julep Maven subscription box!  Actually, I paid $3.99 total for shipping.  What a deal.  I'm super excited.  If you want to grab your own free box go to Julep's website and order a subscription box.  The coupon code you want to use is FREEBOX.

Will today FINALLY be the day that my glossybox finally arrives?

Happy Friday everyone!  I hope ya'll have a super great weekend!

Randomness

I've been MIA for a few days....I went to Seattle over Memorial Day weekend to visit family.  It was FAB!

Some things going on with me right now:

I'm so very impatiently awaiting my first ever glossybox to arrive in the mail.  I am NO good at waiting.  I'm super excited to get that cute box in the mail.  I'll be sure to post my review once I FINALLY get it!

I'm also waiting for a package from Little Black Bag.  I am SUPER excited about what's in there.  It's not a surprise, as I ordered and traded for what I want, but I also can't seem to remember what's in there so it will be a bit of a surprise.

I'm starting Nutrisystem tomorrow.  I already have the box of food here at my house.  I've actually had it for a while now but haven't started yet.  I will have 23 days on Nutrisystem before I go on my vacation to the Oregon Coast so hopefully it will be enough time for a little bit of shrinkage.

I'm tired and want to take a nap.  But I can't because I have to work.

The end.

Finding Motivation

I do, and always have, struggled with motivation.  I was always looking for THE thing that would motivate me to work out and eat right.  Almost everyone I knew had something that kept them going or made them start.  I didn't. Until now.

Last year I purchased a Nike Sports Band.  I didn't even use it until a couple weeks ago.  Let me tell you, it's motivating to me to see the actual calories I've burned on there and to see the actual distance I've gone.  When I'm done with a workout, I plug it into my computer and it keeps track of all my workouts in one place.  I can log on and see how many miles I've gone and how many calories I've burned.  When I'm at the gym and I on the treadmill, I can see that I've burned, say, 380 calories.  Why not keep going to 400?  Or 450?  If I have gone 1.8 miles, why not go 2?  Or more?  Finally, finally, I've found something that motivates me!

Do you have a Nike Sports band??

I only slept 3 1/2 hours on Tuesday night.  I was EXHAUSTED yesterday.  All day.  I was dreaming of a nap.  I worked all day.  Came home and declared that I was too exhausted to work out. And then I did the impossible (for me anyway).  I got off my arse and headed to the gym.  Yep.  I felt like a rock star. 

Ipsy Glam Bag May 2013

Ok...so I don't know where I've been but I have just very recently discovered that there's such a thing as subscription boxes...mystery grab bags, if you will. I LOVE beauty products. I do not wear a lot of makeup and I never wear anything flashy or crazy (although I wish I did) but I still love to try, look at, and buy makeup and such.

I have, in the past few weeks, subscribed to ipsy. It runs $10 a month and you get a new cosmetic bag full of beauty products. How fun is that? And seriously, super affordable!

I got my first ipsy bag today. I was too excited to bring it home and take pictures of the official unboxing, like many of the cool bloggers do. I ripped that sucker open in my car at the post office. No self-control.

I was really excited about what I found in my bag. First, it came in a nice shiny, pink bubble envelope. I would show you, but, no. It's ripped to shreds and in the trash. Inside the pink bubble wrap was the fun bag of goodies!

 

This is really quite a lot of stuff for $10!  And there's no tax and no shipping.  So it really is jut $10!

 

A beakdown of the booty (is that how you use that word?  Other than referring to your butt?)

 

First off is an awesome full size nail polish by Zoya.  The color is a beautiful pale pink (it says Gie Gie on the bottom...yeah, I know, I'm dumb.  Don't know if that's the color name or not).  It has a nice sparkle to it.  I like sparkly, shiny things.

 

 

Next is a roll on perfume from Pacifica.  The scent is Tahitian Gardenia.  I double heart love this.  It smells super good and I LOVE perfume.  This is a perfect size to stick in my bag.

 

Next is a full size lipstick by Mirabella.  The shade I got is Ballerina...it's a sheer.  It looks so pretty in the tube.  In my dreams I can wear pale pink lipstick.  I think I'll keep it for Ally's stocking. It's a perfect lipstick for a 13-year-old.  Mostly just a shine.

 

Next we have a clear brow gel.  Um, I have the world's thickest, plushest, biggest eyebrows and the thought of putting anything else on them besides the massive amounts of hair that's already there is frightening.  This will be something that willl be put in a gift basket for someone. Or the girls can play with it.  Still looks fun, though, and it has really pretty packaging.

 

 

I guess I forgot to take a picture of the little concealer.  It's a great color for me and I'll definitely be using it.  It comes in a little plastick thing and it's the size of a dime probably, only thicker.  A good match for my skin.  And i needed concealer.

 

And I love the chevron print bag.  The turquoise and oranges look great together!

I did what it takes!

All weekend long, I did what it takes.  I want to be fit and healthy.  I made choices this past weekend, each day, all day, that got me one day closer to my goal.  I'm very proud of myself :)

I have now gone close to a full week of eating "clean".  All natural, whole foods.  I always know I feel better when I do this, but fall off the wagon all.the.time.  Last Sunday (Mother's Day) I weighed in at 174.6.  Yesterday, one week later, 171.6!  Now that's motivation!

I exercised most days last week.  I went on a nice long walk with friends on Saturday.  I wore my new Nike+ armband that keeps track of distance, time, and calories burned.  I think I FINALLY found what motivates me!  I like to see with my eyes how many calories I burned. I like to see how far I walked, etc.  Saturday's walk I burned 452 calories!  We went almost 4 miles.  That's awesome for me!  Yesterday I did 45 minutes at the gym on the treadmill.  I burned 350 calories. 

I'm going to list my mini-goals and rewards in this blog.  I usually try to come up with something for every 5 or 10 pounds lost, however, I never lose the weight :(  (until now, that is!).  And the scale doesn't usually move quickly for me when I'm lifting weights and working out.  And this is a lifestyle change, to be healthy.  So, my goals will be for time working toward my overall goal!

Even though I have one week under my belt, I am starting these time incriments as of today.

Rewards:

Two weeks working out/eating right:  (June 3, 2013)  - Manicure (which is a big deal for me as I've only had 1 in my entire life. I'm deprived)

One month working out/eating right: (June 20, 2013) - Massage (my fave)

Two months working out/eating right: (July 20, 2013) - Mani/Pedi

Three months working out/eating right: (August 20, 2013) - New tennis shoes

Four months working out/eating right: (September 20, 2013) - Mani/Pedi/Massage (the full sha-bang!)

Five months working out/eating right: (October 20, 2013) - Not sure.  Something Rad.

Six months working out / eating right: (November 20, 2013) - New wardrobe! 

It just so happens that my birthday is November 22, right after my 6 month goal of working out and eating right.  I WILL make that goal!  And I WILL ring in my 37th birthday looking HOT!  Better than ever before!  I can't wait :)