1. I voted in my first presidential primary! Apparently this is the first New York presidential primary in quite some time that actually mattered. I was very excited about voting, and treated myself to my first iced coffee of the year afterward. It was a happy occasion, though my chosen candidate lost (which I pretty much expected).
Friday Five
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#tbt to Seventh Grade
You guessed it, this week’s Throwback Thursday pic is Seventh Grade Me, circa 1990 or 1991.
Ahh, there are those big red glasses I know and love! Seventh grade was my first year at a school that was all-girls at the time (two years later we merged with the boys’ school that was literally next door). The school had a pretty strict dress code, though it apparently wasn’t strict enough to forbid wearing plain old t-shirts. I guess I thought wearing a t-shirt that matched my glasses would be look nice; at least I tried to jazz things up by rolling up the sleeves a touch. I’m more than likely wearing a plaid pleated skirt with this tee. Fortunately the photo was taken before I got braces later that school year. I clearly attempted to do something with my hair—I guarantee that tiny swoop has a ton of hairspray in it…my baby fine hair has never been one to cooperate.
My Latest Sephora VIB Sale Haul
In last week’s Friday Five I mentioned that Sephora‘s semi-annual VIB sale had just begun. This time around the beauty megastore offered us VIBs 15% off everything in store and online, which is nearly impossible to resist. While I could have gone crazy and ordered All The Things, I ended up placing a relatively modest and restrained order.
So here are the goodies I ended up with:
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Friday Five
1. New sunglasses for spring and summer! I picked out these two pairs at the Burlington Coat Factory in Union Square. The top pair is by Guess and cost $14.99, and the bottom pair is by Nine West and only set me back $9.99. Score!
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Birchbox: April 2016
I heard the mailman drop my April Birchbox at the front door yesterday afternoon and ran downstairs to get my hands on it. I made sure not to slice the top of my Birchbox while opening the shipping box with scissors like I did last month—I had seen Birchboxers posting photos in a Facebook group that I’m a member of, and I knew that I was going to be in love with this month’s design. Rifle Paper Co. simply outdid themselves with the design:
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#tbt to Sixth Grade
This Throwback Thursday post is…my sixth grade school photo! I was still wearing glasses at that time (though I had switched from the light blue ones seen in last week’s #tbt post to a red Sally Jessy Raphael-style pair), but I apparently chose to remove them for the sake of the photo.
I was so into collecting Hard Rock Cafe t-shirts and pins at that time so it’s no surprise that I decided to wear my extra classy black Hard Rock t-shirt on picture day. I wish my arm wasn’t covering up the name of the city that tee was from. When my family traveled we would visit the nearby Hard Rock if there was one around, so I had a bunch of shirts from different cities.
Also, it appears that I’m wearing purple sweatpants. And a Swatch, which was awesome. STYLE!
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Friday Five
1. Evolution Salt Co. Himalayan Crystal Salt Lamp: I’ve been wanting to get one of these babies for some time now, and when I saw that Thrive Market sells them for 33-40% off I knew it was time. When I first signed up for Thrive Market they were unfortunately out of stock, but they recently came back in stock so I ordered the “natural” shape for $19.95! When heated, Himalayan crystal salt is supposed to help cleanse the air and neutralize things like dust, pollen, and mold. I admit that I haven’t done enough research to fully understand the science behind this yet, but aside from that I simply think this lamp is beautiful. I mean…just look at that gorgeous glow. I might even have feelings for the lamp (sorry, John). Like Brick Tamland, I Love Lamp.
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#tbt to Fifth Grade
This week’s Throwback Thursday is my school photo from fifth grade, so it was taken in 1988 or 1989.
Those light blue translucent glasses that were too big for my face! That splatter paint t-shirt! That silvery scrunchie that matched the silver splatter on my shirt!
I actually made that shirt myself; back in the day there was this splatter paint store (I believe it was located in a Creve Coeur or Town & Country strip mall) where you could pick out a t-shirt and the staff would mount it on this splatter paint wheel. Then you got to choose the colors you wanted to splatter your shirt with, and they’d throw the paint on the wheel and spin it around…et voilà: a splatter paint tee. Did any of you have one of these these places in your town? These shirts were OH SO COOL in St. Louis at the time, at least in my school. I mean, look how amazing I was. 😛
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Green Makeup Find: Vapour Organic Beauty
I believe I first heard of Vapour Organic Beauty on Grimm actress Claire Coffee‘s blog, Full Disclothesure (which I recommend, BTW—she doesn’t post often, but her posts are well written and funny, and it’s nice to see a celebrity writing her own stuff and being so down-to-earth about it). Claire had high praise for Vapour’s foundation and primer, which piqued my interest, as I had started (slowly but surely) trying to green my beauty and skin care routine. According to the brand’s website their products are 100% natural, containing 70% organic ingredients and 30% mineral pigments and essential oils. The products are also cruelty free, so no bun-buns are harmed in the process.

Friday Five
1. Makeup Brush Washing—A Spring Cleaning Must: I’ve been doing a bit of spring cleaning here and there, so I also made it a point to wash my makeup brushes. I confess that I don’t wash them as often as I really should (though I definitely do it more often than spring cleaning time), but it doesn’t take long and is a must for preventing the growth of bacteria!


















