I'm the girl, Gracie. Here at GML you can follow my journey of dreaming, working, eating, loving, and blogging my way through life in NYC.
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Around this time of year in the spring and summer seasons, I like to always reevaluate my daily makeup routine and go-to products. Things like the weather and sun exposure can make a huge difference when it comes to not only the condition of my skin, but also the type of makeup look I go for. In the fall and winter there’s more freedom to be experimental with bold colors and more dramatic makeup, but in the spring and summer I like to tone it down and have a more natural look.
To me, keeping makeup natural is all about having the right products. It’s about using makeup that enhances your face – skin, eyes, lips, etc. – rather than just covering it up. One of my favorite brands for natural-looking makeup products has always been Almay, so I was excited when I was asked to do a review of their Almay smart shade™ mousse makeup and Almay intense i-color bold nudes™ kit.
First up – the Almay smart shade™ mousse makeup. I’ve mentioned in the past that I’m really picky when it comes to any sort of face makeup. I can’t stand it when my face feels like it’s being weighed down with cakey makeup. I also have trouble finding face makeup that matches the shade of my skin, which is why I was really impressed with the Almay smart shade mousse.
It instantly transformed into the ideal shade for my fair skin. It also applies great – it’s incredibly smooth and provides just enough coverage for a smooth, even look.
Next is the Almay intense i-color bold nudes™ kit. I’ve never been incredibly experimental with eye shadows because I’m never sure if they’ll look good and be the most flattering to my eye color. That’s why I love how Almay has made it so simple with their intense i-color bold nudes™ kit.
It’s so easy to choose because the eye shadow sets come formulated for your eye color. Not only that, but there’s an eye shaped palette right on the kit that tells you where to put each shade. It doesn’t get much easier than that! I also really like how the eye shadow shades have nude tones but still have a great flash of color to give a great natural yet intensified look to my eyes.
And now for the giveaway….
What’s your go-to date night look?
Answer this question below, and each comment will automatically be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card!
Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
- Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
- Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
- Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
- For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 5/16/13-6/16/13.
Be sure to visit the Almay brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!
Do you love your hair?
No, really. Do you love your hair?
My guess is that most of you don’t mind your hair. You may even like it. But if you’re anything like me, there’s probably a thing or two (or three) about your hair that you don’t necessarily love or would like to change. And, let’s be real, that’s not okay! There’s nothing like having a great hair day that leaves women feeling confident and beautiful. That’s why I love what ULTA Beauty is doing with their Love Your Hair event.
The 21-day event goes from May 12 through June 1st. ULTA Beauty is offering daily Beauty Steals™, free gifts, salon events, free consultations, and the chance to win free blowouts for a year (see below)!
ULTA Beauty was kind enough to send me some of the Beauty Steals to try out for myself, and they’re all amazing products that left my hair looking and feeling the best it ever has. Here are some of my favorites: I’ve mentioned how I’m a fan of Big Sexy Hair products before. I haven’t tried these ones before, and they’re just as great as the others I’ve tried. I started by using the Blow Dry Volumizing Gel.
Combined with using the Root Pump, the result was the perfect lift my hair needs, whether I’m wearing it down or want a bit of a “poof” with my ponytail.
 
Although I have naturally straight hair, you’ve probably noticed that I often like to go with a wavy look. I achieve this by using a curling iron, but that’s not always the best thing for the condition of my hair.
That’s why I loved and was really impressed by these CHI products, both of which help protect and repair hair from the harmful heat of curling irons and straighteners. The CHI Infra Treatment really helps moisturize and reconstruct hair. The CHI 44 Iron Guard is sprayed on right before using thermal tools to help add a protective barrier to your hair.
Last but not least, I absolutely loved this Orofluido Beauty Elixir. It is one of the best products I’ve used on my hair…I might even say it’s a miracle worker! It left my hair feeling silkier than ever and look healthy and shiny.
I also really love what ULTA Beauty is doing with their Hair Pledge. They’re encouraging women to pledge to love the hair they have for the chance to win free blowouts for the rest of the year. Joining is simple – tweet your hair pledge with the hashtag #ULTAHairPledge and you’re entered. You can go here to see sample pledges, more info, and other ways to enter. Last but not least, BlogHer has been kind enough to offer my lucky readers the chance to win a $100 ULTA Beauty Gift Card! To enter, simply leave a comment saying what you love the most about your hair!
Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 5/15/13-6/1/13.
Be sure to visit the ULTA Beauty page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!
1) Silver Linings Playbook. OMG.
2) Speaking of movies…two days until Great Gatsby! I can’t wait to see it. Also, Carey Mulligan has been a favorite actress of mine for years, so I feel a weird sense of pride for her with this role.
3) I want another tattoo.
4) I’m not usually a huge fan of beauty movements (hello, there are more important things than being beautiful), but I still really found myself loving this.
5) What happened to “exciting things are on the horizon” fortunes? And can someone please interpret this fortune for me? Not that I care or anything…
6) Lately, I’ve found myself literally stopping to smell flowers. Maybe it’s because I live in a concrete jungle now, but there’s just something about flowers that I find so much more beautiful and joyful than ever.
7) I can’t stop thinking about this poem/story my pastor including in his message on Sunday. I posted it on my Tumblr the other day, but wanted to share here too.
8) Pardon the scowl…but like my new hat?
9) While we’re on selfies, I recently stumbled across hundreds of old photos on an old computer. I know it’s a little early for “Throwback Thursday” but…say MySpace!
10) As always, I’ll leave you with some inspiration for this lovely Wednesday.
{image sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
Who is/are your favorite actor(s) right now?
This is a kind of heavy question but, what do you think about beauty movements?
Hello from Pennsylvania! I came here for a couple of days to celebrate the (belated) birthday of my lovely mom. But let’s rewind a bit first, shall we?
On Thursday I paid a visit to Arrojo to get my blonde locks all freshened up. Mission accomplished. (If you’re looking for a colorist in New York you have to try Nadia at Arrojo. She’s amazing!)
Later that night Jessi and I headed to Hudson Common for a special karaoke party. But not just any karaoke party…
Karaoke Killed the Cat hosted what was hands down the most fun karaoke I’ve ever experienced. They’ve made karaoke less of an awkward (sometimes boring) performance and turned it into an interactive, silly, and FUN party.
(Check out some more pictures and videos from the night on the FreelyBe Facebook page.)
On Friday Jessi and I had a handful of meetings all over the city. A few miles walked and a forgotten lunch later, we were starving for dinner by 5pm. So after our last meeting our destination was an obvious one – to head to Murray Hill for dinner at Baby Bo’s.
Baby Bo’s has some of the best authentic Mexican food in the city. Tip: always ask for the extra dipping sauces with your tortilla chips!
I usually get enchiladas or a burrito, but I decided to switch it up and try their Chile Rellenos (one with beef, one with shrimp), served with rice and beans. It looks a bit messy, but it was so, so good. I think I may have a new favorite meal.
It was still gorgeous outside when we left, so we decided to take the 30-minute walk home. By the time we got back to the apartment we were pretty exhausted from the long day, so a movie chick flick night it was!
Bachelorette was…good. Definitely funny and cute at times, but sort of unnecessarily crude at others. Definitely entertaining, though!
After sleeping until 11am yesterday morning (who am I?) I headed to the train station where my beautiful sister Katie picked me up.
We had such a fun afternoon together stopping at her apartment, visiting our friend Sara, and running some errands before setting up camp at mom and dad’s. Laziness, ice cream, and quality family time ensued.
And now here I am on Sunday morning, about to get ready for church and the day ahead  Enjoy the rest of your weekend, friends!
Have you ever done karaoke? What’s your go-to song?
How’s your weekend so far?
If you haven’t noticed, my hair is on the longer side.
…and apparently I have a preferred “side” for photos? haha.
I’ve had my hair long since I was about 13 (and that may or may not be because I had a horribly bad experience with a short haircut in 2nd grade). Thankfully my hair is pretty easy to manage, but because it’s so long I tend to need help in the volume department.
Enter: Oscar Blandi Hair Lift Serum and Pronto Texture & Volume Spray.
The Hair Lift Serum is applied to damp hair before blow drying, and it instantly thickens and strengthens your hair. I’ve noticed such a huge difference after adding just a small amount!
The texture and volume spray is perfect for when I want to add an extra bounce to my hair, especially before a night out. It has extra keratin for strength and zeolite – a natural mineral – for volume and hold. You apply it to dry hair from the ends to the roots while lifting.
Because I also get highlights, I try not to dry out my hair by washing it every day. I’ve used just about every dry shampoo on the market, and I can safely say that the Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo is the best I’ve tried yet.
Thanks so much to my friend Gina who works at Oscar Blandi for giving me these product samples! (Please note I was not compensated for this review.)
What are your go-to hair products?
It’s Saturdayyyyy!
I don’t know about you, but this past week seems to have flown by. I didn’t anticipate it being the craziest of weeks, but my days lately have just been booked from start to finish. Throw some (sort of serious) blog issues into the mix…and, let’s just say I was excited to get the weekend off to an early start.
I kicked off a pre-start to the weekend by having dinner with none than miss Monica on Thursday night.
Fun fact: did you know that Monica and I actually would not have been friends if it were not for GML? She has a friend who made a recipe from here, then Monica started reading and found out about FreelyBe, came to one of our meetings, and it was friendship at first sight 
We had dinner at one of my favorite new spots, Westville. Westville’s food is not only delicious, but it’s some of the most fresh and healthy I’ve had in the city. We split four of their market sides (fried plantains, mashed sweet potatoes, parmesan asparagus, and sautéed kale):
And almond-crusted trout over a salad with pears and avocado:
I kept the fresh and healthy kick going for breakfast the next morning to keep me fueled for the long day ahead.
Then…I was off. I spent almost all of Friday out and about running errands, meetings, getting my monthly allergy shot, and doing my blogger duty of taking a selfie to prove it.
And, of course, Jessi and I found some time to squeeze in just a bit of shopping. I picked up a lipstick I’ve been wanting, thanks to the Sephora gift card my lovely roommate Trish got me for my birthday.
Obnixious pink, anyone?
That would be NARS Schiap (semi matte) lipstick. I originally tried it on almost as a joke but loved how fun the shade was! It’s a great color to brighten things up a bit going into spring.
After a couple of hours at home to relax and get ready for the night ahead, Jessi and I headed out to the first of our two events for the night. First up was hosting corporate happy hours at Hudson Common, followed by another installment of the You+2 events.
Our job isn’t so bad.
And now here I am – just having finished some pumpkin pancakes courtesy of my BFF Jessi – and prepping to get the day started. I might even be a rebel and leave my bed unmade today. Good thing I have a futon to store my 92465947 pillows…
Aaaand I’m off. Enjoy your Saturday, friends!
How did you wrap up this week? Any fun plans for the weekend?
{sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9}
Cliche title, amazing sequence of events.
Let’s start with some of the merry…like the fact that it was recently made official that I am indeed moving again!
I know I know, it seems like I’m moving all. the. time. Maybe because I am…? This is a simple move, though, because I’m actually staying in the same building. A room opened up in Jessi’s apartment, and Erica has decided she wants to live in Brooklyn, so…that’s that! On Friday I’ll start living in the new digs (and start saving a heck of a lot of money. Boom).
This past week has also included some tasty new additions. This Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Pecan KIND Bar is definitely a new favorite of mine…
…and also works as a great post-workout snack.
That would be my “I don’t sweat, I glow” look, FYI.
Also a new favorite – Good Karma Flax Milk, which I was sent some samples of. I’ve never tried flax milk (I’m usually more of a whole milk and/or almond milk kinda girl), but I was very pleasantly surprised by how delicious it was! I love how it includes Vitamin D and Omega-3s. It added a great vanilla flavor and creamy texture to my favorite smoothie…
…and made a great addition to my “dessert” of granola + banana + dark chocolate chips.
Back to the merry: a much needed trip to Arrojo to get my hair done was another highlight (pun intended) of the week.
(If you’re in New York and are looking for a colorist, definitely email me. I’ve got the girl for you!)
And then of course there were some lovely nights out. Merry indeed.
Hudson Common, Finale, Rose Bar
What has been the most “merry” part of your week? Any new (healthy or not) food finds?
The good: while I was in Pennsylvania over the weekend I went through some old pictures and found this one of my childhood pet, Cuddles. Yes I named my cat Cuddles, and no she was not as evil as she looks.
The bad: my eyebrows in junior high. WOOF.
The good: also over the weekend – I was able to put my driving skills to the test, which is a rarity these days.
The bad: I may or may not have become a bit of a slow, slightly-paranoid driver.
The good: speaking of transportation, I’m not the only one who is lazy when it comes to getting around in NYC.
The bad: we enable each other.
The good: I’m still keeping up with trying to be fit and stuff.
The bad: I got this tea because I heard it was healthy, but it tastes like a mix of cough syrup and dirty feet.
The good: I’m late to the game on this one but…LANA. DEL. REY. Especially loving this remix of Summertime Sadness.
The bad: what the heck took me so long??
Any other Lana fans out there?
Tell me one good and/or bad thing that has happened to you recently!
I know I’m a little late to the game on this one, but I’m still loving all things studded. There’s definitely a fine line when it comes to studded accessories (I’m generally not a fan of anything that looks like a psychopath attacked by a bedazzeler), but in moderation they can make for a great edgy addition to your look. My recent studded purchase is this shoulder bag conveniently found at DSW.
Hudson Common is one of my favorite new venues in the city. BlackBook nailed it by describing Hudson Common as “a living room on an epic scale. Couches and communal tables fill brick-walled Hudson Hotel lobby that was once Hudson Hall. Beer garden gets elevated, with stylish exposed bulbs overhead, leather and dark wood accents. Built for the common man, at least as far as comfort food and good brews go. Burgers are char-broiled, fries are cooked in duck fat. Cocktails highlighted by spiked soda fountain classics, think root beer floats with rum, cream sodas with vodka. Taps say drink local, Sixpoint and Southampton in the mix. Bring the whole entourage—there’s room.”
Oh, and we just so happen to be hosting there every Thursday
(If you’re in New York, join us one week!)
As much as I love the coziness of winter…oh, who am I kidding? I’m totally ready for summer. That’s why I’m loving this Beach Wood Yankee Candle – paired with a good a sunless tanner and putting the heater on full blast – I can make my room feel like a little summer escape.
Speaking of summer, thanks to Pinterest I’m already getting ideas for fun new summer style ideas. Right now I’m loving (and on the lookout for) exposed-back tops.
As much as I try to be mindful of my health, I’ll probably never be one of those people who gives up caffeine. While coffee is my caffeine de choix, I’ve recently come to appreciate the quick-fix solution of popping a Foosh Energy Mint, which I was sent samples of. One mint has the caffeine amount of a cup of coffee, as well as ginseng, taurine and five B vitamins. They taste pretty good too!
My favorite new makeup product: Loreal Colour Caresse. I don’t usually love lipstick because it feels so heavy (and sometimes sticky), but Colour Caresse goes on light and smooth – almost like a lip balm. I got it in the Merino Mauve shade.
What are you loving right now? Any good beauty/fashion trends or products?
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