Winter Fashion Favorites!

Hi everyone!  How are we all doing today?  It was a beautiful day out weather wise here, but that is over because the high and low for the next couple of days is going to be no more than 30 degrees.  Eeeeek, hate it!  Anyway, let's get going into some of my winter fashion favorites!

First, I want to mention plain black leggings.  I am 100% obsessed with leggings for the winter because I hate having to wear anything else when it is so cold outside.  Leggings are so comfortable and can literally be warn with almost anything making them super versatile.  I have most of mine from Forever 21 because they are inexpensive.  While this is true, the leggings from Forever 21 that I have purchased usually just have to end up being re-purchashed because they are not of the best quality.  Another type of leggings that I love to wear around the house, out somewhere or even to go running or work out are the yoga leggings from Victoria's Secret.  These yoga leggings are absolutely amazing and they are great quality.  While they are a little more expensive, these leggings are worth the price.  Another plus about these leggings is that they come in a couple of different styles/fits.  There are some that are crop yoga leggings and some that are full.  Of course there are regular yoga pants that you can purchase from Victoria's Secret as well.  

Pink Yoga and Forever 21 Leggings.

Moving on, I would love to talk about blazers.  While blazers are obviously a necessity for professionals all year round, I find that especially during the winter, I absolutely love wearing blazers.  To compliment the thought that some people wear blazers all year round, I can also say that there are obviously a ton of different styles.  I tend to enjoy the more cut, professional look of a blazer.  I do enjoy an oversized blazer as well and I like a more subdued color.  This blush colored blazer is perfect with black or cream of any kind underneath, and this cream colored blazer is perfect for black, white, blush, gray or anything else underneath if paired properly.  Blazers are amazing because they cover you up and keep you looking professional while you are comfortable at the same time.  I tend to enjoy less of a cropped blazer during the winter and more of a non-constricted one instead.  Blazers are like instant chic and perfect for any day.  What I love most about blazers is that they make almost anything look so much better than it originally did when you first put it on.  Pair a blazer with a pair of skinny jeans tucked into boots with a t-shirt for a casual feel or try a polo with riding boots for some prep in your step.  Check out Forever 21 for some inexpensive blazers because they can tend to be higher in price in some places.

Cream blazer from Forever 21.

Blush blazer from Forever 21.

Madden Girl Combat Boots.

       

Madden Girl Riding-ish Boots.

                During the winter it's obviously the time where boots are more prominent.  Now let me be completely honest with you and let you know that a couple of years ago you would be able to catch me rocking Uggs almost all the time, I really loved them.  Although I almost never wear them anymore, there are a couple of different types of boots that I have absolutely been LOVING this winter.  These brown riding boots with the ride stripe and zipper coming up the side are from Madden Girl.  I absolutely love them and they were fairly inexpensive and affordable.  When I purchased them, I was looking for something just like them so I knew thats what I wanted, no question.  When looking at them  you would think that the red stripe might be a deal breaker because of its style ability and the boots being restrictive, but it's not true!  I absolutely love how comfortable the boots are and how great they look with a pair of gray leg warmers to the knee, amazing!  The second pair of boots I have been loving are actually a little more edgy for me, but I don't mind!  I love these black "motorcycle" looking boots that are you ready for this?  I got from Payless!  I know, I know, I couldn't believe it either.  These boots were exactly what I was looking for.  I wanted something simple and I absolutely loved the zipper up the back.  These boots have silver hardware on the side so they are not hard to pair with anything.  I absolutely love pairing these boots with my motorcycle jacket from Charlotte Russe.  I am happy to say that they have brought out the edge in me this winter!  Finally, these amazing combat boots.  These boots are from Madden Girl and are absolutely adorable.  The inside of them is an adorable plaid pattern that is a purple/burgundy color.  There are a million ways that you can wear these and a ton of different things that you can wear them with as well.  I love to tuck leggings into them or wear them with jeans.  My absolute favorite way to wear it is with leggings and a long cardigan that covers my butt!  Stay tuned for a future post on how to style combat boots.  

Brash Black Moto-ish Boots.

Saving the best for last, I wanted to include my amazing new Michael Kors watch that I received for Christmas from my father.  I was not expecting this as a gift because I had already gotten something else but he surprised me and I am forever thankful!  This watch is beautiful, and the style number is MK 5605  My dad had known that I wanted this specific style and that I wanted it in gold because I had written it down for him at one point.  The beautiful face with Roman numerals is absolutely perfect.  I haven't been paring the watch with any arm candy because it is the star of the show on its own, its absolutely stunning and I am 100% in love.

MK 5605.

That is it lovelies for my quick series of winter favorites.  I hope that you all enjoyed it and if you have any requests on what you would like to see, please leave a comment!  Also, please send me a tweet and check me out on Instagram, also let me know you read this!  I can't wait to share with you my next post, check back tomorrow.

Xoxo-Brit.

COLLEGE GRADUATION!

Commencement program.

First of all, I went to Monmouth University which is a college in West Long Branch, NJ.  I have grown up knowing I wanted to be a journalism student, seriously I knew that it was going to be my field of study since I was about six years old.  It takes a lot to know something like that so young.  I had a fascination of news and media all of my life and I wanted to be part of it.  I loved politics, fashion, and everything that was current.  When I was in middle school, I became an integral part of my schools morning announcements and did the same as I went into high school.  While in high school, not only did I floor manage, direct and star in my HS's announcements, I wrote for the school newspaper and was one of the editors for it.  I was so happy to finally be able to do something that I knew that I loved since I was so young.

This is what I planned for under my gown.

It was high school that gave me an opportunity to write an article for the Asbury Park Press which was a dream of mine because my parents used to get the APP when I was a kid!  I always wanted to work there so to have an article written in their paper as a high school student I was just overjoyed.  When I began looking at colleges, I knew what major I wanted to be so that was decided upon early.  The choice of which college to go to was also very simple: Monmouth University.  I had known people that went there and I knew that it was my dream school.  When I first visited it in 2007 I instantly fell in 100% love with it and I knew that it was the place for me.  There was one thing holding me back: it was so expensive!  I was very smart (not to toot my own horn or anything), but I knew that scholarship money I was awarded wouldn't cover it all!  I ended up going to the local community college when I graduated from high school for free because I was an NJ Stars student.  Although I wanted to go directly to Monmouth, I knew that going to community college first was an excellent idea cost wise, I was going for free!  After my community college, I transferred to Kean University because my NJ Stars scholarship only went to public secondary education (Monmouth was private).  I was really upset that I didn't get a chance to go to MU but I was so thankful to have the undying support of my father that I was grateful just to have an education at this point.

The seating arrangement.

My time at Kean University was valuable.  I met many people and have friends that I still know from there, I received a great friend from it and I would not trade the experience for the world.  I commuted there from an hour and twenty minutes south for three semesters, definitely interesting but it was more of a real world experience.  I got to know what it would be like as a working person.  (I can post more about this and my previous experiences, I actually plan to).  After going here for three semesters, I started hearing rumors about the schools accreditation being in jeopardy and I didn't want to be involved in that at all.  I started thinking about what I was going to do and decided that I was going to ask my father if I could reapply to Monmouth (when I applied the first time, I got in!).  Thrilled that he said yes, I applied and got in with a scholarship and I was on my way to Monmouth once again.  I couldn't believe my dream was on its way to me.

Incredibly happy with my cap and gown on!

Before I knew it, orientation was here and I was starting classes and ti all lead me to this day, January 18, 2013.  Graduation was a dream.  No lie, the day and everything that came with it was an out of body experience.  Walking into the MAC I felt this overwhelming sense of joy, pride, excellence, leadership, accomplishment and any other feeling that you could, all at one time.  I scanned the crowd for my dad and brother and found them in an instant.  Next to them were my aunt, uncle and cousin and I was infinitely happy in that moment.  My eyes filled with tears but I didn't let anyone know.  I just thought about how amazing this accomplishment was and how much fun I was going to have with my family when it was over and I was happy again.  I sat through the ceremony and listened to the speakers.  The commencement speaker of honor was a filmmaker, one that worked on The Hunger Games.  I must say that yesterday, "the odds were ever in my favor."  After he spoke, the president of my university spoke about how our school was used to house people that were displaced during Hurricane Sandy, and before you know it, I was walking across the stage in my amazing Aldo heels and Forever 21 dress (under the cap and gown of course) and receiving the most expensive piece of paper that I have ever received!  I am so happy to finally have in my possession a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. (I can and will talk more about the graduation ceremony and experience).

Let me hear from you!  Have you graduated college yet?  What is your degree in?  Have you graduated high school?  Thats awesome, too!  Send me a tweet and let me know!  

Xoxo- Brit.

Winter Skincare/Nail Polish favorites!

Hey all!  I hope you're having a great day.  I just wanted to go ahead and continue with my "Winter Favorites" series by showing you some of my favorite skincare and nails of the winter so far.  Let's get started!

First I want to start with some skincare.  Now I went to the drugstore to get a new moisturizer when my Hope In a Jar ran out because I was trying to see if I could get something less expensive, but just as good!  The reason for this is because I tend to go a little heavier with moisturizer in the winter, like I am sure most of you do.  I tend to use Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer.  This moisturizer has an amazing consistency and it actually has a great scent, while being unscented (if that makes any sense!).  Although that tends to normally be my favorite from the drugstore, I wanted to try something else.  I picked up a Neutrogena Oil Free Moisture for combination skin, horrible decision.  The moisturizer made me swell up underneath the eye, I had an allergic reaction to it overnight!  When I woke up, my face was blown up, I couldn't believe it.  I believe it was $10 on sale at my Target when I picked it up, but I would not recommend it.  I didn't even notice a difference in my skin the next morning other than how huge it was.

Ponds Dry Skin Cream

Needless to say, I finally ended up going back to Target and picking up the Ponds Dry Skin Cream Rich Hydrating Facial Moisturizer.  This was $5 at Target and is probably the best kept secret of all time.  Now to be honest, I thought immediately of old ladies and moms when I looked at the Ponds products.  For some reason, I always think of older women using Ponds products, so as someone that is only 23, I was swallowing my pride a little bit with this purchase.  Let me tell you something right now, Ponds did NOT let me down.  I put the cream on my face the same day that it swelled because of the Neutrogena moisturizer and the next day that I woke up, the swelling was down, the dry skin was gone and my face was amazingly moisturized.  I was NOT expecting this at all, but I was accepting of it nonetheless.  If there was one thing I could change about the product it would probably be the scent.  It's not terrible, but it's not the best, it really just smells clean.  The back of the container says that it's Hypoallergenic, Suitable for sensitive skin, and it won't clog pores.  I completely agree and would recommend it to absolutely anyone!

Deborah Lippmann, "Billionaire" and "It's Raining Men."

Now moving on to some of my nail favorites for the winter thus far.  Maybe this is harping on the past but I just must go there, Christmas nails!  I can never get enough of my Christmas nails and this year I just wanted to go back to basics with it.  As you can see in the photo, I used two Deborah Lippmann colors in Billionaire and It's Raining Men.  I love them because they are true colors to Christmas and they are just beautiful.  These polishes are a little steep in price about $16, but they are completely worth it.  The color pay off is great, its bright, lively and fun.  The red here is a true Christmas red and the green and mossy, forest green.  The brushes on these polishes are great for application and the formula is a dream!  I tend to like this classic application technique, red on all the fingers except for the ring, where theres a green surprise!

My "Brown to Tan Ombre."  

The next nail design (or play on colors) that I have to share with you is my "Brown to Tan Ombre."  The reason i share this with you is because I have just been loving rocking it.  I think this is so appropriate for school, the office or even just everyday wear.  I love that it adds pizazz to the nails without really being obnoxious and taking it too far.  I wish I could remember the names of the polishes that I used but even looking at the photo I just cant remember which polish is which, I have way too many!  If you would like to know, please leave a comment below and I will try to look them up.  I posted a photo to my instagram and everyone seemed to love it!  If you try this look, tweet me a photo!

American Apparel's, "Peacock."

Finally, I wanted to show you this amazing color.  I tend to call it a "teal denim" because it reminds me of teal colored jeans.  I love the color and think it's perfect for winter for that pop of color for the season.  I love American Apparel polishes because they are very practical, and to be honest I love the unique bottle design and packaging.  The application of this polish is amazing and the opacity of the color is amazing with one coat!

Okay all, that's all I have for you today!  Look forward to another installment of my winter favorites coming tomorrow and if you have any questions please leave a comment below or send me a tweet. If you haven't already, check out the first installment: My Winter Beauty Favorites. Also be sure to check out my instagram and follow me there for outfit of the day photos, nail insta's and other random stuff!  Love you all and thanks for reading! 

Xoxo-Brit.

Winter Beauty Favorites!

Hi everyone!  I hope you are all having a great week so far.  I am lucky enough to have off until Saturday this week.  My normal school schedule is that I have off from Tues-Thurs during the week but now that school is over things will change eventually.  Then of course I also took off Thursday and Friday because I need to go and pickup the tickets for my graduation ceremony and my cap and gown! I am so excited!  Anyway, let's get on to the point of this post!  I figured that I wanted to share with you some of my favorite things for the winter.  I was going to call it, "Current Favorites" or something, but I think I like the way "Winter Essentials" sounds better, way cuter! ;)  Let's get on with it.

I'll start with some beauty favorites.  I have been recently obsessed with Revlon's BB Cream.  Now when I was new to BB Creams, I was looking for something with the perfect amount of coverage for me, which means not full but not lacking in coverage, so medium (if that makes sense).  I didn't want my face to look like it was caked out in make-up because seriously, who does?  Not attractive.  So when i saw that Revlon came out with something, I had to purchase it and try it out because they are my absolute favorite drugstore brand.  This one is amazing.  When I first started getting really interested in skin care, my skin was more of a combination, but now as I am getting older it gets very dry, very fast and this BB cream is great for that.  I like the way it sits on the skin, it doesn't feel heavy which is essentially the point of a BB cream.  I also absolutely love the smell of this formulation, it's like you are putting sunscreen on your face.  The coverage is great and it blends in perfect with your skin, the color I use is 002 Light Medium.  The only reason I would say not to use this is if you have oily skin.

Next, I want to share with you this Laura Geller Dream Creams Concealer & Highlighter Palette in Regular/Tan.  I got this before the summer started and normally I don't tend to wear concealer on my face in the summer so I never used it.  What I do find, is that a mixture of the two colors on the right (the darker and lighter) is a perfect match for my skin and it makes it an amazing under/around the eye concealer.  The best thing about this?  It stays all day long.  I honestly have never used an under-eye concealer that stays all day long like this one with the creamy consistency.  As far as the left side of the palette, I don't really use it.  I would recommend this palette in the winter for under-eye concealer for long-lasting wear and great coverage!

The next couple of things I want to talk about are mascaras for the winter.  Now normally I am not that picky about when I use certain mascaras because it honestly has absolutely nothing to do with skincare, but I just want to point out these because they are doing great things for my lashes.  Maybelline Great Lash is just a classic, I love it!  The Lots of Lashes formulation is great and the brush is perfect, it allows you to get those inner corner lashes so that you look wide awake.  The Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express in the middle is awesome because I feel like it not only gives volume, but for me it lengthens!  The NYC High Definition has been a favorite of mine for a while.  This mascara really provides the volume that every day wear is perfect for.

Next I want to talk about some lipstick.  Ugh, lipstick is my absolute weakness.  If there is anything that I can't leave the store without its lipstick.  These two are from MAC; one is a Matte (my favorite ever!) and one is a Satin.  The Matte color pictured is Chili.  This color is literally perfection, I don't know where to start.  Because it is matte, the color stays on your lips forever and ever.  The color is this warm red that I wore on Christmas.  If you are easing yourself into red lips, this is the perfect way to do it because its a matte color but it still makes a statement.  The second color is Hot Chocolate and its a Satin color from the Apres Chic line at MAC thats out now.  It may or may not be limited edition so if you like it, go and pick it up!  This color is unlike anything that I have so I love it for that.  I describe it has the perfect combination of brown and purple, 

and a perfect hint of color.  Love it!

Okay so maybe this is lipstick overkill but like I said, I am absolutely obsessed. To this day, my dad still hates me for walking out of the house everyday with lipstick on because I'm his little girl and he can't believe that I'm growing up. Are any of your parents still like that? Haha! I just turned 23 and he does this to me all the time, sorry for that little sidebar. These two lipsticks are from Covergirl and they are amazing. I heard about 305 Hot Passion from beauty guru on Youtube, Missglamorazzi. This color looked a little too bold for me but I said that I would try it anyway and I ended up loving it. I wear the color to work almost all the time and I get so many compliments. This color is a little more glossy than the Chili. Best thing about the color? There are no sparkles and no glitter in it, I hate that in lipstick. If I wanted that extra glitter or sparkle I would put lipgloss on. The second color, 305 Tempt Seduction is amazing also. The color is more of a pink, not quite a hot pink. No extra sparkle or glitter and just the perfect amount of fun. Both of these colors stay on all day and there really is no 

need to reapply.

The next couple of things I will talk about are blushes.  The first two are from Nars with their ever so inapropro names.  The first one is Deep Throat.  I wrote about this color as a great color for the summer which is true, but I really love it all year long!  This is my first year or so having it in my collection and I love it so much.  The color looks like it has a ton of glitter but when you apply it to your face there really isn't that much.  This blush is a perfect wash of color to the cheeks especially if you don't like wearing a ton of blush or color.  The pink is perfect.  The second blush is Liberte.  I am obsessed recently with the wash of color over the cheeks that makes it look like you've been outside and the wind kissed your cheeks!  I was looking for something perfect to achieve this look and Liberte was that blush.  Now I have freckles so trying to get this look is hard with any color, but it's a step in the right direction.  I love this rusty color, perfect for the fall/winter season.  Lastly, I want to share my personalized MAC palette.  You can make your own palette and fill it with pan shadows at any MAC Pro store and I love it.  In here, I have Dollymix and Springsheen.  I believe I also wrote about these as great blushes for summer but I love them now!

Last but not least, I want to talk about the best thing ever! Viva La Juicy has been my absolute favorite scent. I will probably wear this all year long but I love it so much that I thought you should know about it. I don't even know how to explain the scent other than: best one ever. I got this for Christmas from my amazing father and I have had it before but ran out. I can't imagine my life without it ever again, hahaha. The scent is more mature and not sweet, perfect for everyday wear. I love how amazing the bottle looks and I will continue to use it forever!

Okay guys!  Thank you so much for sticking with me!  I am going to be posting a series of these, "Winter Favorites" for the next couple of days that will show you some things that I have been loving.  I hope you enjoyed the beauty post, tomorrow look forward to the nails/skincare installment!  If you liked this post, please leave a comment or send me a tweet.  If there is anything that you think I must try, let me know and I will!  Check out my Instagram as well, I post outfit of the days and other things there!

Xoxo -Brit!

Shopping tomorrow (yay), DIY projects, and another day of housewives.

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having a great day today, mine was not bad at all.  I can't wait till tomorrow of course because as you know, im shopping with my aunt up north.  Garden State Plaza, here I come!

So today I kind of bummed around the house all day and watched Desperate Housewives.  I cleaned my room and the bathroom because they both really needed it.  Although this got done, I must admit that he cleaning came out of impulse.  I got up and just randomly started cleaning things, don't even ask.  After I was done cleaning things out of the blue, I went to pick up the cork board that I wanted to add to my DIY project that I was making.  I will insert a picture right below this text.

I made this because I couldnt find anything to fit all of my stuff.  So far, its looking really cool but I want to add something right below the cork that will hold watches and bracelets because I want somewhere for them to go as well.  I don't know how well its going to fit or anything, but we will see.  I will do another post on this once it is all done but so far I am happy with the way it has come out.  It was very easy to design, my dad helped me put it together but it was very easy to do, and it was so inexpensive!  Also, in the photo that I inserted, it is sitting on my dresser but my dad had the great idea of putting a wire on the back so it can be hung on the wall.  I love this idea and will probably do so once it is completely done.  I want to see how the bracelet holder portion will look.  I also think I want to decorate it a little bit more.  I think there will be some glitter.  

I love this whole DIY process, I love making things mine! Also, doing things like this is so therapeutic.  Once in a while its really nice to create something on your own.  Not only is it cool because its a sense of accomplishment, but it's time for yourself.  The relaxing aspect of a DIY is rewarding and necessary every once in a while.

Like normal, i wanted to share my outfit for the day and my manicure of the day as well, so check them out:

Be sure to send me a tweet: @brittanyirvine and follow me on instagram: @brittanyirvine.  Thanks for reading! xoxo.