This Is Not A Drill

Hello, Lovelies. Its me.  No, I am not about to bust out in Adele. Please, I'm not basic. Don't get me wrong I love Adele, but that joke is staler than the rice cakes you've convinced yourself "taste good."

Its happening. After a year of not posting anything to this sassy corner of the world, I am back. Now why haven't I posted in over a year? I would like to make excuses like I was just busy or I  joined a cult that didn't have wifi but the truth is... I got distracted. Every time I started to write a post I would notice something else that I needed to buy from Sephora or some show that I needed to watch on Netflix. You see it was a vicious cycle of procrastination (my specialty) and well thats pretty much it. 

Now I would like to extend my deepest apologies to the concerned citizens out there in the web universe who noticed my disappearance from this space. I have returned. I am still alive. Still just as sassy and fabulous as I was before, if not more. You see I have experienced life a little more and have ventured into the crazy world of adulthood more than I cared to. And I have to say its made me a little salty. Granted I have always been a bit salty, but now I am like the last french fry left at the bottom of a Mcdonald's bag- tall, pale, and covered in enough salt to cause a heart attack.  

I would also like to think I have grown as a person. Not physically.. goodness no..I am 20. I think I have passed that phase in life. But I would like to say I am slowly becoming someone who doesn't struggle as much with the things they did before. I am still a shopaholic but I can at least reason with myself now. I don't make as many late night impulse purchases... I mean lets not go crazy, I still make more impulse purchases than your average individual, but I've improved. We are allowed to have slip ups every once in a while right? I know my bank account would appreciate for me not to slip up, but sometimes you have to treat yo self! 


Life tip: Don't go on Etsy after 11 pm. You'll end up buying painting of a meerkat riding a moped, and then completely forget about it until it arrives in the mail from England a month later. What am I going to do with that you ask? I have no idea, but 11 o clock me had great plans for it. 

Well divas.. I am back. I have returned and all is well in the kingdom. I shall talk to you soon, and if there are any topics you would like me to discuss just let me know and I will take them into consideration. Now here is a picture of me because I'm vain like that.

Queen Diva out.

                                                                     Stay Swazzy,
                                                                                Cherry XOXO

Ipsy Tipsy

For the past 11 months I have been receiving my monthly glam bag from Ipsy.  I bought  a one year subscription because who doesn't want beauty goodies delivered to their house every month? I do. I had heard of the Ipsy and thought I would give it a try.

Every time I spied a shiny pink package in the mail I knew my ipsy bag had arrived. I was excited. I loved opening them to see the pretty bags and all the beauty products I had received.  At first I was curious about what I was going to get each month but as the year went on my excitement for the bag fell faster than over sprayed hair on a humid day.

The bags become predictable. Every month I knew  I was going receive the following: Nude lipstick or chapstick, Nude eye shadow, facial cleanser, or an eye pencil. Now don't get me wrong I like a little nude colored beauty products but my gosh not every single product needs to be Nude!! Lets have some variety here! My cynical soul needs color too!

Were they trying to subtly hint at something by sending a facial cleanser in every bag? Do they think I never wash my face?  Every month I have received some form of a facial cleanser or wipes. I end up giving most of them away. Don't get me wrong facial cleansing is important... but there are other beauty products besides facial cleansers. Lets widen our horizons Ipsy. I mean we have beautiful eye shadow, flawless foundation,  hauntingly dramatic eye liner, and so many other magical things in the beauty world but yet you choose to send face wash every single time...

Its not that I haven't gotten any good things. I have gotten some products I've loved, but I don't think the subscription is worth it anymore. So after I receive my last bag I will be canceling my subscription. I have decided to move on to BirchBox. I have heard good things about them and the boxes look so cute!

This month's Ipsy bag. I actually really like it. I mean its says what we are all thinking, Makeup is important. I am definitely going to use this bag just maybe not the products inside.

Well my divas that is all I have for today.

Queen Diva out.

                                                   Stay Adventurous, 

                                                                   Cherry XOXO

The Blushed Nudes Maybelline Review

I have been on the search for a decent eyeshadow palette. Let me tell you it hasn't been an easy one. Why are eyeshadow palettes so expensive? I don't get it. So when I was in Walmart and saw The Blushed Nudes palette by Maybelline for only 10 dollars I thought I'd give it a try. 

What first drew me to the product was the packaging. Its a pretty rose gold color which happens to be one of my favorite colors so obviously I had to check it out.  The colors of the shadows looked beautiful so I thought I had finally found a good palette I would actually love! 

The first time I tried this palette I used the lighter shades to go for a rosy pink look.  It was a causal day. I wasn't going anywhere important so I wanted the effortless, less is more summer look. So I got out my eye shadow brush and swirled it in the individual pot. My spirits were rising, tension was growing, and the suspense was too much. Would this palette meet my expectations? I applied the eye shadow to my eyelid and looked in to the mirror for that glorious moment of truth. Excitement filled the air. And as I looked in the mirror my heart came crashing down. That moment was so disappointing I can't even begin to explain. I had such high hopes for this and they were blown away as easily as the shadow could have been blown off of my eyelid. No pigment. I applied more to try and build it up but it only made a small difference. Defeat. 

However I wasn't going to give up yet on this palette. I was going to give it a second chance. I decided I should try it but apply eye primer first. I use Prime Time Brightening Eyelid Primer by Bare Minerals. I applied my primer and then applied my eyeshadow. This time I went for the darker colors.  My hopes weren't too high this time as I had already been burned once by this palette. I looked in the mirror for the moment of truth and I was surprised. There was actually color! Do my eyes deceive me?! I applied more since I was going for a more dramatic look. It was build able and had some form of pigment.  I have even worn the darker shadows a couple time since then. The quality was much better than the lighter shades.

I decided to try the lighter shade one last time. This time I used primer to see if it was my own inability to apply primer the first time that caused such disastrous results. I put on my primer and applied my eye shadow. My hopes were rising as I felt that there might be a redeemable quality to this palette. I was wrong once again. The colors were still pathetic. There was still no pigment. My hopes were dashed. Day ruined. If only the lighter shades were as pigmented as the darker shadows. 

So what is my final conclusion of this palette? Well... Maybelline you could have done better. You really could have. I like the darker shadows and will continue to use them, but if I can't use half of the palette due to the lack of pigment in the product is it worth it? I'm not sure about that. Please Maybelline work on the quality  and concentration of your pigment.

Well my dear darling Divas that is all I have for today. If you know of any good affordable eye shadow palettes leave a comment below. 

Queen Diva Out. 

       

                                                   Stay Fabulous,

                                                       

                                                               Cherry XOXO

There was a Burst of Color

Yesterday I did something I've always wanted to do. I participated in a color run. Well technically it was called a Color Burst since it was hosted by the ymca so children could be involved, but same thing. It was as colorful and fun as I imagined.

Now the training for this 5k was very intense. It was so intense some might not even believe that it happened.......thats because it didn't. I did not train whatsoever for this event. I just went for it. Sometimes in life you just got to jump right in unprepared  and hope you don't die from an asthma attack due to your lack of training. But I survived... clearly otherwise you wouldn't be reading this right now. I was not the only unprepared runner. My friend Brittany who also ran along with Stefanie and I was not prepared either. The two asthmatics just taking the color run by storm and hoping for the best. Stefanie on the other hand who decided to be Ms. Overachiever actually trained for the run. Who does that? I don't.

They had the path of the run set up so it was one giant loop that you had to go around twice so you hit each color station a second time. (Just in case you weren't already dosed in color they threw more on you.) The second time I ran through the red color zone this lady threw some right at my face so it speckled around my mouth like I had the chicken pox. I looked like I had just eaten a giant red popsicle. Fantastic.. My friend Stefanie looked like a leprechaun with the amount of green that covered her. I think they could sense she was Irish so they just dosed  her with the green. Let that Irish pride show. Potatoes!!

At the end of the run they have everyone get in a big crowd for the final color toss. For the final color toss they had everyone grab the remaining color and throw it into the air at the same time. The parking lot turns into one giant colorful cloud that hovers for about a minute. Its really cool to see all the colors fly in the air, but word to the wise do not inhale at all during this. Not a good idea. Just hold your breath and hope the cloud of color floats away.  It is a wonderful sight to see though.

I will definitely do the color burst again next year. But maybe I'll actually train this time. Who knows?

Queen Diva Out.

                                               

                                                Stay colorful,

                                                           Cherry XOXO

What a waste of a Near Death Experience

 Well....Well... Spring break has come and gone along with my mind. Why have I lost my mind? Well to be frank I never had one, but maybe the fact that I had three cups of caffeine this week or that I almost died twice might contribute a bit. Who really knows? I don't.

At the beginning of the week it was great! I didn't have school. I saw my friends. But I also had an asthma attack and well that puts a real downer on the situation. I mean it was only inconvenient for the night, but oh my goodness are they annoying. You're probably picturing me wheezing and coughing like some possessed hyena  (ahh what a mental picture) but no. My asthma takes the more silent approach. When I have near death situations I become quiet and calm which is ironic because even though yes I can pretend to be calm, I am never.. ever.. quiet. I probably won't even be quiet when I'm dead. You might be thinking, "but Cherry thats not possible.. you're dead?" Girl I'll record myself reading coupons if thats what it takes to talk beyond the grave. You can't get rid of me that easy. I'll haunt your cabinets.

A few days after my first near death experience I made a trip to my salon. Now first of all I love going to the salon. They make you feel beautiful and pampered. Oh its wonderful! However I was planning this trip to just be short and sweet. No hair dyeing or root touchups just a trim. Snip Snip and then boom out of there just like a drug deal.  It was supposed to be a simple easy trim but I came across a factor that I could not account for.. caffeine.. You see the night before I had been with my friends and I stupidly thought it would be a good idea to get a frape... ya know.. just a little caffeine to get me through the night.....There is a reason I do not drink caffeine... I can't handle caffeine just ask my friends. They will attest to what happens to me on caffeine. Its not pretty. I can't be trusted on it. So anyways I am driving to the salon all determined while listening to One Direction of course. I'm not superstitious its just I have to listen to them on the way to the salon otherwise I'll get a bad haircut.  I'll be 90 and still be jamming to some 1D on the way to the salon. But  I don't care. I don't take chances with my hair. But anyways   like I was saying I was on a mission to get a trim but the moment I turned my vehicle into the salon driveway something came over me. It was like I was hit with the Holy Spirit. (It it was probably the caffeine,) But I needed to dye my hair! So I did. Black and violet.  Its mainly just black with a little violet in to keep it rich. I also then had another cup of caffeine at the salon because why learn from your mistakes if you can just repeat them?  Just another day kids just another day.

So this all leads to my second near death story. Today it was nice and sunny out and sometimes in the sun my hair looks a bit violet. So as I was walking to my mode of transpiration, the Buick aka grandpa cruiser,  I was trying to turn my head to look at my hair, but since it was kinda windy it was a bit difficult. So there I am looking like an idiot trying to see what color my own hair was (while still struggling to get to my car) when this car next to me starts pulling out an almost hits me!  I could have died!  I mean granted he was probably only going 2 mph at this point but still I could have been incapacitated! I was just minding my own business looking at my hair and I almost died! That would have been it. I would have died just walking to my car because I got distracted by my own hair... not someone else's hair.. no my OWN hair.. And y know what.. I didn't even figure out what color hair I had... what a waste of a near death experience.. This is why I need adult supervision. This is my life kids.

Well thats all I have fore today Loves,
Queen Diva Out.
         
                                                        Stay Fly,
                                                               Cherry XOXO
         

Will Run for Fries.

So I have made the delusional decision to become a runner. Why you may ask? I'm not really sure. Maybe its the way a runner's eye sparkles when they realize they are about to die, or maybe its the sweatiness. Either way I'm clearly unstable. I mean what is more attractive than a dying asthmatic topple over into the pathetic sweaty mess I will have become.

 However, I'm trying to start out slow instead of going full force and burn myself out. And when I say slowly I mean walk fast paced for 5 minutes and then jog/sprint for 2 minutes. I will slowly build myself up to where I can run for most of the time. (If I ever get there.) I'm not sure if this method is really effective or not, but its the one I'm going with. I'm determined to stick to this. I have always wanted to run in a marathon, and I'm going to achieve this. I might die trying, but I will do it.  And I will do it fabulously!

(Reality sets in.)

After the first two days of my decision to become a runner, my legs weren't hurting too bad if at all. I thought I was doing pretty well. Wrong..... I was very wrong. You see I was fine and dandy till the 3 days later when my body decided that it hated me. (This is also happened to be the day that I had to run everywhere for work so definitely not the most ideal time.)  I was a mess. My legs wanted to give up on me while simultaneously cramping up so  I could feel their wrath. It was rough.   There were many moments throughout the day that I was tempted to just lay down in the elevator. Just give up and let the world see the blubbering shambles I was. Its not like anyone would notice some random girl dying in the elevator anyways.   What have I done to myself? In what world did I think this would be a good idea... anyways..

This week beside my insane decision to hurtle myself around in the name of exercise,  I started my second semester of college.  I know you are probably thinking "why are you going back for more punishment?" I don't know.. Seemed like a good idea at the time. However, I already know that this semester is going to be crazier than last. But I already have my first trip of the year planned for next month. So there's a plus. I am finally going to visit the city  I belong in. My whole life I have wanted to go there and next month I will be in it's beautiful city limits.. Ahh.. adventure...

Well anyways my  Dear Divas today's is short and sweet, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Queen Diva out.



                                                                Stay Swazzy,
                                                                            Cherry XOXO

Jingling of the Bells and All that Jazz

Ho! Ho! Ho! It is Christmas! Yes, the day we've waited for all year. The day that is held to such high standards. The day that you wake up and then a few hours later the festivities are over... I mean lets be real here for a second if we have christmas commercials  that play for months and unrealistic expectations for holiday perfection, why can't we celebrate it for at least a week? Christmas is too short. I love Christmas, and the day seems to disappear too quickly.
(Unlike you mainstream whipper snappers we celebrated Christmas yesterday, January 3rd, so don't be crushing my candy cane.)

This year my whole immediate family was in attendance. That hasn't happened in a few years due to the fact that siblings have moved  away so it makes it difficult to get everyone together. ah logistics.
 This was also the first Christmas with my niece and nephew. (Technically this is my niece's first christmas ever since she is only two months old  but small details.) I love being an aunt, and christmas shopping for your niece or nephew is so much more fun! Everything is smaller and cuter. You just want to spoil them with everything. Your wallet may not agree, but you do.

So  yes, once again my house was invaded by relatives. I love my family, but I had finally gotten the bathroom arranged just right.  Now multiple people are using it and messing it up instead of just one person...me. Now I don't care if you mess up the great room or the kitchen(its not like I use the kitchen anyways), but do not mess up my bathroom. I like having all of my beauty products and lotions in the right place otherwise I end up being late to an occasion because I take forever rearranging the chaos left by others. Being fabulous is a process. You can't just have someone come in and mess up the fab. Not cool.

Holidays can be stressful (not that I should know I'm not really in charge of anything.) But there are many ways to cope with holidays. I have a few ways.. only 3 really so maybe you shouldn't be listening to my advice. You see I'm  more of a hot mess than a functioning adult..well a hot mess minus the hot...and double the mess. But who cares? Lets not get stuck in christmas pudding over small details like my lack of sanity. This is my advice on how I live my life during the holiday season. Its not the best...but its all I've got.

No. 1 Never put the lights on the christmas tree, have someone else put lights on. For example choose a brother or family member who doesn't enjoy decorating, but be in complete control of the ornament enhancement portion.  (If you give someone an annoying task, they won't volunteer to do more decorating. This step is very important for ornament control.)  This is very pivotal moment in tree decorating. It will make or break your  christmas tree. Remember to hang your basic beautiful bulbs and color coordinated ornaments first, then add the touch of family ornaments! You don't want to be to carried away with the handmade ornaments, otherwise it might make your tree look a bit bulky. I mean really the only person who appreciates your homemade  gingerbread man which resembles chuckie after a chainsaw accident, is your mother.

No. 2 If you at any point feel overwhelmed and stressed, embrace it. We have all at one point found ourselves sitting in a dark corner going full Adele on all the presents we need to buy but can't afford. "Never mind!! I'll find someone like you!!!" But don't worry you burst out those Adele lyrics. You don't have time for shame or sanity during the holiday season. Or maybe you can take the T Swizzle approach and just shake it off. Because nothing solves debt and desperation like thrusting your body around in an awkward turkey like fashion.  You normally end up looking  more like you're having a Benny Hinn experience than shaking off your problems. And trust me having a body shaking healing experience is never a good way to start the holidays.. people tend to think you are dying. Its unfortunate.

No. 3 I firmly believe in avoiding the real problem in any given situation. I hate conflict. I like to avoid the problem until it eventually goes away or it completely consumes your life so the pathetic mess, that you have always been, is exposed to the public. It's not pretty folks.. not pretty. But someone has to be the poster child of "how not to deal with responsibilities," and that just so happens to be my job. If your problem gets too stressful to deal with just go hide in your nephews tent fort and watch netflix. Normally by the time your family has figured  out where your "adult" self is hiding the situation will have been resolved. No need for you to get your tinsel in a knot.  Its just holidays folks.

As you can see I have great holiday stress handling skills. (I am still waiting for Oprah to call and have me on her show. I could expound so much wisdom to the masses.)  So if there is anything you need advice on or topics you want me to cover, just ask. I am always up for giving inexperienced but  fabulous advice. I think its my true calling in life.

Queen Diva out.

Stay Saucy, 

              Cherry XOXO

P.S. A sign you might be from Wisconsin is if at your family christmas dinner, you spend a large portion of it discussing cheese and the great things of Wisconsin. We are Wisconsinites. We are loud. We are proud.