Another week done....can you believe it's the end of January? I'm in shock. How did it go by so fast?

Well, honestly, it doesn't feel like it went by that fast. I feel like NYE was years ago(HAHAHA) but at the same time, it feels like the month flew by.

I'm gearing up for my least favorite month...February. I hate February. Valentines Day, a lot of not great stuff has happened in February, and just one step closer to Spring. UGH.

This week wasn't terrible...I got my JawboneUp (post coming later), we had a huge(not really) snowstorm in NYC and everyone got a snow day, I went to my first hockey game, and I'm taking it slow this weekend. 

Anyways, here's what I was loving this week:

This interview with Carly from The College Prepster is incredible! Just gives me more reasons to love her. 

NYC was basically shut down due to snow storm Juno and the streets without people is simply incredible.

I love seeing what people keep in their bags, especially when they're the Beauty Director of Allure Magazine. 

Texting ruins lives. Plain and simple. 

Mercury is in retrograde so that explains so much! Here's how it's messing with everyone's heads. 

A baby hearing a blender for the first time is too funny! 

In other kids news, a boy explaining his first kiss is a reminder of love in it's purest, more innocent form. Too cute for words. 

Happy weekend everyone! What are your plans?

Is this a new series? I have no idea but let's roll with it and see.

Since I've been home from school, especially since the weather has gotten colder, I've felt the need to cook more. Sometimes when I'm home, bored of Netflix and my computer, I'll log onto Pinterest and see what I could make.

Honestly, I've made some pretty good things off Pinterest lately and I'm super proud of myself! Pinterest makes everything look so easy so when you finally do make something successfully, it's a big deal...right?

These breakfast cups that I'm about to tell you about is by far my favorite recipe because it's the easiest. It's basically full proof, you cannot mess it up.

I love breakfast. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day...words cannot explain it. I will pick breakfast over anything and I love finding new ways to make it. 

Over the past few months I've seen so many variations of these "breakfast muffins" and I even attempted one last year but I like these so much better. 

Bacon, eggs, cheese, and crescents all in one neat little package...seriously what more could you want?

This is the original recipe I found but I changed mine up a little bit. This recipe makes 12 muffins, perfect for on the go breakfast or just something different from your standard bacon and eggs.

This recipe isn't an exact science. You really can do whatever you want. If you don't want bacon, use something else, just more or less cheese—seriously, whatever you want! I won't tell anyone.

What you need:

6 eggs

8-12 strips of bacon (depending on what you want)

Shredded cheddar cheese

1 package of crescent roll dough

Directions:

Spray muffin tin with cooking spray, thoroughly

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Scramble 6 eggs with a little bit of milk

Cook the bacon to your liking, whether it's in the microwave or oven

Roll out the crescent roll dough onto a cutting board, making sure there are no spaces between the dough. Make the dough one complete sheet, not separate pieces

Place the dough pieces on the bottom of the muffin pan, bringing them up on the sides as much as possible but making sure there are no tears. If there is and you have left over dough after covering each pan, you can add the extras on the bottom.

Place bacon strips on top of crescent dough (I usually cut one strip in half and place the two pieces in the pan) 

Pour egg mixture (as much as you want) into each pan

Sprinkle cheese (as much as you want) onto the top

Place in oven, bake for 15-20 minutes, until cheese melts and you can clearly see the egg has cooked. 

Viola, you are finished!

Like I said, you can substitute items or add more or less of each ingredient. It all depends on your mood and taste... you really can't mess this up, promise!

I've made these a few times and each time they come out better and better. They are truly the perfect breakfast! 

What has been your most successful Pinterest recipe? Tell me in the comments!

It's only been in recent years, when I've had the blog and become obsessed with online media outlets, that I paid attention to the Pantone Color of the Year. I first remember Emerald two years ago and then Radiant Orchard last year.

Neither of them really impressed me.

I do like the idea of having a color of the year...it's like a full proof guide of staying on trend.

A few weeks ago, the new color of the year was announced but I had no idea it was even happening, that is until I saw it on Twitter and I was super excited.

It also wasn't a surprise that Marsala was chosen as the Pantone Color of the Year...I could've called that from a mile away and if it wasn't Marsala, I think I would've been pissed.

I've been obsessed with this burgundy, wine, nude, mauve color (it can be really any shade of those four) since I saw Kylie Jenner rock it on her lips and every beauty blogger on Youtube started talking about it.

What I didn't realize was that I had been wearing a variation of Marsala for over a year now. I have a pair of maroon/marsala pants from American Eagle that I wore to death last winter and am still getting use of today.

I also have been obsessed with the Essie shade "Angora Cardi" since I picked it up in CVS last winter.

So apparently I've been on trend for a while.

What I like about Marsala and what Pantone says is great about it, is that it's a universal shade that looks good on anyone...any skin tone, man or woman, any hair or eye color, it compliments everyone. It also is a very practical shade, which I think is my favorite reason for it.

The Radiant Orchard shade from last year seemed unwearable to me but Marsala, that's a totally different story. There is so much you can do with it, in both clothes, accessories, and makeup. There are also many different variations of the color...it could have more brown undertones or more pink or more nude. It's so versatile.

I'm a little obsessed, can't you tell?

I wasn't intending on doing a blog post about this but I was in an Internet black hole(ever get into one of those where you don't know how you ended up on the page) and got inspired.

I wanted to share my choices for the best Marsala products...makeup, accessories, anything really!

Side note: Reading about how Pantone picks the Color of the Year is fascinating! 

Here are my favorite Marsala products!

Too Faced La Creme Sweet Maple (I have Cinnamon Kiss, which is no longer sold, but a more brown Marsala that I LOVE) Maybelline Creamy Matte Lipstick in Touch of Spice Bite Beauty Matte Lip Crayon in Glace (I have Gavi and it's similar and amazing!)  Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Soft Rose Essie Nail Polish in Angora Card Make Up Forever Artist Shadow in Pink Ash Shop my picks below! (The sweaters are SUPPOSED to be in Marsala but for some reason, they showed up differently!) What are your thoughts on the Color of the Year? Are you going to be incorporating any Marsala products into your routine?

Did anyone else get completely thrown off by the short week? Having off on Monday's seem like a good thought but in reality, it throws off my entire week. 

I was thrown off, case in point, the reason there was no blog post yesterday. My mind escaped me this week. 

Nothing really significant happened this week, aside from the fact that I was way too inside my head, the rash on my face cleared up, and I impassively purchased a JawboneUp on Amazon for less than $50.

On that note, I decided that I'm going to have a No Frivolous February where I don't buy anything I don't need. I say it every month but I need to save more money. I could feel the quarter life crisis sneaking up on me with each passing day.

Anyways...like any other week, I spent most of it on my laptop and here's what I came up with:

The best "fast food" restaurants in NYC. I can attest to a few of these

Someone print this out and tattoo it on my body because I NEED THIS ADVICE #twentysomethings

Husky guys >>>

This is how I feel about #LillyForTarget and all the haters out there

Mercury is in retrograde...save yourselves!

70% of the time, I'm in a bad mood so this is basically my favorite article ever

Happy Friday and have a good weekend everyone :)

This article was all over the Internet and the blogosphere last week. I made a mental and physical note to write this post because I thought it was so cool and I love jumping on bandwagons.

Hallie from Corals and Cognacs first posted this and then passed it around to all her blogger friends, whom I follow and adore. 

The NYT first published this article on the psychology of falling in love and how you can pretty much fall in love with anyone if  you choose. It explains how psychologists have tried to make people fall in love by having them sit and stare into each others eyes for four minutes. Those two people were later married. Weird, right?

I find the psychology of falling in love to be completely fascinating. Falling in love itself is fascinating... how your mind, body, and spirit just chooses this person. It's been said that love is like a addiction and that person your mind chooses is the drug. I'd have to hold that saying to be true. Love does crazy shit to you and I didn't believe it until I experienced it myself so how this article explains you could 'fall in love with anyone', is pretty strange and cool. 

"Most of us think about love as something that happens to us. We fall. We get crushed. But what I like about this study is how it assumes love is an action"—that's a quote from the article and I've never read anything more true.

Anyways...the article says that there is a study consisting of 36 questions that you and your partner answer in order to fall in love. I doubt I'd ever do this with a stranger but the questions seemed intriguing and I'd like to answer them...just to see.

I'm going to skip some of them because it would be too long and some don't work in this context. 

1. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?: Jackie O or  Kate Middleton. The classiest, most elegant women in the world. 

2. Would you like to be famous? In what way?: I wouldn't want to be famous in Hollywood with paparazzi and tabloids but I'd like to be famous in a sense...as a journalist, as a writer, a blogger, an author...something with my career. I want to share my thoughts and words with the world so famous in that way. 

3. Before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you are going to say? Why?: Yes, always. I hate making telephone calls, it terrifies me. I like to know what I'm going to say and how I say it so I don't screw it up. 

4. What would constitute a “perfect” day for you?: A day spent with no anxiety, no mood swings, in comfortable clothes, watching TV or hanging out with my friends.

5. When did you last sing to yourself? To someone else?: Probably sang some One Direction to myself yesterday. To someone else? Probably this past weekend at brunch with my sorority sisters.

6. If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?: Mind. My body means nothing if I can't act, think, talk, and be myself.

7. Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?: No, not at all. Hopefully peacefully in my sleep.

8. Name three things you and your partner(readers) appear to have in common: We love to read. We love the Internet. We love feeling a sense of community with others who share similar interests. 

9. For what in your life do you feel most grateful?: A loving, supporting group of family and friends.

10. If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be?: Probably my parents being divorced...would've made things a lot easier. 

11. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be?: The ability to stop overthinking and overanalyzing...being able to live in the present and stop worrying about every aspect of my life. Basically I'd like to be more laid back.

Set II

12. If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future or anything else, what would you want to know?: I'd like to know the truth about my career and my love life.

13. Is there something that you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven’t you done it?: Writing more outside of the blog. I want to write articles and get started on my book ideas. I haven't done it because my motivation isn't there. I'm always very lazy and tired when it comes time.

14. What is the greatest accomplishment of your life?: I'd say walking across the stage at Madison Square Garden and officially becoming a college graduate. 

15. What do you value most in a friendship?: Loyalty, honesty, good conversation. 

16. What is your most treasured memory?: I have so many wonderful memories, I can't pick just one. Something during my senior year of college, definitely. 

17. What is your most terrible memory?: Something having to do with a fight within my family, probably. 

18. If you knew that in one year you would die suddenly, would you change anything about the way you are now living? Why?: I would do my best to live in the moment and stop making excuses. The couch and netflix and your computer will always be there. Get out there and live your life the way you want too, not how anyone else wants you too.

19. What does friendship mean to you?: It means being there for someone and being part of their life and supporting them in however they need you too. It means spending time together and having a good time, no matter if you're at a bar or sitting in your pajamas talking about nonsense. 

20. How do you feel about your relationship with your mother?: We're very close. Whenever I need advice, depending on the situation, she knows what to say. She's pretty much always right. I would be lying if I said I went to her with everything, because I don't, nor do we never argue but she's my mom and she's always there.

Set III

21. Share with your partner an embarrassing moment in your life: Probably saying something stupid when I was drunk or falling in the mud during an 8th grade kickball game.

22. When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself?: Cry in front of another person? Probably a few days ago in front of my mom or sister. By myself? Once again, probably a few days ago. I can't remember exactly. 

23. If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone? Why haven’t you told them yet?: How much I appreciated them and truly loved them. I tell them, probably just not enough.

24. Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?: My computer...hands down.

Like I said, some of the questions didn't fit without having someone else there to respond so I cut out 10 of them. 

I'd have to say that I truly do think that you could fall in love with someone based on these 36 questions... maybe not JUST on these questions but it's a definite start. They get deep, you really get to know someone quickly when you hear their responses. This is an incredible study, very interesting.

What do you think? Do you think you could choose who you fall in love with, solely based on these questions?

I'm always excited to receive my Birchbox...it's just the best way to treat yourself every month. It also prevents me from splurging on a bunch of other makeup products, especially when my budget is crazy tight.

Anyways...I didn't pick one of the curated boxes and didn't really like any of the sample choices for this month so I chose to be completely surprised. I did however, receive some of those sample choices and products in the curated boxes.

I have to say, I have been really good about using all my samples. Sometimes I throw certain ones (most lip products) in my draw and forget about them. The past two boxes I received mini lip glosses and I've actually been using them so I'm pretty happy about that.

Let's see what I got this month, shall we?

Can we also talk about how friggen adorable this box is?! I'm OBSESSED and so happy that Birchbox is going to be continuing with this trend and giving us cool, colorful boxes all year! It's so much prettier this way :)

//COOLA Face SPF 30 Unscented Matte Tint: Let me just start off by saying that I already finished this sample. I got my box on Thursday or Friday and it's already gone. There wasn't much in there to be begin with but my goodness, it's an amazing product. I already put it in my cart to buy the full size. This is a matte finish BB cream and it goes on so smoothly and air light, it doesn't even feel like there is anything on your face. It evens out my skin tone, stays on all day, and gives me a nice 'no make up, make up look.' I love BB creams but I think I finally found my favorite one. 

Sample Size: 3/5

Full Size: $36

//Whish Three Wishes Body Butter: My skin has bee insanely dry (today I'm actually headed to the dermatologist to get my eczema taken care of) so I always welcome a good body butter. I've tried Whish products before and I'm a fan. I've only used this on my hands but it's super smooth, not greasy, and really moisturizes my hands. The smell is divine as well...the perfect lavender scent!

Sample Size: 4/5

Full Size: $24

//Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair Deep Conditioning Hair Mask: I was SHOCKED when I opened my Birchbox and saw this insanely large sample. I mean, I was pleasantly shocked and super excited to try it out. I love hair masks and this bad boy will last me a while as you only need a little bit. I've used this twice and I can't tell how I feel about it. It does leave my hair soft but a with a little static. It also makes my hair feel and look thicker and fuller, which I definitely don't need. I want to like this but the verdict is still out...

Sample Size: 5/5

Full Size: $26

//Cynthia Rowley Beauty Creamy Lip Stain in Heartthrob: I have been waiting patiently to receive a Cynthia Rowley product in my Birchbox and the day has finally arrived. I LOVE this lip stain. I've been really into reds and berry colors and wanting to try more liquid lipsticks and stains. This is the perfect combination of all of those things. This is a very creamy lip product, not sticky at all, and it's a reddish, orange color. It's a good day time red, nothing too dramatic and I've been truly loving it.

Sample Size: 2/5

Full Size: $20

//Harvey Prince Sincerely: I feel like I haven't gotten a fragrance sample in a while and I was kind of disappointed when I saw I'd be getting one when I took a sneak peek at my box online. I was pleasantly surprised however, because this is a hefty sample size and it's a spray top so it's definitely usable. The scent is divine...I love Harvey Prince and all his scents I've received in my boxes I've used up completely. This won't be any different. It's a musky yet floral scent and is perfect for any time of day!

Sample Size: 4/5

Full Size: $55

I have to say I was really happy with this box. Birchbox has been KILLING the game lately...I love everything I receive!

Have you signed up for Birchbox yet? What'd you get in your box this month?

If you haven't noticed, matte is all the rage. Whether it's your face, lips, or now nails...matte is in. I personally love of how matte looks. I think it looks much more old Hollywood glamour and just so gorgeous. 

I love a good highlight, dewy glow on your face every so often but matte works for everyday. Also, I am never a fan of lip gloss so give me a matte lip any day!

A few years ago, I had a matte nail polish in a hot pink shade and I didn't really understand it (I was in high school and my makeup knowledge was minimal). I tried putting a top coat over it and it just messed up the look. 

I did however, really love how it looked when I didn't apply to top coat and it was a true matte finish. 

I haven't been able to find a good matte polish (aside from matte topcoats which I desperately need in my life) but finally, I saw a new matte polish on Instagram and immediately purchased it.

Sally Hansen has a new line called "Velvet Texture" and the polishes only cost $2.99..can you say STEAL?! When I was making an online Ulta purchase, I checked to see if these polishes were in stock since they didn't have them at my local drugstore and to my surprise, they were.

I bought the "Lavish" color, which is a deep, vampy purple. I don't have any polishes this color and I've been looking to get one so this was the perfect opportunity.

My nails were pretty banged up from the gel manicure removal so the application of this wasn't as smooth as I would like but I worked with it and it came out pretty good. I used my Sally Hansen base coat to give me a smoother surface and it worked fine.

I LOVED the matte finish. It felt so sophisticated and nice to not have a shiny color. I didn't apply a top coat (really need a matte top coat in my life) and it lasted with no chips for about 2-3 days. I applied some polish over the chips and it was good for another 2-3 days. That's pretty standard for my nails but it was nice to know that a matte finish polish can stand up just the same.

I REALLY want more colors...possibly the navy blue one? Hopefully my local CVS or Rite Aid has these in stock now.

What's on your nails this Monday? What are your thoughts on matte polishes?

Another long, dreary week...another week of complete and utter exhaustion. Does anyone have any tips for me falling asleep and staying asleep? It's almost like I haven't slept in days. Emotionally I'm fine, it's now physically I feel like crap...funny how that always happens.

Anyways...there is so much fun stuff coming up and I'm really excited. Brunch with my sorority sisters tomorrow, a hockey game in a two weeks, and a trip to Boston (YEEEEE) next month. Can you say exciting? It's so nice to have things to look forward too.

As I'm typing this up, I'm watching 'Gone Girl' on OnDemand and we all know how much I loved that book. The movie so far is incredible, not as descriptive as the book but hey, it's a movie. It's still awesome.

I'll stop rambling...here are the links I loved this week :)

An example of where you should place bronzer, highlight, and blush while contouring