Five on Friday: Makeup Edition

Happy Friday from Wilmington, NC! I'm so close to the beach yet stuck in a conference room since I arrived yesterday to give a presentation, had a late work dinner, a big event this afternoon and head back home tonight. Somehow I managed to write a post every day this week and then ran out of time and topics for my Five on Friday. However, my makeup travel bag combined with some pictures I had from a recent morning spent with my friend and talented makeup artist, Lindsey, inspired me to post about five beauty products I'm currently loving! These are some of my favorite posts to read because I am nosy and love to know what products everyone else is using. Also, I am clearly no makeup professional at all but Lindsey is and her advice is always spot on,  so if you really want professional makeup advice, go check out her blog!

one. Let's start with my favorite product first -- Too Faced Peach Perfect Foundation. This was a new product that Lindsey used on me when she did my makeup. Right after I left her house I ditched my NARS foundation and haven't been happier. This is hands down the best foundation I've ever used. It's a medium coverage matte foundation that doesn't go on thick or cakey -- perfect for warmer months ahead (or anytime really). It's smooth, light and infused with peach and sweet fig cream! I am color nude. Tip: you can buy it from Sephora or sign up for emails from Too Faced and get 20% off your order (which is what I did). Highly recommend!

Too Faced Peach Perfect Foundation: Sephora // Too Faced

two. I can't tell you how many brow products I've tried -- waxes, pencils, shadows, gels, etc. For awhile I was using Anastasia Brow Wiz Pencil but I was going through it too fast and it wasn't a product I could quickly apply without it looking like I had, well, penciled eye brows! Then my whole eye brow world change when Lindsey used Anastasia Dip Brow Pomade (color taupe) on me. This smudge-free, waterproof pomade is truly the perfect all-in-one brow product.

Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade: Nordstrom // Sephora // Ulta

three. Next up, Benefit Cosmetics' award-winning Hoola Matte Bronzer Powder. I received this bronzer from my girlfriend Laura last Christmas and have been hooked ever since. Lindsey used the contour stick version on me when she did my makeup and they are both awesome. The powder is less intimidating to me than the stick though.

Hoola Matte Bronzer Powder: Ulta // Sephora // Nordstrom // Amazon

And a little bonus contour tutorial by Lindsey...

four. Another product gifted to me by Laura! Smith's Rosebud Salve. It's SO good. Just pick up a tube and you'll understand! Although I think I'm the last one to the party on this.

Smith's Rosebud Salve: Amazon // Sephora // Ulta

five. Last but not least, the best kit for natural eye shadows, Too Faced Natural Eyes. I know this product is super popular among the beauty bloggers right now and I can certainly see why! I've been wanting to add it to my makeup kit for awhile now and after Lindsey used it on me I decided to finally scoop it up. She also has a tutorial saved in her Insta-Stories highlight reel using this product.

Too Faced Natural Eyes: Too Faced // Sephora // Ulta // Amazon

Ta-da!

Book Reviews: Luckiest Girl Alive & The Woman In Cabin 10

Thanks to vacation I have two more book reviews for ya! 

Luckiest Girl Alive

Author: Jessica Knoll

Genre: Thriller & Suspense

Back Cover Summary:  As a teenager at the prestigious Bradley School, Ani FaNelli endured a shocking, public humiliation that left her desperate to reinvent herself. Now, with a glamorous job, expensive wardrobe, and handsome blue blood fiancé, she’s this close to living the perfect life she’s worked so hard to achieve.

Amazon Rating: 3.5 stars

My Review: I had high hopes for this book after so many of you raved about it. I read the entire book but didn't love the story line or plot twists. I am an impatient reader so when the story hadn't unfolded by the middle of the book, I got frustrated. This book is more of a dark chic lit novel than thriller suspense.

The Woman In Cabin 10

Author: Ruth Ware

Genre: Thriller & Suspense

Back Cover Summary: Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, has just been given the assignment of a lifetime: a week on a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins. At first, Lo’s stay is nothing but pleasant: the cabins are plush, the dinner parties are sparkling, and the guests are elegant. But as the week wears on, frigid winds whip the deck, gray skies fall, and Lo witnesses what she can only describe as a dark and terrifying nightmare: a woman being thrown overboard. The problem? All passengers remain accounted for—and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that something (or someone) has gone terribly, terribly wrong…

Amazon Rating: 4 Stars

My Rating: I really liked this book and found the plot intriguing! I read it in 3 days. A good "who done it" book, I kept trying to figure out who the killer was up to the end.

Conquering the Laundry Pile + Laundry Service Giveaway!

Laundry...the dreaded chore that can never be completed. I loathe the laundry. In fact, I'd rather give up French Fries for life than have to locate all of the dirty socks and wet towels strewn throughout the house. I'd rather take 10 toddlers to the DMV over sorting all the clothes into piles. I'd rather walk barefoot through glass over washing, drying, folding and putting away all the laundry. It just never ceases to amaze me how much laundry we accumulate throughout the week -- you would think 25 people live with us. And since our schedules are too hectic during the week, we are limited to the weekends to getting it done in between meal planning, grocery shopping, errands, soccer games, birthday parties, church and more. And trust me, I've tried to break it up into multiple loads throughout the week to keep the loads manageable, but it never fails that I am collapsing into bed just as the washer dings and am too exhausted to get up and switch it over, resulting in the same load getting washed again and again and again before it actually makes it to the dryer.

And you know the other task that haunts me? Dry cleaning, which normally sits in my car for at least 2 weeks before I get around to dropping it off...and then forget about it for 3 months.

So until I can pay Caroline an allowance to fold all the fitted sheets, I'll treat myself to throwing in the towel every now and then and outsourcing a few loads of laundry. That's where 2ULaundry comes in to save our weekend by giving us more time to do things we actually love to do.

HOW IT WORKS

STEP 1 // Create an account: Customize your cleaning preference, select your bags and schedule a pickup.

STEP 2 // Receive Your Bags: The following day your free personal garment bags are hand delivered by 6 pm.

STEP 3 // Stuff Your bags & Set Them Outside for Pickup 

Just kidding. They won't clean your kids, although I would pay extra for that. Stuff your bags with all the items you especially hate to wash/dry clean (fitted sheets, dress clothes, winter coats, etc.) and set them outside your scheduled pickup location by 8 am. You'll receive a text when your driver picks them up. The bags are scanned and tracked to ensure quality assurance.

STEP 4 // Laundry Picked Up. At the cleaning facility, the garments are scanned, sorted, itemized and cleaned according to your customized instructions.

STEP 5 // Clean Laundry Delivered! The next business day, your garment bags are scanned into the system, labeled as clean and returned to you by 6pm. You receive a text once they’re dropped off fresh and clean.

PRICING

The pricing is determined by your zip code, but to give you a ball park estimate I am sharing my rates.

Large Blue Bag (Wash, Dry, Fold): Holds up to 35 lbs or 4-5 loads of laundry and is $35 per pickup.

Pink Bag (Wash & Hang Dry): Holds up to 8-10 lbs or 1 load and is $10 per pickup.


Dry cleaning is priced per item. The prices are a little higher than my dry cleaner down the street, but the convenience is totally worth it and gives me hours of my weekend back to spend with my family. This is actually Matt's favorite service since he is the main culprit of our piles of dry cleaning. He is obsessed with the one day turn around so he can wear his favorite shirts more often.

MY HONEST REVIEW

I was super impressed by the one day turnaround, the cleanliness, the perfect folding of our clothes (including the fitted sheets I tossed in there), the customization options (detergents, etc.) the ease of scheduling, reminders and status updates (done through texts) and the friendliness of my driver. Overall, this company has seriously nailed the concept and their process.

Would I recommend this service to others? Definitely. I especially recommend this service as your next baby shower gift for your new mama friend. Or your co-worker, friend, family member, etc. who needs some extra help.

Will I use this service again? Yes, especially for our dry-cleaning and all my pesky wash & hang items I rarely wash (I'm looking at you - work dresses)! Oh, and I love treating myself to this service when we've been out of town for the weekend and return home with suitcases of dirty clothes and no time to clean them. I can dump them all into bags on Sunday night, they're picked up the next morning and returned cleaned and folded the following day.

GIVEAWAY

And now for the best giveaway EVER. My friends at 2ULaundry have graciously offered to give away ONE MONTH OF LAUNDRY (4 large bags of wash, dry, fold) which is about a $140 value, to one lucky reader! Enter using the rafflecopter below. The contest will run through Feb. 26 and the winner will be picked at random and announced back here on Feb. 27! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to try 2ULaundry now? Click here to save $20 off your first laundry or dry cleaning order.

 

This post is sponsored by my friends at 2U Laundry. All opinions are my own.