Favorite Music Friday: City And Colour

A couple weeks ago in the Game of Tag post my reply to the best concert ever was a City and Colour concert I went to a few years ago. This is what I said about the concert:

I think my favorite was City & Colour at the Lakeshore Theater in Chicago, IL on 1/22/09. I came down from Milwaukee, WI on a bus by myself to go to the concert. I rushed to the concert venue but ended up being at the back of a long line waiting to get in. Lucky for me, since I decided to go alone, there was 1 seat left in the front row. And to my surprise, although it was way off-center, Dallas Green set up his chair right in front of my seat!! It was one of the most powerful concert I've ever been to. Everything was just perfect. I could hardly hold back tears I was so excited and moved. And to make things better after the show I got to meet Dallas!!! He signed all of my CDs, took pictures with me, answered all my silly fan questions, and remembered seeing me during the show sniffling.

So this week I will be bringing to you the ever so lovely City And Colour. City And Colour is a side project of Alexisonfire former singer' Dallas Green (get it, dallas: city, green: color). If you are unfamiliar with Alexisonfire, they are a hardcore band. I got into the hardcore/screamo genres after dating someone for a few years who played drum/bass in several hardcore bands. Once it gets into your blood it doesn't leave. Now don't worry, City And Colour is Dallas' soft side.

Dallas has said that he deals with life by writing songs. He feels happier getting out his thoughts and feelings on paper. Between tours with Alexisonfire, Dallas put together a demo of the songs that he wrote recording only with an acoustic guitar. All I can say about the first album is that it is haunting in every possible way. His voice is emotional, raw, tender, and smooth. I can't even really describe his voice other than creamy, smooth and true to him. His first CD Sometimes is an emotional one for me. The songs themselves are weighed down with raw emotion from Dallas, but the CD also served me as a break-up album. I now generally listen to the album when Im feeling mellow, spacey, or sad. The concert that I referred to was the first time I got to hear most of the songs from that album live. It was heart wrenching and amazing all at the same time. I could not stop smiling, but every so often he'd hit a note that would be so familiar to my pain and Id start silently sobbing. The people sitting next to me probably thought I was crazy. In his sophomore album, Bring Me Your Love he added a folky twang. But it was still true to him and clean. Unfortunately I ended up not getting into his third album, Little Hell. It seemed a bit too worked for his style. Some songs that I initially loved live I can't get into because of how they were reworked. His voice is all I need.

The song I want to share with you is actually an Alexisonfire song that he covered. You immediately feel the pain and weight of the words he is singing. I never listened carefully to the lyrics of the original version. I knew all the lyrics when I was singing along, but never really listened if that makes sense. But with Dallas' version, you hear and feel every word. I hope you enjoy this live version of Boiled Frogs!

Beauty Army: April 2012

This month Beauty Army added a Skip option! Now if you aren't happy with the selection, skip away.

Don't know what Beauty Army is? Beauty Army is a once a month beauty subscription service that delivers a GORGEOUS kit of premium beauty samples to your door. So how is it different from any of the other services out there? Well you get to CHOOSE your samples. Each month based on your preferences (long, thoughtful style quiz that can be changed at any time) you will receive 9 products to choose from. From those you get to pick 6. The products this month ranged from beauty, skincare, hair, body, and more. Some of the products you can choose from are full-size items. Beauty Army costs $12 a month, and your kit will always be valued way above!
Click here to join Beauty Army.

April 2012

Last month I was really disappointed with the product selection. There were multiple repeat products and brands from February, a very monotonous selection (almost all skincare/moisturizers), and no matter how many times I took my quiz I couldn't get different products to show up. This month they hinted that they had a ton of new products to share with us, and they did not disappoint! I had so many new options that I had such a hard time just selecting 6! The selection was so well varied: skincare, beauty, tools, nails, etc. And I was able to retake my survey multiple times and each time I got new products. Even though Beauty Army has the skip option, if they keep offering such varied and new products I won't ever use it!

Information Card:

Products:
Clickr Skincare: Acne Spot Serum
Lethal, yet loving, bad boy combo serum that eradicates blemishes without killing skin in the process. Fast, furious, and functional.
Full Size: 0.11oz ($20.00)
Size Received: Full-size! 0.11oz ($20.00)
I was really excited when Beauty Army announced that they were partnering with this all vegan, plant-based acne company. Instead of harsh benzoyl peroxide it uses 2% salicylic acid and lactic acid and an anti-bacterial. It works fast to penetrate pores and exfoliate while cleaning skin of acne-causing bacteria. I love that it can work on top of makeup. I know some days my skin is awful and halfway through my day I'll find a new zit. Well now I can keep this in my purse to start the healing process way before I get home. It is a nice clear, formula that cools on touch. I have no active blemishes right now since dermalogica's mediBac overnight clearing gel worked wonders last night, but next time I do I'll be trying out this bad boy. It has gotten so many great reviews that I bet it will be a winner!

Cover FX: SkinPrep FX
This hydrating and smoothing primer really does it all. For all skin types including sensitive skin, this paraben, oil, and fragrance free primer will help makeup look fresh all day.
Full Size: 1.0oz ($45.00)
Size Received: 0.16oz ($7.20)
I can't help myself when it comes to primers. It is the one thing that I feel like I have not found my perfect match so I love hunting around for new ones. Last month I tried the Cover FX Eye Prep primer which I did like, so I figured why not this one. Apparently this primer does double duty and has an anti-aging serum formula. So not only will it smooth out fine lines and pores but it might actually reduce their appearance. Sounds good to me.

LaVaque: Crystal Nail File

Double-sided crystal nail file gives your nails a remarkable flawless edge. File can be cleaned and sanitized and used for years. Goodbye emory boards!

Full Size: 1 nail file ($5.95)

Size Received: Full-size! 1 nail file ($5.95)

It was only in my March Julep Maven box that I received my first real nail file! I like the soft buffing side of it, but the actual filing side doesn't do that great a job. It causes the top of my nails to get trimmed down really far, but the bottom layer turns to dust. I have to manually peel off the bottom layer, and then I realize I have uneven nails. This happens no matter what angle I use that nail file. When I tried the crystal nail file, although it made me shiver, it quickly and evenly filed down my nails. Its great! And the fact that Ill have this for years and years is amazing. 

myface cosmetics: mymix Foundation in Fair 02
Upgrade your image with this smooth, weightless foundation. Goes on seamlessly and provides a flawless finish that lasts all day.
Full Size: 1.18oz ($34.00)
Size Received: 0.5oz ($14.41)
Since summer is approaching I want to find a lighter foundation. Lucky for me this color matches my skin very well! So great job on Beauty Army for getting my skin tone right. And the sample is a great size! I'll get weeks of use out of it! The website promises that it is a color-correcting formula that will help eliminate redness. This is a huge perk for me. My skin is very pink and has a lot of red blotches. I hope that it does work well in covering up my redness. The test will be if the coverage lasts all day. I'll be using this foundation tomorrow and I'll report back on what I think.

Purely Cosmetic: Diamond Perfect Finish Powder

Made with read diamonds (seriously), this powder is the perfect finishing touch to your makeup routine. Achieve a red-carpet, airbrushed look with this light, weight translucent powder.

Full Size: 0.21oz ($18.50)

Size Received: 0.1oz ($8.81)

I'm new to setting powders. I love and use fixing sprays every day, but what I dont love is that half way through the day my skin gets oily and shiny. Last month I got to try out Young Blood's HD finishing powder from my Sindulge box and loved it! It kept my skin matte all day, although did it help create an airbrushed look? Probably not. This product has real diamonds that will help illuminate the skin. It says it will reduce the apperance of shadows, wrinkles, pigmentations, and discolorations! This is possible because the diamonds will refract light, but they are so finely milled that they will not give off a shimmer/shine. I tried this out on my makeup-less face and HOLY CRAP! Immediately I saw it reduced the visibility of my pores and fine lines! It did make my deep shadowed eyes a little brighter and it mattified my skin is seconds. I'm so pumped about this stuff! 

Chella: Razor with Brush and Comb

For a quick touch-up or when hairs are too short to pluck, this unique grooming tool fine tunes your brows.

Full Size: 1 razor ($10.00)

Size Received: Full-size! 1 razor ($10.00)

I've never used a razor on my brows before, but Im obsessed with fixing up my brows. It may be the fact that I have no brows to begin with that shaping them has become my favorite past-time. The directions say to stroke the razor lightly against the grain of the hair's direction growth. Like many blondes, my face is covered in bleach blonde peach fuzz. I think I am going to have a lot of fun with this razor removing all that peach fuzz. The hair is so fine that sometimes wax won't even get it all up. And there is no way that Im going to wax every inch of my face. This worked amazing and in just 3 minutes I removed a ton of peach fuzz! No longer with my foundation look crappy because of how light my hair is! And it did a great job at removing stray eyebrow hairs. I wonder how long the razor will stay sharp... Either way so happy about this guy. 

Total Value of my April 2012 Kit: $66.37
I am very, very happy with my April kit! What a turn around. I think I'll have used everything in my kit by tomorrow night! And I've still not tried some of the products from last month! My faith in Beauty Army has been revived!


What do you think of the products I selected? Have you tried any of them? What did you select in your Beauty Army kit? Let me know in the comments below!
If you don't get Beauty Army, click here to join!

P.S. I used my school loaned Nikon D3100 and Nikon Speedlite SB-900 for these photos! I'm really excited how they turned out! So excited that I plan on buying the camera kit once my class is over (I get a huge discount for buying the used equipment)!

Business Cards!!

A few weeks ago I was out shopping and got a compliment on my lipstick. It was the NYX lip cream that I had reviewed on my blog in February. I let the girl know what the brand was and that I had a beauty blog that had a full review of the lip cream and info on where to buy it. It was at that moment when we were scrambling for a pen and paper that made me realize that I needed business cards.

Well I don't NEED them but they are such a great way to quickly get the word out and network. I turned to Vistaprint since they were the most reasonably priced and I got such a great deal. I ended up only paying $10 for 250 custom business cards. Not bad at all.

I had found so many bad reviews for Vistaprint and they have a terrible BBB score! I was very close to canceling my order, but since it was so cheap I decided to go for it anyways. The process for making my business card was super easy and I was able to customize every bit of my card (font, image, placement, sizing, font color, etc). Below is the design that I confirmed and sent to print.

It originally said that I would be paying $20 + shipping since I added on extras (custom image, front and back, a proof of my card). But I found someone's referral code and added that discount code and somehow ended up with a cheaper price as I moved forward in the payment process. They sure tried to have me add a billion extras, like stamps, return labels, a weight, etc. But Im okay with dealing with all that for such a great price. They said it could take up to two weeks to be printed, but my cards were printed and sent out all within a week of when I ordered!

I was nervous when I was opening the box since most of the negative reviews were that the printing was really off and the paper and color quality was poor. I was pleasantly surprised though! The color was less saturated than I original had, but I dont think it looks bad. I sort of like it better. The only part of the design I couldn't edit was the background color of the front of the card. I thought it was a bit too pink and I am happy that it is more beige in real life. The only negative is that the link on the back of the card is a bit off center, but that isn't enough to make me upset. Although, the anal freak in me does find it a bit irritating. Vistaprint does have a quality assurance policy, so I contacted them through a live chat and they have offered to send replacements within the week for free! Super happy about that. Either way I love how they turned out. And ecstatic that I only paid $10!

I do have a referral code. If you are a new customer you'll get a $5 credit towards your first purchase when you use my link, plus the website always has a billion automatic discounts!

I cannot wait to get out and network with these bad boys. I feel like a legit blogger. And a bit dorkier too ;)

Favorite Music Friday: Alex Clare

This week has been a trying one. Technically as I write this I am only half way through. I am 5 weeks away from graduating from graduate school and have probably 60-70% of my grades for all of my classes incomplete. Meaning these next 5 weeks are going to be the most insane, stressful weeks.

As most of you know, I had planned on running a half marathon at the end of April. What do you mean past tense? Well because of the amount of school work I have, I don't have time to train, nor can fathom spending an entire weekend out of town. Therefore, I will not be running the race I have been looking forward to for months. However upset I am, I know physically and mentally I could have run it and done well. I will find another race to run early this fall (there is no way im running a summer race, I overheat enough as it is). I'll definitely run shorter races in between, but until I finish my last final ever, running is sadly on the back burner. It is my favorite destressor, but I literally have no time. I'm even thinking about only working twice a week since I have so many assignments to complete.

Okay enough anxiety ridden boring crap. I've got a lot of things to look forward to, including spending my summer being a young, single female in the city. I cannot wait until I can go out with my friends and spend the night dancing away or sipping on ice cold beer at happy hour. This week's Favorite Music pick makes my dream of summer feel so much closer....

Every so often I go onto iTunes and browse through the top 100 songs. I don't ever listen to the radio, so unless a friend recommends a band, I'm clueless to new music/bands. I heard Alex Clare's Too Close on the top 100 and freaked out. Lucky for me his debut album launched in the US the same week. I of course got it immediately.

Alex Clare is a 25 year old British singer-songwriter from London. Other than being an adorable ginger (yes I have a thing for red heads), he is extremely talented. Alex grew up listening to his father's jazz band and has been influenced by The Fugees, Stevie Wonder, and Donny Hathaway. He was unhappy with the music his friends and siblings were listening to and found that the jazz, blues, and soul he grew up on were a comfort. He realized his passion for music playing in bands with friends, but felt he needed some security and decided to become a chef. He ended up hating his job and started to play open mic nights often. He landed a very small songwriting deal that allowed him to live on a boat and write songs. A few of those songs got into the hands of Island Records and two weeks later he was signed.

His drum n' bass, soul style got the attention of Diplo & Switch (two of my favorite DJs/producers) who then worked with Alex on his first album. They brought together his crooning, rough, soulful voice with the bass lines of dubstep and catchy chords that make a hit.

The song that I am featuring "Up All Night" is one of the songs that was created during one of Alex's first sessions with Diplo and Switch. The song scream teen spirit. With lines like 'watchin my youth slip away surely is a crime' and 'sun is up while I'm walkin' home but my heads up in the clouds.' The beat and the lyrics just make me want to get up and dance! It reminds me that I am alive. Definitely a song that I can appreciate when my life feels weighed down and so stressful.

You can listen to the entire album for free here on this page with the SoundCloud app. My other favorites are Too Close, Treading Water, Hummingbird, and Tight Rope.


(Note: If you are reading from a feed reader, you'll have to visit the actual post to be able to view the SoundCloud app)

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Look of the Day: Forever 21 Life In Progress Chino Ankle Pant

I don't normally wear khakis, chinos, or whatever you like to call khaki style cotton pants. Growing up I always had a fear that Id get out of my seat and have dirt all over my booty or other unfortunate incidents. My anxiety is so bad that I do not own a single pair of khakis. But all of these gorgeous colored khakis and chinos this season made me envious! I finally decided to take the leap when I found these reasonable priced ($22.50 a pop) Forever 21 Life In Progress Chino Ankle pants. Unfortunately the US site is all sold out, but they are still available on the UK, Canada, and EU websites. They came in pale banana and brick. I have never ever worn Forever 21 pants, I always just assumed that they would be a terrible fit, look cheap, and I'd have to size up 20 sizes. But, I could not resist!

 I got my regular 'Gap' size in the banana and the size up in the brick colored. I was so pleased when they arrived. The material was softer than any of my expectations, a bit thicker than I thought I'd be getting for the price, and they have the perfect amount of stretch. I decided I had to wear a pair the day after I got them. But, what do you wear with colored chinos?

I was at a loss for a few hours trying to decide what to wear with them. Should I play it safe and wear a boring button up or plain t-shirt? Go crazy with prints?

I needed to find inspiration online through other blogs, google searches of yellow pants, and street style. If it wasn't for blogs I'd still be wearing flood jeans with running shoes (circa 2000), horrific. Having an online fashion FOTD diary for 4 years really helped me gain confidence to try crazy looks and find out exactly what is my style. Although even today, my looks don't always end up as cool as I first thought. But hey I tried. Here's one of those looks that I look back and wonder...why?

this is an example of poor fashion choices...

So my first look with the pale banana chinos is a relaxed and casual look for work. I love this Gap V-neck tee since it has so many gorgeous colors: mints, lavenders, corals, navy. They all really compliment the yellow. Purples and corals are perfect colors to match with yellow without feeling like you threw up the primary color wheel. And if you want to be a little more subtle, any graphic tee with pops of beiges or yellow of the same hue/color family as your pants will be a perfect compliment. 

The pants and this look were a hit at work. I was comfortable but still felt put together. I'm so excited to come up with more styles! 

What do you think of all the colored khakis? What would you pair with these chinos? Let me know in the comments!