Beauty Forum & Friday I'm in Love

I don't think I've stopped being excited since this all came about on Wednesday night! Hannah asked me to be a part of a beauty tumblr she was planning on creating. I instantly said yes and all these wonderful ideas started to flow from my head and hers through countless emails. Beauty Forum was born that night. Most of you have seen my tweets, our tumblr posts, my video on my youtube channel, but in case you haven't, I'll share with you what you can expect from us. We're currently answering beauty questions, offering product/website reviews, tutorials, our inspiration, our tips and our favorites.  Hannah and I aren't strangers to the beauty world. We spend a lot of time talking about it, researching new products, watching beauty gurus on youtube, etc. We're excited to be offering our insight to those willing to hear it via Beauty Forum. Definitely go follow us if you're interested in anything beauty or are looking for a boost in your beauty routine!

And to keep up with tradition, it is friday. Ya'll know the song, "Friday I'm in Love," so I always share what I've been loving this week. Besides the obvious one, Beauty Forum, of course, I have a few others. :) One of them is featured in the above picture of myself on my lips!! NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams have taken over my life. The one on my lips in the picture is called San Paulo, but they have 10 other wonderful colors. They're not lipglosses, but they aren't quite lipsticks. They're so moisturizing and so pigmented and long wearing and only $6. Seriously, check them out at your nearest Ulta!!!

1. Cooper, everyone knows about my precious two year old Japeke puppy, but he's seriously one of the sweetest things ever. This week has had more downs than ups and he's been there to cuddle with. Yesterday after a long fight with my dad on the phone, I broke down on the floor of the kitchen in sobbing yucky tears and Cooper came right up next to me and snuggled into my chest. It was so comforting even coming from a dog. :)

2. Thirteen Reasons Why, I bought this book for my Nook this morning and I'm already thirty pages away from finishing. I can't really describe it. There's always B&N reviews for that. It is just so moving to see how someone can affect another life so profoundly and not even have a clue. I highly recommend it!

3. Dad, It's been a rough week for us, for our relationship. But it was also his birthday on Monday and it's Father's Day on Sunday, so I can't help, but think of everything he's done for me.

4. Pretty Little Liars, I'VE BEEN WAITING SO LONG FOR THIS CREEPY, GUILTY PLEASURE TO COME BACK AND IT DID ON TUESDAY! I'm so so SO excited for the season. Seriously, the show is so mindlessly captivating. You'll want to keep watching (ABC Family, Tuesday Nights, if you're interested haha)

I hope you all had really good weeks and have satisfying weekends! xx

Newest Read: Heaven is for Real

This book isn't one that I can truly describe, if you're looking for a review, you won't find that here. (Check the 611 reviews on BarnesandNoble.com if you wish). If you've ever been inside of my house, your eyes are immediately drawn to the incessant pile of crap that consumes one of our kitchen counters known as Charles' stuff. I do not even concern myself with the junk that it is on it, except this book was there for at least 2 weeks and I wondered what for considering Charles usually does book projects the night before and doesn't even get the book until the day before that. Since I had not heard any lectures about procrastination on book projects, I still didn't know. I was flipping through People magazine today (the Reese Witherspoon getting married issue) and saw a little mini Q&A about this book and it intrigued me.

Tonight, after taking a shower and talking to Trey on Skype for a little while, I settled into the couch with Cooper, this book in hand and started to read. I started a little before 10 pm and finished a few minutes after 11. It made me feel so many emotions that I can't even describe. At one point I was even sobbing. It is rated 4.5 stars on Barnes and Noble and it's a "religious" book. It's crazy. It's surely inspirational and it will surely make you think. I think it's a book that every one has a different reading experience depending upon your beliefs and the events in your life, but it will surely make you think. I highly recommend this quick read.

I just wanted to share my latest read, stay tuned in the next couple of days for a new Culinary Conversations & Valentine's Gifts, follow up: Gifts for Guys! :) Have a fabulous Superbowl Sunday, loves.

History of Reading!

I think one of the lovely benefits of being out of school has been reading so much. I spend at least a few hours everyday immersed in a book or two. I think my love of reading started long before I could read myself. My mom read to me all the time as a child. I also saw her reading a lot. I learned to read at 4 and found myself totally lost in books and as cheesy as it was, the places they took me. I fell the most in love with them in 4th and 5th grade with the Magic Treehouse Series. I could read one of those books in a half hour and be on to the next one. That's how I continued for the rest of my life. I read the books I loved fast and was on to the next.

I love turning pages of books, but my Nook has been one of the greatest things I've ever purchased for myself. In the last 6 months, I've read close to 50 books. I'm hoping to read at least 100 this year. I'm currently reading Decision Points by George W. Bush. I know what you're thinking, you must be a crazy George Bush supporter, but I'm not. It was ranked on the bestseller list for weeks and I read a lot of amazing reviews on Barnes & Noble, so I decided to download the sample to my Nook. I went through the 70 page sample in less than an hour and decided to purchase it.

So far, it's been extremely insightful. It is about his presidency, but it's his side. It's also about his struggles and his life and his decisions. I don't really like biographies, but I've thoroughly enjoyed this one. I'm not finished yet, but I'm really liking it so far. I'll give a full review when I finish and then I'll update you on the books I've gotten samples for/next on my list to read!

The Three B's

I'm so incredibly in love with my new layout. I love the tweaks and the changes. It also makes me even more excited for the rest of the things I am planning on doing to my blog and the things that will happen spontaneously. I'm working on the navigation bar above and on my blog buttons as we speak. But I love my about me, the picture label links on the left and the new favorite blogs on the right.

I've finally decided on the direction for HSH Cupcakes and I'm actually ecstatic about it. If you haven't wandered over to my tumblr, then this will all be a surprise to you. There are three things that I feel like I talk about a lot on my tumblr that I'd love to focus on more here: baking, beauty, and books!

Baking: I will be posting more recipes obviously, mostly of delicious desserts. Starting in February, when I start at Le Cordon Bleu, I'll be writing a lot about what I'm learning and my experiences in a new little segment currently untitled. I'm excited to further share my main passion with my readers!
Beauty: I love love love makeup and hair and face products. I don't talk about them a lot, but when I do, it's because I love it enough to share it! I'll be talking about new favorites, old favorites, waste of money products, and things I'm excited to try. I think fashion and clothing will weasel their way into this category as well. :)
Books: I read a lot, everyday. I probably finish about 3 books a month and I find a lot of them that I want to share with people and this is the perfect outlet. I'll also share those on my wishlist and ones I'm currently reading and of course take suggestions!

Tomorrow will be your first beauty post! It's going to be a 2010 Favorites. Look out for that and much more!!

New Favorite Obsessions

Strangely enough, whenever I check my formspring I always get weird questions about things I'm loving right now or products I've been using. I never have any problem sharing my obsessions of the moment because they do tend to change frequently. That's me though.  These are all random things, all purchased in the past month.

Clean Start Starter Kit - Dermalogica ($35)

A lot of you know I am a cleanser junkie. I am not ever satisfied with how my face looks. My skin is very oily and acne prone and it frustrates me a lot, but I will never go the extra mile to fix it like using multi-step kits. I heard a lot of great things about this brand and on a whim decided to pick it up at Beauty Brands. This has five products in it: a cleanser (am & pm), toner (am & pm), moisturizer (am), scrub/mask (am; few times a week), and a night-time treatment (pm). I've been using it religiously and am seriously loving the results and it hasn't even been the recommended 33 days that you wait to decide if a line is working for you. The cleanser is very refreshing and I love that the "Ready, Set, Scrub" is a mask and scrub combination, but I think my favorite product of all is the "All Over Clear" toner because it's in a spray bottle and it mists over your face.

I Do, Now What? - Barnes and Noble ($13.75 - NookBook; $14.63 - Hardcover)

I love Guiliana and Bill. They are probably the most real reality TV couple out there. I watch their show on Style every Monday and it's so funny and you just can relate to them. I saw on Twitter from Guiliana (yes, I'm that girl who follows too many celebrities on Twitter) about this book and purchased it for my Nook the day it came out and I'm totally loving it. I'm about half way through. The book is broken up into sections of topics that most relationships should focus on like Honesty, Money, and Cleanliness. I'm not married, I'm not even dating right now, but these anecdotes and tips have been invaluable at seeing how to help any relationship you care about. 

Longchamp Le Pliage  Large Tote - Nordstrom

I am a purse-a-holic, but I've always gotten any of my designer bags for Christmases or birthdays and I've certainly never had the money to buy one for myself. I did sell my first house about 3 weeks ago and I am quite ecstatic. This was my splurge item and I can't stop raving about it. I tend to do a lot of research before purchasing anything over $20 and I'm so serious. I read a lot of reviews, watched a lot of Youtube videos, before deciding to trek to the Scottsdale mall for this baby. The picture doesn't do the color justice because it's actually a gorgeous Dark Purple called Billberry. This bag, it's medium, and mini counterparts are made in France and come in about 12 colors. They are made of Nylon and have a leather strap. But one of the coolest things is it's ability to fold up for travel. SO COOOL. 

Creamy Concealer Kit - Bobbi Brown ($32)

I've been loving Bobbi Brown after buying her Beauty Rules book and have actually been searching for a new concealer. I have horrible dark circles under my eyes and I'm like ultra self conscious about them. After reading in her book about the use of concealer first and then powder to set, I considered buying a translucent powder, but translucent powder does not do a good enough job of setting the concealer because it does not counteract the purple tones in the dark circles. I love this product because it has the concealer on top and underneath is yellow powder which works miracles. This product was rated as a Best Beauty Buy by Style Magazine, if you don't believe me. ;) 

Lavender Vanilla Pillow Mist (Sleep) - Bath and Body Works ($10)

I got a lot of crap from my mom and brother about my Pillow Mist, like who using pillow mist, but I've found that a lot of people really do. I love love love love the smell of it. It is seriously so calming and makes me sleepy. Lavender is supposed relieve tension and sooth the nerves, while Vanilla makes you feel less stressed. With the exception of the one night I was at camp, I am sleeping like a rock. I spray it on my pillow and I'm out like a light. It's fabulous

Dandelions and Difficulties.

Please give me motivation to blog because I have none. I've strayed from the beaten path and I have no clue what direction to go with B&B anymore. I think it makes it even harder because I'm totally frustrated with what should be called my social life, or lack thereof and my relationships. I wish it was easier. I wish wish wish, but it's not. I've been using books as my escape from reality because other than badminton and work, I'm really lacking in a life. It sucks, but there's like no way out of it, so I've been diving deeper and deeper into my current read: Jenna Jameson's autobiography, "How to Make Love like a Porn Star." It's actually super fascinating and I highly recommend it.

I'm really trying so hard not to vent on here, but my head and heart are totally swirling in a bad way. I just feel so alone and I hate crying so much these days and I've been actually able to hold it in, but I totally cried in front of my girls today. It was embarrassing because I was trying to be strong for them when us as a team were weak and I fell apart during my pep talk, so peppy right? 

But anyways, I don't know what to do for the rest of the night. More reading I suppose? I totally bought new perfume today thanks to Sunday Morning Sugar's Malori for the suggestion on her blog and while browsing for hours on what scent to get from CB I Hate Perfume (I got In the Library & Wildflower Honey!), I stumbled upon this quote on dandelions that totally relates to me. 

"I love them because they are beautiful.  Their fierce yellow is so cheery and unashamed sprinkled across a green lawn.  This simple beauty always gladdens my heart.  Incidentally, some of my favorite works of are are those created by Andy Goldsworthy and are made entirely from Dandelions...I love them because they are innocent.  Dandelions can be such fun...These are such brilliant childhood pleasures. I love them because they are fearless.  Dandelions will grow anywhere and will go where they please...I find something inspiring in the courage of a single yellow adventurous head sprouting from the cracked concrete. I love them because they are resilient.  Dandelions survive the harshest conditions.  Beat them, burn them, poison them, rip them out by the roots - these flowers will return."

I've been a dandelion my whole life. I've seen it more this past year, summer, month, than I would have cared to, but that's okay. Dandelion is me. They're beautiful and give people hope for wishes to come true and who wouldn't want that?

Keep following and keep loving each day.

- D