The Procrastinating Beauty Blogger Tag

Since I haven't found much to post about lately I thought I'd do this fun tag! I saw this on Beauty Broadcast and it looked quite entertaining. I feel as though I must explain my absence both here and on YouTube. You're probably aware that I'm in my last year of high school (cause I won't shut up about it) so I've been really busy with that. And since the new 'season' just started I've been swamped with homework and band practice. I'm sure you're all going through the same thing!
1. Name a beauty regime you rarely do.
I never fuss with my hair it's either straight or in a pony tail most of the time. And on a hair note; I never use heat protectant.
2. Is washing your makeup brushes something you do regularly?
Let's be honest. Who actually washes their makeup brushes when they're supposed to? I suppose some people do, and I know I should, but it's too time consuming. Most of the time when I think a brush is too dirty to keep washing I'll just avoid until it can be washed. But that means once these back up brushes are dirty I have a lot to clean.
3. How long will you last with chipped nail polish?
I rarely paint my fingernails. Mainly because I'm so bad at it but also because I bite my nails. When it comes to my toes, I usually get them done and let it all chip off and then replace it with a different color. The only time I keep up with having my toenails nicely painted is summer cause I don't like just my plain toes so I try to make them look nicer while you can see them. Once winter rolls around and my toes are all tucked into some shoes I don't pay attention to them much.
4. How long will you put off buying/replacing a beauty product, even if you need it?
When it comes to beauty products, I tend to replace something before  I need it. But when it comes to deodorant (omg this sounds awful) I somehow always forget when I run out. It's one of those things that's so automatic and lasts pretty long that you don't notice when you run out. I suppose this doesn't necessarily answer the question, though. It's not something I put off, I just forget.
5. What is your worst beauty habit?
I've bitten my nails for as long as I can remember. I seem to recall sitting in the backseat of the car as my dad was driving me to gymnastics one day and I noticed he was chewing on his nails. I'm pretty sure that's where I picked it up.
6. Name something non-beauty related that you put off doing all the time?
Right now I'm supposed to be reading Hamlet for English class...
7. When going out somewhere, do you leave getting ready to the last minute?
Never, actually. Most of the time I'm ready way before I have to leave to go somewhere because I hate being late!
8. Can you commit to spending bans?
For the most part. I find it hard to do things like "spending bans" because it's usually when you end up running out of things you need.
9. How organized is your make-up and nail polish collections?
It depends on the day of the week.... I like it organized but that doesn't mean it stays organized. 
I had lots of fun doing this so I tag all you lovelies to do it too! 
x Emily

Recent Life Thoughts & Baby Emily

Hello all! Welcome back to my blog!
I understand it's been a while, and this is not beauty/fashion related. But hey, it is my blog and I thought I give a little update on... well - me!

Three weeks ago I began my last year of high school. I've found it more difficult then usual to get back into routine, and I think it's just because I had such a great summer. I also just feel tired of the whole school thing; I want to get out and go see the world! Anyways, Grade 12 really makes you think. I don't think I've ever thought about my past so much. All the changes I've gone through and all the people I've met. There's so much growing you do in your life and it's crazy to think that there's more to come.
Looking at the year ahead of me is ridiculous too. I'm going to be graduating this year! It's my last year seeing my good friends everyday, and being in band! If one thing is for sure I'll be crying more on my last music night then graduation day!
On top of that I'm going to (finally) be 17 soon! Late Birthday-ers; I feel your pain!
Anyways, I thought I take myself - and my followers - on a trip down Memory Lane.

My big sister, Rachel, and I at the beach by our old cottage! We used to go there every summer and spend all day at the beach!

One of the many years I dressed up as Tinkerbell for Halloween and one of the many times my sister made me pose for a picture.

Fun Fact: I used to do gymnastics but quit when I was 8

My mom, sister, and I at Disney. My first time!

Jumping back a little - me in kindergarten! 

Spain 2009! My first time in Europe! (and hopefully not the last)

Nicole and I at our Grade 8 Graduation in 2010!

My Sweet 16 + great people I've met in High School!

May 2013 - Disney World #2 with great friends!

*Sigh* soon I'll have a graduation photo to add to this.

What's a favorite memory of yours?

x Emily

Obsessions, going back to school + little haul!

Have you ever just gotten so into something that it's all you think about?

No?

Yeah, me either.

But really, I have been SO OBSESSED with The Mortal Instruments series. in the course of August I've flown through the first four books in the six-part series. I'm currently dying to know what's gonna happen in book five but I'm trying to let everything sink in first. to help myself out I made another tumblr blog (I dare you to try and find me) to help myself deal with the amazing-ness. Also, I'm dying to see the movie which recently came out where I live and I'm hoping to see it before I go back to school.

If you aren't subscribed to my youtube channel you may not know much about this series so here's the 411. (does anyone actually say that anymore?)

Basically the first book of The Mortal Instruments series - City of Bones - starts off with a girl named Clary and her friend Simon. They're at a night club and things start to seem very strange when Clary sees a group of people but no one else seems to notice. She learns that these people are shadowhunters and when her mom disappears she learns that there's a lot more to her life then she thought.

I'd definitely recommend it if you love sci-fi/fantasy books.

I want to know if you've read this series and what you thought of it - no spoilers though! I'm not done the whole series yet!

I'm hoping that the lst two books will get me through the next month cause I have to go back... to school. DUN DUN DUN

It's not that I hate school, it's just that I don't exactly enjoy it all that much. I don't enjoy getting up early, I don't enjoy annoying people (let's be honest though, they're everywhere), I don't enjoy homework.

My advice to myself is to stop thinking of all the stuff I hate and focus on the things I enjoy about it. I like having a better social life, I like learning new things, I like being in the school band. 

But let's be honest, it isn't working out the greatest. 

I've actually been getting some request down on youtube to talk about what I plan on doing after high school. I think I might because it's been quite the difficult time for me and I think it might help some people out if I did a video on it. To be honest, I'm actually not that sure what I want to do after high school yet. But I'm working on it.

If one thing is for sure out of all of this, I couldn't be any happier to get rid of this sweltering heat. It has been so completely humid and muggy where I live all summer and I can't wait to be able to wear my UGGS and comfy sweaters because I am not a shorts-wearing person. Also some perks of fall; Pumpkin Spice Lattes and my birthday!
And now for the haul. The haul of all hauls... a Wal-Mart haul! *intense music plays*
Okay, maybe it's not that exciting but I thought I'd share it.

 I've tired this mascara before, and I really did enjoy it. But for a while I could only find the black satin formula which I didn't like at all. But since I haven't used it in a while I thought I'd pick it up again.

 The products above and below are products I've heard a lot about! I've tried the NYC bronzer before (thanks to my sister) and I think it looks pretty good with my fair skin tone. It's not the most pigmented, but I don't consider that much of a down fall since I'm so pale. The Maybelline Age Rewind Undereye Concealer is something I've been wanted to try for a while because my dark circles are really bad and since school is coming I needed something extra.

x Emily

Back to School Outfits!

I recently posted a video with my sister on my YouTube called The Common White Girl TAG. The last question - do you always look presentable? - made me rant a little about how a lot of girls in the beauty community have been making back to school videos of outfits that aren't exactly practical to wear to school. So as I'm uploading it I went straight to the internet to put together outfits that I would personally wear to school and I thought I'd share it with you.

Obviously this is my own style and won't apply to everyone and everything is optional. I also decided not to put in any brands unless I thought the specific piece was a good price because I want you to be able to find your own stuff and put your own style to it. 

I think a scarf is a great accessory to play up any outfit and make it different. Open sweaters and cardigans are also a staple in my wardrobe because they're great for cooler days, and you can throw it over a tank top to make it more appropriate for school. Leopard print flats are also great because they add some extra pattern to an outfit and consist of neutral colors that can go with almost anything.

Obviously this outfit is based around the military jacket. I think if you wanted it to be more of a focal point you could ditch the necklace and/or earrings. When choosing the shirt I initially picked one with black stripes. But after I wanted the shoes to be red I went with navy stripes. I think blue and red tie in really nicely together as you remember from the nautical trend. Lastly, I picked the cuffed jeans to add a little more detail on the bottom so it would be balanced with the jacket. (I found this jacket on old navy's website; only $40 for a great jacket!)

One of my favorite things to wear to school are v-neck sweaters and black leggings. This pair is comfy, cute, and flattering! Black is slimming as well as v-necks. To dress this up a bit I added a floral scarf, awesome boots and this cute studded watch (which is only $10 at Charlotte Russe!)

This outfit is for lazy days. The cropped jeans are basically if you want to rule out the sweater when it's a warmer day, and if you want to be more lazy, you can replace them with leggings. I saw this cardigan and fell in love with the pattern and the style, so I knew I had to use it. The only thing is that looking for something like this can be really hard and they always come out expensive. Graphic tees are always cheap and easy to find at places like Target and Wal-Mart. As for the moccasins; they can get destroyed really fast, so I'd recommend waiting until Payless brings some out or go hunting at Target or Wal-Mart. Buying expensive moccasins is NOT worth it!

Anyways, let me know what outfits you'll be wearing for this coming school year and what you're looking forward to for fall! (I'm definitely excited for Pumpkin spice Lattes!)

x Emily

Time for Haul!

Yesterday, my sister exclaimed to me how much she wanted to go to the mall. So I decided to humor her and tag along. Recently, my mall has been remodeling and adding in tons of popular stores. In order to get away from the crowds, I've hung back a while and haven't been in quite some time. Let's just say it looked very different and the whole time I was just pointed out how weird it was and my sister kept exclaiming that she couldn't believe I thought it was weird cause "it's been like that for a while!"
Anyways, we hit a lot of stores because I am in desperate need of new clothes for back school but what I came out with was 3 wall flower scents and a scarf... not exactly what I'd gone into the mall for, but I came out a happy shopper anyways.
First off, let's talk about these new fall scents B&BW has released cause holy moly they're all amazing!
When we first walked in and started smelling candles, I picked up the Harvest Coffee Mason Jar Candle and went on a hunt to find this in a wall flower; it smelled so delicious! Unfortunately they don't make this scent in a wall flower and I was very disappointed. I did not buy the candle but now i really want to go back and get it because it just smelled so delicious!  

Anyways, after some disappointment, the first scent I had to grab was Pumpkin Caramel Latte. The website describes this as creamy pumpkin, spiced caramel, and sweet cream; sounds super yummy, right?! Basically it smells like a caramel latte with a hint of spice to it; kinda like Starbucks in the fall!

The next one I grabbed was Blueberry Pumpkin Patch. Sounds weird, huh? When smelling them, I knew my sister didn't find it her favorite and when we got home my mom didn't exactly enjoy it either, but I love it! The website describes it as Blueberries fresh from the farm are the perfect match for ripe pumpkins in this delicious autumn blend. Doesn't exactly describe the scent, so I'll give it a go; it's sort of like blueberry pie with a kick of spice in it.

Last but certainly not least is Bergamot Woods. (If I were filming a video my next sentence would be: is that how you pronounce it? I don't know.) Anyways, this scent just may be my favorite because it smells like - wait for it - a man. Yes, you read that right. It seriously smells like a man ready to go out on a date. The B&BW website describes it as An aromatic woodsy blend, highlighted by bright bergamot, fresh lavender  and deep green cypress. Now isn't that what you want your man to smell like? I sure do!

The last thing I bought on our little trip to the mall was during a quick stop at Spring. I saw this scarf hanging and immediately fell in love with the colors; plus I've been wanting an infinity scarf for a while. Spring had lots of awesome scarves, so if you've been looking for a great way to play up your look check 'em out!
(this one is the vevrousek if you're curious) I'm not ususally one to go for the whole cross trend, but I just loved the colors and had to have this scarf! Plus, when you have it on, you can't really tell that they're crosses.

What's the last thing you bought?
x Emily

My Hair Donation

Many of you - my lovely followers - may be aware of the fact that over a year ago I decided I would donate my hair! After the long process of growing it out, on April 6th, 2013, I cut off 8 inches! Yes. That's how long it took to grow out a healthy 8-inches of hair. My hair is very fine and breaks and splits very easily - I tried to get trims around every 3-4 months. May I mention I hadn't had my hair this short in over 3 years?!

It was quite a scary decision. I grew very attached to my hair while growing it out, and very addicted to doing french braids down my back. I hadn't even planned on cutting it all off that day; it was just supposed to be a trim! But it did teach me that being spontaneous (something I am never) can be a good thing. I do have to admit though, there was a lot of hesitation before it was cut off, and a lot of "its so short"'s afterward. It took a lot of getting used to; but I'm finally truly  embracing it. And honestly, having such long hair was a PAIN. It's grown about two inches since then, and I think I finally found the right shampoo to use with it; which has made a big difference. 

Let's talk about why I love it being shorter:

1. It takes less time to do in the morning

2. It doesn't get tangled as easily (and its easier to de-tangle)

3. I go through less shampoo, conditioner, and hair product in general

4. My natural color is all growing in

5. It dries faster (naturally and with a blow dryer) 

Now; the big question. Emily, what organization did you donate to?

I'm going to be honest and say that I originally was going to donate to Locks of Love but I didn't cut enough off to fit the criteria, and if I'd known about it sooner I'd do the whole #hairforhazel thing happening now. I went with the Pantene Beautiful Lengths program. Which gives hair to specifically women who've lost their hair. 

The timing couldn't have been more perfect; I ended up sending away my hair on the 17th anniversary (August 2, 1996) of my aunt passing away to breast cancer. You heard that right - 17 years - the age I will be turning in November. Hence why my middle name is Deborah, my aunts name. Obviously I never knew her but I've heard about how great a women she was and so I donated my hair in her memory along with the memory of my cousin Amanda, who passed when she (and I) was just 12 of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma in 2009. She actually passed 5 days before my birthday, and it was the same illness my grandmother passed away from in 2010. (Her name was Jean which Amanda was named after as her middle name was Jean - so many connections!)

sorry for the story time - didn't expect this blogpost to turn into that. 

But this is a happy post because some brave, beautiful women is gonna get that hair I grew out! It makes me feel so good inside to know that. 

So what products have I been using?

When I first cut my hair, I was using the Pantene Aqua Light Shampoo and Conditioner. I thought it was working really great; it didn't have any extra chemicals in it, it just left my hair feeling normal. But after a while I noticed that it just left my hair natural. And my natural hair tends to be very frizzy and poofy. Although, I am glad I went with that shampoo in the first place because it felt really nice to just cleanse my hair and give it a fresh start. But once those bottles were empty, I switched to the Head and Shoulders Smooth & Silky shampoo and conditioner and I like it much better! My hair is much more smooth and easier to work with. Head and Shoulders is obviously a brand that helps with dandruff, etc. and I find that it does help with flaking, but my scalp still feels itchy and a little dry from time to time. I've also gone back to using my Herbal Essences Long Term Relationship Split-End Protector just to keep my ends in check now that my hair is getting longer. Tip: just because your hair is shorter, doesn't mean you still can't get things like split ends and breakage.

The verdict? I will definitely donate my hair again if it ever gets long enough. But I think before I do it again, I'm gonna have fun doing different things to it!

x Emily

PS If you'd like to see some back to school videos on my youtube click here to go to the playlist I made

Cool People + Shirt-Making

In these past five days I've been to two concerts. I decided they were too amazing to not share with my beautiful followers! I went to the Paradise Fears Battle Scars Release Tour on saturday, so i'll share that with you first.
When buying the tickets, we had a choice of getting regular tickets or VIP. We decided on the VIP which included a Meet & Greet before the show and we got to watch sound check. I loved that we got all the perks but the Meet & Greet was cut a little short and we didn't get pictures with all the members of the band because of it. I think this happened because they showed up a little late - maybe trouble getting across the boarder. We made shirts to wear to this concert and the band really loved them. Concert advice of this post: make your own shirts; the band really appreciates them!
 When we made these shirts we bought the black t-shirts at Michael's and then traced out the cut we wanted with chalk and turned them into tank tops. Then we each got a color of dimensional fabric paint. The fabric paint was a good idea because once it sets for the indicated time on the bottle, we can wash them. We bought silver sharpies to get the band to sign the back, so obviously we can't wash them after that, so mine is now tacked up on my wall.

There are 6 members in Paradise Fears, and like I said, we didn't get pictures with all of them. But the VIP was worth it because we got in early to see the soundcheck, which means better spots during the concert (aka closer to the band and their beautiful faces!). The band (and all the opening bands, which were awesome!) came outside of the venue after the concert to get pictures. Which is when I'm grateful of meet and greets because although we were rushed by their manager, there was more time to talk because they weren't surrounded by so many people.

Okay, now we can talk about the We The Kings Summer Fest Tour. This tour consisted of a lot more popular bands, which meant lots of people, and since bands don't come to Canada often, a sold out show. So I got up at 9am and we left around 11 and spent the whole day in line. My sister, friend Nicole, and her sister, Shawna decided they wanted Meet & Greet for The Ready Set, so they got early entry and got a good spot in the crowd, while me and our friend Carlin stayed in line. The thing we wanted the most was We The Kings Meet & Greet (obviously) so when Carlin and I got inside we got the Meet & Greets right away. And can I mention how lucky we got? There were only about 25 Meet & Greet wristbands and we managed to grab 5!
The crowd got pretty squishy, and during Breathe Carolina, pretty crazy. I'd been in worse crowds, but it's still not the best feeling to be pushed around by sweaty bodies. I don't want to sound too whiny though, cause Breathe Carolina put on a great show! And Keep it Cute, The Ready Set and TMills!
Also, Corey Vidal came to the show and we got to meet him and the ApprenticeEh crew! They're such awesome people, so super nice, and put up a great conversation! We told Corey how excited we are for Vlogumentary and how good the trailer was. He told how emotional everyone got while they filmed Alli's interview - which is partly shown in the trailer.

We made shirts again for this concert! We modeled the front after The Tampa Bay Rays logo, since they're from Tampa. And since five of us went we were able to keep with the jersey theme and chose one of the memeber and put their last name on the back. After watch the CTFxC vlogs and the We The Kings video diaries we tried to match the numbers of the basketball jerseys they own. This time, we bought a pack of white men's t-shirts from Wal-Mart and again, cut them to the style we wanted. Shawna and I sewed our sleeves to make them into tank tops, which I liked because they felt more sturdy. Everyone else just cut theirs. We used acrylic paint for the shirts this time (which meant no washing the shirts). It made more sense because we used more colors. They got pretty stretched out during the concert, but I definitely liked the fabric better; it was a lot more comfortable. 

The guys loved the shirts; they were excited about us having their names on them. Which was exciting for us cause we worked so hard on them! Travis even wanted a picture on his phone!

Shawna - Hunter - Rachel - Danny - ME! - Travis - Carlin - Cooley - Nicole - Charles

We really wanted to meet Alli but I don't blame her for not coming out cause it was such a crazy night; everyone was exhausted! 

x Emily