...and the days go by (a personal blog)

I can't believe that it is already October! That odd thing is that here in Virginia, the weather today is in the 80s. Ugh. I am not a fan of hot weather.

With the days going by so quickly, it brings me to the topic of Christmas! So I have decided to cut back financially on things in order to be comfortable around Christmastime. I have given up $100 worth of monthly subscriptions. Since I already paid $30 of them, that basically leaves $270 of extra money I will have that can be put towards gifts for others. I am slightly freaking out about money, but I will make it work.

I am not one to talk about politics or current world events that are not related to entertainment...however, I feel that there are a LOT of people that are going through some financial difficulties. I am fortunate to have a job that pays me good, as well as a supportive partner and a place I can call home. I have got to come up with other ways to cut back and make money at the same time. Any ideas??

Oh, and I am on a NO MAKEUP BUYING fast for the rest of 2013. This does NOT include the essentials that I use every day, but nothing new. Nothing limited editions *cries hysterically*. And sadly, no swaps and no hauls. I have about $5000 worth of makeup (not trying to brag) that needs to be used up. So here it is, and you all can hold me to it!

I would love to see more and more people cut back on the little things. If you want to form a little support group with me and we can whine and complain about not being able to buy makeup, I am totally down. Email me too if you need to vent. But mainly, just check out my facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/gleamogirljoelle)

Until the next blog...

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

Urban Decay Shattered Face Case!

Whenever a new Urban Decay product comes out, I start to go into this whole excited, jump up and down, crazy mood...and... I HAVE TO HAVE IT ALL! (especially if it is Limited Edition) So when they announced the new Holiday 2013 collection, I immediately wanted it. And I got it. (gifted though, so thank you)

I wanted to give you guys my interpretation of the pallet, thoughts, and swatches. Also, I filmed a tutorial using the pallet too.

I am in love with this pallet because it literally has everything you need for a complete look...except a mascara. I don't own an Urban Decay mascara (I know, right?), so I guess it's not that bad living without one in the actual Face Case.

The outside of the case is shiny and has a "shattered" mirror look to it.

The top of the palette is the 5 eye shadows, the "zero" liner, and access to the lip pencil.

The pallet comes with 2 blushes and a highlighter.

 

Here are swatches of the 5 eye shadows without any base at all.

 

Overall, I think it is definitely worth the cost! So go out and order yours today!!!

 

And now for your viewing pleasure....

 

Swap with Lynette!

One of my favorite things to do is swaps! This one in particular was a LOT of fun!

 

Check out the video below!


Now go check out Lynette's channel!
http://www.youtube.com/user/27lyndimcghee

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

350 Subscribers Giveaway!

So I FINALLY reached 350 subscribers. It's funny though, because as soon as I posted the giveaway video, I instantly gained a bunch more subscribers...I am now over 400 in less than a week!

I just wanted to say thank you again for everyone who has subscribed and followed me and has taken the time to watch my videos. It really means a lot to me!

Good luck to everyone! Contest ends September 15!!

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

First Impression: Torrid

Some of you may have known me for a while, and some of you have probably stumbled upon my blog via my youtube channel, and do not know me at all. But either way, the majority of you have just seen my face. Why?

I am not ashamed of my body, I just sometimes feel uncomfortable in my own skin. I have struggled with my weight and appearance my whole life. (I am a mere 27 years old, but I have lived long enough to know the views of society on body image). There was a time when I could comfortably shop in stores and wore a single digit size. But after I graduated from college, and transitioned from a student, to a working adult on my own, my weight began to settle on my body, and I developed a curvy body. Permanently. I could work out, diet, and take pills if I want to get to a smaller size, but currently, I am happy with the way that my body looks. Though I may not look like the cute girls on Pretty Little Liars or like Emma Stone or Mila Kunis, I think I am pretty good looking.

Moving right along, I decided to venture into the store Torrid the other day. Torrid is a sister company of Hot Topic, and there was a time when I was employed by them. (Note, they did not and are not paying me or anything for this blog. All opinions are my own) The size range in Torrid is geared towards sizes 12-28. They carry clothing, intimate apparel, shoes, and accessories that are all catered towards the trendy girl with curves. Cost wise, I would compare them to the equivalent of Express or Gap. I personally struggle with paying a lot for clothing, since I am in work clothing the majority of my life. I don't get to wear what I want except for the 2 days off I have a week. On those days, I am usually on my own too, so there is no one to dress up for, or no reason to leave the house.

Back to Torrid. I picked up 2 shirts and a pair of shorts. After tax, I paid $110. Eek. That hurts my debit card, and my heart. Butttt I looked really darn cute!

 

I got this shirt and shorts. The other shirt I got was not online anymore :( 

The quality of the clothes seems to be pretty good so far. I have not worn them out for a long period of time, but so far so good. I plan to wear them to Dallas when I go visit my friend. 

I made a haul video on my channel including the items from Torrid I purchased.

I will let you all know what I truly think of the start of my new wardrobe once I wear it out on the town. I think this is the start of a new friendship!

I think I have a Glamour Doll Eyes problem....

Recently I have been thinking about about all of the makeup that I have and trying to organize it so that I can finally film my makeup storage and updated collection video.Well, in the process, I pulled out my 2 containers of Glamour Doll Eyes shadows, and started thinking about redoing the whole organization system I have currently.

At the moment, I am OBSESSED with matte eyeshadows. I think this also has to do with the fact the my eye allergies are at an all time high, so glitter and shimmer hurts my eyeballs.

So in this whole process, I wanted to organize by finish. I pulled out ALL of my eyeshadows (and they are not all pictured) and tried to sort them. I literally opened about 100 eyeshadow pots to look at each finish. And after all that, I ended up just piling them in a large mound. Mainly because of frustration.

Bottom line? I need a new system. Before, I had them by color. Then by collection. I think I will continue to do by color, but I need a new way to actually see the colors. Any advice??

Once I figure it all out, I will post an updated photo.

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

Feeling a little like Cordelia today...

Most avid Buffy fans like myself will get the reference. For others that may not be as familiar with the show, there is a chick who kills vampires, goes to highschool, yadda yadda yadda. The point I am trying to get at goes right into season 3...

learn about the episode by clicking here

The episode "The Wish" is all about one of the semi-main characters, Cordelia, wishing that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale (the town they all live in). Well it just so happens that her wish comes true, and all Hell breaks loose.

My point is that sometimes, don't you just wish that one particular person had never come into your life? I thought about this a lot today, and how much I wish it could've come true. (and I am pretty sure others may feel the same way)

The only downside? Sometimes you need that one particular person around because all Hell might break loose. Even if you cant stand them, life seems to suck on occasion thanks to them, that person needs to be there.

So, lesson learned. Have you ever felt like this? Let me know. I am curious to hear your stories.

Thats all for now.
xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

Probably the best song of all time

For the longest time I have said that my favorite song is "Don't Cry Out" by Shiny Toy Guns. I first heard that song years ago when I was in college. I fell in love with it instantly. It has such a catchy beat and there is just something so amazing about it.

I went through years of loving this band and have always wanted to see them in concert. Then 2012 hit. And a miracle happened.

Shiny Toy Guns came out with their 3rd full length album, "III", and it was the most amazing album I have ever heard. And the best part? The song "Somewhere To Hide". Words cannot describe how much I love this song. The beat makes you want to dance like crazy. The tune is amazing to sing along to. And the words are phenomenal.

By the time you finish reading this blog post, I hope that you all have this song downloaded on your iTunes. It is worth the $1.29. It is worth more than that.

And if you get a chance to check them out on this leg of their tour, then DO IT.

That is all for now.

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

i heart movies tag.

So I just finished filming the video for the "i heart movies tag", but for those of you who wanted a more in depth version of movies I like and why, here it goes...

 *Favorite Movie of all time? I chose "Adventureland". There is just something about this movie that keeps me wanting to watch it over and over again.
 * Favorite scene from that Movie? "Satin Lives"
* Favorite actors/actresses? Actress: Kristen Stewart, Actor: Anthony Stewart Head
 * Best Director? Joss Whedon
 * Favorite Guilty Pleasure Film? Anything with Mary-Kate and Ashley or Lindsay Lohan in it. I also love Hilary Duff movies too.
 * Favorite Tear Jerker? "Up" and any other happy moments that make you cry movies
 * Character from a movie that scared you the most? Ugh I hate inbred/mutant characters from movies like "Wrong Turn" and "The Hills Have Eyes"
 * Movie you love that everyone hates? 'Repo! The Genetic Opera"
 * Movie you hate that everyone loves? I HATE romantic comedies. (ie movies with Sandra Bullock, Katherine Heigel, Ashton Kutcher, etc)
 * Favrite movie duo? Janis Ian and Damien from "Mean Girls"
 * Favorite animated movie? "Finding Nemo"
 * Actor/Actresses crush? Actress: Kiera Knightly/Actor: TBD
 * Favorite Movie villian? I love the bitchy, popular girls in teen movies
 * What movie surprised you the most? "Orphan"
 * If you could only keep one movie what would it be? 'Adventureland" and "Queen of the Damned"
 * Movie recommendation and for whom? any 1990s teen movies like "10 things I hate about you", "She's All That", etc.
 * If you could go back in time and marry actor/actress from when (now old) who would it be? Heath Ledger
 * One remake you wish had never been made? "Oz, the Great and Powerful"
 * Your about to die but could only watch one more movie, what would it be? "The Goonies"
 * Favorite Movie genre/ Favorite Movie from that genre? Teen movies, horror movies, postapocolyptic movies
 * What's the first movie you remember watching in theatres? "The Lion King"

I would love to know what your responses are too!

xoxo
gleamogirljoelle

sick of being sick

I haven't been sick in about 2 years. Worse than that, I haven't taken a day off from work for feeling sick. I only took a personal day once since I had this job. So why do I feel so guilty? I think I am the kind of person who has an insane hard work ethic to where I feel guilty and take things so hard when I am not there in the office. I recently found out that I will not be changing locations at work, which means that I will have more time to focus on youtube and blogging, and the things that make me happy. I love my job so much, but I also love youtube and blogging and writing. I am torn between the life I would love to have and the life that is "safe". I am very blessed and thankful to have a job during these rough times. I am also thankful that I have a loving girlfriend and a nice apartment home. I also have a one year old car and have very little credit card debt. I really don't have anything to complain about. SO I am sitting here with a fever, barely able to speak, and a cough that is awful. My whole body aches, and all I can think about it how bad I feel about having to call in sick to work 2 days in a row. Even my own doctor told me that it is good to have a personal "mental health" day. But I can't seem to get my mind to stop focusing on the stress and guilt and just RELAX. It is going to be hard for me to heal fully when I can't stop thinking. Does anyone else deal with this? I am curious to know. xoxo gleamogirljoelle

ipsy bag sucks

I guess you could say that the title says it all. I was, once again, not happy with the ipsy bag. I had it back when it first came out and was called "myglam". After seeing a few videos about the bag, I thought that I should resubscribe, and see if I could get in on the good bags. I was wrong. Last month's bag I was allergic to one product (ok...so that isn't their fault)and the rest of the things were just OK. I loved the Mica get liner. So I guess 1 out of 5 products was good. For $10, why not. I got my March bag today and WTF?! First off I get a face mister spray that made me sneeze. Then I get too miniature eye shadows that are from Yabi that are basically one use only. And then a little magnetic pallet that the mini yabi shadows go in. And lastly, a pack of makeup remover wipes. I am hesitant about trying the wipes due to my allergies. The bag itself it totally cute with anchors on it. Again, 1 out of 5 products are good. Part of me wants to hit "unsubscribe" now, but I have this feeling that the second I do, the April bag will be better. Ugh. Overall, if I had to rate this bag, 1 out of 5 stars. I will keep you all updated with the contents of the bags in the future. For now, I can spare the $10 a month...but we will see. xoxo gleamogirljoelle

I died...Rachel Zoe love.

So I bought season 1 of the Rachel Zoe Project on DVD. I started watching it this morning, and lets just say that it has renewed my love for fashion. I am happily enjoying my day off in my pjs watching this show and dreaming about designers. This will probably lead to a LOT of pinning on pinterest LOL. If you aren't already following me on pinterest, be sure to do so (gleamogirljoelle) When I first started out in college in Fashion Design & Merchandising, I dreamed of being a stylist. I love the idea of having a client with a specific style, and going out and finding the amazing pieces to put together and make a WOW. Rachel Zoe has my dream job. Someday I will try and get closer to my dream, but for now...I will divulge in watching it on TV, reading it in magazines, and window shopping. xoxo gleamogirljoelle