Sweet Surprises, Spending, CRUNCH, & Juicing.

I confess...  Friday night I put in an order with Philly Loves Lacquer for a Full Size Fancy Winter Wench Build Your Own Bundle.  I ordered Clevermore, Cara Liom, The Pirates, and Saturnalian.  Seriously, Saturnalian is the most gorgeous color-Accio Lacquer had this to say about it: "Hear me now, Reader, I will go to my grave exclaiming that Esther figured out how to bottle orgasms.")  I can't disagree.  So yeah... I bought a bit of polish this weekend.

I confess... Esther (from Philly Loves Lacquer) is one of the sweetest human beings on the face of the planet. Completely to my surprise a package arrived for me Saturday morning from PhLL and I had no idea what it was.  I opened it to find a gorgeous bottle of polish named For the Love of Pitre and the sweetest little note.  She made me a surprise custom polish in memorial of Pitre the bunny we lost!  So sweet!

I confess... I also spent way too much at Torrid... I had all this Haute Cash to use and so I did... Lots.  But look at two of the pretties I snagged:

I confess...  My word of the year necklace came and I could not be happier!  Seriously-for affordable custom stamped goodies you should check out Pat's Design.  This is my second order from her and I love it!  Also see why I chose Fearless.

I confess... I wrecked my car last week.  Such a bummer.  I was turning into the parking stall and a guy opened his door right at the same time and CRUNCH.  Sad.  I can't decide if it's worth the $500 deductible to get it fixed... The car has 200,000 miles on it and the damage is livable.  I also think I'll want another car within the next year anyway...

I confess... I was down with what was either the worst food poisoning or the worst stomach bug of my life from about 2AM Sunday morning until Tuesday night.  I missed two days of work and class.  Missing class bothers me quite a bit because I missed the review day for my test Thursday...

I confess... Since solid food and I are still a little iffy, I figured what better time to start juicing?  I picked up a bunch of produce and a 12 pack of mason jars and made a bunch to last me til the weekend.  I figured the less often I have to do the work of juicing, the more likely I am to stick with it.  So far, every single bottle has tasted so delicious it's making it pretty easy on me.  Though I'm not full on juicing, just replacing two meals a day at this point.

Do you juice?  What are your fave recipes?

Linking up with:

The Beauty Phanatic's Top 5 Beauty Tricks & Giveaway

Anissa from The Beauty Phanatic is one of the prettiest beauty savants I know, and today I've asked her to share her Top 5 Beauty Tricks with you!  She's also been so kind as to offer an awesome giveaway that includes The Body Shop Chocomania Body Butter and three Julep nail polishes-it is valued at about $48! So stay tuned after the tricks in order to enter the giveaway! 

1. Baby Powder: This is one of my most used tricks! I get greasy hair the day after shampooing, and as most of you know shampooing your hair everyday is not ideal but who wants to walk around looking like a greaser from grease? I love dry shampoo but even at drugstore prices, a $5.00 can still doesn't beat out the good old baby powder trick. I normally can buy a large thing of baby powder for less then $2.00 which would be equivalent to 6 cans of dry shampoo. When I apply my baby powder I section my hair off in the little section and sprinkle the powder closest to the roots, after all my sections are done I let the powder sit for about 10 minuets while I get dressed or finish my makeup this allows the powder to soak up all the excess grease on the scalp and roots. After brush your hair to blend in anything showing and avoid rubbing with your hands! Style as normal and enjoy :)
2. Razors: I don't know about you but I think razors are expensive these days, at $10.00-$15.00 a pack it can be an expensive chore if you ask me. Well at least I feel like shaving is a chore sometimes lol! Have you ever noticed that your tossing out your razor faster then you'd like or its not giving you the cleanest shave anymore? Well this next tip is to get a small jar and fill with olive oil, well any liquid oil you please, and place somewhere in your shower (away from the stream of water) and soak! The water and steam from our everyday showers kills the life of the razor by speeding up the rust factor and corrosion. Soaking your razor in oil between shaves acts as a barrier from the water and prevents your razor from rusting which keeps your blade nice and sharp and saves the life of your razor by weeks!! 
3. Mascara: I love mascara its probably my second favorite makeup item, however I hate when my favorite mascara dries up faster then I can use it. When I have started to notice that my mascara is starting to get clumpier then I’d like I know its time to bring out the eye solution! Thats right eye solution, most people think adding a little water will help moisten mascara however it dries it out more. Eye solution will revive your mascara and actually keep it moist! 
4. Cut it open: Get 25% more out of the beauty products you already have! I don't know why I didn't do this earlier in life but cutting open products that come in tubes is a MUST for me now. You would be surprised how much product is left behind and wasted! I first tried this out when I ran out of my Benefit Porefessional and discovered I had enough product left in the edges of the tube to fill up a sample size jar plus some. I always keep sample jars just for this purpose now! 
5. Peroxide: Now my last trick is a peroxide rinse after you brush your teeth, this helps whiten and over time will change the color of your teeth significantly!! However I would only do this a few times a week not everyday.. MAJOR FYI this works but doesn't have a pleasant taste! BUT it does work wonders over time for a fraction of the cost of teeth whiteners.

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A to Z Book Survey

I snagged this from Living a Goddess Life, who snagged it from The Book Rat, who probably snagged it form someone who snagged it from someone... But hey, it's fun!   You can play along too! 

A: Author you've read the most books by:  Charlaine Harris-due to keeping up with the Sookie Stackhouse Series.

B: Best Sequel Ever: I loved The Prisoner of Azkaban the best out of the Harry Potter Series.  Does that count?  Or The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe which was a sequel technically.

C: Currently Reading: The Wicked Girls by Alex Marwood.

D: Drink of Choice While Reading:  If it's Morning/Day then Coffee, or if it's the evening Wine.

E: E-Reader or Physical Book?  Physical Book all the way, nothing can replace that for me.

F: Fictional Character You Probably Would Have Dated in High School:  Um, I didn't really date in High School... Can we change this to "would have had a crush on"?  If so, then probably Odd Thomas? He would have been just weird enough and just outcast enough.  lol

G: Glad You Gave This Book a Chance: Ophelia by Lisa Klein.  I found it for like $3 on Amazon one Black Friday and thought "Why not?"  I ended up really enjoying the spin on Shakespeare's Hamlet.

H: Hidden Gem Book: The Mastery of Love by Don Miguel Ruiz.  I'm not huge on self-help books, but this one totally turned my entire view of love and how I respond/give it around.  I recommend it for ANYONE, single or coupled up.

I: Important Moment in Your Reading Life:  I've always loved reading.  My dad was a reader so he instilled the love of books in me from a very early age-but one book that really turned it around was in the fourth grade I read Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison and loved it.  It's still a book I remember to this day as a turning point in stories for me.

J: Just Finished: The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice.  Blah.

K: Kinds of Books You Wont Read:  I'm pretty open... But you lose me when it comes to really religious/preachy books or westerns.

L: Longest Book You've Ever Read: The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley.  Worth it.

M: Major Book Hangover Because Of: Hmm... I can't think of any time I've had a huge book hangover.  I guess... I was pretty sad after reading Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss and Love by Matthew Logelin because it was heartbreaking... 

N: Number of Book Cases You Own:  Three, currently. (Well, that have books on them anyway.)

O: One book you have read multiple times:  Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.  Hilarious!

P: Preferred place to read:  The couch, curled up by the plant and the window.  Or up in the mountains camping, that's the best! 

Q: Quote That Inspires You/Gives You Feels From a Book You've Read: “I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I took joy in the things that made me happy.”  - The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

R: Reading Regret: Twilight.  Though the Claiming of Sleeping Beauty comes in a close second. lol

S: Series You Started But Still Need to Finish (All Books Are Out): The Odd Thomas Series by Dean Koontz & The Sookie Stackhouse Series by Charlaine Harris.

T: Three of your Favorite Books: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

U: Unapologetic Fangirl For:  Neil Gaiman EVERYTHING & dirty vampire romance novels (not Twilight).

V: Very Excited for This Release More Than Others:  Can't think of anything... Probably more Neil Gaiman. lol

W: Worst Bookish Habits: Starting a book and not finishing it, taking forever to pick it back up in between readings... Probably the same as Beth-off trend and wont get an e-reader.

X: X Marks the Spot, Start at the Top of Your Shelf and Pick the 27th Book:  I'm at work, and not at home... Soooo I'm just going to guess at what I think it is and it's likely one of the three books in the His Dark Materials series, which I have yet to read but do own.

Y: Your Latest Book Purchase: The Wicked Girls & The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty.  Also my books (shhhh it's a secret) for my Books 'n' Bloggers partner Micaela from Mind Your Madness.

Z: Zzzz-Snatcher Book-(The last book that kept you up way too late): Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. It took me a bit to get into, but once I was caught up in the thriller I was hooked.

2014 TBR & 2013 Reading Recap

Last year I made a goal to read 20 books in the year, and I actually failed.  Life was huge, so I'm not beating myself up over it, but I thought I'd recap what I did read and set a new goal of 20 books for 2014.

What I read in 2013:

Review                  Review                   Review               Review               Review                 Review

Books I own & need to read in 2014:

Books I really want to buy and read in 2014:

What's on your list to read this year?

Starring Role {Musical Mondays & Giveaway}

What is Musical Mondays?

Musical Mondays is a weekly linky party where we share a song we're into for the week, and talk about why we like it-or why it effects us.  Along with talking about music, I host a (usually) month-long music related giveaway.

This week's song:

Starring Role

by Marina Mena

You're hard to hug, tough to talk to and I never fall asleep
When you're in my bed ll you give me is a heartbeat
I've turned into a statue and it makes me feel depressed
'Cause the only time you open up is when we get undressed

You don't love me, big fucking deal
I'll never tell you how I feel
You don't love me, not a big deal
I'll never tell you how I feel

It almost feels like a joke to play our part
When you are not the starring role in someone else's heart
You know I'd rather walk alone than play a supporting role
If I can't get a starring role

Sometimes I ignore you so I feel in control
Because really, I adore you, and I can't leave you alone
Fed up with the fantasies that cover what is wrong
Come on baby let's just get drunk forget we don't get on

You like my dad, you get on well
I'll send my best regards from hell

It almost feel like a joke to play our part
When you are not the starring role in someone else's heart
You know I'd rather walk alone than play a supporting role
If I can't get a starring...

I never sent for love, I never had a heart to mend
Because before the stunt began I always saw the end
I'll wait for you to open up to give yourself to be
But nothing's ever gonna give, I'll never set you free
Yeah I'll never set you free

It almost feels like a joke to play our part
When you are not the starring role in someone else's heart
You know I'd rather walk alone than play a supporting role
If I can't get a starring role
A starring role

This is the accoustic version, but you can listen to the album version HERE.  I really love this whole album, but this song is one of the ones that hits a little more close to home for me-in a good way mostly!  It's a good little reminder that if someone isn't making you a starring role in their life, they're probably not worth your time and you should move on.  I think we all need to be reminded of that sometimes, whether it's in dating or just in regards to friendships.

What are you listening to this week?

Please grab the button and link up your Musical Mondays post in the linky!

<a href="http://www.mysocalledchaos.com/search/label/Musical%20Mondays" target="blank"><img src="http://i725.photobucket.com/albums/ww257/agofish/For%20Blog/MUSICALMONDAYS_zpse9de9ff4.png" alt="Musical Mondays at My So-Called Chaos></a>

Giveaway

Enter to win an MP3 copy of Electra Heart by Marina and the Diamonds (sent from Amazon)!

This giveaway will run from Monday 1/6/14 to Friday 1/31/13.  It is open worldwide.  This is the last week!

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