Essie collection & notd

Like many girls I have a lot of nail polish and until recently I've usually been going for OPI polishes or China glaze ones. Essie has seriously been my newest addiction and I would say my last 3 or 4 polish purchases have been Essie! I don't really have a huge collection, just a handful of what I would say are some of their more popular colors. I just love the Essie bottles as well with their white caps and cute little glass bottles. I hope to get more soon, maybe branch out into darker colors for the upcoming seasons (but who says you can't wear pastels in the colder months?!?!)

My favorite colors would have to be the green polish called first timer and the light pink Fiji. However, I do get a lot of compliments on mint candy apple :) I would recommend any of these colors as they all apply on very easily for creamy pastels. Flawless is a little less opaque than the rest so it does take a few more coats!

That's my attempt at making a nail polish heart aha ! I also did a little nail of the day in honor of this post, and it's bikini so teeny, the newest to my little essie collection :)

A little something about me...

Hello!
So, I've been posting about products or my favorite things for the past couple weeks...but never did a proper introduction! I am a little wary of being too personal because this is the internet after all! However, I do want to be able to write about personal things as well as the usuals like taking pics of makeup and clothes :) SO I guess I'm working my way up to that! I used to blog A LOT about what was going on in my life in my late teens on livejournal haha! So every now and then I'll do little posts about what I've been up to like hanging out with friends etc. mostly just for my own personal keepsake. Anyway! Moving on :) Just some little facts about me and cute pictures of my doggie !

• My name is Nicole & I'm 23 living in California 
• I studied sociology & now I want to study constitutional law 
• I work in a department store 
• I'm half English and half Japanese 
• I've caught the travel bug after going to Europe for two summers in a row...planning on a third! 
• London is my favorite place in the world (that I've been) Hawaii is my second 
• England and Hawaii both feel like second homes because I have so much family in both places 
• I love candles...and flowers...and well, anything ~dainty and girly 
• I can be quite sassy and obnoxious but you'd have to be a close friend to be exposed to that! otherwise I can be quiet as a mouse! 
• I love almost all types of music as long as it makes me feel something 
• I like to make up stories in my head but I have a hard time writing them down 
• Lover of all things pastel and shabby chic 
• dislike summer & lovessssss winter (wish it snowed here :/) 
• I am pretty fandom obsessed (if you're on tumblr I think you'd know what that means) 
• I love lemon flavored things 
• I can eat salmon sushi for the rest of my life and not feel tired of it 
• Harry Potter obsessed since 1999 
• I love crescent moon jewelry 
• I go through style phases 

Fashion Union Wish List!!

Hello!

I recently went on the Fashion Union website and put together a little collection of my favorite items. They have so many on trend items it was hard to narrow it down to be honest! I went for a bit of a monochromatic theme for the autumn season. I Don't usually like wearing a lot of black but when I do I always almost go for a black/white look. These items are all individually great on their own but can definitely be worn together! To spice things up I picked a lot of beautiful patterns and textures...oh yeah and a bunny! ;)

01. Black PU Biker Jacket with Fur £42

02. Black Rabbit Jumper £18

03. Black Baroque Print Knitted Dress £24

04.White Caviar Sequin Detail Blouse £25

05.Black Check Skater Dress £25

06.Black Flat Pull On Chelsea Boot £25

07.Black Perspex Suede Lace Up Shoe Boots £30

08.Black Velvet Skater With Elasticated Waist £16

09.Black Floral Crop Short Sleeve Blouse £20

Fashion Union is hosting this really amazing contest and all you have to do is make your own wish list of their wonderful clothes! To see more about how you can win a £500 voucher click here!

Favorite non-makeup products

Hello! I've gathered some of my most used and well loved non-makeup products. All of these products are things I would repurchase no questions asked! So...here's a mini review!

01. Philosophy Pure Grace Deodorant: This may be TMI but regular drugstore deodorant makes me itchy. I'm on my 4th tube of this and it's so lovely and gentle. It also has a very clean and refreshing scent to it. It may be a bit pricey for deodorant (about 13 dollars) but it's better than scratching all day!

02. Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray: A lot of people rave about this and for good reason! It does add a nice texture to your hair, smells great, and adds a nice natural wave. I only use this when I've already curled my hair, which does sound redundant but it gives the curls a really natural and effortless look. I don't use it on wet hair because I find that when it dries it's quite sticky and doesn't really add much wave.

03. Thymes Moondflower body lotion: This. Smells. Amazing. Sadly, I can't put my finger on how to describe this. But it reminds me of sitting by a quiet lake in the moonlight, surrounded by fireflies and beautiful flowers... well, the description on the bottle says cinnamon, cognac, and sugared quince. This also doesn't leave the body sticky after applying!

04. St. Ives Green tea scrub: I've had almost no pimples while using this. It smells like heaven, is very refreshing, and has a great texture.

05. Aromatherapy Eucalyptus Spearmint Pillow Mist: Bit of a random one, but just spritz this a couple times on your pillow before bed and you're immediately relaxed! One of my favorite scents :)

06. Lush Sweet Lips lip scrub: This is very popular for good reason. It's yummy, moisturizing, and gets off all that dry skin on your lips! This smells like chocolate and vanilla and I couldn't live with out it.

07. Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm: I can't go a minute with out having something on my lips (it's probably an issue). I bought two of these when I was in the Parisian Pharmacie because I knew I would love it. They last a long time and leave your lips feeling very silky. It smells kind of like oranges, which I love and I know I will be using this product for a long time!

Everyday Makeup ~

Hello! Most of these items in this post are my go to products for an everyday look. I've jazzed it up with a coral lip however, when I normally do a berry or mauve color. This is more of a summer time look as I tend to go a bit darker in the winter even though in California it never truly gets that cold! I use a mix of higher end and drugstore products but do lean more towards drugstore unless I feel like splurging :)

Not the best picture to show off the makeup since my bangs are in my face! But it's a simple look anyway :)

FACE: This YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation was my fancy shamancy purchase while in Paris this summer. You can get this product in the states but it just felt special to buy it in Paris. Plus it was a tad bit cheaper. I have it in B40 and hope to get the matching concealer one day :) I have the Rimmel Stay Matte powder which is really nice. This is my first time trying it. And for the blusher I'm using Illamasqua powder blusher in excite. It's suuuuper pigmented and you really only need to do a quick dab to make your whole cheek coral!

EYES & LIP: On my lips I have Topshop infrared a bright orangey coral color. The eyeshadow is just the color sin brushed over my lids from the Urban Decay Naked Palette as I don't wear lots of eyeshadow too often. I have gone through at least three of these Revlon liquid eye liner they are so easy to use and stay on really well. The Chanel mascara was a hand me down from my mother who decided she didn't like it...I love it! It's really nice. I usually follow the ~rule that says drugstore mascara is just as good as high end so this is def not the norm for me!

lippy collection!

Hello! I decided it would be nice to take photos of and share my lip product collection! I really enjoy all of these lippy's so much and I found most of them because of beauty blogs! To be honest- I'm not great at eye shadow, so when I do want to change up a makeup look I always go for different shades of lipsticks. I don't have an extensive amount or anything but I do think I have a humble little collection :) I would recommend any of these brands (they are mostly revlon) and I know many of these products are already well loved by many!!

These are probably my go to types of lipsticks because they are not so expensive, pigmented, and come in so many colors! I'm not one to wear nude, or lightly colored lipsticks just because I don't think they suit me- I typically go for berry and mauve shades :) My most worn here is sassy mauve, it's so easy to throw on.

These lip balm stains are seriously amazing. They stay on so well and only need maybe one touch up during the day. They are quite drying though! My most worn is obviously smitten!

I recently got these lip butters and to be honest I'm not sure what took me so long! They are so lovely and great for those days when you don't feel like you need a strong lip but also don't want to have nothing on. Tutti Frutti is a bit more pigmented than the other two but still feels very smooth and moisturizing.

I got these apocalips on my recent trip to the UK and oh my goodness I am so obsessed I regret not buying more!! So bright and easy to apply. I hear we have them/are getting them in the states under a different name so I plan on hunting them down! I wear galaxy almost every day. Should have bought two!

Here are just some random lipsticks I have in my collection. Because they are so bright, I don't wear the two on the ends much. I have to be feeling very brave! Rebel however, is my go to color in the fall/winter. I know so many people love it and for good reason! I love collecting lip products and am hoping to get more lip butters and apocalips because they are both just so amazing. If anybody had recommendations please let me know :)

NOTD: Magpie & Utopia

Hello! Models Own is probably my favorite brand of nail polish, sadly it's not easy to get hold of if you live in the states. I did get Utopia on my trip to England this past summer and it's now one of my favorite colors! It's a greyish lilac color and I know I'm going to be wearing it to death this fall. I paired it with Topshop's Magpie which has loads of gold, pink & lilac sparkles in it. I think the two go well together if you want a bit more of a subtle glittery nail look :).

Autumn leaves falling down like pieces into place

Hello! Today I went to exchange my new Dr. Marten boots for another size, and of course I could not resist stepping into bath and body works for their offer on hand soaps. I've bought the candles a while ago, but decided it was still too summery to burn autumn candles. However, now that it's finally cooler outside and Starbucks is selling pumpkin spice again I figured it'd be alright to start getting festive! These hand soaps are amazing and leave your hands fragrant for a while after you wash them. I know I'll be getting more of the fall candles once they have another offer on them, but for now I think I have a nice little stash :)

I also tried out Lemonade Cafe for the first time! I love lemonade, so I was excited that one was finally opening around me! It was really delicious, and I would go back for sure. My favorite was the white truffle mac and cheese and the watermelon rosemary lemonade! Next time I want to try blueberry mint lemonade.

I also did a little outfit of the day because I'm wearing some of my favorite items :)

Brunch at Bottega Louie

Bottega Louie is an Italian restaurant in LA, and a pastel lovers dream. The food is delicious but to me, the best part is seeing all of the colorful pastries lined up beneath the glass. Going for brunch on the weekends is probably the best time to go because of all the yummy choices like lemon ricotta pancakes and smoked salmon dishes! A couple days ago I went with my sister and my cousin and we had an amazing time as always. Maneuvering your way around LA is always stressful, but I would say Bottega Louie is worth it! I ordered a green tea mojito which tasted amazing, and the artichoke pizza, which I didn't get a picture of because it came out a bit later than the other dishes.

On to the best part about Bottega Louie...the desserts!! A lot of it is pricey, but I think it's worth it to splurge on something if you drive all the way there!

And last but not least, if you go to Bottega Louie you need to try the macarons. My favorites are the earl grey, rose, and violet flavors. They are seriously amazing and second best to Laduree in Paris in my opinion! I always have to take a couple home.