I'm Done With You: December 2016

In this post, I'll share with you the products that I've finished lately. I'm making a conscious effort to use up products before I replace them. I'll also try to eliminate some things that are not quite finished yet but are not being used.

There's always a good number of Bath & Body Works soap in my empties. All of these were a hit, including Kiss Kiss Mistletoe which was from last year. I don't think they had that scent this year. I always allow myself to stock up on the soaps when they're on sale because they always get used and my world would tip off its axis if I ever ran out.

These are two of my very favourite candle scents. I'm thrilled that Sweater Weather keeps coming back most seasons with different colors and packaging. This yellow was my favourite though. Both of these have very strong scents that will fill a large space.

Inside the Lush bag was a Cinders bath bomb which was cinnamon scented and quite nice. There is also a BBW hand sanitizer, a nail polish remover, and a sleeve of cotton rounds. 

The two hair products I used up were sample sizes. The one on the left is Bumble and Bumble Hairdresser's Invisible Oil Primer which is a really nice leave-in hair primer and heat protectant. It was recently on for a 100 point perk at Sephora so I redeemed for another one. The Fekkai Brilliant Glossing cream was a staple of mine that lasts for YEARS. It's a finishing product that leaves your hair smooth and you only use a pea-sixes drop. I bought a giant one when Target closed that I'm still trying to make my way through. I'm rotating it with the Alterna Caviar CC Cream, which I think I like even better.

This skin care stuff was good, but I'm pretty scattered with my skin care. I like trying new things and get bored easily. I liked the Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion SPF 15 as a sunscreen but I didn't find it to be particularly mattifying. The Aveeno was fine as well. The Blistex was the lip balm at my work desk.

For make-up, I tossed a few products that I didn't like (The Essence lipstick and the Blinc mascara), a few that had gone funky (The Body Shop Mineral foundation and the Tarte lippie), and two that I used up (Benefit Gimme Brow and MAC brow pencil in Lingering). The brow products are both amazing but kind of pricey. I'm currently using some drug store alternatives.

I also purged a bunch of nail polishes (maybe ten or so) that were old or I wasn't using.

I hope you enjoyed peeking into my recycling! I usually do one of these posts every second month.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Currently 12.19.16

Reading

Doctor Sleep -Stephen King
I went through a huge Stephen King phase in high school, and read most of his older works. I've read a few of his newer books, and this one really intrigued me as it's a sequel to The Shining. It was written in classic SK style, and I forgot how easy his books are to get into. I usually don't find his books too scary to be honest, and this one was the same. I had no issues reading it when I was home alone. I really need to read his book On Writing.

Vinegar Girl- Anne Tyler
This was a quick and easy read on my Kobo. It was meant to be an adaptation of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew. It was pretty good.

Vinegar Girl, Fleur de Force, In Style

Clicking

I'm watching so many Vlogmas stories on You Tube. I can't even keep up. Sephora has also been a favourite of mine this month. I'm determined to keep my VIB status for next year, which looks like it will happen.

Watching

I finished the second season of Suits and I'm obsessed ,but I think I'll take a little break before starting Season Three. On my Suits hiatus, I watched Brooklyn on TMN On Demand which was SUCH a good movie. I cried so many times, which is pretty inconvenient when you're on a treadmill.
TheVS Fashion Show was on a few weeks ago. It's always a hit at our house. I'm loving The Weeknd right now so it was great to see him perform.

Eating

Everything. Ugh. There is so much food around time of year. I made some new cookies this year, which turned out pretty good - Aero Thumbprint cookies. The recipe is here.

Drinking

I'm not usually a sucker for Starbucks Holiday drinks. Normally I stick with my chai lattes. However, this year I discovered the Caramel Brûlée Latte. I've managed to limit myself to two so far, but something tells me I'll be getting another one before too long.


Seeing

Cookies and sweets everywhere! A Christmas tree. Two giant containers of laundry pods (seriously, R? 304 pods?). Four poinsettias.

Smelling

Roast beef in the oven :)

Hearing

R's text alerts

Wearing

Cords, a t-shirt and a faux-suede cardigan.

Loving my new sweater from Envy!

Feeling

Tired! I've been so busy at work the past few weeks.

Anticipating

Christmas of course! I'm also looking forward to 4.5 days off.

The view from R's office last week. 

Merry Christmas everyone!!!
I'll be sure to post a bit over the holidays. I'm thinking of doing some "Best of 2016" posts and I'm ready to show you some more empties.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Lumberjack Chic

One of the easiest outfit formulas I love for fall and winter is jeans, a plaid shirt and boots.  It's easy to change things up by changing the shirt, the type of jeans (leggings, boyfriend style, straight cut, etc), and the boots (combat boots, riding boots, or winter boots). You could create a ton of looks with just a few different items from each category. Basic? Sure. But so comfortable!

Details

Plaid shirt: Topshop

Tee: Gap

Jeans: Zara

Boots: Aldo

I almost wore my winter boots with this outfit, but then I changed my mind and wore combat boots. I was on my way to Bath and Body Works for soap day, which is basically like a war zone. 

Success! And I didn't even need to kick anyone! I'm so impressed with how well BBW does with holiday crowds. The lines might look huge, but they go by so fast. I hope your holiday preparations are going well. I think I'm officially done with the shopping and moving on to wrapping.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: November 2016

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. My quarterly budget is $500. This amount can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget. Since I've been keeping a budget, I'm much more careful with what I buy, and I will return stuff at the end of the month if I'm not crazy about it after hanging it in my closet.

I always like to save some money for Black Friday sales. Over the past few years, I think that day has been even better deals than Boxing Day. I did a big chunk of my Christmas shopping - yay! I had the day off work, which I will try to make happen every year.

Turtleneck: Bootlegger
Reg $30, on sale for $7.50
I'm obsessed with stripes and love having turtlenecks or other high-necked styles to layer with my beloved TNA Del Mar shirts in the winter. This also looks great under a blazer or cardigan.

Pants: Bootlegger
Reg $50, on sale for $20
My Madewell jeans developed am unfortunate hole. I wasn't sure if they would be saved (they were - thanks Mom) so I bought these to fill in the casual black pants void in my work wardrobe. They are quite comfy but they do loosen as the day goes on so I need to wear a belt with them.

Coat: Club Monaco
Reg $449, on sale for $189
This was an impulse buy, but I think it was a sound choice. My black peacoat that I got for dirt cheap at Joe Fresh a few years ago isn't the best. I love my black puffer coat, but I wanted something that was a bit dressier for going out to dinner and such. I saw this on Black Friday and it fits like  a dream. I really couldn't leave it there for the quality and price. I always lust over the coats at CM and now I get to wear one.

Necklace: American Eagle Outfitters
Reg $18, on sale for $6.50
This is a very delicate but trendy piece. I love the multiple layers.

Tank: Joe Fresh
Reg $19, on sale for $10
I was going out and felt like something new to wear. I work beside Joe Fresh, and this caught my eye because of the sheer detail. The armholes are too big, but I'll likely always want to wear a cardigan or blazer with it anyway.

I also bought a Christmas sweater at Envy that I will save for an outfit post. It was $40 on sale for $30

Original price of items: $606

Price I paid: $263

I saved 57%

This leaves me with $178 to spend in December. I might buy a pair of chunky heeled ankle boots. I'll also check out the Boxing Day sales, but may carry some over to January as the real deals are usually in late January when the stores are starting to clear the winter stock.

Hope you found some great deals in November!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

In Pink

This pink bomber is getting worn much later in the fall than I thought it would. It's surprisingly warm! It's not something that can be thrown on with just anything though. It doesn't work with most patterned pants, and I had to ditch the red handbag I'm using right now in exchange for something that didn't clash.

Details

Jacket: H&M

Sweater: J Crew

Scarf: I forget! It's old. 

Jeans: American Eagle Outfitters

Boots: Call it Spring

Bag: Danier

I hope everyone is doing okay with Christmas preparations. I've got some stuff bought, ideas for others, and complete blanks for a few! Black Friday is right around the corner, so I hope to make some progress then. 

XOXO 

Glitterary Girl

Currently 11.13.16

Reading

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

A modern take on Pride and Prejudice, I wasn't sure I'd like this book, but I actually enjoyed it. For sure a light read, but one that was well thought out and did a good job on characterization.
The Golden Son by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

I loved The Secret Daughter, so I figured I'd like this. It was about a young Indian man who is torn between is life in America and India. I loved the medical side of the story and the look into Indian culture.
Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson

Before I read this, I'd heard you'd either love this book or hate it. I was one of the ones who loved it. It's actually rare that I will laugh out loud while reading, but this book made me giggle at least half a dozen times. Everyone should read this book, especially if you or someone you love struggles with mental illness.

I'm now reading my first Stephen King novel in YEARS. I was motivated by Halloween. I'll let you know what it is next month. Hopefully I'll be done by then. I blasted through a good chunk while on vacation, so I'm hopeful.

Clicking

Lots of YouTube videos, Purpose Tour Europe updates - I so wanted to go to Glasgow to see it there. Zara on Tuesdays and Fridays to catch the new styles. If any of you saw my latest Zara haul on Instagram stories, I sent it all back. I wasn't in love with any of it once I tried it all on. I'm now hunting for velvet leggings - let me know if you find any. 

Watching

The Bachelorette Canada, This is Us, KUWTK. I watched a few old Halloween movies - The Gremlins, The Shining, and The Lost Boys (how I loved Corey Haim). On Netfix, I've just gotten into Suits. I'm so annoyingly slow with watching series on Netflix and Crave. I have a list of series I need to watch/finish. 

Eating

We had dinner with new friends at La Frasca last week, and the meal was stellar as usual. 

I've been making lots of soups and other things in the slow cooker. Leftover Halloween candy has also been popular! I'm back to using my fit bit to track calories. I had started 22 Minute Hard Corps but got about three weeks in and became bored and unmotivated so now I'm back to running/incline walking on the treadmill, which is helpful with getting through Netflix (see above).

Drinking

On vacation, I enjoyed a bottle of red wine - Goats Do Roam. I also plucked myself down at Starbucks on Halloween and tried the Frappula frappucino which was to die for (get it??) Tis the season for hot tea, so I've been having more of that than usual. I have 50 g of free DAVIDsTEA to redeem- I'm thinking Coffee Cake might be the one to choose. I loved that one last winter. Starbucks have the pretty red cups back - I had one today with a friend!

Seeing

I'm looking at my little reading area in the living room, which has been made more cozy with a new lamp.

Smelling

I made spaghetti sauce today and I can still smell it.

Hearing

I've got Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on in the background.

Wearing

Jeans, a tee, a cardigan, and sparkly socks.

Feeling

Headachy tonight if I'm being really honest. I'm glad I had a productive day, as I'm not feeling like doing much of anything tonight except watching TV. 

Anticipating

I feel like I've gotten a real break from work lately with a week vacation and two long weekends in November (I'm taking Black Friday off). I'm looking forward to dinner and a night at Trapped later this month. I'm planning on getting a good chunk of Christmas shopping done on Black Friday. I did a Sephora haul the other day for the VIB sale - hope to see that arrive sometime later this week.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Kicking off the Season

There's something great about attending a Christmas related event so early in November. Looking at all the festive and cozy things at Chapters put me in the spirit earlier than usual!

On November 2, I was able to attend the Make it Merry event as a media member to check out all the new books, tech, home decor, style, and kids stuff that Chapters has to offer this year. A person could seriously do a lot of their Christmas shopping at this store! 

After some tasty offerings (I may have had more than one cheesecake bite) we were free to browse the store. For someone who reads as much as I do, I could spend hours in Chapters on a normal day, let alone for a special event with tons of brand new items! Trust me, it wasn't just the books I was drooling over. I spent a good part of my visit in the style and home decor section. 

It was also lovely to catch up with some of my local blogger and media friends who I hadn't seen in a while. We are truly lucky to have such a great group of people involved with social media in Halifax. I was able to meet a few folks I'd been following on Instagram - nice to put a face and a voice to the accounts.

Details

Vest: Club Monaco

Top and jeans: Zara

Boots: H&M

Bag: Michael Kors

Necklace: Express

Koala socks!

How Canadian

These wrist muffs? The bomb.

My favourite saying for Canadian winter. 

I'll be certain to put in a good on-line order for Black Friday from Indigo. Thanks to them for hosting a lovely event!

XOXO

Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: October 2016

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. My quarterly budget is $500. This amount can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget. Since I've been keeping a budget, I'm much more careful with what I buy, and I will return stuff at the end of the month if I'm not crazy about it after hanging it in my closet.

October was a quiet month for shopping. I did another Zara order but only kept one thing (see below). I also brought home a sweater from Joe Fresh, but didn't love it once I tried it on, so I returned it.

Jeans: Zara
Reg $50

I have friends who swear by Zara jeans. Up until now I'd had no luck with them. This pair is perfect - the rise, the length, the stretch factor, the distressing. They are labelled "premium denim" so maybe that's the key to Zara jeans for me. If you order them, they run a bit small. I had to size up one size. It has everything nothing to do with Halloween candy.

Dress: Old Navy (this color no longer available)
Reg $30, on sale for $15

I used to shop at Old Navy quite a bit but have been having no luck there for two years or so. I popped in randomly on a lunch break recently and decided to give this dress a try. I was pleasantly surprised! I can make this work any season of the year.

Dress: Banana Republic

Reg $160, on sale for $20

Like was going to leave this on the rack for the price! I loved this dress when I saw it in the summer but couldn't justify the original price. With several weddings next summer to attend, I'm sure I'll be happy to have it! It's still listed as $136 on the website - I bought mine in store.

Original price of items: $240

Price I paid: $85

I saved 65%

This leaves me with $441 to roll ahead (I had an extra $26 from last quarter). I still haven't found my perfect black sweater. I need to hit up Aritzia (maybe on Black Friday) and perhaps American Apparel.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Fall Photos and Wine

Sometimes I get super frustrated with the weather in our corner of the world. Spring takes forever to arrive, and winter can be brutal. Nova Scotia has some spectacular weather in the fall however, and I think it would be the best time to travel here unless you're hardcore into laying on the beach.

Photo c/o Brett Locke

Details

Boots: Call it Spring

Scarf: American Eagle Outfitters

Sweater: J Crew

Jeans: Zara 

Bag: Danier

Bag Pom: Topshop

Sunnies: Coach

Brett (check out his website here) and I have been friends since we were twelve. We try to catch up every so often, and both of us wanted to catch some fall scenery. After a quick swing by Starbucks, we were off on Highway 101 to visit Avondale Sky Winery. Even from the highway the leaves were pretty, but once we pulled onto the secondary roads, we couldn't get over the amazing colors.

We sampled some yummy wine and left with a few bottles each.  There wasn't one I tried that I didn't like! The inside of the winery was beautiful. It's a refurbished church and they retained a lot of the stained glass.

I was determined to wear this scarf even though it produces lint like nothing else I've ever seen. It was the first day this fall I wore tall boots, and I was so cozy. We stopped at a few colourful spots on the way back home, and this pretty laneway was the perfect place to snap some photos.

Photo c/o Brett Locke

Photo c/o Brett Locke

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

I'm Done With You: October 2016

In this post, I'll share with you the products that I've finished lately. I'm making a conscious effort to use up products before I replace them. I'll also try to eliminate some things that are not finished yet, but are not being used. 

The first thing is a Tarte Lipsurgence lip stain that started to turn white. I figured that meant it was not healthy, so I tossed it. I love Lipsurgence products though. I have a bunch of them. I was really disappointed with the Ciate nail polish mini in Talent Scout. It chipped really badly the next day on multiple nails. No need for this to be taking up space in my nail polish storage, so goodbye. A Lush bath bomb was in this paper bag. It was from last Christmas (yes I hoard them) and it was Cinders, which was cinnamon-scented and lovely. The mini mascara was from my Sephora Lash Stash. The label wore off but it was Marc Jacobs and I liked it, but it wasn't anything amazing. I'm not loyal to any particular shave gel.  This Gilette Venus Olay brand was fine!

Next up are the hair products. The Moroccan Oil Extra Volume Conditioner was given to me and I did really enjoy it. I'm all over the place with shampoo/conditioner. I get bored easily and always want to try new stuff so I don't repurchase that often. In saying that, the Redken Cleansing Cream I have bought multiple times. I can't stretch my hair to four days between washings anymore, but when I could, I used this every second wash to get rid of product build-up. As far as dry shampoo goes, I've yet to find my holy grail, but this Tigi Pro stuff I got from Winners was awful. I only used it a few times and it made my hair feel dirtier so I chucked it. I used to like the One N Only Argan oil, but then I went back to using Moroccan Oil and I like it better. 

I buy sheet masks at Winners, and I've used at least four of them lately, but this one from The Creme Shop was my favorite. I try to use one every week and a half or so. I went back to using Olay Total Effects for my night cream a few months ago. Shoppers keeps sending my Optimum Bonus Points for it, so it works out well. The Body Shop Chamomile eye makeup remover is my second favorite, after Bioderma Micellar water. I won the Kibio cleansing milk at a SDM event a long time ago. It was ok as a morning cleanser, but didn't remove makeup very well. The Quo cotton pads are a staple in my life. I buy them in three packs. 

Last are my Bath and Body Works empties. I feel like the soaps and anti-bacs are guaranteed to be great. If you like the smell in the store, you're going to like them at home. The candles are a different story because they always smell strong in the store, but might not give off much scent when they are lit. Beach Cabana is one of my summer favourites. It is so strongly scented (jasmine, white towels and orange blossom) and the scent throws all over the house. The only thing that bugged me about it is that the wax turned a weird brown color when it got close to the end. 

I hope you enjoyed peeking in my recycling! 

XOXO 

Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: September 2016

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. My quarterly budget is $500. This amount can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget. Since I've been keeping a budget, I'm much more careful with what I buy, and I will return stuff at the end of the month if I'm not crazy about it after hanging it in my closet.

Sweatshirt: Zara

Reg $30

My love for athleisure is not going anywhere. R calls this my "90s teenage boy shirt". He tends to name my clothing that he doesn't understand (e.g. Clown pants, witch dress, dog collar necklace, eyeball earrings)

Top: Zara

Reg $16

I've donated a few black tops that we're getting worn, so I need to replenish. I like the sleeves on this one.

I held the sleeve to show the shape.

Scarf: Zara

Reg $16

Neck scarves are cute and I like that this one is a bit more elevated than a basic bandana.

Top: Hollister

Reg $18 on sale for $9

I bought this top in grey in July I think. I really like it, so when I saw it on sale I scooped it up in black.

Sneakers: Puma via Winners

Reg $125 on sale for $52

These shoes! I've been listing for them for ages and I almost bought them from Town Shoes, then someone told me they were at Winners. I love them. They are so comfy and its a life goal to collect as many fashion sneakers as my closet will fit.

Choker: Call it Spring

Reg $12

I shopped hard for a wrap choker and this was the winner. I wanted silver detail but nothing to flashy.

Earrings: American Eagle Outfitters

Reg $10 on sale for $3.50

I wear my Stella & Dot grey earrings all the time so I know I'll wear these too.

Original value of items $228
Price I paid $139
I saved 39%

I'm rolling over $26 to next quarter. My mission is to find a perfect black crew neck sweater. The last quarter of the year is always so challenging as it includes Black Friday and Boxing Day.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Currently 10.01.16

Reading
The Orphan Train - Christina Baker Kline
A novel about two young girls who have no place to call home. I read this on my Kobo and really enjoyed it. The story kept moving from past to present and I liked that there were two main characters.
Wicked - Gregory Maguire
The backstory of The Wizard of Oz. I left this book at work to read on my breaks so it took two months to finish. It was okay, but I wished it had a character guide and glossary. So many weird words! I was relieved when I completed it!

I'm reading two great books now that I'll share with you next month!

Clicking
Zara on-line shopping has been a thing for me lately. I like ordering a bunch of stuff because it's free shipping and free returns. It's even better than shopping in-store because you can try it on in your own home with all your other clothes and shoes. They update the stock twice a week so there's always tons of new items.

Watching
I finished season four of Orange is the New Black - I really liked this season! R and I also finished season four of Homeland. OMG you MUST watch that new show This is Us. I've just watched the first episode and I am completely hooked already. Honestly, the best pilot I've seen in a really long time.  We're also watching a lots of Blue Jays baseball.

Eating
Too much! I haven't stepped on the scale but I'm pretty sure I gained five pounds since early August. Oops. I've been to a few of my old favourites lately- Il Mercato and The Stubborn Goat.  One Halifax staple that I hadn't tried yet - Morris East - was a girls night spot this month. Of course I had pizza and it was delicious. Pannizza is a new spot in The Terrace at HSC. I dropped by for lunch a few weeks ago and I was impressed! I had the pepperoni pizza. I finally tried The Dairy Bar on South Park street, and the ice cream didn't disappoint.

Vanilla bean ice cream

Drinking

Autumn is here and I'm back into hot tea. I need to stock up on some fall blends. One I've tried already is Blueberry Muffin from DAVIDsTEA - super yummy.  I've been loving Bulwarks cider lately.  I bought a taster pack and they are all good! I'm still drinking lots of naturally flavoured sparkling water, and I finally found Skinny Girl naturally flavoured water enhancer. I don't like using the ones that are artificially sweetened. 

Seeing

I'm sitting at Starbucks blogging, and they have the cutest lidded glasses on sale. I don't need one... Or do I? There's a girl here doing schoolwork. If I were still in school I'm sure I'd live here and drink all of my caloric intake. 

Smelling

Coffee.  I'm drinking a green iced tea. I have THREE free drinks on my gold card (learn to work the bonus points system - it's fab) but I'm hoarding them. Whenever I have a free drink I order the most massive elaborate thing I can think of. I think last time I had one it was a venti non fat chai latte with whip, a shot of hazelnut and graham cracker sprinkles. 

Hearing 

Jazz music. Who gets to pick this music here? It should be me. 

Wearing

My  grey and black Cambio jeans, a grey mock neck, Tory Burch black flats. This is probably the last weekend I'll be able to go without a jacket. Sad, but boy am I excited to bust out the bomber jackets. 

Feeling

Productive. I did some housework and ironing this morning and have supper cooking in the slow cooker. 

Anticipating

On Monday I start 22 Minute Hard Corps. I've been doing the workouts sporadically for a few weeks without sticking to the schedule, but Monday is the day that I get down to business. Remember the 10 lbs I lost this spring? It's baaack... Well at least half of it is back. 

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Fall-ish

Nova Scotia went from hot to chilly pretty much overnight! What a wonderful summer it was though... As amazing as summer heat is, we have a really beautiful fall. Fashion girls get excited over layers, so I'm okay with the temperature drop.

Details

Sweater: Guess

Scarf: Zara

Jeans: Madewell

Hat: TNA from Aritzia

Sneakers: Puma

Bag: Kate Spade

Bag Pom: TopShop

After pining over these sneakers for a good six months, I finally found them at Winners (at less than half price), thanks to the sweet salesperson at Little Burgundy who told me they were there!

This weekend we hung out with finds at the Stubborn Goat beer garden on the Halifax Waterfront and then stopped by The Dairy Bar for a yummy vanilla bean soft serve.

My prediction for what will be coming soon on the blog... blanket scarves. Tons and tons of blanket scarves. Hello Fall!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl