Essie

I recently purchased a few new shades of Essie nail polish, and I can't wait to get home and dress up my nails. Some of my all-time favorite shades, as well as newly found shades, are below.

What's your favorite shade?

As Gold as it Gets

Sand Tropez

Ballet Slippers

Lilacism

Playdate

Mint Candy Apple

Sew Psyched

Chinchilly

Aruba Blue

Smokin Hot

Wicked

Little Brown Dress

When is the best time to buy...?

Seeing as it's still the beginning of the new year, I figured I would send out this handy shopping guide.

• January: Winter boots and coats. The longer you wait, the deeper the sales will be.
• February: Cameras. New models come out now, so you can scoop up last year's at a discount.
• March: Perfume. Go after Valentine's Day and you'll be able to score a sweet deal.
• April: Sneakers. The countdown for bikini season begins. Sales offer more incentive to hit the gym.
• May: Sweaters and cashmere. Prices can be reduced by as much as 40 percent.
• June: Men's suits. Pre- and post- Father's Day sales mean low prices on clothes for him.
• July: Makeup. Head to Nordstrom's annual sale for rare discounts on department store brands.
• August: Sandals. Retailers slash prices to clean out their stock. Plan for next summer or a mid-winter getaway.
• September: Airfare. About eight weeks before Thanksgiving, prices start taking their final descent.
• October: Jeans. Anything that didn't sell during back-to-school season is now cheaper.
• November: Bathing suits. They can be as much as 90 percent off as retailers make room for holiday merchandise. 
• December: Bridal. It's the slow season for weddings (but get in now, before the holiday proposals)

I am already counting down the days until July -- not only is it great to buy some new makeup at the Nordstrom sale, but they always have the most amazing boots and bags on sale too!

Courtesy of Learnvest.com

Welcome Back

In the words of Mase, "Welcome back. Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back."

That's right. I am officially back to blogging. With the start of a new month, I am getting back on track and am going to take the time to keep up with my blog (it's one of the few things that helps keep me sane).

The past month and a half have been anything but calm... The holiday's were much needed, but of course not long enough. I went back to Atlanta for Christmas, then to Punta Cana for a week with my family, boyfriend, and some close family friends. Since my return back in the U.S., specifically Chicago, I have been very busy with work. Local businesses never sleep.

Anyways, I am really looking forward to starting the month out of the right (rabbit rabbit's) foot.

Birchbox

For those of you who have never heard of Birchbox, I highly suggest you check it out.


Every month Birchbox members will receive a curated box of 4-5 luxe beauty samples, for only $10 a month! Each box will span beauty categories and deliver exciting products -- anything from skincare to makeup to cult beauty tools, from both well-known brands as well as emerging gems. Not to mention, the boxes ship free!


Check out their products here, and their ever growing list of brand partners here.


The best part is, if you love the samples you receive, you can purchase full-size items directly from Birchbox's shop. There are many ways to earn Birchbox points, and coveting awesome products from their shop is one of the many!


What's even more amazing, is that ALL month, Birchbox will donate 100% of profits from full-size sales to Baby Buggy in order to help children in need.


Interested in joining? There are a couple options for you... 

1. Yearly membership: $110 for 12 months, 110 bonus Birchbox points, and ability to transfer membership at any time.
2. Monthly membership: $10 per month, 10 bonus Birchbox points, and ability to cancel membership at any time.
3. Gift Birchbox: if you wish to spread the Birchbox cheer, you can gift either a yearly membership, six month membership, or three month membership.

Sign me up.

YouTube's 10 Most-Viewed Videos of 2011

Below is a highlight reel, and link to a series of YouTube's 10 Most-Viewed Videos of 2011. I had seen a few of these, but the others were definitely worth watching.




In order to see the full article and video reel, please click the link below!

YouTube's 10 Most-Viewed Videos of 2011

What YouTube video from 2011 is your favorite? Feel free to share in the comments field below!