Wish List Wednesday - YSL Edition

I will admit that I am a total sucker when it comes to gorgeous packaging. Something with a bit of sparkle, or with a bit of weight to it (i.e. substantial feeling rather than flimsy) always manages to catch my eye! Yves Saint Laurent has both gorgeous products and gorgeous packaging - which usually means that I have about a million of their products on my wish list at any given time.

Vert D'Orient Nail Lacquer. Baby Doll Mascara in Fetish Black.  Rouge Volupte Sheer Candy in Tangy Mandarine.

What are some things on your wish list? Any YSL products?!

xoxo
Shannon

Belated

On my vacation last week I received a belated birthday present from my mother-in-law. I already knew I was going to like whatever she bought me because TJ had sent her my Nordstrom wishlist - but I was super excited that she ended up giving me the limited edition Bronze Goddess perfume by Estee Lauder.

On my nails I'm wearing Sea Glass by Skylark from the Wild and Free mini nail lacquer set.

This perfume is described as being "Inspired by the warmth of the Mediterranean, a citrus floral blend with notes of Bergamot and Orange Blossom".  I'm not sure that I would immediately pick out those scents (I don't really think I could pick out the notes of any perfume!). The scent actually reminds me a bit of sunscreen,  not in a bad way though - more like in a way that makes you feel like you're on holiday and everything smells light an airy and just a bit more exotic than normal.

I have been wearing this non-stop since receiving it! I know this will be a staple for the rest of the summer!

xoxo
Shannon

Heat Wave

I have officially been home from my vacation for a little under 24 hour. I am feeling surprisingly good considering I'm running on little sleep and I'm slightly jet-lagged!

My trip back east was great - It was actually better than I thought it was going to be! Not that I thought it was going to be bad or anything.. but as I am born and raised in the PNW I am very used to the temperate weather we get in this area. (I know there are people who LOVE the heat and LOATHE the rain - my sister is one of those people!) The weather on the east coast has been very back and forth as of late (I had been closely monitoring the weather in the days leading up to my trip) and suddenly I was finding that I was glad when the forecast said 82 and started to panic slightly when it said 92. Basically the weather was hot and muggy, but only two of the days were downright unbearable. I tried my best to be a trooper, and now as I'm writing this I'm sitting in my condo where the temperature outside is a whopping 61 degrees. Ahhh...

Since this was my 4th time visiting TJ's family/the area we didn't really do a ton of touristy stuff. I did get to do a few new things though - like visit Philly for a day! What a great city! We did Independence Hall, The Liberty Bell, and Eastern State Penitentiary. I would love to go back and check out more of the city on another trip! We also did a day in NYC - since that was one of the days that was miserable weather wise (like 95 - walking around in that concrete jungle and taking the PATH and Subway was pretty rough) to escape the heat we spent around 3 hours at the Museum of Natural History and then headed to a night game over at Yankee Stadium. It was still pretty hot even at 9PM - but it was amazing to see the stadium and since I'm a diehard Mariners fan it was both exciting and bittersweet to see Ichiro in pinstripes.

This vacation came at a great time and being able to relax for that many days in a row was a real treat! {but i am so happy to be home!}

This post is a bit image heavy - I had such a hard time picking out all my favs!

Eastern State Penitentiary in Philly was amazing! Seriously creepy - and check out the 30 foot walls! 

4th of July on the Hudson. NYC is beautiful - especially from afar! 

This grouping of images pretty much sums up our vacation! {btw I'm wearing In The Cab-Ana by Essie on my toes!}

I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe 4th of July!

xoxo
Shannon

Wish List Wednesday

Ever since becoming an adult (aka working full time vs school full time) I have had a difficult time thinking of things when someone asks me what I want for Christmas or my birthday... I mean most of the things that I really want I can afford. To solve this problem I've been trying to keep wish lists. I have two methods. I keep a draft in my Gmail and just add to it throughout the year. I also keep a wish list on the Nordstrom website - this one is great because I can share this with anyone and it's prettier than sending a regular email with a bunch of links in it!

Since I have discovered my love for lists (specifically wish lists - yay pretty things!) I'm going to post mini wish lists on Wednesdays!

Laura Mercier Creme de Pistache Souffle Body Creme.   Jo Malone Blackberry & Bay Cologne.

xoxo
Shannon

Choices...

I'm going to get a pedicure tonight with my friend (I haven't gone in forever - plus I'm considering it a treat in preparation for my vacation!) and pretty much all day I've been thinking about the color I want to use.  I spent some time looking through my collection and realized how many bright and fun polishes I have that are perfect for summer!

Fracas and May by Chanel. Fiver by butter LONDON. In the Cab-Ana and Play Date by Essie.

Picking these out from my collection helped out my wallet... but I know there are so many gorgeous colors out there right now. I just might have to pick up a new one.. or a couple new ones! 

xoxo

Shannon

Travel Size

Next week TJ and I are going on vacation! We'll be visiting his family on the east coast and will be spending time in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. In the days leading up to the trip I've been starting to gather things together that I'll be taking with me. I always have a tough time taking what I need vs what I think I need.


In order to avoid overstuffing my suitcase I'm trying to only take travel size toiletries.. of course my makeup bag is a completely different story!

xoxo
Shannon

An Edmonds Kind of Day...

Today was one of those days. An Edmonds Kind of Day. This is a phrase that I have heard my entire life. My dad was raised in Edmonds and as a kid my family would spend time there... at the beach, eating at seafood restaurants, walking around to the little shops, watching the ferry come and go. When I was younger I loved spending time there, but it wasn't until I became an adult that I realized how much I genuinely loved this little town. Everything about it is endearing and reminds me so much of my dad that I just can't help but cherish the time spent there.

This afternoon my husband (TJ.. since I didn't mention that yet) and I spent the afternoon with my parents. We wandered around Edmonds for some time and ended up eating outside by the water. It was a glorious day in the PNW. The kind of day that makes up for the months of nothing but cloud coverage and the constant drizzle.. (ok, fine I actually like those days as well...)

I wish ever Saturday afternoon could be this wonderful.

xoxo
Shannon