So, this post comes along with a bit of a funny story. Maybe funny not funny in the "ha ha" sense, but funny in the "I see what you're doing there, universe" kind of way. I woke up yesterday morning feeling energized and productive, which was fortunate because my to-do list for the day was pretty ambitious. I had hoped to get my Thursday video done earlier this week, but between life and sheer exhaustion, it just never happened. That left me Thanksgiving morning to shop a few sales, beautify myself, film, edit, and make Deviled eggs all in time to meet my parents at 1:00. I was a little nervous that I would end up scrambling around at the last second, but I actually was making great time all day. There I am, feeling like a boss, putting on my eyeshadow with hours to spare and BAM.
The power goes out.
My first instinct was that it was just a minor fluke. Give it 30 seconds and they'll be back on. 10 minutes go by. Then 20. Then I realize I probably should report the outage to the power company. All of a sudden my hard earned cushion of time was quickly evaporating, and I start to feel the panic set in.
If you're a blogger, or really, if you're anyone who's invested their heart and soul into a project or business, you probably understand that there's nothing more disheartening than when you feel like the forces of the universe are working against you. You're trying so hard to do all the right things, and just when you think you've gotten into a groove, something comes along to throw you off track. For me its been maintaining consistency with my YouTube schedule. The general consensus among the internet community is that posting consistently and frequently is the only way to build a following. And despite my best intentions to produce awesome content on the regular, most weeks it feels like a struggle.
So here I am, with no lighting and no internet, watching the minutes tick away. I have no idea if the power will be back in 15 minutes or 5 hours, and realize that odds are my Thanksgiving video isn't going to be a thing. At first I'm angry. Why does this have to happen to me? All I want is to be reliable, and here I am proving again that I'm not. And I'm going on in my brain, cursing the universe when I suddenly stop and think.
It's Thanksgiving. Here I am getting in a huff over a YouTube video, when there are SO MANY BIGGER PROBLEMS in the world. Not to mention any of my poor neighbors who may or may not have been in the middle of cooking their turkey when the electricity when out. And I realized, you know what? Thanksgiving is not the day to whine and complain and hold grudges. Its a day to experience gratitude, spread peace, and share positive energy with the people around you. The fact that I even have power to lose gives me something to be thankful for.
And so I decided to stop fretting, bust out my camera, and film my video anyways. Maybe I wouldn't have my fancy lighting. Maybe it would get uploaded late. But life is too short and too precious to get down on myself over one unfortunate incident. Sometimes you just have to roll with things, and keep it all in perspective. I have a lot to be thankful for this year, and that's the most important thing to keep in mind.
So, even though I had hoped to give you guys a Thanksgiving video on Thanksgiving, apparently the universe had other plans. And who am I to question them?
PRODUCTS //
Pacifica Juiced Up Super Kale Shampoo & Conditioner ($10 each)
The Wet Brush ($11.99)
Batiste Dry Shampoo ($7.99)
Simple Micellar Cleansing Wipes ($7.99)
The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil ($10)
Pur-lisse Blue Lotus & Seaweed Treatment Sheet Mask ($8)
E.L.F. Lip Exfoliator ($3)
Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask ($26)
Nails Inc NailKale Superfood Base Coat ($15)
Nails Inc Kensington Caviar Top Coat ($15)
Too Faced Hangover Rx Primer ($32)
IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Color Correcting Coverage Cream ($38)
PEEK Beauty Expresso Natural Stain Brow Powder ($22)
Z Palette ($ varies with size)
In the true spirit of the holiday, I also wanted to say thank you to all of you who read my blog, watch my videos, and give me so much love and support on all of my platforms. Sure it's fun talking beauty for beauty's sake, but what makes it worth it are the people I've been able to connect with. Knowing that I'm able to help someone find a new favorite product, or feel a little more confident doing their makeup, or even just escape for 10 minutes from a stressful day, gives me an incredible amount of joy. So seriously, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for listening, for sharing, and for being willing to spend a little bit of your time with me. It means more than I can express.
The very least I could do, given my inability to fully express my feelings in words, was to give you guys a chance to win an awesome prize. As a self-proclaimed nail polish junkie, I thought it only fitting to give away this epic collection of glittery Julep polishes. One winner will take home this set of 12 colorful, gloriously sparkly polishes just in time to go ham for the holidays. The giveaway starts today (November 25th) and will run for two weeks. Due to the restrictions on shipping nail polish world wide, this giveaway is open to US residents only. But I'm hoping that I'll be able to do some international giveaways come the new year! All of the rules and other information regarding the giveaway should be in the Gleam form down below.
I hope you guys enjoyed seeing some of my favorite beauty products of life. I would love to hear what products you're most thankful to have in your stash. Are you also a champion of dry shampoo? Can you not go a day without your eye makeup remover? Let me know in the comments below! I hope you all had a restful, delicious, family and fun filled Thanksgiving yesterday, and that the good vibes will carry you through the weekend.
Thanksgiving Nail Polish Giveaway!
What products are you most thankful for this year?
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