Author: blonde rosie

Are the Billie Razors Worth the Hype?

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Honestly, one of my favorite things to receive for Christmas are items that I need but may not want to buy myself. Santa, please fill up my stocking with soap and toothpaste because I would much rather buy myself some new shoes.

I recently got influenced by the influencers and decided that now was a good time to buy myself a new razor and see what the hype was all about. My delivery just showed up so I will report back if it really is that good but what I can say already is that it is adorable!

I am a big fan of the price and they are delivered right to your doorstep. Or in my case, work because I can’t trust anything to my delivered by mail now! I’m not sure who made the decision for razors to be so expensive and considering how often I need to change my blades it can add up pretty quickly! You take a mini quiz before making your order to see how often you shave and it determines how often you need to receive new blades. Influencer reviews have said that they notice smoother skin longer than with other razors so I’m excited to see if this is true!I’ve only used it a few times so far and I can tell the difference already. My legs are softer and I’m able to go more days in between shaves. The Billie website also sells lotion, shaving cream and a travel case for your razor which I also purchased.

The razor has 5 blades and comes with a magnet to actually keep it on the wall to dry. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been attacked by my razor because it slips off of the wall because I accidentally bump it with my arm. Speaking of the razor, you can pick out the color which I thought was a fun addition! Because everything was so inexpensive, I also added the Billie shaving cream and a travel case to use when I went to Florida for Christmas. It was so easy to just throw the razor in my toiletry bag. Now I’m so excited to shave because of my new fun Billie razor!

Why I Love My Foreo

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I wash my face every morning and night and I am sure that you do the same, right? I’m sure I am not the only one who still sometimes thinks their face doesn’t feel clean and soft after you wash it. I’ve tried every single skin product out there and they would work great at night and then I would wake up in the morning with clogged pores and bumpy skin again.

There are face masks and products out there but I found them time consuming and costly, simply not practical for everyday use. So I was so excited when I started to use a Foreo face cleanser and saw results immediately! The Luna Mini is travel sized and it’s easy to use while I wash my face in the morning before work. Just wet your face, use the face wash you normally use and then massage around your face for a few seconds before rinsing. Seriously, it is that easy and my face feels so soft for days after!

For days that I wear makeup, I like to use my Foreo Luna Mini while I wash my face at night because it’s the only thing that gets allll of my makeup off. It doesn’t matter what type of cleanser you use because i find it it is the cleansing tool that really mattes. The tool is silicone with bumps that pulse to help unclog pores and give your skin that clean feels. It’s perfect for every day use too! The Foreo Luna Mini has been a great addition to my skincare routine and I highly suggest you get one too!

Recap on 2020

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I’ve never been a fan of New Year’s Eve because of all of the pressure to do something Instagram worthy and then have this “new me, new year” mentality. I do like to take some time to reflect on this past years accomplishments because I think we should appreciate where we started 365 days ago. I went through my photos on my phone and wrote down my accomplishments for each month. It makes it easy to actually remember what I actually did and appreciating all of the trips and events in the last year. More importantly, I can see what worked and what didn’t work so I know where i can improve. This past year had some big decisions to make and some big (expensive) changes. The start of 2019 was a little slow which made me feel stagnant. I wanted a change in my day to day life and boy, did a lot change in the later half of 2019! With a new job, a new house, a lot of unpacking and getting settled in the new house, as well as adjusting to new routines – wow it’s been a busy few months!

January // nothing eventful, It made me want to make a few changes in my life.

February // first Valentine’s Day with J, trip to DC

March // celebrated J’s birthday at Barcade

April // explored Philly on the weekends

May // Started a new job, mom was diagnosed with breast cancer

June // family reunion in Philly for cousins graduations, trip to North Carolina for moms surgery, work trip to New York City for work event

July // trip to Avalon, NJ, trip to Pensacola, FL to meet the Jake’s family, trip to Ocean Grove, NJ, signed lease to our first house together

August // moved into a house with J, anniversary trip, parents came to visit to see the new house, family trip to NJ, trip to North Carolina to see parents

September // organized big week long event at work, college alumni event

October // pumpkin picking, fall things

November // trip to North Carolina for Thanksgiving with both of our families

December // Christmas sights in the city, car was totaled in an accident, spent Christmas in Florida

Recently my life has been really busy with settling into our new house, long hours at work and I feel like there is always something that has to be done. I’m excited to get back into a routine and let things slow down for a bit in 2020. It’s rare that I have a weekend to do nothing and with some extra planning during the week I hope to have more relaxing weekends. There is still a lot I want to do in Philly and Jake and I have a few trips planned for 2020. Another really important goal is to budget and save money. We also have to buy a new car after mine was totaled in a hit and run in December. It seems that every time things start to slow down, life like’s to get busy again! I have a lot of goals and a lot of things I want to accomplish this upcoming year which I will be sharing in future blog posts to hopefully inspire one of you.

Trader Joe’s Holiday Gift Guide

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Since we saw both of our families for Thanksgiving, we wanted to give them their Christmas presents early so we didn’t have to pay for shipping. As annoying as it was in early November to rush and do all of the shopping, it was nice to be done with the shopping and the wrapping! Both of our families love Trader Joe’s but since they are rare in the South where both of our families live, I thought a Trader Joe’s haul would be great stocking stuffers that they can open early! For anyone who needs a small gift for that cousin they only see once a year or your dad that loves to cook, Trader Joe’s is a great place to stop by and stock up on stocking stuffers or last minute gifts!

Gluten Free Snacks
My mom is gluten free and struggles to find food that doesn’t have gluten and is actually tasty. I went a little crazy and bought all of the gluten free things for her and she was so excited to have snacks and food.

Chocolate Bars
They have giant chocolate bars that make for amazing stocking stuffers and are budget friendly!

Maple Syrup Set
If you are staying with family and need a small hostess gift, this would be perfect! My boys in my family love maple syrup so this becomes a fun tradition of trying different flavors of maple syrup at breakfast.

Beauty Gift Sets
From face masks, lotions to soap, Trader Joe’s has amazing beauty gift sets to give to anyone obsessed with TJ’s!

Seasonal Candles
Another great hostess gift find that you can easily toss in your cart while you are stocking up on groceries. Pick up a few of these to have on hand for last minute gifts.

Seasonal Blend Set
For anyone that loves to cook, this is a great gift because it’s not something that you usually buy yourself. My dad loves to get these types of gifts for every holiday and he’s the type of person who is difficult to shop for!

Seasonal Hand Soap
Stock up on a few of these to put in people’s stockings. The packaging is really cute too!

Seasonal Snacks
For anyone who loves Trader Joe’s and snacks, stock up on their seasonal snacks to give as gifts or keep for yourself.

How Keeping My Home Clean Helps My Mental Health

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I like to consider myself a clean person. I have my weekly routine of tidying up, laundry and changing my bedding that helps me stay on top of everything. However recently, life has been so busy that I just haven’t had time to clean. I thought going to bed without putting my dishes in the dishwasher to get an extra five minutes of sleep would be worth it but at the end of the week, I now needed more than 5 minutes to clean the house. So starting in January, I am doing a deep clean of my house and going back to my routine to keep my home clean… Does anyone else like to do a deep clean in January?

Bathroom
I keep a small plastic bin of cleaning supplies in our hall closet next to the bathroom so I can make cleaning easy and convenient. Be sure to have a roll of paper towels, a cleaner with bleach, a multi-surface cleaner, and toilet cleaner so you have no excuses not to clean the bathroom! At night while I do a face mask or use mouthwash, I will clean the sink and countertops and I can get everything clean by the time I need to wash the mask off.

Vacuum
I used to never vacuum because it was such a pain until I bought myself this cordless vacuum. Now when I see a mess, I immediately clean it up and do a quick walk through the house while I have the vacuum out. Once a week, I will vacuum the floors and pick up pet hair on the couch and it only takes me minutes to keep the house dirt free.

Bedding and Laundry
On Saturday mornings, I bring all of the laundry to the basement and sort it by color in baskets that I keep by the washer. Since I have enough clothes that I don’t need to do laundry every week, I can pick out the clothes that I need to wash and leave the rest in the hamper for the next week. On Sunday mornings, I strip the bed and bring the sheets to the basement to get washed. Under our bed, I have a storage container of sheet sets so I can immediately make the bed with fresh sheets. After too many times of bringing sheets down to wash and then forgetting to do it until late Sunday night, now I just swap out the sheets right away. Once a month I will wash the other blankets and duvet cover.

Containing Clutter
Having a two story house is great until I need to clean and put everything away. I keep a fold up storage cube at the bottom landing of our stairs and at the top of the stairs to collect items that need to be brought up and brought down. Everytime I go up or down the stairs I can pick up something and put it back where it belongs. It takes time but then it doesn’t make cleaning so overwhelming.

Kitchen
We take the trash out on Sunday nights and go through the fridge to toss old leftovers or expired food before we bring it to the curb. We are pretty good at keeping the kitchen clean and I like to wipe down counters and load up the dishwasher while I cook dinner. I’m a big multitasker so I like to clean up while I watch tv or wait for dinner to cook.

After work I rarely have any energy so I like to do my cleaning on the weekends. I found that when I keep up with a routine, cleaning is easy and it’s easy to keep up with. One day I will have enough money for a maid, but for now I spend my Saturday mornings cleaning! I love coming home to a clean home and cleaning has always been relaxing to me. There’s just something calming about organizing a drawer or finding a better system for my linen closet.

My J. Crew Factory Holiday Favorites

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I haven’t done much shopping for holiday outfits because my closet is already filled with so many festive pieces. Most importantly is that they are all classic and work year after year and most of them are from J. Crew Factory. There is just something about their plaid that gets me into the holiday spirit! Since there are so many good sales going on right now because of the holidays, I thought it would be a good time to share my J. Crew Factory holiday faves.

Statement Holiday Top // I have one from last season that I wore constantly throughout December. I am excited to see it back this season in a new tartan print! This top is classic and can easily be worn for work everyday or for a festive occasion.

Fair Isle Sweater // Every year J. Crew Factory has a perfectly preppy version of the classic fair isle sweater.

The Vail Parka // I love this coat so much that I bought it three times! I currently have it in a grey, red, and black.

Pearl Headband // It looks like headbands are back in style and my two day dirty hair appreciates it! The headbands are an easy accessory to wear and are a perfect gift for a friend.

Scallop Camis // I have a few of these camis and wear them the entire year. Super cute for the summer months and can be worn with a cardigan during the colder months. I love wearing these with a sparkly necklace as the adult version of the going out outfit.

Velvet Bow Hair Ties // This was the number one item on my Christmas wish list last year and I wear these constantly to work. On my busier days at work, I like to put my hair up in a pony tail and these are great when I need a little something to make me look a little more professional and less frazzled.

Tissue Turtlenecks // If you are one of those people that can’t wear turtlenecks because of how they make your neck feel, then I highly encourage you to scoop up a few of these. When I wear skirts to work I often wear it with a tissue turtleneck for a chic look and they look great with jeans when I want to go for a classic look.

Sweaters // You can never have too many and you can never go wrong with a classic sweater for that preppy holiday look. I’m actually embarrassed by how many sweaters I own and I really do wear all of them!