Halloween Party 2015

Halloween Party 2015

Last year was my first year living out on my own - so I hosted my first official 'party', which of course had to be a Halloween party. This year I decided to keep with tradition and host another Halloween party. This one went a lot smoother than last year and it was super fun!

I decided to have a costume/Halloween party on my traditional Taco Tuesdays. Now for those of you who don't know, it's tradition in my house to host a taco tuesday in my apartment every other Tuesday with a few of my sorority sisters. So the party date was easy to decide on, and so was the food - TACOS!

So like I said - it was a halloween party and therefore costumes were a definite must!

Party pictures in 3...2...1... GO! 

OZ Naturals 2.5% Retinol Serum Review*

OZ Naturals 2.5% Retinol Serum Review

Being 25, I'm one of those women who think that prevention is the best intervention. So when I was in the market for a serum this opportunity presented itself at a very opportune time! Today I'm going to be doing a short and sweet review on the OZ Naturals 2.5% Retinol Serum.

The serum itself is an orangey color and comes with a pump that makes it super easy to dispense the product. Its a little watery, but its perfect to wear under a moisturizer. You must wear an SPF with it! So I tend to wear it with a BB cream with SPF or I wear it at night under my moisturizer.

I used this product for about 2 weeks - I didn't have to worry about any fine lines to fill in, but I did notice a difference in how my skin was looking! It looks and feels more rejuvenated and the baggies that I had forming under my eyes are practically gone. I also have like super sensitive skin (Benefit Porefessional literally burned my skin), but I haven't had any kind of reaction to this serum. Overall I really liked this serum and would give it a solid report card. Its actually available for purchase on Amazon for $25. They've got other products for sale on OZNaturals.com which I definitely will be having a browse through!

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* This post is sponsored by OZ Naturals. Powered by BrandBacker.

Erin Condren Planner Overview

Erin Condren Planner Overview

Recently I've decided to take my organization that I mentioned in this month's Blogging Advice to a whole different level. You all know that I use a $3 planner from the Target to keep myself organized, but I've decided to up the ante a little bit. 
Introducing my new Erin Condren Planner:

The cover I decided on was the Prism Metallic Gold cover. It took me awhile to decide but I did finally choose this cover because it is the one that stood out the most to me when I was originally looking. They have a ton of different LifePlanners to choose from, and a lot of them are customizable so you can put your own name on your own cover!

#FOTD: Everyday Fall Fierceness

#FOTD: Everyday Fall Fierceness

using ALL drugstore products

Okay so obviously I'm in love with this look and it makes me feel fierce as hell. I have been dying to get my hands on NYX Matte Lip Cream in Copenhagen for FOREVER. Every time I went to Ulta they never had it in stock. So this last time when I went, they had two, I bought two. No guilt.

Products used:

elf BB cream in Buff

Maybelline Super Stay 24 Concealer in Medium Beige

Covergirl Tru Blend powder in Translucent Light 2

Ulta Illuminating powder in Yellow Diamond

Milani Powder Blush in Coral Cove

NYC Bronzing Powder in 720A Sunny

elf Smudge Pot in Cruisin Chic

Physicians Formula Eye Booster pen in Ultra Black

L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk

elf Eyebrow Kit in Medium

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Copenhagen

Tools Used:

elf Blush Brush

elf Flat powder brush

Real Techniques Sponge

I completed this entire look in 20 mins, while sitting at my desk. The difference that 20 mins can make on your day though, is worth it.

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Recipe: Cinnamon Monkey Bread

Recipe: Cinnamon Monkey Bread

I absolutely love monkey bread and it is so super quick and easy to bake that I just had to share with you this recipe! It is literally like 5 quick and easy steps.

What you'll need: 1 fluted tube pan (12 cup), plastic storage food bag, and something to grease the pan with.

Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
2-3 teaspoons cinnamon

2 cans Pillsbury Grands Original biscuits (theses are the ones I prefer to use, but choose the ones you like!)
1 stick melted butter or margarine
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F and lightly grease the pan with a shortening or cooking spray (I use Pam) and in a large plastic bag mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon.
2. Start to melt your butter if you haven't already and then open biscuit tubes and cut each biscuit in quarters, toss in bag to thoroughly coat each biscuit in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Arrange pieces in the pan.
3. Mix the brown sugar and melted butter (this is why you should melt the butter while doing the above step) and pour over the biscuit pieces.
4. Bake for about 28-32 mins or until they are golden brown and no longer doughy in the center (use a toothpick or fork). Let it cool in the pan for a few mins and then turn it upside down onto your serving dish! Cut or pull-apart to serve while its still warm.

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Top 3 LUSH Bath Bombs

Top 3 LUSH Bath Bombs

1. Sex Bomb

It def wasn't the name of the bath bomb that drew me to it, but the scent of it! It's a gorgeous pink and purple bath bomb that smells deliciously like sage and jasmine and leaves my skin feeling like butter. It also turned the bath water a pretty hot pink color and was glorious to relax in for an hour.

2. Sakura Bomb

This was my first bath bomb ever. And I'm going to be honest- I'm a sucker for anything scented like a Sakura flower because I love how they smell. This didn't disappoint - it smells amazing and the fragrance is clean but still flowery. It left the water with just a slight blue tint and left my skin feeling more amazing than ever. My fiance even said something about how lovely it smelled and how soft my skin was when we cuddled up in bed that night.

3. BlackBerry Bath Bomb

This one is one of my more recent purchases when I was trying to get away from all the floral scents. I originally bought this for my Mom to try and ended up using it for myself (oops!). I popped it into my bath tub and it immediately turned my bath water a gorgeous purple color and it smelled fruity but not overpoweringly so. I think this bath bomb was a good foray into the more fruity scented bath bombs, but I still prefer my floral ones.

What are your favorite bath bombs? I need to try them allll.

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Current Netflix Obsessions October 2015

Current Netflix Obsessions

Quick Update from the last post: I've finished both Scooby Doo AND Ghost Whisperer (like that's a surprise!). But I've also managed to watch through 2 seasons of RuPauls Drag Race and am now completely caught up on the TV show Steven Universe. Yes, I have no life.

Blogging Advice: Organization

Blogging Advice: Organization

I was sitting on my office the other day (ya know, at work) and thinking about ALL that I have learned in the little over a year+ I've been blogging. One thing that I definitely didn't have a grasp on until recently is ORGANIZATION.

I have been able to organize and plan an entire month of blog posts just my keeping myself organized on on a schedule! My planner is my lifesaver. I write everything I could possibly need in it, from blog posts to chat topics (and questions) for both the #USBloggerChat and the #bdibNA. I also include other things like appointments I have to keep and deadlines for projects at work!

This is a quick sneak peek of what my planner looks like weekly!

Blogging Advice

Blogging Advice

Tomorrow starts an installment of a new monthly series here on Hello Wench. 

(Basically a series on all the crap I wish I knew when I started blogging)

+ some tips for seasoned bloggers

It aims to be helpful to other bloggers/people looking to put themselves on a schedule and to keep themselves a little more organized. I've only been at this for a year, but I feel like I've learned so much and I want to share that wealth of knowledge with you! 

Directory:

Organization

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October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

aka #PinkOctober

Now normally I wouldn't put topics like this on my blog, and I specifically steered away from this topic last October. But in this year I feel like I've grown and I feel like it's something that should be written about.

Breast cancer has always been one of those things that has touched me in a way that I can't explain. It's probably the only cause I've actually put time, effort, and some hard earned cash to support. When I was in high school the dance team I was on would ALWAYS do the Susan G. Komen walk for a cure 5k. We would help the ladies warm up and would help by cheering and dancing as they walked the finish line. Many, many women who walked were survivors. But many of them were families and friends of the women (and MEN) who did not win their battle. No matter their purpose, it was always smiles and good times because we were there supporting a great cause.

In April 2013 my Aunt (my Mom's sister) was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. This sent my Mom into a whirlwind. She almost immediately flew out to Oklahoma where she lives and while she was undergoing treatment my Momma was there doing what she could for her. Good news is - She's cancer free! My Aunt can count herself as 1 survivor of the estimated 231,840** expected cases of invasive breast cancer this year.

Every year since I graduated high school I've done something for cancer, whether it be dye my hair pink to spread awareness, donate money, or volunteer my time I've always managed to do something.