A quick update. Awaiting my new camera.

Hi Everyone!

I just wanted to give you all a little update as I've been missing in action this past week. As much as I've wanted to post for you all, I've been having major lighting/camera issues this past month. My camera might look pretty snazzy, but in all honesty, it's only a good outdoor camera. Now that it's too cold and gloomy outside to photograph, I've been stuck trying my best to photograph indoors with very mediocre results. I take pride in the photos and content I put out for you all, and I just wouldn't be happy providing you all with photos that aren't good quality as well as good color accuracy, etc.

So, I'm really excited to let you know that I ordered my first SLR camera earlier in the week and I've been anxiously awaiting receiving it! I ended up choosing a Canon EOS Rebel T4i 18 Megapixels Digital SLR Camera, and I'm feeling really optimistic that I'm going to like it a lot.

I'm looking forward to doing more tutorials, as this camera has a viewfinder so I actually see what I'm photographing. I'm sure it will make doing tutorials a million times easier.

I'll talk to you all very soon! I just wanted to keep you posted, so won't think I forgot about you! ;)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!!

Wishing all of you a wonderful 2013! Let this new year bring fresh starts, less procrastination, great health, prosperity and lots of love and happiness.

I'm sure all of us can say that 2012 went by so quick, and many of us can say that they don't feel like as much was accomplished as they would have liked to.

Life is so short, and each and every one of us is capable of doing so much with our lives if we just push ourselves a bit more.

I want to look back at 2013 by the next New Year and be able to say that 2013 was a great year. I'm confident in myself that I can accomplish just that.

One of my big concerns this year is looking after my health better. I'm not getting any younger and I really want to put an end to bad eating habits and lack of regular exercise. I'm very famous for yo-yo dieting, and I'll stick to a change of diet for a few months, get to where I want to be and then I'll lose motivation and go back to where I started. After losing my Dad to heart disease, it really makes me think more about what I want to put into my body. I want to live a healthy life, and starting this year, I know I will succeed.

I think the biggest thing is giving yourself tangible, realistic goals. Maybe you want to fit into a size 2 by your birthday. It seems far-fetched  but you feel like you won't be happy until you get into those size 2's. Maybe you fall off your diet for a few days and you gain a couple of pounds, or maybe you see your weight plateau, and you've lost your motivation because you feel like you'll never be able to reach your goal by the time you gave yourself. It's like trying to run on a treadmill at the highest speed for the first time. You might want to, but it takes time to build your endurance. Everything takes time. Nothing happens over night. Set smaller goals for yourself that you will be able to reach and you'll be more successful in the long run. That goes for anything.

Good luck to you all!!

Do any of you have any New Year resolutions? Share in the comments! :)

Weekly Poll Results - How Many Days out of the Week do you Follow a Skincare Routine?

How Many Days out of the Week do you Follow a Skincare Routine?

I have fairly good skin, but I know if I followed a skincare routine a little more habitually, I'd no doubt have near perfect skin. I have a habit of following a regimen and once I start seeing results, I begin to slack. Maybe I'll follow a routine for a couple of weeks and my skin will look amazing. So, for the next week I'll feel like I won't have to work as hard and only follow my routine a couple of days and use makeup wipes on most days. Then I'll get into it again, and then slack again. It's like a vicious cycle! But realistically if I kept up with every aspect of my beauty routine, I'd be ridiculously high maintenanced.

So I thought this would be a good weekly poll question. So, how well do you keep up with your skincare routine? What I mean by a routine is anything more than washing your face in the shower (exfoliate, cleanse, use treatments, serums, masks, moisturizers, etc.)

The Results Are:

7 days, My skincare routine is very important - 82 votes (38%)
5-6 days, I'm pretty good about it on most days - 60 votes (28%)
3-4 days, I do it whenever I remember - 27 votes (12%)
1-2 days, I tend to slack - 16 votes (7%)
0 days, I don't follow a routine - 4 votes (1%)
All I do is wash my face and I'm done! - 17 votes (8%)
Makeup wipes are my best friend, I rarely do anything else - 6 votes (2%)

This poll is based on 212 votes.

I was really surprised to see the large percentage of those that take good care of their skin! The number one answer is 7 days.

So my question for you is, do you stick by your routine every day because it has become so familiar to you as brushing your teeth would be? Or do you have problematic skin? Or do you simply take pride in your skin and always want it to look it's best.

Although I do take good care of my skin, I sometimes see applying all of my products as a chore. Maybe I'll make it one of my New Year resolutions to take better care of my skin!

A couple of days ago I ordered Grapeseed, Rose Hip and Almond Oil from Amazon and I'm really excited to incorporate them in the skincare routine. I love using natural oils and I'm hoping these will all agree with my skin type. I'll keep you postesd.

Jewelmint Cersai Necklace Review!

Jewelmint Cersai Necklace

This is my last Jewelmint post of the month, I swear! It's pretty rare for me to find more than one item I want from month to month, but I really liked the selection for December and ending up getting three items in total. The last item I'll be posting about is the Cersai Necklace.

Jewelmint Cersai Necklace is a really edgy piece with a double box chain that features matching spike/cone & rhinestone beads on each side and a large abstract tribal inspired rhinestone pendant with dangling spikes. It links with a toggle closure.

When I first saw this piece I thought the style was a bit "tough" and edgy, and the fact that the shape of the pendant is so unique/different, it really drew to me to it. I love spikes when they are incorporated in an accessory in a tasteful manner, and I like how the are only an accent in this necklace and not the main focus. The more I look at it, it really does have a tribal feel - the spikes remind me a bit of teeth or horns that you might see on tribal or native jewelry.

The actual quality of the necklace is so-so. It looks like a heavy duty necklace, but it's actually very light and feels a bit hollow. I'm slightly disappointed that it isn't a more weighty piece, but it doesn't take away from the visual appeal of the necklace itself.