Hey everyone!
As you can tell from the title of this post, I'm ashamed at my failure to regularly keep up with my blog. If my ultimate life dream is to be a successful YouTuber/beauty blogger, I gotta learn to be more consistent right? Anyways, the reason I have failed to stay consistent with my posts is that I started college in the end of August, and what a crazy ride it has been so far! Getting adjusted to life as a college freshman has been both fun and very time consuming, between school work, getting meals with friends, going to classes, and giving myself the much needed relaxation at the end of every long day. In case you're wondering, I go to the University of Connecticut and I have not yet declared my major...besides the whole dream of being a beauty blogger, I don't know what else I would want to do.
Luckily, adjusting to having a roommate has been very easy. I met my roommate at our orientation and we very quickly became great friends and we love our cute (and little) room! Just the other day, I did what I've only ever done with two other people...I "came out" to my roommate that my real life dream is to be a YouTuber/beauty blogger. I have only ever told my mom and my boyfriend this, and have been afraid to admit that to anyone else, seeing as it is not most people's typical dream job. I've always thought that if I told people I would love to make videos and post them on the internet for strangers to see that they would say "why the hell would you want to do that?!" My mom and boyfriend support my dream and said I should just start and see where it takes me, and surprisingly (and thankfully) thats what my roommate said too! She was like "so...start! start right now!" and even said she would help me edit them if I needed it!
My biggest concerns in pursuing this dream of mine is that (1) With all of today's popular YouTubers, I know I would need a very good quality camera and be able to post consistently good content in order to even get noticed, and (2) In order for more people to see my videos, or blog posts, it would make the most sense to link them to my social media accounts, but with that comes the fear of everybody that knows me seeing what I post and judging me for it (If anybody reading this has similar dreams or fears associated with their dreams, leave a comment below!). My cousin Erin, if perhaps any of you read her blog "Elements of Style," has become very popular in recent years and she has just released her first book, also titled Elements of Style. She is also an interior designer, which is another one of my dreams, and I'm almost jealous of all her accomplishments! She got to meet Oprah for God's sake! (If any of you read her blog, leave a comment as well!) Her success and seeing how happy she is gives me some of the motivation I need for beginning my pursuit of such a dream, although sometimes it feel just so far out of my capabilities that I shouldn't even try.
Anyways, sorry for ranting. I know many other people struggle with the thought of pursuing their dreams for fear of failing or being judged by others, and we should all come together to say that the only failure is not even trying, and that no matter what your dream is, you shouldn't be afraid to go after it!
Talk to you soon,
XOXO - Taylor :)
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Thursday, July 10, 2014
How I Curl My Hair
Hey guys!
I get a lot of comments on my instagram pictures whenever I curl my hair asking how I get it to look the way I want it to so easily, so I decided to do a blog post about it! (ps. this is also the first post I will share for all of my pinterest followers to see...a quite big step for me!)
Here is a picture of what my hair typically looks like when I curl it:
Now my hair is thin/medium in texture and naturally straight with a little bit of wave...nowhere near like it looks in this picture. To curl my hair to give it this fun, beachy look, I first make sure that I have just washed my hair within the past hour, otherwise my hair won't stay curled for some annoying reason. I don't really use any product, other than Tresemme Heat Protectant, CHI Silk Infusion to add softness (I either add this before or after curling depending on what I'm feeling, or sometimes I don't use it at all), and sometimes I'll add a little Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt spray.
After I have washed, conditioned, and dried my hair, it has this really unappealing straight, frizzy, and a little bit poofy look...not my cup of tea. So, when I curl my hair, I will spray in some heat protectant and divide it into sections - nothing fancy, just clip the top half of my hair up and split the bottom section in half on either side of my head. Then, I will curl using my Conair 1" Instant Heat curling iron (which is amazing despite being only $10 at CVS) and simply wrap my hair around the iron, ignoring the clamp and instead treating it as though it is a curling wand. (Half of the time I will use the clamp, but that gives a very different looking end result than this.) I switch directions each time i wrap a small section of hair around the wand - first I wrap the hair back away from my face, the next I will wrap it forward towards my face, each time holding it there for about 10-15 seconds. This is what gives the beachy, not-so-structured look, and it helps it to look more natural. My biggest tip about what hairs you should curl which direction is simply to make sure the front sections closest to your face are curled away from your face - this will help keep your hair out of your face and I also personally think it makes the whole thing look better. I continue the forward/backward wrapping in the same pattern for my entire head, add some Garnier flexible hold hairspray, and then I'm good to go!
I know this process can be somewhat difficult to understand unless you watch somebody else do it, and there are a lot of great tutorials on YouTube if this post was too confusing! Feel free to leave any questions you have down below!
Thanks for reading!
XOXO
-Taylor :)
I get a lot of comments on my instagram pictures whenever I curl my hair asking how I get it to look the way I want it to so easily, so I decided to do a blog post about it! (ps. this is also the first post I will share for all of my pinterest followers to see...a quite big step for me!)
Here is a picture of what my hair typically looks like when I curl it:
After I have washed, conditioned, and dried my hair, it has this really unappealing straight, frizzy, and a little bit poofy look...not my cup of tea. So, when I curl my hair, I will spray in some heat protectant and divide it into sections - nothing fancy, just clip the top half of my hair up and split the bottom section in half on either side of my head. Then, I will curl using my Conair 1" Instant Heat curling iron (which is amazing despite being only $10 at CVS) and simply wrap my hair around the iron, ignoring the clamp and instead treating it as though it is a curling wand. (Half of the time I will use the clamp, but that gives a very different looking end result than this.) I switch directions each time i wrap a small section of hair around the wand - first I wrap the hair back away from my face, the next I will wrap it forward towards my face, each time holding it there for about 10-15 seconds. This is what gives the beachy, not-so-structured look, and it helps it to look more natural. My biggest tip about what hairs you should curl which direction is simply to make sure the front sections closest to your face are curled away from your face - this will help keep your hair out of your face and I also personally think it makes the whole thing look better. I continue the forward/backward wrapping in the same pattern for my entire head, add some Garnier flexible hold hairspray, and then I'm good to go!
I know this process can be somewhat difficult to understand unless you watch somebody else do it, and there are a lot of great tutorials on YouTube if this post was too confusing! Feel free to leave any questions you have down below!
Thanks for reading!
XOXO
-Taylor :)
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
I'm Scared...
Hey everyone,
It's been quite a while since I posted on this blog because, well, life has been pretty hectic. Between taking those midterms that I wrote about in my last post, AP Exams, college meetings and orientation, prom, my last big dance recital, graduation, and getting a new boyfriend (who was my prom date by the way), writing on my blog hasn't exactly been my top priority. Anyways, today I felt I needed to write to get some things off my chest that made me very emotional yesterday. In one word to sum it all up... Life.
By the end of next month, I will be living in a dorm and be surrounded by all new things and people. To most people, the prospect of starting over in an entirely new place with entirely new people probably sounds amazing. To me, however, it sounds nothing short of terrifying. I have never been a fan of change, and I'm about to go through what is probably the biggest change I will ever endure, so I'm pretty much scared beyond belief.
I struggle from many mental problems that it seems none of my friends do; anxiety (especially about new situations), depression, and just over-stressing and over-thinking about literally every single thing in my life. These things make it so hard to think positively about the whole college thing, even though I usually tend to be a glass-half-full kind of person. I always try to look on the bright side of every scenario, and in some ways I can think positively about this transition into college life, but I'm still way more scared than I am excited.
The whole situation is just very overwhelming and I'm not sure how I'll be able to handle it. Sorry this post is just a big rant (to whoever stumbled across my blog and is actually reading this), but if you're a kind elder with any words of advice for me, please leave a comment below or maybe DM me on twitter!
Thanks for listening,
XOXO
-Taylor
Instagram: http://instagram.com/taylorpurves
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TaylorPurves
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/taypur23/
It's been quite a while since I posted on this blog because, well, life has been pretty hectic. Between taking those midterms that I wrote about in my last post, AP Exams, college meetings and orientation, prom, my last big dance recital, graduation, and getting a new boyfriend (who was my prom date by the way), writing on my blog hasn't exactly been my top priority. Anyways, today I felt I needed to write to get some things off my chest that made me very emotional yesterday. In one word to sum it all up... Life.
By the end of next month, I will be living in a dorm and be surrounded by all new things and people. To most people, the prospect of starting over in an entirely new place with entirely new people probably sounds amazing. To me, however, it sounds nothing short of terrifying. I have never been a fan of change, and I'm about to go through what is probably the biggest change I will ever endure, so I'm pretty much scared beyond belief.
I struggle from many mental problems that it seems none of my friends do; anxiety (especially about new situations), depression, and just over-stressing and over-thinking about literally every single thing in my life. These things make it so hard to think positively about the whole college thing, even though I usually tend to be a glass-half-full kind of person. I always try to look on the bright side of every scenario, and in some ways I can think positively about this transition into college life, but I'm still way more scared than I am excited.
The whole situation is just very overwhelming and I'm not sure how I'll be able to handle it. Sorry this post is just a big rant (to whoever stumbled across my blog and is actually reading this), but if you're a kind elder with any words of advice for me, please leave a comment below or maybe DM me on twitter!
Thanks for listening,
XOXO
-Taylor
Instagram: http://instagram.com/taylorpurves
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TaylorPurves
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/taypur23/
Monday, January 20, 2014
How I Study For Exams
The one week of the school year that everyone dislikes, but we all gotta face it sometime, right? Today I'd like to go over some of my go-to's for midterms week, whether its studying techniques, or what to do what you really need a break.
Study Methods:
Now for someone like me, who is very studious and OCD about how my school things are done, this is something that comes so naturally to me. I'm a very organized person, and I guess that works towards my advantage when I have mass amounts of studying to do.
1) My first and probably most important tip when it comes to studying for mid-year exams is DO NOT PROCRASTINATE. Now, that being said, I've actually been procrastinating more than usual the last couple days...senioritis I suppose, haha :) Basically, just don't save all your studying to be done at the last minute. Give yourself a few days before your first exam to start studying and getting organized...this is proven to actually help you remember stuff much better than if you cram the night before.2) My next tip is to keep a planner. this could be a literal planner with space to write stuff for each day, so a piece of paper that you write down the things you have to do on. If you're really organized and don't need to write things like this down, then at least make a mental list of the tests you have to study for, study guides you need to print out, etc.
3) This study method may not work for everyone, but it definitely works for me: flashcards. I make so many flashcards that it is a very tedious and hand-cramping process, but it helps so much. I've been making flashcards for my AP Psychology exam the past few days, and although it's a pain to use so many cards and "waste" so much ink, it helps me to remember all of the terms (and there are a lot of them) much easier than if I just read through my notes. Writing things down really helps to ingrain them into your brain, and once you're down making all the cards, it is easy to test yourself and see which ones you need to practice the most.
(Here is a stack of my 340ish flashcards that I made for psych...yikes!)
How to Destress:
It's so easy to get stuck in a rut with constant head and body aches and get stuck on brain overload when studying for multiple tests, but it is also easy to keep yourself calm at the same time. Here are some of my favorite ways to minimize stress and what I do during study breaks.
1) This comes in handy for me a lot, seeing as I'm very head/body ache prone and getting stressed out just makes that worse. Whenever I know that i physically need to take a break or do something to calm my brain down, I love to take a bath with some nice warm water. If I can't or don't want to do that, then I'll often take a hot compress (one you heat up in the microwave) and put it on my head/neck/shoulders.
2) While in the bath or relaxing with a hot compress on my neck, I love to either read a pleasure book (I'm currently reading Allegiant) or watch one of the many TV shows I love. What I find to be perfect is taking a study break with a TV show that's only a half hour show (20 mins without commercials), getting something to eat or drink, and just chill while I watch it. Shows like that are the perfect length for a study break; they're not so long that you'll lose a lot of time and motivation, but they're long enough to destress and relax.
As I myself am about to enter a week of midterms (one of them is on my birthday...ew!), I know I'll definitely be using these methods to help me get through all the studying I have to do.
What are some of the ways you destress during the days before exams?
Do you have any really helpful study methods?
Ps. Good luck to everyone taking exams right now!
Friday, January 17, 2014
OOTW: Outfit of the Week
I am someone who always likes to "dress up" for school, whether that means literally getting dressed up or just trying to look nice. I very rarely go with the sweatpants/homeless person look, as we call it in my school (not meant to be offensive!). This week, I wore an outfit I've wanted to wear for a long time, but thought people at my school might think it looked weird.
Turns out I was wrong, people loved the outfit! And so did I... it was so comfortable! The dress I'm wearing is a simple elbow-length sleeved dress with those black and blue stripes throughout, and the sweater is baggy and perfect for those "I don't care" days. Both of them are from Target.
I threw on a nice necklace and wore my hair slightly wavy. I felt so pretty that day, and getting as many compliments as I did sure felt good!
Moral of the story...don't be afraid to wear something to school that you really like just because you think other people will dislike it. Who knows, you may end up getting a ton of compliments on it throughout the day!
What types of things do you wear to school? Do you also get "made fun of" for dressing nicely for school everyday? (I use that term very loosely, I don't get made fun of for it, but people joke about how I'm the only one who actually tries to look nice everyday.)
Follow me on instagram for more OOTD pictures!
http://instagram.com/taylorpurves
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Favorite High-End Eye Products
Hey everyone!
Today I'd like to talk about two of my absolute favorite and most used high-end beauty products; Benefit's They're Real mascara and the Naked 2 palette.
Benefit's They're Real Mascara:
I bought this mascara back in September, and I definitely do NOT regret it. I tend to always use drug store mascaras (I love most of the Maybelline ones) that cost about $10, so buying the same type of product for $36 seemed a bit ridiculous, but I really wanted to try it out.
Since buying it, I have used it almost every single day and it still seems brand new. The wand is perfect; big enough to coat all of my lashes at once, and long enough bristles that my lashes get thoroughly coated with just a few swipes. It is very waterproof, and doesn't flake or make your lashes feel like they're gonna fall off at the end of the day. It also does an amazing job of separating, lengthening, and volumizing your lashes. If you're on the fence about buying it, and aren't sure if its worth the money, I agree with many other online beauty gurus in saying that, YES, it is definitely worth the money!
Urban Decay: The Naked 2 Palette
I don't think I'll be able to do this palette justice with a paragraph reviewing how amazing it is. If you want a great everyday eye shadow palette, and yes I do use it almost every single day, this is perfect for just that. It has a great range of neutral browns, golds, and bronze colors, along with some great highlight colors and darker shades that are perfect for night time makeup.
When I first heard of the Naked palette range, and decided I wanted one, I started saving up money right away. Any of the 3 palette's are $50, which is quite a bit for 12 neutral toned eye shadows. Despite this, however, I highly recommend this palette to girls like me who wear eye makeup on a daily basis. I have zero regrets on spending that much money on an eye palette, and would say that it's definitely worth the splurge! :)
PS. I wanna get the new Naked 3 palette and the Naked Basics palettes too!
Despite the fact that I tend to gravitate towards drugstore beauty products, simply because they're cheaper and sometimes just as good quality as high end products, these are two that I would definitely recommend to all the beauty-lovers out there.
What are some of your favorite high end makeup products? Leave a comment down below!
Follow Me!
Instagram: taylorpurves
Twitter: @TaylorPurves
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/taypur23
Today I'd like to talk about two of my absolute favorite and most used high-end beauty products; Benefit's They're Real mascara and the Naked 2 palette.
Benefit's They're Real Mascara:
I bought this mascara back in September, and I definitely do NOT regret it. I tend to always use drug store mascaras (I love most of the Maybelline ones) that cost about $10, so buying the same type of product for $36 seemed a bit ridiculous, but I really wanted to try it out.
Since buying it, I have used it almost every single day and it still seems brand new. The wand is perfect; big enough to coat all of my lashes at once, and long enough bristles that my lashes get thoroughly coated with just a few swipes. It is very waterproof, and doesn't flake or make your lashes feel like they're gonna fall off at the end of the day. It also does an amazing job of separating, lengthening, and volumizing your lashes. If you're on the fence about buying it, and aren't sure if its worth the money, I agree with many other online beauty gurus in saying that, YES, it is definitely worth the money!
Urban Decay: The Naked 2 Palette
I don't think I'll be able to do this palette justice with a paragraph reviewing how amazing it is. If you want a great everyday eye shadow palette, and yes I do use it almost every single day, this is perfect for just that. It has a great range of neutral browns, golds, and bronze colors, along with some great highlight colors and darker shades that are perfect for night time makeup.
When I first heard of the Naked palette range, and decided I wanted one, I started saving up money right away. Any of the 3 palette's are $50, which is quite a bit for 12 neutral toned eye shadows. Despite this, however, I highly recommend this palette to girls like me who wear eye makeup on a daily basis. I have zero regrets on spending that much money on an eye palette, and would say that it's definitely worth the splurge! :)PS. I wanna get the new Naked 3 palette and the Naked Basics palettes too!
Despite the fact that I tend to gravitate towards drugstore beauty products, simply because they're cheaper and sometimes just as good quality as high end products, these are two that I would definitely recommend to all the beauty-lovers out there.
What are some of your favorite high end makeup products? Leave a comment down below!
Follow Me!
Instagram: taylorpurves
Twitter: @TaylorPurves
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/taypur23
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Getting Through a Rough Spell
Hey guys,
So I don't know whether or not anybody reads my posts, so it probably doesn't matter, but I'm sorry I haven't posted in over a month. I've been so busy and, as you can tell from the title, been going through some difficult times. The key to getting your blog known is to post as much as possible so that you eventually get noticed and gain readers, but I just couldn't bring myself to post anything the last month.
Back in October, what I thought to be an amazing relationship came to an end. My boyfriend broke up with me, and it was and has been way harder than I ever imagined. Same case as what happens to people so often, one person loses their feelings for the other, but says "I really wanna stay friends." Well that just makes it more difficult for the other person...well maybe not, I don't know. Seeing the other person is always hard, but sometimes its even harder to just never see them again.
Aside from the breakup, and dealing with the aftermath of still wanting him back, I've gone through some friend and family problems, and sadly, I didn't have the ideal Christmas break because of it. Well here I am two weeks back into school and into the new year and I've finally gotten the motivation to write something about it all.
I know I should be so, so, utterly thankful for everything I have in my life; my amazing family, friends, house, etc, but sometimes, no matter how hard I try, being positive is not easy. I tend to dwell on the negative things in my life, which just makes me even more unhappy, but trying to only focus on the good and forget about the bad doesn't help solve any internal problems.
On top of everything I've going through emotionally, my dance studio flooded from a frozen pipe and the floors inside were ruined, so dealing with that just made things even more difficult.
When going through tough times like this, which happens to everyone, I think the key is to just keep going. Know that you'll get over the spell of bad luck eventually, and no matter how hard it is, just keep pushing through it. That has been my thought process lately, as well as listening to my favorite quote; "Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day."
Anyways, I'm still in the midst of this rough patch, due to the fact that I'm still not completely healed from the breakup (and I still have to see him in class everyday), but as I have learned, it's a day to day process that you have to learn to tackle one day at a time, and eventually things begin to get better.
Well, that was my little rant for today, kind of like a diary entry I suppose, and if anyone is still reading to this point, I thank you! Sometimes the best thing you can do is talk to people that will listen and not give their input, which can often make things worse. I will try to start posting more regularly, so please come back every now and then! But until then...
-Taylor <3
http://instagram.com/taylorpurves
http://www.pinterest.com/taypur23
https://twitter.com/TaylorPurves
So I don't know whether or not anybody reads my posts, so it probably doesn't matter, but I'm sorry I haven't posted in over a month. I've been so busy and, as you can tell from the title, been going through some difficult times. The key to getting your blog known is to post as much as possible so that you eventually get noticed and gain readers, but I just couldn't bring myself to post anything the last month.
Back in October, what I thought to be an amazing relationship came to an end. My boyfriend broke up with me, and it was and has been way harder than I ever imagined. Same case as what happens to people so often, one person loses their feelings for the other, but says "I really wanna stay friends." Well that just makes it more difficult for the other person...well maybe not, I don't know. Seeing the other person is always hard, but sometimes its even harder to just never see them again.
Aside from the breakup, and dealing with the aftermath of still wanting him back, I've gone through some friend and family problems, and sadly, I didn't have the ideal Christmas break because of it. Well here I am two weeks back into school and into the new year and I've finally gotten the motivation to write something about it all.I know I should be so, so, utterly thankful for everything I have in my life; my amazing family, friends, house, etc, but sometimes, no matter how hard I try, being positive is not easy. I tend to dwell on the negative things in my life, which just makes me even more unhappy, but trying to only focus on the good and forget about the bad doesn't help solve any internal problems.
On top of everything I've going through emotionally, my dance studio flooded from a frozen pipe and the floors inside were ruined, so dealing with that just made things even more difficult.
When going through tough times like this, which happens to everyone, I think the key is to just keep going. Know that you'll get over the spell of bad luck eventually, and no matter how hard it is, just keep pushing through it. That has been my thought process lately, as well as listening to my favorite quote; "Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day."
Anyways, I'm still in the midst of this rough patch, due to the fact that I'm still not completely healed from the breakup (and I still have to see him in class everyday), but as I have learned, it's a day to day process that you have to learn to tackle one day at a time, and eventually things begin to get better.
Well, that was my little rant for today, kind of like a diary entry I suppose, and if anyone is still reading to this point, I thank you! Sometimes the best thing you can do is talk to people that will listen and not give their input, which can often make things worse. I will try to start posting more regularly, so please come back every now and then! But until then...
-Taylor <3
http://instagram.com/taylorpurves
http://www.pinterest.com/taypur23
https://twitter.com/TaylorPurves
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