Back into Blogging!

Hey y’all!

Long time no see! I’ve obviously been off the blogging scene a while (aka since January), because sometimes life gets the best of us, and life has been crazy - grad apps, interviews, jobs, etc - but now it’s summer and I think I’m gonna get back into this whole blogging thing! I’ve also been following a bunch of people on Instagram and it has inspired me to incorporate Instagram into my regular blogging routine!

Here are a few of my new, less strict blogging goals:

1. A few Instagram reviews per week, which will be followed up more in depth by summary reviews on the blog.

2. Project Make-A-Dent: currently my goal is five empties a month, and I have several products in rotation each month that I’m going to try to at least make a dent or hit pan on. 

3. Life posts! What I’m reading, cooking, enjoying, etc.

This post is short, but you’ll be seeing more of me on Instagram, Twitter, and this blog soon!

Love y’all,

Julia :)

Quick Life Update

Dear wonderful readers,

This won't be a long post, nor a make-up related post. Just wanted to give a quick life update because I'm super hyped up on energy at the moment:

I have successfully submitted all of my graduate school applications!!!! It was an arduous process, probably twice as complicated as applying to undergraduate schools (where at least most schools use the same app...) but the process is complete! Now I just have to wait.

In case you're curious, I applied to 9 schools. 2 programs in Music Theory Pedagogy (where I would study how to teach music theory), 5 programs in Arts Administration (where I would learn the business side of the music world), and 2 programs in Accounting (because sometimes you just have to branch out from your comfort zone, especially when there are approximately zero jobs you can get with your current degree). I'll keep the blog updated as I start to hear back from more programs. I have a few extra safety schools I can apply to with super late application deadlines if things don't look promising with the 9 I've already applied to, but hopefully I won't even need those extra ones.

Tomorrow I'll be getting back to make-up reviews and such, but I just wanted to post a quick update because I'm so excited (and relieved) to be finished with this part of the application process!

Yours,

Julia :)

Blush Review: NYX Pinky

Dear beautiful readers,

Yesterday I posted a fairly long description of my January Project Make-a-dent! In that post, I mentioned that I would be posting reviews about most of those products during this month. Today I’m posting the first of those reviews, focusing on one of the more fun products of the bunch: NYX Blush in the shade Pinky!

January's Monthly Make-a-Dent!

Dear darling readers,

I’m incredibly excited about this post today. One of my new year’s resolutions is to use up more of my make-up stash, because it grew exponentially this past year (and my bank account wishes I was joking about that). I want to keep buying new products, and I have a huge list on my iPhone in my Notes where I write down all the new (both new in release date and/or new to me) products I want. In order to let myself buy more, I’ve decided to participate in something called Project Make-a-Dent!

This awesome project is the brainchild of Lola’s Secret Beauty Blog, although I originally discovered it via Auxiliary Beauty. Both of these blogs are super awesome and amazing and I love reading them and you should totally check them out. But importantly, they inspired me to join Project Make-a-Dent! Basically, the goal of this project (further detailed in Lola’s original post) is to pick a few products and use them for a set amount of time, with the object of using them up or making a significant dent into them, such as hitting pan. 

My spin on this: I’m going to pick several products each month of 2015 - a small eyeshadow palette, an eyeshadow single, a blush, a lipstick (or gloss or balm etc), an eyeliner, and a mascara - and document what they look like at the beginning of the month and at the end. The ones I’ve picked for January aren’t necessarily my favorite products, least favorite, new, or old. I literally pick them at random from my collection (aka pour each of my categories on the floor, close my eyes, mix them around with both hands, and grab one. It’s very scientific). But they wound up being products I don’t use every day, and some of them are products that honestly I don’t need to keep. But I don’t want them to go to waste, and I think Project Make-a-Dent is very appropriate to use them up. My plan: use each item at least three days a week, carry around the lipstick everywhere, and see how they end up looking on January 31!

But enough talking ABOUT the project; let me SHOW you the items I’m going to be using!

The Future, or What to Expect When You're Expecting New Posts!

Dear lovely readers,

I’ll be starting my actual make-up focused posts tomorrow, but in the meantime I thought I’d type up a quick post about what you can expect from this blog!

The current plan is that I will post at minimum 3 times a week. While I would absolutely love to post something (or multiple somethings) every single day, the truth is that my schedule is extremely busy. I’m a full-time student taking graduate level coursework while also filling out graduate applications to other institutions, and I also have at least 3 part time jobs at any given time. Next week, I’m starting a new part-time job, one of the 3, which will be at least 20 hours a week and I’m not sure yet exactly how busy I’ll be with that. I say all this to let you know why I probably won’t always post every single day, although I would really like to.

However, I GUARANTEE that I will post at minimum 3 times a week. That’s 3 posts on different days (so you won’t just get nothing for 6 days and then 3 posts at once) at the very least, and I hope to post even more than that!  So don’t let that previous paragraph scare you; you will be seeing multiple posts a week from this blog to keep you entertained, guaranteed.

Keep reading to see the assortment of topics I’ll be pulling from for these 3+ posts each week!

Welcome to the Blog: An Introductory Post :)

Dear new readers,

Welcome to 2015 and to my brand new blog, A Grad’s Guide to Glam. I’m starting out this fabulous new year by creating something I’ve been wanting to make for a while - a make-up and lifestyle blog! The last time I put anything out on the internet in blog form was two years ago, and I’ve definitely missed it. Blogging is such a cathartic way to deal with the everyday stressors of life, and I’ve always enjoyed writing. In the last year, I’ve also picked up a new passion and hobby - make-up! I decided to combine both blogging and having fun with make-up into the blog you’ve somehow managed to find today!

Hi! This is me today, the first day of January! Natural lighting inside the bedroom at my parent’s house - it’s super hazy outside because we’re having horrible, horrible winter weather which means being stuck inside all day.  

Keep reading to find out a little bit about why I started this blog, and why it’s called A Grad’s Guide to Glam!