Vacation, Foundation, and General Ramblings

Hello, dear readers,

Long time, no type! I'm sorry I've been gone for the past few weeks without any notice. I think I just wanted to enjoy the first few weeks of summer without thinking too much, though I'm still writing for CHAOS Magazine [In the Models: The Girls and Life: Party Time sections]. I was also setting up an editorial internship with an extremely nice girl I met at my brother's graduate school graduation. I'm interning for an independent publishing company, aptly named The Little Things Publishing, LLC, and I'm excited to get my first assignment in a couple of weeks or so.

I've been looking for other writing and editing outlets, because it's something I really love to do. Besides, there's nothing better than writing about things you love or being part of a big project like a book publication. That's the case for me, anyway.

I was in the Twin Cities in Minnesota from June 2 until June 10, and it was a pretty interesting trip. A little mix-up with the hotel turned out to be for the best, as it left my parents and I with a studio apartment. This was absolute heaven for me because I got my own bathroom, and I take longer to get ready than both of my parents combined. It's not even because I have an elaborate beauty routine; I didn't even wear makeup every day, and when I did it was super quick and minimal. I'm just not a morning person, and my skincare takes up time.

Did I mention that I ended up with a handicapped room? It was quite roomy and comfortable. Probably my favorite part of the trip, besides the great time I had on the last day, was seeing Jon McLaughlin in concert. I mentioned this in a previous post, but I was bummed knowing I wouldn't be in town when he came to my area, so I happened to browse his other tour dates. Luckily for me, he happened to be playing in Minneapolis while I was there! It was so fantastic, and my mom had a good time as well. It was at the Varsity Theater, which I just happened to write about in this post [shameless self promotion alert]. Here are some pictures from the event; I tried to pick the ones that were of a decent quality:

The reasons I haven't yet posted an updated foundation routine are:

1) I haven't been wearing makeup very often.
2) The foundation I was using [the palest in the collection] was slightly too dark for me.
3) I wasn't sure if my foundation was breaking me out.

Due to an unfortunate near-death, car-towing experience, my parents and I had to stay in a hotel without any of our belongings. We went to a nearby ShopKo, and my mom insisted on getting me a foundation. I got the Cover Girl CG Aqua Smoothers Makeup in 705 Ivory, and it turned out to be a perfect match! When I wear makeup, I put the product mostly on the center of my face [nose and surrounding area, chin] and blend out. Then I use Almay Smart Shade Concealer in the lightest shade, just under my eyes, and finish with Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in Transparent dusted all over my face.

I'm not using Hard Candy Glamoflauge right now, because it really is quite obviously yellowish and makes my eye area look sallow when surrounded by foundation that actually matches. I will be doing an updated skincare routine post as soon as I can.

Is your summer starting out wonderfully? I hope so. Let me know what you're up to.

xEsther

And the Concerts Keep Coming: Jon McLaughlin Hits the Road

Hello, dear readers,

As you may have noticed, this post is about yet another concert. I feel like that's all I've been posting lately, but it's so exciting! I'm going to see Jon McLaughlin in Minneapolis, MN, on June 5th, and I am more than thrilled. It's part of his Promising Promises tour to promote the album of the same name that will be launching around that time. McLaughlin is another of my top three favorite male singers. He plays multiple instruments, all wonderfully, I might add, and his lyrics are deeper than your average Top 40 pop hit. That's not to say he doesn't deserve to be in a "Top ..." list; he really does. You may remember his hits "Beat of My Heart" and "Industry" from a few years back; they were played on several radio stations for a long period of time.

In any case, if you're in Minneapolis, you should check out his concert. Tickets are available here, and if you don't live there, here's his tour schedule. If he's playing near you, and you've never heard him before, check him out on YouTube and see what you think. I'm biased because I have seen him perform, but it was a short set at a free event.

For the record, no one is paying me to mention any concerts. McLaughlin and Eric Hutchinson just happen to be two of my favorites [Jason Mraz is the third, but I'm not thrilled with his new album.]. I'm super enthusiastic about going to concerts, especially because I've hardly been to any, so I want to share with you what I truly believe is fantastic music.

My posts will be beauty related shortly, but I find it fun to write about my interests and the goings-on in my life. I enjoy the fact that it makes me feel closer to my readers, even though I can't see any of you!

So see if you like his music, and definitely get tickets in Minneapolis if you'll be there on June 5th. What if we ran into each other?

I hope you have a lovely weekend!

xEsther

Rockin' Out with Eric Hutchinson

Meeting Eric Hutchinson!  (I'm on the right; my friend, Beth, is on the left)

Hello, dear readers,

Today's post is just an update on the Eric Hutchinson concert and what it was like to meet him and see him perform. I've been singing all of the songs on his new album non-stop since Monday, April 23, so I feel like this is an appropriate topic. As it turns out, my friend and I were not the only winners of the "Meet Eric Hutchinson" contest. In fact, the other girl and her guest were already tipsy when we went to meet him behind the kitchen area. It was quite a strange meeting place. They were also much louder and bigger than we were. In general, they were much more aggressive in conversation. We only really got to say "Hi, nice to meet you" and our names before the other girls started talking.

We had also wanted to sing one of his songs for him, because we harmonize to them all the time. Needless to say, we didn't get the chance. As for feeling starstruck, it didn't happen. He showed absolutely no personality, and he looks happier in this picture than he did actually talking. It was a meeting of approximately five minutes. He also came out after the show so anyone could meet him, which I felt negated the purpose of the contest. Maybe no one else got pictures, or the line was so long that not everyone stayed. 

We were pretty disappointed after meeting him, simply because we barely got the chance to say anything, and he exhibited about as much charisma as a doorknob. However, we changed our minds a bit after the concert. He was amazing, a completely fantastic performer and entertainer. He must have been saving his energy for that. [We can hope, right?] We had a wonderful time dancing and singing along at the top of our lungs. He sang somewhere around 20 songs, I believe, three of which were not his own. It lasted an hour and a half, after a very subpar, 45-minute, opening act. 

Overall, I think I can speak for us both when I say that we're pretty thrilled to have met him, despite his lack of enthusiasm before the concert. And, hey, we came away with a great picture of us!

That just about sums up the event. I can't really do it justice through a blog post, but I can tell you that we had an absolute blast! I'm going to buy his new album today; listening to it on Spotify was only acceptable in order to learn the songs before heading to the concert.

Well, that's all, folks.

Have a thrilling Thursday!

xEsther

A Wedding, Four Colleges, and a Concert

Hello, dear readers,

I know I said I wouldn't justify why I was gone for so long, but I thought I'd share some of the nicer happenings that have occurred in my life while I was away. Last fall, I left Indiana University for very personal issues and threw myself into the college search for fall 2012. I believe I got my first two acceptance letters in March, and the third came just last week. I'm still waiting on the fourth [apparently they want to see my midterm grades], but I've already made my decision. It's beyond exciting for me.

Source
This is a view of Indiana University, my previous institution.

This college is much closer to home and happens to be the only school of the four that offers  Communications, the major I had originally chosen at IU [it was called Communication and Culture there]. It allows me to study film, rhetoric, journalism, and all other types of current media. It's great because I can study several areas, which opens up career options in industries such as publications/publishing, advertisement, and, of course, journalism and film. It's also ideal because I don't know exactly what I want to do. I'm interested in publishing and publications, but that's as far as I've gotten.

Source
Not the actual cake! Their topper was a bird and a wolf.

I got to attend my cousin's wedding while this blog took a long nap. It was very unconventional but perfect for that particular couple. The waiter handing out champagne for the toast seemed to think I was 12, but one of the wedding attendees got the idea that I worked for the restaurant. Weird. Needless to say, he was embarrassed when he found out I was a wedding guest. Do waiters generally wear fancy dresses and red lipstick? Perhaps.

Source

I apologize  for this extremely text heavy post. I inserted pictures at random intervals for the fun of it. It's slightly more visually interesting than just blocks of text, I suppose. I'll leave you with one last bit of news: My best friend and I get to meet Eric Hutchinson, one of our very favorite singers, tomorrow night! We've been fans since his single, "Rock and Roll," was on the soundtrack to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2. We had entered a contest for a chance to meet him, but we had no idea we'd actually win!

I realize that this has nothing to do with beauty, but I need to get back into the blogging spirit. I promise beauty posts will be coming soon!

I hope your week gets off to a great start.

xEsther