Weekend Collage

weekend collage by vanessanelson featuring Clinique

Hello!!!  How was your weekend?  Mine was fantastic!  I had the weekend off and the weather was GORGEOUS so of course I went shopping ;)

Some of my FAVORITE things of the weekend were the new Lash Power Feathering mascara by Clinique especially paired with my all time favorite eyeshadow palette "Neutral Territory 2" and Cheek Pop blush in "Berry Pop" also by Clinique!  I went and visited my favorite former co-worker Natalie (y'all should check out her blog too....she and her husband are INSANELY talented musicians) who now works for Laura Mercier and picked up one of my all time favorite lip glosses "Opal" and a new one called "Azaela" that I'm OBSESSED with :)  

I listened to Miguel's song "Simplethings" pretty much on repeat all weekend.  I'm so glad the weather is warming up and we could drive with the windows down, break out the maxi skirts, and SANDALS.

I hope the weather is nice where you are too :)

Hopefully I have time to post this week.  We are going into gift at the Clinique counter which, as my long-time readers know,  is the time my brain starts to malfunction, I live on Diet Coke and crackers, and I self-medicate with NyQuil sooooo basically.....it's the Hunger Games.  

But I love these crazies I work with so it makes it worth it!

Leave me a happy little note about your weekend :)

xoxo 

V

A Night at the Jr. High Dance....

You know those nights that just take you back?  Back to times of barefoot summers playing in sprinklers, passing notes in class, and hoping that your crush notices you at the dance?  I have vivid memories of those Jr. high dances.  Everyone dancing hard and fast to "Tubthumbing" and then panicking when a slow jam comes on.  In my case the songs that created the most sheer horror and panic through my 13 year old body were....Boyz II Men.  Those soulful romantic songs...wishing my crush (I won't tell you his name....still too soon) would ask me to dance.
I got to relive those glory days as well as fulfill many a pre-teen fantasy by going to a BOYZ II MEN CONCERT.
Oh yes.  This happened and it was glorious.

 This little kid next to me was my favorite person on the planet.  

I don't think he liked me but I took at picture with him anyway.

We felt 13 again

Any moments that had you re-living your preteen days???

I'd love to hear about them!  Comment below! :)

xoxo

V

BONUS VIDEO

My favorite Boyz II Men song ever

Hi Friends

That's kind of how I feel about this post today. You know those weeks that just get away from you because you're stressed or sick or anxious and getting over that is literally all you can think about?  That's the kind of week I had last week so I apologize for lack of posts.  I'm gonna keep it low key today and give you a playlist (which I'm actually super excited about because I've found some awesome new music lately) and do some more fun things later this week.  In the meantime I hope you're all doing well.  If you are share a happy story in the comments and if you aren't....you can share that too.  This is a circle of trust.
xoxo
V

• Miguel: Simplethings
• Boyz II Men: End Of The Road
• Lea Michele: Empty Handed
• Foster The People: Coming Of Age
• Mimi Knowles: In The Mood
• HAIM: Forever
• Mourning Ritual: Bad Moon Rising
• The Black Keys: Fever
• Cher Lloyd: Sirens
• Ray LaMontagne: Airwaves
• The Pretty Reckless: Heaven Knows
• Cam'ron: Hey Ma 
• Bryan Adams: Please Forgive Me
• New Found Glory: The Promise

• Arcade Fire - Reflektor
• John Mayer - Wildfire
• Phillip Phillips - Raging Fire
• Thirty Seconds To Mars - City Of Angels
• The Corrs - Summer Sunshine
• Garth Brooks - More Than A Memory
• Dean Martin - Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)
• Beyonce - Best Thing I Never Had
• Sara Bareilles - 1000 Times
• Taylor Swift - I Almost Do
• Fleetwood Mac - Gold Dust Woman
• David Bowie - Heroes
• When In Rome - The Promise

Currently

I haven't done one of these for awhile so I think it's about time.  Besides I wanted something light and fun after my post yesterday....

Reading: "Where'd You Go, Bernadette" by Maria Semple.  I JUST started it and love it so far.  I'll keep you updated.

Obsessed With: PINK  I know I mentioned this already but seriously....it makes me feel like Spring really is coming...

Waiting For: Easter.  It's one of my very favorite holidays.  PLUS I'm looking forward to trying out some cool new things that I've pinned on Pinterest like these lovely Easter eggs.....

Loving: my new ring I just got.  It makes me feel way cooler than I actually am.

Watching: 90's action movies including: "Heat", "Independence Day" and "3 Ninjas".  I know guys...I know.  I just can't help it.  "Heat" with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro will always be one of my all time favorite movies.  

Excited About: The BOYZ II MEN CONCERT TICKETS I JUST BOUGHT.  Yes that's real!!!!

Wanting: These adorable Converse....I mean...could you just die?

Feeling: Wanderlust.  I want to go exploring....

Listening to: "Rock" music from the early '00s.  Takes me right back to high school including songs like "Addicted" by Simple Plan, "My Paper Heart" by All American Rejects, and "I Just Wanna Live" by Good Charlotte.  Makes me want to roll down the windows playing it at full blast after hanging out at Steak 'N Shake with my friends before we inevitably decide to do a drive by....ah memories.

Laughing About: This resolution as I was flipping through one of my notebooks.  I have no recollection of writing this.

What are you "currently"???  Let me know in the comments and if you do your own link me and I'd love to go check them out! 

xoxo

V

Let's Chat

So normally I do my weekend collage but due to the events of the weekend....I'm just not feeling up to that....so I'm going to do more of a chatty little post if you don't mind.  We're all friends here so I know you won't.
This weekend was a strange one.  I'll spare you the details but we had a bit of a family emergency and then I ended up fighting off a major migraine and just wrapped the weekend up with a panic attack.  Delightful right?
I haven't had a panic attack in quite some time so this one totally took me by surprise....well most panic attacks take me by surprise. All of a sudden I couldn't breathe and I was crying for no reason. That's just one of the many reasons why a panic attack is the queen of all mean girls.  She teases you, hurts you, makes you feel like you will never feel okay again and her timing is a bitch!  Tonight it happened right as I was about to go hang out with some friends.  I hate when that happens.  One of the reasons why is that when it happens like that, all of your friends who don't understand just chalk it up to you being "anti social" or "boring".  That's not it at all.  I wanted to be social.  I wanted to have fun.  Unfortunately I was a little busy remembering how to breathe.  You can't just tell people that either because they think you're seeking attention or being dramatic.
I'm quite an extroverted person....I just happen to be an extrovert with severe social anxiety.  And I don't know how to explain that to my friends or how to explain it to anyone really.  So I just pretend I'm tired and hope that no one thinks I'm lame.  I found this quote on the internet and while it's a little dramatic it's the closest I've ever found in explaining how this anxiety or how a panic attack feels

I don't suffer so much from the depression side of it although I know a lot of people do.  It's hard.  All of it is hard.  We're all just trying our best and we want to feel "normal".  So be kind to each other out there because you have no idea what anyone else is going through or why they do the things they do.

Other than all of that my weekend was great ;)

Tell me your happy weekend stories....or not so happy.  I don't mind listening to either.  

xoxo

V

Pretty Polishes

I have a complete obsession with nail polish.  Which is weird since if you remember from my "50 Things About Me" video....I hate painting my nails.  At least I am a consistent contradiction.  

When I look at all my nail polishes, several different brands are represented.  OPI, Essie, Clinique, etc...however one brand stands out superior.  Butter London.  

The colors are phenomenal, the wear is fantastic, the names are adorable....there is nothing to complain about.  

L to R: Disco Biscuit, Cake Hole, Fruit Machine

L to R: Teddy Girl, Fairy Lights, Kerfuffle, Silly Billy

L to R: Lucy In The Sky, Champers, No More Waity Katie, Fiver

 I just thought I'd share a little of my Butter London nail polish collection with you.  If you're interested in swatches or more info let me know in the comments and I'd be happy to oblige!

Do you have any favorite polishes or colors?  I'd love to hear about them.  Enable my addiction people! 

xoxo

V

1. Coldplay - Magic
2. Celine Dion - The Reason
3. Electric Light Orchestra - Do Ya
4. Ray LaMontagne - Supernova
5. Bastille - Pompeii
6. Lea Michele - Don't Let Go
7. Regina Spektor - Fidelity
8. The Temptations - I Can't Get Next To You
9. Whitney Houston - How Will I Know
10. Willie Nelson - Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground
11. Ryan Adams - Come Pick Me Up
12. The Killers - When You Were Young
13. Katie Herzig - Hey Na Na

Be Soft

I stumbled across this quote again recently and it's always been a favorite of mine.  It always makes me stop and think.  A few years ago I had a tendency to be very abrasive, hard, maybe a lot little like a word that rhymes with itch and has a B at the beginning?  Maybe just at bit......

 I saw sweetness and gentleness as weakness.  That if I was nice or friendly then people would think they could just walk all over me.  I'd be the "sweet girl" and I wanted to be the tough chick. I don't really know what changed.  Life experiences?  Maturity?  Both? I am now the person who annoys the group of friends because I can't just judge and bitch about other people anymore.  I always see the other side to everyone's story.  I used to be the person who my family called a robot.  Now it hurts me when they say that because I feel things so strongly with and for other people.  I CRY WATCHING SWIFFER COMMERCIALS.  I'm soft.  I don't mind being sweet because I no longer equate it with being weak.  I equate it with being strong.  Strong enough to be soft and know that it's ok because I'm still confident who I am.  

I think it's something we all learn eventually.  I used to want to be the girl that people were afraid of because of how much I didn't care.  Now I just want to be the girl that anyone could talk to and who everyone can say "she's so nice!".  I don't mind being that person and I challenge everyone to be the same.  It's ok to be nice.  It's ok to be approachable.  Be strong, be confident, be sweet.  It's all ok.  I heard another quote that has quickly climbed the ranks as an all time favorite of mine

"We need women who are so strong they can be gentle, so educated they can be humble, so fierce they can be compassionate, so passionate they can be rational, and so disciplined they can be free."

-Kavita Ramdas

I love that.  That is what I aspire to be.  Any thoughts you have on the topic?  Any other thoughts on your mind?  Let's learn and grow together! :)

Leave a comment! 

xoxo

V

Weekend Collage

weekend collage by vanessanelson featuring nars cosmetics

Hello hello!  How are you all doing???  I thought I'd share my weekend activities with you in hopes that you will forgive me for being missing last week....life you know?  It always ends up busier than expected.  This week I have some fun things planned that I'll mention at the end.  As for this weekend I really enjoyed PINK.  Like bright pink.  It's such a fun trend right now and NARS has their "Final Cut" collection (pink and more pink) which is to DIE FOR (as most Nars always is.....) and Estee Lauder just introduced a new line of lipstick that I'm loving!  As usual Butter London is my all time favorite nail polish.  I recently discovered the color "Teddy Girl" and it's the perfect babydoll pink.  It's currently on their "Last Orders" list so it's HALF OFF.  You're welcome :)

And my favorite perfume is by Philosophy....surprisingly enough.  I've never really loved anything from them before but this fragrance is my fave.  It's sweet and feminine and lovely and it's aptly called "Falling In Love" which I have done for this fragrance.

DID YOU WATCH THE ACADEMY AWARDS???  I'm going to do a post on all the shenanigans but WOW everyone looked amazeballs.  Also this week I have been blasting Lea Michele's new album non-stop.  Whatever personal feelings I have for her aside....the girl can sing!  My current fave is "Burn With You"  check it out....you'll be blasting it too!

I hope you all had a fantastic weekend!  I'm really excited for the things I have planned this week. A fun post on nail polish, a wicked playlist, and some personal thoughts as well.  While we're on the topic...feel free to share anything you'd love to see more of or anything new you'd love to see too!  

And my video editing is still acting out like a 15 year old girl so.....sorry about that.  Working on it! 

Share anything fun, new, exciting, or just thoughts in the comments! 

xoxo

V
P.S. Feel free to follow me on Instagram (@vanessanelson) as well for a more timely update on the craziness of my life.....