Glamglow Mud

I have seen this GlamGlow mud everywhere, literally like on every blog and celeb instagram account so clearly I had to try it. All of the reviews said this gives you a wonderful "glow" after using and makes your skin feel soft as a baby's bottom. Unfortunately I did not have that same experience. Luckily I bought the sample size which was only $20 as opposed to the full size that's $69. And let me preface this by saying I have super sensitive skin and literally will get a huge zit just by thinking about it. But for some reason even knowing this all of the reviews I read convinced me to try it. 

First off the mud has weird leaves in it and is a dark grayish/green color, which really didn't bother me because I was prepared for that. It stays on for 10 minutes then you wash it off. During those 10 minutes I felt like my face was paralyzed. Literally it hardens like a rock. My husband had me laughing and it hurt so bad because I could barely move my face (which of course made it that much funnier!) Anyhow 10 minutes later I washed it off and my skin felt pretty soft, naturally because any exfoliate will make your face feel smoother. I didn't notice a glow but I figured by the time I woke up I would see that. Well instead I woke up with 5 zits on my chin. I wanted to cry I was so disappointed. The next few days continued with super dry skin around my chin. Needless to say I would not recommend this product due to the experience I had :/ if you want to try it I definitely recommend getting the sample size because $69 is a lot to spend on something you may or may not like!

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel

And the world of at home gel manicures has just forever been changed thanks to Sally Hansen Miracle Gel. This polish requires no light and with just 2 coats of the color and 1 of the top coat you have the perfect gel manicure. I found this the other day in CVS and without thinking snatched it up! This polish dries very fast, I actually painted my nail in the car (I was not driving!) and in under 5 minutes I had a salon look-a-like manicure! I was actually very surprised at how long the polish stayed on. Normally after 2 days my nails are chipping, but not this time.You can see from the pictures above it looked great even after 5 days! And what makes this even better is that it doesn't ruin your nails like normal gel does. It comes off just like regular nail polish, no acetone needed!

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Favorites!

Do not, I repeat do not miss on out the Nordstrom Anniversary sale! This is best time of year at Nordstrom if you are like me and love a sale. There are so many good items on sale that it was really hard for me to just pick a few! Above are my favorite picks for this years sale! Enjoy!

Zella Workout Pants- originally $52 and on sale for $39 purchase here

Rebecca Minkoff Crossbody- originally $195 on sale for $129

Nars Palette- a $73 value on sale for $49

Kendra Scott Earrings- originally $52 on sale for $33.90

Sam Edelman Booties- originally $159 on sale for $99.90

Nike Running Shoes- originally $80 on sale for $54.90

H.I.P Skirt- originally $38 on sale for $24.90

Voluspa Candle Trio- $48 on sale for $29.50

And all of these items will go back to regular pricing on August 4 so make sure you get them while they last!

Fitbit

As you can tell by my previous posts I'm kind of on a health kick right now. I've always been active and worked out but lately I've just bumped it up a bit. This past March I decided I wanted a Fitbit and the day I got online to buy on I saw that Tory Burch was coming out with bands for them. So clearly I had to wait...I got on the wait list and waited and waited and waited. Well finally this week Tory Burch launched their Fitbit line. I'll be honest I'm not that impressed with it. I had high hopes for the gold band from the sketches I had seen but it's almost too ridiculous to work out in. And let's face it if you saw someone in the gym with a gold bangle on you would think they were crazy working out in nice jewelry. However I do think this would be perfect to wear going out or to dinner. It definitely dresses up the regular fitbit. Not to mention the gold band is $195 with out the fitbit. So you're spending $300 for a gold bracelet. That's not what I was wanting to do. However their silicone bands are pretty cute and only $35. I would probably buy the navy one if I really wanted it to be Tory Burch. Here are the bands below (it also comes in a necklace)

So after all of this time waiting I ended up just getting the slate color regular fitbit. The goal is to get to 10,000 steps and yes that is a lot of steps but after day 1 I think I did pretty good! It also tells your sleep patterns and when you are restless and when you are in steady sleep. You can track the calories you've burned, and you can manually add how much water you've drank, and how many calories you've eaten. So far I love this thing and hope that it's get me to a healthier me! I was very proud of my results after day 1:

Novo Nashville

I was recently introduced to this class by a friend last week. I have tried Pilates once before and honestly it wasn't my thing. Some people love it but for me I like a class that's more fast paced and has energizing music and the times I've taken Pilates it's been very calm (hence why yoga really isn't my thing-it's far too serious for me.) Novo however is still a bit of Pilates but pumped up to the extreme. I am kind of a wimp (per my husband) when it comes to working out but little does he know I am pushing myself super hard in this class. It's 50 minutes non stop on the reformer. The name of the reformer alone is enough to scare you much less the looks of the machine. For safety purposes you wear grip socks and yes you can wear your Pure Barre socks or any other grip socks. This class is based off of the Lagree Fitness Method which is a hot workout for all of the celebs. And let's face it if I can take a class that Nichole Kidman does then sign me up! This may sounds crazy but after 3 classes I can already tell a difference in my body. It's slow isolated movements like Pure Barre but yet they are much more intense due to using resistance bands. Your 1st class is free and with 2 locations, West Meade and Franklin, everyone needs to give it a try! Thanks for kicking my butt Novo! Make sure to follow them on instagram here

Best Friends

Throughout life I've found that some friends come and go. Some are there for a short time and some are there for a long time. The most important ones tend to stick around for the long haul (10 years strong!) through the good, the -bad-, and the ugly. I have been blessed with the worlds BEST best friend! And unfortunately my best friend just moved almost 2000 miles away and yes that is TWO THOUSAND, not two hundred. Though we are far apart in distance nothing will change our friendship! I cannot even begin to describe what a wonderful friend she is, and not to mention what a wonderful person. She is genuinely the most kind, caring, honest, and cheerful person I know. I feel so blessed and lucky to call you my best friend Frank! And one month from today she is going to walk down the aisle to her prince charming and I cannot wait to share that day with them in celebration. As for now I will cherish these next few weeks until I have to officially share you with your Hubs :) And also today happens to be her birthday! So happy Happy Birthday Sue, I love you to pieces!!!

Sculpt

I have been a member at the Y since I was really young. I actually was a lifeguard at the YMCA in high school. I love everything about the Y from classes, to the pool, to the wide variety of machines, and the friendly staff. I usually go to the Green Hills YMCA where yet again the staff is always super friendly and helpful. My favorite class is sculpt (aka death by Missy.) The description on the website says "A class packed full of a variety of different strength training exercises using weights, barbells, tubes, bands , resistance balls and even your own body weight." 

The normal class items are a step, 2 sets of weights light/heavy (I use a 5lb and 8lb), and a mat for floor work. This class is an hour long of intense squats, steps, abs, and weights. I have never left a class feeling cheated nor have I ever left a class not feeling sore. I look forward to Mondays with Missy because I know I am going to get my butt kicked and get stronger. She is very good about pushing you but without yelling and intense screaming. And let's not even begin to talk about the shape she is in, that's enough motivation to continue to show up. If you live in the Nashville area and are a member at the Y make sure to look up any class Missy teaches and be ready to sweat!

Workout Mania

I am always trying a new work out. Any of my friends know if there is a new exercise class in town I want to try it. Now whether or not I stick with it is the question. My next couple of posts are going to be about my favorite workout classes! 

Pure Barre, it's a mix of ballet moves along with small isolated movements to target specific muscles. It's 55 minutes of nonstop moving. The class doesn't use a lot of accessories, just a ball, either a tube or resistance band, and weights (the most is a 5 lb). You wear grip socks so you don't slid on the carpet. The class always starts with a warm up, then moves into planks, and from there you move to legs/butt/thighs. The workouts usually vary depending on the teacher and on the muscle group you are targeting. Most of the leg/butt/thigh workouts are done at the ballet barre. The 2nd 1/2 of the class is spent on the floor with a variation of ab and back stretches then you are done. The motto is lift.tone.burn and let me tell you all of the above happen! I did Pure Barre for several months before my wedding and could definitely tell a big difference in the muscle tone of my arms and butt. Make sure to check out Purebarre.com to find your local studio and if you don't have a studio near by you can always purchase the dvds!

DC visit

This past weekend my husband and I went to DC to visit his sister and her family. I absolutely love visiting DC and this trip was especially fun since we got to meet our new little niece. From seeing downtown DC to walking around Georgetown, and spending the afternoon at the pool in Alexandria we had a wonderful trip! And no DC trip is complete without macaroons! Last time I got them at Macaron Bee this time I got them from Olivia Macaron. I recommend Macaron Bee!

I was hoping to buy several new pieces but honestly there wasn't much I wanted to buy and go figure the 2 things I did buy were black....in the middle of summer haha! I knew I had to make a stop at Madewell and C. Wonder. I also stopped at Zara but with the 4th of July sales going on it was too chaotic to even begin to look through. You must check out C.wonder and Madwell's websites right now because both are having great sales (C.wonder up to 70% off and Madewell has all tshirts for $19.95!

Dress/ tshirt

Below are some fun pictures from our trip to DC!

Favorite Red, White, and Blue

In honor of the 4th of July I figured I would post about my favorite red, white, and blue items! I absolutely love love red wine! Apothic is always my go to but I was just recently introduced to Coppola and it's amazing. White jeans- I cannot live without these in the summer. They always look so clean and crisp, not to mention they go with everything! And finally blueberries-YUM!

Hope everyone has a safe and happy 4th of July!

The 404

Two weeks ago for my birthday my husband and I decided to go try a new restaurant here in Nashville called The 404. It's part boutique hotel part amazing restaurant. The front of the restaurant is in a storage container which is so unique! The hotel part  has only 5 loft style rooms (good luck getting a room!) The restaurant seats about 28 inside and maybe 10-15 outside. The service, the food, the drinks were wonderful. And to top it off Southern Living magazine was there doing a spread on the place. We were asked if we wouldn't mind being in some pictures so make sure to check out the upcoming issues to see if we made it in the magazine. This is a MUST TRY place if you live/or are visiting Nashville. Here was the menu from the night we went, the menu changes by what's in season as well as what they can get their hands on. I loved that they stamp the menu by the day, it makes it much more personal!