30+ Pieces of Me

*Now Humming: Pieces of Me -- Ashlee Simpson*

A few days ago I stumbled across a  'You've been mentioned!' type email from tumblr.  I'd been tagged in one of those old school myspace-esque surveys and since I haven't truly introduced myself here on the blog I thought I'd share my answers with you!

*cue 'Getting To Know You' from The King and I*

 LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

GENERAL APPEARANCE: 

1. How tall are you?
5'4.5"

2. Which color and style is your hair?

I have very dark brown locs that brush my shoulders on occasion.

3. Which color are your eyes?

Dark brown

4. Do you wear glasses/contacts?
Glasses on the daily and contacts when I'm feeling fancy.

5. Do you wear braces?
I was the weird kid who wanted braces but never got them. 

6. What is your fashion style?

Is a lack of style a style in itself? My wardrobe tends toward basics.  Think Gap, Target; v-neck tees and denim.

YOU IN GENERAL

7. What is your full name?
My initials are BTC, hence my Twitter handle @QueenBeeTeeCee

8. When were you born?
On a beautiful Saturday evening in May of 1992

9. How old are you?
23 and fabulous

10. Where are you from/live now?

The Sunshine State

11. Do you have siblings, and what are their names?
1 sister, Tee.

12. What school or college do you go to?
Valencia College

13. What kind of student are you?
A born-again student? lol I used to blow off school, but I took a break and came back ready to fight

14. Do you even like school?
No, but I like money so...

15. What are your favorite school subjects?
Psych, health-related courses, music classes

16. What are your favorite shows?
Grey's Anatomy...uh...I can't even remember what comes on TV...I just finished OITNB on Netflix and I'm watching Gilmore Girls for the millionth time. I'm convince that that show made me the witty woman I am today.

17. What are your favorite movies?
Tangled, Pocahontas, Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella (R.I.P. Whitney) & The Lion King

18. What are your favorite books?
I don't currently have any because I don't read frequently enough. Every book I read is my favorite as I'm reading it.

19. What is your favorite pastime?
Watching the fireworks while eating funnel cake in front of Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom

20. Do you have any regrets?
Plenty.

21. What is your dream job?
Hmmm...if I knew the answer to this I wouldn't still be in the degree-seeking struggle.  But let's say and American Sign Language interpreter for a really prestigious person so I get to travel as a bonus.

22. Would you like to get married some day, and where?
To be honest, I'm not sure.  I have yet to see a real life example of a married couple that exhibits the qualities I'd like to have in my marriage.  I'm starting to believe that what I want only exists in a fantasy world.  But if I did get married, I'd like the wedding to be held either outdoors or in a cathedral with stained glass windows.

23. Would you like to have kids someday and how many?

I'd like as many as I can afford to support.  I expect and plan to adopt.

24. Are you a girly girl, a regular girl, or more of a tomboy?
What? I have no idea. A regular girl maybe? Whatever that is...

25. Do you like shopping?
Of course!

26. What countries have you visited so far?
Jamaica, The Bahamas, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Haiti, Mexico, Canada, England, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Luxembourg?, Austria... I think that's it..

27. What is the scariest nightmare you’ve had?
Just spiders, spiders, and more spiders.  So many that you can't see the floor or the walls. Ugh. *shudders*

28. Do you have any enemies?
I don't think I have any enemies but plenty of people that I just don't care for.

29. Who are your best friends?
I kinda hate this question.. In alphabetical order; Caleisha, Elissa, Rhondine & Tee

30. Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?
Nah. Even when I have one I don't.

YOUR MUSIC

Put your phone on shuffle and write down 30 (!!!) songs WITHOUT SKIPPING!

Disclaimer: I'm really big on Spotify and I haven't listened to my own purchased music in ages, but this is still a fairly accurate representation of my listening style.

1. Goodbye My Son - Man of Steel Soundtrack
2. Away In A Manger -Lori Jean Smith (my violin instructor!)
3. Street Urchins -Aladdin Soundtrack
4. The Incredits - Disney/Pixar Greatest Soundtrack Album
5. Something That I Want - Tangled Soundtrack
6. Wolves- Frozen Soundtrack
7. Oozma Kappa - Monsters University Soundtrack
8. The Big Scare - Monsters University Soundtrack

9. One Foot -Fun.

10. Suite No. 1 in G Major for Solo Cello, BWV 1007: 1. Prelude - Yo-Yo Ma

11. Hello, Dolly! - Barbra Streisand & Louis Armstrong

12. I Thought I Lost You -Bolt Soundtrack

13. The War Is Over - Kelly Clarkson

14. Appalachia Waltz  - Yo-Yo Ma

15. Stardust - MIKA

16. Just Another Night - Icona Pop

17. Winnie the Pooh - Disney's Greatest, Vol. 2

18. Erase- MIKA

19. Without You -Lana Del Rey

20. Welcome To The 60's  - Hairspray Soundtrack to the Motion Picture

21. Stay Awhile - She & Him

22. Then We Kiss - Icona Pop

23. Chim Chim Cher-ee  -  Disney's Greatest, Vol. 2

24. Dig a Little Deeper (feat. Pinnacle Gospel Choir) -  The Princess and the Frog Soundtrack

25. Beam Me Up-P!nk

26. Who's That Boy (feat. Dev) - Demi Lovato

27. Ray/Mama Odie - The Princess and the Frog Soundtrack

28. Quintet - West Side Story Soundtrack

29. So Close - Enchanted Soundtrack

30. Catch Me -Mary Mary

WOOHOO! Fin! 

I hope you enjoyed that very brief overview of my noggin. There were actually some questions that I hoped I'd been asked that weren't included in this list, so if you have any questions or comments please share! I'd love to learn more about you as well as myself! 

xoxo, Bee

Summertime Haul//First Impressions

This post is beyond overdue but better several weeks late than never, right? ...Don't answer that.

I've been considering attempting a haul for quite a while now, as if I'm some big shot, fancy blogger.  I'm no makeup guru, but I'd definitely consider cosmetic shopping to be my vice of choice.  If I ever get any "extra" cash (that should really be spent on something productive that I can't think of at the time) you can bet that I'm somewhere picking out some new lippies to add to my collection.

Anywho, without further ado, I'd like to share some things with you.

I think my favorite item in this haul is my new Lilly Pulitzer - Large Agenda that I received as a belated birthday gift from one of my besties. It's perfect! (I believe they're having some huge sale as I type this and this print may be sold out, so I've linked to another print in the same size.) Now that I'm back in school and trying out the whole productive, successful, organized woman thing, this agenda is like my new partner in crime. 

It's got plenty of space in the week-to-week sections and the hand painted pictures are super cute and fun.  Paired with my Staedtler Triplus Fineliner Pens I feel extra fancy. Sometime in the further future I hope to upgrade from the 10 to the 20-pack. Colors galore! There's nothing like writing with a super fine tipped pen on crisp, bleached, white paper.  *Stationery-gasm?* 

Moving on to body things!! I picked up some new-ish things I was willing to risk my money on. 

Walgreens had some Sea Breeze discounted so I snatched some up to aid me in my battle against bikini bumps.  I love the smell of this stuff and who doesn't love a tingly sensation? Win-win!  Next up is...*sigh* a product I'm really having some mixed feelings about.  I've been cursed with sweat glands that are always on duty. They never sleep and never slack so I really have to make sure my deodorant game is on point fleek. That said, this Degree DrySpray probably meets all of my "smellgood" requirements, but I'm too turned off by the fact that I nearly have an asthma attack every time I try to use is -- and I don't even have asthma!  It smells great and it's super convenient, but I have to literally hold my breath and then proceed to run out of the room after spraying it otherwise I feel the particles creep into my lungs and the room starts to dim.. *Dramatic much?* I try to support brands that go for the whole "natural" thing, plus Target was giving $5 gift cards with a $(insert dollar amount here) purchase.  I decided to try 2 body washes -- Fabulously Fresh and an Extra Energizing one  :-) Fabulously Fresh is a minty wash that I haven't tried yet, and my Extra Energizing wash is currently in the shower. One thing I didn't consider when I purchased these is that natural, sulfate/phtlalate-free body washes and shampoos tend not to sud.  Suds to me are an indication that I am now clean and permitted to rinse, but without suds....how do I know when to get out of the shower? It has the consistency of a Dr. Bronner's liquid castille soap and the smell is divine, in my opinion, but the lack of "soapiness" will take some getting used to.  My last body product was donated by my mama.  If there's anything you should know about me, it's that I'm a sucker for packaging. Your product can be absolute crap, but if it comes in cute container or design I'll hand over my monies.  Luckily this EOS Hand Lotion is not absolute crap. I believe the scent I have is Fresh Flowers and it's just as fragrant as it sounds.  It actually smells like straight up perfume so I'll definitely be using it sparingly.  

Brands from L>R: Milani//Wet N Wild//L'Oreal Paris//e.l.f.

Yay! My favorite part! Lip things! 

Can you tell I have a thing for matte?

I'm always on the hunt for reds, berries and plums to add to my lippy collection.  Milani Cosmetics has a line of "Color Statement Moisture Matte Lipsticks" that I've been eye-ing.  I chose Matte Iconic, which turns out to be a classic red with a tinge of orange that I'm not fond of, but I'm really enjoying Matte Flirty. It reminds me of my MAC Talk That Talk (may she rest in piece) but the application is much more smoothe.  On to the disappointments of the haul.  I wish you could see the side eye I'm giving them right now.  I saw these lip pens on Tati a.k.a. GlamLifeGuru's YT channel and I honestly don't remember how she felt about them.  I'm thinking I probably heard her say matte and I probably checked out after that because I'm really regretting this purchase.  I bought 2 of L'Oreal's Colour Riche Le Matte Lip Pens and while I love the colors, these make me feel like I coloring with a crayon that was left out in the brutal Florida sunshine.  The color goes on very easily, maybe too easily.  And it comes off easily as well.  The slightest brush against my lips had me looking like a clown and/or Miranda Sings.  I suppose it could be user error.  I might consider trying they again with foundation or lip liner as a base to see if there's any difference, but for now I'm not a fan.  

I haven't tried these out yet but they're lip stains I stumbled across at a CVS from e.l.f. cosmetics. The shades are Pink Petal & Nude Nectar.

(The 2nd photo includes an eyeshadow primer that I'm hoping doesn't suck because my Urban Decay Primer Potion has dried up.)

Lastly, but not leastly, I found these little gems at Walgreens.  I'd never bought any Wet n Wild products before and I was actually quite impressed! This is what I was hoping for when I picked up the L'Oreal Lip Pens.  They have a soft, crayon feel, but I'm not afraid that the color is going to slide all over my face.  I couldn't find link to these (lo siento) and I'm not sure if they're limited edition, but I'd definitely pick up some more in the future. 2 thumbs up!

 (The second photo isn't true to color -- Fashion Darling is closer to a...copper? color and Plumgenue tends toward a purplish.)

These are just a few things I've swiped my card for this summer.  If you have any recommendations, suggestions, questions, comments or concerns please share!! I'd love to read your thoughts! 

Thanks for stopping by.

xoxo, Bee