We wish you a Merry Christmas

Happy New Years Eve, everyone! As promised, here I have a little post I've been meaning to make for quite a while. I gave you all a sneak peek of my Christmas dress a few weeks ago when it arrived in the mail, so now I'm here to give you the deets.

I ended up wearing this dress to Christmas Eve mass while I opted for something a little more casual for Christmas day. This dress was actually my first online purchase at Forever 21 so I was really excited for it to come in! I squealed like a little girl when it did. I read reviews about it being too long, that it hit too close to the knees, but I personally found it to be the perfect length. It was flattering and classy, just what I was looking for. After all, what's more classic than a little black dress?

Dressed down and layered, I could definitely see myself wearing this dress to school. It has this sort of versatile feel to it that I find all black dresses seem to have. A cold night meant it was time to add a blazer, tights, and booties, and voilà!

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and have a safe New Years Eve!

Hugs and kisses,
Maria

bold halter bodycon dress - forever 21 (similiar here)

black semi-sheer tights - forever 21

black ankle booties (similar here)

tan blazer - h&m (similar here)

Three Days Later

And just like that, my Christmas money disappeared. Today, I finally made my first trip to and purchase at Sephora in the gorgeous downtown Seattle! I was pretty excited, to say the least. So, here's the lowdown on everything I scored. Let's get to it!

NARS Sheer Glow Foundation - Barcelona

$44.00

I've had my eyes on this foundation ever since I borrowed it from my mom, but since that bottle was running low, I decided to invest in one of my own. I admit, it was a bit of splurge but after reading countless positive reviews and even using it for myself, I couldn't resist!

E.l.f. Liquid Eyeliner - Black

$1 - 2.00 (at Target!)

This eyeliner wasn't actually purchased at Sephora. It was given to me by one of my best friends, Mary (love you)! Unlike the foundation, this was a very inexpensive buy. On Target's website, it is listed as costing just $1, but my friend said she bought it for about $2 - the cost may vary. I've lived my life for the past few months convinced that eyeliner just wasn't for me, but recently becoming fascinated by Alexa Chung's obsession for cat eyes (which she talks about in her book, It, which will be part of an upcoming post... stay tuned!) I decided to give it one more try. As I am a beginner, this eyeliner was a little difficult applying by myself, but I was quite satisfied with the results nonetheless. Definite must-have.

Smashbox Lipstick - Plum Scene

$20.00

I've wanted a darker lip color for a while since lighter colors don't stand out on my lips as much as I'd like. I had my mind set on the MAC rebel lipstick but this seemed to be the perfect alternative. Described as a burgundy plum color, I picked up this Smashbox product as it was the cheapest lipstick in Sephora and because I was open to try a new brand! New things are always good.

And there you have it! So, bit of a splurge, yes, but totally worth it. To end this post, I want to mention a few bloggy things:

• Starting in January, I am going to begin a monthly favorites feature! I will pick about 5-10 items I bought in the past month and offer links, reviews, and pictures. Yay!
• Also in January, I hope to begin (at the very least) bi-weekly posts on anything that I can. School, working out, and family time has kept me busy and tired, but this is my New Years resolution! Let me know if you have any suggestions in the comments below or at my Instagram, @mariavmarin :)

UPCOMING POSTS

november/december favorites (as promised)

christmas outfit details

Get excited, folks!

xo ♡ Maria