Turning 21 in Seattle!

Blowing out my single candle on my cake

As I said in my previous blog post, I cannot say enough good things about these past few weeks. I'm not going to lie, I had really high hopes for this birthday above all others in my life. Every birthday of mine hasn't gone the way I planned or wanted and in my heart I was worried this one would be the very same. I didn't want to be getting trashed at midnight at a bar (no offense if that's how you spent your birthday, but I had to be at the airport at 7 am haha). I got to prance around the PHX Airport in yellow jeans with a sparkly 21 crown on my head and Starbucks in my hand with random strangers wishing me a happy birthday. 

My mom and I before leaving for the airport

Seattle was beautiful on my birthday. It was sunny and in the upper 70s and made it very easy to wear the very famous red birthday dress that I've raved about for months and months. My entire family went to a very fun classic Italian restaurant called Al Boccalino and ate family style. It is also where I had my first legal drink: a Blood Orange Martini. (Definitely not my cup of tea hahaha, it was yucky tasting)! 

Everything about the day and night was perfect especially the company and the cake of course. My mom went very crazy finding and creating the perfect cake for me from a super adorable bakery in Seattle called Macarina Bakery. The cake was a white vanilla cake with an incredible white chocolate cream cheese icing that was to die for with pink and turquoise accents with a cursive D on top.

I hope you enjoyed reliving my amazing 21st birthday with me. I thought this day deserved it's own separate post to be honest. haha I can't wait to share more of the pictures and trip with you!!

xx - Dan

Birthday Haulin'

Helllooooo everyone!! I'm home from ALASAAAAKA. :) I gave myself a few days before I came back to blogging because I was seriously so exhausted. I wanted to blog so badly while I was on vacation, but I did not have any wi fi like at all. Awful. But I'm home and there will be more posts about the trip to follow in the coming days, I can promise you that. I wanted to get back into blogging by sharing what I got for my birthday after receiving a question in my ask box on tumblr about it.

I'm absolutely in love with my delicate Tiffany Elsa Peretti Color By the Yard Necklace with the small pink sapphire stone from my mom. It's so very me. I also adore the Tiffany Twist Bow Ring that is a perfect match to my Twist Bow Pendant that is my staple. Well done, Fancy Pants. 

If you've read my blog, you know I've been lusting after an iPad. I received mine with the MARC by Marc Jacobs "Dreamy" case from my Godmother. My grandpa bought me a new camera after a lot of debate as to which one, I decided on the Nikon Coolpix S6200 16 Megapixel in Red. It's an amazing camera and you'll see how crisp these pictures are in my future posts especially the ones from the trip. (10x zoom makes capturing bald eagles so easy!) With birthday money from Fancy Pants' family, I finally gave in to buying Nike running shoes: Nike Free Run+3 in Magenta/Silver. I'm obsessed. They're so light and comfy. 

Makeup. Beauty Products. Skin care. Easiest gifts for me ever. haha. My mom and brother both got me OPI polishes. My mom got me the New York City Ballet OPI Minis and let me tell you these colors are so soft and beautiful. I wore Care to Danse? every day of my vacation and received so many compliments. Grimsby, my brother, (no his name isn't Grimsby for real haha) got me OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls from the Spiderman collection because he knew I was dying for opaque white nail polish! I also received MAC Hey Sailor! Highlight Powder in Crew which is seriously perfect. It's a great pinky summer highlighter which unfortunately is sold out on MAC's website, but if you're looking for it check your local counter or store! The last three beauty products were Sephora must haves in my eyes: NARS Laguna Bronzing Powder, Urban Decay De-Slick Oil Control Makeup Setting Spray, and a Clarisonic Acne Replacement Brush Head.

I'm very grateful for all of the wonderfully thoughtful gifts I received for my 21st birthday. It's been a wonderful past few weeks and I can't say enough good things about the events and time spent with great people. You'll see tomorrow about all the great time spent for my birthday and in Seattle. 

xx - Dan

Finally 21!

By the time you read this, I'll be on a plane to Seattle, if not already in Seattle celebrating 21 with a drink in hand with some of my favorite people by my side. I'm anticipating this one as my very best birthdays yet. This post will be short and sweet with some pictures from birthdays past. :)  (Yes, I haven't had a birthday in the last 5 years without a crown.)

(from left to right: 13, 16, 18, 19, 20, 20, & 17)

I can't promise a lot of posts in the next 10 days, but I will try to pop in here and there!! Definitely follow me on Twitter (@Daniellefaz) and Instagram (@Daniefaz) for more frequent posts. Love you guys!!

xx - Dan

#PackingProblems: Makeup Addiction

Y'all know me. You know I have a makeup/beauty product addiction. The first step is admitting you have a problem and I really really do. Surprisingly, packing clothing was much easier in comparison to this mess that I dealt with, with packing makeup for 9 days in rain, humidity, and cold. It was a definite struggle, but I finally was satisfied as of last night. I really wanted to stay very low maintenance during the day time, but still have the option to dress up my makeup for night time. I consider these products truly the bare minimum for me. For this trip, I decided that taking my Sonia Kashuk Weekender Cosmetic Bag was the best option because of all of the great compartments it has. I will be tossing this bad boy in my Longchamp (my carry on).

I'm going to break it down by the two big zippered sections and then by product types themselves. I'd say this is also a favorites post of sorts because these are obviously my favorites enough that I can't live without them for 9 days. ;) You'll also notice that in one of the compartments, I have a ziplock of misc. products. Those are my "liquids," so that I can easily access them when I get to the security checkpoint. I highly recommend this if you're carrying your makeup on. When in doubt, call it a liquid because you don't want your favorite product getting tossed at the airport.

Back section- one clear pocket (face and palettes), brush compartment

Front section- two removable clear pouches that velcro to the side (lips & eyes)

Sleeve- Quart sized ziplock with liquids

Brushes:

• Walmart Powder Brush (Bronzer, MSF)
• E.L.F. Studio Powder Brush (Foundation)
• E.L.F. Professional Bronzing Brush (Conturing) 
• Sonia Kashuk Blush Brush (Blush)
• Sonia Kashuk Pointed Foundation Brush (Concealer)
• Walmart Blending Brush
• Urban Decay Double Ended Shadow and Crease Brush
• E.L.F. Professional Defining Eye Brush
• Sonia Kashuk Eyeshadow Brush
• Sonia Kashuk Pointed Pencil Brush

Face:

• Revlon Colorstay Whipped Cream Makeup in 320 Warm Golden
• Tarte Clean Slate Poreless 12 Hr Perfecting Primer
• Murad Oil Control Mattifier SPF 15
• Sheer Cover Duo Concealer in Medium/Tan
• MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW25
• MAC Select Cover-Up in NW25
• MAC Cream Colour Base in Seaside (Limited Edition no longer available) 
• MAC Studio Fix in NW30
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Semi Precious Crystal Pink
• Victoria's Secret Baked Mineral Bronzing Powder in Glitterati 
• NARS Blush in Orgasm

Eyes:

• Tarte Clean Slate 360 Creaseless 12 Hr Smoothing Eye Primer
• Revlon Eyelash Curler
• Maybelline Master Drama by Eyestudio in Bold Brown
• Wet n Wild ColorIcon Shimmer Eye Pencil in Black Noir
• Maybelline Color Tattoo by Eyestudio 24 Hr Eyeshadow in Bad to the Bronze
• Maybelline Illegal Length Mascara in Blackest Black
• L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara
• Covergirl Lash Blast Volume Waterproof Mascara
• Urban Decay NAKED 2 Palette
• MAC Eyeshadows in an E.L.F. Elements Quad: Naked Lunch, Saddle, Quarry, & Nocturnelle

Lips:

• Vaseline Lip Therapy Original
• Chapstick LipShield 365
• Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment SPF15
• Fresh Sugar Rose Lip Treatment SPF15
• MAC Lipstick in Party Parrot (Limited Edition no longer available)
• Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait
• Revlon Lip Butter in Candy Apple
• Jordana EasyLiner for Lips Retractable Pencil in Sedona Red
• NARS Lip Gloss in Turkish Delight
• MAC Lip Glass in Pink Lemonade
• Palladio Herbal Lip Gloss in EleventhGorgeous 

The key to knowing if you've packed everything you need is to use only your bag of items for a few days prior to the trip. I hope this was helpful and that you found my #PackingProblems series useful. Check out all of the posts from the beginning below!

#PackingProblems- Intro | Clothing | Shoes | Formal Nights | Makeup

xx - Dan

iPad and Instagram!

HEYYYY EVERYONE! I'm officially in vacation mode. I had my last shift at work yesterday and they even let me go early because I was that excited and ready to be done. I was practically skipping out of the restaurant. haha. It's also OFFICIALLY less than 24 hours until I'm 21 yay!! As most of you know, I'm leaving tomorrow for Seattle which is my actual birthday, so I won't be able to celebrate with all of my friends and some of my family. Basically, this whole week has been little mini celebrations and I enjoyed every minute of it. Along with that, I got two of my big gifts, so they'd be able to accompany me on the trip from my Godmother/Aunt and also from my Nonno (meaning Grandpa in Italian).

The first was one thing I've been wanting for a long long time and I can honestly say it was better than I could have imagined: my iPad...eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeps!!! I'm so very lucky to get such a really nice gift from her.

Me leaving the Apple Store

Two of the first apps I downloaded were Instagram and Instapad. Being a poor, pathetic Crapberry user haha, I did not get to experience the beauty of Instagram until now. I get to enlarge the Instagram iPhone app and upload pictures now too!! (Soooo hipster, ya know. haha) I thought I'd share some of my pictures since I've had it and invite you to follow me (@Daniefaz) for pictures from the trip, my arm parties, outfits, and various adventures!!

Share your favorite instagrammers to follow in my comments and don't forget to follow me @Daniefaz! :) 

xx - Dan

#PackingProblems: Formal Cruise Nights

Okay, let me be honest here. One of my absolute favorite parts of going on a cruise is having an excuse to get dressed up. My extremely boring life does not give me many opportunities to put on a cute cocktail dress and pumps and go out. The most dressed up I ever get is a LBD and my black blazer for work...not too exciting. I wasn't planning on doing this post, but after someone asked me on tumblr what I'm bringing. I decided, what the heck. 

If you read my #PackingProblems: Clothing List, you'll know I decided on two fancier dresses for the two formal dinner nights. But after a quick closet scan a few days ago I realized that I purchased a fairly pricey floor length black dress in hopes of attending a Christmas party in December and knew that it also had to make the trip. (This is why I have packing problems.) 

Typically the dress code for the elegant nights is a cocktail dress or nice skirt and blouse, basically not your everyday dining wear. No jeans, leggings, etc. Some cruises let you get away with that, but I just enjoy the whole aspect of getting all dolled up and fancified. I'd stick with blacks and solid colors because they absolutely make accessorizing that much easier. Dressing for the formal nights doesn't need to be an extravagant expense because usually you'll have something in your closet especially if you're in a sorority where date parties and socials are frequent. If you find yourself craving a new dress or two, head to Forever21 or H&M for an inexpensive option. These places can be hit or miss, but just scour the racks. I found that first dress by accident and it fits wonderfully and will be worn many more times for sure. 

I've broken each of my three dresses down into the dress, shoes, and added purse. Please excuse my super awkward mirror pictures and my messy bun. 

Outfit #1: Black & White BodyCon Dress

Dress- Forever21

Shoes- Steve Madden

Clutch- Charming Charlie

Outfit #2: Little Red Dress aka My Birthday Dress

Dress- Rachel Rachel Roy

Shoes- Steve Madden

Glitter Crossbody- Forever21

Outfit #3: Floor Length Black Dress

Dress- Express

Shoes- Enzo Angiolini

I hope this was super helpful if you're setting sail on a cruise soon and looking for formal night ideas. If you haven't checked out my previous #PackingProblems posts, check them out below!

#PackingProblems- Intro | Clothing | Shoes | Formal Nights | Makeup

xx - Dan

Baby Haul from Target and Sephora

Yesterday I took a quick jaunt to Target and to Sephora to pick up some travel-y type products. I had a gift card to Target and surprisingly I had enough money to buy the three things I had on my list (and only those items!):

• E.L.F. Essentials Custom Compact w/Mirror- I love love love this $1 fillable eyeshadow quad from ELF. It's the perfect alternative to the MAC empty quad because MAC eyeshadows fit perfectly. I don't want to take my whole MAC palette on vacation, so I'm using this to take my 4 shadows. 
• up & up Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes- I found this 10 pack in the travel sized aisle of Target to use to take off my makeup before I repurchase my MAC Cleanse Off Oil. 
• Clear Scalp & Hair Beauty Therapy Shampoo and Conditioner- I've seen some commercials for this line lately and was curious since my scalp tends to get damaged during the hotter months and they're travel sized for the trip!

I've had my eye on one skin care line for the past few months, so I finally gave in and purchased a 7 piece starter travel set. 

• Ole Henriksen Seven Skincare Sensations- I've heard rave reviews about Ole Henriksen and was excited to pick up this set of half sizes of some of his most popular products. This line addresses hyperpigmentation, wrinkles, acne, dull skin, and large pores. It's a great value too at only $55 for $115 worth of products. You'll be seeing a review soon. 

I hope you enjoyed this mini haul of mine.

xx - Dan

20s

“Your 20’s are your ‘selfish’ years. It’s a decade to immerse yourself in every single thing possible. Be selfish with your time, and all the aspects of you. Tinker with shit, travel, explore, love a lot, love a little, and never touch the ground." 

—	Kyoko Escamilla

(on my 20th birthday)

If you know me fairly well, it's no secret how worrisome and paranoid I am. Everything is a what if. It's terrible. This time last year, I thought about what if my 20s went to waste because even though I was just about to turn 20, all I could think about was how I was only ten years away from turning 30. I'm a year in, only days away from 21 and every day makes me more scared. What have I accomplished in 21 years alive? I feel like nothing.

I can't help, but compare myself to my friends from high school graduating a year early from Pepperdine, friends going to teach in Africa, or others having jobs with actual salaries. I'm not in school, working as a hostess at an Asian restaurant, and with absolutely no idea what I want to do. It gives me serious anxiety. When I turned 20, I never saw myself in this place only a year later. It doesn't help that I not only put pressure on myself, but so do my parents. I feel like every conversation where I'm asking for $10 for gas in my car turns into, "well what are you doing with your life? do you plan on hosting forever? what if you had bills to pay? you dropped out of school, you know?" All questions I seriously say to myself on a daily basis without their input. 

It's so scary. I'm turning 21, now 9 years away from 30 and I feel like my life is nowhere even close to being together. I'm laying in bed at 3 am, just worrying about what's going to happen. Aren't your 20s supposed to be the best years of your life? I'm spending mine worried about the next ten years that follow instead of living in the present. When did everything get so hard? I graduated from high school three years ago and I can't remember feeling the weight of the world bearing down on me. When did all of that pressure and anxiety start to get to me and how can I get rid of it? While I may never know when reality set in, I need to at least make it subside some. I should be enjoying my life. 

I wish I could say where I see myself in ten years, but I really can't even tell you where I see myself in one. Fortunately for me, God does. At church this past Sunday,  I got my reality check. God is faithful and I know that while I sit here worrying about what will happen, I know I can trust that He is working everything out for my best interest. 

Everything will be okay. I will be successful in time and I need to not worry so much. I'm 20, not 30 and I have plenty of time to be in my 20s. 

xx  - Dan

Friday Favorites

HAPPY JUNE LOVELIES!!! When you're reading this, I'll probably be fast asleep after three super duper long days of 7 or 8 hour shifts at work. I always feel more productive when this actually goes up early on Fridays anyway. 

• GT with not so much L- Lately my weekdays have started out with a lot of the Gym. It's my perfect start to the day because I feel more productive and energized. I've been following it up with some tanning because come on who doesn't get a base tan before Alaska...(*crickets*) Okay, I also just like having color with my rocking bod, guys. Just kidding. haha
• Spring Beauty Vox Box- I can't really remember how I found out about this amazing website called Influenster, but I'm so so glad I did. Basically, you get FREE shipments of products that fit your lifestyle to try out and review (similar to BzzAgent, except for it's usually multiple brands of products at once.) I was so excited to get my Spring Beauty Vox Box after my Birchbox was a bust. I was super pleased with the products I received and will be doing an overview of all of them here soon, so look out for that!!
• Arm Parties- Everyone and their mother is into stacking and mixing and matching bracelets and watches right now. I'm planning on bringing just a whole ton of bracelets with my rose gold Michael Kors watch to accessorize on vacay. I've found some of my favorite stacking bracelets at Forever 21 (here, here, and here), Windsor (here, here, and here), and Target (here and here).
• Neon colored jeans- I'm finally finally FINAAAALLY joining the neon jeans party. I'm trading my royal blue and red jeans for these fabulous lemon yellow ones from American Eagle.
• Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment SPF 15- I fell in love when I bought the Sephora Sun Safety kit and was so excited to finally get my hands on my Sephora VIB Birthday gift of two minis of the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatments. They smell amazing like lemonade and they're so moisturizing. They even come in different tints. They're pricey for the full size, but so so worth it. 
• Scarves- I'm a huge scarf girl in the fall and winter, but not so much in the spring and summer. But lately I've been loving adding that finishing touch to an outfit with a fun colorful light feeling scarf. It's a wonderful pop that just completes any outfit. 

What are your favorites this Friday? Leave them in the comments and have a wonderful weekend everyone!

xx - Dan