I'm so glad February passed by more quickly than January. I'm not a huge fan of winter once Christmas is over, so I'm happy to see February go and for spring to come. February was a pretty great month for me though, and I'm hoping I can continue that streak through March.
BEAUTY
I'll start off with beauty again this month - I began the month by putting myself on a spending ban, but I majorly failed. I'm done with spending bans because I'm pretty sure I always end up buying more than I probably would have if I was "allowed" to spend money on myself. Anyway, there were a few gems this month. I fell head over heels for the Jouer Powder Highlighter in Rose Quartz - it's such a buttery smooth formula that's a little intense, but it's easy to apply lightly for a more natural glow. The end of the month also marked the return of Glossier Haloscope in Moonstone, and since it's no longer a limited edition shade, I finally allowed myself to fall in love with mine. The Haloscopes are my absolute favorite highlighters, and Moonstone gives the perfect opalescent glow. Speaking of Glossier, I re-fell in love with the Stretch Concealer once I tried applying it with a damp Beautyblender - seriously, give it a try (and get 20% off your first Glossier order here!). And for lips, I've been going back and forth between the Hourglass GIRL Lip Stylo in Activist (review) and the By Terry Baume de Rose every day.
BOOKS, MUSIC, & TV
I'm still working my way through reading A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin. Seriously, as much as I love these books, they take me forever to get through. While I'm relaxing at home I like things that are a little easier to read, and I've read through Rupi Kaur's Milk and Honey several times this month. It's just such a beautiful collection of poems, and I usually am not a huge poetry-reader. I've also been reading Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham, and it's so great to get some behind-the-scenes anecdotes from Gilmore Girls. There really was no other person who could play Lorelai Gilmore.
For music, I listened to mostly the same playlist that I linked last month and the La La Land Soundtrack, but I've been listening to Lana del Rey's new song nonstop since it came out. It's inspired me to go back and listen to her other albums too - I still know every song from Born to Die and the Paradise Edition by heart, but I need to listen to Ultraviolence and Honeymoon more.
Brett and I were so psyched for The Walking Dead to come back this month - it's one of our favorite shows to watch together. So far I'm really enjoying this season and can't wait to see if Rick can finally beat Negan. Another zombie-related show we watched together was Santa Clarita Diet on Netflix - we watched the whole thing this past weekend and loved it. It was so funny and although it was pretty gross at times, it was never unwatchable. We can't believe what a cliffhanger it ended on, so we're looking forward to Season 2.
This isn't a book, music, or a TV show, but I've also been loving the return of the You Must Remember This podcast. It's so well-researched and so interesting. Right now there's a series called "Dead Blondes" - all about blonde actresses that died too soon or tragically. I think my favorite episode from the series so far was the one on Thelma Todd, who I hadn't even heard of before. If you're into Old Hollywood and podcasts, You Must Remember This is definitely one to check out.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
I love doing this section of these posts - this month started out on a great note when I got my dream wedding dress! It was actually only my first appointment, so I wasn't expecting to buy a dress at all. But I fell head over heels with the first dress I tried on - the consultant really understood what I was looking for. I tried on five or six dresses afterward, but nothing compared to the first. I also got the first veil I tried on, too! Although the dress and veil are by different designers, they look like they were made to go together. I can't wait for them to both come in!
I also got my fourth tattoo, a couple peonies on my shoulder. It's not done yet, but I'm already so so happy with it. The artist's Instagram is here if you're interested - her work is stunning, and I'm hoping to get a few more flowers by her on my arm to make a kind of half-sleeve. My plan is to get lilacs next.
This month was also great because Brett had two Mondays off from the Police Academy - having him around for an extra night after the weekend and being able to cook dinner together was such a nice treat. He only has one more month at the academy left, and then he'll be home every night! I can't wait.
I'm hoping March will be the month that we pick our wedding venue and when I can finally stick to some sort of exercise regimen (and also a budget), but no promises.
What were the highlights of your month?