August 2015 on Instagram

The end of August today means we are that much closer to fall!  While I'm sad to see summer go (it went too fast didn't it?!) at this point I just want it to be fall already!  This super hot weather we've been having is killing me so I can't wait for it to cool down a bit, enjoy the changing leaves, and do all things fall.  While I'm excited for what is to come today I'm sharing what my August was like through Instagram.  Make sure to follow along - @theblushblonde!

I kicked off the month of August with a trip to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, which you can read about here.  My Mom and I went to visit one of my sorority sister's and her family and stayed in a house they were renting on the canal, this was the breathtaking sunset view from one of the many porches. The house literally had the most gorgeous views and I really enjoyed taking pictures of all the beauty nature has to offer.

This is also from our time in Rehoboth because when you're on a trip with one of your sisters you absolutely have to get a picture throwing up letters.  I mean are you even really a sorority girl if you don't get one of these?!  We took this picture during a morning walk on the beach.

This is the crazy delicious strawberries and whipped cream crêpe I had at breakfast during our trip. There is the most darling little French café in Rehoboth called Café Papillon that serves authentic, homemade French pastries and crêpes that are just amazing.  I am seriously still dreaming about these and can't wait to go back to Rehoboth to have more!

Of course in the summer my Instagram feed is filled with pictures of my little dog Coco.  Coco lives at home with my Mom while I'm at school and one of my favorite parts of summer is getting to spend so much time with her snuggling her and giving her love.  My sorority's Social Media Coordinator was looking for pictures of sisters' dogs in letters so I just had to take one of Coco!  We had to have a little photoshoot that involved quite a few treats and this was the only good shot out of about twenty, but it came out so cute she was featured on Adam Block Design's Instagram.

This is a snap from my trip to Philadelphia's Magic Gardens I didn't share in my posts!  This place is gorgeous and if you're in the Philadelphia area definitely a must see.

On the 18th I was lucky enough to be invited to Instyle's Summer Social in New York City.  The event was a cocktail party so I pulled out some of my favorite accessories to wear!

This was taken at Instyle's Summer Social cocktail party.  I got to meet Erica of Coming Up Roses and we had so much fun.  At the event there were so many amazing companies to meet with, so many awesome products to try out, and countless giveaways.  I was lucky and even won one of the giveaways, which was super exciting!  We also got the coolest swag bags filled with a million goodies I can't wait to share with you guys.

I took this picture the day I left for school.  I always miss Coco so much when I'm at school, especially after I've been home with her all summer.  I think it's because I talk to my parents on the phone all the time, but I can't talk to Coco and Skype/FaceTime confuses the hell out of the poor thing.  Also not going to lie I'll definitely be missing my big comfy bed while I'm at school too.

This picture was taken on the first day of classes, which also happened to be my last first day of school as an undergrad, something that is kind of scary.  After classes one of my sorority sister's and I went out for a celebratory happy hour dinner and she took this for me.  I'm a total dork who loves to get a new outfit for the first day of school, I picked up this too cute romper at Riff Raff and of course I had to show it off on Insta.

What fashionista doesn't just love the September Issues?!  The September Issue of Vogue is basically the bible for the rest of the year and it's literally the size of a text book.  Allure was the first fashion magazine I ever bought when I was 11 years old and it has been a favorite of mine ever since. Glamour is another favorite of mine and I love Karlie Kloss so I just had to get it!

So this was my August in pictures!  Come check me out on Instagram (@theblushblonde) and follow along with me to see more of what's here!  How was your August?

  

                

Today I'm linking up with #HowISummer, Hello Monday, Mingle Monday, Weekending, and MIMM.

Friday Favorites

Favorite Celeb Collaboration Emma Roberts and Aerie

Emma Roberts is staring in Aerie's Fall 2015 ad campaign.  For the ads Emma is going completely unretouched (meaning no photoshop) as a part of Aerie's #AerieREAL Campaign.  She is the first celeb to pose for the campaign and I love how she gets real about her insecurities.  This campaign is inspiring because it shows real girls instead of super photoshopped society ideals.

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Favorite Fashion Faceoff Olivia Palermo and Hilary Rhoda

Both Olivia and Hilary are rocking this Thakoon for Kohl's vest (the line hits stores September 10th!) and style it in their own way.  They both look so chic that it's hard to decide who wore it better - so I'm leaving that up to you!

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Favorite Sparkle Julianne Hough's Engagement Ring

I'm so happy for Julianne Hough and her fiancé on their engagement!  Her five-plus carat sparkler is absolutely gorgeous and definitely has me swooning.

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Favorite 1989 World Tour Concert Style Gigi Hadid

Taylor Swift's 1989 World Tour has been one big celeb party all summer long, but her Los Angeles concerts take the cake with countless celebs on stage and in the audience.  As you can imagine with all the stars in attendance the entrance to the concert has been like a fashion show.  I love seeing what everyone has been wearing, but my favorite is definitely Gigi Hadid's cool summer style. 

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Favorite Netflix Binge Charmed

My most recent Netflix binge is Charmed and I am loving this magical show!  The show about powerful good witches and all that life throws at them aired from 1998 to 2006 so I was a bit too young to watch it when it was on TV, but remember seeing commercials and am loving that I get the chance to watch it now.  It's a really great show that I'm becoming addicted to and it's so fun to see all the fashions from the late 90s/early 2000s.

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What are you Friday favorites this week?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with Casual Friday, Oh Hey Friday, Fab Favorites, Friday Favorites, The Pick, Five on Friday, and Friday Favorites.

The Best Mascaras

Mascara is my absolute favorite makeup product, my eyelashes are the same color as my hair so without wearing it they're basically invisible.  I think eyes are such an important feature and nothing looks better then eyes framed with a thick fringe.  Since I love mascara so much it's only appropriate I continue my 'The Best' Series and first makeup installment, with it.  If you haven't seen one of these posts before I will not only be sharing my favorite mascaras with you, but my gorgeous beauty savvy friends' favorites too!

CoverGirl LashExact Mascara

I have been a big fan of this mascara since it came out.  I love how the brush is more of a comb style and helps to prevent any clumps, which is a big pet peeve of mine.  I love the Very Black color as it helps to really define my lashes and make them standout.  I have super sensitive eyes and this never irritates them.

Dior Diorshow Mascara

As far as high end mascaras go this is the creme of the crop in my book.  It's super luxe and has a cult following because it works so well.  It smoothes your lashes while adding major volume.  It works to naturally thicken your fringe and covers every lash.

Too Faced Lash Injection

This mascara builds little tubes around your eyelashes to add volume and length (you can actually see the little tubes when you take off the mascara with makeup remover!).  I love the large brush this comes with because it really adds drama to your look.  It also doesn't fade or flake while you're wearing it.

CoverGirl LashBlast Fusion

This is my current absolute favorite mascara and I have talked about it on here a few times before (read about it here, here, and here).  This is similar to the CoverGirl LashExact, but it has a much larger brush, which I definitely prefer.  It adds mega volume and never creates clumps.  It lasts all day without flaking and never bothers my eyes.

SHOP MY FAVORITES HERE:

When I asked my friends about their favorite mascara they all had one they answered with right away.  The girls I asked always have the prettiest lashes and I'm loving their recommendations. Here are the mascaras my friends love the most!

Benefit Cosmetics Roller Lash

Recommended by: Georgette, 21, Student (Instagram: @georgettelaw26)

Georgette is a big fan of the brush on one of Benefit's newest mascaras.  Of Roller Lash she says, "I love how it lengthens my lashes and curls them even better than when I use a lash curler. They stay curled all day and it really makes your eyes look more open and awake."

Younique 3D Fiberlashes

Recommended by: Erica, 21, Student and Blogger (Coming Up Roses)

On the blogger favorite Erica says, "I love how it makes me look like I'm literally wearing false lashes without having to put hot glue to my face! It's the easiest (and cheapest!) way I've found to get a more natural false lashes look, it lasts all night but removes easily, and it just never fails to get me compliments on my eyelashes! My eyes are one of my favorite features on myself, so playing them up is always a must for me!"

Clinique High Impact Extreme Volume Mascara

Recommended by: Shannon, 24, Physical Therapy Student (Instagram: @shannonsamluk)

Shannon has eyes that are easily irritated by makeup, but this mascara never bothers them.  She also says that "It washes off very easily and makes my lashes long and thick!"

Lancôme Grandiôse Mascara

Recommended by: Lia, 23, Graduate Student (Instagram: @liadanielle1)

Lia loves this mascara because "It's super intense and dramatic!"  Who doesn't want that in a mascara?  Also I think the brush for this looks awesome!

Lancôme Definicils

Recommended by: Angela, 22, Registered Nurse (Instagram: @angelafurbush)

Angela always has the most gorgeous lashes, I seriously always find myself admiring them.  She loves a few different mascaras, but right now this is her number one.  Of it she says, "My favorite part about it is that you can put on multiple coats without it getting clumpy and the size of the brush is not too big, but also not too small!" 

MAC Zoom Lash

Recommended by: Paige, 20, Student (Instagram: @piagetmadison)

Paige is a huge fan of all MAC's products, "I love all MAC products, it's really the only company I use! The zoom lash mascara is great because it provides great shape and color to my lashes without being a super wet product!"

SHOP THEIR FAVORITES HERE:

All of the mascaras in this post are tried and true favorites I recommend looking into.  Any of the picks here are sure to leave you with a gorgeous fringe and make your eyes really pop!  What girl doesn't love long, thick eyelashes?  I know I do!  Have you used any of the mascaras here?  If you have a favorite mascara that isn't listed make sure to share it below!

What is your favorite beauty product?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with WIWW, Mid Week Muse, Style Me Weekly, and WIWW.

Announcing Tutu Tuesdays

Happy Tuesday lovlies!  I hope everyone is having a great start to their week!  I have a super exciting announcement to share with all of you today!

Starting next Tuesday, September 1st the lovely Jordyn of The Fairy Princess Diaries and I will be hosting our very first linkup!  Every Tuesday you can stop by here or over at Jordyn's to link up your most favorite recent post.  Jordyn and I will of course be posting about all things girly, but you can post about whatever you like!  That's my favorite part about the link up, there isn't one specific topic so I'm looking forward to a variety of different posts and seeing just what everyone shares with us.

We're hoping to make Tutu Tuesday's a fun party that you look forward to linking up to.  Jordyn and I want you all to be just as excited as we are!  Every week Jordyn and I will be featuring our favorite posts from the previous week, which means every week you have two chances to be featured!  Our goal here is to create a community of bloggers where we can all connect, find new blogs, and support one another.  We love new friends, supporting other blogs, and meeting fellow Girl Bosses!

I have never hosted a linkup before and neither has Jordyn so this is extra special for both of us.  To celebrate this blogger milestone we will also be hosting a giveaway next Tuesday to kick off Tutu Tuesday!  So not only can you come and link up with us and join our party, but you can also win a pretty awesome prize.  Of course you'll have to wait and see what that prize is and how to enter until next week because it wouldn't be as much fun if I gave away all my secrets ;)!

So make sure to mark your calendars for September 1st so you can linkup for Tutu Tuesdays AND find out how to enter our celebratory giveaway!  Don't worry we'll make sure to remind you before then though because we're just too excited not to keep talking about it!

KICKOFF SEPTEMBER 1, 2015!

Hope to see you there!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with Confident Twosday and Style Sessions.

A Magical Garden

Good luck to anyone starting school, today, in the next few weeks and to those who have already begun!  I can't believe today is my first day of school and my last first day school as an undergraduate student.  In my opinion summer, and college, went way too fast!  I feel like just yesterday I was enjoying my lazy days of leisure (well I guess I was, but I really spent yesterday moving in!) and today I am back in the real world.  To keep with my summer vibes I am going to reminisce about some fun I had this past month and expand one of my posts from last week!  

So, in that post I shared my first set of pictures from my visit to Philadelphia's Magic Gardens.  If you didn't check out that post, the Magic Gardens is an entirely mosaiced space that takes up half a block on South Street created by artist Isaiah Zagar; you can get the full history here.  The space makes for the most incredible photos and I took full advantage of all the beauty that surrounded me; I had so many pictures that I had to break them up into two posts and these are the second half.

I had so much fun walking around with my Mom and taking in everything.  We absolutely loved it and I think we will be taking a trip back because you definitely need more than one visit since this space is so intricate.  One of our favorite parts were the messages and symbols that can be found among the artwork. These messages and symbols represent different aspects and occurrences in Zagar's life, in addition they also represent some major events that have happened in the world.  It's amazing know that this art has meaning beyond its beauty and that makes it even more special and interesting to see.

One of the coolest parts about the space is that you can spend as much or as little time there as you want, it's a small space that you can get through quickly or spend hours wandering around.  So if you're in the Philadelphia area I definitely recommend checking out the Magic Gardens, you won't regret it!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with #HowISummer, Hello Monday, Mingle Monday, Weekending, and MIMM.

P.S. I'm teaming up with some awesome bloggers to giveaway $100 to Starbucks!  Who couldn't use that?!  You have until next Monday to enter, good luck!a Rafflecopter giveaway