Leah Tackles

Drink More Water | Best Gallon Water Jugs

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I’ve been on the drink-a-gallon a day train for years, thanks largely to my husband, so the concept isn’t new to me, but when I got sick recently and didn’t have more than a few sips of Gatorade in a day WOW was I reminded of just how important it is. Here are a few of my favorites that either I have used or Stephan has used.

The Best Gallon/Half Gallon Water Jugs On Amazon

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NYX Filler Instinct Review | NYX Filler Instinct Beach Casual

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

A few weeks ago I shared my thoughts on the NYX Filler Instinct Plumping Lip Gloss and today I want to share my thoughts on the NYX Filler Instinct Plumping Lip Color in Beach Casual.

NYX Filler Instinct Lip Color in Beach Casual

The NYX Filler Instinct Lipstick in Beach Casual is the perfect nude-y pink color and I love how I can swipe it over my lips, even without a mirror, and get the best your-lips-but-better lip color. It feels good on the lips. As far as plumping? I don’t notice the tingling sensation as I do with the NYX Filler Instinct Lip Polish, but maybe a slight cooling or minty feel. I love to apply the Beach Casual with no lip liner, no muss no fuss, and then add a bit of the NYX lip gloss over the top.

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How-To Style Trousers | The Best Trousers For Her 2022

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I have talked about my jeans rut and today I want to share how I am incorporating trousers into my routine. I love that with my career I get to wear what I call “snappy casual” (any other sorority gals out there call it this?): jeans with a blazer type of vibe. However, I got caught in a trap of wearing jeans every.single.day. But now I am a trouser convert, and maybe by the end of this post, you will be too.

How-To Style Trousers For Her

My favorite trousers are from Abercrombie. I have also seen great affordable options on Amazon that may be an option if you’re looking to see if this trend is a fit for you. I also have my eye on a pair of Banana Republic trousers.

Trousers Aren’t Just For the Office

You look incredibly stylish and chic but they’re more comfortable than jeans. I have worn them with a crewneck sweatshirt and sneakers and dressed them up with heels and a blouse. They’re incredibly versatile and you instantly look like you know something about fashion. Jeans and a tee or trousers and a tee? They also come in all the basic neutrals, or in fun pops of color if that’s your vibe, AND you can find them in countless styles (wide leg, straight leg, skinny, boyfriend, cargo, and on and on).

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Abercrombie Linen Pants (new favorite for spring/summer)

Tailored Wide Leg Pants (my FAVORITE trouser! So comfortable AND so chic)

Tailored 90s Relaxed Pants (I wore these for my family birthday dinner and to see Bachelor Live On Stage)

Banana Republic Wide-Leg Pants (stunning. Just, wow!)

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My Go-To Lip Combo | Spring 2022 Lip Trends

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

Lip gloss was all the rage when I was a teen in the early aughts. M.A.C Lip Glass and Bonnie Bell Lip Burst, anyone? And now, for Spring 2022 lip gloss is back in a big way. Today I want to share my favorite, easy-to-wear, lip combo and my two favorite drugstore lip glosses.

Spring 2022 Lip Trends

I begin by lining my lips with a nudey pink lipliner, I like Lawless Forget the Filler Definer Liner or NYX Peekaboo. I ever so slightly overline the middle but not the edges. I then lightly fill my lips in with the liner. I put a gloss in the center of my lips. My current favorite gloss is the NYX Filler Instinct in Brunch Drunk. I also love the Maybelline Lifter Gloss in Reef.

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Do you like lip gloss? Do you have a favorite?

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Sí Passion Perfume by Giorgio Armani | Review

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I have talked before about my signature scent and that is still my everyday scent. I have purchased it seven (7!) times. For special occasions, particularly evenings where I want a sexier scent I wear Sí by Giorgio Armani but for my birthday I decided to try something new and I picked up Sí Passion by Giorgio Armani.

Sí Passion Perfume by Giorgio Armani

Giorgio Armani is a luxury brand and the perfume price point is high, especially because I don’t wear it on a daily basis. I typically don’t like travel perfumes because they are a rollerball which I don’t care or (anyone else feel like you NEED the spray?!) but the Giorgio Armani Sí perfumes have a spray! AND the $30 lasts me or a long time since it’s a special scent for me.

I LOVE this scent. It’s sexy to me, it has over 9K 5 STAR REVIEWS on Ulta. And, men love it. This may or may not matter to you, but there it is. And women do, too. I feel special when I wear this.

The website describes this as fruity, but I don’t feel that way. I don’t gravitate towards fruity, but I think that the floral and woodsy elements balance it out for me. Giorgio Armani’s own words are “an irresistible combination of grace, strength, and independence of spirit.”

What is your go-to daily scent? And what about your evening scent?

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It’s been a fun run | LeahTackles turns 8

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

On Saturday this blog turned eight. EIGHT. E.I.G.H.T years of blogging. I started with three posts a week, then eventually down to two, and now I post once/week, but I have never, ever missed a post. That’s something I am proud of, and also something about myself that I grapple with, I am too the max to a fault at times. Today I want to share a few thoughts on this blogging journey, and a couple of birthday snaps.

How [and why] It Started

I’ve always been a writer. In fact, I got into Michigan State with an essay talking about how I was going to major in Journalism and Apparel and Textile Design so that I could be a fashion magazine writer. I ended up switching to Advertising and Public Relations, which is funny because when I started this blog I didn’t work in either field but now I’ve mushed them together into my own business. Phew. Okay, this is a tangle but we’ll get there. Likely the only person reading this is my mother, and I want this for my own memories.

When I was pregnant with our middle child YouTube became my escape. It was the hardest time of my life, but somehow at a time when I couldn’t care less about my appearance, watching makeup videos by the OG beauty influencers was an escape. I was hesitant to start YouTube [I did end up starting YouTube about one year later] so I decided to begin with a blog. After months of preparing the blog design and learning as much as I could without diving in I had my first post planned for my birthday. I ended up having a DNC the day before and still posting because I had promised myself that I would do it to have something for me, using my skills. So after crying and spending all day in bed eating Twix bars, I took some pictures and got it done.

It’s evolved and changed, and I’ve thought about stopping but it’s a way to force myself to keep writing, and I pay for the domain hosting to keep the years and hundreds of posts. I enjoy the consistency, and like to think that the practice of writing has helped me with published articles (they’re better done than these posts, sorry), writing for work, and the Christmas movie screenplays I am working on (if you have connections at Hallmark, Lifetime, Netflix, etc let me know).

If you follow along, even just from time to time, thank you!

My 35th Birthday Celebration

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Easy 1-Step Eye Shadow | Maybelline Color Tattoo 24 Hour Eyeshadow

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

Maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s Maybelline Color Tattoo. Yes, it’s still 2022. No, you didn’t go back in time to 2014. But I’ve been incredibly minimal with my makeup the past several years, with my eyelids often just getting a sweep on bronzer *OR* my tried-and-true Maybelline Color Tattoo. I’ve heard that they were discontinued but I can easily find them on Amazon and Walmart.com. I think they may have re-launched a new line. Do you have answers? Let me know. But shall we go on?

Maybelline Color Tattoo

Quick Story Time:

I went into very active labor with my youngest at about 11p.m and I had a bit of makeup on, when Logan was born at 6:25 the next morning there was a photo taken with my eyes looking down at him and you can see the eye shadow. It was the color Inked In Pink.

Lately, I’ve been wearing Tough As Taupe and Bad To The Bronze quite a bit, they’re great neutrals.

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Revlon Volcanic Roller | Oil Absorbing Face Roller

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

I’ve been oily since my tweens, and while now I am definitely more combo, I always blot my nose and forehead throughout the day. I kept putting off trying the Revlon Oil-Absorbing Volcanic Face Roller because I honestly usually just grab my power brush and stipple it on my nose and forehead when I get shiny during the day and when I’m on the go I use a tissue or my travel brush (and sometimes when I need a real touch-up I’ll use some pressed powder, too). Not a fancy system, but it works for me. However, I finally caved and today I want to share my thoughts.

REVLON Oil-Absorbing Volcanic Face Roller

Product Claims:

  • LIKE BLOTTING PAPERS, BUT BETTER: This face roller is made of real volcanic stone, which soaks up excess oil instantly. Use it on a clean or finished face—it won’t mess up your makeup
  • MASSAGES AND MATTIFIES FACE: Rolling the stone roller across your skin feels heavenly, like a mini facial massage.
  • EASY TO USE: Gently roll the face roller ball over your T-zone or anywhere skin is shiny.
  • LESS WASTE THAN BLOTTING PAPER: Unlike blotting papers for oily skin that are used once and thrown out, this oil-absorbing roller is reusable. To clean, twist the roller’s ring to unlock, and pull out the stone. Wash with a gentle cleanser, rinse, and air-dry before locking it back in

My Thoughts:

I love that this is less wasteful and it’s so easy to toss into your bag without any of the mess of powders. I don’t think it’s a massage, but it doesn’t feel bad either. I think anyone with oily skin, combo skin, or skin that gets too dewy in the summer needs this! It is SO GOOD!

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Have you tried this? I’d love to hear about it!

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Cuddl Duds Thermal | A Winter Wardrobe Staple

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Hi there! Happy Monday!

Ladies, we need to talk thermal shirts and how to wear them. They are not just for when you’re skiing or out in the elements. I am a 90’s kid through and through, and like most girls who grew up in the ’90s and aughts, I wear cami tanktops with almost everything. I now will wear shirts without them in the summer months, and I don’t layer them with t-shirts as I used to do (thanks to bras like this). But I realized in the winter I was reaching for sweaters every single day instead of my blouses and blazers, and then I heard a woman say she wore thermals underneath her workwear and my mind was blown [silly or not, it’s true!]

The Best Affordable Thermal Tops – Cuddl Duds

I have a black thermal turtleneck but really only wore it skiing until now. I recently snagged this white thermal top and it works perfectly under blazers, workwear tops, AND my beloved sweaters.

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Do you have a favorite thermal? I’d love to hear what you love!

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A Must-Have Pink Tweed Blazer | Express Tweed Blazer

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Hi there! Happy Monday! And, Happy Valentine’s Day!

I wear neutrals, mostly beige, cream, grays, and blush, with a bit of black. I don’t wear patterns, but I love classic materials and prints like tweed, houndstooth, stripes, and so on. I saw this Plaid Boucle Pink Tweed Blazer from Express shared by one of my favorite fashion bloggers, Amanda John, and while it’s a bit more bubblegum than the blush and nude pinks I typically consider a neutral I was willing to make an exception ; )

And a quick note about cost, I did get it on a bit of a sale but what I do when I want a new piece but don’t want to or can’t fit it into my budget, I sell things on local BST pages and make it a game. In a few days, I had enough to justify and pay for this jacket.

Plaid Boucle Tweed Jacket

This jacket is a gorgeous boucle (pronounced boo-clay and meaning a loosely woven material made with fancy yarn, which has tiny loops or curls. Derived from the French word for “curl”, this type of cloth can be made in a single color or in a combination of several shades) of pink and white threads with a little bit of a clear, shimmery thread that gives the most stunning bit of sparkle without any actual glitter/sparkle/sequins or anything else that would look, in my opinion, less chic. It is fully lined with a pretty light pink. The style is cropped, but not too cropped, it hits about 1.5 inches below the waist of my high-rise jeans. It is structured in the shoulders, but it isn’t too much padding. It is very comfortable to wear and looks amazing with straight-leg jeans, white jeans, or black slacks.

How I Styled It

I wore this with a pair of mom jeans and this Cuddl Duds thermal underneath.

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Pink Express Tweed Jacket

Do you have any tweed in your wardrobe? I’d love to hear where you like to shop for tweed (enable me!)

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