The NEUTRAL Rainbow

[NAIL POLISH]

HEY EVERYONE!! HAPPY DECEMBER! If I haven’t said that yet  :P So excited that the “MERRY” month has arrived! Though to be honest … November is probably my favorite month since Thanksgiving is my ALL TIME FAVORITE holiday is in this month as well as the change in season … when you can actually feel the season changing to Fall especially in sunny California lol. Okay enough said about November … let’s get down to business! To defeat … the HUNS! :) Today’s post is about my recent  purchase at Target on NAIL POLISH!  My mom, sister and I have just CLEANED out our old nail polishes from our little “nail polish bag” ( You know the ones that have become EXTREMELY thick, dry and CRUSTY … but for some reason you just keep and have no idea why. YEAH! So there was a 25% off all beauty items at Target and I just recently got a Target REDcard (yay 5%!) AND to top that … Essie was having a 10% on Cartwheel (which by the way if you haven’t discovered this APP you should! It’s an app with additional discount “coupons” at Target! Very easy to use so check it out to save some extra  money :D) Anyways I said to myself … “What the hey, let’s buy some Essie Nail Polish” Since the Essie brand has just a great “rave” I’d thought I give it a try. I bought  6 different shades … all in a pink/grayish color. My thoughts on my purchase were to buy polish that I could use on an everyday basis but also be professional with.  So I was immediately drawn to the “nude”/ “natural “shades.

 From left to right:

1 Ballet Slippers, 2 Fiji, 3 Eternal Optimist, 4 Chinchilly, 5 Smokin’ Hot, 6 Berry Naughty

** NOTE: The color swatches given through the internet doesn't ALWAYS match the colors seen in real life

Smokin’ Hot, and Berry Naughty wasn’t really a “nude” polish but I really liked the gray pigment of the Smokin’ Hot. That color was like a shade darker than the Chinchilly which seemed very much a neutral tone.  The Berry Naughty … Despite the NAME! Just kidding :P I really liked this dark wine/blood red color it gave off that red tone but not that “too bright red”  that stands out.. It also reminded me of Christmas so I had to get it. So I guess it is considered “neutral” in my eyes lol.

Nude nail polish is just an easy “go to” color whether you have an interview, want to be professional and clean, or just plain simple. I feel like these colors are the way to go.

The first color I started using was "Chinchilly" because it looked like "shrimppaste" HAH! 

What is your favorite “nude” or “neutral” nail color? Please share! I’d love to hear it!

p.s. Let’s be friends on other Social Media!
IG: michelebanhxeo  

Until Next time! 

s h r i m pp a s t e

BeautyBox Haul [October]

TARGET: BEAUTY BOX  OCTOBER 05, 2015/OCTOBER 19, 2015

So I couldn’t resist and bought the two recent beauty boxes that they had in the month of October.  These were NOT supscription boxes. These were a “one time box only” kind of beauty box where you get know what’s inside beforehand.  

The first one was a L’Oréal  box which included samples and travel sized items valuing up to $16.00 for ONLY $5 +FREE SHIPPING

What’s Inside BEAUTY BOX #1?

1. L’Oréal Paris: Voluminous Mascara

-  “Soften and build lashes up to 5 times their natural thickness for more a defined, voluminous look.”

2. L’Oréal Paris: Advance Haircare Total Repair 5

-  “Works both instantly and over time to help repair the five visible signs of damaged, overworked hair.”    

3. L’Oréal Paris: Age Perfect Cell Renewal Night Cream

-  “Rich, creamy moisturizer helps speed cell renewal for more youthful looking skin.”

4. L’Oréal Paris: Revitalift Volume Filler

-  “Advance re-volumizing technology helps improve skin’s volume with hyaluronic acid and Fibroxyl.”

5. L’Oréal Paris: True Match Shade Strips

-  “Shade-matching technology helps you find the perfect liquid foundation color for your skin.”

6. L’Oréal Paris:  Elnett Satin Hairspray

-  “A cult beauty fave, this legendary hairspray offers an all-day, strong hold with a soft, shiny finish.”

7. L’Oréal Paris: Advance Haircare Ultimate Straight

-  “Smoothing shampoo formula reacts with heat to maximize straightening & minimize damage.”

* Additional Target Coupon: $5 OFF L’Oréal  Paris beauty purchase of $20 or more

The second one was not as specific as the first one. The beauty items had much more variety. This box included sample and actual sized items valuing up to $50 for only $10 +FREE SHIPPING

What’s Inside BEAUTY BOX #2?

1. Goody: Ouchless Silicone Lined Elastics

-  “Made without metal for reduced snags & pulls.”

2. Covergirl: Intensify Me Eyeliner 300

-  “Intense black formula glides on smoothly and dries quickly for instant drama.”

3. Revlon: ColorStay Ultimate Suede Lipstick

-  “Velvety soft formula moisturizes with shea butter and aloe for color that last; available in 20 shades.”

4. RoC: Deep Wrinkle Night Cream

-  “Lightweight retinol treatment hydrates skin cells and helps reduce the appearance of expression lines and deep wrinkles.”

5. ACURE: Morroccan Argan Oil + Stem Cell Triple Repair Shampoo & Conditioner

-  “Organic argan oil provides moisture for even the most damaged hair, leaving it soft & manageable.

6. Skinfix: Ultra Rich Body Butter

-  “Super-rich formula quenches dry, parches skin.”

7. Hello: Toothpaste

-  “Dye-free, sugar-free paste safely polishes teeth and freshens breath.”

8: Olly: Beauty Vitamins

-  “An expert blend of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and collagen that promotes healthy eyes, skin & hair.”

9. S.W. Basics: Certifie Organic Body Scrub

-  “Gentle exfoliation & deep hydration made from three simple ingredients: sugar, coconut oil & shredded coconut.”

* Additional Target Coupon: $3 OFF Beauty purchase of $15 or more

Now I have YET to try all of these interesting items and give you the verdict of each lol. Thank you for visiting! Until next time!

**This blog post is not sponsored by Target in any way or form. This is just a simple beauty box haul (October 2015)  

s h r i m pp a s t e 

OOTD: HOT November

What I'm wearing: 

1. Jean Dress Overalls (Charlotte Russe)

2. O'Neil Crop Collar Top (Pacsun)

3. White Sunnies (Korean store)

4. Maroon Knee Socks (Forever 21)

5. Brown Heels (Cathy Jeans) 

Thank you For visiting! 

s h r i m pp a s t e

OOTD: Vertical Stripes

What I'm Wearing:

Vertical Stripe Blouse (Charlotte Russe)

Light Blue Mid-Skinnies (Pacsun)

Black Heels: Cathy Jeans 

Pearl Earrings: Vintage 

Thank you for for visiting! 

s h r i m pp a s t e 

Gifts On a Budget

Hello my wonderful readers! How are you guys doing today? Hopefully well and lively as the school year is about to begin! So today I wanted to share my go to idea when it comes to small sweet gifts on a budget.  My cousin/niece (I’m not sure on the perfect term/label for her is in English) has gone to a different state to go intern. She is supposed to do like 1000+ hours and she chose to go out of state to do it. It could be for a great experience, a new scenery change, becoming much more independent. There’s so many great possibilities. Anyways… she has set out once again to pursue her dreams J. I thought “wouldn’t be a great idea to get her a little going away/we’re her for you/cheering you on/so proud of you gift” ? So I rounded all the cousins together and decided we should do it together. Because we are ALL on a budget. College, poor, no money, loans … we thought of something cute, small, AFFORABLE, useful, and fun. We honestly just wants to show that we care and are cheering for her on towards her finish line. We ended getting …. STATIONERY !  I mean come on, who doesn’t like super cute stationery? 

So here’s the list on the things we bought:

#1 small pink notepad with pine trees

#2 yellow frog weekly planner

#3 bear water/juice bottle

#4 blue panda lead pencil, rilakkuma pen with assorted colors, white stick eraser

#5 cute “party bear” bookmark/post its

#6 Turquoise color large notebook with mustaches

Everything came to a rough $30 which isn’t too bad when you divide it amongst 5-7 cousins. !

These are just a few things that I personally thought of when I thought of my cousin whose interning right now. I’m sure there are a lot of different things that you can absolutely change from my list or a few more things you can add.

Just remember this, gifts don’t really matter as much as the thought that goes behind it.  The whole purpose of this was to let that special someone know that you paid attention, and that you’re still here for them no matter what or how long. Gifts and presents I think are just an added bonus to the love&support you give them !

So what would you give to someone if you knew they were going away to study? Name something you would change/ or add from my list! I’d love to hear it!

Thanks for reading ~

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSICA: Little Tokyo Adventure

Hello viewers! So this video is a little late but I wanted to experiment with videos or "vlogs." Something new to try and explore :) Anyway this was a little adventure for my little sister. We decided to try out new things and places together. Little Tokyo or Little Tokyo Mall in LA  was one of them lol! Please enjoy! 

For more updates please follow me on Instagram @michelebanhxeo

TOODLES!

OOTD: Teatime

Hey everyone! Sorry for not posting as often as I should be. I know, I know I DO say that a lot. Probably in every post I think LOL. Anyways here's my outfit of the day. This outfit was inspired by fancy teatimes ladies would have on a Sunday afternoon. BRUNCH if you will :)

But really I was feeling fancy this morning :P 

Two Piece suit: Vintage/Mom's Closet
Shoes: ALDO
Sunglasses: Forever21
Bag/Backpack: Forever21

Pearls, fancy dresses, pinkies up,  triangle sandwiches, MMmm :)

 s h r i m pp a s t e 

Thank you for visiting! <3

ZION, DATES, ETC.

Hello lovelies! I'm back ZION! Well I was back AFTER Memorial Day lol. Anyways my trip there was AMAZING! I love everything about except one thing ... but I'll get to that later. I'm just gonna start from what's recently happening in my life right now. So the guy I'm crushing on came back to California for 4ish days? He came last Wednesday and I was super excited to know that he was coming! He makes me feel super smiley when I start talking to him on the phone. Being with him makes me get that feeling again<3 that one feeling that I really thought wouldn't come back to me after my my last break up =\ anyways. The first time I met him was in April during "Spring Break" he was coming to visit his relatives and his sister wanted to take her family to California for a little vacation seeing things like the Zoo, SeaWorld etc. Okay so I started to talk to him in the middle of February and things I guess just began there :) After our "first date" in April he asked me on another and came down here last Wednesday for our "Second Date" lol. We hung out everyday he's been here. Its nice :) for our "OFFICIAL DATE" (Side note ... I only think its an ACTUALLY date if they ASK you the question "Would you like to go on a date" LOL I know I'm Crazy but its okay :P) So yeah we had our second date yesterday. He took me to the Santa Ana Art Walk. There were so many different unique artists out there. I really enjoyed myself during our time together.

 There was a few art galleries that I just wasn't feeling but it was enjoyable to see how others unique views on the world, life, and just outside the box.

Also while we were there, there was a PROM going on, as well as a swap "beat"  meet that sold music, shoes, clothes, jewerly, and such. so many things happened yesterday that it was nice to just explore :)

Our favorite would have to be the student's gallery. A teacher was telling us that he taught the kids and showcased it in a small but cute little area. It was great to see how artistic these kids were and how they felt about different techniques in the art world. 

After our art walk we went to get sushi in Irvine, which his uncle recommended to eat at called TAIKO. It was really good :) The sashimi was delicious. Im a FAN of salmon (sake) but they only gave me one piece so I was a little bummed lol. We got the combo which consisted of a Soup, Salad, Sashimi, Rolls, Rice, Chicken and Calamari. During our dinner, he noticed that we "make a good team" because with all this food, the positive of us not liking a lot of the same things was we wouldn't have to share too much. I like salad, sashimi, rolls, and he liked the chicken and rice and rolls. So we were able to eat what the other didn't like but we of course shared the calamari, soup, salad. :) so I guess there is good in not liking the same things ... especially when it comes to food.

We ended the night going back to my house and just chilling on the couch (because of the food coma lol)

Personally it was a great second date :)

I just now need to know if ... he likes me as much as I do ...

What I forgot to mention was that we are kinda opposite in many ways. Hes also much older than me like 5-6 years older than I. I mean yeah "age is nothing but a number" but you know ... sometimes people think their "too old" for certain things. during our couch time ... I found out that he doesn't like "cuddling" which is something I absolutely LOVE. I love cuddles, I love corny, mushy gushy things, sentimental, and all things touchy feely lol. I guess you can say I'm a sucker for cute things :P AND HES NOTHING LIKE THAT =\ Sometimes when I try talking to him about it ... he just ignores me =\ ... I'm sure what to do yet :( at first he said ... "I don't know" and then he said "No I don't like it" THEN when I hugged him later in the night, I asked him if he liked it when I hugged him "like this" where he's sitting and I put my arms around him, and he said ... "No, I like it"  my reaction was literally "..." LOL ... I was so confused >< I really wanted to know a definite answer. I'm not sure if I was being to assertive but I just really wanted to know. When he said all of the these answers ... it makes me wonder ... is he saying this because he wants to tell me what I want to hear? Or does he really change his mind about it all. You know what I mean? Tonight will be our last night before heads back home. He's leaving tomorrow morning and I have work at 7:30am so I wont be able to see him off so yeah technically this will be our last day together before he goes back to Washington. *Sigh ... Why are boys so complicated LOL

Anyways I just needed to get this off my chest for today before I see him later. I still do need to update you on my Adventure to Utah and ZION so be sure to visit next for more.

Thank you for reading! :)

S H R i M PP A S T E

UPDATE! I'm still alive :)

Hello! It has been yet again too long since I've given sometime to myself and just write about anything. I have been extremely busy lately :( I have NOT yet once been able to sit back and relax. I haven't even been able to watch television like I usually do :( Oh how I miss the Food Network and my reality t.v... (Don't judge me and my guilty pleasures LOL) Let's get updating!! A while back, I told you about a break up, and whether or not "exes" can still be friends or be shut out of your life for all ETERNITY! (lol) My ex and I have decided to become friends. Its because honestly we are much better friends than girlfriend and boyfriend. We love each other and our friendship is just  too valuable to throw away. Being "just friends"actually helps us get to know more about each other. It's sad  to say this but I think I know him a lot more now than when we were dating :( (THinking about it now .. makes me realize what a terrible girlfriend I've probably been) Being friends also lessens the arguing for some wonderful reason. When we were together, we would ALWAYS argue. Now not so much. I feel like we actually listen to one another now. So its a positive thing :) kinda sad.. since we weren't like that in the beginning :( But yeah all is good. Some, especially my family and friends (my side, lol) they still don't understand how any of this is possible, They believe one of us is BOUND to get hurt. :( I hope not , since me and my "friend" talked about it and all is good for now.

Umm, I finally received "full time" at the preschool I'm working at so yay! 30 hours a week :) a teeny tiny raise :( but I get benefits! So that's cool :) I still tutor and will be tutoring the whole summer too. BUt you know, need the money gotta do my part to help the family :) .

I'm gonna try no to over think posting on my blog and use it to the best of what its made for ...ANYTHING. I think I've been over thinking this blog and forgot what it was all about when I made it. It was all about me just writing my thoughts and troubles to feel better, to share with others that it may help or others that just love to read :) BTW thank you to all of my followers AGAIN! It means so much when i get comments or views. Its such a happy feeling to know that someone out there is reading, Actually taking some time out of their day read what I wrote :)

I'm making this post too long aren't I ? Lol okay I'll try to write a little everyday to keep you updated. A little preview, there's a guy I kinda like, and I have a group trip to Zion National Park soon! Shall keep you updated! Until tomorrow... Bye! :)        

And your name shall be ...

Hi lovely followers of mine :) Thank you for spending some of your time to read this blog of each week :) really appreciate it! I'm sorry that this week ... I wont be posting an OOTD ... its been awhile I know ... but soon! Hopefully in 2 weeks ... >< Spring outfit may be coming your way! May I first say ... SPRING IS HERE YAY! lol Im so excited to wear floral prints and  COLORS! lol ANYWAYS :P My curiosity this week goes towards baby names. have you ever wondered where all these different names come from? Or how parents think of them and how they know that that would be the perfect name for their baby?/babies?  I think everyone has some sort of story am I right? On how  you got your name. :D So I use to be a substitute for elementary school and I meet different students everyday, different amazing little ones with unique names that always makes me wonder ... during this year how do parents come up with these names? Some names I've encountered were just ... well ... really interesting ... and I mean REALLY REALLY interesting. Sometimes I'm just like ... "what?? why??" but anyways this question came to be after being in a couple of classes during the start of school ... September. I met the sweetest little kiddies and their names  made me go like this >>>>  "o_o"

So there's this little girl, the sweetest thing ever! And her name was Lexus. Which is a pretty interesting, Unique name for a unique little girl :) But then I met her sisters . She had two older sisters ... one in I believe 5th grade and the other in middle school. But her 5th grade sister was name Porcha and her older sister name was .... Mercedes ...These are all great names but it was just odd to me to somehow assume that there was a ... "theme" on how to name their three daughters. I don't know how I felt about it lol. And another girl whose name was Sapphire and her sisters also had mineral/jewel names... Diamond, Ruby... you get the jist. I just wonder what the story behind it was. It must be really interesting you know? There was one time I took a job at a middle school for 7th graders... not my cup of tea as a grade I wanted to teach but I a very sweet boy there and his name was "Billgates" Literally . It was written like that on the roster. Of course because hes older the others students just called him "Bill" but I was extremely interested on how he got his name. It was amazing I feel like it would have been truly an interesting story if  I ever asked his parents.

How I got my name was actually with the help of my dad. :) Both my mom and dad were undecisive because they had two names ready for me and didn't know which to pick while my mom was in labor. My mom always tells me that she wanted to name me "Silvia" because of her friend/co-worker who was super sweet and took care of my mom during her times in that company. She made my mom feel like her little sister and my mom became great friends with her that she thought such a great person and wanted her daughter (ME! ^^) to be just like that. However, my dad really liked the name "Michelle" because the song by the Beatles and how it had a great "ring" to it. They became very VERY indecisive at this point because they wanted to come up with a compromise. But what can you do at this point? Take the two names and smash them together to form an EVEN COOLER NAME!!?? lol Thank goodness they didn't do that. They decided to wait and choose the name that best suited me when I ... was hatched??! :) okay so when I was born I was nameless for maybe 30 minutes or so ...  they looked at me and wondered ... and i guess at that point "Michelle" was the right choice :) but! that wasn't the end! They told the nurse and as she was about to write down my name ... she looked up at my parents and asked ... would you like that with two Ls or one? My mom got to choose (that was the compromise I guess lol) and she said "One L... it will make it a lot easier for her to write ... less letters :)" which didn't really help because "MICHELLE" was the most common so my name was always written incorrectly or sometimes pronounced incorrectly ... (sometimes mistaken for the suave boys name Michele ... or Michael if you will :P)

Its a bummer not to have like merchandise that has your name on it because of its "uniqueness" but I don't regret receiving this name from my parents :). I feel like parents have great stories or good reason to have you be given the name you have. Don't think that I'm judging them because of their name! Everyone is unique in their own way whether it was a name given to them at birth or what you changed it to. Everything has a reason and we make it perfect by being who we are :

So my question is what's your name? And how did you receive it? :)
Whats the story? I would love to hear it  n_n <3

Thank you for reading~
Till next time!

s h r i m pp a s t e  

Daylight Savings OOTD

Hello Lovelies! :) I hope you're having a great Sunday~ And adjusting to the NEW TIME CHANGE! For those who do have to change the time ... FORWARD. Today has honestly flew by so fast, I felt like I havent handled the changes very well and have started my day "late" but anyways ... Hopefully I can get back to my normal routine soon or at least by tomorrow for work lol. Anyways here is my OOTD! I miss you blog! And I definitely miss my readers :)

Today's a BEAUTIFUL day!! So for church, and the rest of the day I thought to dress a little appropriate and "spring-like" I wore a vintage dress from my mom's closet and paired them with my all time favorite pair of heel/boots from Aldo! In addition, I received my pair of cute big round eyeglasses from zeroUV! And tah-dah! the perfect outfit for a perfect sunny Sunday! Simple and sweet with a bit of quirkyness<3

s h r i m pp a s t e 

 Thank you for reading! <3