What's In My Bag?

Satchel
This satchel I have from Call It Spring is one of my favourite bags to use no matter where I'm going. It's the perfect size for most outings, because it's able to fit all of what I've listed below, as well as sometimes more and sometimes less, depending on what my day holds. I didn't bother mentioning the obvious items, like wallet, phone, and iPod (though to some those last two are one in the same). Here is what's in my bag!

Sunglasses & Case
I literally always wear sunglasses. I have very sensitive eyes, and even in the winter, when the sky is so grey, I still feel a bit of a brightness and so I always need at least a bit of protection for my eyes. I also love these soft cases because they protect your sunglasses from getting scratched or bent, but they're also small enough to fit in even a clutch (I used to use those huge hard cases for my glasses and could literally never fit them in my purse).

Water Bottle
It's always essential that I carry water with me. I never know I'll be in desperate need to hydrate myself, and whether or not I'll have access to water when I'm out (convenience store, cafe, etc.). Water bottles like the one above are great because they're soft so they can fit in bags and purses that a hard water bottle can't, and when it's empty you can simply fold it up so it'll take up even less room. These bottles are also great for travelling and going on hikes (one of my favourite summer activities!).

MAC Studio Fix
This foundation is great for when you're doing your makeup in the morning, but also for doing little touch ups during the day. My skin is very oily and tends to get shiny as the day progresses, so this is always a good fix (pun intended). Speaking of oily skin, that brings me to my next item.

Oil Absorbing Sheets
These sheets are actually a life saver. Especially when I know I'm going to be out for the whole day (and won't have a chance to wash my face in between my day and night plans), these oil pads are what I put all my faith in.

Sugar Lip Treatment
I always carry some sort of lip balm on me, because my lips get very dry and cracked (especially in the winter). But I love this Sugar Lip Treatment from Sephora because it has a bit of a tint to it, while still doing everything I need a lip balm to do. It also has SPF 15, so it's great to wear in the summer when you're going to be out in the sun!

Magazine
You never know what kind of sitting and waiting your day will have in store for you (appointments, commuting, break time at work), so I absolutely ALWAYS like to have some sort of reading material with me. I'm a big reader so if I'm in the middle of a book I'll usually have that with me, but I'll also have a magazine, as they are great for even just skimming through when you have a few minutes.

Hand Lotion
Just like my lips, my hands tend to get very dry, so I always need to have hand lotion on me. The one in my bag usually ends up being whatever mini bottle from a hotel bathroom I stole, because they're so small the size is perfect for any kind of purse. But right now I'm loving Body Shop's Vitamin E Hand & Nail Treatment, because my nails are really fragile and tend to break about every other day. I just started using this one from Body Shop, but I'm hoping it'll help!

Nail File
As I just mentioned above, my nails really do break a lot. I like to keep them long, and so they are always hitting and smashing into things, especially at work. Nothing is worse than breaking a nail and then not being able to file down the rough edge, and making the nail even, so I always like to have a nail file with me.

DIY: Magazine Holder

I never thought I'd do a DIY post, nor do I usually do DIY (I'm not that creative), but I just had so much fun with this, I knew I had to share it with you. 

I have proper magazine holders that I bought from Wal-Mart a million years ago; they're the perfect size for the amount of magazines I typically have on hand at one time and they sit nicely on my desk. But for a few of my classes this year my professors have asked us to keep old magazines on hand to cut out pictures for projects, and so I started saving magazines once I was done reading them, and they started piling up fast and I had nowhere to keep them. 

I had bought a hair styling equipment holder from Bed Bath & Beyond that houses my hair dryer, curler and straightener, and I have to say it's been a handy addition to my dresser. There's also a hook so you can hang it on your bathroom door or towel rack (photo below). I held onto the box it came in for a while, since it was a great size and I thought I'd be able to find something useful to use it for. Turns out I did.

Getting Started
Of course you can use any size box you want (I just happen to have this one on hand and it was the perfect size), but make sure it's sturdy and big enough to hold all your magazines. Choose a paint colour that goes with your room, or wherever you plan on keeping your magazine holder. It doesn't need to match your wall colour or bedding/furniture perfectly, it can just be a colour that goes nicely with your decor. I actually mixed a lavender with white, black and a bit of blue. I also had to keep mixing in different amounts of each colour before I found the hue I wanted. My sister is very artsy and always has paint in the house so I just used what was here, but you could go to any art store in your area and just grab whatever colours you want. I personally love Michael's, but Curry's also has a good selection and is more cost efficient.

Before you start painting, cut off the top of the box so your magazines can stick out a bit if they need to (the box I used just happened to be shorter than the magazines). I used 3 coats of paint on mine, since the paint colour is kind of light and I needed to cover the picture on the box. If you're using a darker colour, you should only need about 2 coats, but feel free to do as many as you want to get the perfect colour.

After letting the paint dry for about 24 hours (not necessary but I needed a break!), I stuck on these jewels from Michael's with a glue gun (I tried to find some that were already sticky on the back, but no such luck). 

The set came with different shapes and sizes, and some were just silver while some had a bit of colour to them, so I played around with them until I decided on a pattern I liked. I chose to do smaller jewels on the top and larger ones on the bottom, since I felt it balanced the weight of the different sizes nicely.

And there you have my first (and possibly not only) DIY creation. Try it yourself for somewhere chic and unique to keep your magazines!