Five on Friday - Best Leggings for Summer, Makeup Brush, and Current Fave Show

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Hey, y’all!  Happy Friday!  We had another uneventful week just hanging out at home watching summer break pass us by.  We’re now only three weeks away from the start of school so we’ve been knee-deep in back-to-school shopping (uniforms), summer homework, and cleaning out the kids’ closets to see what all they need… assuming they even go back.  Sigh.  I just wish I knew what the right decision is to make… I’m really really struggling as I’m sure many of you are, too.  You are not alone.

Today I’m sharing a few bright spots in the week, starting with my favorite Amazon find in recent months…

O N E – Best Leggings for Summer

So I’m a huge fan of the Zella leggings… they’re my all-time favorite!  I also love the 90 Degree leggings found on Amazon, as they are an inexpensive substitute for the Zellas.  I love wearing leggings year-round, but here in the south, summertime is HOT, so I usually find that I don’t enjoy wearing my Zellas or 90 Degrees because they’re so thick. 

I came across these leggings on Amazon, and oh my word, they are fantastic!!  Most of the reviews state that they’re very similar to the Lulu Align leggings, but I’ve never owned Lulu so I can’t vouch for that.  What I do know is that the fit is identical to the Zella and 90 Degree leggings, but they are much thinner, which is perfect for summer!  They come up just above my belly button and they feel like butter… so silky.  They’re so weightless you really don’t feel like you’re wearing anything when you have them on.  That said, they’re not see-through and they don’t feel cheap.  They’re suuuuper stretchy (like, crazily) so they move when you move, and you don’t have to worry about them sliding around on your hips and/or butt.  They stay in place during all of the activities I’ve tried including yoga, running, jumping jacks, and even squats!! 

I. love. these. leggings. 

They’re on Amazon for $28 and, in true Amazon fashion, they come in lots of different colors and patterns… 24 to be exact.  I have numerous pairs of black leggings so I thought it would be fun to change it up with the leopard ones.  Since they’re so stretchy, I suggest that you size down if you’re not sure which size to get (most reviews on Amazon suggest, this too).  I wear a medium in the Zella leggings (I can wear the small, too, but I find that those run tight, so I prefer to size up so they’re not so tight) but I wear a small in these.  I actually ordered the extra-small and the small in these since I wasn’t sure which ones would work better, and the extra-smalls worked for me as well!  I ultimately decided to keep the smalls just in case they shrink a little when I wash them.

With over 4,000 reviews and 4.4 out of 5 stars, you know they’re good!  I will definitely be buying these in other colors!

T W O – Powder Brush

I’ve been using the same pressed powder for over a decade, so I haven’t owned a powder brush in years.  The older I get, the drier my skin gets, so I recently decided it was probably time to kick the pressed powder to the curb and start using a loose powder instead, so I can just target the areas of my face that truly need it.  I still haven’t settled on a new powder yet, but in the meantime, I decided to go ahead and order a nice powder brush and start using it with my pressed powder to see how I like it. 

I got this brush from Target.com and I really love it.  The bristles are so soft and it feels great on my face.  The brush has held its shape well, too, and I haven’t had any trouble with the bristles shedding so I think it’ll last a long time.  It feels high quality, but at a cheaper price tag than the more expensive brushes.  It has almost 10,000 reviews on Amazon with 4.7 out of 5 stars, so that’s ultimately why I chose this one.

I’m no makeup expert, but I am hoping to give my makeup and skin care routines an overhaul over the next few months.  I just turned 38, and with all of these new wrinkles popping up, I think it’s high time I start taking skin care more seriously.

T H R E E – All American

I’ve mentioned this show in my weekly recaps on many occasions, but I know a lot of you probably gloss over those posts because they’re verrrry lengthy, so I thought I’d mention it again here... fitting considering it’s my favorite show right now!  We just started season two and I’m enamored.  

For starters, this show has the most gorgeous cast I’ve ever seen… every single one of them is beautiful, especially my faaaave, Coach Billy Baker AKA Taye Diggs!!  <3 <3  The show is about high school kids in LA and surrounding areas (with a focus on the football team), and even though fictional, the show tackles the very real struggles of black people in America and the effects of systemic racism… especially poignant right now with all that’s been brought to light with the Black Lives Matter movement.    

The show is surprisingly unpredictable… I always think that I know what’s coming, and almost every time, I end up being wrong, which is quite refreshing.  Most episodes end on a mild to major cliffhanger which keeps me coming back for more night after night.  If you need a good series to get into, I highly recommend this one. 

The good thing is that there is already some meat to the series – it’s already two full seasons (on Netflix), each season has 16 episodes, and each episode is 40-45 minutes long – so you’ll have plenty to enjoy once you’re invested after the first couple of episodes.  There’s nothing more frustrating than starting a new series, only to blow through it in three nights because it’s only one season with eight 25-minute episodes.  Haha.  I HATE that.  And season three is due to come out sometime this October so there will be even more available to watch soon!  I’ll be counting down the days!

F O U R – Our Little Party Girl

I just love how festive and happy-go-lucky Olivia is… we don’t call her our jolly gal for nothing!  She is just full of sunshine and confetti and it’s hard not to smile when you’re around her.  A couple of weeks ago she decided to make a sign for her chair at the kitchen table just because, and in keeping with her always festive personality, she wrote “Let’s Party!” on it.  Hahahaha.  I just love her, y’all.

F I V E – Wine Delivery

B and I love wine, so we keep it on hand at all times.  While we spring for nicer bottles from time to time for special occasions, we mostly keep the Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw on hand for everyday consumption because it’s more affordable.  Well, we don’t have a Trader Joe’s here, so we’ve always just bought it by the case every time we go to Atlanta.  Since we haven’t been able to go to Atlanta in months (and won’t be going anytime soon) we haven’t been able to buy any, and we’ve officially run dry.  Noooo!

Since TJ’s doesn’t ship, we’ve been settling for Walmart’s Oak Leaf for our everyday wine (only $2.97 per bottle), but it’s just not nearly as good as TJ’s.  Last week B decided to buy a half of a case of wine from our favorite winery, Crane Creek Vineyards, in north Georgia.  We fell in love during our first visit several years ago, and we’ve continued to visit year-after-year on our mountain trips.  We’re now the proud owners of four bottles of their Mountain Harvest Red and two bottles of their Hellbender… our favorites!!  Such a nice treat while we’re hanging out here at home.  Now if only fall would come so we could enjoy it on the back porch without melting…   

Friday Funnies

I volunteer as tribute.

So true.

Blame it on the quarantine.

100%

The struggle is real, y'all.

On the Blog This Week

Family Beach Pictures

Our Week – The One with Quarantine, Week 17 & Summer, Week 7 (Visit with Mama Cass & Yearbooks)

What I Wore – June 2020

Happy Friday, y’all! 

*Linking up with A Little Bit of Everything for Friday Favorites.