February Favorites

Hey everyone! Can't believe my birthday month has already come to an end. Sad, sad. However, that means it's time for February Favorites! I'm adding non-beauty favorites to this post because I don't actually have that many beauty favorites, so here goes...

TRESemme Keratin Smooth Heat Protectant Spray: I got this as a Klout perk at the beginning of the month and have been really loving it. I got it with the shampoo & conditioner from this line so I'll be reviewing the trio soon!

Bumble and bumble Surf Spray: You guys probably could have predicted that this would be in my favorites this month because I gave it such a positive review. Seriously though, it does great things for my hair.

Soap & Glory Hand Food: My hands have been soooo soo dry this month and this has been my go-to hand cream. Do I think it's particularly life-changing? No, it's a hand cream. But it smells nice and does the job, so I'm happy with it.

MAC Lustre lipstick in "Syrop": I got this as a birthday gift and have been wearing it everyday since. It's such a nice, subtle color and I think it matches my skin tone really well. It's pretty sheer too since it's a Lustre finish, making it really easy to reapply throughout the day. Love!

OPI Liquid Sand in "Get Your Number": Guys. This stuff is SO cool. I haven't been on my NOTD game lately so I haven't photographed it (unfortunately), but I did snap a quick Instagram - CLICK HERE to see it. The application is just unreal and the texture is awesome. I really would love to purchase another one but I've been going a bit nail polish-happy this month, so unfortunately I'll have to refrain...

Bath & Body Works Candle in "Winter": This is my only "empty" for this month, and for good reason. This was such an amazing candle and I'm so sad to see it gone. It was the perfect combination of sweet and spicy with a little bit of fresh pine scent. It wasn't overbearing whatsoever and made the house smell fresh and cozy.

iPhone 4: I got this in the middle of the month and of course, it has been my number one favorite. It's so much more user-friendly compared to my Blackberry so I've been really happy with it. That also means I've got a few app favorites this month...

Apps Gone Free: This is an app that offers paid apps for free on one-day-only promotions. I've gotten some great games and utility apps out of it so it's definitely worth the download. It's awesome for iPad too!

Instagram: Of course, I had to get an Instagram. (Link to follow me is in the left sidebar). I actually much prefer Instagram for my NOTDs lately so if you want a sneak peek of what I've been wearing on my nails - check it out!

Icon Pop Quiz: I had this app on my iPad for a while now and actually beat all the levels, but they seem to have updated it and added some new ones. Basically you have to guess what each image corresponds to. All of the themes are pop culture-related. It's really had me hooked!



This has been my absolute favorite YouTube video this month - Tyler Oakley featured on You Deserve a Drink. It made me laugh so hard, I must have watched it at least 7 times.



If you are interested in the whole YouTube phenomena, I highly suggest ninebrassmonkeys' documentary series on the topic. This week's video has proved to be incredibly controversial (I too have some issues with it - especially his opinion on makeup gurus), but the core argument is valid in my opinion. Have a look for yourself!

So that concludes the February favorites! Please leave links to your "favorites" posts in the comments below, and please recommend some good apps for me to download!

OPI Euro Centrale Collection GIVEAWAY! [CLOSED]

Hey everyone! So I was at the mall yesterday and decided to pick up the OPI Euro Centrale collection minis for a little giveaway. I've been really happy with my blog lately and I expanded my social media a bit (Instagram and Facebook), so I wanted to call attention to those as well.

The shades include (left to right): Can't Find My Czechbook, Suzi's Hungary AGAIN!, You're Such a Budapest, Oy-Another Polish Joke

TERMS & CONDITIONS:

1) Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY
2) Must be 18+ years of age or have your parent's permission to enter
3) Must fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter
4) Must be willing to provide a shipping address if won
5) The winner will announced in a separate blog post and will be emailed
6) You are only eligible to win if you have not won a previous giveaway on Abundance of Erica (including this, this, this, and this)
7) If the winner does not respond to my email within 48 hours, another winner will be contacted
8) All prizes will be shipped in pristine condition (none have been removed from their original packaging), but I cannot be held responsible for damages that occur in transit
9) GIVEAWAY ENDS ON MARCH 15TH

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

Confessions of a Blogger TAG

Hey everyone! A while ago, Meghan from Mainly Meghan tagged me to do this post! I had it sitting in my drafts for so long that I figured it was finally time to bring it to life. Big thanks to Meghan for tagging me! Do go check out her blog :)

Have you had any past online presence before? (Other blog, YouTube, etc)
Yup! I had one other blog before. I can't remember what it's called and I think I deleted it, but I used to use it as a diary type thing where I'd recap my day and stuff. I think I posted a total of maybe four times? LOL. Kind of a fail. But I've had Tumblr and Twitter for a very, very long time. I'm no internet newb ;)

Why did you start a blog?
Specifically - because I was procrastinating on some homework. Actually - because I knew I wanted to get into the online beauty world, and I felt like YouTube was too big a leap (still is).

When did you become so serious about starting a blog?
Well, I started mine in February of last year, but I only started blogging "seriously" in the summer. I mean, I still don't see it as a very serious thing. I don't give myself any restrictions and blogging is, in the end, just a hobby. My only goal is to post at least 10 times per month, which is pretty challenging especially because I'm in school, but it's reasonable considering my will to keep this blog alive and running.

What was your first post?
I guess you can say I kind of eased into blogging about beauty. My first post was this gem of an introduction, and my three subsequent posts had nothing to do with beauty. My first beauty post was my "most worn tag: summer 2012" - back when I included 2000 photos in one entry hahaha.

This is the first picture I ever posted on this blog. Sooo pretty right? :P

What has been your biggest challenge while blogging?
Coming up with content is tough sometimes but I always manage to think of something. I think I get into this rut of like, "is this post going to be popular? Are people going to want to read this?" and sometimes I forget to blog about what I like aside from beauty. I used to do Tumblr recaps (i.e. what I've been reblogging on Tumblr), and movie reviews. I plan on doing more soon.

Where do you see your blog in one year?
Hopefully at 1000 followers! I do work really hard on this page and it would be great to see so many people enjoying it!

What is the most rewarding thing about blogging?
I think it's nice to have my friends come to me and say "hey I read your blog! It's great!" It's a huge confirmation for me because I know at least someone is appreciating my posts - and I can get instant feedback.

What is the most discouraging thing about blogging?
I'm going to be honest. I feel like most of the people that read my blog and comment are only looking to advertise their page. I don't get any real feedback. I rarely get comments that show an engagement with the post. It can be a little discouraging.

But then I realize we're all in the same boat; our goals are to reach x amount of followers and you need to put yourself out there somehow. It serves as a lesson to me as well: I try to comment on as many other blogs as possible to show that I a) care and support my fellow #bbloggers and b) actually read the post! However I do leave my URL at the bottom because it's true - I gotta do what I gotta do lol!

What's your lasting inspiration or motivation?
I think it's just the thought of seeing how much my blog will have evolved in one, two, three years. I love going through a popular blog's archives and seeing how basic and trivial their early posts were in comparison to where they are now. My blog is essentially beauty-related, but I put a lot of "Erica" into it. So it's going to be cool to see how it turns out.

I'll go ahead and tag a few people... Sophia, Jessica, Laura, Sophia, Beth, Laura, Elysa, Annabelle. Of course (as always), feel free to complete the tag yourself! If you got this far it would be a shame not to leave a comment! ;)

REVIEW: Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray

The Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray has received a lot of hype within the online beauty world, and I figured I'd try it out for myself and get back to you guys!

I was searching for a product that would give my hair a little something extra. It felt a little dull and limp and needed some body, so I picked this baby up at Sephora. I paid $19 for it, which admittedly is a little pricey, but let's see how it fared...

I tried out the product on two different occasions. On the top right: third-day hair. I wanted to see if it would give my lifeless curls some body. It seems like the spray straightened it out somehow, but I like the way it de-frizzed and smoothed out my hair.

On the bottom left: You can see very clearly in this photo that the spray livened up my hair significantly. It added volume, controlled frizz, and defined the curls. This morning (see the next photo), I found my curls perfectly intact. Usually they deflate during the night, but the spray somehow managed to hold the curl. Incredible!

Note: The bottle says to use it on damp or dry hair - but I recommend using it on dry hair. It didn't do much for me when my hair was wet to be honest. I simply heat styled, and then used this in lieu of hairspray. Also, make sure you wash it out properly in the shower to avoid buildup.

VERDICT: I really, really love this product. I think it does wonders. If you feel like your hair is a little dull definitely give this a shot. I can't say it works for everyone but it definitely worked on me!

How To Win a Giveaway: Top 7 Tips

Hey everyone! As you all know I love entering giveaways. I think it's a great way to acquire new products if your pockets are tight, and nothing really beats the feeling of winning a giveaway!

I've won I think about 5 or 6 giveaways to-date, so I thought I'd share some tips. I guess when it comes down to it, you need to have a bit of luck on your side, but I've noticed there are a few ways to approach a giveaway effectively.

An assortment of my giveaway wins to-date (not all of them - just a few)

1) Make sure you're eligible: There's nothing more disappointing/annoying than winning a giveaway that you were not eligible for in the first place (some giveaways are UK only, for example). It's crucial to read all the terms before entering - this will make your life and the giveaway host's life much easier.

2) You need to have a GFC account: To be honest, I've no clue how to make one - you'll need to Google that for yourself (sorry! I made mine so long ago I forgot how!), but most blog giveaways require that you follow them via GFC. Also - up your chances by creating accounts on the following platforms: HelloCotton, Bloglovin', Klout, SheSaidBeauty, Instagram, and YouTube. Of course, you will need Facebook to join a Rafflecopter giveaway, and a Twitter account is important too.

3) Enter every day/as often as you can via Twitter: Most blog giveaways allow an extra entry for a daily tweet. I suggest creating a separate Twitter account for blogging & giveaway purposes to avoid spamming your friends with giveaway tweets (mine is abundanceerica, for example), but be careful - many bloggers know that people create accounts solely for giveaways and could disqualify your entries, so make sure you use it to interact with #bbloggers as well (i.e. don't take advantage of people by creating multiple accounts!).

4) Misc. Twitter entry tips: The following are a few ways to make tweeting about giveaways easy.

Step 1: Click the "Tweet" button on the giveaway widget. This will open up a dialogue box containing a pre-written tweet & therefore will save you the trouble of having to make one up yourself.

Step 2: Add the hashtag #giveaway to the beginning of your tweet. This will simplify your life when it comes to tweeting daily. You can more easily discern giveaway tweets from your other tweets. For an example feel free to view my Twitter page - how quickly did you locate my giveaway tweets?

Step 3: For a split second, your dialogue box will change to this and then close. You'll need to be quick - before it closes, click "View it on Twitter -->". This will send you to a direct link of your tweet so that you can easily copy & paste it into the giveaway widget (seen in Step 1).

5) Write up a blog post about current giveaways: Every once in a while, write up a blog post linking current giveaways. Most giveaways give a good amount of entries for completing this. Also, you will get tons of hits on your blog - they're some of my most viewed posts! Check out my most recent one HERE.

6) Don't disregard non-Rafflecopter giveaways: Although I couldn't imagine holding a giveaway without using Rafflecopter (genius system, really), it's a good idea to enter non-Rafflecopter giveaways as well. These tend to be more low-profile and you will have a better chance in winning because they tend to circulate the web less.

7) Enter Twitter/Facebook/YouTube giveaways too: Many cosmetic companies will have giveaways on Twitter asking you to follow and retweet for a chance to win. I've won a Benetint from @BenefitCanada by doing this! Facebook giveaways are good to enter as well - except I participate less because they usually involve spamming your friends. YouTube giveaways are more difficult to win because YouTubers tend to have a bigger following, therefore more people will be inclined to enter, however I did win Amarixe's Lush giveaway recently so they're worth a shot! My tip would be to bookmark YouTube giveaways and re-name them to the date they close - that way you know how much time to you have to enter.

BONUS TIP: Never, ever, ever unfollow a blog after their giveaway is over. I won't even explain this. Just don't be rude.

That's all folks! I hope you found this post useful! I think I may write up a post about how to host a giveaway properly (seeing as I've done 4 thus far so I have some experience)... Let me know if you'd enjoy reading that in the comments!

Current Giveaway Updates

Hey everyone! I thought I'd make a quick post to update you all on giveaways currently going on in the beauty world. NOTE: I haven't included all of the giveaways I'm currently entering - only the ones that offer additional entries for a blog post. If you want to know about more giveaways check out my Twitter which you can find on the right-hand side of this page (or you can click here to follow)!

http://daisy--meadow.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/nearly-500-gfc-followers-giveaway.html

http://aqeelakeela.blogspot.ca/2013/01/300-follower-giveaway.html

http://www.epiphanniea.co.uk/2013/02/mac-stereo-rose-giveaway15.html

http://lolarose1.blogspot.ie/2013/01/thank-you-giveaway-mystery-box-of.html

http://sophiameola.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/1000-follower-chanel-beauty-goodie.html

http://dawndugong.blogspot.ca/2013/02/giveaway-win-urban-decays-glinda-or.html

http://princesagr.blogspot.gr/2013/02/300-followers-giveaway.html

(If you have an international/North American/Canadian giveaway going on and would like to be added to this post - well worth it because my giveaway posts get hits for weeks & weeks after I publish - go ahead and leave a quick comment!)