March 26, 2018

5 College Regrets

The 5 things I'd redo about college are 1) set goals for myself, 2) take attendance more seriously, 3) do a degree audit earlier, 4) hosted a little harder for a real job, and 5) be more involved with the law. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

It is absolutely crazy to me that I’m about to graduate law school! High school went by fast, college even faster, and somehow law school went by the fastest of them all. Since I’m about to finally be done with school after 22 years straight of it, I’ve suddenly become very nostalgic. And with that, I got to thinking about things I’d do differently if I could go back and do it all over again. For time’s sake, I’ve narrowed it down just to 5 regrets I have about college. Hopefully this will give some insight to some bright-eyed freshmen and a wakeup call to any upperclassmen so you can have less regrets than I do. Although that isn’t to say that I don’t love looking back on my times in college and high school!

1. Set goals for myself

I came into college flying by the seat of my pants and while that definitely came in handy several times, it did have its downsides. If you know me then you know that I’m a big fan of making a goal and then having lots of little milestones to get me that goal. Once I realized that med school wasn’t for me, I knew in general that I kinda wanted to be a lawyer but I actually didn’t do much about that until the summer before my senior year (why I’m not surprised I had such bad luck applying to law schools). Honestly I think part of the problem was that getting in to college was pretty easy for me so I greatly underestimated the effort that it takes to get in to law school. I wish I had taken the time to figure out all of the little pieces that it takes to get in to law school and all of the little steps that I’d need to do along the way to get me there. I’m happy where I’ve ended up, but I do think I could’ve done a little more work in college to make the journey here way less bumpy. 

What you can do is to sit down and make a 5 year professional plan. Think of everything you would do if you can! It’s okay if some of this is a wish list and something that honestly might not happen. Then take that and figure out what’s most important to you and organize your list. Then try to come up with at least 5 things you need to do to make each thing happen (so if you want to go to law school, think like good LSAT score). Then look at those 5 things and think of any steps you need to make that happen. In the end, you’ll end up with your big goals broken up into small goals, and those small goals broken up into steps to do. Then give yourself a timeline or due dates to keep you on track. I actually really like the Passion Planner for doing this! If you do this at the beginning of every school year or semester, you’ll feel much more in control of chasing after your dreams.

Related: What to do every year of college to prepare for law school

2. Taken attendance more seriously

My attendance my freshman and sophomore years of college were so stereotypically terrible. Even for the easy classes that I could skip a lot, I wish I still would have gone more. First off, it’s just a bad habit and then was a huge adjustment for me when I got to law school and basically couldn’t miss any class (I had perfect attendance in some classes!). Law school really helped me see the obvious in that if you actually go to class and actually pay attention in class, the tests are so much easier! I mean my 1L year I was getting a little paranoid that it was too easy when my “studying” for finals was mostly just a review for once instead of me trying to last minute teach myself an entire subject. Not only that, but regularly showing up in class is a great way to make a good impression on a professor so that when you do come to them for a letter of recommendation they won’t be like “who are you??”

Before I got here, I had heard that the best way to success in law school is to treat it like I job and that’s one thing that I’ve learned is spot on! Now I know this is easier said than done because it’s not the norm in college, but try to at least try to be a good student. Learn how to convince yourself to go to class even though you have 10 other reasons not to go. Learn how to take your laptop and only take notes on it, completely muting iMessage and avoiding Facebook/Pinterest/online shopping. At least read the summaries of the assigned chapter before you go to class so you’ll actually know what’s going on. I promise you that you will be so grateful that you did.

Related: The difference between college and law school

3. Do a degree audit earlier

Here’s the thing: I actually regret my degree. Not because I don’t like Spanish or anything, but because of how I ended up being a Spanish major. The truth is, I was in the honors college working to get one of their degrees, when I submitted my intent to graduate my junior year just like everyone else. I got an email back from my advisor letting me know that I was at least 3 semesters away from graduating since I was behind on my honors classes and there’s only so many offered each semester. At that point, my options were either drag out graduating for a year and a half or bump my minor up to my major. Basically it was a hot mess. All of this could have been avoided if I did a degree audit earlier and kept up with that better. I even have friends who have had the same problem and ended up graduating in August after they had already assumed they were graduating in May. Go to your advisors office often and make sure you stay on top of this. Even if it’s not required, still go visit your advisor and talk to them. When I went to see my advisor about switching my major, she was so helpful and even told me which professors to take because they were easier!

At the time, I didn’t really feel like it mattered because even though you have to have a science degree to get in to med or dental or vet school, there is no degree requirement to go to law school. But now that I’m semi out here in the real world, I realize that this was the wrong way to look at it! Sure you can have a degree in underwater basket weaving and still get in to law school, but that’s still going to show up on your resume. So imagine you’re sitting in an interview trying to tie together your random degree with the job you’re applying for. I’ve definitely already ran in to that because I’ve lost a lot of my fluency since graduating so my degree is kinda worthless now. Now that I know I want to work in in-house or employment law, I wish I would have taken more business and HR classes. I also really wish I would’ve taken a tax class so that I actually knew what “basis” and “the line” was before I was struggling in my tax law class. My point is, don’t just do a degree audit with your school for graduation; do one with yourself for your future as well! (conveniently, this also goes along really well with that I was saying in #1)

Related: How to Choose a Pre-Law Major

4. Hustled a little harder for a real job

I only had two jobs in college, and both of those were minimum wage retail associate positions. They helped me to have spending money, but that’s about it. Do you know how hard it was for me my 1L year to apply for jobs with no real job experience? I mean, I couldn’t exactly connect being a teller with being a summer associate because they didn’t have much in common besides “excellent people skills” and “trustworthiness around money.” I fully understand that everyone has to start somewhere and that I probably would have had these jobs anyways, but I wish I would’ve used what little experience I did have at these jobs to move on up in the world. I can’t explain how jealous you feel when you’re sitting in class and someone is talking about how they totally understand the foreign concept your professor is talking about because they had some experience with that in some way at their job. Remember, law school is a game and one way to get ahead is to come in with some life knowledge beyond just how to neatly fold and stack shirts.

If I could, I would go back and tell myself to always be on the job hunt. I know job hunting is miserable but I missed up opportunities by being complacent with my boring job. Even if it’s still a typical part-time job, look for jobs where you can possible find a mentor (and hey maybe a rec letter on your worth ethic too). Look for jobs that will give you an opportunity to grow and gain some experience. Springboard what you have into moving up in the world and set yourself up for success once you get to law school and you’ll be so grateful that you did!

Related: How to find an internship

5. Be more involved with the law

I thought I had a good idea about what to generally expect working in the law through hearing law students and lawyers come and talk to my pre-law chapter of Phi Alpha Delta when I was in college, but at the time I didn’t realize how that was just the tip of the iceberg. There’s actually a lot of stuff about the law that I didn’t even know about until I went to orientation as a 1L! I wish I would’ve hung out in a courtroom, shadowed a lawyer, seek out an unpaid internship, really just anything to give me some fist-hand experience before I went in to law school! It was really hard my 1L and 2L year when I’d get asked “what kind of law do you want to practice” in a job interview and all I had for them was a doe-in-the-headlights look (as you can imagine, this didn’t exactly impress them). Even when I was interviewing for my externship, they asked why I wanted to do in-house law and I had no real good answer for them! Now in interviews, I’ve experienced enough to say that I know that criminal isn’t for me because I sat through a few trials and I know that I like employment law because I’ve had a few assignments with that and I know I like commercial real estate law because I’ve looked over dozens of real estate agreements. Having these experiences to tie in to why I want to work somewhere is a much better answer than just “oh I liked this one class that’s relevant to this so I think I’ll like this job.”

I didn’t bother to get involved in the legal field before law school because I knew that I would figure it out on my own, but I wish I would have had some real life experience before I came so I could have some kind of idea about what classes would interest me and what jobs would be good to apply to. Make it your mission to learn about as many different areas of the law as you can so you’ll know more going in! Even if you do have to spend all summer working a paid part-time job for money and an unpaid part-time internship, you won’t regret doing it. And absolutely try to go hang out in a courthouse as much as you can! It sounds little, but you’d be amazed at what you learn. Trials are open to the public by law and if you tell them you’re a prospective or current law student, you’d be amazed at how the help give you a behind-the-scenes look. And all of these experiences are great to touch on in your personal statement to connect your own story and the law.

Related: 5 things to do before law school 

I feel like such a big sister out here pushing y’all to learn from my mistakes haha! But I do hope that some of what I’ve said today will resonate with you and help you get your life just a little bit more together before you head off to become the Next Elle Woods. If you’re brave enough, I’d love to read what mistakes you realized that you made after graduating college!  

March 21, 2018

Pastel Stationary Supplies for Spring

The prettiest pastel stationary supplies for spring, including soft-toned pens, highlighters, paper products, and office supplies. spring school supplies. pastel desk supplies. pretty stationary supplies. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

Spring has sprung!! I know so many people say fall is their favorite season because it has sweaters and pumpkin spice lattes and whatnot, but hands down my favorite season is Spring!! Thankfully it's even starting to feel like spring here in Dallas and I couldn't be happier. To celebrate (or get you in the mood if you live up north where it's still freezing), I'm sharing some of my favorite spring-colored pastel supplies!


Pens


Staedtler really is a staple brand to have because their pens are just amazing! The colors are perfect and they don't bleed at all. The pastel Staedtler pens are great for either brightening up your notes or writing up your spring adventures in your planner.


Since retro is the new thing, let's throw it back to elementary school with some pastel gel pens! And you can totally be a ~signs legal document with a pastel pink gel pen~ kinda person with these.




Okay so these are technically "pens" but they're more like markers. If you're on the creative side, then these pastel art pens are perfect for everything from bullet journaling to practicing your calligraphy. 



Haha at this point I'm using the term "pens" very fast and loose here, but these pastel Sharpies were just too pretty not to include. But in my defense, they are fine point so at least they're close to being pens!


Highlighters


Allow me to introduce you to the iconic Zebra Mildliner highlighters, but in pastel. They will literally make your day as you're highlighting in your casebook because they're so bright and cheery!



Equally as iconic is the Stabilo BOSS wallet! They're so cute and chunky and now they're pretty in pink (and 5 other pastel colors as well!



I've been obsessed with Pilot FriXon highlighters ever since I saw them "in the wild" haha because they actually do erase themselves without smudging and leaving a residue! So of course, I had to include the pastel set of these erasable highlighters in this list. 



These pastel highlighters are super cute and chunky just like the Stabilo ones above, and are in some seriously gorgeous colors!



Okay last set of highlighters I swear! I just had to include these Monami pastel highlighters to the list because I like how there's actually a wide range of colors so you get a lot of options even though they're all pastel colors.

Related: My favorite highlighters and why


Paper products


I know it's the beginning of the semester, but now is a good time to grab some extra notebooks before you run out of room or stock up while it's off-season for school supplies. This set of pastel notebooks is absolutely adorable to go matching with your pastel pens and highlighters. 



Of course I would be a terrible law student if I didn't throw in some pastel legal pads! My 6th grade math teacher actually made us use these because she had read somewhere that colored paper is easier on your eyes or helps you concentrate better. I can't exactly remember what it was but I know we were the most colorful 6th grade class ever haha.


If legal pads aren't your thing, but you want to try out my math teacher's theory on colored paper, then maybe try these pastel notebooks. They have dotted lines which I think are pretty cool!



Lastly, are pastel pocket journals! These will be great to have at your internship but you can get some use out of them now by journaling or just jotting down thoughts in them.


Office Supplies


Tell me you don't get happy just looking at one of these pastel file folders! They come in lots of soft colors but also are great for keeping up with professor handouts or storing your résumés in a place where they won't get crumpled.



Page tabs are amazing because in your casebook they can help you easily find chapters and in your statute book they really help to quickly find a statute when you're on call. So you might as well make your book pretty with some pastel page tabs!



I use sticky notes for like everything because I'm a scatter brain, so I love the idea of having pastel Post-Its because I'm sure that I'll go through the whole pack before the end of spring. A great idea would be to write a little daily affirmation or motivational quote on them and stick them on your mirror for a pretty little pick me up :)



Washi tape is great because not only will it really step up your planner game, but it's great for around the house! I will tear off a small piece of tape and stick it on leftovers with the date I made it so that I don't accidentally eat something so old it went bad. With lots of colors in this pastel washi tape set, you can find lots of ways to use them!

Whoo okay I'm done!! Haha I hadn't originally meant for this post to be so long, but once I got started I just couldn't stop because I already love both stationary supplies and pastels. Do you like pastels too? Or what's your favorite part about Spring?! I'd love to know so tell me in the comments!
let's be friends!


 

March 16, 2018

5 Internship Desk Must Haves

5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

Helloooo! Today's post has been requested a few times so I'm so excited to finally get around to posting this! What took me so long to post it was that I'm currently in a temporary position so I haven't really decorated my desk a whole lot, plus my desk area isn't all that huge so even if I wanted to, I wouldn't have much room to put stuff even if I wanted to. I'll save a "what's on my desk" post for once I do get a job and have a desk, and today's post is just about 5 basic things that belong on any desk.

And as an intern, you should be cautious decorating your desk in general, because you are just temporary so you don't wan't to waste your time/money practically moving in for only a few weeks. Just use your best judgment once you get the feel of your office!

Related: How to set up your desk for school


Notebook

#1 Notebook -- 5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

I’ve mentioned it before but it’s worth mentioning again, as an intern you are going to want and need a notebook! I take notes on all of my assignments as they’re being assigned to me, and then will keep my notebook within reach on my desk at all times. I reference it every single time before I turn in an assignment to make sure that I did everything that was asked of me and didn’t get any details confused. And when I get asked to tag along in a meeting, it’s always the first thing I grab for before heading off.

To-do pad

#2 To-Do List -- 5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com
One Friday, no lie I received like 8 different assignments within 30 minutes! I instantly felt so overwhelmed even though most of the assignments were fairly easy, just because I didn’t know where to start. So now every morning I take a look at what assignments I have going on, and use those to make a daily to-do list. I make mine very detailed so I don’t forget anything— one assignment might have 10 different to-do boxes just because I’ll have email so-and-so about this; meet with boss about this; look up this on WestLaw; add changes so-and-so sent yesterday; CC paralegal on email; send final copy to so-and-so. Every step gets its own box and it really helps me stay on top of everything. I’ll also make a note of when I send people emails so then I’ll know to follow up with them in a week or two if they forget to reply to me, just so I don’t drop the ball and forget to finish an assignment.

Badge lanyard

#3 Badge Lanyard -- 5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com
At every single job I’ve had since coming to law school (both government and corporate), I’ve had to have a badge. So my guess is, most of you will probably have to have a badge. Usually the badges have some kind of clip on them, but if you don’t have pockets it can be uncomfortable to clip right on your waistband and if you wear a dress you’ll have nowhere to clip it to. The first time I wore a dress at my internship I just left my badge on my desk but then totally forgot about it when I went to a meeting and got locked out after going to the bathroom! So now I have a trusty badge lanyard that I wear most days just because I never want to get locked out again.

Water bottle

#4 Water Bottle -- 5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com
Is it weird that I have a “work water bottle?” Because I totally do! One day I forgot to bring it and I was dyyyying that whole day because I had to get up every 5 minutes to refill my little Styrofoam cup that I grabbed from the breakroom. And then I realized just how much easier life is without having to haul your water bottle to and from work every day. Since I only use it for water, all I have to do is rinse it out and clean the mouth piece and then it’s good to go every day. Plus if you carry around the same water bottle all day, every day then people will start to know it as “your drink” and can bring it by your desk if you set it down and forget it somewhere 😊

Minimergency kit

#5 Minimergency Kit -- 5 items that on my work desk that I actually use every single day and couldn't survive without are a notebook, to-do list, badge lanyard, water bottle and minimergency kit. what's on my desk. what to buy for an internship. what you need for an internship. what to bring to on your first day of work. internship supplies. desk supplies. law school blog. law school blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

I took my minimergency kit out of my backpack and brought it to my desk when I first got to my internship! I love having it on my desk because nothing makes you notice something wrong with your nail quite like reading a contract 😂. For real though, I will end up filing my nail at least once a week with the mini emery board in there. And the sewing kit gives me this huge peace of mind to know that if I were to have a button fall off or something, I could quickly run to the bathroom and actually fix it instead of looking dumb all day. Basically anything you might need is probably in here!

That’s basically the few items on my desk that I would be seriously upset if I didn’t have one day. You’ll notice that all of these things are small because as an intern you actually won’t need that much. The smallness is also handy because that means they can all fit in your purse on your first day so you can have everything you need on day one without having to bring a box full of your crap or something.

Related: What's in my work bag

Hope everyone enjoys St. Patrick’s this weekend! I took a three day weekend and am going to the Houston Rodeo since I don’t technically have a spring break (ugh the real world). For those of you still on spring break, enjoy it for me!
let's be friends!


March 14, 2018

5 Best Work Basics from Amazon

Summer internships are coming up, so here's 5 cheap work clothes option to help make it easier when you have to take an unpaid internship. where to find cheap work clothes. amazon business casual clothes. amazon business professional clothes. what to buy for a work capsule wardrobe. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

And I'm back with Work Wear Wednesday #2! Today I decided to share some workwear finds from Amazon of all places. As students, we get access to free Amazon Student Prime! This means free two-day shipping and free returns. With that plus cheap finds, getting work basics off Amazon is a way to start getting work wardrobe without spending much.

Related: What you'll need for a lawyer wardrobe 

I'm low key obsessed with Amazon and shop on there way too much, but recently just decided to start buying more than just household items on there and try out their clothes. I was really worried about buying clothes from Amazon because I was afraid of getting clothes that were made out of cheap material and that looked nothing like what the picture was. This isn't the norm, but that's not to say that it hasn't happened to me. My biggest tip for buying clothes from Amazon is to read the reviews and especially look at any reviews with pictures if you can. Save your time and money and don't order something with a bunch of different people saying the material is scratchy or something. But if you do end up with a miss, the best part about Amazon is the free returns so just go ahead and send it back!


Basic camis


I ordered this white cami to wear with jeans and a cardigan this spring, but one day was like hey maybe it'll look good under a blazer and damn was I right! The material was perfect to be business-y and it has built-in fabric to keep my bra from showing through. I actually loved it so much that I went back and got it in black and green!

Basic shells

Basic work tops - where to find cheap work clothes. amazon business casual clothes. amazon business professional clothes. what to buy for a work capsule wardrobe. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

While camis are great under blazers, sleeveless work tops are great to wear suits when you need to be more formal. If your office is casual you might get away with wearing them as-is, but you can always make it more professional by adding a blazer or cardigan on top.

Basic pants

Basic work pants - where to find cheap work clothes. amazon business casual clothes. amazon business professional clothes. what to buy for a work capsule wardrobe. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

While you'll definitely need a suit, you won't necessarily need to wear your suit pants every single day and instead can wear just normal business professional pants. Since this pair is only $30, you can easily build a capsule wardrobe just by buying a black pair one month, a navy pair another month, and a gray pair another month!

Chiffon tops

Chiffon tops - where to find cheap work clothes. amazon business casual clothes. amazon business professional clothes. what to buy for a work capsule wardrobe. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

Chiffon tops always look good for work because they're a step up from regular cotton shirts. Basically any color you get will go perfect with the pants above, and then you can mix and match to easily create a capsule wardrobe since this top is only $20 each. 

Bow tie tops

Bow tie tops - where to find cheap work clothes. amazon business casual clothes. amazon business professional clothes. what to buy for a work capsule wardrobe. law school blog. law student blogger | brazenandbrunette.com

Let's just all agree to never use the official term for these "pussy bow" and just call them by the less-awkward "bow tie" (even though it sounds like a guy's bow tie). Once you get past the name, bow tie tops are amazing for work! They look so stylish and classic tucked into a pencil skirt! Personally I think everyone should have one just because they look so damn good.

See? Some actually good stuff on there! And this is just 5 pieces of the literal thousands of professional clothing options on Amazon. Since there's nothing fancy about these pieces, you can easily stock up on them and instead of paying $100 for one pair of pants, you can get pants and 2-3 tops! But here's to hoping that one day $100 will actually be cheap for what we can afford to spend on work pants haha. 
let's be friends!


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March 12, 2018

Fab Fit Fun Update

What products of a Fab Fit Fun subscription box are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com

So apparently I'm terrible about writing Fab Fit Fun box reviews! When I got my spring box last week I was thinking about how I still need to write about my winter box and then when I got to thinking about what all I got in that, I realized that I never wrote about my fall box! So this is a hodge-podge catchup post! It's actually kind of nice that I'm playing catch up so I can honestly tell y'all what I still use or what was a total waste for me, instead of just my first impressions. 

I also thought it might be helpful for those interested to see what's the actual breakdown of "fab" vs. "fit" vs. "fun." I'm assuming that all beauty products are fab, all workout products are fit, and everything else is fun.

Related: My first thoughts on the Fab Fit Fun subscription box


Fall 2017 box

What products of the Fall 2017 Fab Fit Fun subscription box are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com

Since I prepaid for a full year of boxes in advance, I get to go to their site and choose between different options before my box is shipped.

Gym bag-  I chose the "meet me at the barre" bag because I liked it better than the "gym & juice" and "will workout for cupcakes" option. What sucked is I got this about a month after I ordered my gym bag so I've actually never used this. It's a very simple gym bag made out of this jean-like material and tbh I'm pretty sure they used the same pattern that I did in home ec in high school when I made my own bag. I currently have this stashed in my closet in case I ever need an extra overnight bag, but this hasn't gotten a lot of use out of it.

Mud mask - I have just about used up this mud mask and I love it! You really have to layer it on pretty thick to make it a "mask," but afterwards your skin is really, really soft. My only complaint is that the pump was on the bottom of the bottle so you have to lay it flat on your counter and maneuver it just-so to get it to work one handed.

Charcoal teeth whitener - I was really excited about this because I've seen the viral Facebook videos about how this will instantly whiten your teeth. However, after reading the reviews online I became a little concerned because some people reported that the charcoal got stuck in their gum lime and gave them nasty looking gums. I also was a little worried when I talked to my friend in dental hygiene school about it and she said they hadn't learned about it but her concern would be that it would be too abrasive on your teeth and ruin your enamel. Truthfully, I have only used this twice. The charcoal dust gets everywhere and stains your bathroom counter and sink and you do have to rinse a lot and use the re-use the brush after you've cleaned it off just to get all the black out of your mouth. And it didn't really seem to whiten my teeth so it just wasn't worth the hassle.

Hot/cold pack - This was the one thing I was most excited to get. Whenever I'm hungover, I always get hot the next day and force Ry to put his cold hands on my forehead to cool me down. Needless to say, I knew I'd get a lot of use out of this and already have. It especially came in handy when I felt nauseous those first few days after my surgery.

Jewelry tray - I really thought I'd have no use for this and was annoyed when I got it because I thought it would be a waste, but I proved myself wrong. I took this up to my study carrel at school and used it to keep binder clips and paper clips on and it's actually at my work desk right now doing the same thing. It's perfect because it's copper and my stuff is rose gold but the colors are close enough that they match. And I've realized the big heart is actually perfect to clip a horizontal picture of me and Ry on!

Cuticle oil - I've used this exactly once, not because I didn't like it or anything but just because it's an easy thing to forget about. It did make my cuticles soft so I really should get it out more, but it's so tiny it's easy to miss.

Lip crayon/balm - I was a little disappointed by the color I ended up with because it's almost the same shade as my natural skin tone so you can't really tell that I'm wearing it. And since it's just a lip crayon, it doesn't last near as long as my lip stains. But this actually turned out to be my saving grace this winter when the air was so dry that the lip stains were causing my lips to dry out and chap so I switched to this and although I had to reapply it throughout the day, I didn't have chapped lips and still had some color on me.

Beanie - Instead of the belt that is pictured, I opted for a black beanie. I tried wearing it to my nephew's peewee football game and it just didn't last. It's so loose that you're supposed to wear it sagging off the back of your head but that was just a little too hipster for me and I had to pull it down. But then I looked stupid wearing a black knit beanie. The whole way to the game my sister and I had fun making fun of it— saying I looked like Eminem in 8 Mile in it, that I looked like a Sticky Bandit from Home Alone in it, or that I should be down by the dock bringing in my catch of the day in it. The pink probably would have been better (I just went for black because I thought it'd go with more) but honestly even then I probably wouldn't wear this just because of the shape of it, plus it was REALLY thin so it was definitely made to be more of an accessory than to actually keep you warm.

Cottonelle wipes - Cottonelle sent this sponsored sample to get people hooked on their products, but jokes on them I already use these and love them (seriously go try it, it's worth the $). Since I already have these at my house, I threw this little sample pack into my toiletries bag to have some when I travel because now I guess I'm that extra.

Scarf - I ordered this in pink instead of the gray in the picture (I'm an idiot and didn't match my scarf to my beanie). I tried to wear this out of the house once but it was just so damn big and fluffy I chickened out because it just didn't feel me. However, since then I've repurposed it to be a runner on my bed because the pink looks perfect on top of my navy duvet cover. I also do think that it would be perfect for traveling with because it's so big you can use it as a blanket. And now, a funny story about this scarf— I came home from work the day after I got my fall FFF box in and see this...

What products of the Fall 2017 Fab Fit Fun subscription box are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com

Me *laughing*: What are you doing?
Ryan: I got cold..
Me: Why didn't you just turn off the AC?
Ryan: Well I was gaming and couldn't get up and you left your box on the couch with everything in it so I just grabbed this.
Me *laughing*: Oh, okay.
Him: Actually can you turn on the fan? I'm getting a little hot.
Me: Why don't you just take it off?
Him: Well it's soft and I kinda like it

So when I went to choose what I wanted to get in my box, I saw that you can get some add-ons so I paid extra to get three.

Felt hat - I love hats on fashion bloggers that I see, so I ordered a black felt hat and I regret it. From now on I'm sticking to only floppy hats. I tried to wear this to Thanksgiving and even tried to take an artsy picture in it and I just could. not. It looks like a damn Canadian Mounty hat! Why is it so tall?? Ugh I wish I could return it because it was just awkward AF.

What products of the Fall 2017 Fab Fit Fun subscription box add ons are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com

Lip scrub - I've seen plenty of makeup tutorial videos to know that everyone always recommends using this when getting ready and now I know why. Wow the difference it makes! My lips are sooooo much softer now that I use this every morning and lipsticks/stains definitely look better on me after I use this.

Brunch shirt - Hands down this is my favorite thing I've ever gotten from FFF (and probably ever will)! I love this shirt! Not only is it super cute, but it's crazy comfortable. It's made out of kinda the same material that jerseys are made out of so you just want to lounge around it all day. Tbh I may or may not wear this every single weekend. It's just perfect. And I was a little worried about sizing since it was a one size fits all, but it actually fit really well (for reference, this photo is with my old boobs).

What products of the Fall 2017 Fab Fit Fun subscription box add ons are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com
Fab: 5 (lip crayon, cuticle oil, mud mask, Cottonelle wipes, charcoal whitener) 
Fit: 2 (gym bag, ice pack, 
Fun: 3 (scarf, jewelry tray, beanie)

Winter 2017 box

What products of the Winter 2017 Fab Fit Fun subscription box are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com
I found this picture off the internet since I can't take pretty pictures of all of my stuff anymore and since each box is a little different, I don't have everything in this picture and instead have some things not listed.

Hair mask - I chose to get a hair mask instead of gold under-eye patches because I figured I'd get more use out of it, but to be honest I have yet to use this and while righting this post just thought Duh Nikki, why don't you just add the hair mask to your weekend bubble bath? and I have no clue why I haven't done this yet lol. I think it's because I've been using coconut oil for so long that I just forget to try this instead. For me it has kinda ended up like the cuticle oil from the last box where it's a good product I just can't ever remember that I have it.

Poncho - I have yet to wear this poncho/wrap. My boss wore one the other day and she looked pretty good in it, but I do not. It makes me wish I would've gotten the black belt in my Fall box instead of the beanie because I've seen a lot of other FFF users pair those together so it doesn't look like you're just wearing a potato sack. Like the scarf from the last box, I'm anticipating that I probably won't use this until I travel.

Coffee mug - I don't drink coffee and don't even have a coffee maker so I didn't think I would even use this, but as I mentioned in my makeup organizing post I've realized that this is absolutely perfect to store my tall lip stains and mascaras so technically I actually use this every day.

Necklace - I wasn't the biggest fan of this necklace when I first got it because in all honesty it seemed like it was made out of the same material as the chain on closet lights that you pull to turn the light on. And it tangled pretty badly when I was getting it out. But I forced myself to wear it out with this bodysuit and it actually looked really great! While it isn't something I would normally wear myself, once I pushed myself of my style I realized that I really liked it. 

Face exfoliator - I was a little annoyed at getting another exfoliator after I had just gotten one two boxes ago, but I realized this was because I wasn't really using what they had sent me. If I had been using the first exfoliator more, then I would've ran out before they sent this one. So now I have a weekend routine where I take a bubble bath and will exfoliate my face to use up what I have. This exfoliator is an ugly green color and smells a little weird but damn it makes my face soft! I really do love this and am glad they sent it to me even if I didn't need it. 

Hand lotion - Truthfully I don't use this that much. I was a little disappointed that this was used with materials from the Dead Sea because I hate how Lokai bracelets and other items like this are exploiting and ruining the Dead Sea, but that's my own opinion. It's fine for a lotion but I already have lotion so I don't end up using this anymore.

Aloe socks - I haven't gotten around to wearing these yet. I originally was saving them to wear while I was recovering from my surgery and then when that time came around I wasn't in the mood for them anymore. 

Makeup palette - This, like the exfoliator, I was a little annoyed at because I just got this a few months ago. I'm not a big fan of how the eyeshadows slide around and there's so much plastic around this thing that it's actually really heavy. So much so that at first I was keeping this in my purse as to-go touchup makeup because the colors are pretty but it weighed down my bag so much that I switched it out for the last palette they sent me. It now just sits on my dresser and rarely gets used.

Workout ball - I chose this instead of the pillow sleep spray and based off the reviews of that, I regret my choice. Although the ball is small and has lots of use when I work out, I would much rather fall asleep easier than have something to figure out how to incorporate it into my workout routine.


Fab: 4 (hair mask, exfoliator, lotion, eyeshadow)
Fit: 1 (exercise ball)
Fun: 4 (poncho, coffee mug, necklace, socks) 

Spring 2018 box

What products of the Spring 2018 Fab Fit Fun subscription box are a hit or a miss? How many "fab", "fit", and "fun" products do you actually get? I'm answering both these questions by taking a look back at my last 3 boxes - Spring 2018, Winter 2017, and Fall 2017 and talking about whether or not Fab Fit Fun is still worth it. lifestyle blog. | brazenandbrunette.com

Since I just got this box last week, I haven't been able to really test much so a lot of this is going to be first impressions.

Candle - This candle is so pretty I almost didn't want to use it, but it smells great. I got to choose which sent I wanted but that's kinda hard to do online since you can't smell it.

Lip gloss palette - I mentioned on my Insta stories that I thought this looked like little kids play makeup since it's we all had that lip gloss and brush set and this is literally just like that! But I did play around with this and the colors are actually pretty and it goes on your lips smoothly and it stays for a decent amount of time. Just can't get over that damn toddler brush.

Face lotion - I haven't used this yet because I already use Cetaphil face moisturizer every day anyways. However, this claims to help minimize pores so it's worth trying to use it.

Massage roller - I just started working out this week for the first time in months and was looking forward to this box's arrival just so I could try this! Ooh this feels so good on my sore muscles and has helped to get rid of some of the knots in my back. My only wish would be that the spikes were shorter and duller because they can kinda hurt you when you aren't even using that much pressure. I've also realized that you for sure have to use this over clothes because it hurts more directly on skin.

Nail polish filler - I had just gotten a fresh manicure a few days before this box came in, so I haven't had a use for this since it's supposed to fill in for your polish when your nails grow. I'll try to use this but I have a strong feeling that this will be forgotten just as easily as the cuticle oil was. I just don't do that many at-home manicures to ever think about these products.

Tassel earrings - I chose these in black and although originally I felt like these weren't my style, I'm actually excited to try them out when I go to the Houston Rodeo because I think they seem fitting.

Lip mask - I chose this instead of another item (can't remember which tho lol) and have tried one so far. These things are huge which makes them a little hard to keep from falling off. I ended up taking mine off after 5 minutes because I kept gagging because it felt like I was accidentally going to swallow the silicone mask, so I'm not even sure how well these work. 

Eye mask - First off I was super excited that they partnered up with Free People because FP is an expensive brand! I've only used this eye mask once but I really loved it! I learned that the hour mark for how long to freeze the insert is just long enough because you want it to me slushy so that you can fit it back in to the eye mask and any longer than an hour it can get still and hard to maneuver back in. Once I got the insert in, it felt perfectly cool, but not cold, against my skin. Even without the insert, this works great as a sleeping mask because it doesn't put a lot of pressure on your eyes and is thick enough to really block out light!

Clutch - I just chose this pattern because none of what was offered was really my style, but I really like the cream of it when I flip the pattern to the inside. I'm not a big clutch girl because I tend to sit things down and forget about them, so we'll see how often this gets used.

Fab: 4 (lipgloss set, face moisturizer, polish filler, lip mask)
Fit: 1 (massage roller) 
Fun: 4 (candle, earrings, eye mask, clutch)

And there you have it, my past three FFF boxes (finally!). Overall I'm happier than I expected to be with what I'm getting. I've learned that I need to work on actually using all of the products since I've already paid for them and usually they're good products. I have noticed that for 3 out of my past 4 boxes, they've all had some kind of wrap (bikini cover up, scarf, poncho). And for 3/4, I've gotten some kind of makeup set (eyeshadow, eyeshadow again, and lipgloss). And every time I've either gotten a new piece of jewelry or a jewelry holder. 

One thing I wish they'd work on is the "fit" part. Part of the reason that I signed up was because all the Pinterest adds had it as a fitness subscription box. As you can see in my monthly breakdowns, the ration of Fab to Fun is about the same but usually you only get 1 Fit item per box. As someone who aims to workout regularly (and noted so in my intake quiz), I could probably use more workout accessories than another eyeshadow palette. But, to be fair I do realize that they have a wide audience to please so it can be a challenge to have a box that someone who doesn't even workout would still want. I'll just continue to keep an eye out for some fitness add-ons that I can add to my boxes.