→ Life Update & 25 Before 26 Update

It's been so long, this is what I look like now! (With no makeup and damp hair and wrapped in a TARDIS blanket...)

Hello, old friends! I'm still alive! Hooray! I just wanted to catch you up on my goings-on and explain my absence. So, I do apologize for being MIA for so long. My mental health has kept me from doing much, as well as the fact that I'm having some (VERY MINOR) health issues that need to be taken care of (two easy procedures and a probable small surgery), but have been put off thanks to my anxiety. The surgery has to do with a sinus in my lower back which causes discomfort when I'm sitting for too long, which is why I haven't been blogging, or reading blogs, or on my laptop too often. I will hopefully get it taken care of within the next month. Nothing is definite yet though since I need to wait for the translators from our base medical office to call me to make an initial appointment, since the surgery will have to happen out in town and I will need a translator with me. Anyway... I can't promise that I will be blogging about makeup very often until my surgery and healing have been taken care of.

On the plus side, I have been trying to squash my every day anxiety by leaving my apartment more often. I'm super proud of myself because I've been doing well with it. I even had a day trip to several new places with a small group including two women I had never met before. Hooray for progress!

Speaking of progress, here is my 25 Before 26 progress:
1. Make at least one video for my YouTube channel.
2. Get rid of unwanted clothing and accessories.
I'm starting to do this, but I can't mark it off because it's not been completed.
3. Wear orange lipstick.
4. Go shopping in Fukuoka.
5. Visit the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.
6. Try Japanese cosmetics.
7. Visit a shrine.
8. Start the How to Be a Fat Bitch E-Course.
9. Try a cream blusher.
10. Perfect the art of glitter brows.
11. Perfect the art of colored brows.
12. Play a drinking game.
13. Finish a puzzle.
14. Watch at least 40 movies I've never seen before.
Current progress: 28
15. Start up my in-house bakery.
16. Enroll in college.
DONE! My start date is the 23rd of February.
17. Visit Hirado.
18. Read at least 20 books.
SUPER DONE! I've read 30 books so far since my birthday!
19. Read at least 10 comics/graphic novels.
DONE! I've read 11 so far since my birthday!
20. Try out cosmetics from 5 new indie brands.
21. Buy a Givenchy lipstick.
I bought the Le Rouge Limited Edition Burgundy in Framboise Velours during Sephora's sale!
22. Go to Milky Way Farms.
23. Go bowling.
24. Do some crafting.
25. Do a spending ban.

Ryan will be taking leave from the military in a few days, but we will be staying in Japan. We're hoping to do a lot of exploring in the weeks he as off, so here's hoping I can cross of several more soon.


Another reason for this blog post is to inform you lovelies that I have started up a book club and book-based blog since reading is something I can do a lot of laying down (and also I love books)! Please check it out and feel free to join or follow if you're interested.

I love you all and I thank you for being so, so patient with me.

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→ 25 Before 26

I took this during Sasebo's Cherry Blossom festival in March!

This year I really want to focus on getting out there, exploring Japan, and experiencing more, as well as self-care and practicing more self-love. It's been a very difficult several months and I'd like to push myself and try to enjoy things whether or not I'm anxious or depressed.

1. Make at least one video for my YouTube channel.
I totally failed on this one last year. I think I'm just afraid (and a bit unmotivated) and I've been putting this off, but it's something that I really want to do!
2. Get rid of unwanted clothing and accessories.
I partially accomplished this, but not enough to make me happy. I'm still hoarding clothing from before gaining 60lbs (thanks to birth control when I moved out here) and I shouldn't be, but it's so difficult to do so because I feel like I'm throwing away hundreds of dollars! Ugh.
3. Wear orange lipstick.
4. Go shopping in Fukuoka.
There's a ton of shopping in Fukuoka: MAC, Ikea, Forever 21, etc... This one is only hard because Fukuoka is over an hour away and traveling makes me nervous.
5. Visit the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.
6. Try Japanese cosmetics.
7. Visit a shrine.
There are a handful of shrines near base housing and I'd be really bummed when I leave Japan if I never got to visit a shrine.
8. Start the How to Be a Fat Bitch E-Course.
9. Try a cream blusher.
10. Perfect the art of glitter brows.
11. Perfect the art of colored brows.
12. Play a drinking game.
13. Finish a puzzle.
14. Watch at least 40 movies I've never seen before.
I'm really good at watching television. I love being able to multitask, but 99% of the time, I'm watching a TV show vs a movie. I normally only watch movies at a friend's house or I have a friend over to my house. I don't know why, but it is what it is. I have hundreds of movies in my netflix queue as well as in our movie collection.
Current progress: 6 - Groundhog Day, Spaceballs, The Emperor's New Groove, Captain America: The First Avenger, Thor: The Dark World, & Captain America: The Winter Soldier
15. Start up my in-house bakery.
I finally decided on a name, all I need to do now is bake!
16. Enroll in college.
I'm twenty-five and I am so bad at making decisions! Plus I just feel so flustered when I'm looking at college websites. On top of all of that, I have to go through another party to enroll. It's just all so overwhelming.
17. Visit Hirado.
18. Read at least 20 books.
I'm halfway through Find Me by Carol O'Connell, the ninth book in the Mallory's Oracle series.
19. Read at least 10 comics/graphic novels.
I just purchased a few trade paperbacks: Catwoman Volume 1, Saga Volume 1, Chew Volume 1, and Ghost World. Hooray!
20. Try out cosmetics from 5 new indie brands.
21. Buy a Givenchy lipstick.
22. Go to Milky Way Farms.
23. Go bowling.
24. Do some crafting.
25. Do a spending ban.

What are some of your goals right now? Also, what are your favorite books/comics/movies (so I can add them to my list if I haven't read or seen them before)?


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→ Life Update & 24 Before 25 Outcome

My birthday presents from the hubby! I'm a 25 year old child.

I'm twenty-five now and I didn't do a great job with my 24 before 25 list. This past year my mental health has been the worst it has ever been. Well, to be fair, it wasn't the whole year, but it was the majority. I'm mostly blaming my (now crippling) anxiety on my quitting smoking. I relied on cigarettes much more than I ever thought I did. This past month I left my apartment twice. I'd really like to work on doing more things and trying to get out of my comfort zone. Anyway, with that said, here's the outcome of my 24 before 25.

1. Start my YouTube channel.
2. Be happy with my hair.
I loved my half/half hair the second and third time around!
3. Get rid of unwanted clothing and accessories.
4. Wear orange lipstick.
5. Curl my hair.
6. Visit the aquarium.
It was awesome. I really want to go again though since I was feeling awful when I went in June.
7. Go shopping in Fukuoka.
8. Visit the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.
9. Try Japanese cosmetics.
10. Bake something from scratch.
I did this a whole lot!
11. Get my couponing all sorted.
I'll probably need to go through them again soon, but that's the nature of couponing.
12. Get another tattoo/start Sailor Moon half-sleeve.
13. Visit a shrine.
14. Make something.
I put together my makeup storage... I think that's why I crossed this off. I'm sure I made something else, but I can't remember! Wompwomp.
15. Set up a space for my shoes.
It's not perfect, but I don't have all of my shoes out here. We bought a little cupboard and I stashed my shoes inside (and on top) of it in our living room closet.
16. Do my nails more. At least once, come on, you're a beauty blogger - get it together!
I did my nails several times! Unfortunately now that I have a baking business, I can't really have nail polish on if I don't want to wear gloves, but that's okay. I can still buff and file them.
17. Buy a YSL lipstick.
I got this done pretty close to when I made the list. I think I'll be treating myself to more luxury makeup.
18. Marathon all of the Die Hard movies (again).
I think the hubby and I did this around Christmas time? Die Hard is definitely a Christmas movie! (Don't ask my husband though cos he doesn't agree...)
19. Start the How to Be a Fat Bitch E-Course.
20. Do the Japanese Rosetta Stone.
21. Try a cream blusher.
22. Perfect the art of glitter brows.
23. Play a drinking game.
24. Make funfetti brownies.
I finally made a batch that cooked through! Hooray!

All in all, I'm happy with what I achieved under the circumstances.

On a different note, I've also been sick for the past month or so and my insomnia is going strong, so I apologize for my lack of posts. I'm currently being treated for my lack of sleep and my doctor and I are going to work on a few other things for my handful of health issues. Hooray!

In light of that, I'm looking forward to doing a ton of new things this year and I'll be doing my best to getting back into the makeup and blogging swing of things.

What have you accomplished lately?


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→ Life Update

Hey guys! I just want to apologize for my lack of posting here and on other forms of social media. The last two weeks have been really difficult for me. There was a death in my family, as well as the first anniversary of the death of a very close friend. I have a few posts lined up, but I don't know when I'll be back to posting frequently... Hopefully soon!

Thanks for understanding, everyone.


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→ Blog Changes & Kitsch Vixen vs Kitsch Cait

Throwback Thursday: Taking a picture of my first ever camera-baby!

You may have noticed that I've been posting links to a site called "Kitsch Cait" on some of my social media sites. Don't worry though, Kitsch Vixen isn't going anywhere, it's just getting somewhat of a facelift (and a sister)! I tried to come up with a full list of installations that will be staying, moving, and added. I'm sure I'll move a few more things around or think of more types of posts I'd like to do. Here's what I've been able to think of so far:


→ Face of the Days
→ Outfit of the Days
→ Beauty Reviews
→ Fashion Reviews
→ Style Inspiration
→ Film/TV Style
→ First Impressions
→ Beauty/Fashion Wishlists
→ Beauty/Fashion Favorites

Kitsch Vixen will be focused more on beauty and style and less on some other things that I've been posting. It will stay my main blog and all of my social media accounts will stay under the name Kitsch Vixen. Some current features will be moved over to Kitsch Cait (like Sunday Social and Kitsch's Caboodles).


→ Monthly/Yearly Goals
→ Life Updates
→ Misc. Reviews
→ Sunday Socials
→ Misc. Wishlists
→ Quick Pics
→ Kitsch's Caboodles
→ Recipes (maybe?!)
→ Monthly Favorites (books, foods, TV, movies, etc)

Kitsch Cait is going to focus on more of the personal aspects of my life, as well as my journey through blogging, education, and mental health. If you're interested at all, please follow Kitsch Cait on Bloglovin!
Is there anything else you guys would want to see on Kitsch Vixen? Or Kitsch Cait? I'm very open for reader input!

I am now officially selling ads, as well as offering ad swaps for fellow bloggers, etsy shops, small businesses, etc. If you'd like the check it out, click here. Right now, this is only available for Kitsch Vixen.

You may have also noticed that I've changed the commenting system over to Disqus. I don't know about you all, but I think I'm loving it. What do you think?

If you have any comments, questions, or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask!

Sunday Social Vol. 4

This week's Sunday Social is all about my favorite things to watch!

What is your favorite thing to watch on a girls night?
Uh, I don't do "Girls' Nights" too often, but we normally put something on in the background and talk. The last time I had one of my lady friends over, we watched Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog and The Usual Suspects though!


What is your favorite thing to watch on your day off?
I'm currently marathoning Supernatural and Charmed. I don't normally watch movies by myself, so it's whatever television show I'm watching at the moment.


What is your favorite thing to watch when you’re sick?
I like watching all time favorite TV shows when I'm sick. Sailor Moon, Parks & Recreation, and Arrested Development are a few among many; they must be comedies though!


What is the last movie you saw in the theater?
The Hunger Games. Can you tell that I don't go to see movies in the theatre too often?


What are your top three favorite movies or tv shows?
Not gonna lie, I don't have a "top three," but I'll choose three of my top favorites!

TV: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Doctor Who, and Daria


Movies: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Se7en, and Beetlejuice


Feel free to leave your answers (or link to your Sunday Social post) in a comment!

Social Sunday Vol. 1

I've joined my first link up! Whaaat?! It's no surprise that I love surveys, so this was kind of a no-brainer. I was intruduced to it by Lena B, Actually.

This week's Social Sunday is things in three!
Top three favorite kinds of food: BLT (with turkey!), Terry's Dark Chocolate Oranges, chocolate frosted donuts with rainbow sprinkles (not "kinds," but actual favorites)


First three things you do in the morning: Pee, drink coffee, brush my teeth (sometimes I do my stretches or work out before my coffee)


Last three things you do at night: Put on lip balm, moisturize, tumblr (tumbl? Would that be the verb?)


Three TV shows you NEVER miss: Once Upon A Time, Parks and Recreation, Bob's Burgers (also Sherlock, Doctor Who, and Game of Thrones)



Three places you want to visit: Whitehaven Beach at Whitsunday Island in Australia, Antelope Canyon in Arizona, and Sea of Stars on Vaadhoo Island in the Maldives (omg, soooooo pretty!)


Three people you can always count on: Elena, Brandon, and Kyle (other than my family, of course and I'm counting Ryan as family!)


Feel free to leave your answers (or link to your Social Sunday post) in a comment!



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