Happy Sunday! It’s time for another Ask Sabrina roundup! You sent in SO many great questions in my last poll on the blog and on Instagram, I think I have a list long enough to keep this series going on for the next several months!
Here are 10 more questions I’m answering today. As always if you’re curious about something personal, my background, etc. you can always click on the ASK SABRINA category to read past posts!
Even though many of you have been with me from the beginning (ie before I ever showed my face to the world) there are lots of new readers who want to know more about how I started my blog, how to become a beauty influencer/blogger, why we moved to Florida and more. All of these are answered in past Ask Sabrina posts, but I’ll elaborate on a few since many of you have asked follow up questions.
1. Can you tell us more about your upcoming move? Why are you moving again? How can you decide between San Diego or Miami?
Andrew and I love exploring and our jobs give us the flexibility to do it! San Diego is still home to me. I have family and friend there although many have moved away over the past decade. A lot of our friends moved away from San Diego to bigger cities like LA or San Francisco for more job opportunities. Also when the pandemic hit and everything was shut down many of our friends moved to different states to be closer to family.
We might move back to San Diego because of Andrew’s job and my family there. But right now our heart is set on Miami for our next adventure. We are exploring our options and are are taking our time exploring both.
For our move to Miami, I’ve always wanted to live in a big city and we both love all that Miami has to offer. It’s significantly bigger than Tampa and whenever we travel to Miami we are always sad to leave. We still love Tampa/St. Pete but we’re ready for a change after being here 6 years.
And who knows? We might be back after a year or so! A lot of readers have told me they have places on both coasts. They travel back and forth depending on what vibe they want. Tampa/St Pete is more casual laid back and relaxed while Miami is busier and has more energy.
2. Do you ever regret leaving your 9-5 corporate job? Do you feel your education and background in finance helps you with your blogging career today?
I have ZERO regrets about leaving the corporate world. When I quit my corporate job to blog full time nearly everyone told me I would regret it. At the time I decided to leave I was really torn. It was the first company I worked at that had a good workplace culture and environment. I really loved the team I worked with and the management. All that said, I still felt limited in what I could do and how I could grow. I was expected to advance to a managerial position eventually and managing people is not my thing at all. The transition of working at a big company to working alone was quite a shock for me. It took some time to get used to but I haven’t regretted it at all.
All of my experiences have been beneficial to me in some way. I do think my education helped in many ways. I don’t know that I would call it essential for me now, but I’m happy I went through it.
3. What is your favorite concealer these days?
I still swear by the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer but there are LOTS of great new options out today. My top 2 right now are the Natasha Denona Hy-Glam Concealer and Givenchy Prisme Libre Concealer. Also really love YSL Touche Eclat (best for brightening) and the Armani Luminous Silk Concealer (always a classic).
For blending I usually use a beautyblender but my 2 favorite brushes are the Real Techniques 210 Brush and the Hourglass Vanish Concealer Brush.
4. What is one beauty product you wish existed but doesn’t?
I REALLY love that Chanel makeup applicator machine from the movie Fifth Element. Instant look that’s also Chanel? Sign me up! For something more realistic, I would really love it Chanel brought back their best colors they discontinued (ie Nude Lip Liner, Seashell or Glow Glossimer, or any of the glossimers really).
5. Best wedding lipstick?
This would be a great question for me to ask YOU! I’d love to do a poll on what lipstick you wore to your wedding because Andrew and I didn’t have one. We got married at the courthouse in San Diego because planning a wedding was overwhelming. Andrew proposed while we were both in grad school. We had been dating for nearly 7 years and knew we were ready, but school was very time consuming for both of us. We had very busy schedules and I felt like we barely saw each other for 3 years!
We had planned on having a big ceremony a year later after we both graduated when we had more time to plan and have fun with it all. But by the time a year rolled around we were both very happily married, felt like we didn’t need a big wedding and decided to save the $$$ for a future honeymoon trip.
For weddings I’ve attended I actually don’t recall what beauty products I’ve worn, but I feel like for lipstick it would have usually been something from Tom Ford or Chanel. It’s really the ceremony or being there for loved ones that I remember versus what I wore. It’s been a long time since we’ve been to a wedding – most of our friends all have kids by now!
6. What’s your favorite guilty pleasure?
Hands down anything sweet. I love Jeni’s Ice Cream and Trader Joe’s Pancake Bread. I also love Swedish Fish and Haribo gummies.
7. Do you like to cook or bake? What are your favorite foods?
Yes, I love baking and cooking! I used to work at Williams and Sonoma and assisted in their cooking classes. I had to stop baking though because it was incredibly unhealthy.
When we moved to Florida we both started cooking a lot to eat healthier but right now I actually don’t cook very much. Andrew wanted to find a way to help cut down on my cooking time so we’ve been trying out some meal plans. If you want an overview or recs I can definitely share them. Finding one we both like has been a challenge because I’m the ultimate picky eater. We’ve tried a lot!
8. What’s a habit you’ve build into your routine?
Both Andrew and I have made an extra effort to improve our health and wellness and it’s made such a huge difference in our lives. We don’t always eat healthy, we still like to indulge, but we’ve made a huge effort to cut down on sugar intake and we’ve never felt better! It’s been a challenge since I have a sweet tooth, but we really make an effort to consume it in moderation.
9. You’re stuck on a desert island, what 5 beauty products do you want with you?
This question always has me laughing because I have follow up questions! Am I by myself? Who else is there? Can I escape or get off the island? If I’m by myself chances are that I really won’t care about beauty products and would rather want something to get me off that island!
But I can’t live without baths or showers so I’d want a lifetime supply of good shower gel (if I had to have only one, I’d steal Andrew’s Jack Black Turbo Wash because it will double as a shampoo) and face cleanser (probably First Aid Beauty Pure Skin Cleanser). Sun protection in which case I’d have my Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protector Lotion Sunscreen. Native Deodorant because even if I’m by myself I don’t want to smell bad. A good lip balm, I think the Vaseline Lip Therapy Cocoa Butter would be my pick. Also I’d probably cheat and ask to be allowed a 6th product which is a really good hair brush.
10. Pet stuff! I’m combining 2 in one. What shampoo and grooming products do you use for Ollie? Do Ollie and Kitty get along?
We started with Earthbath Oatmeal and Aloe Fragrance Free because that’s what we used on Jake and Lucy for over a decade. We’ve since started using the Ouai Pet Shampoo because it smells amazing (available at Sephora and Ulta). We alternate between the two brands.
I did take a whiff of the Aesop Pet Shampoo but thought the scent was too strong so I didn’t buy it. I could see myself using it, but I felt like it would be too much for Ollie’s nose. If you have tried it on your pet let me know!
Ollie still hates baths so we wash him in the shower which he tolerates.
And yes Ollie and Kitty get along well. They don’t snuggle but they actually play together now and have zoomies where they chase each other. Sometimes the cat is the one who initiates play time with some playful swatting. It’s so cute.
That wraps up this week’s Ask Sabrina series! If you want to share your wedding lipstick in the comments I’m sure future brides would be absolutely grateful to hear what your favorites are! I’ll also do a poll on Instagram this week and share results in my next Ask Sabrina series.