Well...it's been a while...

Since the time we matched, we completed the last of our required rotations for school and were able to go back home to California for my EM rotation to work at the same hospital that I used to scribe at.  It was such an interesting experience being back, but this time as a graduating medical student.

After that rotation, we were pretty much done since my husband and I had organized our schedule so that our last month would be our vacation.  Because of this, and some awesome deals we found on flights on Black Friday, we were able to do a Middle East trip (with my parents) and then a Europe trip.  (I'll be doing a **very belated** blog post about those soon!)

OH yeah, and...I GRADUATED!! After moving away for rotations for the past year, it was really nice to see our classmates and spend time together and catch up before everyone gets busy with residency and the "real world". The best part, by far, was the fact that my husband got to hood me when it was my turn to walk across the stage.

Now with a few weeks left before residency orientation starts (I'm still in denial that this is all real, fyi), we're getting ready to move yet again, but this time to our own home! After a lot of research and planning, my husband and I decided to purchase a place and it's been a whirlwind since.  I didn't realize how involved the whole process was. Guess we're truly adults now!

With all this craziness going on, it's also the beginning of Ramadan (the third day, to be exact--Ramadan mubarak!), the month where Muslims are required to fast from dawn to dusk.  It's the first time that Ramadan has been at a time where I'm not busy with school or boards or something...and it's also the first time that I've had my birthday fall during Ramadan (Ramadan begins 10ish days earlier every year because of the Lunar calendar) so I'm excited to take as much advantage of the freedom from school/work obligations as I can for the next few weeks.

What are your Ramadan plans? 

I'm fairly clueless when it comes to hair products.  I use whatever is available, and for most of my adult life, it's been whatever is the cheapest/has the coolest packaging. Over the years, this haphazard haircare routine coupled with constant heat damage and hair dye has resulted in my current hair condition.  At one point I had long, healthy hair, though you wouldn't be able to tell that nowadays.

Because of this, I was very excited to receive Influenster's complimentary Living Proof Restore Vox Box this past month. The box contained: shampoo, conditioner, hair mask, and a perfecting spray.



Product details: Living Proof Inc's "Restore" line available at Sephora, Ulta, Target, and Nordstrom.
There are various sizes of each product available ranging from travel size to 24 oz.

List price: $28-42

Claims: The company's "Restore" line claims to be appropriate for all hair types, working to restore moisture and hydration to damaged locks.




The shampoo and conditioner have a very light scent, similar to the other products in the line. It was a fairly pleasant, mostly floral scent and there was no over-the-top, intoxicating smell left lingering in the shower/bathroom/my hair afterwards so that was a win.  The shampoo was light-weight and easy to wash out, but my hair definitely felt cleaner at the end.  My general complaint with most shampoos is the dry feeling I'm left with once my hair dries. So I really appreciated the fact that my hair didn't feel like all the moisture had been immediately sucked out.

I have the hardest time washing conditioners out of my hair and I usually end up having sticky residue left over afterwards.  This conditioner, however, did not do that.  Like the shampoo, it was light-weight and easy to wash out.

I'm in love

After towel-drying my hair, I applied some of the hair-perfecting spray before brushing.  Again, every hair product I've used claims to be "de-tangling" so that statement doesn't mean much to me.  However, I'm not sure if it was the shampoo, the conditioner, the perfecting spray, or a combination of all three, but it was so incredibly easy to brush my hair.

First time trying out a hair mask

Though I love my face masks, I have to admit that I have never used any type of mask for my hair.  I really enjoyed the other products that I was sent so I decided to give this a try, as well.  Though my hair felt pretty hydrated after, I'm not sure there was enough of a difference in the state of my hair to justify the hefty price tag or the extra time I had to spend putting this on and waiting in the shower (yes, I'm lazy, errr too "busy")

Repurchase: As I've stated numerous times, I loved how my hair felt after I used the products.  But, I don't think there was any drastic change in the overall health of my hair long-term.  Given that and the high price tag, I'll probably continue my search for affordable and effective hair products.  The perfecting spray, however, was an absolute game-changer and I really liked how my hair felt and looked after I regularly used it. If you're in the market for a hydrating spray with great de-tangling qualities, I highly recommend this product!






*I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.* 

Though there's loads of information on creating rank lists as an applicant, I found that I had a lot of questions specifically about going through the process as a couple.  Now that we're (almost) done, I decided to share some of the information we learned along the way and hope that it will help clear up some confusion surrounding couple's matching.



What is couple's matching? 
Couple's matching allows applicants participating in the AOA or ACGME match to link their rank list with another individual's.  Anyone is allowed to couple's match (significant others, spouses, best friends, siblings...you get the point) but doing so has its own set of advantages/disadvantages. Participating in the couple's match allows you to rank different combinations (ie: same program, hospitals within close proximity, hospitals across the country, etc) in conjunction with your partner.

Prioritize
Communicating with your partner and discussing your priorities is crucial.  Is it more important that you both get your desired specialties/programs or are you willing to compromise (either choice of program or, in some cases, specialty) to maximize your shot of ending up near each other?  This is even more important if one or both of you are considering applying into a more competitive specialty with limited available residency programs.  Many people apply for a less competitive specialty in addition to their primary specialty of choice to increase the likely rank combinations and alleviate some of the worry of not matching at all.

Research
Once you've decided what/where you want to focus your efforts, begin researching programs early your third year. Depending on the specialty you and your partner are interested in, doing an audition or sub-internship may be something that you consider. The advantage of auditioning at programs that you're interested in is the ability to relay your interest in the program and/or location and establish relationships with residents and attendings. This is particularly true if you and/or your partner are vying for more competitive specialties or those that place a heavy emphasis on auditions.

Half the battle (on the AOA side, at least) is making sure you can get auditions scheduled at your desired programs for the months when you want them so staying on top of things is vital.  I had an extensive excel sheet with all possible programs listed by state, what their application requirements were, minimum board scores (if any), contact information, and possible audition dates.  My husband and I tried to coordinate being at the same hospital during the same month to cut down on housing costs but it didn't always work out.  For the most part, we were able to stay in the same general area so we were able to split rent for a 1 bedroom place for those months which helped save some money.

Focus on certain regions
When researching possible residencies, consider regions with multiple programs within driving distance to each other.  Focusing on areas with multiple residency programs increases the number of combinations that can be ranked (for example, if each partner has three programs in the same vicinity, a total of nine combinations are possible as opposed to only three if the programs are different geographical areas). Like I stated above, it's important as a couple to discuss priorities --for us, living together was of the utmost importance. There were plenty of programs that both my husband and I were interested in but for various reasons they weren't viable options for the other person (they didn't have both specialties we were looking for, minimum score cut-offs were too high, etc) so we opted to skip over those for auditions.  Instead, we focused our attention on the midwest because of the flexibility and number of options we would have. This was invaluable when it came to ranking programs since we were able to list various combinations of programs in close proximity to each other (more on that later...). The locations we focused on were: Detroit, Cleveland, and New York. ACGME programs may have additional geographic regions with multiple programs in close proximity.

Making your rank list
As if creating your rank list wasn't challenging enough, the couple's match adds another element into the mix. I highly recommend the NRMP tutorial on couple's matching (link here) for anyone considering the couple's match.  NatMatch.com also provides a useful tool via excel sheet (on this page) which will generate all possible combinations, along with examples of how ranking combinations works.  The list will also automatically create the combination of one individual matching while the other goes unmatched. It's up to you and your partner to go through and eliminate any combinations that are undesirable and rank remaining combos based on order of preference.  Understand that every combination you delete theoretically worsens your chance of matching.

To disclose or not?
Whether or not to disclose you're couple's matching is controversial. I've heard mixed things from attendings, students, residents, program directors and all I've gathered is that there is no right answer. If you do disclose, be prepared to explain how couples matching works (we were asked countless times if that meant that we could only match at the same hospitals) as there is a lot of misinformation about the process.

Of note, if you disclose you are couple's matching on your ERAS application, programs will be able to see it and ask you about it.  You will be required either way to register as a couple on the actual matching program, but programs will not be able to see that. For some people, disclosure is advantageous, as it allows you to really convey interest and stress your desire for the particular program, especially if your partner has received strong feedback there/program nearby.  On the other hand, some program directors may be hesitant to invest in a candidate that may not rank their program as highly due to their partner.  In the end, the decision to disclose couple's match status or not is ultimately yours.

Once all of this is done, you submit...and wait (and try not to stress...yeah, right)!

Good luck!

Did you participate in the match as a couple? How'd it go? Any advice? Let me know!

2016 was the year of eyeshadow palettes. I told myself I wasn't going to buy anymore after I purchased the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette and the Anastasia Beverly Hills Master Palette by Mario on a whim.

I had been eyeing the Huda Beauty Rose Gold Edition Eyeshadow Palette for a bit but repeatedly talked myself out of it (and it was pretty much sold out every time I checked so that helped).  The reviews were mixed and I tend to reach for the same few palettes usually so I managed to hold off for a while. I started getting bored of the same matte colors that I had and was really interested in how the glitter shadows were in the palette

Product details:
The palette contains a good mix of matte and glittery shadows.
Specifically, the palette has: ten matte shadows, two pearl finish shadows, and six 3D metal shadows.

List price: available on Sephora.com for $65.00.
Currently sold out on http://www.shophudabeauty.com/ but you can add yourself to the waitlist (free shipping on orders over $75)

Thoughts:
I was lucky enough that I was able to snag this palette from Sephora's website because I received the product in two days (shout out to Sephora Flash Shipping!).  I had heard horror stories from people that had ordered from the Huda Beauty website not receiving their packages for well over a month.


The packaging is typical of Huda Beauty products (still a sucker for it, though). The eyeshadow is laid out on a fairly cheap black plastic palette, which I was expecting since others had mentioned the poor quality.  It's similar to the Anastasia Beverly Hills Creme Contour Kit case but cheaper quality.

When I initially read reviews regarding the palette, I was concerned because some of the common complaints were about the lack of pigmentation of the shadows.  However, I didn't find this to be true - especially with the pearl finish and matte shadows. They were very easy to pick up and apply with a brush and equally easy to blend out.

The only issue I experienced (similar to other users) was that the glittery shadows are nearly impossible to apply with any sort of brush.  This problem is pretty easy to solve if you just use your fingers for these, but if you're not a fan of that technique, then this palette definitely isn't for you. I was skeptical about how these more stubborn shadows would show up on my eyes (I haven't used my fingers to apply eyeshadow in...a few years...) but the end result was great and very pigmented. The 3D metal shadows are not chunky so if you're expecting a very obvious glitter look (think "instagram makeup tutorial looks"), then you'll find yourself disappointed with the shadows in this palette.

When I swatched these shadows, the color payoff wasn't as great as on my actual lids, but I think that may be due to the fact that I primed my eyes prior to application.  Keep that in mind if you decide to purchase this palette.

Also, the swatches shown below are with two swipes of an eyeshadow brush.

(top to bottom): Dubai, Fling, 14K, Rose Gold, Trust Fund, Angelic

3D Metallic Glitter Shadows (swiped using fingers)

(Top to bottom): #Blessed, Bossy, Flamingo, Shy, Bae,Moondust

(Top to bottom): Black Truffle, Suede, Coco, Maneater, Henna, Sandalwood

Repurchase?
The Huda Beauty Palette is pricey and incredibly difficult to get, as it's been sold out almost every time I've checked since it's release.  If you have the ABH Modern Renaissance palette and tend to stay away from glittery eyeshadow (and/or hate applying makeup with your fingers), then I would skip this palette. You'll be missing out on very little.  However, one of the greatest draws of this palette is the ability to play with muted looks, as well as, more vibrant and colorful colors.  I have been traveling quite a bit these past few months and the versatility of this palette is great because I can pack just this and have a variety of different colors/textures at my disposal.

The list of liquid lipsticks on the market right now is, overwhelming, to say the least. From mainstream brands to indie companies, it seems like everyone's jumping on the (not so) new trend. At this point, I've figured out which lipsticks work for me but I was still pretty excited when I received Marc Jacobs Le Marc Liquid Lip Crème in "Hot Cocoa" along with Marc Jacobs (P)Outliner Longwear Lip Pencil in "Nude(ist)" to try out.

Product details:  lip crème available in six shades on Sephora.com and MarcJacobsBeauty.com
lip liner available on Sephora.com (seven shades), NeimanMarcus.com (three shades), and MarcJacobs.com (three shades).


List price: $28.00 (lip crème) and $24.00 (lip liner)

Claims: Full coverage nude shades that allow for long-wear (approximately eight hours) without drying out lips. The lip liner is a gel-based liner that also allows for long-lasting wear and prevents bleeding or feathering.  The shades for the liner complement the lip crème color range.

Use: I very rarely wear lipstick for eight hours continuously so I decided to test this the next best way - at a desi party with greasy food I couldn't really eat with a fork/spoon.


Thoughts:
I was pretty hesitant about the color when I received it because it looked like a very dark brown on all the advertising I had seen.  I was pleasantly surprised to learn that that was incorrect, because the lip crème was actually more of a orange-ish brown (I'm not sure who thought that it looked like "hot cocoa" but...).  Regardless, I thought the color was pretty universally flattering and a good choice for Fall/Winter.


The lip liner was also significantly lighter on my lips than the swatches online showed.  It was so light that I had a hard time visualizing where I had applied it.

Both the lipstick and lip liner feel very comfortable on the lips; given that it's currently winter, I didn't have to deal with flaking or drying out. I definitely do not agree with the "eight hour wear" claim. Though some was still left, most of the lipstick came off by the time I finished my meal.

On the other hand, there was no feathering, which is something that I struggle with when I use liquid lipsticks. And layering more coats of the lipstick also was not an issue, unlike some other liquid lipstick formulas.

Repurchase?
Though I loved the packaging (sleek and simple) and the formula was extremely comfortable, I don't think I would repurchase this.  The formula isn't as long-lasting as I desire and the lip liner is far more than I spend on similar products.  If you don't mind reapplying lipstick (or only need it to last for a short period of time) and struggle with finding liquid lipstick that doesn't dry your lips out, this is a good option to consider.

I dread taking off my makeup at the end of the day. Most of the makeup I use is water-proof and long-lasting because of my tendency to constantly touch my face and rub my eyes so my night-time routine generally involves me scrubbing the heck out of my face until its red.

Over the years I've tried numerous makeup removing products: wipes, oils, etc, but everything either left a significant amount of residual makeup on my face and/or caused my skin to break out so I found myself switching things up constantly.  My most recent routine has comprised of using Philosophy - Purity Made Simple Cleanser (on sale here) followed by The Original MakeUp Eraser® Makeup Remover Cloth which I purchased from Sephora (also on sale right now here!).  The combination of products has been fine (no breakouts) and though I don't have to scrub quite as hard with the makeup remover cloth, I still feel like my makeup isn't being completely removed, especially my mascara and eyeliner (shout-out to Make Up For Ever's Smoky Extravagant Mascara and Kat Von D's Tattoo Liner in "Trooper" for being truly long-lasting/being so difficult to remove).

I stumbled upon this whole micellar cleansing water frenzy and was curious as to whether all the comments about it were actually true (feels like water?! I don't need to wash my face after because there's no gross residue?! Affordable?) I was curious so I went out and purchased one to try it out.


Product: Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water (There are two types: a "regular" one with a pink top and one for waterproof makeup that has a blue top. I purchased the latter).

List price: $6.29-875

Where to purchase: Any drugstore or Ulta (where both types are on sale currently)

Claims: The concept behind these and other "cleansing waters" is that water that contains micelles (collection of molecules that surround the makeup/dirt) allows you to easily and effectively remove makeup and other products without harsh rubbing and scrubbing. Because it's mostly water, you don't have to deal with the oily feeling other makeup removers leave you with so there's no need to wash your face after using this.  The end result should be clean and hydrated skin with no residual products left.

Use:
I decided to test this out after a dinner party when I had on heavier makeup than usual. For my eyes, I used a small amount on a cotton pad that I applied to each eyelid for a few seconds then gently rubbed.  The result is shown below.


For my face, I used another cotton pad and wiped my face until I felt like most of the product had been removed.

Thoughts:

As you can see, the cotton pad had a significant amount of eye makeup and mascara on it and it had done a fairly good job of removing most of it from my eyes.  So it definitely works.

However, despite repeatedly running the pad over my eyes and face, there was a little bit of mascara and eyeliner that refused to come off.  It wasn't until I used my usual cleanser and wiped my face with the makeup remover cloth that my face was truly makeup-free.

Speaking of washing my face, I definitely do not think I would have been able to get away with just using the micellar water to cleanse my face.  I agree that it isn't quite as oily as other makeup removers, but I still felt like I had a film of something that wasn't water on my face.

Although I don't think I'd ever use this in place of water to clean my face, I really liked adding this to my current routine.  While it doesn't take off everything on its own, I found that when I used this with my usual cleansing routine, my face felt a lot cleaner and less dried out.

Repurchase?
Given the price, I don't see why not.  Though it wasn't a miracle by any means, I did feel like it improved my current routine.