Sweet 16 (+10): Birthday Fun With Friends...And NARS

Tuesday marked my 26th birthday. Though I'm not usually one to do anything too extravagant for birthdays, I decided to spend some of the late afternoon and evening in NYC. On the agenda was a stop at MAC Pro, a bit of a disappointment since the only thing set on my wishlist, the Lip Erase, was out of stock. All was not lost, though, as the Cupcake Stop , a mobile cupcake vendor, had their truck stationed about a block away from the MAC store. The policy is that you get a free cupcake of your choice on your birthday, so I opted for a scrumptious Red Velvet (see below for a photo from the website...I forgot to snap a picture of the little beauty before I inhaled it lol).

After a bit of solo time, I met up with my beauty "partner in crime" and adopted little sister, Adina of Krasey Beauty for some much needed (OK, so it wasn't really needed) beauty retail therapy. I'm not going to lie. I actually went into SAKS soley with the intention of purchasing a new foundation (I had been debating between NARS Sheer Glow and Armani Luminous Silk). Needless to say, I ended up with a few more items than I had planned (I got caught up in the loveliness at the NARS counter). Behold, the damage....

Sheer Glow Foundation in Mont Blanc

Concealer in Honey

Powder Foundation in Mont Blanc

Douceurs de Paris (Pleasures of Paris) Palette (limited edition)

From L-R, T-B: Nepal, Violetta, Demon Lover, Cordura, Abyssinia, Fez

Lip Laquer in Chelsea Girls

Botan Brush

After some lovely time with Adina, who always seems to have some "NARS-fluence" on me, I headed downtown to meet Aja, of Don't Forget the Lip Gloss, and Nancy, of The Informed Makeup Maven, for some dinner at Buddakan, a very hip and trendy Asian-inspired restaurant (one of my all-time favorite cuisines, I might add!) The food was yummy, the company even better.

It was a really great birthday. Not to sound cheesy (OK, here comes the cheese...), but honestly my most meaningful birthdays are those spent with friends and family. It's not about what I'm doing to celebrate, however, but it's about being with people whose time I value and with whom I can just let myself enjoy being in the moment. **I am through with the sappiness/seeming cliches now**

I will leave you all with some photos of the birthday cake my mom made me. It was (well, actually, it still is...leftovers abound!) a pumpkin spice layer cake with a cream cheese buttercream frosting. It was delicious!