Happy Birthday Mom

Today would have been my Mom's 60th birthday.  I try to imagine what she would have been like at 60.  Still beautiful I'm sure.  She always looked about 15 years younger than she actually was.  There were times she was out with my brother and I, who were both of age at the time mind you, and she would get carded.  She would laugh so hard that she wouldn't be able to get her license out of her wallet.  It was a shock every time, even though it happened often.  She had a great laugh too, and even though she was sick for so long, she was a more positive person than I could ever hope to be.  Those who were lucky enough to know her, all loved her.  It was impossible not to.  So happy birthday Mom, I miss you terribly and love you more each day.

My Mom at 16

July Birchbox

I admit, I've been a little MIA lately.  Work, and life have been busy.  I'm on vacation this week with virtually nothing to do, so expect a post heavy week.  I'm in complete relaxation mode.  Let's see if I can keep from going crazy of boredom by Weds.

I received my July Birchbox on Friday.  For those of you who have never heard of Birchbox, it's a $10 monthly beauty sample subscription service.  Like a magazine, they ship around the 10th of the month and you receive a box with 4 to 6 deluxe samples (somewhat) tailored to you.  Back to July's box.  This month BB partnered with Glamour Magazine to bring us the 5 senses of summer.  I'm not sure I agree with how BB matches each of these items with the senses, but that's ok.

There were 31 box variations that went out this month.  I received either 3, 10, or 30.  The only difference between those 3 was the color of the lip glaze, so I'm not positive on which one I got. Here's what was in my box:

• Oscar de la Renta Live in Love perfume - Not bad, I had kept seeing that this was a "grandma" scent, but I didn't mind it. (This would be the smell sense)
• Birchbox exclusive earbuds - These obviously aren't the best quality, but it's nice to have a spare pair.(Hear sense)
• Larabar Uber Roasted Nut Roll - I'm not a huge fan of getting food in my box, but I like Lara Bars so no biggie. (Taste sense)
• Jouer Luminizing Moisture Tint in golden - I've posted before about how much I like this product.  The sample size will give me 3 or 4 uses and the color is right for me.(See sense)
• Alterna Bamboo UV+ Color Protection Fade Proof Fluide - Wow that's a long name.  I have colored hair, so I'll probably give this a try.  Anything that can help my fake red from fading is a win in my book. (Feel sense)
• Stila Lip Glaze in Action - The color is pretty, I'm not a big fan of lip glazes though.  I live by my Fresh Sugar Plum, so this will probably be given away.

All in all not a bad box, but not my favorite either.  I love Birchbox, they have a great point program so in a few months I'll be able to order a bunch of full size products pretty much for free.

Interested in Birchbox?  Get on the waitlist here.

My hoarding tendencies

I don't like clutter.  I don't have a lot of knick knacks, or things that need dusting.  I don't change my home decor depending on the seasons, because I don't want to store things.  Each year we put up less and less Christmas decorations because again, I don't want to store it.  If it were up to me, I would be fine without a tree too, but my husband isn't going for that.  This is a trait I inherited from my Mom and I'm thankful for it.  I don't have an emotional attachment to "things". 

For some reason though, I seem to hoard samples of beauty products.  It used to be contained to just one drawer, but that drawer is now barely closing.

It's moved on to a basket below, and a cabinet in the bathroom.  And this is before my July Birchbox, and New Beauty Test Tube,  not to mention I have samples on the way from Melvita and Mario Badescu.  I don't know why, but I rarely use any of the samples I receive.  I love the anticipation of getting them, but then they move on to the drawer never to be seen again, unless someone comes to stay with us, or a friend asks for something specific.  Maybe I should sell them in lots on ebay, or trade them on makeuptalk.com for something I will use.

In the mean time, anybody need anything?

And btw, those Boscia blotting papers?  Pointless.  I used 1 so there are 99 left in the packet.  The best blotting paper I've found is a Starbucks napkin and they're free.

Nailing It

Nail art seems to be quite the trend this summer.  Whether it be painted on or decals, I've seen all different designs.  I received the Sally Hansen Salon Effects in my Voxbox from Influenster.  While I won't use the laced up design, some of them are pretty cute, and seem easy to apply.

This tutorial, from The Beauty Department is a pretty subtle robin's egg look, and would be an easy DIY.  TBD has a ton of easy tutorials for nails, hair, and makeup.

The Tropical Sunset nail, pinned from here,  is a take on an ombre nail with a lovely palm tree on one nail.  I love this one!

What do you think about the single accent nail?  I think it depends, sometimes I like it, and sometimes I think it just looks goofy.  These two, pinned here, and here, I like.

However, these Winnie the Pooh nails, I think take it a little too far.

That's the great think though, there are so many different ways you can go with it!  I know that I would probably go to a salon to have anything like this though.  My left hand would be ok, but my right would be a disaster.

Oh, and by the way, I did start my bracelet making extravaganza last weekend.  I made 5 and though I did lose my patience a bit, it didn't go too bad.  No pics yet, I'm still working out the kinks.









Trying to occupy my mind

So, I've been a slacker lately.  Our summers are always crazy busy, and this one is no exception, but since it's so hot I just don't have any motivation.  Most years we may see a handful of days in the 90's, and that's usually in late July/August.  This year we hit 90 in May and have seen very little rain.  I know for people in TX, 90 is nothing, but up here we're not used to it.  Add to it 90% humidity and being outside is miserable.  I needed to find something to do to entertain myself, so as usual, in comes Pinterest.

I've been a member of Pinterest a little over a year, since it was in Beta mode.  I can proudly say I have done many of my pins, mostly with success.  I mainly use it for recipes, but have done a handful of DIY projects too.  We were at the farmer's market a few weeks ago and found a woman selling handmade jewelry.  I purchased a couple bracelets from her, which for me is unusual as I don't normally care for handmade jewelry.

Here's what I got (minus the blue braided one)

While I'm happy with them, and actually do get a lot of wear out of them, I think I paid $27 for the two of them.  So after disecting them to see how she did it, I decided that I can make my own for less money.  Off to Hobby Lobby I went last night, and $50 and a ton of supplies later I'm ready to begin my bracelet making.  Here are a few I pinned that I plan on trying out:

For the $50 I spent on supplies I figure I can probably make 100 or so bracelets.  I'll update after I make some to see if it's actually relaxing, or if I'm even more stressed out because I can't figure out the difference between an overhand knot, and a square knot.

Have a great week, and stay cool!





50 shades of huh?

Let me start this by saying I read.  A lot.  In the winter when it's cold and dark here for 6 months I can easily read 3 or 4 books a week.  If I'm on the treadmill, I have a book in front of me.  Sitting out in the sun with the mister on, my Nook is in a plastic baggie.  (Why don't they make a waterproof cover for the Nook?)  The Twilight series?  Read them a few times.  Hunger Games?  Yep, loved them.  However, there's a series that's got everyone in a frenzy that I just refuse to read.  Yes, 50 Shades of Grey. 

A friend recently posted on facebook that he didn't know what was up with 50 Shades, but it seemed like every woman he comes across is in heat.  I have to agree with him that pretty much every friend I have that reads, (and some strangers I've come across) have been all worked up about it.  Now, I don't have a problem with the adult content, the main reason I can't bring myself to buy it is because it's based on a fan fiction of Edward and Bella from Twilight. 

If you're unfamiliar with fan fiction, there's an entire world out there of people who are fans of stories, Twilight for instance, and they'll write their own story, going off of the original, of how they'd like the story to progress.  Some of these, sadly, are better than the originals.  But hey, it's Twilight, that's not saying much.

So I'm supposed to read this book and not picture Kristin Stewart and Rob Pattinson with all their horrible acting as the main characters?  That's probably not possible.  (By the way, they're not at all how I pictured Edward and Bella when reading the books, but since the movies came out I can't help it.)

What about you?  Are you on the 50 Shades train?  Am I really missing out on some great literary works?  Or is it just for the fantasy aspect?

As an aside, if you enjoy reading, and like a good laugh please check out NYT best selling author Jen Lancaster.  Her memoirs take her from fab, to almost destitute, and back to fab with everything in between.  She's extremely relatable and easily my favorite author.

June Birchbox

I finally received my June Birchbox on Friday!  If you're new to Birchbox, it's a $10 monthly sample subscription.  Each month you get a box with 4 or 5 deluxe beauty samples in the mail.  They also have a great points system, you can rack up the points easily and get free products on the BB website.  I can never wait for it to show up without spoiling the surprise though.

This was my 4th month, and the first time it was just an ok box.

First up, The Balm Stainiac in Beauty Queen.

It's a gel based lip and cheek stain.  I don't care to use cheek stains, I can never get them to blend well before they dry.  This is a really nice lip stain though, as long as I use a something on top of it to moisturize, as it tends to dry my lips out.

Next, Oribe shampoo and conditioner for beautiful color.

The thing about this, is BB had a policy of no foil packets.  They said their samples would always be big enough to get multiple uses out of.  I'll try this, but it's not something I would buy.

Melvita Rose Water to refresh and hydrate summer skin.

I'll keep this in the fridge to use after spending time outside.

Joya Âmes Sœurs Parfum - A Scent of Soulmates

I've gotten perfume every month, and this was the first time I didn't like it.  I enjoy fruity scents, and this one is too musky for me.

Dr. Jart Premium Beauty Balm with spf 45

I'll try this, but I don't usually wear all over face makeup, especially in the summer, so it'll have to be one of those special occasion things.

Last is the Cynthia Rowley Band-Aids

I actually really like these, I saw the other day they sell them at Target for $2 a box so I may pick up more.

Interested in Birchbox?  Get on the waitlist here.