Friday, April 27, 2012

Friday Favorites

This week has easily been insane! Between packing and prepping for the move this weekend, my body decided it wanted to throw a monkey wrench into the mix and I'm now sick so this should definitely prove to be a long weekend. How about you ladies? What's on your agendas this weekend?


Favorite Quote:


Favorite Treat: After this crazy week I'm booking two massages one for me and one for Gregory. We've earned it!


Favorite Indulgence: Looking down and knowing he's mine forever! = ]

Favorite Shoe: Love these!


Favorite Laugh: Thought this was hilarious!

Monday, April 23, 2012

Mani Monday & Big News! :: OPI - Lincoln Park At Midnight

Happy Monday everybody! Ok I know Monday's are usually the pits but I figure what the heck why not do something that makes you look forward to Mondays?!

Thus begins a new series I'll be doing here on my blog! Mani Monday's! I know it's not very original but hey I'm constantly changing my color and Mani Wednesday just doesn't have the same ring to it. Plus it gives me the perfect excuse to show off my BIG NEWS!

I'M ENGAGED!



Yes, after seven years together Gregory finally popped the question Friday, April 20th! I'm so thrilled! And of course I will be taking you guys along for all the ride!

Now back to the nail polish! Today I am sporting OPI's Lincoln Park at Midnight one of my all time favorite OPI colors! The dark purple tone really add that pop to set off my sparkler! The formula is nice thick and smooth to apply. It gives a nice opaque color after one coat but you can see some streaks so I always prefer to go with two coats. She's definitely a beaut! (The polish that is not....okay my ring to! LOL)

OPI - Lincoln Park at Midnight (Flash)

OPI - Lincoln Park at Midnight (Natural)
Well that's it for this Monday's Mani post. What are you guys currently rocking on your nails?

Friday, April 20, 2012

Friday Favorites

Well we've made it to another Friday here in the US of A! And truth be told this week has be INSANE! Between packing, work, migraines and melt downs I'm wiped! Unfortunately there's no sleep for the busy.... or was it rest for the wicked...? ...oh well... But any who lets get on with the favorites!


Favorite Quote:


Favorite Treat: NOM NOM NOM! These are seriously my favorite! Warm out of the oven with some butter! Delicious!


Favorite Indulgence: Dreaming about getting more tattoos, I just never seem to actually get to it.


Favorite Shoe: ooooo These are SUPER cute!


Favorite Laugh: Truth lol. It's just easier.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Back To Basics :: A Skin Refresher

So last friday I decided to drag my sister to the mall for what I thought was going to be a quick trip into Woodfield Mall's Lush to pick up a bath bomb and then spend the night with a luxurious soak in the tube.... Well if you've ever been in to a Lush store you know it is never an In-&-Out experience.

This being my sisters first time in to a Lush, she was all types of curious on all the products. She always has a hard time finding products wither it be: shampoo, body wash, face wash, bath gels etc. because she has a really bad Sulfate allergy which is no fun to deal with. One of Lush's many qualities is they are an all natural line as well as a lot of their products are vegan friendly too!

I started with introducing here to the bath bombs. Explaining how fun and wonderful they were. We then set out on a hunt for a sulfate free bath bomb. This is about the time Athena came over to ask if we needed help with anything. Stephanie (my sister) asked if there were any sulfate free products she could use. Athena said she'd be happy to go see what she could dig up and asked for us to just exploring the store. This is where the real fun began.

Like most people my skin isn't perfect and I suffer from acne. I'm always on the hunt to find a regiment that will be my miracle cure but just haven't seemed to find it yet. While exploring I came across Coalface,  a charcoal infused face bar. I've heard really good things about coal for skin so when Athena came back with some sulfate free ingredients for my sister (I'm sorry I don't remember which products specifically) I asked her about the bar and if she had any recommendations to help me with my skin. She gave me a solemn look and said "Okay bare with me I'm going to ask you a few questions before I answer that" so after asking me various questions about my skin like my type (oily or dry), where my break outs usually occur, what am I using now, do I exfoliate etc. She said she had an idea....

Now I'll be the first to admit I can be a little ... uh how do you say.... CRAZY when it comes to my skin. I desperately want clear skin to the point of insanity that I tend to over do it on the matter. After explaining my daily skin care routine to her, Athena said it be best to take it back to the basics. You see with everything I was doing to my skin I was pretty much just making it as crazy as I was. (Haha!)

These were the products she suggested...

Ultrabland - a non-irritating bees wax cleaner
Tea Tree Water - A non-alcohol toner that gently cleanses skin 
Enzymion (sample) - a mattifying fruity moisturizer
Grease Lighting (sample) - a gentle spot treatment for acne

Now she didn't just say here use this now be on your way. That's just not how Lush works! She started by explaining to me you wash you hand what a couple billion times a day right? (Who you kidding I'm the hand sanitizer queen!) Well let me show you the amazing-ness that is Ultra Bland. She put a nice layer of it on my hand it was almost like a body butter that the more she rubbed on my hand the creamier and smoother the product became. The beauty of this product is it puts moisture where it needs to be and not where you don't. She then followed up by taking a cotton pad and spraying some Tea Tree Water onto my hand and wipping my hand off. I could not believe all the dirt it took off my hand... It was kind of gross but amazing at the same time.

The beauty of these two products are its simple, gentle and helps my skin regain a balance. Because of all the products and frequency in routine my skin just didn't know what was going on. Now that I have two products to work with the Ultra Bland & Tea Tree Water that I am only using at night (talk about saving myself SO much time in the mornings). Athena gave me samples of Enzymion (in case my skin had some dry spots) and a sample of Grease Lighting (in case I had some scary breakouts). She said give it a month and lets see where we are then. So with renewed faith in my skin and even more love for Lush and their helpful employees I gladly made my purchase.

Currently I am 6 days into my new routine and while I do have a few new breakouts they're nothing like my normal ones. You can tell that that it's from my skin starting to balance out. I am so thrilled with  my new routine and can't wait to see the changes a month will bring. Of course I'll be sure to keep you posted on the results!

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Creamy Mixed Berry White Chocolate Crumble Bars (with Vegan and Gluten Free Suggestions)



Makes 16 bars
Storage:  In an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to three months.

Ingredients
  • 1 2/3 cups vanilla, white, or yellow cake mix 
  • 1 cup old fashioned whole rolled oats 
  • 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened 
  • 1 large egg 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • 2 cups berries
  • 1/3 cup white chocolate chips
  • optional* 1/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut flakes, 
  • optional* 1 can (14-ounces) sweetened condensed milk 

Directions
  1.  Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 9-by-9 inch pan by lining it with aluminum foil and then spraying it with cooking spray. 
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, oats, butter, egg, vanilla and mix either with a mixer, with a spoon, or with your hands, kneading it together. The batter will be thick, tacky, and may be difficult to combine, but keep stirring or use your fingers and knead it together, adding a splash of water if absolutely necessary in order to combine. 
  3. Press the dough it into the prepared pan. It will be tacky, sticky, and a bit tricky to work with, but keep pressing, spreading, and finessing it. 
  4.  Sprinkle the berries, then sprinkle the white chocolate chips and coconut, evenly over the top of the dough. 
  5. Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the top, using a spatula to gently spread and even it if necessary. 
  6. Bake for 25 to 29 minutes, or until edges of bars begin to barely brown and pull away slightly from the sides of the pan, taking care not to over bake. 
  7. Optionally, dust with confectioner’s sugar, top with whipped topping or ice cream before serving. 


Note:
The middle will not seem very well set and although it will be bubbling, the middle will be jiggly and juicy upon removing from oven and that is okay, you want to keep these gooey. They will continue to set up more after they have cooled but don’t be alarmed if you cannot get perfect squares as these are made to be soft and gooey. Allow bars to cool well before slicing and serving.

To keep vegan,
Use a vegan cake mix, a flax egg, vegan white chocolate chips, and coconut milk (full-fat), sweetened to taste with agave/maple syrup/sugar, in place of the sweetened condensed milk.

To keep gluten-free,
Use gluten free cake mix. Take care all ingredients used are suitable for your dietary needs.

If you do not like white chocolate,
You can omit entirely or use milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips. Use slivered almonds in place of the coconut flakes if you don’t like coconut. Make the dough with the oats, cake mix, egg, vanilla, and press it into the prepared pan. Top with berries (fresh or frozen, any combination and variety you like), top with white chocolate chips and coconut flakes (or other toppings such as semi-sweet chocolate chips, slivered almonds, other nuts, toffee bits, or toppings you like) And then bake them, taking care not to over bake. These will look very gooey and under baked even after the suggested baking time, but take them out of the oven anyway and let them cool. They will firm up considerably upon cooling, but they are still a very ooey, gooey, messy dessert.

Friday, April 13, 2012

Friday Favorites

Well ladies & gentlemen it is Friday the 13th DUN DUN DUN.... Ok nothing to scary but I couldn't resist. How was your week? Have anything exciting planned?

I get to do more packing to prepare for the move but maybe I'll luck out and the weatherman will be wrong and it will be nice this weekend so Mr. Gregory and I can go to the river walks this weekend. We'll see... But as always lets getting in to the Friday Favorites!




Favorite Quote: Words to live by.


Favorite Treat: Do these not look to die for?! Yum!


Favorite Indulgence: There's just something about perfectly painted nails


Favorite Shoe: My newest addition to my shoe collection.


Favorite Laugh:

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Shoe Unboxing :: Cupid's Penelope & Bamboo's Colada

Decided to do a first of its kind on my video channel. A shoe unboxing of two new pairs of shoe I just recently ordered. If you remember from my recent March Favorites I purchased a pair of black suede wedge heels from UrbanOG after months of searching. Well I was so thrilled with outcome I went back on the site to see what other goodies I could find and ended up getting another two pairs!

So for today I decided to show you guys the shoes so you can join in on the excitement!

Here are pictures of the shoes I got:

Bamboo - Colada
The nude peep toe pumps were made by Bamboo and at $15 were such a steal! I'm so thrilled with these!! Unfortunately they aren't currently on the site so I can't supply you with a link. Sorry ladies!

Qupid - Penelope
Next up are these AMAZING mary jane style pumps from Qupid. These babies only cost me $25! They are still available on the site but are only available in size 8.5 [Click Here] But because I know how gaga you all will be about this shoe like I am I looked around and found a couple similar pairs also on UrbanOG's site.


Qupid's Marquise - $27.90 - [Link To Buy
*Other color options available*


Qupid's Neutral - $27.90 - [Link To Buy
*Other color options available*



Qupid's Onyx - $24.90 - [Link To Buy
*Other color options available*


Friday, April 6, 2012

Friday Favorites

Happy Good Friday to those who celebrate it and if not Happy Friday! We've made it through another week and the weekend is in site! I'm lucky enough to have today off from work but have a lot to do. Have to finish some freelance video editing, finish hard boiling six dozen eggs and get some more packing done. Should prove to be a very busy day!

But this Easter weekend should be interesting to say the least. On Saturday I have Easter basket blessing to go to. I believe it's a Polish tradition but know some Italians that do it to. It's pretty much taking what food you are eating for Easter dinner and having to blessed with holy water. Nothing to exciting. Followed by a early dinner at my Grandma's house with the family. Sunday should be the craziest day for the weekend as we (Gregory & I) have a brunch with his family then Easter dinner with mine but are bringing some boxes to his parents in prep for the move. Holiday's are always so crazy but that's the way the cookie crumbles! Now lets get in to this week's favorites....


Favorite Quote:


Favorite Treat: These things look fun AND yummy! I really must try to recreate this!



Favorite Indulgence: Newly discovered app Cinemagram! Seriously check it out! It is so much fun!

Created with cinemagr.am

Favorite Shoe: I love everything about these! The gorgeous jewel toned purple, the peep toe and even the hit of silver! <3


Favorite Laugh: Thought this was hysterical!

Monday, April 2, 2012

March Favorites

So March has come and gone I can't believe how quickly it has flown by. We had St. Patricks day and Gregory's birthday (he got a really pretty guitar for his birthday) The Hunger Games came out (I still haven't gotten to see it yet though)

This month though has been really busy I've been doing a lot of freelance work videos while also working full time which has caused me to be a bit behind on my channel. Sorry about that guys.

But let's get into this months favorites....


Clinique - All About Eyes Rich - $29 (0.5oz) / $47.50 (1.0oz) [Buy Here]


China Glaze - Capital Colours Collection (Hunger Games) - $5.99 [Buy Here]


Qupid Taken - Suede Round Toe Wedge - $27.90 [Buy Here]


Skull Candy - Hesh Light - $49.95 [Buy Here
*They no longer have the color head phones I have.

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