DIY Bobby Pins

No Place Like Chrome

 I can't get enough of this Essie color. It is great on it's own or an accent color. You don't have to keep the color strictly to your nails. You can brighten up boring bobby pins with nail color. It's SO easy. Put the bobby pins on a piece of cardboard, paper...junk mail works great too. Then paint the pin. So easy and you feel like a crafting Queen!

Happy Mother's Day and What I Wore Sunday...

 Any day I can spend with my boys is special but going to Mass together is extra special. I had a wonderful weekend. I also helped raise money for Women's cancer research doing EIF Revlon Run/Walk

 Whenever I look at this picture I think how blessed I am.

 Pink nails for Mother's Day.

Julep:: Audrey
Taking my stripe obsession to the next level! I just love navy and white stripes!  

Dress and belt::Gap
I linked up with Fine Linen and Purple to see what other women are wearing this special day.

"Be more splendid. Be more extraordinary. Use every moment to fill yourself up." Oprah Winfrey
Happy Mother's Day!

The Aviator's Wife

I've been (slowly) reading The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin. It is a novel about Anne Morrow Lindbergh and her husband aviator Charles Lindbergh. I saw a program on PBS about the Lindberghs and it peaked my interest.  I don't think I'm going to finish this book. Anne Lindbergh's life is really fascinating and I would rather read a biography about her than historical fiction.

Nails of the week

Feeling super girlie and ready for Spring.

Elisa by Julep

Hawaii Nails

Day 6

I didn't want to go to Hawaii with bare, boring nails. I also didn't want chipped nails on vacation. The day before our flight I painted my nails with CND vinylux 7 day manicure. I used the color Romantique #142. The color is very similar to Essie's Bubble Bath. It was really easy, I did my nails in the weekly polish and then the top coat.  CND vinylux really works!

Minty Winter Nails

I've been dreaming of getting a mint green color. I found this on Black Friday and I love it! This color is a nice change from all the red and green of the season.

What I wore Sunday…Winter White

 Happy second Sunday of Advent. Today was pretty chilly but as I watch the football games I know it's nothing compared to the East Coast. I love wearing dresses and skirts. When the temperature dips I try hard not to wear jeans or pants to Mass. I stay warm with boots and lots of layers.

Sweater:: Old Navy

Shirt:: Eddie Bauer

Scarf:: street vendor in NYC

Tights:: Donna Karen @Costco

Boots:: BP Nordstorm

Find out what other ladies wore this Sunday at Fine Linen and Purple

 In my quest to find matchy nail colors…I've found the perfect Starbucks red Julep's Claudette.

 Currently I'm reading an inspiring book on Saint Therese of Lisieux by Heather King

When I asked F.W. to take my picture for this post I found over a dozen photos like this on my phone. haha

Happy Halloween!

 Trick or Treat

This Halloween I went with the super simple ghost nail. 

What I Wore Sunday

This Sunday I got to wear boots for the 1st time this season, hooray for Fall. 

This whole get up is Target 

except the boots: BP at Nordstorm 

Bag: Fossil

What are the ladies at Fine Linen and Purple wearing this Sunday?? Do yourself a favor and check it out HERE.

 Nails: OPI You don't know Jacques!

I kind of forgot about this color, I haven't worn it all year. I think it is the perfect neutral for Autumn.  

My sweet F.W. and I were color coordinated today. I feel like photos of me turn out SO much better if I have one of the boys with me. Being a parent to a teenager is a new challenge...the mood swings alone are crazy. I just keep thinking this to shall pass and try not to say something sarcastic that I will regret saying later. I am so thankful we go to Mass every Sunday together as a family.

Someday, Someday, Maybe...I'll like this book

Someday, Someday, Maybe is Lauren Graham's (who played Lorelei Gilmore) first novel. If you like the TV show Gilmore Girls you will most likely enjoy Someday, Someday, Maybe. It is about a 20 something actress, Franny. It is 1995 in NYC Franny Banks is trying to make it into movies, Broadway, TV, commercials- really she'll take any acting job. I liked the quick witted dialogue. However this book gave me anxiety because of the main character's constant self doubt and her terrible audition dreams. I decided not to finish reading this because I found the energy of the book a little exhausting.

What I Wore Sunday

 Sweater:: Old Navy

Dress:: Land's End*

Shoes:: DSW

From far away you can't tell I am wearing clashing patterns.

 I had 2 objectives for this weekend's outfit...1. NO stripes 2. Mix patterns

Lately I've seen a lot of pictures in fashion magazines about mixing patterns. An example of this would be wearing flowers and stripes. The trick is to have a color that pulls the outfit together.  I kind of played it safe with black and white but hey I tried it. 

*Land's End makes this same dress every summer just in different fabric patterns. 

After my bold 4th of July nails I needed something simple and lady like. I love this color Tea with the Queen by Butter London. Yes, my mug is filled with Barry's tea.

Hey, you can check out what other Lovely Ladies wore to mass this Sunday at fine linen and purple.

Kindle

I have a couple books on hold at the library. While I am on the waiting list for those books I borrowed F.W.'s Kindle. It has taken a little getting used to. The one thing I like about the Kindle is you can order books by the touch of the finger...which is also dangerous($)! It definitely takes up less space in my bag.

I think I am ready for Summer

 This is my favorite summer nail color. It is Nan by Julep. It doesn't show up so well in the picture but it is a faded red khaki color.

 Last day of school. F.W is jazzed and D is having a hard time saying good bye to kindergarten. I think it will take me at least a week to get into the summer groove. Last year's summer learning theme was science. I am not sure yet what we are going to focus on this summer.

Farewell school

Mustache Cake step by step

 Bake a round cake and cut it in half like a Ying Yang

 I used a fork to give the mustache texture.

I used the Buttery Cake recipe from The Dahlia Bakery cookbook. This cookbook is great because it gives VERY specific directions.

Beautiful Ruins

Great Summer Read.

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter is SO good, I couldn't put it down. The book mainly takes place in modern day Los Angeles and 1962 Italy during the filming of the movie Cleopatra. The novel is mostly about people's dreams and ambition or lack there of. Jess Walter's writing had me falling in love with these flawed characters.
Pasquale Tursi is the owner of The Hotel Adequate View. Walter's describes him..."He found himself inhabiting the vast empty plateau where most people live, between boredom and contentment." Brilliant!
I hope Hollywood doesn't turn this book in to a movie because the movie will never live up to the book.

Flower Make Up

So as you might have already heard Drew Barrymore has her own make up line called Flower. I've been wanting to check it out. However it is only sold at Wal-Mart and I'm a Target girl. I finally made a "special" trip to Wal-Mart. I'm glad I went because Flower has lots of fun and trendy colors in eyeshadow, Lip gloss and nail polish. I was surprised to see a lot of the lipsticks and glosses were sold out. The Wal-Mart I went to was sold out of the lipstick I wanted. Overall I like Flower make up.
Good news first...
::Her make up is all made in USA, which I LOVE.
::It is reasonably priced.
::Great spectrum of matte lipstick colors
::Flower nail polish goes on easy and looks really good dry

Cons...
::The lid of the nail polish is large. The lid was awkward to hold while painting my nails.
::The color names are not labeled very clearly on the product
:: The BB cream doesn't have sunscreen

Julep Maven

 I love nail polish and I love mail so joining a monthly nail polish website is a no brainer for me. Every month at Julep.com you can buy a Mystery Box. How exciting is that?? In the past I've always been pleasantly surprised. However this month was a let down. I only got 3 colors (in the past I've gotten 6). I wasn't thrilled with the colors and The Daylight Defense I already own. As luck would have it D's school is having it's big fundraiser this weekend. The school makes a lot of money off a silent auction. So I donated this box to the silent auction. Combine this box of nail goodies with a spa pass and the school is sure to raise some $$$.

My one sister's nails ALWAYS look good. I would do my nails and they would look less glossy and chip right away. My sister asked "Do you use a top coat?" I was like no...Well using a top coat has made all the difference. I usually use Sally Hansen Insta-Dri. It helped seal in the color and my nails would dry fast but it has a terrible smell that lingered for days. I got Julep Freedom Top Coat in my Maven box and I'll never use Sally's again! Biggest improvement for me...it doesn't smell toxic. It prevents chipping and gives your nails a high gloss like Gels but it doesn't strip your nails like Gels. It can be removed with any nail polish remover.

St. Patrick's Day Nails

Happy St. Paddy's Day

I used Julep Emilie, Maybelline Porcelain Party & Revlon Siren

 F.W. found his dream car

 This morning we had breakfast downtown at The Field. We got to watch the 7 Nations rugby.

Hello March, Baking & Books

I baked New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies. They are delicious. You really can't eat just one! What makes these cookies different is you don't use all purpose flour instead you use bread and cake flour. Give them a whirl because they really are yummy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/dining/091crex.html?_r=0

My nails are ready for Spring. This mellow yellow is not my typical color...Not sure how long I'll keep them yellow.

 I am currently reading Lessons from Madame Chic By Jennifer L. Scott. Picked up this little nugget of wisdom from the library. We can all stand to be a little chicer.

We met the San Diego Chicken! Being a San Diego native this was a really big deal. As a kid I would see the Chicken at Padres games and he was always on the local news in the 80's. D was not thrilled about meeting the Chicken but both boys were good sports.

Valentine Nails

Valentine Nails

 1st bite of cake.

A mouthful

On Saturday we drove to Orange County for our nephew's 1st birthday party. It was a great weekend filled with lots of family...but no baking.

The birthday boy doesn't want to come home with his crazy Uncle.

After the birthday party the boys' Aunt let them release the birthday balloons. The kids wrote wishes on the balloons before they let them go. F.W and D's unselfish and loving wishes made me so proud.

West Coast Cousins