Archives for April 2018

Dear Tabby…

April 4th, 2018 by Karen 25 Comments

Sometimes when Trader Joe’s is out of THE ONE THING I’m craving (I’m talking about you, Lightly Salted Frozen Edamame!), and the baby has been screaming and kicking doors for hours, and I’m feeling anxious because it’s 4 p.m. and I haven’t accomplished anything on my to-do list, and the tears are welling up in my eyes, but I don’t want to cry because I haven’t taken pictures of my eye makeup yet, and I’m spitting curses at my computer, even though I’m the one who accidentally clicked the little red dot thingy that closed Chrome, Tabs will hop up on my desk and head butt my face.

Just like that, I can breathe again…

Like a tabby doctor who knows exactly what his patient needs, he kicks his purr machine into high gear. I take a deep breath, then another, and bury my face in his fur. It’s like he’s telepathically telling me that everything’s gonna be alright. It’s OK, girl. Dr. Tabs will make it better. ?

The Dear Tabby Tee, $29 at connorclaire.com

This tee reminds me of Tabs, and if any cat could appreciate a feline who wears pink polka-dot glasses, he could. ❤️

Your friendly neighborhood tabby addict,

Karen

My Favorite Tree Is Blooming Again!

April 3rd, 2018 by Karen 33 Comments

Say what!? You don’t have a favorite tree? That, my friend, is crazy business. You need one. You owe it to yourself to find a tree ? that speaks to your soul, and designate it as your favorite. 🙂

This one’s been my favorite for years, and it goes OFF in the spring. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I get so emo about this tree! I could get lost for hours just staring up at it. I love her pale pink flowers, silvery gray trunk and the light green lichen on her branches. I look forward to it every spring.

Strangely enough, I’ve never named it — this coming from the person who names every inanimate object that crosses her path. It’s just my favorite ? tree. That’s it.

What about you? Do you have a favorite tree? Or another favorite plant?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

OUAI Dry Texture Wheat Protein-Infused Texturizing Foam Creates Instant Undone Texture and Hold

April 3rd, 2018 by Karen 9 Comments

ouai dry texture foam — Say it with me — “WHEY.”

I love that I can walk around nowadays with messy hair that looks like I just woke up, but have it be, like, a legit hairstyle (Dear Beauty Goddesses, please don’t let this trend go away!). Texturizing sprays (or naps on the couch) are the typical way to get this lived-in look, where you’ve got clumps of hair sticking together and tussled waves like you just emerged from a wind tunnel, and there are lots of good ones out there, but now there’s a new way to get the same look by going down a different path, and it’s from OUAI (you’ve probably seen them all over the ‘gram).

Dry Texture Foam is $28 for a decently-sized 5.8-oz. bottle, and it’s for curly, wavy and straight hair types. You shoot a little foam into your palm, then work it through your hair while it’s dry, starting at the tips and working your way up the shaft.

It does everything a texturizing spray does — you know, roughing up the hair, upping volume, keeping the curl pattern — but in some ways, it does them so much better. I really like the “piece-y” effect I get from this foam.

The foam gathers up more strands and clumps them together into chunkier pieces than the sprays I’ve used, which makes my hair more visually interesting, a.k.a. messier. LOL! I also like that it roughs up the strands just a touch, like you took a 10-minute cat nap at your desk at work (hey, no judgement), but not like you got caught in a tornado.

Now, OUAI products generally have strong fragrances, and when I put this in my hair in the morning, I smell it all day long. It’s SUPER strong and gets up in your business like that one Auntie at Filipino parties who’s all, “Why aren’t you married to your boyfriend yet? Why don’t you have kids? Aren’t your parents sad they don’t have grandchildren yet?” It smells exactly like OUAI’s shampoo and conditioner or a Byredo white floral with honeysuckle, jasmine, lily of the valley, and some white musk thrown in there for schmexiness.

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Easter Noms

April 2nd, 2018 by Karen 20 Comments

easter 2018 carrot cake — Ask me about these walnuts, dude.

BABE. Thank you for telling me about toasting nuts for baking recipes. It was totes key. I did it for the “rustic” carrot cake I baked for Easter yesterday, and it made all the difference. (And yes, I call anything that doesn’t look Instagram perfect “rustic.”)

Also, I haven’t forgotten that I said I’d share my go-to brownie recipe, but my pants have been feeling a wee big snug lately, and I want to bookend the recipe with new pictures of fresh brownies… But I have it on deck for this week, much to El Hub’s delight.

I made four Easter dishes yesterday — the carrot cake, roasted chicken and potatoes, corned beef and cabbage (which I made in the Instant Pot, and IT WAS A REVELATION), and roasted lemony asparagus and rice. 🙂

easter 2018 roast chicken and potatoes — Roasted chicken and potatoes (salting the chicken before putting it in the marinade makes a big difference)

easter 2018 corned beef — Corned beef and cabbage (and parsnips and carrots, if we’re gonna be specific)

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 518

April 2nd, 2018 by Karen 37 Comments

You bring out the best in yourself by looking for the best in others — It’s a beautiful day to be alive ?

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past 11 (!) years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

1. What’s one of your best high school memories?

Most are just small things, but there are so many to choose from! What really stand out for me are the little things that I miss so much now as an adult.

One of my best ones, and Cindy would probably disagree with this, but it was on a day when we had a written test in honors history class (because we were nerds in that way), and I remember this clear as day. It was senior year. We were in the car. Jen was driving us to school, and Cindy was like, “Are you ready for the test?” and I was like, “No, not really.” I hadn’t studied for it. I can’t remember why, but I didn’t.

It was going be an essay test, so I asked Cindy, “Well, what did you learn last night? Give me the bullet points,” and she broke it down for me over the course of the drive. From the time we got into the car, got to school, and then left the car was about 15 minutes, and Cindy told me everything she studied, everything she learned. The highlights.

We go in, and we both take the test…

I got an A on it and Cindy got a B. And she was pissed! I can’t blame her.

2. What’s the last show you marathoned?

I’m always starting shows with a bang, and I’ll watch for a few hours but never finish. But the last show I marathoned from start to finish was The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Prime Video.

It’s by the people who did Gilmore Girls, which is probably why I liked it so much.

3. Favorite decade?

I mean, I could do without the spiral perm coming back, although I’m down for hair that reaches for the sky, but obviously the ’80s. The music was so much fun, and even though I had such a hard time with high-waisted pants back then, I’ve come around to appreciating them more with my mom bod.

Also, all of the leggings we wore back then are making a comeback again, too.

4. Will you be my lucky charm?

Only if you’ll be my lucky star. ⭐

5. Peeps: love ’em or hate ’em?

I wish you could see my face all scrunchy right now. ?

In theory, I don’t like them. There’s something about the texture that isn’t appealing to me…but if you put one in front of me, I’ll go there.

New yummies

What was for breakfast this morning? You know it’s my favorite meal of the day so I had to ask. Well, it’s one of my favorite meals of the day. I’m a big fan of lunch and dinner, too, and the snacks in between. HAHA! But breakfast is my fave, which is why I looked around for some new breakfast yummies while I was grocery shopping over the weekend. They’re pretty healthy too!

Starting with… Dave’s Killer Whole Wheat Bread. I like the nutritional numbers, and this dude on the package (I’m assuming he’s Dave) cracks me up.

I don’t know why a muscled guy playing guitar on a loaf of bread is so hilarious to me, but I dig it!

Also: Thomas’ English Muffins Double Protein Oatmeal With Cinnamon. There’s 7g of protein in each muffin. I toasted one this morning and topped it with a tablespoon of peanut butter and YUM! So good.

I also picked up Dannon Light ‘N’ Fit Greek Yogurt in Strawberry Cheesecake because sometimes I wake up wanting dessert for breakfast. Wait… that never happens to you? You’re crazy!

I found all these yummies at Target, by the way, because the one in our town has a grocery section. And yes, it’s awesome.

So, Monday. Looks like it’s going to be a sunny day here in Northern California. I feel like it’s gonna be a good one, too. If you need some extra cheer, allow me to be your cheesy cheerleader and remind you that it’s a beautiful day, an absolutely gorgeous one, to be alive. I know, super cheesy, but sometimes you need a little bit of cheese in your life. Happy to provide it for ya.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy and paste with your answers in a comment:

1. What’s one of your best high school memories?
2. What’s the last show you marathoned?
3. Favorite decade?
4. Will you be my lucky charm?
5. Peeps: love ’em or hate ’em?

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 495

April 1st, 2018 by Karen 25 Comments

Hey, bunny! ? Happy Easter! ?

Like my brows?

I tried something different with them today. I went bold.

I get stuck in makeup ruts, and I wanted to jouge up my normal #weekendmommakeup with something new. I’ve also been scrolling a lot through Instagram lately, and I’ve been inspired by the wavy brow trend.

I like that this look combines classic elements I love, like teeny, tiny wings, nude lips and cats.

Do you like it?

Tabs approves, but of course he would.

Speaking of Tabs, like any good big brother, he shared his Easter basket with Connor.

Granted, all of the plastic eggs contained cat treats, so she didn’t really want to eat them…or maybe she did. Who knows? I don’t know what those two get into when I’m not looking. When I turn around for one second, all hell breaks loose — or, all heaven, because they’re little ? angels. Haha.

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