Karen

I’d love to hear your take on why you love your foundation, tinted moisturizer, powder, concealer, etc, because this gal needs to do some makeup shopping STAT.

For the first time in months, I’ve felt the urge to wear makeup again, hooray!

A little background: I’ve been going uber-minimalist for the past few months, and I’ve whittled my daily beauty routine down significantly. I do a tinted sunscreen with SPF 50, cream blush, under eye color corrector, a brow pencil and mascara on most days. Oh, and setting spray, of course.

A couple weeks ago, though, I got the urge to dig out my Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation tinted moisturizer and some powder blush and, gasp! It felt REALLY good to wear it. Who knows? Maybe a return to a full-face of paint is in the cards for me in the near future.

I think that’s the beauty of makeup. It’s always there for you to come back to it, if and when you want to do so.

Anywho, enough of my rambling. Tell me ALL ABOUT your go-to base products.

I’m excited to hear about them!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy Saturday! We’re spending a quiet weekend at home after last week’s camping adventure. Today, I’m going to take Connor to an end-of-the-summer dive event, and then we’re doing a little bit of window shopping for school. Have a great day!

We went camping last weekend by the Russian River, and Marnie tagged along with us, which added a different spin to our usual routine. I’ve never gone camping with a dog, so it was a first!

For this trip, I tried something new; I spent less time taking pics on my phone and more time trying to be present. I only took a handful of shots, including the one at the top.

Have you ever tried this? It’s been years since I’ve attempted to not grab at least a good amount of photos during a trip on my phone, and it was kinda weird for me.

I’m not sure how I feel about it! On one hand, it was really nice to not feel the need to constantly document everything. I really tried harder to burn images in my mind and capture the feelings at the moment—the sweetness of seeing Marnie walk right up to the edge of the river and getting right into the water without any hesitation, or how my heart swelled when Connor and Marnie looked so peaceful curled up together sleeping in the tent.

But on the other hand, I kinda wish I took at least a snap or two of those moments, so that years from now, I could get one of those reminders on my phone that shows me that I was by the water with my people on this specific day.

I legit wonder if I’m gonna remember it, ya know? I used to have a stellar memory; for years, and up until recently, I could remember even seemingly small things, like all my locker combinations during middle and high school, LOL! And now I can barely remember what I did last Monday, eek.

Oh, on a somewhat unrelated note, if you *do* take a dog camping, one thing I learned this time around is to save a little extra energy to give the dog a bath when you get home because they get absolutely filthy! My goodness.

Anywho, are you the type of person who just takes a few pictures on a trip and is fine with that, or do you feel the need to document every moment?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy Wednesday. I hope this week has been treating you well!

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007).

1. Something you need to buy for yourself that isn’t beauty related?

Shoes. I’ve been waking up with sore and cranky arches, so it’s time! I can’t believe there was a time in my life when I could wear whatever footwear and get up in the morning with happy feet. It’s wild to me!

2. Colors in your wardrobe that you wear the most?

I wear a ton of blue, gray and black. Honestly, I’m not crazy about that particular palette; it’s just that I bought a bunch of basics in those colors a while back, and sticking to just a few different colors makes it easier to get dressed in the morning. I have some pink, red and yellow items up in the mix, too, which I enjoy wearing.

3. Pick a sport you’d like to be amazing at: speed walking, high jump, wrestling or diving?

For practicality’s sake, I guess wrestling? At least that way if I ever found myself in a hand-to-hand grappling situation, I’d have a chance at getting out of it.

4. Where are you from?

California, baby! Specifically the East Bay, although I haven’t lived there in a really long time. I guess I could say I’m from Marin county since I’ve lived here for almost 20 years, but I don’t feel like I’m “from” here. I’ve always felt like a transplant.

5. Current mood?

A little sleepy but otherwise good. I really want to have a smooth, positive week, as it’s Connor’s last full week of summer before school starts again. It went by in a flash!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with your answers in a comment. Talk to ya soon.

1. Something you need to buy for yourself that isn’t beauty related?
2. Colors in your wardrobe that you wear the most?
3. Pick a sport you’d like to be amazing at: speed walking, high jump, wrestling or diving?
4. Where are you from?
5. Current mood?

I’ve only got one at the moment (unless you count my deodorant, ha). It’s Gabrielle Chanel L’Eau, a light, breezy floral with tuberose from Grasse, jasmine, ylang-ylang and orange blossom. Right meow it’s the purr-fect summer scent for me.

What scents are in your rotation right now?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

1. Do you really need another lipstick?
2. Why do you wear so much makeup?
3. Why do you want bangs?
4. Do you really need to carry “all that stuff” in your purse just to leave the house?
5. How much did you spend on your hair?
6. What the heck is the point of wearing perfume?
7. What happened to your eyebrows?
8. Did you unplug the flat iron/curling iron? (Side note: I always unplug it, but inevitably if El Hub asks me this question and we’re on the road, I’ll make him drive back so I can double check it, otherwise I’ll whip myself into a frenzy wondering if I did.)
9. Do you really need to wear sunscreen when we’re not at the beach?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!

July was a lovely month here at Casa MBB. Quite a few things happened!

1. I chopped off my hair

I’ve been on the fence about it for months. I knew it was time to finally do it when the stylist said, “It’s just hair, and it will grow back,” and my heart leapt with excitement. Next thing I knew, there was a massive pile of hair on the salon floor!

2. Marnie graduated from a dog training school program

She now knows some basic commands, and we as a family are better equipped to communicate with her. We took her to Mary’s Dog Angels in San Rafael! If you’re looking for some solid basic training, Mary is great.

3. I found a new-to-me boba place

It’s Teaspoon in Corte Madera, which is about 15 minutes away from my house. I asked the person behind the counter what the most popular flavor was, and he said Thai tea, so I went with that. The tea was tasty and the boba was fresh. I ordered mine with the classic boba balls and a sweetness level of 50%. It was purrfect!

4. We spent time next to the water

Any day you get to see the ocean is a good day. I spent fourth of July at a barbecue at a friend’s house on the bay, and we went to the beach a couple times with Marnie.

5. I fell in love with Marnie a little bit more

This little love had a REALLY hard start in life, and she’s still carrying it with her. Did I mention that she is a rescue? Apparently she spent her puppyhood in a backyard with very little socialization, and unfortunately that’s shaped how she currently experiences the world around her. She’s anxious and needs a lot of reassurance. Every day, though, I can see her confidence growing, and it’s so wonderful.

6. We all enjoyed fresh tomatoes from our deck garden

We enjoyed eating the tomatoes, Rosie enjoyed chillin’ in the plants, and Marnie enjoyed digging up the dirt in the pot. Sigh.

7. I found a new fun thing to love

Um, and it’s vintage jewelery! I have no plans to buy any of it, mind you. I just like looking at old pieces and imagining the history behind them. My favorites are Jewels by Grace and Erica Weiner Jewelry.

8. I spent absolutely nothing at the Nordstrom anniversary sale

But I did buy a dog crate on Amazon prime day!

9. I realized a big thing that may be helpful to me in the future

I don’t know why this took me so long to learn, but apparently I can allow people in my life to be — gasp — totally and completely wrong about me. And in turn, I don’t have to correct them. I can just let them continue to be wrong, and I can continue on as my sparkly self. Hmm, does that make any sense at all? In my mind I swear it’s logical, LOL! Anyway, This revelation has been very freeing and very helpful to my peace of mind.

Did any good things happen for you in July? Big or small, I’d love to hear about it.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007).

1. Have you been watching the Olympics?

Yes! I’ve especially enjoyed watching gymnastics because the skill level they possess is insane! I’m especially in awe of all the things the ladies achieve on the beam. I mean, seriously, I could barely even climb onto that thing, LOL!

2. Peanut butter: creamy or crunchy?

These days both! Creamy for smoothies and crunchy for toast or as an accoutrement with apples. Yum!

3. What beauty items do you happily buy extra large bottles of?

Aveeno body lotion and body wash, for sure. We go through a lot of it. Oh, and sunscreen.

4. A pet peeve that you have with roommates or co-workers?

When people wash their dishes and leave niblets of food in the sink!

5. Expensive shampoo or expensive perfume?

Um, both? But if I had to pick just one, then expensive perfume it is, ooh la la.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with your answers in a comment. Talk to ya soon.

1. Have you been watching the Olympics?
2. Peanut butter: creamy or crunchy?
3. What beauty items do you happily buy extra large bottles of?
4. A pet peeve that you have with roommates or co-workers?
5. Expensive shampoo or expensive perfume?