Just For Fun

So, this morning I drove down to Southern Marin for a dental appointment, and sigh… What I can I say? I feel like I’ve gone to the dentist every other day this summer. Heck, though, I’m thankful for modern dentistry, because I can only imagine medieval dentistry being a million times worse.

I left Novato super early to avoid the weekday traffic, and what’s usually an hour-long drive took only 30 minutes. Surprisingly, traffic wasn’t too bad today, so I ended up with time to spare in my old stomping grounds of Mill Valley. Small victories! Since we got there so quickly, I took Connor to this place El Hub and I used to go jogging around called Blackie’s Pasture, which is in the lovely Town of Tiburon.

There are usually people jogging and walking their dogs, and, on sunny days, you can see Sausalito on the right, Belvedere Island on the left and San Francisco across the Bay.

There was a fog bank hanging around today, so we couldn’t really make out SF in the distance, but I could kinda see a little bit of the skyline.

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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 10 (!) 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. A piece of advice you would give to someone just getting started in makeup?

Before you pull the trigger and buy that foundation/tinted moisturizer/BB cream or whatever it may be, check to see how it looks on you outside using a mirror, because store lighting can make a product look COMPLETELY different than it looks in sunlight, or the shade, or even a different type of artificial lighting (light soft white bulbs vs. daylight bulbs). It helps to check whether a base product is a good match for your skin when you’re in natural light.

I would also say that you usually don’t have to wear as much makeup as you think.

2. Say something positive about your beautiful body.

My body kicks butt! It can run. It can surf. It continually keeps trying to do yoga, even though downward dogs are like the most challenging thing in the world…

I’m glad it’s healthy, and I appreciate all the thing it does.

3. How much does packaging matter to you?

It matters to a degree. Obviously, I want the product in the packaging to be good, but it’s nice when something also looks pretty sitting on your bathroom counter or when you pull it out of your makeup bag, ya know?

If I had to choose between the same product in not-so-cute packaging and the same product in cute packaging, I’d choose the cute option, for sure!

4. What’s something that you didn’t expect to like but ended up liking anyway?

Peppermint ice cream from Baskin-Robbins (I’ve only seen it during the holidays), because MAN! — it looks so nasty, like Pepto-Bismol ice cream. It tastes really good, though.

5. Someone that you hope is thinking about you today?

My li’l coywolf. I hope she thinks fondly of me.

Mondays are for magic

May a little bit of magic find you today. 🙂 Have a great one, friend!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy and paste.

1. A piece of advice you would give to someone just getting started in makeup?
2. Say something positive about your beautiful body.
3. How much does packaging matter to you?
4. What’s something that you didn’t expect to like but ended up liking anyway?
5. Someone that you hope is thinking about you today?

Babe, if you’re one of those lucky people able to sleep in Saturday mornings, I’m majorly jealous. I get up at 5:30 during the week, and I really, REALLY wanted sleep in till at least 7:30 this morning, but alas, my body had other plans… I’ve been up since 6, GAH!

Oh, well. At least I’ve gotten a few things done. I watered the plants in the Lady Sanctuary, made food, fed the baby, ran on the treadmill (BTW, one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. Got it in 2011 with an extended warranty, and it still gets use.), and now I’m about to go KonMari Method on the mountain of miscellaneous baby accouterments, like giant pregnancy pillows and too-small diapers, that now lives in the middle of my bedroom.

So at least there’s that… No sleeping in, but at least I’ve been moderately productive.

What’s new in your neck of the woods? How are you doing? If you have a few moments to unwind, stay a while! Put your feet up, kick back, relax, and check out some of these stories online. For one reason or another, all of these caught my eye this week…

• Yo, Tabs and I are doing this! Up your crazy cat lady game by getting a matching mani…with your cat. (I love scarymommy.com, BTW. Lots of interesting articles.)
• It’s a trip down the Internet rabbit hole, but visit the Skincare Addiction subreddit if you can. There’s lots of handy info, even in the sidebar, which has fact sheets on topics ranging from stretch marks to paraben safety.
• Can Container Store’s Luxe makeup organization system handle my your next-level hoarders lipstick stash?
• QVC is buying HSN for $2.1 Billion to form…wait for it…QHVSCN! Not really though. 🙂
• The best of the best from Bobbi Brown
• Fun fact: when you eat a dried fig, you are probably also nomming on wasp mummies. Bon appetit!
• Sabrina has the skinny on the best summer foundations.
• BareMinerals wants to make a statement with their latest lip collection.
• This bestselling gadget on Amazon allegedly obliterates your lady mustache, so, obviously, I wanna try it.
• Among others things I learned from this post on weirdly accurate Amazon reviews, I learned that cat food allegedly tastes pretty good… Allegedly.
• Congress doesn’t feel that sleeveless clothing is appropriate work attire for women.
• 5 modern day Shakespeares (including one of my favorite lyricists, hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar)
• The most annoying mistakes you can make on a résumé, according to an expert who’s reviewed more than 40,000 of them.

(That’s a lot!)

Have a good rest of your Saturday, OK? I hope it’s a nice day there. I have a few more chores to do and one errand to run, but them I’m driving into the city for high tea at the Fairmont with a few friends from school. That should be fun. Scones and lemon curd for everyone!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

It’s like Disneyland in Oakland. For babies! Who knew?

Connor Claire had so much fun at Fairyland yesterday. Among the things we learned, we learned that she loves puppet shows and sits attentively through them, and we also learned that she loves ducks! She met a cute duck couple named Valentine and Lucky and didn’t want to leave them.

If you ever make it out to Oakland, and you’re traveling with little ones, Children’s Fairyland is a fun stop. If Connor has her way, we’ll definitely be going back.

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Oh, gosh. So, I’ve always thought of myself as home-decorating challenged, mostly because I get overwhelmed by all the choices. Too many options, and I completely shut down, but this weekend I finally figured out something major (I think), and it’s related to makeup, which kind of blew my mind…

I learned that if I take certain… I don’t want to call them rules; I’ll call them themes instead. If I take certain themes that I know work for me when I’m putting together a makeup look, and apply those themes to decorating, it makes things so much easier!

Contrasting elements

Like when I’m putting on makeup, if I incorporate contrasting elements into whatever I’m doing, that looks right to me. Whether it’s contrasting colors or finishes or something else. Like, for example, satiny skin with glossy lids and a matte lip. There’s something visually appealing about combining different finishes together, because when the finishes are too similar, it reads as flat or monotone.

When I went to Marshalls to look for good deals on pots and things to decorate “the lady sanctuary,” I had that idea of contrast in mind as I picked out plant stands, of all things. I thought that if all of the potted plants ended up being low to the ground, it would look too monotone, and too much like just one note, so I got some plant stands of varying height.

Then I took it a step further with some other contrasting elements, like, some of the stands have straight legs, and some have curvy legs. Some are newer-looking with a black wrought iron finish, and some have more of an aged bronzed finish.

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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 10 (!) 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. Something you don’t need but want anyway?

So, I’m totally not a car person, but I love my li’l 2010 Mazda (zoom, zoom!). It’s reliable, and I REALLY like not having a car payment…but I wouldn’t mind having something a little bigger.

With power locks.

And those fancy seat cushion heaters that keep your butt and back warm when it’s cold.

2. What shoes are you wearing today?

Team flip-flops, baby! I’m wearing an ancient pair of black and hot pink Reef slippers that I probably shouldn’t be wearing in public anymore.

I sooooo love them, though.

Have you ever worn Reef flip-flops? My friend Cindy introduced me to them years ago, and now I can’t wear any other brand. They’re squishier and thicker than usual for slippers, and after you wear them a few times, they mold to the shape of your feet.

3. How’s your skin doing?

Aghh! It’s moody today. I used a nighttime retinol by Chantecaille a couple times last week, and my skin is still crabby about it. I’m definitely not used to it yet, and the skin at the base of my nose and the corners of my mouth feels tight and dry, blergh…

4. How often do you say exactly what’s on your mind?

Oh, gosh. Not that often anymore, but when I was younger and completely clueless, I’d blurt out any old crazy thing that crossed my mind. I quit doing it when I hit my 30s and realized that some things are better left unsaid. Basically, sometimes it’s hurtful when people say whatever they want.

5. Have you ever dated someone who had longer hair than you?

Hmm, nope. Never have. One guy I briefly went out with in college had hair that was long enough to hit his cheekbones, but now that I think about it, it was more like a bowl cut than “long hair” (air quotes).

Hey, at least he used conditioner.

Happy Monday, friend

Drink an extra cup of coffee for me today, will ya? I need the energy!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy and paste…

1. Something you don’t need but want anyway?
2. What shoes are you wearing today?
3. How’s your skin doing?
4. How often do you say exactly what’s on your mind?
5. Have you ever dated someone who had longer hair than you?