Aveda lip products

Recently, I've had a renewed interest in healthier cosmetics.  My interest has always been there as I don't particularly want to put chemical laden products on my body, but I've never really found organic or chemical free cosmetics that I like.

Along with finding fashion for the pear shaped body, you may notice in my posts that I am also interested in health, diet, and fitness.  I've read various books on beauty and I've learned that eating a healthy diet helps beauty from the inside out.  One book that I've read and mentioned in a past post, is Kimberly Snyder's, Beauty Detox Solution.

I like Kimberly's recipe for a  Green Smoothie (minus the celery) and I also follow her blog as well.  In one of her post titled, "Obtain Natural Beauty with Safe Cosmetics", she mentions a brand called Vapour Beauty.  These products are online order and even though you can order samples, I really had the "I want it now" vibe so the next best thing was to head over to Aveda. 

In my quest for natural, healthier cosmetics, I decided to start with make up products that I'm most likely to ingest such as, lipstick and gloss. 

Nourish-Mint Soothing Lip color in Wild Plum

I selected the Nourish-Mint Soothing Lip color in Wild Plum.  The color is more in the rose family and applies pink, not plum.  The lipstick scent is described as a "refreshing organic spearmint and vanilla flavor", but I just think it smells like a spa in a tube.

Nourish-Mint Soothing Lip Color in Wild Plum swatch

I also purchased two lip glosses:

Nourish-Mint Rehydrating Lip Glaze in Agave Nectar

Nourish-Mint Rehydrating Lip Glaze in Ginger Lily

Swatch of both lip glosses

Out of the three products that I purchased, the lipstick is my favorite.  The lipstick slides on, had good wear, and smells wonderful.  The lip glosses have great color payoff and have a wonderful mint scent, but the gloss is a little thick and tacky on the lips.  Not really sticky like a Mac lip glass, but not slick like a NYX gloss.  I probably wouldn't run out and buy more as I prefer a more emollient lip gloss.

If you have a favorite natural and/or organic cosmetics brand that you like, let me know in the comments below and the product(s) that you like as well.

Cheers,
Monica 

Cream blazer with black piping and a Starry Night shirt

I usually try and take outfit pictures on the weekend so I have content for the week.  This weekend was spent mostly on the futon, napping with my dog.  I guess I just needed some rest time.

So these pictures were hastily taken this morning before the sun had time to break through the over cast sky. The jacket and top were purchased back in February and I forgot to post pictures of these two items.

Anyway, this top reminds me of Van Gogh's Starry Night painting.

Starry Night by Van Gogh

Top by INC at Macy's

I normally don't purchase three-quarter length sleeve jackets, but I really liked the detail of the black piping around the sleeves.  The piping gives the jacket an nice outline as it defines and adds dimension to the lapel of the jacket.

I added my Not Your Daughter's dark wash jeans.

And comfortable heels by Clarks.

Clarks Artisan Slingback heels

I sure don't miss the days when jeans were prohibited from the work wardrobe.  I'm so happy that I can dress up my jeans and have a comfortable work day.

Do you get to wear jeans at the office?

Cheers,
Monica.

A Jewelry Tree Stand

I got the organizing bug this spring and I recently took on the task of re-organizing my jewelry. I have quite a few necklaces and I had them all stuffed in a very old jewelry box that I swear I've had since I was a teenager.  The jewelry box was originally brown, then I got all "crafty" and did a crackle paint job. This was when crackle first made its appearance in craft stores (way before crackle nail polish).  Anyway, it was really just time to say good bye to this item and find something modern.

Old crackle painted jewelry box

 My next purchase was a sort of carousel jewelry stand off of ebay.  It arrived, I put it together, added the necklaces, and I just didn't like how all my necklaces hung from the same height. The longer necklaces dragged on the dresser and I knew this wasn't quite what I had in mind.

Next I saw the Chirp Jewelry Tree at Target and thought it was adorable.  I promptly put this item in my cart and added the ring bowl as well.

Chirp Jewelry stand and bowl from Target

After I got my necklaces all organized, I realized that I was really missing the single drawer at the bottom of the old jewelry box so I purchased the Three Drawer Portofino Cube in Espresso from The Container Store.  This cube now holds my rings, earrings, and watches. 

3 Drawer Portofino Jewelry Cube in Espresso from The Container Store

The metal container with the dog on top says "A True Friend will leave Pawprints in Your Heart" and this is where I store Taylor's (the cocker spaniel) baby teeth.

So now my dresser looks like this:

What's on my dresser

I'm really enjoying the necklace tree.  I've found and worn necklaces that have been buried for years in the old jewelry box and I just love the necklaces dangling on the stand as a type of decorative art piece.

How do you store your jewelry items?

Cheers,
Monica

Faux leather jacket and a few other items from New York and Co.

Since there isn't an H&M in the Palm Desert area, I often find myself at New York & Co. at the Westfield Palm Desert mall which is where these items were purchased a few weeks ago.

The temperature is still quite cool at the San Diego coast in the morning, so I wanted to get a light spring jacket.  Initially, I wanted a light leather jacket, but I couldn't find anything that was inexpensive so opted for a faux leather jacket.  This jacket was a good choice because the material feels quite soft and doesn't have that plastic texture that I find with most faux leather jackets.

Faux leather jacket (front), from New York & Co.

Faux leather jacket (back), from New York & Co.

I really like the layered ruffle around the waist and how it continues to the back.  It's a really cute detail and lightens up the look of the jacket for spring.

I also purchased a floral print top with bright green accents.  The top came with a belt that is worn high on the waist, but I'm not so sure about this detail on me and I may be cutting off the belt loops.

Floral top from New York & Co.

Back of shirt with button details

And lastly, I purchased another dress.  Since it's wonderfully warm in the desert, I've found a renewed love for dresses, wedge sandals, and getting dressed up in general.  In San Diego, the evening temperature hits below 65 degrees and my interest in wearing a dress turns to zero.  I am so not a cold weather gal.

White dress with geometric design

I am currently on the look out for a light blue clutch to go with the white and black dress .. sort of "Tiffany" blue if I can find something in that color range. 

And ... Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there, even if your kid has fur.

Cheers,
Monica

Linking up with Patti over at Not Dead Yet Style

 

Dansko Thea in natural

There are two parts to this blog.  First, my lovely new Dansko clogs and second is my attempt to style a pair of green/gray army color pants.

I chatted about my first pair of Dansko clogs here.  Those particular clogs are brown suede and I wanted to get a lighter pair for spring.  While visiting The Walking Co. I saw a gal trying on the Thea clogs in black.  Since I don't need another pair of shoes in black, I didn't ask if they came in any other colors.  I was still thinking about the shoes later in the evening and went to The Walking Co. online site and discovered that these shoes come in brown, red, green, and blue.  I ordered a pair of shoes in the natural color.

Dansko, Thea clogs in Natural

I really like the sculpted heel with the geometric cut out.  The foot bed is padded and I do love how the rocker bottom allows a natural stride from heel to toe.

The second part of the blog is my attempt to style a pair of green/gray pair of pants.  I was about to donate the pants when I saw Alice over at Happiness At Mid-Life blog about an army green cargo jacket.  She mixed color with print in two different ways and I was like - Wow, perhaps I can rescue those pants.

I don't have a lot of prints in my closet, so I decided to pair a bright orange striped top with a dark denim jacket.  I don't think I look incredibly special, but it's an amazing attempt from someone who always wears an off-white sweater or a black top with these particular pants.

Super windy day and the sun is in my face ;-)

Me and my favorite boy.  Taylor, the cocker spaniel is always happy to make an appearance.

Alice, thanks for the tip!

Cheers,
Monica

Linking up with Patti over at Not Dead Yet Style

Cinco de Mayo dinner

In honor of Cinco de Mayo, I decided to try a new recipe that I found online called, "Tequila Lime Chicken and Black Bean Burritos".  I've only enjoyed tequila in margaritas and I've never used tequila in cooking, so I was eager to find out if this combination of ingredients would make a good marinade.

Tequila Lime Chicken marinade ingredients

It look a lot of limes to make 1/4 cup lime juice.  The recipe also called for the zest of two limes.

Lime zest

I marinaded the chicken for four hours.

Chicken marinade

And here's the end result ...

Tequila Lime Chicken and black bean burritos dinner

Looks pretty good right?  Well, not really.  The chicken was flavorless.  There were hints of lime, but overall, this recipe is missing some spices like garlic, chili powder, cilantro. Perhaps some jalapeno peppers would have given this marinade the kick it so desperately needed.

The meal was edible and my husband and I enjoyed it, but I will look for another recipe to try next year.

Cheers,
Monica.

April Favorite: Motion Medica Skin Care

My current workout routine consists of yoga, weights, and running on a treadmill which I chatted about in my Exercise Plan post.  It seems that when I run and work up a sweat, I start to get body break outs, especially on my back.  I have tried body acne products such as Neutrogena Body Clear wash and Murad's Acne Body Wash and Clarifying Body Spray.  Both products are very drying and leave my skin tight and irritable.

One day I came across a tweet on Twitter with a link to a write up about a company called Motion Medica.  I read the online article and promptly placed an order.  Since I wanted to try a few products with out a major commitment, I ordered the Fitness Skin Care Sample Pack ($21.95), which included:

Left: Fitness Skin Care Sample pack | Right:  Stellar Performance Post Workout Cleanser, 8 oz

 From left to right:
(1) Antioxidant Endorphin Rush Serum
(1) No Time to Shower Botanical Mist, 2 oz
(1) Stellar Performance Post Workout Cleanser, 2 oz

I also ordered the 8 oz Stellar Performance Post Workout Cleanser ($28.97) as I read that the product removed sweat, dirt, and oil without stripping the skin.  I have been using the cleanser after I work out and I really like how my skin feels clean, refreshed, and soft.  My skin is comfortable and I don't have to slather my skin with lotion to get rid of that burning tight feeling.  Plus, the products actually help calm my break out prone skin.

My favorite product is the No Time to Shower Botanical Mist.  If you're at the gym and have 'no time to shower' then you can give your skin a quick mist to freshen up.  Since I work out at home, I have been using this product as a toner after my shower. The mist has a light tea tree oil scent and has healing botanical ingredients such as green tea, fennel, sage, and lavender to name a few.  I know this product works because I had an inflamed cystic acne bump on my back that I couldn't reach to put product on, so I sprayed the mist on for three days and the bump went away.

The Antioxidant Endorphin Rush Serum is the one product that didn't get much use only because the product should be applied prior to your workout so that when you skin heats up the serum will penetrate your pores and help keep your skin clear.  However,  I was usually dressed and ready to go when I remembered that this product needs to be applied pre-workout, so then you think, ah, I'll get to it next time.

The products arrived promptly and were packaged in these cute and colorful bags.  I am really happy with my purchase and will definitely re-purchase the No Time to Shower Botanical Mist and Stellar Performance Post Workout Cleanser.

Cheers,
Monica.