To those of you who still sign up to follow my blog.
I’ve moved, evolved, changed names and servers. You see, this little blog that could got a little too big and I needed to switch over to my own domain name. Thebeautyblogs was taken, so I am now writing about beauty products, running and husband antics on: www.beautyandthepalette.com.
Please come over to the brighter side. We have cookies! And prizes. Lots and lots of prizes.
With love,
The beauty.
Today, I randomly chose the winner.
Congratulations, Rachel Mitchell! You have just won the Korres Antioxidant Color Collection. Korres products are Organic, loaded with Vitamin enriched Antioxidants, Paraben free, Sulfate free and contain no synthetic ingredients what so ever. Good for you and good for the environment. This kit contains 4 eye shadows, an eyeliner, mascara and my very favorite cherry lip gloss. Valued at over $117 and worth every penny. I will make arrangements to get this to you.
Normally on a giveaway blog, I do not talk about other products. However, I must discuss this because it is in limited edition.
For all you Vampire loving True Blood fans, your prayers have been answered. Threefold, even.
First we have the eye palette. The box itself looks a little naughty, with hints of red Vamp fangs peeking through. Open the mirrored chest and inside you will find 17 absolutely gorgeous shades of color, 1 black gel eyeliner pen, eye shadow primer and the finishing touch…..mascara! Not a fan of the mythological blood suckers? No worries, this kit is perfect for anyone. Bare to smokey, Tarte has you covered. All of this is available at: Tarte online and Sephora stores (online freebies) for $52 dollars. Season 4 just started and Season 3 is now available to rent!
Now we have the True Blood Lip Surgence Natural lip Tint. These are closer to a tinted lip balm, but in stick form. This long lasting tint can be layered for a darker color or slicked on once for a luminous shade of Bing Cherry red. This sells for $24.
Now for my absolute favorite item. The Cheek Tint. If you’ve ever read my blog before, you know how I wear a little make up when I run a race. I may sweat, but I am still a girl. Normally I go to the pink hue of, Babydoll, but one swipe of this tint of red and I am hooked. The natural mineral pigments make it good for your skin and okay to wear for anything. Yes, even to the gym. One swipe on each cheek and you will have a sweet cherry glow that lasts an entire day. Wear it under your makeup for special occasions when touch ups are not an option or even to the beach. If you’ve never tried a cheek stain, you are missing out. $30 for this long lasting stick.
One more thing, Tarte products are also Organic and free of all Parabens and Synthetics of any kind!
Time for a new contest.
Stila, “Haute in the Hamptons” Palette. This purse ready palette contains a darling pink blush perfect to put on the apples of your cheeks. Then a bronzer to apply on your cheekbones. Top it off with 4 shades of eyeshadow ranging from a shell inspired ivory to the deepest blue of the ocean. I’m actually wearing this blue on my lids right now. Summer is the perfect time to wear blue shadows and eyeliners. The right shade can make any eye color, POP! Plus, when your eyes are tired or blood shot, always reach for a shade of blue. It mutes the redness and makes you look more awake.
To enter, simply follow my blog. Nothing else. Here is the link to my new blog, this one will soon be obsolete. www.beautyandthepalette.com.
Good luck, my beauties
Every year I ask my father what he wants for Father’s Day. And every year I am given the same reply:
“Nothing, dear. Your love is gift enough!”
To that I say, “BULLSHIT!”
Listen, I know that it doesn’t take this years new hard to find Lowe’s gadget to let people know how much I love my father. But I also know that if I actually do show up empty handed, someone is going to be in the dog house. I am claustrophobic. So, there will be gifts.
With my Dad, I know that he does not want the extravagant things that say, I would want. So on a recent trip to Target trying to find something to make my Husband smell better after leaving the Morgue, I came upon a bottle of Brut. I was amazed that they still made it. My father has been wearing this ever since I can remember. I hold the bottle in my hands looking at it nostalgically. Then I put it back. The more I thought about this green bottle of old man cologne, the older I felt. My father is still under 60 and in my family, 60 is the new 40. No way, will I let my father smell like an old fogie!
Time for an upgrade!
AXE, “Revitalizing Shower Gel in Dark Temptation”. So many fragrances to choose from. With names like: Dragon Fruit, Glacier, Shock and Snake Venom, I didn’t want to scare the poor man. So I picked the bottle that I thought would be most appealing to him. Boring, brown. Well, I can assure you, the bottle may look boring, but the fragrance inside is purrrrfect. Warm, woodsy and all man. In truth, I loved them all, so I had to buy one in every fragrance for my husband to try. The Glacier is packed with mint and made his body tingle. He tried the Dark Temptation next and loved it. Then he tried Snake Venom and Dragon Fruit. They do both say that they are HOT, but I assumed that meant like, “steaming, sexy HOT”. But, no. It made him feel like he had just poured hot sauce on his chest and turned his skin bright red. The poor guy. He looked like an Atomic Fire Ball from the trunk up. Needless to say, he refused to ever be my Guinea pig again. Thankfully, he tried this boring brown one before the shower massacre and he let me go back and buy him a cupboard full of wash and a can of body spray. The best part, each item was under 6 dollars and available at every drugstore and grocery store near you.
I am kind of liking this idea of bringing my father into this century. I even start to think of ways to get the coaches shorts and velour sweats out of his drawers. All in due time, I tell myself. So I settle on the idea of making him smell younger. After all, your sense of smell can make or break your entire day. You smell younger, you feel younger, and mommy will thank you for it.
Bath and Body Works Signature Collection For Men, “Noir”. Keeping in mind that my hubby will no longer be my product tester, I enlist the help of one of my male friends. After enjoying the aroma of all 5 of their fragrances for men, I decide upon Noir and Oak for him. After smelling, Twilight Woods, I was afraid to give him that one since it smells very spicy. Burning another product tester is not an option. Citron reminded me of furniture polish and Ocean was out of stock except for the tester. Noir was the fragrance that I was most excited about. When I opened the bottle, hints of Musk and Vanilla filled my nose. I just love when a man smells like he could go chop down a tree for me then come inside and bake me some cookies. I knew my friend, Michael, loved to cook, so it was no surprise to me when he gave me positive feedback. His exact words: “I like this. It lathers well and the scent lingers without being overbearing!” He liked the Oak as well. This smells of a forest to me. Hints of Cedar and Patchouli. After his good feedback, I went back to the store with my “spend 10 dollars get a free full size body wash” coupon and picked the Ocean up for my man. I put it in the shower without saying a word. He tried it and loved it. Now this is the only fragrance on his one shelf in the shower. Or, as he likes to call it, his “33.3 percent of the shower”. Each fragrance comes in a shower gel, body spray, cologne and shaving line. The gel sells for $10.50 but is currently buy 2 get 1 free. No coupon is better than a Bath and Body Works, coupon, so use them to buy a little something yourself and get him a freebie wash. No store near you? Also available online at: Bathandbodyworks.com
Molton Brown, “Re-Charge Black Pepper Body Wash and Deodorant”. Back in the day, a man went to the Barber Shop to get his hair cut and face neatly shavenBergamot and Black Peppercorn to warm your senses. Then throw in the 24 hour Anti-Perspirant stick with Andiroba Tree Oil to condition the skin and you have one great $50 dollar Father’s Day Gift. Available at fine Department Stores, moltonbrown.com and Spalook.com.
Father or not, your man deserves to be pampered. Nothing is sexier than a man that smells good and takes care of himself. That includes, grooming!
For those of you who do not know, I have a new, updated web address and blog. http://www.beautyandthepalette.com. Go there for your June Korres Sweepstakes!
Log on to http://www.beautyandthepalette.com
New blog, new contests! Good luck, my beauties!
Serves me right, I guess. I should know better than to ever under estimate a lawyer. Honestly, I was just trying to keep the man motivated to run.
Two months ago, I convinced my somewhat out of shape friend, Phil, to train and run a little 5K in our home town. He then convinced his wife to sign up, as well. The two of them trained, asked me and Mandi questions and one of them even began to enjoy it. Not him, of course. So, to make a game of it, Mandi started egging on a little competition between he and I. She kept telling him that I was going to smoke him. Just to fuel his fire.
He tells me that he runs about a 12 minute mile. Well, I can beat that. So I go along. I buy a Camouflage running skirt to scare him a bit. I checked in with him once a week to see how his training was going. We laughed about the little competition Mandi had started. Then, I may have threatened to pin a Mr. Goodbar to the back of my running skirt to make him go faster.
When I look back, I think this is where I may have erred.
Thank goodness I had better sense than to actually pin it to my skirt, because my new skirt kept falling down while I was running. Here I am holding it up in the front while running through a gravel path. I must have looked ridiculous.
I get about a half mile into the race and who do I see pass me? Yep, that’s right, my “somewhat out of shape” 6 foot tall Asian Lawyer. I look at my Garmin and it says that I am running a 9:44 minute mile and “Mr. 12 minute mile” flies by me? The nerve! He should be ashamed of himself!
In truth, I was actually a little proud of him. But that will be our little secret.
He finishes the race a good 3 minutes ahead of me. He laughingly cheers me across the finish line. I cross, grab a water then hand him the Mr. Goodbar I was secretly carrying in my side pocket. “You win, here’s your candy bar” I jokingly tell him.
Then his wife Karen comes across the line followed by his sister in law, Michelle. Pam in her leopard running skirt and flowered visor is not far behind. Erika ran with her brother, Brian, who was running his very first 5K, and they came a minute after Pam.
What a fun day. I love watching my friends cross the finish line more than anything. Especially when it is their first race.
After the race, we celebrated Diva style. Freshened up, took post race photos and ate a huge breakfast! Is there anything better? I think, not!
Now, no Diva ever runs with a bare face. I think Pam was born with a smokey eye and even sports one while she runs. She doesn’t even wear waterproof eye make up and somehow it stays put.
Me, on the other hand, waterproofed it up and wore a boat load of lip and cheek stain to boot.
Lorac, “Sheer Wash”. I use, “Magic”, a sheer bronze shade to stain my cheeks and lips so the color stays put for the whole race. I then topped it with a clear gloss for moisture. These travel sized vials are perfect for the beach, sporting events and quick pick me ups throughout the day. Not a fan of bronze? Then try: “Emotion”, a raspberry tint or “Luck”, a sheer wash of rose. Available at Sephora and Ulta stores plus their online boutiques for 20 dollars. Don’t forget to look at their free with purchase samples before placing your order.
Now, in the spirit of giving back, I promised that I would occasionally be mentioning products who’s proceeds go to benefit a good cause. Enter, MAC and Lady GaGa. Together they are collaborating to spread the word about the impact of living with HIV and AIDS. This has been a staple with MAC cosmetics since 1994. This year, the pair created a GaGa inspired nude shade of lipstick and lipgloss. A gorgeous peachy shade that looks fabulous on just about everyone. Available at your local MAC counter and at http://www.maccosmetics.com for a mere $14.50. A great quality MAC product and you are donating to a great cause in the process! If you are not a fan of the nude shade, check out the 6 other shades from previous campaigns. All are still available.
Staring at the 11 mile mark, where the half marathoners cut off and the full continue, I start debating in my mind. ” Do I want to do 2 more miles, or 15?” I repeat this over and over. “2 or 15?” I see many yellow bibbed marothoners cutting off here instead of continuing. It’s almost 80 degrees for goodness sake. I tell myself, “the doctor really didn’t want me running the full, but my leg feels fine.” So, knowing that my husband and Mandi are tracking me, I continue. I didn’t want to disappoint them…..or myself.
For most of the first half, I took things very slow. Walking whenever the hills got too steep since I was told this was harder on the Tibia. Mine was already fractured, but healing. There were many hills. It seemed like there were way more uphills than downhills. As slow as I was going, I still managed to stay with the pack. Of course when there are 31 thousand runners, there is bound to be a pack.
People are stopping to stretch, businesses are handing out pieces of cut up fruit, everyone is complaining about the hills. But no one gives up. I keep my eyes open for a port-o-potty without a long line and finally find one around mile 4.5 or so. There was only about 10 people in front of me, some weren’t even runners. No toilet paper, but luckily Mandi had given me a Cucumber face wipe, so I used that. I did feel fresh!
The second half was a bit more tense. Once the halfers cut off, I was alone. Not completely, just without the massive crowd of blue bibbed runners. I follow two girls with bandanas hanging from their water belts. I figure they look like they must know where we are going and I am a little challenged when it comes to my navigational skills. I follow them to the next water stop, then lose them. I never did find out why they were wearing those bandanas. So, once again, I am alone.
My leg feels fine, so I start to run a little more. The hills don’t seem as bad when you are not purposely taking it easy on them. I tried to do what Erika taught me, since she is a master hill runner. The heat is bad and the humidity makes it worse. I seem to be all over the course because I am trying to run through every sprinkler and water hose. At the water stops I now take two cups of water. Drinking one down quickly and dumping the other down my back or legs, which were burning up and sweaty. I see people laying on cots with wet cloths on their heads and I feel for them.
I slow down to walk again at what I now know was mile 18, I see runners passing me on the other side. I look for my friends. There’s so many people and they are going much faster than I can see, but I thought I saw Erika run by me. She looked solid and that gives me a little more strength. This was already the furthest I’d ever run. My training had been cut off at mile 18 due to the stress fracture. I look at my Garmin to see the time and it isn’t working. Totally, off. So I start looking at the clocks and deducting 15 minutes because I was no where near the front of the pack at the starting line. I keep telling myself to speed up because there is no way I am going to come in under 6 hours at this pace. So I do.
I have been following two men wearing heavy, light blue suits for quite some time. I’m so hot right now in this little running skirt and T-shirt. Why would they run in a suit and tie? Trying to get the foot and thigh pain out of my thoughts, I start coming up with reasons for their idiocy in my head. Maybe they are planning on proposing at the finish line to their girlfriends? That would be an original way to do it. Hope the ladies appreciate the agony they just went through to be original. Maybe they are both expecting boys? Their suits are powder blue, which is the color for a baby boy. Thankfully, a lady in a pink top and white hat runs by me and talks to me, I was starting to want to throw things at the suit wearers. This is also her first time running the Nashville marathon. She is from Pennsylvania originally , so we have a little bit to talk about since I lived in Erie for 20 years. She was from Hermitage, so as it turns out, we didn’t live close at all. Her Garmin also went out on her, and she was glad since she was no where near the time she wanted to be and didn’t want to keep being reminded. I liked that answer.
We laugh at the bands. By this time, they are getting pretty tired and their playing skills are going downhill. Right before the entrance to the park, a solo girl is now just sitting on a stool strumming her guitar. Someone brings her a beer. I want a beer. I don’t even drink beer, but that beer looks really good. What I wouldn’t do for something cold, right now.
We see another sprinkler and a man on his knees taking pictures as we run through it. She didn’t want to get wet, and moved over to the side. I closed my eyes, raised my swollen hands and let the water hit me dead on. I didn’t care. Honestly, the only make up I started off with on this day was my Smashbox, O-Gloss. I knew it would be hot. Wish I could see that picture.
Before I knew it, the mile 24 sign comes upon us. A man runs by me, takes his racing shirt off and throws it off to the side of the road. He yells, “This course sucks. I thought they were changing it!” and continues on. The lady in the pink shirt keeps getting ahead of me. She is obviously in much better shape than I, but I don’t want to lose her, so I speed up. I just keep thinking that I only have 2 miles or so left to go and then I can get an Iced Tea.
By this time, people are passing me left and right, so I know I must be near the end. I lose the girl in the pink shirt, so many women are wearing pink shirts, it’s hard to tell them apart. Then I realize they are passing me because we are running down hill. The heat must have been getting to me, because I don’t even remember seeing the mile 25 or 26 markers. I stop running for a minute to get my bearings and figure out where I am. Then I see Mandi. She is yelling at me to run, the finish line is just around the corner. I think I may have cursed here. Then my husband comes out from the crowd and offers to run me in. He runs with me for about 20 feet before they make him get off the course. Then I turn the corner and see the finish line. I just want it over, so I speed up. I run through it and get my medal. I am dying for something cold to drink, so I find my husband and he gets me a blue frozen lemonade. He hugged me then told me I stink. I reply, “yes, but is my lip gloss still on?” He said it was not, then kissed me anyway.
After the race was over, we hopped on a shuttle and went for some Mexican food. Not the best food, but certainly the best company in the entire world. These are the people who inspire and encourage me. They make me feel like there is nothing I can’t do. And even though I think they got my time wrong, I feel pretty darn solid right now and am looking forward to the next race. If I can do this, I can do anything………and do it faster!
After dinner, Mandi and I hobbled around the corner and got massaged. They confused us, she got the magic fingers of Buddy and I ended up with her Masseuse and got a freebie hot stone one thrown in. My legs felt amazing after she was done. We went back to the hotel, got dressed up and went out on the town. I managed to get my swollen feet into my high heels but couldn’t walk very well in them. Anything for fashion, right? Our friend, Andy rocked an old time quilt like cowboy shirt that looked adorable on him. I think he got more compliments than we did. I never did get to wear the pink cowboy hat Erika bought me. Oh well. If I ever go to Texas, I’ll have one handy.
Now that I am thinking clearly, this was the best trip……EVER.
I check the ingredient list prior to using. I am allergic to Strawberries and some products contain real fruit extracts or the seeds for exfoliation. I’m safe, so I apply a generous amount to my freshly scuffed face. It’s very oily between my fingers, but I do not let this deter me. After all, winter skin needs a good moisturizing to get back to being spring ready. It feels nice. Contains: Cocoa (a natural caffeine that stimulates circulation), Rice Bran Proteins (to stimulate Collagen production), Vitamin E (antioxidant) and various fruit estrogens to keep your skins elasticity. All in all, it feels nice, doesn’t smell badly and contains some good ingredients. This product sells for 30 dollars in whole foods stores, Ulta and at Befineonline.It seems that my mind has more stamina than my bones. I have a stress fracture in my right Tibia and a bonus fractured, rib! Not sure how the rib occurred. Since I have no pain, I’m just going to laugh about it. Only I would go to the Orthopedist for shin pain and walk out with a broken rib!
My first sports injury! Sadly, this makes me giggle.
Now, as for my upcoming marathon: Don’t count me out just yet. I’m one tough chick and am not going to just sit back and watch my friends run this race. The race I have been training for. The race I’ve been dreaming about running. No sir, this redhead is no quitter.
The plan, Dr. approved, is to cross train on the Elliptical, stationary bike and hopefully the pool for the next three weeks. Then, if healing properly with my air cast, ice packs and major doses of Vitamin D3, I can easily run the half marathon. If I feel no pain, and I am anticipating this scenario, then I will indeed continue on for the full marathon. My friend, Pam, is running the half and has offered to run it with me at a slow pace to keep me fresh for the remainder of the race. It may take me longer than I anticipated, but I don’t look at that as a bad thing. It just gives me something to beat, the next time I run a marathon.
Now, to be a little sappy, I have to tell you why doing this is so darn important to me. You see, I’ve never been sporty, never won a blue ribbon or a red one for that matter. Never entered a contest for anything except for a few beauty pageants and a poem writing competition. I’ve always played everything safe and levelheaded. Not taken too many risks for fear that I may hurt myself. I quit Karate when they wanted me to start sparring with other yellow belts. Stopped bowling when I saw some drunk idiot break his nose because he forgot to let go of the ball. Quit gymnastics because I was too afraid to try a back flip, or cartwheel for that matter. I never learned my guitar properly because callused finger tips were a bit painful. Okay, and not very girly. That’s why I write, I can not get hurt from it.
For once in my life, I need to do something just to prove that I can. I need to put the princess to bed and be a warrior. I like that. A warrior in lip gloss and waterproof eyeliner!
Now, what you may not know about races, is that almost every single one is sponsored by a charity. You pay your fees and help clean up the parks or get senior citizens rides to doctor’s appointments. It makes me feel like I’ve not only done something good for myself by getting exercise, I helped someone get a ride to their Dialysis treatments. Since I can not sign up for any new races until I am well healed, I have been searching for other ways to give back. I am going to start occasionally sharing these with you. Only if they are blog worthy, of course.
Here is one of my current favorite products that give back:
Aveda, “Light the way Candle”. If you live anywhere in the world, you know the name, Aveda. They make amazing products! I logged in to buy my volumizing hair powder and saw this candle. 100 percent of the proceeds go to cleaning up our water. Since 2007, they have helped clean toxins out of our water supply, find water where needed and even teach people agricultural methods. Nothing wrong with drinking clean water, is there? Now if you do not want to buy it because of the good it does for the community, how about the good it does for you. It is made out of recycled wine cooler bottles. Composed out of organic soy wax that burns an incredibly long time and is infused with organic lavender and other floral and plant extracts. But it smells of lavender. Relaxing, bubble bath soaking, lavender. The good news, it’s only 12 dollars. Available online at http://www.aveda.com or at Aveda stores nationwide.
Now for the hate part. The smell of my products makes him vomit. No joke, he literally gags, dry heaves and then vomits after smelling them. He’s fine with creams and gels, but bring out the aerosol hair sprays, dry shampoos and voluminizers, and he’s bent over the toilet.
At first, I thought it might be from the alcohol content in the products. But his Paul Mitchell spray has just as much and he is fine with it. So, except for shampoos and conditioners, I switched to the Paul Mitchell line. All was good in the vomiting department, but my hair just never looked the way I wanted. My hair is my best feature, it has to look perfect!
About a hundred dollars and an entire drugstore later, I thought I had found the solution: Got 2 Be, “Smooth Operator Smoothing Hairspray”. Infused with Cashmere to help keep those flyaways in place. This hairspray smells like Jolly Ranchers or a fruit smoothy. Not a hint of the normal hairspray smell. The first time I used it was on a curly hair day, so I used it to scrunch up those curls into my natural 80s do. It really did control frizz, too. But on my straight hair style days, the spray fell flat and didn’t hold my hair in place unless I used a ton of product. After so long, even after straightening, my natural curl eventually starts to bounce back in to play, so I need a stiff hold. If you like your hair to be smooth and touchable, this is definitely the spray for you. Here’s the good part, it is less than 6 bucks a can and available at every drugstore in town!
Hairspray Strong Hold”. Everything in the name is absolutely, TRUE! Infused with Argan Oil, this spray smells of spices. Not a hint of chemical, stink. I didn’t need to spray much product on, and it held in place all day. My hair looked silky and shiny, to boot. I soon began using the Moroccan Oil Treatment, Curl Cream and Hydrating Styling Cream. The curl cream gave me a bit of an afro, but worked beautifully in a friends hair who was less naturally curly. The entire line smells just as amazing. Available at select salons, Moroccanoil.com, and amazon.com for 19 to 25 dollars. I keep finding sales on Amazon!
Now, for the best of the best, the cream of the crop…….okay, I mean, the mose expensive.
Serge Normant, “Meta Luxe Hair Spray”. I am not kidding you when I say that a little piece of Hollywood heaven awaits you inside this can. I saw an article about the hair Guru in a magazine and with it, a picture of Julia Roberts with her hair huge, bouncy, and blowing in the wind. I wanted that hair. So, I coughed up the 25 dollars and ordered myself a can. Please don’t tell my husband. The box arrived, without samples, but no worries. I went right into the bathroom, restyled my coif and sprayed. It smelled of spices with a hint of Cedar. I touched my hair and realized that I didn’t need to spray a second coat. It was perfect. I read the can. This spray not only soothes and protects your hair with Chamomile, Rosemary and Echinacea extracts, it contains UV protection. That means, your color will be protected from the sun. I immediately went back online and ordered the Meta Lush Volumizer and Dry Shampoo (even though I do not need it). As of now, this is only available online at: sergenormant.com. But I am hoping for it to be in stores or salons, soon. Next I will be trying the Meta Sheer Dry Oil Finishing Spray! I am not sure what it does, yet. I just know that I have to have it!
Now that the hair product problem has been solved, my husband’s toilet hugging has slowed. Now he only vomits from my cooking. As it should be.
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