Category Archives: Stuff I Love/Guilty Pleasures

Currently

My department at work is really into engagement. Therefore, we have a book club meeting of sorts tomorrow. Required reading on top of the rest of the crap I have to do is just want I need.

Work has been challenging and there’s no relief in sight. Therefore, I am so glad that I have a weekend getaway planned. Woohoo! I’m going to Toronto to visit one of my favorite people. I will probably be exhausted when I get home Sunday night, which should make work on Monday really interesting, but the change of scenery and face time with a good friend is so completely worth it.

Here I am, looking all confused while wearing my glasses. I wore my glasses yesterday as part of my Professor Melissa costume since I had to give that presentation. What do you guys think? It’s nice to wear glasses instead of contacts once in awhile, especially since I have a pair that I like. I also got my face threaded today. I kind of miss my bushy eyebrows but I don’t miss my Tom Selleck mustache. Threading is awesome and Patty, my threading artiste, is awesome.

Do you like these earrings? So do I! I just got these in the mail from my pal Jen, who handmade them. LOVE LOVE LOVE. There’s nothing listed in her Etsy shop right now, but contact her if you’re interested in seeing more. Yes, really!! I have several pairs of earrings made my Jen and a pretty turquoise necklace, and I love all of it.

April is coming to a close soon. Time passes too quickly. Way too quickly. The good news is that I can see and feel how much I’ve changed in the past week and month and months and especially in the past year. It’s nice to take a step back, evaluate myself, and feel pride in who I am. And I can only get better. I’ve still got more oomph to put into my efforts of getting stuff done and being a better and happier person.

The best way to describe how I feel right now? I kind of feel like Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles, right before this moment:

She had a shitty day that didn’t end so badly and then she started to feel pretty awesome about herself and then Jake Ryan shows up at her sister’s wedding after having looked for her all night and morning. I wonder if my Jake Ryan is looking for me… I LOVE YOU, JAKE RYAN. Pick me up in your cool car. Or, I can pick you up. Despite the title of my blog, I can drive.

Zooey Deschanel is a Charming Alien.

This is not a rant about Zooey Deschanel. It may seem like it is, but it isn’t. The truth is that I’m a little jealous of her. Ew, I can’t believe I admitted that. Anyway, I get the appeal of Zooey Deschanel —- to an extent. She’s cute, adorable, sexy. But she’s also completely quirky and, let’s face it, kind of out there. I can’t help but feel like all the dudes who get all unf about her are hypocrites. Most of you, anyway. I mean, COME ON. She seems so awkward and SHE NEVER STOPS BEING ADORABLE. Let’s not forget that she and Katy Perry and Emily Blunt have nearly the same face (not that there is anything wrong with that). In real life, Zooey would be your everyday cute weirdo. There’s nothing wrong with that. I would love to be an everyday cute weirdo but most of the time I’m a creepy, frowny weirdo.

There’s no doubt that ZD is intelligent and attractive. I want to be friends with her. I would also like to see her in a normal t-shirt and jeans without any makeup on. That’s the thing, though… the overwhelming reason for me to put ZD in the “Like” column of my Likes/Dislikes list is because she’s so her. It’s in what she wears, how she speaks, how she carries herself. Zooey is Zooey and Zooey is (or at least seems to be) 100% confident about her Zooey-ness. She knows what she likes, she’s not afraid to show it, and she has the face/body/brain to pull it off. God, I hope she’s not scamming the world by being “Zooey” instead of Zooey.

Are you still with me?

It’s only been recently that I have started to try and define my style. I used to call my style the “Soccer Mom Who Isn’t A Soccer Mom” look. It was really kind of disgusting and unflattering. I was a jeans and t-shirt and gym shoes kind of girl. My color palette usually consisted of black, grey, black, grey, and more black. Cardigans, cardigans, cardigans. No skirts or dresses unless there was a special reason for it (or it’s laundry day and I’m desperate). Hair down, no makeup, accessorize with simple earrings, a ring, and my watch. Alright… all of that still describes my style, but I’m wearing clothes that are more flattering instead of loose-fitting (showing off my assets, if you will) and opting to wear nicely cut tops instead of a standard t-shirt that says “YOUR FAVORITE BAND SUCKS” on it. YES, this just turned into a post about style!

I kind of adore ZD’s style. It’s girly, bold, sometimes a little too quirky, but like I said: she has the face and body to pull it off. Let’s take the bangs, for example. I HEART HER BANGS. If my hair would cooperate and make it possible for my bangs to look Zooey Deschanel’s, I would have bangs all the time. It’s entirely possible that she has a professional bang stylist, but still. It’s not fair!

I don’t think my style is as feminine and colorful as ZD’s. A co-worker and I were reading Cosmo during lunch today, and there was a “What’s Your Style?” page. We agreed that I mostly fall into the “girly” category with some “edge” but little “glam.” Let’s face it. Glam and I don’t exactly go hand-in-hand, and it’s not like I’m going to show up to work in a sequin skirt unless someone dares me or I lose a bet. I appreciate fashion but I’m mostly conservative. I’m not completely in love with my body and it’s hard to feel confident in something that’s too colorful or doesn’t fit right.

I’ve been incorporating more color into what I wear. I always had color in my closet, along with fabulous shoes and skirts and dresses, but I rarely wore any of them. I may have joked about having pants for each day of the week and rotating them week in and week out, but that was the reality. Why the change? I lost some weight and can actually wear clothes in my “Wear This When You Lose Weight” pile. My new-ish work environment made me want to step up my look and look more professional and put together. And this is pathetic, but I wanna look the way I feel and have my style reflect my personality. It seems so easy for most people, but it’s a challenge for me.

This above photo is very much a Me look. Quit copying me, Zooey. LOLJK. I truly do like this everyday casual look, though. What really slays me about ZD is the makeup:

Between the crazy blue eyes and the eyeliner/mascara? WHAT?!?! Stop it, Zooey. Just stop it. You’re putting my brown eyes to shame and teasing me because I lack any ability to apply eyeliner.

The point of this post is, Zooey Deschanel is attractive but unusual. She’s a charming alien. I think I’m a charming alien, too. I’m quirky. I act like a complete fool sometimes and I am thisclose to being brave enough to reflect who I am in what I dress and what I wear. Bye bye conservative soccer mom who isn’t a mom. No, wait! Come back! I can’t afford a new wardrobe! Dammit.

Superficial Favorites

I am almost embarrassingly low-maintenance when it comes to my physical appearance. Luck and genes are the main reason: my hair is strictly wash, dry and go and, aside from a few months of horrible acne when I was 26 — yes, 26, WTF! — I haven’t had any issues with my skin. I don’t need any fancy or expensive products to keep my skin or hair healthy. I don’t even comb my hair anymore.

It’s only been in the past few months that I have started wearing makeup almost everyday. Why only recently, you ask? To begin with, I always felt too young to wear makeup. I’m in my 30s now (shudder), so that reasoning doesn’t really fly. Secondly, I’m lazy. I just am. Between peeing, brushing my teeth, showering, and dressing myself, who has extra time to put makeup on? Finally, makeup? Really? Unless there’s a special occasion or something… why wear makeup? I always felt kind of fake when I wore makeup. I would rub most of it off of my face before walking out the door.

Cut to today: Makeup has become part of my daily get-ready-for-work routine. I finally reached that point where I was wearing the makeup for me instead of to impress other people. As you’ll see if you continue reading, I don’t exactly go nuts with it, and I let my skin breathe on the weekends unless I’m going someplace special.

Here are some of the products I use:

The foaming cleansing liquid from the Shiseido Pureness line has been my face cleanser for a few years now. It’s gentle and leaves my skin feeling fresh and soft. I’m panicking a bit because it was discontinued. Thankfully, I can still stock up by buying on eBay. In addition, the deep cleansing foam from the same line is a suitable alternative.

I moisturize with Ultra Repair Cream by First Aid Beauty. This stuff is so totally gentle and keeps my face nice and moisturized. It’s also great for any dry patches I may get anywhere else on my body. I have found that moisturizers with sunscreen in them leave my skin feeling greasy and cause breakouts. I’ve had no trouble, however, when I put on Aveeno’s face sunblock after applying my moisturizer. It’s good stuff. Wear sunscreen!!!

I have to thank my friend Christie for suggesting the Sin shade by NARS to use on my cheeks. It’s a great everyday blush that works great with my skin tone. I sometimes use NARS The Multiple on my cheeks in either Malibu or Maui, depending on the season. When I want flush cheeks, I use the tarte for True Blood limited edition cheek stain.

My must-have for lips is a tube of Carmex, which never lets me down. For color, though, I like Stila’s Long Wear Lip Color in Rendezvous. If I’m going for something glossy and fun, I use Zuzu’s lip gloss in Mischief, which was a gift from Janesse. For something bold, I like Sephora’s cream lip stain in Endless Purple. Sephora isn’t messing around with their lip stain, people. All I need is a drop! It’s as if I am painting my lips. It stays on long and is meant to be noticed.

I don’t do much in the way of eye makeup. I put on mascara maybe once a week. Blinc makes a great mascara — this was another recommendation by Christie. Once it’s dry, it doesn’t smudge no matter how much you rub your eyes (I speak from experience) and rubs off cleanly with warm water. I have also tried Blinc’s liquid eyeliner… ‘tried’ meaning that I managed to get it everywhere near my eye except where it’s supposed to go. Thank goodness it comes off with water. I need to practice my liquid liner skills. P.S. I had some trauma last week when I mascaraed my eyeball. All is good!

I finish off my face with a loose powder by Estee Lauder. It’s a nice translucent finish and works well on its own when I’m in a hurry or just want to wake up my face a bit before I go out.

Allow me to end this post by saying that I LOVE SEPHORA. I can easily spend an hour or two there trying products. A visit there can lift your spirits if you’re having a bad day, or can be a fun girls activity if you’re at the mall with a good girlfriend or a bored niece. I remember being totally intimidated by Sephora when it first appeared in the Chicago area. Have no fear: no one will bother you if you don’t want to be bothered but they will be really helpful if you want advice. (Okay, now give me free stuff for plugging your store, Sephora. Thanks.)

Gift Guide: Ethereal Confections

Site: Ethereal Confections (link)
What You Will Find: Classy and delicious chocolates that use only the finest ingredients and no preservatives. They are dairy free, gluten free, and vegan*.
Perfect for: Anyone who appreciates fine chocolates and cares about what they put in their body.

Who doesn’t love chocolate? Well… there’s a lady at work who doesn’t like it (Hi, Bettie!), but chocolate is generally a crowd pleaser. It tames the wild, hormonal, and anxiety-ridden beast that lives inside of us. My friend Tammi got me a box of Ethereal truffles for my birthday and I absolutely fell in love with them.

Ethereal Confections are handmade locally (local to me, anyway) and contain local ingredients. You can definitely taste and see how much care is put into making the chocolates. They chocolate itself is so fresh and tasty–and they don’t use any milk or white chocolate. The flavors are creative but never weird for the sake of being weird. There’s something for everyone from the traditionalists to the adventurous.

Ethereal Confections just opened a store in Woodstock, IL where the chocolates are made. Their products can also be found in a handful of stores in Illinois and Wisconsin. You can also buy directly from their web site.

I hope you will consider Ethereal Confections for the chocolate aficionado in your life!

*I contacted Ethereal Confections through their web site to find out if their products are vegan. Sara informed me they are vegan, however, honey (which some vegans may not consider to be totally vegan) is used in the following: Lavender Honey truffle, Sesame Ginger truffle, Ginger Orange bar.

All photos were found on http://www.etherealconfections.com. I would have taken a picture of the chocolates that were given to me but I devoured them.

Gift Guide: Little Pretties by Jen

For the holiday season, I decided to share some of my favorite shops and items. This is the first post in what I hope will be a series of gift-giving suggestions. Hope you find something you love for the special people in your life—-or for yourself!

Garnet Mistletoe Earrings

Site: Little Pretties (link)
What You’ll Find: Handmade earrings, bracelets, and necklaces using only quality materials and gems
Perfect for: Bauble- and jewel-loving gals who want to be complimented on their accessories (what lady doesn’t?)

Jen is one of my Internet BFFs and I am so excited that she has listed new items in her Etsy shop for the holiday season. She started making jewelry about three years ago while vacationing with friends in the Outer Banks. She credits her friend Kim with getting her hooked on making jewelry. She is self-taught in her craft and says that practice makes perfect! Here is a sampling of some of her items:

Jen makes jewelry that she would want to wear. She likes items that comes from antiquity. She has most recently been inspired by jewels in the Met Museum. Her other artistic interests are glass blowing and rustic pottery.

I am a proud owner of a few Little Pretties and I get compliments on them all the time from girls and women of all generations. Whenever I’m looking for a particular color or style for a friend, Jen knows exactly what to make and I’m always happy with the result. She’s an awesome woman who makes awesome jewelry!

Check out Little Pretties on Etsy and let Jen know that you found out about her from i-cant-drive.net! You can also follow Jen on Twitter. DO IT. She’s crafty AND clever.

Teaser

It’s no secret that I’m a big teenybopper at heart. Some inflammation of my obsession occurred this summer. I’m gonna blog about it. It’s gonna be embarrassing. I’m going to get giddy. I’m going to blush. It’s gonna be awesome. Teaser photo below.

I took this photo myself so don’t be a jerk—-credit me if you want to post it somewhere else! KTBSPA. (I’m not a loser. I’m just not very cool.)

Pretty Little Liars and Ugly Hot Guys

Confession: I LOVE PRETTY LITTLE LIARS. It’s such a guilty pleasure. I didn’t want to get sucked in, I don’t even know how I got sucked in–well, I can probably blame my friend Jen for turning my mild interest in the show into an obsession–and I am now a sucker for the plot twists, teenage drama, and whackadoodle mysteries.

Why do I love this show so much? First, I am a teenybopper at heart, in love with shows set in high school that have a pretty cast. Seriously, the four main girls in this show are pretty! Grr. I hate them. Nah! I love them! Get four teenage girls in a room and you’re bound to hate one of them. Not the case with this group. All the characters (with the exception of their dead friend, RIP Allison) are likeable. I won’t lie, I’m also uberpsyched that Shay Mitchell, who plays Emily, is half-Filipino. Work it, girl.

The other thing that makes this show so fun to watch? THE DUDES. I mean, come ON. It’s so wrong that I think these boys are cute, but I do! I think they’re trying a little hard to turn Caleb into Tim Riggins 2.0, but maybe it’s just the hair. And the dude who plays Toby? Ugly-hot (thanks, Jen, for that adjective).

Mostly, I’m really into the mystery aspect of the show. These girls do NOT have easy lives! A killer is on the loose! Someone knows all their secrets! It almost fills the void left by the cancellation of Veronica Mars, which had its own grisly mysteries to solve.

Pretty Little Liars is good, dramatic fun. Actually, no. There should be more fun on the show. But I guess that’s hard to do when someone is essentially stalking you and you’re worried that you will be murdered. Huh.

Catch Pretty Little Liars on Tuesdays at 8/7c on ABC Family.

Official site

Photo from abcfamily.com.

First Aid Beauty

One of my pet peeves about winter is that my skin gets dry and flaky. Certain areas of my body get hit worse than the rest – the back of my legs, shoulders, and my cheeks and neck.

I was lucky to get a sample of Ultra Repair Cream by First Aid Beauty, and it has quickly become my new winter-dry-skin solution. It’s not too heavy, it smells good, and it comes in a tub which is a major plus. (I have used Aveeno in the past, but so much goes to waste because of the packaging.) The other major plus is that I can use the cream on both my face and my body.

First Aid Beauty products are available exclusively at Sephora. Finally… one of the many samples I have gotten from them have led me to discover a new product that I will actually use. It’s not cheap, but the price isn’t ludicrous, either. So, stop by Sephora, try it out, and let me know if you like it as much as I do.

The Best Things I Ate This Year

People who moan incessantly when they eat something delicious annoy me. Sometimes, I feel like telling people to get a room with their steak or cake or whatever. Don’t get me wrong -  I enjoy eating and I appreciate tasty food. But when I do the whole “mmmmmmm, oh my god, mmmmm, that is so delicious, mmmmmm, I want more of that” bit, you know that I really, really, really like it. Here are the dishes that made me go “mmmmmm” this past year:

Oxtail Pot Stickers at Sunda

Surf and Turf at Pete Miller’s

Carnitas Tacos at Uncle Julio’s *WINNER* – I was having an embarrassingly orgasmic reaction to these tacos. It was a special that night, so now I feel like calling ahead before I go again and asking if they have it.

That stuff from that street vendor in NYC (Midtown)

Iceberg Wedge at The Yard House

Feta cheese in Israel

Lamb with mashed potatoes and green beans at my friend Sue’s house

Pumpkin donuts from Didier Farms

Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory

 

Sweet Kids

They’re high-maintenance, whiney, dramatic, annoying, loud, and need to be taken care of. But I love all of your moms anyway.

*crickets*

OK! Bad joke. I am talking about kids, of course. I was never much of a kid person until my nieces came along. They can be crazy and obnoxious, have little attitudes, throw tantrums, and give you dirty looks. When one of my nieces does something or says something that is SO an imitation of me, I think, “Crap! I need to stop rolling my eyes! I need to stop yelling WHAT when people call me!”

Despite all that, I get the BEST feeling whenever they do something sweet. Whether or not it’s because I taught them to be nice or polite or whatever is irrelevant. It’s just great to witness the sweetness of little kids as well as the concern they have for one another.

  • When one of my nieces cries, the other will go to her and pat her on the back or hug her and say, “It’s okay… it’s okay.”
  • When I joked that I was going to get a leash for my baby niece, her older sister got upset: “You can’t do that! Those things are for animals, not for people!”
  • When I said to my niece, “I hope you like what I got you for Christmas,” she leaned in and whispered, “I think I’m going to love it!”
  • My baby niece often comes up to me randomly and gives me a hug or a kiss.

Kids are definitely a handful, but don’t forget that they are also capable of being sweet little creatures–as well as full-fledged monsters from hell.