Tag: reviews

Paige Denim

Leave a comment

Why are good jeans so hard to find?? Shopping for good jeans is as bad as shopping for a good bra. Or a bathing suit. No one ever says “I’m so pumped to go bathing suit shopping!”. Jeans are the same way for me. I’m picking about the fit, the rise and of course, the length. Why are models 6 feet tall but jeans all have 30 inch inseams? Where do the tall girls get their denim?!

I found my answer last fall at Nordstrom. I was turned on to Paige Denim and I have to say, a year later, I love them just as much. Of course, Nordstrom stopped carrying the style I like. Which turned out to be a good thing because I found Paige.com instead. In trying to track down my favorite cut (Skyline Straight) in the wash I wanted, I emailed the company. I was shocked to see an email just an hour later from the customer service rep saying she had just personally restocked that style and wash and that she was holding out a pair in my size and how would I like them shipped to me. Amazing!

wedding lunch

I lived in these white jeans I bought from them this summer and just ordered the same pair in black hoping to get the same good use out of them. They carry several styles and fits – my favorite is that the straight cut jeans are on the narrower side at the ankle – skinny jeans without the tapered leg – perfection!

Check it out at www.paige.com 

Oh – and they have maternity jeans – where the heck were these when I needed them!?

 

The Beauty Blog: Face and Body Edition

1 Comment

I love knowing what my friends are using for their hair, make up, perfume, you name it. I always like to know when something is worth the money or where to find a steal. So today is the beauty edition and I’m starting with face and body care – I need more than one edition because it takes a lot to make this face and body look good these days…

Eye Cream

Splurge: Bobbi Brown Extra Eye Repair Cream – I have dry skin and my under eyes are no exception. If I had to choose 1 product to take to a desert island, it would probably be eye cream. I love this stuff because it soaks in fast and leave skin soft and moisturized without being greasy. It’s pricy, but I slather this stuff and a jar will last me anywhere from 4-6 months.

Splurge: Bobbi Brown Extra Eye Balm – I use this guy at night and it’s like putting ointment under your eyes. You’ll still feel the effects in the morning. The moister is second to none. Again, pricy but lasts and lasts.

Face Cream

Steal: Neosporin. Yup, I said it. After a particularly bad round of adult acne, I splurged on a facial and this was the last thing the esthetician put on my face. And it worked like magic. Generally anything with salicylic acid or benzol peroxide irritates my skin in addition to clearing a breakout, which just makes everything worse. I slather a good round of Neosporin on clean, broken out skin and it’s generally clear within one to two days.

Splurge: Bobbi Brown Extra Broad Spectrum SPF 25 Tinted Moisturizer Balm – yes, there is a trend here. I’ve tried some of the more expensive and less expensive brands and I keep coming back to BB. The value for the product is just so high. And to find a moisturizer with SPF that works is like finding a diamond in the rough!

Splurge: Bobbi Brown Extra Repair Moisturizing Balm – I use this at night. It has the consistency of marshmallow fluff and is easier patted into skin rather than rubbed in. It. Is. Awesome.

Splurge: Facials – I had my first facial ever right after Baylor was born and I was less than impressed. It wasn’t until last year when I found out that the esthetician who does my eyebrows had great prices on facials. I treated myself and was insanely impressed. Even Peter, who was concerned at my new found love of something else expensive (hello kettle? this is pot…) remarked at how good my skin looked. If you’re in the Scottsdale area, you must go see Noel at Skin Studio AZ.

Splurge: La Roche Posay Sunscreen – my mom found this at CVS and it is amazing. You get it behind the pharmacy counter and they carry both body and face varieties. The face SPF is broad spectrum, SPF 60, not greasy and not chalky. It goes on totally unnoticed under makeup, in the part of your hair and on your ears.

Steal: Keihls Rare Earth Pore Cleansing Mask – this is a fantastic mud mask that gets pores super clean. Clears up blemishes and keeps the new ones away.

Body 

Steal: Aveeno Daily Moisturizing – what can I say? It does the trick leaving skin moisturized but not greasy. And you can get three bottles for like $11 at Costco.

Steal: Bio Oil – While prepping for the emergency c-section to deliver Baylor, the anesthesiologist was poking and prodding my lower half to ensure I had no feeling (which is always reassuring when you’re awake and about to be cut in half). I was shaking uncontrollably from nerves, medication and exhaustion – it was a real treat all the way around. The anesthesiologist looked over the screen at me and declared “You don’t have one stretch mark on that belly of yours!”.  Not really what you want to be hearing from the man that is responsible for making you pain free and not paralyzing you at the same time, but a complement none the less.

That was a long way of saying that Bio Oil really does work. It soaks in fast, smells nice and it apparently does what it promises.

Splurge: Aveda Foot Relief – Ali my sister bought me a bottle of this recently and I’m obsessed. I love the cooling feeling that it gives my feet and hands. And the smell…it is so refreshing! I sit in bed for a good 5 minutes after applying it to my feet and just huff the scent off my hands. PW is a bit concerned that I’m developing some kind of addiction.

Mac Should Pay Me for This Post

1 Comment

I don’t get indorsements from Macintosh. But for the post I’m about to write, I should because damn if I can’t help that I love the Iphone. (Topher, please let someone at Mac know I’m putting out the good vibes!).

I got an Iphone the day they became available on Verizon service and I saw from the beginning what I had been missing. Peter just got his and in one day, the number of apps I have on my phone has quintupled. Slightly annoyed by some of them (no, I don’t need the Orvis fishing app, Zillow, Monster.com, the need to know my exact elevation or Dragon dictation) many of the new apps are amazing.

My absolutely favorite new app is called Sky View. It is a map of the stars – you hold it up to the sky and it shows the names of the stars, constellations and planets. It. Is. Awesome. The funny thing is that I realized it doesn’t work solely with the camera so you can use it during the day too so that you can see where the stars are, the projected path of the sun. I can’t say enough how much fun I find this app. We used it every night on vacation because I think there are few places in the world where you can see as many stars as you can from the top of the mountain in Montana. It was so much fun to know what we were looking at. A side note: whoever came up with the constellations (Gemini, Ursa Major, etc) was either insane or drunk because none of them look like what they are supposed to be!

What do you do when you’re sharing a room with your sleeping kiddo and you have to find your way to the bathroom, or pajamas? You use the flashlight app. I thought this was really dumb until I tried it. So very useful – unless you’re trying to find your phone.

When entertaining a child in a doctor’s office, on a plane or anywhere else that requires them to sit still and be quiet for stretches of time, I’ve found that there are several apps that they love. First are books. The Miss Spider app is a video, a book and games all in one. Duck Duck Moose has really funny apps like Old MacDonald’s Farm , Word Wagon and  The Wheels on the Bus. The kiddos need to swipe, tap and move objects around to keep the image moving. They can also record themselves or you singing which is Baylor’s favorite part (the one with her voice, not mine).  It does require some supervision though as Bay has A. Friended people on Facebook B. Called random people out of the contact list and C. Sent random text messages. So if you ever get an odd voice mail or strange text, just know Baylor loves ya.

So that’s it. I’m addicted. I hate to admit it, but a smart phone just makes life cooler. Anonymity be damned! Track me and what I’m looking at and where I’m going all you want because I’ll be enjoying looking at the stars.

 

 

Not Since You

Leave a comment

A few weeks ago a friend and sorority sister from college emailed me and asked if I would review a movie in The Goon Room. Christine Duell is an executive producer of a movie called Not Since You. She explained that it’s been a long time coming, but it was finally released and it was a great, romantic comedy.  I said that I would love to and she sent me a copy.

After I agreed, I became very nervous for several reasons. First, I am not a big movie person. I mean, I watch and enjoy movies, but I’m not that person waiting in line opening day or the person that has a subscription to IMDB or Rotten Tomatoes. I really only watch the Oscars for the clothes and then I lose interest.  I like what I like and I don’t what I don’t.  Which leads me to the second reason I was so nervous; what if I hated it?

The good news? I loved it. Even Peter who likes nothing but Westerns, loved it. The movie starts with a group of college friends converging in Athens, Georgia for a wedding. The beginning feels a lot like Love Actually in that there isn’t any background, you’re thrown right in and trying to figure out who is who and how they are connected. As the wedding nears, it becomes very clear that there is an old romance that is still smoldering between Amy (Kathleen Robertson – you’ll know her as Claire from 90210) and Sam (Desmond Harrington – not sure what he’s been in but whoa, is he easy to look at) despite Amy being married to Ryan (Christian Kayne). I liked both Ryan and Sam so it was hard to know who to cheer for and the outcome of both relationships leaves you guessing until the very end. Meanwhile, Sarah (Sarah Rue from the recent Jenny Craig commercials) is trying to strike up a relationship with the obviously damaged Joey (Elden Hensen). The source of his damage comes out late in the movie and made me tear up. His story is illustrated beautifully, but painfully. Then there is Billy (Will Estes – if you were in HS when U-571 came out, you’ll know who he is) and Victoria (Sunny Mabrey). They are in love and she wants to get married, but her past with his best friend Howard (Jon Abrahams) is holding Billy back from proposing. Victoria and Howard were dating when Billy and Victoria fell in love, thus making Howard the third and very bitter wheel. Until Billy can get Howard’s blessing, there won’t be a proposal.

The setting of this movie is beautiful and makes me want to visit my friend Melissa C in Athens. The overall feel of the movie is refreshing – it’s different from a big budget movie and I mean that as a complement.

The outcome of each person is unpredictable, making the movie “the total package”. It’s a great date night flick, girls night in or out, or something fun to watch during home-beauty-night with a face mask and glass of wine. It’s available on netflix, iTunes, pay per view and on demand for rental, filmbaby.com and amazon for purchase. And if you’re flying Air Canada in December, it’s available for your in-flight convenience.

I have been trying to think of funny ratings to give the movie – like 2 thumbs up or 4 “damn dirty apes” (that’s an actual rating for some radio show, I’ve not been hitting the wine or anything). So far, all I’ve come up with is Goons. Predictable, right? Well then, send me some new ideas! Until then, I give Not Since You 5 out of 5 Goons.

picture credit here.