Beach Blowout, Crafts and an Old Dog's Birthday

This weekend was blustery to say the least!  It was basically an undiagnosed tropical storm. Lots of wind, tons of rain and a mostly indoors weekend.

So, Saturday we ventured out to the movies and saw The Lion King in 3D.  Rather, Husband and I watched it in 3D.  Lallie refused to wear the glasses and I wonder how she didn't end up with a headache!
That night, we had a couple of friends over, sans children, for a relaxing and informal dinner (aka ordered out pizza) and game night!  We played a couple rounds of Trivial Pursuit.....to which I won't discuss further.  Next time, we'll concentrate on Scrabble  :-)

Between the movie and game night, we were up in my crafting room.  Lallie played with her dollhouse, colored and helped me sew and I made two dresses, a skirt and a shirt.  I haven't embroidered the name on the shirt yet.

Just curious though.  Have I told you how much I LOVE my new sewing machine?

If you like this skirt pattern, let me know.  I'm selling them for $25.00 shipped, custom sized and fabrics.  Just email me at slpreppy@gmail.com to discuss.  Yes....I'm trying to build back up my inventory to reopen my etsy shop!

Saturday was also U.K.'s 13th birthday.  He's an old, old dog but still as sprite as can be.  That's 91 in dog years if you didn't know.  Yes, that's old.

Sunday, we took "Barbie" out for a ride (that's Lallie's nickname for our 140,000 mile massive Suburban for boat towing, dog hauiling and mulch transporting). 

We ventured out to the beach to watch the 11 foot waves and they were impressive!  Near one particular area of the island, the waves hit some rocks and sprayed up over a house!  I became soaked at one point (helping to contribute to my beach blown hairdo).  Husband wouldn't put Lallie down as the sand would just pelt her poor little legs and it stings!  

The picture doesn't do the waves justice, they were huge and anyone would be nuts to be out there!  Even the hard-core surfers stayed indoors.

Here's a natural beach blowout hairdo in the making.  As you can see, I just love the pink sparkly $9.99 CVS glasses Lallie bought for me a while back.

See, Lallie loves the pink sunglasses!

 

And the completion of a natural beach blowout.  Is this how they do it in California?  (No worries fashionistas, I had a Lilly white cardi with me as to not show the bra strap all over town!  No siree, not me!  However, I had to take it off at the beach for fear it would become a parachute and hoist me away with the winds!)

I'll leave you with a video of the winds.  I'm not kidding, it was windy and these were sustained, so it was this heavy all weekend long.

Happy Monday Y'all!

 

Best Brush Ever

I'm always running across blogs talking about hair products, hair dryers and curling irons, giving reviews and tutorials.  However, I've never seen anyone talk about their actual hairbrush.  As I was fixing my hair this morning, it hit me that I've been loyal to one particular style and brand of hair brush since I was a freshmen in college.  I won't divulge how long I've been out of college, but it's been a while! 

I am from a smaller town in Kentucky and there is a mall, but back then it was not a mall with higher end retail and fashion.  So, when I first moved to Lexington, Kentucky and visited the mall there, I discovered Aveda.  I had never heard of it before, but they gave me a sample of their tea (which I bought), took home a few product samples and purchased this hair brush.

 

Since I have gone through at least 6 of these brushes (with proper maintenance and cleaning, a hairbrush can last quite a while).  By the time I'm finished with one, the wood is all beat up and chipped from my hair dryer hitting it and from travel and general abuse.  I've always vowed that if Aveda quits selling this brush, I will buy a lifetime supply of them. 

Now why do I love this brush so much?  It's thin, flat and lightweight, easy to clean and the bristles are just far enough apart, yet close enough together to deal with my fine and curly hair on a daily basis without ripping it all to pieces (yes, I have very LARGE naturally curly hair which I rarely wear.  I straighten nearly everyday.  I tried to find a picture but it's so rare, I couldn't find one!).  It's a special detangling brush that massages the scalp as well (and let me tell you, it does massage and it feels great!  Like you're in a salon getting your scalp massaged by the shampoo girl/guy). 

I will never buy any other brush for my hair.  And at $20.00, it's not a huge extra expense to pay for quality versus a $10.00 drug store brush. 

As a side note, I'm not saying drug store products aren't wonderful, I love drugstore products and will probably never buy expensive mascara (Maybelline Great Lash) or Powder (Cover Girl here). 

Do you have a particular brush that you just love and would recommend?

Happy Tuesday Y'all!

Day 1 - Hair

Over the past year, I have been trying out different products for hair, body, face, hands, feet...you name it! With my turning 32 this year, the wrinkle/freckle/graying phobia has kicked in and I'm on a mission to ensure that I look like Sophia Loren when I'm 70! (Serioulsy, I'm already half way there and she looks MY age!)

So, over the next few days, I will talk about the products I use and that work for me. Some are inexpensive, some not.so.much! I'd love to hear what you've tried and you like as well.

First stop - Hair. I have super fine, blonde, naturally curly hair (very curly hair). I have been straightening it for years and most people are shocked when they see it curly, which is rare, and usually only on a super hot summer day with 100% humidity. But, for those few curly days, I have always used a mousse. Bed Head is my favorite. Gels gunk up my hair and make it look like straw-hay. Bed Head keeps my curls taught and in tact, frizz-controlled and natural looking. It keeps all day!Some days, I just like to give my hair a break. After all, I straighten it at least four times per week, which is hard on it, and with chemicals and heat and product, it needs a good cleaning. So, I turn to Thymes Sweetleaf Baby Shampoo, not to mention it smells unbelievably good (I love all Thymes products, especially Kimono Rose, another post). It just feels clean and natural and resting. What do you expect, it's for a baby....technically!

My daily shampoo is Philosophy. I currently have Cocount and Margherita (the stronger flavors are just a bit too much for me - the cakes and icings, yuck!) Since I have started using Philosopy, my hair has behaved better, looks and shines better and is fuller. My highlights also seem to last longer. Of course, the fact that I can use it as a shower gel is wonderful too!

Now onto conditioners. I'm not a huge fan of them. I've tried every conditioner made on the planet, I promise. My hair is so fine and so blond that even the slightest bit of overload causes it to look oily and droopy. And on blond hair, oil shines ten-fold! But, without it, my hair is a complete "rat's nest."

That is until I discovered organic Archipelago Botanicals Mint Conditoner. Now - this bottle will last me a year - I need to use VERY little as it goes a long way, but makes a huge difference in my hair. I can untangle it easily and my hair is not oily, shiny in the least bit and my hair remains full. The mint smell is a definate plus. My hair smells of mint all.day.long! Husband notices it in the evenings after an entire day. The mint also wakes me up in the mornings!There are those days when I need a little extra conditioning umph, such as traveling to cold weather or days when I want extremely straight hair, no full qualities. For such, I've turned to Paul Mitchell's Original Leave-In Conditioner. It has the same qualities as the Archipelago Botanicals conditioner, just without the smell and fullness qualities.

On a super humid day, I'll use the Botanicals conditioner and then smooth a little Paul Mitchell's The Creme in my hair. Just a dime size, if even that. This helps the fly-aways and frizzes on humid days. It can also help with static on cold days. I actually stole this from my husband!
Last but not least, dry shampoo. Oscar Blandi's Pronto is my choice. It doesn't leave a residue and removes the slightest bit of shine from my hair the second day after a washing. With fine hair, I can't wash every day or it will become super dry and break. But, without the daily washing, I get the shine like my hair hasn't been washed in days. Oscar Blandi has saved me from this dilemma.

What are your favorite hair care products? Maybe I'll want to try!

(I know I'm supposed to put some sort of disclaimer here. I was not paid or asked by any of these companies to do these reviews. These are of my own admission!)

Oscar Blandi - Dry Shampoo

(Let me preface - I really love Husband, he makes me smile! He always leaves me anonymous comments that I rarely publish as they are usually snarky, funny, inside jokes, but he also usually tries to deny that it's his comment when I call him about it, making me somewhat uneasy, he likes me to squirm. Anyways - please note his comment - no, no, no, I do NOT have greasy, clumpy hair - it is in fact oily....okay - continue reading.) :-)

Good morning peeps! I don't have much to blog about today in family life, so I thought I'd blog about one of my favorite products, Oscar Blandi Dry Shampoo (found at Sephora.com).

I have long, blond super fine hair. I can't wash my hair every day because it gets extremely dry and brittle and will break (and gets those little fuzzies that stick up - partly because my hair is naturally curly and I straighten it). I digress....BUT, I can't not wash it every day because it gets greasy and clumpy around my scalp. This is for two reasons 1) again, super fine hair and 2) I am a compulisive hands-in-the-hair girl. I've tried really hard to stop, I just can't, it's unconcious. Arggg...



Anyways, you know how some soups and casseroles are better the second day after? Now, my hair always looks better the second day after washing, all because of Dry Shampoo.



I sprinkle some on those greasy, clumpy areas, usually on the top of my scalp only, near my forehead and then style as normal. The best thing, I lose that grease shine, but not the luster and shine that makes the hair look pretty. And, there is no white residue or white-ish looking hair that some products leave behind. If I'm not mistaken, they make this is colors as well for darker colored hair, not sure?

I love this stuff. Have you ever tried dry shampoo? And if so, why does it work for you? What brand? I'd love to know!