September 6, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

It’s The Little Things: My New Favorite Sandals

I knnnnnnooooooowwwwwwww. Sandals?! It really is not the time for them. And yet, it is. It is not fall yet. Now is a good time to stock up (or stalk up, whichever creep level you feel is appropriate when pricing out shoes) on sandals for the spring and summer of 2015. Almost all of the sandals I have seen in stores are now on sale. I purchased so many boots on sale last winter that now I only need a black pair to complete my collection. Shopping between the seasons is the best way to accumulate items for a wardrobe on a budget.

I picked up these Julianna Hough Teresa Sandals two weeks ago for $25 (regular price is $60. Link goes to a different site, in case you do not live near a Nordstrom Rack. The link price is a little more).

I loved the eyelet design on the back. They are sweet and comfortable. I like the color, too. I purchased mine in a pretty beige color that reminds me of my favorite tall gladiator sandals. Here is a peek at an outfit post coming up with these shoes. They go with so many items in my closet. I have a very high arch and I was scared that the high back of the sandal would rub on my ankle, but they surprisingly do not. I took my regular 7.5 shoe size. They have a zipper in the back making them easy to get on and off without messing with any buckles.

I also purchased them in this lovely brown color for my daughter. They came in a pretty black color, too. My sister came over to my house and tried my sandals on. She was going to go and get some herself. I hope she did (did you Mandi?). Nordstrom Rack had a lot of them in stock just last week.

Did you know Julianne Hough made shoes? At first I was incredulous, thinking that she could not possibly make comfortable shoes. She is a dancer. A beautiful, beautiful dancer. I wanted her to stay in her perfect little box that society or myself had put her in and perfectly dance away. Barefoot. But I tried them on. Swallowed my inner envy that the girl can do anything. And I am now happily walking around town in them. Maybe even spinning. Just a little.

With only a bit of jealousy to my step.

You can barely see the green envy of my sole.

Just don’t look too closely.

August 3, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

It’s The Little Things: Wave Iron

I first learned about the wave iron on a girls’ trip I took to New York City with a bunch of friends four years ago. One of the girls is a genius at doing hair. She did my hair with the wave iron. I was skeptical because I thought it would be like a crimper. But it isn’t. It simply produces soft waves. The waves all of us girls in the eighties wanted. The ones we used to have to get through perms.

I was hooked from the moment she did my hair.

I used to do my hair with the wave iron all of the time, but I lost my wave iron two years ago.

I only recently purchased the Pro Beauty Tools Professional Speed Waver from Amazon. It was under $15 so I figured if it did not work, it was not a big deal.

Well, I loved it.

Here is how I use it. Wait! Before I begin, I want it noted that my mirror is not dirty, but rather, when they installed my countertop last year, they reinstalled the mirror with some sort of glue that is now eating through the mirror and causing those marks. I think it looks vintagey, so I do not mind it:

I have very thin hair. It took me nine minutes to wave my entire head. I never use the wave iron with clean hair. The wave is too soft. I like to use it with one day old clean hair. Does that make sense?

I turn the wave iron onto a setting that is not the lowest but just a little hotter than the lowest setting. You do not want to use the highest setting. This wave iron gets hot and your hair has a greater potential of frying if it is set at that.

First I start with a small section of hair and I place the top section of the hair near the root into the wave iron. I count quickly to ten (not in the thousandths, just one, two, three…). When you first try it, count to five to see if it works at a lower number. You do not want to burn your hair!

Then move the wave iron down to an unwaved section and count again. Do this until you reach the end of that section of hair. Because ends of hair are usually the driest, I only count to five at the ends. They have a greater potential to burn off with heat so I do not want to chance it. Plus it looks more beachy with the ends slightly not as wavy as the rest of the hair. I always do one half of my head before I do the other half.

Pretend you’re a mermaid and make a fish face. Yes, this part is necessary. Trust me. Your hair will ~~not~~ turn out if you do not do this.

Repeat all over head. Then do not forget to unplug your wave iron (this message is to myself because inevitably five minutes after we have left the house, we have to turn around to check to make sure I have unplugged my devices. Be better than me!).

Spray with hairspray.

Make a funny face.

Enjoy your waves! These are nice the next day, too. The wave is softer and more beachy then. Plus the wave hides dirty hair pretty well. I touch up a section if it needs it.

I do not use this all of the time. Any kind of heat is not good for your hair. So, use sparingly. I used mine five times before I reviewed it here because I wanted to make sure I would recommend it.

I do. With that said, as with any product your experience may vary. And as with any beauty tool, please use with caution and at your own risk.

I purchased this wave iron with my own money. I was not compensated for writing this post. However, the link above is an affiliate link. Purchasing the wave iron from the link will provide a small commission for this blog.

Do you have a wave iron? How often do you use it? I use mine about once a week, but I can usually get two to three days of wave from that one day.

It’s The Little Things: Changing Your Hair In A Fun Impermanent Way.

*The dress in the photos was styled and ironed previously in this post here.

June 22, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

Things We Did and ate On Maui

On Monday, I will finish our Maui trip with pictures of sand, surf, and the resort we stayed at. But today, let’s travel around town. We all ready traveled to a volcano, a lavender farm, a waterfall and ate at Mama’s Fish House.

But we did much more. And nothing at all. I feel like we spent so much of our trip relaxing, but the following pictures showed we actually got around the island, too. It was the perfect trip.

We ate breakfast one day at Kihei Caffe. This still remains my very favorite breakfast spot. It is insanely inexpensive (for Maui) with huge portions and the food is just darn good. Greasy. Buttery. Good. Comfort food.

Upon the recommendation of the owner (I believe the man is the owner. He is always there. Has a command of authority. And is always smiling), we tried this pastry thing. It was filled with cream cheese frosting. It was groan-out-loud-but-not-in-a-“When-Harry-Met-Sally”in-a-public-restaurant-good. I am still thinking about it. It was amazing, like a homemade Toaster Strudel.

We all enjoyed our meal and the kids were happy they split their ginormous plate of pancakes.

After going ziplining last year, I knew I was going to be sitting out of the family’s ziplining excursion this year. That is, unless L.B. was one of the instructors. I told my family I would join them if he was there to catch me. I am nothing if not a team player.

Alas, L.B. was not working. Some other lovely young men were.

I stayed on the ground and took pictures of my family in the air.

It was actually very peaceful. I did not regret not ziplining. Heights are just not my thing. It was my son’s favorite thing he did on Maui. They had a blast.

We also ate at The Monkeypod Kitchen on this trip. Twice. This restaurant is very good. The buns on my pulled pork sandwich are made on the premises. Everything there is fresh and proudly created in their kitchen. My kids could not get enough of their fish and chips.

We had a bottle of my favorite Firefly Red Flash wine left over on our last night in Maui (we bought six bottles of wine at the grocery store when we got there. Five Barefoot Pink Moscatos and one Firefly. This was such a cost saver. Our room had a small refrigerator and came with a wine opener). We did not want it to go to waste, because we could not bring it home. Even though it was $25 to uncork it at the restaurant, it was still cheaper than a single bottle of wine there. We are so unbelievably fancy.

We will pay $25 to uncork a $6 bottle of wine. But that is how much we love that wine.

It was worth it.

We have tried different shaved ice places on Maui. The best one? Ululani’s. Hands down.

I am boring. I know what I like. And I always get the same thing.

Strawberry and blue raspberry syrup (made on the premises from their sugar cane) over vanilla ice cream and shaved ice.

It is heaven. The tables even have holes so your ice cup can rest on the table and you can very ladylike shovel the delectable treat into your mouth.

We ate here so often that we filled a punch card and got an icee free. If you go to Maui, you have to have shaved ice. It is not the same as snow cones or shaved ice near you. I promise.

We went to a luau at The Marriott in Wailea.

I wore a Free People dress I purchased last summer and my Forever 21 Floral Kimono.

The food was delicious.

The drinks were all included and I liked them… Maybe a little too much.

The show was entertaining. We were seated at a table with four teenage girls and a separate party consisting of two honeymooners. It was an interesting dynamic. We had a good time.

I loved the couple’s dance they incorporated for the adults that were together.

We brought back so many memories from this trip. But like most experiences, my being cannot process them all at once. They simply combine together into one simple feeling: pure happiness.

What has been your favorite vacation destination? Is your favorite part the food? Or the experiences?

Gnome Lover

Stumbling through life while still having fun

recommendation

It’s The Little Things: My New Favorite Sandals

It’s The Little Things: Wave Iron

Things We Did and ate On Maui