Highlights

Posted in Life by

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{Slowly starting to feel like my old self again. Who-hoo!}

Between the common cold and  general life stresses, the last few weeks have been rough. The great news is that things are falling somewhat back into place and I’m starting to feel like my old self again. I’m happy to report that I even went to my first yoga class after a month off, and while it wasn’t at my fancy schmansy yoga studio, it was a lovely class better suited to my price range and it was so nice to get back on the mat.

Otherwise, this week has been all about re-balancing things and trying to enjoy life’s little pleasures. I can’t tell you how much I’m enjoying the taste of food again since my sinuses finally cleared up. And the fact that I can actually breathe in and out without much effort is quite divine. It’s when you get sick that you once you recover you really start to appreciate even the simplest of things as this.

I don’t have much going on this weekend as of typing this, but I do have a lot of life and errand catching up to do since I was bed-ridden all last weekend. I’m looking forward to starting a new novel (though I’m not sure what yet) after finishing And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini. While I found the book to one of the most eloquently written I think I’ve ever read, with engaging stories and characters, the book turned out to be rather anti-climatic for some reason to me in the end. I was waiting for the life-altering bomb to drop that would throw the narrative into a surprising new direction. I realize that because each chapter focuses on the perspective of one person among a group of interconnected characters over many generations, that it may be hard to do this – but I felt rather unsatisfied as I finished the last page. Perhaps it’s time to shake things up with a good mystery/thriller!

So as we close out another week, I’m grateful I made it through my first cold in years and ready to enjoy the rest of the summer. Cheers to a great weekend!

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{How to survive the common cold: lots of Kleenex and a day with the girls.}

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{On dessert duty for girl’s night at Buttercelli.}

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{Enjoying a moment in the grass.}

What I’m Lovin’ Right Now

Posted in Accessories, Beauty, Fashion, Home Decor by

Blend

  1. Face mapping to determine what’s happening. How the location of a blemish tells you what may be going awry inside. Full article here.
  2. TESLA – Natural crystal quartz geometric hexagon pendant edged in gold from ArrowandEra.
  3. Oprah.com’s 11 Sunday Gloom Breakers.
  4. How To Winged Eye Liner Tutorial.
  5. Furbish Studio’s Penelope Lamp.
  6. Red velvet ice cream eye candy. Yum!
  7. Bear Traps Roma Booties.

How to Survive a Plague

Posted in Health, Life by

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Okay, okay – I admit that the title of today’s post is a bit dramatic and a total rip-off from a very serious, but great documentary from last year (that everyone should see, by the way). No, I haven’t contracted a life threatening disease or anything, but I did for the first time in years actually get sick over the weekend. (Pausing to let that marinate.) Why is this such a big deal? Well, I’m one of those people with a strong immune system that doesn’t have to deal with the common cold very often so this is pretty big news. The greater issue is why I got sick in the first place!?!

Spending 3 days in bed doesn’t give a gal much to do other than to spend a lot of time thinking about lots of random things (I think I’ll sign up for Italian classes after all) while figuring out the fastest way to get back to your normal self because in the moment you feel so crappy you think you might not make it and start planning your will (To my brother Drew: if I don’t make it – you can have my beloved car…I’m almost done paying for it 🙂). On the other hand, there are 5 epiphanies I had after surviving my ordeal.

Here’s what I learned:

{1} Something’s off and it’s time to do something about it.

As you can tell from my last 2 Highlight’s post (here and here) things have been very off-balance in my life lately and the fact that I got sick was a wake-up call as to how off-balance. I stopped taking my awesome yoga classes, I’m skipping meals (because I’ve trained myself to not like eating breakfast except on weekends again for some reason), and I’m stressed out in every area of my life. The problem is balance. Realizing that it’s time to take a chill pill and come up with a game plan, I’ve decided it’s time to make some changes. One of them being that it’s beyond time to get back into a steady work-out routine, my yoga practice, and enjoying my much-loved outdoorsy activities (even if it means going alone).

{2} The best way to open congested sinuses in 3 seconds flat.

I don’t know about you, but though I’m not a fan of being sick – it’s not the end of the world. In general, us ladies have a much greater threshold for pain because it visits us on a monthly basis for 45 straight years. However, the absolute worst part is by far the constant congestion that ultimately causes me to lose my sense of taste and smell. So I decided to figure out a way to calm my sinus pressure/congestion with a bit of research. I learned that while it feels counter-intuitive because you’re blowing your nose every 2 minutes – your sinuses are actually craving moisture and steam helps! Sure, a nice long hot shower feels great, but I had much better success with boiling a pot of hot water and carefully inhaling the steam. My congestion alleviated after just a few seconds. Be careful when placing your nose over the steam, I don’t want to be responsible for your face melting off.

{3} Eating is NO FUN when you can’t taste your food, but there is a silver lining.

While I’m not promoting the sick diet and can’t enjoy 2 out of 5 of my favorite senses when I’m on it, it seems my appetite goes right out the window too. I did make a point to stay really hydrated, but just couldn’t do much food. Since you’re always supposed to find the silver lining in every situation, I thought I would share that I dropped a few pounds over the weekend without much effort at all. At least something good came of this.

{4} Entertainment is crucial.

You’ll likely be spending a lot of time alone while you convalesce. I spent $100 on the Sex and the City Complete Series as a gift to myself on my 26th birthday and I’ve MORE than gotten my money’s worth. Every time I’m down – any disc from any season, or either movie makes me happy. My advice? Spend as much time with the girls as you can when you’re under the weather. Every giggle instantly made me feel better between chaffing nose blows. (If your male, I heard Entourage provides the same effect for bros).

{5} A little kindness goes a long way.

Before I succumbed to the true depths of my cold (circa day 2 was the worst), I had a girl’s night planned that I was looking forward to all week that I didn’t want to skip but didn’t want to drag my sickly carcass over and spread my germs to my girlfriend. I wasn’t exactly hacking every where at that point (or I wouldn’t have gone), nor was I in full-blown sick mode yet, but it really made my weekend when my friend not only encouraged me to still come over, but ordered me some miso soup to go with our sushi feast to help make me feel better. The horror was that I couldn’t taste any of it after the first 2 bites (I’m still devastated…DEVASTATED about this) – but it meant the world to me that she didn’t treat me like a complete leper and watched a crappy movie with me. Thank you! 🙂

And this my friends is how to survive a plague…or the more accurate (but much less dramatic) common cold: figure out what’s off-balance, keep those sinuses clear with my new trick, look forward to shedding those last 5 stubborn pounds, make sure you have appropriate entertainment, and someone sweet enough to bring you soup.

Here’s to clear breathing! Ahh!

Highlights

Posted in Life by

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{A thoughtful gift from a friend’s garden brightened a not so awesome week.}

Not to be a complete Negative Natalie, but this week was pretty crappy in general. Do you ever have that experience of things not going quite so well with the brilliant caveat that it’s all happening at the exact same time? Well, it’s been one of those weeks.

Drama, a general lack of energy, busy at work, topped-off by being dead on “E” and needing to get gas in the middle of the night (against all my principles) are some of the culprits. Even better, your debit card not working at said gas station because of possible fraudulent activity so you have to contact the bank because guess what – you don’t have any cash! Really? Now I’m spending even more time in a gas station…at night…alone…against my principles.

Ladies, I know it can’t just be me. Don’t you get that eerie sense that if you don’t keep alert when you’re in a gas station by yourself late at night with creepy guys wandering around (without cars, no less) that if you close your eyes for a second longer than necessary, that someone is going to come up behind you and kidnap you? Perhaps it’s just one too many scary movies for me but I refuse to become a statewide amber alert.

I’m also beginning to wonder just how much yoga plays a part in maintaining balance in your life. It’s been a month now since I’ve practiced, and while I’m not saying that life itself was any better or worse when I was practicing consistently; I am saying that I think I was somehow different, which made me react to circumstances differently.

I’m still trying to figure out what to do about my yoga practice ever since my membership to my amazing yoga studio expired and quite honestly, I’ve been slacking on dealing with it. (I know, I know.) It’s even crossed my mind to just buy a DVD and do it at home, but I don’t think it would be quite the same. There really is a synergy to yoga when you practice with like-minded people and have your favorite instructor come over and adjust your posture. This, among other things, is something I’ve got to look into ASAP.

On a brighter note, I’ve been reading a really great novel for my book club meeting next week that I can’t wait to sit down and discuss with the gals over a glass of wine. If you’re looking for a new read, And the Mountians Echoed by Khaled Hosseini has been a welcome distraction. I’m only about half way through so I can’t vouch for it entirely; but so far, so good. And while I wasn’t expecting much from the new film, Jobs (wait for a rental), it was fun to go to an advanced screening during a busy week to get away from it all for a while. I will say, that while I didn’t really care for the film, Ashton Kutcher pulled off such a complicated character pretty admirably. If anything, it was astounding to see him transform into that character. He looked so much like Steve Jobs from a certain angle at times that you could’ve fooled me.

The great news is that weekends always put things into perspective and you get the chance to start again. I’m really looking forward to a girl’s night tonight. Redbox, sushi take-out, and good conversation are on the way.

Have a nice weekend!

DIY: Simple Gold & Swarovski Bead Necklace

Posted in Accessories, DIY by

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About 4 years ago, I took up a new hobby in jewelry making and fell in love immediately. Once you pick up the basics, you’d be surprised at how often you find yourself eyeing a set of earrings in a department store, but saying to yourself that you could easily replicate them yourself for half the cost. I will admit that this can become an expensive hobby if you start working with high quality materials. This, combined with the amount of time it can take to make a single piece – I now have a much greater understanding of why jewelry is often so expensive.

Normally, my jewelry making projects are earring themed, though I have often used what I have learned to repair pieces that I would have otherwise gotten rid of. Recently, I’ve been wanting to add a delicate gold necklace to my collection and came across the perfect inspiration on Cupcakes and Cashmere.

I loved the design. The use of a short row of stones to add a bit of drama to such a simple necklace was a great idea and starting point for what I wanted to do. However, the design used on C&C was much longer in length and didn’t have a clasp because it was long enough to simply slip over your head. I wanted a necklace that was much shorter, had a clasp, and wanted to alter the design of the stones – opting for small Swarovski Elements Crystal Bicone beads in a unique pattern over the ombre effect used on Cupcakes and Cashmere.

I used very inexpensive materials, all purchased at Michael’s for crafting my piece. I loved how it turned out so much that I will eventually swap the chain that I used for something of higher quality that will last longer and maintain a better brilliance.

You can read the full “How To: Delicate Necklace” to get the details on the inspiration for my design.

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Paradise Found

Posted in Explore, Food by

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{Beach day at Point Dume.}

Every summer over the last couple of years, I’ve made it a point to spend more time at the ocean. Beach days typically now find me at Point Dume in Malibu on late Saturday mornings well into the afternoon with all the essentials necessary to completely veg out and relax. In fact, aside from a $70 massage – I can’t think of anything else that actually does completely relax me. The sound of the waves, a good book, some snacks, and sand in your toes for a few hours always does the trick.

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{Morning waves.}

An even sweeter thing to partake in while in Malibu is a stop for lunch at Paradise Cove. Paradise Cove is a private beach about 2.5 miles northeast of Point Dume that loosely mimics the Beverly Hills Beach Club from 90210 (the Walsh-era one) minus the club membership with a much smaller stretch of sand. I’ve never had the expensive pleasure of spending the entire day here lounging on the private sands with a beach bed rental (which would run you about $90), but I do love to stop and eat at the Paradise Cove Beach Cafe.

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{Cafe.}

Full of cliché in a way that just works, Paradise Cove grants complete permission for guests to be as laid back and chillaxed as possible. The cafe, located right on the sandy beach, is on the pricier side at an average $20 an entrée, but is well worth the splurge. I can’t think of a place that serves larger portions (this place easily surpasses the Cheesecake Factory) and they welcome sharing meals without problem. I do find it funny that for a place full of bikinis, bathing suits, and things “beachy” that the restaurant would be so courageous as to serve so much food. I mean, who wants to pig out while at the beach? This is why I recommend stopping by AFTER a day at the beach and just before making the trek along P.C.H. back home and to bed.

Though certainly not a frequent indulgence (because of the amount of calories you’re inhaling, money you’re spending, and the guilt you feel when looking at all these attractive people in model-esque shape), I’ve had nothing but positive experiences overall. The service is great. The food tasty. And they serve drinks in fruit shells. Always a plus in my book. Beware that on the weekends, it can get rather crowded and while they are not very efficient at keeping to their reservation schedule, it can’t hurt to make one on Opentable to bypass the walk-ins.

So my advice to enjoy a little bit of Paradise? Start your morning with an awesome spot on the beach at Point Dume, arriving circa 10:30am to grab the best spot before all the tourists show up. Spend at least 5-6 good hours taking in the rays and getting through that book you’ve been meaning to for the last two weeks. Head to the Cove. Order a watermelon daiquiri and the tomato and caramelized onion grilled cheese sandwich. Paradise found.

Paradise Cove is located at 28128 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.

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{Watermelon Daiquiri.}
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{Cobb salad. Tomato and caramelized onion grilled cheese.}

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{Welcome to Paradise!}

Highlights

Posted in Film, Life by

Happy Friday! Boy, am I looking forward to the weekend coming off an exhausting week. Last weekend, I got the worst “stomach bug” (if that’s what you want to call it because I could never actually pinpoint what caused it in the first place) that took a few days to shake. The pain subsided after a day or so, but physically drained me in a way that lingered for days. I don’t get sick or experience ailments very often (aside from my horrible allergies to dust and anything furry) but it’s when you’re under the weather you truly realize that there’s no better reminder to treasure your good health. Needless to say, once this passed, it sure made me grateful for mine!

Though I spent most of last weekend trying to take it easy, I managed to see The Spectacular Now at the Arclight and spent some time perusing Amoeba before the movie started. As far as The Spectacular Now goes, I was pretty disappointed overall. The film was the talk of Sundance (behind Fruitvale Station) this year and the trailer, very enticing. While I personally thought the film wasn’t executed very well (mainly due to casting choices and some script issues) it did make me want to read Tim Tharp’s novel from which the film was adapted. I suspect that the weaknesses in the film are more eloquently developed in the book because it has the substance to make a very rich story.

Otherwise, most nights this week I was simply content to be at home enjoying my new Kindle reading this month’s book club selection in between watching hours (and yes, more hours) of Friday Night Lights. This is the newest Netflix addiction that I am just now catching up on at a speed that’s pretty insane because I love it so much. Yes, I realize this news is about 7 years too late.

I did venture out 2 nights that were the absolute highlights of my week. Meeting a friend to catch-up on some girl talk over much-needed strawberry margaritas (in an awesome pineapple shell no less) was the perfect way to kick-off the work week; and seeing Blackfish last night, a documentary that explores the exploitation and psychology of orca killer whales once captured and trained to entertain millions at SeaWorld. Apparently, Shamu and his peers are a part of some of the biggest cover-ups in modern times.  It certainly sparks a continued debate about removing species from their natural habitat for the sole purpose of human enjoyment. This film is worth a visit to the theater.

While it isn’t expected to be too warm this weekend, the sun seems to be making a solid comeback. The plan is to hit the beach and hang out with my Kindle, my guy, and the ocean.

Have a great weekend!

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{Strawberry margaritas and girl talk at Pink Taco.}

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{New to my collection? Couldn’t pass up on The September Issue on a recent visit to Amoeba.}

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{Starting my first official novel on my new Kindle Paperwhite – And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini. So far, so good!}

Becoming L.A.

Posted in Explore, Museums by

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Where: Natural History Museum

Location: 900 Exposition Boulevard, South Los Angeles

When I first heard about the new exhibition, Becoming L.A., now open at the Natural History Museum, I knew it couldn’t tie into the theme of All That Glitters any better. This LA-centric show focuses on the origins of what would become the City of Angels; beginning its tale with the 44 settlers who migrated from Mexico to found an agricultural community in 1781 – joining a few of the already established Spanish missions in California as the 4th official “pueblo” 232 years ago. From there, mission life and their contribution to the cultivation of a new environment is explored (albeit through historically known harsh treatment of the Native Americans that isn’t readily highlighted); to the importance and influence of cows (seriously!) for successful cropping development, to the colonization of the area by Mexican rule once Spanish influence was overturned, until that rule is later lost during the Mexican-American war, where Los Angeles became a part of the United States. The exhibit ends with my very biased, yet favorite part of the exhibition: contemporary L.A. – showcasing the turn to movie-making, Hollywood, and all things 20th century.

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Spending almost 2 hours in the gallery on a dreary Saturday afternoon, I easily found myself completely engaged and completely overwhelmed at the influx of information and history around me. Told through a walking narrative as you explore the 14,000-square-foot gallery space, the atmosphere is surprisingly very dark and dramatic overall, providing a more moody vibe to take in the more than 250 artifacts. Original photographs of various settlers and places, paintings of early California missions and prominent individuals to the development of L.A., household items and furniture of the time, tools, a rare sighting of the 1902 Tourist automobile, books, and filming equipment are among the objects on display. It was beyond fascinating to learn how a simple town of 44 would eventually become one with millions, both in populous and economic industrial endeavors.

While the museum does a solid job of compressing over 200 years of history into a cohesive experience, I had grievances with the presentation of the show visually. At times I was so unimpressed, that I found parts of the exhibit to be rather uninviting. Specifically, I was distracted by the museum’s choice to align many of the paintings and photographs intentionally so high that it was hard to appreciate them. And not that they were running out of wall space either. In some cases the walls right in front of you at eye level were literally empty, yet you were forced to take in paintings well over 7 feet high up on a wall. Even more frustrating, accompanying text was written in black on already darkly painted walls making it extremely difficult to read labels. Not to mention that while eliciting a great mood, the low-lighting made it nearly impossible to capture awesome pictures for my post! But this isn’t a deal breaker. I know that museum’s do this at times to preserve the physical integrity of the art and perhaps even the strange positioning of the paintings I mentioned might allude to this as well – though I gather this was more of a poor design choice. Either way, the essence of a museum is to be welcoming to guests and presentation is everything. The placement of some objects took away from an otherwise enlightening experience.

That being said, I would still make it a point to see Becoming L.A. It earmarks the triumphs and tragedy of building what would become one of the greatest metropolis’ in the world. The exhibition is the newest addition to the Natural History Museum’s permanent collection.

1-2013-07-20 13.28.09{Interior – gallery.}

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{The importance of cattle to the development of L.A. agriculture. It’s amazing what a little grazing and cow “poop” can do!}

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{The actual table that the Treaty of Cahuenga was signed on effectively ending the Mexican-American War.}

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{A rarely restored 1902 Tourist automobile.}

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{Hello Hollywood!}

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{The birth place of the electric guitar.}

What I’m Lovin’ Right Now

Posted in Beauty, Fashion, Food, Home Decor by

For us to be well into August, it hasn’t felt much like summer here in LA at all. The weather actually feels truer to spring, filled with gray mornings and rather temperate afternoons along with a spot of rain here and there over the last few weeks. In fact, this past spring felt more like an extended winter. Perhaps there really is something to this whole global warming stuff. We have perpetually been a season behind for the last year. This means, I can’t wait to until Christmas when it’ll finally start to warm up! Despite our “spring-y” weather patterns this summer, I know us Angelenos are lucky when it comes to the weather gods. While you can get away with a sundress right now, you might still need a light sweater to make it through the day – at least I do. I know I’ve mentioned the peculiar weather more than once in recent posts and though I dream of one day moving to another great city to live and explore at some point in my life, I’m really starting to authentically understand how much of a California girl I really am. It looks like I’m trapped here. Until the weather decides, yet again, to catch up with the calendar…

here’s what i’m lovin’ right now

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1. Belted shirt dresses and gold aviators.

2. Essie nail polish in Fiesta.

3. Inspiration for how to rock stacked skinny bracelets perfectly.

4. Glitter Guide’s Style At Home Tour with Devon Dyer. LOVE the “Get it Girl” pillow from Society Social.

5. Two for one ice cream cones and Sincerely, Jules‘ travels in Paris.

6. Where I wouldn’t mind cooking up my next meal – A Wall of Windows in the Kitchen.

7. Fried Honey Bananas.

8.  Romantic cascading bridal bouquets and stunning wedding photography.

9. 23 Genius Ways to Use an Ice Cube Tray.

10. My motto.

Highlights

Posted in Books, Life by

I’ve got a confession to make. I caved in a pretty big way this week. Those who know me, know I’m a total book-worm. I rarely leave the house without a book in my bag. It’s about as essential to me as making sure I have my wallet, phone, and car keys at all times. I’ve been a loyal fan of reading for as long as I can remember – back to the days of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps, The Babysitters Club, and let’s not forget the seemingly never-ending Sweet Valley High series. Friday nights killing time in bookstores and Saturday afternoons in the library were quite common growing up. As I’ve gotten older, I realize just how influential those days were to me the more I think about it. I’ve even blogged about it in my Ode to Bookstores.

The funny things is almost 20 years later, nearly all of the books that I read are still checked out from the library and are, in fact, “real” books! There’s something so nostalgic about being around and carrying physical books. I love the smell. I love to turn pages. I love to see the progression of a bookmark as I make my way through a great novel.  And I love, love, love stories (hence my eternal devotion to film; a story that started on paper that became visual). So the big highlight of my week was making the decision to go digital when I gave into the new Kindle Paperwhite.

I debated for a while over making the switch not only because of the cost, but because I wondered if the experience of reading would be as “genuine” as a real book. And while libraries are slowing building their downloadable e-media content for Kindle’s, I know that buying technology like this inevitably also means that I’ll be spending more money on books, which is something I’ve avoided altogether by using the library. Unlike music or films, I hardly ever re-read books, so while I do enjoy them and have a small book collection at home, I’ve never been able to justify the cost and it’s also saved me a lot of space.

Ultimately, the decision came down to ease (and I won’t lie, a little bit of awe in having a new gadget too – it’s my much belated birthday present to myself!). I can access over a millions books at any time, storing over 1,000 of them in my device; at no where near the bulk that it would take up in my purse to carry a single book (and I’ve stretched out quite a few handbags lugging around 500 page hard cover books over the years). I think future handbags and my aging shoulders are already grateful.

This doesn’t mean that my relationship with books is over, it just means it’s changing…knowing that they won’t be too far away.

I’ll let you know how it goes. Have a great weekend guys!

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