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Thursday Ten: Unintentional Holiday Break Edition

December 30, 2010 by 3 Comments

1. Well, hello there. Guess I took a break. I didn’t mean to. I sure have a lot to talk about – like Christmas, and how I made a cheesecake so good that it could bring a tear to your eye. I’ll do that. Soon. Just as soon as the holiday chaos settles – JUST A LITTLE.
Brownie Mosaic Cheesecake

2. I told y’all last week how I was test driving the amazing Dell Inspiron One 23? Yeah. Dell provided the computer to me for review and we are basically smitten with the thing (Hello? HD screen? Amazing for photos) – and now I’m giving one away over on BD. If you’re a US resident over the age of 18, get thee on over and enter to win it.

3. I’m finding it hard to believe that 2010 is nearly over – whether that’s good or bad, I’m not really sure. I’m excited to see what the new year will bring.

4. It’s currently 38° and rainy. After the brutally cold temps of the past few weeks (brutal is my word – really, I suppose it could have been worse out there), anything over freezing feels like a heatwave.

5. I try to keep the begging to a minimum here, but since it IS the end of the year – tis the season to make last minute charitable contributions to great causes! And in case you needed one to support… I am walking in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer again this coming summer. 39.3 miles over two days. It’s an amazing experience, and if you would like to support me, and support the cause of kicking breast cancer’s ass, click and donate. (Love y’all. You look pretty today)

6. I need to go and get my hair trimmed but finding the time is so freaking hard. I am really going to be fighting the urge I always get midwinter to chop all my hair off – which is why I have to go SOON so that “hey! Cutting off four inches of hair seems like a good idea” thought doesn’t wander into my brain.

7. I am incapable of typing the word “brain” without typing the word “brian” first. Stupid fingers. And I just typed “weord” instead of “word” and oh my goodness, I think maybe I need a little more sleep.

8. I have been going through an intense perfume smell testing process that evolved from a friend sending me massive quantities of perfume samples from Sephora (I love internet people). After everything I smelled (and there were TONS), I have narrowed it down to Bliss or Philosophy’s Amazing Grace. I loved Versace’s Bright Crystal but think it might be a little TOO MUCH for me. I have such a sensitive sense of smell, I am so easily overwhelmed by fragrance. The lighter the better.

9. I finally bought a Speedlite (well, I got a gift card for Christmas, so I bought nothing). I picked it up the other day and LOVE that I can have some light in my inside pictures without the subject being totally flooded in fake flash. Why did I wait so long?

10. I finally saw Black Swan. Have you seen it? WHOA. I knew it was being billed as a “psychological thriller” but I had expected more ‘psychological’ and less ‘thriller’. I jumped so many times – frankly, it creeped me out a lot. It was one of those movies – I can’t say I enjoyed it – because that would just seem weird. Extremely well done. Extremely thought provoking. Extremely scare the bejeezus out of me.

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Scents and Sensibility

October 5, 2010 by 6 Comments

Sometimes when my sister has been around, if we’ve gone shopping and she’s ridden in my car, days afterwards, I catch the scent of her perfume lingering lightly on the upholstery or on my daughters’ clothes after she’s hugged them. It’s a beautiful fragrance and it’s distinctly my sister. I’ve never smelled Chanel Chance on anyone else, and so it’s a scent I associate with my sister and only my sister.

It’s beautiful.

Meanwhile, I wear fragrance sporadically. I mean, I work from home, no sense gussying up for myself. I feel wasteful wearing perfume when I’m not leaving the house and suddenly I have a bottle three quarters full and three years old and the fragrance doesn’t even seem to feel like ME anymore.

My most recent fragrance (three years recent) is a splash by Marc Jacobs and it felt lovely in spring and summer months – for autumn and winter? It’s not…quite…right.

So, I’ve been ON A MISSION.

I went to Sephora, seemed a good place to start. While there, I did their in-store fragrance finder (which differs somewhat from their online fragrance finder), and after telling it I liked to wear blue jeans and liked long walks on sunny days, it recommended Burberry Brit. Its notes are

Italian Lime, Icy Pear, Green Almond, White Peony, Sugared Almonds, Amber, Mahogany, Vanilla, Tonka Bean.

Now, I don’t even KNOW what a TONKA BEAN is, but it’s actually a lovely fragrance. Is it for me? I don’t know – I think that White Peony may be too strong – I’m not a fan of florals.

Another Sephora Junkie I know recommended the Fresh series of perfumes. These actually sound more “me” – but I have yet to check them out.

I want something classic – something I can fall in love with and live with for a long time. Something I can wear in ripped blue jeans and something I can wear when I’m dressed to the nines. Something I can wear while I’m sitting at home in front of my laptop and something I can wear when I’m on a class field trip. I need something versatile. I need something fresh. I can’t stand cloying, overwhelming fragrances. It must be light, and wearable.

And most importantly, it can’t make me pukey.

So, tell me – do YOU wear a fragrance (and men who might be reading: YOU ARE NOT EXEMPT FROM THIS QUESTION!)? What is your fragrance style (sporty, fresh, romantic, floral, spicy, etc)? What are your favorite scents? And MOST IMPORTANTLY, do you have any recommendations for me?

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