Fall Beauty Updates

A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous."- Coco Chanel

As the days get shorter and the night gets longer and the leaves start to change colors, my beauty routine is changing to match the new season. I think it is important to update my normal routines and products to mirror the changes in my environment. 

Skincare: Now the air is drying out it is more important than ever to stay moisturized. 

• Body:
• I am a big fan of Jergens lotion and I am currently using Jergen's Ultra Healing Lotion to combat the dry air of Autumn.
• I also discovered Morroccan Argan Oil which I use after I moisturize and in the shower or bath. It really does give your skin a silky smooth finish.
• Face:
• I have been wanting to try a Clarisonic Facial brush, but I couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money. Instead I decided to buy Ulta's Cleansing System. It only costs $25 compared to $150. I used it for the first time yesterday and I could feel a difference immediately. After I take off my makeup I use Neutrogena Illuminating Foamy Cleanser with the brush and I can feel the air in my pores. I think this is a great purchase for anyone who wants to have clean skin and the ability to really exfoliate well. 
• I am also a major proponent of face masks both for skin benefits and the relaxation benefits. I love this Purifying Mud Mask, it goes on bright blue so you can have great William Wallace moments. 

Nails: Dark colors and neutrals all day. My signature color is Haute Couture Red.

Makeup:

• Eye shadow: I  am currently loving Bobbi Brown Chocolate Eye Palette. For mascara I am a dedicated user of Benefit's They're Real! 
• Blush/Bronzers: I am still using Nars's Blush Bronzer Duo in Orgasm and Laguna, but it is an expensive product, so I also am using Physician's Formula: Pressed Bronzer. In the fall, highlighting your face is super important since your summer tan is fading. I use Benefit: High Beam.
• Lips: This fall I am tending towards tinted chapstick. I love Baby Lips in Grape Vine

No Makeup

Foundation + Eyebrow definition 

Finished Product

Hair: My hair was absolutely destroyed from the summer so in order to get ready for fall, I got a haircut! My stylist took around 3 inches of dead ends from my hair and recut some long layers. She also threw in a complimentary deep conditioning treatment to get some life back into my lifeless hair. 

Before

After

• Products:
• KMS Repair Conditioner and Shampoo

Cheers X

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

“To feel safe and warm on a cold wet night, all you really need is soup.”- Laurie Colwin

It is finally starting to cool down back East. There is a chill in the air and the leaves are starting to fall from the trees. The weather has been inspiring me to be super domestic and home cook most of my meals. When it is dreary and cold out (which I actually love) there is something very comforting about fresh baked goods and home cooked meals. 

The other day I found myself at work with a hankering for Panera's Broccoli Cheddar soup. I've been a fan of their version for a long time, but I didn't really want to go out to the nearest Panera. Instead I decided to try my hand at making my own Brocolli Cheddar from scratch. I found a couple different recipes and ended up combining a couple that I thought sounded best (and were the easiest to make without a full supply of cooking gear). I was absolutely thrilled with the end result. I think this version is excellent (and dare I say better than Paneras). 

What you need:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 small onion, chopped 
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 pumpkin pie spice
• 2 russet potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 3 large carrots shredded 
• 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

How to Make: 

• Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.
• Add the onion, celery, and garlic and cook until tender (5 minutes)

• Whisk in the flour and cook (4 minutes)

• Add the potatoes (1 min) then gradually whisk in the half-and-half until smooth

• Add the chicken broth and pumpkin pie spice and simmer

• Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, until thickened (25 minutes)
• Add the broccoli and carrot to the broth mixture and simmer (25 minutes)

• Add the cheese to the soup and whisk over medium heat until melted (you can add water if the soup is too thick and add flour if it is too thin)

Enjoy!

I enjoyed mine with a giant loaf of crusty sourdough bread and it was perfect. I hope you like it!

Cheers X

Mediterranean Pizza

“First we eat. Then we do everything else”- MFK Fisher

I am not having the best of luck with the whole mobility thing…I strained my hip flexor a couple days after I got the all clear from my doctors about my broken bones. However, I’m so sick of being unable to do things (I’m going stir crazy) so being the incredibly intelligent woman that I am, I decided to do a ridiculous core workout with my roommate.

This was not smart.

I mean, the workout was great and I really need to get back in shape, but this was akin to just learning to swim and deciding the open sea in a hurricane is your best bet for practice. Basically, I am in a lot of pain. So when I got home from work, the last thing I wanted to do was go to the grocery store. My solution was to throw everything I had together and just see what happened. I was very happy with the end result. I ended up making a (relatively) healthy Mediterranean pizza.   

This recipe is based off of what I had, but this entire thing could be customized. You could use pesto or tomato sauce instead of olive oil or goat cheese or feta instead of mozzarella and cheddar. Honestly, the combinations are endless.

What you need:

• Extra-large tortilla
• Shredded cheese
• Onion
• Garlic
• Bell peppers
• Spinach
• Artichoke hearts
• Black olives
• Olive oil

How to make:

• Preheat your oven to 410 degrees
• Spoon a tablespoon of olive oil over your tortilla

• Sprinkle a layer of cheese over your tortilla

• Place spinach evenly throughout your pizza

• Cut up bell peppers, onions, and artichoke hearts and cover your pizza with them

• Crush garlic and season the pizza
• Sprinkle another fine layer of cheese
• Top with black olives and crushed red peppers
  
  
  
  

• Cook for 10 minutes

After cooking my pizza I decided I was done with standing around so I decided to eat mine in my bed. And it was fantastic.

Cheers X

Banana Nut Muffins

"I eat breakfast pretty much 'round the clock - muffins in the morning, scones for lunch, cereal at night - which may be odd but it is also satisfying, if only because the choice is my own"- Caroline Knapp

Today my roommate and I realized we both weren't eating our bananas quickly enough. Being newly employed, I am not trying to waste anything so ergo a need to make something with mashed bananas. Normally I make banana nut bread, but I don't have a bread pan yet so I decided to try my hand at muffins.

And they were awesome.

Bannana Nut Muffins
What you need:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 4 overripe bananas
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cups unsalted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

How to make:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Combine flour and baking soda in a large bowl

• In another bowl mash 2 bananas with a fork

• Whip the other 2 bananas with the brown sugar

• Melt the butter and combine with the eggs and vanilla. Add to the brown sugar/banana mix.

• Mix in the dry ingredients and the mashed bananas
• Fold in the chocolate chips, nuts, and spices

• Bake for 20 minutes

nom nom nom

Cheers xx

Apple Orchard

"Delicious Autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the east seeking the successive autumns."- George Elliot 

After work on Thursday, a couple of my fabulous friends (and co-workers) and I decided to go watch the sunset from a mountain top apple orchard. We have been having incredible weather for October so we have tried to get outside as much as possible. Sitting with your friends watching the sunset from a beautiful mountain is a great way to make a work day a little bit more exciting. 

The orchard has a quaint little shop with gifts, wine, any every kind of butter you could imagine. Apple butter, pumpkin butter, peach butter...it is a mecca of unique butter flavors. I am a huge fan the apple cider baked donuts at Carter Mountain, but since I am still on my cleanse I abstained. 

For those not on a cleanse, Cater Mountain has a grill and bakery. From what I saw and how long the line was to get food, it must be pretty delicious.

Apples and pumpkins galore! It's like the mecca of Autumn stereotypes. 

We wandered around the orchards for awhile, taking in the views before we settled into a front row seat for the sunset. 

These beautiful ladies and myself settled in to watch the day fall away. 

And really, what's the point of watching a sunset if you don't have a little wine?

Everyone should try to take a little time every once in awhile to take advantage of the beauty all around us. 

In that vein, my cousin (who is an incredible photographer) spent the last 4 months working on a time-lapse project to capture the beauty of the night sky in Northern California. He made an amazing tribute to his father and it is worth seeing. Watch it here: Timelapse

Cheers xx