Friday, August 30, 2013

Tasty Salads 1: Mediterranean Mushroom

I love veggies. Lucky for me, salads are easy and quick to cook. I eat this as a meal (or two), but I'm sure it would make a pretty good side dish with some rosemary chicken or something.
Ingredients:

2 diced portobella mushrooms
1 diced tomato
1 diced green pepper
1 diced cucumber (leave the middle seed part out)
juice of 1/2 lemon
olive oil
Parmesan cheese
salt
pepper 
chili flakes

Instructions:

1. Fry mushrooms in skillet until liquid starts to emerge when pressed (about 8 minutes).

2. Add the other veggies and toss in lemon, olive oil, cheese, and spices.

Super easy and pretty filling, too. If you keep it in the fridge for a bit it will taste even better.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Cyber Hippy Stuff



Life can be downright stressful sometimes and how you deal with it can say a lot about you. I have had quite a bit of stress in my life (hasn't everyone?) and lately I have just been focusing on how to live life more peacefully. I find as I grow older I really just need some time in my day where I can relax, breathe and just enjoy all that is going on, to really appreciate all that I have.

MR and I have been through a lot together in our 13 years of friendship. We have had perfect days and horrible days. She has been there through it all and that is just one reason that I love her forever. Now, things have settled down a bit and one of my biggest goals is to be a more peaceful, content and appreciative person each and every day because if I don't work at it, I can be kind of a rabble-rouser :P.

Here are some mantras that I have absorbed from various sources and experiences that help make my days more peaceful by avoiding conflict and centering my mind. I find that they come in handy in many situations:

  • Tread lightly.
  • Don't name names.
  • Whisper when you feel like shouting.
  • Focus on what you can do instead of what you can't do.
  • Instead of being jealous of others, be happy for them.
  • Never stop dreaming. 
  • Be patient.
  • Be kind. 
  • Be thankful.
  • Be humble.

These are all so simple but they really help me compose myself when I need to. It really helps me when someone is really getting on my nerves and I just keep reminding myself "Be kind, be kind, be kind..." in my head. Plus taking a moment to think really helps me collect my thoughts so I can respond better.

Another thing that I do is collect the horoscopes from the newspaper. Sometimes I lose them but other times I manage to keep them. They usually say something positive and/or constructive. I recently started collecting my favorites in a little covered dish. I wonder who writes them?

One thing my mom does is she writes about what brings her joy every day. This helps her truly appreciate her life and focus on the good. You could also thank those who bring you joy. Share the love!

What's your favorite peace keeper? 

<3 KM

In This Look:
Eyeshadow - "Seahorse Disourse" from the Lime Crime Aquataenia palette
Under Eye - "Nautilus Prime"from the Lime Crime Aquataenia palette
Lip color - "Crush" Urban decay Super-Saturated high gloss lip color 
Headband by Pink Pewter

Friday, August 23, 2013

Cassie and Melancholic Songs

One of my guilty pleasures on Netflix was Skins. It's a British TV show about some crazy teenagers. I must admit that I stopped watching after the Cassie left. It was just no fun without her. I think she was the only reason I enjoyed watching that show. Is it creepy that I had a girl-crush on her? 

The thing is, this show has some seriously awesome tunes. I discovered two of my favorite songs from this show. If you haven't already discovered them for yourself, here they are:




Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Zombie lips?


For some reason I have been lusting for sky blue and mint lipsticks for a long time. 

I told myself over and over again that I would never wear them, but then I saw some pics of people wearing them and I thought they looked super cool so the temptation returned.

I was initially thinking of purchasing Lime Crime but it's a bit expensive for something I would only use once in a long while. 

Finally I caved when Morgana's Crypt had a sale but now I am fairly certain that I will only wear the blue and the green shades on Halloween...

or during costume parties... 

or when it is generally acceptable to wear mint lips...

I wonder if that will ever happen...

maybe in the future even college professors, doctors and lawyers will be able to wear multicolored hair, tattoos and piercings...

That would be pretty sweet! 

Here's some swatches if you're interested:

Marigold - Esmerelda - Just Peachy - Sky Fire - S'mores
Just Peachy - one of my faves

Marigold - Esmerelda - Just Peachy - Sky Fire - S'mores



One thing that I really like about Morgana's Crypt is that it is an indie business. I think that it is so cool that these are made in small batches and still in lipstick tube form. Many of the indie makeup brands have lip pots for their lip colors, it is pretty rare to see sticks!

This is my first time trying out M.C.'s products and I really do like them. The white based shades (especially Sky Fire) may separate a bit so they require a base coat of foundation and perhaps a dusting of powder on top to set. I believe that it is due to the nature of the color and I have this problem with other white based lipsticks too especially NYX lip cream.  I usually wear a bit of foundation underneath my lipstick anyways so that's not a huge deal to me but these photos are taken sans foundation.

The formula of Morgana's lipsticks is a bit firmer than most other lipsticks I own. This makes it really easy to outline your cupids bow and shape your lips. 

I still don't know exactly why I wanted mint and sky blue lipstick but now I'm good. I have been wearing Just Peachy quite often and I like to layer Marigold with other colors. My son says S'mores makes me look like a zombie lol. At least I've got a head start on my Halloween costume :). 

What's the craziest shade of lipstick you own?

Thanks for tuning in!

<3 KM

Friday, August 16, 2013

Of Woods and Amulets

"I've given my life to the forest
Sweet creatures, take me in your arms" -Corpus Delicti
I find the tradition of Apotropaic magic appealing. I only have a couple of necklaces that I wear that aren't protection amulets. The one I am wearing here has St Christopher on one side and Our Lady of the Highway on the other. It was my father's when he was young and had not yet become an atheist. I have never been Catholic, in case you are wondering. It is supposed to give you safe travels and passage. I think it probably helped me not succumb to a twisted ankle or a falling branch. Nah, I'm not that superstitious, but every little bit helps, right?
These are Betsey Johnson sunglasses. They have a little gold-rim inside of the frame. I've never seen anything like them... I better not lose them. 

I've always wanted a Betsey Johnson dress, but could never justify spending that amount of mulah. So when I found these sunglasses for the same price as a drugstore pair all I could say was "awesome!"
The shirt is Eddie Bauer. They say it's for layering, but I say screw that - it looks great on it's own.

The pants (they roll up into capris) are Mudd. It's funny because they are almost exactly like a pair a of Rampage cargoes that I have in pink. So I looked up Mudd and it turns out that both companies are owned by the same parent group: Iconix. Weird, huh? Uh oh... I also found out that I have aged out of the demographic for both brands. Oh well, so much for being a pretend grown-up. It's not my fault that they don't make sexy cargoes for adult women.

The shoes are not mine, so I have no idea... 

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Picture Printed

I was ecstatic when leggings became popular again. When I was young I loved to wear brightly colored tights and leggings allow me to continue that trend. This time it's even better because I can buy leggings with all sorts of stuff on them, in whatever crazy shades and prints I like. Even things like R2D2. And candy. And hello kitty.

Since my legs are pretty thick I try not to go with prints that are too crazy because there is a lot for people to look at. If my legs were thinner I would be tempted to try some of the stranger styles but I still do own a galaxy print pair. I think that these watercolor print leggings by Romwe are my favorite so far.

Leggings may not be the dressiest attire but I hope that they are here to stay. They are so comfy and easy to wear, plus they are perfect for postpartum moms because they can grow and shrink with your body. I wear them when I feel like wearing something comfy like pajama pants all day but I think they look a little nicer.

Have you jumped on the legging train?


In this look:
Shirt: Romwe
Leggings: Romwe
Boots: Zodiac (love these!)
Necklace: handmade using magnesite, smokey quarts & brass










Here are some other leggings that I have been coveting -


Silver Mermaid - Carouselink 


Chesire cat - Black Milk

Caution tape - Romwe





Lumpy Space Princes - Welovefine 


<3 KM










Friday, August 9, 2013

Djellaba: Moroccan Hooded Robes

http://www.toast.co.uk

These hooded Jedi-like robes are called djellaba. I want to wear one every day that I need to hide from the world instead of my stand-in: a large hoodie and a long skirt. They never have the colors I want online for a reasonable price, so I'm going to have to go and get some straight from the Berber.

I want to go hiking in the Atlas mountains and sleep in a tent in the sand dunes. I want to get an inexpensive room and write like I am Burrough's ghost. I want to wander the streets of old Medinas and get lost over and over again. 

I need to get two or three of these robes. A winter one and a summer one, for sure. Maybe one in wool and one in cotton, or if I have extra money: silk. I want a pale green one and a deep grey one. And perhaps a burnt-orange or brown one. 

They are meant to keep the dust and sun out of your eyes, which is so practical. Also, when you aren't using the hood you can supposedly use it as an extra pocket. Why doesn't everyone wear these?





Monday, August 5, 2013

Referee Me





I am so excited to share this dress. First of all because I fell in love with it right away because I love thin stripes and I love bows. Secondly because I hemmed the sleeves all by myself. I even managed to make 2 little pouches out of the leftover sleeve material!

This might not sound like a major accomplishment but for me, it is a big deal. I am notorious for messing up sewing machines. In the past I have broken way more needles than anyone else I know, considering how few hours I have actually put in to sewing.

In high school I was very impatient with sewing. I tried to sew through jeans, and seams when I wasn't supposed to. I hardly ever used pins and when I did I would run over the bumpy part. I put my mom's sewing machine through a lot!

Back then my projects were always kind of crooked and they took me forever because I had to keep re-threading the machine. This project took me only about 1 hour, bags included, while I was simultaneously trying to keep the kids entertained. Not too shabby! It would have been even nicer if I had been patient enough to buy the right color thread though :P.

In this look:
Dress: Nordstrom Town Square vintage secretary dress
Purse: Unlabeled vintage
Shoes: Seychelles "It don't Mean a Thing"
Lipstick: Urban Decay Super Saturated Lipcolor in Theodora

Thanks for stopping by!

<3 KM

Friday, August 2, 2013

Fish Fish Fish Fish

I have this weird thing where I usually only like one or two songs made by a band. I have favorite songs, not favorite bands for the most part. I listen to my playlists rather than albums.

 Anyway, this is one of those songs. How could I not love a song that says "fish" over and over again? 



PS. I really did not like the beer pictured in this video. The bottle may be cute, but what it contains is gross. One of the worst beers I've ever tasted. At least I think so.