vacation makeup

I'm a low-fuss makeup girl. I would say no-fuss, but I think my friends would disagree with that since I'm totally obsessed with Birchbox and I'm a Sephora VIB. I think the root of my obsession is in finding makeup that's really easy to apply, the culmination of which is vacation makeup. When I'm out adventuring, I don't want to waste my day in front of the mirror, nor do I want to bring a train case of beauty supplies. That's not a vacation!

So when I saw this palette (Aqualillies for Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eye And Cheek Palette), I thought OMG best vacation makeup ever! It's by Tarte, so you know it won't fade away, and I love that there's a highlighter and bronzer built right in. Best of all? That aqua eyeshadow - wouldn't that be the perfect pop of color for a night of piña coladas near the ocean? So. Good.

This makes me want to plan a vacation to somewhere warm, good thing it's supposed to hit 90* in NYC this weekend!
<3 barb="" p="">

PS - Here's another multi-tasker that I love. Just swipe, blend, and go!

the race begins...

I know I've been mostly absent around here lately.  Truthfully, I just wasn't feeling the whole blog thing, and so I just let it slip into the background.  But today, I'm here for your help!

a different race... 

PJ and I have entered a race... not really similar to the one that the above photo is from, but a race just the same.  However, the finish line of this race includes a RING... and a PROPOSAL... YEA.
If you've met me before, or you've ever read this blog, you know that I love this guy.  I want nothing more in the world than to spend the rest of my life with him, going on adventures, acting silly, and being generally happy.  I'm totally crazy about him, and also totally secure in the knowledge that he is crazy about me too.
Anyway, the contest...

click to go to the voting page!

We need 500 *unique* votes to get to the next level.  That means I can't just sit here all day and vote for myself until my fingers go numb.  It also means that we need the support of you, our friends, to not just vote yourselves, but spread the word about how adorably perfect we are and how much you'd love to see us win this contest and get engaged!  

So click on the photo above, log into facebook, and vote.  And then, tell everyone you know... because we're cute, and we're happy, and you know we'd vote for you!

Thank you for your help, we truly appreciate each and every vote,
<3 barb="" p="">

iPhone wardrobe

I've had my iPhone4S for about a year now, and I'm thinking it might be time to get a new case... considering my current cases were bought before I even had the phone in-hand.  I've been admiring one for a while... but then I saw another adorable one today and well, now I'm torn.

by PAPERFASHION

by The Case of Mr Pelham

As you can see, both are pretty spectacular, and I hate to see my love of fashion pitted against representing my favorite sorority.  If you had to choose, which would you go with?  Or would you just say "to heck with saving $$, I'll have both!"

Yea, I know... stop being a bad influence on my wallet...

<3 barb

ace of base

Base coats, that is!  I'm totally an at-home mani/pedi type of girl, mostly because it can get so expensive, but also because I think it's fun and relaxing to do at home in my pajamas.

What's not fun? when my carefully done manicure shatters the first time I wash my hands, and my hard work is ruined.  Not ok, manicure, seriously :-/

I figured maybe it was my top coat that was messing things up, so I bought a new one.  I decided to test out the Sally Hansen No Chip Acrylic top coat, since I love their Complete Salon Manicure, and I was... disappointed, to say the least.  My nail polish broke into a million pieces and chipped off.  It was really not good at all.

this is a week-old mani, with my new fave products

So, I went off in search of something new.  I decided to try out a combination of base coat and top coat, using OPI's Chip Skip (base) and Top Coat... I'm linking you to the Ricky's website because that's where I bought them, and I think it's a great beauty supply store.  To say I was impressed would be an understatement.  Chip Skip went on not as a layer of polish but more as a thin layer of primer, which leads me to believe that it's really the key product here.  

My nails lasted a whole week with no noticeable chipping, and about 10 days before really starting to break down. Even more amazing, when I smashed my hand into the pole on the train (spaz moment, I know) and made a big crack down the middle of the polish on my thumb, it didn't peel off!  It just, kind of, stuck in place so you didn't even see the crack.  It was magical ;-)

And yes, $25 may seem like a lot (I know many people don't even use a base) but that's the cost of what? TWO salon mani's?  I have found my nails' new BFF, definitely.

<3 barb

PS - do you have a favorite new (or new-to-you) beauty product?  I'd love more suggestions!

very pinteresting

I have to admit, I was really resisting the urge to start a Pinterest account... not because I didn't think I would like it, but because I worried that I would like it a bit too much.  You see, I've never heard anyone mention Pinterest without using the words "obsessed" or "addicted"... it just seemed like a risk.  However, recently I just felt like it was time to jump in... and I've started to fall down the rabbit hole.

Above is what a few of my recent pins look like... some style, some food, some crafts... the usual.  If you're pinning, I'd love to follow along - and follow me, too, so we can share!!

<3 barb

new favorite

I think I've mentioned about a million times recently (in my very sparse blog posts) that I've been working out every morning.  It's not easy, but its a routine now... I get up at 5:30am and don some workout wear, grab a big cup of water and head to my basement workout fortress.  I don't have the space or the money for a whole lot of different equipment, so I have some bare essentials and I try to work around that when choosing my exercise routines.

yea, whatever... who cares if all my pics are from Instagram?

My recent most favorite routine (you can ask my friend Ili, who I keep raving about it to) is this boxing workout from Women's Health Magazine.  I love it for 2 reasons: 1- because all I need are some light free weights and a jump rope and 2- because it is KILLER, it works out my whole body and I can feel it working.
Full disclosure: there's not a lot of room in my basement fortress for jumping rope (low ceilings) and my jump rope skillz are not what they were in 5th grade (I was awesome) so instead I tend to sub in running in place, lots of awkward jumping around, and high knees.  Cardio is cardio, right?
Bottom line is, you should try this workout.  It's awesome, it's quick, and you WILL sweat.  Let me know if you go for it!

<3 barb

signs

Its honestly been a while since I've cared at all about my zodiac sign- I think it was sometime in middle school that I had all the books, especially the books which showed "love matches" between zodiac signs.  Anyway, I saw this post on Design Crush today and had to check mine out:

Gemini

I'm pretty sure these three words fit me to a T.  I could also be described as easily distracted, overly chatty, and a total nerd... but this is way better :-)

<3 barb

back on track

You may have noticed that last week I unintentionally passed the blog writing over to PJ, who did a pretty nice job posting about both music and fashion... or cars... what I really wanted to do today was post this morning while I took the ferry into work, but my iPad had other ideas about what I would be able to do, and my BlogPress app just wasn't in the mood.  Either way, I'm here now.
As PJ mentioned, I spent most of last week stressing out about a fair that I sold at on Saturday... which sadly, was not a great success.  However, since I had this guy to keep me company, I still had fun.

PJ diligently sets up my display

I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but PJ is a pretty special guy.  Not only did he post on my blog last week (I didn't even ask, he told me he had a few ideas he wanted to try out) when I was too distracted to do it myself, but he also checked the forecast for Saturday (windy... very very windy) and made sure our table was totally prepared.  We were wind resistant!  He was really proud of his wind resistant solutions, and so was I.
After the fair, he was positive, even though it wasnt a great day.  And it didn't take long for him to start nagging at me about the blog:
PJ: You need to write a post NOW.
B: I'm tired... I don't want to blog right now.
PJ: If you don't do it now you won't tomorrow either.
...darn him always being right!

Anyway, he's awesome... and times like these remind me how lucky I am to have someone who encourages and helps me whenever I need it.  Thank you PJ!

<3 barb

PS- Now I'll stop with the mushies and see if I can't get back to a regular schedule this week, or something that resembles one at least.

my apple story

As a 20-something nerdy type, you'd expect me to have been using Apple products daily for the better part of the last decade, and you would be right.  Just before I went to college, I purchased my first iPod, a pink Mini, and loaded it up with all my favorite CDs rather than lugging them all with me to school and letting them take up valuable space in my dorm room.  But my Apple story isn't about me, it's about my dad.
My dad is, like Steve Jobs was, in his mid-50s, but that is really where the similarities end.  He likes his cell phone to be "a phone, that makes phone calls", he never checks his gmail account, and he doesn't text.  Literally, he won't even read a text if you send him one... so don't even bother.  I think he now knows how to download pictures from his camera to a computer, but only after my sister and I teaching him several times.  Honestly, I think he's pretty typical for his generation... but there is one area where he has agreed to move into the 21st century.
A few years ago for Christmas, Katie and I got my dad an iPod shuffle.  I think at the time he was already using  my old laptop as his portable iTunes jukebox... it's possible that he even said that he didn't need an iPod!  But we bought it for him, showed him how to use it once (a record, I'm sure of it) and I don't think a day goes by that he's not listening to it.  Remember the "put some music on" commercials?  Well, he's that guy... he has sewn headphones into all of his hats and helmets and clipped his little shuffle onto anything that will hold it.  He sings along loudly to whatever it is we can't hear... whether he's skiing, working on his motorcycle, or just hanging around the house.  Dad has even hijacked my original (pink) iPod mini to use as a secondary device.  He might be, just a little bit, obsessed with his portable music source.
My point is, Steve Jobs was a genius.  And it's not because his products are technologically advanced... even though they are.  It's because his products are intuitive, simple, and beautiful... so much so that my technophobe dad will not only use his iPod, but that he will also wear it.  Now THAT is a success.

Thank you Steve, for a job well done.  You will be missed.
<3 barb

on being a huge nerd...

Here's another random fact to answer any lingering questions you have about my coolness: I am a lifelong nerd.  Not in the geeky losery kinda way, of course, but in the accelerated programs throughout my life kinda way.  I was put in the top class in second grade, stayed in honors through middle school and went to a specialized high school where I totally nerded out for 4 years, scored a 1590 on the SAT (back in the day when 1600 was a perfect score), and took 6 AP classes.  Then I went to an even nerdier college, literally a place where the word "nerd" possibly originated.
I sounds like I'm bragging, right?  Well, I am... but I'm not just here to brag about myself - I'm here to brag about my high school, Staten Island Technical High School, which is getting some really good press as of late and I'm so happy to say that Katie and I are both alumni of one of the best math and science schools in the country!
This video is a little long, but I had to include:

Staten Island Tech: MyFoxNY.com

According to the U.S. News and World Report ranking of High Schools, S.I. Tech ranks not only #34 on the Gold Medal Schools list, but #13 on the list of Best High Schools for Math and Science!  It received the highest ranking of the NYC Specialized High Schools, which is something that Staten Island is really proud of.
All rankings aside, I really loved attending S.I. Tech and I agree that it is a very special school.  I made friends with intelligent, creative, and fun people during my time there that I have remained close with.  I have four years worth of memories of "spirited discussions" in class, teachers who were passionate and engaged with their students, and a feeling that everybody at the school was committed to the success of every student.  Maybe I'm sugar coating it now that I'm a few years removed, but high school can be a tough time and being part of a small community of like-minded people is a huge advantage in making it through successfully.
So, congratulations to S.I. Tech! You truly deserve it :-)
<3 barb

old new york

PJ and I are heading back from DC today, but I had to share these 1940's New York City photos by Charles W. Cushman which were featured in the Daily Mail.  The images are "JAW-DROPPING" says PJ... I'll let you judge for yourself!

the ferry

Wall Street - this is where the bull is now!

South Street Seaport

the Brooklyn Bridge

Wall Street - facing Trinity Church

Words can't describe, but I guess that's why they say a picture is worth a thousand words.  We'll be back to  THIS city soon!

<3 barb

it's in the bag

Note: I have to snag my Irene pics from PJ, but in the meantime I will entertain you with this highly ridiculous scheduled post)
Um, what's in the bag? ...exactly.  If you didn't think I was crazy already, I'm going to go ahead and convince you of the extreme crazy with a probably TMI list of what I carry with me every day.  It's a long list because I have a long commute, I've got about 80 minutes in each direction to keep myself occupied!

I featured this bag once before, and I finally bought it in April.  Its super sleek and holds a ridiculous amount of stuff, as you can see here:

1. My awesome backpack: the Farm Rucksack from Makr Carry Goods
2. I also carry a smaller bag that I can take out and use on my lunch break... yes, a bag in a bag: the Pleated Bag from Bayan Hippo (I have another BH bag as well, and I love both)
3. Rollerball perfume is so easy to carry, this one is my favorite scent: Stella by Stella McCartney
4. I like to carry my iPad in style... or as PJ's brother says, my iPad is "wearing a dress": Orange Lotus iPad Case from Gussy Sews
5. My blackberry... I'll be trading up soon... really...
6. I like to carry a notebook with me, obv... this is just a plain old Moleskine
7. Reading material on the ferry ride is a MUST... I usually carry a book or a magazine: Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin (I reviewed it too!)
8. Metro Card for the train/subway, and the key card to my office
9. Cords for the iPad: power cord (I frequently forget to charge) and camera connector
10. Seriously, who still carries an iPod?  Yea, I do... it's only like 5 years old now...
11. Shades and Specks: TOMS Classic 101 Sunnies (c/o Jeans Tees Travel Cakes) and my glasses that I should probably wear more often (I'd show pics of the sunnies themselves, but I was switching off wearing them as I took my pics...)
12. My lunch... I keep it in a ziplock bag just in case the container leaks!
13. Fold up tote bag in a tiny pouch, so I can just grab this smaller bag and throw in my lunch and iPad and go sit in the park on my break! (yes, this is yet another bag inside my bag)
14. I literally carry an umbrella EVERY DAY... this tiny one fits perfectly into a ziplock baggie so that I can stow it even when it's wet: Totes Micro 'Brella
15. Clearly, I need a pencil case full of pens and pencils to carry back and forth with me all the time (to write in my rarely used notebook): Muji Pen Case and Pens

Yea, so this is what's inside the bag that's inside the bag... because really, I need 2 bags full of stuff... obv...

a. My Bayan Hippo Purse <3

b. I'm getting more into lipstick lately... as you can see by this lovely shade of nude - I sometimes use the shiny cap as a mini-mirror: Sephora Collection Lipstick

c. I carry business cards, I generally forget to give them out... oh well: Muji Card Case

d. Subways are gross, so I'm always washing my hands... I carry lotion for when my hands get dry, and antibacterial spray for when I can't get to a ladies' room to wash up: Gap Hand Lotion, Clean Well Organic Hand Sanitizer Spray

e. Because I'm old school, I write things down in my agenda book: Moleskine Pocket Monthly Planner

f. Assorted random items: nail file, chapstick, advil, pepto chewables... also earplugs and a tiny binder clip

i. Wallet, for obvious reasons

g. This case houses my camera, its just a point and shoot... the camera isn't in the picture because I'm taking pictures with it!

h. Coupons, receipts, love letters, you know ...important things I need to save forever, or I need to clean out my bag...

Clearly, I'm carrying way too much junk around, but thanks for letting me share with you

<3 barb

PS - feel free to advise me on possible downsizing ;-)

oh yea, like i really need this...

So, in case you didn't know, I work far too close to that Mecca of shopping that is SoHo. There are 3 Gaps, 2 Sephoras, 4 Aldos, 2 Forever 21s, countless designer stores... you get the picture, right? ...all within walking distance on my lunch break. And today, this appeared:

MARSHALLS. SHOE. SHOP. Literally next door to my office... I told myself I wouldn't go in, that I've been spending too much, that I already have so many pairs of shoes... And yet, in I went!



Yup, I am in TROUBLE... They're not kidding about the 50% off thing, because everything is. And did you see the boots? Yea, it'll be fall... soonish... clearly I'll need new boots for that. Lots of new boots... And flats, with pretty baubles on the front... yup. As you can see, I'm planning ahead, for the inevitable: me buying everything, and not even feeling bad about it!

If you're in/around NYC, you should totally hit this up, and let me know, because I'm a really good shopping helper! It's on The corner of Astor Place and Broadway, and it's fabulous, and I will probably be there, making goggly eyes at all the boots :-)

<3 barb

talking to girls

You know how sometimes you read something and it just sparks up a million thoughts and ideas in your mind, and you just want to talk about it and share it with everyone you know?!  Well, that is how I felt when I read yesterdays Motherhood Monday: how to talk to girls on A Cup of Jo.  It discussed how by always complimenting little girls on their clothes, hair, and accessories, we teach them that their looks are most important.  In the original article, Lisa Bloom suggests talking to young girls about books and shares how exciting it can be to have a really intelligent conversation with someone so young, who is learning new things every day.

yes, this is me and my cousin... yes, we have always been fabulous

While I am not a mother, and I don't know many little girls, I could easily relate this to MANY conversations I have with the ladies I speak to all the time.  The major brain wave I had over this was related to sorority recruitment.  As an active sister throughout my college career, I was heavily involved with recruitment.  During that time of the year, we were literally not allowed to talk about boys, parties, drinking, things you do behind closed doors, etc.  Basically, we wanted to attract girls for the right reasons, not because they thought we would bring them to awesome parties (which, eventually, we would).  But somehow, this translated to "since you cant talk about boys, compliment their hair or purse".  WHAT?!  I went to a really good college, full of amazing young women studying everything from Nuclear Engineering to Biology to Product Design.  If we are all so intelligent, why aren't we focusing on more intelligent topics?
The article especially hit me with the suggestion of talking about books.  I have ALWAYS been a girl who loves a good book, but I very rarely talk about all the reading I do, even with my closest friends.  Now that is just silly, so I'm going to make more of an effort to share my thoughts about books, news, and ideas (I'm thinking in the form of book and/or movie reviews, or linkups to intelligent articles like this).  Even though appearance isn't everything, I'll continue sharing my favorite clothing, accessories, and shoes as well, since  beauty AND brains are a great combination :-)

<3 barb

PS - speaking of brains and beauty, I'm sponsoring the amazingly Fancy Nerd Liz at srslyliz.com this month!  She is amazing, and you should all stop by and check her out!

a great weekend

So what if it's wednesday and I'm just telling you about my weekend now? It was great, but this week has been busy, and this is the first chance I'm getting to share...

Bridget and Danny

Saturday was HOT, but PJ and I spent the day helping our friends (pictured above at their wedding last month) move from an apartment into a house! While it was a long day of packing up and carrying out, they provided pizza and beer... that's not really something you can say no to!

Don't we clean up nice?

Sunday was a really special day... PJ and I went into the city with my fam to see Catch Me If You Can on Broadway!

Can you find her name?

Now, any day of the week a broadway musical is special, but this was EXTRA special because my cousin in in the show! I actually took a picture of the cast list above, because I need photographic evidence of her first broadway show. Her name is Kristin Piro, it's about halfway down the left column, and you should all remember her name because she's going to be a star!

Me, Kristin, Lauren, Katie, and Mom after the show

Actually, she's already a star... can you pick her out above? She's the glamazon in the white tank top. She was in stage for about 90% of the show, and it was so distracting! I couldn't stop watching her and thinking, OMG thats my cousin, I KNOW her! It was totally crazy.

The show itself was really fantastic, and I'm not just saying that because I want everyone to go see it and support my cousin. The songs are fun, the sets are fabulously retro, the actors are so talented, and the TRUE story is just about unbelievable. Really, what could be better than that?


The last great thing about this weekend, I found out that I WON a pair of Toms Sunglasses. My friend Meg did a giveaway on her blog Jeans Tees Travel Cakes and I won! I've really been needing a new pair of sunnies, and the Toms 101s are a perfect classic style :-). I'll have to remember to take a pic when I get them, Thanks Meg!
Was that good enough for you? I hope your weekend was lovely too... and your week, since it's halfway over now!

<3 barb

shoes for architects

Eamz Pump in Lemon

Earlier this week I saw a pair of sandals from United Nude on Moorea Seal's blog... I thought they were pretty snazzy, and so I made my way over to the website to see what other styles were available.  Little did I know that I had discovered the mecca of shoes for architects.

Block Ankle Strap in Pewter

Maybe I'm the last to know about them, since I actually spotted the style above in my sisters Seventeen magazine, but I think they are pretty awesome.  I love the geometry, the bright neon colors against more natural shades and textures... seriously, its love.  And if I didn't already have way too many pairs of shoes, I just might spend the $$ on a pair!

Mobius Hi in Zebra

I'm particularly impressed by the sleek design of the Mobius series.  I literally had to look at each different picture several times to figure out what was going on with the shape, which is really a mobius strip created by the heel and front strap!  If anything screams ARCHITECT, its something that you have to look at for a long time until you realize that its completely inexplicable.

<3 barb

inspiration workshop week 2 - kitchens

Last week I was a slacker, but this week I'm joining in on Gussy's Inspiration Workshop! The prompt this week is kitchens, which means I went to my #1 source of home design inspiration - Design*Sponge - and checked out the Best of Kitchens post... I found what I was looking for :-)

While the color combo is certainly a selling point for me (hello?! Blood orange and teal blue? Love it!) I think it's the white subway tile that secured this as my favorite of the bunch... And the open cabinets don't hurt things either, its so pretty :-D
Feeling inspired? Blog it and head over to this week's post on Gussy's blog to share your link and see others!

<3 barb

snowpocalypse recap

It hasn't snowed in a few weeks now, and while generally the aftermath of a blizzard is a giant pain in the butt, I'm starting to miss the white fluffy stuff!
Last time it snowed (Jan 27) we got about 20 inches overnight, on top of the almost 2 feet of leftover snow from the last major snowfall (Dec 26).  It was completely crazy!  Since I failed at sharing pics the day of the storm, here's a bit of what it looked like:

My house as I left in the morning... that's my dad in red operating the snowblower

Most streets hadn't been plowed nearly enough to make a difference

PJ had a difficult time getting his work truck out of the snow... it got stuck about 10 times between his driveway and the nearest plowed street

That is a snowman... yes, it is about 15 feet tall... I wish I could've seen some in-progress shots of that!

I met Gina at the train station... she was there a little before me, and we both waited about an hour and a half for the train!

When a train finally did arrive, this is what was towing it!  Since the 3rd rail (which carries the electricity for the trains) was snowed over, they had diesel engines towing the trains.

And once I got to Manhattan, it was a total mess!

I left my house at around 7:40 that day, and got to work just before 11.  Thats over 3 hours of travel!  It was crazy, but my office wasn't closed, so I just went in and made the best of it.  And while a 3 hour commute isn't really my favorite, I wouldn't mind a few more inches of snow before this season is over :-)

How much snow are you getting? As much as here on Staten Island?

<3 barb

kitty fun

I've never had pets in my house... my parents have a million reasons why and really, I was always ok without them.  You know, minus the occasional goldfish :-)
However, PJ has kitties... sweet, fuzzy, snuggly kitties... and they are fun to play with:

Chi-chi is a little sweetheart... she likes to snuggle on the couch!

We were hanging out with her one night and when we left, I covered her up with the blanket so that she could still be snuggly!

Max is less snuggly with us, hes more of a Prince.  So, we thought he needed a regal bow tie... of the Bands & Bows variety :-)

As you can see, he did not really agree with us! 

These kitties have the potential of turning me into a crazy cat lady!  Do you have any special furballs in your life??
<3 barb

workin' for the weekend!

It's been a busy week around here, but I'm proud of myself... I've managed to pop up a bunch of posts, find some new blogs worth a follow, and catch up on all the blogs I'm already following!  I've collected some of my favorites to pass the time over what I'm guessing will be a perfect weekend for snuggling, drinking warm bevs, and staying inside reading blogs :-D

SrslyLiz reminded me of this hilarious video in her post about her bi-weekly trip to the nail salon with Shawni... My college roommate and I cried with laughter when we watched it, way back when :-)

Need some pretty tags for your presents? Snag a free download of these beauties from Whisker Graphics!

From Jess Van Den via My Girl Thursday - Holiday card envelopes for the fashionistas in your life!

The best part? You can adapt this tutorial to use any kind of pretty paper :-)

As a life-long nerd, I appreciate the nerdy comeback... and this wonderfully nerdy gift guide by design*sponge

Gussy searched for FUN on we heart it this week... I'm pretty sure she found it :-D

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - if its anything like mine it will be full of fun with friends, tracking down the last of the presents, and wrapping them up with pretty paper!

<3 barb