The sun is shining brightly through the windows, even as it nears setting. September first arrived and the temperature dipped noticeably. We were up at the house in Cultus Lake this weekend. Every year my fiancee’s family spends a week at the “cabin”, a palatial home built with the true feeling of the Pacific Northwest with floor to ceilings windows displaying views of the fir and cedar forests that surround it and warm wood throughout; floors, staircases and doors bring the forest inside. There have been bears and cougars spotted on the property and my sister in law saw a linx.
We drove back to the city yesterday to have a couple of days at home before we jet off on our next adventure: Mexico. I’ve never been.
These are the things I’ve been loving throughout the last month.
eBay
I realize I’m late in the game but to be honest I just recently discovered eBay. I mean, I always knew it existed but never bothered to visit the site. I always thought it was a bidding site so I think that’s what turned me off but surfing the site last month I found that I could bid but also purchase things I liked immediately. Because of eBay I’ve now begun a collection of high designer second hand clothing. So far my collection includes a vintage Missoni dress from Italy with the iconic knitted colourful zigzag print. The vendor is a woman who owns a boutique in L.A. She buys up clothing worn only once by celebrities or wealthy clients who wear the piece out then can’t be seen again wearing the same thing (gasp! talk about a faux pas for the wealthy). I’ve always loved Missoni and am so excited to add this to my wardrobe. The second piece I found was a Diane VonFurstenberg dress. Diane VonFurstenberg created the wrap dress in the 70’s and I’ve admired her work for years. The pattern and colours on this 100% silk dress are stunning; all Autumn leaf and feathers. I’ve been styling it with a vintage leather belt to cinch the waist. It looked lovely with leather sandals in the Summer and am already thinking how I’ll style it with my Tod’s boots for the fall.
The last thing I got I bid for. I’m getting married in December and for the wedding photos we will be in the forest. In the snow. Which means I can’t wear my nice heels. Because the dress is long and will cover the shoes anyway, I found these comfy Uggs through one seller. They are new with tags and in the box. The bidding started at $40 which I bid and I won them 3 days later! This style of Ugg retails currently for $198 so I’m beyond happy.
I Love A Good Giveaway
I’ve followed the Pioneer Woman’s blog ever since I first saw her featured on the Food Network. It’s always nice to see people succeeding in what they most enjoy doing so when Ree Drummund (aka The Pioneer Woman) launched her Mercantile shop she also started doing these amazing giveaways. Most include products from her store which include some of the pretties and colourful dish wear and kitchen gadgets. She also sells leather goods and I signed up every single day last year during her 12 days of Christmas to see if I could win a pair of cowboy boots for my sister. I have yet to win but am crossing my fingers for a Kitchen Aid or a $500 certificate to her store.
Netflix Series – Ozark
My sister Steph recommended Ozark to us and coincidentally I’d been seeing people mentioning it a lot on Facebook but had ignored it. It is by far one of the best series on Netflix. Yes it’s intense and very violent but the story merits it and Laura Linney and Jason Batemans performances are superb.
The Byrdes and their teenage kids, Charlotte and Jonah, are, for all intents and purposes, an ordinary family with ordinary lives. Except for the job of Marty, a Chicago financial advisor who also serves as the top money launderer for the second largest drug cartel in Mexico.
We started season 2 last night and we’re on a binge.
Beauty
I admit it. I am a beauty junkie. I follow makeup artists on Youtube and love reading about new trends in beauty. I would totally be a makeup artist if it weren’t for the fact that I can only do my own makeup but found I don’t posses the same talent when working on others as I sadly discovered when I tried to do my fiance’s egyptian pharao makeup last halloween.
- Avene Thermal Spring Water: ok so this is literally spring water in an aerosol which sounds pretty ridiculous given it’s $24 but in it’s defense I bought 2 mini bottles along with the full size and carry them in my purse for a midday pick me up spritz (it’s important to keep the skin moisturized throughout the day) and I use the large bottle to moisten my beauty blenders when doing my makeup.
- Dior Lip Glow in 004: I attend the beauty gala at my local beauty boutique every year. I usually go to the Winter one as a kick off to the christmas season. This time I attended the summer event and had my makeup done by a Dior rep. I already knew about the Lip Glow through other vloggers I follow and was going to pick it up regardless but I was very pleasantly surprised to fall in love with the Backstage Airflash Foundation. I picked it up too.
- Kiko Milano Gold Waves Bronzer: I picked up this buttery bronzer in Siena Tuscany when I visited in July and it’s taken 1st place while all my other bronzers have been relagated to the drawer. It’s not a solid colour so it’s very subtle and buildable and it smells like chocolate! to die for.
- Nivea Body Wash in Care & Roses: I tried this shower gel a couple of years ago and kind of forgot about it. After going through a rose phase during most of Spring I still wanted a floral and this one is light and floral with a milky soft twist. It’s not in your face rose like the Crabtree&Evelyn shower gel I was using before but it still feeds my rose craving.
- Louis Vuitton Mille Feux and Contre Moi perfume: I got this cute little sample box of all the Louis Vuitton perfume collection with my purse (I got a speedy for my birthday). I really love these two scents in particular and wish I could describe them but they’re not a distinguishable scent of anything in nature. Obviously synthetic but wow. I want a bottle of either if I can afford it in the future.
SoftMoc
I was happy to see a SoftMoc shoe store open on South Granville this year. I’d only ever seen one at Richmond Mall years ago when I ended up there after taking the wrong bus. They sell everything from boots to flip flops but their main focus is on really comfy shoes. Every year for my birthday I always end up with some birthday cash so I headed over to SoftMoc and found these moccasins with a rubber sole which means they can be worn outdoors. They are lined in the softest insole and came very much in handy this weekend up at Cultus where it was quite chilly in the evenings. My feet were toasty.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this post. Visit soon!
Love,
Jennifer