Gaia Henna

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I know the coolest people.

My adorable friend Candice is seriously cool.

She is a belly dancer and she does henna art. She's got three kids and a husband, yet she still manages to teach belly dancing, perform, and paint beautiful designs on people! She makes it look easy! (Of course, we all know it's not!)

Part of my Summertime tradition is to visit the Ogden Farmers Market as often as I can and I always stop by and see Candice in her henna tent. If I have the funds I get some henna done for myself. I like to just let Candice do her thing and she's always done something gorgeous.

Candice put up a call on Facebook for volunteers to get free henna if they let her do bridal hands, wrap it properly, and document the first few days for her. She's trying to build up her portfolio and of course I jumped at the chance!

I went over to her house back at the beginning of October and she spent hours painting my hands. When she was done my arms looked like this:

It's traditional in Bridal Henna to hide the groom's name somewhere in the design, you can see that Candice did "Eric" right where my wedding ring goes! 

 To make the design last as long as possible Candice made a concoction of warm lemon juice and sugar, applied it to my arms and hands, then put paper towels down, and wrapped the whole thing in plastic wrap.

I felt like a mummy!

I kept the plastic on all night and the next morning I got to peel all the dried henna paste off to reveal the staining underneath. That part is a lot of fun!

The day I peeled it off it was a little light, but by the next day it had darkened beautifully.

I after that it slowly faded over the next few weeks. I got so many compliments! Everybody thought it was very pretty and really interesting. I'm not one to shy away from conversations with strangers, and having beautifully decorated arms was definitely an ice breaker!

Over Spring Break I took Betty over to see Candice and we both got a little henna. Candice wanted to show us how much darker the henna is on parts of the body with thicker skin, so she did the back of our right hands and the palms of our lefts.

On my right she did a design based on an Art Nouveau enameled brooch.

My left was more traditional.

Betty's right: 

On her left she asked for something "Steampunk" and Candice rose to the occasion! How cool is this?!

Candice's company is called Gaia Henna. She's available all the time, not just at the Farmers Market. You can hire her for parties, bridal showers, or just to have something pretty done. (She does amazing work on pregnant bellies that look great in pregnancy photo shoots!)

For more information you can find Gaia Henna on Facebook and Instagram. Candice is also trying to raise money to get her business off the ground, if you feel like supporting her you can donate here.

Abstract Autumn Nails

It's still really warm outside, but all anyone can talk about is Autumn.

Pumpkin Spice flavored everything is popping up everywhere. I'm not really a fan. Don't get me wrong, I like pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dessert. That's just pretty much it for me.

The thing that does excite me is that the mountains are starting to change color. The fall leaves are absolutely one of my favorite things. That is the true sign of Fall.

Autumn is absolutely my favorite season. I was born in the Fall, so was my husband, and we were married in the Fall too. Those dates are all in October.

I love all of it. The cooler weather. The bulky sweaters. Wearing a hat and a scarf with just a jacket. Leggings and tights. Boots! Smelling wood smoke. Rainy days. Halloween. Thanksgiving. Football. There's just so much to love!!

In honor of the beginning of Fall I decided to do a subtle Autumn look.

I didn't want something that screamed "LEAVES AND PUMPKINS!!" I wanted something a little more understated. Since it's so hot, I just wanted a nod to the new season.

I had a really hard time getting the color to show up correctly in the pictures, so I painted some white paper and sent it through my scanner to try and show it properly.

It sort of worked.

The base is Color Club Mod in Manhattan, another one of the gifts from my friend Kristin. I'm pretty sure she got it in one of her Birch Boxes, but if you really like it you can probably find it on Ebay. I'm not really a fan. The color worked perfectly for what I wanted, but the formula was too thick and streaky. It was hard to deal with.

Full sunlight and showing my thumb.

I taped off the square with nail accent tape and then painted on Color Club Put A Pin In It. Still really loving this one. It went on perfectly and looks gorgeous. It's also from Kristin and her Birch Box.

The final dots look black, but they're really a rich bronze brown. They also smell. That's because they're done in Revlon Parfumerie Autumn Spice. They don't smell bad. Just kind of... Autumn spicy.

They look a lot cooler in person than they do in these pictures, and I'm really pleased with how they turned out. Once the leaves really start changing I'm sure I'll have some more Fall looks, but for now this is perfect.

September Ipsy Bag

I received my September Ipsy bag on Tuesday, but I was too distracted to post about it.

You see, my dearest lovely friend graduated from Esthetician School on that day. It's a wonderful accomplishment, but it also meant that she was moving back to her home state of Washington. I was thrilled and proud, but also sad. There were too many emotions going on to worry about makeup.

I'm so proud of you Kristin! 

I also have to confess that this month's bag had a product that I gave away before I could get a picture of it. It was Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Mask for hair. My hair is short, non-damaged, and non-colored, so this was completely wasted on me. I handed it over to a friend with long hair that she dyes, so it went to a good home.

So here's what this months bag looked like after I gave away the conditioning mask:

Sorry the quality is so bad. I had a hard time with the lighting this time. 

First, let me just say that I love the actual bag. My 13 year old begged me to give it to her, but I'm keeping this one! It's buttery soft too, I've been using it as a purse the last few days!

Here's what it contained: NYX Hot Singles Eye Shadow in Rehab (Now I just have to try a smokey eye look!), Pacifica Natural Water-Proof Eye Pencil in Fringe, a Crown Brush brand Infinity Shadow/Crease Duet Brush, and Cailyn Art Touch Tinted Lip Gloss in Basic Instinct (I am in love with this lip gloss. It goes on with a gloss wand, but it looks and feels a lot like a lipstick. And the color looks great on me! I went to the Cailyn site and not only did I get a full size to try, the retail price is $19! That means the $10 I spent on this months bag was well worth it!!)

I seriously love Ipsy! Remember if you want to get an Ipsy subscription you should do me a favor and sign up through my link. Then I get points to put towards free stuff! Woo hoo!!

http://www.ipsy.com/r/69qo?sid=ipsypoints&cid=general

One Coat Wonder

I was given this polish as a gift and it's my new favorite.

That is just one coat of Color Club Professional Nail Lacquer in Put a Pin In It. One coat over my normal base, no top coat or anything. This stuff is so cool. It went on nice and thick but it took a really long time to dry. 

I am in love with this color. It's a very subtle metallic in a rosy, silvery, gold-ish color. It looks amazing with my skin tone. I've been looking for just this shade for months and it just fell into my lap! Thanks so much Kristin!! 

Kristin (who is now my Hero) received it in a Birchbox, and that's the only place you can get this color. I've read that other bloggers have had trouble with this polish chipping, but so far I'm not seeing an issue. 

If you're paying attention, you'll notice I'm hiding my thumb in those two pictures. That's because my thumbnail ripped off. 

I honestly don't know how it happened. I was getting ready for bed and my thumb felt funny. I looked down and the nail was barely hanging on. I tried to clip it off, but I still managed to injure the side of my finger. 

Can you see how red my thumb is? It is so sore! It's like a paper cut. I know I'm being a baby about it, but every time I touch something or grab something it hurts again. 

Weekend Fun

So much went on this weekend! I hit the first Ogden Farmers Market of the season. I got there half an hour after it all started and the produce was already selling out! I managed to snag some tomatoes, but I was really there for the kettle corn.

It's also a tradition for me to stop in and see my friend Candice and get some amazing henna done!

There is so much to love about the Farmers Market. Aside from all the stalls, I always run into friends, and I always get to meet new doggies.

That's Boss. He's a baby English Bulldog!! I just had to snorgle him! His owner was very patient with me. The good news is that he belongs to somebody running a stall, so I'll get to see him next week too!!



If you've read the last few posts you'll remember that we let my oldest boy get a guinea pig. That has been a saga of its own.

What we thought was simple hiccups turned out to be a respiratory infection. We woke up Saturday morning to a dead baby pig. It was very, very upsetting. Joshua took it like a trooper though. Of course he cried a little, but he didn't act out or anything. I'm really proud of him.

He decided that it was a sign that we shouldn't ever get an animal from a pet store, adoption is the only way to go. Since we'd only picked up the guinea pig on Tuesday, there was a warranty. Josh took the money and adopted another female pig. This time a full grown, mellow adult.

Her name is Lily, and she's a complete sweetheart. Even my husband has fallen in love. That's him cuddling her in the picture.

She's still a little skittish, but she's eating and drinking well. She even took a strawberry I gave her! For the love of Pete, please let this one live!



This weekend I also had the chance to spend some time with my good friend Jen. She lives in Wisconsin now, but she came back into town to get some work done on her house so she can put it on the market.

It was great to see her again, she is as beautiful as ever, and it was so nice catching up. I'm bummed that she's going to sell her house though, as long as she had that I felt like she had ties to this town. Now the only excuse to visit is Tona Sushi and of course all the people here who love her!

Polish Removal and a Shopping Spree

After my nail disaster I painted my nails with another $1 WalMart polish L.A. Colors Color Craze NP541 Candy Sprinkles. I thought it was fun and since it was a dollar I just had to get it.

I knew I'd be redoing things pretty quickly so I didn't bother with a top coat, just one coat of my normal base and two coats of the polish. It's a jelly or gelish, whatever they call it. A semi-sheer color with glitter in it. I didn't do the normal daubing technique like I usually would with a glitter, I just brushed this one on like a normal polish. It worked fine that way, and I am pleased with the polish. It didn't last very long before chipping, but without a top coat I don't know if it's the polish that's the problem or just lack of top coats. 

Speaking of glitter polishes, they are a giant pain in the butt to remove. The polish remover can't penetrate the polish under the metal flakes, so it just doesn't come off as easily. Pinterest (the place I love) is full of pictures of people wrapping their hands in aluminum foil to remove gel and glitter polishes. I thought I might as well give it a try!

You can see how well it took the polish off my thumb and forefinger, pretty much one swipe and it was gone. 

It works great!

It feels a little weird to have alien-robot hands, and I only do one hand at a time so I can still do things. It also gets weirdly warm. I'm not sure if it's the chemicals in the polish remover or just the cotton and foil insulating things. It doesn't hurt, it's just weird. 

First, I tear five strips of aluminum foil and get five cotton balls. I apply polish remover to a cotton ball, put the remover side to my nail, then wrap the foil around it all. I've started with my thumb and I've started with my pinkie, there really doesn't seem to be a difference. I just have to keep it on long enough. I keep forgetting to time how long I leave it on, but I'd say it's between 5 and 10 minutes. 

Now, the reason I didn't post all this earlier is because Tuesday was a bit of a crazy day. 

First, I met up with my friend Tiia Lin at Ulta. Where my weakness is nail polish, Tiia's is makeup. Unlike me, however, she has actual training. I highly recommend you check out her Facebook, her blog and her videos. 

Tiia helped me pick out colors, let me hold her adorable baby, and as we were checking out she said she had a present for me! When we went out to her car she handed me a bag full of nail polish!! I love this woman!! 

L to R: Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Whirlwind White, Color Club Dark'n Stormy, Color Club Mod In Manhattan, and Nail Rock Nail Velvet Navy

In addition to those polishes Tiia gave me, I bought a bunch of my own. With the sale going on and the coupon I got 5 polishes for under $9!! It was great!! 

L to R: Essence Colour & Go 147 Miss Universe, Ulta Salon Formula Diva, Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear 481 Breezy Blue, Ulta Salon Formula Indigo-Go Girl, Pixel 233 Oh Golly Gee!!

I'm already working on a new look with my new polishes, I'll post more soon!

The other thing that kept me busy is that we welcomed a new addition to our family. 

She's still scared and spends most of her time hiding. We've seen her out to eat and drink though, so that's good. 

This little lady is named Summer, and she belongs to my middle kid Joshua. He's been working his butt off this summer, helping his dad with side work and helping me here at the house. We ask a lot of him, and he rises to the challenge. 

My husband and I decided that he's shown enough responsibility to be in charge of another life, so we agreed he could get a guinea pig. I had guinea piggies growing up, so I know what kind of challenges he's likely to face. He did a lot of research and decided that he wanted a female and a baby. He thought about adopting, but he really wants to train it and the sites he visited told him that starting with a baby is easier. 

He's doing really well so far, and going very slowly with her. He had me scoop her out of the carrying box and into her cage so that she won't associate him with anything negative. He left her completely alone for 24 hours and even then all he did was lay his hand in her cage with a treat for a few minutes. For an 11 year old kid with ADHD, this shows a remarkable amount of restraint! I am completely proud of him! 

Ogden Bucket List (A work in progress.)

My cousin Shanon just moved here to Ogden. I've been driving her around bombarding her with "You should eat here!" "You need to try this!" "This place is so cool!" and she suggested that I put it all down in a blog post. (Probably in an effort to get me to shut up and pay attention to the road while I'm driving.)

This is partially a love letter to my town and partially a list of things I want Shanon to check out. I will probably update it more than once.

Things to see:

The Ogden River Parkway. Great for a little exercise or just a little fresh air.

Historic 25th Street. Just walking it is fun, but it's good for shopping and eating as well.

Ogden Union Station. If you feel like a museum, they have a couple. I think you'll have fun just taking pictures of the trains that are outside and free to explore.

Pineview Reservoir. Technically it isn't in Ogden, but I claim it any way.



Things to do:

Alleged. It's a club but they have Geeks Who Drink every Thursday. I will happily introduce you to people who will let you join in the fun. You might even be able to convince me to go some time.

Ogden Nature Center. It's not just for little kids. Sure they'll educate you if you want, but just wandering around is peaceful and sometimes you can get pictures of the wildlife.

Ogden Mustangs Hockey. The season is over for now, but isn't it nice to know we have a team!? YAY HOCKEY!!

Peery's Egyptian Theater. Lots of different kinds of performances. They even get some of the Sundance shows!

The Zigfeld Theater. This is where I saw Spamalot and Rent. Very fun.

Sasquatch Cowboy. Woo! Improv Comedy! Woo!!

Ogden City Dog Park. To let the pups run! While you're in the area you can also look at..

Ft. Buenaventura. Totally cool that it's an old (reconstructed...) fort in the middle of the city. When you're there it feels like a forest in the middle of nowhere.


Places to eat: 
Slackwater*

Lucky Slice Pizza This one is my favorite because they have awesome gluten free pizza too!

Kneaders*

Dragon Restaurant

Tona Sushi (I can't remember if you like sushi and sashimi, but they have other good foods there.)

Sonora Grill. I make Eric take me here on dates!

Sweet Pop'n Cafe. Okay, they only have different awesome sweets and popcorns but hey, you eat it! I'm addicted to their Kettle Corn.

*Places that I have not personally eaten at because of stupid Celiac Disease. I recommend them because they have been recommended to me. Or, like Slackwater, it's just an awesome place. 

Shopping!!

Only in Ogden. This is where you can go to get local things to send to your out of state friends to make them jealous that you live her now and they don't!

The Queen Bee. Chocolate. They have other stuff, but chocolate.

Things Shanon might not actually like but I have to write them down anyway because they are awesome: 

Sandtrap. Karaoke with Jackson the Karaoke Dude on Wednesdays. Very fun crowd. I've also been told the food there is pretty darn tasty.

Silver Firs Farm

We all know that the stuff you put on your skin should be just as good for you as the stuff you put in your body. Chemicals and junk shouldn't be in your foods, and they shouldn't be on your skin either. Natural is the way to go.

One of the things that I struggle with is finding beauty products that are affordable and good for me. Oh, I can find "natural" and "organic" stuff... I just can't afford to pay the prices. Even if I can find something, how do I know I can trust it? How do I know that it really will be good for me?

I buy from Silver Firs Farm, that's how!

This is another one of those times where I'm going to brag about my amazing friends, but I kind of wish I didn't know her in real life. If I didn't know her then readers wouldn't think this is biased at all! In reality though, I am so blessed to have friends like this. So what if you think I'm biased!

My dear friend Kristin is more than the fixer-upper of vintage trailers, she has a real passion for beauty. She's going to school to be a Master Esthetician, a fancy word for somebody who helps people be fabulous. She's also one of those amazing people who can't help but make things better just by being around them. Everything she touches comes out beautiful, the parties she throws are glorious, and she even has adorable kids.

She also has a passion for the products she sells in her Etsy shop. Silver Firs Farm sells top quality soap and lip balms. She's also got a few adorable necklaces (Eric, this is the one I want you to buy me!) All of the products are as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible.

Have I mentioned the quality? The quality! Every batch is scrutinized thoroughly and only the best stuff gets sold. One batch of Castille soap came out looking bad and now Kristin won't sell it! If it has to look perfect, you know it has to act perfect too.

I'm going to take a minute to talk about the lip balms. First, I need to give y'all some background.

I've written about how I get dehydrated easily, one of the side effects of that is that my lips dry out often. A lot. It's one of the first signs that I need water. Spending my teen years in Mesa, Valley of the Sun, "It's a dry heat", Arizona... I tried every single kind of lip balm on the market. Utah is desert too, so my adult life had been a continual quest to find the perfect balm.

The quest is over! Let's just say that if Kristin ever stops making lip balm I will be in trouble. I am a lifelong customer now.

Not only are the ingredients high quality, Kristin takes it further. She doesn't add any artificial scents. Everything has to be natural. She also won't add flavoring. Flavoring only makes you want to lick your lips and that dries them out more. Rather than try to get people addicted to the flavor (like so many other makers) Kristin actually wants what's best for her customers! How rare is that!?!

The feeling of the balm on my lips is heavenly too. "Lush" is the only word that comes close enough to describing the feeling. I don't have to apply it very often because it works so well, but when I do I feel pampered. I have used incredibly expensive lip balms that haven't come close to feeling this luxurious.

The Lavender Spearmint is my current favorite. The mint makes it tingle in a really fun way!

Kristin does have one exception to flavors. Her son was chewing on his lip so much that it was getting horribly chapped. Whenever she'd put balm on it, he'd just suck it all off before it had time to work. She started experimenting and came up with Bitter Stick. It feels just as amazing as her other stuff and it's still natural, flavored with lime essential oil and naturally blended pomegranate flavor oil. It has a flavor, just not a good one. Not terrible, just not good. (I tried it myself.)

I have some for my youngest. He likes to suck on his bottom lip and it gets chapped. Especially in the winter when the air is super dry and cold. I started using the Bitter Stick and it works wonders! It isn't so nasty that he hates using it, just bad enough that he realizes what he's doing and stops. He even asks for it now!

Silver Firs Farm is up and running on Etsy for your shopping pleasure! You can also read all about the fun at the Silver Firs Farm Blog and "like" them on Facebook. I highly recommend her blog. She does all kinds of reviews on beauty products. A good stop if you're in the market for face stuff, and really, what woman isn't?

All the pictures from this post are courtesy Kristin Guthrie Brandt and Silver Firs Farm. Pssh, as if anyone would believe I could take pictures this good!

Favorites Friday: Vintage Trailers

There is just something so fun about vintage camper trailers. The appeal of the 'innocent' 1950s, the lure of road trips, the freedom of the open road.

Whatever it is, I love them. My friend Kristin had a darling little trailer she named Peggy Lee after the 50s singer. She bought the trailer in so-so condition and fully restored her to better than her former glory. Peggy Lee was divine. Unfortunately, Kristin had to sell Peggy Lee to pay tuition but the legacy lives on.


In honor of Summertime and Peggy Lee this week's Favorites Friday is all about Vintage Trailers:

Retro Trailer Small Change Purse by manikgrl $8.75

Vintage Camping Trailer Pendant by PepperAndFarley $12

Little Camper Trailer in the Mountains by MichellesClay $10

Airstream Vintage Trailer Oil Painting by ArtByMicheleZuzalek $375

Bird House Trailer by birdhouse20 $42.95

You have to check out this shop, there are so many adorable trailer birdhouses!

Housewarming Quote Print by handz $17

My Little Trailer PDF Quilt Block Pattern by BubbleStitch $2.90

Little Trailer Bank by rpfeikgraphics $24.50

Funky License Plate Recycled Art by recycledartco $65

Twig and Vintage Trailer Earrings by clabbercreekstudio $22

Vintage Trailer Earrings by JenniferSumner $12

Set of 10 Blank Mini Cards by mad4plaid $5

Camper Fabric Bib by littlethingsboutique $8

Retro Camper Ipad Sleeve by thatssewrad $30

Hand Carved Wooden Box Purse by DeTiki $149.99

Camper Dog Collar by dogdazzle $17

RV Print Clutch Purse by CutieGirlie $36

By the way, if anyone has any suggestions for Favorites Friday Features then by all means let me know. I love doing searches for random things, so give me ideas!