1. The Scunci Fish Clip Jaw Clip for Extra Thick Hair
Otherwise know as THE JAWS OF LIFE! I bought this on a whim at Target, and now every other hair clip is dead to me. If you have long, thick or otherwise unruly hair, this will do wonders for you.
It has more teeth than your standard-issue claw clip, so it feels stronger and sturdier, and when I twist my hair up into a bun and secure the ends with this clip, the bun actually stays put, which NEVER happens when I use a single run-of-the-mill clip.
I got the large size for $3, but they also have small ones, too.
2. Edible Monterey Bay
I picked up two issues of this local magazine in Monterey last weekend (I believe it’s free in town). One was in our room, and I found the other one on the counter in a fancy-schmancy organic ice cream shop.
It has gorgeous photography and captivating writing! You’ll want to stay up reading about goat cheese all night long, even though you’re completely exhausted from sightseeing…
3. The Ninja Blender
My in-laws gave this to us while they were moving last month, and it’s the most terrifying blender I’ve ever owned.
So many blades!
I fear for my life every time I wash it…
But it slices through anything you feed it. Even lemon pits don’t stand a chance and get obliterated to bits. My green juices have been the smoothest they’ve ever been.
It’s not the most intuitive device, however (the first time I used it, I spent 20 minutes trying to figure out how to turn it on), but once you get the hang of it, it’s great.
4. “Do Not Disturb” mode on the iPhone
That “moon symbol” on your iPhone silences incoming texts and calls when you press it, but it still allows emergency calls to come though if someone tries to repeatedly call you.
Very handy if your alerts are set on vibrate, and you come from a family of night people who text things like pictures of bacon at odd hours (side note: true story). I turn it on just before I go to bed and turn it off first thing in the morning.
5. Fitness Blender workouts
I’ve been doing the HIIT ones by Kelli, and by the end I’m sweating like a mofo. But they have all sorts of non-HIIT workouts, too, like for core, arms, back, etc.
If you try the HIIT ones, you should probably have a few real life classes under your belt, because the videos don’t delve too deeply into technique. She just jumps right in, which I like.
Just did this one yesterday.
The visual extras on the screen are very helpful, like there’s a bar on the right-hand side that lets you know how much of your workout is left, and there’s also a mini preview screen in the upper left that shows you the upcoming move.
Kelli works you hard, and I like that she’s also chatty but not obnoxiously perky. You can also add your own music, since they purposefully don’t include music in the background.
So that’s me. 🙂 What have you been loving lately?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Joyce B. says
June 12th, 2018 at 4:49 pmLove the Ninja! To clean it, pour in about an inch or 2 of water and a squirt of dish soap. Then run it. It should foam up and clean everything nicely. Just rinse it off, no need to touch the blades. I found this on Ninja’s web site after my husband kept cutting himself. Enjoy!
Karen says
June 13th, 2018 at 4:02 pmYES! Thank you, Joyce! This will save me some fingers, for sure.
Jennifer says
June 12th, 2018 at 6:04 pmHow did you know I need new hairclips? I was going to head to Ulta. I’ll save myself $$$$ and hit Target instead.
I’m loving my bed and my pillows.
Ouai wave spray
Dirt–Got lots of flower seeds and dahlia tubers planted this week.
A 3-ingredient fried shrimp recipe from omnivore’s cookbook site. Super simple. I fried a pound of pretty big shrimp in no time and it was delish.
Chelsea says
June 12th, 2018 at 6:47 pmThis makes me miss my NutriNinja! I bought a different brand last time and I don’t like it nearly as much.
What am I loving lately? Hmmm… aerial, licorice root extract in skincare products, and almond butter sandwiches!
Lulle says
June 12th, 2018 at 10:15 pmMy phone is set to switch to silent automatically at 10pm and back to regular mode at 7am, and I can manage exceptions too. I don’t bring it into the bedroom anyway – the bedroom is a tech-free zone – but I also don’t want to be disturbed in the evening before going to bed. I check it from time to time but I hate the beeping and buzzing when I’m trying to relax.
Lulle recently posted … #FrenchFriday : Pink Flamingos And A Sunkissed Tan With New Clarins Bronzing Compact
Linda Libra Loca says
June 13th, 2018 at 4:24 amFitnessblender is the best! They recently did a 1000 kcal workout to celebrate reaching a milestone and I was dead afterwards.
Linda Libra Loca recently posted … Avon Anew Perfect Skin – Overview and recommendations
Erin says
June 13th, 2018 at 5:24 amDo Not Disturb is essential. 10 PM to 7 AM for me.
Ruchita says
June 13th, 2018 at 6:19 amOh my goodness, that Ninja blender is not messing around. So many blades! That design is genius though because I notice in my regular blender I have to constantly stop and mix things to get it to blend evenly.
I love Fitness Blender! They have such a great variety of workouts. I’ve created my own playlists with my favorite videos.
Karen says
June 13th, 2018 at 4:03 pmHey, lady! Are you back from your trip?
Ruchita says
June 13th, 2018 at 4:11 pmYes! We got back on Sunday. Unfortunately that was the same day Mingus passed, so it was kind of rough. Just been trying to adjust to a new normal without him.
Kim says
June 13th, 2018 at 11:43 amSo much information!! 🙂 I immediately thought “oh, it’s cute – looks like a fish” and was ridiculously proud when I read that it WAS called a fish clip. HAHA!
I love that Edible Monterey mag already. Someday I’ll drive down the coast and stop at all those awesome places!
The Ninja gets rave reviews from the Hubs of one of my besties. He’s the king of juicing everything and has had great luck with that blender.
I had a HIIT workout queued up recently and was interrupted. I’ve yet to do one. It’s very much on my list, though!
Shannon says
June 13th, 2018 at 12:27 pmMmm, this is a nice little exercise! I’ve been loving:
1. Making fresh coffee in the morning. I convinced my boss we should get an aeropress, rather than a Keurig, for the office. I’m all about it, and have really been enjoying making coffee when I get to work – I never have time at home!
2. The cool days we’ve been having. It’s been in the mid-70s the last few days, so it almost feels like fall. I finally wore a scarf today and I love the soft coziness it provides! It’ll get hot again soon, which I also enjoy, but at the moment I appreciate this little respite.
3. Getting enough sleep. We had a long weekend away, and I got a good amount of sleep. And on Tuesday, I asked to come in to work an hour late because I knew I’d be out late the night before – and man oh man, was that simply glorious. I wish I could wake up at 7:45 every day!
4. My succulent office plant. My coworker pawned him off on me in January, and I’ve been taking pretty good care of him since then! He seems pretty happy, and is growing several new leaves. It’s nice to have an easy plant that doesn’t take too much babying, because I do NOT have a green thumb.
5. Messy buns. My hair is just long enough to pop up on top of my head – and even though I feel like I need a haircut, it’s nice to be able to throw it up out of my face!
Thanks for the nudge toward gratitude 🙂
And y’know what, I’m gonna add 6. Yoga, because I’ve been getting back into it – and oh my GOSH is it valuable to take that time! I’ve been walking to class (the studio I like is about 20 min away, on foot) and the walk to and from is such a wonderful, intentional time of me going to do a thing that I love and that is good for me. And that is *mine* in a solitary and important way, even though I’m going to practice in a room with other people. It’s been so good.
Karen says
June 13th, 2018 at 4:01 pmEvery period of my life when I made time for yoga everything got better, it seems. I was calmer, more centered, generally less anxious… I should really get back into it! I was doing it pretty often until the studio I liked closed down. What kind of yoga do you do?
Shannon says
June 14th, 2018 at 9:41 amThe studio I’m at seems to be a smattering of lots of different things… but I generally lean towards Ashtanga (a form of Vinyasa) in my own practice. I’ve heard really great things about Iyengar, too, though! I want to try a few classes at some point.
Suzanne C says
June 13th, 2018 at 1:50 pmIt’s going to sound crazy, but I’m really loving farro right now. I would totally eat a farro and veggie salad every day of the week for the entire summer. Farro, roasted vegs, and the Liquid Gold vinaigrette from Cookie & Kate’s Love Real Food Cookbook.