Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Thankful

Hi Everyone, Happy Thanksgiving, I hope you all have a great day with your loved ones. This year I have so much to be thankful for, I thought I would share some of them with you,
I'm Thankful for,
The Gift of new life, Christopher,
and of course My Bri, Bri
My loving and all forgiving Children
My Sister who is the salt of the earth
My Brothers
New friends that have come into my
life
Friends that have stuck by me and
given me so much support, I love ya's!
Old friends that have left because
they never really were
My Sobriety, because being naturally
high is so much better!
My treadmill and music that takes
me away from my daily rut :)
Forgiving myself for my mistakes
and bad decisions
Realizing that some people I thought
were something, were nothing!
My Counselor, for sure LOL!
For all of you, my followers and
visitors
My Dad who came to me through
a medium
But most of all I am thankful for
my husband who had the courage to
save me from myself and loves me
like no one else ever could!
What are you Thankful for today?
Thanks for visiting my blog,
Love ya,
Janet :)

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For all of you, Thank you :)

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Stepping Out This Thanksgiving? 6 Tips For A Bouncin', Swingin' Blowout!!

 [source: Tumblr - Lindsey Mak Photography]
Get that touchable Holiday hair you have always wanted by trying these easy tips. Proper blow-drying techniques yields hair that is straighter, softer, full of body and less likely to revert. I use these methods when blow-drying my hair to press it, or when wearing a dry braid out [pictured here]. - Grab your most hydrating conditioner, your favorite light leave-in, a serum or two and your well on your way!
Condition well: This is when I break out the good stuff. It is very important to make sure your hair is ultra hydrated before blow drying. Not only will this help speed up the blow drying process [and lessen your chances of damage from combing/brushing tangled hair], but it will also close the cuticle which means your hair will be smoother, softer, shinier, full of body, and less prone to static electricity. 

Here are my favorite ultra hydrating conditioners:
  • Macadamia Oil Deep Repair Mas <<--Hands down my fave buy of the year. Ladies, buy the samples if you don't want to splurge on the full jar.
  • Jessicurl Weekly Deep Treat << Another fave, specifically formulated for the needs of curly hair, this natural conditioner packs a powerful moisture punch. 
  • Keracare Humecto 
  • Aveda Damage Remedy
Detangle well: A large percentage of the damage from blow drying comes from mechanical damage; basically combing and brushing your hair. Your hair is in it's most fragile state when wet, so improper combing/detangling techniques can lead to breakage, split ends, single strand knots, and hair loss. - For those with thick, highly textured hair, I recommend detangling in small sections either before shampooing [as demonstrated in this video], or while your hair is loaded with conditioner.  Detangling well prior to blow drying means less tension on the hair, and a quicker blow drying session. 
Protect your hair: Protecting your hair from the heat will help you retain more moisture, and will also ensure that your hair remains soft, shiny and full of body. To protect my hair, I usually bring in a light-weight conditioner formulated for free-flowing styles. My leave-in of choice for sleeker styles that require heat styling is always Sebastian Potion Number 9. It's light enough so that it doesn't leave your hair stiff or dull from residue. Yet hydrating enough for thick, coarse, curly hair. I only use about a dime-size portion for each section of hair. - I also spritz my entire head with Aveda Brilliant Damage Protection. This is a heat protectant that also offers additional shine, softness and body.

Bring in the serums: If you aren't afraid of products that contain silicone's, listen up: I usually add about a dime-to-quarter size amount of Chi Silk Infusion alone or mixed with a few dollops of Aveda Smooth Infusion to my entire head {after applying my leave-in and spraying my heat protectant} before blow-drying. Not only do the silicone's in the serums absorb the heat which helps protect the hair, but they also help seal the cuticle. This means less frizz, reduced chances of your hair reverting due to moisture in the hair, and also, less tangles and knots.

The 8 inch rule: Always hold your blow dryer at least 8 inches away from your hair. This will significantly help prevent heat damage, and ensure the finished style is hydrated and full of body. Holding the blow dryer too close to your hair not only causes heat damage, but it can also make your blow-dried hair appear stiff, dull, and dry.

Point dryer towards the ends of your hair: I always hold my dryer at an angle facing downward. This makes for a much smoother, straighter, sleeker blow-out, as it encourages the cuticles to remain flat.

**Optional, ditch the blow-drying comb and use a Denman D4 brush for an even sleeker look

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Does Maybelline's Colossal Volum' Express Mascara REALLY Deliver Nine Times The Volume In One Coat?

{My lashes after one coat of mascara} 

Here lately, I have been perusing my local drugstores trying to find products that were reasonably priced, yet effective. While in the cosmetic isle, the bright yellow packaging on this mascara caught my eye. I have never really used drugstore mascara, so honestly my expectations were fairly low. I presume the packaging, price, and lofty claims is what prompted me to toss in it the basket and give it a whirl.
Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express Mascara
$6.50 Walgreens

Here are the claims:
Creates 9X the volume, instantly
Patented MegaBrush + Collagen Formula plump lashes one by one
Dramatic Volume with no clumps
Washable
My review:
Nine times the volume in one coat? Not really my experience {more like 5}, however; my lashes have never looked this long and have had this much volume with any mascara. The brush is a little big so you need to really keep a steady hand during the application process as to not ruin your eyeshadow with tiny black dots.

Also, if you are going to wear more than one coat of mascara, it is best to apply the second coat immediately after applying the first. I noticed that this product has a tendency to dry fairly quick, and waiting too long in between coats could cause a severe case of tarantula lashes. 

Would I buy this again?
Most definitely! I have tried many mascara's from Benefit and MAC, to Lancome and Dior, and this surprisingly was by far my fave of the bunch. 

Here are some mascara tips that will help you nail your application every time!

Use a mascara primer to coat and separate lashes

For thicker, fuller lashes; mix your mascara. Apply one coat of lengthening mascara, then apply one coat of thickening mascara. 
After applying two coats of mascara, add a third coat to just the outer corners only; it will help define the shape of your eyes and lengthen your lashes. 
To prevent dots on your lower lash-line; wait 5-10 seconds before blinking.  

To make eyes appear brighter and wider, reach for an eyelash curler! You can curl your lashes before or after applying mascara [tip: warm the eyelash curler with a burst of warm air from your blow-dryer before using].  
  • Apply mascara in three easy steps: 
  1. Wiggle the wand near the base of your lashes [this darkens the area near the lash-line giving the illusion of thicker, plumper lashes]
  2. Pull the wand up the lashes still wiggling the wand as you make your way up [this helps keep the lashes separated]
  3. With your eyes closed, apply mascara to the top of your lashes near the base of the lash-line in the same wiggling motion, bringing the wand to the tip of the lashes

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Self Discipline

Hi Everyone, Hope your doing well. Everyday I work on Self Discipline in different areas of my life, be it exercise, eating healthier etc. Not Smoking is my toughest battle right now. It is definitely not easy, but with each passing day I feel more inner strength when I am able achieve some form of discipline be it in small or big ways. If I fail at it one day, I get up the next day and start over because I know someday the battle will be history and I will win. I love these articles by Remez Sasson, I hope they help you too for whatever you are working on in your life to better yourself.
Thank you for visiting my blog,
Love ya,
Janet :)

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Self Discipline, Its Benefits and Importance
By Remez Sasson

One of the main characteristics of self-discipline is the ability to forgo instant and immediate gratification and pleasure, in favor of some greater gain or more satisfying results, even if this requires effort and time. Self discipline gives you the power to stick to your decisions and follow them through, without changing your mind, and is therefore one of the important requirements for achieving goals.

The possession of self discipline enables you to choose, and then persevere with actions, thoughts and behavior, which lead to improvement and success. It also gives you the power and inner strength to overcome addictions, procrastination and laziness and to follow through whatever you do.

This is a very useful and needed skill in everyone's life, and though most people acknowledge its importance, yet very few do anything to develop and strengthen it.

Contrary to common belief, self-discipline is not a severe and limited behavior or a restrictive lifestyle. It is a very important ingredient for success, any form of success. It expresses itself as perseverance, the ability not to give up despite failure and setbacks, as self control, and as the ability to resist temptations and distractions that tend to stand in the way of attaining aims and goals. In fact, it is one of the most important pillars of real and stable success.

This ability leads to to self confidence, self esteem and inner strength, and consequently to happiness and satisfaction. On the other hand, lack of self discipline may lead to failure, loss, health and relationships problems, obesity and to other troubles

Life often presents challenges and problems on the path to success and achievement, and in order to rise above them you have to act with perseverance and persistence, and this requires self discipline. You also can use this skill to cure and overcome eating disorders, addictions, smoking, drinking and other negative habits.

Self discipline is vital for overcoming eating disorders, addictions, smoking, drinking and other negative habits. It is also an important requirement for studying and learning, for developing any skill, and for success in self improvement, spiritual growth and meditation.

Most people acknowledge the importance and benefits of self discipline, but very few take real steps to develop and strengthen it. This ability can be strengthened and developed like any other skill, through training. Yes, you can develop self discipline with special exercises, which you can practice at any time and place.

The development of this skill will help you:
* To avoid acting on impulse.
* To continue working on a project, even after the initial rush of enthusiasm has faded away.
* To go to the gym, walk or swim, when all you want is to lie down or sit and watch TV.
* Learn to wake up and get up early.
* Overcome the habit of watching too much TV.
* To continue working on your diet, and resist the temptation of eating fattening foods.
* Start reading a book, and read it to the last page.
* To meditate regularly.
* To overcome laziness and procrastination.
* Fulfill promises you make to yourself and to others.

It will be easier for you to develop this skill if you:
* Think and realize how important it is to develop self discipline.
* Be aware of your undisciplined behavior. When this awareness increases, you will be more conscious of your behavior, and more often than not, you will seek ways to change it.
* Make a list of what you want to achieve.
* Act and behave according to the decisions you have made to change your behavior, regardless of laziness, the desire to procrastinate or the desire give up and stop what you are doing. In other words don't give up, keep at it!!

Monday, November 22, 2010

My NY Diary PT. 2

The second day I wore a 70's inspired outfit I picked up from Forever 21 the night before at about 1AM. Gotta love NY.
My mom and I left our hotel bright and early, hopped on a subway and headed to Williamsburg for breakfast
I immediately fell in love with this area
The buildings had so much character!
We decided to have breakfast at Egg
Egg is a quaint little eatery with very fresh, inexpensive food
The atmosphere was friendly and inviting...they even had crayons and paper on the tables. I did some doodling and people watching whilst waiting for my food...
I ordered Eggs, Toast, Hash-browns and Candied bacon...
My mom had Duck Confit... 
After eating, we walked around Williamsburg and snapped pics...
After falling into a few shops, we headed back to Manhattan
We stopped in Bryant Park to drop in some of the shops...
This sandwich shop had amazing eats...
 We hung out in this area for a while and took in the beautiful colors of Fall...
After making our rounds, we had to head back to Harlem to pick up more fabric....then we stopped in Sylvia's....
I had the usual...Fried Chicken, Greens & Yams - My mom and I then killed more time walking around Harlem which ultimately resulted in us missing our first flight....good times..

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My NY Diary PT. 1

Last week my mom and I took a short trip to NY to pick out some fabrics and do a bit of work. I didn't have much time to visit each borough like I would have liked, but it was still fun nonetheless. - The weather was amazing compared to the last time I was in NY for the winter. I was able to get away with a cotton jacket, silk dress, tights and over the knee socks.
We spent the better part of Wed running around sourcing fabrics and tracking down my blackberry I left in a taxi..
 We stopped at the bank first. While there,  I ran into the cutest little boy ever. - I wanted to take him home with me...
My mom picked out some amazing wax prints & batiks!
We were in a warehouse filled with African fabric! 
 After hours of looking through fabric, we made our way down 125th - I am in love with the buildings...
On a sidenote.. I found these cute clogs on sale at DSW for about $20 - They were ultra comfy, I walked in them all day

My hair held up pretty well too. I was a bit hesitant to wear my hair out, as I thought it was going to turn into a big mass of tumbleweed by days end...
My mom and I made our way to Negril for dinner...I had the Village Island Punch
My mom had the mojito
 After a few drinks and lots of laughs with mom, our food finally came. I ordered Jerk Chicken, and decided to also order greens, mac & cheese and yams. 
My mom had the Mojito Baby Lamb Chops
After dinner we were stuffed and happy....we decided to walk off some of our food so we walked to Topshop
My mom took lots of pics for her inspiration board
We ran into a Dean & Deluca on the way...so we grabbed some Earl Grey and a few other goodies...
We finished our night with FELA - It was absolutely amazing from beginning to end :-)


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Saturday, November 20, 2010

Yours To Know

Hi Everyone, How are ya, see I told you two weeks flies by, actually I got out of hell a day early!! They were nice enough to let us leave a day early because they were doing floor work on the dump, I mean the building, we had to stay in for the DUIL Program. I don't think I would feed my dog the food they served, seriously! My cholesterol should be lower now that I ate Cheerios the whole time, I'll have to check that out at my next Doctors appointment LOL! I decided to go cold turkey and not use any stop smoking aids, because we were not allowed to smoke the whole time, not even outside, along with barely any TV and no music (hell, my friends, hell I tell ya!) it wasn't too tough, but the real test comes now that I am home, I am going to keep fighting to not give in to my cravings and smoke, so keep your fingers crossed for me, thanks ahead of time! I am so happy to be home sweet home and I felt like writing a quick little inspirational poem for all of you. I hope you all have a great Saturday, I know I will. One good thing came from my stay, new friends, that have walked in my shoes, Thank you to everyone I spent the last two weeks with I look forward to keeping in touch with all of you :)
Thanks for visiting my blog,
Love ya,
Janet :)

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Feel your light
damages of yesterday
disappear in it's bright
Feel your soul
memories of pain
no longer have
hold

Free your heart
negative energy
soon depart
Free your spirit
and you'll know
beauty with no limit

Love yourself
and those around
Live life with no
bounds
Laugh like you
never have
Smile and breath
For "now" is all we
need, each moment
special and unique

Forgive yesterday,
and all it's mistakes
Let go of tomorrow, for
we can never control
Peace inside will be
yours to know

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