Welcome to Kelly’s edition of “Oprah’s Favorite Things
Episode!” I don’t use exclamation points lightly, so you KNOW this is going to
be a treat.
Now that I’m a mature, wise 31, I feel I’m at the age where
I’ve tried enough products and brands and I know what I love and what I have to
have.
No, I’m not giving away any of these items to Aquarium Fan Club
members. These are just my helpful tips for what to use if you want to be like
me.
•Mascara: This one’s tricky because the brand I really love
is Lancome.
But at $25 a pop, I debate whether I’m worth spending the money.
Who am I kidding? Of course I’m worth it. But as a mortgage payer, I’m trying
to be more frugal these days. I used to be a drug store makeup girl because I
couldn’t afford any of the department store brands. But since I got a new job
and started making a little more money, I figured this face was worth the extra
cash. Certain products I think are worth splurging on (liquid foundation,
pressed powder, eye shadow, lipstick) and others I think you can get away with
cheaper brands (eyeliner, blush, mascara).
And I’m a big ole slutbag for free gifts with purchase so I try to time
my purchases around those events.
•Hair product: I don’t care who you are, every girl should
be using some type of hair product. Especially as you get older, your hair
changes and not usually for the good. I’m someone who has had, admittedly, great
hair my whole life, and since I turned 30, it’s gone downhill. I see so many
girls whose hair has potential, and I think “Girl, get thee to an Ulta and treat
yo self to some product.” I’m the daughter of a hair product hoarder, so I’ve
inherited a lot of products my mom has discarded. I try to use a different one
every day so my hair never gets used to one.
My favorite product to comb through wet hair is Barex
styling gel. It’s a little expensive (around $30) but it lasts a long time if
you’re not using it every day.
My favorite heat styling product (what you put on your dry
hair before you flat iron it) is from Rusk.
•Face lotion: Oil of Olay seems to work great for this face.
Now that I’m over 30 and have smile lines, I’m on the search for the perfect
eye cream so if anybody has any suggestions, send them my way!
•Hand lotion: Nivea from the circular white tub. When you
dab some on your hands, it feels like your skin is literally drinking it. It
has to be the one in the circular white tub though. I made the mistake of
buying the blue tub lotion once and that one has a paste-like consistency.
Yoga pants: Gap with Danskin capris coming in a close
second.
Powder: Clinique. Whether it’s pressed powder or mineral
powder, I’m a Clinique girl. I’m going to have to find a new brand of mineral
powder, however, since the Macy’s sales girl told me this week Clinique is
discontinuing its mineral powder. CUE PANIC!
Website: Lately, it’s www.buzzfeed.com.
I’m jealous of whoever came up with the concept of this website, which takes
random topics and presents them in list form with pictures, GIF’s, videos and
clever comments. Current headlines include “14 Ways People Fail at Basketball,”
“32 Things You Might Not Know About London,” and “20 Great ‘Golden Girls’
Comebacks.”
Book: Hard to choose what my favorite of all time is. I’ll
point you to my Goodreads page to see what I’ve been reading the past few years
(and encourage you to sign up for Goodreads-a great way to see what your
friends are reading and to get ideas for what to read yourself). I’m not sure if you
can see this http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4889810,
without an account but give it a shot.
You’ll notice I’m currently reading “I’m Proud of You: My
Friendship with Fred Rogers,” which caused me to be quite emotional on the train
today. It’s written by a Texas journalist, who developed an intense friendship
with Mr. Rogers after profiling him. The book is all about what it means to be a true
friend to someone and loving someone as your friend unconditionally. After
reading it during the commute this morning, it got me thinking about my own
friendships and how I’ve approached them. I’m very proud to say I’ve had
friendships where there is mutual unconditional love without judgment. I’m
proud to say I’ve loved someone as a friend and been a friend to them even when
they didn’t give me that love back, either because they didn’t have it in them
or didn’t think I was worthy of it (still trying to figure out which one it
was). OK, we’re getting too deep here. Read the book, you’ll see what I mean.
That book, combined with Florence and the Machine's "Shake it Out," and I was a hot pink mess on the Metra this morning. To make myself feel better, I post this picture of Florence Welch at the Grammy's.
And ask you who she reminds you of. Could it be ...
And yes, comparing these two photos is one of my favorite things.
Fin.
