Dear DIVA

In what I hope might be a recurring segment* on the DIVA Domain, I bring you the first of DIVA's spin on Dear Abbey, in hopes that practical answers to real life questions might entertain and educate our readers.  Names have been omitted to protect the not-so-innocent.

Dear DIVA,

I need to find a new lip gloss/chapstick with color that isn't sticky or drying.  Recommendations? I know you use to like the Fresh Sugar stuff.I kissed a boy the other night (yes, that's correct) and my lip gloss was extremely tacky and not pleasant. Since you're an expert in this area (yes, making out and lip gloss), I am seeking your advice. Thanks,

Sticky in Steamy Makeoutville

Dear Sticky,

Let me ponder... Yes, sticky, tacky lip glosses are no bueno when it comes to tonsil hockey.  I do really love the Fresh Sugar - there are multiple shades, and it smells fresh and lemony, and goes on creamy and smooth- however, it is NOT a gloss.  It just moisturizes your lips and gives them a soft stain of color.

If you want something glossy that isn't sticky, I like the C.O. Bigelow glosses.  I know Bath & Body Works sell them.  There are several "flavors" and again, just light sheer color, but this way you get the gloss.  I will say the tackier the gloss, the more staying power it seems to have.  These C.O. Bigelow ones don't seem to last long, so I would definitely start with a lip primer and/or lip liner and fill in your entire lips before layering the gloss to help it stay put.

The Juicy tubes by Lancome aren't that bad either as far as stickiness goes.  But if you're planning a makeout session, plan ahead and line your lips and go for a subtle lip color like the ones I mentioned above, or even Burt's Bees wax has some nice cheap tinted glosses and stains.  Point is, don't wear super glossy, sticky gloss (or red lipstick!) if you're planning to smooch right away.  You could wear these types of lip gloss at the beginning of a date and just not re-apply through the night, so that by the time dinner and a movie is over, the color has worn off enough that it won't be all over your guy.

However, if you're kissing from the moment you see him, you hussy, then he clearly doesn't need a glossy lip to draw him in, so forgo the gloss and go for the subtler stains as mentioned above.  

Yours truly,

the DIVA

*Have a question for the DIVA?  Send me your questions and your question/answer might get published.  You know where to reach me.

Things I'm obsessed with these days

John Mayer's newest album, Born and Raised - for me he's the songwriter who tracks right along with where I am in life, from the self-discovery of my early 20's, to the dating and breakups in the years that followed, and now he tackles getting older.  I love his lyrics, and yes, his gravelly smoky voice.  I agree he's a polarizing figure; you either love him or you hate him.  My favorite track on this album is a tie between the "Age of Worry" and "Something Like Olivia."

The Pistol Annies - I still can't believe I hadn't heard of them before a few months ago. Do yourself a favor ladies, and check out the killer country twang, tight harmonies, and snarky girl power of their single, "Hell on Heels."

I am loving my no-frills moisturizer, CeraVe, recommended to me by my dermatologist.

Kale... who knew it was so tasty?

I have no choice but to be surrounded with Star Wars and Superheros.  I'm learning more about either than I ever wanted to. Welcome to the world of little boys!

• My new Kate Spade purse.  She's my first, despite the fact that I have been obsessing over these designer bags for the past 11 years... But who's counting? I snagged this oversized leather bag on super-sale and am pleased with my purchase.
• Bullet points
• And for my guilty summer pleasure : season 2 of the Glee Project.

Fresh sugar

It's been quite a while since I've done any product reviews, and now here I am playing catch up with the blog, with another product to rave about that I simply cannot get enough of.  It's the Fresh Sugar Tinted Lip Treatment.  I have the Rose, and Laura has it in the Plum shade.  We both have agreed it's a product we can't live without.

I'm not really sure what to classify it as- it doesn't give your lips a gloss, so much as it adds a hint of color with SPF protection, and smooth hydration.  It goes on really creamy, and has an amazing citrus-y scent.  The packing also feels really weighty in your hand, as opposed to some lightweight plastic Chapstick, so I think subconsciously, the heavier weighted product makes you feel like you're getting more bang for your buck.

My sister and I each got them in our stockings for Christmas 2010, and here is a picture of what my beloved lip product looks like, circa January 2012:

The product is totally worn down, and even the print on the packaging has worn off from so much use.  A few days after this picture was taken, I finally had to toss the empty stick in the trash, and what a bittersweet moment that was.  

As much as I used to be a total makeup whore, I am a recovering addict,  trying not to buy products and use what's in my seemingly-never-ending arsenal of cosmetics.  However, how often does one really finish an entire lip gloss?  I mean, it takes forever, and in this case, a little over a year, so that should tell you how much I love this product, that I could use it up entirely in a year's time, and that I am prepared to purchase a replacement for it soon.  They are pricey at $22.50 a pop at Sephora, but to me, worth the luxury expense.

Product Review: Sally Hansen Salon Effects

Sally Hansen Salon Effects are a fun way to get a unique and long-lasting manicure.  They are nail polish sticker strips that you smooth on, peel the edges away, and the end result is a really fun mani.

My sister bought these for me on a whim when we were shopping together at Target before Christmas.  One box is $7, and I wasn't willing to splurge, but she insisted and got them for me as a stocking stuffer.  I was instructed to pick out a design that was fun and something I would never be able to do myself with regular nail polish, so I
selected a silver/black argyle print.

For someone with smaller/shorter nails, I have read reviews where people can get by with 2 applications in one box.  My nails are such that I was only able to get one manicure out of the box.  The product claims the polish will last for up to ten days, and I have found that to be true.  I wore the polish for 15 or 16 days, and though the tips chipped probably around Day 10 or 12, the chipping isn't very noticeable (maybe because my chosen nail effects were a pattern so it's less noticeable) so I was able to stretch out the manicure.

The downside is that it took me about an hour to apply the strips one night, and that one package costs as much as an average-priced bottle of nail polish.  The polish is also industrial strength and took me at least 9 cotton balls soaked in nail polish remover to remove the product.

The upside is that you get a unique manicure (available patterns include cool metalics, animal prints, and
geometric designs) without the cost of a professional manicure, and it lasts about 2 weeks.  There's no waiting on drying time, and I have received tons of compliments on my nails since using this innovative product.  I'm sure that if you wore them enough, you would become more speedy in applying them, too.


So there you go.  That's my non-expert 2 cents.  I'd love to hear from you if you've used these yourself.

Brentwood Busts

Here's your public service blog for any local readers.

The "live nativity" that Brenthaven Christian Church on Franklin Road is not what you might think, and definitely not worth your time.  I told Bradley we would get to see live animals with baby Jesus, counting on some cows and sheep, and hoping for a donkey and a camel.  What we got instead was a group of well- meaning church members dressed in Nikes and shepherds' robes, telling the story of the birth of Jesus in three stations, with wooden stand up animals, a fake fire pit for the shepherds, and a baby doll lying in a kid's crib as the manger.  "Where are the real animals?" Bradley asked.  "I don't know," I answered, thinking that perhaps at the final manger scene there would be the live farm animals.  Alas, it was not to be.

Some of the participants didn't even have their lines memorized, and the whole presentation lasted about 15 or 20 minutes.  I expected more out of a church in Brentwood.  So if any locals know of any live nativities that might be a little more realistic, I'm all ears.

The second Brentwood bust is the upscale Mexican restaurant Sopapilla's.  We went there last night for the first time to get together with some friends for Christmas, and while the food was excellent (albeit spicy) for the adults, this is NOT a kid-friendly restaurant.  The kid's bean & cheese burrito I ordered for Bradley was so spicy it brought him to tears, and after trying it myself, I can see why.  I pointed this out to the server at the end of the meal and told him that this was in no way acceptable for a child's menu item, and he remarked that another family had complained recently that the rice was too spicy, but that it must have been the beans after all.  This place needs to get with the program and alter their recipes if they are even going to bother to offer a children's menu.

Eye Roller Review

So I caved and bought the Garnier eye roller ball thingie, otherwise known by its official name, Skin Renew Anti Dark Circle Eye Roller, a week and a half ago.  It claims to instantly tighten and brighten the under eye area, and also promises to lighten dark circles over time.  I said I would give a product review, so here it goes.  

I apply my moisturizer in the morning, and then roll the pen under each eye back and forth.  The pen deposits a light liquid concealer.  I pat it in gently, and then apply makeup over top.

The first time I applied the roller ball, I felt a pleasant tingling sensation a few minutes after the concealer had set.  One of the ingredients in the pen is caffeine, which helps constrict the blood vessels around the eye area, firming up the skin.  Disappointingly, I haven't felt the tingly sensation since that first morning.  Also, I haven't been able to tell a difference daily or over time yet that my eyes look any different.  

Oh well.  It was worth a try, and I'll continue to use it until it's gone.  Who knows, maybe after an extended period of time I'll notice a bigger difference.

It's not easy bein Green!

Kermit the frog said it best: it's not easy being green. I liken the whole global green movement to eating healthy. It often costs you more time, and more money, but in the end it's better for you. That's how I feel about the making the effort to "go green" and reduce our carbon footprint on the world. My sister in law Sarah could probably give a lot of facts to back up what we're doing (and maybe she will post a comment with some info and other helpful hints, hint hint!) but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord, and we will do our part, one thing at a time, to be kinder to our planet. Here's what we've done so far:

• Recycle. We purchased 3 recycling bins from Lowe's, and we recycle paper/cardboard, plastic, glass, and aluminum (an added perk is that since we recycle, we can share the cost of trash pickup with our neighbors b/c we don't produce as much)
• Replaced all our lightbulbs with the long-lasting environmentally-friendly CFL ones
• Installed a timer to our hot water heater. Now it kicks on twice a day, between 5:30 and 8am, and again at 5:30-7:30pm, and we still have plenty of hot water throughout the day
• Be conscious about turning off lights when we leave rooms, especially keeping the computer turned off when not in use
• Unplugging appliances like the toaster, and even the coffee maker when not in use, and phantom energy users, like ipod docks and cell phone chargers, that consume energy when left plugged into an outlet
• Installed an energy-saving shower head which reduces the water pressure, saving several gallons of water for each shower taken
• Keeping our thermostat set at higher temps in summer, cooler in winter. I'm cold natured and this usually doesn't bother me. Ours is at 77-78 during the day, and 75 at night after we put Bradley to bed. We also turn the temp up a degree or two when leaving the house.
• Run the dishwasher/washer/dryer only when we have a full load
• Use reuseable cleaning cloths in place of paper towells whenever possible
• Use reuseable shopping bags
• Purchased a special power strip for our office, so that once the computer is turned off, all the other accessories will shut off automatically
• Stopped buying bottled water, and other individual plastic bottled drinks and use refillable bottles instead
• Use tupperware instead of plastic baggies whenever possible

Now that I look at the list it seems like a lot, but Brian and I are constantly looking at ways to reduce energy consumption even more, so any ideas of your own would be helpful, and I hope our list inspires you to take steps to go greener. This site is a good place to start if you need ideas.

Christmas come and gone

Another Christmas come and gone, and once again, no snow! In the magical land of Narnia it is their curse that it's always winter but never Christmas. Well in Tennessee it's always Christmas but never winter. We were greeted with sunny skies and near-60-degree weather yesterday upon returning home from Indiana. Oh well, so much for the white Christmas I was dreaming of!

The holidays were bittersweet this year because my Papa is in such bad health and we all know it was his last Christmas with us. I'm so glad that we were able to let him come home to his house and stay a few days before taking him back to the nursing home. Papa wasn't all that interested in all the Christmas goings-on, but as always I enjoyed having the house full of family. By Christmas morning it was just Mom, Dad, Laura, George, Julius, and Papa, so we let Papa sleep while we opened presents. George and Laura accused each other of not liking each other's presents, Dad loved his Shrek Donkey slippers and had fun shooting his catapult across the room. And Mom was excited to finally open the box from me and Laura- a red irobot Roomba vacuum cleaner!

We tried out the Roomba today, sitting it in the center of the living room floor and watched gleefully as it spun and made its way around the room. Oscar hated it and barked and followed the Roomba around, while the other 2 dogs could not have cared less! Laura came downstairs to see Mom and I watching the Roomba do its thing, when she remarked, I thought the whole point of that thing was to do other stuff while it vacuumed! Okay, so point taken. It was still fun to watch. The jury's still out on whether or not it's an effective cleaner, but we'll let you know.

Ugly Neti

So. Many of you who read this blog are Tennesseeans, and thus probably suffer from seasonal allergies to one degree or another. I don't usually put product reviews on here, but I have found sinus relief that I cannot live without, and want to shout about it from the rooftops (or at least write about on a personal website). Many of you have heard me talk about it already- it's called a neti pot, or by its formal name at the drugstore, SinuCleanse. The neti (pronounced NET-ee) pot clears out your sinuses, provides instant results, and is strangely satisfactory because you can actually see the results (ie, the congestion leaving your nose, and into the sink.) I heard about the fabled contraption long ago from a singer friend, but I wasn't desperate to pour water up my nose at that point. Now, a few years later, I purchased one to help me stay healthy during the run of my play. (I bought the SinuCleanse brand at Walgreens and can vouch for it, but I know there are other brands who make their own versions as well.)

How it works:
Basically, one mixes a saline powder packet that comes with your plastic genie-lamp-like pot with lukewarm water, lean over sink, tilt head upwards, breathe through mouth while slowly pouring the solution into one nostril. Blow nose, and repeat on other side.

Gross? You bet. But satisfying? You betcha!

This can be done as a roommate bonding experience, such as when Natalie & I walked through it together for the first time, or perperhaps as father-daughter quality time like after I bought one for my dad for his birthday and stood back & watched as he spewed water onto the mirror, or as a great conversation piece to use on the phone with your customers, such as John Roberts talking telling a lady in Mt. Juliet today about it after taking care of her biling question.

Another fun addition after purchasing one is to use the verb "to neti" in sentences or better yet, "neti potting;"
ie, hang on, I'm almost ready to leave the apartment- I just need to finish neti potting first!

I learned on Wikipedia while researching for this article that the neti pot originated as part of the daily cleansing rituals of yoga practice, so now you can feel oh-so-zen after irrigating the sinuses!

a bit of randomness for the afternoon

He's baaaa-ack!! According to the weather man this morning, El Nino is back to wreack havoc on our weather patterns. Which as you all know, is Spanish for "The Nino." (Anyone know how to do the tilda on blogger?) Guess this little annoying weather pattern is responsible for this yucky fall-like day here in Middle Tennessee. Many of you know my feelings are less-than-fond for the fall, so I'm siting at my desk here today lamenting the end of summer. I am excited, however, at my impending transition from a caterpillar to a butterfly with Derelicte tonight! It has been far too long- just call me Kunta-Kinte, cause I've got Roots!

On a totally unrelated strand (pun intended) I purchased the new John Mayer album Continuum last night and I cannot stop raving about it. (Well, I could, but why would I want to?) If you're a fan of his, you'll love it.

Product review: Creamy Coconut lotion

While I normally leave the fashion and beauty advice up to the gals at Las Fashionistas and the Beauty Addict, I simply could not refrain from sharing my latest find at Bath & Body Works. I went to their huge summer sale that they were having to stock up on my coconut lime verbena body lotion and to see what other goodies I could snatch up as well. While I did exercise some amount of self-control and refrained from buying a hot pink rubber ducky (what in the heck would I have done with it, even though it was really cute?), I did get some citrus basil antibacterial soap for the kitchen, and a small tube of the antibacterial hand lotion in the same scent for my drawer at work. To round it out and make it an even three to take advantage of the sale (3 products for $9), I grabbed another antibacterial hand lotion in a scent I had never before tried; Creamy Coconut. To be honest, I bought it on faith because I didn't even smell the lotion before I purchased it! I thought, it's coconut. I love coconut, so I can't go wrong. Well let me tell you, I ended up running back to B&BW last week to purchase the body lotion in Creamy Coconut because it was so intoxicating!

Ladies, I can promise the men will flock to you if you have on this scent. I cannot tell you how many of my male coworkers have come by my desk and gone on and on about how good I smell since I've started wearing it! You will have dates in no time, I guarantee! Why, just last night while out at a bar in Louisville I had an attractive dance partner for the evening and I am convinced it was the Creamy Coconut lotion that drew him in!

Men, go out and buy a bottle of this for the lady in your life- you will certainly not regret it. (Be sure to hurry while sales are still going on!)

And just when you thought Bath & Body Works was so 8th grade and all sun-ripened raspberry on you, they go ahead and come up with another home run in their summery scent department. This DIVA gives the Creamy Coconut products a big 2 thumbs up

new 'dos

Me and Heather's new haircuts, thanks to Mr. Derrick Deering. I love this guy- if you're a Nashvillian looking for a cut and color, look no further. He's reasonably priced, flexible with after-work-hour schedules, and absolutely hysterical!

I'm still trying to decide how I feel about this cut though- I had originally wanted layers in the front and Derrick talked me out it- who knows- maybe I'm just mourning the loss of my 4 inches of hair that i saw topple to the ground! I'm open to affirming words and opinions seeing as how it's going to take quite a while for me to grow my hair back out.

a purdy good weekend

This past weekend was one that was highly anticipated, even though I had just had an amazing previous Memorial day weekend and a four-day work week. Friday was Beth's birthday so she and I partook in a ritualistic Friday Starbucks run on our morning break (Really?? I mean REALLY?!) where I discovered my new favorite drink- a tall fat-free Coconut Latte- it tastes exactly like an Almond Joy (or is it a Mounds?). Then we had a girls lunch at Calypso Cafe- Beth's choice- before finally heading out that night with a bunch of people to celebrate her big 2-5 in style at Saffire in Franklin. I'll admit I was most psyched about this dinner party because I had an awesome new dress to wear. It's one that Beth "made" me buy when we were at TJ Maxx after convincing me that despite the fact that I couldn't wear it to work or to church that I could wear it to her birthday party that her husband Daniel was planning for her. Deal, I said, and I promptly purchased the dress.

Saturday was pretty uneventful although I did meet MA, Em, and Lana at a Sounds baseball game. The Sounds ended up winning, and we got to see some amazing "Reworks" after the game (they really need to get those lights on the scoreboard working!).

Today after church I spent the day helping my parents around the house. Since they're getting ready to put the house on the market we painted the laundry room and their bedroom. It was actually kind of fun- I got to learn how to put on a dryer hose and connect that to the wall, and I was able to utilize my painting skills that ironically enough, I attribute to my New York mission trip last summer. It's kind of funny because you always think about God teaching you things in your day-to-day life that will help you out on a mission trip, and not the other way around, but I certainly didn't know anything about painting techniques before working in that NYC middle school last summer, and that experience certainly came in handy today. Dad nicknamed me "Spongey" because in his opinion I was using up the paint unusually fast.

We had one of what I love to call Blogworthy Moments when mom volunteered to go to Home Depot to buy another gallon of paint while dad and I continued working. Besides the paint, dad told her to get a pack of Purdy rollers also. Without looking up from what I was doing, I knew what was about to follow and I began to laugh in anticipation. "Pretty rollers," she said? "What are those?" As a girl in-the-know (again, drawing from that Kairos mission trip where all I did was paint for an entire week solid) I laughed and said "Purdy. P-U-R-D-Y- it's a brand name, Mom."

The other amusing thing that made the painting more enjoyable was the whistling and singing in tandem by dad and myself to the Christmas song, Sleigh Ride. Random? Absolutely. This went for about 15 minutes or so before I finally asked dad what in the world made him start to sing that song. Apparently when I bumped into a wind chime hanging above the laundry room window it reminded him of the sound of Jingle Bells, and thus, the Christmas caroling began.

Now it's close to beddy-bye time and everything on me hurts. No matter that my softball game got rained out today- I definitely still got my work-out for the day!

Don't eat the lotion!

Do you ever have those nights where you have something scheduled to do that you really don't feel like going to, but then once you get there, you are so glad you went? Well that's how I felt about Bible study last night, except that I really didn't have a choice in the matter about going- we were meeting at my apartment, so I didn't have the option to skip! I had had a crappy day at work (boys are dumb, and that's all I'll say), Emily had a crappy day too, so we sat in our living room and had a sob-fest (minus the tears) about our collectively crappy day. Then 7 o'clock rolled around and it was time for Bible study.

Somewhere in the course of those 3 hours, my attitude gradually changed from bitter and out-of-sorts to giggley and grateful for the wonderful friends I have in my life- maybe it had something to do with the gab fest we had afterwards,each of us one-upping each other with funny stories about work and friends ("Have you seen the nipples," Lisa?), Sarah's synopsis of the Crunk-umentary movie, "Rise," or being content to stand in the kitchen for 30 minutes finalizing details of our awesome weekend ahead. But by 10 till 10 when everyone finally left, I was giddy and not anywhere ready to go to sleep.

Em wandered in my room and picked up my bottle of Coconut Lime Verbena lotion, opened it, and sniffed. "What is it about this stuff that smells so good?" she wondered aloud. "I would say the coconut," I said. I paused. "Or the Lime. Or the Verbena."
"No seriously, this stuff smells good enough to eat," she said.
"well why don't you?" I dared.
"No way! I'm not eating it!"
"Come on, just a little taste."
"N0. You taste it."
Well, I couldn't back down since I was the one who started it. How bad could it be? I mean, one taste wouldn't kill me, and it did smell quite heavenly.
"Ok. Fine. I will..."

... I know the suspense is killing you ...

so yeah, I put a teeny bit on my finger and touched it to my tongue. At first taste it was pretty yummy but then it burned going down and a disgusting lotion taste was left in my mouth for the next 15 minutes or so. I do not recommend eating lotion, for future reference. No matter how good it smells, do not, I repeat, do not eat the lotion! You should be so lucky, that I took one for the team all in the name of research, and did the unthinkable for you all, so you wouldn't have to.