hollywood housewife

unusual nail polish colors and my new favorite beauty product

This is part of my Lazy Beauty series.

Two weeks ago we discussed everyday nail polish colors.  Neutrals.  Soft pinks.  Perfectly respectable. 

But, admit it, boring.

When I need instant confidence shooting out from my fingers, I tend to go for a true red or a deep burgundy.

But when I'm feeling sassy, I like to experiment with the trendiest colors.  Right now matte and suede taupes are everywhere.  So I tried OPI's You Don't Know Jacques and really liked it.  

Here's a picture from Amazon.  

 

Those long nails give me the shivers.  Here is it on my own hands.

 

Another not-normal nail color that has become pretty standard is OPI's Lincoln Park After Dark.  This is a dark blue purple black.  (That makes sense, right?)  

I used to think this color should only be reserved for Halloween, but I've gotten used to seeing it everywhere, even on the red carpet.

Here it is on my friend Kate.

 

For more of a Spring-y bent, HH reader Ruth sent in a picture of her toes sporting Sally Hansen's Grass Slippers.  Cute!

 

Do you have a nail color you wear when you're in a certain mood?  Are you on board with the non-normal colors or does it make you feel like Freaky Friday?

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I've been meaning to tell you about this for several weeks now, because I am overdosing on it.  

 

 

Boots Original Formula Bath Oil ($12, Target) makes my evenings better.  I pour several capfuls into my bath water and I swear it smells exactly like the fancy spa.  And I have lots of experience at the fancy spa.

It makes my skin so smooth and smells good on my skin through the night and into the morning.  It's sort of lavender-y.  And rose-y.  Oh, look - it says that right on the label!

It's heaven.  In-expensive.  My newest obsession.  Try it.  

the races

Last weekend I found myself at the horse races.  Real, live, Eliza Doolittle-style horse races.  I half expected to see her shimmying around with a black & white parasol among the white tents, sipping one of these.

 

No Audrey Hepburn in sight, but these ladies are a modern version, don't you think?  Can you get over that horse hat?  I'm told she made it.  Which makes it that much better.

 

There were lots of Lily Pulitzer dresses, seersucker pastels, and Southern style.

I caught this darling couple dancing in the aisle.  Literally.  

I just love a man in a bow tie.

 

This hat had us all staring.  It was even more interesting from the front.

 

Oh yeah, there were horses, too.  Aren't they gorgeous?

  

A horn announced the beginning of each race, and it sounded exactly like you thought you would.  I squealed with excitement, as everyone around me can attest.

This was my first attempt at shooting the race.

 

They're fast!

I tried again.

 

 
 Look how funny these two pictures look when you put them together.

  

It was quite a day.  I'm already scouting attire for next year.

{giveaway} lisa leonard jewelry!

I first met Lisa Leonard in the Nashville airport on the way home from Blissdom.  I was instantly smitten with her, her beautiful blog, and her amazing jewelry.  

 Two weeks ago, I was having a crummy day.  I don't even remember what it was that I was frustrated about, but I opened up my mailbox to the most charming necklace and then I melted.  It was the Family Crest necklace with two very special initials monogrammed in the center.

With that, I was reminded of what was important.  

I've worn that necklace almost every day since then, because I LOOOOOVE the way it looks, and I love the reminder of the initials.  I get compliments every day!

I know you want one of her pieces.  I know you're already imagining wearing one of her pieces. 

Lucky for you, I'm giving one away this week!

The winner can will receive a $75 gift certificate towards any of Lisa Leonard's custom jewelry.  

You choose the piece, you choose the monogram.  Then you wear it with pride and be beautiful.

Here's how it works:

Leave a comment on this post telling me which Lisa Leonard custom piece you would choose.  

**BONUS** For a bonus entry you can follow @lisaleonard on twitter, but you have to come tell me by leaving a second comment here.  (Very important: if you want a second entry in the giveaway by following @lisaleonard on twitter, you MUST leave a separate comment on this post.)

You have until midnight PST on Saturday, April 3 to enter.  I'll announce the winner early next week.  

Choose one for yourself, or choose one to give as a fabulous gift (Mother's Day is coming up, you know!).  

Good Luck! 

scratchy face tickles

Someone please tell me when I'm ever going to get tired of seeing this?  

   

I'm serious.  I need to soak it all in to prepare for that day.  

Who do you think misses The Gorilla more when we're at the lake?  Me or Pigtail?

It's a toss-up.

But I know who The Gorilla misses more.  No question.

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The original winner of the Moby wrap giveaway never responded to claim her prize, so I used Random.Org to choose a new lucky gal.  Congratulations to Christy from The Domestic Princess!

Make sure you check back tomorrow.  I have a really good giveaway you won't want to miss!

not A mom, but pigtail's mom

Mondays are reserved for Mommy-stuff at Hollywood Housewife.  It's just an excuse to show off my baby girl.  

 

She's been breathing oxygen for five months and one week.  We have loved (almost) every second of it.  We watch her like she's the most fascinating documentary.  

In a way, she is.  Our little documentary.  We made her.  Continue to make her.  Watch her being made.  

But until recently, this adoration has been a one-way street.  We give and give and give - happily, lovingly - and she acts like the Queen of Sheba.  

We smile at her and she smiles back, and that is the extent of her demonstrative affection.

Then one night, just after our return from Oklahoma, her daddy was putting her to bed.  I was upstairs, and could hear her wailing and carrying on.  This in itself was unusual, she goes to bed easily.  I thought she was probably just a little off of her schedule and I decided The Gorilla had it under control.  

After about fifteen minutes, I ventured down to her room to give him a break.  Pigtail doesn't cry like that often, but I know the rocking and cooing can get exhausting fast.  As we traded off, she snuggled into my neck, fell completely silent, and drifted off to dream within minutes.

My eyes widened with the realization that she wanted her Momma.  

Me.  She wanted me!  She likes the way I hold her, or the sing-song rhythm of my voice.  My smell brings her comfort or maybe it's just that my face is smoother than her daddy's.  

In the past week, I've noticed a few other, smaller things.  I can tell by her cry if she's hungry or tired, or just needs to fuss it out for a few minutes.  I am relaxing in my abilities and more confident in my relationship with my daughter.  I don't know if it happened over time or suddenly.  

I have felt like a mom for half a year.  Now, I feel like Pigtail's mom.

friday links - many flavors and an apology edition

Is it Friday?  I wouldn't know, I skipped Thursday.  

Pigtail and I took a red-eye flight Wednesday night clear across this great country of ours.  Red-eyes seem like they would perfect for an infant, right?  They'd sleep the whole time?  Don't worry your precious head over it one more minute, because I'm here to tell you this is not true.  There's no sleeping when there are SO MANY FUN things to see on an airplane.  Plus people who talk over an intercom.  Frequently.  Loudly.

We're a little out of sorts.  

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Do you think you're perceptive?  Sure that you pick up the "vibe" during a conversation?  Do you catch the flash of emotion in another's face or do you miss it?  Or possibly misjudge it entirely?  There's a test for that.  (And, not to brag or anything, I got 100%.)

I'm still talking about wallpaper.  I may never stop.  Here are the 12 Most Creative Wallpapers.  My favorite is the wall of paint swatches.

I found Habitually Chic this week.  I love this St. Patrick's Day post of all things green.  Shiny green tiles are for me. 

Rachel has the best stuff.  Human Tetris is absolutely mesmerizing.  I watched it twice.

I could relate to this post from Girls Gone Child.  The First Choice Isn't Always The Right Choice.

I stress about what blog writing does to my other writing.  This post from Country Fried Mama made me laugh out loud. 

Happy weekend, HH readers! 

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IMPORTANT HH PSA:  When I launched Hollywood Housewife in January, I changed the way I did things from my former blog.  One of the things I was most excited to change was the way commenting worked.  Here on HH, I was able to reply to your comments and facilitate more of a "discussion."

When I set this up, I was led to believe that every time I replied to your comment on my blog, you would receive an email notifying you of my reply.  Since many of you replied to my reply in the comments, I assumed all was going as planned.

By complete accident, I learned this week that no, in fact, the HH readers haven't been receiving these notification emails.  So if you never checked back, it looked like I ignored you!

I cannot apologize profusely enough.  If I had known, I would have emailed people personally as they found and commented on my site.  I read every single one of your comments and always appreciate them.

Going forward, I'll handle my welcoming of new readers and commenters differently.  

Head hung in blogging shame,

Hollywood Housewife   

what is the difference between a director and a producer?

My husband The Gorilla is halfway through his third movie in a franchise he created.  I'm giving a little End Credits Education here at HH, so you'll never again wonder what all those titles mean on the movie poster.

This has to be the most asked entertainment question.

Let's review what we've learned about each position so far.  There is the Director and there are Producers.  (There are all kinds of Producers, and I haven't covered them all yet.  The link takes you back to my very first explanation of Producers in general.  For clarity, in this post we're only discussing the main Producer.) 

 

To tie it all together, a Producer is someone who makes the creative idea of the Director happen.   The creative idea may originate from either the Producer or the Director.  Either may have optioned a book, found an original script, or simply jotted their own idea into a summary - called a treatment - that eventually became a movie.  

Through the duration of the project, a Producer may find the right Director, may pitch the idea to different studios, and eventually will oversee that the Director's vision is being met.  They will stay involved from pre-production through locked picture.

A Director will be the captain of all things creative.  He decides the look and tone of the entire film, and then executes it.  He decides the cameras angles.  He will also be the only one dealing with the actors on their acting.  An actor looks to the Director for guidance (um, direction?) and is, like everyone else, working for the Director's approval.  Even actors are just a part of the Director's overall vision.

A Producer makes the creative idea happen logistically.

A Director makes the creative idea happen creatively.

It's easy to think of it as a kitchen analogy: The Producer gets the idea for kitchen, finds the kitchen, and stocks the kitchen with food and tools.  The Producer makes sure all is legal in the kitchen, and that the function of the kitchen is as it should be.  

The Director is the chef.

Everyone in the room is working towards the entree, but it's the Director who has chosen the exact ingredients and who puts it together in just such a way as to make it a masterpiece.  Or a fallen souffle.  Whichever. 

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Many Directors are also Producers on the same project.  The Gorilla is always a Producer of his own ideas, and he is usually the Director.  

photo by GlobalX via flickr

vanity: makeup organization

This is part of my Lazy Beauty series.  I want everyone to feel pretty, without sweatin' it. 

We remodeled our bathroom a few years ago and it quickly became my favorite room in the house.  It's a calm and soothing sanctuary.  

Except when it looks like the tub vomited beauty products everywhere.  

I am a beauty product whore and I'll generally try any regimen thrown at me.  In the rest of my house, I aim to simplify, but in the bathroom I'm a certified hoarder.  And our pedestal sinks, though gorgeous, leave nothing to the imagination.  I had a small cabinet that in theory was supposed to house my creams and powders, but it was a pain to get them out and put them away every day.   I mean, who has that kinda time?

 

The Gorilla cried mercy and we purchased a vanity table and chair.  The mirrored table is from Pier 1, and the seat is from Restoration Hardware.  I bought an inexpensive acrylic makeup organizer from The Container Store and filled the back row with uncooked white rice. 

Yes, rice.

 

This is where I stick my makeup brushes and pencil-type cylindrical items.  I made up that trick, I think.  I just wanted to be able to have the items stand up in the organizer.  

Everything else just sort of floats about on the table, but I try to keep only the things I use somewhat regularly out on the table.  (Like the Stridex pads.  I'm 30 and hormonal and frequently use acne products aimed at pre-teens.)  

 

At the far end of the table you can see the brown travel bag where I stuff larger items for a trip, and the M.A.C. wipes I use at the end of each day.  You may also spot one of my fourteen jars of moisturizer.  I like to have options.  

The products I use daily, I keep in this little bag. 

 

 It's small enough to toss in a purse if needed.  

 

So, there's a lot of it, but I have it organized in a way that works for me: Daily & touch items in the polka-dot bag, regimens and alternative options on the vanity, and travel items in the brown bag.  I almost always know where to find the product I'm looking for.

Are your beauty products organized or strewn about?  Cluttered minds want to know.

F street

 It was big.  And old.  Crumbling even then.

I dreamed of growing up to be more Miss Havisham, less Estella.  Not that I wanted to be alone, or a jilted bride, or with rotting cake on my table.  I just pictured myself as an eccentric old lady.  In an elaborate dress.  In a big old house.

This old house.  

It had been abandoned for years and was just a few blocks from my elementary school.  One of my neighborhood friends shared my obsession.  We tried to break in and we stole tiles from the porch.  There was a tree in the front yard that was large enough to command the street.  I memorized every eroding detail.  

We got in just once.  I remember a grand staircase and rows of built-in bookshelves.  I thought that my life would feel complete if I could ever live in such a house.

When I was in my hometown last week, I took an hour or so to drive around and reminisce and think those heavy thoughts that show up like puddle reflections when you're in the place of your childhood.  

I make that drive at least once a year.  Sometimes it helps me clear a few cobwebs away.  Other times it brings buried memories to the surface.  It's like mental roulette. 

My route usually takes me down F Street, and not by accident.  I like to look at it, my first dream house.  I like to see that the tree in the front yard isn't as big as I always thought it was.  I like to feel irritated by the current owner's choice of cheap siding.  I allow myself, for just a few moments, to wonder what it would be like to move back to Oklahoma and live in the house of my childhood fantasy.

It's a useless drive, mainly.  A waste of time and emotional space.  Only it's not.  To revisit your very earliest dreams reminds you of your current ones.  

Just no lingering. 

caught napping (and moby wrap winner!)

I came home yesterday from running a few errands to find this.

 

 Which quickly turned into this.

 

Precious.

 The Moby Wrap Giveaway ended on Friday and thank you for participating!  I used Random.org to choose a winner.

The lucky new baby-wearer is Condo Blues!

Congratulations!  

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I had such fun with my very first giveaway that I have a few more planned down the road.  As promised, it will only be for things I love and that I think you will love.