Shark Week is one of those cult obsessions that I absolutely adore and, after the recent release of the now infamous “SharkNado,” it should come as no surprise that the internet is buzzing with excitement. Happy 25th anniversary, Shark Week! Here are my favorite shark-inspired finds fot the week:
Mixology NYC Shark Teeth Charm Bracelet: I’m not a big charm bracelet girl but I obviously really enjoy the mixing of metals here and, of course, the blinged out shark tooth.
Shark Fin Ice Tray: Fun ice cube trays are kind of a thing. I think having some floating shark fins (especially in a punch bowl) would just make drinking water that much more fun.
Tiffany Chou Shark Tooth Double Ring: I’m also really into double finger rings (demonstrated here and here) and now I clearly NEED this gold shark version. Seriously, I want this in a major way.
When Crest approached me and asked if I wanted to attend this year’s Young Hollywood Awards my first reaction was “ohhhh fun!” My second reaction was “wait…am I too old to attend the Young Hollywood Awards?” I’m not gonna lie and say that I knew every nominee (cause I soooo didn’t) or that I even knew who every performer was (THAT was pretty funny), but I decided that if Ian Ziering can attend the Young Hollywood Awards, then so could I. In fact, he and Tara Reid actually accepted an award for “SharkNado,” true story, and I got a hilarious video of Tara thanking the fans for “Twittering”…nice one.
Anywho, the Crest-sponsored awards show actually had a lot of “older” stars that I was pretty excited to see, like Ian Somerhalder, who is just as hot in person, and Ms. Lauren Conrad, who’s gorgeous smile basically inspired me to finally commit to using Crest’s brand new 1 Hour Express Whitening kit. I DID try their previous version that took 2 hours for every use and yeah…I couldn’t get through it. For some reason, the minute someone tells me I can’t drink water for two hours, I immediately NEED that water. But one hour? THAT I can do, for sure.
August Anarchy. Yes. Back in June 2011, I briefly blogged about a new “lifestyle” (e.g. diet) that I had been doing for about 2 months and I was LOVING it. I felt lean, toned and strong…which I really miss. It’s been a little over two years now and, sadly, I’ve gained a good amount of weight back at this point. Am I overweight? Absolutely not. But do I feel good? No. I’m not (and never have been) a naturally thin person and I’ve always had to work REALLY hard to not gain weight, most of which is really just diet and being slightly active. I’m a carb fiend, guys…no, seriously I LOVE potatoes and pasta and I’ve realized that the only way to avoid gaining is to really just limit my intake to once or twice a week and that’s it. Period. No exceptions. It sucks but hey, as Kate Moss once said, “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” and it’s really a choice: eating all of the food I love constantly OR being thin.
Long story short, I was inspired by my friend Beth’s journey to lose her baby weight. Granted, I didn’t have a baby, I’m just LAZY and love pasta, but Beth looks AMAZING. We’re about the same size/build so there’s really no excuse why I can’t do the same thing (seriously, look how fabulous Beth looks after only six months). Beth did Paleo, which is really similar to what I’ve had success with in the past: Tim Ferriss’ Slow Carb Diet. Basically, I’m going for it. August Anarchy. 31 days of hard-core Jamie…my friends are going to be annoyed (I tend to not be as social in order to avoid eating “no no” foods and drinks), but I’m doing it. And when I start to get annoyed, I’ll refer back to THIS Shape.com article, where I was glowing with excitement and energy.
If you’d like to follow along, you can follow my “Healthy Foods” Pinterest board, as well as my “Fitness!” board.
What do you guys think? Will you try out the Slow Carb Diet?
I have a question…what is the purpose of toner? Is it necessary? AND, after I take off my makeup (using Queen of the Quarter Life Crisis-approved Neutrogena makeup removing wipes) and wash my face, when I put the toner on should there be dirt or some kind of grey to brown on the cotton ball or does that mean that my face wash isn’t working well enough?
xo,
“E”
Answer:
Hey “E”!
That’s a great (and really common) question. My first experience with toner was when I did PR for Sea Breeze back in the day…that stuff was hard core, let me tell you, but it had a cult-like following. Here’s the story: toners are greatly misunderstood.
What are they? Toners are traditionally used to balance the skin’s pH and remove anything that your cleanser missed (hence why you see color on your cotton ball after you use it). Newer toners actually can be really hydrating and have added benefits with good-for-you ingredients, depending on the product.
Should I use one? Since there are so many different kinds, you just have to do some research to see which toner is best for your skin (my favorites are above). Some contain alcohol, which removes excess oil and helps prevent breakouts but can also dry out skin. However, most derms say that anyone with eczema or rosacea (ahem, me!) should avoid them due to sensitivity.
If you have oily skin, look for toners with salicylic acid, sulfur, or tea tree oil
If you have dry skin, grab ones with panthenol, hyaluronic acid, aloe, and glycerin
