What’s your earliest memory of Mary Kay makeup? Mine is of swiping some of my mom’s fancy creams and face washes. The bottle said something about reducing the signs of aging. Who wants to age? I was already seven years old. I figured I’d better get the party started. So I started using Mary Kay as a kid, and I have no conclusive evidence, but it might’ve worked, because people always think I’m younger than I am.

It’s been many years since I dipped into my mom’s sweet stash of Mary Kay. I hadn’t thought about it until I saw the BlogHer program. I was happy to take part in the review program because I have some good memories of the products and I was curious about how the Mary Kay of today compared with the Mary Kay of my childhood. I have no idea why, but I rarely blog about my beauty routines and obsessions. I’m pretty hard-core and have been for ages. I’m very particular about what I put on my face and I am extra loyal when I find something I like. I even have a Pinterest board dedicated to my favorites. I kept an open mind about Mary Kay and am happy with the results. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I am tossing aside a few of my staples for some of the products I tried.

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If you’ve followed my blog for a bit you might remember my summer in Indianapolis. One of the first things I realized upon our arrival was that the majority of my belongings were left behind. Yep. Most of my clothes, shoes, and toiletries stayed behind in Ithaca. It was kind of a bummer but I quickly turned my frown upside down when my husband took me shopping for some new gear.

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I’m super picky about hair products. I’m loyal to a few brands but try something new every couple of months. My hair is super curly and pretty manageable but I don’t have much time to mess with it. It seems that good hair days with hair like mine is a total crapshoot. Sometimes it looks amazing. Fantastic! Other times it’s limp, flat, and scraggly looking.

Years spent wrangling my curls into submission have taught me a bit about what works and a lot about what doesn’t. Dry, damaged, and kind of coarse (kind of because it’s also sort of thin, my hair is nuts) hair needs serious conditioning. I’ve made the mistake of trying light conditioners or 2 in 1 products and suffered the consequences. Yes. Suffered. If I experiment and smear the wrong product on my head I look like Sideshow Bob.

No lie.

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Happy Friday!

Here is some cool stuff I found while bopping around the internet this week.

This post was really helpful: Tips for Productively Working from Home

I love nude lips and am on an endless quest for the perfect shade. The last shade I bought was from Bobbi Brown and looks anything but nude on me. More like a hot pink.

I think the Rachel Zoe 2012 look above is perfect. The post says it is a Maybelline Nude lipstick paired with a little foundation underneath. Can’t beat that price. Cheap experiment and I am all over it.

How amazing does this look? An instant Instagram printer!

I cannot wait to buy Susannah Conway’s book: This I Know: Notes on Unraveling the Heart*.

My tips for dining out with kids.

Some really great advice for all kinds of writers.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend. I think we are lying low since my husband has a big test on Saturday.

See anything you loved on the internet this week?

Share in the comments.

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