I'm Kind of a Nerd

I love reading. I remember kind of feeling like a nerd when I was little because I would always, always have my nose buried in a book. I remember back in Elementary School anticipating those Scholastic book club order forms that would arrive each month. I would beg my mom to let me order tons of books every month and when we could, I would get to order a couple books and it was just the coolest thing ever.  It started with Clifford The Big Red Dog... then it moved to more mature books such a Goosebumps. R.L. Stine is probably a millionaire by now. I just looked it up, his net worth is estimated at 300 million. Go figure.

During the summer, I joined one of the local library programs and my goal was to read 30 books during the summer. I think I got close - I might have read 25 or so. But, that wasn't a big deal to me. It was just something I loved to do. As I got older and had to devote more of my time to studying, I wasn't able to read as much as I wanted to. In high school and college, I really didn't read much for fun.  My life revolved around school and friends.  Even now {even though I don't have any more homework}, sometimes I struggle to find time to read with all the other social media distractions around me. 

For me, the thing about reading is that once I get into a good book, I am hooked. I read Gone Girl in 2 days, which isn't unusual. But I had to stop reading The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao because I just couldn't get into it. I tried to pick it up several times but for some reason, it just wasn't the right book at the right time for me.  

Ironically, I think getting a kindle was one of the best things to happen to my "reading life" I discovered that I could borrow books from the local library for free for 21 days and I could get on wait lists for the really popular books. And once a book is ready for you to download, it's very seamless - you just login to your amazon account and it sends the book wirelessly to your kindle. It's basically magic. Oh - and it automatically returns it after 21 days and erases it from your kindle. But - I found a trick. If you don't close out of the book and don't turn off your kindle, it can't erase it and you can keep reading it for as long as you want. You know me, I have always been a bit of a rebel.

I think social media has also done a lot for making books popular and cool. Are you on Goodreads? It's a website where you can catalog books you have read and books you want to read and share those lists with friends. It's a fun new way to share some of your favorite books.  Truth: Jake and I literally had a bibliography spreadsheet that we shared on google docs about our favorite books but not anymore! Find me on Goodreads and add me as a friend so we can share recommendations!

*I am currently reading Brain on Fire which is a fascinating true story. Next up is Where'd You go Bernadette?.... Happy reading! 

It's Boden Time

Have you all heard of the British company Boden? Within the past couple of years, they started shipping to the US and I have a mild obsession.  It's probably my favorite online shopping site after Jcrew {and Madewell and the Loft}.  When I first checked out their website, there was a million things I wanted.  But I had to restrain myself. I allowed myself to buy a dress that was on sale and one of their lovely Bretons.  The Breton is a simple long sleeve striped shirt but it is one of my favorite pieces. I want to wear it everyday. And it still looks great 2+ years later. As far as sizing goes, they have US sizing which is pretty spot on but I've found that some items run small. It just depends on what you are ordering.

Recently, I've been looking for a warm coat for Iceland and thought I would check Boden.  I ordered the Stockholm coat from there and also purchased a puffy coat at Target {as insurance, in case I didn't like the Boden one} for a great price. In the end I decided to go with the Stockholm coat and I ended up returning the Target coat. It was too shiny, not that warm and kind of made me look like a giant trash bag.

The Stockholm coat is amazing, complete with a fur hood! I am absolutely in love with it, as much as you can be with a material item, that is. I've actually worn it on a couple cold days here in Charlotte! Can you believe it? Cue Polar Vortex.... 

Target Coat on {L}; Boden Coat on {R}, Sorry it's blurry - I was on my tip toes, holding the phone above my head. Haha.

A close up of the Boden Stockholm coat

After reading a really good blog post on Wide Eyed Legless about editing your wardrobe, I've decided that I'm going to go through all my clothes and do this. I was actually thinking about doing it this weekend and this post really inspired me. So, I will be doing some spring cleaning in Winter. Ugh.. Is it still winter?!?!

A Full Length Shot of Boden Stockholm coat

Have you bought any amazing purchases lately? Or conversely, gotten rid of anything? I think going through my clothes will be very soul cleansing. I was reading the comments section of the blog post I mentioned above and the writer said she only has 75 pieces including bags and shoes. I'm going to count how much clothing I have and streamline. Quality, not quantity, ladies! 

Favorite Red Lippies

Lately, I have really been into beauty products, mainly lipstick.  I think it has to do with my recent recognition from Sephora that I have been upgraded from a Beauty Insider to a VIB {get it?? kind of like VIP}. What does this mean?  It means I spent $350 at Sephora in a calendar year. Yikes! That is not good news. Part of the reason? I have been on an obsession to find the perfect red lipstick. And I've tried bought a lot of them. 

My first red was {1} MAC Dubonnet which is more of a vampy red, but I was actually looking for a more Kardashian red, thankyouverymuchladyattheMACcounter. Next, I ventured to the Benefit Makeup counter and tried {2} Flirt Alert. I really like this one! Very creamy and more of a cherry red which is what I was going for. Then... I put my search on hold for a while and didn't really pay much attention to the lipstick scene. I read in a recent Lucky magazine about {3} NARS  dragon girl velvet lip pencil.  I cut the page out of the magazine and it sat somewhere for a while. Then, while shopping in Sephora, I spotted the elusive dragon girl lip pencil! Well, not the actual pencil, but I saw the name label on the shelf and it reminded me that I needed it! So, on my next Sephora order, I added it to my basket. It came in a few days later and it is exactly how I envisioned. And it's my favorite red lipstick ever. You must try it! I think it works on every skin tone. It makes my teeth look whiter and its more of a blue based tone. I highly highly recommend it! And now.... the photos! Sorry, the lighting isn't great in any of these photos. I need a DSLR! 

From L to R {1} MAC Dubonnet, {2} Benefit Flirt Alert, {3} NARS Dragongirl velvet lip pencil and {4} Covergirl Flame 

From L to R {1} MAC Dubonnet, {2} Benefit Flirt Alert, {3} NARS Dragongirl velvet lip pencil and {4} Covergirl Flame

My new trick is wearing a red lip when I travel so I feel not-too-drab and icky from the dry airplane air. 

Finally, one more lipstick story. Did you watch Project Accessory back in 2011? It was a spin off from Project Runway and only lasted one season. One of the contestants {Christina Caruso} had the most amazing lip color and she wore it every single episode. It was a pinky red, watermelon color.  I googled {unsuccessfully} to try and figure out the brand and color name of what she wore. The other day I found her instagram and decided to give it a shot - I commented on one of her photos asking about what color she wore on the show and she commented me back! The very next day... how cool is that?!?!?! The color she wore is a {4} cover girl lipstick called Flame. So what did I do? Drive myself to Target that very day and pick some up! Holler! 

Now, photos of each color on:

In Italy, wearing {1} MAC Dubonnet

In Seattle wearing {2} Benefit Flirt Alert

In Charlotte wearing {3} NARS Dragongirl

{4} Covergirl in Flame

Do you have any favorite lipsticks? Red or otherwise? Please share in the comments below!

xoxo,

Kim 

2014 Non-Resolutions

Jake always says that new years resolutions are the worst. If you want to start doing something, you can start it anytime - why does it have to be the start of a new year??? and I kind of agree, that if you want to start exercising more, eating healthier, blogging more, etc you can really do it whenever. It doesn't HAVE to be in January.  But - I think it's human nature to view a fresh start as a perfect time to make positive changes in your life. So, while we don't usually make specific resolutions, I decided to take this as a time to reflect and make some because what the heck - everyone else is and I think it's kind of fun. 

{ via }

Of course I have been trying to lose weight for a long time, but Jake and I recently committed to making a lot of little changes like doing 50/50 every day which is 50 pushups and 50 sit-ups each day and we have also been planking for 30 seconds which was soooo hard for me the first time we did it. Jake and I have been working out together at our apartment gym which isn't anything too fancy but has some treadmills and free weights. I have been trying to also use the gym at the office during my lunch break. So things are off to a really good start. The trick is sticking with it, so we'll see how that goes. 

Last weekend I bought 3 books on my kindle at the same time and I'm almost done with the first one. I highly recommend Brain on Fire - its based on a true story. I've heard a lot about Where'd you go Bernadette so that one is up in the queue next and finally Beautiful Ruins rounds out my 3 new purchases. Some of the books were only $3.99! I thought kindle books were like $15+ so I was pleasantly surprised to see these bestsellers for less than $5.00! Good looking out, Amazon! In case you didn't connect the dots, one of my resolutions is to read more! 

And lastly, I want to continue to make self care a priority. I've spent a lot of my life worrying and stressing and trying to take care of everyone but me, so now I am focusing on myself.  You can call it selfish but I think the happier I am as a person, the better wife, friend and co-worker I will be. 

So there you have it, folks! My non-resolution resolutions!