Month: January 2012

A Whole New Week

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This weekend was equal parts eventful and relaxing. I went out and met new people, watched The Help and Ides of March (loved them both), took multiple naps, and painted my nails Essie’s Cocktail Bling (one of my new favorite colors). I was not ready for the weekend to end, but I am looking forward to a productive week ahead!

Just like I posted last week, I wanted to share some inspiring words that I’ve come across recently. Here’s hoping they help or inspire you in some way.

Have a great week ahead!

(All images courtesy of Pinterest.)

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Music of the Week

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It’s finally Friday and the weekend is a mere few hours away! Here are some songs that have been getting me through this week. Whether it’s during my workouts, drives, or powering through my emails these songs have been on my playlist. Some even make me want to start dancing, no matter where I am.

Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Supafunkadholic (Esjay Red Light Remix) – Delhi 2 Dublin

Sadi Gali Horiya – PBN + Shin DCS

Take Care – Drake ft Rihanna

We Found Love – Rihanna ft Calvin Harris

What are some of your favorite songs at the moment?

The Vegetarian Diaries

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I think it is possible to be a vegetarian and a lover of food at the same time. I may not eat meat or fish, but that doesn’t stop me from trying different cuisines and restaurants. Perhaps I have been lucky enough to live in an area where there are plenty of choices for vegetarians.

Regardless, I thought it would be fun to share what I eat when I go out to a restaurant. And no, it’s not a salad or soup. I’m talking real food.

This week I went to a local Mexican restaurant. I LOVE it. Whenever we would return from month long visits to India, my first meal of choice would be Mexican food. Honestly, how can you not like a cuisine in which guacamole is one of the main ingredients?

I ordered the nachos (can you believe these were in the appetizer section?). I opted for black beans because I love them, but also because they are vegetarian.

In case anyone is interested, I added the book Eating Animals to my GoodReads list. Just as he is about to become a father, the author Jonathan Safran Foer, takes a look into the food that we eat, why we eat it, along with a few trips to factory farms in the middle of the night. I am looking forward to reading it!

Essie Nail Polish

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I am a total girly girl. I love all things girly – the color pink, earrings, dresses, you name it. The one thing I never really got into was nail polish. I liked the concept of it, but didn’t understand why it kept chipping after a mere few days. Who had the patience to change their nail color that often?

A few months ago I learned about Essie. I loved their polishes because they had fun colors and it lasted a while. Plus, all Essie polishes are formaldehyde free. But at $8 per bottle, I couldn’t swipe up every color even though I wanted to.

Solution: The Essie Winter Collection

For $11 I was able to sample 4 colors from Essie’s 2011 Winter Collection: Bangle Jangle, Cocktail Bling, Size Matters, and Bobbing for Baubles. The mini-bottles are adorable and much, much easier for me to apply (read: no smudges).

These collections are for every season, so you can expect Essie’s Spring Collection to pop up in a few months! Take a sneak peek at all their new spring colors here.

Do you like Essie and/or nail polish in general?

It’s a Girl! Documentary

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In following up with my book review on Half the Sky, I wanted to share the preview for an upcoming documentary entitled It’s a Girl! I’ve seen the trailer making the rounds on Facebook, but I am posting it here in case anyone hasn’t seen it yet. It’s a harrowing look “gendercide”, the term that has been coined for the preference of a male child versus a female child. Approximately 200 million girls in the world are missing because of gendercide in countries like India and China.

Here is the trailer:

Upon doing research for this blog post I stumbled upon the fact that today, January 24t, is National Girl Child Day.

What are your thoughts on the trailer? I’d love to hear them in the comments!

Start Your Week Off Right

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This weekend was a nice and quiet. I was coerced into watching the Niners vs Giants game yesterday (the first football game I’ve seen in years) and it was a close one. I’m not a football fan, but I had to root for my city, San Francisco.

It’s too bad the Niners won’t be in the Super Bowl. I was looking forward to baking a red velvet cake for our annual Super Bowl party. Now I wonder: will there be any famous spouses or significant others in the audience that I can look forward to seeing?

I like starting off my week by reading or watching something inspirational or happy. For example, I once posted this video about the power of positive thinking.

Here are some inspirational words that have caught my eye on Pinterest.

Hope you all have a great week ahead!

Let it Rain

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As fun as it was wearing sandals and sipping a java chip frapuccino in January (like in this post), all good things must come to an end.  After a particularly dry winter, we are expecting a weekend filled with rain.

Picture courtesy of Flickr

I actually enjoy the rain. I love the sound it makes tapping against my windows, while I sip tea or read a book. I love the smell of the rain after it has fallen. It’s like a clean slate.

Hope you all have a a happy, warm weekend!

GoodReads

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I enjoy keeping up to date on all the trends and latest happenings in social media. Last year I blogged about Pinterest. My most recent obsession is GoodReads.

What is GoodReads exactly? It is a social network for bookworms, like myself. On GoodReads, you can share what books you’ve read, your reviews, and what you are currently reading. Have you ever been in one of those instances where you’re at a bookstore and you can’t remember the name of the books you’ve wanted to read? (I’ve been there. Many times.) GoodReads has that covered with a handy “to read” list.

And best of all, this is a social network so you can add your friends and their lists! Think the book that your friend is reading is interesting? Add it to your list!

There is also an app for the iPhone and Android. So if you’re at a party discussing books (what? that doesn’t happen to you? ) you can quickly jot down the names.

Check out my GoodReads shelf here!

Are you on GoodReads?

All About TOMS

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Remember how I blogged about needing a new pair of flats? Well, I still need some! I looked everywhere – Aldo, DSW, and Payless to no avail. I figured I would just continue wearing my boots throughout winter and resume the search for a pair of flats in the spring.

Well, then it hit me..why not get a pair of TOMS? I’m sure you most of have heard about them already, but if not let me explain. TOMS sells footwear with a One-for-One policy. What this means is: for every pair of shoes purchased, a pair of shoes will be donated to a child in need. Pretty cool.

TOMS are also known to be amazingly comfortable and yes, stylish to boot. Check out some of my favorites below!

Psst, for those that love ballet flats such as myself, TOMS will be coming out with a line this Spring! Sign up here so that you will be notified when they arrive online.

Hand Drawn Dots in Metallic

Glitter Shoes in Blue

Morocco Classic

Do you own a pair of TOMS? Which ones are they and do you like them?

From Blogger to Business

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I am always in awe when I read stories about people who have taken their blog and made it into a full-time business. With so many blogs out there, it makes me wonder why certain blogs succeed. But I realized that there is no formula (I wish it were otherwise!).

The blogs below have a few key things in common: they target a niche, and provide fun, innovative content every day.

Here are some of my favorite blogs, who have turned their hobby into a full-time job and in some instances, much more.

Cupcakes and Cashmere – Emily started her blog while she was working at Teen Vogue. It became an instant hit with posts about fashion, recipes, home decor, and more. She has since left Teen Vogue to focus solely on her blog. She has designed a Coach bag and even has a book coming out later this year.

MissMalini – MissMalini is touted as India’s gossip girl. Her and her team basically get paid to attend events and hobnob with Bollywood’s finest. Sounds like the best job ever right? MissMalini is taking branding to a whole new level. Here is an article the Huffington Post did on her just last week.

Sugar– Sugar is a San Francisco based online global network geared just towards women. It started as a blog (created by Lisa Sugar) about all things entertainment and pop culture.  Lisa and her husband took it to the next level and now they have 130 employees!

What do you think about blogs turned into businesses? I’d love to hear your comments!