Wine Tasting + Balance

Holy goodness gracious.

Last night was a blast, TBF and I joined one of my good girlfriends at a wine tasting where her sister works. It was my first wine tasting and I had such a good time. How could I not with good wine and good conversation with some of my favorite people? So.much.fun.


One of our conversation topics was about finding that “balance” in life with your 9-5, being able to go to the gym/spend time for yourself and have a social life. I struggle with this balance, I’m either all for one and not one for all.

Having said that, one of my new years resolutions is to live with no regrets, and I’m finding that I’m not passing up on opportunities like I used to because I feel like I would regret my decision if I turned the opportunity down.

couldn't pass this image up...too funny.

Along with this resolution comes balance because I’m getting a little bit of everything without even having to think about “the dreaded -- balance” I think this is where TBF described it as a cafeteria, picking up a little bit of everything. Variety.


Ya follow? I may be on my way (for now).


Did I mention I had fun last night?

My head is feeling a little fuzzy today, but I don’t regret it :)

Make a resolution to treat your skin better? Then make sure to enter the giveaway!!

Happy hump day!

Another Giveaway :)

Some of you mentioned having dry skin in yesterday's comments. So I feel like this is the perfect time for this giveaway!!!

This company contacted me about using this product as a giveaway, but in no way did they pay me or urge me to give positive feedback about the product. I was super skeptical at first, but I came around eventually and thought what do I have to lose?

My giveaway item is a shielding lotion by Skin MD Natural. The company sent me this product as well as various samples, and because of this product, I don't have extremely dry skin this winter for once in my life.

The website says the following about the shielding lotion:

"Shielding lotion is a lotion that forms a protective barrier on the skin and keeps out irritants and chemicals. It also allows the natural oils and moisture to remain in the skin so it can heal better. It is a big advantage that shielding lotions are light and go on without a greasy mess," says Dr. Brian Zogg, a dermatologist in Albert Lea, MN."

You have until this Saturday, January 23, at noon to enter the giveaway.

All you have to do is be a follower (or become one!) and comment below. I'll announce the winner on Monday, January 25.

Good luck!!

Weekend Recap + Some TLC

Late Monday post. Back to work. Back to reality.

My weekend was SUPER lazy and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Work’s been rough so I needed some TLC which included zoning out to football with TBF and reading magazines. This month’s Real Simple? Pretty darn good.


I always enjoy the skin and hair care articles. Even though I never actually try the diy face masks or hair care treatments, they make me say to myself, “Hey Freck, go slap on a mask, you aren’t very good to your skin”

It’s true.

I use a drugstore clay mask that works well. Once I put that baby on I usually put on some Crest White Strips and that’s as far as I go (unless my brows are unruly and I'll attack those, too).



Tonight I’ll be gymming it up and watching Chuck and Castle. Anyone see Castle in this month’s cosmo?

Lookin' good my friend, lookin' good.

Hope you had a great weekend!

DanielaSings

I sort of slacked on yesterday's post. I'm confident this post will more than make up for it.

I give you a very talented 17 year old girl with a beautiful voice covering one of my favorite Feist songs.

Here is Daniela singing Feist's Gatekeeper.



Check out some of her other covers and own songs here.

Enjoy!

Freck's Friday Fancies XXXII

So glad it's Friday.

That's all I have to say.

It's been one of those weeks. Good news = promotion. Bad news = no raise yet + double the amount of work. So what do I do? Browse the internet at pretty things that I can't afford. Anyone else do this? I think I'm off my rocker.

Enjoy this week's fancies :)

I give you handbag Love.

MARC, $saleplease? I'll never stop loving this bag, in every color.

JPK, $88

Tory Burch, $toomuch

Love me some Kate Spade

Yep, it's a short FFF this week.

TGIF!!! Have a great weekend :)

The One Piece

With Chicago warming up to the 30s (heat wave!), the sun gracing us with its presence more frequently (can I get an Amen?!) and a potential vacation on my mind, I’ve been thinking about swimsuits.

I know, I know, it’s only January, but maybe it will make you feel better if I were to say I’m actually thinking about one pieces more than bikinis?

Still aren’t that interested? Let me just show you what I’ve found…

See? Cute right? J.Crew, $78


J. Crew, $85


Love, J.Crew, $115


VS, $168


VS, $134

The days of icky, unflattering one pieces are gone. It's been about 10 years since I've worn a one piece, these make me want to invest in one now.

Who's with me!!!?

Hooray, tomorrow's Friday!!

Hello The Limited...

I picked up a couple things at The Limited yesterday, I'm impressed with their new line! Pssst, thank goodness for coupons!

Great under a cardi, $34.50

Almost got this, kind of wish I did...$34.50

Sale! $19.50


Also great under a cardi, or on it's own. $44.50

...and a springy cardi, $44.50

Time to start purging things from my closet..any tips?

By the way, thanks to your comments, TBF and I are seriously considering going to Cozumel or Cancun!!

Happy Hump Day!

The Poof : : A Lesson With Freck

The Progressive woman's poof bothers me. Does it bother anyone else? As a show choir alum, I know a thing or two (or a million) about poofs and hair in general.

Let me tell you how to do a great poof (WITHOUT a silly bump-it!). Pull up a chair and listen, you'll be the queen of a cute poof (nothin' crazy) in a couple easy steps like exhibit A..

Queen of the tasteful poof. Doesn't she have the most amazing hair?!

Tools:

and small hair bands similar to this - make sure to get the kind that won't hurt your hair!


OR

1. Make sure your hair is a day old so it's moldable. This may sound gross, but the baby powder or dry shampoo will take away the grease, add volume and make your hair more maneuverable. Trying to tease and mold freshly shampoo just doesn't work as well.

2. Using the teasing comb, start teasing (combing toward your scalp making your hair ratty) sections of your hair all around your head, don't forget the sides! Work in small sections, it really doesn't take long. You literally want your hair to look like you put your finger in a light socket when your finished. Don't worry, a little conditioner in the shower will bring the rats right out!

3. Using the boar bristle brush, start smoothing over the top layer of hair over the rats. I like the bristle brush because the bristles don't reach the rats (which will comb out your beautiful teasing job), you won't lose the volume and the top section of your hair will look smooth and shiny. It won't take much pressure to smooth down that top layer of hair.

4. Once your top section is smooth, (this is when you'd want to insert a headband if you prefer) gather your hair into a low pony tail and continue smoothing down and making sure the poof is symmetrical. Feel free to swoop the front and leave some wispy pieces around your face. Bobby pins may be necessary :)

5. Once your hair is in the pony tail hair band, you can go back in with the other side of the teasing come to pull your hair out if you see some unsymmetrical sections or if you simply want the poof bigger!

6. Feel free to use a shiny hair spray or just hair spray to keep the poof in place.

Voila!!! See? You don't need a bump it!

Now you can use the poof with other hairstyles like...

the side pony

half up, half down

the bun

and a classy side bun

Good luck and feel free to email me if you have any questions!

Happy Tuesday!!

Weekend Recap + Lady Gaga Concert *With Pictures!*

Well, this weekend was fabulous.

Gaga was absolutely amazing. I still can't believe I saw her live. A couple notes before all the pics begin :)

When we got there, we noticed that the crowd was FAR more diverse than I imagined...TBF and my seats were in the balcony, we mentioned to each other how suburban and regular everyone seemed to be up in the balcony. There were older people and younger KIDS (boys and girls) in the balcony.

See?

Except for this woman..? Her husband and his bulging muscles didn't seem to mind that his wife was half nekkid.

Then we walked downstairs to use the ATM and we encountered what seemed to be the Real Housewives of Chicago type of women. Know what I mean? As if going to the concert was pocket change and just a fun dance party rather than AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE THAT WAS ACTUALLY EXPENSIVE! No I'm not annoyed by it.

So we were actually really happy we were in the balcony instead. Anyway, I think I expected a lot of gays in drag and women my age.

Who I enjoyed seeing:

This older couple sat next to TBF. First of all, love that they're there. Second, love her sparkly cardi. Third, love that she was there because she'd seen Gaga on Ellen. "I really like how she can sing well and play the piano, too!"

Presh.

Love this. He took so many pictures with people.

You could take a picture in her orb!

Jason Derulo - mmm Whatcha Sayyyyy! He was pretty good.

Everyone below us boogying in the aisle to MJ before Gaga.

Onto Gaga!!

What sparkly cardi woman wanted to see...

This was right after she grabbed his junk...

Her set was amazing. I can understand why it wouldn't have fit in the original venue.

Isn't she tiny? She's SO tiny. At one point she was only wearing what looked like a leather red bikini..this is also the part where TBF started to pay more attention...see?

You can read a full review of her Chicago performance here.

It's official, TBF and I left as one of Lady Gaga's little monsters.

Happy Monday!