TulaNYC

TULA GIVEAWAY AND FUN AROUND N.Y.C.!!!

by with 2 Comments giveawaysskin caretravel

Trips to cities you love always seem to go too quickly! I’ve put together the vlog of Corrine and I from our travels last week when we visited with Dr. Raj and her team at the TULA headquarters. They’re located in the heart of N.Y.C., such a beautiful city and attached are some photos of our adventures while we were there! We had a pretty awesome candid sit down interview with Dr. Raj . . . who btw is my new bff, tbh . . . she and I have the same favorite color and we both believe in beauty from the outside in, which totally qualifies me for a bff position 😉

I think what you’ll enjoy most about the interview is how sincerely Dr. Raj speaks about the philosophy of TULA, the necessity of balance, and the science behind their patented collection of skin care products. She was a pleasure to chat with and I’m so happy I got to spend time in the place where it all started and ask some questions that we’d all been dying to ask like, “What’s next for the TULA brand?!”, and you get the exclusive right here!

To see the rest of the vlog click HERE to head on over to my channel for the full video, and to enter in our awesome giveaway of TULA products simply TAG me here in the comments, send me a message, or TAG me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook! You can enter all of these different ways and as many times as you want so that I see your response on every platform! Don’t forget to use the hashtag #TULAForLife so I can follow along and be sure to tell me what you look for most when searching for a great skin care line!

I will announce the winners on my blog next week so stay tuned for that and Good Luck! I have each of the sets that we’re giving away and you will flip when you receive them, they’re game changers! I’m all about the packaging, I mean how beautiful is this color?!

TULAForLife

And of course we soaked up as much of the city as we could while we were there and this was our first view!

New York
A busy street corner with deli sandwiches and the yummiest pastries!

New York
The view from our hotel room. We never noticed that in New York we could never see the sky because the buildings are so tall and they cover the clouds.

New York

Corrine throwing up signs of peace and love for this most delicious dessert! Fro-yo topped with Captain crunch, oreo chunks, and chocolate chips. Oh. my. goodness.

New York
The Freedom Tower. So beautiful, so surreal to see it in life, remembering always.

New York

Breakfast day 2. The yummiest avocado toast topped with a sunny side up egg and fresh green apple slices. Yes that would be fresh mint water and flowers on our table *swoons*

New York
Art was everywhere. This was on the side of a building in the Meat packing district and for some reason I had to stop and have a photo with it.

New York
My city babe exploring one of her favorite cities!

New York
Our last breakfast before flying home. We get it New York, your breads are superior. What is in your water?! This was the bestttt bagel sandwich I’ve ever had. Like ever.

New York
And just like that we’re back home! I’ve gotta say . . . as much as we enjoy traveling and visiting other cities and meeting new people, Los Angeles will always be home. I love our city.

Thank you for watching the video blog and the awesome interview we did with Dr. Raj! Please be sure to enter our TULA giveaway, I WANT you to have these incredible products! There’s still time, you have until next Tuesday to enter!

Let me know in the comments what you look for when searching for a skin care regime, and where have you traveled to this summer?! Spill it! Have a be-you-tiful week beauties!

Jess Lizama

yummy casserole

BEST TUNA NOODLE CASSEROLE RECIPE

by with No Comment fitnessfoodhealth

Yup I said it! This recipe IS the best! It’s Corrine friendly (it’s gluten-free), super nutritious (that’s for you, carb conscious ones), and it’s super delicious! It has that nice crunch on the top layer, that ooey gooey comfort of the cream and cheese, a sweet lil kick from the peas, and a spicy lil kick from the peppers!

yummy casserole
I got the recipe from one of my favorite blogs, posted by fitness extraordinaire Sarah Bowmar! I tweaked the recipe just a bit to meet Corrine’s dietary restrictions and walaaaa! Here you go! The taste of home in less than 30 minutes! . . . Well minus the prep 😉
Ingredients:
6 oz pasta (I used 4 oz of quinoa elbow pasta and 2 oz of GF spaghetti noodles – for texture!)
1 1/2 tbsp grass-fed butter
1 medium onion finely chopped
3 TBSP gluten-free flour
1 1/2 cup water (or you can use broth like the original recipe calls for)
1 1/4 cup almond milk
2 cups peas
2 cans of tuna – drained
1 clove crushed garlic
shredded cheese (I used what cheese we had left of the Trader Joe’s lite 3 cheese blend)
salt, pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes – to taste

Method:
Cook the noodles as directed, I used two kinds of GF pastas because I’m a texture girl and no matter what anyone says, quinoa pasta still tastes different to me. The GF spaghetti noodles (cut into pieces) added a lil normalcy to my life.

While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter and carmelize the onions and garlic in a separate pan. Then salt, pepper, garlic powder, and red-pepper flake that to taste. Wisk in the flour for a few minutes until it starts to brown (creates the thickness).  Then stir in the water (or broth) and bring that to a boil. Add in the milk and peas. Let that simmer together for a few minutes, drool over how yummy it smells, and then add in the tuna. Mix it around to break the tuna up and evenly disperse it throughout the pan and then remove it from heat.

Toss in your cheese and blend together until melted. Add in your noodles. Stir this pot of happiness until everything is nicely combined and coated.

Spritz your pan with some coconut oil spray and pour in your casserole. Bake this for 20-25 minutes (depending on how you like your crispy) at 375 degrees and NOM NOM NOM! If you love cheese like we do, sprinkle in the remaining cheese on top before baking so you get that crispy melty goodness!

I’ve linked the original recipe above so if you’d like a non gf recipe (but still really healthy one) than you can try that one out too!

Take it from someone who eats gluten and loves regular glutenous pasta – with this recipe you won’t be able to tell the difference! Even Joe was happy! We’ve been getting all beach-season ready over here so this healthy take on the traditional dish is such a comfort food! It’s been a lot of chicken and broccoli in my house. I of course, drizzled my portion with sriracha sauce and was quite sad when it was all gone.

This recipe makes a nice huge pan worth so we’ll be enjoying this tomorrow too hallelu!

TAG us on Twitter or Instagram when you make this and let me know if you alter it so I can try!

Hugs for a beautiful week!

Jess Lizama

 

How To Pack

HOW TO PACK A CARRY ON BAG – N.Y.C. HERE WE COME!

by with One Comment adventurebeautytechnologytravel

“I’m going to have to ask you to check your luggage.” Oh those dreaded words. When you travel you’re frazzled! You’re trying to take off your shoes without your feet touching the germy ground, while taking your lap top out of its case, WHILE making sure you eliminate any kind of jewelry or metal that would cause TSA to have to frisk you! Pro tip: travel as light as possible.

Corrine and I are traveling to NYC this week and we’re so excited to share with you our city adventures, our shopping finds, and what all the hub bub is about! The hub bub yes! So if you’ve been watching my videos *ahem I’ll wait here while you catch up* than you know that Tula is a company I’ve been obsessed with supported since they were a start-up company who appeared on QVC.

Well we’re beyond happy to be joining them this week at their headquarters in New York, sitting down with Dr. Raj herself, and hosting the coolest Tula product giveaway you’ve ever seen! I have a few questions myself for Dr. Raj but I’d love to have some of your questions answered too, so be sure to leave them for us in the comments! So meeting the team behind one of the companies I’m so passionate about is such an exciting event and all I could think about was, “What am I going to PACK?”!

I know I know, you were thinking the exact same thing! Well have no fear lil grasshoppers today I’m going to share with you my top 15 must-have-at-all-times-no-matter-where-I-go- items!

How To Pack

1. Free People tote: this bag is perfect for traveling! It carries everything, I mean everything! It has two side pockets so that your phone and your card holder don’t get lost in the abyss, and it’s as deep as the Mary Poppins bag! To see my Mary Poppins take on hand bags click here!

2. Scentbird perfume atomizer:  a lipstick atomizer that is travel friendly, you get a new designer fragrance each month, and it comes in the cutest packaging! You can try a new fragrance each day if you wanted! Hey a girl’s gotta have options!

3. Tula (for lyyyyfe) revitalizing eye cream:  this eye cream goes on like butter, absorbs quickly, hydrates your delicate eye area like crazy, and smells like heaven.

4. Micheal Kors  lipstick external charger: fashionable, totable, lipstick sized but larger than life-sized tech saver!

5. Micheal Kors wristlet: this jet set travel wristlet is large enough to accommodate your iPhone 6, your Samsung, and keeps your entire life close by – i.e. ID, credit cards, and cash.

6. Louis Vuitton agenda: this is the small agenda, 6 ring, and cutest ever life organizer you can get your hands on! I love that it’s small enough to be toted with me in any cross body bag and has slots for credit cards and ID.

7. Lanza portable hairspray: airport security has confiscated enough hairspray from me to support a Texan pageant. So now I carry with me a portable hairspray and this Lanza one smells increds!

8. Itssewann cosmetic pouches: these are handmade, laminate pouches, machine washable, convenient and come in a variety of sizes. Perfect for packing toiletries and spillable items! She also makes custom snack bags!

9. Shiseido Benefiance eye masks: whenever I travel I feel jet lagged even if it’s from LAX to SF! So I always pack eye masks so that upon my arrival to said scheduled event – I don’t look like I’ve just flown in from Egypt.

10. Caudalie hand and nail cream: whenever I travel I also feel like my skin gets SO dry. This is the perfect hand cream, it smells fresh, hydrates your hands, and conditions your cuticles. It’s always been a favorite of mine!

11. Karen Walker sunnies: love love love these! I have a thing for oversized sunglasses and these tortoise framed beauties were worth every penny! I feel so chic in them even if they’re all I have on my face – even sans the makeup!

12. Asos hand lotion in cucumber: I told you, my skin gets dry! This is my back-up go-to hand cream. Smells like a refreshing spritzer, small enough to carry in your back pocket, and won’t break the bank!

13. Canon vixia mini camera: my one and only. My most prized camera, fits in any bag, comes with me everywhere, and gets the entire room with its fish eye lens! If you’re just starting to video blog, or take any video in any capacity I highly suggest this one. It’s user-friendly, auto focus, auto everything.

14. Mpow blue tooth headphones: teeny tiny, no cords smacking you in the head, and they fold up to be a nice little hand-held accessory (perfect for the gym!).

15. Josie Maran argan oil: not only do my face and hands get dry while traveling but so does my hair! What do they put in those airplanes?! So I always carry an oil of some sort with me. I’ve recently been loving this argan oil, it’s great for your hair, skin, and nails!

And not numbered in the photo are the little trinkets that are still a part of my must have items, they’re just more commonly found. These ear plugs are everything. You can find them anywhere and they will actually allow. you. to. sleep. Hallelu!!!

Hand sanitizer is a must, especially for this germaphobe *raises both hands* so I make sure to always have with me a travel sized hand sanitizer and this one smells like a vacation.

And last but definitely not least is my lip balm. All 587 of them! Of the seven I usually carry with me, this Smith’s rose minted balm is one of my most coveted! It comes in a tube so you don’t have to stick your fingers into a tub *where are my fellow germaphobes at?* It’s silky, hydrating, and smells like a tropical breeze.

Whew! There you have it! My top 15 products, each of these things I actually carry with me in my carry on. Call me crazy or call me genius, but if you ever need a shoe shiner . . . I’m looking out!

Tula Giveaway
Okay okay now on to the world’s coolest giveaway! Not only are we doing a tour of the Tula headquarters but 7 of you lucky lil honey bees are going to win some of these amazing Tula products! I’ve tried each and every one of them and I’m so excited for you have them too!

Pictured are the goodies you’ll be entering to win, the purifying face cleanser, revitalizing eye cream, illuminating face serum, hydrating day and night cream, advanced neck cream, and the exfoliating treatment mask! If I had to choose a favorite I wouldn’t be able to, they’re all so beneficial! I have a post on Tula explaining my deep love for their products here, and to enter to win one of these prizes simply leave me a comment below telling me where you’re from and what product you’d be most excited to receive! You can also TAG me on Twitter or Instagram sharing your answers with me over there and you’ll be entered to win that way too! I’ll announce the winners next Monday July 6th here on my blog and in a video!

Jess & Corrine take over NYC
Good luck, enjoy your week, have a happy and safe Independence Day! Let us know what your plans are and we’re so excited to share our week’s adventures with you all so stay tuned for all the happenings!

Jess Lizama

 

Tula

TULA: BEAUTY FROM THE OUTSIDE IN – REVIEW

by with One Comment beautyhealthreviewskin care

Declotay . . . declotage . . . . decolletage – yes that word. My mother would always say to me, “Nen, don’t forget to bring your product down your decolletage!”, I would yell, “Mom, I’m 19 what does that even mean?!”. Now as my daughter graduates from High School and I realize that I’m no spring chicken, do I understand what my mother meant by that direction.

Bringing your product down your decolletage means not forgetting about your neck and cleavage area . Ok mom, you were right. I thought of this moment when I saw deep lines forming on my neck last month and had a minor freak out. By minor I mean I screeched so loudly that my daughter was startled and came running into the room expecting to find an intruder!

So if you know me than you know that I probably added a product, or FIVE to my daily routine. In this case I started using Tula’s advanced neck cream and their exfoliating treatment mask to ramp up results. So today I will share with you my review of the products and tips on how to make your products work ten times more effectively.

Tula

I’ve used firming creams before, I have dry skin and aging skin (ewww who wants to say their skin is aging?) but what I found with the Tula hydrating day and night cream was that it was hydrating without being heavy or sticky. No one wants to apply a product and be greasy and shiny all day, so I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly the cream was absorbed into my skin considering how thick it appeared to be in the container. It is thick in texture, but light in consistency, which is what I also found to be true with the hydrating day and night creams. When it comes to hydrating creams you want your products to be thick but not heavy, moisturizing without remaining tacky to the touch.

Tula
If this is the first time you’re hearing me talk about Tula, a little excerpt on them – I found their skin care line last year and what drew me to the brand is their patented probiotic technology that they use to topically apply ingredients to the skin that most people have only heard of being beneficial by way of ingestion. After the first week of using the line I was hooked and have been a fan every since. So when I heard about their new products launching I was so excited to try them out, especially since they couldn’t have come at a better time. You can watch my review of the Tula collection here.

So with the advanced neck cream, I apply it to my neck and decolletage area twice a day, over my day and night creams, in an upward/outward sweeping motion (remember we’re trying to defy gravity here), paying particular attention to the lines on my neck. Using it over my day and night creams I’ve found make the product work even better with that extra nudge of hydration and aids in prepping my skin for the neck cream application.

The scent is light and clean – as are all products in the Tula line, only a dime sized amount is needed, and it’s great for all skin types. I say if you’re 25+ or a face sleeper *raises hand*, than start using a neck cream now. I use this cream daily and then at least twice a week I will use this exfoliating treatment mask.

Tula
This Tula product is a dual phase treatment, exfoliating the skin both physically and chemically using clay and lactic acid. Sounds very scientific but breaking it down in layman’s terms, it utilizes two formulas combined to create the ultimate spa experience. It looks and feels like a clay, the beads being fine in texture and hydrating in element since they contain both Vitamin E and jojoba oil (my dry skin applauds this), and can be used as often as your skin requires.

Since I have dry skin and I’ve noticed fine lines in places on my face where I didn’t notice them before, exfoliating is a staple in my skin care routine. I use the treatment mask up to three times a week. Exfoliating not only sloughs off the dead surface cells that makes my skin look dull but it also prompts the production of collagen . . . win win.

For my dry skin it removes dead skin allowing my products to work more efficiently, for aging skin it aids in collagen production, and for acne prone skin it combats acne causing bacteria. I know you’ll love this mask because what I enjoy most about it is how gentle it is. The beads are fine enough to use the mask multiple times a week but effective enough not to require daily use. I always worry when someone tells me they exfoliate daily. This product however is the best of both worlds, exfoliating while hydrating. I suggest you exfoliate starting in your teens and if you exfoliate already than you know how awesome it is for your skin’s appearance and keeping its overall balance.

Tula
Another perk of this line is that all Tula products are mineral oil free, paraben free, and never tested on animals, yayy team! If you’re in the market for a great skin care line I highly recommend all of the products in the Tula collection, speaking from experience as I’ve tried everything in the line with the exception of the illuminating face serum. It is next up on my list of ‘to do’s’ and ‘to reviews’. You can check out the collection for yourself here and read up on how Tula teamed up with QVC. I’ll link you to my review of Tula’s 4 piece deluxe discovery set here.

That’s it for today, let me know what your current skin care favorites are and I’ll check them out and review them in future posts! I hope you have a be-you-tiful week and remember, “don’t forget to bring your product down your decolletage!”. Thanks mom, we get it now.

Jess Lizama

Corriney

<3

by with No Comment lifestyle

unnamed
Pastels? For Spring?…Groundbreaking. No, but really. In this post you’ll see that I mixed neutral pastels that brings light to the oh-so typical Spring palette. The colors I worked with were mostly neutrals: tan, faded blue, white, and canary yellow. It was really fun to put together because I clashed the pastels with a bright pink, vintage coat that you would at first not think about pairing the colors with. Altogether it ended up working out and the outcome was a unique pairing that felt exciting to wear! Spot the socks + sandals duo! Try it out yourself and you will be surprised with your surprisingly sophisticated result.

 

unnamed-1

Hope you enjoyed it!

xo, Corrine

 

edited by Jess-

Jess Lizama

Chella baby

SUMMER SECRETS IN STYLE + VERSATILITY

by with 2 Comments fashionfestivalstravel

Perhaps you’re like me and putting together an outfit each day is a task that involves indecisive questions like; “am I going to be comfortable in this?”, “am I too matchy matchy?”,  and “am I not matchy enough?”. Or perhaps you’re like my fashionista daughter Corrine and putting together an outfit each day is easy peasy so long as you have a few statement pieces! Oh she makes it look so easy.

Well then today’s article is for you! It’s all about taking ONE pair of shoes and remembering that whether you’re dressing them up or dressing them down, that you ARE creative and you DO have versatility skills! Sounds far fetched coming from someone who changes 7 times before stepping out the door *raises hand*, but style is all about being versatile. No matter your fashion skills, or lack there of *raises that hand again*, you can put together a killer look that meets your comfort level and is on trend. After all, confidence comes with how comfortable you are in your own skin, and confidence my friend, looks amazing on you.

Chella baby
As you’ve seen in our most recent posts, Corrine and I teamed up with DSW® to take you through festival season this summer and all of the fashion favorites coming out of it this year. We’re centering the conversation around bohemian themes for you frolicking princesses out there, and colorful trends for you movement motivated ones. What we’ve discovered is that it doesn’t have to be one or the other. You can be both; colorful and trendy, and bohemian bound and comfortable. Here’s what we did with our two most coveted shoe styles of the season, and how we paired them with our personal favorites in fashion.

Chella baby

Corrine’s style combines pops of color with vintage inspired pieces. This more formal ensemble features this bell sleeved white romper with mustard colored leggings for fun, and rose gold accessories. She topped the look off with these pewter booties, going sock less to show off the side cutouts and ankle buckles, and this Aztec backpack features similar hardware which tied the look together. It also showed off its own versatility by doubling as a tote and an awesome accessory.

Chella baby
My personal style is all about being trendy (on accident) while sticking to more flowy and free styles that I’m most comfortable in. I took the same booties and dressed them down with this bohemian themed outfit. Crop tops and kimonos were sprinkled all over the festival; some cool and colorful and others warm in tone and fabric. I followed suit and paired my black kimono with my Natalia Fedner Designs crop top, this ankle length hi-low skirt, and kept it casual with the booties, also opting to go sock less. For accessories I wore a simple bangle and a silver headpiece that went beautifully with the muted colors of the look.

Chella baby
Our second favorite style in footwear this season are these turquoise flat sandals. We love the color variations it comes in and the double strap that makes them more formal than a traditional sandal. For this look Corrine dressed the flats up a bit with these patterned socks which she wore beneath a pair of overalls and a 1960’s inspired tie dyed bathing suit. The vibrant pop of color came from this vintage scarf she tied around her neck that brought out the colors in the bathing suit.

Chella baby
The photo above was snapped of me on our last day at Coachella, and by day three all I wanted was to be comfortable . . . and colorful! Corrine’s style must have rubbed off on my by this point. I kept my look casual per the usual, yet super fun by styling the flats with an equally colorful jacket. I paired it with a simple white crop top, black skinny jeans, and accessorized with the Aztec backpack. I was all about silver this trip so featured here is a metal fringe necklace and some some simple bangles. Also, this was me practicing that ‘pro pose’ look we talked about earlier, while 90,000 people roamed about.

From this photo set you’ll notice that even though Corrine and I have very different styles, and our choices may be opposite from one another when it comes to styling themes and occasions, but we have the same outlook on footwear. The shoes we choose to style are comfortable, trendy, and versatile. They have to be when you have two ladies in the house who wear the same shoe size and it’s debated who gets to wear what! We’ve learned that it’s easy to choose the same pair and give them completely different attitudes by simply incorporating what makes us feel most comfortable as individuals.

If I had to give us each a themed name, it’d be, “Corrine- the vintage queen draped in color”,  and “Jess- the trendy bohemian princess”!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this article and find a way to incorporate what’s trending this season while interjecting your own personal style. We love teaming up with brands to share with you how we approach our every day whether it be in style, travel, or dealing with the occasional fashion dilemma, and hope to have helped you with a dilemma or two while we were at it!

Let us know what your favorite styles are this season and tell us; if you had to live with only ONE pair of shoes for the rest of forever, which pair would you choose and why???

Thanks for sharing in our adventures and we’ll see you later this week!

love, Jess

 

DSW

At DSW®, we believe in the power of shoes, and in the power of shoe lovers.  With thousands of fresh styles for men, women, and children, we’ve got something for everyone, no matter who they are or how they dress.  Shoes say a lot about you. Say something great.

 

FTC Disclosure: Compensation was provided by DSW® via Mode Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of DSW®.

San Diego

MOTHER’S DAY WEEKEND GETAWAY

by with No Comment adventurespecial occassionstravel

Now that I’ve come down from my Mother’s Day weekend dream cloud, today I’ll share with you where we went, what we did, and what about this particular trip to San Diego made it so special.

We’ve been to San Diego before, Corrine and I took a day trip down there for Easter last month and although we’ve enjoyed every trip we make out there, this past weekend has evoked some much avoided conversation about relocating there. Avoided because we love Los Angeles so much, but we realized that SD has instant appeal with its differently paced lifestyle.

Much like L.A. it has its beaches, its hiking trails, its art district, and its blue collared corners. Different from L.A. however, is it’s less than enthusiastic infatuation with Hollywood and an overall city energy that we feel is much more calm and stress free than that of our L.A. hub bub. Just an opinion here but we really loved how calm everything felt. Blame it on the holiday weekend or the location we were at, either way we almost booked another two nights there.

San Diego
This is the night view of the walk to our hotel room, complete with koi fish ponds and tiki torches that guided our way through the Catamaran Resort.

San Diego
After we settled into our room we laid out on the beach for a bit and then headed into town for a romantical Mother’s Day dinner. Enoteca Adriano off of Cass St. in Pacific Beach offers up traditional Italian cuisine and gluten free pasta options which we were over the moon about since Corrine was able to enjoy one of her favorite meals with us. Pictured above, we had their meatball spaghetti, pasta bolognese, and Corrine’s GF spaghetti dish.

San Diego
After dinner we took a complementary riverboat cruise that took us from the Catamaran to the Bahia hotel on the other side of the bay. During the day there are ‘family hours’ where you can bring your children and enjoy the views of the bay, and at night it offers live music and beverages to those who want to dance the night away.

San Diego
The next morning before doing any exploring we took a short stroll over to The Mission Cafe on Mission Blvd which is a couple of hops and skips away from the hotel. We enjoyed a hearty breakfast with a side of their famous homemade rosemary bread and Corrine was able to enjoy their gluten free menu and specialty GF rosemary cinnamon toast! I also had a Vincent Vega, and holy moly- it’s a shot of espresso, cola, and vanilla over ice! Seriously so good!

San Diego
We packed up our room (that we very comfortably settled into) and met up with our friends Esther and Jacob who just moved there from Las Vegas. Walking around Hillcrest this was our first stop, Flashbacks. It’s a vintage store located near a plethora of other fun shops and restaurants, and that would be a vanilla chai latte I’m holding from Kona Coffee Company. You’ll see me holding a few different delicious beverages throughout this post!

San Diego

This is the world’s best tri tip sandwich and Corrine’s GF spicy tuna sandwich from Rubicon Deli, which by the way is the cutest deli ever! They have photos up from the 30’s and an entire wall covered in a beach photo taken from when the deli first opened its doors. Check it out if you’re ever in the area, it’s delicious and delightful! P.S. That’s totally a shirt slogan waiting to happen.

San Diego

San Diego
Here are those photos of me holding beverages as previously promised. The first is from T Deli in Hillcrest, a freshly pureed strawberry watermelon smoothie taken inside of Thrift Trader (all the thrifting courtesy of Corrine). The second was taken inside of Havana Kitchen on the drive back to L.A. in Temecula. It’s their house made sangria with peaches, watermelon, and strawberries. Not photographed were the Cuban sandwiches and rice bowl that we ordered.

I’m already on to the part where we drove home and I’m sure I didn’t touch on just how beautiful of a city San Diego is, but these were a few of the fun things we did while we were there. We are foodies at heart and adventurers by nature. We love exploring new restaurants and walking around unfamiliar cities. We especially loved the sparseness of the area if that makes any sense at all. It was just a different kind of vacation, sort of slow and chill which we loved.

I’ll end the post with this photo. It was taken on our first night in SD on the same dock that we took the Bahia Belle out on. It hasn’t been retouched or altered at all, and to me it looks and feels like a painting. There were so many beautiful homes and buildings in the distance and the darkness around it make it all so eerie, but in a good way! Ugh, can’t tell you how much I’d love to live there.

San Diego
Have you ever been to San Diego? What was your most favorite thing to do? It was all my favorite, the food and the food! I hope you had an amazing Mother’s Day and I’ll see you later this week with all things thrifted and sifted! If you’d like to see a video blog of the weekend head on over to my channel, the video is up now!

love, Jess

Mercado Segrado

MERCADO SEGRADO – CHANNELING MY INNER FLOWER CHILD

by with No Comment adventureartfestivals

We try and take each weekend to focus on family time, exploring the different festivals around L.A., and disconnecting from the work week by getting outside. This past weekend we attended a small festival called Mercado Segrado, in the Malibu canyons. It was a celebration of the canyon spirit, the arts, and an Earth-connected kind of experience. I’m all about that spiritual life so you know I got all kinds of loopy about this!

Set in a private oak grove in Malibu featuring hand made goods, artisan vendors, fresh food, and spiritual ceremonies (more on this in a bit). Above is the view from where we were when we entered the festival, from the far back white fence. Soooo beautiful!

Mercado Segrado
This is that fence, and to the left you’ll see one of the vendors – a beautiful set up of what appeared to be made of paper mache and animals formed from what looked like beautiful pieces of color paper. Beyond the fence is a small pond and the rock formation that we’ll call the “disgruntled man”. If you were able to see beyond the weeping willow tree, you’d see groves upon groves of trees and green!

Mercado Segrado
Here’s a man in the wild. Joe, barefoot, shoes in hand- we were headed towards the live band area and taco stand near the back. I’m not sure that he was just as in love with the festival as we were, as it was a very female heavy crowd and we were all barefoot and swaying with the wind, but he loved all that energy floating around him!

Mercado Segrado
There were tents, open spaces, and racks full of vintage clothing and goods, handmade art pieces, and soy candles – pictured above is Corrine in her element- sifting through vintage pieces underneath a meadow of trees. It was just as magical as it looks here, the sun did this to the photograph, nothing I could do could have made it look so dreamy.

festival6
Corrine found a spot under one of the trees later in the afternoon to set up our blanket for picnic times. Look at her, my lil Earth baby. She found the event this day,  she follows a lot of the vendors and artists that were there on Instagram. Here under the tree we had vegetarian tacos and a rice bowl . . under a tree you guys… on the grass. Makes me want a back yard. Now about that tea ceremony…..

Mercado Segrado

The words you see on the piece of paper are the words that came to me after I participated in a tea ceremony. I sometimes go into things as a bit of a skeptic and I don’t mean to, but this was one of those times. Surprisingly, I really loved it though and I’m really really interested in learning more about plant science and plant medicine.

So we all sat in a circle- Corrine, myself, and a few other ladies. The first of 3 teas that we drank was a jasmine- pink rose- and lotus tea. We started off by meditating, then we introduced ourselves to the tea (this in of itself is a whole other article), we took in the aroma of the tea, and then we slowly sipped it. We let it sit in our bellies for a bit and then we meditated with it some more until we felt words or saw colors, whatever it was we wrote them down. These were the words I felt. If I learned anything from this experience it was that everything carries with it an energy, and each day the things that we do shift that energy. By the end of the tea ceremony, 3 teas after, and an hour later, my energy had shifted from feeling overwhelmed and rushed, to a more calm and grounded feeling. It was really interesting, you should try it out some time, even if you’re a skeptic like me.

Mercado Segrado
This was my view from our picnic tree as I lay out, toes in the grass, listening to folk music on a sunny Sunday afternoon before we headed back home. It was beautiful and peaceful, so if you get a chance to get out this week do it! Nature can totally be cool!

Have you been to this kind of festival before? How about tea ceremonies? Too cooky for you or would you try it? I’ll leave my tea suggestions in another article for you all about tea ceremonies and energy shifts if you like, so let me know in the comments!

love, Jess

 

Daily Vitamins

WHY DO I NEED TO TAKE A DAILY VITAMIN?

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This is a question Corrine used to ask me when she was little and it’s still a question Joe asks me when I try to hand him a palm full pills each day. Part of my daily regime is to take a daily vitamin, and about 17 other vitamins that do a few different things.

Daily vitamins

Ok not 17…7, and I know what this looks like…so many vitamins! Why?! How do you do it?! What do they do?! Well I’ll tell you. So pictured above we have . . . the 2 green pills which are for my brain (more on this in a bit), the larger orange pill is fish oil, the smaller tan capsules are a multi-vitamin, the larger tan pills are  anti-oxidants, and the two white capsules are fish collagen. I know what you’re thinking…”whoa back it up….brain pills and fish collagen?!”

Let me explain what they do and it will all make more sense. The first is my daily multi-vitamin. I love this one by the Tone It Up Girls because it’s vegan and gluten free which means my Corriney can take them daily also. Not to mention that it provides 100% of most of everything you need like Vitamin C, E, B6, Folic Acid, Biotin (big one for your hair, nails, and skin), Zinc, and others! So just by taking this one vitamin a day (2 capsules per serving) you’re able to refrain from having to take 805 other pills. I choose to take the other 7 you see, but if you wanted to take only  one vitamin- THIS is it! Simple, wholesome, and almost everything you need! It is a vegan product so the fish oil and collagen I take separately.

Perfect Fit Daily Vitamin

The Super Antioxidant formula smells like fruit which makes complete sense considering it’s comprised of super potent seeds like black cumin, cranberry, pomegranate, black raspberry, grape, milk thistle, and others. Antioxidants are simply molecules that interact safely with free radicals (highly reactive atoms that can start of chain of damaging reactions) thus preventing any damage free radicals may cause. Soooo . . . I take two of these a day.

Ear Bar Organics Super Antioxidant

Fish Collagen I take as it promotes collagen support and reproduction. As we age, there is a progressive break down of collagen in our skin. A loss of firmness and elasticity, the ‘plumpness’ you have in your skin that we try to regain the older we get. So I take 2 capsules before bed! The collagen in this is the main component found in the collagen of our skin, and combined with the other ingredients, promote collagen and tissue renewal… YES YES YES!

Fish Collagen

And Brain On. Now I can see how this would sound a lil bit cooky….it all does, all these pills and vitamins and minerals, but this particular supplement is great for focus and clarity, a balanced mood and lowering stress levels. This blend is primarily composed of blue-green algae which contains active enzymes, amino acids, phytochemicals, and essential fatty acids. Hey I’ll take anything that will keep this brain of mine young and sharp . . . short of having to consume 15 cups of coffee a day…yeesh! But so far I’ve noticed sharper focus, I work with more intention, it’s only been a few months but I love that I feel more alert and ON! It’s the same effect I get with coffee except this is caffeine free.

Brain On

And there you have it! Those are the vitamins and supplements I take daily, along with a ton of water, lots of rest, and an active lifestyle – I feel like I’m on the right path towards having a healthy mind and body. We’re all going to get older, aging is a part of life. I accept that and I look forward to aging gracefully. Gracefully being the key word here. I will supply my body with what it needs to flourish but I 100% understand that at times it could make me appear a tiny bit loopy……”why yes I take brain on and fish collagen”. It’s a bit much.

Do you take a daily vitamin? Have you ever heard of some of the other supplements I’ve talked about today? Share your daily regime with me and I’ll see you later this week!

 

xoxo- Jess