Tag Archives: weekend

Aug11

Posh Polishes

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Posh Polishes

Hey everyone and happy weekend! Lil Red is the ultimate girly girl and nothing pleases me more than caring for my tresses, skin, and having gorgeous acrylics on my nails. But, gorgeous acrylics need gorgeous polishes to top them, which is where Londontown comes in to play. Londontown features a wide array of colors, treatments, and goodies to keep your nails looking lovely one fab shade at a time. Including some of the following:

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And, if the colors Chim Cher-ee, Briolette, and Opal look familiar, that’s because they’re on my acrylics as we speak! Experimenting with different nail polishes is always fun, especially if you can’t find the shade you’re looking for in store or at your salon. That’s why it’s such a treat to enjoy some new colors exclusively at Londontown. And, to make the feeling of luxury even sweeter, the website frequently offers wonderful promotions to save you money. And that’s something Lil Red can always get behind! 😀

What is your favorite shade of nail polish? What color is on your nails today? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug5

Making New Friends As An Adult

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Making New Friends As An Adult

Hey everyone and happy Sunday! As I make my way deeper into my twenty somethings, I find that I have had an increasingly difficult time making new friends. I work for myself, I’m no longer forced to be around anyone because I’m not in school, and, sometimes, talking to new people can be down right scary! Although Lil Red might seem like a confident gal, I still have issues with social anxiety. And, racing thoughts of whether an attempt at small talk will be a hit or miss can leave even the most confident in a tizzy.

But, then, I started utilizing the “what have I got to lose” mindset. The literal worst that can happen is that someone gives you the old “let’s get coffee sometime” and you never do. But, if you’re successful, you could have a brand new friend to get to know and spend time with.

I’ve began putting myself out there more and more lately and, I’ve got to say, it feels great! I’ve been attending different clubs of my interests at the local libraries and have even suggested a hang out with my favorite barista at Starbucks – and it worked! I have also been trying hard to maintain wonderful relationships with my old friends, because a phone works two ways.

I want to continue spending my free time in a meaningful way, and putting forth a better effort to make new friends has definitely helped me achieve this goal. Within just a few months, I feel like my anxiety in unfamiliar situations or speaking with a stranger while out and about has decreased significantly.

I started out small, by striking up a Facebook conversation with the people that I admired from afar and worked my way up from there. And, now, I have a plethora of both new and old friends that I would feel comfortable initiating a hang out with. I’m proud of myself for setting this goal and sticking to it, because meeting new people can be hard. But, once I got over the initial scare factor, it turned out to be an exciting adventure in my life and I’m looking forward to continuing to meet more new potential friends!

Making new friends as an adult can be challenging, but there are ways to make the process easier. One of the best things you can do is look for opportunities to meet new people. This could mean joining a club, taking a class, or even going to concerts like a Ravehub – anything that gets you out of your comfort zone and interacting with others. Another great tip is to be open and friendly when meeting new people. Smile, strike up conversations, and be yourself! People are more likely to want to be friends with someone confident and easy to talk to.

Does anyone else experience difficulty making new friends in adulthood? What are some of your tips for putting yourself out there? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul28

New Nine West Cape Blazer

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New Nine West Cape Blazer

Hello everyone and a very happy weekend to all of you! I don’t know about you but, when I get the idea of something that I want in my head, it literally takes until I get that thing for the thought to dissipate. This rings true constantly for clothing, because I want the piece that I buy to be just right. Take the cape blazer, for example. I’ve wanted one for close to two years, and I finally found the one, because every cape that I encountered leading up to the Nine West number seen below just wasn’t up to snuff. Check it out:

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Ugh, ain’t she a beaut?! Nine West is a brand that I really, really love. But, god knows that their normal prices cost a pretty penny, so I don’t indulge unless it’s at TJMaxx or a thrift store. My new cape was forty dollars, which is ONE HUNDO cheaper than its original price. You literally can’t beat that!

I love everything about this cape. The polka dot lining, the shape, how it falls perfectly away from my hips, the styling potential. WOOF. It really is perfect and I can’t wait to wear it constantly. From a more formal take on business casual for work to exploring my favorite outdoor mall, Crocker Park, during a blustery fall day, this Nine West piece will be the jam.

Every cape blazer that I’ve tried on has paled in comparison to my latest find and, even though it was a long time coming, it was so worth the wait. The cape is such a unique piece of clothing and when you find just the right one for just the right price, it would be a shame to not get it!

Who else is a fan of the cape? How would you style this piece? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul22

Northeast Ohio Rocks Pt. 2

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Northeast Ohio Rocks Pt. 2

Howdy everyone and happy Sunday! If you can remember back to a post I made in April, I discussed a really cool local tradition called Northeast Ohio Rocks. The idea is that you paint or Sharpie a rock as you see fit and then hide it somewhere in public where a stranger can find it. Then, you do what you will with your surprise on social media and rehide the rock for the next lucky person to find. It’s such a fun community program and people have had get togethers at their homes or local meeting centers to create more rocks to hide around Northeast Ohio.

At a Green Day concert at Blossom Music Center last year, I found a solar eclipse themed rock hanging around by the entrance. I felt so lucky to have stumbled upon such a beautiful creation and vowed to give the magic back in due time. I thought that it only seemed appropriate to return the rock to the location that I found it at last summer and that moment finally came last week when I saw Marilyn Manson perform at Blossom.

We’ll chit chat about the show tomorrow, but I wanted to follow up on the post that I made in April to let everyone know that I kept my promise to bring the rock back to its original location. I wrote my web address on the back of my Northeast Ohio Rock, so hopefully whoever found it will come to my page to let me know that their surprise was received!

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Does your area have a similar program to Northeast Ohio Rocks? Would you ever like to start a local tradition? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul21

Londontown Pampering Party

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Londontown Pampering Party

Hello everyone and happy weekend to all of you! As we all know by now, Lil Red is a nail girl and I would be nothing without my beloved talon acrylics. I think this deep love for being pampered in terms of my nails comes from my beautiful grandma, because I can always remember how much she enjoyed having her nails painted with lovely shades of seashell pinks.

I am lucky enough to be pampered every four to five weeks or so when I get my nails filled. My mom, on the other hand, doesn’t get to enjoy the luxury of a manicure, because with the intense medical treatment that she’s under, she wants to avoid any more chemicals on her body than need be. This is perfectly understandable, of course!

But, this doesn’t mean that sweet JANE doesn’t want her nails looking as nice as possible, so I decided to treat her to a fabulous cuticle treatment by Londontown. Londontown is an amazing nail and hand care brand that is dedicated to strengthening nails and nourishing hands in the most natural way possible. Their products use a variety of different oils and essential vitamins to show your phalanges some love, and I knew that it would be the perfect surprise to give to my mom. Take a look:

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^^^ In order, you can see my mom’s nails without treatment, with the treatment on, and after the treatment was finished.

Londontown’s Nourishing Cuticle Oil treatment worked wonders on my mom, and she has now deemed herself “obsessed” with it. We had a blast playing beauty shop together as I applied the product and we watched as it worked its magic. Our first impression of the treatment was its scent. It smelled herbal and sweet without being overly pungent or perfumey. This was so nice, because that’s actually one of my mom’s favorite scent styles and it made us eager to apply it and see if it works as good as it smells!

Before using Londontown’s Nourishing Cuticle Oil treatment, my mom’s cuticles were really dry and brittle. They looked so ready to be removed, and I was really hoping that this product would be as good as anticipated, because if anyone deserves to be pampered – it’s my mother. Lucky for us, we didn’t have to wait long to see if this treatment was the one for her, because almost instantly upon application, she could feel it moisturizing the problem areas on her nails.

Not only was the treatment so nourishing, but its consistency did so in a non-greasy manner, which is so important to both of us when it comes to our beauty products. Its texture was not thick but, rather, quite thin and it stayed on the nail well without running onto the towel under my mom’s hands. #wastenotwantnot

After the Nourishing Cuticle oil was on my mom’s nails for a few minutes, she pushed her cuticles back, removed them as best as she could, and then I applied some more treatment. Neither of us are nail experts, by and means, but in just one use her nails looked so much better. My mom said that she felt so spoiled to be using the treatment and it made her nails look pretty without polish, which was the goal all along. ❤

Be sure to tune in next week to see my new acrylics featuring some gorgeous nail polish shades by Londontown!

How do you pamper your hands and nails? How do you create a spa night in? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: I can’t make this up. As I write this, my mom literally walked down the stairs while rubbing in the cuticle treatment and goes “Sarah, I’m addicted to this. I just feel like my nails look better”. So it definitely has the Sarah & Jane Seal Of Approval! Thanks, Londontown!

Jul1

Happy July!

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Happy July!

Hi everyone and welcome to another month here on lifewithlilred! June flew by, so hopefully time will slow down so that we can all continue to enjoy sweet summertime. You can tune in again with me tomorrow for all of the latest and greatest but, in the meantime, I’ll just leave this here:

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How has your weekend been? What are your plans for the Fourth Of July? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jun16

More Pacer Progress

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More Pacer Progress

Hello everyone and happy weekend! My last Pacer pedometer update was written on May 19th with a step total around 600,000. That’s a pretty big number, so I wasn’t expecting a huge amount of progress to be made in twenty-four days. So, imagine my surprise when I checked my stats for this post and ended up adding an extra 275,000 to my step count! I couldn’t believe it either, but I’m so happy about it! Here are the rest of the stats for this month’s update:

  • Steps Taken: 874,580
  • Calories Burned: 21,546
  • Hours Active: 135
  • Miles Walked: 287

After seeing such great results, I found myself wondering just what I was doing to get myself there. And, it has a lot to do with the wonderful Metro Parks that Ohio has to offer. For the past few weeks, I have gone on nice, long hikes at least twice a week if the weather allows it. Dogsitting for my neighbor and walking her pups twice a day for a week didn’t hurt, either!

For the most part, I have been exceeding my goal of 10,000 steps per day and I’m really proud of that. It feels good being more active, and completing my goals almost daily like it’s nothing now makes me feel such a huge sense of accomplishment. I had no idea that downloading one simple app would work such wonders on my self esteem, but I am so thankful for it and am looking forward to reaching my goal of 1,000,000 steps soon. 😀

If a pedometer app isn’t for you and you prefer your Apple Watch, be sure to check out Mobile Mob for the best accessories to keep you stepping in style!

Who else uses a pedometer? How many steps do you walk or run per day? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May27

100+ Beauty Tag Part Two

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100+ Beauty Tag Part Two

Hello!! Yesterday I answered thirty of the questions from the 100+ Beauty Tag that I found and now I am going to answer thirty more! Here we go:

 

How often do you use contact lenses? Daily. Unless I know that I will be at home all day, then I might wear my glasses.

Which color of contact lenses is your favorite? I’ve never tried any of the colored contacts before, but I would love to give lavender a shot.

Have you ever tried Eastern makeup styles? What does that mean? Lol.

Which country’s makeup is your favorite? I don’t know! I’ve never really thought of it.

Has someone ever made fun of your makeup? Yes. 😦 I experimented with some cool green eyeshadow in fifth grade and evil classmates poked fun of me for that. Assholes.

At what age did you begin to wear makeup? Honestly, I don’t think I regularly wore makeup until I was a sophomore in high school. So fifteen, maybe? But when I was younger, I wore makeup for dance recitals and figure skating competitions, of course.

What was the first beauty product you tried? Technically, it was Lip Smackers. But, my first “real” makeup product was probably a CoverGirl mascara.

Name the celebrity that you hate for their makeup? None! Girls and guys should be able to express themselves however they want without being hated for it.

Have you ever put makeup on someone else? No way. I do not have the steady hand or creativity for that.

Which beauty product do you recommend in the summer? SUNSCREEN!!!!

Which beauty product will you never recommend for summers? Heavy moisturizers or lotions are gross in the summer time.

Which brand has the most attractive packaging? I love the Soap & Glory packaging.

Suppose that there is only one beauty product left in the world. What do you wish it would be? Red lipstick! Preferably matte, please.

How many eye mascara coats do you put on? I put on a healthy five or six.

Black eye mascara or a glittered one? They have glitter kinds?!?!

How much money do you spend on beauty products per month? It depends on what I need. Some months it might be nothing, other months it might be forty or so if I am restocking products.

Only lipstick or with a lip liner. What do you prefer? I used to wear lip liner, but it doesn’t do much for me so I just wear lipstick now.

What’s your favorite bath and body brand? The Body Shop.

Do you like to try different skin products or keep with certain items? Yes and no. I do have my favorite skin care products, but I don’t mind experimenting with them if a good deal or something new comes up.

Name your favorite shop for makeup products? Target!

Have you ever tried a mixed foundation of two different brands? No. I don’t wear foundation – but mixing two of them sounds tricky!

What’s the color of your favorite eye pencil? Black for my under eyes and emerald green for my eyelids.

Kajal or eye mascara? What do you prefer? What is kajal??

If given a chance, what type of cosmetic surgery would you go through? Honest answer? I would love to have another breast reduction.

Have you ever tried a makeup to change your face to resemble your favorite celebrity? Lol, no!

Have you ever followed any Hollywood celebrity makeup and hair styling? No. I just kind of make it up as I go along.

Which hair dye color is your favorite? Vidal Sassoon’s Runway Red from their London Luxe collection.

Which brand’s hair dye do you use? See the above answer. 😉

Hair gloss or highlights. What would you prefer if asked? Neither. I prefer all over color.

Do you have a beauty budget or do you buy whatever you like? As a whole, I don’t really go overboard when buying beauty products, so I don’t have a budget.

How would you answer some of the above questions?? Who else is going to try this tag? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

May26

100+ Beauty Tag Part One

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100+ Beauty Tag Part One

Helloooo everyone and happy weekend! I found this super fun ONE HUNDRED PLUS QUESTIONNAIRE that I just had to complete. Mainly because I have no ideas for posts at the moment and also because I really enjoy doing these. Even Lil Red runs out of blog topics sometimes, so I decided to break this tag up into parts and give you my answers on all things beauty! Check it out:

 

What is your most favorite makeup brand? Hmm… I wouldn’t say that I have a favorite, but I will say NYX just because they carry my favorite lipstick. Other than that, I’m not too picky when it comes to brands.

What is your favorite cosmetic? Lipstick, of course. And I’ve grown increasingly fond of the highlighter by Becca that I’m using. And, does hair dye count??

Which brand’s eyeliner do you love the most? I love CoverGirl’s Liquid Blast eyeliner in Black Fire. It’s a pencil, but it has the perfect amount of moisture to it to give you the easiest application ever.

Name the brand that ever caused you a skin allergy: Aquaphor made my skin break out in a really weird bumpy rash when I was using it after getting a tattoo. Needless to say, I stopped using that immediately and switched to Lubriderm.

Which three cosmetics are always in your handbag? None, usually. But if I’m wearing a lippie, then I’ll keep that with me.

A concealer or a foundation? What do you apply first? Neither, because I don’t use them.

An eyeliner or mascara? What is your favorite? BOTH. Lol, I know that’s not an answer, but my makeup look isn’t really complete without either.

Which blush color is your favorite? Maybelline’s Dream Bouncy blush in Fresh Pink.

Name a cosmetic product that you avoid using in summers? None. But I do try and opt for a lighter moisturizer if I have one available.

Name a cosmetic brand that you avoid during winters? None.

Which face wash is your favorite? Destiny Boutique’s charcoal face wash. I love it and use it every day.

Which color of lipstick do you prefer during summers? RED.

Which color of lipstick do you prefer during autumn? RED.

Name the makeup brand that you always want to buy but your pocket does not allow? I wouldn’t say that I have one. If I like something that I know that I will get good use out of, then I will buy it. But, trust and believe that I’ll try to find a drugstore dupe first!

Name your favorite beauty soap? I’ll use whatever bar soap for my body, that doesn’t matter too much to me. But, I love Destiny Boutique’s charcoal bar for my face.

Name your favorite shampoo? I actually don’t wash my hair. I only get my hair wet once a month when I’m redyeing it and I will use a conditioner to wash it out, but that’s it. I gotta keep my red fresh, honey!

A hair straightener or a curler? Straightener! But I do like to try curling my hair every once in a blue moon.

How much time do you often require for a party makeup? Probably the same as my normal makeup, so like thirty-five or forty minutes.

Good clothes or a stylish makeup? What is more difficult to choose? Makeup. I’ve got fashion on lock, but I do need a little help with makeup!

Do you like multi-functional cosmetic products? Not really.

Name the product that without which you can’t leave the house? None.

How many lipsticks do you have right now? I’d say eight to ten but I only actively use three or so.

What is your favorite color of lipstick? RED!!!

Do you remove your makeup before bed? This is so bad, but no. I sleep in my makeup!

Name the body lotion you use: Right now I am using Cocoa Butter from The Body Shop.

Which moisturizer is your favorite? The Body Shop’s Vitamin E moisturizer.

Do you still like using a baby lotion? Lol, no?

Name your three favorite beauty stylists? I don’t have one. But I do love the looks of Kat Von D and Jeffree Star.

Which celebrity do you follow for hair styling? I love Julianne Hough’s shorter hair.

Name your favorite beauty salon: The Shear Shop. The woman who does my hair has been my stylist for well over a decade. I love her!

How would you answer some of the above questions? What kind of post should I do next? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

May20

Final Therapy Update

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Final Therapy Update

Helloooo! I hope that all of you are having a wonderful weekend so far. As you can tell by the title of this post, this will be my Final Therapy Update until I choose to go again. I was definitely on the fence about going to my appointment this week, and I ended up canceling it.

I just feel tired of going over the same things week in and week out, and I almost feel like being in therapy gave me an excuse to engage in risky behaviors like binge eating or drinking, because I could just talk about it at my next appointment. My therapy sessions were very helpful to a point, but I felt like the metaphorical wall had been hit, and none of the advice that I was getting was anything that I felt like I could utilize.

This is not to say that I didn’t like my therapist at all, because I really did. But, I also felt like she was trying to force a belief system on me that I was not comfortable with, and didn’t seem to have any other advice but that. Although I could totally research things on my own, I did expect to gain some new insights during therapy and, after a while, I just wasn’t any more.

If a mental rough patch comes up, I do plan on returning again so that I have a safe place to communicate my feelings. But, for now, I am taking my medication daily and seeing what I can do on my own to start improving things for myself.

Has there been a time when therapy has been helpful for you? What are some of your mental health struggles? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah