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Archive for July, 2011

reunion weekend

Posted in Andrew, Co-op, East Aurora, Exercise, Food, Fun, Running on July 30, 2011 | 2 Comments »

It’s Reunion Weekend here in East Aurora.  That means the 5K, sidewalk chalk competition and sale and, of course, all the high school reunions.  Andrew’s is tonight at a local bar, Wallenwein’s Hotel.  Hi Bob!

We started our day off with the RERUN 5K at Fireman’s Field.  It was the first time I’d been there, so it was neat to get acquainted with another part of the village.

Before:

After (VERY SWEATY):

Andrew ran with me–yay!  Well, “with” might be slightly misleading.  More like 3:33 minutes behind.

Andrew: “This heat and that hill in the middle killed me.”

Me: “What hill?  Oh, I suppose that was a bit of an incline…”

He threw his water at me.

I LOVE just-ripe bananas!  And the Braeburn apples.  Did you know New York used to be the apple capital of the country, if not the world?  Apparently Washington has overtaken NY’s production.  Oh well, more for us!

There was also a one-mile kids’ fun run.  Adorable.

Guess what?!  I won my age group!  HOLY COW! This was a shocker, since despite the small size of the field, it was FULL of “real” runners.  Not that I’m NOT a runner, but you know what I’m talking about.  Teeny sports bras and compression shorts abounded. The overall female winner (with an 18-something time) is a college runner at Bucknell.  At least five or six youngsters (16-20 year-olds) smoked me.

I ran the 5K in 22 minutes flat, which is definitely my best time ever.  So proud!

The awards were pint glasses and beer mugs.  I chose the pint because I love the size and collecting those with neat designs.  I picked up a couple colorful ones recently that are teal and brown and say “Buffalo Lounge.”  I can’t wait to use them in our future house.

Check it out!  Andrew’s high school track and cross country coach was the one handing out the awards–neat!

I’ve come so far as a runner from where I was in college; it’s hard not to be just ecstatic.

After the run we popped by the co-op.  Alix Martin and her team had started the mural project earlier this morning and I was supposed to take some photos of the progress.  I’ll link to that once it’s finished so you all can see!

We cleaned up at Andrew’s parents’ house, then headed over to Main Street for the sidewalk sale.  It’s an annual thing and all the shops along Main Street bring out their wares, as well as typical fair booths and festival food.

Look!  It’s Van Gogh’s “Starry Night!”

Kids hard at work on the piece that, I believe, took second place.

What fair would be complete without kettle corn?

Andrew passed on the popcorn in favor of…

…FUNNEL CAKE!  I was full of self-control and only had two bites.

It was pretty steamy out (even I was getting warm!), so the mister was a hit with those who didn’t mind getting a little wet.

We took a break from the heat and headed into Tuscany on Main, the newest olive oil and vinegar store in town.  They were having tastings and we loved it.  We’ll definitely go back.  I tried fig, chocolate, blood orange and cherry balsamic vinegars, pear champagne vinegar and garlic olive oil.  DELICIOUSNESS!

There was fencing…

…and chess demonstrations, just to name a few.

We’re headed out in a few minutes for Andrew’s reunion–must go get ready!

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it was a homerun

Posted in Andrew, Co-op, Food, New York on July 29, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

…at least according to Andrew.  That’s what he says when I make something new (which is pretty much any time I cook) and he likes it.

DINNER!  Photo courtesy of Andrew.

I made a version of Maggiano’s famous fried zucchini appetizer.  It comes with lemon aioli and Susy and I could have eaten it 24/7 without stopping.  Seriously.

I found the recipe online at TaraCooks.com.  I chose it because it called for club soda in the batter instead of an egg.  I was out of eggs and I didn’t want to buy a whole dozen before my five-day trip to Phoenix.  Besides, I’d rather get my eggs from the farmer’s market or the co-op, and neither of those happen until tomorrow, which did me no good tonight.  So, club soda it was.  And it was 99 cents.  And it doesn’t go bad.  Sweet.

My cut-up zucchini was pitiful.  The skin was super thick and my knife is dull as all get out (with no way to sharpen it here!), so I wasn’t thrilled with the slices.  I got a few long ones, but they were all too thick, and then a bunch of smaller scraps.  Interestingly enough, the scraps turned out to be the best of the finished product.

BTW, I HATE glass cutting boards.  I hate the noise my knife makes each time I use it, and I swear it has contributed to how dull it’s gotten.  But, it’s what’s here.

I made the aioli, but not exactly as the recipe said.  I subbed plain lowfat yogurt for the sour cream (it’s what I had in the fridge) and dill seed for the dill weed.  I’m pretty limited here.  It was yummy; more yogurt-y than creamy.

Our salad fixings were on their last legs in the fridge, so I threw a basic green salad together for both of us with Garlic Expressions dressing.  Andrew loves it!  I love sprouts.  I especially love sprouts with ranch dressing or on veggie sandwiches with avocado.

I also included some of my canned goodies: Barefoot Contessa’s Roasted Apple and Pear Sauce, from her newest cookbook, How Easy is That?  I love this stuff.  It’s like dessert.  I canned a bunch for Christmas gifts this past year and it was my go-to dish to bring to events since it made so much and was so easy.  I love that it’s applesauce with a more intense flavor, which comes from the pears and orange zest.

To drink?  Buffalo Bill’s Brewery Orange Blossom Cream Ale.  You can get this all over (in fact, the first time I saw it was in a friend’s fridge back in Ohio), but I’m on a ‘local’ kick and only want to buy New York microbrews right now.  This is an awesome beer for those of us who like Blue Moon and won’t touch a Bud.

For the sake of calories, Andrew and I have been splitting a beer instead of having our own.  Obviously, there are lots of benefits to this; our purchases go further and we ingest fewer calories and alcohol.  Since I’ve lost weight, I’ve definitely noticed that anything I drink affects me a lot more than before.  Who knew ten-plus pounds could do that?  Drinking just portions of beers, or wine, is something I saw on KERF.  She’s always having just a little bit of something.

I fried up the zucchini and then kept it warm in the toaster oven.

The finished product:

It was no Maggiano’s, but it was a great way to use a zucchini that was languishing in the fridge.  Andrew, while he passed on the aioli, chowed the zucchini. Seriously.  Thank goodness, because I probably would have it he hadn’t!  What you see above, plus one long piece, is all I had–talk about some self-control!

So yeah, dinner was a hit.  HAHA, get it, hit?  (homerun…)  :)

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what a lunch

Posted in Co-op, Exercise, Food, Weight-loss/Nutrition on July 29, 2011 | 2 Comments »

This post is for Emily, my sweet, sweet “Irish-twin-one-year-removed” who is a kindred spirit in terms of body type and is on her own “healthy weight” journey.  She is one of the healthiest people I know, both mentally and physically, and I love her to death!

Hi Emily!

Anyway, I found I had some extra time this afternoon due to crummy weather, which is postponing the awesome mural project at the co-op–the first thing I was going to help with as a volunteer.  I’ll be working in a writing/blogging/photographing/PR capacity for them, which I’m super excited about since it’s right up my alley in terms of my education and strengths.  Yay for God leading me right here, right now and blessing me with an opportunity to use my talents for something I truly believe in!

OK, enough of that tangent.  Back to lunch.

Emily emailed me yesterday with some food questions, like how to feel more full and what other healthy things could she try to get more variety in her diet.  I’m telling you, I missed my calling as a nutritionist.  Seriously.  Not that I necessarily want to work in a school/hospital/gym, but I want to KNOW that stuff.  Hmm… I wonder if Andrew would let me just be a perpetual student so I could become a nutritionist/cook/baker/yoga instructor…?

ANYWAY… Reining myself in here…

I replied to Emily and told her what works for me, as well as some sample snacks and lunches she could try to incorporate.  Bottom line:  protein really keeps me feeling full, and whole grains satisfy me.  Add fruits and veggies to the mix and you’re set!

The photos are nothing to write home about.  I know.

Today’s lunch was homemade tuna salad, pretzel crisps, fruit and Kefir and tea.  Let’s deconstruct:

Trader Joe’s Mango Black Tea.  I got this from a friend before we left Ohio and I have to say I’m not a huge fan of black tea.  However, tea is a great beverage to have any time of day.  For the “price” of about 15 calories (1 tsp of honey or sugar), I can enjoy a warm or cold beverage without feeling like I’ve blown it.  Whatever you do, don’t drink your calories!  WATER WATER WATER!  I cannot thank enough my nazi of a father who ONLY allowed us to have water with meals growing up.  Now I love it and don’t have an addiction to soda or juice.  I like to save sodas for special occasions, like pizza night.  Anyway, I’ve been drinking lots of different teas lately and really like my lemon ginger and peppermint varieties.  Get it, “varie-teas?” HAHA

Homemade tuna salad.  Tuna is a GREAT nutritional powerhouse, but you’ve got to keep the mayo in check.  I almost never order it at restaurants because it’s just dripping in mayo.  I made this two-serving batch with one hard-boiled egg white, some pickle and celery, 1.5 tbsp mayo and a teaspoon or two of mustard.  I added a bit more mustard on top today.

I also had a serving, and I mean ONE serving, of garlic parmesan pretzel crisps.  I don’t usually eat a lot of pre-packaged things, but these were one of two bags Andrew picked up on our Target date and they are awesome.  At 110 calories for a one-ounce serving, they’re better than chips and they were perfect for scooping my tuna.  And measure!  I have a tiny “diet” scale that’s perfect for measuring up to one pound.  It really comes in handy for things like chips–have the chips, just don’t have three or four servings.

For sweetness and protein, I recreated my “dessert” from last night: fruit and Kefir.  LOVE IT.  A serving is one cup, which has 140 calories, but I rarely have that much Kefir in one sitting.  I usually just do a half-cup by itself or with fruit or granola.  I cannot recommend it enough.  It’s basically a tangier, drinkable yogurt that’s packed with probiotics, the good bacteria found in yogurt.  It helps with digestion.  For those who grew up on, or still eat, yogurts like Dannon Fruit-on-the-Bottom, it will take a lot of getting used to.  I stay away from a lot of the yogurt cups because they are basically just sugar.  I once heard a dietician on the radio say that one of those flavored yogurts usually has the same amount of sugar as ICE CREAM.  Seriously.  Who needs that much extra sugar in the morning?  So, I switched to plain and haven’t gone back.

Hey, this is a pretty decent picture!

Remember that chocolate from yesterday?  I never ate it…those veggies and hummus were filling!  It made a reappearance on the plate today, but alas, it’s STILL here!  It’s currently sitting on the counter, all by it’s lonesome.   I felt full after I finished everything else.  Those are probably the biggest two challenge for me: NOTICING when I’m getting full, and STOPPING.  All too often I load my plate (even with healthy things) and then switch to auto-pilot and finish it all off.  Listen to your tummy, Holly!

I’m thinking the chocolate might get eaten with some hot, decaf coffee today as an afternoon pick-me-up since I blasted more than 900 calories this morning!  First, an hour of pilates, then an hour of crazy hard kickboxing, then an impromptu one-mile run with Hadrian.  Whew!

So, this post was all about my lunch and thoughts… Hope it helps anyone out there looking to eat real food you can feel good about.  Yesterday was hummus, veggies and dried fruit, today was tuna, pretzels, fruit and yogurt.  If you keep stashes of good things, like cheese sticks, fruit, veggies, healthy dips, yogurt and smart splurges (like good chocolate!), you’ll always be able to mix and match different things for nutritious meals.

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kefir sundae

Posted in Dessert, Food, Ice Cream on July 29, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

This was my dessert last night:

I told you I bought the “Birthday Cake” flavored Kefir on an impulse last time I went to Wegmans.  I bought Kefir all the time in Ohio; both for Andrew and myself.  His favorite is strawberry and mine, is, well, all of them.  I’m bummed that the bottles are a WHOLE DOLLAR more here ($3.49 vs $2.49 in Ohio) but there is way more selection (hello peach!).

Anyway, I bought this particular flavor thinking it might be a neat “dessert” for those nights I want something sweet but can’t have ice cream.  I’m a HUGE fan of birthday cake-flavored ice cream, so what could it hurt to try?

Well, it’s no rich-and-creamy-swirled-with-buttercream-icing-and-sprinkles scoop, but it’s not half bad!  It definitely has that familiar “tang” of Kefir, so if you don’t already drink it, it would be pretty tart still.  I pretty much survive on plain yogurt with mix-ins (a teaspoon of honey here, a tablespoon of jam there), so compared to that it was pleasantly sweet.  I served it over my leftover fruit from dinner and it was quite yummy.

I’m a sucker for “limited edition” flavors (can anyone say pumpkin spice creamer?), so I’ll probably keep getting the birthday cake flavor while they have it.  Last winter I tried both the pumpkin and cranberry flavors and they were OK.  I have to admit that when it comes to yogurt, the classic fruit flavors are always good.

Here’s to a 120-calorie dessert!

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who knew veggies could be so filling?

Posted in Food on July 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Here’s my light lunch today:

As I said in this morning’s post, I over-did it last night on our date (ahem, the GIANT milkshake), so I wanted to make sure I had lots of fruits and veggies today to counter balance my calorie-laden date.

I had to use the half red pepper sitting in the fridge, as well as a couple celery stalks and the hummus, as they were all getting a bit old.  I’m loving Patricia Wells’ hummus from her Salad as a Meal cookbook.  I’ve made it twice already.  It has more tahini and less olive oil, so it’s lower in calories.  It doesn’t have cumin, but instead has more lemon juice and cilantro, so it’s more fresh than smoky tasting.

Here’s the recipe:

Patricia Wells’ Chickpea and Sesame Dip (from Salad as a Meal)

Makes 2 cups; 52 calories for 2 tbsp

1 can chickpeas (she calls for cooking from scratch; her recipe is in the book)

2 garlic cloves

4 tbsp lemon juice

3 tbsp tahini

1 tsp sea salt

2 tbsp sesame oil

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

1/8 tsp paprika

Drain and rinse the beans (since you’re using a can) and throw them, along with the garlic, lemon juice, tahini, salt, 1 tbsp oil and cilantro in a blender or food processor.  Add more water as needed to thin it out, up to 1/4 cup.  Garnish with the remaining 1 tbsp oil and paprika when serving.

The broccoli was a local find from Wegmans and I couldn’t pass it up yesterday.  I find I don’t like hummus on broccoli–I think it’s just too dry or something–so I included a serving (2 tbsp) of my Wegmans Yogurt Ranch Dressing as well.

I added some dried fruit and chocolate to round out the meal.

The photos are pretty horrendous…I was super hungry!

I LOVE Sunsweet’s Cherry Essence Dried Prunes.  Prunes get such a bad rap, but they are so good!  I also grabbed a couple pieces of Trader Joe’s Dried Mango.  WOW.  If you have a TJ’s near you, get them!  If the prunes are good, these are like dessert.  Seriously.  They are almost too sweet.  The only thing you have to watch out for with dried fruit is the calorie count.  It’s easy to snack away and not realize how many you’ve had.  A serving size is usually 4-6 pieces (prunes, dates) or less for bigger, sweeter items, like apricots or mango.  Just remember that dried fruit is exactly that–smaller, dehydrated WHOLE fruit (usually).  You wouldn’t sit and eat 5 or 6 apricots or plums in one sitting, would you?

I also broke up a chocolate bar (on smaller plate) and noted the serving size.  I chose half of a serving, or 1/4 of the bar.

However, I didn’t even eat it because I got too full!  I guess there was quite a bit on my plate.  I’m thinking I’ll have the chocolate this afternoon with a cup of decaf coffee or tea.  Or maybe not if I’m still full!

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date night and how i’m going to make up for it today…

Posted in Food, Fun on July 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Andrew and I went on a date last night.  An actual date.  I don’t even remember the last time we had a “true” date.  Sure, we go out to dinners and movies all the time, but they never feel like a “date.”  It’s just not-eating-at-home, or grabbing something convenient, or going to see the new summer blockbuster with Andrew’s family.  I think because we can go out often, we DO go out often, which takes away some of the “special-ness” of it all.

So, we decided mini-golf would be our date.  It was a typical New York summer night; the temps have dropped again (thank goodness!) and I was in a t-shirt, pants and a jean jacket–can you believe it!  As always, I lost to Andrew, but perhaps played my best 18 holes EVER, so that was fun.  After golf we stopped into Target to explore the new “Fresh” section they just put in.  We shared a cherry ICEE and a bag of popcorn and walked up and down the aisles, which was probably more fun for me than for Andrew, but it was nice to see what they had.

We left with some odds and ends and then made ANOTHER stop…this time to get DESSERT.  (Not that I needed it, but I’d had a crazy craving for chocolate and we’d discussed going to Taffy’s; I needed no more persuasion than that!)

Taffy’s is a 60-year-old hot dog and milkshake stand that is now on the corner of a busy intersection in Orchard Park.  Strip malls filled with Tim Horton’s, McDonald’s, Lowe’s and the like have sprouted up around it, yet it remains a local favorite.  It’s a tiny building surrounded by four-person gliders with canopies–perfect for a summer day or night.

They’re known for their milkshakes; they have a menu with about a hundred (or more!) options, all divided by main ingredient, like fruit or chocolate.  Thank goodness!  I’m indecisive enough!

I got a Raspberry Truffle milkshake (raspberry and chocolate) and Andrew got a vanilla ice cream cone.  We split an order of cajun curly fries.  YUM.  We’ll definitely go back, and I’ll be bringing the camera because Taffy’s deserves a post of its own!

I’m still four pounds away from my goal (grrr), so in order to make up for last night’s overindulgence, I’m going LIGHT today.  Very light.

Breakfast was a banana (I love eating bananas plain when they are yellow with just the tiniest hint of green; once they have the brown dots all over them I tend to mix them into things or slice them on toast with peanut butter) and coffee.  After my workout, I fixed myself a fantastic, Kath-approved snack:

I mixed up plain lowfat yogurt, flaxseed meal, 1 tbsp chocolate chips and the last of my frozen cherries in the blender, then topped with the last of my Great Harvest Groovy Granola.  YUM.  The granola makes it pretty high in calories (220 for 1/2 cup) but it also keeps me full for awhile.

I’m planning on finishing up the last of my hummus and veggies for lunch, with some fruit.  I’m cooking here tonight, finally, and we’re having Trader Joe’s Mango Chicken Sausages (they’ve been living in the freezer since Ohio!) with barbeque chips and fruit for dinner.

I bought Birthday Cake-flavored Kefir at Wegmans yesterday (I know, it sounds weird) in hopes that if I poured it over fruit it would KINDA taste like ice cream.  We’ll see.

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overnight oats with drizzle

Posted in Oats on July 27, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Finally!  I pulled a Kath and drizzled some peanut butter on my breakfast!

I’d been jonesing for some overnight oats topped with some of the last of my Great Harvest Groovy Granola for a couple days now, and I figured my frozen cherries would be just the fruit to make it with.

Last night I mixed up half a banana, 1/4 C instant oats (I’m going from “doesn’t prefer” to “major dislike” by the day), 1/2 C milk, 3/4 C frozen cherries and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

This morning I threw it all in a blender and topped with 1/2 C granola and, for once, a drizzle (1 tbsp) of Susy’s homemade white-chocolate peanut butter!  YUM.

Although I don’t think I would do the oats in this combination again; I think a fruit and yogurt mix is a better combo with the granola and peanut butter.  There is always tomorrow!

Busy day ahead:

-Pilates/Yoga then Kickboxing at the gym

-home for lunch

-maybe to the co-op for some picture-taking/documenting of their mural (more on that later!)

-Wegmans (we’re in DESPERATE need of some doggie bags!)

-date-night with Andrew :)

Happy Wednesday!

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a list

Posted in Lists on July 26, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

1.  I AM SO HUNGRY.  With all the reading I’ve been doing (my newest cookbooks, my ex-pat-chef-living-in-France-memoirs, Pioneer Woman’s blog, Kath’s blog), I see food at every turn.  With just a few more pounds to go, I MUST control myself!

2.  Why is a cake cone called a cake cone?  It’s not made of cake, or really anything remotely like cake.  In fact, I’ve always thought they tasted like styrofoam.

3.  I called around to local apartment complexes today.  We have about another month here in the hotel, and if by the end of that month we have no solid prospects on a house, we have to get an apartment or house for rent.  It seemed a little dicey as I called place after place and heard they only accepted “small” dogs, or none at all.  However, it looks like there are at least two places that will take all three of us, and one is actually in East Aurora–praise God!

4.  We looked at a house today that is closer in price to $500K than $400K…  I don’t know what we were thinking.  Actually, I take that back.  I know exactly what Andrew was thinking.  He did his homework and found out the house had been for sale for a whole YEAR awhile ago and never sold…which means they’ll take less.  However, our “less” and their “less” are probably two very different numbers.  That, and in seeing the house, (while it was AMAZING) it was really too big for us.

5.  We just had a heat wave here, along with the rest of the country.  The temps soared to mid- to upper-90s and the locals were dying.  While it was definitely warm and uncomfortable, it wasn’t too bad for Andrew and me.  However, one must remember that a lot of people here don’t have a/c, including Andrew’s parents.  Their house was HOT.

6.  Have you heard of that “Dessert Delights” gum?  They have flavors like Key Lime Pie, Orange Dreamsicle and Strawberry Shortcake, all of which I’ve gotten before.  In the Target check-out line today I saw Apple Pie.  I grabbed it immediately.

7.  I’ll be in Phoenix next week with my mom and brother, Aaron, for his Assemblies of God National Youth Fine Arts competition.  I’m excited to see them both and his guitar solo, but I’m also excited to find hole-in-the-wall places to eat.  I love eating at special/famous/local favorites while I’m traveling; I think it’s better than sightseeing.

8.  Andrew’s 10-year high school reunion is this weekend.  I’m super excited.  Going to his reunion is second only to going to MY high school reunion, which is this October.  Let’s just say I’ve been waiting for this for, well, ten years.  In fact, I was actually a little worried that they’d be on the same weekend.  That is so me.

9.  I just ordered two more cookbooks; a smoothie one and an Eastern Mediterranean one.  I’d been eyeing the smoothie one for a bit and thought Andrew would like the other one.  And I had a 60% at The Good Cook.  I found another one to add to my wish list today: Quinoa 365.  Lord help me.

10.  I’m so hungry…did I already say that?

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chocolate-covered cherries

Posted in Exercise, Food on July 25, 2011 | 2 Comments »

I felt like having oatmeal this morning.

I should have photographed it BEFORE I mixed it all up, but I hadn’t been planning on blogging about it until Andrew urged me to.  So, instead of being pretty, it looks like brown mush.  But it was good!

I used instant oats (I know, I know, not my favorite, but I have a bag of them here in the hotel and I want to use them up!), half a banana, a few frozen cherries, 1 tbsp chocolate chips, 1/2 tbsp flaxseed meal, slivered almonds and a splash of milk.

I knew I was going to swim today, so I wanted something that would fill me up, and I just wasn’t in the mood for a smoothie and toast.

For my first time back in the pool, I did a simple “build” workout: a 100, 200, 300, 400 and then a 500-yd swim.  That adds up to 1,500 yds, which is just shy of a 1-mile swim.  I took it nice and slowly; it took about a half-hour.  It was nice to be back in the pool; there is just something about putting on goggles and blocking out the rest of the world for awhile.  I feel good and am looking forward to future pool workouts.

Happy Monday everyone!

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fun with color

Posted in Fashion/Style on July 24, 2011 | 4 Comments »

I’ve been planning this post for awhile now.  Not sure why it’s taken me this long to get it all together and hit the “publish” button, but I suppose it does fit in well following yesterday’s nail polish post.  (Yes, unfortunately there are times that my life really is this UN-interesting.)

Anyway, last month’s Real Simple featured an article on colorful makeup and it really intrigued me.  I love makeup, and I love color, but I’ve never really branched out beyond browns and plums when it comes to eye shadow.  And don’t even get me started on lips…I rarely do anything more than lip gloss since I don’t recognize myself with lip stick!  That, and my lips are ENORMOUS, so color of any sort just kind of amplifies them.

But, I decided to give some of the shades a try (green, teal and purple) so I brought the article to Ulta and scoured the aisles looking for the suggested lip colors.  I’ve been hooked on bright eyes ever since!

Click below for the article; I tore out the last page that had a re-cap of all the color pairings and have been using that to mix and match.

“Bright Makeup for Eyes and Lips” Real Simple June 2011

Here is green/teal eye shadow with coral lips.  I actually already had greenish and teal eye shadows, so I’ve been interchanging and mixing those depending upon what I’m wearing.

Doesn’t my hair look red here?  Unfortunately, it’s just the lighting…

I like the coral lips, but having color on takes some getting used to.  And it’s time-consuming!  The only coral lip stick I could find was Sula Natural, but it’s SO BRIGHT, so I have to blot, then apply gloss, then blot again.  I’ve been going through the stash of napkins in my glovebox like crazy!

Here’s navy blue shadow with reddish lips.  I love the navy and red combo.

The red is a combo of a maroon lip pencil (it’s NYX in Maroon) and a free sample of Trish McEvoy’s Beauty Booster SPF 15 gloss in “Brightening Pink” I got in the mail.  I love the lip pencil because it goes on really smoothly and then kind of “stains” my lips, so I just have to keep re-applying gloss instead of both.

Another color combo was purple eye shadow with brown lips.  Again, I already had a purple shadow, which I think really brings out the green in my eyes.  This is more of a lilac or lavender purple than a plum.

The article said to pair it with brown lips, but I couldn’t find a brown lip stick I liked, so I chose Palladio’s Herbal Lip Gloss in “Sheer Bronze.”  I love the smell and that it’s pretty sheer, but next time I’m at Ulta, I might try to find another NYX pencil in a darker brown to get a little more color on my lips.

So, what do you think?  Do I look ridiculous?  Is it something you would do?  I’ve been having a blast pairing colors with different outfits.  Summer is such a great time for this; I love pairing neutral outfits with bright accessories and makeup!

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