clicks of note: we're home...

get your week off to a colorful start.

LISTEN.

• One of the great mysteries of the music world to me is that Matt Nathanson isn't a household name yet. "All We Are" came up on my Pandora and I realized I'd forgotten what a lovely song it is. I'm linking up with Musical Mondays at My So-Called Chaos.

SWOON.

• Jennifer Blair photographed this perfect beach wedding.
• DIY marbelized ribbon from Oh Happy Day - so pretty!
• Style Me Pretty features an elegant Rhode Island wedding.
• SW shows off a simple, lovely Memphis restaurant wedding.

SMILE.

• Digging a painted geometric welcome mat from The Crafted Life.
• Lovely Indeed's new series is so clever... art and style combined.
• Thrifty Decor Chick shares ways to fit storage all over the house.
• Vogue presents a history of the coolest French It Girl hairstyles.

FLASHBACK.

• Last year I shared a Sunday Social all about the 5's, joined the Literary Junkies link-up, rounded up beautiful bridesmaids in white, let Mr. Q take over the blog for a day, and recapped my April in entertainment.
• Two years ago I recapped my entertainment favorites from April and my spring in Instagram photos.
• Three years ago I shared my big goals for the future and wardrobe inspiration featuring Pantone's 2012 Color of the Year, Tangerine Tango.

style challenge: new hairstyle, oscar inspired casual outfit, and grace

Audrey's fourth style challenge over at Putting Me Together was to try a new hairstyle.  I decided to go big or go home with this one and booked a color and cut appointment. You see, my Pinterest hair and makeup board had started to look like this...

so I booked an appointment to get two inches cut off the bottom of my hair and attached a picture of beautiful balayage highlights. My stylist Tess loved the idea of very subtle dark caramel highlights. She did use foils, so these aren't strictly balayage highlights, but she did go from subtle at the roots to more intense on the ends for an ombre effect. Instead of painting highlights on the top layer of my hair (where roots growing in would be really obvious really fast), she did three "peekaboo panels" on each side and a "mohawk section" at the crown.  She also left the toner on for a bit longer than usual so that the highlights would be fairly dark, since it's still winter - they will lighten over time with repeated washing.

I love it so much! My hair gets so dark in the winter that the white hairs that are coming in around my temples really stand out. I don't hate aging, and I don't really hate my white hairs, but highlights make them a lot easier to live with until they grow out enough to be in full Susan Sontag/Bonnie Raitt/Stacy London/Rogue from the X-Men cool streak mode:

Here's the very casual outfit I put together for Oscars night dinner with Mr. Q and Breeze - I definitely wanted to get some gold in there, and my art deco necklace always reminds me of Old Hollywood glamour.

Cardigan: Merona for Target  Tank: Old Navy (Similar, Similar) 

Necklace: Lia Sophia (Similar, Similar) Jeans: LOFT  Boots: Merona for Target

I also wanted to share something from a celebrity I love this morning. I have a little addiction to Fashion Police and usually agree with Giuliana Rancic on all things red carpet. However, I thought young actress Zendaya had one of the most beautiful looks at the Oscars this year with her faux locs, rosy makeup, and goddess-worthy dress.  G, on the other hand, made some comments that were meant to be humorous but came off as reenforcing negative stereotypes. I saw her apology to Zendaya on my Facebook feed this morning, and thought, "Now that is an example of grace." Check it out:

Linking Up With:

PMT Style Challenge at Putting Me Together

I Feel Pretty at Get Your Pretty On

Manic Monday at More Pieces of Me and The Daily Express

Style Sessions at Style Elixir

Style to Inspire with Rhea Et Cetera
Style Me Wednesday at Shopping My Closet
Oh Hey Girl at Pumps and Push-Ups
Let Your Light Shine Thursday at Made With Zeal

My December Favorites

Here's what I'm loving this month... 

Disclaimer:  Amazon links contain an affiliate code.

1. Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Plus volumizing mousse 2. St Ives Even and Bright Scrub 3. 4-Way Nail Buffer from Amazon 4. December desktop calendar from Oana Befort 5. Christmas Welcome Yankee Candle 6. A Thousand Wishes Signature Collection from Bath and Body Works  7. Glee Cast Holiday station on Pandora

Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Plus volumizing mousse - I purchased this mousse to style my hair in curls for Breeze's wedding last year - I had seen a hairstyling tutorial by Kate from The Small Things and couldn't find Aquage lifting foam, but I used her technique and it worked great! I have been using it for special occasions and all-around good hair days ever since.

St. Ives Even and Bright Scrub - This is what I got when I put "St. Ives Scrub" on the grocery list and Mr. Quinn did the shopping - I meant the traditional apricot scrub and wasn't specific enough.  Well, I'm probably not going back to apricot now that I've discovered this pink lemon and mandarin orange goodness.  I love the smell (it helps me wake up in the morning) and the fact that St. Ives uses all-natural exfoliants rather than pollution-causing plastic microbeads.  This one is gentle enough for everyday use and helps keep my skin clear.

4-Way Nail Buffer - I got one of these babies from a mall kiosk years ago and it's an essential part of my weekly routine.  Each side is covered with a different grain of buffer, perfect for smoothing out ridges, shaping nails, and buffing them to a pretty shine just like the technicians at the salon.

Oana Befort desktop calendar - I'm addicted to desktop calendars and this one is so merry and bright for the holidays!  Oana Befort is such a talented artist; I love her slightly bohemian style.

Christmas Welcome Yankee Candle - My favorite Yankee Candle scent, Sugared Apple, gets an upgrade for Christmas by being swirled together with Red Apple Wreath.  My house will smell festive every evening!

A Thousand Wishes - This Bath and Body Works scent is perfect for the holidays.  The top note is champagne, complemented by some of my favorite scents including peonies, freesia, amber, and almond. 

Glee Cast Holiday station on Pandora - It starts with music from the Glee Christmas Album (I love Lea Michele's version of "Oh Holy Night") and builds from there, so you get some Mariah Carey, Kelly Clarkson, and Michael Bublé thrown in too.  I also like the U2 and She + Him holiday stations, depending on the mood I'm in.

Linking Up:

my late summer in instagram

We started the summer with Mr. Q's second relay triathlon.  This one was held in Roanoke at one of the city's parks.  Mr. Q's team had added a new runner and the three of them took second place!  Also, NEW CAR WOO.  We are loving our Crosstrek!

Just messing around with my morning routine.

Chicken and waffles with my BFF Breeze and my other favorite friends for my 29th birthday.  It was also my "golden birthday" because I turned 29 on the 29th.

The country townhouse, ready for D-Day and Independence Day celebrations.

Summer means lots of patio lunches and dinners, and more time to cook!

My container garden has done really well this rainy summer, and the colors make me smile every time I look outside.

Preparing for camp by building a whale with my fellow adult volunteers and getting the campers' medications organized on opening day.

Probably the most "summer camp" picture ever.

Mr. Q and I went to our favorite Brazilian restaurant for our anniversary and I convinced my health-conscious guy that we needed to treat ourselves to tiramisu.

My mom and I spent a day in downtown Roanoke pretending to be tourists.  We visited the art and science museums and had lunch on the market.

Back to school haircut - my fist from my new hairdresser.

A few views of my classroom in action.  Lots of neon to keep me happy and awake!

Beautiful Wisteria Ridge, where Mr. Q's cycling club had their end-of-summer cookout and fundraiser ride for Roll Over Cancer.

Treats!  I made this Oreo cookie poke cake for the Roll Over Cancer cookout.  The cookie butter was a treat from my friend Jess's trip to Trader Joes.  So amazing!  It's probably a good thing we don't have a TJ's around here, actually.

Linking Up:

sunday social: beauty edition

1. How old were you when you started wearing makeup?

I distinctly remember wearing that rubbery peel-off kid's nail polish when I was three or four years old and loving it!  I started having makeup put on for dance recitals in second grade and started playing with eyeshadow for school in fifth grade.  It was probably blue eye shadow because that's what was in my stage makeup kit, and I apologize to anyone who had to see me walking around school looking like a baby drag queen.  I discovered Coty airspun translucent face powder via the dance world and it was my favorite product in middle and high school, along with black eyeliner, which probably made me look kind of goth most of the time.  

2. What are your top 3 favorite beauty products?

The Sally Hansen Simple Spa waxing kit is one of my favorite things in the world - I have my eyebrows down to a science at this point.  I'm currently in love with L'Oreal's Magic BB Cream in Fair - it gives just enough coverage for everyday wear and I do notice fewer blemishes when I use it regularly.  My favorite eyeshadow is Almay's smoky-i for browns palette.

3. What is one makeup product you don't leave home without?

Some kind of lip balm.  Right now my favorite is Neutrogena's MoistureSmooth Color Stick - it feels really soft and the color lasts for a while.

4. What is your daily beauty routine?

I wash my face with St. Ives apricot scrub in the shower, apply acne medication to any spots, moisturize (I used Mary Kay for years but I just switched to Neutrogena Naturals) and then use either L'Oreal BB Cream or their mineral foundation depending on how much coverage I need.  Since I'm naturally so pale and foundation gives me even more of a porcelain-doll appearance, I wear bronzer every day, even in the winter, and the Physicians formula "mood boosting" palette with bronzer and blush all in one is my current favorite.  Lip balm and eyeshadow finish my everyday look - I only use mascara and eyeliner on the weekends if I'm going out because I find them a little too dramatic for the classroom.

5. What is your favorite hair/makeup product you've discovered in the last year?

I'm in love with John Frieda's Full Repair shampoo and conditioner - they've made my hair so soft and shiny.  I recently picked up a bottle of Full Repair Root Lift Foam and used it before I curled my hair for K's wedding, and I really could tell a difference in the amount of volume it created without giving my hair too much of a "goopy" feeling like some other foams.

January Favorites

I'm happy to be linking up with Kylie and Emily again this month with some of my recent favorite things.

View this set on Polyvore

1. lia sophia - Usually I am not a fan of home shopping parties, but I recently attended my first lia sophia jewelry party and it was a totally different experience - a girl I went to elementary, middle and high school with has become a very successful salesperson in our area, but she is not pushy at all.  I didn't feel pressured to buy anything, but the deals were pretty awesome.  I found this adorable necklace, a cute pair of stud earrings, a bar necklace like I've been looking for, some gifts for friends and family members, and I got a silver chain link bracelet (another thing that's been on my wish list) as a treat for booking a party next month.

2. Flannel pajamas - I was hoping for some new flannel jammies for Christmas and my mom made that wish come true.  These Insomniax reindeer pants from JC Penney are super adorable, comfy, and the perfect length for me - I am 5'2" and usually have to roll up the ends of my PJ pants.  Good job, Mom!

3. John Frieda Full Repair - This is my current favorite shampoo and conditioner.  I've been using it for a while and all of a sudden I'm getting compliments on how shiny my hair is, so I guess it's been working its magic!  I usually have a lot of problems with breakage, split ends, and flyaways in the winter, but with this shampoo and conditioner my hair is smooth and healthy looking.  It's safe for color-treated hair, which is a big plus since I just went back to black.

4. Hershey's crinkle cookies - Apparently I've been living under a bridge because I had never tried cocoa crinkle cookies until I saw the recipe on Pinterest.  Hello, amazing chocolatey goodness.  Chilling overnight made the dough very easy to work with.

5. Reindeer Ranch wine - I picked up a bottle of Sweet White at Kroger because of the fun label (obviously I am a wine connoisseur) on our way to a holiday party and it is tasty.

6. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones - I posted a short review of the movie in my most recent entertainment round-up.  I was so happy that the movie lived up to the high expectations I had after reading the series.