Monday, April 24, 2017

Garnier Whole Blends Smoothing Shampoo And Conditioner Coconut Oil & Cocoa Butter Extracts


Weighing price, convenience and effectiveness, I lean towards organic personal care products; and when it makes sense, I will switch from drugstore brands to those products with cleaner, organic ingredients. In reality, it's difficult to go totally organic -- nevertheless, we can aim to reduce the amount of chemicals we use in our beauty products.

Most shampoos will clean your hair just fine, but the commericial hair conditioners still work better than any organic conditioner I have tried. Plus, the mass produced name brands of shampoos and conditions tend to be cheaper  than many organic brands. If you wash your hair every day, the costs can add up! Will it be pennies, or dollars you wash down the drain? Sometimes it's worth the extra cost, sometimes it is not.
Photo credit: Jacqui Writes
Shampoos are easy, but I always return to the drugstore brands of hair conditioners. Recently I tried Ganier Whole Blends Smoothing Shampoo and Conditioner Coconut Oil & Cocoa Butter Extracts. Forumulated with South Pacific coconut oil and African cocoa butter extracts, the shampoo and condition tames and smooths hair. It has a clean, coconut scent and leaves a shine. Thankfully, both shampoo and conditioner are paraben-free and gentle for daily use.

While it is always wise to check ingredients, the great news is: Drugstores are responding to customer demands for better, safer ingredients. For the price, effectiveness and hair sans frizz, I recommend this new Garnier forumula. Try it, you will like it! 

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Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Introducing Lori's Shoes Of Chicago




Lori's Shoes Of Chicago is a fabulous find! Launced in 1983 in a vacant storefront on Armitage Avenue by Lori Andre, the entrepreneur has two passions: shoes and gourmet cooking. Thirty-four years (and three sons) later, her business now includes several other brick and mortar stores, as well as, a thriving website. 

Moreover, Lori's business model remains the same: Offer fashionable, high-quality shoes that customers won't find elsewhere at affordable prices. The retailer's shoe buyers select styles from small factories in Italy that are new, fresh and fashion-forward, but not so bizarre and aggressive as to be impractical. 
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Some of the shoes are made in the very same factories as well-known couture brands, but Lori's Shoe stock is aimed for people who don't spend $1,000+ on footwear, yet still covet well-made shoes.

As reported in The Chicago Tribute, her top selling brands include Bernie Mev, Jeffrey Campbell, Franco Sarto, Sam Edlelman and many contemporary brands. The inventory now includes some apparel and accessories also.

Personally, I scored a sleek pair of leather sports ballet flats for $29 (+$8 shipping). With great arch support and athletic rubber soles, they are marked down from $100. What a steal!


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Thursday, April 13, 2017

The Easter Holiday

Easter is this Sunday ... and not a moment too soon. Old Man Winter begone! On the Western Hemisphere, it's symbolic how Easter arrives as spring begins. In the west, we have persevered through another cold, harsh winter when nothing grows, and now can look forward to sunny days as a new cycle of life begins.
Christianity recognizes that not all is right in the world. Both good and evil exist. There is much suffering and injustice on earth. In fact, history is a solemn record of hard times marked by hunger, disease, death, natural disasters and political unrest, etc. But Easter reminds us to look at the big picture. Find the light at the end of the tunnel. With perseverance, good can ... and will overcome evil.
Explaining why evil exists is difficult, and yet without strife, there is often no growth. I have heard it said, we learn as much from our hardships and failures as we do from our successes. Easter reminds us to look on the bright side of life! Be positive. Have hope. Opt to do good. Keep striving, and never give up! 

A Happy Easter! Likewise, a Blessed Passover. 🌷🌻🌺

River Jordan 
The Secret Sisters
'Go to the river Jordan', said the prophet to the king
'Wash in that murky water seven times and you'll be clean'
Yeah, that deep rollin' river's gonna make you new and whole
And the faith acquired of you will save your soul
Let's go down to the river, raise our voices in prayer
And get ourselves a snow white robe to wear
Take away the earthly stains, remove each and every one
In the name of the Father and the Son
Jesus said to John the Baptist, bury me in that cold grave
Made of Jordan's icy water, I will show you all the way
And a light came down from Heaven saying this is My Own Son
And I sure am please with what has just been done
Let's go down to the river, raise our voices in prayer
And get ourselves a snow white robe to wear
Take away the earthly stains, remove each and every one
In the name of the Father and the Son

I'm looking for the river Jordan, that old life giving stream
Within its waves of mercy sweet forgiveness ever teamed
I'm a weary broken soul living in a house of clay
And that river's gonna wash my sins away
Let's go down to the river, raise our voices in prayer
And get ourselves a snow white robe to wear
Take away the earthly stains, remove each and every one
In the name of the Father and the Son ... Bury me, river Jordan
Songwriters: Laura Elizabeth Rogers / Lydia Lane Rogers
River Jordan lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.


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Thursday, April 6, 2017

Inge Christopher Makes Cute Party Bags


To be honest, I only own 3 party bags. One was a gift, the second a hand-me-down from my mother and and the third one, I bought for under $50. And ... I can't claim to personally own a costly clutch purse, made of silk, or decorated with glittery Swarovski crystals. But that doesn't stop me from recognizing beauty when I see it. 

Inge Christopher makes some fine party purses! You will pay 3 to 6 times more than what I paid for mine, but will get upscale silk, snakeskin, leather, metal or wood, as well as, eye catching embellishments. If you're always partying, you can justify the greater expense as an investment. 
Many of the clutches are designed to hold an iphone, and there is a wide selection of materials, shapes and styles. I picked a few of my favorites. As you can see, I tend to stick with a classic style, but you might like something more unique like the Luma Mini Tote.

When putting on the Ritz, most of us want to look our swanky best, which just might include a quality, durable clutch! Let's take away some style tips from Inge Christopher. We can either search for a budget-friendly knockoff, or better yet, catch a sale on one of these lovely bags!


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Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Unshrinkit Sweater Restorer


Have you ever wished you could unshrink a wool sweater that got ruined in the wash? Now you can by hand washing it in a liquid solution called, Unshrinkit.

Unskrinkit was invented by Harvard Business School graduate, Desiree Stolar. She teamed up with a chemical engineer and fellow graduates to develop a product that interacts with shrunken, bunched up wool, cashmere or angora yarns, straightening and lengthening the clumps of yarn back to their original size.

It's safe, fast and easy. You pour a bottle of unshrinkit into a a tub, add water and your shrunken sweater. Soak it in the solution for 30 minutes. Raise, stretch and lay flat to dry. Voilà ... back to its original size! 

The Unshrinkit restorer works on fabric that is at least 10% wool. Wow, like a miracle!




Thursday, March 30, 2017

Yves Saint Laurent Babydoll Kiss & Blush Duo Sticks

Photo: Yves Saint Laurent
YSL is launching a new spring collection of creamy muti-tasking lip/cheek colors that the company calls Babydoll Kiss & Blush Duo Sticks. At $34 for 5 ounces, they are not cheap, but you get rich lasting pigments in two hues. Apply it sheer with one application, or heavy with two strokes. The mult-purpose color comes in a sleek and compact case, which makes it convenient to take on overnight trips. There are 6 duo color sticks ... all fresh with a smooth matte finish. Bring lips and cheeks to life with a swipe of flattering color! 

New makeup is eye candy for grown women. 👸🏻



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Tuesday, March 28, 2017

My Bucket List For 2017

Photo: visionaustralia.org
Eventbrite, a platform that lets event organizers plan, organize and post events and conferences across social media, asked me to produce a bucket list of experiences I'd like to accomplish in 2017. Here are 5 goals I have in mind: 

1) I'd like to get back into Pitates. - A few years ago, my limbs were flexible and my core was strong, but after losing several excellent Pilates' teachers, I stopped going to classes. Recently a classical Pilates studio opened near my home, giving me the motivation to go again.

2) Host an authentic English High Tea - A delightful way to ring in the spring. Certainly, a few friends will want to come. What fun!

3) Brush-up on the German language - If you don't speak a language, you forget it. I can't let that happen with a language I once had a good grasp of; so I must find time to listen to some German language audio. Plus, practice speaking with anyone who will speak to me in German.

4) See the Secret Sisters live in concert - Laura and Lydia Rogers are a duo who sing a gorgeous harmony and will be wildly famous in the future. I must see them when they come to Manhattan, which they do about twice a year!

5) Tour Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia - where I can meet up with out-of-town friends for company. I have neglected my travels lately ... but fortunately, not before visiting California, Los Vegas, around the US, Europe and Egypt. So I have to get back into going oversees! But first, I'll plan a trip to Williamsburg, Virginia, meeting up with old friends. None of us have ever been to Williamsburg!

These 5 doings all seem very doable in a year! Thank you, Eventbrite, for the prod in making the list. Now that I've written my aspirations down, I need to get busy! 

What's on your bucket list for 2017?

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Friday, March 24, 2017

Easy Homemade Lemonade

Photo: Healthful Pursuit
As my regular readers know, I stopped drinking soft drinks, a/k/a soda or pop, after my teeth became sensitive because a daily soda habit (which coats our teeth in acid) was eating away my enamel. Yikes! Tooth enamel does not grow back!

Now I drink plenty of cold water; ice tea; and kombucha. When I crave a burst of flavor, I make a simple lemonade using 3 ingredients:

Cold water
ReaLemon concentrate (The store brand is ok too.)
Stevia

At first, I used store bought lemons, which is fine, but the ReaLemon concentrate is easier, faster and (I believe) tastier. But, if you have a lemon tree in your yard, use your fresh lemons! You can't beat the freshness of picking fruit off the tree!

Directions:

Throw all the ingredients into a big, tall glass -- everything to taste, stir and add ice cubes.

As easy and quick as opening a can of soda ... but better. Bottoms up!

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Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Extra Photos: Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany

Prince Leopold (age 6) and Prince Arthur (age 8) in a staged performance celebrating Leopold's birthday (1859)*.

Sometimes I am asked if it takes me a long time to write a blog entry. The answer: No ... not usually. I can write a post fairly fast. But. After it's written, I might refine it: Change a word, or words here and there for clarity. Add a word or sentence to make a paragraph punchy, or flow better, etc.

In editing a post, I frequently shorten the piece. I call the process, "killing your children." Sometimes I must delete phrases/sentences I really like. Initially, they sound brilliant, but after the piece is complete, there is no place for them. They slow down the fluidity, or just make the blog too long. So I go back and kill sentences ... delete ... gone!

When I wrote the last blog (on Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany) not only did I have to cut interesting facts, but pictures I love. I think it might be fun for readers to see a few.
Here is one I adore, but could find no information on when or why it was taken. Prince Leopold looks very Victorian, doesn't he? A Victorian man about town? Inquiring minds want to know! According to a student of British history, Leopold was dressed as his ancester, Charles I, for a costume ball. The Prince was known to have an liking for the Stuart kings, and he even named his son, Charles Edward, who was born posthumously.

I think the very top picture of Prince Leopold and Prince Arthur is adorable! Such cute little boys at such cute ages. Undoubtedly loved, but how could their mother, Queen Victoria, not find little Prince Leopold as darling as his older brother? I can't understand it!

Another photo I love, but didn't use in my post, is of Leopold's wife, Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont, in her gorgeous Parisian wedding gown (a gift from her older sister). It is made of white satin and decorated with orange blossom, myrtle and trimmed with fleur-de-lis.
Princess Helena wasn't considered a beauty; but I disagree. Certainly, she was a beautiful bride! I can imagine Leopold thinking so as she walked down the aisle of St. George's Chapel. Helena was intelligent and cultured, as well as, an ideal wife and mother, but in last week's blog, I cut much of her description after reminding myself that the blog was supposed to be about Prince Leopold. 

In vain, I spent lots of time trying to find a wedding photo of Leopold and Helena together as bride and groom. Unbelievably, none seems to exist! Can it be!?! So I was thrilled to find the bottom photos of the newly married couple driving in a carriage soon after their wedding (on April 27, 1882). In the 1st shot, Prince Leopold is standing giving a speech to well wishers.
So that's what blogging is. It's as much about what you delete and leave out as about what you write and leave in.
Leopold and Helen on their wedding day.
Periodically, my vexed mother would say, "There was a life before you, Mädchen!" and these images from Victorian England prove her right. We don't think about our great, great grandparents as being young once upon a time, do we? 
Generations depart ... and generations follow.

*Hand-coloured photograph of Prince Arthur and Prince Leopold in the costume of the sons of King Henry IV (1857), commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert (photograph by Leonida Caldesi). Royal Collection Trust. © HM Queen Elizabeth II 2020

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Remembering Prince Leopold, Duke Of Albany

Photo: Hilton Archives 1880
After reading biographies on Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, I moved onto one of their nine children.

According to historians, Prince Arthur (the 7th child) was Victoria's favorite son, while Prince Alfred ("Affie," the 4th child) was Prince Albert's. Without a doubt, my favorite of the sons is Prince Leopold (their 8th child), who was born on April 7, 1853.


Like her husband, Albert, Victoria loved all her children; and they loved her, but sometimes she was more monarch then mother. Once a private secretary recalled seeing a stampede of royal children fleeing her approach, shouting, "The Queen! The Queen!"

Photos taken: April 1, 1857. At 4 years old he handwrote a letter to his parents, signing it "From Dear Leopold." In another early letter, dictated to sister, Alice, he said, "Everything what I think, when I want to tell it, I forget it."*

She had a strong, domineering nature and a fiery temper, and she often tried to bend her sons and daughters to her will without considering their own temperaments, talents or desires. Such a dynamic was especially hard on her youngest son, Prince Leopold, and it caused periodic friction between mother and son. Furthermore, the stress likely took a toll on Leopold's health.
Prince Leopold with his older brother, Prince Arthur and with his beloved dog 
                 
Although Victoria knew Leopold was a clever child, why she was so critical and overlooked his many fine qualities is puzzling to a reader. She thought him a plain-looking child ... at one time calling him the ugliest of the brood and was annoyed by his posture, which as it turns out, was probably due to stiff joints. 

Prince Leopold had Albert's keen intelligence and aspiration to live a useful life. A polymath, he was a talented pianist and tenor singer. He could draw, as well as, tended his own gardens at Buckingham Palace and Osbourne. Leopold liked people (which was mutual); had his mother's feisty and sensible personality; and loved to travel to see the world when permitted to do so.

With his sister, Princess Louise, Leopold visited Canada and the United States in 1880. Even as a child he was a sympathetic listener, and as an adult became a "highly praised public speaker."*
With Queen Victoria in 1862 - Leopold was away in Cannes for his health when his father died. The 8 year old returned to a house in mourning. The life he knew before going away was gone.
Unfortunately, Prince Leopold inherited the condition of hemophilia B, so his blood was missing the plasma protein (Factor 9) that allows it to clot. Throughout his life, he had episodes of severe bleeding from bumps and injuries, sometimes lying him up unable to walk for months.* He also had extended periods of good health. It is striking how some of his more serious attacks (that included internal bleeding) followed emotional trauma with his mother; or occurred after the Queen blocked his path to jobs that Leopold could have done with aplomb.

Too often Victoria stifled Leopold, using his health as an excuse to keep him tied to her. But by nature, Leopold was perhaps the Queen's most independent child, and he resisted her attempts to keep him at home as an invalid. As author, Charlotte Zeepvat says, "Full of spirit, he resented his illness and wanted to fight against it."* He was smart, curious and needed to take on challenges outside of the castle. The Prince wanted to lead the life of a normal man of his class.

It is touching how his older brothers and sisters rallied for him. At one time or another, Vicky from Prussia, Bertie, Alice, Affie, Helena, Louise and Arthur all wrote letters to the Queen in support of something their younger brother wanted to pursue. Sometimes Victoria's other children and her prime ministers understood Leopold better than she did.

Only when Queen Victoria saw that her son wouldn't be put-off, did she allow him to attend Oxford University and earn an honorary degree in civil law. He thrived in his studies, despite his mother's habit of yanking him out of classes to accompany her to Balmoral.
At Oxford 1875: Photo taken by Lewis Carroll,  author of "Alice In Wonderland"
Attending Oxford University was one of the happiest periods of Prince Leopold's life. Throwing himself into university life, he studied a variety of subjects and joined a number of clubs. He loved going to concerts, operas and plays, liked actresses and met many artistic and literary elites in Victorian England. Some became lifelong friends.

Indeed, Prince Leopold stayed in touch with people from different stages of his life, from former nursery staff and old tutors to his Oxford friends. He also loved children and was a devoted uncle and godfather to his nieces and nephews, as well as, to the offspring of close friends, who named their sons, Leopold, in honor of him.
Sister Alice's daughter, Alix of Hesse, the future and last Empress of Russia with her Uncle Leopold in 1879.
Death touched him at an early age. At 8 years old the Prince lost his father and equerry on the same day, December 14, 1861 while the little boy was recuperating from illness in France. Years later, his sister, Alice's 2-year old son, Frittie (also a hemophiliac and Leopold's godson) died of a fall from a window. The child would have lived had he not had hemophilia. That death was followed by Alice's daughter, Marie (another godchild) from diphtheria and during the same period {1878}, by Alice, herself, also of diphtheria. At Oxford, a close friend and possibly Leopold's first love, Edith Liddell (the younger sister of Alice Liddell, who was the inspiration for "Alice In Wonderland") died young. Leopold was a pallbearer (which was then unusual for a prince).

After college, Queen Victoria thought her son should remain unmarried and at home with her. Off and on, Leopold acted as her unofficial private secretary, advising her on domestic and foreign policy. He grew to love foreign affairs, communicating with prime ministers Disraeli and Gladstone.

But Leopold had other hankerings. Not only did The Prince covet foreign appointments and peerages like his brothers, he longed for a wife and family of his own. He was a gentle, sensitive soul with qualities that would make him a loving husband. But due to his hemophilia and a suspicion (possibly false) of mild epilepsy, Leopold had trouble finding a bride. Over a two year search, several German princesses, plus an English heiress rejected him, and it was Queen Victoria (to her credit!) who had the idea of having him meet with Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont, whose German family made a favorable impression on Victoria a decade earlier.
Prince Leopold with Princess Helena and his first child, daughter Alice, named after his sister. His sister's widower, Louis of Hesse, was the Prince's best man and a godfather of Alice.

Luckily they hit it off ... marrying (7 months after meeting) on April 27, 1882. (It didn't hurt that they had two mutual contacts who praised Leopold to the German princess.) 

Helena (a/k/a Helen) was highly intelligent, warm, supportive, "full of fun and humor;"and they had a happy although all too brief marriage. Leopold delighted in fatherhood to daughter, Alice, born in February, 1883. They lived in a relaxed and comfortable home, Claremont House, that Leopold took pleasure in decorating. 

Their marriage "showed every sign of lasting and growing;"* and it breaks a reader's heart to learn that Leopold died on March 28, 1884 in Cannes, France after slipping on a tile floor and banging his knee. He went to Cannes (a warm climate) on doctor's orders to ease joint pain (a common malady with hemophiliacs) that was often brought on by the winters in the UK. Helen planned to go too, but pregnant with their second child, required bed rest. She urged Leopold to go (which he did on February 21), and they wrote each other every day. In his last letter (written before he fell asleep on March 27) he asked her to join him if she could. Helen, who knew of his fall, was arranging to send Alice (their toddler daugther) to keep her father company* when she received word the next afternoon.
Leopold had "cheated death so many times,"yet sadly not this last time. Sources speculate that the Prince died from the effects of morphine (administered to dull his pain) combined with a glass of claret (he was served with his dinner). Other sources say that by falling, he ruptured small veins in his head causing a cerebral hemorrhage, but the exact cause of death remains unclear. He had hurt his knee at 3:30 pm; was given morphine a couple of times in the evening. At about 2:00 am he had a seizure and died. Just 30 years old ... a promising life cut tragically short.

Robert Hawthorne Collins, a former tutor and close friend, wrote: "May we meet that gentle, loving boy again! I can think of nothing more joyful in the hereafter."

Always aware of his mortality, Prince Leopold had a "thirst for life."* When he befriended individuals he wanted to introduce them to all the people and places he loved. You can't help being charmed by him, rooting for him and having your heart broken by how much he had to overcome. Most of all, he is inspiring. Not always a healthy man, but a positive and kind person, who persevered to live a full life. (For more Prince Leopold photos go here and here.)
Princess Helena with daughter Alice and son Charles Edward, born on July 19, 1884, posthumously after Leopold's death. (Leopold got lucky with her, the right girl!)
To understand hemophilia, it helps to remember: Hemophiliacs don't bleed more than a normal person, but they bleed longer, missing the clotting factor.