The Finer Side of Life

I am obsessed with the FOX show, Bones.  I love the dynamic between Brennan and Booth.  I love Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz's chemistry.  But since Season 2, I mostly love the wardrobe of the female characters.  Brennan, Angela, and Cam all have their distinct styles and I love them all.  I especially adored this dress that Michaela Conlin's character wore in the Season 4 finale.

Imagine my delight when, just today, I get my usual sale alerts in my inbox, and I spot this dress!  It turns out that it is a Marc by Marc Jacobs Crosstown Jacquard Zipper Front Dress from last season.  It's on sale right now at Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, and Bloomingdales.  But no store has my size.  That's probably just as well, because if it did come in my size, I would probably not hesitate to drop the $200 on it.  But it was originally $428.  That's a steal! (ish)

MARC by Marc Jacobs Crosstown Sleeveless Dress

$428.00$214.00 by Marc by Marc Jacobs at Bergdorf Goodman

In recent years, there's been a movement spreading awareness regarding the importance of wearing sunscreen all year long, even on cloudy days.  But I have never gotten a clear answer on the effects of layering SPF products.  I frequently use a moisturizer/sunscreen that has SPF 15 or 30 in it, then foundation that usually has SPF 15 or 20 in it.  Does this mean I actually have the protection of the sum of the two SPFs?

The answer is no.  SPF protection does not depend on how many layers you have on.  Rather, the key to protecting your skin from the sun is how often you reapply.  According to the National Agricultural Safety Database, if you apply two layers of SPF 10 sunscreen, you still have the protection of only SPF 10.  You should apply sunscreen 20-30 minutes prior to going outside so that the sunscreen has time to penetrate your skin and protect your cells.  Make sure you use extra protection for your lips because there is less natural protection for them through melanin.

Remember to reapply sunscreen every 2 hours.  I always find it annoying to reapply on my face because slathering on more sunscreen totally ruins my makeup, but I like using pressed or loose powder that contains SPF 15 or 20 because it is such an easy way to freshen up makeup and protect my skin!

Furthermore, higher SPF doesn't necessarily mean better protection.  According to a skin care expert blogging for Beauty Snob, SPF 15 for normal skin and SPF 30 for sensitive skin will usually suffice.  SPF 30 only offers less than 4% more protection than SPF 15.  And SPF 45 offers only 2% more protection than SPF 30.  I am such a sucker for the really high SPFs though.  But even I think SPF 100 is pretty ridiculous.  In fact, a high SPF lures me into a sense of false security, and I end up forgetting to reapply, figuring that I'm well-protected.  So perhaps I should just stick with SPF 30!

I don't usually like Diane Kruger, but I fell in love with what she wore to the Sydney premiere of Inglourious Basterds.  I love red.  I love one-shoulder mini-dresses.  This Marchesa dress from the Resort 2010 collection is the perfect combination of the two.  I love how gorgeous it drapes, but also how structured and architectural it is.  It looks like the Roland Mouret-inspired version of Marchesa.

I don't even want to know how much this dress is, which means if I have to ask, then I can't afford it.  But that doesn't mean there aren't other really pretty red, one-shoulder dresses out there!  This one is probably my favorite substitute.

The bottom half of this dress isn't nearly as gorgeous as the Marchesa, but I do love the neckline.  For a fraction of the price, it's probably worth the sacrifice!

Carmen Marc Valvo red sateen patent belted cocktail dress

I recently watched an episode from the PBS miniseries Spain...On the Road Again.  It's a food/travel documentary of chef Mario Batali & co. as they eat their way through Spain.  One of the dishes I really want to try from the 3rd episode is pulpo gallego, which is made with Galician octopus.  The Galician octopus is just a giant octopus with giant tentacles, which is my favorite part.

The show takes you to Abadía da Cova, a winery about 25 miles east of Galicia, in northwestern Spain.  The local chef there shows you how to make incredibly tender and delicate octopus.

2.  After the foam covers the water, leave it on a low heat for 5 minutes to slow cook, then turn it off, and the heat that it has created will cook the octupus for the rest of the time.  Once the water comes to a boil, it takes about 45 minutes.  This is the key to tender octopus, something even Mario didn't know!

3.  Once you take out the octopus, cut the tentacles with scissors.

4.  Finally, sprinkle salt and picante on top, finish off with a little olive oil, and voila!

It looks so gorgeous.  At the winery, the chef used  an olive oil can that looks like it came out of the Wizard of Oz.

Yum!  That looks absolutely amazing.  The show can be a little slow at times while the people converse among themselves (and I'm not sure why the camera is still on), but overall, there are some great recipes and really gorgeous scenery.  I'm off to figure out when I can go to Spain just to try this dish, along with many others!

When my friend came to visit me recently, she introduced me to the Youtube beauty guru, Michelle Phan.  The first video I watched was advice on how to stretch tight shoes.  I had the perfect opportunity to try it out when I wore shoes that pinched my pinky toe to a summer barbeque.  I have wide feet, but still, I couldn't resist these Betsey Johnsons  that were probably made for narrower feet when I saw them on sale!  To stretch them, follow these four easy steps:

1.  Fill a small bag with water. Instead of sandwich bags, I just used thin grocery bags.

2.  Place the bag into the shoes. You may want to put the bag into the shoes before knotting the opening because I had to adjust the water level in the bag to accommodate the shoes.  I needed the pinky toe area to stretch the most, so I tried to move the bulky part of the bag (with the most water) to the area where I want to stretch the most.

3.  Freeze the shoes overnight.

4.  Put the shoes in the sink, and let the ice melt.

This technique worked well, with a few caveats.  (1) In the video, she says that you can stretch shoes by at least half a size.  I did not find this to be true.  I think this is technique is best for when you buy shoes in the right size, but it runs small.  Even so, you don't want to get it the next size up because it'll eventually stretch the more you wear it, and there is nothing more I hate than wearing loose shoes.  (2) It took my shoes almost 2 days to dry and for it to not feel like ice when I put it on.  Give yourself at least 4 or 5 days if you want to wear the shoes to an event.  (3) I wouldn't try this technique on closed-toe pumps or very high-quality leather.  The material of the upper on my shoes appeared fine, but it wasn't leather, and I imagine it can't be good to freeze really soft leather.

For now though, I'm happy with this.  Can't wait to go out on the town with these babies again!  So don't despair if you have to stretch tight shoes...

Welcome to my new blog, The Finer Side of Life!  I am a long-time reader of the Sugar blogs and many, many other similar blogs.  The ones I love range from beauty, style, fitness, vegan foods and recipes, traveling, work-life balance, news, finances, and yes, even celebrity gossip.  I love going to my Google reader and seeing all these new posts.  It got to the point where I am commenting (or I want to comment) on so many things that I thought, why not create my own space?  I am about to enter into basically a desk job in a male-dominated and old-fashioned profession, but I am a girly girl at heart.  This is where I indulge my whimsical thoughts related to all of my interests (translation: everything that is unrelated to my job), and I hope you will come along for the ride.  My current plan is to post a lot of reviews, suggestions, tips, and obsession of the moment.  My favorite part will be chronicling my purchases.  That will make my purchases all the more exciting.  Let the guilty pleasures begin!

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