Guess Who Found Her Camera?

Gah, you're good! You should come with me to Las Vegas this afternoon! You can use one of my cameras.

Yep, when I was cleaning out my car for the trip to Vegas I found it. The camera had slid under the driver's seat. And I swear looked for it there too. It must have gotten caught under the rug. Hmmm. Now I have a decision to make. I can actually return the new camera I purchased. I have about 26 more days to think it over. I do like the camera and can see a difference in the picture quality between the two cameras. Like I said, I'll think it over.

In other news, here is my NOTD! Trying to get back into the swing of things.

Essie's Mesmerized

I swear, ever since Essie moved out of salons and into my drugstores, I feel like the formula has greatly improved! More daring and unique colors (because I love ballerina pink as much as the next girl, but come on - how many shaded of ballerina pink does one nail polish line need?)

That is it for now. As I mentioned, I am going to Las Vegas later today and the first stop on this list is The Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace! YAY! I'm so excited! I can't wait to have my first experience with Inglot! I've got quite a chunk of money set aside for that!

I'll share it with you when I get back!

Guess Who Got a New Camera?

Good guess!

I got the camera I was whining about! I actually almost repurchased my lost/damaged camera because Best Buy was clearing them out (I guess they are discontinued now because they were sitting right next to the Flip cameras, also on super clearance.) The clearance price was $100 cheaper than the new camera I purchased, but due to the truly stellar salesmanship skills of the employee who helped me, I purchased the Canon PowerShot ELPH 300HS camera. I am indeed happy with this purchase. Over the duration of the past year I have learned that there is more to the the performance of a camera than the number of mega pixels. I am enjoying the wide angle lens quite a bit on this new camera, even though most of my point and shoot camera pictures are use with the macro setting. Like this picture:

China Glaze Crushed Candy (crackle) over Zoya's Kelley.

This is picture is not actually taken with the macro setting due to the heinous quality of my cuticles and manicure right now. It was late, I needed something on my nails, and this is the first paint that has been on my nails since the last time I posted a NOTD picture on this blog. Plus I wanted to prove to you that I had a new camera with this picture.

The bottle I am holding is MiO Liquid Water Enhancer in Fruit Punch. Having this stuff on hand makes water consumption a breeze! I love this stuff. I have tried all the flavors and I think Fruit Punch is my favorite flavor tasting the least artificial. These are zero calorie so they have some artificial sweeteners in the (but some natural ones too) that I usually try to stay away from. But while I am trying to lose weight, this is a little excitement in an otherwise calm diet.

Speaking of the diet, erm...I wish I hasn't mentioned it now, LOL! On Sunday morning I was ONE POUND away from a total 20 lost. However, after yesterday's birthday party (my sister is turning 21) that number is closer to 4.3 pounds away from 20. :-( I have about 4 days to reverse that number to make my goal for Las Vegas. I'm going to the gym this afternoon for a hard core workout. Today is my sister's actual birthday, so the family is going out for drinks at a local Mexican restaurant for Margarita Monday. Maybe I will limit myself to one...hopefully.

On a somewhat happier note, I did a littler retail damage at Lane Bryant. I was able to buy two pairs of jeans in a smaller size! Yay!. But I didn't buy any smaller tops yet. If I am going to go down one jean size, I need some forgiveness with the shirts. If you have ever suffered from a muffin top, you'll understand what I mean. Anyway, everything I bought was on sale or clearance, plus I have $50 to spend in free money AND $25 off a $75 purchase. I bought lots of lovely things! The best score was a pair of Seven7 Cropped Jeans originally $70, on clearance for $20! I tell you the best time to hit Lane Bryant is in the changing of the seasons collections. All the new stuff comes in and all the old (like 2-3 months old) stuff goes on super sale to clear it out of there. So the next time you get a catalog in the mail with the new collections (for any store) go shopping ASAP to swoop in on last season's collection!

Lastly, I will leave you with long overdue FO pictures of some socks I knitted.

These are Monkey by the well known sock pattern writter, Cookie A. Super easy, and very rewarding pattern for such an uncomplicated pattern. This is Cherry Tree Hill Super Sock SemiSolids in Mango. Although when I started knitting with this yarn it reminded me more of Muenster cheese rather than mangoes. The second picture is more color accurate.

And here is a picture of my newest sock:

The pattern is called Nine-to-Five (Ravelry Link) with a nifty faux cable stitch. Though the stitch isn't easy to maneuver, though the Signature Needle Arts DPNS make it infinitely easier, it is still way easier than making a traditional cable. These socks are for my Oma, the only one who wears my knitted socks. So far she's received a self-striping stockinette pair, a gansey patterned pair, and now for Christmas she will receive a cabled pair. Last on the list will be lace, but something tells me she won't go in for the lace. Too much of a chance for wearing through.

The yarn is Madeline Tosh Sock (my current FAVORITE yarn) in the colorway Calligraphy. At first look it seems like a greige (gray/beige) color, Oma's favorite, but once knitted it has subtle shadow pooling, showing tones of lavendars, washed out gunmetals, and sweet peachy pinks. That is the beauty of Madeline Tosh, the colorways are so complex, but in the most sophisticated ways. No clown barf colorways to be found. And with names like Earl Grey, Malachite, and Fjord, the company takes luxury knitting to a new level!

Ta-ta for now!

I Have an Addictive Personality

I know I do. Thank God I have always been too scared to try any drugs (save for alcohol...and though I indulge occasionally, it puts me to sleep more than gives me a high) or else I would probably be on the streets doing...never mind.

The reason why I felt compelled to comment on this is because I am close, so close, to losing a total of 20 pounds. The last time I lost this much weight was in high school, preparing for prom, trying to squeeze down into a smaller dress size. And even then I am not sure I made it to 20 pounds.

I have been exercising (at least twice a week...I wish it was more) and I have been really limiting my calories. I have become addicted to watching the numbers on the scale drop. And I know there are things I am doing that are not healthiest (I've taken up smoking....just kidding!) like skipping breakfast and just having a couple cups of black coffee in it's place (I've always had the black coffee, I just used to eat some buttered toast, or croissants, or breakfast burrito too.) I know that is bad for my metabolism, but I figure there are other things I am doing to help my metabolism, like the exercising and strength training.

And as for my other meals, I am really trying to stick to vegetables. I am lucky to find inspiration everywhere these days. The Youtube vlogger, ShayCarl, has been doing weight loss vlogs on his Shayloss channel. Misschievous.tv has been doing healthy eating and weight loss updates on her TheThirdShift Youtube channel. In fact, I have fallen quite in love with her bean salad and always have it on hand as my "go to" food to eat whenever I get hungry. Aside from the olive oil in the dressing, it has no fat and tons of fiber.

Oh, and another thing too is that my best friend recently became a vegetarian (and an environmental nut, erm, advocate.) She makes me want to be a better person. I have no (NONE) intentions of becoming a vegetarian, but it did prompt me to add more veggies and beans to my diet.

Anyway, I know this kind of stuff is not originally what the blog started out regarding subject matter, but I did want to meet my goal of a post once a week. I intend to keep up the at least once a week posts, even if the subject matter goes a little off topic (because staying on top of weight control is definitely NOT one of the things I enjoy about being a girl.)

I think I am getting a salon (not DIY or DYM) pedicure this afternoon! Maybe I'll post a picture of that on Saturday because I think that is when I am getting my new camera! Talk about fate! I went into Best Buy to get the camera I was interested in. Because of some advertised pricing issues, I didn't end up getting the camera last Friday. Then I started to rethink my purchase entirely...maybe I didn't need another point and shoot. Maybe my DSLR would be good enough. But then my favorite vlogger ShayCarl posted a vlog in beautiful 1080i quality. He recently purchased a new camera (as a rule, he and his family films with Flip cameras) and was testing out the quality. It turned out beautiful, so he said he will be switching cameras. He didn't mention the brand or the kind of camera he purchased. I just kind of assumed it would be a traditional video camera. BUT, he filmed himself in a mirror and he was holding the camera close enough for me to read the make and model of his new camera. WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT!!!! It was the EXACT SAME CAMERA I was going to buy! I take signs like that very seriously. I am going on Saturday to BUY THAT CAMERA, PRICE BE DAMNED!

:-)

THIS IS GOING TO BE A BITTER RANT...

...about my horrible friggen track record with point and shoot digital cameras. I really cannot tell you how many I have owned. Far too many for me to keep track. I think my very first post (OK, the second) for this blog was regarding a new camera purchase to replace my old camera purchase. Well folks, it seems to be that time again.

ARARARAAAAHAAHHHHGGGGGGGHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

If it isn't cracking the screen, or spilling a soda on it, or simply losing it, it's gotta be something!!!

This time it was a combination of numbers 1 and 3.

On the Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS I'll admit, I was careless. I use my camera so much (yeah, I know you wouldn't know for the lack of pictures posted to this blog. I'll kindly thank you to shut your mouth.) I let it roll around my purse without it's case and I cracked the glass on the screen. However, I did not damage the working parts under the LCD screen and it still showed the pictures just fine. I carefully hand cut a piece of tape to fit over the crack in the glass (it was only on the lower right corner) and the camera was absolutely fine. In fact, I just used it to post pictures to my Flickr account with my newest finished objects for Ravlery.

I had to remove the SD card from the camera to put the SD card into my laptop's card reader. Fine, we're good. Then I remember taking the camera with me to take a picture of something at work - OF COURSE forgetting the SD card in my laptop. So I knew I wouldn't be taking any pictures that day. But I also didn't know that I would be losing the camera that day either. I remember shoving it into my jeans pocket and then...never seeing it again. Dang it if it didn't fall out of my pocket at some point.

Lame. Really lame.

So I have been on the hunt for a new point and shoot. I love Canon cameras (although, maybe there is a curse that comes with them...) and since Circuit City is extinct, my only in-store option these days is Best Buy (or maybe Sears.) I've read some positive reviews on this camera and think that this will be my next purchase. I love large LCDs, and the fact that it shoots 1080p HD quality videos. The HD video quality is important because one day I will make videos on Youtube and it will make me rich...

It's nuts: I have losing cameras...but I love buying new ones. I can't pinpoint why it gives me such a thrill.

I need to get my hands on this one within the next few weeks because my sister is having her 21st birthday party in a weekend trip to Las Vegas. And though I love my DSLR and probably will still take it with me, it is just not practical for those candid moments that I want to capture.

Well it's been just over a year, but I must presume you dead Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS even though your status is officially MIA. Out with the old, in with the new.

Who knows, maybe when I get a new camera the posts will even improve!

Fitness and Weekend Update

Hey ya'll! I have to admit, sometimes I don't know what to post. And I am already a little late meeting my challenge this week :-/ Sahrry.

I thought I'd give a little weightloss/fitness update. So far I am down 12.4 pounds. I have been slaking off a bit, but I am recharged and ready for a fresh Monday start! I skipped every single regular gym day last week which explains the stall and minute backslide on the scale. I have a goal to meet. I agreed with my sister that I would lose 20 pounds before we head to Vegas for a weekend 21st birthday celebration for her. I have about 3 weeks left to crank up the disciplined eating and physical activities. I know I can meet this goal if I really try.

FYI, my sister wants to lose 20 pounds too. She won't meet that goal, though she did lose a bit a weight before her vacation. She'll probably put that lost weight back on during her vacation (don't we all put on weight on vacation?) but she might lost anywhere from 5 to 10 pounds before we head off to Vegas. My mother tells me I look thinner, and I can definitely tell it in my clothes, but the weight isn't coming off in the places I would like (LOL, it never does). But my arms are starting to look thinner, which is great because I definitely like to rock sleeveless styles in my wardrobe.

But enough about the weightloss...

For more fun stuff, I went to an outlet mall this weekend. There is one in Carlsbad, CA (near San Diego) and I showed AMAZING self control. I am trying to hang onto any superfluous funds right now so I have a little money to play with in Las Vegas and so that I can afford my spinning wheel when it is ready to ship (sometime in mid to late August.) Oh, you didn't know I spin fiber (wool, silk, mohair, etc) into yarn? Well, that's whole different post for another time...

At the outlet I saw lots and lots of goodies that I REALLY wanted to buy. But I mad a deal with myself: look through all the stores first, without buying anything, then go back and make the rounds on things you still want to buy. I am glad I did because every time I went into a cosmetics company store, I had a handful of items I wanted to buy before I got to the back of the store! But I kept telling myself "Self, you have so much makeup as it is. You work hard for your money! Does a new makeup item similar to something you already have really make you that happy?" Plus, before we arrived at the outlet I told my mom that every time I took out my wallet to buy something to whisper into my ear, "but, I thought you wanted that new spinning wheel?" Boy, that worked! Eyes on the prize, Ashley!

I did end up making a few purchases based on pseudo-need and an insanely good deals on something that I would have gladly paid full price. I splurged on a pair of Coach sunglasses. Buying designer sunglasses always scares me a bit. It is only a matter of time before I scratch ANY pair of sunglasses I own - cheap or designer. I had a penchant for Ed Hardy sunglasses (please, keep the poser/douche comments to yourself - I LIKE THINGS THAT SPARKLE!) but my current pair, aside from being a little scratched, pinches my head behind me ears pretty badly. I am the one who always drives everywhere and I find that a workhorse pair of sunglasses is a necessity. When my sunglasses pinch, it bugs me. I drive long commutes sometimes and the pinching gets to be a pain. The particular pair of sunglasses I picked out are much lower profile (I usually opt for huge Jackie O sunglasses) and were a very comfortable fit. Considering that the sunglasses only rang up to $67.00 with tax, I thought I did fairly well. I would have paid more for a pair of Ed Hardys or Michael Kors. Now I just have to work up the guts to wear them, LOL! J/K!

The other purchase I made was a Khiel's packaged set of facial creams and treatments. I have been eyeing Khiel's for a long time - particularly the facial cream and avocado eye cream. I saw that they had two boxed sets with these creams. The other items in the sets were a facial oil (I have extremely oily skin and applying more oil to it freaks me out) and the other product was a wrinkle treatment. I couldn't decide which I wanted to try, so I marched up the the checkout counter and told the sales person I wanted to buy whichever set was cheaper. The set with the wrinkle treatment was $30 cheaper, so that's what I bought! The cheaper set did contain a trial sized facial oil, so I can still give it a go! I am really happy about the find because I would have gladly paid full price for those Khiel's items a la carte, and I was planning to when I made my trip out to Las Vegas. Major score!

So I passed up the Bobbi Brown color corrector, concealer, and shimmer brick for Coach and Khiel's. I'm happy I kept the spending down because I do really want that spinning wheel!

Thanks for reading. I have misplaced my point and shoot camera and would like to provide ya'll with pictures. I gotta find that freakin' camera!!!