Portable Coziness

Here on the eastern seaboard, we're expecting another round of "wintry mix"  and as soon as I hear that phrase, I immediately want to snuggle on the couch and sit in front of a roaring fire.

Image via TheAnimalBlog

Since I live in an apartment, and they frown on the lighting on fire of random things, I guess for now it's just daydreaming... or is it?

I found a few interesting takes on what a fireplace really is, and I have to say... they made me pretty excited! These are all bioethanol burning so you can have them in the house without a separate ventilation system for them.  I imagine they don't put out a ton of heat but they sure do look cozy.

First up, the Ponton Fireplace by Wolf Udo Wagner on Generate.

Its a little hard to get the scale here but I think its about the size of a small camp fire.  Plus, I *love* the glass and clean lines of this little guy.... not to mention its the most affordable of the bunch.

Next up is this one from Aktys that I found on digsdigs.

I love the muted black of this one and from the looks of it, you could hang it up on any wall without it being too intrusive.

Finally, my favorite of the bunch is this one by Swedish designer Fredrik Hylten-Cavallius.  

Practically demands snuggling... 

From the looks of his website, this was his master's thesis project.  I don't see any ordering information but I'd be all over that if I could.  Plus, it's named after Danish architect and mathematician Piet Hein, the best of the Danish architects!  What more could you ask for?  Seriously - i want this!

Oops!

I just realized my last post had no pictures in it... just words.  And who cares about words, am I right?

So here's a link to a fun slideshow of winter-proof clothing from Refinery 29.

We're going to be dealing with this weather for at least another month so we might as well be cozy doing it!

Winter Weather Weekend!

Happy Friday!

I woke up this morning to the slightest dusting of snow and that feeling that there is more to come.  Sure enough, I looked at the weather report for the weekend and we should get more of my favorite type of precipitation.  Whenever I talk about my love for snow, and winter weather in general, people either look at me like I'm a lunatic or simply shrug and wish for summer.

I'm not sure where this love of all things winter comes from... I'm not good at winter sports, I hate digging my car out and I'm always cold but in spite of all that I'd take winter a million times over a humid, sticky summer.

Plus, everything is beautiful in the snow.  Architectural Digest has an amazing slideshow of ski town digs.  Can't you just imagine sitting in this living room with a cup of coffee watching the flakes tumble gently to the ground?

Photo via www.architecturaldigest.com

So! Fingers crossed for a lovely, relaxing snowy weekend.

Smooth as a Baby's Bottom

Something you should not do at work - google image search for baby's bottom.
Moving on!

I have always felt pretty lucky to have the skin I'm in.  I don't generally fight with blemishes, never had acne, and don't always need to wear foundation or concealer. But lately I have noticed that my skin is looking a little dull (and wrinkly...ugh.)  Probably due to the fact that we're in the throws of winter here in Baltimore and the dry air coming out of our heater is almost constantly flowing.

Whenever my skin starts to feel this way, I immediately turn to Kiehl's.  They always have something that will fix whatever ails my epidermis.  Lately, I've been in LOVE with their Epidermal Re-Texturizing Micro-Dermabrasion.

I know, it's a mouthful... but it's not nearly as scary as it sounds.  It's a sandy white paste that you rub on your clean face for about 30 seconds and you come out of the shower with a fabulous post-facial glow.  I swear I used this the other day and someone told me they liked my new foundation.  First of all, I wasn't wearing foundation but secondly... I've never gotten a compliment on foundation before in my life so my skin must have been pretty impressive looking that day!  Not to mention the fact that their stores are so fun, and their lovely salespeople will let you test just about anything without looking at all irritated.  PLUS when you order something from their website, you get to pick out three free samples!  I'm sold.