Books This Week 17

Absolutely perfect weather to curl up with a book in my city this week. And I made the most of it

Pretty Girls- Karin Slaughter

Last week I thought Career of Evil was gory. But this book takes the cake. By far, it's the goriest book I've ever read. I should have known when the author's last name is "slaughter"! The storyline is fabulous though. The protagonist( I like to think of Claire as the protagonist though Lydia has an equal share of storytelling) comes across as really dimwitted, especially in the beginning. I think this has been done intentionally so that we can appreciate the transformation she undergoes towards the end. I cannot tell more without spoilers. Go for it. I really enjoyed reading it.

365 Style- Nicky Hilton

Loved this one. The central theme of the book is that we constantly dress for 3 occasions in our life. And we only need 6 outfits & 5 accessories to complete the look. I love this minimalistic approach to wardrobe as I think we have way too much. I like the fact that she breaks down the 3-6-5s for every season. You can simply replace one item with another if it doesn't suit you. There are other sections too like 5 can't do without items, fashion advice from her mom, cleaning up etc. Good stuff.

How to be a Parisian wherever you are

This is co- written by 4 -5 women, none of whom I've heard of before. This has got to be the strangest book I've ever read. It's full of contradictory advice & I simply don't see why they bothered to write at all. Some parts are fun but that's not enough to hold my interest. Passable.

Scandalous Housewives of Mumbai- Madhuri Bannerjee

Oh Dear God! Wannabe desperate housewives. This is one tacky book with things either black or white. There are no greys. All the housewives have primitive thought processes but tend to dress in shorts & dresses. Don't even bother.

The Double Comfort Safari Club- Alexander McCall Smith

Oh how I love this series! Now that I'm almost at the fag end of the series, I'm actually rationing these books. Thoroughly enjoyed this. I love the simple storytelling in this entire series.

That's all for this week. Cheers.

My Very Own Box- Indulgences

It's my Birthday month & I can't wait. This month's box will be made up of my favourite indulgences- chocolate, coffee & wine. In that order

Nature's Essence Choco Facial Kit

INR 150 for 42 gm

I wanted to try this from a long time. With the weather finally cooling, I think I can use this next.

Silkberry Time Control Facial Massage Cream- Cocoa & Chocolate

INR 270 for 250 gm

This one smells exactly like Khadi Chocolate Body Butter & is pretty rich. I'll be using it as a hand cream once my current hand cream finishes.

Aloe Veda Chocolate Vanilla Luxury Shower Gel

INR 180 for 300 ml

Smells absolutely divine. A little goes a long way, sadly the smell is not long lasting. Perfect for the colder weather.

Asta Berry Wine Facial Kit

INR 200 for 52 gm

Another one on my list from a long time. Loving these facial kits so much. Bye bye salons!

Nilgiri Aroma's Shea Butter Coffee Face Scrub

INR 150 for 100 gm

Picked this up from Coorg while on a holiday. Total impulse buy. It doesn't smell like true coffee but is pretty close. This is by far the creamiest scrub I've ever used. It has actual coffee particles floating around & I love it.

That's it for now. What are your indulgences?

Resolutions

Nothing makes me more aware of the passing nature of time like the passing of a birthday. I'm happy as ever to celebrate but it also makes me realize that time ain't coming back & it's NEVER going to get less busy. So Carpe Diem- Seize the day- & live your best life now. After all, Kal Ho Na Ho.

I always make resolutions around my birthday & not new year like most people. Somehow I feel it's more personal this way & you are not doing it just for the heck of it. I'm only writing my beauty & general well-being resolutions for obvious reasons. Here goes

Get More Fit

I was so happy to lose my post pregnancy weight & so easily at that, that I didn't realize I was still eating for two. Somewhere along the way I started making more & more unhealthy choices. And the result is plain to see. I'm still not what is considered overweight but I'm sick of the fat rolls around my stomach & my butt seems to be 2 sizes bigger- just like that! And I'm plain tired of wearing leggings & jeggings every- freaking- where. They are so forgiving that you don't even realize immediately if you are putting on weight.

I want to start exercising again, not just to lose weight but so I get more fit. I hardly seem to have any stamina these days & get tired easily. Since it's been over 3 years since I stopped exercising, I started with walking. I don't have a fixed schedule but I walk a couple of kilometers every other day. It's made my joints more limber & it's amazing how fast the body remembers. I used to love walking before- it was my me- time. I have also started exercising at home but it's an uphill task. I can barely do 4 reps of what I could easily do 20 earlier. No matter. I will get there.

Stop Saving Things

We have all been there. Saving that gorgeous dress for a more special event in the future; not using that super expensive lipstick often; not even using that amazing serum which works wonders- you get my drift. We are perpetually saving things for a more special day forgetting that everyday is special. I'm guilty of this too- I would never use new makeup for practising looks assuming I would waste product! That's rich coming from someone who has never finished a single makeup item.
I want to utilize everything that I have on a regular basis. Hell with special occasions! What could be more special than being alive & healthy?

Experiment More With Makeup

Of late, I gravitate towards my standard look ALL THE TIME. I have my 5 minutes look & 10 minutes look & don't go beyond that. I didn't even try strobing when it was all over the place. Time to be more adventurous- especially with my eye makeup.

Start a Good Skincare Regime

I do have a basic routine in place but I think it's time to up the ante. My routine is either super elaborate or almost nothing- I want to strike a balance.  I also want to start using retinol creams.

Do The Fun Things on your To -Do List

Somehow only the important stuff gets done. We don't seem to make time for reading the books we want to read or the movies we want to see or even the friends we want to meet. I've a huge pile of movies that I've been meaning to see but never got around to. Want to make time for about 2 movies per month.

Join the 6 a.m. Club

As you have probably guessed, this is a spin- off of Robin Sharma's popular 5 a.m. Club. I simply can't do with that less sleep so I've moved the waking up time to 6. I especially love the peace & quiet at that hour & honestly,  I would get nothing done if I didn't wake up early. I may eventually move it up to 5 a.m. but currently it's firmly at 6.

I may add more resolutions eventually but I feel these are plenty. I don't do too well when I have too many balls in the air. Cheers.

May Empties

Hello people, it's been about 2 years since I started doing empties & more than a year since I started posting them here. My stash is visibly reducing & I couldn't be happier. Let's start

Liquid Neutrogena Pure Mild Facial Cleanser

INR 299 for 150 ml

I HATE the way this smells but it works decently. No repurchase.

Balaji's Neem Herbal Powder

INR 28 for 100 gm

Had bought a lot of these powders to make a homemade ubtan. More than half the packet was left over which I used to wash my face alongwith besan. Good enough. Maybe I'll buy again after I finish some more powders that I have.

Balaji's Orange Peel Powder

INR 24 for 100 gm

I love the smell of orange & picked this up for the abovementioned ubtan. Totally stinks. Whatever the benefits maybe I'm not repurchasing again.

Balaji's Chandan Powder

INR 30 for 100 gm

One more thing I picked up for my ubtan. Smells lovely. Wouldn't mind buying again.

Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Moisturizing Shampoo

INR 205 for 300 ml

I loved it when I first started using it. By the end of the bottle, I couldn't wait to get rid of it. No repurchase.

Sunsilk Natural Recharge Conditioner

INR 64 for 80 ml

I rarely use conditioner on my hair. I prefer leave- in conditioners & that is why this took so long to finish. Smells exactly like the shampoo. No repurchase.

Streax Perfumed Body Mist- Refreshing Oriental Blossom

INR 120 for 100 ml

I had bought 3 of these a while back. Bad move for someone who uses perfume almost everyday. Deciding to get rid of them, I used this every single day instead of my roll- on deodorant. Not a wise choice in summers as the smell disappears in 3-4 hours. Sigh! 2 more to go.

V Color Nail Polish Remover Pad- Grapes flavoured

INR 45 for 40 wipes

Smells nice & was very effective in the beginning. I could remove polish from all 10 nails with a single wipe. It dries out super fast even though I kept it open for as less time as possible. After a while, I needed more wipes to clean the same number of nails. And more until it dried out completely. About 15 wipes are unused. Still have 2 more of these.

Happiness is .... finishing multiple products on the same day. Cheers.

Books This Week 16

Hello all, I haven't done this series in a while. Let's get straight to it

Career of Evil- Robert Galbraith

I was looking forward to reading this book as I loved the last book in this series. Cormoran Strike returns to solve another gripping mystery. A murderer is on the prowl, who likes to collect body parts of victims as trophies. And he has his sights on Cormoran's assistant Robin. As thrilling as it was to read, it was also quite gory. I simply couldn't shake a few images from my mind. Quite good but still doesn't come close to my beloved "Silkworm" from the same series.

Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic -Jennifer Scott

The final book in this series. I didn't particularly love the last book in this series but as you can probably tell by now, I simply don't leave any book series unfinished. There isn't much that's new in this book & I simply didn't take a shine to it.

Get Positively Beautiful- Carmindy

What an upbeat book! Generally beauty books focus on what is lacking & how to solve the same. I like the fact that the author keeps giving positive reinforcements throughout the book. She works as a beauty expert on TLC's show What Not to Wear. I simply love this book. I also loved her pictures throughout the book.

He Won't Need it Now- James Hadley Chase

I was feeling very nostalgic just picking up this book. This was one of the first thriller/mystery authors I started reading. It's typical James Hadley Chase with enough plot twists to keep me happy. The title kind of gives away the ending but it's a good book nevertheless.

500 Nail Designs- Chelsea Franklin

Picked this up purely on whim. I don't see the point of this book. True to the title, it is made up of 500 nail art designs but a LOT of it is repeated with just different colours. Also, there is absolutely no explanation on how to go about doing the design. Unless you have been living under a rock with no internet,  you would have seen at least a few of these designs on YouTube in much more detail. Not worth it.

What have you been reading?