Spin pins

I've been wanting spin pins for forever, but as soon as I saw them at Target I was disappointed. $7?? For two large twisted bobby pins? Come on. So I debated, I picked them up and put them back many a time, until I finally just bought them. 

My mother has had success with them and I have been loving my modern updo pin so I decided to go ahead and get them. 

So glad I did! These pins are my new favorite toy! They hold my hair very well, and keep the shape of a bun much better than a hair tie and bobby pins do (in my hair at least).

Kind of hard to explain how it works with words, but basically you make a bun out of your hair and spin the pins in clockwise at the base of the bun, from opposite sides (my favorite part of the tool is how easily it comes out, all it takes is a few counter-clockwise spins and it's free). 

For a better visualization, this video includes the spin pin until 0:25 seconds.

The Oscars

Had a wonderful evening at an Oscars party hosted by two good friends, Jodye and Kelsey. They are fantastic hostesses with some of the most delicious party food I've ever had. They themed their food to all of the nominees for best picture (pigs in a blanket for Moneyball, croissants for Midnight in Paris, sugar cookie clocks for Hugo, etc.). I wish I had taken pictures!

{photo}

Enjoyed a night spent comparing all of our ballots to the actual winners (I did pretty poorly this year), and I really wish I had seen more of the nominees! I had seen The Descendants, Midnight in Paris, and The Help from the Best Picture category, but I gather that I now must see Hugo and The Artist! Nice end to the weekend.

Zucchini orzo

Mmmm....orzo! I love love love orzo, so when I found this recipe, I had to try it. I modified it though, and ate it warm not chilled, so here is how it went:

• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3/4 cup orzo
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons thinly sliced onion
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons feta cheese

I cooked the orzo, which only took about nine minutes. Then I cooked the zucchini and onions on medium heat with the tablespoon of oil, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Once browned, I added this to the orzo (still warm), and added the feta cheese. I topped it all with more salt and pepper, and olive oil and vinegar. This may be one of my favorite recipes so far!

{Sorry about the crappy cell phone pic!}

Braid up to a bun

This has been a double-test week for me, so I've been rocking the un-straightened, un-curled hair. In order to avoid just a simple ponytail over and over, I have turned to this!

I started by dividing my hair in half (top and bottom). I took the bottom half and French-braided it, starting from the bottom and working up.

I made a bun with the top half,

and wrapped the braid around the bun.

Voila!

Quinoa-stuffed acorn squash

Wanted to share my dinner tonight, because I know I can't be the only one who is always looking for ways to make quinoa more flavorful. 

This is quinoa-stuffed acorn squash, will feta cheese, oregano, salt and pepper. Yum! I baked the acorn squash (sliced in half) for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then added quinoa cooked in vegetable broth. I mixed in the feta, oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper (all to taste). Pretty flavorful meal for considerably little effort!

New flakie polish

As you can probably tell, I have a bit of an obsession with nail polish. Although I have many polishes, I didn't have a flakie until now! A flakie is a nail polish with irregularly shaped flakes in it, which makes for some pretty cool effects.

This is the one I got, from essie. As you can see, the flakes are pretty light, but I love the look of a flakie over a dark color.

I used this Sinful Colors which is black with faint blue glitter in it.

I added the flakie, and it came to life!

The next step was to mattify it, with essie's matte about you. Here it is indoors,

and outdoors in direct sunlight!

Yoga and test rewards!

Celebrating a great day today! 

First, finally able to consistently do a headstand in yoga! (I know this picture looks like I am holding myself up against the wall, but I promise I'm not. I'm not as tall as the door!) This process was not easy though, I have a pretty sad looking knee, with a bruise on top of a bruise...

I got an A on my biopsych test and I got an A+ on my Greek and Roman Tragedy test, one that I was super nervous for because I am most comfortable in the cold-hard-facts world of biology and the sciences. Whew! To celebrate, I made a trip to Lululemon, only my favorite yoga clothing store ever! Although everything is pretty much out of my price range, I went straight back to the sale rack and, lo and behold, a very cute top in my size, for cheap!