MOVED!!!

ATTENTION FOLLOWERS:

I will no longer be writing at this blog! You can find me now at:

LILMISSWISECRACKER.COM

Please add me to your blog roll!

(In your reading list hit "add" and then type in "lilmisswisecracker.com" into the URL and I will show up on your reading list!!)

Let me know if you need help with this- and come check me out at LILMISSWISECRACKER.COM!

ALSO - if you have google reader (link to a post explaining google reader), and all your blogger/blogspot writers AUTOMATICALLY HAVE IT - please add me on to your google reader in order to stay up to date! Google.com/reader

:)

Love and Sass,

-K

MOVING!

Ok fellow bloggers that follow me!!!

I'm going to be moving my blog to a dot com!  So exciting!  I will see what I can do about forwarding this blog over there - but i just wanted to let you know about the big news!

It won't be happening for a while- but I want to get it on your blog rolls now so you can be excited!

Are you all ready to meet Lil Miss Wisecracker?  :)

www.lilmisswisecracker.com

Bookmark it! Love it! Want it! Read it! 

I'll post again when it's up and running

What I have in my purse

I'm doing a fun post today!

I carry around a large purse.  It's insane.  But I love it!  Why? Because it has everything I need!  I never have to go without!  

I used to get really frustrated running into someone and not having make up or planning a last minute date or get together and not having stuff to freshen up. Or those little medical emergencies that pop up at the MOST inopportune time! 

I'm sure you ladies have had this happen!  So maybe, by me telling you what's in MY bag - perhaps it will inspire you to become big bag ladies too!

First of all: the bag:

I love this bag.  It's soft, it's huge it was $20.  I got it at a flea market.  It has a fake Dolce and Gabana label on it - and it's been mistaken as real quite a few times.  love it.  Best investment ever.

Second.  It's all about the organization.  I got one of these 3 bag travel packs from clinique back in the day due to their free give aways or something.  I whipped those out to help me organize everything and it's been the best.  Here are my three bags:

Also say hi to my desk at work!

So let me go through the bags for you all!  We'll start smallest to largest:

My smallest bag I use for my cool sunglasses.  I always used to have sunglasses but they ALWAYS break or I lose them.  Now that I found ones that I really like - I want to make sure to keep them- and having them in this little bag? They fit perfectly and keep them safe!

ok that was an easy one.

Next I'm actually going to do the big bag. The big bag is what I call the beauty bag:

First of all let me say. I'm a HUGE advocate for baggies.  They are perfect! I put all my brushes in one. Al my "tubes" (lipstick, eyeliner, mascara) in another one, and I use that brown bag for all my powders (blush, bronzer and eyeshadow) Things that float are the square makeup compacts, eye lash curler and tweezers.  

The best part about having this all set together in a bag is that I grab it at home, put my make up on, and throw it all back into their respective baggies/holders, throw it in my purse and I'm out the door!  It's all organized!

I personally like organizing things together based on their likeness.  Brushes in one bag, powders in another, tubes in another.  But another way to organize your make up could be: a bag of things you use everyday and then extras.  This way you have a smaller bag of all your "go-to" things that you can grab out at home and all your extras you can leave in the bag for special occasions or whatever.  

Ok moving along... the middle bag or my "emergency" bag:

Ok what do I have in this mess of stuff?  I'll tell you.  From left to right. Glasses case (and glasses) bobbypins, listerine mouth spray, make up remover, lotion, anti-bacterial hand lotion, hair frizz-remover for those crazy humid days, deodorant, contacts and solution, prescription, aleve, excedrin, sleep aids, pepto bismal, zyrtec.   

Pretty much everything I would need if I get stuck or if I end up sleeping over somewhere. :)

Things not pictures that are in my purse: Fingerless gloves, my wallet, my cell phone, my keys, my hand sanitizer that is attached to my keys and an extra pair of underwear in case I get stuck over night some where ;) and my apple that I had for breakfast!

Anyways...  That's what I have in my purse! If I have to run into a store, I will leave it behind my back seat covered and just take my wallet and keys - but it's a comfort to have everything I need with me just in case!

So.... what's in your purse?!

All about Hair

Ok so I've been asked about my hair and what I do to make it look SO awesome.  ok maybe not so awesome- but at least looking decent.

When asked what products a used- JL was quite surprised when I said: "None." So she asked my secrets.  So here are my secrets to ok/healthy hair.

1: Shampoo:  I really don't have a specific kind I use.  Since my skin gets so dry in the winter- right now I'm using head and shoulders.  Usually I'll use pantene.  

2. Conditioner: Same thing- I don't use a special type but I am in LOVE with the Loreal Rosemary mint shampoo and conditioner.  

It smells like heaven!  It's for color treated hair and it reduces the frizz and has special UV filters to lessen damage.  (It's also 100% vegan for those of you tree huggers out there!)

3: When to Wash:  Ok this will make or break your hair so pay attention!  DO NOT WASH YOUR HAIR EVERY DAY.  I'm totally being real right now.  The reason is--- shampoo strips your hair of it's natural oils and leaves it completely dry.  So when you wash your hair every day- your head works EXTRA hard to produce more oils to repair the damage the shampoo does.  So that's why- when you wash every day and you skip one day- you hair looks EXTRA nasty greasy- and that's because your head is producing a super amount of oils.

If you do wash your hair everyday- it will suck to break that cycle.  The first week will suck.  But I swear to you- start washing your hair every other day.  It will be greasy on those 2nd days and it will drive you nuts- but after a week or 2 of doing this- your hair will eventually start producing less oil and your hair will start looking healthier and less greasy.  Honestly. If you are unhappy with your hair- this is the first thing to try.

4: How to Wash Your Hair:  Suds up, rinse, repeat,. right?  Wrong.  Shampoo is designed to cut the oil (which is produced by your head) and conditioner is putting more oils into your hair to make it soft/tanglefree, etc.  But this doesn't make any sense if you think about it.... why would you want to cut the oil then put more on?  You don't!

First shampoo.  I only shampoo once.  Why? Because I don't want to strip my head of everything it naturally has.  Only shampoo your head.  This is because that's where the oil is.  If you hair is long- just suds up the hair around your head and a few inches off- the run off shampoo will clean the ends- but since your ends are not getting oils because it's too far from your head- the more you shampoo your ends the more dry they become (hence split and dead ends).  

Conditioner.  Only put conditioner on the ends of your hair.  Why?  Well as I said before- your conditioner has extra oils to help mend the broken ends of your hair.  It's super strong - so you do NOT want that super strong oils to go right back on the top of your head- where they will naturally be produced anyways.  

Basically you want your hair to be an even scope.  Take away some oils from the top, add some to the bottom.  Shampoo your head, condition your ends.

5. Styling: Ok now this is just for me- I don't know if you have particular ways that you have to do your hair. I don't know if it's long or wavy or straight or curly.  My hair is naturally a little bit wavy.  But here's the main tip to maximizing the health of your hair: Heat destroys your hair. You have heard this over and over- I'm sure.  But the more you blow dry your hair or straighten or curl it with harsh heat tools - the more damage it does to your hair.

What I do? I shower at night and let it air dry over night.  Then in the morning- if I want to style it-  it will already be dry- so a few minutes with the straightener or curlers isn't so bad because I didn't blast it with 10 minutes of heat blow drying it.  I will rarely blow dry my hair is it frizzes my hair to pieces- but I will on occasion.  Those who blow dry their hair every day will damage it.

6: Styling without heat: My hair, as I said, is only slightly wavy.  But I love when my hair is full and has waves or curls!  But I hate using the curling iron or hot curlers because I seriously love to sleep in and don't want to waste time.  So I found a few tricks to get the hair I want.

For really loose waves I will tie my damp hair in a tight bun and sleep in it

When I wake up my hair is usually lookin like this:

That's my usual go to look.  I'll usually throw my hair in a bun at night and call it a day.

Now if you want to get this look:

It's very easy!  I like to call this the poor man's curls.  Basically it's a loose crimp.  In order to achieve this look- french braid your hair into 2 french braids - but make sure it's slightly damp.  Sleep in the braids, wake up, take them out and there you go!  Very simple and very easy. 

Curls?

The best way to get a head of curly locks without using heat is to sleep in curlers.   I know this sounds painful! But there are very easy (and CHEAP!) ways to go about this.  And it's fun because you can do it the night before while watching tv and not all sleepy in the morning!

How many of you remember these sponge curlers?  

Break those suckers out!!  I used to LOVE it when my mom would set my hair in curlers, and it would come out so nice and curly!  If you don't have any of these old sponge curlers- there's other cheap and easy ways to curl your hair overnight.  

Avon sells very cute wire and foam/fabric pillow curlers.  

They are super easy and super fun! it's a foam pillow that's wrapped in cloth with a wire on each side.  Basically wrap your hair around them and then fold the wires inward! very simple to close up and easy- and you don't have to worry about clipping!  I believe I paid around $6-8 for a pack of 12 - (and since I have long thick hair I got 3 packs) but I gotta tell you- they're totally worth it! I think you can find them on amazon for about $4.80  a pack.

But if that's STILL too expensive you can use..... PAPER TOWELS!  I know that sounds ridiculous- but I tried it out and it worked great! and you can reuse them!  Roll them up loosely, start rolling your hair normally and then tie them off at the top of your head. Here's a pic of little kids doing it.  

The cool thing about the paper towels is that you can make as big or as small curls as you want.  The more hair you put on one paper towel- the bigger the curls!  It's really simple and really fun!  My hair is still curly after sleeping in paper towels on monday night!

One Last Tip:

For shiny hair the quickest and easiest tip is this:  Heat dulls your hair.  For extra shine, at the end of your shower- blast your hair with cool water to cool it down and remove the heat.  I usually do this at the end of my shower when I'm washing my face- because I have to cool the water down to rinse my face!  So once I'm done rinsing my face- I stick my head under the cool water!  

I hope this helps for any of your hair needs or maybe you learned something!  If not... I hope you enjoyed the pictures!  Do YOU have any hair tips that I might use?

SHOPPING

I went online shopppinnnggg today!!! MAJAH sale going on over at torrid.com - my FAV shop everr. So I figured I would share my super clearance sales!!

First is this skirt. totally cute in front....

BANGIN in the back!! check it!

This pretty ring for $3! I LOVE IT!
I love the comfy look of the jersey dress with the extra vintage flap on the bottom. LOVE!
I like to call this my new "native american" dress! How cute and sexy "little house on the praire" dress! How cute! And I have the perfect flat ankle boots to wear with!
A sexy twist on the casual button down. it's got elastic in the sleeves and the back to give it a little bit of shape!
Ok this is hard to tell in this little picture but it's halter and the white part has little red cherries on it! ah! so cute! And I have little cherry wedges! So excited!
Cool stretch belt to add some snazz to the little black dress. And a little rocker which I totally love.
This is so cute! I love it. So casual. I have shoes that actually match this pattern. Eee!
How cute is this shirt? Halter... pretty. sexy. yay!
How MUCH do I love this dress???? A raspberry dress with black feathers at the bottom! ah!

So that's my shopping extravaganza!!! And just to let you know.... I got all of this for an amazing clearance price. The true price minus what I paid? I saved $174! That's INSANE. If you're plus sized and have my style--- black, sexy, kind of punkish - you NEED TO SHOP at torrid.com! Love it!

I'M A NOMINEE!!

I just saw that Brittany over at Little Miss ScatterBrained just nominated me for:
The Beautiful Blogger Award:

Thanks Britters!!! I'll go ahead and fill it out for you!

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated me for the award

2. Copy the award and place it on my blog

3. Link to the person who nominated me for this award

4. Share 7 interesting things about myself

5. Nominate 7 other bloggers

Here are Seven Interesting Things About Me:

1. I don't know if this is interesting but... I'm a photographer! I love it. I started my own business a year ago and it's been slow building but i LOVE it! If I could- I would be just a photographer all day every day.... or an author!

2. I'm using my 6 year old desktop at the moment. blech. It's my desktop that I had through college. This is my second laptop that the cord has broken and it won't charge. :( At least this time I was able to find a replacement online. So there's that.

3. I have 2 almost pure black cats. I'm not crazy, I promise- I just love that black cats have so much personality and are so pretty! To see more about them- see my previous entry.

4. I'm a quizaholic. Ok not really. But i love answering questions about myself like this one! If you want to know ANYTHING go to: formspring.me/karamaye0202. You can ask anonymously if you want, I'll answer anything!

5. I studied abroad in Uganda, Africa. I was the only business major to ever go on the Uganda program.

6. I can't sleep unless I take something to knock me out... which is sad because I LOVE sleep!

7. I've been single for the last 2 years---- and I absolutely love it!! I've been having a blast doing my own thing. I think I'd be ready for a relationship should it happen, I've grown a lot and I think I would be a great girlfriend! But for now- I'm loving me some single life!

Now to spread the love to seven other Beautiful Bloggers:

1. Jennilynn at Happy Feet
2. Jeri-Lynn at Los Pajaros se van Volando
3. Sarah at Hipster Veg
4. Lorraine at The Downpour
5. Laurel at Sometimes Life is a Rotten Pineapple
6. Amanda @ A Mess of a Dreamer with the Nerve to Adore You
7. Gen at Grace Glides on Blistered Feet


Can't read what you ladies say! Have fun and thanks Britt!

I'm a thief

I'm totally stealing this from JL my beloved bff. I suck. I know, but I'm sure she will forgive me eventually.

BUT here's the deal: I'm going to be talking a lot about my cats and my roommate and my roommate's cat I'm sure. Why? Because our 5 souls are sharing a 2 bedroom apartment and there is just no way I can't talk about them. And because I want to. There's always that.

First up is Zuri:
Name: Zuri

Nicknames: BB, Pretty Girl, booboo, bitch, sassy, Baby Girl, Little Kitty

Description: Pure black, medium hair, Smallest full grown cat you've ever seen (seriously not even 6 pounds. she's tiny), Biggest attitude, always has a scowl on her face.

Age: A little over 2 yrs. old

Likes: Annoying the heck out of mama, Being in my room, crying when she's not in my room, nursing on a leopard print blanket, putting her nose against my nose or eye to wake me up (yuck), sleeping on my hip, and judging everyone else in the apartment.

Dislikes: being kept out of my room, the other kittens, when her water is dirty, being sprayed with water, any type of wet food, me paying attention to Mani and not her. Jealous little thing

Weirdest behavior(s): Besides crying insistently whenever she's not allowed in my room she really loves running to the door in hopes to get out..... but hasn't figured out that the crack that's too small for her to get out is actually the wrong side of the door. God bless her dumb soul. The door thing and also trying to outdo Mani by getting to the highest place in my room (the shelf in my closet) and then being to scared to come down.




Name: Mani

Nicknames: BooBoo, Buddy Boy, Pretty Boy, Lovebug, Cuddlebug, Cuddlemuffin, Little Buddha

Description: Pure black except for a little grey on his stomach (yes I have 2 black cats! I'm not weird), LONG hair (not kidding... his hair is insanely long), constantly purring, constantly sitting weird (hence the nickname Little Buddha), HUGE - over 10 pounds at 9 months and has big foot sized paws, and has the biggest dumbest/trusting/confused yellow eyes

Age: About 9 months

Likes: Cuddle, pets, climbing over everything, sitting in boxes, playing with Kona, treats, me-and shows it!

Dislikes: Not being the center of attention, being left out at night (he gets into everything!), the air can I spray him with, the vaccuum.

Weirdest behavior: He loves being the highest he possibly can be and we find him constantly on top of the refrigerator. He also can jump from counter to fridge to floor with ease- but he continuously trips over his own feet when trying to get on the couch....?




Name: Kona (my roommate's cat)

Nicknames: I call him KonaKitty. I think sarah has other nicknames for him but I can't think of any right now.

Description: Orange and white striped. Has a cute birthmark right on his nose. Long hair. BIG. (weighs more than Mani!) Kind of looks like a teddy bear sometimes

Age: About 9 months

Likes: Cuddles, his momma, chasing any type of ball, anything that crinkles, playing fetch, getting fed human food

Dislikes: Zuri at times, not being let in my room.

Weirdest behavior: Kona is super possessive! Whenever we give him a piece of foil or paper to play with he will growl if one of the other cats come close!

yes I took this picture (shameless pimping!)

Name: Sarah (my roommate... and yes we rhyme... and yes we know it... and yes we're starting a folk band if we find someone named Tara)

Nicknames: S and Roomie

Age: 24

Likes: The internet, her job, designing webpages, learning new things, cooking, being crafty, wine, BBC, singing saying: "we could totally make that." Writing, And updating her cool vegetarian cooking blog: www.hipsterveg.com

Dislikes: Hairballs and other bodily functions from the cats, talking to rude customers, Zuri trying to hack into her room, having to drive in the snow, smell of cheerios and baby powder, and the sound of cellophane.

Weirdest behavior: ... I'm going to leave this one blank for fear of a) being hurt in my sleep (even though I can't think of anything too weird right now) or b) the fear that she'll STOP doing these weird behaviors when we drink ;)



Name: Kara

Nicknames: K.

Age: 24

Likes: Photography, laughing, wine, telling funny stories, good hair days, snow days and rainy days, Tv (in unhealthy amounts, I know), Sleep.

Dislikes: Cleaning the litter box, my sensitivity to smells, dogs, butterscotch, dirty counters, rude customers, aches and pains, not getting enough sleep, when I lose things, traffic

Weirdest behavior: ... you'll have to have a drink with me to find out ;)


So those are all the players in this scenario of Apt 212! And to close out... a picture montage of everyone!

They were not amused. We totally are. Here are Kona and Mani for christmas!Kona and Mani Again

Mani and Kona going after the nail in the wall while Zuri watches on in disapprovement

Mani jumping high and going for the gold! He's so skilled at jumping!
And check out that bushy tail!

Kona and Zuri.... Zuri looks ready to slap a kitten.

Zuri was seriously not amused. You can see the pure hatred going on in this pic.

You can also see that she sulks away whenever things don't go her princess way. Snob.

This is a typical night when we go drinking. Sarah's super happy and I'm super crazy/excited

Watch out boys---- us girls (all 6 of them) and single and ready to take you on,
if you can handle it!

Roooomiesss
(and yes, we do get asked if we're sisters ALL.THE.TIME)












The end.