Category: Sincerely, Karina

The journey called Life

Welcome back to my blog!kc4

For those of you that have been asking me where my blog went — first of all, THANK YOU! and secondly, it was waiting for me to open my eyes. I was (and still am) on a journey — a journey I believe many people embark on (or should!). I will continue to use this blog as my platform to share tips, advice and learning experiences.

I quit my (more…)

The Summer of SPF

I’m officially in my late 20’s and can’t deny it anymore– (just turned 27 on St. patty’s day) and I’d like to think I’m not only getting older (sigh) but also getting a lot wiser…in many different ways.

For one, I used to be a fan of a dark ass tan! I mean who in their teen years and early adult years doesn’t want a tan – fake or not- we want it.

I will never forget going to Ann Hope (department store) with my Babcia (grandmother) when I was mmmm maybe six years old and having people grab my cheeks and comment on how “porcelain” (aka the nice way of saying extremely white) my skin was. In middle school, there was that one mean boy who called me Casper (the not so nice way of saying extremely white)

So, at a young age, having my mothers very fair skin and suddenly thinking it was a bad thing, I did anything I could to make it tan- from heavy bronzers, to tanning beds, to baby oil / tin foil in the sun (eeek) I remember saying that I’d rather be burnt than this white!

 And the second scary thing was that I was not alone with those thoughts.I got my share of skin burns but it didn’t stop me from doing the same exact thing the following summer, and hearing and seeing plenty of girls and guys do it too.

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the little boys expression is perfect! Don’t let this happen to you!

Luckily, I realized (before it was too late) that tans fade but the signs of aging and skin damage do not.  I still get carded at the bars when my friends may not and occasionally get carded to see a rated R movie – so I’m lucky I still have a baby face and my porcelain skin remains. However, this is not the case for everyone – I have seen firsthand what excessive unhealthy tanning has done to young girls – leaving an orange tint to the skin with a rubbery, texture – not to mention WRINKLES galore and they haven’t even reached their 27th birthdays yet!   

 Up until recently, I haven’t taken a good approach to the sun and to my skin care.

Last year – on our vacation to Jamaica, I used SPF 30 very very sparingly + no hat on the first day and then switched  over to a SPF 8 OIL. The result: a burn — and a bad one –and major peeling.

This year- on our wonderful vacation to St. Thomas, I used SPF 50 every single day every 1-3 hours + sun hat. The result: hands down- the best natural tan I have ever had in my life. NO peeling (I didn’t think that was possible!)

 I also have been using this Vitamin C serum from Amara Organics every day and night. I have a few sun spots on my right cheek from my years of being a little too crazy in the sun but I am already starting to see them lighten up and faint away.

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It also moisturizes my skin – something all of us in New England desperately need right now with this dry, cold weather… winter is continuing into Spring! why ohh why!!?

I am thankful I stopped going to artificial tanning salons 2 years ago, wasting my money and that I FINALLY understand and believe the dangers of the sun and know how to stay safe and healthy in it! Think: would you rather be a dried up prune or be a smooth creamy coffee ice-cream? I’ll take the ice-cream any day! 

Make this be the summer of SPF for you and your family too! Wait – do dogs need SPF? 

Sidenote: tanning salons may be necessary for someone with Vitamin D deficiency or to boost endorphins during the long winter we’re having.  Be smart and remember, it is never too early to protect, nourish and rejuvenate your skin!

 *Sponsored Post*

I’m Engaged!!

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Freddy with a sign “Will you Marry Me?” my heart melted!

What a wonderful Christmas I had! I’m so very excited to announce that I am engaged to the love of my life!!

A proposal on my favorite Holiday (Christmas Eve) was more than I could ever ask for.. oh and a Nikon D5300 camera.. a very nice prop to help with the surprise of a lifetime.

Nico and I (& Freddy) are more than thrilled to start on this new journey in our lives.

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Many bests & Happy New Year! 2015 is starting to look like a wonderful wonderful year!

xo,

KPM

My puppy stopped peeing under the dining room table and 13 other little things I’m thankful for.

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simple fall centerpiece

With Thanksgiving just around the corner and the madness I’m about to encounter with prepping food, baking pies cleaning up and the bouncing between 2 households (mine and the boys), I am trying to stop myself and not only be grateful for the insanely large amounts of food my family always prepares or that we have a warm house filled with love to eat it all in. I am thankful to spend it with the people I love dearly. I am thankful for having good friends who listen to me vent and always have my back. I am thankful to have a job, although I may not like it, I am glad for all that I have learned and continue to learn. I am thankful for my Prius, which doesn’t cost me a day’s work of pay to fill up and is very reliable. I am thankful for my boyfriend and my puppy, who I get to spend every morning and night with.

All that thankfulness should be more than enough—and it is—but I also wanted to think of the little things that we take for granted. Well— because they occur all the time, like every day or so – we may not appreciate them. I know we aren’t the Pilgrims and don’t really look at Thanksgiving as a time to be thankful – it’s become more about the 3 F’s (food, family, football), but It’s good to realize some of the  day-to-day things going on that we may have become accustomed to without even realizing  until, well you make a list of thankfulness!

Here is my quick list I jotted down – (in no particular order)

I am thankful….

–that the dog stopped peeing under the dining room table – as our house has a small slant to it, that is most noticeable when he pees under there and it slides down to the other end of the room…

–for my amazing boyfriend: who sees me with no makeup, hair a mess, in my sweats and still loves me. And for how hard he works along with getting his MBA at Boston College (late nights) yet still remembers to give me a kiss when he walks in the door.

–for my mom and dad – especially for my mom who has done a complete 180 with Freddy and is not only accepting being a pet-gramma but embracing it. My dad has always been on my side =)

–for my cousin, Jaclyn who always makes sure we stay connected – and keeps calling- even if our conversations are via voicemails.

–that my friends have a group chat going about only things we would laugh at (Bridesmaid quotes, they never get old)

–for chocolate and my spontaneous baking that always comes out delicious. (thank you grandma for that skill)

–for the dog park (so I can have a few minutes to myself after without Freddy attacking me to play)

–that I tried to volunteer at 5 different shelters and they didn’t need my help because they were overwhelmed with the amount of volunteers helping! (It’s always good to know people care about people or about animals)

–that football season is half way over (My boyfriend is a huge fan, I am only because I want to win Fantasy  – but I would rather spend our Sundays doing other things together)

–that my mother likes to shop as much as me and that we have the same size foot!

–for Sunday morning acoustic radio

–that my brother is into golf and wants to go with me!  Also that even though he’s 16, I’m thankful that he still gives me a kiss goodbye in public.

–that my sister keeps our g-chat going with random fun stuff to get us both through those longggg days.

Writing this down- made me realize how many more things I could add to it- and how we tend to focus on what’s missing in our life instead of what’s already there in front of us.

Try it out for yourself – maybe when you finally get the pie in the oven – or you can put the recipe book away- takes a few minutes, but means the world to realize how good you actually have it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

8 Fashion Opposites that ALWAYS attract

My friends have always critiqued me- or maybe they were complimenting me?- when it came to my choice of outfits.  I mean saying “What the hell are you wearing?!Only you could pull that off!” – is a compliment, right? I’d like to think so.

Whether it was wearing a party dress with ankle booties, wearing a white crew t-shirt tucked into my black leggings with a navy blazer or mixing patterns like floral with stripes, or my favorite- wearing cute socks with closed toe heels! (oh my, a horror to my friends), I ALWAYS strive to make Fashion fun- to make it ME- to make it different- and the best part is — I actually don’t care what people say- because as long as I feel confident and I feel good- I have a great time and I get things done! “Look good, Do good” mentality.

I know there are a lot of people out there who may not feel as confident or as comfortable stepping out of the norm. I guess what I mean is people who don’t live and breathe fashion. You know the people who find items that “go” together…. making sure the jacket matches the shirt or the top matches the pants.

All that going and matching and fitting might make for a perfectly good outfit, but it’ll never really get you to a great one. For greatness, you’ve got to go in the opposite direction. 

 I make it a point to find items based on differences, rather than similarities. You know this actually helps you get more use out of your clothes than if you were persistent on always matching.

I will share with you the common ways to not follow the “My shirt must match my pants” mentality and thus get that Great outfit!

1) Wear ankle boots with a party dress. You will look fierce, yet not too prim and proper.

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2)Vintage tees with classic blazers

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3) Jeans and Heels

4) Stripes and Florals – okay, do pick a color that is in both prints – like blue stripes — blue florals 🙂
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5) Brown and Black and Black and Navy – I remember when people would cringe (and still do) when I tell them to wear their brown shoes with black pants. Same for Navy/Black. Think LBD with a navy gold chain clutch.

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6.) Leather Pants and Chunky Comfy Knit Sweater – something cozy and sexy about some leather and a gramma knitted warm sweater. 

7). Leather “work men” belt and polished dress or coat or high waist long skirts – In college, I would wear a belt with almost every outfit. I have my mothers Camel color leather braided belt that she wore in Poland when she was in her 20s =)white-summer-dress-with-brown-belt-pr8av7n5

8) Boxy top and a pencil skirt – love this look.

 

Explore, Be creative, Have fun!