Tina Turner

One more post for the day. Today we talk Tina Turner. I remember being so excited to listen to her discography- but then I found out that her music is just really not my cup of tea. At least most of her solo stuff. I think I liked more of her music under the Ike and Tina band. 

So I only have one song to share today. And of course it's What's Love Got To Do With It. Not my favorite look of hers but it's ICONIC. I'm so tempted to go do my hair like that for fun....

And of course- gotta have the live version..

I really should have a movie night and go watch What's Love Got To Do With It. I have never seen it somehow- but I know it's a classic.

Fennel and Apple Salad, Greek Chicken Wraps, and Blueberries and Cream Pie

 Yet another food post- I haven't been blogging. But I have been cooking. Usually after fighting through some extreme laziness. For the next couple weeks I think I have just going to cook one thing a day on my cooking days. I had just been doing too much and I'm going through a kinda burn out. 

Anyway...here is what I made this week...

Fennel "Salad"

I don't know what the name for this was. And I'm too lazy to grab the cookbook. I almost skipped this recipe because it seemed like it was doing too much. I'm glad I didn't skip it though. I have never used fennel or radishes in anything I've made...so it was nice to come across a recipe that uses them. It is a vitamix recipe and supposedly the vitamix is supposed to shred the veggies. And it didn't. So once I saw that it was blending it, I went with it and basically made a fennel, radish, apricot, apple smoothie. Or basically a puree. It didn't taste bad. Kinda like apple sauce with fennel. I think this would made an amazing juice..if I had a juicer.. It wasn't bad. Just not what I had intended. 

Also---I bought the apricots for this...and they were terrible. I have never had a good, fresh apricot. Do they exist? 

Next up- Greek Chicken Wraps...

 ..that I turned into flatbread. I wanted to make my own wraps but was too lazy to roll them out and cook them so I just spread it out like a pizza dough and applied all the toppings. This was really good! I made a small batch of hummus too since I had cooked chickpeas earlier in the week. This is like the perfect summer/sunny day dinner. So fresh!

Last up--- blueberries n cream pie. I ended up making a small one because I had a small pie crust I wanted to use up from the freezer. I would definitely make a larger one next time- I think it would bake up better. I think I might bake one when I go to the states that way I can share it with my family. Also..they have a fresh blueberries growing in the backyard that would be perfect for this.  I ate this one with vanilla ice cream...perfect pairing!

And that is all for this past week. Not a bad week for me.

Maison Louis Marie No.4 Bois de Balincourt Soy Candle

I took a much longer break from the blog than intended. But I think I'm back now. I have a few posts I need to knock out. Starting with this candle. I thought candle season was sure to be almost over but we are back in a cold spell. I had to turn my heat back on the other day...for Mid May that's really crazy. So I'm still lighting up my candles. And also ordered two more just in case the cool weather continues. I like having my candles going to make the atmosphere feel a bit more cozy.

Maison Louis Marie claims:

Timeless. Endlessly wearable. Deeply personal.

A warm woody scent with sandalwood, vetiver, and amber wood. Creamy, earthy, and quietly addictive.

This candle is a dupe for La Labo Santal 26 candle. Which is a candle I have already burned through and reviewed. It's a very popular candle. Also a very pricey candle. Although it was nice- it isn't nice enough that I would want to drop that kind of money on it to have it again. I also don't think it's special enough to seek out dupes- but it definitely was pretty unique. It was more so a candle that was nice to experience once and then I wanted to move onto other scents. 

But I did pick up this MLM candle. Mostly because I want to try all their scents and this was just next in the line up.

I think it smells extremely similar if not straight up the same based on memory. So what I get from it is a spiced sandalwood. I get a slight hint of cinnamon or something. I think the Le Labo had more vanilla to it. I don't really detect much vanilla.

Also...I thought the Le Labo was lightly scented. But this is lightly scented. It is not strong enough for the price. My living area is not that big...I can barely detect this while I am burning it. It needs hours and hours to build up. It just doesn't feel or perform for the price. It is much cheaper than the Le Labo...but it is still a pricey candle and I expected more for the price. I've tried a few candles from MLM and I find that they can be really hit or miss depending on the scent. 

As always I like the packaging. It comes in a nice box and very clean, goes with anything type of packaging. I like that the brand name is printed on, etc. It's supposed to be soy- I think maybe a soy blend but they don't say. I find with this brand as long as I trim the wick etc the candle performs really well with no sooting/smoking etc. 

It comes in a few different forms, I have tried and reviewed the perfume oil,  It also comes in a perfume, and diffuser. It even comes in a deodorant. So if it is something you enjoy, you can buy it in other forms.

As for me, it's not for me. I'll still pick up their other candles to review...but I think I might be done with this iteration of the scent. 

Irish Lamb Stew, Cookies N Cream Cake, and Roasted Celery Root and Pear Puree

 I've been busy in the kitchen again and I'm feeling a much needed break will be coming on. Or at least I'm taking a break for today. I made all the things in the title- along with cinnamon rolls yesterday because I didn't want the icing ingredients to go to waste. 

So...here we go. Starting with Lamb Stew. I had my doubts about this recipe..just seemed too simple. And I was right. I'm not into it. I so badly wanted to add carrots and all kinds of things but I resisted because I really wanted to find out it if it would be good on its own. It was edible- but I wouldn't make this again. This is from the Unofficial Harry Potter cookbook which I am cooking right through. I'm not about 65% through the book. Only 35% more to cook through! 

Looks very meh....

Next up- a cookies n cream cake. I was craving one for a little while now. It came out OK. I think if I were to make this again I would use a chocolate cake base with a deeper chocolate flavor. I just used the Hershey's Chocolate cake recipe and freestyled the icing. I used a mix of butter, cream cheese, and mascarpone with crushed Oreos. I wish I took a picture of the inside. This was actually the second attempt. The first time I baked the cake I baked it for about two hours because I went to watch TV and complete forgot I was baking a cake. 😂😂😂 Whoops. The remake was a lot better though. 

And last up- Celery Root and Pear Puree. I thought this was the last puree in the Vitamix book but looking ahead- there are more. I almost skipped this recipe thinking Celery Root would be hard to find. But---apparently not. To my knowledge I have never had celery root. Had no idea celery even has roots. But I'm always down to branch out and try new vegetables. So I very loosely followed the recipe...and I really like it. It has an edge to it. Very flavorful- kinda spicy. Complex. And the added pear (I used canned) gave it enough sweetness. I still am not really 100% sure what to do with puree. I feel like they go best with fancy food- you know where they place a smidge on the plate and then small portions of whatever food. I just served with Salmon and Rice. It was surprisingly good. 

And that's all for this week! 

Beekman 1802 Pistachio and Dark Cherry Goat Milk Soap Review

 There aren't enough Pistachio scented things- I wish there were more candles, soaps, lotions etc in a Pistachio scent. Although I don't know if the scent can really be captured....but for some reason it appeals to me anyway. Which is pretty much why I bought this scent- this one was the most intriguing to me of all the soaps in the Beekman lineup. 

Beekman claims:

Make every bath or shower feel like dessert with this skin-loving bar soap!

Scented with notes of pistachio nougat, dark cherry, and sugar glacé—it's like a nutty delight with a cherry on top!

Our rich, creamy goat milk lather nourishes and hydrates the skin while cleansing, leaving it soft, smooth, and smelling absolutely delicious.

Benefits:

• Triple-milled to last even longer, extending all of the benefits of nourishing goat milk down to the very last lather
• Goat Milk boosts skin health with the same pH as human skin, and it’s rich in lactic acid, vitamins, and minerals to help renew and strengthen skin

Top: Toasted Almond, Sugar Glacé

Middle: Caramel Drizzles, Dark Cherry, Pistachio Nougat​

Base: Whipped Coconut, Bourbon Vanilla, Amber​

I haven't had much luck with the Beekman soaps I've tried so far. Of the ones I have tried the only other one I have liked was the Orange Blossom Honey. I think this is the 2nd best of the ones I have tried so far.

I watched the infomercial on this scent and they did mention Tom Ford Lost Cherry scent being the inspiration. I haven't smelled that scent so I don't know. This doesn't really smell particularly like any cherry or almond scents I know of. Sometimes it smells a bit like Hall's Cherry cough drops. And a bit like a Cherry Almond scent.With a light fruitiness to it. It's not a bad scent at all, enjoyable. But if they discontinued it tomorrow I don't think I would care much. It's one of those scents that was nice to try once, I will enjoy the bar until it's gone and then move onto something else.

The bar lasted quite awhile too...I got mine in the large 9 oz size. Which will last quite awhile. Probably would have lasted me a lot longer but I tend to use excessive amounts of soap. I love a lathery, bubbly shower with as many suds as I can get.

And it does lather pretty well, rinses clean, and doesn't dry my skin much. My skin is definitely soft and I do think the goat milk makes a difference to that. 

Ingredients:

Sodium Palmate, Sodium Cocoate and/or Sodium Palm Kernelate, Water (Aqua), Glycerin, Parfum, Sodium Chloride, Caprae Lac (Goat Milk), Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Aleurites Moluccana Seed Extract (Kukui Nut Oil), Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Pentasodium Pentetate... and Kindness.

Overall, it's one of the better scents from the brand.

Lancome Cils Booster XL Lash Serum and Mascara Primer Review

 The other day I stumbled upon an AI movie...have you seen one of those? They are so weird, I was so horrified I almost could not look away. I didn't end up finishing the movie- my curiosity was satisfied. But it is really unsettling how AI is getting into everything. Probably the oddest thing I have seen people do is use AI to create a profile picture on their social media, then people comment it and compliment people  on the AI version of themselves. Makes me wonder about the people that do this. Such an odd thing to do. 

But back to the mascara.

Lancome claims:

Get plush, voluminous, strengthened lashes with a sweep of this innovative white mascara primer. Gliding on smoothly and evenly, each coat creates an even surface layer to maximize the results of your favorite mascara. With a conditioning formula for visible performance, this mascara primer is infused with micro-fibers, Vitamin B5, and Vitamin E so lashes appear longer and fuller. The revitalizing lash and mascara primer formula helps improve lash results, thickness, and curl over time.
White in color, Cils Booster XL leaves lashes feeling luxurious and soft, while allowing the pigment of your favorite mascara to stand out, thus creating an intense and rich false-lash look.

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW
Cils Booster XL takes your mascara one-step further. This creamy and conditioning multi-purpose formula not only lengthens and thickens lashes but can also be worn overnight as a “lash mask.” Simply apply on clean lashes to nourish and rejuvenate before bed.

I went from never having a mascara primer to wanting to always keep one on hand. I like to try different mascaras. It's very rare that I will repurchase because I want to try them all. Every now and then I happen upon a complete dud and I hate wasting so even if I hate it I will still try to use it up. Instead of having sad lashes for however long that tube lasts I have started using with a primer so boost up the effects of the dud mascara.

I bought this for a bargain off Amazon. I think it was $10.00. The only thing was it was backordered so I had to wait quite a long time to get it. Worth the wait though. Kinda wish I had ordered a few more.

It goes on really well and because it's white, you can really see exactly the difference when you apply. This really feels like a mascara that applies lengthening fibers on your lashes. The length is out of this world. I've never seen my lashes get so long with any other mascara. The volume is decent.

I like to let it dry then sometimes throw on another coat before adding whatever mascara I am using.

The only problem I have is that I lose some of the length after  I apply mascara on top.  They just don't stay looking as long as they were with initial application.

Also as it dries the white color tends to dry down too...so give it enough time and you might not even have to apply black on top.

I can definitely see myself purchasing again- especially if I find a good deal. I have the Clinique primer as a backup and I think after I finish that it will be back to the Lancome one for me.