Cooking For Three

This weekend, my mom gave me a cookbook that she selected with my little family of three in mind, Kids Cooking: A Very Slightly Messy Manual.  The concept behind this book is that kids can cook with an "adult helper."  Obviously, my nearly nine-month babe is still a little young to be a sous chef, but it's definitely fun to plan ahead.  So I was scanning the pages yesterday when it dawned on me: these are recipes that I can cook!

Sad?  Maybe.  But definitely true.  The whimsical illustrations that accompany recipes like "Buried Treasure Muffins" and "Alphabetter Soup" make it clear that these recipes are for kids, but the simple directions (and even the illustrations!) make this cookbook a handy guide for those whose culinary skills might be...lacking, shall we say?  While I have two binders full of recipes that I've clipped from Martha Stewart Living and other magazines, I could probably count the number of times I have actually made said recipes on one hand. Don't get me wrong, I totally want to make my Martha recipes, but my skills--and frankly my spare time--just aren't there yet.  

Someday I will make those fancy, sophisticated culinary creations, but in the meantime, I can hone my skills with more basic recipes like this:

Put-Back Potatoes

Ingredients-
potatoes (as many as you like)
milk: 2 tbsp. for each potato
grated cheddar cheese: 3 tbsp. for each potato
salt and pepper: pinch of each

Directions-
1. Bake your potato
2. Take the potato out of the oven when it's all done, wait a little bit for it to cool, then cut it in half and scoop the potato out into a bowl.  Keep one of the skins (you're going to need it).
3. Save 1/3 of the cheese to sprinkle on top of the potato before it goes in the oven.  Mix the rest of of the cheese, the milk, and the salt and pepper with the potato.  If you like butter, add a pat per potato now.  Use the masher or mixer while the potato is still a little warm.
4. Put your potato-and-cheese mixture back into the potato skins you saved.  Put it in a baking pan, sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top of it, and put back into the oven for 20 minus at 350 degrees.
5. It's done when it starts to melt!

Yum.

There are also recipes for play dough, giant soap bubbles, and face paint, but I think I'll save those for Harper.

Pretty In Pink

Nail Colour in May by Chanel, $26
Available from Nordstrom

After a very looong week, I was both surprised and relieved when I found myself with an hour to spare on Friday.  I did what any other floundering fashionista might do and scurried off to the nail salon for a long overdue mani/pedi.  As luck would have it, the bottle of Chanel nail color that I purchased on impulse a few weeks ago was still tucked away in my purse; who knew that being such a disorganized mess would actually work to my advantage?!  How nice to end the week right, pretty in pink.

May on my nails,
holding hands with my girl.

As part of this year's Chanel spring/summer collection, May is my perfect pink.  Finally!  It's the pink I have been searching for forever, soft and feminine but still punchy and fun.  British Vogue calls May a "pretty shell pink,"  though it reminds me more of cotton candy than anything else.  Either way, May has a girly sweetness to it, and I love the way it looks on my hands and toes.  This pink has turned my week around (though the complimentary neck/shoulder massage at my nail salon certainly helped).  Yay for May!

Nails at Chanel,
photo from Vogue UK

Lip Service

Big & Healthy Lip Gloss in Krystal
by Buxom, $18
Available from Sephora

Last weekend, I was blessed to be a bridesmaid in my best friend's stunningly beautiful wedding in Kennebunkport.  While the weather was so hot I thought I might melt, I managed to pick up a very cool tip, thanks to a fellow bridesmaid, who shared the lip perfecting power of Buxom's Big and Healthy Lip Gloss.  


I tried the clear gloss that Buxom calls "Krystal."  I'm not sure why the marketing pros at Buxom felt the need to spell it that way; I mean, this isn't a stripper we're talking about here so why cheapen a good thing?  But I digress.  This lip plumper gives your lips an icy little zing while also adding shine and moisture.  Hello, lip service!  You can wear it alone, though I tried it over lipstick and really liked the added fullness and mega gloss.  Love this!

Mommy Mocktail

Mommy makes mocktails--
say that five times fast...

After a long day at work last week, I needed a drink.  But since I don't drink--alcohol, that is--it was mocktail hour at the Wilson house.  My good little babe was asleep, and I found myself with a few precious moments to make myself a drink and put up my feet (okay, I actually used those moments to check email, but that's basically the same thing).  Here is the amazingly delicious mommy mocktail that I created.  Even for you drinkers out there, this is something you should definitely consider; it was absolutely the most perfect thing I could have imagined on a sizzling summer afternoon.


Mommy Mocktail:
One cup ice
4 oz. diet 7-up
4 oz. strawberry lemonade (I used Trader Joe's brand)
1/4 lime--squeezed

She's Come Unheeled Comes Unheeled

Coming unheeled with my girl

Since I brought my sweet baby home from the hospital this past winter, I have been struggling to maintain She's Come Unheeled--which you may or may not have already concluded from my lack of regular posting.  It's not that I don't still love fashion (I do!), or writing (I do!)--but my adventures as a self-proclaimed fashionista have become...different. 

It may be that my priorities have shifted.  Darn conscience; I can't feel like a good mama if my credit card is burning a hole in my wallet after splurging on a pair of shoes or handbag that I really shouldn't buy, when there are diapers, wipes, formula, and baby gear to buy.  Glamorous, huh?  Yet, I still feel a sense of calm come over me when I walk through the front doors of Bloomingdales and step onto that signature black-and-white tiled floor, and there are more dog-eared pages than not in the newest J. Crew catalog.  I am, it seems, still a fashionista (what relief!), but I am also a mother, and the latter has afforded me a new lens through which to view the world--of fashion and otherwise.  So, just as I have found myself rocking my lovely yet sensible Tory flats instead of my exquisite and indulgent Louboutins lately, I feel that it is time for She's Come Unheeled to come unheeled--as I have.

No, I'm not quitting!!!  Please.  Rather, I am embracing the changing nature of my adventures as a self-proclaimed fashionista so the tone of She's Come Unheeled will likely change accordingly, now that my days aren't all filled with my lust for a Chanel handbag (just most of them).  I am guessing that there will be some days devoted to my new favorite nail polish or the shoes I'm coveting, but I am also excited to write about the amazing children's consignment shop I discovered, whether or not baby girls should wear bikinis, and the delicious mocktail recipe I tested while my babe was napping.  Don't worry, I will NOT be giving up designer denim in favor of mom jeans (the horror!), but beyond that, I'm not entirely sure where my new adventures will take me.  I just hope that you, like me, will look forward to finding out--and maybe, just maybe, coming unheeled with me. 

Flower Power

Flower Lattice Necklace in multi-color, $228
by J. Crew

I have admired statement necklaces for a while, but with the exception of larger-than-life pearls, I have yet to invest in one for myself.  Then I spotted this Flower Lattice Necklace in the most recent J. Crew catalog, and I have been obsessing about it ever since.  Made of hand-cut faceted stones and Czech glass, the multi-color blooms make me think of a blinged out watercolor.  It is the perfect summer necklace, with playful flowers in a color palette that works for day or night, work or play.  I want this!  


So what's my hesitation?  On a daily basis, I wear three silver charm necklaces that I have grown so attached to that I can't imagine removing them--but of course, I would have to if I were to wear the Flower Lattice Necklace, as it is a statement unto itself.  There's also the question of price (it ain't cheap!)...  So this is something I'm going to have to keep my eye on, and maybe I'll luck out with a summer sale that will help me bring some flower power home.  Fingers crossed!

Lovely Lace: Worn 3 Ways

Raindrop Lace Top in apricot mist, $110
by J. Crew

When I returned to work in March after my maternity leave, my mom sweetly helped ease this challenging transition by gifting me a few "back to school" items.  Don't judge; for me, retail therapy always works.  One such item was J. Crew's Raindrop Lace Top, which has quickly become my favorite top ever.


This intricate lace top is available in navy, pale apricot, and neon pink; mine is navy.  The ultra-feminine aesthetic inherent to lace is balanced with details like the scalloped hems with roughly fringed edges.  Albeit elegant, this top is also totally versatile; I have already worn it three ways:
(1) For work- with grey pinstripe suit pants, ankle boots, and an argyle cardigan.
(2) For dress up- over a white tank, with a pleated tangerine skirt, and navy canvas wedges.
(3) For play- over a grey tank with skinny dark denim, flip-flops, and a leopard print headband.


In addition to being my favorite top ever, it's also clearly a good investment piece; how rare for a single top to work so well in such a range of situations and dress codes!  I love it so much that I may just need to add the pale apricot and hot pink to my closet as well...  

Polar: The New White

White denim has been all the rage for the last few summers, and I can totally see why.  Nothing compliments a good tan like a crisp white, and white jeans lend themselves fabulously to a nautical look, and can be dressed up or down...  Clearly, the list goes on!  Yet, I have yet to purchase a pair of my own.  So why would a self-proclaimed fashionista intentionally deprive herself of such a blatant trend?  The truth is, I am far too accident prone to wear that much white.  Seriously, on days when I wear a white tee-shirt or top, I undoubtedly spill something on myself so white pants--well, you get the picture.  But as a fortune cookie once told me, all is never lost.

Mid-Rise Skinny Leg in Polar, $180
by J Brand

Allow me to introduce you to polar, the newest wash of J Brand's Mid-Rise Skinny Leg.  Think: polar bear.  They are not a perfect white, but in that they are perfect.  This broken-in icy white is the ideal wash for the wannabe-white-denim-wearing girl on the go.  The moment I saw them, I knew I had to have them.  If I had a signature denim, J Brand's mid-rise skinny leg would be it so the polar wash was essentially the cherry on top.  The worn, textured white means that I won't be afraid of wearing them out and about, and maybe even getting a little dirty (I'm sorry, but how do you white denim lovers manage to stay so pristine?).  Contrast stitching complements the perfectly imperfect white, but the beauty is that--like your standard white denim--polar is perfect for spring and summer.  Dearest fashionista friends, all the signs are there: this is the new white.




Psst...  For you Boston area local fashionistas, you can get your very own polar J Brands at Belmont's fabulous boutique, Bessie Blue.  Check out their website for store hours and directions!

Spring Break--For Your Nails

Last weekend, while my dear friend, Annie, was visiting from Seattle, we decided to treat ourselves to a morning of Starbucks and manicures.  Nail dates are actually one of our favorite pastimes, and so we always make a point to fit it into our itinerary.  I had stumbled upon Essie's Sand Tropez in the drugstore just a few days before Annie's arrival, and it immediately struck me as the perfect nude polish I had been searching for.  So of course I brought it with me to the nail salon in the hope that I was right; after all, some things you just have to see to believe.


I was not disappointed!  This nail polish is like spring break for your nails.  It is a soft, sandy neutral that makes your nails look like they are naturally perfect--what I feel is the nail color equivalent of the I'm-not-wearing-any-makeup cosmetic look.  I typically have trouble with nude polishes because they're not opaque enough for me, or they have a shimmer to them that I could do without.  Sand Tropez has neither of these issues; rather, it goes on solid but subtle.  And in a couple of months when I have a tan (a girl can hope!), it will look even better...

Sand Tropez
by Essie, $8

A Prettier Pout: New From Sara Happ

Disaster struck: my very favorite lip gloss, Boy Bait by MAC, recently ran out (gasp!).  Even more horrifying was the fact that I kept forgetting to either a) get myself to Nordstrom to resupply, or b) order it online.  And you should know that, second to mascara, lip gloss is one of my absolute essentials;  so when I said "disaster," I meant it.  BUT apparently this was fate doing its thing.  While picking up a few gifts for friends, I stumbled upon the latest and greatest from Sara Happ, the cosmetic genius behind the lip scrub I so adore: the lip slip.  It is nothing short of life-changing.

The Lip Slip by Sara Happ, $18

The Sara Happ website describes the inspiration for lip slip, and while I would normally give you my take, I don't think I could say it better myself:  The supple feel of a shimmery gold YSL calfskin bag. A bottle of Coco Chanel Mademoiselle. Your favorite camisole; soft, sweet, nude, girly and grand. The world doesn't need another lip balm. It needs the right one. Slip into this.


Offering the luxe shine of a gloss while moisturizing like a balm, the lip slip has allowed me to abandon my normal process of first applying my Palmer Cocoa Butter Swivel Stick and then layering gloss on top.  Sara Happ suggests layering the lip slip over other gloss for an added shimmer, but I personally find the the subtle pink tint is ultra feminine and flattering.  For me, this product has been a total game-changer.  Trust me, your lips need this.  

Good Things Come In Small Packages: DvF for babyGap

Diane von Furstenberg and babyGap Exclusive Collection

Since Harper was born almost four (!!) months ago, I've been in a baby time warp, which is why I have once again neglected my poor Unheeled for much, much too long.  But the silver lining--in addition to my adorable baby, obvi--is that I have become well versed in the ways of baby fashion!  So you can imagine how excited I was to receive an email from babyGap a couple of weeks ago announcing a limited edition collection from Diane von Furstenberg exclusively for babyGap.  

DvF babyGap Floppy Sunhat, $20

The collection has since been released, just this past Thursday actually, and as I was already up at the crack of dawn feeding the baby, I took the opportunity to multi-task and signed on to the babyGap website from my iPhone first thing.  I couldn't help but marvel at the way the iconic DvF wrap dress was translated into fun, youthful apparel and accessories for the itty bittiest of Gap wearers, from wild leggings featuring bold prints, to graphic onesies, and the most most irresistible baby wrap rompers.  It took every ounce of willpower to not snatch up every DvF item in Harper's size, but baby girl already has a bigger wardrobe than I do.  Instead, I took a more practical approach (impressed?) by filling an accessory gap in her upcoming spring and summer wardrobe with a floppy sunhat--perfect for lounging poolside, of course.  Being the self-proclaimed fashionista that I am, it is only natural that Harper gets to know the wonders of DvF as soon as possible.  And it's true what they say; good things really do come in small packages!

Diane von Furstenberg and Baby Gap Exclusive Collection

Psst...  Word on the street (well, maybe just the Gap website) is that the DvF for babyGap collection is almost sold out so you'd better get shopping--after all, you don't want your itty bitty fashion star to miss out!

Winter White

Essie Nail Polish in Waltz, $8

There are certain fashion rules that have withstood the test of time, and not wearing white after Labor Day is right up there near the top--if not at the top.  However, winter white is a fashion savvy way to bend this rule, and what fashionista doesn't like bending the rules a little bit?  I know I do.

With that disclaimer in mind, this past Saturday afternoon found me at the nail salon for the very first time since my baby girl was born in November (don't do the math--let's just say that my nails were long overdue), given my dearest friend India's engagement party on the books for Saturday night.  In standard practice for me, I was planning to wear all black--dress, opaque tights, and Tory Burch booties--so my nail color options were accordingly limitless, but I had a cheerful red in mind.  Yet, as I examined the rows of polish, my eyes fell upon something totally different, totally unexpected for me: white.

My usual approach to nail color is threefold: (1) opt for something that really pops; (2) go with something dark and neutral since it will compliment virtually any outfit; or (3) when in doubt, go French.  To pick something subtle and light--if not barely there--is not my typical style, especially during the dreary winter months.  Still, I was stuck on Essie's Waltz.  The Essie website calls Waltz an "elegant, sheer white," and it is precisely that.  Having my manicurist apply three coats instead of two gave my nails a light, bright look that was refreshing amidst the dead of winter.  Sans summer tan (usually the only thing that makes white an appealing nail color choice), Waltz still gave my fingers a pretty, feminine feel that was the perfect counter balance to my black outfit, though not competing with the blinged out ropes of pearls and rhinestones at my neck. 

Don't get me wrong, I would never abandon my go-to punchy pinks and cheery reds, or the moody greys and blacks that I so love, but I suppose that sometimes less really is more--and as far as nail color is concerned, Waltz makes a compelling case for winter white.  Brrrr.