Showing posts with label tropical. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tropical. Show all posts

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Fall-Out: Tropical Skin and Hair Savers

Tropical Skin and Hair Savers

Tropical Skin and Hair Savers by elbonner featuring Malie Organics bath & body products

Well, I can safely say that I have had enough of cold weather. I had a cold and windy run this morning, and even though last week I got a teensy bit excited about fall stuff, I have totally gotten that all out of my system. I am now in full-on tropical mode and wishing for warmer weather, big flowers, palm trees, and warm water. No pumpkin spice concotion or Christmas cookie can give me the sort of joy I get when I walk out of my front door without having to wear a goddamn jacket. Layering is the worst; don't deny it! Even though my city is not going to turn into tropical paradise anytime soon (hurry up, global warming), there are still things I can do to make my life a little more "paradise" and a little less "please kill me, it's cold". Tropical ingredients are great for relieveing winter skin woes too; too much sun=dry skin just as too much cold/wind= dry skin. I can at least use some fabulously scented products to keep my skin and hair in tip-top shape so I'll be totally bangin' by summer's arrival!

Body

Organic Fiji Nourishing Lotion- A thick, yet wearable daily lotion that's good when you need moisture, but still need to put skinny jeans/leggings on. This will keep you just a moisturized as a thicker lotion due to the high fat content from organic coconut oil, but sinks in faster so you can get ready faster!

Hei Poa Monoi Oil- I will always sing the praises of monoi. It's great for skin and hair and I always have a bottle of this handy in the winter and summer time. In winter, I put it on under a body butter when my skin is really dry and unhappy and I'm taken away to a tiare-scented, moisturized skin paradise!

Macadamia Nut Oil- Excellent for dry or mature skin; oils are great for your body no matter what season it is. Macadamia oil is rich, but soaks in well to keep your skin flake free even in the coldest of places!

Malie Plumeria Beauty Oil- This really is a beautiful product. Made in Hawaii with native ingredients, Malie Organics makes you feel like you're miles away from dead leaves and dangerously aggressive holiday shoppers. This oil comes in all types of different scents, but plumeria is my favorite!

Saffron James Nani Perfume Oil- Don't spray yourself with alcohol-laden fragrances, use something that benefits your skin and lasts longer! You're going to be power blasted with full, Arctic-force winds until March, so why not use a perfume oil that stays on a smelling great. Saffron James makes the best perfume oils and are all based on famous Hawaiian scents. WIN-WIN!

Pure Fiji Body Butter- For when a lotion isn't enough, this super rich body butter comes in scents like coconut, pineapple, mango, and starfruit to keep you comfortable and smelling nice! Made with Fijian ingredients, it's the ultimate skin-based escapism!

Hair

Macadamia Oil Hair Mask- Rich moisture for wind and cold-damaged hair. Winter really sucks the moisture out of my entire being; my hair included. This masque is great on a cold, rainy Sunday when I can keep it in for a few hours to really let everything soak in.It works great in a pinch, too, and can give you soft, shiny hair after only having it in for a few minutes.

Shea Moisture Coconut Hibiscus Curl & Style Milk- This thick cream is best when left on damp hair to dry naturally. It gives me soft, shiny waves without any gnarly dry ends. I also use this in my hair before and winter surf sessions to keep the cold salt water from double-destroying it. Smells AMAZING!

Alba Hawaiian Hair Products- I basically love the entire Alba Hawaiian line. I haven't tried one product that I wouldn't buy again and again. They're hair care line is great for everyday care; sulfate-free shampoos that don't strip moisture and light-but-moisturizing conditioners that don't weigh your hair down with too much product. Plus, they smell like what I believe heaven smells like. My favorites are the plumeria shampoo and gardenia conditioner. 

Winter can be a tough time for skin and hair, and super tough for those who would rather smell like a tropical flower garden than a cinnamon smothered Christmas tree. So if you're a fellow winter-hater, get some warm, tropical scents in your life and pray for warmth!

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

WTF, Emily: Where The Hell I've Been

I think it's safe to say that sometimes you just don't have the umph to go the extra mile. Sometimes you just want to be a lazy lump. That is where I've been the past few weeks (oops!). I had a week off from work, and even though I didn't go away on vacation, I spent my time doing stuff that I like to do. I stayed busy without having to worry about running myself ragged. At work, the week before my vacation was a scene straight out of Satan's butthole and all I wanted to do that first day off was crash and relax. I wanted my week off to be low-key and low-stress and it was! I took a few pictures so let's force you to look at those now!


We went on a ton of walks around our neighborhood.There are a bunch of hibiscus flowers blooming at the moment and I always take the time to stop in appreciate them. They make me feel like I'm some place tropical! The pink ones were in a small park on one of our walking routes and the flowers, I swear, were almost as big as my head. Hooray for freakishly big flowers!

I like that my city is old (too bad it's sinking). There's a lot of cool architecture and neat little places tucked into neighborhoods that you wouldn't see from the main roads. 

I went thrifting and found some cool records! This one is a compilation of all those songs that remind you of vintage Hawaiian news-reels and movies. I was worried that it wouldn't play, but I figured even if it didn't I could frame the cover. I got the soundtrack to South Pacific too which has a big ol' picture of Tahiti on it which is always a plus.

I ordered this book almost two months ago and Amazon finally got it in stock. It's a the "sequel" to the Surf Cafe Cookbook which is awesome. This one is more about the whole beachy lifestyle and includes ideas on decorating your house, creating a useable garden, and it also has a bunch of really good-looking recipes. Click HERE to get yours!

It was wonderful waking up later than 6:30in the morning, eating a good breakfast, getting some exercise and sunshine, and having a no-stress time with the BF. We even saw a sweet zipline park not far from us that we will probably frequent once the tourists get the heck out of here. I hope you all are enjoying your summer and denying that it will ever end. I watched The Endless Summer whilst doing my laundry and wished I lived in a place or had the ability to go to a warmer place in the colder months because last winter was the winter from Hell, but it just gives me something to look forward to in the future! Have a good week everyone!

Oh, and here's a picture of a praying mantis that landing on my windscreen and looks like a space monster attacking the city:
 All hail the Mantis!

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Sunday Funday: The Best Time of the Year

There really is no contest; this time of year in my area is simply the best. The tourists aren't here yet, the weather hasn't gotten unbearably hot yet, there's all sorts of stuff going on, and I'm usually spending a lot of time outside.  It's like it went from dark, cold, boring nothingness that was seriously depressing to an almost overwhelming amount of stuff to do! My friends have their pool open, it's great hiking weather, Busch friggin' Gardens is open, the beach is warming up; it's almost too much to do! The past two weekends have been so amazingly perfect that it just kept my mood lifted all week. After my backpacking trip last weekend, this one was a bit more subdued, but still really enjoyable. I spent almost all day outside in my parents backyard on Saturday and the BF and I went on a long walk today. 

Two of the great things about my apartment is the fact that I have sunroom and that my landlord is an A+ gardener and keeps the place so gorgeous! I love having all sorts of plants in my sunroom, I sometimes like to call it my jungle room (like the Walking In Memphis Song!). We also have a tiny, shared backyard with all sorts of plants and flowers that are changed throughout the seasons. It's never the same stuff twice! Even though sitting at home can get boring, it's days like these that I really enjoy being at home just looking at all the pretty stuff around us.










I've been going through cookbooks (one of my very favorite things) looking for new recipes, but mostly just enjoying the pictures. This one in the photo, The Surf Cafe Cookbook, is a great cookbook for food and photo-lovers alike. The sandwich bread recipe in there is amazing, as well as the lemon squares! I highly recommend it to anyone with taste buds. It reminds me of the kinds of things I eat when I visit my relatives in England which puts me in instant vacation mode. 

 No smart-assiness here today; it must be all the sunshine. I've got no complaints and I'm very content just staring out of the window and watching the world go by. Hope you all have a great week!

Saturday, May 31, 2014

Tropicooler Than Anything: Comptoir Sud Pacifique

Tropicool: Comptoir Sud Pacifique

Every once in a while, a true miracle happens that reminds you what it's like to be alive again. That little miracle happened this week when I checked the "What's New" section of Sephora's website. I was scrolling through, not expecting anything out of the ordinary when I saw a familiar name. Like the name of an old friend I thought had disappeared forever; one I never thought I'd see again. But there it was, Comptoir Sud Pacifique, a name I thought was forever damned to them realms of fragrance nostalgia websites! Comptoir Sud Pacifique is a fragrance line based around the scents of French Polynesia and it has E. By The Sea smeared all over it. Their fragrances range from sweet tropical fruits, to warm coconut, to fresh aquatic notes that are like a olfactory vacation. Not only did I find they re-released my favorite fragrances of the past,but they are selling smaller, roll-on versions FOR $20!! I nearly had a coronary and then promptly bought one. I remember begging for these as birthday gifts in high school and smelling them whilst watching half-loaded Roxy surf videos in the early days of high speed internet. This is the perfect time for this release because these are the only summer scents you will ever need. If you are not really into super fruity fragrances, wait around a bit, because Comptoir Sud Pacifique did have some floral fragrances in the past and I'm hoping they will make a comeback too. If your Coco Mademoiselle or your Miss Dior Cherie need to pack a lunch, get yourself a Tahitian vacation for as low as $20 with Comptoir Sud Pacifique's amazing frangrances! Bon Voyage!



Instagram @e_bythesea
Twitter @e_bythesea
Pinterest @ebythesea86

Saturday, May 3, 2014

Summer Trend: Palm Fun-Day

Palm Fun-Day

Palm Fun-Day by elbonner featuring H&M

A new summer trend is afoot and I couldn't be anymore excited about it! Palm trees are all over everything this summer and it's about damn time! The most majestic and tropicool of all trees are everywhere and they make me want nothing more than to be lounged under one, drinking too many rum punches, probably super close to total dehydration. If that happened and I had a coconut palm nearby, I could just drunkenly crack open a coconut (probably with my phone or a stray snorkel) and rehydrate with some life-giving coconut water! God bless the humble palm tree! I have collected some of my favorite palm-themed items to make your home and wardrobe a little slice of paradise!

For The Home

Men's Clothing

Ladies Clothing & Accessories

So if you're hankering for a tropical vacation every day of the week, plaster yourself in palm trees and consider yourself on permanent island time. Palm it up!!

Instagram @e_bythesea
Twitter @e_bythesea
Pinterest @ebythesea86
 

Friday, April 4, 2014

The Things They Carried: What's In My Bag!

Who cares, right? You would think so, but people friggin' love these types of things. I know I watch YouTube videos of people showing me what's in their purse. It's a weird, voyeuristic view into the mundane things we chose to carry with us at all times that are eerily similar, but oh-so different! I had a sexy beach photo shoot with the contents of my bag today which was only destroyed three times by the wind. Here's the end result!

The Bag

The Contents (L-R)
 iPhone with case from Society6
A Book (currently The Code by Shaun Thompson)
Fossil wallet
Rio change purse I got from Macy's last year
Keys

If you couldn't tell, my bag seems to be made up on lots of little bags inside of one bag in a vain attempt at organization. I love my bag, though. It holds everything and would be great for school/work. It's big enough to hold a laptop or a change of clothes and it even reverses to a beautiful royal blue color once summer rolls around! I like using the Samudra clutch when I don't feel like carrying a big bag and want something a little more festive!

Well, those are the secrets of my purse. I hope that interesting in any way. If not, I have certainly wasted my time and yours. Anywho, it's nice out so I'm out of here! Adios!

Monday, March 31, 2014

Look Upon The Ocean...


The latest in my Pinterest sourced, dream-places. Wishing I could wake up to a better view one of these days. At least I can do it mentally!

Friday, March 28, 2014

Outfit Inspo: Bring On The Warmth

Bring On The Warmth

Bring On The Warmth by elbonner featuring beach wall art

Had a decently warm day today, though it felt like it was way too windy for my tastes. It seems as though the weather has turned the corner and is getting to where it should be instead of 34 and raining all the time. In celebration of breaking into the low 70's, I made a little outfit to celebrate. Really simple, with some fun embellishments that scream "simply summer". I'm just hoping it gets a lot warmer by my birthday! Have a good weekend, everyone!

T-Shirt: Rag & Bone
Shorts: One Teaspoon
Earrings: Free People
Necklace: Free People
Perfume: Saffron James
Nail Polish: Essie
Sunscreen: Shiseido
Lip Balm: Clinique
Clutch: Samudra
Shoes: Vans