New in Review: Nails & Noshes

Hey look, I didn’t totally give up on my new series! I’m going to try to get these up every other week so I hope y’all like them as much as I do!

This week features a couple nail-related beauty products as well as plenty of food items…

  • Veggie-Go’s (sweet potato pie)

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I’ve actually had these before but I never did a formal review on them. They’re anything but your basic fruit strip, because they include veggies (!) and have no added sugar. This flavor in particular tastes like a dessert, but it’s only got 2 grams of sugar, from the sweet potatoes and apples. They’re just fruit, veggies and spices — perfect if you’re like me and prefer your food to be as simple as possible.

Pros: extremely tasty, perfect for a quick 1/2 serving each of fruit & veggies

Cons: a little expensive for the size (~$1.25 per strip)

Where to buy: Whole Foods, their site

  • Sally Hansen Kwik Off Moisturizing Nail Polish Remover

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Has anyone else ever been intrigued by those little containers you dip your fingers in to get nail polish off? My friend had one and it worked magic, so I thought I’d buy one instead of the usual messy nail polish remover liquid. This stuff works like a charm, and it doesn’t smell all chemical-y or get all over the place. I will never buy acetone remover again!

Pros: inexpensive, easy to use, no lingering smell

Cons: honestly, none!

Where to Buy: Target, Sephora, drug stores (CVS and Walgreens probably have them)

  • Dr. in the Kitchen Flackers raw flax crackers

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Another cheat (I first started buying them like 2 years ago), but I started recently buying them more often now that the Whole Foods nearest me carries them. I’ve tried the dill, rosemary, sun dried tomato & basil and cinnamon & currants flavors (basically all of them but the savory flavor) and I love them all except the cinnamon and currants. That one gets a bit too chewy from the currants and the flavor is weirdly sour. But all the others are tasty, not too salty and have stellar nutritionals. 6-7 grams of fiber, raw, gluten free and 4-5 grams of protein per serving. Freakin’ delicious on a snack plate with some olives or raw cashew cheez.

Pros: really healthy, good flavors

Cons: a bit expensive, hard to find

Where to Buy: Whole Foods (not all carry them), natural foods stores, Amazon

  • Honest Fizz (root beer)

Y’all know Zevia has my heart. I mean, sure it costs a lot more than your typical diet soda but it’s so much better for you. If you drink soda, you really need to switch to Zevia.

But Honest Fizz is another great alternative that is a little cheaper. Currently, they only have 4 flavors but I’m hoping they’re successful so maybe they’ll add more. Fingers crossed they (or Zevia) make a watermelon soda. Obsessed. Anyways, the root beer is pretty spot on. I actually prefer the Zevia root beer only because it has a kick from the ginger, but the Honest Fizz was less filling (I don’t drink Zevias too often because I hate being filled up with soda, even if it’s zero calorie) which I like. And I think it would make a pretty good healthy root beer float!

Pros: cheaper than Zevia, less filling

Cons: not many flavor options

Where to Buy: Whole Foods, possibly Sprouts

  •  Broadway Nails imPress press-on manicure

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I’ve gotten into the habit of constantly having my nails painted. The problem is I hate constantly touching up and redoing my nails every few days after they inevitably chip. Enter the fake nails! This is my first time using them, and I can honestly say I am imPressed 😉

These go on really quickly and easily. You press them down for a few minutes and after an hour they’re completely good to go. My nails were fairly short at the time I applied these, so even the ‘short’ length had to be trimmed down a bit, but they look natural. Best of all, no chipping!

Pros: easier than nail polish, look natural

Cons: more expensive per use than nail polish, only get 1-2 uses out of each pack

Where to Buy: Target, CVS, Walgreens

  • Living Intentions superfood cereal (hemp & greens)

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I first discovered this granola at the Whole Foods in my college town. They started stocking it in the bulk bins last spring and once I saw it, I had to give it a try. Of course, being a sprouted, superfood-y type thing, it’s expensive. About $12 per pound! But if you only get a little bit at a time like I do, it’s a lot less expensive. Some stores only sell it prepackaged so you can’t buy only what you need, but if your Whole Foods sells it in the bulk area, BUY IT!

I’ve tried a few of the flavors, but my favorite by far is the hemp & greens. This one isn’t sweetened with agave like some of the others, which I like. It’s got a bit of a ‘green’ flavor from the added spirulina, chlorella, spinach, alfalfa and dandelion — what other cereal can boast those ingredients? It’s grain free (made from buckwheat), low sugar, high protein…basically the healthiest granola ever. It’s perfectly crunchy and just a bit sweet and pairs well with almond milk. I also love it as a topping for my protein puddings.

Pros: one of the healthiest cereals ever, great ingredients

Cons: expensive, I love it so much I keep buying it 😉

Where to Buy: Whole Foods, Sprouts, Nuts.com

What new products have you tried lately? 

Currently: December

…Also known as “It’s almost finals week so I’m stressed and practically brain dead so here’s a fun post that will take my mind off all that I have to do in the next week and a half.” All my fellow (or former) college students will understand what I’m saying here.

Current Book: I’m currently doing my best to avoid all books, even my textbooks. Just kidding, but really the only books I have time to care about are my textbooks. #sorrynotsorry

Current Music: All things Christmas music, especially Vince Guaraldi trio, aka A Charlie Brown Christmas music!

Current Guilty Pleasure: Homemade dark chocolate-covered orange slices. Remember those chocolate oranges that always came out around Christmas? These are like that, but better because I’ve been making them with satsumas (100x better than plain old oranges) and stevia-sweetened dark chocolate. So does that make them a guilty pleasure, or not so much?

Current Nail Color: They’re chipping now, but last weekend I painted my nails with my friend who has a million different nail polishes (seriously, a girl’s dream) and I used OPI The Color of Minnie and Essie Toggle to the Top for some festive-looking nails.

I can never get my nails to not chip a few days in.

I can never get my nails to not chip a few days in.

Current Drink: Celestial Seasonings gingerbread tea or water.

Current Food: Alllllllll the homemade ‘balls’, creamy & spicy butternut squash sauce, leftover grain free stuffing, pomegranates, satsumas, stevia-chocolate chips melted on everything, sauerkraut and these really good spicy sprouted sunflower seeds I got from the bulk section at Whole Foods. I like how I always list multiple things in my ‘Current Food’ section. What can I say, I love food!

Some completely random nachos from sometime last week. I had some sprouted cranberry pumpkin tortilla chips I needed to use them up, so I paired them with beans, sauteed spinach, sauerkraut, olives and homemade cranberry sauce.

Some completely random nachos from sometime last week. I had some sprouted cranberry pumpkin tortilla chips I needed to use them up, so I paired them with beans, sauteed spinach, sauerkraut, olives and homemade cranberry sauce.

Current TV Show: This question and the book question need to go, seriously. I never answer them because I’m never reading/watching anything regularly enough. I will say that my dad has been getting The Newsroom on Netflix and we watched a few episodes of that over Thanksgiving break to get caught up. I am obsessed with that show. Take my love for journalism/news and my love for (recent) history and you’ve got a perfect show for this nerd 😉

Current Wishlist: To make it out of finals week alive (and graduated), to mentally prepare myself for Christmas (not that I’m dreading it, it just doesn’t quite feel like Christmas yet to me), and to magically have my dream job right now #nothappening.

Current Needs: More coffee (haven’t had any Starbucks in almost 2 weeks), my car to start again (poor Alejandro’s battery doesn’t work after a week of near-zero temps) so I can stop taking the bus to campus, the end of school to come sooner.

This was back when Alejandro could deal with some cold and snow.

This was back when Alejandro could deal with some cold and snow.

Current Triumphs: Trying not to stress out so much. Emphasis on the trying there. I’m not 100% anxiety-free, but I’m doing better. I had a lot of stressful situations thrown at me the beginning of the week and I’m still trying to deal with those (such as my car not working, and having to take the bus to campus) on top of stressing about finals, graduation and the post-grad life. I’m doing well not worrying so much about what I’ll be doing with my life after school is over, but I need to also focus less (in a good way) on the more present issues so I don’t run myself down too much.

Current Bane of Existence: How damn cold it was here for the past week, and still kinda is. We got about 6 inches of snow last Tuesday/Wednesday and it’s barely melted due to how cold it’s been. I know a lot of the country’s been dealing with very cold weather, but even living in Colorado most of my life, we never get weather this cold for this long. I blame my Arizona-born blood for not being able to handle the cold 😀

The snow we got a week ago...and it still basically looks like this today.

The snow we got a week ago…and it still basically looks like this today.

Current Indulgence: Mung bean pasta (so good–grain free and 25 grams of protein per serving) with homemade spicy butternut squash sauce, sauerkraut and salted pumpkin seeds. It tastes like a totally decadent pasta dish but is actually healthy.

Current Blessing: Being so close to the end of my school career (for now, anyways). I feel like I’ve been a student forever, and I kinda have if 16 years is forever, so it’s completely crazy that by next Saturday I’ll be done. I’m so thankful that I’ve had the chance to go to college, finish out my degree and make some amazing memories.

Current Outfit: Chillin’ in my pajamas at the mo, but here’s a recent memorable outfit. It was from last Friday, when I had my capstone panel review. One of the most nerve-wracking things ever, but I got some good feedback and it’s all over now!

I'm so classy in my Ann Taylor skirt suit set I got on sale during Labor Day weekend and wore for the first time ever last week.

I’m so classy in my Ann Taylor skirt suit set I got on sale during Labor Day weekend and wore for the first time ever last week.

Current Excitement: CHRISTMAS (duh!), graduation and most of all, being home for the holidays. I. Can’t. Wait.

What are you currently excited about? Is it still cold where you are?

Currently: November

As you can see, I’ve changed my blog design yet again! I am a little obsessed with page design but I didn’t want to shell out money that I don’t have to get one of the premium designs or find a professional blog designer so this is what I went with and I like it–I love the colorful, bold look!

Anyways, here’s the latest edition of Currently. These kinds of posts are always my favorite to write because they’re more personal but in a fun way!

Current Book: Am I ever reading a book I actually like, instead of something I have to read for school? No such thing! Again, currently reading this book (on my tablet) for my post-WWII history class. I really like that class, and the books are pretty interesting, so no complaints.

all soulsCurrent Music: I’m patiently awaiting the arrival of Christmas music on Sirius XM (editor’s note: actually found out it started on Tuesday, so I’m officially listening to it on the drive to and from school) and I will be listening to that nonstop until New Year’s. What can I say, I love the Christmas season!

Current Guilty Pleasure: Starbucks 1x per week. I’ve been hitting up the ‘bucks almost every week for awhile now, especially now that the red cups are back. Seriously, it’s a problem but not really because I’m working my way up to gold card status and I never order those crazy fancy expensive drinks. Tall Americanos and blonde roasts for me, please and thank you, with the occasional addition of soy or sugar free syrups.

Another guilty pleasure is car selfies.

Another guilty pleasure is car selfies.

Current Nail Color: This pretty forest green color from OPI that I got last Christmas. It came in the cutest mini-size bottle and somehow I still have some left.

Current Drink: I feel like I say water every time (boooooring!) so I’ll switch it up and say tall Americano from Starbucks with 3 pumps sugar free peppermint, in a red cup of course. I got this drink the other day when I was at Starbucks for a group project meeting, and it was surprisingly good and not overly sweet.

Current Food: Lettuce wraps for lunches on campus, random salads at home, homemade PB & J bites (basically raisins blended with peanut butter from the Whole Foods bulk section), black bean pasta (soooo good, and I love the protein it has), protein banana softserve, pomegranates and persimmons.

A totally random but yummy salad.

A totally random but yummy salad.

Current TV Show: I’m not watching any show regularly, aside from SNL every week. A lot of the cast is brand new this season, but I’ve liked most of the shows so far. I still miss Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, though.

Current Wishlist: Basically, all I want is to make it to Thanksgiving break alive (I am crazy busy with school stuff) and then make it to graduation with good grades. I’m in the home stretch, and I’m freaked out and not at the same time. #senioritis

Current Needs: More time in my day to get shit stuff done, a break from school (Thanksgiving break in T-minus 8 days!), a little bit more money in my budget to get me through the rest of the semester.

I also need to find more persimmons, to feed my addiction.

I also need to find more persimmons, to feed my addiction. I like the hachiyas best.

Current Triumphs: This may sound weird, but learning to like the color black. Before this year, I owned basically nothing black in my closet. I was not a fan of black in any way. I finally branched out and bought a few black pieces to add into my wardrobe and I’m finally starting to love it, in small doses, paired with other colors. I just love how chic and edgy it can be!

Current Bane of Existence: School, my skin situation (I still have acne, and it’s not going away easily), stress about finding a job after graduation.

Current Indulgence: These homemade PB cups I made last week. Okay, maybe they weren’t that indulgent, being made with stevia-sweetened dark chocolate and organic, no-salt no-sugar PB, but they were really good and I’m planning on making them again once I get more chocolate chips and PB.

Current Blessing: Having the support of my family, forever and always. I’ve said it before, but I love my family. Even when they get on my nerves, I still love them and I will be forever grateful that they’re so supportive and loving. My mom’s been helping me pay for groceries lately since I’ve been running low on money, and my dad’s helped me figure out some school stuff, and my sister’s just been there to cheer me up with some new Lady Gaga music 😉

Current Outfit: This was something I wore last week, but a red peplum shirt from Forever 21, my new black jeggings from American Eagle (I’m obsessed with these, and they were $12!) and sparkly black flats from Target.

OOTD shots are always better in my new full-length mirror.

OOTD shots are always better in my new full-length mirror.

Current Excitement: ARTPOP, the new Lady Gaga album, is finally out. It’s a lot different than some of her older stuff, and I still think I prefer her Born This Way album, but the new songs are really catchy and fun.

What are some of your currentlies?