The Pretty Dish Giveaway

Check out this blog and the giveaway!

http://theprettydish.com/2012/04/22/celebrating-100-posts-with-a-laura-mercier-giveaway/

I Don't Think You're Ready For This Jelly

Calling all children of the 80's who rocked their jellies with pride! I have always stated my love for my jellies and that has never faded. I knew they would make a come back....and now they have! You know my love for shoes and that definitely includes jellies. I wore them in the summer, when it was raining and I tried to convince my Mother that nothing was cooler than breaking out the jelly shoes in the snow.

I could never quite tell if my dedication to these plastic gems included the color, the flexibility or the ability to secure rocks in the bottom to add to your collection. All around this just seemed to be the perfect shoe. You could wear them with shorts and a t-shirt and then turn around and wear the same ones, with a dress, to your crushes 9th birthday party. Jelly shoes were always there for you and now it's our turn to be there for them. Countless designers from Gucci to Sketchers have reinvented this timeless shoe so check them out!

                                


Mel by Melissa "Ice II" Jelly Flat
http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/mel-by-melissa-ice-ii-jelly-flat
              



              
               Michael Kors Jelly Sandal
               http://www.neimanmarcus.com/p/MICHAEL-Michael-Kors-Logo-Plate-Jelly-Sandal






2012 GUCCI MAROLA AZURE BLUE JELLY G INTERLOCKING LOGO WEDGES SHOES
http://www.bonanza.com/listings/2012-GUCCI-MAROLA-AZURE-BLUE-JELLY-G-INTERLOCKING-LOGO-WEDGES-SHOES-38-39-G/44103390

Say It Ain't So

Rich Maloof, from the Daily Dose blog, wrote about a study done on women (ages 18 to 64) and it was discovered that 9 out of 10 women don't find themselves attractive. This is an astonishing number, but unfortunately it's not hard to believe.

I fall victim to self-scrutiny more days than I would like to admit. But why? I have an incredibly supportive husband who loves me just the way I am. For the most part, I surround myself with other women who are confident and therefore, give me the boost I need. My family will allow me to be seen at functions even if I'm wearing a garbage bag. (Although,  I firmly believe as long as you show up with a bottle of wine they will let most anyone attend.)

So if we have the support from those who are nearest and dearest to us then why are we so hard on ourselves?  Personal truth: The days when I am not satisfied with my personal growth is when I stand in front of the mirror and begin to invite myself to the pity party. I internally pick apart everything negative about myself and concoct a list of the 72 different things I want to change. Unfortunately, those revisions usually require time, money and a quick trip to luxurious island. Due to the lack of time and money it would take to transform myself into a Victoria's Secret model, I have to come up with a quick pep talk to get me back on track. A pep talk plus a phone call to my sister, my Mom or a true friend is usually what I need to pull me out of my funk. But, I must know....am I alone on this one??


Peace, love, and beauty,

     Traverse Girl

http://living.msn.com/life-inspired/the-daily-dose-blog-post?post=9ac3e926-79dd-460a-b70a-38cd105b1a60&OCID=OTD_0424

Win This Bag!

Check out this fab Nico Messenger bag from Rachel Zoe collection that you can win. Hurry because this is the last day!

http://www.thezoereport.com/rachel-zoe-collection-bag-giveaway/

Kissed By The Sun

OK, I fully admit that I used to spend countless hours in the tanning bed desperately seeking that special glow for the summer. Because I'm from a small town most tanning beds are in salons, or as I found out my senior year in high school, they can be located in a tool shed. Yes, a tool shed. I paid a friend who assured me she would pay the homeowner, whom she knew. She then told me where the secret key was hidden for entry into the "tanning shed". After school I quickly rushed to this random persons house and searched under the deck for the hidden key. The golden key unlocked a world I knew nothing about and I was disappointed in myself that it had taken me 17 years to discover tanning beds could be hidden in small wooden barns that also housed a lawnmower. Each day I visited this wonderland my skin obtained the tan I was longing for. I was forever hooked on tanning beds, or so I thought.

Being raised just two hours from the beach, most of my summers were spent riding the waves, building sandcastles and playing catch with a beach ball. My Mother forced us to wear sunscreen before we went swimming in the ocean and then it was mandatory to reapply after a few hours in the sun. And you know how horrible that was. The combination of salt water, sand and sunscreen makes me squirm just thinking about it!

30 years ago the scare for skin cancer didn't ring constantly in our ears like it does today.  When my Mother had a melanoma scare almost 10 years ago I began to realize I could be next.  Mixing the trips to the tanning bed plus the lack of sunscreen and countless hours on the beach had to stop. But how was I going to glow from now on??? 

The are two words that most of us either dread or love.....self tanner. I have spent several years not only searching for a great self tanner but trying to figure out how the heck to put it on. Through many trials and errors that consisted of streaks, blotches and orange patches I finally found my perfect match. Three summers ago I reluctantly purchased L'Oreal Paris Sublime Glow (purchase info below). It's a daily moisturizer plus a skin tone enhancer. After the first application I was sold. It's so easy to put on and it leaves a shimmer that I have not grown tired of. Just like any self tanner you need to exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate before applying. After I exfoliate I usually put on my regular body lotion. The Sublime Glow claims to moisturize but I haven't found, in my case, for that to be entirely true. After I apply the self tanner immediately wash your hands. This self tanner doesn't tend to leave blotches but it can leave that "dirty hands" look that I'm certain you don't want.

Hopefully you will reconsider your time in the tanning bed and use a self tanner to create your "kissed by the sun" look.

Peace, Love, and Glow
   Traverse Girl


www.lorealparisusa.com/sublime-bronze

Monday, Monday

Just a little something to get you going on this chilly Monday!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h02uJGfqON0&feature=related