When Tara Met Blog: November 2009

RedPlum’s Cheap and Chic Gifts Under $30

In honor of Black Friday, here are some holiday gifts under $30 that were recommended at a RedPlum “My Frugalicious Holiday” event that I attended at SLS in Beverly Hills last week. They had over 30 editor's favorites on display, but these were my favorites:

Personalized Pacifiers $4.99
“mute button” pacifierWHY WE LIKE IT: The “mute button” pacifier is too funny, and great for new moms and dads, or those who have just added to their brood.
HOW TO USE IT: Put in baby’s mouth to stop crying.
They also allow you to put your own message on the pacifier too.

DAYS AGO TIMER $5-$12
a timer for anything
WHY WE LIKE IT: Lets you quickly mark how long it’s been since…anything! When you made the soup in that Tupperware, when hubby left the socks on the floor.
HOW TO USE IT: Stick or strap it on (depending on the model) and hit start and it will count off the days.

NIC’S STICKS by OPI $7
write-on polish sticksWHY WE LIKE IT: These time-saving tubes of polish are perfect for your best friend who needs to be able to touch up her manicure at her desk, or a teen who is just learning to polish her nails.
HOW TO USE IT: Push the tube a couple times, like you would click a pen. Then just paint and go!

MAKEYOUR NECKLACE $14
design-your-own necklaceWHY WE LIKE IT: For one super-reasonable price, you can let anyone on your list design their own necklace.
HOW TO USE IT: The giftee can choose from cord, leather or stainless steel and the pendant options.

OLIVE WREATH $17.50 - $30
WHY WE LIKE IT: First, the incredible smell. Second, because it’ll last long past the holidays.
HOW TO USE IT: Hang it on the front door or any interior door, or use as a centerpiece with a candle inside (inside a glass holder, of course!). Let it dry while hanging and you can enjoy all year.

Since moving to our condo two years ago, the neighborhood has slowly gentrified and I'm all for it. The one exception being this random store at the end of my street "Cameron Supplies" with its 1950s sign. The weird thing is that I never once saw it open or people inside it or even anyone going in or out...for two years. It was weird. I wondered how it was staying in business or if it was simply a front for something else. Anyway, after two years of bitching and speculating, all of a sudden they had cleaned out. Now, I've been thinking of all the great things I'd love to see go in its place.

Here's my shortlist for the new tenant:

Pizza place
Fro-yo shop, preferably Pinkberry
Used book store
Tea shop
Dry Cleaners
Jamba Juice

Raphael's want list:

Deli
Ice Cream Shop

What I wouldn't want to go there:

Real Estate Agent (boring)
Bar

What would be your vote and what would be your veto?

The other night, I saw Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical at The Pantages Theater in Hollywood. I love the popular cartoon, the song and even the Jim Carey movie, so I expected much of the same, but was very disappointed.

Let me start with the good things first-- it starred John Larroquette; there was some humorous parts and it was only an hour and a half long. There wasn't an intermission, which was smart, because I would have taken the opportunity to sneak out. However, the later half was better than the painful begining. I of course expected the musical to be childish, but it was so geared towards children even more so than the original cartoon, making me think this would have been better to take a child to as a great introduction to Broadway and not for my husband and I.

I was also surprised that John Larroquette wasn't in the title role of The Grinch, but played his dog Max from the future and the story's narrator of sorts. In fact, the whole story was told through the eyes of the dog now older, which I thought was weird, corny and forced. I know they were just trying to tell the famous story in a new way, but I liked the original and would have just preferred seeing that.

The show runs until January 3, 2010. Tickets range from $23 - $90 but their are also special deals via @pantages twitter and on Goldstar.com.

Calling all foodies and Food Network fans! The Food Network and NAMCO BANDAI Games just released a brand new cooking game for the Wii – Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked. Remember, when I had attended the sneak peek event for the game with Michael Symon a few months ago (post)? Well, If you still haven’t heard about it, the game features Food Network personality Susie Fogelson, of The Next Food Network Star, and Food Network Kitchens chef Mory Thomas – and teaches you 30+ real Food Network recipes and the skills and culinary tricks you need to execute them with precision. Now what kind ofother games other that??

In honor of the game's release they are letting me offer my readers a culinary cornucopia prize pack. The pack includes a copy of the Wii game, plus tools of the trade and other fun Food Network and Cook or Be Cooked branded items.

Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked Prize Pack
- 1 copy of Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked for the Wii ($39.99 retail value)
- 1 Food Network recipes DVD box set
- 1 copy of Food Network’s “Meals on DVD”
- 1 Food Network branded oven mitt
- 1 Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked branded apron
- 1 cooking utensil – varies (ex. peeler, can opener, ice cream scoop)
- 1 Food Network key chain
- 1 Food Network refrigerator magnet
- 1 Food Network pen

To enter, post a comment here for a chance to win. Be sure to reply with a valid email address in the body of your comment or link to a profile where I can find a way to contact you if you should win. Also, you'll receive an additional entry if you tweet this contest too. Ends Saturday November 28. Update: Congrats to Nathan!

Last night, I attended the unveiling of the 2011 Buick Regal with a private concert by Colbie Caillat at the Hollywood Palladium.

I've been to auto shows (NY and Detroit), but never to a car unveiling before. It was actually kind of exciting. I walked into the theater and a large curtain was up in the middle of the room. Then, after some speeches by GM including the famous Bob Lutz, the curtain was slowly lifted to much applause. I have to say It wasn't the big Buick that I remember from back in the day, but a sleek compact.

Also on display were the Buick La Crosse and Enclave, both of which looked really luxurious inside with their leather interior. Raphael had me sit in the Enclave, but since the seat was all the way back, I looked quite small in it, lol.

After the unveil of the newest Buick, singer Colbie Caillat took the stage to perform a rather long set considering this wasn't a real concert. I recognized Colbie's name, but didn't realize what songs she sang until I googled her and saw that I knew three of her songs including one called Bubbly which goes like "It starts in my toes and I crinkle my nose, where ever it goes I always know..." She also sings Realize - "If you just realize what I just realized, Then we'd be perfect for each other and will never find another..." She also has a duet out with Jason Mraz called Lucky. You can click on the above titles to view the music videos. Basically, she has a soft, bluesy, earthy tone to her voice, kind of like a female Jason Mraz.

In person, Colbie was also very hot as is her guitar player, which all the girls were mooning over (including me). I was standing literally right in front of the stage with my blogging buddy Kaitlin and her friend Kimmy who is a huge fan of the double platinum singer-songwriter--her excitement to be there was contagious.

While walking around the party I had spotted Desperate Housewives Kathryn Joosten a.k.a. the older neighbor on Wisteria Land, Mrs. McCluskey, which I was pretty excited about. She also looks exactly as she does on TV, so it was pretty easy to spot her when she walked by the cars. The stalker in me approached her and asked if I could take a photo, which she willing did. Very sweet of her:

Note: GM is a Weber Shandwick client

Come tweet with me, twitter tutorial

This coming Monday I'm going to be providing a twitter tutorial with the awesome people at BlogOutLoud. If you're still confused by twitter, tweets and want tips on how to grow your twitter following, definitely RSVP to this event. I'm preparing a deck with some ideas, but am most looking forward to feeding questions from those that are there. Below are more details:

The workshop will be at Patio Culture on Abbott Kinney in Venice. Hopefully will see you there!

Update:
The class went really well, at least I think it did. I received a lot of positive feedback after, tweets and lots of questions through out. I also talked for 2 hours straight, which was pretty tiring, but at least it was on a topic that I enjoy and am passionate about. Here's a photo that someone tweeted during my tutorial and you can see me up in front of the room by the computer screen.

The other day, after a long day of work, I was invited to have a complimentary 20-minute MicroZone facial normally worth $25 at the Dermalogica Spa in Santa Monica on Montana Ave. This quick skin fix was just the pick-me-up that my skin so desperately needed, removing blackheads or as they say "congestion" and leaving my face healthy and bright again. Don't get me wrong, I love the relaxation of a longer facial, but you don't always have the time to change your clothes and spend over an hour on you. Thus, I really liked the no fuss MicroZone treatment, which left my skin looking as if I did have an hour-long facial. I only wish it was closer to my office because I so would go once a month on my lunch break or quickly after work, especially for only $25.

They also did a face mapping diagnosis where their skin therapist analyzed my skin from forehead to collarbone and marked any problem areas on a map and recommended different products I could use and ways to prevent future issues. With my face in her hands, the woman told me that I have beautiful skin, but she did suggest that I use an exfoliate more often as well as SPF lotion (guilty of not doing much of either). This service is complimentary to any customers that go into the store, so I definitely recommend it. Their skincare products developed by The International Dermal Institute are also pretty reasonable for a professional beauty line. Besides their Santa Monica shop here they have one in SoHo, New York too and at locations across the world. Here's a more detailed and in-depth Dermalogica skincare review from Pierre Michel Beauty.

Giveaway: Post a comment here for a chance to win a free Dermalogica MicroZone treatment gift certificate for their Santa Monica location. Be sure to reply with a valid email address or with a profile where I can find a way to contact you if you should win. Update: Congrats to Nanette!

Thanks to Marsha at Sweatpantsmom, I was invited to her Wii Fit Plus Party and demo. We were told to come in our yoga gear for a Wii workout and mingle.

Although I own a Wii console, I had never played the original Wii Fit never mind the Wii Fit Plus, so I was really eager to try it out, especially since I'll use any excuse not to go to a real gym!

At the party, I quickly partnered up with LAist's Julie Wolfson who already played the game, so she was coaching me and of course beating me at all the competitive challenges, lol. We did some yoga stretches to improve posture, which were fun and made me miss when I had belonged to a yoga studio in NYC. The most fun part though was the activity games that incorporated the sensor balance board, which included a ski jump, hula hoop, kung fu and some other wacky games. No matter what activity you play or physical routine you select, the game counts the calories you've burned and calculates your BMI and daily progress, thus motivating you to continue. I was also surprised to find that the board also doubles as a scale--yikes!

Another cool feature is that the Wii Fit Plus allows you to add a pet as a family member, so that you can create a profile for them and even weigh them too. So, when I went home with the Wii Fit Plus parting gift that I received (yay!) I quickly held my poor Patches on the board to see her weight and received a scratch from her in the process, lol. She's 9.5 pounds, so not bad. Now, I'm going to have Raphael try it out and create a profile too, but hopefully he'll be more accommodating than Patches.

For Halloween, while my husband practiced learning the steps to Thriller with his friends to re-enact at the WeHo Festival, my girlfriend and I headed to the Hello Kitty Halloween Party at Royal-T Cafe in Culver City. Although I'm a fan of the festival and Michael too, I didn't have time to practice the routine due to my recent travel. Plus, I already recieved a free Seven 'Til Midnight Snow White costume at The Silver Spoons Emmy party, but as one of our friends pointed out it looked more Ho-White than Snow White, lol. Luckily, my friend Karen went as Belle so we had our own little Disney Princess theme going on.

At the Hello Kitty Halloween Party, 30 years of memorabilia and new inspired artwork were on display and will be up until mid November. There were also some special Halloween touches including a Hello Kitty Pumpkin Patch: