Yes, we’re still right smack in the middle of winter and the rain and clouds outside keep taunting me to wear vampy reds and chocolaty browns on my tips.  But I say, the hell with all that, I’m ready for spring and I WILL wear hot pink in January if I want to. 

Essie Spring 2009 Collection includes six nail lacquers in a range of basic colors from nude to bold reds and blue.  The collection of creme finish polishes is a bit retro to me, a nice throwback to your basics.

Lacquered Up is a superhero red that reminds me of Wonder Woman and complements my fair skin tone nicely.

I love the soft cotton candy pink of Flawless.  These types of pink shades usually don’t do anything for me but this one really won my heart over.  I have a feeling I’ll be reaching for this bottle many times this season.

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I hadn’t had my hair professionally colored in nearly a year so I thought I’d go big or go home right before my 30th birthday (oy it’s coming soon!).

Last week I stopped by MNKYTHMP (pronounced sort of like ‘monkey thump’) in Union Square, the only Redken Elite salon in San Francisco.  MNKYTHMP‘s doors have been open for about a year now hosting a melting pot of stylists and colorists from all around San Francisco so I was excited to experience a new salon to sass up my color.

A little history: every so often when I break up with my current colorist to go with a new one, I usually tell him or her that I’m open to any color or style and let them go to town.  But my experience with Carissa from MNKYTHMP was very different.

Yes, I told her I was pretty laid back and was not picky with my hair but she surprised me by asking lots of questions about my regular styling routine and what colors in clothes and jewelry I like to wear.  This helped her determine what to do to my hair to make it gorgeous while keeping maintenance easy for me.

She definitely made me feel like my look was tailored specifically for me.

After a few minutes of discussing, we decided on deep violet red chunks using a block coloring technique and then warmed up my base color making it a couple of shades lighter.  Here’s my before photo!

While Carissa was mixing my color – MNKYTHMP uses Redken colors exclusively – I walked around the huge salon and snapped some photos.   Talk about spacious! What makes MNKYTHMP unique is that they’re a hair salon as well as a spa, so you can spend the entire afternoon pampering if you want to.

Once my color was applied and processed, we went back to the shampoo station to wash it out and apply my Redken Chemistry shots.

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For my girlfriend’s baby shower, I wanted to try a couple of recipes I had been eying online for a few weeks now.

One of my favorite resources to use is FoodNetwork.com.  Thanks to my favorite TV chefs, these dishes were a hit at the party!

Grilled Beef on Focaccia Toast is Tyler Florence’s recipe.  If you’re on a budget like me, skip the tenderloin and opt for a cheaper alternative like flank or skirt steak.

This dish came out nicely and made a huge platter that was more than enough for the party.  However, if you’re short on time, there are quite a few components that require lots of prep time.  My only other gripe is that I didn’t have time to snap a proper photo to share with you! 

Rachael Ray’s recipe for Spitfire Shrimp was the absolute star of the party.  If you like spicy foods, you’ll love this!  But if you don’t, you can cut back on the amount of chili sauce (I used Sambal Chili sauce) to about 1-2 tablespoons, depending on what you like.

This recipe only takes minutes to whip up so I think I’ll be coming back to this one for weeknight dinners.

The last thing I made was Caprese Bruschetta.  I didn’t follow a recipe but it requires almost no brain work.  I sliced a baguette, rubbed it with garlic and a little salt and pepper and toasted it in the oven for about 7 minutes, or until crispy on the outside and soft in the middle.

Then you just start assembling – layer sliced vine-ripe tomato, then whole basil leaves and sliced mozzarella.  Top that will a little salt and pepper and a nice drizzle of balsamic vinegar.  Garnish with chiffonade basil, slice into pieces and serve!

We kept the rest of the food in line with our finger food theme and had chips and dip along with hummus and pita bread.  My other friend also made mini pesto pizzas on crackers that were super delicious too!

Before looking for cake options for my girlfriend’s baby shower that I hosted last Sunday, I had never heard of a pull apart cupcake cake before – that is until I found a woman who specializes in cupcakes: Carrie, from Carrie’s Creations.

This red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting was a hit and so cute that we stood in front of it for 10 minutes just staring at it before finally diving in!

If this were any other occasion, we might have been a little critical of the sweet concoction – it was a little on the dry side and had wayyy too much frosting for my taste – but it was a hit nonetheless and Carrie was a DREAM to work with!

So this is my shout out to her.  If you’re in need of a fun and different idea for cakes, check her out.  The cupcake itself wasn’t anything to write home about but it made a great conversational piece for our party!

Thanks Carrie!