Turning Men To Stone Since 1978

My Halloween costume came about rather randomly this year. I had ordered a flapper costume online. Since my only sizing options were "One Size Fits Most" or 1X, I thought it would be a good move to chose the 1X option and give myself a little breathing room. Bad decision! The costume arrived three days before Halloween and was so large that me, Bad Wolf and a third person could have fit in it. I frantically dug through my closet for other options. Had the hat and boots for a cowgirl costume but my only denim skirt is more of the pencil variety and doesn't exactly scream Hee Haw. I have a kick ass Japanese dress that I have been dying to wear but the costume wouldn't have been complete without a little geisha girl wig. Roadtripper + wig = a night of hot, sweaty hell.

I rushed out to the costume store on Halloween day on my lunch break. My only criteria were 1.) no wigs and 2.) must cover my ass, thus eliminating every naughty nun/slutty cheerleader costume.

The end result? Medusa! Yeah. Turn 'em all to stone because that just reflects my current sentiment to most of humanity these days... well, at least the male population.

Armed with spiral rollers (ha ha! snakes... get it?) and tons of hairspray to cajole my stick straight locks in to staying put, I made it work in a last minute way that Tim Gunn would have been proud of. Check out the 'do:



I can't seem to find a full-length picture of me in the costume... so here is one of a very happy and drunk Medusa instead.

My Favorite Things

Fellow blogger CKD has a regular feature on her site showcasing her love of over-priced but fabulous cosmetics. Knowing a fellow product whore when she sees one, she issued up the challenge to me. Here goes a list of my favorite things (alternate title: How Roadtripper Gets Free Shipping From Sephora By Spending Way Over $50 With Each Purchase)




Benefit Eye Bright: Blame my genetics because I can roll out of bed after a solid 12 hour slumber sporting dark circles under my eyes that would indicate an all-night drinking binge. A quick swipe of this snazzy pink pencil makes me look well-rested and completely zenful even after the worst bout of insomnia.



OPI nailpolish: I adore OPI and don't even blink when I shell out almost $10 for a bottle. This stuff lasts forever and the colors never streak. My recent obsession has been their Royal Navy color, which has enjoyed heavy rotation on my toe nails all summer long.



Philosophy Hope in a Jar: Hands down, the best moisterizer for my skin. Not at all greasy, absorbs instantly and makes my skin feel like buttah.



Anastasia Perfect Brow Pencil in Strawburn: My brows are ridiculously sparse. For years, the only light pencils I could find were ash-blonde and ended up making me look like Ash Wednesday Gone Awry. Anastasia has a fabulous color called Strawburn that is perfect for those of us with an autumn palette.



Revlon ColorStay Mineral Lipglaze: Anyone who knows me well can attest to the fact that I am always smoking a cigarette or sipping a soda, wreaking havoc on any lipstick I wear. This recent drugstore find holds for hours without turning my lips in to a chapped, dried-out mess.



Philosophy Red Velvet Cake 3-in-1 Shower Gel: Any southern girl goes bat shit crazy for red velvet cake. This stuff smells so delish... sans those pesky calories and fat grams.




John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Shine Shock: Makes hair glisten. Not just for brunettes either... I have had almost every color on the Redken wheel and this stuff works like a charm. A bright and very shiney charm.

A New 'Do

I can be a bit rigid when picking a hairdresser. My last few were women in their forties. Call me crazy but give me the twenty-something with purple streaks in her hair. I think they are more willing to take risks and will make sure you don't look boring. Since I am new in town, I was kind of flying blind. I noticed my co-worker Laura has really cute highlights so I bit the bullet and asked for her hairdresser's number. I walked in to the salon this morning to discover my stylist was a twenty-something with a purple wash to her dark hair. Jackpot!


Along with a new base color and highlights, the girls in the shop offered up advice on local bars and clubs. What more can you ask for? I love one-stop shopping!

My Style Icon This Autumn

They always say that moving to a new town is a clean slate. Although I don't want to completely transform, I am going to embrace the opportunity to fine tune one aspect of my life: my wardrobe! I have gotten complacent the last few years. Khakis, V-necks and ballet flats are my go-to uniform for work. I always used the weekends as my chance to bust out the fun clothes but lately you are lucky to see me outside of sweats, flip-flops and a T-shirt on a Saturday. My general attitude has been "Why bother?" I am seriously teetering in to "What Not To Wear" territory, and have found myself looking over my shoulder to make sure Stacey and Clinton aren't going to swoop down on me.

I have gotten crazy inspiration from my new TV obsession Mad Men. My new style icon is the sexy office vixen Joan Holloway.

Proof that curvy girls are sexy

This lady totally makes me want to grab a box of bright auburn hair dye, slap on some red lipstick and sashay around the office in shift dresses and heels. I am bordering on girl crush territory here.




I already have the hips for it. The clothes in the stores this season support the look. Only thing is I have to find a good stylist to do something with this dark blonde mop that I have been sporting on my head lately. Otherwise... think I can pull it off?

Another 80's Trend

Fashionistas have been trying to bring back 80's style for a few years now. And I have dug my heels in protest. I hate 80's style. It isn't flattering; and it is just plain ugly. Pegged/rolled pants send me in to a blind rage. Day-Glo colors make me want to gouge my eyeballs out. Leggings have been known to induce fainting spells.

Having said all that, I do secretly dig crimped hair. Definitely not for walking down the street midday like Ms. Banks chose to do. And, yes, it does look a little trailer trash. But for those nights out when your ensemble needs that extra pizazz and you just don't feel like taking yourself too seriously. Hell yeah... bust out that crimping iron!

This is one of the rare 80's trends I can actually stand behind. What do you think? Cute trend or do I just need to go ahead with the down payment on my double-wide right now?