Posted by Luana | 6 Comments

Preparing for 2010!

Starting fresh is a very important concept for me, one that I take literally to the bone when it comes to starting the new year. A true procrastinator at heart, I’ve been putting this off for a while now but we are only two days away from 2010 and I want to make sure I am well armed for whatever it throws at me.

The importance of order in the home (out with the old!)
If you are a neatfreak at heart, there is no way you are waiting until spring to clean out your closets! What better way to start the new year than with an organized wardrobe? Throw out anything you shouldn’t take with you into 2010. Consider the following: Is it over two years old? Have you worn it in the last appropriate season? Is it covered in lint balls? Are you only keeping it because it was a gift, and never actually to wear?  If the answer to any of these is yes, is it a favorite piece you can’t do without? If it isn’t, throw it out. Careful with downgrading pieces to “loungewear” because you cannot part with them. Your loungewear drawers will be overflowing within months (I should know!)

Orderly Corners
Another thing I love to do is go through my computer folders, deleting excessive files and photos (I have photos in my ‘inspiration’ folder from 2005…). I keep my bookmarks down to 100, so only the essential dailies. Anything else goes to delicious just in case!
I also go through my iTunes and delete songs that I usually skip over and I make new playlists or revise old ones.
Tame down crowded shelves and drawers; I basically go through them all over the house and throw away piles of things — if I didn’t remember I had that, or if I haven’t used it in forever, they go in the bin. If they are in good condition I put them aside maybe to give away.

Productivity Powerhouse
The desk is where some of the magic happens, if not most depending on your job and hobbies. I tend to be glued to mine (to an unhealthy extent sometimes!), so it needs weekly maintenance. Extra papers, clippings, pens running dry, little things you just don’t know where to put so you shove them in any drawer. All these need to go out! Keep only what you use actually on your desk, the rest should be filed away. Keep some sort of board up for calendars, important notices/reminders and inspirational tidbits! This year I’ll be keeping a physical inspiration folder of inspiring articles, and I’ll leave the pictures to be put up on the wall next to my desk. Whenever my creative juices are running low, I’ll just glance over at them and keep going! Things on my desk: this semester’s books and notebooks, a big bag of pens and markers, extra paper and my printer. Nothing to distract me here! Except for the laptop which I kind of overlooked. Set it on sleep and you should be good for a while (damn twitter!)

Put those Christmas gifts to use!
Those of you who have already received your presents can start the new year with brand new shiny things, yay! I will have to wait until January 6th as is tradition here for the big loot, but a few days can’t hurt I guess!

So now that your home is a wonderland of all things beautiful and new, all you have to do is wait for 2010 to roll around! That, and maybe write down your plans for it; big ridiculous plans, small details, wants, wishes…! Exciting!

Posted by Luana | 1 Comment

Looking Back on 2009

Ah, 2009! It caught Tom and I by surprise as we lined up to enter a countdown party — the actual counting down had began inside so those of us lining up just counted down together and proceeded to hug each other as we welcomed the new year.

It’s definitely been a chaotic year in every sense of the word, but as usual the memories to go down tend to be the good ones. And with time you can look back and laugh at past misfortunes and be glad that you survived them!

2009:

• Visited my beautiful family in Venezuela and took a mini holiday to the islands.
• Left my teenage years behind and turned 20!
• Finished my semester in Beijing with actually good marks!
• Moved to Madrid; probably the most hectic part of the entire year.
• Went Long Distance.
• Spent part of the summer in France with Tom; probably the best part of the year!
• Started my Psychology degree; loving it.
• Had Tom come over to Madrid and Toledo.
• Saw Tom in London and Cardiff. Amazing time but a bit too rainy for my taste…
• Had an amazing Christmas with family!

What has 2009 brought for you?

Posted by Luana | 3 Comments

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas to those of you celebrating! A lot of amazing food and wine, cake and champagne and most of all family, have been making my holidays super sweet! I am giving myself a break from books, but inevitably I will have to get back to them — until I do, I will sit back and start thinking for the new year. It’s all about plans and goals for me, and wishing too.

I hope you guys have been having a happy time wherever you are!

Posted by Luana | 1 Comment

Goodbye, Frizzies!

My fine hair has been battling frizz eternally, and no matter how dry it is where I live, rainy days will be sure to ruin my life. It is a damn struggle. The worst periods of frizz fighting occurred while I was living in Hong Kong (thanks to the unbelievable humidity). At that point I decided to give up on straightening and blowdrying and just let my hair naturally curl and frizz any which way it so pleased. I have to say that actually did wonders for my super damaged ends.

But you know the old “we want what we can’t/don’t have”, and so I have always been set on straight hair. Or at least wavy NON FRIZZY hair. Here are six main principles that years of trial & error, frustration and hairbrush fights have taught me:

1. Do not wash your hair every day! This will strip it of natural oil and your ends become dry. Figure out how long you can go without washing it before you look like you’ve had an olive oil shower, and keep that interval. I’ve always washed my hair every other day, but I’m finding every two days works as well! I have yet to try the wonders of dry shampoo, and I’m guessing that would reduce hairwashing by about a ton.
2. Do two rounds of shampoo, massaging the scalp for volune (great for fine hair). Rinse and condition from your ears down. I have found that it is actually better not to comb hair at this point, but that may be personal preference.
3. Before you jump out of the shower, rinse your with cold water to close the cuticles; this seals in proteins & actually makes it look healthier.
4. Gently towel-dry your hair. Add a little bit of protecting serum and start blowdrying with cold air and finish off with hot air. Keep the nozzle on the hayrdryer so that the air hits exactly where you want.
5. Pick out soft hairbands to tie your hair up. I usually go for hairclips or bobby pins though.
6. Water, lots of water and protein based foods (hair is protein after all); healthy diet healthy hair! I’ve also heard salmon is good for its omega-3 fatty acids — did someone say salmon sushi? YUM!

I’m sure some of these were no mystery to most of you, but man did it take me long to figure out the entire routine! What is your hair care routine? Any favorite products?

Posted by Luana | 8 Comments

Buried in Books

It is almost Christmas (!) and I am still up to my neck in work! Besides my taking a break on Thursday and Sunday, I will be typing away at the computer, flipping through textbooks and cramming information into my brain. So my goals for this week are:

• Finish 3 assignments by tonight (without counting one I finished this morning)
• Get the last of my Christmas shopping done — I’m so unprepared! Boo!
• Have an amazing Christmas Eve with family, lots of wine and desserts.
• Finish 4 more assignments by Friday
• Start studying on Saturday

And there you have it! A holiday dictated by numerous cramming sessions. New Year’s shall be a nice break to go all out, then quickly back to it by Jan. 1st! I am a mix of excitement and anxiousness and so, so tired. But I’ll survive, no doubt!

How are you guys preparing for Christmas? Loving the snow this year, nice touch Earth!