Gnarly Head - a MUST have

I had to do it guys and gals.... I just absolutely had to write about a wine that has pretty much taken over my wine collection entirely.  I literally crave this wine - the bold flavor, the amazing color and above all ... the catchy name!  You heard it - Gnarly Head, Old Vine Zinfandel!  Want to know the real kicker to this sweet nectar of life?  It's got a 14.5% alcohol content AND its from the great state of CALIFORNIA!!!  That's right people - California makes damn fine wine and this one is proof of that. 

Gnarly Head - Old Vine Zin

My future plans definitely include a trip to the Gnarly Head winery - I plan on trying to get my hands on each and every wine this company makes.  So far I've only had the pleasure of trying the Zinfandel and believe me it's addicting.  The flavor is strong and smooth and hits your palate with a burst of individuality that each amazing grape put into making this sublime vino. 

What is the Shay secret to really getting the most out of this wine you ask?  Well here it is.... It is best paired with a bag of pistachios, a good game of rummy and excellent company.  You really can't go wrong if you follow those few simple recommendations.

Enjoy!

Lovely things

For those of you out there that are like me you will understand what I mean when I say that a girl can never have enough makeup.  I mean to the average person one taupe eye shadow is the same as the next but to us makeup obsessed women, it is absolutely a completely different color and to that end, we should probably have it in our personal collection.  My makeup addiction has been around for as long as I can remember and that is a fair amount of years... however I didn't always have the means to indulge in expensive trips to the beauty counter until a short time ago.  The other day I was trying to organize my lipsticks and realized that the drawer I was keeping my makeup in was just too small and it was time to breakdown and organize. 

Now here is the deal - makeup enhances our beauty but the makeup itself is just as beautiful.  Companies spend a fortune on packaging and more often than not, the package is just as gorgeous as the product on the inside.  So I decided I would not only organize my collection, I would display it.  I didn't want to hide it in drawers or train cases - I wanted to show it off.  Now granted, it may seem like a small collection right now, but trust me it's growing daily. 

Full Display Case

My photography leavse a lot to be desired, but hey, you get the idea right?  This is a shot of the front of the case.  It has five glass shelves that are behind a glass door.  I use the bottom shelf for odds and ends of my hair products and facial cleanser stash - I always have about two or three back ups just in case. 

Two top shelves

The top shelf houses my skin care products which range from under eye creams, morning moisturizers, night moisturizers and primers. This is one important shelf.  It's the beginning and ending of each day so it absolutely deserves top shelf honors. 

Shelf two holds my foundations, concealers, powders, blushers, bronzers and gel eyeliners.  Why the eyeliners?  Simple - I have several creme shadows that are packaged just like the liners - I'm a little particular about how things are arranged - mainly for ease of access.  So I separated the two completely - just works for me.  Love this shelf - it's what makes up the canvas for all of the rest....



Bottom two shelves

 Shelf three - the most expensive shelf... All of my eye shadows, mascaras, and liners.  Here is where the look of my face steps into color and definition.  I'm pretty happy with my eyes - guess you could say I got lucky.  They are a real strong green and are round shaped.  Which means I can do a lot with them.  So I go heavy on shadow, mascara and liner purchasing.  I always go back to neutral tones, but I'm branching out into color as well.  My green eyes go best with purples and greens so I have a few in there somewhere.  I wanted to display my mascaras one by one, but I found that every time I grabbed one that was in the back, they all fell down - drove me nuts so I found these little glasses in my kitchen and put them in there - still pretty cute.  Did the same for my pencil liners as well.

Shelf four - the shelf that adds color to my bathroom.  The lip stick shelf.  You can see the color range I like to stay in - warm peaches, pinks and nudes.  I have some great reds in there too - a couple from Tom Ford and one from MAC.  But I'm mainly a gloss girl so that is what my collection pretty much consists of - again, branching out in this department as well. 

So there it is - my display case for all of my makeup.  I got something big so that I could add to it - a girls gotta plan for the future right?  I hope this gives you an idea for a different way of organizing your makeup drawer and using those great little treasures to not only enhance your beauty but to add to beautify your home decor.

Have a great day beautiful!

A Good Wine

So the title of my blog is C'est la vie right?  That translates to "such is life" which sums up how I feel about most things.  I have been a true fan of the saying for as long as I can remember... I love it so much that it's tattooed on the back of my neck!  Out of the 4 tattoos I currently have, that is my favorite.  Tattoos... yea, that is another blog at a later time for sure...

I have been living in Italy for going on 16 years now.  If you have ever been to this country, you would understand why Italian food is some of the best on the planet... but I'm not going to talk to you about food - instead I am going to talk to you about what accompanies the food... Yup, you guessed it... Wine.  Not all wines of course, but one in particular.  I have many favorites, but last night I opened one of my "go-to" wines and as I was sipping the "sweet nectar of life" as I like to call it, I thought I should share it with you. 

I live in the Veneto Region of Italy.  This region is famous for one of the best wines on the market - Amarone.  If you haven't tried it - you should and I mean now.  It is amazing.  It's a red, strong, dry wine that packs a punch in the alcohol percentage - normally at 14.5% or so.  Now don't get me wrong... I'm not one of those snooty wine connoisseurs... I like what I like and that's about as far as my wine tasting abilities go.  I tend to only drink red wine and I am NOT a fan of sweet wines at all.  I'm going to attempt to get out of the box and try more whites this year...  I've been a staunch red wine drinker for all my wine drinking life, but I think I've been cheating myself out of some great finds in the white wine world... so we shall see.  Anyhow, back to why I'm writing this blog.... my wine of choice from last night...Maculan Palazotto Cabernet Sauvignon from Breganze, Veneto Italy.  One word... Fabulous!  It has a deep red color, pleasing to the eye; it's fragrance explodes into spicy, rich, woody scents and it's taste hits your palate like a slow running waterfall. 



Maculan Palazotto Carbernet Sauvignon
Breganze, Veneto Region, Italy

 All I can say about this is it is yummy.  I don't know what you "should" eat with it or how to better explain the flavors - I'm just giving it to you how I see it - a real everyday person point of view.  It's good - and if you can find it wherever you are, I recommend it highly.  Don't wait for some special occasion to open it - everyday is already an occasion to open a good bottle of wine!  Celebrate life over this wine and toast to being alive.  That is as good a reason as any right! 

C'est la vie!!!!!