Category: beauty

saturdays are for soaking (with fur)

closer to the start of lockdown, my friend elisa sent me a little gift to enhance my baths.

if you know me, you know i can soak for hours. the fact that there was a product that i hadn’t heard of related to bath time seemed nearly impossible. leave it to elisa to do the impossible. fur is this incredibly soothing bath oil that has left my legs feeling smoother than i knew possible while making shaving seem equal parts easy and enjoyable.

i just dropped three of these in while my bath water was running and they had dissolved completely by the time i was hopping into the tub. bath time will never be the same. you can find these bath drops and more skincare essentials from fur at nordstrom.

have you tried fur? if so, what is your favorite product?

xoxo,

k. tap

saje natural wellness

last week, i did a little staycation in san diego.  it was exponentially improved by three things: great company, an unparalleled dining experience at herb & sea and my soak in the tub with saje natural wellness.

 

hillary knows me so well that she deep cleaned her tub in preparation for my arrival.  while she finished working, i enjoyed a peach hard seltzer while listening to leon bridges and soaking in her tub.  prior to my 30th birthday, i had never heard of saje natural wellness.  leave it to hillary to show me the better things in life.  she knows how much i love baths plus, both hilly and her roommate swear by saje.

 

let me tell you this: i literally felt like i was on a cloud.  the bedtime ritual relaxing bath kit did just that.  i just floated away.  my muscles were so relaxed and the tension i often carry in my back just melted away.  something i loved is that the kit came with enough bath salts for at least two (if not three) soaks.  the body butter, oil and candle really rounded out the experience.  i felt completely at ease in the tub but what i loved most was how that state of being continued even after.  i absolutely felt a difference in how i slept that night, even on a couch – that should tell you something.

 

 

while i initially would’ve just categorized this as beauty, i realized that saje is much more than that.  if you are truly into health and wellness, saje is for you because of their ability to reduce stress and create calm.  if you love candles and diffusers for your home to create a certain ambiance, saje is for you.  if you want a natural approach to beauty and wellness, look no further.

 

have you tried saje natural wellness?  what are your favorite products?

 

xoxo,

k. tap

 

 

fresh ink

for as long as i can remember, i have always loved tattoos. i was 12 when i decided that i would get a tattoo on my 18th birthday. i told myself it was going to have to be something that i liked for a full year before inking it on my body permanently and i did just that. over the years, i added a couple more. i have gone with countless friends to their appointments and even paid for my brother’s first tattoo when he was 18 (he has since lapped me and has full sleeves). i truly believe they are an art form.

fast forward to the beginning of this year. alan (one of my best friends from undergrad at scu) is someone who not only understands the beauty of tattoos, he is someone who truly understands me. we have grown up together in so many ways, especially when you consider how much a person evolves from 18 to 30. add some bonus points in for people like us who also value working on our mental and emotional health/wellness. i had been wanting some more tattoos for quite some time and had a list of things i wanted. however, i had this vision and thought he might call me crazy – i wanted us to get matching tattoos. before even discussing what it could be, he agreed immediately.

i was amped. we tossed around countless ideas of both matching and connected tattoos. nothing was totally sticking. we made an appointment for a few months out so there would be some time to decide. one day, i asked how he felt about a skull with flowers. he was equal parts shocked and on board. we were all set for april and then covid swept through. we pushed out the appointment to june and it was the best decision we could have made.

our tattoo artist made us feel incredibly comfortable, she is ridiculously talented, has the most genuine spirit and alan and i are both counting down until our next appointment with her. you can check out ruby and her amazing work here.

alan had done so much research about ruby and we knew we trusted her. we gave very little instruction aside from wanting skulls with flowers and the general size of the tattoo. i went first and it was seamless. alan ended up getting two tattoos – it seemed like ruby could read our minds.

here is the finished product!

not only were we thrilled the finished product, we didn’t give her an exact number for the flowers but she chose three. alan and i have known one another across three decades (end of our teens, our 20s and now, our 30s), we turned 30 this year, alan is born on june 3rd and i have always loved the number 3 because both my brother and i are born on the 13th.

this photo was taken the day of so the color will settle in a bit differently once completely healed. even still, i am in love with them! i can’t wait for my next appointment with ruby.

do you have any tattoos? any questions about the process? let me know.

xoxo,

k. tap

boxfox

prior to last month, i had never heard of boxfox and now, i am here to tell you about how much i love this company.  it is gift giving made easy while also having the ability to be totally unique and customizable if you so choose.

 

in may, i had a surprise delivery from my dear friend, nicole.  she is always on top of the latest and greatest in health, beauty and yummy treats, which is not surprising with her working on the love goodly team.  this is the box she gifted to me:

 

 

it included:

  1. a rose gold ink pen
  2. a floral notebook by rifle paper co.
  3. rose hibiscus coconut water hydrating face mist by herbivore
  4. cold brew gummy bears by sugarfina
  5. genmaicha green tea by no. six depot

 

with the month of may typically being a rough one and those emotions being heightened due to the pandemic, the craziness of work and the racial injustice in our nation, each of the five items have served a special purpose.  i love being able to put pen to paper to jot down thoughts, ideas, feelings and all of the things i am trying to figure out how to say in person.  i have been working on my skincare regimen because now that i am 30, i am ultra aware of how our skin is the largest organ on our bodies so i am treating it as such – shout out to my rose hibiscus face mist! i started drinking caffeine regularly again once we were sheltering in place and these cold brew gummy bears are the perfect midday pick me up.  and who can say no to a warm cup of tea to just soothe the soul?

 

as if i was not already obsessed with boxfox, a second surprise one arrived courtesy of one of my favorite couples, gio and liz.  liz has a super dope blog, by the way.  you can catch up on that here.  gio and liz regularly tune into my instagram live sessions and before even hearing my last one in full, gio told liz that i sounded sad.  i am typically good at compartmentalizing so the fact that he could pick up on that was quite telling.  fast forward to them surprising me with my second box in lieu of the hug we couldn’t do due to covid-19.  this box was equally awesome but had totally different items:

 

 

  1. two face masks by lapcos
  2. a sparking rosé candle by voluspa
  3. a stainless steel champagne flute by corkcicle
  4. dark chocolate with smoked sea salt by compartes
  5. 52 lists for calm by moorea seal

 

first of all, i teared up when reading the message both because i was so shocked and just touched by the thoughtfulness of my friends.  clearly, gio and liz picked up on the skincare obsession.  i have a stainless steel wine glass but did not know how much i needed this corkcicle.  while i do not eat chocolate often, when i do crave it, i like it balanced with sea salt or caramel.  and a book that involves list making and calmness?  that has kristin written all over it.

 

so i am sure you are interested in boxfox because who wouldn’t be?  there are prearranged boxes to choose from or you can build a box from top to bottom based on category, budget and vibe.  there are gifts for everyone on here, including dads (if you need to send a belated father’s day gift). and even amidst covid, they are shipping in three to six business days.

 

if you are looking for a birthday gift, bridesmaid boxes, graduation gift or something to just show someone how special they are to you, boxfox is the way to go.  if you have any questions, let me know!  i am working on building some boxes of my own as we speak.

 

xoxo,

k. tap

 

 

self(skin)care sunday

i typically use sundays as a day to recharge for my work week.  self care looks different for everyone, especially amidst a pandemic.  even still, i have been making an effort to pay closer attention to my skin.  while the drunk elephant products have been coming in handy for my evening routine, i am a huge fan of exfoliating on the reg.  as part of my birthday gift basket, my friend gracelyn gifted me this 3-in-1 mask, scrub and cleanser that is made with recharging greek yogurt and probiotics.

 

 

 

my favorite part is the combination of a cooling and tightening sensation once it has been on my skin for about 15 minutes.  it is gentle on the skin but there is this glow afterwards that not even covid-19 could stop.

 

it comes in a four ounce container and i would say i could easily get three uses when using it as a mask.  i am sure i could get more if i was simply using it as a scrub or a cleanser.   to find this “yes to superblueberries recharging yogurt and probiotics 3-in-1 mask, scrub and cleanser” – click here!  it is the perfect way to treat yourself.

 

what do your selfcare sundays look like?

 

xoxo,

k. tap