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J and I celebrated the long weekend at our favorite place with some of our favorite people – Carmel. It was a great weekend of champagne, hot tubing and yummy food. I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day and takes a moment to remember the fallen men and women of our country.
Simple syrup is the easiest and cheapest homemade condiment you can keep on hand. Instead of buying it for $5 at the store, grab some sugar and water and make your own!
Simply simmer equal parts sugar and water until sugar dissolves and… voila! You’re good to go!
I always keep a bottle on hand in my fridge for easy additions to cocktails, coffee, tea… anything that needs a sweet little kick!
Cilantro-Infused
Strawberry-Infused
Now HERE is the fun part… INFUSED simple syrups. As you may now I am OBSESSED with infused alcohol as of late (I just discovered pineapple infused rum with lime juice – it’s like a low-cal Pina Colada!) but simply add a handful of herbs, fruit, zest, etc. and simmer until the item is infused in the syrup (anywhere from 10-30 minutes).
Strain the syrup and store in a sealed container. Syrups will last up to 6 months in the fridge!
I made Strawberry, Cilantro and Mint-infused simple syrups (respectively) and am using them over fruit salads, in cocktails and over shaved ice! 
I’m addicted to doing my nails. I love painted nails and chipped polish makes me cringe. Therefore when my mom introduced me to Shellac (aka Gel Manicure), I was pretty certain Christmas came early.
Long story short, the polish is a little more expensive, it takes a little bit more time to apply, but 2-3 weeks with chip free and shiny polish!? It’s a no-brainer in my book.
So how to do it… well 1st you need a UV nail lamp, nail polishes (including base and top coat), 99% alcohol (remover) and manicure accessories (file, buffer, etc.). Here we go…
1. Remove your old Shellac nail polish with Pure Acetone (there are multiple ways but the acetone must remain on your nails for 10 minutes – a. you can dip it in cotton pads and securing them on your finger with foil or b. soak your nails in a shallow dish filled with acetone).
2. Make sure your nail bed is CLEAN – I file/shape my nails, then buff to “rough” up the service. I then spray with this nail cleaner and (once dry) brush BondAid on each nail to dry it out, so that it really holds the polish.
3. Next… the fun begins! Brush a THIN layer of Shellac Base Coat onto each nail.
4. Put under lamp for 10 seconds.
5. Apply color coat. Then dry under lamp for 120 seconds.
6. Repeat color coat if needed. Followed by 120 more seconds under the lamp.*
7. Finish with top coat.
8. Finish with 120 seconds under the lamp.
9. Saturate a cotton pad with 99% Alcohol and swipe over each nail. This will remove the “gooey” residue left behind by the top coat and result in shiny, gorgeous nails!
10. Go wash the dishes/take a shower/go swimming… whatever you couldn’t do if you had wet nails for 20 more hours! You’re good to go!
Tips:
With summer approaching what better time for a refresher course on how to slice up a watermelon! Here is how I do it…
1. Slice it in half (horizontally).
2. Slice the bottom rind off (how fun is that heart!).
3. Working around each half of the watermelon, slice off the rind working from top to bottom.
4. Remove any remaining pith/rind.
5. Make 1-inch slices working from top to bottom.
6. Cube each slice.
7. Repeat with the other watermelon half.
8. I’m a big fan of serving with lime slices and a little salt. Enjoy!
 Lime Spritzer'))
 Lime Spritzer'))
