Cocoa & Pearls: 2019

Travel Diaries: Maui

And Maui makes three. We were hoping for the best, but expected to not be blown away because of all the hype. Many of our friends kept saying that Maui was their favorite island and in a lot of ways it lived up to expectations (relaxing, beautiful water + beaches, livin' the resort life), but maybe it was a little bit of a let down because those expectations were so high. Also, it was wayyy hotter than we expected (highs in the 90s, which is totally not normal for them this time of year), so that also put a damper on things. The weather here in Arizona was better than it was in Hawaii!

Our trip started off a little rocky since our flight was delayed by a day because of maintenance issues. This threw off our schedule and we lost a whole day on the island. We also were not able to recoup the rental car fee for the day, but the Westin refunded us for the missed night and even gave us a room upgrade. This is why we love Westins so much. Their customer service is top notch and their heavenly beds are...well, heavenly.

Beach days are the best days. We spent two straight days lounging on the beach under an umbrella (you can rent an umbrella and chairs from the Westin, they will even set it up for you where you want it on the beach). Nick tried unsuccessfully to not get sunburned (he came home a lobster - good thing I packed that Aloe) while we watched the giant waves from the shore.

We are early risers, so we were able to wake up every morning and watch the sunrise from the beach. We had breakfast either at the hotel or at Island Vintage Coffee next door at Whaler's Village. The location of the Westin was so convenient to Lahaina (the closest town) and Whaler's Village that we didn't feel like we were confined to eating resort food the entire time (our biggest complaint about the Big Island trip).

We had to make a stop at the iconic Mama's Fish House. The food was spectacular, but I have to admit that the best fish I had in Maui was the Misoyaki Sea Bass at Roy's Ka'anapali (this was legit, I'm trying to find a recipe for the sauce).

We went zip-lining with Kapalua Ziplines, but I didn't bring a camera so I have no photos from that. Nick also went scuba diving (he said it was meh) and for the first time I did not go snorkeling (good thing because a day after we left there was a fatal shark attack on Ka'anapali beach). So overall, our trip to Maui was good, but it's probably not our favorite Hawaiian island.

xo

0Comments

, by Nali

In Lifestyle

Happy Weekend

0Comments

, by Nali

In Fashion And Style

In My Closet

0Comments

, by Nali

In Lifestyle

Happy Weekend

This weekend's post is all about our kitchen remodel. It really made a world of difference in our downstairs living area because not only did it open up the space, it also gave us more usable space. Oh, and not having to clean black granite is a giant bonus (white Quartz is so much easier to maintain). We wanted this to be a minimal renovation (honestly, our kitchen wasn't bad), so we kept the original cabinets and floor and instead added more bottom cabinets to extend the countertop out by 14 inches.

I agonized over backsplash tile for weeks. I hit up all of the tile stores (multiple times), had nightmares about tile, hoarded all the samples, and then when I finally made a decision...I changed it again. Finally, we ended up with a white/stainless glass tile backsplash and ceramic Encaustic tile under the countertop (I knew I wanted to incorporate this tile somewhere in the house, but wasn't sure the kitchen was a good fit. Looking at it now, it was a great decision).
I wanted to extend the upper cabinets out a little to the left, but didn't want to close off the space by putting more cabinets, so I added this planter from Crate and Barrel. Currently, the plants in there are fake (Hearth and Hand from Target), but eventually I may want to plant real basil and mint.
Of course, I got my farm sink (must have). Our divided sink setup was cumbersome for cleaning (there just wasn't enough room) and this deeper, one-basin farm sink is just a better setup for cleaning dishes. Bonus - we also replaced our garbage disposal with a quieter more powerful one (I stressed over this decision, too).
We kept our existing faucets because they are Grohe and nothing that we looked at came close to quality (Nick and I spent a good chunk of a Saturday morning polishing those bad boys with Barkeeper's Friend). We probably saved ourselves a $1000 by re-using the faucets.
I wanted a black and white theme with rustic accents (inspiration here), so I bought up all of the matte black accessories from Crate and Barrel and am in the process of convincing Nick to let me get a cognac leather couch and counter stools.
And finally, some lessons learned: it will get dusty so cover up everything and don't try cleaning before the reno is done (guilty), yes - you can match wall paint color (just take a 1"x1" wall sample from a non-shaded area to Home Depot and they will work their magic), and it will always cost more than you thought it would but it'll look great in the end (see below for more photos).

0Comments

, by Nali

In Beauty

Nightime Skin Routine

Truth: I don't always wash my face at night (I know, I know, it's bad for your skin). I work from home, so I don't wear make-up everyday and thus I don't think that my skin gets as dirty as when I do wear make-up. On those rare occasions that I do glam up, I will double cleanse my skin with make-up remover wipes and a cleansing balm (this is my favorite). Ok, now that we've gotten that out of the way, I do still cleanse - just not with water. I use these Simple Micellar Cleansing Wipes to clean any impurities from my skin that have accumulated throughout the day and then use this Skinceuticals Toner to get at the deeper gunk. Once I have that all off, I will do one of the following routines...

Simple: For nights when I'm feeling lazy, I usually just throw on the Summer Fridays Jetlag Mask and the Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask. Even with just these two items, I wake up with plump, hydrated skin and lips. I have the travel version of the Summer Fridays mask so that I have it at all times. My combination skin (oily T-Zone, dry everywhere else) gets extra dry in hotel rooms, so then I'm constantly having to fight the shiny forehead/crusty cheeks battle all day long. Trust me, it's not pleasant.

Light Exfoliation + Moisture: When I want to step it up a little, I use the Summer Fridays R+R Rose Mask (this stuff smells amazing and I love the little sugar crystals for a gentle scrub), then I use a washcloth to wipe off the excess, massage the remaining oil into my skin, and apply the Tatcha Water Cream. The water cream feels so good on, and in the morning my skin looks super hydrated and dewy. I only use this cream at night, though, because I feel like it is still too rich for my combination skin during the day. I heard the Tatcha Dewy Skin Cream was good, too, but I haven't tried it (I love all the Tatcha products I've tried so far, so I don't doubt that I would love it, too).

Microneedling + Retinol: I do this twice a week, because aging is a reality when you're in your 30's. The directions on the BeautyBio tool says to use it for a minute in each area in specific stroke patterns, but I've gotten lax with my routine and just do it for a couple of minutes in random patterns all over my face. I also feel like a minute is way too long in each area, because the pokey needles start getting uncomfortable. Anyways, after using the Microneedling tool, I apply the Sunday Riley Luna face oil all over and massage it in until there's no more blue on my face. I personally like the smell, but I know it's not for everyone.

Breakout Prevention: I use a Niacimide serum during the day sometimes to help with adult acne (yes, that's a thing for me), but when I need an extra boost, I'll do my normal cleansing routine and apply the Sunday Riley U.F.O. Face Oil. I feel that it's really gentle on my skin and helps prevent breakouts and those dreaded under-the-skin bumps.

Pamper Night: When I really want to be extra or when I know I have an event coming up, I usually Sheet Mask every night to prep my skin. My favorite masks are the Dr.Jart+ Rubber Masks or their Clearing Solution Mask (not pictured, but linked below). Sephora used to carry a brand of masks called When, but they no longer carry it and I'm a sad panda. Also, you can get some great masks like these Karuna ones from Nordstrom Rack/TJ Maxx/Marshalls for cheap.

I'm going to leave you with one more piece of advice...drink a lot of water. Nothing will work miracles on your skin like staying hydrated and that's #truth.

xo

SHOP THE POST

0Comments

, by Nali

In Travel

Travel Diaries: The Big Island

If you read my Waikiki Travel Diary, you know that we love the energy of Waikiki. The Big Island is completely different. Slower. Much slower. We didn't think we'd like it, but surprisingly we did. We stayed at the Fairmont Orchid (another fantastic property). They had snorkeling right off the private beach and at night they shine a light into the water near the property and you can see Manta Rays swimming around and feeding. Also, turtles, turtles were all over the resort. It was glorious. My only complaint was that the property was 40 minutes from Kona which meant long drives to and from town if you didn't want resort food. After a week there, we got pretty sick of it (the food, not the resort).

A Category 5 hurricane was expected to hit the islands on the week we were planning to be there (first one in a hundred years), so our vacation plans were up in the air for a while. Luckily, our flights were not canceled so we made it to Kona and this was the weather when we landed.

Unfortunately for our friends, the Hilo side of the island (where they initially intended to get married) got the brunt of the storm and their venue was flooded. It was a scramble to find a different venue, but the wedding was very beautiful regardless of the change and we were grateful we could spend the day celebrating with them.

We were pretty active on this trip (usually we don't do much on our "relaxing" vacations). Besides the wedding, we visited a coffee plantation up in the mountains and made friends with some cats and wild pigs (just kidding, we kept our distance from the pigs). Nick also went scuba diving and did one of the Manta Ray night diving excursions.

We drove up Mauna Kea to the observatory and watched the sunset. There were parts of the drive that were pretty treacherous (especially driving into the sun), so if you're scared of heights and drop-offs, this might not be for you. Also, you definitely need an all-wheel drive vehicle and a coat - a huge coat...it was cold and windy at the summit. You aren't allowed to stay much past sunset, so when driving back down, I would recommend finding a nice spot to pull over where it's pitch black. You'll see the most stars you've ever seen and probably will ever see in your life. This was one of the best experiences of my 30+ years on this planet. It'll be hard to top.

I did more snorkeling on this trip than any of our other Hawaii vacations. The hotel has a private cove with abundant fish and wildlife along with free snorkel gear rental, so it was pretty convenient. Also, I learned that you can in fact get motion sick under the water.

Lastly, the Big Island has the best fruit of any of the islands. I can say that now that we've been to Maui (Travel Diary coming soon). If it's Longan/Lychee season, be prepared to be blown away. I know I took a photo of fruit at a Farmer's Market, but haven't been able to find it, so I'll just leave you with a beautiful sunset photo instead.

xo