Lip Love with Skintastic

There are two little known facts about myself which those closest to me know: I am extremely honest and if I want something I find a way to get it. I have never been afraid to try something and/or experiment. I still remember wanting a certain type of hair treatment and finding it on groupon. When I arrived at the salon the owner greeted me and proceeded to chat about weed and the art of cornrows for the duration of the treatment. While this wasn’t an experience I would recommend to you all, there is one I would. A few weeks ago I decided I wanted a fuller upper lip. Actually this was something I had thought about for a while. I have great lips but always wondered what a little bit of a fuller upper lip would look like. There is always something we want to “fix” and seeing first hand people over-do it had me scared, so I left the idea alone. However, the more I thought about it and the more I debated it, I finally decided to just do it. After I came to the decision and chatted about it with others I have been shocked by the number of people who said, “I have always wanted to do that but…” Literally every single woman I spoke with had some excuse or reason why she couldn’t fill her lips but had always wanted to. While this usually isn’t something I would discuss on the blog I thought since hearing so many women’s fears I thought I would take one for the team, be honest, and share my experience. Discussing such topics has become so taboo for women. Like we are lesser of a person for wanting to try something new. While I am not a fan of overdoing any type of plastic surgery I do understand wanting to try something new (especially temporary). And when it comes to this type of thing moderation is key!!!

You have heard me chat about my microdermabrasion from Skintastic for the past few weeks. I have absolutely fallen for the Skintastic team! They are so fun and helpful with all of my questions and have done a fabulous job with my skin. At my last microdermabrasion I started talking to Karen about lips. Her and I had a great time and after the session I decided I would try them out. The day the appointment arrived I was a little nervous but my fears were settled once I started talking to everyone there and we decided on a very natural look. We were all on the same page and I felt relieved. The process itself is easy and only takes about 20 minutes. There is minimal pain (thanks to numbing cream) and a touch of swelling after (depending on how much filler you get). I would recommend doing it on a day you don’t have any afternoon meetings! After a few days the puff goes down and everything settles in really nicely. Mine are very subtle but enough to make me happy! They say it should last about 6-9 months and gets easier each time.

While they are something I am really happy with now, I am happy they are temporary. I think having a permanent “fix” would really make me nervous. I look at this entire experience as something I wanted to try, I did, I loved it but am not married to it, and I can always return to “normal” shall I decide to. That is the joy of temporary fillers and the team at Skintastics. It is always win/win!

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Fire Eyes

After quite the stressful situation in noticing the travel agent spelt my name wrong on my ticket the night before I left and the longest customs line I have ever seen at Heathrow I finally arrived at my sister-in-laws flat. It is an absolutely perfect and beautiful day here in London! I spent the morning resting and am now ready to go enjoy the sunshine and cool temps. I actually was really smart about my London packing and only brought a carry-on. I know, I know, I was impressed too! I am meeting my husband in Geneva this weekend he will bring my “Big” Paris bag so I didn’t have to lug it all over London! Isn’t he a gem? In my London suitcase are outfits like this one. Simple, functional, and comfortable. However, one thing I completely mis-read was the London weather. It is quite chilly here and all I brought were shorts and a dress! Even thought this Madwell blazer is one of my favorite things in my closet it definitely isn’t enough to keep me warm the next few days. So with that being said, off to COS I go (one of my favorite London stores)! No, but literally, I am heading to COS right after I post this! See you on the flip side!

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outfit details //  Madewell Lycee blazer, Forever21 T-shirt, Frame denim shorts, Steve Madden Gladiator sandals, ZeroUV sunnies (designer version)

Summer of Adventure Begins

mary summers paris travel blog

Wow! How does time fly so fast? This weekend is the weekend I am off to my summer of adventure. I have not started packing, running errands, or anything else I was suppose to do. Typical. Much to the dismay of my sweet husband I am last minute and totally type B. However I have this feeling that everything will fall into place as it should. I am not putting any pressures or stresses on this trip as I want to take it day by day and really live the experience.

To be honest the question I get the most is – what will you do with the blog? And to that I say, I don’t know. I have thought about it quite a lot and am leaning more towards making the blog a little diary. A place to unwind and jot down my thoughts. I don’t think it will be as fashion centered (unless I find a photographer) but more photos of my wanderings around Paris. To be frank, I struggle with the feeling that I really don’t want to work when I am over there. I have seen time and time again people who go abroad and the entire time they are concerned if they are meeting with the right brands, taking the right instagrams, and concerned with getting a post up. I truly feel they miss the beauty of the trip. In a world of oversharing (I am so guilty of this) I am looking forward to unplugging, unwinding, and really living. It has been a while since I have done that and I can’t tell you how ready I am! I plan to get lost in the streets with just my camera and me. I want to dine alone. I want to travel alone. I want to wander endlessly and not stress about any outside influences (ie. did I do a blog post). I want to soak in every ounce of this experience. So I hope you all come along for the journey, whatever that might be, as I am sure this will be a really great growing period and I always love your feedback (positive or negative).

Another reason I am taking this trip day by day with no pressures (or agenda to “grow my blog”) is because it is something I have literally wanted to do since I was little. I was reminded of this the other night when a dear friends mom (who was like my second mom growing up) wrote me a message saying how proud she was of me. That she still remembers even at the tender age of 12 me telling her, with complete conviction and confidence, that I was “going to live in Paris one day.” And while this trip may be short (I have to get back for a family trip to Nantucket in August) it is a chance for me to live out one of my dreams. And I think that is so much more important to grasp and appreciate.

I leave tomorrow morning and I am full of emotions. I am proud of myself for doing this, I am nervous something will go wrong with my school (like I didn’t sign up correctly), I am sad to leave my husband and my dog, I am anxious to just get it started, and mostly I am excited. Excited to: grow as a person, make life memories that I can pass on to my kids one day,  learn another language (or as much as I can), be pushed out of my comfort zone, and to know that I am finally getting to live a dream. Au revoir!

 

photography by Meredith Braden

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