607. The Lip Bar – February 6, 2023 – Detroit, MI

A visit to The Lip Bar made for a bold, Bawse Lady of a Monday!

The locally-owned makeup brand is a total boss, with its wares being sold at Target and Walmart stores across the country. So it’s totally appropriate that it offers a shade of lipstick called Bawse Lady.

That’s the shade I tried and bought when I visited The Lip Bar’s shop located in Parker’s Alley in downtown Detroit. It was a delight to experience the sleek store with its neatly curated shelves of makeup and wall of mirrors nestled into arched cut-outs, a swing bench anchored from the ceiling in front of each one. The personalized shopping experience offered to me by the salesperson running the shop that day was awesome. She’s the one who convinced me to try The Lip Bar’s Liquid Matte Lipstick in the Bawse Lady shade.

I was initially intimidated by the thought of having to apply the bold lip stain with an applicator wand, but it was easier to put on than I expected. And I loved the striking red hue! Minutes after leaving The Lip Bar, I got compliments on my makeup – and for that, I’m giving Bawse Lady and that lovely saleswoman all of the credit!

Not only is Bawse Lady a pretty shade, but it’s impressively long-lasting. Yay to a liquid matte lipstick that’s easy to apply and worth the effort!

And double-yay to The Lip Bar’s makeup being vegan and cruelty-free! Its makeup line is comprehensive, featuring not only lipsticks and lip glosses, balms, and liners but also skincare products, tinted moisturizers, bronzers, concealers, eyeliners, eyeshadows, mascaras, and more. The women-of-color-founded brand is made for all shades; take its Complexion Quiz to receive personalized makeup recommendations, and use its Virtual Try On feature to see the products on yourself right at home. Or take a trip to The Lip Bar’s shop and sample its pretty wares in person!

1435 Farmer St., Ste. 122

Detroit, MI 48226

www.thelipbar.com/pages/the-lip-bar-flagship-store-detroit

299. Spa in the Woods – December 24, 2017 – Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Oh my goodness – happy 2018, guys! I took another one of my unexpected hiatuses from the blog – one of those black holes of writing inertia cropped up unexpectedly around the holidays for me, and I pretty much forced myself to get on and write this post to avoid extending the thing any longer. It’s crazy how quickly time flies and how a few days of putting off posting can turn into a month!

But hey, as much as we can all beat ourselves up about our lapses, the most important part to focus on is the fact that we started again, am I right? That’s the tack I’m choosing to take here. And I’m very excited to have a bunch of adventures built up over the last month to recount to you – including Visit Number 300!!!! [Cue multi-hued confetti!] But today, it’s all about my becoming acquainted with the very lovely Spa in the Woods in Grosse Pointe Woods – on Christmas Eve, of all days.

One of my dearest friends got me a gift certificate to Spa in the Woods for my birthday in October after I’d revealed to her that the last time I’d gotten a professional pedicure was when President Obama was still in the thick of his second term (Yeah . . . it had been a minute).

I originally scheduled the pedicure on the first Saturday in December, then cancelled the morning of when I realized that I’d neglected to plan my day around the fact that I would be unable to wear proper shoes for several hours after my visit (pairing my parka with flip flops in my planned subsequent jaunts about town wasn’t an especially appealing prospect). So I postponed the appointment until Christmas Eve – because even though it was a Sunday and Spa in the Woods is generally closed on Sundays, it was open on Christmas Eve for the employees who wanted to work. I figured that a relaxing a.m. pedicure would be perfect before the (potentially ungrounding) interactions with family members later that evening.

And it was! It was such a delight to sit there in the cozy, quiet salon (only one other appointment showed up while I was there) chit-chatting with Maria, the lovely purple-haired nail technician, while she whipped my feet and toenails into a civilized state.

I opted for the Signature Spa in the Woods Pedicure, which is the fancy spa-level pedicure (as opposed to the more standard Express Pedicure that is also offered): in addition to being the recipient of the requisite heel-scraping and nail clipping, I had an awesome-smelling coffee exfoliating scrub rubbed on my legs and feet, followed by a luxe lotion and hot towels. The nails on my toesies were painted immaculately in a berry hue, and I was relaxed and ready to go for the holiday shenanigans with the fam.

I can’t emphasize enough what a treat it was to get this pedicure. I have always loved salon pedicures and used to get them more frequently; this was a reminder to treat myself to them more. Granted, at $55 before tip, the Signature Spa in the Woods Pedicure may have to be more of an annual occurrence for me than a regular splurge within the parameters of my current budget. But if you feel moved to treat yourself to a spa experience, I would highly recommend trying out this place; my aforementioned friend has treated herself on her last couple of birthdays to its spa packages and has loved the included massage, facial, sauna steam shower, and nail treatment.

21023 Mack Ave.

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 48236

www.spainthewoodsmi.com