{Beauty Mark:Local Love} Hearts and Robots

Austin is known for it's weirdness. 

The hipster culture reigns supreme here, and East Austin is quickly becoming the hipster hub. Heck, it was even rated #7 in Forbes' America's Best Hipster Neighborhoods. So, when I made an appointment at a salon named Hearts and Robots, I knew I was getting someone who knew how to do something other than a bleach job and California girl style blowout. Not to say I don't love having blonde beach girl waves, but it's fall, and it's time for something more put together.

A little backstory: I haven't hair a single hair cut from my head in over a year. Due to lack of funds/time, my hair has been sorely neglected. With the presence of a regular paycheck, it was time to get myself back in full working order, starting at the top. I am incredibly nervous about finding new hairstylists, as my curly, dry, fine-textured-but-lots-of-it hair tends to be a diva in the wrong hands.

I found Hearts and Robots via Yelp, and knew instantly that I'd be a long term customer. The over 100 reviews sparkled with happy customers who loved their new hair and their hairstylist. A double bonus. Once I clicked on the website, I found not one but TWO curly hair specialists. Triple bonus. Oh, and did I mention that not only is the salon in an old home full of found treasures {swoon} but they make it a point to provide affordable hair services? My dirt cheap heart nearly exploded from excitement. 

I promptly booked an appointment online, which is incredibly convenient, by the way. A week later, I met up with Stephanie, one of the curly hair specialists, and got right down to it. She spent quite a bit of time talking to me, getting my wishlist, looking at past photos of me with bangs, color ideas, etc. She took the time to get to know my hair, examining the curls and condition and taking my needs/wants and combining them with her expertise. 

Photo via

Within 15 minutes of her beginning the color mixing process, we found ourselves chatting like we'd known each other for years. Lots of laughter, lots of similarities. At one point, we were both holding back tears as we talked about our mothers and their health. We showed each other pictures of our fur babies. We made fun of frat guys with highlights. I mean, we bonded people. How can you not when the woman standing behind you holds the fate of your hair in your hands? She was incredibly easy to chat with, and we had plenty of time to talk, as she had set aside 3 hours just to tend to me.  I felt like a valued customer, not a cow being shot through the chute.

 Another bonus- They just added a beauty trailer, the Gypsy Rose, to the back of their salon! The airstream in Austin is synonymous with 'hipster', and this full service mini salon offers esthetician services like waxing/sugaring, eyelash tint/extensions, facials, etc. So next time I plan on a bang trim/new color/whatevs, I will be booking a lash dye and brow wax to set off the freshly done hair.

Bottom line: I loved her. I loved the salon. I loved the affordability. I'll be back.

How To: Fill A Large Wall

This wall has been driving me nuts. 

Actually, figuring out what to do it has actually made me want to beat my head against a wall. Specifically this one. Not only is this the longest wall in the house, but we have pretty high ceilings for an older home, and that has only added to the expanse of space to fill. 

I have racked my brain for ideas, from a grouping of large canvases ($$) to framing up a large graphic fabric shower curtain to mimic a painted camvas, to wall tapestries. I attempted the shower curtain, but felt like it still didn't do the wall justice. I tried leaving it blank for a while and it just ate me up. Something had to be done, but I just couldn't decide on what.

Shower curtain attempt

The room felt incomplete, and because the home is a rental, I couldn't do anything permanent or drastic, like wallpaper or just knock it down. Lord knows I wanted to. I contemplated painting a mural of some sort, but cringed at the idea of my landlord seeing it and blowing an artery and having to repaint. Well, maybe I smiled a bit. She's kind of a pill. But once the mural idea was set in my brain, I knew I had to find a way to execute it.

I remembered entertaining the idea of using a wall decal for a headboard a while back, and thought I'd look into something I could use on a larger space. Now, I know most of you think 'wall decal' and think of those obnoxious FatHead commercials for oversized stickers of sports figures in action. But they actually can be done right. 

I searched on Etsy and found a great selection of vinyl wall stickers that can be arranged based on your creative whims. I love all things birch tree, so it seemed a natural choice to use a leafless birch forest for our dining room. I found my specific set here, but there are tons of styles to choose from, including chevron/geometric, animals, nature inspired, ocean, geography, kids, writing, wildlife, etc. The initial price shocked me, but when I considered the time involved of painting vs decals, and how much work would go into painting and then covering the artwork, I chose the easy-ish route. 

 So, what constitutes as 'easy-ish', you ask? Well, here's a quick how to guide of how I put this together. 

1. First of all, the decals come sandwiched between white contact paper and a semi opaque sticky layer. 

2. The trees came in rolls with multiple branches and trunks on one sheet. I cut them out individually and laid them out on the floor in the pattern that I wanted.

3. After tacking them up to the wall using blue painter's tape (white contact paper side against wall), I made sure they were spaced properly and the arrangement looked as good up as it did on the floor.

4. Starting with the center tree, I removed around 6 inches of white paper backing and starting from the top and smoothed down the decal on the wall using the pinky edge of my hand to eliminate bubbles.

5. Once secured, I continued to remove 2 feet long sections of backing and methodically smoothing the decal to the wall using a top down motion.

6. After the entire tree was applied, I went back to the top and firmly smoothed over the decal through the sticky contact paper using a small dish scraper blade (you can use a squeegee blade too). Don't be afraid to use a decent amount of pressure.

7. Using a slow, controlled movement, I pulled straight down on the tacky paper, keeping as close to the wall as possible, folding under as I went to keep the paper from sticking to my face.

8. Be careful when moving over corners or spaces, like the cuts on the sides of the trees. They have a tendency to want to peel off and may result in sticking to themselves, which renders them ruined.

9. After peeling the tacky paper off, make sure to run your hand over the decal once more to secure any loose sides that may have popped up in the process.

And then, you have this:

Heads and Butts

What's the last thing that goes through a bug's head before they hit the windshield?

Their butt.

Just about describes last week for me. Hence the no posting.

Some randoms today:

1) I have something called Back Mice, and they hurt like hell. Apparently, my back fat is not only unattractive, but it's a real pain in the ass. Literally.

2) On a scale of 1-10, how bad it is to order 2lbs of gummies online simply because I can't seem to run into them in person?

3) I got bangs.

Also, the winner of the Shabby Apple giveaway is Michael Robin! Congrats!

Promises, Promises

I consider myself a very giving person. 

I am the one on your porch with my three main men Ben, Jerry and Jack (Daniels) at the first sign of a breakup. You can call me and be guaranteed that I will be in on any painting, running errands, watching pets duty, no questions asked. It's a rare instance when I find myself being stingy or less forthcoming with my assistance, but when it happens, consider me stuck in the mud. Not budging. 

Sometimes this happens when I'm pushed to do something, or if I feel taken advantage of. Or when I have to give up clothes. I know I don't wear things anymore, I know they don't fit, I know. I know. That doesn't make me any less inclined to dispose of them.

 I've received a few emails about the Shop My Closet post, and when I will be putting up a link for some pieces. I have a few in mind and have set up a BISTM page this week. It won't be a lot, but it will be some little or never worn pieces mixed in with some fabulous thrifts that I bought because they were just that... fabulous. Maybe not for me, but for you.

So, please, hold me accountable. Because I know once I hold these pieces, feel the fabric between my fingers and think of all the beautiful pretend memories I have in each piece, they may never make it up and into your closet.

400 Dresses

Well dear friends...

Here we are. 400 followers. Holy Moses. 

The last time I offered a giveaway from Shabby Apple, I was just hitting 250 followers. 150 later, they reached out to me again and graciously offered another opportunity for readers to score some beautiful dresses with a $50 gift card!

Shabby Apple is an online boutique that caters to those of us who appreciate the style, grace and quality of a time past, where women never felt dressed without a swipe of lipstick, a tailored dress and a can of Aqua Net. Not to say they are stuck in the past. Their dresses don't require a coverup, slip or cardigan. They make beautiful, quality pieces that are an outfit in and of themselves:

"A return to what dresses were always meant to be — a one-piece outfit. No need to add anything...no tank tops, no cardigans, nothing (except accessories, of course!)."

Their pieces are beautiful, modest, and Mad Men-esque without being even a hint of matronly. They also have a fabulous Fit to Flatter tool that allows you to find the perfect dress to fit your shape with 3 easy questions.

 Now, if you aren't a big vintage lover, no worries. They're stocked with maxi dresses, shirt dresses and a lace dress here and there.

As my favorite red heeled lady would say "Vintage dresses, retro dresses, modern dresses, oh my!"

Also, for all my bargain lovers out there: If the giveaway isn't enough incentive, there is a 10% discount when you enter thesecondhandmagpie10off at checkout. 

{To enter, you must}

Be a follower of Secondhand Magpie on Google Friend Connect
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Follow Shabby Apple's Facebook page
(This giveaway is for US residents only. Sorry trans Atlantic friends!)

When you enter, visit their page and let me know what your favorite dress or item is in the comment

{Additional Entries}

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**Leave a separate comment for EACH entry, as each comment counts as a separate entry**

Humble Brag

Aside from my ever growing home and closet improvement projects, I've been warming up my camera skills after nearly a month of neglect. 

After doing my original post on Max's Haus in New Braunfels, I was invited back by Norma, the owner of the shop, to take some updated photos of the store. She not only asked me to return every couple of weeks to take updated photos of stock, but she asked that I help run the photo section of the shop's website and Facebook. I was beyond flattered, and couldn't believe my little old photos made the cut! 

To add to the excitement, she wants to compile my best photos and submit them to Texas Monthly for a feature on her store! I was completely speechless when she delivered the offer. Granted, even if the photos never make it past the website, I'm beyond honored that she saw something worth representing her beautiful little space.

If you find yourself 'round these parts and have a need for some antique lovelies, check her out. 

This is the new shop kitty. She needs a name.

Sleep tight, shop kitty.

Oh, Baby.

I originally had another post for today, but something happened in my life and I had to share. 

On Friday I got a call from my oldest and closest friend. She broke the news that she's expecting her first child, due this spring. As soon as I saw her name pop up on my phone, my pulse started racing and I just knew she was calling with the news. I had to hold back tears of joy the entire phone call, as I probably used up all of my allotted crying at her wedding. I'm beyond thankful they didn't have a videographer!

After hanging up the phone, I instantly started cleaning anything I could get my hands on. I dusted, swept, scrubbed sinks, whatever I could to get myself together. That wasn't working, so I called my mother and promptly burst into tears. Shit just got real.

Just as the wedding mania has settled down in my circle of friends, I find myself surrounded by babies. Cousins, old roommates, best friends. All making and having babies. This might sound funny, but for me, marriage is big, but babies are huge. We date, breakup, and meet new people. We practice this ritual until we think we have it right. At some point, we finally pick one person that we know we can be with for the rest of our lives. The good, the bad, the ugly. We know them before we commit, so we're prepared for life with another person. That person.

Making babies is an entirely different thing. It's bringing someone into this world that we know nothing about. We have never met them, spoken to them, touched them. We aren't guaranteed their health, their happiness, their success or their affection. We aren't combining two lives; we're making a completely new one from scratch. There is a hell of a lot of responsibility in not only making a new life, but guiding and protecting it until our last breath. As women, we give not only our hearts, our time and our freedom to this new person, but our bodies as well. This person we know nothing about moves in us and pushes our limits far before we ever lay eyes on their face. That's a lot to be in charge of, and it scares the living daylights out of me.

I remember walking around our home a few days after we adopted our second dog, Prana. I kept saying to Micah, "I can't believe she's ours. It's hard to believe that she really will be with us until she leaves this world." It was such a change to have another life that Micah and I were now responsible for protecting and providing for, as well as a change in the dynamic of our home. Granted, this is only a dog we're talking about, but it was an adjustment nonetheless.

I guess I find myself a little in shock. Sure, a large majority of my friends are now married. As am I. For me, it felt like we all just had our permanent relationships in place. No more breakups, no more horrific dates, and another pair we could count in for a couple's trip or date nights. Babies change up the game plan. They really make us 'grow up'. We have to become infinitely less selfish, with toys scattering the floor instead of discarded heels from a night out, a car seat in the now Cheerio dusted car, a vast knowledge of PBS Sprout programming. It is no longer just people in love who decided to make it more than Facebook official. It's a new life with a new title.

Parent. Mom. Dad. Grown Up.

In all, it just seems to be the final step in growing up. It's the most exhilarating and terrifying step to make and I applaud anyone who makes the decision to do so. I can't say this is something that I want for my own life, and maybe one day I will explain why. But for now, I stand here with my semi-grown up pants on, watching the rest of my friends make those last big steps toward marriage and parenthood. My role for now? Babysitter, extra set of hands, crazy aunt. And I couldn't be happier.

Also, this Tumblr pretty much makes my life right now. Perfect for anyone who isn't a smug married person with 2.5 kids in the 'burbs. And maybe for them too.