Leap Year

{source}

Personally I did quite a lot. I had an important appointment and later on dinner at a friend's house. Though I have to admit I also spent some time watching sitcoms...

What have you done with your extra day today? Did you use it to tackle your to-do list or perhaps to relax guilt-free because, hey, it's an extra day, right?

Owl Things Considered

My dad was recently sent me this beautiful owl card when he was away on a trip. Isn't it amazing? I love the special feel it has!

Looking Back on February

True winter only set in this month, we had quite some days of snow, but thankfully there was also some nice spring weather! It was also a month full of plans and new project, let's take a look:

• Had my first genuine Taiyaki.
• Signed up for a Pay It Forward craft project.
• Reorganized all my yarn.
• Started sharing my favorite Lush products.
• Got tagged and tagged 11 others.
• Went to the movies 3 times.
• Got lucky here and here.
• Stocked up on chai.
• Interviewed Kayte.
• Made some things for some friends.
• Got lovely mail from Suki and Brittany.
• And drank all sorts of hot chocolate.

Marvelous Music: Bombay Bicycle Club

One of my early morning favorites is the Bombay Bicycle Club. I just love the calm and magical vibe and Jack Steadman's creaky voice.

{source}

A while back I went to see them live. If you're used to hearing calm songs while watching the sun rise, but suddenly feel the need to press your hands to your ears because it is SO loud, you feel a tad bit surprised to say the least. It was still good though.

But it just goes to show that you can't judge a show by it's cd. It's not the first time I expected a quiet gig yet came back completely deaf.

Either way, it's a lovely band, the guys are all nice and their music is lovely. Enjoy!

GlossyBox: February

First there was the very first GlossyBox, then one for Christmas, then Valentine's Day, but this is the first time there is no special occasion whatsoever. It was still pretty good though.

I got six items, and though all where tiny there was one thing that made up for that...

The Eos lip balm! I've been wanting one for ages, but couldn't find them anywhere. I'm so glad I finally get to cross it off my wishlist. It's 100% natural and 95% organic and I got one in delicous "Summer Fruit".

Another thing I really liked was the Thierry Mugler Womanity sample. It's teeny tiny, but very cool because of the way it works and the little face in the packaging! It smells great too.

Then there's a little Shiseido cream. The jar looked tiny enough as is, but when you flip it you see you really only get about 25% of the expected volume.

Thankfully there's still a L'oreal primer, that is small, but actually full sized. There's also a Doctor Babor anti-aging cream, which I don't need yet, but might be able to make my mom happy with (despite it being tiny as well).

And lastly there's a Koh hand bath fizzie. I've never tried anything like it and am quite curious about it.

And that's it for this month!

I wasn't super excited about the majority, but I'm glad a few things really stood out. And I haven't tried anything yet... so I might still be blown away.

What did you think?

In the Mail...

I recently won a giveaway over on Mermaid Eyes. It consisted of ad space, and amazing camera (I'll show you once it has arrived) and some lovely cards from Brittany that just came in.

When I opened the envelope I saw the cutest little post-it portrait:

Here are the actual cards, all hand drawn and hand painted:

And let's not forget about the amazing hand painted business cards she has for her website where you can also find her blog and shop.

They even have an inspirational quote on the back!

Thanks, Brittany!

Sponsor in March?

If you're interested in sponsoring Blue Eyed Night Owl please shoot me an Email. Or leave a comment with your email address and I will get back to you.

There are 3 sizes available: small ($6), regular($10) and the exlusive large ad($25). You can even save money on 3 month deals. Learn more here. 

Smelled the Perfume of a Waxing Moon

Somehow the song wouldn't copy into the post, but I meant the picture to go with this.
{picture source}

Today was a very long day, but a very nice one too. I had orders to finish and errands to run and even managed to enjoy the sunnier weather we've been having. I planned my proper computer-time in for tomorrow and am off to bed now.

Hope you're enjoying your weekend too. Do you have any special plans?

Lovely Movies: the Descendants

Though the story is completely different, the Descendants is somehow very reminiscent of The Kids Are All Right. And that is a great thing! It is actually one of the best movies I've seen in a long time, and I've seen quite some good ones lately.

{source}

I love that it's about real people, with real feelings, fears and prejudices. And it deals with pain in a very human and often very funny way. Though jokes and slapstick are quick ways to make people laugh, this movie is the perfect example that the best humor can be found in real life.

  

It's also nice to see that someone as accepted in mainstream movies as George Clooney still takes part in "non-spectacular" movies like this one. And he did a pretty amazing job, might I add.

Have you seen the Descendants yet? What did you think?

All-Natural: Burt's Bees

Burt's Bees has only just gotten popular where I live. I remember I only used to spot it when I went to the US, and oddly enough always in bookstores.

Though it popped up here a while back, I hadn't tried any products until recently. But a friend of mine gave me a bottle of Milk & Honey bodylotion a little while ago. I really love it, though it smells more like coconut than anything else.

It seems the brand is mostly known for their lip balms, so it made sense to try one of those first. I actually have a lip tint, in the color Caramel. It feels very tingly, but I'm slowly getting used to it. And the shade is very nice and natural.

Also, you might recall my raving review of the Lush Smitten hand cream. Well... I got a chance to smell Burt's Bees' Almond Milk hand cream today and I'm pretty sure that will be my replacement some day! I'm also very curious about the Banana hand cream.

                                     

Have you tried anything by Burt's Bees? Anything you highly recommend? Or perhaps even advise against?

Owl Things Considered

This morning I stumbled upon what's possibly the cutest owl jewelry I have ever seen! iamabird on Etsy has some amazing handpainted necklaces for sale and most of them depict owls.

I'm always very fond of the combination art/wood. And it seems to work especially well with woodland animals like owls.

What I love about these two above+below, is that it looks like the owls are actually living inside the necklaces, instead of just being framed as a picture.

This shop is owl paradise, honestly it seems like there is an infinite amount of one of a kind pieces and every single one is beautiful!

In the unlikely case you follow my blog yet are not into owls, there are also loads of other necklaces to choose from.

Don't you just love that quail for instance?

Be sure to check out the iambird shop for more of these, as well as some pretty brooches. There's also a blog with the occasional update.

Enjoy!

Marvelous Music: Fink

Though it happens sometimes, it's still a bit of an enigma to me how you go from being a DJ to being a singer/songwriter, but apparently it works. Not knowing much about DJs I honestly have no idea about his previous DJing skills, but I know singer/songwriters and Fink definitely makes some lovely songs.

{source}

He's coming to my town soon, for an amazing concert with an orchestra. I'd love to go but the tickets come with a price tag. On the other hand it's a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I'm still thinking about it.

In the meantime, let's just enjoy another song, shall we?

New Audrey Kawasaki Pieces.

Over 2 years ago, when I had just started blogging, I did a tiny little post about Audrey Kawasaki's art. To this day, she's still one of my favorite painters and she's really tried something new: multilayered vellum pieces. They so stunning, I just had to show you!

All three pieces will be auctioned off for charity today, though probably very much outside your (and definitely my) budget.

In the Mail...

I got the cutest package in the mail from Suki!

Two beautiful and thoughtful gifts accompanied by a lovely Beth Wilson postcard.

It included an amazing handmade owl button, made with a painted collage.

And an adorable lavender heart! Suki actually has a few of these in her Etsy shop. They're all made with different colors and different vintage embroidered fabrics and they're all very cute.

Thanks so much, Suki!

---

Also, I thought now would be a good time to catch up on some things I had in the mail at Christmas time. I know... a long time ago, but that doesn't make them any less cool!

I did a little swap with Julia and this is what I got:

And I also received some other cute gifts! A variety of amazing goodies from Hannah:

And an adorable coffee cozy made by RobbieLee!

Have you had anything fun in the mail lately? Or perhaps you're currently waiting on something to arrive?

Spotted

Ok, I have to admit, I am so so stoked about the Star Wars re-release in 3D. Not really because of the 3D aspect, but more because I get the chance to see them on the big screen. There will probably be some more posts soon, but to kick things off here's a Star Wars collection of awesome stuff!

I need to get my hands on these chopsticks! Don't you just love that Yoda's pair is shorter?!

And of course there's a Darth Vader baking trey!

There are even Star Wars soaps! With fun scents might I add.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: laser cute jewelry is awesome! Especially the rings below.

Though I like my Star Wars tees, I wouldn't mind owning a dress like this one.

Also, here's proof that geeks can still rock heels.

Messenger bags might be a bit more expected, but cool nevertheless.

Isn't this the coolest alarm clock?! You can put it on snooze by pushing his head.

If you feel like doing some Star Wars crafting, you might like this cute cross stitch pattern.

The Graham Norton Show is one of my favorite shows. And it's things like this that make me love it so much:

LUSHified: Smitten

If you're a regular reader, chances are you know about my love for LUSH. This winter I started visiting their stores on a regular basis and have grown more and more fond of their products. Besides them smelling delicious and just being awesome, they are 100% natural and that's what draws me to them the most.

Where is all this leading, you ask? Well...since I've noticed some fascination with the brand from you guys too, I've decided to feature my favorite products one at a time. First up: Smitten!

This is a tricky one, because it's hardly available anymore. I don't see why, as it's the best hand cream of all time. It smells like Snow Cake, a scent always available for Christmas. I don't want to bore you with a complete list of ingredients, so instead I decided to make a short list of the good stuff;)

What I love about this cream is that it's not greasy, yet very soothing for even the driest winter hands. I'm really gonna miss this stuff when I'm finished with my jar, thankfully I still have a long way to go.

Either way, if you're lucky enough to spot one of these, I recommend you get it. Unless you somehow can't stand the delicious Marzipan scent of course...

Do you have any all-natural hand cream tips for when I eventually run out of this one?