review

I used to complain about the fact that my parents never gave me a proper middle name ALL. THE. TIME. Rather than having a traditional middle name, y’know, like one that is also appropriate to be used as a first name, I was bestowed with my mom’s maiden name instead while my older sister got that AND a traditional middle name. I could seriously go on about this whole subject, but I won’t. I finally started appreciating my middle name when I was 18 and even adopted it as my nom de plume and ditched my actual last name (well, not legally anyhow). But all together my initials = N.P.H. Just like Neil Patrick Harris! By default, I have the most legen–wait for it–dary initials. EVER.

After I started noticing a slew of monogram accessories pop up all over the web last year, I longed for a gold necklace that bared my initials. It’s funny, because I recall thinking that very thought while checking my email and came across a message from oNecklace asking if I’d be interested in reviewing a necklace of my choice for Le Fancy Geek. Kismet at its finest, right?!

There are tons of pretty baubles to choose from — you can have necklaces, rings, and bracelets customized with your name (just like the infamous ‘Carrie’ necklace from Sex & the City) or initials in silver and gold (24k plated, 14k, 14k white gold). They also come in various styles and you can choose what length and type of chain you’d like for your necklace to be on. I opted for the split chain monogram necklace on a 16 in. rolo chain and I’m completely smitten with it. The fancy font is slightly hard to read at first glance, but I love how it’s a great balance of being both delicate and bold.

If you ponies want to get one too, you can use the code “fancygeek” at the checkout to receive 10% off! Plus everything’s free shipping. And isn’t Mother’s Day coming up soon? Just sayin’. 😉

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, there are apparently guidelines (which you can find here) for how your monogram should look if you chose to get a monogramed bauble. For example, it’s supposed to be First/Last/Middle. So my necklace should’ve actually been customized as NHP, but I didn’t see the guideline until after I made my request. Oops! I prefer it the way I have it anyway.

Cheers,
Nina

necklace: c/o oNecklace (buy here) // dress: ModCloth (buy here) // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy similar here)
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FTC Disclosure: This is a sponsored post as oNecklace provided me with a product to review. I was compensated with the aforementioned product. All opinions expressed are my own.

Whoops. I never posted my overall review of the cleanse I went on immediately after completing it, but I did survive the A Choice For Life 5-Day Fruit Detox!

This is definitely one of the hardest things I have ever put myself through. It took a toll on me emotionally, mentally, and physically. And I lost 6 lbs (of water weight, but whatever). It’s been 3 weeks since I completed my cleanse/detox and I’ve managed to keep the weight off so far.

This detox has been offered on Groupon numerous times, so if you happen to see it and you’re curious here’s what it’s all about:

You are given a bag of tea and a protein mix; you must drink 12 ounces of the tea every morning and evening, and 6 ounces of the protein mix (which is, in my opinion, absolutely disgusting. It tastes like sweet chalk). During the day you are supposed to drink 64 ounces of 100% fruit juice. The choices given are apple, cranberry, white grapefruit, prune, grape, and lemon water (6 lemons squeezed and mixed with 64 ounces of mineral water). You don’t have to dedicate each day to a certain juice, you can mix them so long as you drink 64 ounces, and you can mix them with other fruits as a smoothie. I opted to just dedicate each day to one juice as to not confuse myself (I’m bad with measuring things). And I will admit, after 2 glasses of prune juice I said, “F*CK THIS SH!T” and just drank water for the rest of the day. Oh God, it was horrible.

Here’s a list of the fruit I ate while on this cleanse:

Strawberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
Kiwis
Apples
Plums
Cherries
Grapes
Pineapple
Cantaloupe
Honeydew
Watermelon

And here’s what my day-to-day was like:

Day 1 was probably the worst as my body adjusted to this all fruit consumption. And I already wrote about that experience, so there’s no need for me to recap. But if you missed out and want to know, you can read about it here.
Day 2 was grape juice day and I mostly consumed peaches, watermelon, honeydew, a couple of kiwis, and strawberries. I managed to make it through 20 minutes of yoga, but was soooo exhausted due to lack of food-food.
Day 3 was dedicated to prune juice. I didn’t want to save it for last because I knew it was going to be a doozy on me physically. Like I said earlier, 2 glasses in and I threw in the metaphorical towel. Prune juice has this thick, overly sweet consistency that makes it hard to drink (at least for me). Also, the fact that I had gone to the bathroom 4 times in between having two 12 ounce helpings of it made me think that it would be in my best interest to stick with water for the rest of the day. No fruit for me that day! Just water. Prune juice… never again. EVER!
Day 4 was supposed to be white grapefruit juice day, but after one glass I said, “I REFUSE TO PUT MYSELF THROUGH THIS BULLSHIT.” So I ate heaping amounts of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, cherries, and a plum. Oh, and on this day I walked downstairs and saw my dad biting into the juiciest looking burger. I walked right up to him, bent down and inhaled the savory musk of that tasty looking meaty delight. When I walked into the kitchen, there was a box of French fries. FRENCH FRIES. You have no idea, you guys. French fries are my thing. They are like crack to me. I damn near broke down – I went so far as to inhale them. But I just reminded myself that if I even bit one, then I COMPLETELY fail this whole thing. Somehow I managed to stay strong and walked away with a kiwi.
I saved cranberry juice for the last day because I happen to love it! Why not treat myself after all that crap I went through? I managed to finish off the 64 ounce bottle of juice before 5pm and ate a plethora of strawberries and cherries, a whole peach, and an apple. But since I was going to San Jose the next day, I wanted to test my stomach out and see how it would react to other food. I made egg whites and plain wheat toast and my body handled it quite well.

Overall, I’m glad I challenged myself and, despite the eggs and toast, was able to make it through all 5 days. Afterwards I felt a lot lighter and more energized! But the downside to this whole cleanse was getting back into “regular” eating habits. And by regular, I don’t mean going back to the same old crappy foods, but getting back into solids like chicken and protein bars. I had a lot of soups and veggies post cleanse. I think I waited 4 days after to start having chicken again, and even then my body was like, “What is this?! I HATE YOU.” And I definitely wouldn’t advise someone to do this during a workweek – I felt utterly exhausted each day and the frequent trips to the bathroom was a nuisance! Can you imagine having to excuse yourself every 10 minutes to give offerings to the Porcelain God? o,0

But if you want to challenge yourself, go for it!