[00:00:00] Ava: Hi everyone. I'm Ava. I'm the new intern here at Bold Blind Beauty. Welcome to our final Bold Blind Beauty On A.I.R. Podcast for 2022. So to start off, let's see what Steph, Nasreen, Sylvia, and Dana are doing for the holidays.
[00:00:20] Steph: Hi everyone. I'm Steph. I'm gonna describe what I'm wearing and my background.
[00:00:25] This is the first time we've attempted to do a video, so we're real excited about it. I am wearing a red sweater with the shoulders cut out and around the cutouts are these it's bejeweled, so I love my bling. And it's around the outer rim of the cutouts of the shoulders. In my background is my Christmas tree.
[00:00:52] It was decorated compliments of my son and grandson. and my living room, you may be able to see part of my sofa and a teal-colored barrel chair. And right now it's light outside, but I'm sure it's gonna be getting a little darker pretty soon as we're heading towards five o'clock in the evening.
[00:01:17] But the tree is sitting right in front of my sliding door.
[00:01:24] Nasreen: That's great Steph.
[00:01:25] Steph: So, Nasreen, would you like to go next?
[00:01:26] Nasreen: Yes. Hey everyone, it's I'm Nasreen. Happy holiday Greetings to everybody. I am actually sitting here in this sort of semi-gloomy day today. I'm wearing a red top with some silver decals around this v-neck.
[00:01:47] and it's I've got my red glasses on. My hair is Auburn today, and I do not have a tree or any Christmas lights behind me because I just don't have the space for, for where I am actually sitting here and shooting. I just have this blurred virtual background, which is what I like to use. But I love looking at the wonderful tree and lights and ornaments that Steph has, and I think, Sylvia, you got something going on too, something shiny right?
[00:02:19] Sylvia: Okay. Hey everybody, it's Sylvia and I am actually wearing my hair up today and it's kind of auburn these days too Nasreen. And I thought about going with paper bag hair, by the way, Dana. But, you know I'm wearing a little red jacket, like a little red blazer and I have on snowflake earrings and necklace. So a little fun bling on my jewelry and my Christmas tree is behind me and it's 10 feet tall.
[00:02:56] Yes, it's big. And I have to tell y'all that it is my job to put the ornaments on the tree. And so I have this very. System. And so I actually brailed my boxes for my ornaments this year. And we have this whole little system so I can decorate the tree and I use a little grid pattern to make it happen.
[00:03:20] So super excited to be here. I love the holidays. So Dana?
[00:03:28] Dana: Hello everyone. Happy holidays. Good to be with you ladies, as always. I do not have a festive background for where I am right at the moment, but I am wearing a burgundy jumpsuit with a black cardigan over top, and I have a black top underneath my burgundy jumpsuit.
[00:03:49] My hair is pulled up into an updo and I have on long silver stiletto earrings that make a U-shape and happy holidays every.
[00:04:06] Ava: All right, so if you guys want, we could start our questions. So for the first question, it's share your holiday, your favorite holiday tradition. And Steph, would you like to start us off?
[00:04:18] Steph: Sure. This is actually one of my favorite questions. And it's a holiday tradition that gosh, I can't remember when it began.
[00:04:32] It might have begun when my kids were little. I absolutely adore the Grinch. He's like one of my favorite cartoon characters, I love him. So every year now, since I have grandchildren now we've started on Christmas Eve running the original Grinch cartoon. We baked cookies and it's me, and my kids.
[00:05:02] My, sons and the grandkids, and it's just so much fun, especially when they start singing the song, the Grinch's song. Mm-hmm. And introducing my oldest grandson to it has been a real hoot because he's nine years old, so now he has this whole understanding of what Christmas is and everything, and he thinks I'm silly for loving this Grinch character, but he goes with it.
[00:05:26] So it's, it's a lot of fun. We really, we really enjoy it. Nasreen.?
[00:05:33] Nasreen: Wow, that's awesome stuff. Sounds like tons of fun too. for me. Our tradition is, I love. Christmas Eve. I really like curling up with hot chocolate and I love watching the Sound of Music movie, just one of those old movies. I just absolutely love watching and each time I appreciate even more.
[00:05:55] And the next day we get up, we cuz where I live we have usually snow. If we have snow, we'd love to go out sledding or at least make some snow angels outside. And later on, on Christmas Day, we always have a family dinner, whether it's at my house you know, at my aunt's house or my sister's house. We go over, go over early.
[00:06:16] Kids love to bake. My daughter loves to go over and bake cookies and all kinds of stuff in the kitchen. And we just, we just sit there and eat and enjoy, giggle, laugh, and. Spending Christmas that, that way this year, I think my sister said she was gonna get Christmas tree, so I'm really excited about that because she's got space for one.
[00:06:33] So we may go over there and really indulge in that something that we sometimes don't get to do. And so that's something new that we're gonna be doing this year. But yeah. How about you, Sylvia?
[00:06:48] Sylvia: My favorite Christmas tradition is a Christmas Eve service with the candlelight service. And you know, with the very limited vision I have, I still love it when they light up all the little candles and you go, you know, from person to person lighting up the candles and every holds 'em up.
[00:07:05] I just think it's so beautiful and magical and to me that just is what Christmas is, is that, that, that moment right there. Dana?
[00:07:15] Dana: Wow. Nasreen who thought, who knew we would have the similar Christmas tradition with The Sound of Music? Nice. So, that's one of the things, if I can catch it, I like to look at the Sound of Music for some reason.
[00:07:32] I love that movie. Another tradition that I have started for myself, I think it started about three years ago before the pandemic hit. I started reading The Purpose of Christmas by Rick Warren. And when I read it about three years ago, I said, I'm gonna make this a tradition for myself. It's a very short book, and it's on BARD by the way to read this book every Christmas.
[00:08:03] So I haven't downloaded it yet again, but I'm, that's what I plan to do is read The Purpose of Christmas it's very encouraging and it, it's really encouraging, uplifting. So that's what I'm gonna continue for myself is read that book and catch the sound of music.
[00:08:21] Sylvia: You guys make me wanna start singing The Hills are Alive...
[00:08:29] Ava: For our next question, it's what is your favorite holidayguilty pleasure? Steph, would you like to start?
[00:08:36] Steph: Oh, this one's so easy. My best friend makes the best miniature cheesecakes. And I always, when she would make 'em, I would always tell myself, okay, I'm going to eat two or three. But she would always give me this great big container of them.
[00:08:58] And the next thing you know, I would keep going back to my refrigerator and getting two or three more and keep telling myself, okay, only two or three more. . . And then before you know it, Before you know it, I've eaten maybe a dozen and a half and I would have to psych myself into thinking, well, you know, they're miniature, so the damage can't be that bad , but obviously
[00:09:25] Sylvia: Love it.
[00:09:26] Steph: You can see where I'm going with this, right? Yeah, it's very, very bad, but that's my guilty pleasure. Nasreen, how about you?
[00:09:35] Nasreen: Mine's kind of similar, but mine isn't that Mine is fruitcake. I don't know if it's a healthy food. I've heard so many horrible stories about the dietary nutrition value of a fruitcake, but I just love the fruitcake, all the colorful stuff the nutmeg, and the green and red, and.
[00:09:52] Purple all through it, the fruit that they put through it. Now, I know it's probably not really real fruit, it's probably candy fruit or however they do it, but I just love fruitcake and when they bring it over, I mean, I like you Steph, I go for one slice. Then I find myself later reaching for a second and then a third, and, and, and before you know it, I have to remind myself, this is probably not good for me, so I should stop somewhere.
[00:10:17] Before I know it, half the cake is done, and then I tell myself, well, you know what? It's poinsettias and fruitcakes that you can only have at Christmas. So just don't even think about your slice count. Just go for it. Sylvia.
[00:10:33] Sylvia: Listen. sweets period. Just any sweet. So, you know, Nasreen, most people hate fruitcake, but I am in the boat with you.
[00:10:42] I love fruitcake, and my mom taught us to make this one called icebox fruitcake, which is all that like that, that fruit that you use for fruitcake whatever that is called. And crushed up bigelow wafers and sweet and condensed milk. Oh delish. I gotta tell you, the real guilty pleasure is fudge. And I make like four different kinds.
[00:11:07] I make chocolate and butterscotch and peanut butter, and I'm like, I'm like stuck with this. I, you can't eat just one and then I'm sick and then I don't sleep because I've had so much sweets and yeah, and, but you know, the sad thing is not just one day, it's. Kind of started today. Okay. It'll be like a six week thing.
[00:11:36] Dana, what about you, Dana? You better come with some food. OK.
[00:11:40] Dana: Oh, it's truth. Truth be told. I, you know, one of the best things about the holiday is the food, all the good stuff, even the desserts. And one of the things now, I'm not necessarily a big cook I know how to cook, but it's not one of my favorite things that I like to.
[00:11:57] So one year I decided to make french toast using eggnog and I, yeah, so I used eggnog and still put in my cinnamon, vanilla and you know, all the things that go into the French toast, and it was pretty good. So I'm hoping I can make it. I didn't get a chance to make it last year, so I'm hoping I get a chance to make it this year.
[00:12:23] But definitely food, sweets. Food, all the stuff that's centered around the holidays, food.
[00:12:29] Steph: What about Ava? What's your guilty pleasure? Ava,
[00:12:35] Ava: I guess. I wanna say food again, but , it's, I like my aunt, we always go to her house for Christmas and she only makes her like really good spinach pasta during the Christmas season.
[00:12:53] And so I'll always like try to like go over her house a lot during Christmas and like Christmas seasons. Because like I know it'll always be there and I can be like, oh, I could take some, and then I could take some home. And I'm really, I'm really again, with the food too.
[00:13:10] Nasreen: So the majority of us have a sweet tooth from the looks of it.
[00:13:13] Sylvia: Yes. Not old enough to have that sweet tooth.
[00:13:19] Nasreen: You're gonna develop it, even trust us.
[00:13:22] Dana: she's a college student. She probably has it.
[00:13:28] Ava: So for our next question, it is, what is your favorite holiday memory from childhood? So Steph, would you like to start?
[00:13:40] Steph: Sure. You know, I struggle with this one cause I just, I have the older I get, the further away those memories are and it's like, oh my God, I can't really come up with anything. But I used to love going over to my grandparents really any time, but especially during the holidays.
[00:14:01] They had one of those silver. Christmas trees with the light that shined on the tree. So the light turned different colors. I think it was. It might have been red, yellow, blue, or something like that. I can't remember. But I thought it was the coolest thing when I was a kid. I thought that silver tree was so beautiful,
[00:14:24] And now of course people make fun of them, but you couldn't tell me that that tree wasn't beautiful. It was, it was gorgeous. And one of the things that I remember as a small child my grandmother used to I can't remember if she bought them or collected them, green stamps. Sylvia, does that ring a bell with you?
[00:14:45] Green stamps? Yes. Okay. Well, she had a book and you would fill up the book with the stamps, and then you could get things with it, and there was like a catalog, and I would look through that catalog and look for toys, and I just remember that. I couldn't remember how it worked exactly, but man, it just, it gives me a warm feeling, just thinking about it. And how about you Nasreen?
[00:15:11] Nasreen: Me it's two things. One is going sledding without a real sled and using garbage bags and just going down the train in a near. Sort of a walkway pathway, but it was like under a bridge. So as you went up the, there were cliffs on both sides, you know, grass cliffs, and we would go down those on garbage bags and have so much fun and just whip through the trees and, and, you know, hurt our backsides.
[00:15:41] But it was so much fun doing that. And the second thing I remember from childhood, is always something I anticipate every year. Cookies. My neighbor, was Irish and she would always bring us a plate full of cookies. It was not Christmas until Madeline brought you cookies. And they were homemade cookies made with love and fresh ingredients, unlike the fruitcake
[00:16:05] And you know, there was a plate full of like, A green Christmas tree and the shortbreads with the little jelly just in the right spot. And there were other shortbreads and chocolate chip cookies and Santa cookies with icing Oh, are my favorite. The gingerbread man with icing on it. I never knew, which way to eat that gingerbread man.
[00:16:28] If I should start with the head or the legs first? But until she brought us that plated cookies just prior to the 24th, the 25th of December, it was never Christmas because those cookies were just something that put a smile on our faces and it was just really symbolic. And that was one of my favorite memories is Madeline's Christmas cookies. Sylvia?
[00:16:51] Sylvia: That makes me want some cookies right now. . So for me it's two things too. And one was going out Christmas caroling, and I've never done that in years. And every year I go How you find a group to go Christmas caroling with?
[00:17:04] But my other really fun one, and this all happened because when we were eight, when I was eight years old, I'm the oldest of five and we're all right in a row. So when I was eight years old, my parents got us bikes for Christmas and we woke up at three in the morning. I am not lying. Three in the morning. And we got those bikes and we went out riding the bikes down the road, and now we lived on a dirt road.
[00:17:30] So it's not, you know, like the highway or anything. So my parents started a new tradition right after that. So Santa came on Christmas Eve for us from then on. And so on Christmas Eve late afternoon evening we would my parents would go, oh, it's time for Santa to come everyone go get in the car.
[00:17:55] And we would have to wait for them for like, you know, ever, we're all, they're in the car, all excited, teenager, we're all excited, you know, and they're, in there, you know, fixing everything up. Oh, we didn't know that. Then we would drive around to see all the lights, and then we would come back and open all of our gifts. That was my fun one, Dana.
[00:18:18] Dana: I have two memories. I had so many good Christmases that I can remember from childhood. Two things. My godmother was an awesome cook and an amazing baker, so of course, she would do baked goods around the holidays. The cookies would be one, but one of my favorite things that she would bake is a sweet potato pie.
[00:18:45] I love the sweet potato pie. So I remember that growing up that she would do that around the Christmas holiday. And like I said, I had many good Christmases, and one that I thought about today we spent a lot of time mainly on my mom's side of the family.
[00:19:06] With my grandparents, we would go over their house for Christmas and then it got to a point where they, would come to our house at some point for Christmas later as we got older. But this one particular year, my brother and I spent Christmas Eve night over my grandparents' house.
[00:19:23] Because, my grandmother put up the tree and all the presents. We were gonna be there for Christmas dinner anyway, so we might as well have all the gifts at my grandparents' house. And I remember that year, and I don't know if you all remember, but I mean, the tree was filled with presents, and I, it was something that I had asked for for Christmas that year and I ended up getting it.
[00:19:44] And it was the Snoopy snow cone machine.
[00:19:48] Nasreen: Oh. Mm. Yep. Nice, nice. Remember that ? Do you remember that Steph?
[00:19:58] Steph: Trying to, I, think I vaguely remember that. Yeah.
[00:20:02] Dana: Yeah. It was like, I was very young. It was, I had to been about like five, so I was very, very young. But I, I do remember that Christmas and that my brother and I were, we was, we were so excited and we couldn't wait, you know, go to sleep and all that. So.
[00:20:21] Nasreen: How did your snow cones turn out? Dana?
[00:20:24] Dana: They were good. we're good. I think the, I think the next year or a few years later ended up with the easy bake oven
[00:20:34] Nasreen: Ava, how about you? Oh,
[00:20:37] Ava: well, I guess I'm still kind of a child, but I guess from when I was like really little, my favorite memory, it's also kind of ties in a little bit with like a tradition. We would spend, like, I would have Christmas Eve at my house and like my mom's side of the family, but not like her sister and like my close cousins would come.
[00:20:57] But, then we would have Christmas with my dad's side. And since I never really saw, like my mom's like dad or like my close cousins, they would come over the day after Christmas, like every year. And like we would, like, I, they were still old or when I was like little and would have like toys, but like they would bring over what they got for Christmas and we would play.
[00:21:20] Like, like games and board games and like video games every year. And it's probably like one of, we still do it, but it's probably one of like my favorite like childhood memories from like ever most likely.
[00:21:33] So for our last question, what one word best describes the holidays for you? Steph would like to go first. . .
[00:21:47] Steph: Sorry. Yes. I'm struggling with this. I struggle with this one too, cuz there's so many one-words that I can choose from. But it depends. It depends on the day. I guess. It to some degree melancholy. I know that sounds like a Debbie Downer, but, you know.
[00:22:09] Nasreen: Yeah.
[00:22:09] Steph: I'm such a serious person. You guys know me though, so you know that I had that silly side too, right? But when I think about Christmas and All that it really means and everything, and yet all the stuff that's happening around me, I have a really hard time like pulling those things together and I struggle quite a bit. So I'll just say sort of melancholy, like calm, melancholy, but not bad, just, you know. Keeping it real. Nasreen?
[00:22:44] Nasreen: oh, that's a good word, Steph. But I'm gonna bring it up a notch cuz I mean, I want, I love, I love color. I love, I love, I love tinsel. That's my word. Because when you're talking about that, that silvered tree, well that's tinsel gold and shiny things and, and that makes me feel happy and good. So I like to look at it that way. So mine's tinsel.
[00:23:06] Sylvia: That's a fun one Nasreen I love, mine is love cause that's what for me, that's what the holidays is about. And we get to love on people and give them gifts and make things for them and get that back from people. I just love, I would say love. Love it. Dana.
[00:23:28] Dana: Oh man, Sylvia. That's what I was thinking. It's just the love and peace. It is just, hmm, love and peace. I, I, I'm sorry I broke the rule. Because that's
[00:23:46] Sylvia: One more. Dana. One word. . Right.
[00:23:51] Dana: I guess, you
[00:23:52] Sylvia: know, still love. No, that's still
[00:23:55] Steph: two words. .
[00:23:56] Dana: Yeah, it right. But I was like every, you know, everybody said that, but that's what I had thought about was love. So, Hmm. I'm just gonna say warm. Just yeah, warm.
[00:24:14] Nasreen: So from melancholy to tinsel to love the warm to, what do you have to say, Ava?
[00:24:21] Ava: I guess mine would. Family because for like the whole like two weeks from like the beginning of like the dis, like the beginning of like Christmas time to like New Year's, I see like some part of my family almost every day, like the whole like two weeks. So it's like a lot. So family would be my word. I think
[00:24:42] Nasreen: that's wonderful.
[00:24:43] Sylvia: Awesome.
[00:24:48] Steph: Well, you know what, I, I have one more question. That I neglected to ask. And I know it's a little bit off-topic, but it's something that we do here at Bold Blind Beauty On A.I.R., and that is to Dana. So Dana, can you share with us what is in the works as far as beauty for the holidays for this year?
[00:25:14] Dana: Oh, I'm glad you asked that Steph. So think glamor, like with the hair, sleek updos, and shiny hair accessories. If you're into hair color icy highlights with the blonde hu to it, with the hombre chambre, however you hombre. From the reds, the coppers, and deep burgundies now. So deep burgundy's, reminiscent of cranberry.
[00:25:46] The makeup look is like, think 1990s. Y2k. So like foundation is matte, but it doesn't mean your skin looks matte. You wanna keep that luminous glow going on. You can do that with like facial oils, like grape seed oil, or even primers that have those properties that allow for your skin to glow underneath that matte foundation, cuz everybody can't really do that.
[00:26:20] So if you're into the whole eyeshadow thing, I always think metallics in a shimmer is always good for this time of year, but also think about like a shimmery pastel, if you can pull it off. Contouring with bronzer and, you know, blush has been pretty popular over the past year and one of the most popular colors now is either peach tone.
[00:26:53] If your skin's a little lighter and a coral tone, if your skin is a little deeper, and if you wanna keep that look lasting through your party nights and your holiday fun, you might wanna take a foundation brush spray it with a little bit of setting spray and apply it and Voila! You go have your party and enjoy the holidays.
[00:27:22] Sylvia: Dana, what is setting spray?
[00:27:25] Dana: So, setting spray is, any makeup setting spray that you can spray over your makeup to make it last even longer. Many brands do it. There's many of them out there, so that's what a setting spray is. It's almost like think of it as like hairspray
[00:27:43] Sylvia: for your face. Hairspray for your face.
[00:27:45] Dana: Yes. Like, but this is setting so for your makeup. But yeah, just to kinda get an understanding of that. That's what that is. Ok.
[00:27:52] Steph: Like the finishing touch, right, Dana?
[00:27:55] Dana: Yeah, exactly.
[00:27:57] Sylvia: Does that go on your eyeshadow too, or just on more of your face?
[00:28:03] Dana: Now personally, I have never used a setting spray on my face, so I would say don't spray it close up on your face. Right. And do it like, like hairspray, like that? Yeah. Just close your eyes.
[00:28:17] Sylvia: Okay. Yeah. Cool. Gonna look for that. I actually think I might have had that sprayed on my face when I've had professional makeup before.
[00:28:28] Nasreen: Thanks a lot for that Beauty Byte for the holidays, Dana. Think a lot of us can use some of those wonderful tips as we're going out to parties, functions and events through this seasonal time. Thanks Dana.
[00:28:44] Dana: No problem.
[00:28:50] Steph: As a reminder, everyone, with this being the holiday season, the mission here at Bold Blind Beauty is to improve humanity by changing the way we perceive one another. And we do this through our advocacy work so you can help support our cause by supporting our online shop or buying us a cup of coffee.
[00:29:12] The link is provided inside the show notes.
[00:29:18] Sylvia: Happy holidays everyone.
[00:29:20] Nasreen: Happy holidays everyone.
[00:29:22] Steph: Happy holidays.
