Beauty and Gardens

Nude'tude palette (nude is in)

2012-10-10T17:50:00.001-05:00

It's been quite some time since I ordered from hautelook, and I thought I was done with that site. Too many deal sites clogging my email! I happened to read that the palette I've been eying was on sale so I jumped at the chance to get it. I love a good deal!

Today I received the Nude'tude nude eyeshadow palette from The Balm. Occasionally you will find it 50% off from Hautelook.com only. It was $18 + $5.95 for shipping which is a very good price for this beautiful palette!

I've heard very good things about this, and it is also compared to the UD Naked palette. Funny since the colors are not similar. I can't wait to test it out for myself.

Hautelook personal invite:
http://www.hautelook.com/short/3Bvfv

Makeup Storage sneak peek

2012-09-29T22:17:00.001-05:00

For my makeup storage I use these awesome drawers from The Container Store. I first saw them on youtube and I thought they looked like the PERFECT solution. It's true!

They are called "Stackable Desktop Drawers" and are made of polystyrene. Basically plastic. It's originally for sorting paper. Each unit has three white pull out drawers. The drawers pull out nicely and I love how they are shallow and wide. I didn't want to waste vertical space or have to stack my makeup on top of each other. Each drawer is only 1.25" high.

http://www.containerstore.com/shop?productId=10024247&N=&Ntt=Paper+drawers

To hold my makeup I need two sets of these so I have six drawers. I actually prefer this to the muji. It is a cleaner look when closed. (and costs less) I also have the muji that I use for jewelry storage. Muji is great and I love acrylic; it just tends to look cluttered.

Perhaps later I will have more pics of what's in my other drawers!

Loving clearance deals

2012-09-28T19:25:00.001-05:00

These are some things I picked up at Dillard's almost monthly clearance sale this weekend. This time all permanent markdowns were an additional 40% off! Yay!

*I'm trying to post from my phone, and it's very limited. Who knows how this will look when posted haha.*

Jessica Simpson Claria wedges in Ivory Lisa [jessicasimpson.com]

Flour sifter [similar]
Tovolo slotted turner [buy]
Kuhn Rikon Pairing knife [similar]

Steve Madden B Gracie clutch wallet [amazon.com]

DFW Bloggers Shop Around at Allen Premium Outlets

2012-06-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday I was invited to tour the Premium Outlets in Allen, TX with ten other bloggers from the Dallas / Fort Worth area. It was organized by my blogger friend Cris of MyFashionJuice.com with help from Robyne (Central Marketing VP) and Penny (General Manager). There are so many Premium Outlets all over the US, I'm sure there's one near you. This was my second time at this location. It's been 5 or 6 years!

Some new and familiar faces! A good mix of mommy bloggers and fashion bloggers. We started the morning eating breakfast, meeting each other, and going through our gift bags full of coupons.
[photo source]
L-R top: Penny, Robyne, Cris
L-R bottom: Stephanie, Me, Ivonne, Melissa, Tamara

I can't believe they gave us such a great quilted black tote to carry all of our finds! Inside it was stuffed with special VIP coupons and goodies.

Just some of the coupons we were armed with. Every Premium Outlet will have coupons you can print out online before you go. I would make a list of all the stores you want to visit and make sure you print a coupon for those stores. You never know what you might find!

The VIP coupon booklet that's valid until 2013. Isn't it a convenient all in one brochure? Sign up to get yours here.

Our first stop was Banana Republic Factory Store. Most of the clothing you will find here is exclusive to the Factory Store. Therefore they are on trend and it's not leftovers from the regular stores. Great right?! These three ladies are modeling Summer Trend looks put together by the store manger. From the blue cardi, to the wedges, to the floral print I love it all!

Banana is not short on cute PRINTS and these are my favorites from the store.

Next we headed over to Samsonite where Patrick demonstrated how to pack for summer using the Eagle Creek Packing system. I was not a believer when my brother first told me about the packing system. I really didn't think it would make a difference at all but WOW when Patrick unfolded everything from the Folder I was amazed how useful the Pack-It system is. It was like that scene in Mary Poppins, he kept lifting out shirt after shirt.

Here are the different size Pack-It cubes. If you don't have a Samsonite near you, try the Container Store. After our presentations we were free to roam the outlet and we left in groups to hunt for our free gifts.

Other goodies: Samsonite 3oz travel bottles, Movado Jewelry Cleaner, notepad

A special gift from White House Black Market. Personal fan, hand sanitizer, laundry scents, and mints.

Another tote! I was actually looking for a canvas tote I could paint on. This came at a really great time.

At Vitamin World we were introduced to the magical Coconut Oil. It's good for you inside and out. Just google this craziness!

Retinol Cream and a Protein Bar from Vitamin World. Thanks to the manager! He was really friendly and curious about all our blogs. ;)

My FAVORITE find is this adorable green pan from Kitchen Collection. You never need to use oil and the food won't stick. I can't wait to test it out! This store was a baker's heaven!

NY & Company gave us a $25 off $25 coupon so I picked up a white bolero and this black enamel multi-chain necklace. I plan on recycling the chain and spray painting the black part gold. You'll have to wait and see the before/after on my other blog Julu Jewelry.

Columbia gave us a $15 gift card to use and I used it to buy a hat for my dad. My cashier was also really cute. BONUS!

I stopped by the CCO (cosmetics company outlet) but I didn't see anything I wanted. bummer! Same for the Coach Outlet. I wasn't in need of a purse, and I was overwhelmed by the selection and people buzzing around too.

My last stop before I went home was the Le Creuset store. The discounts were generous and they even had a 25% off sale on top of that for all of the beautiful blue items. I wish I could take it all home!

Allen Premium Outlets had so many stores but I only walked half of the huge property before I decided it was time to go home. I didn't want to tire myself out otherwise I wouldn't make the hour long drive home. Coming here is really an excursion so you need to be prepared. Wear comfy clothes, make a plan, bring water, wear a hat, wear a cross body purse to keep your hands free, and most importantly bring a friend.

Check out what the other bloggers had to say!

Ivonne - Ivonne Stacy Style

Cris - My Fashion Juice

Alicia - Fashion by Alicia

Stephanie - Beauty and Gardens

Tamara - Southern Yankee Mix

Staci - 7 on a Shoestring

Heather - Dallas Single Mom

Melissa - MelissaStuff

Metsy - Metsy Shines

Jenn - Jenn's RAQ

Stephanie - Korean Bohemian

April myglam bag review and surprise bag

2012-04-13T20:43:00.000-05:00

This is my first ~~myphan~~ myglam bag, and I wanted to see what the fuss was about. There have been good and bad said about this company who copied Birchbox, who copied My Pretty Pink Box. It's $10 (same as birch) and you get 4-5 deluxe and full size products (same as birch) every month in a bag/pouch. This month it's metallic pink! ($2 value?)

This month's theme is Girl's Night Out.

Shadow brush and liner brush - $2 value each?
The quality reminds me of Sephora collection brushes. It's actually a nice brush and densely packed.

Urban Decay 24/7 travel size liner in Woodstock - $6.40 each
You had the possibility of 3 colors. I would have preferred Perversion or Ransom but hot pink eyeliner will have to do. It'll be a challenge to make a wearable look.

Dermstore Lip Quench - $12 full size
A glossy lip moisturizer in a pale pink shade. Haven't tried it yet.

All-belle lashes in 2822 - $2?
Handmade in Taiwan. They don't look too bad but I've seen better. Like most Asian lashes it comes with a small vial of glue.

To add up the value of this month it's $24.40 and I consider that estimate generous. If you're paying $10 you should only hope to get something valued at $10-$12 anyway, right? Since that's half of my estimate I'd say this box was worth it. But will it satisfy everyone? No, because many people think they should open it to find makeup gold or something that looks like this:

This is the "Never Gonna Happen" bag for $10... Full size Mac brush! YSL! full size shadow OMGZ!

Pros:
shipped on time
this month's samples were good
$10 to try won't break the bank
listens to customer feedback

Cons:
no points system or referral system
no store
no personalized picks (everyone gets the same thing)
no skipping the month
new company (will have glitches)
the card explaining everything was cheap looking. hire a new designer please!
very basic website

Will I keep my subscription for May? Not sure, but I think I will cancel. I have way too many samples as it is. I do think it's worth trying ONCE though. :)

Easter Egg Half Moon Nails

2012-04-07T12:30:00.000-05:00

The first time I saw the Half Moon Nail trend I wasn't a fan but after seeing it with pretty pastels I'm a convert! This is my first go at it. If I had a true white I probably would have done these differently. Also you usually don't see this look with a trim but I flubbed it so the white trim covers up my mistakes. The white trim gives it that Easter Egg look.

How to:

Paint your nails the base color (top part). Make sure to paint the whole nail.
Wait for it to dry completely or use seche vite to speed it up.
Use Hole Reinforcements and place them on the top part of your nail where you want to keep the base color showing.
Paint the bottom portion of the nail any color (same or different ones to complete your look).
Remove the reinforcements carefully to reveal your half moon shape!
Add a middle trim with a thin brush or skip this if your application and sticker removal is clean.
Apply a top coat and let it dry!

Colors used:
Etude House BL501 Cloud Milk - pinky
Revlon Lilac Pastelle - ring finger
Revlon Cafe Pink - first finger
Revlon Electric - middle finger
Revlon Pale Cashmere - top moon
Rimmel French White - trim

Happy Easter!

Take a sexy plunge with Candice

2012-03-24T17:58:00.000-05:00

I was invited to interview Candice Swanepoel (you know the super model plastered all around Victoria's Secret and on tv?) so I put on my Victoria's Secret best (my secret) and headed out to Northpark Mall in Dallas.

Now Candice didn't come in wearing this amazing White Herve Leger Ari Essential Bandage dress. The word is she stopped by the BCBG store first to pick it out. How gorgeous is she?? And I love her South African accent!

So why is Candice here? She's promoting the new line of deep v plunge bras, very sexy bras and Very Sexy Touch fragrance. I know first-hand that Dallas and the rest of the metroplex loves Victoria's Secret!

"My favorite part of the new collection is the new bras with the deep v plunge. You can wear it 5 different ways, and it's basically your go to bra. Great for low cuts to get that cleavage you want."

This season's new fragrance Very Sexy Touch with italian iris, gilded apricot, amber wood. The packaging is very pretty! Doesn't it remind you of YSL lipstick?

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In love with Chanel Amour (swatches and review)

2012-02-10T00:57:00.001-06:00

Released just in time for Valentine's Day is Chanel's newest collection of pinks called "LES ROSES ULTIMES DE CHANEL." Out of the 6 new glossimers and 4 nail colors I decided on the one featured on the model. Amour #166. The Frisson nail polish also looks pretty but I'm waiting to see some swatches of that first. It reminds me of Zoya Erika which I have already.

According to the website she's wearing Amour glossimer and Pink Sugar lip pencil together.

Levres Scintillantes Glossimer in Amour. My camera picked up the same pink as the promo shots so I would say it's accurate but what you can't see well is the subtle shimmer which reflects fuchsia under my fluorescent lights. I'd call this gloss a rich coral pink with iridescent shimmers.

Formula: Thick and smooth but never sticky.

Take a look at this swatch! Where it is misleading is how it shows up on the lips. It swatches thick but sheers out quickly once on pigmented lips. It's not too sheer that it does nothing for me though. It brightens up my lip color with a nice pink glow. I'd say if you have REALLY red lips this wouldn't show up at all.

If you were expecting the color in the ad you will need a lip pencil underneath. They've tricked us with a little bit of photoshop magic!

It does in fact go really well with my pink heart macarons I made this week! :)

Two pumps and a dress

2012-01-21T21:25:00.000-06:00

I definitely did not plan to buy dressy clothes this week but when a great sale comes around- I just can't pass it up!

First are the much raved about Perfect Pumps from Ann Taylor in Patent Dark Navy. The retail for $155 and I bought them for $35.93 online. They are surprisingly comfy and true to size! And that's coming from the girl who hurts in almost every shoe. I'm a big fan of the round toe shape and it's all around classy and beautifully made. 3.25" heel. Will a Perfect Pump ever get this low again? I don't know, but I hope so! I would buy another!

I popped by Banana Republic actually hoping I wouldn't find anything. Ah, and of course I would! There weren't many clothes left but there were many shoe styles and sizes to choose from. Something I didn't expect! Most of the shoes were marked down to $30-$40 PLUS an additional 25% off. I ended up buying these Mad Men Izzy Pumps in Dark Platino for around $24. Dark Platino looks more gunmetal in person. They are hidden platform 4" heels. It's my first hidden platform shoes and so far I can tell it's just comfy enough. I will say they run a little narrow so I wasn't sure if I should get a half size up, but I ultimately decided against it and stuck to my normal size. Now that I think about it, I've wanted Banana Republic shoes since high school! I'm so glad I found these!
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Sweet Azaleas

2012-01-21T02:09:00.001-06:00

Oh garden part of this blog- I have not forgotten you!

Since Asian New Year is in a few days the Asian markets and floral shops are FILLED with beautiful new plants. Last year I missed out on buying an Azalea plant. Bby the time I was ready to buy it all the blooms had died, and I thought I could wait it out another year for a "fresh" pick.

Well dang it the shop owner raised the price to $55 from $25 this year! Of course I was outraged but I still bought it anyway like an obsessed idiot. It is possible last year's plant was smaller. (what I tell myself for comfort) I googled around and the going rate for this is around $100 now so maybe it's not so bad? I really wanted it to be a twisted topiary and it is! The dark pink petals actually sparkle in the light like a shimmery nail polish/ lipstick would. It's so pretty! If I could afford more than one I would also pick the white and pink mix above but I'm happy with just the photo for now. :)

End of last year Freebies

2012-01-17T19:02:00.002-06:00

I found this post in my draft box that I compiled back in November of some samples and freebies that came my way. I think I thought of making it a monthly series like "what's in my mailbox" but then I changed my mind. If you have any questions about these products let me know in the comments below.

Target Beauty Bag - a cute pouch with mostly shampoo samples

Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Primer- with my dry skin this season I'm really liking this primer! The texture is really unique.
from the Klout.com Perks program. Klout Perks are exclusive products or experiences that you earn based on your influence. It changes weekly.

I received a card in the mail from Sephora JCP to try out BareMinerals. Which I do not like so I gave it to my sister.

BCBGMaxAzria EDP - from the Dillard's Beauty Event. So far I'm liking this scent!
Clinique Rinse Off Foaming Cleanser & High Impact Mascara - from the Dillard's Beauty Event
Green & Black's Organic Chocolate - from the Sephora VIB event

And a free panty from Victoria's Secret. I occasionally get cards for these that require no purchase. Why? I don't know, but it's awesome!

Paris Amour Body Lotion - If you know me than you know I hate Bath & Body Works. Very rarely do I find a scent that I actually like there. In comes Paris Amour. It's actually light and non-offensive so that's a winner in my book. This lotion will probably last me a few years. I kid not.

The rest below came free with purchases.

Sephora Fabric Tote from the Sephora VIB Party. It's plain enough that you can embellish it to make it your own.

Perfume Sampler from a Nordstrom.com purchase.

Perfume Samples from a Sephora.com purchase.

Anyhow I just wanted to release this post from the draft box as way to get back in the blogging mood. I have lots of photos I've been taking but not yet uploaded. I hope to soon!

Sephora's TEN $10 Black Friday Deals - Amazing!

2011-11-23T13:30:00.000-06:00

I've put together a list of Sephora's Ten $10 Deals for Black Friday. It's valid on November 25 ONLINE and IN-STORE for one day only! Some of the ~~deals~~ steals below are very tempting!!

Is anyone tackling the crowds this Friday in search of a good deal? I think I got most of what I wanted even before Black Friday, but I will still be poking around stores for the fun of it!

Tarte MultiplEYE Primer and Lights, Camera, Lashes Duo - $10 (value $30)

Stila Glitz and Glam Palette & Lip Glaze - $10 (value $76 LOL!)

Bare Minerals All Decked Out Set - $10 (value $44)

Sephora Beauty To Go Brush Set - $10 (regularly $15)

Tokidoki Cromatico Eye Shadow Palette - $10 (regularly $19)

Korres Guava All Butter Moisture Therapy Duo - $10 (value $22)

Kat Von D Adora Fragrance 1.7oz? - $10 (regularly $55)

Josie Maran Argan Color Stick in Petal Pink - $10 (regularly $22)

Buxom Welcome to the Party Mascara - $10 (value $33)

The 4 Elements of the Perfect Shave Travel Size - Lavender - $10 (value $25)

September Favorites

2011-11-02T20:00:00.000-05:00

September favorites are more about what kept me cool in the summer than specific items from that month. + a couple beauty items of course. :)

David & Young Floppy Hat $20, on sale $9.90
My hat is actually straw colored but I'm tempted to pick up another color at this price! Black (which looks blue?) or Olive? This hat has the perfect amount of floppy vs sturdiness without making you look old. The weave is tight so you can shape it and the hat won't fall in your face.

Rayban Purple Aviator Sunglasses RB3025, $60ish on sale
At first I wasn't sure about the purple but now I love how it looks on. My favorite shades EVER! The gradient is nice because it makes the glasses blend into my face. Knock-offs can't come close!

Mac Ever Hip Lipstick $14.50
Revisting last summer's must have lipstick.

Dior Blush Vintage Pink (Rose) $42
This originally came out in a lace pattern last spring, so when it was re-release I had to get it. I used my $20 voucher to bring the price down on this. It's a gorgeous peachy-pink!

Got 2b Rockin' It Dry Shampoo $5.99
This is my second favorite dry shampoo after Batiste. The smell is better and the price is good at a BOGO but sometimes the spout gets jammed and only powder comes out. Then all you have left is liquid. Which is not good because it then it won't work right.

So with this post I have officially done more than a year of Favorites! I don't know if I will continue on with regularity or not. If I do I'll be changing how I do this.

The last day for Sephora's Friends and Family Sale

2011-11-01T23:18:00.002-05:00

Today (Tuesday) is the last day for Sephora's Friends and Family 20% off anything sale! To get the code go here and enter your email address. Below are some of my picks! Please check them out. And no I didn't buy all of this! That's crazy! Let me know in the comment what you hauled!

Hypnôse Doll Lashes Set ($63 Value) $29.50

This set contains:
- 0.07 oz travel-size Cils Booster XL Super-Enhancing Mascara Base
- 0.04 oz Artliner Precision Point EyeLiner in Noir
- 0.22 oz Hypnôse Doll Lashes Mascara in Black
A great value for the full size artliner or mascara alone! It's almost like buy one get one free!

Wild & Chic Best of MAKE UP FOR EVER Kit ($103 Value) $59

This set contains:
- 0.17 oz HD Microfinish Powder

- 0.21 oz Aqua Cream in 13 Warm Beige (champagne shimmer)

- 0.04 oz Travel Aqua Eyes in Mat Black 0L (black)

- 0.09 oz Lab Shine in Star Collection - S4 (pearly pink beige)

- 0.5 oz HD Microperfecting Primer

- 0.23 oz Smoky Lash Extra Black Mascara
This is a good sampling of what MUFE has to offer.

Hourglass Hidden Corrective Concealer $32
A creamy, weightless moisturizing concealer that blends easily into the skin for an undetectable finish.
It's my favorite concealer and a pricey one!

Fresh Mini Sugar Kissing Trio $28
This set contains:
- 0.08 oz Sugar Passion Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15
- 0.08 oz Sugar Honey Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15
- 0.08 oz Sugar Plum Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15
If you're a lip balm junkie you can try three of the different balms in mini sizes. Perfect for all three to fit in your purse.

Danmari All About Cheeks Palette $65
This set contains:
- 6 x 0.12 oz Cheek Color in Hungry Heart (gold ivory), Super Orgasm (peachy pink with gold glitter), Desire (cotton candy pink), Casino (dark brown with golden shimmer), Orgasm (peachy pink with golden shimmer), Sin (berry with gold shimmer)
There was lots of buzz surrounding this palette but now it's back in stock!

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion Tube $19
Or stock up on your favorite staples! Even the Naked Palette, Mariposa, or Book of Shadows IV! Most things are back in stock!

Indulge in Dior Addict Lipstick if you haven't yet tried it. $28
Rose Déshabillé 260 & Tokyo 422 are beautiful shades!

Benefit It's Potent! Eye Cream $32
I tried a sample and this made my eye really soft!

Collector's Edition Fragrance Sampler For Her $75
Who doesn't love these minis? And you get a free full size perfume voucher!

There are so many sales going on now it's crazy! Ulta mailed me a 20% off coupon too! Plus the VIB 20% off party is coming in November too! .

Trick or Treating Makeup

2011-10-31T17:15:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone had a great weekend! This weekend was full of free beauty samples and full size items! Who needs Birchbox?? Act quickly and you can still get these!

1) Nars Pro-Prime Eyeshadow Base deluxe sample - free at Sephora inside JCP only while supplies last. Bring this coupon.

2) L'Occitane hand cream 30ml - it was free for liking them on Facebook a few weeks ago. Nov 1 is the last day to redeem it after the coupon was mailed to you.

3) Aquolina Pink Sugar - free random sample from the nice Sephora girl.

4) BareMinerals Big & Bright Eyeliner - This full size liner is free at your Bare Minerals boutique only with coupon! Print this coupon. You have until Tuesday!

I hope everyone is handing out candy tonight! I hand out the GOOD STUFF thanks to CVS! :)

My delicious pumpkin macaron with fresh pumpkin puree! I more or less followed this recipe at Sweet Lady Sass.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

P.S. My brother went as Nyan Cat lol! I would post the photo but the costume is not around!

FNO: dessert porn

2011-09-10T11:12:00.001-05:00

Blah blah fashion, but look a cupcake!!

Stopped by Mozart Bakery to let me sister see how awesome it is. This is a peach mousse. Their smoothies are AMAZINGLY smooth. mmm, taro boba.

Macarons and whoopie pies from Tart Bakery at Neimans. The macarons were good, but the whoopie pies were far from good.

I loved the cranberry tarts! One of them rolled down my shirt... opps!

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FNO: Les Jeans de Chanel

2011-09-09T11:37:00.001-05:00

The thing I was anticipating the most about FNO 2011 (Fashion's Night Out) was the release of Chanel's extremely limited new nail polishes. I've become a Chanel polish addict, and I heard these were only available for purchase on Sept 8 at Chanel Boutiques and select beauty counters. So I drove up to the only boutique in the area where I lucked out and got a sweet valet parking spot! I told the guy I just wanted to pop into Chanel real quick and he was very nice about it. :)

To celebrate FNO and the polishes, they brought in three nail techs from a local salon (Hollywood Nails on preston & royal) to offer complimentary manicures! It's my first time to use the base and top coat. (nothing fabulous btw) She did an okay job considering I told her I was in a rush.

It's kind of hard to take photos and dig in my purse with wet nails so my sister helped out while I waited for them to dry. Imagine me awkwardly waving my hands around at Chanel. Hopefully no one was watching me. The fun thing about FNO is you can waltz into any high end boutique, and they are less likely to be judging you.

Nail Swatches of Coco Blue and Blue Boy.

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August Favorites

2011-09-01T23:53:00.001-05:00

This month there was less makeup and more time spent baking. macarons and creme brulee specifically. This is my 12th favorites post! I can't believe I've done it for a year already.

Chanel Le Vernis in Morning Rose (557)
Surprisingly this rose with golden flecks polish sold out! The weird thing is there is no buzz about how it sold out like Chanel Jade. Morning Rose was not even the IT color, it was Mimosa (yellow). I managed to snag this during the Nordstrom Anniversary sale in July, and I noticed that it had to be shipped from the downtown Seattle location. As if it was the last one. It also didn't seem completely full... compared to a brand new polish. I'll never know, will I? Out of curiosity I checked Chanel.com and it was sold out there too! I had just checked the week before, and it was still there! Apparently it was a sleeper hit or they just didn't make very many of them. I hope you got one while you could!

Chanel Rouge Allure in Desinvolte (86)
At a glance it seemed similar to Rouge Coco Peregrina, but I'd say it's more pink than peach which is why I like it better. Plus I've always wanted a Rouge Allure but the colors in the permanent line are either too brown or too bright. This was the right pink I was looking for. This is also a million times better than the Rouge Cocos because it doesn't have a gross fragrance smell and taste to it. It's also limited, so get it from Nordstrom while you can.

Dior Crush Glow Quint (659) LE
When it first came out last year I didn't think it looked all that great compared to the Ready to Glow quint, but for $20 via blogsale I decided to take a chance and get it. I'm so glad I did! It's gorgeous! I'm a sucker for the soft purples and golds.

Half Sheet Size Aluminum Baking Pan (about 12"x17")
It's extremely thick at 18 gauge, and it will probably never warp. It's heavy enough so the heat from the bottom of my oven won't cook my macarons too fast. It also doesn't burn the bottoms of cookies. Aluminum doesn't burn quickly like non-stick (dark coating) does. Remember to use parchment paper. I got these professional pans from a restaurant supply store for only $7.38 each!

KitchenAid Hand Mixer Whisk attachment
Adding this whisk attachment to my hand mixer gave me more control over beating my egg whites in a smaller bowl. I prefer this over a big stand mixer!

July Favorites

2011-09-01T22:37:00.000-05:00

My July Favorites are here! (yes I know it's September..)

1. Dior DiorSkin Shimmer Star Powder in Amber Diamond
A perfect finishing touch for the cheeks. I think it illuminates my cheeks without being too shimmery. It gives that light from within glow. Thanks Steph for the birthday gift!

2. Sigma Duo Fibre Powder/Blush Brush - F15
I bought this to use with the above powder. It's also workable with cream blushes. It's soft and deposits the right amount of powder with the duo fibre tip. Sigma actually makes good quality brushes!

3. Lmdb Rock and Romance Polishes
Perfect transition colors to fall. See my review here.

4. Dior Instant eye makeup remover
I received a sample of this, and I think it works slightly better than Lancome Bi-Facil!

5. Le Creuset mini cocotte in lavender
I found these cute mini cocottes on clearance at Dillards! My first Le Creuset, and I love the quality of it. It's perfect for single serving souffles or gratin! They were about $3-$4 from $20! I was also drawn to the Taro color likeness.

Apothica $25 Gift Card Giveaway

2011-08-08T21:32:00.003-05:00

Lately I've been getting back into the Stila products I own. I have a few single eyeshadow pans here and there. What I love is the soft texture, the generous size, and the pigmentation. It was one of the first brands beyond the drugstore that I experimented with. I just ordered an empty palette to hold my shadows in. If you're looking to get a good feel of Stila, checkout this Smokey eye bold beauty set. I've seen other bloggers rock a look using this palette and the result is easily gorgeous!

Starting today thanks to the kind folks at Apothica.com you have the chance to win a $25 gift card towards brand name cosmetics, skincare, and more! The gift card is valid toward three sites: (Apothica.com, skincarerx.com, and skinbotanica.com) which carry more thatn 80,000 products! Apothica.com is so great because they have many high end brands, have free shipping at $49, a great return policy, price matching, and no tax! (for most)

This giveaway will run from August 8-23 and is open internationally, but Apothica does not ship to every country.

You'll have three ways to enter the giveaway:

Option 1: Facebook

1. Visit Apothica.com

2. Write on Apothica’s Facebook wall about what you think of Apothica

Option 2: Twitter

1. Visit Apothica.com

2. Tweet about @Apothica on your own Twitter Account

Bonus: Retweet Apothica’s tweet about this giveaway @apothica

Option 3: Blog

1. Visit Apothica.com

2. Write something on your blog about what you think of Apothica

Extra +1:

1. Comment below what product you would like to try from their site!

Please fill out in the form below and I will contact the winner!
Giveaway OVER: The Winner has been picked!

DIY Nail Polish shelf display

2011-07-26T11:08:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend I decided to make this foam board nail polish stand using a tutorial I found on Youtube.

You can fit 9 bottles per row. I ended up making a smaller shelf than in the video for space reasons. Mine has 6 shelves.

It doesn't hold everything and takes up more space due to the tiers but it does look cleaner! Though it is a little rough looking in person from using a dull knife, you can't tell once the polishes are on it.

Before: here are my stacks of polishes.

After: it's nice and tidy! I also shoved things underneath it like the Konad stamps. It's not a space saver & I can live with that. Since the black boxes of Revlon couldn't even make it to the shelf. Perhaps I need another...

If this video is a little raw it's because I edited and uploaded it with iPhone 4 only.

June Favorites

2011-07-19T10:19:00.008-05:00

First, I've updated my blog sale with Chanel and R&R!

Here are my June Favorites!

1. Lancome Color Fever gloss in Paradise Peach - moisturizing and goes on smooth. It gives my lips a pretty pink-peach glow. I thought the Lancome glosses would be sticky like the juicy tubes but these are very nice and not sticky at it. It's thick but it settles nicely. It's also pigmented enough to use without lipstick! It's limited edition, so I bought a backup! :)

2. fresh Citron de Vigne edp - it's a "fresh" citrus scent that's light and crisp but still complex.

3. OPI Nail Polish in Steady As She Rose - This creamy pale pink-purple polish is from the Pirates of the Caribbean OPI collection. At first glance I thought I wasn't going to like how light it is, but on my nails it looks very pretty! It's a tad streaky at first but workable.

4. Revlon Nail Treatment - This is a ridge filler, and I like how it provided a nice and smooth base to my nails. It dries quickly, and I can apply two to three coats to prime my nails for polishes that usually require more coats.

5. MAC 219 Pencil Brush - An essential makeup brush, no other pencil brush compares! Thanks Megan! <3

Le Metier de Beaute Nail Laquer Set review

2011-07-17T00:37:00.003-05:00

For a long time I've seen this brand, Le Metier de Beaute, on beauty blogs but I never purchased anything from them. Mainly because they are located in Neiman Marcus and their stuff is expensive! Thanks to the Nordstrom Anniversary sale going on NOW I can finally get my stubby fingers on them! All Nordstroms should have this in their nail polish section even if there is no counter. Check near the Butter Londons and Deborah Lippmans!

Nail polishes are like a beauty gateway drug. They are usually the most inexpensive product in the brand line and it's easy to develop an addiction from there.

Le Métier de Beauté 'Rock 'n' Romance' Mini Nail Lacquer Set (0.14 oz each) $25
The set includes:

Heat of the Night
True Romance
Chrome Passion
Midnight Rendezvous

Full size polishes are usually $15 at (0.25oz) and LE colors are $10 at (0.14oz). So the value here is $40!

Heat of the Night: a passionate black cherry, a beautiful vampy color. Drusilla from Buffy comes to mind. It's very pigmented in just one swipe!

True Romance: a delicate pale rose with a subtle metallic nude finish. This is what I wish Chanel Quartz was. The polish was streaky for me though.

Chrome Passion: a charcoal with holographic shimmer. So stunning and mesmerizing! I think holographics are my new best friend!

Midnight Rendezvous: a shimmering, steely midnight blue with blue and green shimmers. It's dark, mysterious, and spacey. I love it!

The last three are my favorites! If you're a polish fanatic you must check these out at your local Nordstrom! Even though the bottles are tiny, it's still a great value! Tiny things are cute!

The red and blue together remind me of the Moulin Rouge movie poster. I spent a lot of time obsessing over anything Moulin Rouge when it came out. It never leaves my mind. <3

The Body Shop Event recap + giveaway

2011-07-14T09:22:00.000-05:00

Back in May, Elissa of Dress with Courage put together an event at The Body Shop at North Park Mall in Dallas. It was the first blogger event for any The Body Shop so I was very honored to be a part of it!

Chick-fil-a was there to welcome us with coffee, yogurt parfaits, and mini chicken muffins!

The Body Shop district manger and store manager talked with us about the philosophy of The Body Shop and some interesting facts I did not know. Something new I learned was that they support fair trade. If say one of the villages they buy ingredients from cannot produce the product then they will simply wait and that product will be out of stock until they are able to buy it via fair trade.

One of my favorite things was the Peppermint Foot Scrub! They set up a couple of chairs where we could take mini foot baths using their 3 step foot care from the Peppermint line. My feet were so soft after the treatment it made me feel like a slob! A slob because I keep my feet in horrible condition all of the time.

There was also a makeup station where we could play around and the makeup artist was there to give makeovers (shown here on Katie). One of my favorites was the eye shadow in Chocolate. Usually I do not think of makeup when The Body Shop comes to mind, but they do have a nice selection of products!

At the last station the district manager applied their scrubs and body butters to our hands over their mobile sink.

This pampering also reminded me of how poorly I treat my skin haha.

It was great to see the blogger girls again! Thanks to The Body Shop for having us!

Before we left they handed out goodie bags filled with samples and coupons for us to try. How sweet!

Wish you could have been there? Well I have a special goodie bag for one of my readers! I adding to it a full sized eye shadow that I purchased. :)
All you have to do is comment below what product you would like to try or what your favorite product is.

Remember, you must be a public follower of this blog via google friend connect. :) Please leave your email in the space marked e-mail. Not the actual post. The giveaway will end on July 19, and I will contact the winner!

John Frieda Salon Tour recap

2011-07-12T17:51:00.000-05:00

Early in June I was lucky enough to attend the John Frieda Salon Tour in Dallas, TX at the Shops at Park Lane. From what I gathered, this is a yearly summer long event, and a first for Dallas. Last year they visited Houston.

A red carpet leading up to the fun inside. Everyone who comes will receive a complimentary 15-minute consultation and hair transformation. Since there was no one there early in the morning my consultation lasted a big longer!

The tools used. The set up was like a real salon and even nicer than some cheap ones I've been to. This is mobile so props to them. I was impressed at how nice it looked inside!

Okay I forgot my stylists name already, but she was awesome! She's from LA so if you're there you should get her to do your hair. It would help if I could remember her name! She asked me about the problem areas of my hair. I told her my number one problem would be volume and then dry ends.

She's working her magic, and it's so voluminous wow! I need her skills! It's impressive that we only used "drugstore" products of course. Go John Frieda!

After adding volume she then decided to curl my hair. I told her my curls never last and was up to the challenge. Sorry to report that they did not last... Anyhow, here on her iPad she is showing me what products she used.

The lovely blogger ladies who were also there. Tina, Julie, Elissa, and me. Props to Tina for the photos of me!!

John Frieda's new line of products. Loving it! She used the Protecting Root Lift Foam, the Perfect Ends Deep Infusion for my dry ends, and the Touch-Up Flyaway Tamer. *giveaway coming up*

Hair Care by John Frieda

They also used the new Anytime Volume Refresher on me! It's their dry shampoo! It's pretty awesome except a week later it stopped spraying the powder and only mist. Either it runs out fast or the design of the can is not good. I did really like the formula of it while it was working properly. I'll do a full review on this later.

Me outside feeling all happy about my new hair! :)

Elissa playing paparazzi with Tina.

Afterwards we stopped by Gordon Biersch for a delicious lunch!

I definitely like John Frieda a lot more after this event. While I used to see them as just another drugstore brand, I now feel like they are near-salon quality at drugstore prices. I'm interested to use more than just their shampoo. It's easy to forget they are a huge salon in NY and LA. They don't have a fancy salon here. They should!

The info for the last two tour locations! If you live nearby them and you're a blogger, shoot me an email asap! :)

MINNEAPOLIS, MN
MALL OF AMERICA
Friday, July 15, 2011
12:00PM - 8:00PM
Saturday, July 16, 2011
11:00AM - 7:00PM

ATLANTA, GA
PERIMETER MALL
Friday, July 22, 2011
12:00PM - 8:00PM
Saturday, July 23, 2011
12:00PM - 8:00PM

I hope that John Frieda comes back to Dallas next year. I heard the turnout was not huge but that would be due to the location. The shops at Park Lane does not get heavy traffic and the location of the truck was not visible to shoppers driving by. They would be better to park where there is more walking traffic or to do it inside North Park Mall. That's my recommendation for you PR people who set this up!