Shoe favorite 2011

I was planning on doing a post of some highlights of 2011...but then I started to think about the low lights  and the whole idea lost it's charm. This year went by incredibly fast. Scary fast. I can remember last January very clearly and here it is upon us again. Anyone who enjoys soap operas would probably enjoy a story or two of mine from this past year, but I try to keep this blog fashion oriented. 

Having said that, in order to keep things superficial, today's post is this: My favorite pair of shoes from 2011.  This took me a minute to decide. Boots, heels, platforms, wedges, flats...it's hard to pick just one. I picked these Lauren Conrad nude heels. I have seen much more expensive versions that also come in other colors. I love the nude because it flatters the legs and can be worn with so many different things.

          I will try to never post about these shoes again, but what can I say? When you have a favorite, you have a favorite. These are easy to walk in and they can be worn with just about anything. They were also one of the lowest priced shoes that I bought this past year.

         What are some of your favorite things from 2011? 

Navy and Beige

I love navy blue. To me, navy is the new black, has been for a while. Anyways, there are several colors that I adore with navy, such as: red, yellow, bright pink and beige shades. Animal print also looks great with this classic color. I always love a good dress as well as knee high boots. Knee high boots are always a favorite of mine this time of year! Anyways, the outfit below incorporates some of my favorite things: navy, dresses, and knee high boots...as well as the great leopart print clutch. Simple and chic.

                     

                        

Urban Decay Naked Palette 2 and Tarte natural lipstick

One of my favorite cosmetic pieces is my Urban Decay Naked palette. Recently, Urban Decay came out with the Naked Palette 2. Even though the "2" is still a nice palette, I definitely prefer the original palette, as I find it more wearable.

2 palette

original Naked palette on bottom, 2 palette on top

My other recent must have is from Tarte, which is an organic makeup brand. Tarte is a recent discovery of mine, I am in love with this brand and wish I would have found it sooner. The newest product by Tarte that I am loving is the 24/7 natural lip sheer lipstick spf 15. Lately I have been loving hot pink and red tones for lips, but this natural shade made me fall in love with a simple lip again. The name says it all: 24/7 natural lipstick. To be honest, whenever I hear the word natural, sometimes I get bored. I think of the word natural and I think "naked", nothing is there. Even though this lipstick is very natural looking,  it gives a beautiful, natural glow. A very light rose color that would work with any skintone.  That is what makes this lipstick so amazing to me, it is so easy to wear and anyone can pull it off. Budgetwise, this liptstick is the one piece that you need because you can wear it every day. I love the subtle color it gives, while remaining natural and easy to wear.

Available at Sephora

I urge you to try Tarte's natural lipstick on, it works with the natural color of your lips to develop its own shade.

Current love: Houndstooth

I can't get enough of houndstooth this season. Whether it's on scarves, a skirt, or dresses, I love this print because it is classic and it is fun to add pops of color to it.

                     








What are some of your favorite prints and patterns right now?

I accidentally bought some Christmas gifts for myself...

Like many of you, I have been trying to finish my Christmas shopping lately. Every year the same thing happens- I end up shopping for myself. Oops!  The hot pink purse below is a current favorite of mine, I got a great price on it...and the inside is what sold me! I found it last week while I was shopping for my sister.

                                  





         This is a lazy Outfit of the day photo. I used:  the pink bag, my favorite nude mary jane pumps,  a favorite  Betsey Johnson necklace,  and my favorite Mac lipstick Ruby Woo, which I was first inspired to try after seeing Gwen Stefani sporting it at The Grammys. She can pull off bold makeup like no one's business! I love this girly photo.

I hope everyone has been more successful with their Christmas shopping than I have, meaning you didn't get distracted and buy for yourself. Happy Holidays!

Every girl should have some studs in her life

     Every time I watch the first Sex and the City movie, I fall in love all over again with the studded  belt Carrie wears. She wears this belt in several different scenes in the movie. It was probably the 5th time I watched this movie that I realized just how many scenes this belt appears in. I think part of this is due to the way she mixes up the usage of the belt. What a great example of how to wear one piece in several different ways.

                        

      The first scene we see the belt in is the scene where Carrie and Big go apartment hunting, which is where the picture above comes from. I love how the belt is paired with such a beautiful, elegant dress. It is always fun to use an edgy piece paired with something girly.  






Sidetrack moment: I didn't even notice the adorable Eiffel Tower purse of her's the first few times I watched the movie. Love it!

                                                  Eiffel Tower purse




           Back to the belt...


                                   Next, the belt appears in the scene where Carrie calls Samantha to announce her engagement. In this scene, Carrie is wearing an adorable hot pink dress. Hot pink and black look great together, so again I loved this look.

                                                               




                                                 
                  The next scene the belt appears in is a much sadder time for Carrie. She is still in the process of taking in her broken relationship with Big. The belt appears in the scene where Carrie and Miranda are doing some Halloween shopping in a drugstore.Carrie is also wearing this outfit when she spots the Vogue magazine which featured a story on her upcoming wedding to Big. She buys the magazine in shame and scampers off in her fabulous outfit.

                                     


              The last picture of Carrie with the belt is from promos for the movie, I do not believe this outfit appears in the film itself.


                                              

                                                
                                         

Outfit of the day: Red shirt w/ black blazer...

A couple days ago I wore a black blazer with one of my favorite red tops underneath. I always feel so put together and chic when I wear a well fitted blazer. I love the pop of color the red top provides. I thought I should keep things simple, so I accessorized with a black beaded necklace.

                           As you can see in the picture above I wore this outfit with different accessories earlier in the day.    I  definitely prefer the black beaded necklace with this outfit!

                              A close up of my boots...and my dog who had to be in the picture

                                            Without the blazer. I love this comfy red blouse!

                                    My new favorite bag/purse    -     H&M bow chain clutch - $17

                                    I love this clutch so much, so chic and perfect for a night out

Green jacket = in the holiday spirit

I enjoy having pieces in my wardrobe that I will wear for years to come. The green jacket I wore today is no exception. It keeps me nice and warm but at the same time isn't too
 heavy. Not only that, but it is perfect for this time of year when it is chili but not ridiculously cold. I love the black and white top I wore underneath- I love a bright solid color thrown in against a strong pattern.

My green jacket and red necklace definitely got me into the holiday spirit today. What is getting you excited for the holidays?!

3 trends taking over fall 2011

 There are a few main trends you have probably already started to notice for fall this year. While there are several other great trends that are not on this list (so stay tuned for those) this is the list of the trends I've been seeing the most.


The first one on my list is Polka dots, I love how they are having a major comeback. Not just on clothes though: jewelry, purses and furniture are other merchandise you can spot this classic pattern on.

The images below are from Fashioin week 2011- Marc Jacobs and Diane von Furstenberg polka dot pieces

Below is a collage I made of some of my favorite polka dot items for this season...

The next trend on my list is the maxi skirt. This is probably my favorite trend right now and my idea of the perfect maxi is #2 in the collage below. I love the sheer black, it is elegant yet fun.

It is a huge trend right now to wear a chunky sweater with the maxi skirt. I personally find this look a bit sloppy and would prefer to pair it with a well fitted top/blazer.

The last trend on my list is

Faux/leather/pleather shorts with tights or leggings

Great example of how to pair shorts with tights

I love the idea of being able to wear any piece of clothing all year long. Pairing shorts with a pair of tights or leggings and then adding a cute bootie is a great way to be able to wear your shorts in the winter months.

What are some trends that you have been seeing constantly?  

Outfit of the day - Grey and black blazer w/ leggings and boots

         I actually had a few minutes today to get a few pictures of my outfit. I love this outfit because of the blazer - it is so comfortable and I love the way it looks.

                       Close up of the cuff - love the black trim (my dog wanted to be in the picture)

                                   Grey Blazer w/ black trim - Lauren Conrad - I got it for $50

                                                      Necklace- Forever 21 - $7

                                                    Purse- Target - $ Unknown

Cheap thrills and deals at Costco

For the first time in about 3 years, I went to Costco yesterday with my mom. We were absolutely mesmerized by everything in the store. Don't get me wrong- Costco having fun merchandise at low prices is nothing new...but I had no idea just how exciting some of my findings would be, especially in the beauty area.




   My first thrill came when, out of nowhere, displayed before me were Betsey Johnson makeup bags, 3 for $19. A small one, medium one and large one. Perfect! I had been needing to buy a new makeup bag or two but wanted to wait until I found one I liked.



                              

Betsey Johnson 3 piece makeup bag set $19.99

Not the best picture, I took this on my iphone. But you get the idea. I love her rose pattern, very cute. The medium size bag is glossy black, very chic. Behind the black bag is the largest bag, which is the perfect size for me. I like having a larger makeup bag with me at all times. I think the smallest one is perfect for keeping lip products in, lip liners and lipsticks are easy to loose so I like to have them in a smaller bag.






My next thrill came when I saw the Fekkai shampoo they sale...I wasn't aware that Costco was selling Salon brand shampoos. I've used Fekkai before, which I thought you could only get at Bath and Body Works.

           

 

Fekkai set $29.99

                                     

                           This Fekkai set sales for $29.99 at Costco- each individual product is at least $25 at Bath and Body Works




   I think the biggest thrill came when I realized they carry some products by Stila and Smashbox cosmetics, which are 50% less then what they go for on the Stila and Smashbox websites.

                                                         Still palettes     $19.99

                                         Stilla duo eyeshadow kit-   $19.99







                                                   

                                              
                                                     Smaxbox set-       $19.99

    I have also heard that Costco carries Mac eyeshadows. I have yet to see this but I don't doubt it's true.



                                     Costco also has a great electronic department

                 
                                         
      With all the excitement over the beauty/electronic merchandise, I almost forgot that Costco has food. Seriously, they have everything. I didn't even talk about the cool toys for little kids. Soo...I will definitely be doing more shopping there in the future.  Possibly some Christmas shopping if I make it back in time. I haven't had that much fun shopping in I don't know how long.





Now, I do remember seeing these on my last trip to Costco...it creeped me out three years ago and still creeps me out now.

  Do they have everything or what?

Park Avenue Princess

                                                      

No, I'm not talking about that kind of Park Avenue Princess. I'm talking about a bronzer.

In fact, this bronzer, which is made by  Tarte, is my new favorite. Tarte happens to be an organic makeup company. Everything is natural and better for your skin. Also, they do cruelty free testing which always makes me happy as a consumer.  I had never tried anything by them before but when I was at Sephora the other day looking for a new bronzer, I saw Park Avenue Princess by Tarte and immediately loved the color. The bronzer has just the right amount of shimmer to it and I love the texture of this particular bronzer. It is supposed to be good for your skin. To read more about it, visit

 http://sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P262113&categoryId=B70#moreInfo

                                 Tarte bronzer in Park Avenue Princess $29

                                    

                              


        I had been using MAC before and the bronzer I used by them doesn't even come close to my love for this one by Tarte. It goes on so smoothly, I highly recommend looking at the Tarte brand if you haven't before.

        I will definitely be trying more Tarte products in the future. Have any of you tried any of their products before? If so, which ones and do you recommend them?

Winter layering 101 : Part 2

In the previous post I skimmed over all the basic pieces for your wardrobe that you will need for layering. In this post I put together a few outfits, combining the basic pieces with the outerwear pieces.



   Layering   basic pieces with the blazer


              As you can see, I have taken basic pieces and paired them each with a blazer to show different ways to use your basics with classics (classic being the blazer). The white collar shirt under the blazer definitely gives it more of a professional look. The t shirt and cami are more casual but can still be dressed up.

In the first look, a  basic piece with the poncho/ In the second look, a basic cami with a cardigan

              


            I mentioned earlier how I enjoy having basic pieces such as long sleeves in bold colors from time to time. I love the yellow long sleeve crew neck under the black poncho. In the next look, a white cami works nicely with rich red cardigan. Of course, on a colder day, you could wear something heavier under the poncho or cardigan.




The next look is an example of dressing for super cold weather by optimizing the number of layers you use. Here I paired a simple long sleeve and a cardigan  with a trench.

                     





Next is a tunic paired with a cardigan and scarf

This last image is an overall look I created to illustrate layering. I used a white shawl to go over the red blouse; over that goes the trench and scarf. For the bottom half, I used red socks, which go past the boots by a few inches. The red socks are layered over black leggings, giving extra detail to the outfit.
























PS - anyone notice a color combination that I'm into?

Also- do you have any neat layering ideas? I'd love to see them!