Bow-Tied

Thank you all!

2011-03-03T14:06:00.000-05:00

I have moved blogs! Please follow me at my new location. There will still be posts about my life as a mom, but there will also be more posts about fashion and the things that I like. I want my blog to fully reflect me as a person, not just me as a mom or me as a young woman.

I'll check out your blogs when you follow and leave comments. But, either way, thank you for following me here! I appreciate it and appreciate all my readers.

Tell me it's not happening

2011-02-24T00:15:00.000-05:00

"Did you hear? The House voted to bar Planned Parenthood from federal funding. They cut funding for HIV tests, cancer screenings, birth control, and more, putting millions of women and families at risk. We can't let it go unanswered. It's time for you and me to stand with Planned Parenthood. Sign the open letter to the reps who voted for this bill — and to the senators who still have a chance to stop it."

I signed the petition. How in the world can you cut funding to an organization that gives out birth control, does STD/STI screenings, tests for HIV and gives women and their families choices? Oh, I forgot - this is America.

Let me tell you all a little story. I went to Planned Parenthood once to get screenings and tests (because it's only right if you're sexually active). The office and waiting area for that particular center was absolutely packed with people because it was a day during the month where they would give out birth control for free. After I got pregnant and had my son, I told a lot of friends who were low on cash to go to planned parenthood if they needed birth control or needed to be tested. Let me tell you, nothing is more comforting than getting your tests back and knowing you're free of disease. It is so important for men and women to be careful and have the option of planned parenthood available to them. Not only does the center respect their privacy but they will work with your income. No one is ever turned away because of inability to pay. And without funding from the government who is going to pay Planned Parenthood? The people who work at these centers need to eat and pay their own bills.

I don't know what in the world is going on these days but I can not stand it anymore! Everything seems to be falling apart left and right. The upheaval in the U.S. as well as the turmoil in Africa/the Middle East. It's incredible that more people aren't reacting to it all. I don't want to blog about all of these issues because I am not a news reporter and I don't know anything that CNN/NBC or other news stations don't already know. So, please, if you're interested in what is going on in the world go to a new station, surf the web and find out. I just felt that this particular issue needed to be addressed on my blog because I am a young mother and I know how important planned parenthood is for other people who are not ready to have children or who need help because of their income. Not everyone in this country is blessed with fat pockets and health insurance.

Please sign the petition and write a letter to your representative! My representative, Elijah Cummings, did not vote for this bill (thank god). I am going to write him an e-mail thanking him for standing up for my rights. I suggest you find out how your representative voted and do the same! I just hope they can squash this in the senate. I am worried but I will still hold out hope.

Spring has not sprung... yet.

2011-02-21T23:17:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately we're currently getting snow and ice here and Maryland. A couple days ago it was 70 degrees. We're also supposed to have a 60 degree day some time this week. Mother nature is awfully confused. I'm hoping that means I can get a snow day out of all of this. I was really hoping that we were going to have an early spring and it seems that we were just being teased.

I had a long day at school today but I feel good about my classes. I am learning a lot in Italian (and struggling to keep it all straight). Unfortunately my 3+ years of French are mixing up my brain. Genetics is extremely interesting and we're studying genotypes, phenotypes and of course the Punnet square. I learned something interesting - it's easier to create a baby (through genetic modification) that has blue eyes than it is to create a baby with brown eyes! And yes, they do make "designer" babies these days.

I have long over-due photos of Valentine's Day and other recent things. I find that I spend 50% of my free time at a book store or a toy store. I really do love both of these places, mostly because they are places that I can let Daniel run around and I can also have fun as well. On a recent trip to Barnes & Noble I found a great, thick bound book of Poe stories and poems for only $20. That's a steal! I also picked up a Disney princess coloring book to appease my inner 5 year old. Daniel goes to the book store just to play with the train set and fool around with other little kids. We did manage to coax him into wanting a couple books, one about a boy named Danny and his dinosaur and the other about bugs. Daniel and the bugs, sheesh. He'd much rather go out and catch the bugs, though. To each his own.

Not going anywhere

2011-02-19T13:03:00.000-05:00

I was on and off about deleting this blog since I don't keep up with it too much and I really don't give it the love it deserves. However, I am not going to delete it because I do put time into it and I want to continue to challenge myself to do a public blog. I don't care how many people love or hate this blog, I do it for me. I also don't care how many people agree or disagree with my opinions! Don't like it? Move along!

I am happy to report that school is getting better. I wasn't so impressed with any of my classes at first but I have started to get back in the groove. I also had a great anniversary with my fiance, we went out to dinner and he spoiled me rotten. I got a pair of chocolate Uggs, a new Juicy Couture crown charm and a box of Godiva chocolates! We had a really good time despite that fact that we spent most of the day apart on Valentine's day due to conflicting schedules. I really have to take pictures of the lovely stuff I got, but I've been busy with school, homework and just spending time with my loved ones.

I've recently purchased the Iphone 4 for Verizon. My lovely mother let me have her upgrade and I got the phone I've been wanting since it was released! I never went over to AT&T because I had a feeling Verizon would get it in the future. I really love it so far and I've realized I'm a little bit of a tech junkie. I don't buy the newest and best every time it comes out but I love getting a more advanced phone.

And let me just say, it annoys me terribly when I find my photos on tumblr sometimes because the person has posted it without credit, etc. But it really makes me happy and feel good when I find my photos and not only have they been properly credited to me, they have 1,200+ notes! I do not consider myself a photographer, I just like photography. However, it really helps me when I see that people like my pictures. I've been trying to look on the bright side recently. The internet can be a real downer and annoyance but there are good things about it as well.

And I leave you with an adorable picture of my son sleeping. We've been playing outside a lot these days, yesterday it was frisbee at the park and the day before that we went to another park and ran around. He has really been zonked at the end of the day.

Here we go again

2011-02-09T19:50:00.002-05:00

Within the first week of school I managed to get the flu and miss almost a week's worth of classes! Impressive, huh? It was terrible, let me tell you. I hated every minute of it and although I really hate waking up early for class I would have preferred it to what I was going through. I still have a cough and some mucous but I am feeling a lot better since last week.

School has been going okay, I am still trying to get caught up. You would think two classes isn't a big deal but college goes by quickly. I am taking Genetics, Italian 101 and a Math concepts course. So far I like Italian the best, then Genetics and then of course Math is dead last. The only bad thing about my Italian class is that I have to wake up at 7:30am in order to make it to school by 9:00. Parking is a nightmare, as usual. Hopefully this will be my last semester at HCC, though. I am hoping to move on to a four-year school.

I don't have much time to take pictures so I snapped a couple quick ones today. Sitting in bed under my covers, reading a magazine or watching TV is my favorite thing to do after school or before bed. I don't have a whole lot of extra time between class and homework but I make the best of the time I do have. If I'm not hanging out with Daniel or Greg I'm in bed, snuggling with my blankets watching some Teen Mom 2.

My mess of a bun

My phone + magazine + laptop + TV + bed = heaven

Found a couple cute shirts

I love the teenage mutant ninja turtles!

My life as of now

Organelles, mitosis, meiosis, oh my!

Birthdays, snow, etc!

2011-01-30T19:50:00.002-05:00

I'm still alive. Sort of. My 22nd birthday was January 24th but I was busy celebrating and then digging out from the snow. I don't really have much use for this public blog anymore but I'm trying to use it as much as possible. We did quite a bit for my birthday this year. I had a mini party at my fiance's father's house, went out to hibachi with my family and went out for dinner and drinks on my actual birthday. My birthday was really great this year besides the fact that it was on a Monday and the bar was deserted when we went. It was okay though, I had an impromptu dance party in the parking lot with my fiance and friends thanks to some loud car speakers and great electronic music!

Greg and I will be celebrating 4 years this coming Valentine's day. That's not our actual anniversary but we always combine our anniversary (the 12th) with Valentine's day because they are so close. I can't believe it will be 4 years! That's amazing to me, I never saw myself in such a long-term relationship. I don't know what we're going to do yet but I am looking forward to a date night with my boo.

We had quite a snow storm last week and are going to get another one this week. Hopefully nothing too tragic because I start school tomorrow. I'm not too excited about all my early classes but - c'est la vie. I am really ready for spring and summer as weird as that sounds. Winter always stays so late in this part of the country and by the time you get all this snow and ice you're tired of it!

I got a new TV for my room as a birthday present for my mom, plus camera accessories including a remote shutter from my love-bug. I'm so happy with how 2011 has been so far, even if there was quite a bit of drama in the very beginning of the year.

Greg, my fiance, snowboarding

Some Things Are Better Left Alone

2011-01-13T17:31:00.002-05:00

The Zodiac... as we knew it

Some of you may or may not know that there is news about the 13th zodiac and that it changes the alignment and dates of the original zodiac signs. So, of course this means that when you thought you were one sign you may actually be another. Apparently this news is not new at all and has been known for a very long time but it has just been pointed out by an astronomer recently. This kind of blows me away because according to this scientific dude - I was always a Capricorn and technically was never an Aquarius. The alignment of the sun within the month range of Aquarius has been wrong for a long time. But really, who knew? Unless you're heavy into astrology you probably had no idea until now, like me.

I just think it's all a little shocking because if it has been "wrong" and we were all technically following the wrong sign what does that say for astrology? I know, astrology is silly but I like reading my horoscope!

This new star chart dictates I am not really an Aquarius but I don't care. I was born thinking I was Aquarius and I will continue thinking it so. I don't really believe in Astrological signs dictating someone's personality but I also don't believe in going in and changing something that people have known for years and years. I have come to accept myself as an Aquarius. This new sign "Ophiuchus" is also known as Serpentarius. The symbol looks like a snake coiled on a rod. The sun isn't in this phase for a very long time and that is why a lot of people don't count it as part of the zodiac.

What is your "new" sign? Do you accept this new information or think it's silly? I personally don't think that things like this usually go over well. I know that technically Pluto isn't a planet anymore but because I have followed Sailor Moon for most of my life I always think of it as a legitimate planet no matter what! I just hate when people go in and change stuff that doesn't need to be messed with.

Still confused about it all? this link will help you understand why the signs are actually wrong and why the signs have shifted from then to now.

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T11:32:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone had a good New Year's Eve. Unfortunately, I am still sick. I am getting over a nasty case of viral gastroenteritis. That's a fancy way of saying your stomach is really screwed up. I stayed home with my fiance and watched the ball drop. No bars, no drinking. I had one glass of wine and that was probably a mistake. Having an illness that involves your digestive system means you can't drink anything with alcohol or eat spicy foods, no caffeine, etc. Spicy food and coffee are my life! I did get some alcohol for my family and when I was there I was told by the 40-something guy behind the counter that I looked 17. That's definitely a first but I'll take that as a compliment, haha.

I am hoping to get better quickly and I'll be celebrating my 22nd birthday on the 24th of this month! That's exciting but a little scary. Three years until I'm 25 and that's "mid-twenties". I feel like I'm still 18 or something. I actually forget that I'm old enough to buy alcohol all the time. No matter, I'm looking forward to celebrating with my friends and family.

I hope everyone is having a good start to the new year.

Wrapping Up The Year

2010-12-26T23:39:00.000-05:00

I made my blog private for a minute or two but I've decided to make it public again. I hate when people take my photos so I've decided not to post any photos that don't have a tag on them. I'm sorry if it makes my photography ugly but I just don't like when other people take credit for my work.

A lot has happened since I last blogged. I celebrated Christmas and had a grand ol' time with my family. Everyone got very nice presents, myself included. I got an IPod nano amongst other nice things, but I was really looking forward to my IPod because my poor mini doesn't hold a charge anymore. Rest In Peace dear IPod mini, you lasted me a good 6 years! I'm so happy with my new IPod though, it's adorable, touch screen and PINK. I also love that I can listen to the radio on it. Daniel got a bunch of great stuff including a trampoline, a kid's digital camera (already took 390 pictures - takes after his momma!) and the Creepy Crawlers that they just put out recently. I was surprised when I saw they brought it back, I had that when I was a kid! I was also surprised to see my Mom got me the full size of the original Juicy Couture perfume. The bottles are just to die for, really. With the extra money I got I think I'm going to get myself Flora by Gucci. I've been stuck on that fragrance for the longest time now and I think I'm due for a couple new scents.

I ate great food, opened great gifts, had a lot of laughs. Now it's time to detox. I'm currently taken by jasmine tea. It smells SO good, it's extra fragrant and delicious. I don't know what it is about the tea that makes me feel so cozy inside but I got a lot of new tea for Christmas. If I'm not drinking Pellegrino, I'm drinking tea. Anyway, I've come to post a couple pictures from the past few days. I hope you all enjoyed your holiday!

My home made cheesecake, it was as delicious as it looks!

A Decade Under The Influence

2010-12-12T12:47:00.000-05:00

I have been downloading old music that I used to love and Taking Back Sunday is on the top of my list. Every time I listen to this band it reminds me of middle school and high school and all the good times I had. I saw them live and loved the concert. I don't usually care what people say about Taking Back Sunday (it's emo music) because I love it. Where You Want To Be and Louder Now are my two favorite albums. I can put a Taking Back Sunday song, kick back and feel better. Which is definitely something I need right now because Monday is the start of Finals week.

First Snowfall of the Season

2010-12-10T17:55:00.000-05:00

Today we got the first "real" snowfall of the season, even if it wasn't much. It only snowed for about 45 minutes and it left a pretty light dusting on the ground but it was still pretty and fun to kick around. Someone flipped their car over right when it had started snowing on my street, don't know how that happened! They would have had to be going really fast in order to accomplish that. Traffic was terrible. I'm just wondering what is going to happen if this Sunday storm brings quite a bit of snow and is more snow than rain. I have finals on Monday! We'll just have to wait and see, I guess. I have two finals left and then I am done with the Fall 2010 semester. Thank goodness! It's so weird starting school when it's 90+ degrees out and finishing when it's cold and snowing. I distinctly remember one of the first days of school standing out on the parking lot and having the pavement radiating heat onto the backs of legs - it felt like my legs were on fire! And now my nose runs when I walk from building to building. So, so strange but I am so thankful that the cold weather is finally here. Hopefully we'll get more snow before Christmas (or on Christmas, always crossing my fingers for that).

Here are some pictures from today:

My neighbor's town house, my town house. We need to add more lights!

Goofball :)

Don't be fooled, these shoes are NOT good in the snow. But they're warm.

Happiest Time of Year

2010-12-02T21:10:00.000-05:00

I am so excited that it's finally Christmas time. Everyone knows I wait all year for this. What have I been doing? Decorating the house, painting and doing some Christmas shopping. So far I've got 3 people taken care of, but I have a couple more to go. How are you doing on your Christmas shopping so far?

Everyone loves (and hates at times) this part of the year. I mean, I usually love the holiday season but then again people can get totally rude and annoying during shopping trips and some people can be downright grinchy. And after an arduous trip to the mall I can be a little Grinch myself. However, I do these things to keep the inner Grinch at bay:

See Christmas lights. I love to go around to neighbors and look at everyone else's light displays. Some people can get really creative and Daniel absolutely loves the lights. We also take him to The Symphony of Lights, it's a local light show that the Howard County hospital puts on every year for charity.

Donate to a charity. There are plenty of different charities to donate to during the holidays. Toys for Tots, Salvation Army, etc. Everyone who has some extra money should donate a present or something! It's the season of giving, isn't it?

Decorate! Obviously I decorate to my heart's content. We make decorating our Christmas tree an event. We turn on Christmas music, make hot cocoa and make the event as festive as possible. I love to decorate outdoors and indoors.

Go caroling! It's pretty unheard of in this day and age but I used to go caroling in my neighborhood with my friends. We got sheet music, huddled together in the cold and sang Christmas songs outside our neighbor's doors. We usually got free cups of hot chocolate or egg nog for our efforts. And it's always fun to hear people singing from inside the house. I would love to go caroling again if I could ever get enough people who would want to do it.

Watch Christmas movies. My favorite is Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. I love both movies and any time one or the other comes on around Christmas it really feels like the season. There are other great Christmas movies, of course.

Spend time with family and friends. It's always hectic this time of year but it's nice to make time for your friends and family that you may not have seen a lot. I like to hang out with friends who come home from school during this time and visit family. Seeing people who know and (have to ) love me grounds me.

I hope everyone is having a good start to the holidays. So far we've had zero snow but I hope that changes soon! And for your amsuement, I leave you with my collection of holiday scented candles from Yankee Candle. Can you say "obsessed"?

Kids these days!

2010-11-27T19:09:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling old right now. Real old.

I just realized that about 90% of the people on Tumblr are under the age of 18. That's kind of scary. I also realized that "kids these days" don't really look or act like kids. It probably sounds stupid coming from someone who is 22 (well, almost) but really! I feel ancient.

I was in the mall today looking around for Christmas stuff and hitting up Yankee Candle (my favorite store ever). As I was walking through the mall I saw all these girls who to me looked like they could be 16 or 17 and then I realized they were in middle school when they were talking about "going on to high school". I remember being in middle school fairly well and I guess I was trying to be grown up at that age too, but I don't think I was as convincing as these kids! I don't get it. When did kids stop being able to be kids? I guess it horrifies me the most because I am a parent now. I just don't want my son to be like that. I know I can't stop it and I went through a phase of trying to be ~grown~ when I was younger. I just hate thinking of my kids doing the same. Hypocritical? But of course.

Nothing ticks me off more than when I see young kids carrying cell phones or with Coach purses. It might be because of where I live but I see this a lot. It's just so annoying and frustrating. Your 7-year-old is not a teenager and should not be treated like one. And why is it that everywhere I go kids are staring at their Nintendo DS and not paying attention to where they're going or just zoning out in general? I know if I did that as a kid my Mom would have kicked my butt. My son will not be allowed to just sit at the table when I eat and play a video game. I actually know of a couple middle-school aged kids that have Ipod touches. I don't even have one! What the hell? I'm all for kids having fun and indulging once in a while but from what I've seen - everything is just overkill.

I'm probably biased because I'm a 20-something adult that likes Sailor Moon and still collects anything with Hello Kitty's face on it. Honestly, things are better when you're a kid. I wish I had listened to my parents and the adults in my life that told me this. I wish I could go back to the time when I had recess, when I could blow off homework because it really didn't matter, when I could eat a bowl full of Mac n' Cheese and not have to worry about my weight. Those were the days. But, as you know, hindsight is always 20/20. I'm going to try my best to insist that my son and my future children enjoy their childhood while they can. It seems childhood is getting shorter and shorter as time goes on.

A girl after my own heart

Now, please excuse me while I go watch SpongeBob Squarepants.

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T11:51:00.000-05:00

What am I thankful for?

Everything. The good, bad and ugly. The people who talk shit, the people who screw me over and the people who are negative. I'm stronger still. Hard lessons are the best ones. I'm thankful for the tough times, the long and winding road, the mistakes - I've learned from them all.

Of course I am thankful for the positive things in my life as well.

My friends, family and everyone who supports me. My son because he is the sweetest little guy ever, even when he's being a complete butt-head. My fiance, Greg, who loves me despite my thorns. School, for giving me something to work for and teaching me some discipline. The people I know online who like me for me and support my sites. The people who like my photography. The people who send me messages asking me if I'm okay when I have a shitty day. Thanks to all of you ♥

Eat, drink and be merry!

Enjoy the last glimpse of fall! Photo: © Lauren Cairo 2010

Thanksgiving & Hair?

2010-11-24T20:34:00.000-05:00

November is really flying by! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving here in the United States, so Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Americans. I'm going to be eating good food and hanging out with family so I suggest you do the same. I have already whipped up my contribution to Thanksgiving which is a cheesecake. It's huge and looks delicious. My mother is currently in the kitchen making the brine to put the turkey in overnight. The house smells like herbs!

This week I have been painting the bottom floor of our townhouse. I have already gone through 2 gallons of paint. I am close to finishing though, which is excellent. I don't know how much more my arms and back can take. The first day after painting I felt like a train hit me and had the worst tension headache. It's all worth it because after I finish all my painting we are going to go crazy decorating for Christmas. It's kind of crazy that "Black Friday" is already upon us. And the crazier part? I've only gotten one red cup this season. One! Obviously I am due for a grande peppermint hot chocolate after Thanksgiving. Maybe I'll treat myself right before I start studying for exams.

I'm going through a stage of wanting to be blond or just have different hair in general. Unfortunately I go through these stages a lot during the year. I need to get it out of my head so I've been looking at people with cool hair. Hopefully if I get my fill of cute hair I can get it out of my system and resume loving my natural brunette color. Have some pictures of people with cool hair. From me to you.

I LOVE HER WITH RED HAIR. *dead*

Pretty in Pink

2010-11-19T14:29:00.001-05:00

Japanese nails don't have a whole lot of functional use, but to me they're spectacular. I've always wanted a real set of gels but obviously people around here don't know how to do it. And if they did I'm sure it would cost an arm and a leg. I buy my nails off of Ebay but you can buy the supplies and make them yourself. They're tricky to wear and take a lot of skill and practice. The only bad thing about the fake ones is that you can easily pop one off and lose it! I've had a couple of different sets of nails and these are by far my favorites. The nails are clear gel acrylic with sparkles mixed in. They have a pink french tip and cute little doo-dads all over. I know that right now the trend are rounded tips but they just don't appeal to me as much as square.

Please do not take or reuse these images without credit back to me or my blog. Thank you.

Speaking of images, I find it very amusing how many of my photos are floating around the internet! If you search "juicy couture" on tumblr, at least once you will find a picture of mine. Mostly not credited back to me (of course) but I think that's very strange and amazing all at the same time. I have really come to like how popular my photography is even if it's not always properly credited to me. It used to annoy the living daylights out of me but I've taken it as just something that comes with the internet. Plus, if people appreciate my photography then that's pretty much good enough. I just hate that some people alter my images, like crop them or edit the coloring. And most of the time this editing isn't good, it's just butchering the image.

And thank you to everyone who follows my blog :)

Dashing Through The Snow... (hopefully soon?)

2010-11-19T00:23:00.002-05:00

I gave blood this past Tuesday, unfortunately it left a little bruise!

I don't have much time for public blogging right now unfortunately. The semester is starting to wrap up. Gotta get those good grades! I've been doing well in school and all the powers have finally shifted for me. My son recently turned 3 years old (on November 6th) so, that was exciting. We had a lot of fun and I'm proud to be his mommy! We got pictures taken of him for the holidays and they turned out really well. I still have to scan the originals in but once I do I'll post one or two on here for the heck of it. He looks adorable so, why not?

I changed my tumblr to - http://coutureable.tumblr.com. It feels more me, so if you aren't already - please go follow me there!

I have been keeping myself busy with school and other things. I'm getting ready to paint the entire downstairs portion of our townhome. That should be quite the adventure. And let's not forget Thanksgiving. I feel like once Thanksgiving passes the rest of the year is going to really fly by. That's why I'm going to try to enjoy it like I did this year with Halloween. I'm going to make hot chocolate, decorate like crazy, blast my Christmas music in the car, have fun wrapping gifts and enjoy the ~spirit of the season~! It always makes me wonder how people can dislike Christmas. Even if you don't celebrate there is just something about this time of year that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

What I really can't wait for is the first snow of the season. Now that will be loads of fun!

Cupcakes galore

2010-11-05T15:52:00.000-04:00

When did this turn into a cupcake blog? Well, it hasn't really but I bake a lot now! I used to think baking was hard for some odd reason. Now I have realized that baking is actually incredibly easy. Just very time consuming. I'm no Martha Stewart, my cupcakes will never win award for beauty - but hey, I try!

Anyone who knows me well knows that my son turns 3 years old tomorrow (shocking, I know). I'm very excited for his birthday. This year instead of buying him an elaborate cake I baked him cupcakes and tried to incorporate things that are quintessentially Daniel. Daniel really loves two things right now: bugs and SpongeBob Squarepants. And when I say he loves bugs, I mean LOVES bugs. He can talk about bugs all day, read books about bugs, watch videos about bugs on Youtube - all of the above. He also really gets a kick out of SpongeBob even though that is definitely not my favorite cartoon.

To make his cupcakes, I used recipes from Martha Stewart's cupcake book. I used a recipe for the chocolate cake and her swiss meringue buttercream recipe. I have never used the buttercream recipe before but they're all pretty much the same. This one used regular sugar and of course egg whites for the meringue. I like this recipe a lot because it's not a very sweet icing. Definitely buttery, though! Four sticks of butter will do that. I wasn't too keen on putting four WHOLE sticks of butter into the icing but that's what a lot of these icing recipes call for. Anyone who is watching their weight need not indulge in these cupcakes. The icing also sets up nicely and will hold it's shape, perfect for piping. I don't know why I feel the need to pipe the icing for every cupcake I make. I just love piping. It's my favorite thing. It's actually the one reason I even make cupcakes at all! I also love coloring the icing. Messy but a lot of fun. As you can see we split the icing into two portions (it made a lot, about 5 cups). I colored one part green and the other a blue. The green I piped into grass for the bugs and the blue I piped into swirls for SpongeBob.

My "throw away" cupcake for taste-testing :)

We got the little boxes from Michael's - they fit 4 cupcakes in each and they're perfect for our party. The little candy treats we obviously bought pre-made. You can be a true Martha Stewart and make the little decorations yourself but I'm not that much of an over-achiever.

Tomorrow my baby turns three. I'm kind of in denial about him getting older. I love that little booger so much!

Halloween, etc.

2010-11-02T18:27:00.000-04:00

Time really does fly by these days. We celebrated Halloween and had a great time. I have a couple pictures from the last couple days of October. Now it's November. That means we're getting closer to my favorite time of the year - Christmas!

We had a great time this October, I'm really happy. But I've noticed that the less time I spend on the internet the happier I am. This may mean that I spend less time updating but I'll make sure I am on here sporadically to check in. Mostly, I'm cutting out Facebook and all those other pointless "networking" sites that do nothing for me. I've been more productive, I have more time with my family and I am doing better in school. So far, it's been a win/win situation.

I will definitely be taking some pictures the closer it gets to Christmas. I can't wait for Thanksgiving, a break from school and when it really starts to feel like Christmas season.

The end is near

2010-10-26T11:09:00.001-04:00

Ah, I have been so busy I have just forgotten about this blog. It's been a mad month full of things to do. It's still not over but the end is nearing, sadly.

What have I done so far this month?
- did make-up for two weddings
- watched a bunch of scary movies
- took my son to a farm for a fall festival
- dropped a class from my schedule, thank goodness
- studied my butt off for some tests
- did a lot of school work

And that all has happened in the last 2 weeks! We still have to carve our pumpkins, toast our pumpkin seeds, get the final things we need for Halloween, and of course we have Halloween itself. I have a mid-term this Wednesday for my favorite class. The upside to this month is that my grades have been steadily improving! I got a B on my math test which I thought I was going to fail and I got a bunch of really good grades in Psychology. I just feel so busy that I don't have any time to dedicate to a blog like this. Maybe once the madness of Halloween dies down I'll have some extra time to make a couple of fun posts.

For now, have a couple pictures of my cutie and some pumpkins from our Sunday at Larriland Farms!

Octobre Deux

2010-10-12T19:27:00.000-04:00

More Halloween stuff? But of course!

My mother and I got in our heads thinking we're Martha Stewart or something and got some more ingredients to make cupcakes. This time I was determined to make the cake batter orange. I definitely succeeded in that. Unfortunately, the coloring for the icing didn't turn out to be as purple as I had hoped. Oh well! We live and we learn. The cupcakes are delicious no matter what, really. I made them by myself this time. I used a Martha Stewart recipe for the icing, in case anyone was wondering.

And of course, because I was on a roll with the pictures I snapped some more shots of our outdoor decorations.

The leaves around the area have started to turn as well. I'll be sure to take some pictures of them. We have one tree on the corner of the block that turns this great bright red. It's so pretty. This weekend is going to be really busy so you probably won't hear from me until after. I hope you're all having a great October!

Octobre

2010-10-10T10:57:00.000-04:00

October is really flying by and that is making me kind of sad. I have been trying to go out and do things when I have free time. Most of the week is eaten up by school and doing homework. This coming weekend Stacie and I have our two weddings, so there goes my relaxation time. We're hoping that on Sunday we can go to Larriland farm and take Daniel on a hay ride, have some apple cider and do some other fun activities they have there.

I got my hair cut yesterday and finally cut some bangs back into my 'do. I look better with bangs but my hair has crazy cow licks and is super thick so it's not really easy styling my hair. We took Daniel to get some pumpkins, I picked out mine. It's a big, round baby. Daniel picked out a tiny little pumpkin for himself. I can't decide what I want to carve into mine. I always pick out a pretty intricate pattern from the carving books - we don't carve silly faces into our pumpkins! It's between skulls and a werewolf but I'm not sure what I'll decide yet.

We finally put up some decorations inside and outside of our home, or I should say I really put them up. The kids playing outside were all like "isn't it kind of early?" I told them that it's never too early to decorate for Halloween. It's kind of lame because only a few townhouses in our neighborhood really decorate for any holidays so, we're usually the only house on the block. Oh well! Someone has to bring the festivity.

Fashion Week 2 (Paris, Milan)

2010-10-06T17:50:00.000-04:00

I wrote about New York fashion week already but I have just started seeing the last of the shows from Paris and Milan. It took me a while to catch up because I have been busy with school lately.

I was actually surprised to see Alexander McQueen's collection. I didn't expect there to be one. I don't know if this is a continuation of what he had designed for Fall 2010 or if this is really someone taking over the design process but it was magnificent. So much detail, so much elegance. So unwearable (as usual). It's much more like art with McQueen than it is about clothes. I am sad that he isn't alive to really share his visions anymore. It seemed that this collection went along with the last collection and I know that with McQueen it is never that way (or at least has never been that way in the past).

And of course, sometimes with fashion we are really let down. I am not sure what is going on with Chanel right now but I don't like it. Karl Lagerfeld seems to have veered so far off course with the brand that I can't even understand it anymore. Sometimes I think that maybe they should retire Chanel, or stick to handbags. The clothing is so bizarre. I hated the wooly mammoth fur thing he did for Fall and I really hate this bizarre collection for Spring. What is even going on there? Some pieces are great, the little tweed jackets are nice as usual but then the rest of the clothes seem to just be a mish-mash of other things. I don't know if anyone else likes it but I don't get it.

I don't know, maybe I'm being hard on Karl but that second outfit seems to be the product of someone who has run out of ideas. I'm sure there will be people who disagree and say that he is trying to make Chanel contemporary but... I think the great part about Chanel was that it was kind of not contemporary, it was a throw back.

There were great beaded numbers all over the runway, a lot of intricate detail. The mostly all-white show came from Dolce and Gabbana and I loved their collection this season. It was sexy but also sweet, the dresses ranged from super short to floor length. There was a great theme throughout of soft white, eyelets and lace with beading. It was something I definitely deem appropriate for spring. The Elie Saab show is one of my favorites because I love his work. Much like Marchesa, I believe he makes some of the best gowns. His gowns were great as usual and he threw in some jump suits and shorter dresses to mix it up a little. There were plenty of award show gowns to be had. And I don't believe what people say about designers like Elie Saab and Marchesa - they are not one trick ponies. More like ponies that know their place. They know gowns, they know great, attention-grabbing pieces and they do that season after season. What is wrong with that?

This doesn't even begin to cover every designer but it is my little highlight. I definitely recommend every one go to Vogue.com and check out the rest of the shows. There are great photos and detail photos for you to see make up, hair and accessories.

Make up: The Vamp

2010-10-01T17:59:00.003-04:00

I told you guys I've been waiting months to do this and finally, the opportunity arose. It was cool (in the 60's) and zero humidity. It's also the first day of October! What a coincidence ;)

I'm finally wearing my Media lipstick by MAC.

A quick run-through of what I'm wearing:
- Laura Mercier foundation primer
- Bare Minerals 1C (Fair)
- Taupe eyeshadow as an eyebrow filler
- UDPP in Eden as a eyeshadow base
- UD Virgin on the brow bone, Sin on the lid and a little bit of Buck in the crease
- Ardell false lashes (I forget what number, sorry)
- MAC fluidline in Blacktrack for eyeliner
- Too Faced Lip Insurance
- MAC Media lipstick
- Estee Lauder Soft Matte Bronzer (01) for contouring

And really, that's it. I threw on an all-black ensemble, straightened my hair and that's how it's done. The great thing about this lipstick is that it's super matte. It dries down quickly and is not sticky at all. The bad part? It's hard to work with. If you put it directly on your lips it's very, very dark. If you apply it with a brush you get more of a "wash" of color. I did both to get the final product. It's just painstaking because every tiny mistake is super obvious with a dark color like this. However, I think I like it. Definitely not something I'd wear everyday but it's fun to play around with. Plus, I really never wear lipstick for whatever reason. I usually play with my eyeshadow. But popping on a statement lipstick is really useful for those days when your eye make-up just isn't looking right or you're not in the mood to blend a bunch of shadows together.

Today has been great, the weather is super nice and it's feeling like fall. While we took Daniel to the playground, I bumped my head on one of the metal poles while going under the jungle gym and I have quite the head ache from it. Hopefully it goes away soon. I'm going to go munch on one of our cupcakes from yesterday.

Enjoy the first day of October!

Halloween Cupcakes

2010-09-30T18:51:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow is the 1st of October and this is the time when my mother and I start celebrating Halloween by decorating. We never bake, and I mean never. I've never even baked cupcakes before! But we thought we'd give it a try. Daniel loves cupcakes and it's certainly cheaper than buying them at the store already made. It has been super rainy and dreary anyway, so what is there to do? Plus, we wanted to make our own because - hey, it looks fun. So we got a recipe, our ingredients and some fun add-ons and went to work. We cheated and used a mix for the actual cake part, it's devil's food. But we got a recipe for the icing and piped it through a bag. That was the most fun, actually. I colored the icing as well. All of this stuff can be found at Michael's or the supermarket.

Mine, right of the oven!

Mine, decorated

My mother's, she used a bigger pan and hers ended up kind of flat :P

Mine, decorated

Daniel eating the finished product

Daniel was our taste tester and he seemed to approve. Of course, he mostly ate the icing which is what he tends to do but at least we know the icing is good. I'm going to look for a stiffer icing recipe, this one was a little too soft, although it served it's purpose. They are not perfect by any means but at least I know I'm not totally incompetent when it comes to baking. I still prefer to cook, however. ;)

By the way, the icing recipe came from: JoyOfBaking.com and it's a butter cream.

Reviews

2010-09-23T16:06:00.000-04:00

This started as a beauty blog and although it is much more than that now to me, I still want to stay true to my "roots". I have been having a stressful week to say the least. I am not in a very good mood, I am extremely tired but I have wanted to review these products forever because I like them a lot.

L'oreal True Match foundation spf 17 oil free
Color: Classic Ivory (N2)
Price: $13.00

I tried the liquid make-up for this brand, not the roller or the compact. I don't use anything but liquid foundations. I didn't have high hopes for this one because a) it's cheap and b) I had to guess about the match in store because there are no testers. However, I was very happy with what I picked. It was given good reviews in Allure and I firmly believe it's the best drug store make-up I have ever used. I would say the finish is semi-matte, not completely matte. The coverage is medium and it really is very blendable. I got lucky and the color I picked worked very well with my skintone. I chose the "neutral" color because one was too pink and the other was too yellow. I would definitely suggest that people stay in the N family unless they know for sure they are either pink or yellow. It covers my blemishes very well for being only a medium coverage. I think it wears rather well also. I noticed I got very shiny at the end of the day but that's probably just my super oily skin acting up. I have been breaking out like crazy lately for no apparent reason :(

Over-all: I would definitely recommend this make-up to someone who is looking for a better price but doesn't want to sacrifice the quality for their foundation. There is also a pretty wide range of skin tones and colors. There is something for the palest of the pale, which is hard to find, let me tell you.

Lorac Visual Effects Mascara
Color: Jet Black
Price: $20.00

This is a very different mascara from what I've tried. First of all, I want to start out by saying that this mascara is NOT for the people who have trouble putting mascara on normally. This product will only make your life more difficult. However, if you're like me and are pretty good at make-up application, give it a try. This mascara has the 4-sided combing wand that really separates. The hard part about it is that when the mascara is new there is too much of the formula deposited on the brush and if you don't learn to scrape it off you are going to have a clumpy, smudgey mess. What I do before using it is take the wand out of the tube and scrape off excess mascara on the sides of the tube opening. That gives you the best amount to work with. When you get a hang of the wand, it really gives you dark, separated, thicker looking lashes that stay long and curled. It doesn't get as hard as some of the curling mascaras do but it gets a little stiff. It's a 3-in-one mascara for those of us that need all the help we can get.

Here is an example of my eye make up with it on:

Over-all: I would definitely recommend this mascara to anyone who has been around the block with other brands and formulations but haven't found something that really "does it all".

Urban Decay Naked Palette (Limited Edition)
Color: a variety of nudes, creams, golds, browns, grey and black eyeshadows
Price: $42 (now sells on amazon and ebay for over $100)

I was waiting for this palette since I learned about it at my old job in the beginning of the summer. I have a lot of praise to give this palette but I do have some critiques after having used it so much. First of all, the packaging and everything was excellent. I love the case and I love the way the eye shadows are set up in a row. The mini UDPP and the eyepencils that come with it were a nice bonus but if they wanted to charge us less for the set without them in it, I would have been down for that. I didn't really need a 24/7 liner, I have a bunch already. The colors included in the set are (from left to right): virgin, sin, naked, sidecar, buck, half baked, smog, darkhorse, toasted, hustle, creep, gunmetal. I like that it had a nice range of different shades and that no two were very similar. Creep is the darkest shadow, it's a black with small sparkles in it. Some of these colors are in their permanent line and I believe some are new. I loved the way the colors blended, the way they wore and the shade range. I didn't, however, like the fact that there is really only two matte colors. Naked and Buck are the two mattes and I was expecting for there to be a darker matte for blending. I don't really like blending shimmery shades into my crease. However, it's not a big deal and to me that didn't take away from the whole palette. So most of the shades have at least a little shimmer to them, while some like Sin, Sidecar and Half Baked are very, very shimmery. I think if you have at least 5 of the shadows in this palette you could have easily passed on it and not be missing a thing. The fact that it's being sold online for $136 really makes me laugh.

Over-all: I like this palette a lot for the colors but I believe it was pretty over-priced and that I would have taken it without the pencils and mini UDPP for a reduced priced and been a little happier. However, if you got the palette - you got a nice buy. If not, don't worry, something new and interesting will be on it's way out before we know it.

Sunday

2010-09-19T18:43:00.000-04:00

I was going to do a whole look (make-up) and post the final product, but instead I had to spend most of my Sunday doing school work. I had a really long, 16 page paper due for one of my classes. I think you may be able to hear my sigh across the internet. So, because I couldn't really do anything fun with my make-up I still took some pictures. Here are the pictures I haven't posted. I got my digital SLR back as well, so finally some pictures not taken with that silly point and shoot.

The cupcake and tea pictures are from today, and yes those Hello Kitty folders and notebook are mine. I always have Hello Kitty school supplies! I'm a kid at heart, what can I say? Blueberry tea always gets me through homework. The sugary cupcake didn't hurt either. My Mom came home with more cupcakes from Cake Love in Silver Spring, MD. I gobbled that one up, too. Tomorrow I have a full day of school ahead of me so I am going to try to clean up and do some laundry before the day ends and I'm all out of time! I feel like today went by in the blink of an eye.

Operation Beautiful

2010-09-18T23:06:00.001-04:00

This is my personal experience, I decided to share it to start off this entry.

I was in school my first day this semester and had stopped in the bathroom. It was excruciatingly hot outside and I was walking around in the heat from building to building so my make-up was kind of taking a beating. I knew that and decided I was going to go and make sure that I didn't look ridiculous or have eyeliner running smudged all over my face. It has always been this fear of mine that I'll go walking around with my make-up looking terrible and no one will tell me. So, I went inside and when I went to look in the mirrors, I saw something pink posted on the mirror above the sink I was standing in front of. I leaned in to take a closer look and it said "Don't worry, you look beautiful!" I noticed that there were other pink post-it notes stuck to the other mirrors so I went around reading them. One of them said "Beautiful is anything you want it to be." The other said "Smile, love yourself. Operation Beautiful." It made me smile a little and I wanted to write my own note but had nothing on hand. So I decided that I would do it at a later time and pass it on.

Obviously, there was something behind "Operation Beautiful" and funny enough, when I picked up Glamour magazine it was a featured article. I definitely suggest that everyone check out the Operation Beautiful website and see what the story is all about. It's a pay it forward, anonymous self-esteem boosting campaign that is easy for anyone and everyone to do. OB is centered around weight-issues and giving women and men the self-esteem they need to stop focusing on their weight. However, I feel that beautiful has to do not only with our weight but with our looks in general. I know that being in the beauty industry that not only do I judge others but I also judge myself very harshly at times and it's not fair. I don't know how many times I've had to remind myself "that person is air-brushed". It's not even that, just the fact that everyone is built differently. No face is the same, no face is totally symmetrical. It's hard to remember these things because of the way the media toys with our minds. And it is easy in the age of the internet to compare ourselves to countless people, some we will never meet. For what?

Everyone wants what they don't have. I've spent most of my life admiring people with green or blue eyes because I don't have them. Instead of wearing blue contacts or something equally as silly, I've started to admire my eyes for what they are. No, they're not blue or green, but they're striking in their own way.

It also took me a long, long time to embrace my natural skin tone. Unlike what most people think, I am Italian but not at all tan like the stereotypical Italian person is. In my family, there are both typically tan people and very fair-skinned people. My maternal grand-mother had milky white skin. I always wanted to be tan! I wanted to be tan, green-eyed and have brown-ish black hair. However, I am pale (and always have been), I have hazel eyes and had blond hair that darkened to a medium brown color. I was always asked if I was sick or if I ever went outside. I worked at a tanning salon when I was 17 and really put myself in harm's way before I realized that what I was doing was not only unhealthy but pointless. After a while, I got used to being light-skinned and just accepted it for what it was. No matter how much I tanned, I never got that bronzed, golden glow that some girls could get. Around the time I had Daniel, being pale started to come back in style and people started to use sunscreen all the time. Now, I get complimented on my skin In fact, I am told by older women all the time "stay out of the sun, don't damage your beautiful skin!". It still is not the cultural norm to be pale, especially not during the summer. Working in so many beauty stores, I see a lot of girls and women come in with very, very dark tans. However, I hope that everyone starts to realize that being naturally fair-skinned is okay, too. I want to shake every woman that would come to me and ask me for anti-aging creams but confessed that she laid out by the pool almost every day. Why? If you don't want to get sagging, wrinkled skin you have to stay out of the sun! There is no miracle cream, there is no fountain of youth. The only thing you can do is prevent the damage of DNA from free radicals and have good genes (and only one of these things you can somewhat control).

Embrace the skin you're in! So, I definitely echo the sentiments of Operation Beautiful. Be happy with you, don't worry about the next person. Beauty is what we make it. And with that, I hope everyone passes on some notes to strangers like I plan to do. I just have to remember to stick a post-it pad in my purse the next time I go out. :)

The life

2010-09-15T17:21:00.001-04:00

I am busy, busy, busy! I did have some free time to snap some pictures yesterday. I was going through my things and sorting out what stuff I want to sell and what I want to keep. My mother suggested I sell my Louis Vuitton but I can't bear to part with it. It's a Trocadero, not a speedy or anything. I want to get another style some time in the future since the shoulder strap bag is something I either love or can't stand. However, I am not going to just sell my little piece of luxury to a consignment shop. They'd give me $100 for it probably, when the bag is worth far more than that. I'm looking to get rid of a bunch of clothes I don't like or don't wear, some things I've never even worn. Silly, I know. But I am one of those compulsive shoppers. Yeah, those people. I just need to create space because I have stuff everywhere.

My beloved ♥ I treat this purse like my child


Other than that little mark on the strap, it is like new

My bedside table, the candle is Cedar and Balsam from Yankee Candle

I am going out with my lovely boyfriend tonight to see a movie. We haven't been able to see each other very much in the past few weeks. My schedule is packed and he always works when I am at home. Luckily, we both are free this evening for some quality time. ♥

Fashion Week

2010-09-14T19:41:00.001-04:00

The title says it all. New York Fashion week. I await Fashion Week each year, twice a year, patiently. Now that this week is finally here I am extremely excited to see ahead. I really can not wait for Milan and Paris but, first things first. I have been keeping my eye on the collections coming out and so far, I am on the fence about it. There are some collections that I would literally give an arm and a leg for and some that I could easily pass up. Spring is not my favorite season for fashion but I always keep an eye on the runway. Not only does it tell me about what will be in fashion in terms of clothing, I can see the trends emerging for beauty as well. I am sitting on this proverbial fence for a couple of reasons. A lot of collections are leaving out color, and to me, color is what spring is really known for. I see a lot of black and white, which is really great, but for spring? I'm all about wearing black year round, I was just expecting there to be bright, fluid colors. That being said, I am never one to turn down blacks, greys, or anything monochromatic. Let's be frank, Lauren is a black on black, all year 'round of type of girl.

Jason Wu Spring 2011 RTW courtesy of Vogue.com

The collection for Jason Wu and many others were primarily black/white/grey and were either very tailored or very drapey and feminine. I saw a lot of futuristic, structured looks as well as a lot of soft, sheer and very airy pieces. I really did not like the fact that so many of the models walked down the runway in see-through shirts with no bra. How is that "ready to wear"? I get that the designer does not intend for women to actually wear them that way and that a lot of the looks that go down a runway are not literal. However, I feel that it's strange to send people down a runway with their shirt see-through and expect the people looking at the clothing to know how to make it wearable. What do you wear under it? I don't get it! I was just very surprised at how so many people were using dark colors for spring. Vera Wang's collection is mostly black! There are exceptions to this of course. Marc Jacobs had crazy, bright, over the top clothes per usual. A light pink silk/satin pant suit? Only at Marc Jacobs!

Donna Karan Spring 2011 RTW courtesy of Vogue.com

And of course, the other side of the spectrum was Donna Karan and Alexander Wang with monochromatic, simple and soft collections. I am still keeping my eye out for some of my favorites that have yet to make their way down a runway. Based on what I've seen of some previews, especially Marchesa, they are going to be gorgeous. The white Marchesa gown in this preview is to die for, basically a dream dress. I am waiting with much anticipation to see the whole collection.

Marchesa Spring 2011 RTW preview courtesy of Vogue.com

As for beauty, there has been a lack of make-up on the runway. I have been seeing a lot of sweeps of eyeshadow with tinted lips. Nothing extreme, a lot of minimalism. Spring is usually that way so I am not at all surprised. However, I do notice a lot of people are going sans mascara?! How bizarre. I don't believe I could ever do that. I think spring is the time to let your skin be the main attraction, so I'm going to load up on a great moisturizer and a highlighter and let it do it's thing. For now, since we are going into fall, I am going to get a little daring and experiment with more intense looks. I can't wait to wear my Media lipstick!

9 Years Ago...

2010-09-12T00:27:00.000-04:00

It's technically 9/12/10 but my post for 9/11 is coming now. I want to make it short because there is already enough circulating on TV about it.

On September 11th 2001, I went to school as normal. I was in 7th grade, middle school, living in the same area I'm in right now. I don't remember much, actually. It's a very spotty memory. I do remember being at lunch hearing the first thing about the attacks. Someone told me "the world trade centers are burning". All I knew at that point was that the WTC was in New York and that if it was burning, that was bad. Then someone else chimed in with "yeah, my dad said someone attacked the pentagon". At first, I thought this was some strange joke and then word started circulating around the lunch room and people started to look panicked. I don't remember much else except going to my science class where my teacher looked grim. He didn't say much and told us that we all needed to stay in class and they were going to explain to us what was going on. He turned on the news and explained to us that the WTC in New York had been attacked at the two towers were collapsed. I don't remember if there was any word about the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania yet. They excused everyone from school and permitted our parents to come pick us up. I went to the office to call my Mom, who informed me that my sister was okay. She would have normally headed into Washington, D.C. for work but was running late that morning and didn't leave once she saw the news about the attacks in New York. All I remember was that it was kind of like bedlam. People were leaving the school and when my Mom came to pick me up she looked like all the color had drained from her face. She left work when she saw what was going on and had been watching the news and said she saw both of the towers collapse.

My uncle had his wedding reception at the restaurant Windows On The World at the top of one of the towers. We were planning on going to New York within the coming year and my Mom had assured me she would take me in to see the buildings. I had always told her I wanted to see the towers because she has a photograph of the city skyline at night framed and hanging up in our living room. Unfortunately, I never got to see it and instead had to visit "ground zero".

It was a terrible event and my heart goes out to all those who died or still suffer from the tragedy of that day. Nine years later, the wounds are still fresh. I just hope we all continue to move forward.

If The Shoe Fits

2010-09-10T23:21:00.001-04:00

This post is going to be all about shoes.

I am not a shoe collector and most of my days I spend in flats or some sort of strappy sandal. Now that the weather is cooling down, I want to break out my boots. But, for the most part, I am a shoe devotee but only in the background. I was not blessed with cute feet. My feet are incredibly wide and for being so short I wear a pretty large size. That being said, I refuse to wear "ugly" shoes. I do not touch Birkenstocks or Crocs, even if they are comfortable. Calluses can be sandblasted away, nothing a good pedicure can't fix! I also spend a lot of time running after a 2 year old. Not something usually done in 5" heels, right?

So, needless to say I am not the shoe goddess. I am no Jane Aldridge. However, I do love me a pair of great shoes!

I paged through Vogue and Glamour and noticed that for once in my life, the shoes for fall were not blowing my mind. I am a sucker for Fall fashion. Spring/Summer I can do without. I barely want to wear clothes period during the summer. It's all these new mid-heels. Kitten heels? I don't get it. I've already voiced my displeasure about kitten heels and mid-heels over Twitter, but it needs to be said! Kitten heels are terrible. Unless you're 5'9"+ and have extremely long legs to begin with, there is nothing a kitten heel will do for you. Platforms, stilettos - they all elongate the legs and firm the tush. What exactly does a 2 inch heel do for one's gams? Nothing, that's what. I prefer my shoes sky high or totally flat. There is really no in-between for me. I am a very particular shoe person. I don't even know why. It's kind of like the eye-twitch I get when I see someone who has completely unruly eyebrows.

Photo: Weheartit

It comes as no surprise that I am a heel worshiping woman. I am only 5'2" and I can use all the height I can get. Don't get me wrong, I like my height. However, I do not want to make my short legs look even shorter. I always feel like the right pair of shoes can make or break an outfit. Many times, I've just stared at someone's feet as they walked past because their shoes were either spectacular or horrendous. And as much as I love sky high heels, I feel they have a place. Like false eyelashes and lots of glitter, sky-high shoes should be worn at the appropriate times. I always have felt that a lot of having good fashion sense is knowing when it is appropriate to wear certain things. I'm sure some people will disagree with that statement but that is just how I personally feel. Platforms don't belong at the mall or at the grocery store, unless you're coming home from work. I also feel like you have to watch what you wear with sexed up shoes. If you pair platform heels with a very short dress or with something that bares a lot of skin, you're drawing too much attention in the worst ways possible. My favorite ensemble would be platform heels ala Christian Louboutin, a pencil skirt and fitted blouse with a cropped jacket thrown over for the office.

In homage to my favorite shoes, here is some shoe spam for all the shoe fanatics out there!

Photo: seaofshoes.com

The McQueen Shoes = ♥

Inspiration

2010-09-07T13:02:00.000-04:00

I keep a lot of interesting links, images and things on the internet in my bookmarks and on various web pages (tumblr, weheartit). Because we are transitioning into a new season and because I am being moved by it so deeply, I decided to do an "inspiration" post for those of you who really like to indulge in this sort of thing. All images are credited in the caption, unless I could not locate the image source. None of these photos are copyrighted to me unless otherwise stated!


runawaylove.blogg.no

Elie Saab couture

http://www.modelmayhem.com/61759

http://www.modelmayhem.com/karielizabeth

There is so much more out there but it would take me so long to post it all here. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I do.

Adventures in Baking

2010-09-06T13:43:00.000-04:00

I don't bake very often but when I do, I like to make delicious things like cobblers. My Mom got a recipe from Cook's Illustrated for this delicious blueberry cobbler. It looks like it tastes awesome but we'll see when we eat it tonight after our Labor Day cook out.

Je ne sais pas.

2010-09-03T20:32:00.000-04:00

I feel like I just went through a 10 day week. School really sucks up a majority of my time. The days I go to school are very, very long and tiring. I haven't been in the best of health lately so it's been even worse. Thankfully, we have a long weekend because of Labor Day so I can rest up and relax before it's back to the grind. I already have a bunch of homework. I'm going to try to remember to post here and not forget about my blog. I haven't had much time to really do anything make-up related in a while! Hopefully I will get a chance to do a tutorial or something. When I get my business cards in, I will definitely post some pictures of them.

We just barely missed Hurricane Earl's wrath, thank goodness. I have been cleaning, organizing and burning lots and lots of candles. Candles are my new thing. I tend to make a huge mess when I put on make-up and get behind on cleaning all my brushes. So I finally took the time to give them all a thorough scrubbing and reorganized my very cluttered desk top.

Cleaning my brushes

My desk, finally clean!

Back to School

2010-08-29T18:17:00.000-04:00

The time has come for Back to School. Finally! The summer is almost over, only a few more weeks (hopefully) left of terrible heat and humidity. I am going back to school as a full-time Psychology student. I am excited and anxious to get back to my studies.

Because it is going to be so hot the first couple weeks of school I plan to do a minimal make-up look. Bare-faced, if you will. Just some foundation, a luminizer on the cheeks along with a light blush, mascara and filling in my eyebrows wherever needed. I never feel like wearing a lot of make-up when it is warm out and it is hard for me to ensure it will stay on all day anyway.

Make-up by Bobbi Brown

For girls going to school I always recommend taking a powder around with them to just blot out any shine and maybe rice paper sheets. I don't really touch-up my make-up throughout the day so I set it in the morning with my Urban Decay All Night Setting Spray and it really keeps my make-up locked on. No worries!

Right now I am battling a cold so I will be popping cough drops like candy to get myself through the day. But, the exciting part is - Starbucks has welcome back the Pumpkin Spice Latte! It is available to everyone now. I am definitely going to get a Pumpkin Spice Latte tomorrow, with soy and no whip to help my throat. We're one step closer to fall, ladies and gents!

I am so excited for the fall looks I've seen in the magazines. I just purchased the Vogue September issue and I am excited to page through it. I just read online that The September Issues are now bigger than they were last year. Is the economy finally starting to turn around? Let's hope so. I have a shipment of business cards coming in and I plan to use the looks that are on the models in a look book portfolio for people to choose out of when they ask me to do their make-up. It's a good way to ensure my magazines don't go to waste after I've drooled over them enough!

A Girl Can Dream

2010-08-17T23:32:00.000-04:00

I 100% believe that you can make anything great and believable if you give it an atmosphere. What do I mean by that? All the senses have to work together to create the entire image. This is one of the reasons why I always wanted to stage photo shoots - I get very clear and detailed imagery in my mind. It's also one of the reasons I love reading books, I can imagine the images and setting in a book very well, I don't need a movie to do it. I'm a dreamer with a very wild imagination. For me, there are so many things that just set off these vibes and feelings of other-worldliness. I usually apply this to my make-up. When I bought my latest lipstick (MAC's "media") I thought of an entire look. It starts with the make-up and ends with the hair, clothing and accessories. I put together the whole idea in my head once I fell in love with the lipstick color. I used Polyvore to kind of illustrate my point.

I guess I'm going for that dark, brooding gothic look. My plan is to make up my face like I normally would, making sure the skin is absolutely smooth and almost porcelain looking. Then I will put on the dark, purple-ish red lipstick and make sure that the lines are extraordinarily clean so the mouth looks chiseled. Then, I would leave off any bronzer or blush, opting to just sculpt the face. I'd make sure I have a strong, clean brow and leave the lids completely colorless but even with the rest of my face. The finishing touch will be black eyeliner and a lot of mascara. That is it. I create looks like this all the time in my head, so we'll see how this one pans out when I actually do it.

While I'm on the subject of atmosphere, I am so happy to inform you all that I have finally gotten my fall scents from Yankee candle. I have an Autumn Leaves oil plug-in going in my room right now and it smells divine. I am that crazy person that stands inside of Yankee Candle and smells their scents one at time until I find the ones I love. After I have finished with Autumn Leaves I am going to burn down my Balsam & Cedar tumblr candle that I got. It smells just like a Christmas tree - Oh, joy of joys! Really, I am certifiable. I kid you not.

Anyway, I can't kid myself much longer about the season. It's definitely August. It was at least 89 degrees today, minus the humidity. I am a sad (and hot) panda but I look forward to the season change. I know I am not the only person out there wishing it was fall already. At least all this terrible rain will be good for the trees so they can turn incredibly bright colors when it is finally time to enjoy the cooler weather! We must look on the bright side.

School starts August 30th - I am readying myself by cleaning everything in sight top to bottom. When I get into cleaning moods I am unstoppable. It was about time, my make-up was really encroaching on every available inch of space on my desk top. I must learn to stop making such a terrible mess. I mean, really.

A Fresh Start

2010-08-12T23:46:00.000-04:00

I've been writing in here more and more it will now become a habit because I have moved over to blogspot "permanently". I used to write mostly in my Live Journal only and I feel I've grown out of Live Journal. I still love the blogs I read on LJ and the people I met but I feel like I am more of a fashion/lifestyle blogger and that I belong on Blogspot now.

So, as a fresh start I feel like I should maybe break down what has been going on in my life right now. My fiance and I celebrated 3.5 years on Wednesday the 11th! My loving and adorable companion took me to Volt, some of you may remember Bryan Voltaggio from Top Chef on Bravo. That's his restaurant! It was very good, we went there for a late lunch. The goat cheese ravioli was absolutely delicious. I had a very enjoyable day despite it being a blistering 98 degrees in Maryland. I really wish I could escape this August heat! Then of course last night we had yet another epic thunderstorm that took down trees and power lines everywhere. Traffic was terrible no matter where you went so it was a frustrating day to say the least.

My make-up for our date at Volt

Finally, we can get to the beauty part of this blog! I have been searching for and yearning for the Urban Decay Naked pallet since we were told it would be launched over a month ago. I do work in a beauty store so I find these things out rather early. I wanted this pallet so badly because I am a nudes kind of girl. I love nude lips but my favorite is doing creams/browns for the eyeshadow. I don't really know why but pinks/purples/creams/browns are my go-to colors. I just think they compliment my eyes and skin nicely. So this pallet, let me tell you! It was a pain to track down. I had to buy it full price (curses, Urban Decay!) because my store did not get any more than our original shipment in stock. I bit the proverbial bullet and bought it, all $44.00 of it. I don't normally love pallets because they're bulky and take up a lot of room but this one is really to die for. It has the right mix of mattes with shimmers and the creams/browns/greys in it are killer. If you already have a lot of the Urban Decay eye shadows you can probably pass this one up because there are probably going to be a lot of repeats. But it also came with a tiny Urban Decay primer potion which we all love (although I have... six eyelid primers now? yes, I believe six...). Thank you Urban Decay, but next time, please plan better for how well your featured items are going to do! Not everyone that wants one will get one and that's kind of sad.

I also bought myself a really bright blue eye shadow from MAC, Atlantic Blue. I wanted something matte but super pigmented. I don't really have any blues. I got Carbon, which you know, is their staple matte black shadow. I finally got my original non-greasy/non-waxy eyebrow crayon in Lingering, MSF in "Light", Media lipstick (a dark purpley-red), and I am going to try out Opulash. I've heard some pretty good things about Opulash and it can't be any worse than the $20 I wasted on Texas Lash by Cargo. I expected great things but the mascara stinks, it's hard to get off and makes my eyelashes super spidery looking.

I hope to get some time to experiment and play with some new looks, especially my look for fall using Media as a lip color. I'm not that brave with lip colors so, this will be a new adventure!

Beautiful Brows

2010-08-10T17:58:00.001-04:00

A lot of people ask me when I am working what I do to my eyebrows. It seems like eyebrows are still mysterious to most women. "How do you get them like that?" and "What do you use on them?" are frequently asked questions. First of all, I am a waxing/plucking fanatic. Every morning I check for strays and about every 3-4 weeks I totally wax and reshape my brows accordingly. I wax them myself. I have threaded them before but I am just not that good at it, plus it hurts my hands a lot.

First of all, I never over-pluck or over-wax. I try not to wax them too thin and I always make sure my arch is in the right place and my eyebrows is not too short or too long. There are a lot of tutorials on youtube for brow mapping - plus, it is really simple and not hard to do. I trust everyone can figure that out. I try to make sure that my eyebrows are similar (they will never be totally the same, the face is NOT perfectly symmetrical).

I fill them with a medium ash brown or taupe colored pencil. Nothing too dark or too light. I have medium brown colored hair so I want my eyebrows to never be darker than my hair color - a smidge lighter is the best. Too dark eyebrows look crazy and when the color you fill them in with is too light it wont show up.

I make sure that the lines of my brow underneath and on top (the top and bottom of the eybrow) are totally straight. A straight, clean line. That gives you the best, cleanest shape. I fill the brow in with quick strokes that go in the direction of the hair growth. Think of it like drawing in hairs where they are lacking. You don't want to just fill them in like you're drawing in a coloring book. That gives you an unnatural fill - you want them to look as natural as possible.

I normally use a brow crayon or pencil that has a waxy finish - MAC makes a pencil like this. However, I sometimes feel that the pencil is too waxy or greasy and it doesn't take well to my skin and seems to smudge around too much. So, sometimes I will just use a regular pencil and use a clear brow gel to set the hairs in place. Hairspray does the same thing and will work just as well if you spray some onto a eyebrow comb/brush and brush it through your bows! It's simple and saves you some money.

The key to having great eyebrows is to keep them in a clean, simple shape that flatters your face. If you take the time to maintain them every day you'll never have the issue of having to re-wax a new shape into them. Plus, they look good for longer. If you need ideas for great brows - look no further than Megan Fox and Kim Kardashian. They are my eyebrow idols. Megan Fox has the best eyebrows of anyone of the planet and Kim Kardashian's eyebrows never look bad. What do you think?

With The Falling Leaves

2010-08-08T17:01:00.000-04:00

Fall is my favorite time of the year. It's rapidly approaching as the summer draws to a close and school starts again. I am the most thankful person alive because I hate summer. I do not like the heat at all and in Maryland it's constantly soupy and disgusting outside.

There is nothing more enjoyable to me than taking a walk on a crisp afternoon in autumn, drinking some warm tea and kicking the leaves around. I absolutely love it. The thought of it fills my heart with joy. Not to mention the fashion is so much better in the fall. I am a black-on-black wearer and it's kind of hard to wear black during the summer. Jewel tones are in season, which is what I look best in. Kids are back in school during the day so that means it's a little more quiet at the mall and in stores. Fashion week happens in the fall as does just about everything else amazing and fabulous! The red cup comes out from Starbucks in November and then the holiday season starts. Every year I feel like I spend all these months leading up to October-January. I know I can't be the only one who feels this way.

So, this is my celebratory post for all things Fall related! It's August 8th, which means it's almost September, which is almost October. Just a few more months and I'll be able to wear sweaters again, bring out my boots from the deep recesses of my closet and start picking pumpkins! I'm about as giddy as one gets. In a couple days I will be reviewing some of the fall collections for make-up that have come out recently.

Music & Make-Up

2010-07-27T15:16:00.001-04:00

I am going to review a couple of products when I have tested them out thoroughly enough. Right now, here is my music and make-up playlist. In other words, this is what I'm listening to while I do my make-up!

1. D4L "Shake That Laffy Taffy"

2. Florence and the Machine "Howl"

3. Florence and the Machine "Cosmic Love"

4. Florence and the Machine "Heavy In Your Arms"

5. Justin Bieber "Somebody to Love" Remix

6. Justin Bieber "Baby" Remix

7. Maroon 5 "Misery"

8. Mike Posner "Cooler Than Me"

9. Nelly "I am Number One"

10. New Boyz featuring Iyaz "Break My Bank"

11. Petey Pablo "Show Me The Money"

12. Rich Boy "Throw Some D's On It"

13. Rick Ross "Blowin Money Fast"

14. T.I. "I'm Back"

15. Taio Cruz "Dynamite"

16. Trey Songz featuring Nicki Minaj "Bottoms Up"

I obviously like HipHop/Rap a lot. What do you listen to while you're doing you're make-up? Or do you not listen to music? I find it's easier to relax and concentrate on what I'm doing if it's not completely silent. I've been experimenting with different looks with all the eyeshadows I own. I really don't have any super bright colors so that is something I need to keep in mind the next time I'm going to look for new stuff. One or two super bright, pigmented colors would really help! I tend to gravitate towards more natural/neutral colors.

That's it from me for now. Until next time...

Here we are again

2010-07-16T19:21:00.000-04:00

It's been quite a while since I last updated. I haven't had the time and also didn't have a computer to update from! I now have my own laptop, my photo editing software and some time to do a little update! I left my camera at my friend's house who is currently on vacation out of the state, but I do have some terribly blurry and pixelated web cam photos for you all.

Firstly, I have been working at Ulta for about 2 months now. I love my job and it has a few great perks. One of them is getting gratis (free stuff) all the time. So far I've collected about 10 products and two shirts. Of the new things I have acquired I'd actually like to start using it so I can write a review about it for all of you to see.

I was given Too Faced's Long Stemmed Lashes as a part of my gratis and it happens to also be an Ulta exclusive. It is a lash-growing serum that is said to approve the over-all appearance of lashes, plus adding length and thickness in 8 weeks of continual use. It has a clear serum for night time and a medicated black eyeliner for day. It is also very gentle and will not cause any irritation or discoloration of the skin or iris. Because it is so safe, I'm more than happy to try it out. It is normally $38 and only sold at Ulta stores. I think we can all agree that longer, thicker, fuller lashes are always a good thing.

I also have fallen in love with everything Philosophy sells (as if I wasn't already a big enough fan). Their fragrances and skin care are excellent. I got myself one of their shower gels/bubble baths and plan to add a few more of their products to my collection. Their fragrance "Unconditional Love" is out of this world, I literally wear it every day. So, if you're looking for a few fragrance or something to try - I point everyone in the direction of Philosophy. Their most popular scent, Amazing Grace, smells so clean and fresh that it suits
everyone. I dare you to try it and tell me you don't love it!

There is nothing in this world that smells too much of coconut for me. And the best thing about the shower gels is that they are just aromatherapy and the smell does not linger on your skin. I wouldn't mind smelling like coconut frosting, but with a scent like their "margarita" it may be a good thing that you don't go to the office stinking of an alcoholic drink. ;)

I'm off to freshen up, eat some dinner and then meet my boyfriend after he gets off of work at a pub for some drinks with friends. Keep cool, east coasters - it's been a scorching summer!

Julia

2010-04-22T14:52:00.000-04:00

My friend asked me to do her make-up and I happily obliged since I need people to do make-up on for my portfolio. I'm letting all my subjects tell me what they want done since it's more of a challenge and that is the way it usually is when you're doing someone's make-up. Very rarely will someone tell you to do "whatever you want". So, she asked for a more natural look with purple on her eyes because she likes when her green eyes pop. This was the result, we were both very pleased with it. I added eyelash clusters on each eye, about 8 per eye and it really made a big difference in making her lashes look fuller.

I forgot to take a "before" picture, so I'm bummed about that but we definitely will remember next time. I also would like to emphasize I do not Photoshop these pictures. The first picture is with no flash, the second is the eye make-up detail and the third is with flash.

Long Time No See

2010-04-16T21:18:00.000-04:00

I have really neglected this blog for some time but I have had a lot going on in my life, personal and otherwise. However I do want to update those of you who follow this blog to let you know that I am now a certified make-up artist. I graduate with my certificate on May 11th but the class ended April 2nd. I just have one day to make up! I'm happy and proud of myself but I knew I could do it.

Also, that I am in the process of getting hired at Sephora. I have confirmed that I am going to be hired but I have not done any of the formalities just yet. Just got the call today! So, hopefully I'll start training soon and I'll get to give you all a little better insight on some different lines.

So, that's my exciting news. Oh, and I've also lost 18lbs since the end of February! I'm on a roll. Hopefully I can keep it up. I hope everyone else is doing well. Have a good weekend!

Lessons and Lipliner

2010-03-28T22:54:00.000-04:00

So, exactly what do you look for in a make-up artist? What do you look to achieve when doing your make-up for the day? Are you looking to be someone else or to just improve upon you? Since taking a make-up artistry class and almost being finished with it, I can say that some people view make-up as a way to be someone else. On the other hand, some people just see make-up as a great way to highlight the good and cover up the bad.

I have always seen make-up as a way to make you look like you, but better. And that's how I think most people should view it. There is nothing so bad about you or your face that you should feel you have to distract people by using intensely bright neon colors or look like you've drawn around your eyes with a sharpie. I like doing dramatic looks once in a while but it's not my thing and I don't really feel that's what most people want. I want someone who knows how to make me look better but still look like me! So, to any aspiring make-up artists out there, get to know your tools and your clients so you know how to address their wants and needs. Not everyone wants a M.A.C. make-over.

That being said, I've learned from the many boyfriends and male friends I have had that most men appreciate girls who look good but don't look fake. I don't think many men like to look at women and just see make-up. Men want to see you. Because at the end of the day you'll have to wash that make-up off and you shouldn't feel like you need to hide behind it. I always get a little scared when girls say "I never go around my boyfriend without make-up on". He'll catch you with it off one day and trust me, he won't run away and hide from you. It took me a long time to realize that. Women are far too hard on themselves. Really.

This is a "love yourself for you who are" entry, but also a "make-up is fun and you're allowed to have fun with it" entry as well.

Telephone

2010-03-25T11:39:00.002-04:00

I got a new phone and I had to share a review with you all because it's such a great phone and people need to know about it! This is not a comprehensive, point by point review, just an over-all.

Morotola Android for Verizon

I purchased this phone yesterday! My old phone was a Blackberry Storm (version 1) which I believe is, by far, the worst Blackberry device ever made. So, I will compare this new phone to my old Blackberry.

Look, Feel, Weight, Shape: This phone is pretty heavy and pretty durable. It's not light by any means and it's not small either. It's a little longer than my Blackberry Storm and narrower. They're about the same thickness. The casing for this phone is definitely a good quality. The phone is all black with a matte finish. It's smooth to the touch and the screen is HUGE. The screen takes up 90% of the phone face on the front side. It has a slider QWERTY keyboard that has relatively large buttons. The only issue with the slider that I have encountered is that there is a little selection pad on the right side and if you hold the phone with both hands, with thumbs in the middle, your right thumb has to reach farther to get at the buttons. I have just let my left thumb do most of the work to compensate. I'm not used to it just yet but I am sure in time I will get the feel for it.

Graphics: The graphics are amazingly clear and sharp. As I said before, the screen is huge so this is extra important!

Speed: Lightening fast! It really is so incredibly fast compared to my Blackberry. There is no lag when typing like the Storm. I haven't had the phone freeze up on me or force close. The internet loads pages really fast. The processor in this phone is excellent and by far the best I've used so far.

Interface: I would say it's pretty easy to use and is, over-all, a very nice interface. The main screen allows you to drop and drag icons like on your computer desktop. You can slide over to more icons if you run out of space. The phone, to me, is pretty straight forward. It takes some getting used to as it is pretty different but the touch screen is pretty sensitive and doesn't require the kind of handling my Blackberry did. The "home", "back", "more" and "search" buttons are on the phone itself and are touch activated. I would say the touch feature on this phone is much more like the Iphone and much less like the Blackberry Storm. Which is a very good thing.

Applications: The Apps are great. The Facebook App, when I got the phone, wasn't working properly but by 8:00 at night the same day it was working correctly again. The Facebook App intereface is so far superior to the Blackberry App it's insane. I can actually see the posts on my wall without having to choose "more". I also have a really amazing Twitter app on the phone called "Tweetcaster" and it's extremely comprehensive and easy to use. It is better than UberTwitter, sorry Blackberry. The nice guy at the Verizon store let me know that the phone has 70% free applications, so there are a lot you don't have to pay for. I downloaded a currency converter that is really easy to use and a Calorie Counter (I'm dieting) that lets you SCAN BARCODES and get the calorie and nutrition information off of food boxes. You can then add this item to your daily log of calories. Amazing! That application is harder to use, the barcode thing doesn't always work correctly and it takes about 10-15 seconds for the camera to actually pick up the barcode but awesome, none the less.

Sounds: The phone is LOUD and your default sounds for texts and notifications are the robot voice saying "DROID" which I love and will not change. Can it get annoying? Maybe, but you can always change it. There are Apps for downloading ringtones but I haven't messed with them yet. The vibrate function works very well, as opposed to some phones I've had where it didn't even work.

Unlock/Locking mechanism: It is easy. You push a button and slide to unlock like an Iphone. You can even set an "unlocking pattern" that is unique to you so that NO ONE except you can ever use the phone. I'm not that paranoid but it's very neat.

Typing: There is no lag at all while typing. It is much easier than the Blackberry in landscape mode on the touch-screen. However, in portrait view the typing is really hard, nearly impossible because you will surely fat finger it the whole time because the keyboard is so small. I have it set to predict my typing and that is much easier. I never type in portrait view anyway, though so it's not much of an issue for me. The keyboard is pretty easy, as I said before, just takes some time to get used to the button placement. The keyboard has illuminated keys (A HUGE PLUS) so while you're in the dark you can still see what you're typing ;)

Features: GPS, e-mail, SMS messages, Internet browser, voice search, application store, MP3/music player, touch screen, QWERTY keyboard, etc.

Battery life: All the Apps, plus the huge screen can really drain the battery life rather quickly. So I would get used to charging this phone frequently. However, if you charge over-night and are not on your phone constantly it can last you a while before completely dying. I think it's to be expected that phones that are so advanced and are refreshing applications constantly are going to drain battery power. I set down the screen brightness, made the screen to be illuminated for less time and also set the refresh for most of my apps pretty low. This has really helped not suck the battery dry so quickly.

GPS: This is the neatest, handiest feature of the phone by far. It has a really great GPS system and will show you real-time traffic on your route. You can also use voice search to search your address. I tested it out at the store and voice searched "Towson Town Center" and it came up with a route, I clicked on it and it set it up for me and even showed me in a map where the traffic was heavy or congested and where it was free moving. I got the GPS mount for my car that will automatically put you in GPS mode when you click your phone into it. Now, I don't need an expensive GPS system! My phone does it all.

Price: The one bad side! It was $299.99 with the extension of my 2 year contract. However, I do get a $100 rebate for it and I guess for a phone this nice $200.00 is not bad. My Blackberry was around the same price and is far, far inferior technology. I also love Verizon as a carrier so I'd never switch to AT&T just for a type of phone. Not to mention, you get the additional feature of having a GPS/Phone in one so the cost you save for not having to buy a Garmin or other GPS device makes this phone quite a deal.

Over-all: This phone is great. Over-all, there is a lot about it that I love, quite a bit that I like and very little if anything I'd change. It is a huge upgrade from the glitchy, slow Blackberry Storm. It's a fast, multi-tasking, GPS system, fun to play with phone. I would highly recommend this phone to anyone!

Here, have a bad picture of me and the phone so you can actually see it!

In The Name Of The Moon

2010-03-22T17:28:00.000-04:00

I don't go on Ebay too often. The temptation is too great. However, I sometimes do go on to look around for Sailor Moon merchandise. I have friends that collect Sailor Moon merchandise and while I'm not a collector, it inspires me. I saw these glasses on Ebay for $1.00 and I just bought them. I didn't care if I was scammed, I mean, for a dollar? I had my doubts but they arrived! Don't know if I'll drink out of them or just display them. I want a mug now, but I know I'll be afraid to put it in the dishwasher. Sailor Moon makes me happy!

Make Me Over

2010-03-20T20:26:00.000-04:00

I haven't had that much to blog about because it's been so incredibly beautiful outside here in Maryland. So, I've been outside for the majority of the day for a couple of days now. I love taking pictures of my makeup and these were the last ones I took. I hate the powders because they get everywhere, as you can see from the picture below. I'm also going to school for make-up artistry and it has been going very well so far. :)

What's In My Bag?

2010-03-15T01:13:00.000-04:00

I don't usually do these sorts of things because my personal belonging are not that interesting (at least not to me). However, a photo of mine that included my purse, blackberry and a lipstick case circulated around Tumblr rather fast and had a lot of activity - so I figured, people probably like these sorts of things. And I guess they're pretty interesting! This is what's in my purse at the moment. I recently got myself a new Daydreamer tote and replaced my old one that got really dirty. I love these Juicy totes because they carry SO much.

Stop callin', Stop callin'

2010-03-12T21:42:00.000-05:00

I love Lady Gaga and her latest video, "Telephone", was even more than I expected. I don't think anyone really "gets it" or understands her except Lady Gaga herself. I love how many costume changes she has in all her videos and how she knows to keep the person watching entertained. "Telephone" is one of my favorite songs from her new album, so - Long Live Gaga!
I also really want her jacket pictured in the .gif below - if only!

In the shade

2010-03-07T12:11:00.000-05:00

Everyone needs a pair of stunna shades. A pair of sunglasses that are a little wild and a little out there and that grab attention. I got a pair a couple days ago and I love them. They're Versace replicas based off the Versace sunglasses Lady Gaga has worn before. I believe hers are even vintage. Pictures below, that's me wearing them. I definitely believe that a good pair of shades can make an outfit.

Eyebrows

2010-03-05T19:40:00.000-05:00

I am a very picky person when it comes to my eyebrows. Or any eyebrows in general. I usually wax them, I sometimes wax them myself. Although, I have waxed off way too much before so I am hesitant to do that. I like to pluck everyday and get really upset about the state of my eyebrows if they are anything less than "perfect" (to me). Anal? Yes, I would say so. Instead of having to go to someone, I decided to teach myself the art of eyebrow threading. It looks really complicated but it's actually quite easy. You can achieve really great results with this method and they last as long as waxing. It's not without some discomfort - it's like plucking multiple hairs at once and you have to get fast with it or you will take forever and the longer you take to pull the hair out the more pain you feel. That is one good point to waxing, you rip it off and it's over. However, this is much easier to do at home and you are a lot less likely to thread too much.

Why did I learn threading? As a make-up artist, I can not wax my clients, however, I can offer threading because it doesn't use heated wax. This is a really good skill to have since some people do not maintain their eyebrows and a good brow is key to a really pretty, finished look.

Threading tutorial on youtube

Happy threading!

New and Improved

2010-03-02T14:16:00.000-05:00

Sorry I have not blogged on here for what seems like a million years. I started a work-out routine with a new diet at the end of February and have been really caught up in keeping myself in shape. So far it's been going very well and I have lost 8lbs so far (and lost inches as well). Today, I completed day 10 of the exercises. It's really tough and I work out every day but I'm happy I am finally making a change that will improve my self-esteem. So, I hope to return to you all a slimmer, happier and more physically fit me. :)

Flora

2010-02-19T09:48:00.000-05:00

I am so grateful when I get flowers. Especially from my fiancé because he knows me so well. I got this bouquet of pink, white, peach and yellow roses on Valentine's day. They weren't in bloom at the time so I took these yesterday when most of the flowers looked their best. I hate that they eventually wither and die but for a short amount of time they look so gorgeous!

Fanciful

2010-02-14T17:21:00.006-05:00

I decorated these Betsey Johnson shoes a while ago and now can't wear them but they're still the prettiest shoes I own. They're just white glitter, I added the lace and bows. I also got the bows in the picture from Forever21 on my last shopping trip for my hair. I love bows!

Happy Valentine's Day ♥

Beauty favorites

2010-02-10T13:40:00.002-05:00

It's a snowy day here in Maryland (again) and I thought I would highlight my favorites of each type of beauty product. People ask me this a lot (what is your favorite mascara, etc) and I guess this would be a good place to highlight my faves for everyone. Keep in mind, I am a fair-skinned woman so a lot of my favorites are catered around my skin tone.

Favorite Foundation: I say it all the time and I'll say it again, my favorite foundation is definitely Lorac's Break-through Performance Foundation.

Favorite Concealer: MAC's studio finish concealer

Favorite Powder: MAC's mineralize skin finish Natural in "Light"

Favorite Blush: Nars "Orgasm" powder blush

Favorite Mascara: Dior Show or MAC's zoom lash

Favorite Eyeshadows: MAC, Nars, Urban Decay, Smashbox

Favorite Eyeliner (cream): MAC fluidline in "blacktrack"

Favorite Eyebrow Pencil: MAC's eyebrow crayon in "lingering"

Favorite False Eyelashes: Ardell, MAC, Make-Up Forever

Favorite Lipstick: MAC's "myth", Estee Lauder, Chanel, Guerlain

Favorite Lipgloss: MAC's lipglasses and gelees, Smashbox

Favorite Primers: Urban Decay Primer potion (eyes), Laura Mercier Oil-Free Primer (face)

Anything I forgot? What are your favorites?

Buy any of the products I've listed at these sites: Sephora, MAC Cosmetics, Nordstrom

Shopping = ♥

2010-02-09T18:26:00.000-05:00

I hate wanting to shop all the time but the internet tempts me way too often. I'm on a girlie kick, as opposed to the beginning of fall when everything was studded or leather and I wanted to look like a grunge rocker. I go through phases in my clothing choices. I never have one "look" that I feel I must adhere to and that's what I love about my style. I can reinvent myself all the time and it's believable because no one knows me as the girl who only wears ____ or the girl who is a _____. These are the things I really would like (all from Forever 21.com)

Juicy

2010-02-07T20:28:00.000-05:00

I love my Couture Couture perfume and the body cream that goes along with it. I really love the product design and everything that goes along with Juicy Couture. Some people think it's tacky but I honestly think it's really cute. Of course it's not the only thing I ever wear but their bottles and packaging are enough to draw my attention! They also make great centerpieces in a photograph :)

Snowpocalypse!

2010-02-06T12:13:00.000-05:00

The snow storm to break records is here and in full force. It came over night and really hit us hard. I live in Maryland near Baltimore. Apparently my neighborhood and the surrounding areas were hit the hardest - we definitely have the most snow in the area. We're estimating it at 28-30" right now. Thunder, blizzard-like winds, and tons and tons of snow! We won't be getting out of here any time soon because it's not even over.

Snow storm commences

2010-02-05T18:15:00.003-05:00

It's been in the forecast for a couple of days now but it's finallyhere - the winter storm that is supposed to dump between 20 and 30inches of snow in the Baltimore/DC metro area. People are freaking outleft and right and I don't say I blame anyone. There are supposed to beblizzard-like conditions overnight with really strong winds. So, if youdon't see me update for a couple of days, you can bet my power is out!!

A Collector

2010-02-05T14:44:00.001-05:00

I don't collect many things, but one of the things I tend to unintentionally collect are magazines. I know a lot of women love magazines but I have a serious attachment to them once I buy them. I never seem to throw any away! Pictured below is maybe 1/4 of my magazine collection. The top row of magazines pictured on the last picture in this entry are Japanese fashion magazines (my personal favorite).

Do you collect anything?