HALLOWEEN INSPIRATION // METALLIC GYPSY

Halloween is right around the corner, and it's one of my favorite holidays of the year! I wanted to share with you a fun Halloween tutorial that you can recreate at home if you are in need of some costume inspiration. The look was inspired by this striped dress from Shabby Apple. It's not a 'costume' at all, but it would work for so many outfits like a pirate, a witch and of course, a gypsy. If you have a striped dress at home, all you need is to add a few accessories and makeup, and it can be a quick and easy costume too. Everything else in my costume just came from my own closet, and I didn't have to venture in to a high-priced costume store...winning!

Here's a quick

video

of how I created this gypsy look, let me know what you think.

Wearing:

Purple Striped Dress

 c/o Shabby Apple

Rope Twist Tutorial

Makeup:

Blue Shadow

Pink Shadow

Gold Shadow

Plum Gel Liner

Contour Foundation

Liquid Shimmer

Liquid Blush

Brow Gel

Lip Gloss

Metallic Flake

Happy [early] Halloween! Let me know in the comments below if you liked this video, and what you are gonna dress up as for the holiday. Thanks for stopping by, xo

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WHAT I WORE: NEW YORK FASHION WEEK

Happy Friday! I am so glad you are here- thanks for your continued readership!

Today, I am sharing a few pics of the outfits I wore during Fashion Week. I know I am not a fashion blogger... I could never keep up with that! But, since it is Fashion Week after all, I wanted to show you some of the beautiful clothes I got to wear, from some of my favorite clothing brands.

Floral Dress: c/o Kingdom & State

|  

Leopard Belt

 |  Shoes Jessica Simpson (

similar

)

Blue & Black Zip Dress c/o Shabby Apple

 |  

Yellow Belt

 |  

Black Booty Pumps

 |  

Watch

 |  

Sunglasses

Graphic Skirt c/o Shabby Apple

 |  

Black Tee

 |  

Necklace

 |  

Sunglasses

Black High Waisted Skirt

 |  

Bomber Jacket

  |  

Pumps

 |  

Ear Cuff

Love to you all!

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THE BEST BEAUTY FROM BACKSTAGE AT NYFW

Happy Monday! Today I am excited to share with you my backstage coverage from New York Fashion Week. It was such a thrill to be backstage at a handful of shows this year- the energy and excitement is like nothing I have felt before.

Imagine

15 gorgeous models, 30 makeup artists and hairstylists, and 5 manicurists... all doing their jobs at once,

 plus about 20 members of the press (that's me... 'press' :) trying to photograph and video ALL AT THE SAME TIME! In a tiny backstage area, I might add! It is chaos at its' finest.

In the

video

below, I put together some of the beauty looks that I was able to witness first hand, as well as some of my other favorites from shows I wasn't able to attend this season. It gives you just a glimpse of the beauty you can expect to see trending come Spring 2015. The majority of the designers all opted for sleek/wet hair looks on their models, and mostly natural looking makeup. But, there were of course a few outliers that went for bold lips, crazy nail art, and even pierced eyebrows! Take a look:

Featuring looks from:

• Rodarte (pierced eyebrows)

• Degen (rainbow/water color nails)

• The Blonds

• Zac Posen (red lips)

• Georgine (hair wrapped in scarves)

• Libertine (letters/tassels on the fingernails)

• Thakoon

• Suno

• Rebecca Minkoff

• Jason Wu

I hope you find some beauty inspiration in these looks! I know I did, and I'll be bringing you some '

Inspired By'

posts over the next couple months, where I'll showcase some of my favorite looks, and how I would achieve them at home. Stay tuned for those, and be sure you come back later this week for a recap of what I wore while in NY, and for my

Mascara Wands 101

class with Studio5 TV. xo

THE SUMMER ACCESSORY EVERY WOMAN NEEDS : FLASH TATTOOS

Wearing: Flash Tattoo

Zahra Collection

 |  Oasap c/o 

Striped Crop Top

 | Maurices c/o 

Layered Stone Necklace

Hello! Happy Tuesday. I am super excited about this unique product on the blog today-

Flash Tattoos

are seriously so much fun and every time I look down at my hand while typing this I think 'oooh pretty sparkles...' Yep. That made me sound like a Seagull, didn't it? Ha

Even my 5 year old got in on the action!

My sister in NYC, spotted these cool metallic tattoos and sent them my way, and I have been hooked ever since. 

Flash Tattoos are the gown up version of the gumball-machine tats you loved as a kid

, and work the same way. You simply peel the clear coat off the design, place that tat on your skin in the desired location, then apply a little water to the back side of the paper and Walaa!

The collections come with 4 sheets of metallic designs that all resemble jewelry. You can cut them up and make your own designs to create a look that is completely unique. I love the way my bracelet turned out when I added the dangling feathers, but you could do something totally different with yours. That's part of the fun! I think these tats are the perfect accessory for Summer because you get the glam look of blinged out jewelry without actually wearing any.

And if you feel like this look is a little too young or not quite work appropriate, just remember that they are temporary and come off in 4-6 days (or earlier if you remove them with baby oil) so it's great for a long weekend or a Summer vacay to the beach. I might also suggest a more discreet location like the top of your foot, which gives a beautiful henna-type effect. Cute eh!?!

See you all later this week- xo

P.S. I just updated my

Shop the Snoop

 page with the latest of my

Holy Grail

beauty finds- check it out if you are looking for my top recommendations.

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SUMMER ESSENTIALS: POOL SIDE HAIR IDEAS

Today I am stopping by Studio5 TV to share some great hair styles that you can wear at the pool and beach. Often times when I get out of the pool I feel the 'wet dog' syndrome happening... it makes me want to run and hide, do you relate!?! 

These accessories and quick styles will help you feel put together at the pool, but they are easy and no mirror is required. Take a look at the

video below and check out my go to looks for wet hair beauty.

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STYLEWISE: THE LUPITA & THE RETURN OF THE HEADBAND

This years' Oscar red carpet was filled with 'hits' and not too many 'misses'- which is always a treat for celeb-loving people like myself. I honestly love the fashion and beauty in the pre-show much better than the actual award show itself, and I don't think I am alone. 

This year during the red carpet there was one women on everybody's minds: Lupita! She stole the show with her stunning blue plunge-neck ball gown, and her elegant use of a HEADBAND. Wha!?! Headband you say? My instagram feed was blowing up with pics of her simple jeweled band, which paired beautifully with her cropped haircut- which I didn't know was even possible! Since then I have been on the hunt for a version of my own, and now I just need an excuse to get fancy and put it to use.

In the

StyleWise

pic above, I simply placed the stretchy head band around the crown of my head in a halo fashion, with the rhinestones placed about 2 inches behind my hairline. Starting near the temples, I took large 2inch sections of hair and wrapped them from the outside of the band up and over, then under the elastic to form one complete loop around the elastic. Once the tail is wrapped around the elastic and hanging free, incorporate it with the next subsequent 2 inch section, and then wrap them both around once again. Repeat on both sides, until the two tails meet in the back near the nape of your neck. Join them into one final tail and gently tuck it in behind the elastic to form a completed roll. This style is so quick and easy, and it works for shoulder length hair or longer.

You can shop my fav picks for a sparkler-band below. What do you think of Lupita's headband? Let me know in the comments below, and thank you for stopping by today! xoxo

SERIAL KISSER- BUXOM LIPS 5 WAYS

If you have ever read my bio on the

about

page- you may have seen my quote about the power that comes with a perfect shade of lipstick. On the surface that may seem like a bold quote that borders on the edge of 'shallow', but if there is one one thing that I have learned over my career- it is that women deserve to feel confident and beautiful at every opportunity they can get.

When I am in a hurry to get out the door without a full face of makeup- I still reach for lip color to amp up the volume of my look with minimal effort. And on the flip side, when I am in glam-mode and want to complete my look, lipstick is always the final touch.

I have been a HUGE fan of Buxom cosmetics since the get go, and my love of their

glosses

has been splattered all over these blog posts in the past. But I wanted to branch out and try the

Buxom Full Body Lipsticks

too- and then the perfect storm happened:

This limited edition (sold out in stores, so buy online) set called

Serial Kisser

- gives you five shades to try in mini version. I jumped on it because I know it won't last, and it's a great way to sample the shades and then purchase the full size sticks of your favs later. (although, for mini size- they're actually very generous)

Seriously, all five shades are gorgeous and truly cover all your bases for shades you'll ever need. The two that stood out the most for me are

Menace

and

Centerfold

. (all the Buxom names are hilarious and fun too!)

The formula is just like I expected it to be; buttery and perfect. Seriously, Buxom has the formulas for lips down pat! The coverage is also quite opaque but still has a semi-gloss sheen.

If you've been toying with the idea of jumping on the lipstick train- this is the way to go.

* * *

Okay- can we take a brief pause to check out the cutest dress that I am wearing in these pics!?! It is from

JunieBlake

 and I am a little bit obsessed with it.

JunieBlake makes adorable dresses and clothes- and this

Corrine

dress

(c/o)

was my perfect choice for this post, because every lipstick pops with these fun colors on the dress.

I am excited to wear it with tights and fall boots too- who says you can't wear bold color in the winter.?

Shop JUNIEblake

 |   

JUNIEblake facebook

  |  

JUNIEblake Instagram

Thanks for stopping by today, and don't forget to go back to last weeks' posts and enter my two huge giveaways happening right now. You could win a jackpot of unique hair products, or a $600 stroller. Whaa!?!!

STYLEWISE: ROPE TWIST UPDO

Hello my lovely readers! So glad you've stopped by today to check out the latest edition of StyleWise. Now that my hair is as long as it has ever been (without extensions) I have been wearing a miriad of updo styles to keep myself cool during these hot months. I also love an up style on day-3 hair when it has just enough 'dirt' to hold teasing and bobby pins well.

This hairstyle is a variation on a rope twist braid that starts at the nape of the neck, travels to the crown and wraps around in a bun topper. To achieve this look, I actually lay face down on my bed and hang my head over the edge. Why not let gravity help you out from time-to-time? Once my hair is all draped down towards the floor, I can begin twisting at the neck and work towards the crown. Much like a french braid- I simply incorporate hair from each side along the way until I have finished the twist. Secure the rope with an elastic and then wrap the rope tail into a bun and secure with two spin pins. Fun eh?

Don't know how to rope twist?... keep scrolling for a pin-worthy (hint, hint) illustration!

Hope this gives you some inspiration for your next up style. You may get a blood rush to the head if your try my version, but just think of all the other possibilities too. Top knot, low and over-the-shoulder, Princess Leia buns...sans golden prisoner bikini, of course!

See ya soon beautiful friends- and if you've got a minute, please share this blog with a fellow beauty lover, so I can continue to grow and spread the wealth. Thanks!