firey summer

When Summer rolls around I find myself looking more for brighter, warmer colors in my makeup and thankfully with the help of a few different palettes I can make that happen. I'm afraid this might be a bit too bright for work for some of you but there are a couple tweaks you can do to tone it down: 1) don't use a coordinating color base under the orange eyeshadow 2) stick with just the Rule and/or Firespot eyeshadows - by themselves they're a much subtler orange. Hope you guys enjoy!

Products Used:

~~UDPP

~~Maybelline Color Tattoo in #10 Fierce and Tangy

~~Ebay Eyeshadow palette, orange-y red eyeshadow

~~MAC Rule and Firespot eyeshadow

~~Jane Rockstar eyeshadow

~~Stila bare eyeshadow

~~Inglot gold eyeshadow

~~Stila champagne eyeshaodow

~~Stila smudge stick in damsel

~~The FaceShop freshian volumizing mascara

blog crush: Gary Pepper

I'm a bit late to the blogger train on this one, but oh my god Gary Pepper. Even if you're able to move beyond the fantastic around-the-world travels she always seems to be on, she has to be one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen (with an amazing sense of style). I've loved combing through her archives over the past couple of weeks and I hope you do too!

Humbug

Siesta

Hypnose

It's been raining and gross in DC lately, so sorry for the lack of outfit posts :-/. I hope to get back into the groove this weekend with a couple of makeup looks (& maybe a bit of vintage shopping)!

Happy Friday!!

while i was away...

Sorry for the radio silence but as you can see I was a bit busy :). This past weekend one of my oldest and dearest friends got married - Congratulations Jessica!!!

Top Left: The Groomsmen & Bridesmaids ~ Bottom Left: The Bride & Groom ~ Middle: Myself & Two Bridesmaids ~ Top Right: First Dance ~ Bottom Right: The Beautiful Bride!

(pictures from my Instagram)

P.S. - The bride and groom danced to this song and while I'd never heard it before I have to say it's a beautiful song and a wonderful choice. 

powder adventures

So I've  been spending the past few weeks trying to find a powder for the wedding I'm in Saturday. I wanted something - hypothetically - like mattifying gold that would keep me shine free and fabulous all day.

I'm sure you're all less than surprised when I say I didn't really find that. I did finally settle on something that's pretty close though, so I thought it'd be helpful for my other oily skinned gals if I gave you a run down of what I've tried from Sephora lately.

Urban Decay De-Slick Mattifying Powder, $32
The 'translucence' of this powder is really over-hyped because every time I used it my tone changed by at least one shade. It's mattifying but clings really badly to any dry patches (hello healing acne!) or pores. Maybe it works for other women, but me not so much.




COVER FX Matte Setting Powder, $32
This was the first powder I bought - and I really wanted it to work - but
unfortunately the shade range is just too limited. The 'deep' is took dark and gave me muddy skin while the next shade up is too light. Regardless it's a mattifying powder that does what it says, but doesn't cling to all the bad stuff as much as the UD.







MAKE UP FOR EVER Pro Finish Multi-Use Powder Foundation, $36 - The Winner! 
I decided to go with the new MAKE UP FOR EVER powder foundation for a few reasons. First as a powder foundation it has a buildable coverage that's useful for other non-wedding situations. Second the finish is very smooth, not *too* matte, and with a fluffy brush doesn't cling to anything. Finally, in conjunction with both my Covergirl Stay Fabulous and the Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Foundation I'm matte for 70-90% of my day which is really I can hope for realistically. I'm going to have this with me on the day of for touch ups but I'm convinced (at least for now) that this is gonna be my best bet for a beautiful result on Saturday.

all in one

Dress: The Limited ~ Shoes: Express ~ Necklace: Borrowed ~ Watch: Michael Kors

 *Pictures taken by NK*

Sometimes all I can do is wear a dress and call it a day.

truth time

Top: Lucky Brand (via Marshall's) ~ Skirt: Old Navy (old) ~ Sweater: LOFT (old) ~ Shoes: LifeStride (via DSW) ~ Necklace: Ebay ~ Belt: Hong Kong

I've paired this skirt a number of times with sky high heels that looked awesome and extended my leg line, but the truth is these shoes are what I wear the majority of the time. DC is a commuter city and you know what's not public transportation friendly? High skinny heels.

Still I don't think flat(ish) shoes are the worst thing ever with this skirt so I figured it was time to come clean and show you how it looks :).

weather appropriate style advice

I love how the internet happily provides things I didn't even know I needed. An XOJane article was the first place I read about StyleUp, a kind of outfit 'suggester', where you put in your zip code and it provides weather appropriate outfit ideas for you to consider. From the sounds of it they even provide links for the pieces you might like to buy or suggestions on how you can use what's already in your closet to create a similar look.

With DC's typically schizophrenic weather this sounded just like something I could use, especially in the summer when really all I want to wear is nothing.

At first look (I actually just signed up on Thursday) things appear pretty good. I like (for the most part) the styles they have for me to rate, but I'll continue to update you guys on the usefulness of it all.

But what about you? Do you think this would be useful in your life or just another service to clog up your mail boxes? Let me know and ....

Happy Friday!!!

so would you have me in your wedding?

As you guys have been with me during the whole 'should I or shouldn't I' journey of bridesmaid dress shopping I figured it was only right that you got to see the final result :).

I can't say it was the easiest thing I've done, finding a dress outside of my usual color palette (taupe is great on my eyes but not much else in my opinion), but I think this Adrianna Papell dress is lovely and pefect for the occasion. I upped the drama with this fabric flower belt from Etsy and feel the overall effect is classy, classic, and definitely appropriate for a summer wedding.

Will I regret the high heels? Maybe. Will I feel beautiful while I'm wearing them? Without a doubt.

Dress: Adrianna Papell (no longer available but in a different color here) ~ Belt: StellaArborBoutique ~ Shoes: Nine West

bridal makeup test 2 - the winner!

And the winner is....

Light peach-y pink shimmer on the lid!! I'm not sure if it picks up as well on camera but something about these colors just bring out my skin tone and make me feel extra pretty. If you can get your hands on the Little Black Palette from LORAC I highly recommend it - even without a matte blending color the eyeshadows are super pigmented and blend like a dream.

Products Used:

~~UDPP

~~LORAC Little Black Palette - light pink/peach, highlight, and dark brown eyeshadows

~~MAC Sot Brown Eyeshadow

~~Stila naturaleyes palette, bare and sandstone eyeshadows

~~Physicians Formula Liner

~~L'Oreal Smoldering Voluminous Eyeliner

~~Milani Eyebrow Pencil

~~elf natural fake lashes in black

~~Mascara

*the only thing I might change is corner lashes vs the full band but regardless these natural lashes from elf are my favorite!

old town *pic heavy*

If you live in the DC area and haven't been to Old Town yet I'll tell you right now - you're missing out.Yeah there are tourists and yes some of the vintage shops are infuriatingly overpriced, but the area is just beautiful and perfect for walking around and exploring.

I never fail to find something new or some great piece of architecture or greenery that appeals to me and thankfully I have friend who'll indulge my more 'blogger' moments shall I say?

Dress: Anthropologie ~ Cardigan: Old Navy ~ Necklace: Borrowed ~ Shoes: Tahari via Marshall's ~ Belt: Forever21+ ~ Hat: Lou Lou Boutiques

"My Friends Have Made The Story Of My Life"

Click for more!