A Lunch With My New Lady Friends

I cannot tell you how incredibly excited I was to FINALLY meet my other Houston blogger friends IN PERSON!! YAY!! We all finally found the time to meet at a quaint little restaurant called Flora & Muse in the heart of City Centre.  I have spent a lot of time with Monica from Classy & Fabulous but I still hadn't had the chance to meet Veronika (she runs Veronika's Blushing) and Magen (she recently started Map Your Style).

First and foremost, you have to visit these ladies' blogs!! 

I could barely contain myself! A whole afternoon with ladies who love fashion as much if not more than me! What more could a woman ask for?

We had great food (including Nutella crepes), refreshing drinks (A mimosa please), and two hours full of fashion, beauty, blogging, and just life!  

Here are the photos to document our fabulous ladies' outing.

(Warning: Picture Heavy Post)

This is what I decided to wear! Lots of mixing prints and texture!!

Banana Republic skirt and blouse, J.Crew cardi and tights, H&M belt, Steve Madden boots, Kendra Scott necklace

This is me and Magen!! The redheads of the group!

And me and Monica laughing while trying to pose!!! Isn't she gorgeous?? I am going to start calling her Chanel because she is the classiest lady I know!

The chandeliers in the restaurant were absolutely beautiful. I could not resist taking a photo op!

A close-up on the necklace I bought at Elaine Turner during fashion week.

Magen and Veronika posing for the camera!! Their hair is stunning! They both just got it done!

Magen and I decided on Nutella and banana crepes. If you haven't had Nutella before, you best get your little booty to the store and get some!!

And of course the talented Monica painted this amazing Chanel perfume bottle for Megan.  Check her out, she has her own Etsy shop, HERE!

Magen and Monica. These ladies are too gorgeous for their own good!

Have you ever gotten to do a blogger meet up!??? 

Happy Saturday lovelies!!

XX

We Heart Austin, Don't You?

I am sorry this film has taken me SO long to put together, but perfection takes time right!?? So, this is our mini weekend vacay video!! We had such an amazing time in this art filled, beautiful, and inspiring capital city of Texas.  I wouldn't mind living here one day!  I hope you can get the feel of the city through the video but you know it is always better with a REAL VISIT!! (Just representing my state, TEXAS!!)
Here you go!! Let me know what you guys think!! Would you go to Austin?? You know you would!!!

Off to Austin with a New 'Do

I am still working on downloading and editing our video from the Austin trip this last weekend.  But instead of making you guys wait that long to see my new haircut, I decided to post these pictures first! I was packing and waiting around for Hubs to get home so we could leave.  In the meantime, I took a few outfit photos and tried to get some good shots of my new haircut.
So basically my hair was mostly cut in the back.  We left the sides almost completely untouched so that it would be an extremely angled bob.  I still have TONS of layers in my hair too which helps to keep the curl.  I have curled my hair everyday for the past week because I love how it looks! Let me know what you all think!!

F21 tee, UO jumper, WHBM tights, J.Crew Cardi, Steve Madden boots

Outfit Post - Flowers and Fluffy Stuff

I know on Fridays I normally do a post about how to style a certain piece five ways, but I have been going back through some of our photos and realized I hadn't posted this outfit yet! Shame on me! This is guiltiest pleasure from American Apparel.  This top haunted me for a few months before I gave in, rushed back to the store, and bought this beauty! In this particular post, I paired it with my fabulous leather shorts from Topshop while bought on vacay to London. (I want to go back sooooo bad) I have the travel bug REALLY bad lately.  I love the look of the feminine top paired with the mini leather shorts.
Since having the travel bug, my husband and I were dying to go to Vegas this weekend, but the flights were crazy expensive, so we settled on driving to our state's capital Austin, Texas! I will be posting our weekend adventure and of course taking video on this new flip camera! You will also see my new haircut in these pictures.  Did I mention I cut 5 inches off the back!?? I know it is a big deal I guess! So, stay tuned!
Now onto the outfit!

(All Photography by Shan Renee)

American Apparel blouse, Topshop shorts, F21 tights, Nine West Booties, Tiffany & Co ring

Happy Friday All!!

XX

Vibrant Streaks in Gorgeous Locks, What's Your View?

I have always loved a peek of bright pink or hint of subtle blue found within gorgeous blonde locks.  I know to some it may seem too "out there" or "over the top", but I must say I adore it!  I am also a hairstylist, so it would make sense that I love to see these funky hues in people's hair.  I have picked some of our top celebrities who gave this bold trend a whirl.  What's your take on this? Yay or nay?

First up is Katy Perry. She is actually my newest girl crush! I love her funky style and how she carries herself with such pizazz.  I think if anyone can pull this look off, it's her!

Jordan Sparks keeps most of her fiery orange red streaks under wraps.  But after a closer look, you can see a little red streak popping out.

Awww and Rachel McAdams.  I have always and will always adore her! And one of my favorite combinations is pink and blonde.  She looks so dreamy!

The infamous Avril.  Although I don't dig her style much, I do think she is a beautiful girl and this look suits her.

Christina Aguilera. Wow, this bombshell has come such a long way.  I do still love this fuchsia  color amidst her baby blonde locks, but I prefer her full on platinum these days!

Would you ever consider donning a funky hue in your locks?? I did last year for about a month.  I had dark brunette hair with a big hot pink stripe in front.  I don't have any photos of it though! (Probably because I rarely take photos of myself with dark brown hair)

Makeup Mondays - Urban Decay's Pony Eyes

I am sorry that I am posting so late today!! The Hubs and I have been crazy busy all weekend and I just got down to makeup business.
I found this particular look on Urban Decay's website that you can find HERE.  It is a mod, 60's look with a little disco sprinkled on top!! It is a heavy turquoise eyelid with a pinky glittery color on the upper lid.  I hope you guys enjoy and let me know what you think!!
Don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel HERE.
Happy Makeup Monday!!

XX

A Styling Opportunity for the Non-Profit Autumn's Dawn

I don't post just a whole lot about my personal life, but today is different.  I have a 20 year old sister whom I adore and love with all of my heart named Autumn Dawn Howard.  She is one of the many blessings I have as far as close relationships go, and I enjoy each and every moment we spend together.  Autumn struggled through much of her junior high and especially high school years.  Not because Autumn wasn't smart or didn't apply herself, Autumn has Asperger's Syndrome. Asperger's Syndrome is a developmental disorder that makes it very hard for one to interact socially with others.  It has similar traits as autism, but many Asperger's children go undetected and are simply classified as "socially awkward."  Autumn was not diagnosed until the age of 16, so she went almost her entire school career without a diagnoses.  This is the reason my parents put together the non-profit organization called Autumn's Dawn.  Autumn's Dawn is an organization dedicated to the development of young adults finishing high school with Autism Spectrum Disorders into a stable independent adult life.  While trying to find options for Autumn after high school, my parents realized that there were not a lot and statistics showed many of these young adults ending up without jobs and without friends.  They were determined this would not happen to my sister and wanted to help other young adults in the same situation.

This is my sweet sister, Autumn

The Autumn's Dawn center officially opened in October 2010 and has been getting organized and prepared to take on clients and begin seminars to help these clients.  One of the center's first clients was a young lady by the name of Linda.  After going through testing and setting up goals for herself, Linda decided it would be necessary for her to revamp her entire wardrobe.  She is normally intimidated by shopping and not sure what to buy or even what style she wanted.  That is where I got to be of service to her.  The Director of Programming, Amy, asked if I would like to join she and Linda for a shopping extravaganza! Would I!?? I was SO excited to be a part of this organization and volunteer to help out in any way I could.  So last Thursday me, Amy, and Linda headed out for a shopping trip to remember! We went to Kohl's and all picked out many different outfits for Linda to try.  She tried on every single piece of clothing we put together, and she even learned how to shop, what she did and didn't like, and she said that she had fun! This was the first time she had gone shopping stress free!
She even let me video some of our adventure with my new Flip.  I put together a little video montage of our outing, and I used music from The Cure since Linda told me she really liked them.
This organization is so near and dear to me, I just had to share it with everyone!! And if you want to read more about Autumn's Dawn or have questions about Aspergers's Syndrome, click HERE.
Here is our video!!



Thank you All!!

XX

Five Ways to Style a Tutu

I would have to say the most commented on piece of clothing that I own is my tutu skirt from American Apparel!! And I understand why because it is quite fabulous I must say!  That is exactly why I decided that I would do my Five for Friday post this week on different ways to style this marvelous skirt. So here we are.

1. A no nonsense way to style this fluffy skirt is with a simple tee.  I picked this one up from Forever 21 and I wear it at least once a week! I am a huge tee fan so this look was easy for me.
(F21 tee and headband, AA tutu, Nine West shoes)

2. I am a huge black and white stripe fan.  I feel like you can pair it with prints and almost any color under the sun.  I liked how it looked with the skirt and a classic black cardi.  I topped it off with a black floppy hat for that girly appeal.
(H&M shirt, J.Crew cardi, AA tutu, Nine West shoes, F21 floppy hat)

3. Mixing rocker pieces with feminine pieces is not a new trend, but it definitely works!  I like the edge of my moto jacket and combat boots mixed with the femininity of the tutu.
(VS jacket, AA tutu, Steve Madden boots)

4. The ever classic white button down! I learned of pairing this with a tutu in the book That Extra Half and Inch by Victoria Beckham.  This is the way I wore my tutu when I took it out for its first outing!
(Express blouse, AA tutu, vintage heels, F21 headband)

5. Another Free People top! Must I explain why this is fabulous?? A lace top and a tutu. Enough said!
(Free People top, Express tank, AA tutu, Aldo shoes)

Would you ever wear a tutu? If so, how would you style it!!???

XX