DIY Perfume/Cosmetic/Jewelry Tray

I got this antique frame at a flea market. The seller told me it came out of an old southern mansion in the city that was being restored. I thought it looked so ugly as it stood, but saw the potential in it as a vanity tray and knew it would look great in my Etsy shop. I bought it, sanded it down really well, gave it 2 coats of primer, and then applied a metal pewter finish paint on it. 

 I also got this really pretty decorative leather print type paper at Michaels for it. 

 Here it is all done up and accessorised with makeup, jewelry, and perfume. I love finding old frames and upcycling them into something new. 

Head over to my Etsy shop to see another tray and other newly listed items. 

Halloweenie Twenty13

So this year I dressed up as a belly dancer. It actually a costume I got about 8 years ago. I came with pants, but I got a pair of boy cut undies, painted them purple and was good to go. I was going to a club after all where some of the people didn't have anything but body paint on, so considering that I was pretty conservative lol. 

My friend Sarah on the left dressed as a genie and my other friend Alyssa was a bartender at the event and dressed as a school girl. 

 We met up with a couple of other friends. A ninja, Chucky and Bride of Chucky

 I got Jason to dress up this year. He wouldn't go as an arab or sultan like I wanted, but he went as a Spartan :)

 My friend Heather went as Robin Thicke and her husband went as Miley. I wish I would have got a pic of her husband, it was hilarious.

 I love how Danny photobombed my pic, looks like he's saying "ruuuuun!" haha

 We went to Hells Gala this year which was way better than metro, they had an awesome light show and performers. 

  I've been friends with lyndi for about 19 years now, she NEVER goes to clubs. She recently lost a good bit of weight and wanted to celebrate in her bunny costume :)

 All the above pics took place the Saturday night before Halloween. For Halloween we had all these full size candy bars to give out. Word got out fast that we had the good stuff. Especially when one kid screamed, "I got a full bag of skittles!", kids literally crossed the street at that exact moment lol. I was wipped out in about 10 minutes. 

What did you guys do for Halloween? Any parties?

Chunky White Black or Tan Genuine Leather Tassel by CcCrystalChain

Chunky White Black or Tan Genuine Leather Tassel by CcCrystalChain (clipped to polyvore.com)

Miami Cruise - Bahamas, Coco Cay and Key West

A few weeks ago my husband and I went on a 7 day vacay. We took a 4 day cruise out of Miami to Nassau, Coco Cay and Key West and then did 1 night in Miami and 2 nights in Ft. Lauderdale. Definitely one of the best vacations ever and actually one of the first one's we've done just by the ourselves (not including the honeymoon of course). We usually always go on vacations with friends or family.

This was in Atlantis in the Bahamas, unfortunantly I wasn't able to swim with the turtles, they were just there for show 

This was in Key West at some museum. You climb a bunch of steps and then ring the bell when you get to the top. 

I got my hair braided in Nassau. Would you believe they wanted $40 for 1 rench braid!? I laughed and said nevermind. I managed to get them down to $15 and I thought even that was too much, but I went ahead and let them do it. 

These waves were do huge! You can't tell but they were at least 6 or 7 feet high. I almost drowned in there!

Mean muggin' in Key West. 

My first time rock wall climbing. It was so much fun!

I literally got to the top in like a minute and a half. 

Mile marker 0. They say it's one of the most photographed signs in Key West; and also the most stolen lol

Atlantis

Train tour in Key West. I had braided my hair myself into 2 french side braids and pretty much wore it this way through out the whole trip. I have curly thick hair that I didn't want to deal with so this was the best style for me. 

Coco Cay, one of Royal Caribbean's prive island. It was my favorite stop on the cruise. 

Jason looks thrilled to me taking this picture lol. 

This was in Coco Key too, I seriously got THIS close to the igunanas. They were all over the island and had no fear of people. 

Southern most point, only 90 miles to Cuba. They had a line of people waiting to take a picure in front of that.

Aviators

I was recently (2 weeks ago) in Miami Florida for a cruise. What I noticed when I got there was that I needed a pair of aviators ASAP. It seems like that's all everyone was wearing. I've been rocking my cat eye frames all summer, but I needed to mix it up, so I got these polarized ones. 

They're actually rose gold with a dark brown lens. I love them and it's all I've been wearing lately. I seriously can't get enough and I really want to try the colored lens.

 I just ordered 2 pairs on ebay for a silver frame w/ blue lens and another with a gold frame and green lens. I'll share them once they come in. I also need to do a post on my recent vacation. Work and my Etsy shop has been taking up most of my time now and unfortunatly I'm not able to post as much as I would like. 

What shades have you been rocking lately?

Dresses! Work Outfit post

Now that I have a tan, (thanks vacay!) I've been wearing dresses a lot lately. Plus, we were in a heatwave for a while and the pants and blazer look has been too much lately. We still have to wear a blazer at work, but they don't really tell me anything when I take it off. 

 I ordered this dress off of Forever21's website. It was originally around $30 but it was on clearance for $19 with free shipping. I really like it, but the neck part is really small (even for my 13'' neck!)

I got this dress below at F21 too, it was on clearance for $15 and the fit is perfect! The back has a V that stops right above the bra strap so it's really flattering and super comfortable. 

I had originally wanted the blue version of this dress when I saw these on the clearance rack, but I couldn't find my size. I went back a week later to do some shopping and what do you know? I found the blue one and it was reduced down even further to $11! Yay!

Red dress is from F21 too

This tribal dress is also from. you guessed it, F21 too. This was around $14 I think. 

What's your usual work style?

Review - Maybelline Fit Me Stick Foundation

I'm a sucker for Maybelline foundations. I think I've tried almost all of them, so when this one came out I knew I had to try it. Here are my thoughts about it after 2 weeks of use.

One of my favorite features of this is the size, it's small and convenient and you can apply it with your fingers. I'm not a fan of using my fingers to apply makeup, but it's fine when your in a hurry. For a stick foundation, this bends pretty easily which I wasn't expecting. It dries fast though, so you literally have mere seconds to hurry and blend it in. Because if this I don't think it would be suitable for dry skin. Also, the coverage of this is light to medium. You may be able to build it a bit, but I don't think you can expect much more than medium coverage. Lasting power is maybe 5 hours at best. I did't use a powder to set it though because when I'm done applying it my face feels matte to the touch. I only set foundations that feel more wet/dewy. I think if you apply a loose setting powder you may be able to get an extra 2 hours out of this. Keep in mind, I have combo skin so I'm only a bit oily in the T-zone. I've heard people say this makeup doesn't work well on oily skin.

The middle of the stick contains a shine-free core, which is supposed to help give you a matte finish. The results after I apply it is definitely matte, it's just that it doesn't stay that way for too long. Overall, I do like this foundation. I think it's good for the summer time as long as you set it with a loose powder, but don't think it would work well in the winter when my skin is dryer. It would emphasize the dry spots. Also, I think this foundation is easier to apply if you apply a light moisturizer first, it helps it go on and blend easier.

This is right after apply the makeup. No setting powder, just blush and lip balm. I'm really impressed with the color match. If you follow my blog, you'll know that I ALWAYS have to mix my liquid foundations to get the color just right. The color of this was perfect for me straight out the tube. My color in this is 220 Natural beige. For comparison, I'm NC35 in MAC studio fix+

Have any of you tried this foundation? What do you think of it and what is your current favorite?

PS. Use coupon code 10OFF10 to save 10% off your $10 or more purchase in my shop. Good till 12pm tonight, domestic orders only.