Luxe Casual

Luxe Casual by stylewriteup featuring short jackets

Men Inspired Woman's Wear

Men Inspired Woman's Wear by stylewriteup featuring a long coat

Luxe Casual

Luxe Casual by lahlayla featuring leather jackets

Alice by Temperley London : Lottie Dress

The Lottie lace dress from Alice by Temperley London is such a unique item. It can be edgy by adding a pair of booties and cropped leather jacket or be comfy cozy by styling it with a long sweater and ballerina flats or brogues.                                       

Temperley London is British design house headed by it's name sake Alice Temperley. Her designs are quintessentially British, it's what most  people expect when they think of London. Her clothing are not preppy but are very girly and demure. Temperley London  is a high end line and Alice by Temperley London is suppose to be their lesser priced clothing line,  but when you see the prices it's still quite expensive. It is a similar concept to Burberry and  Burberry Brit, but Temperly London offers a more updated and youthful take of post Victorian fashion. 

Decor : Ideas for Small Living Space

After visiting www.jossandmain.com I was inspired and wanted to share some of my favorite pieces from their website that would fit perfectly into a  small space in the home. The  key piece is the settee which works for Moroccan or Tuscan theme,  and will  help warm up any space. The nestled table work as compact side table and the mirror is a great touch that would probably look great hung over  the chair.They go great against white walls or rust or brown  painted  feature walls. 

Trend Watch : Ciate Caviar Manicure

Hmm? I wonder who thought of the idea of adding little tiny colorful micro beads to their fingernails. (They probably thought of it while eating sprinkled covered ice cream.) Well, who ever did is genius. Not  really, but it's a pretty cool trend. Ciate's Caviar Manicure (appx $25). which can be easily found at Sephora, give ladies a chance to be unique and expressive through  this unique type of nail art.

Since the Ciate brand may be a bit expensive to some women, many are finding other inexpensive alternatives. They are flocking to Michael's craft store and finding different types of beads and decorations to adorn their nails with.

The steps are very easy. Paint you nail with a base coat and/or a color polish, then sprinkle the tiny beads over you nails, press them into place so that they stick. Voila! Pour unused beads back into  the container for future use. The only dilemma that I see is removing the bead when you are ready for fresh manicure. 

Trend Watch : Jelly Bags

There is nothing new under the sun of course, but it is always exciting to see new twist on the "old."  We all  remember jellies. I remember wearing jelly sandals as a kid. The jelly trend comes back around every five to ten years. The jelly revival is taking the shape of watches and handbags. They are simply fun.

Melie Bianco "Sophie" shiny jelly 

Furla "Candy" rubber bag

For Fun : Where's My Water? App

For a change of pace-I recently discovered  a fun and challenging  app called "Where's My Water?" I may be the last person to have discovered this Disney app, but better late than never.

Pros: great graphics, challenging, different levels, addictive, free version. Cons: minimal special effects, large data usage, battery life, paid version. The objective is simple, get the water to  the gator in the tub. You may spend hours trying to figure out the logistics of how to get the water through the maze of pipes and sand. If you decide to try this fun game just check your data usage (if it is not unlimited) and walk with the charger for your device.

Expandable Tote : Kenneth Cole

The Kenneth Cole Tote-al Expanse Tote (we get the play on words). This leather  bag is  a great fit for  those on the go for work or travel.  This top handle leather tote looks nice and is functional with side zippers that open allowing the bag to expand wider so you can hold more "stuff".  It is  a nice alternative to those higher priced designer hold all or expandable bags. 

Trend Watch: TikTok iPod Wrist Strap

Most of us wear watches and most of us listen to music on the go, LunaTik.com found a  way to combine the two into one practical, multi-functional and stylish accessory. The TikTok wrist strap, available at www.lunatik.com is a great accessory. It is holds the iPod Nano, 6th  or 7th Generation securely in the strap on your wrist. You can set the  clock function so that a clock displays for you to easily tell time and then the device snaps out for you to play music. The wrist strap comes in a variety of colors and the sporty masculine unisex design is on trend.

Trend Watch : Color Blocking

Cinema Couture

We watch movies for the story line, to be entertained, but sometimes you remember the costumes in the movies just as well as you remember your favorite moments or favorite line from the movie.

Favorite Things: Movies

The movies listed are in no particular order. Let's just say I like almost any Alfred Hitchcock movie and you will see a theme, I love old movies, black and white movies, and although not included, I equally like foreign films with subtitles. You may also notice that I like romance, suspense, spy and conspiracy thrillers, and comic book action movies where there is cutting edge special effects and mind blowing stunts.

a. Funny Girl (1968)
b. The Way We Were (1973)
c. Wuthering Heights (1939)
d. Vertigo (1958)
e. Notorious (1946)
f. The Apartment (1960)
g. Claudine (1974)
h. Lady Sings the Blues (1972)
i. Arlington Road (1999)
j. Cider House Rules (1999)
k. House of Sand and Fog (2003)
l. Mahogany (1975)
m. Coming to America (1988))
n. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
o. All About Eve (1950)
p. The Notebook (2004)
q. To Catch a Thief (1955)
r. Shrek (all)
s. Harry Potter (all)
t. The Usual Suspects (1995)
u. We're Not Married! (1952)
v. Spider-Man (2002)
w. X-Men (all)
x. Pay It Forward (2000)
y. Wag the Dog (1997)
z. Beverly Hills Cops (1984)

...plus many more.

When Traveling

I love to travel but I dread packing and I dread trying to decide what to bring. When driving to a vacation destination you can pack your entire closet but when traveling via airplane it takes a bit more planning and restraint. But here are a few helpful tips:

1. First, don't get stressed out. Take a deep breath and put on some fun/happy music. No need to pack more than a week ahead of your departure date unless you will be gone for more than two weeks.

2. Make sure you have all your travel documents, itinerary, a valid passport or license, visa (if applicable), address book with emergency information written down.

NOTE: Let someone know where you are going and when you will be back home. Don't post being out of town on any social network. Do not update your status indicating that your house is vacant, tell everyone where you were when you get back home.

3. Check the weather periodically ahead of time. Be aware of seasonal changes.

4. Put all your toiletries on the bathroom sink to make sure you don't forget anything, go through your morning and nightly routine checking off all the products you use in your head. Don't waste money repurchasing thing you already had at home.

NOTE: If carrying a suitcase, travel sized items are great but you can sometimes put your full sized products in individual zip lock bag and pack them in your suitcase instead of your carry on bag.

5. Lay out your outfits. Don't just pack random articles of clothing. If you are going on a three day trip you may only need three to five outfits plus sleepwear. Don't forget to lay out undergarments as well.

NOTE: Leave your expensive jewelry at home.

6. Pack comfortable shoes. Ballerina slippers, flats, wedge heel, or sneakers are great options for milder weather locations. Flip flops are not good to walk around in unless you are vacationing on the beach.

NOTE: You may end up wearing the same pair of shoes everyday.

7. Pack away your clothes and shoes and full sized toiletries in your suitcase. You can pack your carry on last and throw in any last minute items like chargers, cameras and laptop.

NOTE: If using a suitcase and a carry-on bag, pack at least one outfit in the carry-on bag just in case your suitcase gets lost.

8. Clean up the night before and empty all garbage. You don't want to come home to a messy house.

9. When you return home, unpack immediately so that your suitcase doesn't sit there for days and weeks after returning home.

Swatch: Full Blooded Watch

This watch is beautiful and comes in a variety of colors for women and men.

Jerusha Couture Bag

While watching Youtube I came across Jerusha Couture's channel. She is a designer who owns her own store down under in Sydney, Australia. In one of her videos she introduced her signature leather bag which she designed called the Jerusha Bag. The bag can be worn as a hand bag or as a shoulder bag. I fell in love with this bag. It can be purchased from her website for $199.00, but the international shipping and handling fee is $60.00, pricey-I know.

"Red Bottom" shoes

First there was who knows who, then there was Manolo Blanik, then Jimmy Choo, now there is Christian Louboutin. Louboutin is on the feet of every celebrity and wanna be celebrities. When you see the signature red bottom there is no guessing who is on their feet.

Favorite Things: Basic Skincare

These are my personal favorite tride and true favorite basic skincare products. They work for me, they are great for combination skins or sensitive skin, and these products are somewhat inexpensive.  They are Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser, Clinique Clarifying Toner Lotion, Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion.  There are other products and brands that I like to use, but these are my staple products. 

Favorite Things: Light-weight cotton

Nothing says SUMMER like bright colors, linen, sandals, big floppy hats, sunscreen lotion, shorts, bathing suits, family vacays, and COTTON TOPS  a la: ZARA

Hand Painted Ceramics from Turkey

On a trip to Turkey, a country in eastern Europe I was introduced to a wonderful culture of people and things. The Turkish are known for certain things like handspun rug, quality sterlin silver & gold, tea, and a long deep rooted history. I went to the most spectactular places like Sehrince, Ephesus, Izmir, Bodrum, Istantul, Kusadasi, Antalya, Tire, Pamukkale, and many small villages that most tourist will never venture to.

While in Ephesus I was introduced to Ephesus Ceramic. Ephesus Ceramic is a home store full of beautiful hand made and hand painted ceramics. There is a showroom filled with every type of ceramic homegood accessory and dinnerware. There is also a school where student can learn the art of pottery.

Ephesus Ceramic ships all over the world through their website, ephesusceramic.com. These pieces look better and more vibrant in person.

Turquoise Collection:

Fun Trend Under $100

Denim Sneakers(Coach @ Dillards)

Keds @ The Gap

Fall/Winter Lace Up High Heel Boots