Happy Halloween!

     Happy Halloween!     

Below is a really awesome costume from one of my favorite glamourous celebrity faces!



Kim Kardashian as Poison Ivy. She hosted the MIDORI Halloween Costume party here in NYC this weekend!



I am posting this costume not only because it was my favorite celebrity costume of the year but... have you heard? Kim is making headlines today, as she just has filed from divorce from hubby Kris Humphries. :-( I was rooting for them!

LaLicious Body Scrub--- Review and Recommendation!

Today is the day that I rave about a product that I truly and absolutely LOVE!

I really adore and love the brown sugar body scrub by LaLicious. First of all--- why is exfoliation important? Have you ever taken a shower and moisturized right afterwards? If you have never exfoliated, you may have been just like me. Moisturizing but never reaching the important layer of new skin! A couple weeks ago one of my friends and I had a dialogue about exfoliation and the importance of not only exfoliating your face but how cruicial it is to do on your entire body. I am ashamed to say that, I had never exfoliated prior to this discussion. Upon learning her results -- glowing skin, smoother and more even complexion, and reduction of the appearance of pores and fine lines-- I was eager to try this facinating skincare method.

One of the things that I noticed when I first got the jar was ... the jar! A lot of body scrubs come in glass jars but the LaLicious one comes in an easy to open, twist top plastic jar. I love this because I can take it into the shower with me and not have to worry about it falling and breaking. This is important because it is super cold in New York and as many of you may know, coconut oil crystalizes in cold climates. Having it in the shower makes is easy to just grab some into my fingers without having to rub the whipped mixture in my hand to make it warm and creamy again--- I love it!

When I first opened it, I was blown away by how awesomely sweet smelling it was. The fragance was really
rich and I love how long it lasted after showering. After all the brown sugar crystals are rubbed into and dissolve into your skin, there is a nice layer of coconut oil that is left. --- No need to moisturize, just pat dry and enjoy beautiful glowing skin!


For more info--- visit lalicious.com or their other vendors, b-glowing.com / soap.com

Tuesday Tresses. Taylor Swift.

Elegant Taylor Swfit.

What do you think?

I love this elegant look. It's her natural beachy waves mixed with a classy updo. Brilliant!

LOVE: modcloth.com

If you have ever been interested in vintage clothing, you have most likely heard of Modcloth.

Most of my close friends know that I have a love for anything traditional and vintage. Especially home decor! I am a really big fan of bright and bold colors so, I think anything traditional with a vintage flair is right up my alley in terms of clothing and decor.

Are you in love with the vintage look too? Check out more at modcloth.com!

The Lip Scrub

This product is one of the many that I got in my b-glowing haul last week! (It was a tiny haul... but these products are seriously worth talking about!)

So the first product is this amazing exfoliator above-- THE LIP SCRUB by Sara Happ. This product retails at $24.00 a pot so of course, before I decided to splurge-- I was hesitant! I rarely ever spend that much money on skincare products (unless we are talking about the FRESH Sugar Lip Treatment!) I must say though, that I was pleasantly surprised when I opened this cute little box. I went across many blog entries about this lip scrub before I decided to take the plunge and choose a scent. This scrub comes in many different fragrances but I was sold when I found out that there was one that smelled like hot cocoa!

I would say that the first time I tried this, it was a bit messy! It's cold here in NY and my package was outside waiting on my doorstep for hours, making the product a little bit hard and more difficult to spread on my lips. Once I got to scrubbing, it was all good!!!

I have never tried any other lip scrubs on the market but, I can say that this is excellent and does exactly what it is supposed to do. After using it, my lips felt really soft but, unfortunately they didn't feel too moisturized. I think that I wiped too much off, as on the website and on other reviews, it says that some residual oil will be left to help keep moisture locked in. All in all, I give this product:

Grade: A-

If you want to check out some other scents, see here: http://www.b-glowing.com/sara-happ/


Needless to say, I am going to keep trying with this lip scrub! I would love to hear other reccomendations for exfoliating products out there, as this is something that I recently have fell in love with doing!

Have any favorites or have anything you would like me to review/talk about?

comment below!

Tuesday Tresses - Historical Edition.

This Tuesday Tresses I want to go back into time and look at the hair of

Diana Ross.

Below are photos of her from my personal favorite photoshoot of hers. She looks so glamourous and amazing! She is one of my idols and she looks so breathtaking here.

Although the hair is probably not all hers,  I love how it looks just like an extension of a natural, toussled, weekend, beach hair look.

Hair Woes

For the past 4 years or so I have had my bangs cut straight across like this picture of Rihanna:

I have gotten so used to having bangs that whenever I am home and have down time, pulling my hair into a ponytail, I am shocked to see how my own face looks! I have a small face so when I don't have hair to frame it, I look a lot younger and my forehead looks a lot bigger.

I have been recently thinking about starting to grow my bangs out or at least wear them back but, I seriously need some tips on how to make this transition.

What do you usually recommend to clients who are growing bangs out? Are there any hairstyles that you reccommend that they do? I'd love to hear your comments. I can't wait to share tomorrow's Tuesday Tresses with you.

Until Tomorrow!

salon branding

I met with a career counselor not too long before graduation. I met with him because I had a few questions about how to prepare my resume. I'd always heard how important it was to make sure that the key words and phrases that I used to describe myself were of interest to potential recruiters. One of the questions he asked me during our meeting, I will never forget.

What is your brand?

He was basically asking, what charactertistics and elements do I want to be known for? What would I use to differentiate myself? What will set me apart from the hundreds of others who may be looking for that same job.

I think that this concept is so very important, not only for every individual person to think about but for every salon. Thinking about your brand is just as important as a company's mission statement. It will not only differentiate you from other salons, but most importantly, make it easier for niche market clients to choose your salon out of the others.

Do you make a point to use all organic products?

Do you specialize in blowouts?

Do you specialize in taking care of natural hair?

Are you committed to outstanding customer service?

Is your salon especially eco-friendly?

Make this known!

I personally make the choice of what I spend my money on this way and I know many others do too.

For example, I have natural ethnic hair. I usually only make it a point to go to salons who deem natural hair care/styling as a specialty of theirs.

Don't be afraid to advertise what your speciality is. You may very well be able to gain a lot more clients when not only taking the approach to appeal to a broad market but, define the brand of your salon to attract clients who may be looking for that something special.

b-glowing haul (Part 1: The Anticipation!)

Okay so I recently took the plunge and made my first purchase at b-glowing.com. I have been trying to support more small businesses and especially businesses started by young entreprenurial women. I was drawn to b-glowing because they carried a lot of interesting brands form the beauty industry that I'd never heard of.


I came upon the site while browsing the internet, in search of the Adara Coconut Oil that I've been hearing about. After months and months of visiting and revisiting, I made the decision to get the coconut oil. But--- who goes online to shop and walks away with just one item!?

Not me.

I also purchased a body scrub and a lip scrub and I plan to review all three here on my blog once they arrive!

One of my closest friends and I had a chat a few nights about about exfolitation and how important it is to keep skin preserved and mositurized... needless to say, I was sold on that idea and decided that I would take the challenge to take better care of my skin this winter.

Any ideas or tips? Feel free to share them with me in the comment box below! Reviews of the products I purchased, coming soon!!!!

Tuesday Tresses.

For this week's edition of Tuesday Tresses...

I'd like to feature Kim Kardashian. Everyone that knows me, knows that Keeping Up With the Kardashians is one of my guilty pleasures. I watch it every Sunday night and this weekend was no different. For those of you that keep up with the show (or at least keep up with entertainment news) you know that this weekend, Kim's Fairytale Wedding special was shown on E! this Sunday and Monday night.

It was definetely a must-see, as Kim wore 3 different wedding dresses (custom-made by Vera Wang) and wore two different hairstyles. She was beautiful in all of her looks that night!

This was a very classic look on Kim and although it's very different from her typical hairstyle, I think she looks gorgeous-- her wedding photos will be timeless!

What do you think of this look?

jamba juice mornings.

Some mornings, I just need that extra boost of energy and where most people reach for a hot, piping cup of coffee, I reach for something else. Something frozen but, smooth, sweet but, delectable, and filled with fruit and yogurt goodness! That something that I reach for is none other than   JAMBA JUICE .



 When I first tried Jamba Juice, I was a freshman in college and was in San Francisco taking a summer job. On an off day, one of my fellow coworkers and I took a trip downtown and she squealed in excitement at the sight of a Jamba Juice.  This was years ago and the store wasn't actually a storefront but, a small booth equipped with blenders, two high school aged workers, and awesome fruit.

I am now infatuated with Jamba Juice, especially the "all-fruit" combinations. I am not really a fan of yogurt or heavier fruits (like bananas- ick!) in my smoothie so, I really love some of the options below:

Strawberry Surfrider, Pomegranate Paradise, and Aloha Pineapple.

Do you have any morning-pick-me-uppers??? Share them with me! I could always use that boost of energy & amazing fruit!

the GAP

One of my favorite places to shop is the GAP.

The number one reason why this store is my favorite is because denim is great and reliable quality. When i was a high schooler I shot up in height and I was one of the tallest students in my class. needless to say, most of my height was compromised by legs! (Some would say that this is a good thing but, at the time, I don't think I would've been quick to agree with that statement).

The GAP was one of the first stores that started selling "tall" jeans, or at least "tall" jeans that were good quality. I remember back when I first started getitng tall jeans, they would have to be ordered online. About 10 or so years ago, this was much more of a big deal. (Nowadays, I think I shop online more than I do in-person at a store- yikes!)

From then on, almost all of my denim purchases have been from this store. I love that they offer jeans that are created to fit comfortably for all body types. They also have a wide variety of styles, from curvy, to staight, from boot cut, to always skinny, and from jeggings, to high waisted cuts. From Monday-Sunday, if I am outdoors, I am usually sporting GAP Jeans.

A few years back, there was a surge in the popularity of GAP jeans with the new line of 1969 styles. This special line was somewhat of a throwback to the old days. Launched in 2009, these were designed to make everyone look and feel good, at a recession-friendly price (approximately $60 a pair).


NOT BAD!

Have you tried Gap Jeans? Do you have a favorite brand of denim? Do you prefer skinny or flared jeans? Let me know in the comments below!!!

Tuesday Tresses. Veronica Lake

This week for Tuesday Tresses I decided to go back into time and visit Veronica Lake, actress of 1940's fame.