Summer Essentials: "Cool" Makeup Bag!

I got the new issue of my favorite magazine People Style Watch in the mail this week and saw an amazing invention on page 113:

"Say goodbye to melted makeup with this cute bag! It's insulated and comes with a freezable gel pack--perfect for summer." - PSW


The IcyBag comes in turquoise/black, pink/tan and black and will help extend the life of your beauty products by keeping them cool in your hot car, gym bag or at the beach!

*Available at icybag.com.

Celeb Trend: Fuchsia Lips!

I couldn't resist! 

FOTD: Audrina's Electric Purple Tutorial

Audrina in OK! Magazine

Yours Truly

Lookin' Bitchin' In The Kitchen!

Unique-Vintage.com has been saved in my bookmarks for a while now, but it wasn't until I saw an article on The Budget Babe about their kitschy aprons that I actually bought anything. The feature was about Charlotte wearing one in Sex & The City 2 and I fell in love with the retro cuteness!

Charlotte wearing the "Audrey Cupcakes" style

They offer everything from adorable pin-up swimsuits to gorgeous, vintage-style wedding dresses, but I've always hesitated to order because they can be a bit pricey. Their aprons, however, are very reasonably priced ($30) and you can remove the bib to wear it as a standard apron, so it's like getting two aprons in one! 

I chose a bow & skull print for myself. They're very well made & I can't wait to bake cupcakes while wearing it!

Jessie Steele Vintage Style Adorable Skull & Bow Apron

A close-up of the print

*Shop all of their vintage aprons here. 
SAVE 20% with coupon code HOSTESS now through June 15!

The Look For Less: Treasures at Ann Taylor!

While watching one of LisaLisaD1's videos on YouTube today I was shocked to hear that an absolutely gorgeous and expensive-looking bracelet she was wearing was from Ann Taylor! Like any shopaholic would, I quickly typed www.anntaylor.com into my browser to gawk at their 51 pieces of beautiful jewelry! 

To my delight they're having a BOGOHO sale right now (just use code SUMMER50 at checkout) so I picked up a couple items for myself. Here are 3 amazing dupes I found for some well known, high-end pieces:

Sydney Evan Large Pave Diamond Disc Necklace $7,195

Ann Taylor Pave Pendant Necklace $58

Noir Rhodium Plated CZ Pave Pyramid Stud Bracelet $300

*Rebecca Minkoff was wearing this exact bracelet when I met her & I've lusted after it ever since!

Ann Taylor Pave Pyramid Stretch Bracelet $48

Sonya Renee gold fill chain with droplets $116 

(sorry for Lorraine's boobies! lol)

Ann Taylor Long Sparkling Gem Necklace $35

**Check out all of their gorgeous jewelry on AnnTaylor.com!

The Answer To My Prayers!

The Dilemma:

I have a VW Beetle and a 2 year old. These two things do not mesh well. My car has arguably the smallest trunk in the history of the automobile and I'm lucky if I can fit a jumbo pack of toilet paper in there on grocery day! 

The Desire:

Any moms out there with compact cars know just how difficult it is to find a stroller that will fit into their trunks, let alone in the back next to a car seat. My son's first stroller was an Eddie Bauer and it would only fit in the trunk if I lay it on it's side and took both of the front wheels off. His next stroller was a Kolcraft and it would only fit in the back seat if I put it in through the trunk and removed the back seat head rests. (Can you feel my frustration??) Umbrella strollers were all I could bring on most trips and they're uncomfortable for all involved. My mission was to find a reasonable sized stroller at a fair price that would maybe (just maybe) fit into my tiny car while there were people riding in it. If said stroller did exist, it wouldn't hurt if it had a snack tray and some storage too. 

The Solution:

While browsing through Walmart.com I came across their lightweight stroller section. Lo and behold, there was an attractive, inexpensive model with rave reviews! The Jeep Cherokee Sport goes for around $50 and I am ecstatic to report that it FITS INTO MY TRUNK! There's even room leftover for a diaper bag and miscellaneous items like an umbrella, some eco shopping bags and a pack of emergency diapers. 

Where have you been all my [son's] life?

If you know anyone who's struggling with the same problem, I'd without a doubt recommend this Jeep model. My only complaints are that the child's cup holder is too small to hold anything but a baby bottle and the underneath storage is a tad too small for my liking, but overall I am so thankful for our new stroller! I wish I had found it sooner! 

My Perfect Red Lipstick!

I'm not ashamed to admit that I totally watched MTV's My Life As Liz. Scripted or not, it was pretty entertaining! That embarrassing admission's relevance to this post is that I loved how Liz was a "nerd" but still rocked deep red lipstick to school every day.

Now, what's a girl to do when she likes something she saw on another girl?? Venture to Target in search of her own of course! Well, I swatched & swatched til I couldn't see the back of my hand through all the different shades of crimson and found my "perfect red lipstick" a la Liz Lee! 

The best part? It's only 5 bucks!

Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Red Revival

Methinks I spot a photobomber in my back seat!

I can't wait to ironically pair this new lip hue with my Star Wars shirt! LOL j/k... not really. 

The Look For Less: Katy Perry in Lucky Magazine

Katy's cover look: $1904

My recreation: $147.75

Red silk dress - fashionright.com - 75GBP

Disco stud earrings - forever21.com - $4.80

Assorted gold necklaces - forever21.com - $3.80-$6.80

Gold charm bracelet - luckybrandjeans.com - $14.75

*Rimmel lipstick in Red Alert (the actual lipstick she wore on the cover)

Win a Material Instinct candle from Candles By Victoria!

Named after my blog, Material Instinct is a delicious blend of Viva La Juicy perfume and sugar cookies! I chose the light blue wax shade as a nod to me having a baby boy.

When deciding on scents, I thought of what I imagined a "material mama" such as myself would smell like. Feminine and sexy, yet sweet and nurturing all at the same time! It smells sooo good and everyone I've shown it to loves the scent too!

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment below with your favorite scent/smell! Here are the rules:

• You must be a follower of my blog. 
• The giveaway is open internationally. 
• One entry per person please.

*I'll choose a winner on May 31st so stay tuned for the announcement!

Want to create your own signature scent? Just go to page 8 under the Candle section of www.candlesbyvictoria.com and customize away!

The LiLash Experiment: Week 4

4 weeks after starting my LiLash experiment, I am pleased as punch with my results! I've only missed 2 or 3 applications and am continuing to use it nightly before bed. It still hasn't been the 6-8 weeks recommended for noticeable growth & I'm getting compliments from complete strangers on the luxuriousness (my word, not theirs) of my lashes! 

I mentioned in my YouTube video that the slight irritation I had from Week 1 had faded in Week 2, but it's back now. Both of my eyes appear to be a bit bloodshot, but they do not itch/burn. (I'm wondering if it's because I sometimes get the product too close to my waterline when I apply it?) Regardless of the minor redness I'm experiencing, I'm going to continue to use LiLash as I'm simply amazed at it's power! 

Don't forget you can still SAVE 10% and get FREE S&H with coupon code MATERIALINSTINCT until May 31st!

Before: My average looking eyelashes.

After: My longer, fuller & healthier looking lashes!

Here are some more detailed photos of my 4 week results as well as my unkempt eyebrows:

Ooh, shiny!

I can almost produce a breeze when I bat these babies! LOL

Note the thickness & length! (That's what she said.)

*Read Week 1. 

**Read Week 2.

I found the Hidden Treasure!

If you follow me on Twitter, you know I've been searching for a particular nail polish for a few weeks now. It's the hard to find, limited edition Hidden Treasure from Sally Hansen. It's part of their Spring 2010 collaboration with fashion designer Tracy Reese and it's chock full of gorgeous holographic flakes that instantly enhance the color of whichever polish you layer it over!

Well, I took a chance and popped into a nearby Walgreens today and low and behold, I found 2 of them! I'm giving one of them away on my YouTube channel this month so head on over there and enter to win!

**Here's some quick swatches I took to show you what this polish can do. I'm wearing it over Sally Hansen's Midnight In NY. Please excuse my dry cuticles...

In artificial light.

In sunlight.

See the holographic-y goodness??

What I Wore: Tyler Hilton & The Spill Canvas

My best friend Kimberly & I went up to the State Theatre in St. Pete yesterday to see Tyler Hilton & The Spill Canvas in concert. Here's what I wore:

Black ribbed tank
Floral mini skirt
Black cropped leggings
3/4 sleeve grey cardigan
White tennis shoes
*All from Target

*

The highlight of my night was meeting Tyler Hilton! I was probably his oldest fan there, but I didn't care. He was so nice in person & even signed my Ladies & Gentleman EP:

What I Wore: Mother's Day 2010

Gold 5' Lisa Taubes chain necklace (worn similar to one shown)

Navy & White Striped Boatneck Tee 

Ripped Boyfriend Jean Capris 

Cynthia Vincent for Target sandals

New LiLash Coupon!

I keep forgetting to post this, but it's still good until Sunday! Save $15 & get FREE 2 day shipping with coupon code: MDAY10

Click the banner to go to LiLash.com

What To Wear: Daytime Date

Top - Forever21

Shorts - alloy.com

Shoes - Cynthia Vincent for Target

Bracelets - TopShop

Earrings - TopShop

Recycle Your Old Polishes & ZOYA Will Replace Them For FREE!

"The Zoya Nail Polish Exchange is simple. Just gather your old used or unused bottles of nail polish (any brand) that are laying around, collecting dust and send them to us, and in exchange we will send you an equal number of brand new Zoya Nail Polishes. All you pay is $3.50 per bottle for shipping and processing. There is a minimum of 6 bottles and no maximum (exchange as many bottles as you want as often as you would like)." - zoya.com

Are you going to take advantage of the ZOYA recycling program? If so, which colors will you choose??