A Wedding Fit for Princess Jasmine

I was oh so fortunate enough to attend a wedding in Houston, Texas this weekend. One of my boyfriends' college roommates tied the knot in a beautiful, elaborate Indian celebration that lasted all weekend. Lavish jeweled attire, the groom on horseback, snake charmers and smoking drinks were just some of the major highlights of our trip. I really loved getting involved in another culture (at least for the weekend) and even got a henna tattoo and wore a bindi (body/forehead jewelry) for the wedding. See photos below!

An amazing party the night BEFORE the wedding.

Gorgeous venue with snake charmers, dancers, and people painted in gold body paint.

Very cool way to kick off the weekend!

My love and I before the event

Aren't we the cutest? =)

Texas <3

Me getting my first real henna tattoo!

I can't stop looking at it, so freakin cool

This is what it looked like when she was done!

It eventually flakes off when it dries and looks like the below photo...

A few days later and it still looks like this.

The woman did it so quickly and I really admire how intricate and delicate it is.

My boyfriend dancing with the groom and a friend

Look at the sea of people behind them whoa

The next day - an Indian-type parade outside the hotel

See the blonde head right there? That's me attempting to Indian dance.

The groom rode in on this beautiful white horse.

It was supposed to be an elephant, but the elephant guy in Houston was out of town

Yes, REALLY

The groom and a pretty amazing headpiece.

Forgive me for not knowing all the real terms ha!

After all the dancing and music, came the actual ceremony

The bride and groom sat up there in a glass structure surrounded by roses and candles

I still can't get over how lavish the clothing is, obsessed!

Party time! (Again...)

Night two - the reception. Our cocktails are the special "bride and groom martinis"

The dry ice made them bubble and smoke...amazing!

My bindi! One of the party guests was nice enough to give me one of hers

It's essentially a jeweled sticker, but looks so pretty

The bride and groom partying into the reception hall

Sparkle City.

Take me back, PLEASE. Or at least I hope to meet some new Indian friends so I can be invited to their wedding =)

Vera Wang's Simply Vera Makeup at Kohl's

The uber famous designer (mostly known for her work in beautiful couture wedding gowns) has channeled her inner beauty addict - and is launching a line of cosmetics available in Kohl's stores next month.

By the looks of the photos, the stuff looks pretty amazing! Vera often appears to be bare-faced when it comes to her makeup choices, but she admits in this month's issue of Allure that she actually wears quite a bit of makeup, even though it doesn't look like it. I'd be excited to check this stuff out!

What do you guys think? Worth checking out?

Online Shopping is the Devil. Even Though I Look Cute.

So I’ve been on a bit of an online shopping binge, I have to admit. It’s getting to be Spring time and I thought – I need new stuff. Like now. See below for a self-indulgent post of the fun new stuff I bought! Oh, and a photo of my first ever Shellac manicure! (had to add something makeup related in there ha!)

Snotty photo of me in my new dress! With new jewelry! And new nails!

(are you seeing the pattern?)

A pretty unique necklace that I got from Jewelmint.

It's sort of a choker, then has a long chain with nuts and bolts at the end of it!

It's weird, so of course I love it!

Mod bracelets from Jewelmint.

These two come together - I think they really compliment each other!

They are a bit hard to type with at work, but at least they look cute =)

I love Jewelmint - quick delivery, adorable packaging, and cute stuff!

The sleeve of my dress! I saw this pattern (dress is from Gilt.com) and I needed to have it.

The material is light enough to wear for spring, even though it's black.

And it's comfy!

And finally, what the nail fanatics have been waiting for - my first Shellac manicure! I'm going to a wedding this weekend, so I wanted to make sure there was no funny business with my nails (chips, breakage, etc). So I decided to try Shellac (CND) polish. I really love this pretty pink! It looks more purple in the photo, but that's probably because my phone sucks haha. I only got them done yesterday, so I want to see how long they really last me - hopefully 2 weeks!

Do you guys do a lot of online shopping? And who else has tried Shellac? Share with us!!

Violent Lip Tattoos - I Kinda Hate You.

Now before the blogosphere gets all crazy on my ass, let me just say this - It's me, not them. The "them" being Violent Lip tattoos. This was my 2nd attempt at applying them, and clearly the results were disastrous. They look so amazing on other people, and I just wish I had the skill to apply them. I did a post on them a while back (click here to read interview with the creator) so I really wanted to give them the old college try. See below (if you dare...)

Yeah. So this was my attempt at looking cute while I have lop-sided lip tattoos on.

Clearly, this post is purely for entertainment value, because it quite frankly embarrassing.

My issue with applying these (peel off the clear plastic sticker, then wet with a sponge or cotton ball) wasn't the entire tattoo, it was just the corners. I thought I had wet the tattoo enough and tried peeling it off, only to get THIS look. AAAHHHH!!!

These were the ones I tried. I also have a few packs of other styles but doubt that I will try doing it again.

What do you guys think, have you tried these? If so, any tips on how you did it? I'd be interested to know! xoxo

3 New Product Reviews and Eye of the Day!

Hi dolls! So i'm really excited about this EOTD. I got these products last week, and have been wearing the 3 of them together ever since! I also wanted to wear them consistently so that I could give them an accurate product review =) See below for eye of the day fun and a little more about the products I used!

L'Oreal Infallible 24 hour eyeshadow

Flirt! All that Lash mascara

Physcian's Formula 2 in 1 Lash Boosting Eye Liner and Serum

Happy! I feel like Adele today =)

Without flash

With flash! You can see how beautiful the eyeshadow color is here

OK, and here go the reviews...

L'Oreal Infallible 24 hour eyeshadow

As a true makeup addict, I simply cannot pass up the CHANCE that something will be ultra long lasting and fabulous, even though I do have beef with some of the claims makeup companies make. I saw the 24 hour claim, and thought this gold shade was to die for (shade is Amber Rush) so I just bit the bullet and went for it. As I said, I've been wearing this shadow for about a week and am fairly pleased with the wear. It barely creases, and even if it does it's after hours and hours which i'm fine with. I used Urban Decay Primer Potion, as always, then dabbed the shadow on with my finger tip. It's so pigmented that you really only need a LITTLE bit. It's just an easy eye look that takes less than a minute and lasts a long time. Plus, I think this shade really brightens up the eyes which I could always use =)

L'Oreal Infallible 24 hour eyeshadow

This is what the front looks like =) It looks like a sparkly little pot of gold!

Physcian's Formula 2 in 1 Lash Boosting Eye Liner and Serum

As I've been telling just about every person in the human race, i'm obsessing over the new Physician's Formula products. I reviewed the two lippys I got (click here to read), and now there's this beautiful felt-tip eyeliner! I really do like applying eyeliner this way. However, I find it difficult to find a felt tip liner that's actually good. Some have too skinny of a point, some dry out too quickly, some tips aren't stiff enough, etc. I'm happy with this one! After I apply it in the morning before work, it stays put. I like that it has a thicker tip, allowing me to do the Adele-like wings that I'm rocking today =) The only thing that I think could be improved upon, is I wish the formula was a bit blacker. I like my liner super black, and this one is just ehh black. You guys know what i'm saying right? Otherwise, it's great. It also claims to contain lash boosting serum...I mean, i'll take every little bit of lash growth I can get!

Flirt! All that Lash mascara

I believe I blogged a while back about the amazing skincare and makeup products at Kohl's. I know, Kohl's right? I was shocked too. A friend gifted me this mascara and I've been using it daily! I ran out of my usual MAC Haute and Naughty, but decided to stick with this Flirt mascara for now and try something new. I love the formula, and the brush is nice a fluffy giving you that thickening/dramatic look.

What do you guys think? Hope everyone has a kick ass weekend and enjoys the St. Patrick's Day festivities!

Gwen Stefani Awesomeness

L'Oreal just posted this photo of Gwen Stefani on their facebook page, and I think she looks bitchin! Gwen is the face of L'Oreal's new hair color line Superior Preference Les Blondissimes.

Aside from the Photoshop job being a bit liberal, I really adore the makeup they chose for her. It's a much softer, prettier princess Gwen vs. the usual black liner and red lip. Plus - her hair color is amazing! Ms. Stefani has come a long way from her No Doubt days huh? =)

Magnetic Nail Polish - The Aftermath

Pretty cool right?! Granted my manicure skills need some serious help, I really like the concept of this polish. A friend gave me this Nails Inc Magnetic Polish in Whitehall. She looked at it and said "I don't know what to do with this, but i'm assuming you would." Gladly, I accepted the free polish and went to work last night.

I applied to two coats, and let dry. Then, I applied a 3rd coat, and after each nail I hovered the magnet over the wet polish and it made this bitchin design! The first hand I did was a little all over the place - I was still getting used to the technique. The above photo is the second hand I did, and I think I started to get the hang of it. I was also a doofus and accidentally kept touching the magnet to my wet nail and had to reapply - ahhh!

I think the key to success is hovering the magnet over each nail as soon as you paint it. Each nail came out with a different design, but I think it looks kinda cool that way - similar to crackle or shatter polish. I want to try to again and do a better job since I think I got the hang of it now =)

What do you guys think?! Hope everyone had an awesome weekend!

Physician's Formula - You Have Officially Wowed Me

I’ll be honest – I never really gave the brand Physician’s Formula a chance. I would glance at the drab packaging and products and pass it on by. WELL, let me tell you honey, things have DEFINITELY changed for this brand! They have such new, amazing products with great packaging - they scream pretty, young and fun.

To put this in perspective for you – I went from owning nothing from PF, to purchasing FOUR different items at Ulta the other night! Now, you might be thinking – well yeah, it LOOKS nice. But how are the actual products? The answer: FIERCE. Below are the reviews for two lippies – one a lip gloss, the other a lipstick. Let me know what you think!

Gorgeous little guys!

This is Physician's Formula's "pH Matchmaker gloss." It claims to react to the light and your body's pH to achieve your perfect lip color. And it really is awesome! Not only is the color brilliant, it was extremely long lasting for a lip gloss. I couldn't believe that it was still intact hours later. It kind of reminds me of Benefit's O-Glow, but honestly I like this pH gloss a ton better. Still need a reason to get this gloss? See next photo below.

It comes with a light!!!! Not only is this super cool looking, but it's actually very helpful. In a dimly lit room, makeup application proves to be challenging. The light points directly to your lips while applying, allowing flawless application. Seriously so awesome (and a little too much fun to play with at times).

Aaaand here it is!! I really do love the color. Upon purchasing, I didn't read the package first so I didn't know that the color would change in 60 seconds. The result (and my confused expression) was probably hilarious when I looked in the mirror again to find this intense pout.


Next lippy! This is PF's Glow and Mood Boosting lipstick. This one surprised me too - the texture was awesome, I adore the color and it lasted a long time without being drying or feathery.

A little heart in the middle, so cute!

BAM!! PINK!! I was pleasantly surprised with how much color this lipstick delivered. I also really love the texture - it's more of a balm than a lipstick feel, which kicks ass. It's a nice shade for every day wear!

What do you guys think? xoxo

L'Oreal Infallible Lipstick in Forever Fuchsia - 10 Hour Claim

My brother, me and my boyfriend at a family party this weekend!

I absolutely LOVE the color of this lipstick! I really have been trying to go outside of my comfort zone lately (see the Tom Ford lipstick in earlier post) so I didn't want to just pick a baby pink shade like I always do. I've worn this lipstick ALL weekend, so I feel I can give it a proper review in terms of texture, long wearing capability, shade, etc.

In terms of it being a 10 hour lasting lipstick, I don't think that's the case. Don't get me wrong, it did last for HOURS, but I think 10 hours is a bit of a stretch. I had to touch it up a lot less than other lipsticks which I liked. The texture was a little on the dry side, but that's to be expected with long wearing lipsticks. If the texture isn't creamy enough for you, I'd suggest just throwing a clear lip gloss on top of it. As I said before, I really do adore the shade! I don't really own a fuchsia lipstick so it was a nice change for me. I kept my eye makeup simple - one day just a touch of mascara, the other day a thin strip of black liner - because I really wanted the lipstick to stand out.

All in all, I like this lipstick. Though it didn't withstand the 10 hour claim for me, it lasted for a long time without feathering or flaking. I might go pick up another shade muahaha.

Hope everyone had an amazing weekend!! xoxo

Beauty Mistakes that Turn Men Off

I saw this article on Allure.com and got a giggle out of it, thought i'd share. Here is a summary of what "turns men off" beauty-wise:

• Fragrance overload
• Caked-on foundation
• Overdone eyelashes (clumpy mascara, big false lashes, etc)
• Dry skin
• A sloppy shave
• Yellow-tinged teeth
• Sticky lipgloss
• Orangey self-tanner
• Stiff hair
• Smokey eye overload
• Bold lipstick
• Hair add-ins (feathers, colored extensions, etc)
• Neon, dark or patterned manicures

What do you guys think? I think most of these are common sense, but a few did surprise me. My boyfriend loves when I do a smokey eye so I guess that doesn't apply to me haha. I have colored red extensions and he doesn't seem to mind them, so scratch that one too. I didn't think nail color was a big deal, so that one is kinda weird also right? I think everything else is pretty on point though.

What do you dolls think? Does your man have issues with all of the above?