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Author Archives: Karen
Christmas Morning Dress
| DETAILS |
BANANA REPUBLIC Ruffle Sleeve Dress | H&M Black Tights | ELAINE TURNER Dress Booties (similar | similar) | GIGI NY Magenta Clutch | BAUBLEBAR c/o Venette Drops, Pave Links Bracelet | Nails: ESSIE c/o Oh Behave | Lips: MAC Craving
I always loved picking out my Christmas dress as a kid. We would get to pick out the prettiest dresses with some combo of velvet, satin, tulle, and lace. Of course, for many years, my sister and I were forced to buy matching dresses. We would have our Christmas photos in them and wear them to church on Christmas morning. It was a very special occasion that required a very special dress.
Even though many years have passed since my sister and I wore our matching red and white dresses to Christmas mass, I still like to occasionally buy a nice new Christmas morning dress. These days I look for one that I can wear to the office or a holiday party too.
The ruffle sleeve and dot print on this navy dress took me back a bit to that Christmas dress memory. It was that something special that made it not just some ordinary work dress, but a perfect Christmas morning church dress. Now that we are finally starting to get some cool weather, I figured my go to black tights were the perfect match for this outfit. When I wear black tights, I almost always grab for these dress booties.
I wanted to also create a look that could work for an office holiday party, so I grabbed these gorgeous berry statement earrings and clutch to add some fun color to the overall look. You could also pair this dress with a pair of nude heels and continue to wear it year round.
SHOP THE LOOK
Holiday Gift Guide for the Beauty Lover
| DETAILS |
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: Fresh Mask and Face Wash Kit | Kiehls Mask Set | Tula Starter Kit | Mario Badescu Anti Aging Kit
MAKEUP OBSESSED: Anastasia Eye Palette | MAC Lipstick Set (25% off) | MAC Eyeshadow Palette | Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual (currently reading!) | Bobbie Brown Eye, Cheek, and Lip Palette
MANI PEDI TIME: The Body Shop Peppermint Foot Scrub | Essie Holiday Collection | Lulu 18 Pack Nail Polish Set
BIG HAIR DON’T CARE: T3 Curling Wand | Drybar Texas Tease Set | Best of Sephora Hair Masks
BRUSH LOVE: Sigma Brush Cleaning Mat | It Cosmetics Glitter Brush Set | Sigma Eye Brush Set
Happy Friday! Today’s gift guide is filled with gift ideas for the beauty lover in your life. The holidays bring out gift sets galore when it comes to beauty products. If you know someone’s favorite brand(s), check around online to see if they offer a best of or travel set. Gift sets are also a great way to try out that brand you have had your eye on too. Many gift sets include 3 or more products at a discounted rate.
This beauty gift guide mainly consists of things I have and love or want. When it comes to makeup brushes, It Cosmetics and Sigma are two of my favorites. Their brushes help apply eye shadows and foundation flawlessly! I own this brush cleaning mat and love it. It really deep cleans my brushes, and I think it makes it a little more fun.
Makeup palettes are such a fun gift. I LOVE eyeshadow palettes! I have heard rave reviews about this Anastasia one. It has some great warm earth tone colors in it which are my favorite. I just started reading the makeup manual. It would be so perfect for someone just learning makeup or wanting to expand their routine. It talks about EVERYTHING from skincare and supplies to application.
A few beauty gifts I think you can never go wrong with, skincare and nail care. Don’t we all want to look younger with flawless nails. 🙂 I have been wearing the Essie Holiday Collection on the blog lately. I love how rich the colors are in this line. Plus, most of them only needed one coat. Of the skincare products, I have tried all but one and love them. I have heard Mario Badescu products are AMAZING, so I had to include a set.
Recently, I fell in love with hair masks after I did this one. I saw my bestie the next day, and she quickly commented on how fab my hair looked that day. This set will probably makes it way to my wish list, because now I want to try ALL the hair masks. I have never tried this curling wand, but everyone who uses it talks about how fabulous it is and how your curls last all day. It’s pricey, so definitely a splurge gift idea.
Hopefully this guide has given you some good ideas. You can always find more holiday gift ideas HERE or under the Holiday Shop tab on my menu bar. I hope you all have a great weekend, and I will see you back here on Monday! Thanks so much for stopping by!
SHOP THE GIFTS + MORE
Lace Holiday Dress
| DETAILS |
BB DAKOTA Lace Dress (comes in 10 other colors too!) | STEVE MADDEN Proto Heels | GIGI NEW YORK All in One Bag | BAUBLEBAR c/o Astolat Drops , Pinnacle Cuff | Nails: ESSIE c/o Ready to Boa | Lips: NYX Staycation
I seriously cannot believe that tomorrow is December and officially the Christmas season! The holiday season also means time for holiday parties. I can’t wait! I have some really fun holiday celebrations on my calendar already. Even though December gets a little crazy busy, I love that it is filled with friends and family time. Not too shabby of a way to end the year.
If you are heading to a dressier Christmas party, this lace holiday dress would be perfect for you! It comes in 11 COLOR OPTIONS, so you are bound to find the perfect one. Plus, it’s under $100 and would also be great to wear to weddings year round. I picked this dark teal because I thought it would be fun to do a play on Christmas colors. The red earring and teal dress pair perfectly together. You could also do a dark hunter green with a berry pink earring to reverse the color play.
For those of you in colder temperatures, you can easily pair this dress with black tights and black heels for a slightly warmer outfit. Since this dress was lace and a crew neckline, I opted out of a necklace with this look. If you wanted to wear one, I would go with something short and delicate that will not easily catch on the lace design.
If you want more holiday style inspiration, I have collected lots of different ideas HERE. Remember it can take 7-10 days for the regular shipping, so be sure to order soon if you need any holiday gear. You can find this page all month long under the special Holiday Shop tab on the menu bar too. I will be back to gift guides this Friday, so be sure to stop by and check it out! As always, thanks for stopping by the blog.
SHOP THE LOOK
Red Christmas Sweater + The BEST Cyber Monday Sales
SANCTUARY Red Sweater | DL1961 c/o Black Skinny Jeans (40% off) | CORSO COMO Black Riding Boots (similar & on sale) | STREET LEVEL Reversible Tote | KENDRA SCOTT Skylar Earrings (20% off) | BAUBLEBAR Pave Links Bracelet (25% off) | Nails: ESSIE c/o Ready to Boa | Lips: NYX Staycation
Happy Cyber Monday!! I made this post two parts – an outfit for those of you so over all the sale info and a HUGE sales list for those of you still looking for all the great deals. But first, let’s talk about this outfit.
This sweater popped up in the “things you might like” section when I was looking at another item, and I was immediatly smitten with it. From a distance, this sweater almost looks solid red, but up close and personal you see the cool black and red striped details. I knew this would be the perfect red Christmas sweater, if the weather allows. It was freezing the morning, I took these photos, so I can say with confidence that this sweater will keep you warm. It’s a pretty thick sweater and oh so cozy!
Since I lean more towards comfy, cozy on holidays, I styled this sweater with boots and jeans. For something a bit dressier, I would go with leather leggings and my lace up heels. The funnel neck on this makes it hard to pair with a necklace, so I went with cute drop earrings instead. I also added my sparkliest bracelet to add a little glam to the look.
SHOP THE LOOK
Now to Part 2 of today’s post, all the sales! What I love about Cyber Monday is that many of the sales are sitewide and many retailers offer Free Shipping for the sale. Most of my Black Friday purchases were for me 🙂 , but I plan to do more gift buying today. Well probably a little more for me too… #shoppingaddict
The sales are divided up by category, so you can easily find the sale to fit your gifting or personal needs. I also listed some of the items I have purchased for myself so far. My favorite personal purchase is these lounge/work out pants. I bought my first pair during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2015, and I wear them all the time around my house. I have been dying for a 2nd pair, so when I found them on sale again it was an immediate add to cart! I picked up this cardigan too. It’s not on sale, but the size and color combo I wanted finally came back in stock. YAY!
Happy Shopping Ya’ll and thanks for stopping by today!
WHAT I’VE BEEN BUYING DURING BLACK FRIDAY/ CYBER MONDAY
CYBER MONDAY SALES
FASHION
AG JEANS – 30% off sitewide with code BF16
AMERICAN EAGLE – 40% off sitewide & 50% off all sweaters, shoes and cozy accessories + FREE SHIPPING
ANTROPOLOGIE – 20% off full priced items with code STACKS
ASOS – 30% off sitewide with code THANKFUL30
BANANA REPUBLIC – 50% off sitewide
CHICWISH – 25% off sitewide
EXPRESS – 50% off sitewide + FREE SHIPPING
FRANCESCA’S – 30% off sitewide
H&M – 20-30% off full priced items + FREE SHIPPING
LAST CALL AT NIEMAN MARCUS – Up to 80% off sitewide + FREE SHIPPING with code CYBER
LOFT – 50% off everything + FREE SHIPPING with code CYBERMONDAY
MACYS – Extra 20% off with code CYBER
MODCLOTH – 30% off sitewide with code CYBER16 + FREE SHIPPING
NORDSTROM – Extra 20% off select items + Price Matches other Sales + FREE SHIPPING
REVOLVE – 20% off Final Sale with code CYBER20
SHOPBOP – Spend $200+, get 15% off; Spend $500+, get 20% off; Spend $800+, get 25% off with code GOBIG16
SHOES & HANDBAGS
GIGI NEW YORK – 15-35% off sitewide
HENRI BENDEL – 30% off sitewide with some items up to 60% off
SOLE SOCIETY – 30% off sitewide
TORY BURCH – 30% off $250 purchase with code THANKS
WORKOUT WEAR
ATHLETA – 20% off purchase with code RECHARGE
CARBON 38 – Extra 20% off sale with code EXTRA20
DANSKIN – 30% off sitewide
LUCY – 30% off everything
SWEATY BETTY – 20% off everything
JEWELRY
BAUBLEBAR – 25% off 1 item with code SAVE25 or 35% off 2 or more items with code SAVE35 + FREE SHIPPING
CHARMING CHARLIE – 40% off jewelry + FREE SHIPPING
GORJANA – Spend $100, save $25
JULIE VOS – 20-35% off select styles
KENDRA SCOTT – 20% off sitewide with code SALE20 + FREE SHIPPING
BEAUTY
BIRCHBOX – Sales starting at 10% off
COLLEEN ROTHSCHILD – Discovery Collection on sale for $49 and all regular-priced skincare will be 30% off with code CYBER30
FOLICA – 30% off Sitewide PLUS 40% off Sedu and Solia with code NOREGRETS
IT COSMETICS – 20% off any $35 purchase with code ITSHINES35
MARIO BADESCU – 10-25% off sitewide + FREE SHIPPING
T3 – 25% off sitewide with code T3CYBER16
THE BODY SHOP – 50% off + FREE SHIPPING
ULTA – $10 off qualifying purchase, NYX 40% Off Eye Makeup, 25% off Ulta Holiday Collections, 50% off select It Cosmetics products, and 40-50% off more select items from Smashbox, Julep, Murad, Pur, Stila, Bare Minerals and more
HOME
CRATE & BARREL – 15% off purchase with code SAVE15
MINTED – 20% off $150+ on holiday, wedding, and all gifts with code BF2017
ONE KINGS LANE – Extra 20% off sitewide
POTTERY BARN – Select items marked down, 30% off stockings & ornaments + FREE SHIPPING with code SHIPFREE
SERENA & LILY – 25% off sitewide with code BESTEVER
THINGS REMEMBERED – 25% off sitewide with code A130
WAYFAIR – Up to 80% off select items
WILLIAMS SONOMA – 10-25% off your purchase + FREE SHIPPING with code SAVEMORE
WISTERIA – 25% off with code OURFAMILY
KIDS
DYLAN’S CANDY BAR – 25% off sitewide with code STOCKINGSTUFFER
GYMBOREE – 50% off entire purchase + $25 off $100 + FREE SHIPPING
H&M – 20-30% off
LAND OF NOD – 20% off purchase + FREE SHIPPING
PEEK KIDS – 25% off everything
