Pretty (&) Practical

Beauty without pain. Now there's a dream! Staying in shape: hurts! Getting that wax: hurts! You get my drift. Well I've got some good news not all pretty things have to hurt.  This my friends is a post dedicated to practical beautiful shoes. Hoorah!  It's no secret that I'm a fan of high high heels. It's no secret that I'm willing to handle a blister or two in the name of a fantastic pair of 5 inch pumps but sometimes you just need to give your tootsies a break and you just don't feel like wearing flats.  There are a few brands out there that I'm a big fan of and today I'm dedicating my post to Seychelles. They're unique, good quality, good price point and have a vintage glam feel to them. Oh and did I mention they're comfortable?

For those summer street festivals:
Candy from a baby, $90

For Sunday brunch:
Mixed emotions, $80

To add some funk to your look:

Aloof, $100

To take the stuffiness out of business casual:

Letter press, $83

For a twist on classic:

All dressed up, $71

To take your skinny jeans to the next level:

Ampersand, $98

What's your go to brand for stylish comfort?  And more importantly how am I going to pick which of these gets to come home with me. Decisions, decisions. 

xo's

-A

Hulk Smash.

Mostly, Hulk Smash because that's what came to mind when I saw my green face mask induced complexion.  So let's get on to business. What better way to unwind and treat yourself after a long day? Yes, a face mask.  It's affordable, easy and smells fantastic.  Here are two of my current favorites, both from Lush:

Brazened Honey by Lush $6.95

Ayesha by Lush $6.95

Brazen Honey really deep cleans your pores and if you have super sensitive skin it might be too much for you but it works wonders!  Ayesha smells amazing and is supposed to help smooth out fine lines. Nonetheless you get about 4 applications from each little jar. (If you save 5 empty jars you can trade them in for a free mask, score!) They expire quickly because it's all natural so you're almost forced into pampering yourself at the risk of wasting the mask. The instructions indicate that you should leave them on for 5-10 minutes but I usually keep it on 20 minutes or until it's totally dried.  Love.

Today I indulged in Ayesha.

Note the uncanny resemblance to the Hulk's green epidermis.  And now readers you've not only seen me without makeup but covered in green gunk. 

Happy Tuesday.

xo's

-A

Glitter Runs!

It's Sunday, the bittersweet part of the weekend when you're laying around blissfully. You've finally got the hang of this no work thing and then you remember tomorrow you have to get up for work. This was quite the busy weekend for me:  

• I worked Saturday. 
• Read two whole books.  Nothing mind shattering or award winning: Hush and Memoirs Aren't Fairytales: A Story of Addiction.  They were free downloads on my kindle.
• Finally got a real manicure, more on that later.
• Ran a 5k. My mom's first one!

Nothing exciting about work except that it was the day I got my mom some delicious cupcakes. They were homemade and amazing. See for yourself:

To the left is Banana and to the right Tropical Bliss.  If you're in the Chicagoland area I highly recommend CupcakesXO.

Neon Pink Glitter. Yea I went there.

There we go!  Finished the 5k like champs.

That's all for today. Happy Mother's Day to the mommas.

xo's,

-A

DIY Accent Reverse Moon Mani

Today I was feeling adventurous...
                            ...With my nails.
But still that counts right?
I had been getting no-chip mani's consistently for months and then all of sudden in February I stopped. My nails broke, they grew back, I bit them off as stress made that nasty little habit resurface and they are now finally back to a respectable length.

So on to the adventurous part.  I purchased one of the new China Glaze Hunger Games Collection polishes mostly because it was from the Hunger Games Collection. I know.  I loved the books so sue me.  I bought Fast Track:

Pretty right?

Well I then decided to go crazy and pair it with one of my favorite deep reds: Essie's Wicked:

Wicked right? ;p

I love accent nails so I decided to do a spin on a french mani with a reverse moon for an accent.  This is what I came up with:

Sorry poor picture quality but you get the idea right? 

My nails chip like it's their job so we will see how long this lasts.  It didn't take very long since I used the french manicure sticker guides:

Ta da!

That's it for tonight. Drop it in the comments if you've tried something fun with your nails recently. <3

xo's

-A

Lunch Stories

It's my lunch hour so I've decided to post about a particularly nice lunch event last week.  So everyone knows that Tuesday's are new markdown days at one of my favorite stores, Anthropologie. Well maybe not everybody but know you know.  I was eyeing a dress and I decided to stop in Wednesday to see if it was a taker (since it had been marked down). Dress didn't work. I was not happy with the material and the shoulders were too big but there is still a happy ending. Wendy, one of the girls that works at the Old Orchard store asked if I would be willing to fill out a mad libs style questionnaire about Anthro. I said sure, then she asked if they could take a pic of something I was trying on.  I was handsomely rewarded with a $50 gift card! So what did I spend my spoils of war on? Behold, Miss Albright Crest-Cut Wedges (Nicoise):

They were marked down to $79.99 from  $178, so I made out like bandit scoring these at $30!

I debuted them today. Love.

This is what I wore for the picture (sans earrings and purse but I thought that if I stepped out in this lovely look I would surely include them). All Anthro.  All beautiful.

Dakota Dress, $148

Paprika platform wedge heels, $188

Leather handbag, $598

Anthropologie 14k earrings, $38

Genuine leather belt, $48 

During this trip I added two lovely things to my wishlist:

Stacked Layers V-Neck

Flowering Magnolia Belt

Happy Monday!

xo's

-A

Inauguration...

I finally caved. I'm blogging.  I've been thinking about it for some time now and in the wake of 2012 I've realized there is so much I could be sharing.  It's hard to be original but it doesn't mean I won't try. In the end this is another blog from a girl for other girls about the daily things that make us smile, hopefully you will agree.  I will start my inaugural post by sharing some recent pretty happenings.  All of those in my header are involved.

One of my dearest friends is getting married in August. This was for her engagement party last week.

Meet my dad. Leaving a ceremony for one of the many 2012 weddings. I said smile, this is what I got. 

Roasted asparagus wrapped in prosciutto and chipotle gouda. My weekend creation.

A bundle of Asparagus. 

Cut stems. 

Lay on pregreased cookie sheet. 

Sprinkle olive oil, salt and pepper. 

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. 

Wrap each stalk in prosciutto. 

Lay cheese over and pop in the over for 60 seconds. 

Voila! 

Easy and delicious.

My favorite new pair of crazy shoes. They're about 2 weeks old but still. I think I'll name them Melony.

xo's

-A