Tic Toc

How do you spend your time? I saw a clip from the the Today Show where author, Laura Vanderkam, talked about her book '168 Hours'. It's basically about focusing on the 168 hours in a week rather than the 24 hours in a day. This can help you to better complete many of those tasks you have for yourself. You can actually visit her website my168hours.com to check out some of what she talked about and get the direct link of her interview on the Today Show.

My point though is, I really got a lot out of her short 3 minute interview. I know that I tend to get side tracked through out my day with FB, e-mails, cleaning, etc. and really, I know I can be more productive. Sometimes I tend to get frustrated with feeling like there is just not enough time to get things done for myself, and I realized yesterday that honestly, it is just how I am spending my time. That even goes with spending some extra time with my little sweeties. She is not trying to tell you to micromanage your time, but to really pay attention to how you spend your time, and re-evaluate what you can do differently to get those things, that are most important to you, done. I am really going to try to pay attention to what I do with my time this week, and re-adjust some things. I just wanted to encourage some of you fellow, motivated, inspired, goal achieving bloggers to do the same....if it's needed;) It's amazing what we are capable of accomplishing, but it's even more amazing at how easily side tracked we can get.

**You can also download a time log on her website where she encourages you to log your time, and how you spend it, for just one week...think I might try it!

Bendiciones!!!!

Oxox

Summer Easy

As I was Skyping with my sister yesterday, I noticed her super cute dress, which was just a short sleeve navy cotton dress belted at the waist with a chic dark brown belt. When I told her how cute she looked, she told me that she felt like wearing something easy to get in and out of and comfortable. Well, she not only had that, but she looked really good too. It got me thinking how perfect some summer dresses are for comfort, yet many of them still have you looking chic and put together. This too got me thinking that whether you are going somewhere with the kids (park, zoo, museum etc.), running errands, have a lunch date, or even work at home as my sister does, a summer dress is just the thing to wear in aiding you with some style and comfort. Take a look at some dresses from Forever21 and Layne Bryant to give you ideas for an easy, breezy fit, yet stylish as well. Even if you are not doing much, or just going somewhere with the kids, why not still feel cute?

all dresses can be found here forever21 and here laynebryant

Weekend is almost here.....

Oxox

Business Women

For those of you beginning your work week again, here are some ideas to give you as you kick your work week off. You'll see in many of the pics that ruffles have flowed right through Fall and graced us with their style through every other season as well....why stop with summer? Well they haven't, and I am still loving them. They add just a bit of class on a nice blouse. Makes it great for a work outfit.

all images found here: www.bananarepublic.com

Blessings!!!

Oxox

Summer Staples

Veranda Stripe Skirt I love my skirts, and a couple of my favs are definitely some summer time staples for me in my wardrobe. The reason why is that these pretty garments are great for when you are over wearing a pair of jeans or capri's, yet don't want to really wear a dress either. You can dress them up or play them down, yet still look put together, all by the tops you pair them with and the sandals you sport. They are also a great go-to item for showing off those newly bronzed legs, toned legs or just great pair of legs in general for summer time! Here are some lovely skirts to browse through and, hopefully, take some ideas for what to add to your summer wardrobe.

Bogetta Veneta, tie waist

Ritten House D&G, bow embroidered silk-satin

Lela Rose-black embroidered silk-organza

Angelic Pretty Dreamy by Doll House

I am a definite lover of the pencil skirt myself. This is definitely one of my staples in my wardrobe. I love to wear a pencil skirt with a chic ribbed tank and some pretty jewels. It's a nice casual, yet a little dressy, look. Great for so many different events.

RL Blue Label-Dustine Pencil Belt Skirt

Maxmara, Pencil Skirt

Karen Millen, Tailored Italian stretch cotton

Stillwater skirt by Ever

Pauw, Tulip crossover

Dries Van Nolten

Vivienne Westwood, Red Label

Carbon Dark Denim...denim is always a go to and so much you can pair with this skirt.

Karen Millen, Rose print










**Remember that you can find many skirts similar to these looks at stores such as Estampa, Studio F, Forever 21, Lane Bryant, Gap, Old Navy, Target, T.J. Max, Walmart, Dillards, Macy's and many more.

For any of you going on some summer vacas...have fun:)


Cuidate!!!

Oxox

Cream vs. Powder

Which do you prefer to use on your eyes? While most of us tend to think that the powder will last longer, crease less and appear less oily, it is quite the contrary. Cream eye shadows actually crease less and absorb less oil, looking more smooth and keeping that fresh look we want longer. This is especially true with warmer climates that tend to make us perspire more...... might think of switching it up to a cream shadow for the summer time!















Some recommendations....


Laura Mercier metallic creme eye colour. Starts at about $26.00

Revlon eye cream shadows for $6.49 which can be found @ Walgreen's

Nars cream eyeshadow starting at $22.00

Mac 12 palette cream shadows starting at $22.99















Of course there are many brands out there to try..... so why not if you haven't? Whether it's a cream or a powder shadow, go with the one that works best for you and looks best on those eyes.


Beauty on the inside....Surround yourself with people that are happy, positive and wiser than you. You'll tend to be in a happier mood more often, more goal driven, and constantly be learning more and growing more from some of their insight!

Happy Monday!!!!


Oxox

Check it...

Get My Fashion.com is a great site for those of us that are 30+ (or close +/- a few years) and want to wear something that has some style and some trend, yet is realistic in accordance with our age and lifestyles. They carry names such as: Sandwich Clothing, Great Plains, Farhi By Nicole Farhi, French Connection, Noa Noa Clothes, Jackpot Clothing, Out of Xile, Marilyn Moore, Avoca, Odd Molly, European Culture, Paige Jeans, Michael Stars, Saint Tropez Clothes, Yummie Tummie, Stewart + Brown, made, and Camper shoes.

Check it out here:

getmyfashion.com

** Remember to forget about the size when shopping and go for the fit. As women, we tend to focus on the 'number' rather than the fit. Who cares about the number? The way a garment fits you, and flatters you, is way more important, and appealing, than what the number says on the tag...something a little too snug is not always so attractive on the eyes.

Cuidate!!!!

Oxox

101.

Spring/summer time has many of us itching to change up our hair color, usually going lighter. Many of us get so caught up in wanting a color that we LOVE on someone else though, that we forget to choose a color that is going to look equally as good on our OWN face. The tone of your hair color can really alter your appearance for better or worse. Here is a great article for choosing the best color for you and your skin tone.

When choosing a hair color, the trick is to complement your skin tone in order to minimize flaws and bring out the best in your complexion. Picking the wrong shade can be a disaster for your overall appearance. It can make you look tired, sickly or unnaturally ruddy. Visiting The Early Show on Monday, stylist to the stars David Evangelista brought tips on hair coloring, which he demonstrated on three models.He says the first step is to determine if your skin tone is cool or warm. In general, you will have a cool skin tone if your hair is naturally bluish-black, dark brown, medium ash or golden blonde. Your skin will be pale, with pink or no undertones; medium, with pink, golden or no cheek color; very dark brown (some Latinas or African Americans); or true olive (Asian). Evangelista says "cool blues" do well with blue-red hair shades, such as burgundy, ruby, garnet, cherry or bordeaux.


You will mostly likely have a warm skin tone if your natural hair color is red, reddish or golden brown, deep brown, strawberry blonde or natural golden blonde. Your skin will be pale, with peach or gold undertones; brown, with pink, butterscotch, copper, caramel or golden undertones (some Latinas or African Americans); or freckled. "Warm yellows" do best with copper, cinnamon, ginger, russet and strawberry shades of red hair color, according to Evangelista.



Quick tip: Another way to figure out if you have a warm or a cool skin tone is to look at the veins in your arm. If they look blue, chances are you are a cool; if they have more of a greenish tint, you're probably a warm.



Warm/yellow/golden skin tone
The first model, Jackie, appeared with hair in a pretty shade of deep brown. Evangelista and Parvin Klein, head colorist at the John Barrett salon, thought the color looked flat and that it gave her skin a yellow tint. They decided to even out Jackie's skin with a flattering chestnut shade, and to add a few cinnamon highlights to bring a little red into her coloring, neutralize her yellow/sallow skin tone, and add some rich depth.

The result: Jackie's skin looks rosier and her hair looks rich and healthy.

General tips for warm/yellow/golden skin tones
*Try deep, rich base colors like dark golden brown, chestnut, mahogany or auburn

*Highlight with red, cinnamon or copper streaks



Cool/blue-red skin tone
The second model, Paige, looked fantastic when she came into the salon, but there was a definite blue/red tint to her cool-tone skin, especially under her eyes, and her hair color was a little drab. To counter the blue and red tones in her skin and to make her blue eyes stand out even more, the stylists decided to go with a deep, minky base color, which would cool off the pink in her skin. They also opted to add a slew of golden highlights to warm up the blue tint to her skin.

The result: Paige's skin looks more ivory or peaches-and-cream than red/blue, and her blue eyes stand out.

General tips for cool/blue-red skin tones
*Try intense shades of brown, red or blonde for base color
*Highlight with wheat, honey, taupe or ash shades that contrast base



Red, ruddy skin tone
When Abigail walked into the salon, two things stood out: her bleached blonde hair, and her ruddy skin tone. The platinum hair over-accentuated the rosy cheeks and looked artificial. Klein decided to weave a slew of deeper colors like honey and caramel throughout Abigail's hair and to add a few bright blonde highlights for pops of color.

The result: Abigail's new hair color dramatically cools down her skin tone and, though she's still a light blonde, it's a far more natural color than before.


General tips for red, ruddy skin tones:
*Avoid bright red tones, and don't over-bleach
*Cool ruddiness with beige, honey brown, golden or light coffee colors
By Polly Leider;CBS

Need some inspiration?
Blonde dimensions; you can definitely see a difference between the strawberry blonde Nicole is wearing (warmer) and even the gold in Scarlett's hair, compared to the more ashy, light blonde below. A little edgy...









Honey, caramel tones

copper and blonde hilites







Love the chocolate brown colors...

There really are so many different tones of red to play around with...

Tones really do make a difference in our appearance....you be the judge with these lovelies.

There are those few that really can pull off just about every shade and one of my favorites is Mrs. Parker; though I would have say that the soft medium to dark brown is my favorite on her...the last pic.

Feliz lunes y bendiciones!!!

Oxox