Monday, February 28, 2011

My dressing room

playing dress up on New Years in my dressing room (we stayed home) LOL


So I am lucky in the fact that I have a dressing room in my house. Basically the dressing room is an extension of my closet plus a space for me to do my makeup, hair, all things girly so NO BOYS ALLOWED!
In my new house my dressing room is still not complete and it is driving me nuts!! I still have a lightbulb in the ceiling LOL! In all my other dressing rooms I always had a ceiling fan (comes in handy when it gets hot from all the lights doing your makeup OR when it gets hot from blowdrying your hair) BUT in this house I decided I want a black chandelier and just haven't decided on one yet. 

I've always had a dressing room, well as long as I've been with my husband I have. Basically when we dated 10 years ago and I moved in with him in his condo I got the guest room closet since there wasn't any room in the master closet, which worked out fine with me cause then I would basically just take over the whole guest room since he never had it set up a guest room anyway. 

10 years ago my first 'dressing room' consisted of all my clothes in the guest room closet and one of those mirrors you would hang on the back of a door leaned up against the wall on the floor and bed tray table infront of it with my makeup kit on one side and my blowdryer and hair stuff on the other. I would sit in the floor and do my makeup, hair, ect the rest of the room was all storage for his 'crap' LOL

Oh how times have changed ; )
In our new house there is actually a his and hers master closet and my closet ended up meeting back to back with one of the guest room closets so my husband cut a hole thru the wall which conjoined the two so now I have a closet that leads into my 'dressing room' it's pretty awesome! I still have LOTS to do, it's no where near what I want it to look like but it's a work in progress. I still have ALOT of decorating to do in the whole house and as much as I would like it to be a priority it's not! I've had my husband put up shelves, take down, patch the holes, put back up, take back down, patch new holes sooooooo many times it's pretty ridiculous honestly. I ended up putting up all my old modeling posters, calendars ect and plastered them all over the walls thinking what the hell otherwise they just rot in boxes, well honestly now I am so over looking at them I am going to take them down and back in the boxes they go LOL! For some reason I'm just not feeling this new room as much as I was my old one.

In our last house my dressing room was on the other side of the house. We had his and her master closets in that house as well but just not nearly as big so the closet in the master I kept all my casual everday clothes and all my sneakers and flipflops then in my dressing room I kept all my nicer going out stuff, it's where I did my makeup and hair. I even had a couch, tv and a laptop in there so it was my little hangout. Eventually ended up cramming in a sewing table, sewing machine ect....which made it really tight but I still loved it! Here's some pics of my last dressing room in my old house...

I took off the closet doors so it was open and had my husband make me the mirror with all the lights around it for doing my makeup!
Cheap black and white shelving on the wall for all my heels


  
The mirror with the lights was glued on the wall so thank God the couple we rented the house the wife LOVED my room and kept it like that ; )



I decided in the new house instead of glueing something on the wall like that again incase I ever want to change it (I am constantly rearranging things like furniture and stuff, have been since I was a teenager) so I found this from Vanity Girl a while back and ordered it.

It cost $399, here is the link where I bought it, they have a couple different styles and options too http://www.vanitygirlhollywood.com/


To be HONEST though I am missing my old mirror and set up and think I am going to have to cave and fess up to the hubs and let him know how I'm feeling. (He didn't really want to buy it in the first place and was wanting to do the same thing like in the old house but I kept insisting...uh dang I hate when he's right) 




Anyway as I said my room is no where near done and I am going to be changing ALOT of things but for now here is a couple pics

old pic from 4 months ago
I was sitting on the floor trying to envision it all on a blank canvas, blank canvas cause as you can maybe see the hubs removed everything besides the tv from the wall for the millionth time and patched all the holes AGAIN ......  

Then put up all these calendars, posters, ect...which are coming down asap!


New pics to come.....it's a work in progress...hopefully by summer I'll have it done!

There is this cute website for decorating and everything is pretty cheap, I have yet to order anything from them but figured I would share ; ) I'll let you know if I do though
www.wakeupfrankie.com click on the decorating tips tab for cute fun DIY ideas too


Anyway I was on www.urbanoutfitters.com the other night and came across this...I LOVE IT! Not that you would really pack it up and take it somewhere but hey if you wanted you could! It cost $500 but I think it's great. Perfect for a corner in a master bedroom too. I totally understand not many people have an extra bedroom to transform into a dressing room so make a little section in your master and if you had to drape it off drapes or even a room divider!




















Ok that's enough for me and dressing rooms, the new Bethany Ever After is coming on!

Nighty Night

Jamie xx

Manac Monday! Let's get physical... physical!

So I was trying to think of a post to do this morning for Manac Monday and since I woke up singing 'Let's get physical..physical' for some unknown reason I thought maybe I would do something on 'getting physical', I checked YouTube for a video of what I had been singing all morning and this is what I found...




I have nothing else to say!! Ba hahahahahahahahahaha


Happy Monday ya'll


Jamie xx

Friday, February 25, 2011

Polka dots! Leopard!

On way to a charity event for the Boys and Girl Club! 


Having a thing for polka dots lately and gotta love some leopard!


Top H&M
Jeans William Rast
Clutch H&M

RMS Beauty = AMAZING!

All I can say is WOW! 
I got my package from RMS Beauty yesterday afternoon and am still in a little bit of shock of how AMAZING this stuff is. I mean like I've said before I have acne prone skin and the thought of putting coconut oil on it had me skeptical.
Yesterday by the afternoon my face was looking pretty greasy and gross so I decided to take a shower before going to hot yoga. I used the coconut oil to remove my makeup and WOW right after using it my skin already looked amazing, then after showering I used the lip and skin balm on my lips and around my eyes and again AMAZING then not that I wanted to put on any makeup before yoga BUT I couldn't resist trying the concealer/foundation and again AMAZING!!! 
Even at yoga my friend Lindsay said "OMG what have you been doing to your face, your skin looks amazing!" 
Then this morning again used everything and WOW I really still am in shock how awesome my skin looks right now.
I was gonna make a video on the application process and what I did this morning BUT when I did one the day you couldn't even see the difference in the camera of before and after I did my makeup so I will have to mess around with the lighting. Videos coming soon!


Anyway since I LOVE having parties I think I'm going to have a party and invite all you girls so you can see this stuff for yourself AND all my other crap LOL
Drinks, dinner, chit chat...I always love girls night!


www.rmsbeauty.com = AMAZING!


Jamie xx

Thursday, February 24, 2011

My journey to a less toxic beauty regimen..first off the list..PARABENS!!!



Today I made the decision that I am going to eliminate 95% of parabens from my life. 
After everything I have learned about our cosmetics and how toxic they truly are how could I not want to do this. 
I have come across some AMAZING websites in the last week. Alot about natural organic 'paraben free' products. Not the ones that claim to be but really aren't either.
Did you know that companies can put "Paraben Free" on the label even if they are not?! It's nuts...even if it says "Paraben Free" on the label you still need to check the ingredients unfortunately.


In case you're not even sure what the hell a paraben even is..... here is the scoop!

The National Organic Program prohibits chemical preservatives in products that are labeled "organic." So what are chemical preservatives such as methyl, propyl, butyl and ethyl parabens doing in personal care products labeled "organic?"
There are many delightful organic foods that contain no preservatives. Read the labels on your organic honey, maple syrup, vinegar, olive oil, sugar, raisins, peanut butter and wine. These foods are considered by the FDA to be "self-preserving" and contain no preservatives. This means that, because of certain inherent qualities, these foods are naturally stable and not overly susceptible to contamination from bacteria.
Organic herbal medicinal tinctures made from high quality organic herbs and organic grain alcohol are shelf-stable for around two to three years. True castile soap, liquid or bars, has an excellent shelf-life of up to eighteen months or longer and requires no preservatives. Wouldn´t you prefer body care products that are fresh (like the food you eat) rather than several years old?
A self-preserved 100% organic moisturizing body oil made from organic sunflower oil, organic cocoa butter, organic coconut oil, organic peppermint oil and organic spearmint oil can have a shelf-life of up to 18 months.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in their report "Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment: Agents of Subtle Change?" reported that the chemical preservatives called parabens—methyl, propyl, butyl and ethyl (alkyl-p-hydroxybenzoates)—displayed estrogenic activity in several tests. This means that these chemicals mimic your body´s own hormones and can have endocrine-disrupting action when they are rubbed into your body or washed down the drain into your drinking water. These disruptors interfere with your body´s endocrine system: your hypothalamus, your ovaries, your thyroid—virtually every system in your body. The EPA also stated that "continual introduction of these benzoates (parabens) into sewage treatment systems and directly to recreational waters from the skin leads to the question of risk to aquatic organisms."Scientists in Europe found other endocrine-disrupting body care chemicals in the bodies of fish that humans are eating, and in human breast milk.
Dr. Elizabeth Smith has written that "It is a known medical fact that estrogen stimulates breast cancer" and that "anything absorbed through the skin may be as high as 10 times the concentration of an oral dose." (Think about how nicotine and birth control/hormone patches work—the chemicals are absorbed through the skin!) She also reported that, in one study, a paraben was injected under the skin and was found to have an "estrogenic response on uterine tissues." Scientists observing these harmful effects on the uterus remarked that "it is suggested that the safety in use of these chemicals should be reassessed."
Endocrine disruptors are transported into the body, daily, via absorption through the skin and hair follicles when using personal care products. Now that we know that we absorb toxins through our skin, isn´t it important that body care products that claim to be organic should be as pure as the organic foods that we eat?


Luckily I came across www.beautytruth.net and learned some more on the subject. Please take a minute to check out the site. This lady Rose Marie Swift started a 'real' organic line of beauty products (RMS) that I ordered a few things earlier in the week that I can't wait for them to get here. Fingers are crossed that I end up LOVING them! I will of course let you know as soon as I've tested them out a couple times. I ordered the raw coconut cream (used as a makeup remover, moisturizer for really dry areas AND can even be used as a deoderant), concealer/foundation and the lip and skin balm. I'm really hoping I love the concealer/foundation and can work with it cause yes my fav tinted moisturizers have parabens in them ; / (which by the way I'm not throwing them out or anything and will use them at times I 'really' need to i.e date nights..unless however the RMS stuff is just as good if not better)

Another great line I recently discovered and got a few things from already is http://www.persephenie.com/ so far so good, they feel amazing on the skin. Here is what I got 
She included a few samples of some of her other products too
I especially LOVE the organic body balm, it's the SHIT!

I plan on replacing MOST of my products and will be filling you in on the process. Which by the way I already use a natural deoderant and have been for over a year, best thing I ever did! Way better than the regular stuff, just gotta get use to it. 
I will do a post on that another time ; )

Here is another article that came out today from The Huffington Post about the toxins in our cosmetics! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/estelle-hayes/chemicals-in-cosmetics_b_826191.html

Here are two other sites I am LOVING with all natural products and they have blogs too that are  awesome 



Christy Coleman, a natural beauty expert has an awesome blog as well


Peace and Love,


Jamie xx

Eyelashes



If you want longer thicker darker eyelashes you have a few different options to chose from. 
You can apply the fake ones that will last for a day.
You can get eyelash extensions that will last up to 90 days.
Or you can apply something like Latisse to your eyelashes and have them grow which will last as long as you use it.


I actually have naturally pretty long thick eyelashes. When I use to model some makeup artist wouldn't even put on fake lashes on me cause they didn't think I needed them. I would have to pout about it to get them to put them on! In my opinion no eyelashes can be too long...the bigger the better haha.


As for applying fake eyelashes on myself..IMPOSSIBLE! I have tried a million times and never had the greatest success. Alot of my friends do it and make it look so easy but for me some reason I just can't get it down. Plus if not done correct they can irritate your eyes the entire night....which for me is so not worth it!


Eyelash extensions....I actually had them done before my wedding. Like BIG ASS CRAZY ones! I loved it! Everywhere I went people were like OMG your eyelashes! 
But the only problem with those are...they are expensive and once they start to fall out it isn't so cute, it's not like they all fall out at once so sometimes you will have a big gap bald spot and it sucks. Plus you aren't suppose to really get them wet and excessive sweating is a no no. So showering and washing your face was always kinda a pain and no hot yoga, steam rooms or swimming! They claim to last up to 90 days but in my experience they lasted a few weeks and started to fall out, once some are missing they look wack so....it ran me about $1200 for my initial application then 2 refills in a total of about 5 months. Plus you can't wear your regular mascara or eyeliner and can't use your normal eyemakeup remover so they end up getting you with buying there 'special' products which I did and never even ended up really using them because I didn't think did anything! Basically it's EXPENSIVE!


Then there is products like Latisse! I honestly never cared for longer eyelashes that bad, I mean the commercial kinda makes you think when it list off all the side effects like ah I don't think I want risk that. So I never really looked into it!


Well my cousin was wanting to kinda try it. By the way you need a prescription for Latisse or have to get it from a doctor and it's pretty expensive (like $100+ I think)
So she did some research on it and found it online for less than $20 with no prescription!!
It wasn't Latisse the brand name but it was the same thing (exact same ingredients). 
She bought it! I honestly kinda thought she was crazy, trying something she bought online and knew no one else who had tried it PLUS I think it comes from Asia AND it's your friggin eye! But she did and used it every night like your suppose to and sure enough in 2-3 months her eyelashes were soooooooooo long, thicker and darker. It was nuts! I really couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was my birthday at the time so she asked if I wanted to try it and that she would buy it for me for my birthday, so I said sure!
I've been using it since Thanksgiving and I don't notice anything CRAZY like she did BUT they are a bit longer! 
So if you want longer thicker lashes this is the way to go......


This is the stuff

You put it on once a day (I do it at night before bed) with a brush like you would eyeliner, right on your lash line. It doesn't come with a brush. 
This one I just happened to have, it was tiny paint brush.


Here is the website where you buy it from. The more you buy the cheaper it is. I still haven't used my whole bottle and it's been almost 3 months. Which by the way it takes 2-3 months to work! They refer to the bottle on the website as packets. So basically you'll be paying anywhere from $16-$20 for a bottle that will last atleast 3 months and make your eyelashes grow like crazy ; ) 
Anyway here is the link.
http://www.unitedpharmacies.com/customer/product.php?productid=1001


You'll have to thank my cousin Carrie for this one ; )


Jamie xx

New hat!

New hat I got at H&M in Barcelona ; ) 





Don't remember how much it was but everything in H&M is pretty cheap so I'm assuming less than $25!


Jamie xx

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Cheers!


Juice:
small bunch of organic italian parsley
4 stalks of organic lacinto kale
3 stalks of organic celery
1 organic fuji apple

Then blended in blender with:
2 oz of George's Aloe Vera Juice
1 teaspoon of royal jelly powder
1 scoop of Boku Super Protein
1 scoop of Boku Super Food

YUM! 



I have a Breville juicer and blender that I LOVE! 
I put them both in 'My Store' 
with the Boku Super Protein & George's Aloe Vera Juice


Reasons to Juice

Juicing helps you absorb all the nutrients from the vegetables. This is important because most of us have impaired digestion as a result of making less-than-optimal food choices over many years. This limits your body's ability to absorb all the nutrients from the vegetables. Juicing will help to "pre-digest" them for you, so you will receive most of the nutrition, rather than having it go down the toilet.

Juicing allows you to consume an optimal amount of vegetables in an efficient manner. If you are a carb type, you should eat one pound of raw vegetables per 50 pounds of body weight per day. Some people may find eating that many vegetables difficult, but it can be easily accomplished with a quick glass of vegetable juice.

You can add a wider variety of vegetables in your diet. Many people eat the same vegetable salads every day. This violates the principle of regular food rotation and increases your chance of developing an allergy to a certain food. But with juicing, you can juice a wide variety of vegetables that you may not normally enjoy eating whole.



; )

Jamie xx

Probiotics


Probiotics.....for someone like myself who has been constipated since I was little they are vital, they help keep things moving if ya know what I mean ; ) That's not all they do though....


Best and easiest definition/description of probiotics I found on the internet:


In lay terms, probiotics are the healthy bacteria that inhabit your intestines and, many believe, form the basis of general health and wellness including digestion and immune function. These "friendly bacteria" go by such names as acidophilus and L. reuteri. Supplementing with them helps balance the overall ratio of good bacteria to bad bacteria. Supplementing with probiotics is particularly beneficial during and after the use of antibiotic drugs because the antibiotics kill off all bacteria in your gut and so it helps to repopulate yourself with good bacteria. 


How probiotics work


It may seem strange to think of the digestive tract as an external organ, but that’s precisely what it is. And unlike the skin, which is relatively impenetrable, the digestive tract is easily permeable, because nutrients must be absorbed through the small intestine into the body.
Seventy percent of our immune system function takes place in the gut, and one of the ways that probiotics work is through promotion of the integrity of the mucosal barrier, which is a direct physical barrier to pathogenic organisms.
In addition, by establishing colonies of good organisms in the gut—which plays host to hundreds of millions of organisms—probiotics help discourage less friendly organisms. They inhibit the growth of bacteria that otherwise the immune system would have to deal with. 
They out-populate the bad bacteria, steal their food and also make molecules that are absorbed by the body and that help strengthen the immune system.
They play a more vital role for certain populations, including the elderly, infants and those with autoimmune conditions, as well as those who have recently taken antibiotics. Infants and small children benefit from probiotics in ways that can affect them in the long term.

Even better

Probiotics are bacterial microorganisms that are well-known for their ability to alleviate certain internal issues, such as diarrhea, IBS and lactose intolerance. However, dermatologists and other skin experts have found that their benefits go beyond digestive health.

Since acne is partially caused by an overgrowth of bacteria, ingested probiotics help to treat blemish-prone skin by rebalancing bacteria in the stomach to create an overload of good bacteria. Topically, they provide protection against harmful bacteria, restore skin's balance, and build up skin's protective barrier and normal bacterial floral to help eliminate breakouts.

Eczema is believed to be caused by a skin imbalance that causes skin barrier dysfunction. Some dermatologists have found that probiotics improve eczema by aiding good bacteria and allowing them to continue releasing oxygen so skin breathes better, blood flows, and skin's balance is restored
.



Probiotics may even help fight the external aggressors that speed up aging. Destruction of skin's barrier due to factors like the sun, smoke and pollution leads to greater dispersion of harmful bacteria, which can cause inflammation, loss of elasticity, and ultimately, wrinkles. But probiotics can help improve moisturization, stimulate cell functions, regenerate mature skin so it becomes softer and smoother.

If you include probiotics in your beauty routine, you'll find that topical skincare products start producing results anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. Daily internal supplements can take weeks or months for a noticeable difference.

But don't be surprised if you feel better while you wait to see changes in your skin.



Since there isn't too many choices when it comes to foods with probiotics I take probiotic supplements. Yogurt is one of the most common foods that has probiotics and I'm not really a yogurt fan ; /


Probiotic supplements are to be kept in the refrigerator and taken on a full stomach, I take one in the morning  with breakfast and one at night with dinner. 
These are the 2 I like and take

A friend of mine gave me this probiotic granola bar the other day to try and it's great! I bought a few the other day, this is them


Anyway here are some more beneficial effects of probiotics


1. Increased nutritional value (better digestibility, increased absorption of vitamins and minerals);
2. Promotion of intestinal lactose digestion;
3. Positive influence on intestinal and urogenital flora (antibiotics and radiation induced colitis, yeast infections and vaginitis in women);
4. Prevention and reduction of intestinal tract infections (bacteria or virus induced, Candida enteritis, Helicobacter Pylori);
5. Regulation of gut motility (constipation, irritable bowel syndrome);
6. Decreased incidence and duration of diarrhea (antibiotic associated, Clostridium difficile, travelers, and rotaviral);
7. Maintenance of mucosal integrity;
8. Improvement of immune system;
9. Prevention of colon cancer;
10. Reduction of catabolic products eliminated by kidney and liver;
11. Prevention of osteoporosis;
12. Better development (growth);
13. Anti-carcinogenic, anti-mutagenic and anti-allergic activities;
14. Feeling of well-being;
15. Anti-Candida properties;
16. Hepatic encephalopathy;
17. Regulation of inflammatory conditions such as Inflamatory Bowel Disease (Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis);
18.Reductions and elimination of small bowel bacterial overgrowth;
19. Relieving urinary tract infections;
20. Positive influence on autistic children;
21. Provides antagonistic environment for pathogens;
22. Blocking adhesion sites from pathogens; and
23. Inactivating enteroto
xins.




Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Bag Borrow or Steal

So why buy an expensive designer bag when you can just borrow it!!
I've been a member of Bag Borrow or Steal for over 3 years, it's the best thing ever!! 


For instance this bag


To DIE for!

I borrowed last year for $110 per month. Keep in mind that bag from Louis Vuitton cost $2,250 and you can't even buy it in hot pink anymore.

Basically when you borrow a bag you can chose to either borrow it for a week or a month, a month ends up being a better deal AND you don't HAVE to return it in a month if you don't want to. So for instance that bag I borrowed for 2 months so it was $220.

YES all bags are real! And I've never gotten on that didn't look brand new! 
Personally I've never really even cleaned mine when I return it (they pay for the return shipping too) and I've never had a problem! 

You can purchase insurance if you want but I never have and like I said never had a problem and no I'm not extra careful with it or anything either! Designer bags can hold there own and last without much wear and tear from my experience. They automatically give you a $150 towards insurance just in case.

Plus I am pretty sure if they do get a bag that has been messed up they send it back to the designer for repair then sell it at a discounted price.

And before you return your bag if you LOVE it and don't want to return it you have the option to buy (steal) it a at discounted price. For instance I think I could have bought the above bag for $1500-$1600 and like I said it cost $2,250 and that color is no longer available.


Basically how it works is you sign up for a membership
$59.95 for 1 year
$19.95 for 3 months
$9.95 per month

TRUST ME the $59.95 for 1 year is the way to go PLUS when you sign up for 1 year they automatically give you back the $59.95 as a credit in your account. So say the first bag you rent is $100 for a month you'd only be paying $40.05

And every 10 dollars you spend you get a dollar in your account as a credit to use.
I've used a lot of credits from them AND today since I had to renew my membership I did the $59.95 for 1 year so I get that back AND I already had $$ in my account from them so now I have a total of $165.06 credit to use on something so basically I could rent that bag again for free and still have money left in my account to use.

They don't only have handbags, they have jewelry, watches and sunglasses too!

You don't HAVE to sign up for a membership but that only allows you the ability to rent certain stuff and for 20% more than you would if you had the membership.

With a membership you get .......

First notice of new arrivals + special offers

Wait List access (sometimes the bag you want will be borrowed by somebody else so you can go on the wait list if you want, then as soon as it comes available they send it to you, for instance the above bag I was on the wait list for and I thought it would be FOREVER before I ever got it, cause I thought whoever had it would never return it LOL but sure enough a few weeks later I had a huge package in the mail SURPRISE haha love it!)

Invitations to private sales 

And like I mentioned the 20% savings on all rentals and reward points (credit) if your a member!

Anyway I LOVE it and since I renewed today for the 4th time I figured I would share with you guys! If you want click here and check it out yourself or better yet..sign up!


Here is the designer index so you can see the designers they carry

HANDBAGS                                                          JEWELRY


SUNGLASSES                     WATCHES