Back to Black

As I mentioned before, I have more of a casual classic style than anything else, and my favorite colors are also classic black and white.
When I put this black cardigan (from HauteLook) on for the first time, I immediately fell in love with it - it's classic, fitted, and lacy (although it's cotton). It's also quite thick, which means it will last longer. To add a pop of color to the outfit I chose to wear a simple coral top underneath, which also made the texture of the cardigan stand out.
I also wore my new Tacori bracelet as I felt like it would look nice on black.

Top- Mossimo, Cardigan - Dept, Jeans - Victoria's Secret, Bag - Calvin Klein, Shoes - no name

 

Haul: Clothes, Shoes, and Jewelry

I can't say that I buy clothes very often (not more than once a two or three-month period), but when I do, I prefer quality stuff. Too bad quality stuff is usually very expensive...But fortunately, when I came to the US I discovered two stores that sell quality things for cheap(er) - TJ Maxx and HauteLook. The former is just a chain store selling designer fashion and home items at discounted prices, whereas the latter is an online store with great daily deals on clothing, accessories, home decor, and other things of various brands.  These two stores have become my favorite, and whenever I decide to go shopping, I don't hesitate.
This last month has been fruitful in terms of shopping, so I want to share my happiness with you guys and show you what I got from those and some other stores:
 

This first crop cardigan is from HauteLook. It's 100% silk and the brand is Shu Shu. It originally cost $92, but I got it for only $23! This style fits loose, but still looks nice on, and I love all the embellishment it has!

This cardigan I bought in TJ Maxx - it was the only (or the last one) they had and luckily it was my size! It's by Juicy Couture and made of 100% merino wool. The original tag says it's $158, but I got it for $49.99. What a deal! It has bows at cutout shoulders and cuffs, which I really really love!

 This month can be called a "cardigan" month lol. Ok, this open knit cardigan is also from HauteLook and is by the brand called DEPT. Its original price was $138, but it was on sale for $35 there. I didn't expect the cardigan to be good quality just because the pictures on the site didn't show it well enough, but when it came in the mail I was pleasantly surprised how nice it really was. It's 100% cotton and has holes creating different patterns all over the cardigan. I'll show you what I mean in the next OOTD post.

 These tank tops are from Target, and they also were on sale for $6 each.

I had been wanting a neon swimsuit for a long time, and I was happy to find it at my local Victoria's Secret! I decided to go for non-matching pieces, which I think turned out different, but pretty.

 These shoes are from TJ Maxx. The ones on the left are by Etienne Aigner, the ones on the right- by BCBG.

I like the jewelry department at TJ Maxx as there you can find some amazing pieces at a low price. I wasn't planning on buying jewelry, but when I saw this cuff bracelet I couldn't resist, especially since it's by Tacori, my favorite brand of jewelry.

 It's platinum plated over sterling silver and has a unique lace design throughout the cuff with some CZs in the front and two oval canary yellow stones as endcaps. It was the only one in the entire store, so I'm glad that I got it! I was searching for more information about it online and found out that its full name is
Tacori IV Diamonique Epiphany Cuff Bracelet with Faceted Endcaps and that it's sold by QVC. Here's the link if you are interested: http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/view.2/app.detail/params.item.J156958.desc.Tacori-IV-Diamonique-Epiphany-Cuff-Bracelet-w-Faceted-Endcaps

Ok, that was a huge haul lol. If you live in the States and want to save some money on clothing and accessories, definitely check these stores out, if you haven't done so already. I just wish all countries had such great discount stores...

Thank you guys for reading and good luck on finding good deals on whatever you'll be shopping for next time!

My Neutral Eyeshadow Palettes: Inglot and UD Naked

I don't have very many eyeshadow palettes. Actually I think I have only three, which sounds like few, but I believe if they are quite big and if you truly like them, that's enough to create numerous looks. These two palettes are my favorite as I love all the neutral colors they have and the fact that they can be used for creating both, day and night looks.

Inglot 10 eyeshadow palette and Urban Decay Naked

The palettes are similar; however, I find that Naked is warmer in tone than my Inglot palette. I chose the colors of the latter myself as Inglot has a "freedom system," meaning that you can build your own palette of 2 to 20 colors.
The quality of the palettes is amazing. The colors are extremely pigmented and smooth in texture. However the texture of the Inglot eyeshadows is more buttery and softer than that of the Naked palette, which is a little drier, but still is silky smooth.

Urban Decay Naked palette swatches

 My favorite colors from the Naked palette are the first two from the left, and the third and the fourth from the right. I use them the most.

Inglot 10 neutral eyeshadow palette; left to right: # 409, 402, 342, 358, 387, 395, 397, 399, 420, 441

Here my favorites are #402, 395, 397, 399 and 420. I also use # 342  for my eyebrows.


And what are your favorite eyeshadow palettes? Do you prefer neutral or bright colors on your eyes?

Outfit of the Day

This week (or 99.9% of the year?) has been cold and rainy, which means that I can't wear all my nice summery clothes that I've recently bought. Heading for a walk, I chose comfortable shoes, jeans, and a warm cardigan. I'm not an expert at combining things, so I prefer simplicity and casual style, which help me to avoid mistakes. I paired the cardigan with a basic black tank top and a wide leather belt. As for accessories, I wore my everyday watch and a little black bag, which completed this black-and-orange look nicely.

Top - Melrose, cardigan - Ralph Lauren, jeans - Victoria's Secret, shoes - no name, bag - Calvin Klein, belt - no name, watch - Bulova

nailpolish - Wet n Wild - I Red a Good Book

I don't normally wear tons of makeup, so today I only wore light foundation (Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua,) bronzer (Too Faced Chocolate Soleil,) eyeliner (Stile Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner), mascara (Diorshow Extase), and transparent pink lip gloss (Artdeco Hydra Lip Booster #38.)

Thanks for reading and have a nice, sunny day!

My Travel Makeup/Skincare Bag + Reviews

We've just returned from our one-week vacation (we went to visit Mike's parents), and I wanted to share with you guys what makeup and skincare products I took with me.
Starting off with makeup, I want to say that I don't really like heavy/complicated makeup in general, and especially when I'm out of town. That's why I took only basic things with me, most of which I use regularly.

Here we have Jane Iredale Purepressed Base SPF 20 (mineral compact foundation). I've never been a fan of loose forms, that's why I love this powder - it's compact and not messy at all, provides very good coverage (although it's sheer, it can be built up and at the same time look thin and very natural), the color is just right for me, and I like the golden compact! But the most amazing thing about it is that it creates a soft-focus effect, making your skin look poreless and smooth.The brush I use for it is also by Jane Iredale. It's called the Handi Brush. It performs very well; however, the bristles can feel scratchy at times as it's made of goat hairs, but maybe it's just me who is used to extremely soft synthetic brushes like Sigmax ones.
I also took my favorite matte bronzer with me -Too Faced Chocolate Soleil. It's great for contouring or just adding warmth to you face, and it looks very natural - not orange at all! It smells amazing too, just like hot chocolate!I'm going to do a review and comparison on all the bronzers I have as there are a couple more that I also like.
I don't like blushes in general, but there are two in my collection that I find look good on me. One of them is Mac Mineralize blush in Warm Soul.It's hard to describe what color it really is because depending on the lighting it can go from beige to peach to bronzed pink. I really like the effect it gives my face.
The brushes I use for applying blush and bronzer are from Mrs Bunny travel set by Sigma.
My cat has recently stolen my favorite concealer, and I couldn't find it, so I took my Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch concealer instead, which is more of a highlighter than a concealer, but it still has some coverage.
The only eyeshadow palette I took with me was NYX Triple Eyeshadow palette in Rock&Roll. It has a highlighting color, a pinky-nude color, and  a darker blueish-silver color. I like the colors, and the palette itself is very versatile.

NYX Triple Eyeshadow Palette in Rock&Roll and Revlon Lip Butter in Strawberry Shortcake

The brown eyeliner by Stila is called Smudge Stick in Lion Fish. I got it in my Birchbox a couple months ago and really like it! For my eyelashes I used Dior Extase mascara (Birchbox again, lol), and for my brows - Mac transparent brow gel. I also took a neutral lipliner and two lip products - Revlon Super Lustrous lipgloss in Pink Pop and Revlon Lip Butter in Strawberry Shortcake. The latter is used in the above pictures.

Ok, next to my skincare.

High SPF was my priority. I like that Neutrogena's Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock is truly dry-touch, and doesn't feel greasy on the skin as most creams with high SPF do.
My day cream is A Perfect World SPF 25 by Origins. It's a little too thick for my liking, but if I wait half an hour before I put on my makeup, it soaks in and feels soft and moisturizing rather than greasy.
 My night cream and toner are from the same line, Vitamin E, by The Body Shop. The are both very moisturizing and smell like baby powder, which I like, surprisingly. I can say that these two products were the first ones that truly helped my skin to get rid of the extreme dryness that I had not so long ago.
The eye cream that I use is by the Grapeseed Company and is called "Vine Eyes". It's organic and is supposed to be anti-aging. I'm not sure about the anti-aging effect, but the cream itself is very moisturizing. My under-eye area is very dry, but when I put this cream on at night, I wake up with very soft and supple skin.
 I used Gold Bond Ultimate Softening Shea Butter Lotion as my hand cream. I'm not sure if I like it or not, just because it's not as rich and thick as I would like it to be. I mean it's thick when you put it on, but when you rub it in, it becomes dry, and your hands feel just bare. The cream still works, but I don't like the initial effect. I guess I'm just used to greasier types of hand creams.
I also took a hair spray that I got in my Birchbox this month and Dove soap to use in the shower.

Alright, that was a really long review, but I hope it wasn't too boring! I'll try to be more concise in my future posts though.
Thanks for reading!