Closet Prepster?

Though fads and fashions go in and out, there is one style that I've found to be relatively constant: prep. Casey of TeenFashionista seems to highlight her own preppy style a lot, and I've found that though it's sometimes hard to grasp the fashion behind Hollister, the prepster style has a lot of staying power and a lot of classic elements. Though "preppy" style may often be driven by what is sold in "preppy" stores like Abercrombie, American Eagle, Hollister, and the like, there are a few pieces in those stores that tend to be fairly constant. A polo shirt, for example, can be defined as either a classic top that anyone can wear, or a holy grail object for an uber-prepster.

One thing I've found as a petite person (5'2") is that it's often hard for me to find sizes in stores that are small enough for me. A lot of my friends chide me because I complain about being very small, saying that there are worse things in life. I suppose I don't really mind being skinny. But if you took a normal-sized young woman and imported her image into Microsoft Word, then I would be what results from dragging one of the corner tabs while holding "Shift." For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about...it basically means that proportionally, I'm normal sized. It's just that I'm shrunken...width-wise and length-wise. This creates a problem when I enter stores with the mindset "just look for the smallest size available," and when even XS sometimes doesn't quite make the cut. Jeans are a humongous pain, so this summer I haven't worn a single pair of jeans, instead opting for skirts and dresses. But while I can revel in the fact that by many standards I might be considered skinny, it comes with a pretty negative drawback.

You're probably wondering what in the world those two ideas have anything to do with each other. Well, I wanted to introduce you guys to some of the places that I often frequent for casual wear that fits my petite frame: Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch. By all means, you have every right to groan and look away from this post. But it's not as if I frequent those stores and come out with stocks of tight-fitting tees that proclaim "California 1968" in huge white letters, or shorts that live up to their name a little too much. Instead, I browse their sale sections every once in a while, looking for some cute, casual tops that could easily be dressed up or dressed down. Plus, the sizes at Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch are made for...what seems to be very small people, so the idea that I can buy a size Small in something is pretty revolutionary!

Let's start with Abercrombie:

This tank top seems more to me like something you would find while perusing the racks at Urban Outfitters. It's not Anthropologie or Free People material, but still, for $12.90 it's not a bad tank to have. What I like is that the plaid gives it an edge, which allows you to echo the plaid trend that's been seen on pretty much everyone's shorts...without having to get plaid shorts of your own. I would probably wear this with a black cardigan and any bottom that isn't cutoff, just to make sure the plaid doesn't go in a "farmer" direction


I suppose that this pair of khaki shorts doesn't really have anything cool going for it, but personally I think that a pair of khaki shorts is an essential to have this summer. Personally, I like to dress up a little more than the average person and the T-shirt/jean cutoff shorts combo isn't really for me. What I like about khaki shorts is that you can wear a cardigan with them, a button up with them, or even a casual T-shirt with them, and they look very put-together. The reason I chose to feature this pair is that I've actually had a lot of trouble looking for a new pair of khaki shorts myself that's within my budget (these are only $18.90!). Plus, they come in size 00 :)


Let's move on to Hollister. Technically, Hollister is the "high school" to Abercrombie's "college," but I usually don't see much of a difference in the clothing between the two stores. But more on that later.

This t-shirt, which comes in navy and white (I loved it so much I had to show both) is a great casual piece with a little bit of extra pizzazz. NOTE: It took me at least three tries to get the right combination of zzzzzz's. I like that at first glance, it doesn't seem like something one would find at Hollister. They actually had a heather grey version which I adored, but sadly it's out of stock. I'm really not sure which one of these colours I would rather have...on the one hand, the white goes more seamlessly with the lace, but on the other hand the white is probably pretty sheer and I don't really want to be bothered with wearing a tank top underneath...decisions, decisions. Anyway, if you feel like rocking this tee with flavour you can pick it up for only $12.90.



This tank is a simple, casual tank that looks like it could last you a while. It doesn't really echo any recent trends, and it isn't ridiculously revealing like some of the tanks you see on sale today (which are, apparently, for "layering"). It's got a little bit of menswear-esque stripes, a little bit of flowers, and a lot of style. I was seriously considering getting this until I found...


...another tank! This one is cut in the same shape as the previous one, but it looks so much more stylish! Well, to me at least. Somehow, the first tank legitimately looks like something that could be found at Hollister. But the second tank looks like I could have picked it up from Anthropologie! Both of the tanks are each $19.


Like I said before, there isn't much of a difference between Hollister and Abercrombie. In general, Abercrombie tends to be more expensive and have more "adult" clothes, but in terms of their sale section they've been looking more and more similar these days.

Marc, Two Ways with Outerwear

For those of you that are still into large day clutches, you might want to check out this little gem at Bergdorf Goodman.


It's on sale for $195, and it was originally $260! I would buy this in an instant if I wasn't already over-budget with clothes/accessories/beauty (all of the new MAC collections are so tempting!), because it's completely my style. I love the colour, because it goes with everything and because it isn't specific to any season. And come on...it's Marc Jacobs! For me it's been pretty hard to find something from the Marc Jacobs line (as opposed to the Marc by Marc Jacobs line) that's even within my price range. But alas...my credit card isn't exactly welcome to a $195 dent at the moment, so I decided to style two outfits for you guys using this clutch.

The first one is meant for a young, yuppie lady who's fairly well-off and is meeting her girlfriends for lunch. She wants to look put-together, but not like she's put much effort into what she's wearing. First of all, my entire palette for this outfit would be neutrals. Wearing lighter-coloured neutrals ensures that nothing will be clashing and that you will look polished. Plus, because the palette isn't beiges and browns, there's no risk of "muddying up" your clothing palette. I would start off this outfit with a classic trench, styled exactly the way the model has it with the belt tied rather than buckled. What's underneath doesn't matter, as long as it's some sort of sheath that doesn't really show through, which makes the trench a little sexier. I would add a pair of beige heels, like the ones below. What I love about these is that they add a touch of youth and edge to the outfit, and set this young yuppie lady apart from all of the other trench-wearing young yuppie ladies out there. Did I mention they were on sale? I would wear this outfit with loose, Serena van der Woodsen-esque waves.


You can get the trench from Nordstrom for $84.90 here, and you can get the heels from Shopbop for $112.80 here.

The other look is on the other spectrum as far as young yuppie ladies go. This one is meant for a more trendy, fashionista-type girl, who wants to look as polished and perfect as she can without going too over-the-top. While I was browsing Shopbop's sales, I came across a fabulous cape from Thayer which is a great alternative to typical outerwear. The neutral beige colour keeps it from being over-the-top, but this cape is perfect for our Blair Waldorf wannabe. I would pair it with a coloured shift dress, like the green and pink ones I've shown, for a simple pop of colour. Finally, I would top the whole outfit off with these great ankle boots from Piperlime. They're very Whitney Port, and border the line between edgy and girlie.


You can get the cape from Shopbop for $338.80 here, the green dress from Nordstrom for $183.90 here, the pink dress from Nordstrom for $165.90 here, and the ankle boots from Piperlime for $44.99 here.

Colour Fear

I've always admired people who could rock really bright and crazy eyeshadow combinations. Temptalia, an incredibly creative blogger, is one person who comes to mind. For some reason the idea of coloured eyeshadow has seemed, on paper, to be really tacky...but then I see people like her post these great looks and it all seems to come together. Part of the reason that I don't really experiment with eye colour that much is because of my skintone. I'm half Indian, half Filipino, which therefore means tan with dark hair. My eyebrows were out of control until I discovered the wonder that is tweezers, and I've always had these ridiculously large undereye bags. Until today, finding a concealer that doesn't look ashy is always hard. Because of my darker skintone, I've always found it hard to go for brightly coloured eyeshadow because it's hard to be subtle. If I had paler skin, I could do, say, a light lavender eye and have it be subtle and pretty without being over-the-top. But because I have darker skin, if I want to do a purple eye, it's got to be a darker, more vivid purple...which kind of freaks me out.

So, I was browsing Temptalia when I noticed her "Pink Eyes Challenge." Like I said, I've never been one to wear colour but I figured...it's summer, I have a lot of free time -- why not give it a shot? Of course, I wasn't about to do a crazy number and go out and purchase a ton of pink shadows. What I did instead was: grab the N.Y.C. lipstick that I purchased recently and my e.l.f. eyeliner brush, and line my bottom lash line with the fuschia shimmer lipstick. And, lo and behold, it didn't look half bad! Now I know this is nowhere near the daring looks that many beauty lovers out there wear, but for me, it's a start. This whole lining the bottom lashline thing doesn't seem quite so bad now! Maybe next time I'll try a shimmery purple, since purple is supposed to bring out brown eyes...


P.S. I apologize for the state of my brows, they aren't looking so hot these days...

Basic Face

Though my makeup "look" has remained unbelievably similar these past few years, I've changed a few things. First, I've ditched the waterline-lining idea. I've found that on me, lining my waterline with a dark colour makes my eyes look smaller, and it never really adds anything to my makeup look. Second, I've started concentrating foundation in areas where I really need it. Instead of coating my whole face with foundation, I put some on my nose (which sounds weird, but it's darker than the rest of my face!) along with some concealer under my eyes. I've started going for the less-is-more concept, with little flashes of colour for interest as opposed to bright, bold, eyeshadow looks. Up until my drugstore trip (as described in the blog post below), I essentially wore these three items, in addition to a limited amount of foundation and concealer.


The left-most item is Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Rhubarb. I've been rocking this as a basic summer colour for a while, even though it totally doesn't go with my skintone. A lot of my friends have been complaining about the Burt's Bees Lip Shimmers, because they bought the much lighter pink tones. My policy with tinted lip balms is: always for a darker colour than you think you need. It turns out that the cute pale pink Lip Shimmers make you look sort of sickly, while the much darker ones give a hint of tint. What I love about these Lip Shimmers is that they still retain the same tingly, cooling feeling of Burt's Bees Lip Balm, while also showing a bit of colour. However, I think I might try out the Jane lip balm that I posted about earlier for a while, as the colour is much more warm. The eyeliner in the middle is Wet 'n' Wild IdolEyes Retractable Eyeliner in Midnight Black. I know it's not the best eyeliner I could get, but it was super-cheap and I got it a little while back. It's actually got a fair amount of staying power, as long as I layer it with my L'Oreal Wear Infinite Eyeshadow in Lush Raven. It's definitely not the blackest of black eyeshadows, but I kind of like that since I'm layering it with a pretty black eyeliner and I'm using it to soften up the look and make sure my liner stays in place. I've found that applying black shadow over the liner using an eyeliner brush is a nice alternative to smudging the liner, because it stays longer and it looks more natural.

I'll update later as to how my new lip purchases fit into my slimmed-down daily routine...hopefully they stack up to my Lip Shimmer!

Drugstore Goodies

Here are some reviews and swatches of a couple of drugstore deals I found:

One thing that was on my list when I stopped by my local drugstore was a nice red nail polish. As far as my tips go, I'm more of a neutral person, and the loudest colour I'll put on is some sort of bronzy-beige shimmer. However, it's usually clear. My toes, however, have been the subject of many trials and tribuations. For summer, I wanted a cute red go-with-everything polish, which I found in the form of an NYC colour, Royal Red. I got it for around $1.00, and the colour payoff is really good! You probably don't want to see a picture of my foot, but since I never paint my fingernails, here's a shot...sorry if they're unkempt!


I was also looking for some sheer, shimmery colours for summer when I came upon the Revlon Illuminance Creme Quad Eyeshadow. While doing my usual bout of internet shopping, I had seen many of these. Of course, I was curious to try them but was worried about their staying power and colour payoff. I picked up the quad in "Precious Metals," and was...well, I don't know how to describe it. These definitely aren't the best creme shadows out there, and their colour payoff is pretty low. However, the quad itself was around $4.00, which means it's $1.00 per shade. So, for the price...not bad at all. When I first looked at the quad, I figured that I would like the grey shade the best, because I've been looking for a shimmery grey shade to use with smoky eyes. It turns out that that's my least favourite colour. The shade I was expecting to dislike, the brown shade on the right, was the one that I liked the most! It's perfect for a sheer wash of colour on a lazy day, or as a base for other neutral-coloured shadows. The middle two shades go wonderfully in the browbone or in the inside corner of your eye. The staying power of these shadows is pretty good...they might have some trouble if it begins to rain, but besides that I would recommend this quad to anyone looking for some simple shimmers for summer.



Finally, I grabbed four simple pink lipcolours for varying occasions. The swatches are, from right to left: "Princess", from the Cover Girl LipSlicks line, "Toasted Rose" from the Jane Lipkick Lipstick line, "Rose Petal" from the N.Y.C. Ultra Last Lip Wear line, and "Pink Quartz" from the Jane Be Pure Mineral Lip Balms. The two lipsticks are swatched twice; the bottom swatch is just putting the lipstick on normally, and the top swatch is the shade that is achieved when you dab the lipstick on lightly (I love doing this on my own lips to get a more natural look).


The first one I picked up, Princess from Cover Girl Lipslicks, was a classic favourite. As I've mentioned before, I really don't like sticky, tacky lipglosses and my favourite lip products are tinted lip balms and dabbed-on lipsticks. This doesn't give a ton of colour payoff, but it's nice for daytime, or with smoky eyes to balance things out. Plus, it looks so much like a gloss it's pretty hard to believe that it's so light on your lips. I might go for a darker colour next time, but I'll definitely be keeping this one around for a while.



The second item I picked up, Toasted Rose from the Jane Lipkick Lipstick line, was a great basic lipstick. It's kind of like the opaque lipstick version of a dark coral lipstick, which is great for a "no frills" look. There's no glitter, shimmer, or even shine, but it's nice for a more business-y setting. I like to think of this colour as a very "Bobbi Brown" colour, because it's not that unique, but it's still very universally flattering. I love the colour that I get when I dab this on my lips, because it's a nice, basic colour that almost makes it seem like I'm not wearing anything on my lips. At the same time, it's so basic that it's a great canvas for a funky lipgloss, in pretty much any shade imaginable.


The third item I picked up, Rose Petal from the N.Y.C. Ultra Last Lip Wear line, has kind of a misleading colour. In the tube, it appears to be a really dark, typical, teenager-y lipstick. It's sort of fuschia looking, with some artificial shimmer. As you can see from the swatch, it's a little more adult-looking that it seems at first glance, and is a fun twist on a typical red lip. In addition, the colour that I got when I dabbed it onto my lips was great! It's a more shimmery version of the Toasted Rose dabbed colour, which you can't really see in the swatch.


Finally, I decided to end with the surprise product of the day, Pink Quartz from the Jane BE PURE Mineral Lip Balm line. Tinted lip balms are great for summer, and this one is no exception. The pretty peachy-coral-pink colour is universally flattering. It would go wonderfully on someone who is very pale, and yet also works great on my own lips, even though I'm pretty tan. The staying power is nice, and there's this great sweet vanilla smell that isn't overly cloying but still lasts a little bit. I love this product! I was able to get this and the Jane lipstick in a BOGOF deal at Walgreens, so that made those two products even sweeter. One warning about the Jane products; they're completely sealed, so you can't actually see the colour of the product inside. I'll try to swatch more if I can, but for now try to use these swatches as a guideline -- and remember, when going for a balm always try something a little darker than you would think!

Spotlight on Sephora Sales

I was about to do this ode to Sephora in separate posts, kind of like I did the Etsy posts, but I figured instead that I would make it a monster blog post. Because really, you can't ever get enough of bargain beauty! Sephora's really stepped up their sale selection, most likely because of the recession. Whatever the reason, there are some amazing finds for both the beauty product junkies and those just looking for a few things to spice up their makeup collection.

I wanted to start off with some basics that may not exactly be makeup, but that relate pretty directly. First, from the Sephora brand, there are two makeup brush sets that are really helpful and basic. There's the "Safari Pocket Brush Set," which has 5 brushes in total. It houses the brushes in a handy pocket that's perfect for travel, and only costs $14. For those looking for something that could house more future brushes, there's the "Summer Safari Pop Up Brush Set." It also has 5 brushes, but they come in a pop-up canister that could house some of your own brushes as well. The Pop-Up Brush Set costs $22.



There's also a sale on some of the Daisy Marc Jacobs items (no, not the perfume). This is a part of the sale I particularly love, because even though a new eyeshadow or blush is always fun to obtain, it's also great to get some really good practical beauty storage items that you know will last you a long time. The "Charming Candle Collection" might not be the best of buys if you're just looking for a nice treat for yourself, because there are so many more beauty-related Daisy goodies to be found. However, if you're looking for a gift, this would make a perfect one for someone whose tastes you don't really know very well, especially since it's only $25.


There's also a great brush set, if you're looking for something that's still well-priced but slightly more "designer" than the Sephora brush sets pictured above. It's $35 and has five brushes, and it comes in an adorable case with the trademark "Daisy Marc Jacobs" print. What I love in particular about this set is that the case can hold additional brushes, and has a little pouch on the inside for runaway items (like blot papers, makeup remover, Q-tips, etc.).


Finally, there are some makeup cases that you can use to house your own collection. There's a set of three cosmetic cases, each in a lovely shade of gold embossed with the words "Daisy Marc Jacobs," which is only $19. Then, there's a circular hard beauty case with a daisy on top. It's in the same shade of gold as all the other items, and it costs $25. Finally, there's another hard beauty case that's more of a "vanity case," as it is larger and resembles old-fashioned hand-carry luggage. Because it is bigger, it costs $42.50. All of these beauty cases are great deals, and I'm currently deliberating whether to get the small pouches and the $25 beauty case. If I do, I'll be sure to let you know how they are! Sadly, I don't think I have enough beauty items to merit getting the $42.50 case, but I know there are lots of girls out there that do.



Okay, now onto the real beauty products. Most of the lip products that I'll feature are from Hard Candy and Bourjois, but there's one from Sephora and one from Napoleon Perdis that I wanted to feature. The lipstick from Sephora is the "Gloss Lipstick." Sephora is offering a few of their other lipsticks on sale, but being the lover that I am of natural makeup, this lipstick is perfect for my makeup looks. It's not as opaque as most lipsticks, and yet still isn't completely a gloss. For me, Gloss Lipstick #27, or "Sheer Putty Pink" is one of my favourite MLBB colours. It's one of the few colours that's still available, so grab one quickly! Even if you've got darker skintones, this is a great lipstick for applying lightly and then moving around a lot for a sheer wash of colour that stays. Plus, the weird grape smell isn't something I'd like layered thickly on my lips. However, it's only $6 and it's a great basic everyday colour.

(this is Sephora's swatch, but it's a little bit more cool-toned in real life)

There's also Lip Lacquer from Napoleon Perdis on sale for $10. This is sort of the polar opposite to the previous lipstick. First off, it's a gloss in every sense of the word. It's super sticky and tacky, which means that you'd better have a ponytail if you're rocking this on your lips on a windy day! However, the mauve shine doesn't have the usual teenager-style glitter on it -- instead, it's more of a subtle shimmer. I've seen this colour in person and it personally isn't my style (I'm more of a coral-lover), but for the paler and cool-toned girls out there, this is definitely something to look up.



As I mentioned before, one of the brands that is completely going on sale is Hard Candy. A lot of their lip products are on sale but available in limited colours, so you'll have to search hard if you're looking for a basic pink lip, but you should be able to find some great bargains if you want a wild purple lip or a bold orange lip. First, there's "Sweet Spot Lip Gloss," which I would suggest getting in Aquarius, a sheer light pink shimmer. It's great for simple and sweet days, and costs only $5.50.



There's also Candy Coating Lip Gloss, which comes in a "clickable" pen. The only colour left is Taffy, and while it's a lovely pigmented pink, it also comes with its own cherry scent. I'm all for cherries, but this one borders on Robitussin cough syrup cherry. I'd suggest giving it a quick test before purchasing it, even though the packaging is adorable and it's on sale for only $6.



Sadly, most of the lip offerings from Hard Candy have sold out. However, there are a couple from Bourjois that are definitely work taking a look at. Bourjois' lip selection is a little bit more broad, with just more than the typical tinted glitzy lipglosses, and they offer a lot of products that are great for first-timers. First, there's the "Baume de Nuit," which is a light, sheer pink balm that is to be worn during the nighttime. I'm a huge lip balm aficionado, and tinted lip balms are my HG of all lip products, and this product is definitely something I'd recommend. The packaging is adorable, and while this balm doesn't work miracles, it's also not ridiculously heavy like a lot of other repairing balms. I've tested this balm out before and it's a great product for summer, when your lips are dry and you're not willing to glob on typical lip healers. Plus, it's only $7.35.


One of my absolute favourite products in the Sephora sale is the Bourjois Lovely Rouge Satin Lipstick. Though the lipstick itself may not quite be as shiny as it is in the picture, it is most definitely soft. The glide is lovely, and the lipstick is right in between uber-pigmented and sheer. It seems like people agree with me, as the only shade left is Rouge Best 15, a vivid red shade. Even for those that aren't as into red, this is a good shade to start out with. If you end up hating red lipstick, it's still a lovely shade for dabbing on your lips for a sheer tint (something I am frequently guilty of). Plus, it's only $9.80.



Speaking of favourite products, here's one that I'm about to spring for myself. Hopefully they have it in stock when I go out to Sephora, but if not I just might buy it from the website. Bourjois' La Creme des Levres is a product that was pretty much made for me. It says in the description that it's a cross between a balm, a gloss, and a lipstick...and that's pretty much what it is! I love tinted lip balms with all my heart, because I really don't like looking overly made up, so this product is perfect because it's a slightly more makeup-y version of tinted lip balm. I would suggest getting this in Rose Doux 03, a typical soft pink colour, and Rose Molleux 05, a sheer coral (the swatch doesn't really do this shade justice). This product is most definitely work the $9.80 price tag.




There is quite a selection of eyeshadow, mostly from Hard Candy. The first product I wanted to highlight was this Cream and Powder Eyeshadow Duo from Sephora. It comes in many different colours, but being the neutral-loving gal that I am, I would suggest Copper Harmony 02. I love that you can use the powder shadow to set the cream shadow for more staying power, or even just use the two separately. I often find myself using the cream portion as a highlighter as well! It's also on sale for only $6.



There are a few Hard Candy single eyeshadows for $6.25 being sold, but the real star is the quads. If you're looking for a simple single eyeshadow, I would suggest picking up the Hard Candy Eyeshadow in Caramel, which is a nice, shimmery, peachy colour that's great for perking up some basic lids. It comes in an adorable slide-lid neon container.



If you're looking for a quad, however...you've got a lot of choices. Hard Candy has a ton of different quads, each with a different "style." In order, they are Techno, Drama Queen, Sonic, Frigid, Sushi, and Disco 2000. If I was getting a quad, I would probably go for Drama Queen. I might not have a whole lot of use for the lavender shade, but the combination of plum, green, and beige is a lovely spin in typical neutrals. Each of these quads is on sale for $14.








Hard Candy also has palettes, with three eyeshadows and three glosses. In typical Hard Candy form, the cute packaging is right on par with the cute product. In this case, each palette is a "mix tape," whose name goes with the colour selection. Each palette is only $7.50, which is a great deal for a portable case with three shadows and three glosses. In order, I have shown the Breakup Mix, the Party Mix, and the Workout Mix. Personally, I would go for the Workout Mix, even though I'm really not big on wearing makeup to the gym.



Phew! That was quite a post...let me know if you want really huge posts like this, or would rather that spotlight posts (like this one and the Etsy one) are done in pieces.

Man, now I really want a lot of those...