Tag fashion

Brows Are In

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Suddenly, eyebrows are in, and in a big way.

cara-delevigne-eyebrows1
Those of you who are old enough to remember the caterpillars which framed the eyes of Brooke Shields and Margeaux Hemingway might be cringing at the new trend in brows which Kim Kardashian, Ariana Grande and Cara Delevingne have popularized, better known as #EyebrowsOnFleek. What is fleek? Flawless, perfect. So if you have any interest in new makeup trends, you had better make sure those brows are meticulously groomed and filled in.

Brooke brows

Similar to the trend in the early 1980’s, today’s brows are full and thick, but an obsession with drawing in a false silhouette to “shape” the brow has dominated the makeup world. The problem I have with this trend is that it creates a false brow line, rather than accentuating a natural arch. Take a look at this transformation, and you will see what I am talking about.

Brow-Fleek

Women these days are encouraged to keep tweezing to a minimum, and let it all grow out, which means that those who have anemic, pencil-thin brows will be forced to use eyebrow waxes, stencils, permanent tattooing, and even faux brows to create the illusion of much fuller brows. Faux brows? Oh yes. There’s something called lace front brows, which are fantastic for people who have gone through chemotherapy or alopecia.

faux brows

As for me, I plan to work with what Mother Nature gave me. Though I have a sparse area on my left brow, it can easily be filled in with a bit of brow pencil or brow wax. I accentuate my natural arch, and only make my brows look thicker if I have full makeup on with a dark smoky eye. After seeing too many young women with shaped brows which make them look like clowns, I prefer to avoid jumping on the brows-on-fleek bandwagon. It seems to be a trend best suited for the young crowd anyway.

Women And Their Shoes

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shoes1

I recently stumbled upon an article written by John Chung entitled, “How Many Shoes Does the Average Woman Own?” and found it relatively perceptive, despite the fact that it was written by a man. In the article, John mentioned a study by Glamour Magazine which stated that a woman will purchase about 470 pairs of shoes throughout her adult life.

The study also determined that the average woman owns about 19 pairs of shoes at any given time. When I read that, I giggled. I don’t know many women who have only 19 pairs of shoes! Just counting my athletic footwear, I have 14 pairs! After reading that article, I became curious about how many pairs of shoes I actually had. I counted up every single pair I had, including house flip flops, and my back-up flip flops in the car, and I was stunned. The total came to…

132.

Holy hotel!

I will say that my collection is very neatly organized, so neatly that I didn’t even realize I had that many pairs.

34 pairs of shoes are in this cabinet. And yes, I have photos of each pair of shoes on the face of most of the boxes to make them easily identifiable.

34 pairs of shoes are in this cabinet. And yes, I have photos of each pair of shoes on the face of most of the boxes to make them easily identifiable.

There are 43 pairs in this cabinet...

There are 43 pairs in this cabinet…

These are all boots, mid-calf to over the knee

These are all boots, mid-calf to over the knee

Most of my athletic shoes, flip flops, kitten heels and Ugg-type boots are in these cabinets. I have a few random pairs in another cabinet across from these.

Most of my athletic shoes, flip flops, kitten heels and Ugg-type boots are in these cabinets. I have a few random pairs in another cabinet across from these.

Letting My Personal Style Show Through

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The past several months have been fun for me with respect to my personal style, because I have been changing things up. However, everything I do with respect to putting outfits together tends to be a bit more understated, with neutral colors favored over bright colors, and solids over prints. I reserve the wilder expressions in smaller elements like jewelry and nails.

black

After getting French manicures for six years straight, I got completely sick of the look, despite the fact that it photographs well. I guess you could say I got a bit tired of being constrained by a certain look, even though the work I do requires it. I have been rebelling completely, turning to dark polish shades like eggplant, espresso, navy, black. I was a bit concerned when I got a last minute call for a cover shoot a couple of weeks ago, but it turned out that the look was dark, sultry, Goth-inspired, which meant that my black and pewter nails lent themselves quite nicely to the whole vibe of the project. Phew!

I have never been comfortable with the idea of changing things up on a permanent or semi-permanent basis, which is why I have no tattoos or pierces (nope, not even my ears). That’s why I prefer the idea of changing the look of my nails, wearing different pieces of jewelry, exploring a different color in a cosmetic (maybe deep eggplant and black in a lip look?), or maybe even wearing small clip-in hair extensions in a wild color.

My wardrobe has also undergone a bit of a shift. I just got so bored with items which had been in my collection for so long that I had to shake it up a bit with a few new tops. I also was so fortunate to get two pairs of SquatPants from Beleza Brazil Fitness, which makes the most amazing pants ever! I cannot stop wearing them, because they are so comfortable, the colors are vibrant and distinctive and work well with other wardrobe items, I can work out in them or wear them for my day to day activities, and they make my booty and legs look AMAZING! I am not kidding when I say that I am completely obsessed with these pants.

(In case you’re curious about these incredible pants, please check out: http://belezabrazilfitnesswear.com/#_a_NAITO
At checkout, be sure to enter discount code NAITO)

squat

Come By And Say Hello This Weekend At The L.A. Fit Expo!

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Fit Expo 2016

If you live in Los Angeles, or will be in town this weekend, you should check out The Fit Expo Los Angeles! I will be working at the Muscle and Performance/Oxygen/Black Belt/The Box booth (Booth number 722) on both days. Please come by to say hi, get free magazines, and get signed magazines and photos from me and the other incredible athletes who will be at the booth as well!

Wardrobe Issues

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“Darling-I-Have-Nothing-to-Wear”-Said-No-Woman-Ever-Thanks-to-These-Five-Tricks

Have you ever had a moment when you looked at all of your clothing and thought, “I don’t feel like wearing any of these things!”, and wished that a wardrobe fairy would alight upon your shoulder and grant your wish for a whole new wardrobe? Well, I have had that feeling repeatedly over the last few months, and I cannot figure out why I am experiencing such a feeling. As a result, I have been itching to switch things up, and add some color and flair.

The main challenge I face when it comes to adding wardrobe items is the fact that I can’t stand shopping. My eyes glaze over within about 15 minutes of being in a mall or shopping area. I will NEVER understand the rush that many women get from bouncing into a store, trying on mountains of clothing, spending their hard-earned money (or their husband’s or boyfriend’s, as the case may be), then moving on to the next store to repeat the process. No thank you!

Online shopping has been a welcome alternative to walking into brick and mortar stores for me. It is quick, relatively painless, and many companies make returns and exchanges easy. Even so, I still have a problem spending money on clothing, because clothing never holds much value. I know that the markup on clothing is astronomical, and I also know that reselling items yields almost no return on the initial investment.

However, I also know that flattering, comfortable, and stylish clothing can boost a person’s spirits and confidence. Though I go through all of my belongings several times a year and get rid of things which are threadbare or damaged, or which don’t fit me correctly, I still have this feeling that I need a change. Perhaps a few new tops would do the trick, since some of the tops in my closet have been a part of my life for close to two decades. I look at them now and think, what the hell am I doing, keeping these things?

It doesn’t help that my body has been shifting ever so slightly, but enough that my clothing fits differently. I am essentially the same size, but I know that age-related muscle loss is occurring, which makes me very upset. Another curious thing which happened recently is that I am suddenly cold in cold weather. I had spent a good year in the grip of night sweats and hot flashes, and grew accustomed to always running hot. I could go out in 35 degrees Fahrenheit weather without a coat and be fine. That has all come to a screeching halt, which I welcome, but the problem is that I got rid of most of the sweaters I had!

Is this a mid-life crisis? Maybe. Whatever it is that I am going through, I had to figure something out to keep me from tearing my hair out in frustration.

My solution: I purchased some new, inexpensive dresses, tops, sweaters and leggings, and said goodbye to some clothing items that just HAD to go in the give-away pile. I have been trying to assemble new outfits so that I present different looks which still reflect my personality. It has been fun looking at the new styles!

The $4,000 Cape Coat I Tried On

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IMAG0546

Two weeks ago, I found myself in the Beverly Center, a high-end shopping mall near restaurant row in Beverly Hills. Though I hate shopping, I went there to kill some time (three hours to be exact), since my acting class wasn’t starting until the evening, and I didn’t want to brave L.A. traffic to drive home, only to turn back around and sit through two hours of traffic to go back over the hill again.

Memories of shopping trips I had taken with my mom back when I was a teenager flooded back as I walked through the mall. We used to go into the swanky stores, try on beautiful designs, and wish we had the money to buy them. As usual, the Beverly Center was filled with designer boutiques which displayed beautiful items with hefty price tags. Since I had no intention of shopping, I simply strolled by the stores to familiarize myself with them. Fendi. Louis Vuitton. Gucci. Prada. Dolce & Gabbana. Tiffany & Co. Versace. Burberry. Henri Bendel. It was an impressive display of ostentatious style.

2016-Fall-Fashion-Woman-Gareth-Pugh-Collection

I settled onto a bench in the middle of level six of the mall with a cup of coffee and relaxed for a bit. Then as I was sipping my coffee, my eyes alighted upon THE COAT. There it was, just beyond the entrance of Traffic Los Angeles, a cape coat like none I had ever seen before. It was Goth, vampire-ish, Sith Lord-ish, high fashion, and utterly exquisite. It completely took my breath away. I averted my eyes as if I had been caught staring at a human object of lust. I drank my coffee, but was so compelled to stare at the coat that I finally allowed myself to do so, unabashedly. I stared at the lines of the coat, the fall of the cape, the leather piping, and was in love.

I finished my coffee, then walked into Traffic, straight up to the coat. I fingered the asymmetric neckline, then the looped belt, then the cape. A saleswoman approached me. “Would you like to try this on?”, she said with a smile. “You’re damned right I would!” was what I was thinking, but instead, I just said “Yes.”

As soon as I felt the heft of the coat sliding across my shoulders, I knew I would love it on me. It was INCREDIBLE. It fit me perfectly too.

I looked at the price tag: $4,078.

SERIOUSLY????

I realize full well that it is a designer cape coat, by Gareth Pugh. Incidentally, the saleswoman wrote down the designer’s name as Garrett Pugli, which meant that I went through a maddening search to find anything on him online. That seems very odd, coming from a high end boutique where the salespeople should be very aware of the designers, especially if they boldly throw the snobby high-pressure sales pitch on potential customers. But, let’s get back to the price of the coat. I am not even in the vicinity of being able to afford such a thing, so my heart broke. Despite my disappointment, I tried it on a few times, even after walking around the mall for an hour and a half and returning to try it on again. The salespeople there told me they could give me a 45% discount on the coat, as if that made it somehow affordable for me. At $2,242, it was still about $2,000 out of my budget. Oh well.

My love, the Gareth Pugh cape coat, is most likely still hanging in Traffic, waiting for someone with wads of cash to give it a home. Alas, I will not be the person to grant it a forever home.

My Favorite Stores For Hot Dresses

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One of my favorite hot dresses is this gold bandage dress from Hot Miami Styles

One of my favorite hot dresses is this gold bandage dress from Hot Miami Styles

I love hot dresses, but I honestly can’t stand shopping. The mere thought of stepping into a mall to shop makes me cringe. Thank goodness for online shopping! There are several sites which I turn to for hot dresses, all of which have decent prices and lots of cute styles.

http://www.hotmiamistyles.com/ I love the bandage dresses from this site, and I also love two very distinctive and comfortable maxi dresses which were purchased from this site. However, I haven’t had any luck with the other maxi dresses, because they all are cut to fit someone over six feet tall! My advice to anyone who is shorter than 5’10” is to stick with the shorter dresses.

http://www.venus.com/ This is a great site for maxi dresses, and I have found also found nice dresses for work. However, this is not the site to visit if you are into the club dress or bodycon look, because their selections are a bit on the modest side.

http://tobi.com/ The clothing on this website is trendy, yet well made, and the prices are fair. Their cuts fit a willowy fashion model type very well, but often hide the hard work that a fitness gal has. That being said, I love their cut-out designs, and one of my favorite dresses is a dress which looks very modest and sedate, but features a very sexy open back.

http://www.amiclubwear.com/ and http://yandy.com/ I used to love these sites because they both have TONS of selections, and the prices are amazingly low. However, you have to dig through a lot of trashy and cheap looking designs to find the good designs. I think it’s worth it if you don’t want to spend a lot of money. If you are a fan of club dresses, you’ll enjoy these sites. I have stepped away from the club dresses, so I don’t find myself perusing these sites anymore.

http://www.zaful.com/ This site has so many selections that you could probably visit every single day and find something new that you will want to buy. The prices are unbelievable, and the quality of most of the items is quite decent. However, I would advise you to read the size charts for each item very carefully, and also read the product reviews before buying anything, because these items are shipped from overseas, and returns are difficult at best.

http://www.hellomollyfashion.com/us/ This site is based in Australia, but ships to the US and has US dollar pricing as well. The clothing is SO cute, and there is a pretty big selection. My only beef about this site is that too many of the items are pink, which I absolutely hate and refuse to wear.

http://www.fashionnova.com/ Cute stuff, big selection, and great prices. The quality is a bit cheap, and the materials used are rather flimsy, but the site is good for trendy, bodycon type, “throw away” fashion.