Alexa Chung on the Cover of British Vogue!

Beauty | 09 May 2011

Trendsetter Alexa Chung graces the cover of British Vogue for the June 2011 issue looking as beautiful as ever! With soft bangs and a tousled wave, her chic bob is picture perfect.

Alexa has been a hair icon for years and has been setting trends since she arrived on the scene! Check out some of my favorite hair looks from years past.

Similar to the Vogue cover, look this soft and feminine bob is the perfect length for Alexa’s face shape. The caramel hue makes her eyes look even more blue!

Alexa had a heads up on the ombre trend back in 2009. With dark roots and a lighter tone on the tips, Alexa was one of the first to make this hairstyle sensation a hit!

Fixing the bangs into a chic side braid is the perfect way to get your hair out of your face while changing up the style. Keep it loose and tousled for a soft and easy look.

What do you think of Alexa’s styles? Which one is your favorite?

Get Gorgeous with Michelle Phan

Beauty | 18 April 2011

by Stephanie

If you are interested in beauty and makeup and you haven’t heard of Michelle Phan, well, you can thank me later. This YouTube beauty guru has been long been considered the authority on internet makeup tutorials. With a fantastic range that includes both conceptual and everyday makeup, her videos are respected and referred to regularly in the beauty community. Michelle is the first female YouTuber to reach over a million subscribers, and her video views exceed 361 million! Michelle recently joined the Lancome team and is currently making videos using their fantastic products.

Being on YouTube almost more than Facebook and being obsessed with all things beauty and makeup, I have following Ms. Phan for quite some time. Let me walk you through a few of my favorite videos, shown below.

Ahh, the Purple Disco Tutorial! Not only is this video fantastically edited and easy to follow, Michelle is one of those super talented artists who manages to make purple eyeshadow look somehow subtle and glam. This tutorial gives you step by step instructions on how to achieve a perfectly sparkly and sultry evening eye look. The main reason I love her syle is that Michelle always manages to make her makeup look effortless, regardless of the intensity of the colors. The look is never overdone and always celebrates her features.

Fast and fresh makeup in the morning is an instant confidence booster. Growing up pale and awkward, I quickly discovered that blush and mascara were my friend, and from that a love of cosmetics was born. It is all about enhancing your natural beauty and feeling great! Enjoy this tutorial shown above, which gives you fast tips on how to enhance your look in just 5 minutes! I love that Michelle always mentions the importance of defining your brows. Giving you an instant frame around your face, your eyebrows are one of the most important parts of your face.

Michelle definitely knows how to have some fun with makeup, as shown in the video above. Based on a look from Lady Gaga’s video, Bad Romance, Michelle shows us how to achieve the wide eyed look made famous by the pop sensation. One of several Lady Gaga inspired videos, this tutorial is my favorite for the fun computer generated effects at the end. Receiving over 20 million views, this video is a web classic and has been referenced many times.

Make sure to check out Michelle’s channel. Her sweet demeanor and expert skills will make you an instant fan, trust me!

Trend Alert: Tempting Tail Hems

Fashion | 05 April 2011

by Allie Paxton

Feeling a little playful with your hemlines? Tail hems are the best option if you want to experiment with the hemlines of your skirts and dresses. A tail hem is when a dress is actually slightly longer in the back, also known as a high low hem. This length does not have to be drastic; it can actually be very subtle and allow one to wear a short dress or skirt if they are usually self-conscious about revealing too much of their back end.

Etro spring summer 2011 Mary Katrantzou spring summer 2011 Topshop Unique spring summer 2011

This is an awesome way to spice up your spring fashion wardrobe with a new cut. One side of the garment suggests lengthy elegance, while the other allows one to be a little risqué. This makes it utterly impossible to ever get bored with this adorable trend!

Here are some perfect little numbers that will keep you on par with this transpiring trend:

BB Dakota Alicia Silk Poppy Red Dress BB Dakota Janine Black Skirt

Train Station Strapless Floral Dress Curious Quest Beige Lace Skirt

Serendipity Chartreuse Dress Party Punch Floral Sundress

What do you think about tail hems?

xoxo

Nails by The Biebs!

Beauty | 09 March 2011

by Stephanie

What can’t this mini-mogul do? This Justin Bieber beauty craze comes in a small and colorful bottle. What could it be? No, it is not a love potion to make The Biebs fall head over heels for you! Tap into your inner Belieber with this fresh line of nail polishes in an array of colors! The 17 year old designed a line of polish for Nicole by OPI called One Less Lonely Girl Collection this past October. Although it has been out for a while, I can’t wait to get ahold of a few bottles of my own! With his signature purple and plenty of primary colors in the mix, this line has clever names such as One Less Lonely Glitter, One Time Lime and Give Me the First Dance.

Personally, I love the glitter shade on the top left. It has chunks of multi-colored glitter and would be perfect layered on top of a light blue polish. I love statement polish and these shades are not for the faint of heart. They would make the perfect gift for the Bieber-loving teen (or adult!) in your life.

I think that Justin wants his nails painted, in the shade of Step 2 the Beat of My ♥. What do you think?

Paris Fashion Week Spring 2011 Couture: The Future In Fashion at Armani Privé!

Fashion | 25 January 2011

by

The future has now arrived and Tron: Legacy seems to have launched fashion into a video game where clothing looks more and more surreal. The Armani Privé spring 2011 couture show seems to be embracing a new sentiment, that we have to embrace ourselves for space travel in the near future.

It seems as though the metallic threads woven into these organza garments bent light at super speeds as the models floated down the runway.

Don’t these hats remind you of the discs that the programs of Tron:Legacy use to defend themselves? Odd reference for a couture show, I know, but I couldn’t help notice that they have a strikingly similar appearance!

Luckily there was a bit of color (teal, red, and fuchsia) thrown into the mix of gun metal silvers.

At least, as the years go by, we know that we’re already equipped with some pretty sweet futuristic clothes. And, as technology advances we’ll be able to create high heeled functioning moon boots and anti-gravity defiant gowns by the time we’re forced to use them!