After a long break from blogging....I'm back :)

After months of sleepless nights due to homework, stress, group projects, stress, researching trends, fabrics and more stress....I graduated from FIDM last month!!! It was literally one of the greatest days of my life that I wish I could re-live over and over again. :) FIDM was the most awesome school, and was completely worth every penny. I HIGHLY suggest FIDM  to anyone interested in going into the fashion industry. 

As my last few quarters were winding up I had to take a break from blogging and dedicate every minute and hour to school. I wanted to finish strong, and I did. Not to mention working my last quarter as well. 

The good news is i'm inspired and fired up more than ever about doing what I love...blogging about fashion and beauty :)

Since I missed so many months of blogging (January-June) *oops sorry!* I will try to take highlights of what I experienced and will try and back track and share awesome purchases, new obsessions and much more! Stay tuned....

XOXO Alyssa Adore

New products +some of my favorites.

Don't you love it when, you run out of all of your favorite products, all at the same time? I do! I do! This is exactly what happened last week, while here on Winter break in Arizona. This gave me the PERFECT reason to visit my favorite beauty destination, and former employer- Ulta. I absolutely love Ulta, and you're going to find me often bragging about the awesome goodies I find there. I learned so much about skin care, hair, and makeup while working there. It's an awesome store. Here are some of the items I picked up. 

                                                        NYX Eyeshadow Base

Some of you may have no idea what an eyeshadow base is, but fear not! I will be more than happy to explain the amazing benefits of an eyeshadow base. Ever notice your eyeshadow is no longer vibrant by 2pm? Or even worse- ever notice it's completely gone? This will prevent all of the above from happening. The best example I can give is the same benefit of painting a primer, before painting a wall. By using an eyeshadow primer, your eye makeup ( eyeshadow, eyeliner) will stay twice as long throughout the day, and will prevent from creasing. This will also allow your product to last longer, because you wont be reapplying eyeshadow 3 times a day, like some people do! I use this EVERY SINGLE DAY and it's totally worth it. Some eyeshadow bases come in skin tone (pictured above), white, and sometimes even shimmery white, so you can use it also as a highlighter. You can apply this by dabbing on your eyelid and your lower rim, with a clean finger, or with a consealor brush. Apply this before eyeliner, or any eye makeup and watch the amazement happen. 

I'm not sure how many of you struggle with acne. I used to have severe acne to the point where, I would wake up look in the mirror, and cry! My acne has improved since I did Photodynamic Therapy with Levulan, back in 2008. The treatment was totally worth it and cleared all my acne, with the exception of a breakout here and there due to stress. So when I do breakout with stress, it's difficult for me to use over the counter acne products, because the majority of them contain Salicylic Acid, which my skin doesn't take well to. I've been told my many people about Burt's Bee's Herbal Blemish Stick, and let me tell you, i'm very impressed. The fact that it is all natural and doesn't contain any harsh chemicals, is what made this work for me. My skin is very sensitive, and this worked like a charm. 

                                            Pink Tinsel Shower Gel by Ulta

I'm the queen of body wash, and shower gel. I love to try new products, and I couldn't pass this one up. This is actually part of Ulta's holiday collection of their bath and body products. I found it clearanced to $3.99! It smells like candy, it's pink, and the best part is...it has glitter!

                                    Garnier Fructis Anti-Humidity Smoothing Milk. 

I've been using this for quite sometime. When I run out of After Party by BedHead, I use this when I straighten my hair. This product works really well considering I have naturally curly hair, and I live a couple blocks from the ocean. Use this along with a heat protectant spray, before flat ironing your hair. 

                       Bed Head Style Shots Extreme Straight Shampoo and Conditioner

Speaking of straight hair, my BFF who is also a hair stylist, got me this as a gift for Christmas. I absolutely fell in love with it, along with my hair smelling good and feeling super soft. This is actually a new line re-introduced by Bed Head. 

                          Bed Head Style Shots Hi-Def Curls Shampoo and Conditioner. 

 I haven't really worn my hair natural (curly) since i've been in Arizona, but i'm very excited to try this line for curly hair as well :)

                         LORAC aquaPrime and Studio Gear Matte Foundation in Creme

These are two products that I cannot live without. aquaPrime by LORAC is my favorite foundation primer. Like I mentioned before, my skin is super sensitive and I break out easily, and this is the only foundation primer that I can use. aquaPrime is oil free, fragrance free, paraben free, and silicone free. This also contains Sodium Hyaluronate which is an ingredient found in some of the best anti-aging skin care products, because it hydrates and plumps the skin. Using this product in conjunction with a moisturizer, will help your foundation last throughout the day without fading. aquaPrime runs about $30 at Ulta but I promise is worth every penny because it WILL LAST you for about 4-6 months. You only need 1-2 pumps for your entire face. 

Studio Gear Studio Matte Foundation is my absolute favorite. In early 2009 I was a makeup artist and vendor for this line. This foundation was reformulated to be paraben free and is also oil free.

I hope everyone is having an awesome last week of December! Get ready for 2011!

xoxo<3

Alyssa

Gucci In The Desert

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas! I absolutely love Christmas. In my family Christmas eve is bigger than Christmas day (leading up to midnight, when Jesus was born). Between spending time with family, eating awesome food (tamales, pozole, menudo-oh my!) and celebrating the birth of Christ, Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. 


I will be posting pictures of some of the gifts I received, but I have to wait until tomorrow for good lighting. (Yes, it's my fault for posting so late). In the meantime, i've been meaning to post some pictures that I actually took on Thanksgiving Day. As a Merchandise Marketing student, I love paying attention to how merchandise is photographed in magazines. I always love when the photographer takes such an elegant product or garment, and has a model posing in the garment, or with the product in a rugged place, or in the middle of a dirt road. It's the contrast that catches my eye. For fun, I took these pictures with some pieces from my mom's Gucci collection. 

                           Dress and Tights by Xhilaration, from Target

                    'D Gold' large hobo with D ring detail handbag by Gucci

Gucci Monogram Canvas Continental D Ring Wallet

         Gucci Square Sunglasses by Gucci, Earrings from Styles For Less


Yes, I mix high end pieces with fast fashion pieces :) and so can you!


xoxo
Alyssa

Christmas Week And Goodies From Ulta

Ok, so I know it's been a while since I have posted , but I have a really good reason! Between the chaos of finals week at school, christmas parties, my brother's homecoming from deployment, and not finding my camera charger (had to buy a new one), its been really crazy! I'm now here in the motherland (Arizona) for winter break. I've been buying last minute gifts and goodies here and there, and wanted to share some of what I bought. 


I have been looking for a light lavender/lilac eyeshadow, and came across this one from NYX in Frosted Lilac. I love NYX because it is super affordable, and good quality. I was introduced to this line by one of my fellow makeup artists that I used to work with. LOVE NYX

ps....yes that is one of my favorite eyeshadow brushes #28 from Studio Gear (better than mac brushes...true story!)


I wanted to pick up some eyelashes  from NYX and I fell in LOVE with these. They are NYX #126 in Guilty Pleasure. They have silver glitter dusted across, and are super long and dramatic. I'm totally wearing these on my birthday *New Years Eve*

I also bought some other eyelashes by the brand NYC. They were $2.99 and were fabulous. I wore them  on the last day of final presentations at school, and also at my apartment building's Christmas party. They are pictured below and also pictured on me. 

Also if you have curly or wavy hair, you MUST buy this wave enhancer spray by Garnier Fructis. It's amazing!

NYC eyelashes on. Earrings from Styles For Less


Also if you need any gift ideas, I bought my friend a bottle of Bubbly ( haha, no not that kind of bubbly) by Philosophy. It is a shampoo, body wash, and bubble bath all in one. I had a friend give me the Cookies and Cream set by Philosophy last year for my birthday, and i've been hooked! The box caught my eye, with the cute little blonde girl, and all the glitter! You can find this as well as other sets at Ulta, and this bottle runs $16. 

 Hope everyone got their shopping done! 


xoxo
Alyssa

Christmas Came A Little Early This Year

I've been meaning to do this post for a while. I actually meant to do this a week ago after I received it. My Mom is notorious for telling me what my gifts are before she actually gives them to me. She's a lot like me, we get excited when we buy someone a gift, and we tend to spill the beans before giving it to them. Three weeks ago she called me and told me she had to buy my gift early because there was a "Global Shortage". I laughed and thought "oh goodness, what did mom get me?" I was thinking she got me an endangered species animal as a pet or something....or an endangered plant? 


I had to laugh and smile really big the minute she handed me a brown gift bag with the words Louis Vuitton embossed on the bag. What I definitely will take from Louis Vuitton when I have my own boutique, is the gift wrapping. When I have my own boutique, I want my clients to feel like they are opening an extravagant present, even if they bought it themselves. I was very impressed with how Louis Vuitton gift wraps all their items, and almost creates this buildup of excitement with each detail. The ribbon on the box actually had glazed LV initials. I thought it was so genius, I didn't want to mess up the pretty packaging, and almost didn't want to get to my present. Once I took the ribbon off, the box opened like  mini drawer. Inside was a dust bag with the item inside. Then the grand finale....out came a beautiful leather wallet with the Damier Ebene Canvas that matches my purse. Here are some pics...

Nail Polish by OPI in "Louvre Me Not"

                       Yes, your eyes are seeing right- Yes I put my wallet in my christmas tree ;)

Happy Holidays 
xoxo Alyssa xoxo

It's that time of the year ;)

It's that time of the year again, and i'm loving every moment of it! December is my absolute FAVORITE month. It's a time for Christmas trees ( yes I put mine together on November 30), festive coffee sleeves, and another reason to wear sweaters, scarves, and boots everyday! Think about it- what other month can you really get away with wearing and layering all your favorite winter clothes and accessories? Being raised in Arizona, and now living in Southern California, I've realized that once January comes around, people start transitioning into spring clothing. So my advice to you, is to enjoy wearing your winter clothes everyday, and who cares if its not snowing outside- WORK IT! :) 

In Fact.... I think I'll wear my faux fur vest tomorrow at school :)

I

Want to taste Christmas in a cup? Order a Soy Vanilla Chai and make sure it's hot. 

Gold stone ring from Kohl's. 

My mini Christmas tree. Tree, ornaments and glitter blue ribbon all bought from Michael's. 

Another favorite of mine this month, is my holiday edition Starbucks Tumbler I bought on black friday in Arizona. The holiday edition straw looks like a candy cane, versus the green straw it usually comes with. Oh, and by the way, these tumbler cups are really hard to find, I have been searching and stalking every Starbucks for MONTHS. Every time they would get them in, they would sell out that day.  So if you see one, and want one- buy it! I bought mine for $12.95 and on Ebay and Amazon they are going for $34.00-$50.00!

I like to fill mine with green tea or passion fruit iced tea- yum!

Happy December!

xoxo Alyssa xoxo

December Romance

I can't believe it's already December! Yup, that means its finally time to give in, and turn on the heater ( stop walking around with a blanket draped over your head to keep warm ). November was here, and now its gone. I'm not sure about anyone else, but i'm still coming down from the excitement of Thanksgiving and Black Friday. I'm back in San Diego now, and i'm so excited for a month of holidays, birthdays (mine and my mothers :) final exams (yes fall quarter is almost over!), traveling back to Arizona, and more excuses to shop!


I was feeling inspired with the feminine silhouettes, that I have been seeing on and off the runway, for Autumn/Winter 2010/2011. I wanted to put together an outfit, that would exude romance, while incorporating lace details, and florals. 
I bought this whole outfit, including the accessories on black Friday. I decided to pair my black Vera Wang tights with black flats. Pairing black opaque tights with black closed toed shoes, gives the illusion of long thin legs.

Floral skirt by Candie's, tights by Simply Vera by Very Wang. Both items found at Kohl's. 

Cardigan top with lace detail on shoulders from Styles for Less. 

Want to incorporate your makeup with this look? make an extra thick line of eyeliner, to get that dramatic romance novel look, along with rosy cheeks, voluminous mascara, and pink or red lips. 
I used L'oreal Infallible eyeliner in Carbon Black (my favorite eyeliner), MAC powder blush in Pink Swoon,  Maybelline The Colossal Volume waterproof mascara in Glam Black, and Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick #485 in Rapspberry Freeze.

Flower ring from Styles for Less, Audrey Knot Ballet Flat by American Eagle for Payless.