Style Within Means

Tuesday, 24 July 2012

Blake

There is something so carefree, yet so polished about her look... almost right in between a beachy Californian and a chic Parisian girl. I love her tousled blonde hair, twinkly eyes and usually bronzed skin. She has been a muse to Karl Lagerfeld and was just chosen as the face of the new Gucci fragrance "Gucci Premiere". Oh and she was on this show called "Gossip Girl", which I hadn't ever gotten into really.

The crazy part is that she doesn't have a stylist! I would have to say that I'm sure she gets assistance from designer friends, since her red carpet style is much more outstanding than her day-to-day/street style.

Here are some of my fave looks she has been snapped in:

Friday, 20 July 2012

F21 fall preview

By now, you may have noticed that I am quite the Forever 21 fan. I believe that people can look fashionable on any budget if they want to. I love Forever 21's endless options and quick turnaround (so the items seem fairly "limited" in a way).

I am so excited about these shots released by "Teen Vogue". I love the styling, hair/mu and overall fashion-y feel. Definitely inspires me to try some of the looks!

I'm loving the striped blazer and rose polka dot blouse...

Tuesday, 17 July 2012

easy-breezy

So here is yet another extremely simple look I thought was good for the Summer, or really anytime!

1. Moisturize skin/apply SPF and then dab your fave concealer where needed. I like MAC Pro Longwear in the Summer since it stays put longer in the heat and humidity.
2. Apply some longwear concealer or primer as a base on the eyes and apply a golden brown shade of eyeshadow, like the second in on the right (golden brown) from this Tarte set. Swipe a little under the eyes too.
3. Curl lashes really well! I just had a lash perm done and it's been great! Then apply thin, long coats of mascara to get extra length without too much volume. You can wipe your mascara to take of the excess product to help with this effect.
4. Smile and dab a hot pink cream blush, like this Make Up Forever HD one. Apply to the apples of the cheeks and slightly up the cheekbones (I tell my students to imagine a tear drop/egg shape). Dab a little bit onto your lips.
5. My brows are sparse in some areas, so I lightly filled them in with a MAC Brow pencil.

That's it... done! This is a very natural look, which is great for days when you are in a rush or it's so hot that you don't want to be layered in makeup.

This is what it looked like on moi:

Here are links to the products used (I used Clinique Mascara though, I actually really dislike the one from Tarte that comes in the set shown :s):

Make Up For Ever blush
sephora.com

MAC Cosmetics concealer
nordstrom.com

Sephora Collection eyelash curler
sephora.com

Mac cosmetic
nordstrom.com

Tarte gift sets kit
sephora.com

Wednesday, 11 July 2012

summer buys

After Coachella, I had a little dry spell in the shopping department while I paid off the trip. Here are some of the items I bought recently though.

I seem to be into cut off tops and cropped denim these days! I really like the silhouette of these tops and have cut a top of my own (a Madonna concert T) and bought a vintage one as well. Two are loose, two are tight. I love the skeleton print on the one, and couldn't resist the mint with spikes top... both from Zara. I definitely love mint right now! I even bought these jeans in mint. I love mixing something hard with something very soft and pretty (like the skeleton top with the mint denim).

These sandals were so cheap at Forever 21 and I freaking love them! I want to go get them in brown too now. I like the little studs and the way the straps look.

The spiked rings were only $1.80 at the F21 in Bellis Fair (US)! I find I need some smaller rings to go in the mix with my statement rings, so these will do the trick, since I can wear just one or all.

I also got these jeans at H&M for only $39.99! I tried them awhile back and kept thinking about them, so I knew I had to go back for them. I wore them out with the mint, spiked top recently...

As well as this watch at Wal-Mart for $39.99, which I love mixing in with various bracelets when I don't want to wear my larger watch...

Here are the links to everything in the collage above, I think the priciest being the mint pants at only $39.99...

Zara studded t shirt
zara.com

Zara cotton t shirt
zara.com

Zara cropped capri pants
zara.com

Forever 21 zipper jeans
forever21.com

Forever 21 strap sandals
forever21.com

Forever 21 pyramid ring
forever21.com

Tuesday, 10 July 2012

denim-on-top

Before the weather finally warmed up, and now that I am in air-conditioning at work, I find that I need a light coat or cover up most days. I have been wearing this Gap denim shirt that I got at a second-hand store so much! It's definitely a useful piece in my wardrobe.

Now I am thinking about getting a lighter denim top to wear and I saw a few at Forever 21 and Zara. I also like some that have cut off sleeves with a bit of fraying left behind. I'm considering getting another second-hand top, cutting the sleeves off myself and bleaching or dip-dying it myself... but we'll see if I make that effort.

For now, here are a bunch of tops, vests and jackets that are $39 or less!