FASHION
Last week kicked off the party season for me, starting on Thursday with a charity cocktail mixer, attire is Birthday Denim. I put on a cocktail dress that I had on hand (purchased on EBAY AFTER renting it from Rent the Runway, because I loved it that much) and paired it with my Lucchese boots, because why not? I live in Texas and it actually worked out. On Saturday, I attended a bonafide Ball—The Dallas Margarita Ball, where you can’t ever be overdressed. I’ve talked about Rent the Runway before, but I wanted to revisit it again, for those of you who may have recently had a need to rent a dress.Rent the Runway is the premier online destination for access to your dream closet. With a revolving roster of over 200 top designers of the season's hottest dresses and accessories, Rent the Runway is designer fashion delivered to your doorstep for all of life's occasions for just a fraction of the price!I don’t like is having to wear the same things over and over, nor do I want to spend a whole lot of time shopping, attempting to pair something that fits within my budget and looks right on me. This isn’t to say that I don’t have such pieces of clothing, because I do. However, I’d rather spend my money on my corporate everyday wear. RTR carries sizes 0 to 16, from daytime wear to black tie. You can also rent accessories or buy foundation garments from them.
I searched for a while for the dress that I wanted to wear to the ball. The more glam and sparkle, the better. I’ve attended this event before and being in Dallas, there are no limits to what you will see. For me personally, I wanted something understated, which would accentuate my best features, and be comfortable enough to dance the night away. Chic and elegant are what I came up with and I felt these dresses would pair nicely with accessories I currently own.
Halston Heritage and Robert Rodriguez for the win! Why two dresses? Well, a gal likes to have a choice and when they arrived, I was gonna go with the one that felt the most comfortable. At the price point for rental, it was still CHEAPER than committing to a gown. I was gleefully happy until I received notification that both of my dress choices had been damaged beyond repair and they would not be available. UGH! Here is where I have to rave on the customer service of Rent the Runway! Rather than stopping with their condolences, they invited me to select my top 5 choices at any of their price points for my original rental price! WOW! WOW! WOW!
While they still had plenty of selection to choose from, there weren’t AS MANY choices as I would have wanted. I sent my my selections and these are the two that they sent me:
Badgley Mischka and ML Monique Lhuillier for round two! These dresses may seem polar opposites to one another. One screams va-va-voom siren and the other states conservative charm. Both of these gowns satisfy the two sides of my Gemini nature. I was able to rent them at my original rental price, so the price is DEFINITELY right! When they arrived, the zipper on the black and white gown was damaged so badly that I couldn’t wear it. The red gown was shorter than I wanted it to be (who looks at feet anyway?). I contacted Customer Service immediately and they sent another gown out to me overnight. It was larger at the top and not very flattering, so I took my chances with the Badgley Mischka. I had a pair of black opera gloves I wanted to wear with it, but sadly, one glove is missing and I have a strange feeling it is mixed in somewhere in the dress up trunk of my darling girls. The shorter gown paid off, because I had to walk through rain and some puddles to get to my destination and didn’t have to worry about my dress dragging. Score!
To make up for the lack of fit, they gave me a discount code off a future rental, which made me very happy. My next rental from them will likely be a sparkly cocktail dress. I’ve not yet settled on which one, so I won’t share here. I have about 6 in my queue that I’m considering. In any case, if you have a formal event (wedding), a cocktail party or you just want something nice to wear on a night out, then I would recommend Rent the Runway. Click my referral link to start browsing. I think you get 20% off the first time you rent! Yaaay!
HAIR
I have a LOT of hair. When I give myself a blow out, it is usually a two day process for it to look how I want it to look. I spend almost an hour blowing it out the night before, then will spend another half an hour the next day (after it has settled down) curling it or running a flat iron through it. If there is any modicum of humidity outside, my hair gets excited from the moisture and frizzes up. It isn’t a good look, not to mention, I’m angry for all of the time that was wasted in attempted to calm my mane. That isn’t to say I don’t love my hair because I do! I love, love, love, love my hair!With that said, I go to The Drybar for blowouts. I have been going to them for several years now. What I love most about my visits to The Drybar is that no matter which location, there is consistency. The styles remain the same, they are very true to their branding, and it is a treat for me. My styles are never compromised with the humidity and will hold strong for about 4 days. My girls both know when I’ve gone for a blow-out not only because my hair looks awesome, but also because of how it smells…and it smells so good! Cost of a blowout is $40 + tip (they encourage $10). Case in point, my hair above was blown-out on Thursday before my Birthday Denim event and it held up until Sunday evening when I washed it. Here it is Sunday morning after I woke up from a night of dancing and walking in the rain.:
MAKE-UP
I am a vaseline, eyeliner kind of gal. I own all of that other stuff, but I don’t use it regularly. I’m trying to get more into my mascara and lipsticks. As I get older, my moisturizers are key, but small beauty tricks can go a long way. Curling my lashes and brushing on a bit of mascara really opens my eyes. A complimentary lip color really works a dazzling smile, too!I am very lucky to be related to the best make-up artist ever (in my opinion), but he lives in Southern California. While it is no big deal to hop onto a Hangout, he hasn’t yet figured out how to make product magically appear through the screen. So for me, when I need something immediately, I pop my head into Sephora and opt for a free 15 minute beauty tutorial consultation. There isn’t an obligation to buy, but often when I’m going in, I know I will be purchasing a product. If you are a noob like me, you will need someone to teach you how to best use what you purchased, and their artists know their stuff! Are you gonna spend more than $50? Then sign up for the total beauty make-over, complimentary with $50 or more purchase. It is for 45 minutes and they will work your whole face!
Recently, I went in and bought some new items that I’ve fallen in love with: Marc Jacobs Beauty Gel Crayon, Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme in Icon, and Make Up For Ever’s Blending Brush. I used to be a loyal Urban Decay gal when it came to my liners, but at the end of the day it still smeared and gave me the look of bruised eyes more often than not. I’ve been in search of a great red lip color and so far Hourglass has satisfied. It has no nasty fillers and doesn’t dry out my lips. And the blending brush because holy wow does it make a difference. I never knew. After my session, I had tips on how to make up my face for future events!
Tips that I learned from my quick beauty tutorial:
- Johnson and Johnsons baby wash will clean my brushes just as good as fancy brush cleaner, just be sure to lay the brush flat to dry.
- Urban Decay’s primer is key before applying make-up.
- Apply moisturizer, primer, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, then concealer. <---I’ve been doing it wrong forever, no wonder I looked like a clown.
So that’s it. Those are three things that have helped me. I realized that not all of these things will work for everyone. Budgets, time constraints, etc can get in the way. Rent the Runway is not a common thing that I use. Plus, I always try to find a discount code to apply before placing my order. I realize that there aren’t Drybars in every city. Most salons can do blow-outs for less and odds are, they can give you what you are looking for. Sephora will actively encourage you to try their products without committing to purchasing. I would highly encourage you to do that before you invest in something that you probably won’t need. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions.
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