LBD

LBD = Little Brown Dallas, lol.

Love this dress from Zara - I think it was literally only $30, and it's perfect for when the weather is weird - warm, but still cold in the office or cools down in the evening. Plus the zipper in the back is a nice added detail.

If you guys live near Santa Monica, I just checked out the store "DB Shoes" on the Third Street Promenade (Ryan and I figured it stood for douchebag shoes), but apparently it's Department Brand Shoes. They have a pretty decent selection, but the best part is that most shoes are 50% - 70% off! I got these shoes for $24.50. Not bad for suede wedges. Because of my short legs, I'm sticking to "under-the-ankle" booties from now on. Booties that hit my ankle or higher just cuts my legs into thirds.

zara black dress (similar one here), f21 belt (similar one here), f21 necklace, refresh booties (similar - but more expensive version - here)

I opted for doubling my eyeliner instead of heavy eyeshadow. The black liner is a combination of Maybelline Eye Studio Master in Black and NYC Liquid Liner in Black and the upper teal is Make Up For Ever Aqua Liquid Liner in Turquoise Blue.

Some bonus pictures! In case you're wondering why my hair looks weird, my hair was still wet when taking these pictures...though in photos, it just looks like I have any oily head, haha.

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Hot or Cold?

When I wore this outfit last night to go to the Third Street Promenade, the first thing Ryan asked me was if I was hot or cold - A knit sweater and shorts? Plus a scarf? How confusing! But to be honest, much like the whole Uggs-with-denim-shorts thing, this was actually a great combo for a warmer evening with a cool breeze. But unlike the whole Uggs-with-denim-shorts, I didn't feel like a douche. Ha.

knit sweater from nordstrom, f21 shorts, f21 leopard flats, old navy scarf

And of course, an outtake!

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Strict Restrictions

As part of my healthier/slimmer diet, I've created these little turkey rolls for my lunch. 6 pieces of honey baked turkey, 1/4 of an avocado, and 1oz of pepperjack cheese (usually adds to be about 220 calories).

Granted, not the most filling, but I do usually have carrot sticks, bell pepper slices, and cucumber slices to add more veggies/greens and nutrients. Cheese and crackers help with adding carbs and making me feel fuller if I'm still hungry. A greek yogurt and a piece of fruit for a mid-afternoon snack rounds out what I usually bring for lunch at work.

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High on a Hill

I just bought 2 new skirts from Nordstrom Rack (one for $20 and one for $5!), so that got me to thinking, "Man, I have a lot of skirts that I just don't wear," so I felt like I should take advantage of the warmer-than-normal SoCal weather we've been having and start wearing them to work! I like that a button-down shirt with a little structure counters the flowiness of the skirt.

martin + osa shirt, anthropologie skirt, club monaco belt, zara heels

I've been so bad at exercising the past 3 days - I've had a constant headache and the last thing I want to do is make it go into a full-fledged migraine so I've been taking it easy. But because of my lack of exercises, I've been much more cognizant of my eating habits (as I'm eating a full bagel). Thanks to all of the readers who have been super supportive! :)

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Madly Dapper

Ryan's coworker was hosting a Mad Men-themed party yesterday, which of course, is just an opportunity for me to get dressed up! I actually wore this dress for our engagement dinner, but with a little tweaking (aka: I pulled the shoulders down) and different hair/makeup and adding some pearls, I think it looks pretty different (and timely).

 Ryan. of course, looked perfect for the era with his horn-rimmed glasses and slim-fitting suit and pocket square.

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Tied Up

In an interest of being cool and up with all of things Pinterest, I bought two of my Fall essentials: leopard print flats and a denim (chambray) shirt. You know what I'm confused about? What people consider chambray or denim? Is there a difference? Is chambray a specific kind of denim? I thought it was a thinner version? I'm so unhip with it.

To make things super uncomfortable in the LA office, I made my coworker take my blog photos in the mail room with my phone, teehee.

f21 denim shirt, h&m maxi dress, f21 flats

Then of course, to make things EVEN worse, I posed like:

And he caught:

Coworkers are awesome.

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Guilty as Charged

On tiring days (and when Ryan gets his way), we order pizza from a local pizza joint. He literally asked me, "If I order it, will you eat it?" (because there have been times where I just want to smell it and then try to eat something else), lol. Hey, you gotta live a little!

oh come on, you KNOW that looks damn good.

Surprisingly, it was the glass of wine that put me over my caloric intake. Also worth it! So two interesting things about the below picture:

1. "Be" - this new (I guess?) wine brand that I've discovered at my local Ralph's store is amazing. Regular price it's $6...on sale it's as low as $3.99. SAY WHAAT? I'll be honest, I've only tried the Pinot Grigio - not their red wines. I will when it turns Fall and I want something warmer.
2. Those weird "spoon" things are actually wine chillers that I received for my birthday from my director. You keep those in the freezer since they take up very little space and when you need to chill a bottle of white wine, you plop them in the glass. It chills the wine in about 2-3 minutes! I don't know the exact temperature, but cold enough and it doesn't dilute the wine!

If you're wondering if I'm still doing MyFitnessPal, I definitely am - and yes, I did input those my dinner and saw that I was in the negative. Surprisingly, my carb-intake was still under, but look at that fat intake! Oopsies.

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Up, But Lazy

Lately I've been the queen of snoozing...not like 10-15 minutes snoozing...more like an HOUR of snoozing. I normally don't, so I'm unsure if I'm just falling into a bad habit or what. But because of the constant snoozing, I'm waking up later, going running/walking later, and then going into work later. Like 10am! That is just too late, so my goal is to break the habit of snoozing. This morning I did better...I only snoozed for 15 minutes, but the funny thing was - even though I was awake, I was tired! You know, not sleepy, just lazy.

I opted out of a run today and just walked Dallas around the block for 15 minutes. Hey, at least I got out there, right? It was only for 15 minutes and I only burned 44 calories. To give you perspective, the one glass of soy chocolate milk I had before I left for work was 90 calories.

Dallas is always ready for a walk! (And so are my Uggs and warm ups, lol.)

Speaking of which, it's kind of crazy thinking about how many (or few) calories we actually burn per workout. Monitoring these types of things really does put things into context. Ryan's cousin (who is trying to lose weight) will often go walking...to the donut store...and then buy said donut and walk back! Trust me, the amount of calories burned is not even close the amount of calories that donut has. But hey, I'm just happy that he's walking there!

The point is - just get out there, even if it's for a Sunday-stroll type walk. Get some fresh air, clear your head before your day begins with the 1,000 emails you know are waiting for you in your inbox.

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How To: Remove Gel Manicures

Oh how we love gel (or shellac) manicures! They're chip-resistant! They dry instantaneously so no more waiting 20 minutes to pay for the manicure! And they look so good all the time. But I hate going back to the nail salon to get them removed (unless I'm getting another one done), so I stole their methods and have been doing this at home ever since.

What You'll Need:
+ Typical kitchen foil
+ Scissors
+ Cotton balls
+ Acetone nail polish remover
+ Cuticle tool
+ Buffer file

This is a 3-week old gel manicure, you can tell because it's starting to crack and my nails have grown out (well, in-person at least...in this photo they don't look too bad):

Step 1: Cut the foil into 10 pieces and set aside 10 cotton balls. I usually just split 1 cotton ball in half for two nails.

Step 2: Soak each cotton ball with acetone nail polish remover.
Step 3: Using the foil, secure each fingernail with the acetone cotton ball facing your nail.

Step 4: Leave for 5-7 minutes.

Step 5: Using your cuticle tool, gently scrape off the nail polish, going away from your hand. It should be relatively easy - if it's still too difficult and isn't peeling off, then reapply the soaked cotton ball and foil and wait a few minutes.

Step 6: Repeat for the rest of the hand and switch over to the next hand. Your nails may still have some nail polish on it as well be uneven, but that's okay.

Step 7: With a buffer, simply buff your nails out until smooth and even. Use more acetone to remove any excess nail polish as needed.

By the time I'm done with using cuticle oil and prepping my nails, they're ready to go with a basecoat and color!

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Keep This In Mind:

When you are trying your darnest and nothing seems to be working...it takes awhile for your body to adjust and show your progress. I know I'm BARELY just seeing results. Don't give up, mang.

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Half & Half

I shrunk this shirt and am pretty bummed because buttoned up, it's a bit snug, but because of the ruffles, it looks ridiculous unbuttoned. Figured I could do half-and-half and belt it to make it look more "put together." On Tuesdays I have early-morning status meetings so always am scrambling to do my hair and makeup...a top bun + headband is an easy way to get my hair out of my face!

ralph lauren shirt, lululemon leggings, wanted oxfords, f21 belt

   

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