Living Curvatude: the weekend baby!

one of the things that i love about my life here in chicago is that there is always something to do, even in the heart of winter.

this weekend was no exception.

friday night me and a couple of my girls, Danyelle of The Cubicle Chick & Raijean of Swa-Rai met up at FoodLife for dinner and a chat and although we all are bloggers and usually pictures are a top priority, we didn't take a single one.

saturday started pretty early. my kid's bball team is in the playoffs and so i went to her game and hung out with my little niece, passion.

they won so after the game my kid was all smiles..

off to round two...lets go wildcats!!!

after the game i rushed over to the tweetup of the week, the #haroldstweetup which if you are familiar with chicago, you know that one of our most famous fast food chicken joints is called Harold's Chicken.

so a bunch of us met up at a harold's, purchased our food and took it over to the Three Peas Art Lounge, which is an art gallery, bar, lounge space.

i got fish since i don't eat chicken...yes i said it, i don't eat "yard bird", or beef, or pork, or lamb or turkey...you get the point...

and strangely again, i wasn't the usually picture snappin fool that i am, so i only took a couple of pics

here is one with my girl Mary Kay, who had her first taste of harold's or as she put it, her harold's virginity was about to be taken...LOL

we chatted, ate and had drinks and then i headed to a starbucks to get a chai and chill out for a bit...

i really wanted to go home but couldn't because i had tickets to the performance, or better yet, i had EVERYONE's tickets to the performance because if i was going alone i probably would have just gone home and went to bed and blew it off

a girl was tired...

but i am glad that i did not.

i met up with Danyelle of The Cubicle Chick and Kim of The Stylish Life

once again, no pictures...

we saw Funk it Up About Nothin a "hip-hoptation" of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing and it was really fun.

they took a classic and put the freshest, funniest and at times raciest spin on it.

i would recommend that if you are in chicago that you go and see it before it ends feb 13th and they take it out on tour down under, yes that down under, Australia

i was reading about the show and found out that the guys who created, directed and star in it, JQ & GQ are members of the Merz Apothecary family and JQ co hosts a video blog about their products. check it out here.

if you are not familiar with Merz Apothecary, hand over your beauty card!

but they are a 135 year old chicago landmark that sells hundreds of beauty, health and wellness products.

the theater is located at Navy Pier, a major tourist attraction here in chicago and they had the coolest thing going on there this weekend, called Snow Days.

Part of the event was a snow sculpture contest.

here's a pic that i snapped

and here are pictures of the winners creations.

yesterday, i met up again with Danyelle of The Cubicle Chick AND one of my favorite people EVER, Rae of Rae Lewis-Thornton: Diva Living with AIDS

Rae is such an inspiration in so many ways. she lives her life OUT LOUD, which mind you is a challenge that i can not even fathom.

if you are not familiar with her story, you NEED to be.

spend some time on her website and follow her daily life and dealings on twitter.

its not always pretty but its always real. and its always Rae.

she also makes fabulous jewelry and i will be rockin & reviewing one of her new tea bracelets soon!

anyway, we took a few pics yesterday. Danyelle and I made sure that we did!

Rae, Danyelle & Moi - photo from: http://www.thecubiclechick.com

we had a great time...i am so grateful for the people that twitter has brought into my life...

Danyelle wrote about our sunday afternoon on here blog and she really summed it up perfectly.

She is a sweetheart and i knew when i met her last year at Blogging While Brown that she was just good quality people. She is fun, sincere, open, giving and honest. It gets no better than that.

She has an incredible blog and she writes for numerous websites and she has something major cool in the works, which is why she was here in chicago this weekend.

FINGERS CROSSED that she gets it! You deserve it Danyelle girl!

Check out her recap of our lovely day here.

oh i almost forgot to post the winner of the L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara. it's Cid! I tweeted ya. email me your mailing addy via the link at the top of the blog!

love rockin...

besides not being able to leave the house without applying a coat of the new l'oreal voluminous million lashes mascara (enter the giveaway btw!), i have been unable to leave without my ceramic watch..

i tweeted it a few weeks ago and i still just love rockin it.

its just so cool and simple and no matter if i am going out scruffy to the gym or a little dressed up, my wrist begs for it...

stainless, ceramic...simplicity.

rockin the golden globles...

who doesn't love awards season? its fashion nirvana.

last night during the golden globes emerald green reigned and everything from blush to purple to black flowed across the red carpet.

here is my pick for the most curve rockin look of the evening...

Amber Riley in Oliver Tolentino

i am a serious glitz girl and this dress brings it to the max.

it also fits her fabulously and makes the most of her dangerous curves

BRAVO!

get schooled with l'Oreal

i've written about it more than once, that i am a big L'oreal Paris fan..

just a peek at some of my makeup kinda shows that i buy a lot of the products from their lines, especially HIP and of course Voluminous (btw check out the giveaway)

so i was excited to see their latest project, the L'Oreal Paris Academy.

its an online school where you can sign up to take courses in hair, makeup & skincare, fashion & lifestyle.

the courses are videos that you watch and take quizzes about.

they also have five women that they have chosen that they will fab up for various red carpet events..

you can also enter to win various prizes, from trips to makeup & more.

fun...

L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara Review/Giveaway

i saw a few reviews floating around from folks who gave this mascara so so ratings and i would have to say that i am a bit confused by them.

i am a die-hard original L'Oreal Voluminous user.

it is without a doubt my favorite mascara EVER!

so, while i will from time to time try others, i always tend to come back home to it.

needless to say, i was a bit surprised at how much i loved L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes from the first swipe. well maybe not, since it is from the same company and under the same line...

here i am with just one coat on. and i didn't curl my lashes or anything, i actually never curl my lashes

sorry the picture is so dark...dang cellphone pic...
but even so, you can see it really added length and definition.

oh and in case you are wondering what that is near my eye, its the xanthelasma i mentioned in this post

my only issue with this particular mascara is that it has a lingering smell.

it doesn't stink by any means but it never goes away which is not something that i am used to in my mascara or makeup in general for that matter...maybe i am just super sensitive...

but smell aside, it's the only mascara that i have reached for the past week or so, even over my beloved original (GASP)

anyway, because i am a sharing kinda girl, i would love to give one of you a tube of your own to try and smell for yourself... {SMILE}

Comment here on the blog to enter to win it!

And for the love of all things chocolate, make sure you leave your email addy or twitter handle so that I can contact you...seriously...i can not tell you how many times someone has entered a giveaway and not left info..


fine print: giveaway ends 1/20/11 @ 12 noon CST.

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday: Closet Frenzy

Today's Fashion Beauty Friend Friday is all about if and how I plan what I wear.

I almost didn't even respond to this week's questions because all of my answers are pretty much..no or I don't but here we go..

1. How do you determine what you will wear that day?

Most of the time, I get up and stand in my room and look at my closet at all the clothes and go and do something else.

LOL

I just own way too many things...and my closet is way too small to hold it all, so things are everywhere.

That is why this year I have seriously started purging (more below).

But I determine what I wear most days by what is clean, easily accessible and fits.


2. Do you plan outfits out in advance for a whole week, month, weekend?

Seriously, I almost never plan out what I am going to wear.

The only time that this happens is when I am going away. But just being home doing my regular thang, no way.

I am very fly by the pants, pun intended.

3. Do you have any specific way of tracking outfits and items already worn so you don't repeat?

I have pieces from season to season that I fall in love with because they are either crazy cute or comfortable or whatever so I try to wear them as much as possible.

So, I am not one of those people who has a problem repeating and this was taken to greater heights when I did my Rockin 10 items for 30 days challenge.


4. How do you discover new combination's of items in your closet? (Trial try-ons? Hanging items together?)

Mariah's Shoe Closet - Obscenely Fabulous!

As much as I wish that I had a closet like the one above, that's all organized and lit up and HUMONGO, I don't!!!

So, most of the time its purely out of a need to get out of the house NOW that I will look at pieces and grab them and put them together.

I applaud the people who really take time to do all of this planning but it is just so not me.

I am the girl who will go out and buy something rather than spend time trying to put together an outfit from my closet.

5. To streamline the process for 2011 what is one new thing you can do to cut down your dressing time?

To correct my errant dressing ways, I have begun a huge purge of my closet.

And while this is something that I regularly do in small ways, this year, I am taking it to another level.

My wardrobe is a huge mix of pieces, some that I have had for 20 years or more and a lot of current more trendy pieces, so I am paring it down to only the pieces that I love and know I will get the most mileage out of for years to come.

And besides, my style is changing so much, from the fabrics that I prefer to the colors that I am drawn to.

So, this current purge will leave me with an almost empty closet...good for Goodwill, bad for my wallet.

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday is the brainchild of Katy Rose of Modly Chic. It's a fun community of diverse bloggers that's growing by the day! Join in and have your say

link love...the fab five returns

OMG people, HAPPY NEW YEAR!

it's been eons since i posted a fab five..

i am busily living my life and consumed by my quest to make my apartment the home of my dreams but i wanted to post another one of my favorite blog features.

i follow so many incredible bloggers, who really keep me excited and interested in so many different ways...

here are a few links that i hit up this week that i wanted to share because i think you will love them.

my girl Felicia of This That Beauty is so great at offering a variety of skin care tips. her latest post centers on her own Winter Skin Care Solutions

btw, if you don't know Felicia, you need to follow her asap on twitter. she is so fun and funny as evidenced by this discussion after i tweeted a picture from the grocery store (ignore the spam tweet at the end...how i abhor spammers!!!)

But see what i mean?

She is HILARIOUS!!!

the other fabulous lady who joined in the convo with us is none other than THE Rashida B.

she works brows, nails and beauty to the MAX...follow her on twitter too!

oh and check her out working her magic on carrie underwood for the december cover of instyle mag...

now that winter is in full effect, i am hibernating a bit and while doing so, i am consumed by home decor, DIY bloggers.

one of the ones that i am loving on big time is Centsational Girl...

this woman does the coolest DIY projects I have ever seen. she fuels my home aspirations in the biggest way...

so, if you are like me and you love home decor & furniture, you must check her out..

now on the fashion front, i am loving Lexy of Beauty Fash.

her blog is fun and personable and she has really great style..

she not only works fabulous drag, she works a wicked weave and recently wrote a tutorial on how she keeps it fierce!

my good friend Raijean of the blog Swa-Rai has started an incredible cause called the Bleeding Heart Project"

it was birthed because she found herself at the age of 28 suffering from congestive heart failure.

thankfully she survived and is thriving and now she wants to make sure that young people gain more awareness about heart health.

this is so near and dear to me because I lost my beloved Gram to heart disease, my mother has survived numerous heart procedures and issues and i along with other members of my family have cholesterol issues that are leading causes of heart disease.

so every year i try to do something to support the fight against heart disease. i always participate in the American Heart Association, Go Red for Women campaign and this year i am excited to add the Bleeding Heart Project to the mix.

that was more than five huh?....oh well...there is so much good stuff!

fab five out...

have a wicked weekend!

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday: How Do You Compare

This weeks FBFF post is about how you feel you compare to other bloggers. People comparing folks is a huge NO in my book check out my responses to see why.

 1. Have you ever looked at someone's blog and thought yours will never measure up?

I never feel a need to compare myself to others. And while it could be attributable to my age, (I am in the 40/40 club) its not.

I have just always been that way. Maybe it's the bull in me.

My only goal when I look at other peoples blogs is to snoop.

To see what they are up to, what they are wearing, how they are decorating (since I also have a home decor/DIY blog), what they are eating, get new ideas, etc.

It's all in fun.

I think it's fruitless to try to measure yourself against others.

You are you.

The only thing you should strive for, is to be the best you you can be.

2. Do you (did you) feel pressure to meet some kind of undefined standard for fashion bloggers?

Nope.

I am not good at following rules, especially when I think they are ridiculous and unnecessary.

And usually if someone insists that I SHOULD do something, because that's the way they feel it SHOULD be done, I usually do the total opposite.

So, I don't feel a need to follow the blogging trends or the pseudo standards of fashion blogging.

3. Many established fashion bloggers are also extraordinary DIYers, bakers, and crafty people. Do you think you need to combine all of these things to be successful at blogging?

Naw.

To be a successful blogger, I think that you need to be true to yourself. I blog about whatever I am interested in or whatever I am doing.

I personally love DIY and do that kind of stuff all of the time but I don't blog about it much, although more of that will be coming on my luxaholic blog.

And since I am working to design/make my own clothes, there will be more of that here on this blog but these are not things that I do to fill some kind of blogging must have.

Besides I am somewhat of a part time lover blogger, so I don't blog when I don't want to.

I don't want it to feel forced or like a burden. So, I only do things that I really want to, when I want to.

I blog like I live my life: very spontaneously and only doing what feels good to me.

4. The most successful blogs are the ones that have their own personal voice - how are you developing your voice or how did you find yours?

When I first started this blog, I used to write in the third person but that just didn't work for me because I had a personal blog for years and it was all about me and my life and when I tried that "we" third person thang, it just felt odd and forced.

So, I went back to blogging about me and the things I like and love and that I am interested in.

5. Toot your own horn... what's one thing you do that is unique to you and your blog? What gives your blog an edge?

Hmmm....not sure if there is anything.

I blog about me, my life and my interests.

And since there is only one ME, I guess that in itself makes it unique.

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday is the brainchild of Katy Rose of Modly Chic. It's a fun community of diverse bloggers that's growing by the day! Join in and have your say!