SheaMoisture Pop-Up Shop at Bryant Park

Loved this place and I took advantage of their B2G1 free deal as much as I could. Too bad they couldn't put up a permanent store in NYC. Their website has been down for about a year now and not all the retail suppliers carry all the products. It's a bit of a pain. Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

HAIR: Two New Protective Style Videos Uploaded!

First up, and long overdue, my videos on Beshe Drew lace front wig purchased from Elevate Styles. Had to do that in 3 parts:
Part 1
Part 2
3 weeks later and pics

I blogged about her below, check it out here.

NEW WIG ALERT!!
Second is FreeTress Equal Lynn (lace front) purchased locally at New York Hair & Wig Factory in Brooklyn, NY. She wasn't on my original wishlist, but I saw her online the night before and liked how she looked in person and had to have her. Plus $29.99 was a steal, and he threw in a free wig cap, ha!

Check out the vid on her here.

I referenced Elevate Styles in the links above, but both wigs are available at most online wig retailers.

Harajuku Mini for Target- Children's Style!

What a good time to speak about children's fashion, which I've been meaning to do for ages. Harajuku Mini for Target is a little spin-off of Gwen Stefani's popular fun and funky Harajuku line, but for the little ones. It debuted on Sunday, November 13th and nothing in the line is over $30. I've always loved Stefani's style and when she had her first son Kingston, I was LOVING the way she dressed him. Not the traditional cutesy way, but more of like a little hip dude. Then Zuma came along and the same thing. Both of her boys are total style icons when it comes to kids. The line is available in stores only and for those of you who happened to go on Target.com during the Missoni for Target madness, you're probably still scarred for life and grateful for this. The day after Missoni launched I was innocently trying to get on the Target site to look at something un-related and couldn't even get on. WHAT? Missoni totally flattened the website. Out of commission. So, the fact that this new Harajuku Mini line is only available in stores is great for that reason...for those of us who happen to live near a Target, or two or three (like me). Buuut not so great for those who don't since they are basically left deprived of super cool kids fashion. I've never seen an item of Missoni clothing in person, just the signs and the racks filled with Target's Xhiliration clothing that were probably thrown there in desperation after the racks were left bare. Since Harajuku Mini is a kids line and not everyone has kids is most likely the reason why the same thing didn't happen to them.

Sunday I happened to walk by the display in the girls section and fell in love with all the girls clothing, then proceeded to complain that nothing cool is ever for boys, blah, blah blah...the usual rant of a hip mother with a son ;) If I see one more football or animal on boys clothing, I will scream. I guess someone kind of heard, so they started with the skulls, which I HATE on children. That's just me though, I find it weird. Since my son was born, I've been constantly trying to re-invent the wheel when it comes to dressing him. He has to look hip! He has a pair or two of skinny jeans every season since he's been able to walk. But it is definitely not an easy task, and I kind of enjoy that because it forces me to be more creative. Girls stuff is everywhere in abundance, in one store you can get a whole new wardrobe, twice. I have to put pieces together from different stores, always mix and matching. It definitely keeps me busy. Anyway, so last night I was looking up the clothing line on my phone while in bed and realized there are toddler boys items!! I mean, why didn't I think there would be? She has two sons for Pete's sake! So this morning on my way to work, I was a Mom on a mission! I had nightmares last night of tees with soccer balls on them chasing me! So I jumped off the train and went to Target and asked where the boys clothing for the line was...turns out it was in a totally different area from the first display I saw. There were two items I was specifically interested in, and guess what? There was only one of each of them in my son's size! Talk about luck and a sign from above! Shhh, don't judge me. I was in and out of Target in about 10 minutes. Never happens when hubby is with me to actually witness :/

Here is the landing page for the line on the Target website. I absolutely adore the logo, it's a little hamburger! Another fav of mine! :P

The Huffington Post is where I took a look at the lookbook since the Target site didn't seem to have the whole line displayed, click here to see it. 50 looks!

This is what I got my son, the top and the canvas slip-on sneaks.

The top was $20, and I'm still a little bothered by that. I've actually never spent that much on a top for him ever. I think the fact that it was a designer and not only that, Gwen, made me bite the bullet. I'm thinking about $15 would have been better for a long sleeved tee for a toddler, especially since the sneakers were only $17. I didn't see those cute pants. I'll have to check again. I didn't have time this morning and naturally, there were more girls clothes in the line on the racks than boys and they were all mixed together causing me stress. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Which could mean that most mothers snatched them up in complete exuberance, or that there were barely any items for boys to begin with. One thing is for sure though, I got the last 5T in the tee and the last size 11 in the shoes! I hope they fit!!

Here are some other cute looks from the lookbook on Huffington Post.com:


Yes, I would put my son in plaid pants. I didn't see them, hubby will be glad about that.



IN LOVE! Very rasta with the lion and red, gold & green colors!

Adorable. A funky sleeper!

How cute is this? Zebra print?! Come on!

Check out the ruffles on the hips! Too cute!

They also have some accessories like bags and headbands for girls. One plaid hat for boys from what I can see based on the lookbook. Run to Target and check it out!!

Blinged Out Sneaks!

I blinged out my friend's daughter's sneakers with swarovski crystals, sequins, feathers and ribbons for her 2nd bday party. I also put rhinestone appliques on her top. M squared for her name and age. Full blog post to come and video. Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

Fall Fashion for Less- Wedge Boots with Fold-Over Fur Cuffs **UPDATE**

Updates in red

So I went to Target last night to buy toothpaste for my son and somehow I found myself trying on and buying these:

Mossimo Supply Co. Kamea Wedge Boots

Errr, I went slightly off-track, but $28! I mean, why not? (Don't answer that). Plus, no one told Target to put them on the end-cap for me to notice on the way to the toothpaste aisle! Mind you, I prefer genuine leather and suede in any footwear that I purchase, especially if it is a timeless piece. Trends go by fast, by next year if they're out of style, I wouldn't have invested too much in them. BUT, they have to look good and not like I'm wearing flammable plastic. :/

The boots have that worn leather look and the fur is all the way inside as well. They are very cozy. The fur is in the flap only, but because they were so soft when I first put my foot in, I thought it was all the way through. That's a good thing! You can pull it up or wear it folded over like shown above. I normally wear a 7 1/2, but because of the fur, I bought the 8. Oh, by the way, it was the last size 8 so I had to buy them. I am a little worried that because they aren't genuine leather they won't hold up in wet weather, if at all. The heel is also what is called thermoplastic rubber and not rubber rubber (you know what I mean) and that's another thing I'm a bit skeptical about because it just sounds cheap, doesn't it? We shall see. I chose black because I have enough tan/brown/taupe boots. I haven't actually worn them, so I can't comment on the comfort. But fur + wedge should = comfortable, don't you think? Definitely not a walking shoe. They are a creeper because the fur makes you think comfort, and they are at first, but wedge or not, your foot is still on an incline and slowly but surely, the balls of my feet started hurting me. It probably didn't help that I wore them to run an errand on my lunch break. I have since taken them off at my desk. The rubber is great and provides good shock support though. They are also a nice looking pair of boots.

By the way, do NOT sleep on Target, they are truly the one-stop shop, their fashion is great, especially the designer brands that pop-up every few months. The trick is to wait and get them on clearance on the Target website ;) I always find stuff for myself, hubby and son, even better on sale.

Back to the boots, here are her more expensive siblings:

Aldo Peale, $90, material upper.

I actually prefer the taupe in these

Diba "Flower Girl" at Shoebuy, $120. Suede (I am guessing genuine since the word "faux" didn't preface it).

Rocket Dog's "Bonfire" at Zappos, $95. Faux suede and shearling.
"Francille" by Kelsi Dagger on Piperlime, $120. This is a different look but the same concept.

Now, 2 out of the 4 other boots I posted above are genuine materials and cost 3 times as much as the one I bought. You have to use your noggin when it comes to trends and fashion, it makes so sense spending that much for "faux" anything in my opinion. If genuine is what you want though, you're better off spending the extra $20 for the Diba or Kelsi Dagger pair than saving $20 and getting faux. Or you can buy the Mossimo ones and save that extra $90 altogether and spend it on some more Fall/Winter fashion. It's totally up to you =)

Okay, so I'm a nerd and found the definition of "thermoplastic rubber" on synoprene.com:

"Properties
Light in weight
Colorability
Good tear strength
Excellent abrasion resistant
Excellent dimension stability
Low temperature flexible
Excellent weather resistant
Performs like vulcanized rubber
Reusable and recyclable
Non-migratory
Excellent electrical properties
 
Applications
Superior in quality, the thermoplastic rubber offered by us is used in various industrial applications such as:

Footwear
In footwear industry, thermoplastic rubber is used in the the production of shoes soles, loaters sole, safety shoes sole & industrial shoes sole, sports shoes sole, ski-boot soles, kiddy shoes sole and related decorative accessories, unisole. modifier asphalt, modification modifier for SMC (sheet moulding compound) and other thermoset & thermoplastic composites."

Doesn't sound so bad after all.

Happy shopping!

Beshe Drew Lace Front Wig Review and My Hair Today- Quasi-Pompadour

Yes, my eyebrows are jacked up. I'm growing them out :)

Been rocking my Beshe Drew synthetic lace front since last week. Love her! A lot of natural hair ladies have been rocking her for the last two years, so I'm a bit late, but hey. I got her from Elevate Styles when they had a free shipping promo a couple weeks ago. She was $35. I ordered her a Friday afternoon and got her Monday, so they have fast shipping...LOOOOVE ITTTT!  I got her in a #2 because they didn't have 1b at the time (and yes, I needed her right then!) I was a little worried about that since I've only ever did 1, 1b or a 1b mix with red in my weaves or wigs in the past. I didn't want it to look too "dusty" if you know what I mean. But the color is great! She has two combs to the front near the temple, one in the back and an adjustable strap. She definitely has about three curl patterns in her like other ladies have been saying. More of a wave to the front, afro to the back, and a loose spiral curl at the nape of the neck. Some ladies like that, some don't. I like it because she looks more natural to me that way. My real hair has at least two different curl patterns. Drew is cut in a great style, long on the sides, then angled going up to the back. This is my first lace front and the lace is a bit scratchy, but I have nothing to compare it to.

My Method
I followed Dezi1016's YouTube tutorial on how to cut the lace off without the wig head. I have one, but using the pins and all that made it seem more intense and scary to me. Her method, you just use a paper towel, fold it and put it along the hairline so you can see exactly where you're cutting. Holding it that way also just made it easier for me to cut. I didn't do a straight cut, I sort of zig zagged a bit (BridezillaMartina, mentioned below, recommended that). I rocked Drew just like that for a couple days and I was definitely self-conscious wearing her because I felt it screamed "LACE FRONT!", and was even considering pulling out some of my real hair along the front and sides like I was doing for the 1/2 wigs. But I figured that was defeating the purpose of a lace front. I was getting frantic! So I stopped being lazy and followed BridezillaMartina's YouTube tutorials (which I marked as favs well before buying the wig) on how to make the hairline realistic. Here's Part 1 and Part 2, take a look, she's fab.  I have a full protective style this way. THUMBS UP! Her tutorials involve tweezing the hairline and cutting/shearing in baby hairs. This wig claims to have a natural hairline, whatever that means, but it still needed some tweaking. I used a product recommended by muffinismylovers years ago to smooth down your edges and baby hairs and it works wonders for me. I use it to lay down my own edges, then the baby hair on the wig. It's called, ummm, I forgot, but when I remember I'll put that up. Before I did BridezillaMartina's method, the front of the wig would recede a bit and show my natural hair, which irked me, so I considered buying Wig It's Gripper, which isn't a glue, but just as sticky, so I was a little skeptical about that and figured I'd only use it as a last resort. Thank goodness I didn't have to get to that. I stopped wearing the combs to the front because I felt that pulled the wig forward, which is not cool, so I started putting two bobby pins at the sides instead for security. I bought a beige wig cap at first, that was too light, then I bought a dark brown which was better. Weird since I figured the beige would work more since the skin when we part is always lighter than our face. The dark brown is darker than me. Oh well, doesn't matter because yesterday I stopped wearing a wig cap underneath altogether. I know that protects the wig and your hair, but they were giving me headaches because they're so tight! I mean I have a small head, what do ladies with bigger heads do?? Today I forgot to put the bobby pins on the sides so I had a mild panic attack about that when I realized...then another one when I realized I didn't have my backup bobby pins in my handbag. But it's going good so far. If you see me in the street today with my wig hanging off my head, let me know please ;)

Btw, our pc died at home, so I haven't been able to upload the vids I did on her last week :( Hopefully we get it fixed soon! In the meantime, here are some more pics of today's style:

Sent from my Motorola ATRIX™ 4G on AT&T