Genevieve has finally achieved her dream, she’s left London and all it’s stresses behind, bought her boat and is renovating it. All she had to do was watch a package for Dylan. But she hasn’t heard from Dylan in over 5 months when her best friend turns up dead and now Genevieve’s past comes back to haunt her. She never thought she’d have to tell any of her dock mates that she was once a dancer, or that the events that caused her night job and her day job to collide would catch up with her.

I was pretty surprised by this book. I wasn’t sure that I was going to like it when I grabbed it out of my library’s new section. However this book was absolutely riveting. Seriously, this is one of the best thrillers I’ve read and it’s been added to my to buy list. I loved how they interspersed her past and present and how every thing flowed together fluidly.

Final Verdict: If you like thrillers or suspense novels then I completely recommend this.

This weeks outfit really had nothing to do with this book, but it’s been kind of my uniform as the weather starts to cool down.

Outfit: Loft Sweater, H&M Leggings, Knit Scarf, and Pink and Pepper riding boots.

On My Face: Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in Siberia, Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla, Benefit’s Benetint, Benefit’s Watts Up, Benefit’s They’re Real, various Lancome Shadows, Makeup Forever HD Setting Powder.

My bracelet is the October Birthstone Bracelet from Alex & Ani which I absolutely adore.

And if you’re wondering about my scarf it’s an infinity scarf that I knit myself. There’s is also a matching hat to go with it because I’m awesome like that, that you will probably be seeing very soon. I’m so excited for it to be getting colder and the season to bundle up.

I was pretty in love with how this outfit turned out and felt that the colors were perfect for fall.

I’m also incredibly excited about all the leaves and will be raking them up this weekend for leaf pile jumping.

I don’t know if you’ll remember but I said I wanted to recreate this outfit that Emma Stone wore this year. I knew we were going to have a really laid back day, so I wanted my outfit to be nice but super laid back as well.

I wore this Gap Fitted Boyfriend Shirt in White with Gap Legging Jeans (mine have zips at the ankle) and Toms.

I also wore my Madewell Drifter sunglasses and for my hair I pulled it up in a low messy bun and swept my blunt bangs to the side. I actually really liked them this way and haven’t stopped wearing them that way since. My earrings are my Kate Spade Small Square Studs in Silver

On my face I wore: Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in Siberia, Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla, Nars Blush in Deep Throat, Lancome Eyeshadow in Metallic Taupe, Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencil in Bourbon, Benefit Watts Up Highlighter, Benefit They’re Real Mascara, YSL Volupte Sheer Candy in #9 Cool Guava and Makeup Forever HD setting powder.

I was completely in love with this outfit. It was absolutely perfect for the day, and I managed (with the help of an apron) to keep my white shirt white during meal times which is an amazing feat for me because I’m insanely klutzy.

Howl thinks he’s a Vampire now and wants to know why he doesn’t sparkle! I keep telling him only Faeries sparkle.

I’ll be doing a post on what my husband and son got me for my birthday very very soon so be on the look out for that.

I’m wearing a Utility Jacket from H&M, Hollister Sweater, Gray Tank from H&M, Gap Legging Jeans, and Pink and Pepper Boots.

Even though it’s from Hollister and I’m not actually a fan of the Abercrombie company and it’s policies, I actually really love this sweater, and would totally buy more sweaters from them. This one is really soft and comfortable and washes well, even though it says dry clean only.
The jacket I bought from H&M last spring, and it’s absolutely awesome. I last wore it here. I adore this jacket, it’s comfortable and it’s perfect to layer with a sweater on extra chilly days.

These boots from Pink and Pepper I bought last year and I adore them. Despite the one inch heel they are incredibly comfortable and are my absolute favorite riding boots I’ve ever owned.

There’s no good close up of it this week, but I’m wearing the Pen Necklace Miss Cannady bought me last year for my birthday. I am obsessed. It’s probably my most worn necklace.

I am completely in love with my makeup from these photos too. I’m wearing Lancome’s Tient Visionaire foundation and concealer, Nars Deep Throat Blush, Lancome Eyeshadows, YSL Baby Doll Mascara, Lancome Rouge In Love Lipstick in Madam Tulip, and Makeup Forever HD Setting Powder.

Of course here’s Howl’s close up. If you’re wondering why his front leg has been shaved, that was from his time in the hospital. He is doing so so so much better, but he’s still on medication and constant surveillance.

How did your Friday the 13th go?

I bought this book because I’m insanely impatient and I missed Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring in theaters and now I have to wait for September 17th for it to come out on DVD.

I don’t know what I was expecting with this book, but I didn’t get it. It was written by Nancy Jo Sales who authored the article The Suspects Wore Louboutin’s, which is what inspired Sofia Coppola to make her movie. This is an expanded version of that article. The full story so to speak. I didn’t love this book, but I didn’t hate it either. She mostly discusses the things that Nick Prugo told her about the robberies and what happened and what was said, she also talks to a police officer who was close to the case, and she talks about how these kids were fame obsessed and how it affected their decisions. I remember when this case happened it was only a few years ago and the kids were about my age at the time.  The actors they robbed weren’t much older than me at the time either. I remember seeing footage of Orlando Bloom after the robbery and just feeling heartbroken for him and how violated he must have felt. If you’ve ever had anything stolen from you, from your house then you know that feeling.

She mentions in one part that we’re all famous now thanks to the internet. Which got me thinking, do I want to be famous? Honestly the answer is maybe. I always wanted to be an actress growing up, but I never pursued it entirely because of the fame factor. I never could decide if I could deal with the Paparazzi following me, so I never even tried.

For the outfit I wore, I decided a bit of a reminder was needed before I recommend this book.

The Shirt says “Live Simply So Others May Simply Live”

I wore a Blazer from Nordstrom, H&M pants and a Tee From Sevenly. My Bag is from Urban Expressions and is 100% vegan.

My Chelsea Boots are from Asos

My Necklace is from Jewelmint and is the Rose Gold Lovers Locket, my ring is from the now defunct ColourMe.com and my nail Polish is Lancome’s Flirty Red.

My hair is just in a messy bun and my Makeup is: Lancome Teint Visionnaire in 100N, Nars Concealer in Vanilla, Makeup Forever Setting Powder, Nars Deep Throat Blush, Lancome Metallic Taupe Eyeshadow, Nyx Skinny Marker Eye Liner, YSL Babydoll Mascara, Vapour Elixer Lipgloss in Enigma.

Final Verdict? I recommend this book if you’re either obsessed with the case, or if you just can’t wait for the movie to hit DVD. I learned way more about this case than I normally would have wanted too, but I’m completely okay with that. I wouldn’t say it’s a must read, but it was an interesting one

Here are two more pictures of Howl being cute while I’m holding him for the above shot:

I’ve linked up to I Feel Pretty’s Weekly Link Up

I had a couple requests for a Tutorial on how I did my hair in this post, so here it is!

First you’ll need: A Hair Tie (I’m using one from Emi-Jay), 2 bobby pins, and not pictured Hair Spray. Personally I use Aveda’s Air Control:

Starting with your hair down:

Seperate out a section at the front which will have your bangs if you have any:

Then brush up into a ponytail:

And tie it off with your hair tie:

then start twisting up your bangs:

You’ll be placing the bobby pins in two places right before you get to the end of your bangs:

And then again at the end of the length of hair you’ve twisted:

And this is how it should look:

This really is super simple, after it’s all done just spray with a light hold hairspray and smooth any flyaways you may have. You might have to do the twist a few times to get it just how you want it, but it’s so quick and easy that after awhile you’ll have it perfect on the first (or second) try.

My top is from H&M and if you’re wondering what’s on my face, I’m wearing: Nars Sheer Glow in Siberia, Nars Concealer in Vanilla, Benetint, Lancome Taupe Eyeshadow, Makeup Forever Setting Powder (just where I used the concealer) and Nyx Soft Matte Lip Cream in Amsterdam

If you try out this hairstyle tweet me a picture, I’d love to see it!

I’m wearing an Sevenly Tee, which you will be hearing more about in a later post, and H&M Shorts

My necklace is the Lovers Locket in Rose Gold from Jewelmint

My hat is also from H&M, and I just left my hair down.
On my face: Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in B10, Nars Radiance Concealer in Vanilla, Nars Deep Throat, Benefit’s Bad Gal Lash, Makeup Forever HD Powder in Translucent, and Benefits Girl Meets Pearl Highlighter.

My Shoes are from the brand Wanted via DSW

This was another really comfortable and easy summer outfit. However my husband said that both the shoes and the hat look like something an old man would wear. I’m perfectly fine with that, but it is a little hilarious, I now have old man shoes and hat, and old lady pants.

Here’s howl looking adorable as always. He was trying to run up and chew the camera so he was tugging pretty hard at his leash.

Everything I’m wearing is actually from H&M except for my Jewelry. The Pink Tee and Floral Shoes are from last year.

I’m a bit sad that I didn’t get a good shot of my bracelet, but it’s a Tiffany’s Return To Tiffany’s Heart Toggle Bracelet that T gave me for my 23 or 24th Birthday. The Key necklace was a present from O that same year.

I really loved both my hair and my makeup here. It was just an all around good day.

On My Nails: Nails Inc Notting Hill Gate.
On My Face: Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua B10, Nars Creamy Concealer, Makeup Forever Setting Powder, Nars Deep Throat Blush, Benefit Girl Meets Pearl, Benefit Bad Gal Lash YSL Sheer Volupte Candy Succulent Pomegrante, Tarina Tarintino Broken Doll Eyeliner
My Hair: Blown out with a Round Brush using Orifluido’s Beauty Elixer.

Howl was also having a particularly great hair day, and he got a new harness recently, so here’s some puppy overload.

We didn’t really do much of anything this day, it was pretty lazy. I think at most I might have run to the store, and I’m pretty sure we had takeout for dinner, but I couldn’t tell you what it was. I do remember feeling great and it just generally being a really nice day that day.

  I wore a my sheer Oatmeal Colored Tee from H&M, Turquoise American Rag Shorts that I cut off and distressed myself, my Olsenboye Satchel, A Floral Headband I made myself (a picture tutorial here), and my Green Hunteress Hunter Rainboots.

Here’s a close up of the Headband:

And my necklace which is from the now defunct Colorme.com.  On my nails are Lancôme’s Noir Caviar and Deborah Lippmann’s Across The Universe.

 

I went to pride with my friend Ryan, who I’ve known for 10 years and he actually used to be my Boss. Since he’s kinda spent the last several years moving all over the country, and has at least visited everywhere from Alaska to Amsterdam and a lot of places in between.

Here we are in the car on the way there looking awesome:

We actually didn’t get to spend much time at Pride because I had a Panic Attack that turned into an Asthma Attack, and we ended up having to head home to get my emergency inhaler. Once that was taken care of we decided not to let that get us down and went to go see The Heat, which was awesome. Seriously go see it. On our way home one of the small towns we passed through was having a fireworks display so we pulled over and watched the fireworks. It was awesome, because what could have turned out to be a horrible day actually ended up being amazing.

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I can’t say I’m going to be exclusively shopping at H&M, because I do love Topshop, Asos,The Limited, Kate Spade and many other companies like that, but I can say that I will always try to find what I need at H&M first.  That said here’s an outfit that features 3 of the above mentioned companies.

 This peach collared dress that I hauled from H&M a while ago is one of my favorite dresses. It reminds me of something Emma Stone would have worn as Ms. Skeeter in The Help.

 Which probably has a lot to do with why I curled my hair. Especially since I almost never use heat on my hair. If you want to know how I did this, I actually filmed how to ages ago when I was making YouTube videos. It’s my Emma Watson Say You Don’t Want It Hair Tutorial. My makeup is my bog standard, Chanel Foundation/Mascara, Nars Blush, Makeup Forever Setting Powder, and Julep Lipgloss.

 Accessories were my Kate Spade Bow Belt, and then a Rose Gold H&M barrette that I used as a bracelet by putting a black Emi-Jay Hair Tie through the clip. On my nails is Illamasqua’s Mottle.

 My shoes were my new Asos Chelsea Boots. I think they went really well with this outfit.

I bet you’re wondering where the body image bit comes into this outfit. Well like I mentioned above H&M recently used a plus sized model in their swimwear campaign and that was amazing and it made me a 1000% more likely to shop there. If you’re wondering why it’s because I’m a size 12. I know it’s hard to judge someones size by images you see, so I’m telling you flat out what my size is. No speculation here. I’m happy, I’m healthy and that’s really all that matters.

It’s important to dress for your size, even if you’re working to loose weight. A while ago I did a huge closet clear out and essentially had a break down that left me depressed for a few days. I wasn’t upset about the actual clothing that I got rid of, I was heart broken about how few things I had left. It was at that moment I decided to stop yoyo dieting and to focus on being healthy.

So here I am today, with 90% of my clothing being from H&M and the most adorable puppy ever, and I’m doing just fine.

 So since I can’t wait, I’ll talk about my hair first. my bangs had not been cut for months and they were driving me absolutely, completely crazy. So I made an appointment at Tanya’s Image and Wellness Salon in Crestview Hills, KY. I’m absolutely in love with the result.

 Once I made my appointment I had to decide what I wanted. I looked for days at pictures of celebrities and at pictures of how I had my hair before. But none of them were really what I wanted. Finally about 2 days before my appointment when I was starting to worry that I’d walk in there and not know what I want, I sat down and said who do I have the most hair envy over?

 The answer of course was FleurDeForce. Every single time I see her I’m jealous of her hair, even when she’s got it tossed up in a ponytail headed to the gym, it looks amazing. The picture I took in of Fleur’s hair was one that she posted on instagram after she had gotten her hair done at the Aveda Salon in London.

 Which is actually a bit funny, because according to her bio my stylist, Christie Toffan, graduated from the Aveda Fredric Institute. I must say I completely adored her, and if you’re in the area I fully recommend going to see her. I drove an hour to get there and it’s definitely worth it. I will be going back.

 

 Now that we’ve all cooed over that adorableness, lets get into the outfit. Here’s the overview:

 For my top I wore a lace tank that you can see better here, with a grey cardigan that kinda reminds me of the cardigans that ballerina’s wear. Sorry it’s been ages and I don’t remember where I bought it. My necklace is from Jewelmint and it’s the Lovers Locket. It’s one of my favorites, I’ve always loved Lockets and it’s Rose Gold.

 Here’s a close up:

For my makeup I’m wearing Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in B10, with Nars Deep Throat, Makeup Forever Setting Powder (Gift from my bestie T, and as usual she was right I adore it) Chanel Mascara, Benefit’s Highbeam and Boi-ing concealer in no. 2. 

My Pants are Peach Skinnies I got from H&M awhile ago on sale. I adore these pants, the only issue is that they stain easily, and I’m terribly clutzy.

and finally, we have my Chelsea Boots that my absolutely amazing husband gave me for our wedding anniversary.  He ordered them from Asos, and if you’ll notice they’re the ones I mentioned wanting before. I’m completely in love with them and wore them all day today. Right from the moment I put them on they were extremely comfortable. I’d say they’re probably my favorite boots I own.

I think we’ll end things today with another adorable picture of Howl.  He’s just so cute.