The Best Products for Flawless Skin

Flawless skin is hard to come by these days. Trying to steer clear of wrinkles, sun rays, pollution, and genetics can get exhausting. The pursuit of smooth skin is no easy feat. Finding products that work for my sensitive skin has been tough but over the last two years I've gotten really concerned with what I put on my face. I used to be awful at taking care of my skin. I'd constantly stay up late and wash my skin before bed maybe half the time. Which I've now come to realize is awful. I was also into tanning all throughout college, which is pretty much the worst thing you can do for your skin. What was I thinking? I knew it was bad for me but I think it's one of those things you just mature out of... you finally realize your mother was right when she said 'stay out of the sun'. I' m happy being my light-skinned now and I've learned to embrace it, and even kind of love it lately. 

After I spent one too many nights not washing my skin at night and getting upset that my skin was so 'blah', I finally decided to clean up my routine and my skin has really thanked me for it. I'm very meticulous with my skin routine now and always wash my face before bed. I rarely miss a step and my makeup and  skin just looks so much better.

So, to help you all out, I've come up with my 9 favorite products to get your skin glowing, smooth, and ultimately, flawless. From serum to silky finishing powder, these are my can't-live-without beauty favorites that I hope might help you all out. What are your favorite flawless skin essentials? (I'm always on the look-out for new and reader-approved products?)

Nuxe Serum, Dior Hydra Life Pro-Youth Sorbet, Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer,

Marc Jacobs Foundation, Marc Jacobs Concealer, YSL Touche Eclat, Too Faced Bronzer

Nars 'Final Cut' Blush, Laura Mercier Translucent Powder

Weekend Deals & Steals: March 28-30

Aritzia - 20-30% off select style during their "Here Comes The Sun" sale

Asos - Up to 50% off sale

C. Wonder - 40% off entire order! Discount applied at checkout

Express - Up to 70% off during their Semi-Annual Clearance sale

J.Crew -  25% off full-price items and an extra 30% off sale with code 'HEYSPRING'

LuLu's - 15% off floral dresses with code 'HH15FLORAL'

Madewell - Extra 30% off sale with code 'BYEMARCH'

Topshop - Save up to 50%

Victoria's Secret - $15 off $100. $30 off $150, and $75 off $250 with code 'SPRING14'

Emerson Fry Spring '14

Last week Emerson Fry debuted a sneak peek at their Warm Spring '14 line. The pieces just hit stores this past Tuesday and I couldn't be more in love with this line. If you haven't 'sneaked your peek' yet, you're missing out. The jersey Ts look comfy and sophisticated, and I've got my eyes on these tie sandals! The pairings of minimal pieces is stylish simplicity at it's finest. The "complex colors" layer well and can be matched interchangeably. Love, love, love. I've compiled a few of my favorite looks from their line below, but you can check out the full line at emersonfry.com

 

Emerson Fry Warm Spring '14

 

 

DIY Beach Wedding Centerpieces

I was in major DIY wedding mode these past few days working on my rustic beach wedding centerpieces. With just months left until the big day, I've been trying not to stress and working hard on all my beach decor. I'm determined to do most of it myself to save money and then be eco-friendly and re-use the decor long after my actual wedding. My rustic beach theme allows me to play with sand and shells all afternoon, which is fun and it definitely has me dreaming of the beach and summertime. Is it June yet?

These tiny little starfish are the cutest.

Close-up of the shells.

Lining up all the beachy decor.

The raffia adds a rustic touch to the DIY centerpiece jars.

They're slowly coming together.

More to do... the DIY beach wedding to-dos seem to never end. Final product to come soon!

NYC Engagement Photos

With the wedding in May, I've had a good amount of time to plan and build excitement. As I am obsessed with photography, picking our wedding photographer was the most important detail, for me. I wanted someone with a timeless style that has more of an editorial eye, than the typical wedding poses.

After much research I settled on John Paul Teuntonico, based here in NYC. JP can envision far beyond what I think a typical wedding photographer usually does. He's so aware of the small details and important moments, and he captures them beautifully.

Here are a few gems from our engagement shoot in June. I can't wait for round 2 at the wedding.

I highly recommend JP to anyone in the area. His work can be found here:  http://www.jpteutonico.com

(P.S. as if things can't get any better, check out his philanthropy work here)

DIY Kitchen Nook

A DIY Kitchen Nook: This past week the fiance and I finally did something with the awful space in our kitchen. We just hit the one year anniversary of us moving into our new house and we're still trying to get everything to feel like "home". I came across several DIY ideas online for making a kitchen nook or kitchen banquette. But none of them were extremely helpful and unfortunately the fiance's lack of handyman skills doesn't help much either. So what to do? Get creative.

DIY Kitchen Nook (aka Banquette)

I started with my base. I came across these cabinets from Ikea. They're actually used to go over the refrigerator in kitchens but we re-purposed them. We bought three of them each measuring 36" long by 24" deep by 15" high. Optimum seating height is between 18" and 20" so after we add a cushion, we should be right on target. We picked out our favorite type of door - I think there might have been about 5 styles to choose from - and set off home. It took us about 1.5 hours to set everything up. I like to think of myself as an Ikea builder master - the fiance... not so much. Like I said, not the most handy of handymen. In total we spent $393.00 (before tax) for the cabinets, doors, and hinges.

(Pictures from Ikea)

We headed off to HomeGoods for pillows. I covet all things Pottery Barn, but sometimes my budget doesn't quite allow for splurges of that kind. I can always find something fab at HomeGoods and this time I got a real score. We picked up these high quality Pottery Barn look-a-like pillows at $30/pair. Great steal considering that's $15 a pillow. Just to compare, here's a Pottery Barn pillow at $35.50 each: Tonal Linen Flange Pillow.

We also grabbed a vase to put in the awkward corner space for our "sticks". Our "sticks" came courtesy of a 40% off coupon from Michael's Craft store. Never go to Michael's without a coupon... they have a new set of coupons every week and you'd be crazy not to take advantage. These "sticks" (I like to call them sticks in case you can't tell) cost us roughly $20 and look great in the corner between the wall and the windows.

The small wooden item is actually a crate from Michael's that I stained myself with two coats of wood stain. Sun bleach and then . Gives a great, rustic, beachy feel to the space. (Side note: I should really buy stock in Michael's)

My nearly finished product... it compliments our kitchen and we can finally have guests over for brunch or coffee. It's definitely my new favorite space.

Stay tuned though... next up: custom cushions and a new kitchen table. (Pictures taken at night, final picture taken in early morning light)

Tulips & Springtime Blooms

My new house must-have spring blooms are tulips. Tulips and peonies are my favorite flowers and with spring just around the corner you can find tulips pretty much anywhere and most likely, on sale. This time I got a mix of colors and set them up as my centerpiece on our kitchen table. The colors are so vibrant and eye-catching. They definitely put me in a good mood.

Ellinger Baking Institute - Wedding Cake Tasting

This past weekend the fiance and I drove out to the North Shore of Long Island to go wedding cake tasting. Our venue is affiliated with Robert Ellinger's Ellinger Baking Institute located in Port Washington. It was a balmy 63 degrees on Saturday so the drive was gorgeous.

Right off of Main Street sits the cute Ellinger Baking Institute where they hold classes and parties. We met with Robert, the owner, a really nice man who took us through our tasting process. With my allergy, he even had a separate gluten free tasting for me. Awesome. The fiance got to try three different cake types and basically devoured all three of them. Good sign. He ultimately settled on Red Velvet, so I hope our guest like red velvet cake... but, who doesn't, right? My cake was a rich but light, flourless chocolate cake which had to be the best gluten free cake I've ever tried. Honestly. The top tier of our wedding cake will be gluten free and frosted to match the rest of the cake. My sister-in-law and I are both gluten free, so at least I'm not the only one.

Here we are taking "selfies" in the car on the way to the baking institute. A Saturday full of sun makes for a great ride on the north shore.

As taken from Ellinger Baking Institute's Facebook page, here is Robert in front of his baking institute's store front. Robert was such a nice, honest, and funny man. I'm excited to be working with him for our wedding and definitely recommend him to anyone out here on Long Island. He was full of great information and funny stories about his business. He made the cake tasting experience even better!

Click the photo below to visit Ellinger Baking Institute's site. Learn all about their classes and their parties. I so want to take a class or maybe throw a party with the girls. I'm all about baking, so this is totally up my alley.

Photo sources: 1 & 2

Top 4 Gym Essentials

Yoga mat, Fitbit, Klean kanteen, Sports bra

Summer is right around the corner (hopefully) which means bikinis are right around the corner. Yikes. I've been spending lots of evenings at the gym lately, which isn't my ideal way to spend my nights, but the fiance makes me go with him, so at least I have a gym buddy and motivator. Another motivator? Vegas. The land of dresses and bikinis. My bridesmaids and I are headed to Vegas in just 2.5 short weeks for my epic bachelorette party. I'm pumped for pool parties, dressing up, and late nights with my favorite girls.

So, if I have to go to the gym, I need my gym essentials - my yoga mat, fitbit, water bottle, and comfy sports bra. I get a little grossed out by using community yoga mats so I have two that I alternate and bring to my yoga classes. Now I know exactly where my mat has been. My future father-in-law bought us fitbits as gifts about a year ago. I wear mine often to track my steps, my sleep patterns, and my calories burned. It's an awesome accessory and tiny enough to be discreet. My klean kanteen is my water bottle of choice due to it being BPA free and a comfy sports bra is a must-have for any workout session. What are you workout essentials? Would love to hear from you all. 

Oh Joy! for Target - Spring Party Decor

If you haven't heard about Joy Cho from Oh Joy! you're in for a real treat. The lifestyle blogger has just teamed up with Target for a line of party essentials that are incredibly cute and incredibly affordable. The line is full of happy spring colors in shades of sherbert, lemon, aqua, and sparkly gold.

Oh Joy! Beverage Buffet Collection

Oh Joy! Dinner Party Collection

Oh Joy! Party Buffet Collection

Oh Joy! Cake Toppers, Oh Joy! Ice Bucket, Oh Joy! Goblets

Check out the entire line over at Target and get all your spring-time party essentials.

Seattle Bridal Shower

I'm a little late in posting all of these but I recently made my way back home to Seattle for my west-side bridal shower. My Maid of Honor (MOH) put together an amazing party for me and my closest friends and family. (Unfortunately I only had my camera phone with me (sorry!), so these photos will have to do, blurriness and all.)

For the mixed crowd we had beverage choices of wine, champagne, and sparkling cider. The wine bottles came complete with pictures from my engagement shoot. How cute are these??! 

There weren't too many sweets, thankfully, because this girl has to fit into a wedding dress quite soon. However, my sweet-tooth was indulged by these little delights - mini gluten free spiced cupcakes. I'm a true lover of cupcakes and my MOH and her mom are the most amazing bakers. Most guests had no idea they were even gluten free... the true test of good baker!

The game table. We played a couple bridal shower games right before I opened gifts. The first game: everyone had to write down their favorite or most memorable memory of us, and then I had to guess whose memory it was. It was so fun to hear what people thought was their favorite memory of our times together. Such a fun and heartfelt game.

The second game: my lovely MOH, Ashley, had contacted the fiance ahead of time with a questionnaire about our relationship. Questions like how we met, how many kids we wanted, who wore the pants in the relationship, etc. Corey wrote down all his answers and I, separately, had to do the same. Ashley then read the answers that we had both written down - out loud - to the delight of most the guests! Some of the answers we had written down were the same and so spot-on (go us!), others... not so much. Ha!

P.S. Yes, that cute little girl in the blue dress is me... I love that picture so much.

My beautiful bridal shower spread! A perfect winter wonderland-themed party accented by purple and silver. Ashley did such a beautiful job and I couldn't have been more excited to spend time celebrating with the people that mean the most to me. I'm a lucky girl to have two coasts full of people I love. I can't wait for the celebrations to continue!

Spring 2014 Must-Haves

This weekend was such a tease. Nice, sunny weather but now we're back to temps being in the 20s here in NY. As all new yorkers are, I am so over the winter. This year has been brutal and I'm begging for spring to actually, well, spring! This year, spring is going to be all about the casual yet chic. Distressed denim has made a serious come-back and I'm all about pairing them with flats. I don't go anywhere without a water bottle (have to stay hydrated) and have you seen Bobbi Brown's spring line? It's enough to make you dream of all the sunsets and tanned skin to come! What are you craving for spring?

 

Paige Denim Jimmy Jimmy Crop/ Naomi Destructed, Tory Burch Desi Pump, Kate Spade 'Clean Slate' Bangle, Ray-Ban Foldable Clubmaster, Diptyque scented candle, Blomus 1L Water Carafe