Zara, Sephora & Marshalls Haul. I Am in Love.

So, it really is Murphy's Law. No really. Today Candice and I headed to the mall for no reason other than to browse and go to Sephora to use the 15% off coupon. Remember a few weeks ago I said I never find what I'm looking for? Well today I was looking for nothing in particular, and ended up coming home with some of my most beloved purchases of all time.

We stopped at Zara on the way to Sephora and I've never been so impressed with their stock. They had so much stuff I loved I actually had to stop myself from buying a few of the items.  I would have to say today was one of my best shopping trips in recent history.

Two of the three items I bought at Zara were pricier...but so versatile that I justified them.

Firstly, here's what I wore shopping (my tried and true Forever 21 Tunic and GAP always skinny destroyed jeans):

This is one of my favorite go-to outfits. To be honest, I usually wear LuluLemon pants and whatever workout top and zip-up I wore to class that morning when I shop, because we tend to shop after Pilates...but today we decided to skip class and wear normal clothes to the mall!

OK, back to the purchases.  I'll start with the most amazing dress ever (ok, I say that about a lot of dresses, but this one makes that list!)  Don't be fooled by the pictures- they don't do it justice. ON, it looks amazing. Flattering, beautiful print, vibrant. It cost $79.50, which is pretty good for a dress like this, IMO. I haven't seen anything like it elsewhere and when I put it on, I felt incredible.

Sigh. So stunning. Candice and I both got this dress because it was just such a must-have.

My next splurge was this tunic for $89.50. I know, that's a lot...and believe me, I debated it over and over. But my love for it won me over...and it's versatility cannot be denied. I can wear it with a slip underneath as a dress, either loose or belted, I can wear it as a swimsuit cover-up, with jeans, with leggings, the list goes on. The print is beautiful and the details are pretty too. Overall I just couldn't part without it. It's one of those pieces where I had to ask myself "are you going to totally regret it if you don't buy this?" the answer was yes.

I just love it. I've been looking for the perfect dress/tunic like this for a very long time but none have ever appealed to me as much as this one...so yay for finally finding one I love! I can't wait to style this in different ways and post pics :) I promise I will!

My final item from Zara is this simple, yet sexy black dress. It has a low back and high neckline and is very fitted. I think it might even be Spanx-worthy (which I don't own.) It cost $29.50.  I really like the way it fits and I don't own anything like it. I think it would look sexy with a pair of heels for a nice dinner date.

So many great purchases make me a VERY happy girl...I even told my husband I won't have to buy clothes for awhile and in a moment you'll see why...(there's more!)

But before I get to my money-saving binge at Marshalls, I'll cover my Sephora purchases and also give you a definite thumbs-down on a certain product I've been wanting for awhile.

I used my 15% Sephora discount to buy: Anastasia Brow Powder in "medium ash" and her eyebrow brush, FRESH lemon lip conditioner and a mini version of Josie Maran's Argan Oil stick.

OK so here's the bad review. I've wanted to purchase Dior's Lip Glow gloss for awhile now but could never justify the $30 price tag. Once I discovered that the gloss makes lips a pretty pink shade (kind of like O-Glow) I was sold because it wasn't just a clear gloss anymore.  So I bought it at Sephora with my 15% off and opened it the moment I got out of the store and happily applied it to my lips. Within seconds Candice said "wow, your lips are super bright pink" and I looked in the mirror and sure enough they were a brighter pink than I'm used to, but it looked cute.  A couple of minutes later I started to feel a tingling sensation on my lips which by the minute turned to a burning sensation. Not good. I know lip plumpers like Too Faced Lip Injection can make your lips feel this way (which I why I never use plumping glosses) but I didn't expect this from the Dior gloss since it is not a plumping gloss. I basically immediately returned to Sephora and though I hated to return it (because I wanted to love it)...I'm also not going to pay nearly $30 for something that HURTS my lips. So I got the FRESH Lemon Sugar Lip Conditioner instead. I will report back on that once I've had the chance to use it more. Anyways, big thumbs down to the Dior Lip Glow, but love many of their other products (in fact, Candice just got their AirFlash foundation and is going to write a review for the blog!)

I also wanted to get Stila's baked eye trio shadows in "Champagne" but they were sold out. I might try another location tomorrow so I can use the discount on it. It has 3 colors and they are all amazingly gorgeous. You'll notice above that I also got MAC's "blanc type" eyeshadow for my quad (the other color is "brun" which I use to line my lower lash line.)

After going to the mall I wanted to stop by Marshalls because I'm looking for decorative and practical accessories for our new West Elm 2 x 2 Console Desk (which I don't want to photograph yet because it has like nothing on it.)

Of course, as always, when you're looking for something you won't find it...but somehow I ventured to the clothing section and of course I was completely stunned by the amazing deals I found...and not only that, I was able to find two cute dresses that I have been looking for everywhere and unable to find for less than $100!

I got these two adorable summer dresses for $14.99 each. They fit perfect and are so versatile. I could wear them with flip flops for running errands during our hot summers or wear them with heels and a chic belt for a dressier look. I love them and the ruffle detail at the bust is flattering and oh-so pretty.

I realize they kind of hang weird, but they look totally fantastic on!

Then I got this dress (also in two colors) for $12.99 each ($12.99!!!!!!!). I actually wore one of them tonight so here is a pic of it on:

Sooo cute! I love the zipper-front and the ruffles. I also got it in black. These are pretty short...so I'd opt to wear them either to the pool, with tights or over skinny jeans, or even tucked into a skirt as a cute top. I like to use too-short dresses as tops sometimes and a good way to do this is to just tuck them into a pencil skirt.

Finally, I got this adorable superlong tee for $7.99

Perfect for workouts or with tights or over skinny jeans since it's long enough to cover my butt!

I did find two cute items for our desk at Marshalls which included this storage basket for $16.99 and the monogrammed mug for $3.99 which will hold pens.

That's everything for my weekend shopping. Did you have as much luck shopping as I did this weekend? 

Also, for anyone interested, I wrote another story for Houston CultureMap. Check it out here! 

Happy weekend!

xoxo,

Veronika.

Forever 21 Haul, OOTD & Ann Taylor

For those of you who don't know, the rodeo is in town right now. We were lucky enough to have a friend score us some tickets into his company's tent for the Saturday night cook-off so we headed over to the rodeo for some good ol' country music and food.

By the time we got there, food was limited, so I had about 5 bites of sausage and a dinner roll. I thought to myself, awesome less calories.

Except a couple of hours later, I stated to feel funny. Nauseous, stomach pains etc. I tried to brush it off because it came and went. We stayed until the end of the cook-off at 11 p.m. and on the taxi ride home I was holding on for dear life praying I wouldn't pass out from the stomach pain.

Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I had some kind of food poisoning, because I ended up just feeling awful all night, but I'll spare you the details.

My husband knew what a tough night I had so he didn't complain once when I asked if we could go to Forever 21 the next morning (today) to do a little accessories shopping (I had a gift card I wanted to use.)

I ended up getting no accessories and a few clothing items, go figure. The last few times I visited Forever 21, I was left feeling quite unsatisfied. I thought a location change might help better my luck so we headed to the Forever 21located in the Pavilions downtown, which is Houston's flagship store.

Here is what I wore today:

Jeans- GAP's destroyed "always skinny"; Racerback tank- Forever 21; Sweater- White House Black Market; Necklace- Tiffany & Co "return to Tiffany" heart w/ Forever 21 key charm on it as well; Flats- Xhilaration at Target. I love the little buttons on the WHBM sweater on the front and sides. Such a cute detail.

One of my Forever 21 purchases was this cute off-white spring jacket, which I put on when I got home so I could take some pictures of it for this post:

I love cropped jackets and especially love the detailing on this one. It's lightweight and perfect for Houston's in-betweenish kind of weather right now.

I've been wanting to add a bit more navy blue to my wardrobe and this cute top fit the ticket:

It's got little hearts on it and a sweet front pocket. The back has a great cut-out too, that makes the top a little more fun and unexpected. It was $24.50 and I got a size medium.

This pretty tiered top caught my eye right away:

It's definitely a top you have to wear a strapless bra with, but that's OK with me. I love it. Perfect with jeans and a cool necklace, or tucked into a skirt with a cardigan over it for work.

It was $27.80 and I got a size medium.

When I saw the ruffle-sleeve top I bought a few weeks ago in off-white in this gorgeous pinky/peach color, I knew I had to have it. I don't oftentimes buy something in more than one color, but this top was too good to pass up:


It looks a lot brighter and peachier in real life. Love this top! My white one is a size small, but they didnt' have any left so I got this one in a medium. It was $15.80, I believe.

It's always hard for me to find a long black tank, so when I saw this super-long one for $12.00 with ruffle/netting detail at the neckline, you know I couldn't pass it up:

I like to wear longer tanks with my skinny jeans and this one is just perfect for that.

My final item, not from Forever 21 which I forgot to post a couple of weeks ago is this gorgeous soft pink blouse from Ann Taylor that I got on sale for $29.99 down from $78.00. I love the big fluffy flower-like detail at the chest area.

It is such a beautiful blouse. The pink is super soft and perfect for spring. I can't wait to wear this top!

Did you go shopping this weekend? Share your steals with me in the comments below!

xoxo,

Veronika.

Seriously, I Promise I'll Stop (Little Haul)

I need to stop shopping. As good, responsible and sale-hungry as I am, I just need to stop shopping. I have everything I need at this point. I broke my Jessica Simpson heels a few weeks ago at work. I tripped on a rug and flew forward out of my shoes which cause the inner and outer side of the shoes to get little slits in them that are now full-on rips so they fall off of my feet.

I tried to find shoes yesterday but I didn't find any I liked. I went to Memorial City mall today and Macy's had lots of shoes on sale so I got one classic black pump (Jessica Simpson) and a pair of Michael Kors Sandals that I've been in love with forever and were finally on sale. At least you could say I needed new shoes. I also had my new watch size-adjusted when I was there! yay!

I actually only own about 10 pairs of shoes total. This doesn't include old grungy flats I don't wear or flip-flops. But maybe 8-10 actual heels/dressier shoes. For someone who loves fashion so much, you'd think I'd be more into shoes (and handbags) but I actually own very little of both. I don't even own one designer bag. I just get something that looks designer-esque at Aldo and call it a day. I do love purses, but I can never bring myself to pay so much for one. I do really love Michael Kors purses, so I might watch out for some of the styles I like to go on sale.

I promised my husband (and myself) no more shopping for at least 2 weeks. The thing is, it's not about the money. It's about treating shopping like a hobby instead of a once-in-awhile treat. I think I'd rather shop less often and feel like I really scored some great stuff than shop every Saturday like it's part of my weekly routine. I don't always buy a lot of things or expensive things, but I just need to focus on accomplishing some of my other goals and use my weekends to do that.

I'd like to start running in Memorial Park, for example. I could do that on a Saturday or Sunday instead of shopping, right?

Right.

Here are the lovely shoes:


And the Michael Kors (oh zippers, how I love you:)


I think both pairs will take me through spring/summer. I usually wear closed-toe shoes in the fall/winter and then open toe in the spring/summer, but if I have meetings with some of our more corporate clients, I like to have closed-toes on hand for that.

I also stopped by at Forever 21 because I had a gift card. I bought one shirt and a tank. The shirt is actually super awesome, and I'm so glad I saw it before almost leaving empty-handed. Once again, I wasn't that impressed with the selections at Forever 21. I think right now the seasons are transitioning and it's just a mish-mash of stuff.


It fits super great and the ruffles on the sleeve are the perfect touch to the otherwise simple tee. Marie Claire magazine has "ruffles" listed as a top Spring 2010 trend, so I think I'm OK to continually buy stuff with ruffles everywhere. (OMG I hope ruffles never go out of style. sigh.) It's a size small and cost $17.50.

I also picked up this purple tank for $4.50. It fits cute. Perfect for the gym. I bought it without trying it on first, so as soon as I got home I threw it on and was impressed with the fit.

Speaking of the gym/workout wear. I am obsessed with Victoria's Secret "The Lacie" panties. OMG. I stopped wearing thongs when the whole boy undie/cheeky craze began (even Cosmo Mag recently declared "The Thong is Over") but let me tell you, The Lacie is not your typical thong. It is the most comfortable one you will ever wear. I absolutely love them and picked up 3 more today. They actually work perfectly under all pants, especially workout pants, you can't detect them at all. I know its weird because they are "sexy" thongs...but I see them as more functional than anything else and wear them to work out. They come in super-cute bright colors too. I believe I heard that they are supposed to be a cheaper version of the "Hanky-Panky" lace thongs.

So that's it...for awhile, I hope.

Do you own a lot of shoes and handbags? I know a lot of women just love to have a lot of shoes...I just try to find ones that are fairly classic so they'll look good with lots of different outfits. Let me know below!

xoxo,

Veronika.

A Little More Shopping- Rosettes, Stila and American Eagle Denim

Well, I pretty much think the picture above says it all. Baby pink. Rosettes galore. I told my husband the sweater was the epitome of who I am as a person. LOL. I got it today at The Limited for (gasp!) regular price. I just loved it too much. The rosettes are large, so a simple camisole is all you need under this pretty sweater. It is crop length. Love it. I can also see it being adorable with pearls.
Baby and nude pinks are supposed to be big for spring, so I'm glad to have gotten a great pink piece to start the season off right! My second purchase was this pretty blouse from Macy's. I believe it was $25.00. It is sheer, so I'll have to wear a camisole under it. I really like the geometric style pattern. It was in the juniors section, which surprised me. Chloe from The Chloe Conspiracy always wears the "Artist" jeans from American Eagle, which look really cute on her, so I popped into AE today to try them on. I know I've been whining about how much I ate on vacation, but I guess I am OK because I was able to get a size 4 (long) jean, which I've never gotten from there before. Here they are: I don't have a pic of me wearing them yet but they fit great. AE jeans tend to stretch like crazy, so the snug fit of them now is perfect. They cost $39.50 which is great for denim. I also stopped by at Sephora to make an exchange, and picked up this cream lip/cheek color by Stila called "petunia." It's a pretty bright pink/peachy color. I've never used cream blush, but I've tried it on my lips already and love it.

The swatch above shoes the pretty warm pinky color. It was kind of a random buy, but I love it. I will try it on my cheeks this week, and report back!

Other than our little shopping trip (my DH got a few things too), today has been a pretty high-energy day.

I once again purged my closet of older clothes I never wear to donate to charity. Then I cleaned and organized to my heart's content. This is my workout clothes drawer!

I want to actually make a Flip video of how I organize my closet, but it needs a little more work before I do that. I need more drawer dividers too.

I also want to thank each and every one of my readers in this entry for being a follower. Today I reached more than 300 followers, so I'm going to celebrate with a contest. I'm actually not certain what the prizes will be yet...I'll have to take a trip to Ulta and see what goodies I find!

Tonight, I will use my Calrisonic for the first time...very excited!

I also have an awesome Motivation Mondays post for tomorrow.

What did YOU buy this weekend? anything exciting? Thanks for sharing your comments with me!

xoxo,

Veronika.