On Trend: summertime

I recently picked up the June 2012 issue of People magazine's StyleWatch and, while using its pages to make my elliptical workout feel shorter, was delighted to encounter a number of summery trends that I've either already seen among my fellow bloggers or have tried myself.  I felt kind of awesome perusing the articles with the knowledge that I have a leg-up for summer fashion and beauty!  Here are some of the examples I'm talking about.

1.  Asymmetrical earrings.  You may remember me gushing about my pair of Fynn earrings, custom made for me by Roots & Feathers?  Yeah.  I love them.  And so does People StyleWatch.  :)

 { asymmetrical earrings by Roots & Feathers }

2.  Neon nails.  I think it's pretty obvious from my nail polish board on Pinterest and all the Mani Monday link-ups you see around here that I'm obsessed with lacquer and have seen plenty of awesome examples of this summertime Day-Glo trend!

3.  Bold wedges.  I've been rocking my Blowfish Timos for a few weeks now and I'm smitten.  They definitely offer a bold pop of color and still manage to be super-comfy!  How do you do it, Blowfish?!

4.  Polka dot jeans.  I saw Shannon in these a few weeks ago and was delighted to see the same pair in People StyleWatch shortly thereafter!  Way to rock the coolest denim, Shannon!  Jamie also donned some amazing polka dot pants (albeit not denim, still awesome) here.

{ Shannon Heart's, Emma Roberts, and Taylor Swift in polka dot jeans }

5.  Ikat print tanks.  I own three of them.  From Target.  Super comfy.  Enough said. 

6.  Denim shirts.  Caroline rocks her fave denim button-up all over her blog, and she's clearly ahead of the fashion curve on this one!  I'm also loving Shannon's and Dana's outfit posts including a denim shirt with some sweet floral details.  Nice work.  :)

 { Dana of Wonder Forest and Caroline of Sew Caroline rocking the denim shirt trend }

7.  Global-print scarves.  Scarves can be tricky in the summertime; I don't usually want ANYTHING on my neck in the heat.  But lightweight, breezy versions of my favorite accessory are hitting summer 2012 pretty hard in some awesome tribal prints, like this one I recently scored in LA. Amy of At the Pink of Perfection also does an awesome summer scarf in a great global print here!

8.  Boat shoes.  I saw Nichole wearing a new pair of metallic Sperry Top-Siders and was instantly jealous; I was ecstatic to find their budget-friendly relatives at Target.  Oh Target, how I love you... be on the lookout for these in an upcoming Anna Delores outfit post!

 { Nichole Robertson of Little Brown Pen blogged about her new metallic Sperry Top-Siders }

9.  Floral shorts.  I'm still working on losing enough weight to feel comfortable in short-shorts again, but Sandy looks amazing in a super-cute floral print.  She seemed hesitant to go for it with this trend, but I think she dazzles in this adorable pair!

10.  Easy dresses.  Julie Ann wore this amazing little Ruche number to a recent lunch date with fellow bloggers Gina and Tammy.  I was supposed to be there too, but practicing my wedding photography took over my Saturday.  We're setting up another date soon, ladies!

{ Sandy's floral shorts and Julie's lovely dress }

I'd like to give my blogger community a collective pat on the back.  We obviously know what we're doing (not even a smidge of sarcastic narcissism there!).  ;)

Shabby Apple GIVEAWAY and discount!

I could not be more excited to announce this giveaway!  The amazing Internet shop Shabby Apple and I have teamed up to bring Anna Delores readers a GREAT prize to celebrate the official arrival of summer: a $50 gift certificate to splurge on goodies from the Shabby Apple online store!  EEP!

Here is just a teeny, tiny peek at the incredible wares available via Shabby Apple.  Proceed with caution!  You won't make it out without some serious yearning and the urge to shop.


Shabby Apple has some of the CUTEST dresses and accessories around, plus plenty of cute tops, bottoms, and swimwear -- though their commitment is really to dresses!  They offer flirty, stylish dresses a woman can wear comfortably in the office, at a family dinner, AND on a date. Their selection reminds me of a quote from Edith Head: "Your dresses should be tight enough to show you're a woman and loose enough to show you're a lady."  One of Shabby Apple's recent lines, Twin Palms, recalls an era of "Mad Men" fashion nostalgia which, let's face it, has made a distinct comeback (and rightfully so!).


I'm also totally smitten with their newest, super-summery Lighthouse: A Comfort Collection (who doesn't want to look cute AND be comfortable?!).

As if all these aren't reasons enough to start shopping, Shabby Apple also gives a percentage of their proceeds to charitable causes serving women and children.  How cool is that?!

I know, I know -- you're thinking, "enough talk already!  I KNOW Shabby Apple ROCKS, so lemme at the giveaway!"  Your wish is my command.  Real quick first: get 10% off your order, too!  Use discount code "annadelores10off" after filling up your cart.  Now go enter the giveaway!

:: TO ENTER ::
You must "like" Shabby Apple on Facebook.  Leave a comment here telling us you've done so and include your name and e-mail address so we can contact you if you're the winner!  You must also be a follower of {the Anna Delores blog} to qualify for this giveaway.  Not a follower yet?  Hop on board via GFC, Hello Cotton, and/or Bloglovin'.

:: EXTRA ENTRIES :: (you MUST leave a separate comment for EACH additional entry)

1. "Like" Anna Delores on Facebook (what's your Facebook user name?) 
2. Post this giveaway to your Facebook page! (Leave a link in your comment entry.)
3. Follow Shabby Apple on Twitter: @shabbyapple (tell us your Twitter handle)
4. Follow Anna Delores on Twitter: @annadeloresLA (tell us your Twitter handle)
5. Tweet about the giveaway!  Feel free to steal this text: "Win a $50 gift certificate from @shabbyapple on the Anna Delores blog! @annadeloresLA http://tinyurl.com/83louss"  Leave a link to your tweet!  You can repeat this entry once per day!
6. Follow Shabby Apple on Pinterest (tell us your Pinterest username)
7. Follow Anna Delores on Pinterest (tell us your Pinterest username)

:: DISCOUNT ::
Can't wait for the giveaway?  Shabby Apple is offering Anna Delores readers a discount, too!  Use discount code "annadelores10off" after filling up your cart.

FINE PRINT :: One winner selected at random will receive a $50 gift certificate to spend at the Shabby Apple online store.  Giveaway runs for two weeks and will close at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, July 4, 2012.  Entrants must have a U.S. shipping address to be eligible.  This giveaway has no cash value and may not be substituted.  This giveaway is hosted by Shabby Apple and is subject to their terms and conditions.

Good luck! 

 

weekend in review: Instagram

I've been neglecting Instagram recently.  When it first became available for Android, I was all over it like white on rice; after the novelty wore off, I discarded the app like the kid in Toy Story neglected Woody after he got Buzz Lightyear for his b'day (how's that for a ton of similes?).  Wow.

So anyway.  Been trying to get back into the Insta-groove, and I have some fun weekend pics to prove it.

1. Mani Monday \\ 2. Purple flowers in Venice, CA \\ 3. Rad kitchen chalkboard wall \\ 4. My parents' new puppy, Freddy \\ 5. Coveting Target pillows \\ 6. Parsons band at Venice wedding on Saturday \\ 7. My dogs, enthralled by hair styling \\ 8. Me: smiles.

How was YOUR weekend?

 

mani Monday: silver mirror nails {a critique}

I don't remember the first place I saw these, but I've been in love with the look from day one: silver metallic mirror nails.

I've been searching FOR. EV. ER.  for either false nails or polish strips that give me this look.  I've had very little success, even on the Internet. 

FINALLY I came across Minx #1 for at-home application, the do-it-yourself version of the nail effect previously only available in salons.  They were on a lower shelf in my local Ulta store, very unassuming and hidden away.  As soon as I saw the silver gleam, I snatched them from their cardboard display.  I opted for Silver Moons: metallic chrome accented by a silver matte moon.  Ulta also had the gold version of these, which I originally added to my shopping basket in my excitement, but I decided to try just one package to start.

Frankly, I'm glad I only bought one pack, and to be honest, even that seems excessive at this point (considering each mani-pedi package is $18 and I wasn't planning to use the pedi portion).  I still love the effect, and I'm glad I didn't have to cruise over to the salon to get it, but I gotta say, I think Sally Hansen nail strips are a much better bang for the buck -- but Sally doesn't make the silver mirror strips.

Minx #1, the retail version of the salon original, are difficult to apply and super thin, so any imperfections in your nail bed will show right through.  I'm sure this effect is only exacerbated by the unforgiving metallic foil color I selected, but still.  For an $18 DIY, I was hoping for better results.

It looks okay, but as you might be able to tell from my photo above, the finish is uneven and, while that is a symptom of my less-than-perfect nails, I buffed my nail beds before application so I don't know how much better I could've done.  Also, trimming off the extra strip length was troublesome, and you HAVE to file the excess off with a super-gritty file in a downward motion at a 90-degree angle to your nail tip -- this is the only way to successfully trim; back and forth filing doesn't work, nor does a softer file (which I used in hopes of achieving a less ragged finish).  It just takes a long time and produces results that are (literally) a little rough around the edges.  I applied these bad boys about 12 hours ago and they're already starting to peel, too.

I'm also a little disappointed about the "matte moon" thing -- from the look of the package, it looked like the strips were a solid shiny silver so I was surprised to find the little half-moons when I opened them up.  That's partially my lack of attention to detail when making the purchase, though -- I was just so excited to have found them that I didn't read the description that said "Silver MOON."

Perhaps it's obvious at this point, but I won't be buying these again.  I'm keeping my metallic chrome silver moon manicure for now, and I'm glad I got it out of my system!  But I'll be sticking with Sally Hansen strips in the future, thank you very much.  :)

Remember to visit the other awesome Mani Monday bloggers!  Thanks to Heather at Glitter and Gloss & Heather at Just Love.ly Things for hosting!


Link party with Heather & Heather!

WEAR: back to black.

First of (hopefully) many outfit posts in the works... Starting out a little bit (unintentionally) anti-summer: all black.

rosette headband: c/o Rissy Roo's

black kimono dress: Target

black bandeau: Heavenly Couture
black capri leggings: Old Navy

black gladiator sandals: Cathy Jean
floral post earrings: Brooke Medlin
red lace bracelet: branchbound
lip color: NYX Lip Cream in Spicy

For some reason I've really been fighting backyard self-portraits.  I argued with myself that it takes too much time which, let's face it, after I set up the tripod, snap photos with either my remote shutter or self-timer, run back and forth from the camera to make sure the images look halfway decent, load the images on my computer, edit the photos in LR, and compile the post, it kinda DOES take a long time.  But I don't have to do it all the time, right?  And I promise that in the future, I'll get more creative than all-black basics.  Consider this my outfit-of-the-day test run.

P.S. Like my little pooch Mickey with me in that third photo?  He kept following me back and forth from the camera; he couldn't figure out WHAT the heck I was up to.  :)