Category Archives: Vacation

Shea Moisture

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Coconut and Hibiscus body butter, dry oil mist and hand & body scrub.

Coconut and Hibiscus body butter, dry oil mist and hand & body scrub.

For the last month or so I have been using these three Shea Moisture products and I can’t say enough good things about each of them. Shea Moisture’s products contain naturally certified organic ingredients, they also take pride in not adding any potentially harmful chemicals such as parabens, paraffin, formaldehyde, propylene glycol, synthetic fragrance, petrolatum and lastly it is not tested on animals.
The Coconut & Hibiscus collection blends an exotic mix of fruit and floral ingredients giving this line the perfect summer island feel. I love anything coconut, so it was ultimately love at first sight. This specific line is said to help remedy some of the most common beauty woes such as dry skin and discoloration. The coconut oil penetrates into the skin leaving it deeply moisturized while the hibiscus flower brightens and tones your complexion. They also have a hair care line (I believe Ari has reviewed some of their products).
How to use:
First use the hand and body scrub all over my body while in the shower (Tip: exfoliating your legs before shaving leaves them feeling extra smooth)
Second I mix a quarter sized amount of the body butter with 2-3 spritz of the dry oil mix together and rub all over my legs, knees, arms pretty much everywhere.
* You do not have to mix the body butter and oil together it’s just my personal preference. The oil on its own leaves an amazing sheen on your body, perfect for a sexy night out. The body butter is thick an creamy leaving your body feeling silky smooth.
By using these three products my skin is left with an abundance of moisture and smelling like a delicious coconut drink.

These products are sold directly on Shea Moisture’s website or your local Target and Drugstore will carry them.

Links to Products:
Body Butter
Hand & Body Scrub
Dry Oil Mist

Happy Summer,
-Gwen

Chiquita Banana

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What a long over due post from me! After coming back from Puerto Rico my sister Gwen has been putting in so much work and has posted so many amazing things. Keeping with that momentum here is an outfit of … Continue reading →

Summer Stash

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Our vacation is officially over! Ari and I are super sad that we are no longer laying on a beautiful beach in Puerto Rico, alas reality has kicked in.
I wanted to talk more in detail about one of my recent purchases at Sephora, by the title of this post I am sure you all know I am referring to the Summer Stash makeup kit. This is the absolute perfect little set you can take along for travel or if your purse is small and you aren’t able to fit your normal sized products. Below are swatches and detailed explanations of each item’s function, lets get started!

Summer Stash $45 (worth $123)

Summer Stash $45 (worth $123)

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The makeup bag included a Urban Decay all nighter makeup setting spray, Make up forever aqua eyes waterproof eyeliner, Stila foil finish eyeshadow in Kitten, Deborah Lippmann nail lacquer in Mermaid’s dream, Josie Maran coconut watercolor cheek gelee, Nars travel size bronzing powder in the color Laguna, Buxom divine goddess luminizer in the color venus, O.C.C stained gloss in the color new wave and lastly a Marc Jacobs mini lash lifter mascara.

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From left to right: Buxom Luminizer, O.C.C lip stain, Stila foil eyeshadow, Nars laguna bronzer (which doesn't show u on my hand now that I have a tan) and Makeup forever's aqua eyeliner

From left to right: Buxom Luminizer, O.C.C lip stain, Stila foil eyeshadow, Nars laguna bronzer (which doesn’t show up on my hand now that I have a tan) and Makeup forever’s aqua eyeliner

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The products above were either hard to swatch, in liquid form or I haven’t had the chance to try them out. I will say that I was not a fan of the Josie Maran cheek gelee, not sure if my skin is too pigmented for it but there was hardly any color payoff when I tried it. Also the Marc Jacobs Mascara was a bit flaky on me, it is a gel form so I am guessing that’s what caused it not to stick to my lashes. The Urban Decay all nighter spray is a product I have used before and loved and lastly I have not tried the Deborah Lippmann polish but I am sure I will love to use it as an accent nail color.

The essentials for my trip were the Urban Decay all night setting spray which worked great for those hot and sweaty days, the Nars laguna bronzer which I only used the first few days before my tan, the Buxom luminizer for a quick cheek bone highlight and lastly the O.C.C lip stain which was a perfect bright pink.

Even though there were two products I wasn’t a huge fan of I still believe the kit was a good deal and would definitely purchase something like this again.

Hope this mini review helped any of you thinking of purchasing this kit or any of the full-sized products.

I’ll leave you with this quick shot of the beach we were able to capture, because it’s the beach and who doesn’t love the beach.

Isla Verde, Puerto Rico

Isla Verde, Puerto Rico

Until next time,
-Gwen

Sephora Summer Stash

Gwen packs for Puerto Rico

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Hey Everyone! So as you previously read my sister and I are going on a very much needed trip. We are so excited to see each other and will hopefully be able to snap a few photos of us together.
Although my packing technique is not as organized as Ari’s I’d like to believe that it is also a good method when trying to figure out what to bring along with you on a trip. So what I generally do is look at all of my products (hair, skin, makeup) and say to myself “will I really use this?” if my answer is no I obviously keep looking, if my answer is yes I place that item aside. Now another thing to consider when traveling is the climate of your destination as well as the duration of your stay. I snapped a few photos of what I will be taking for this trip (Sorry they are not tucked in neatly in my suitcase, I still haven’t officially packed Yikes!)

Suncare

Suncare

First order of business is of course suncare! Sunscreen/Sunblock is very much needed when out and about in the sun all day.

Personal Hygiene

Personal Hygiene

I know that most hotels and resorts provide lotion, shampoo conditioner and all that good stuff, but I personally like to bring my own things. I normally just buy small clear bottles and pour the product in.

Hair Care

Hair Care

Because we are going to be in the pool or beach most of the time, curly hair will be the way to go.

Skincare

Skincare


My skin hasn’t been behaving lately so I am taking a small bottle of acne cleanser and of course can’t forget my dirt, oil and makeup removing wipes.

Makeup

Makeup


This may seem like a lot of products but I did add a few items for the nights when we get all dolled up for a night on the town. My daytime essentials will most likely be my cc cream (which has spf), mascara, my brow wiz, a peachy blush and a lip butter or stain. Also check out a great travel piece for storing small items (like makeup) that Ive mentioned in a previous post from Sonia Kashuk. It is affordable and available at any target near you in varying prints and styles.

Hopefully this helped all of you traveling this summer to get an idea of what you should or shouldn’t bring with you.

Puerto Rico here we come!
Hasta Luego
-Gwen

*If you are curious about any product I posted or would like a review please comment down below. Thanks a bunch!
Xo

Pack w/ Ari for Puerto Rico!

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So as some of you may already know my sister/co blogger and I live in two different states and don’t get to physically see each other that often (except for holidays and such). We have decided to take a “sisters” trip this weekend for some fun and relaxation in Puerto Rico! I am so excited to get away for a little bit and thought it would be awesome to share some packing tips for our 4 day, 3 night extravaganza. I will be going over some ways to best utilize your clothing and Gwen will go in further on another post on your makeup and hygiene products.

  1. First things first, assess how many days you will be gone and what type of climate you will be in. Google is your best friend on this matter.
  2.  If you don’t already have a set itinerary, have a general idea of what type of events/ outings you will be attending ie. mostly casual, conservative historical sites, festive night outs, or mostly beach bum days etc
  3.  Write down your basic clothing essentials so that you wont forget them and can easily check mark them once they are packed away (undies, bras, socks etc – Here is a List I like using for myself.
  4. Start with each day and run down the list of pre planned (or made up) activities that you will go through. For instance mine looks something like this.

    Untitled

    I am repeating many items for sake of saving room in my carry on (my sandals, purses, makeup, pjs just to name a few). I then take photos of everything laid out on my phone for reference. This process helps me not over pack and bring exactly what I need for each day keeping in account all different types of scenarios that may occur. I am so excited for my trip and I hope this helped anyone who struggles packing a bag (I still do sometimes). Stay tuned for detailed outfits of the day from this trip!

    78

    6

    5

    Love

    Ari

To Tokyo

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Memorial weekend has come and gone and with it came an opportunity to get away, perhaps relax and enjoy family and friends company. I don’t typically do the usual BBQ setting but this is my first year being a godmother and attending such family oriented festivities. Memorial weekend brought me down to Miami to visit him and also get the chance to reconnect with old pals for some fun in the sun. I love the combination of black, white and leopard and felt inspired by my new crop top from H&M. This look is similar to an old club look of mine and can be recreated with different pieces to convey the same effect. The crop mesh top with Tokyo emblazoned on the front can be paired as a I did here with a high waist skirt or even jogging pants for a more sporty look. The striped skirt and leopard heels are both old season Forever 21. Links & options down below!

leopard,ootn, ootd, forever 21, hm, h&m, stripes, mixing prints, fblogger, blog. fashion

 

I purchased the top in store only two weeks ago but it is not on the site! Check your local H&M and you may score the exact one. Here are some similar options

Here, Here, Here, Here & Here

Similar Heels- Here, Here and Here

Similar Skirts- Here & Here

Down Home Style

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Staying on the short and sweet trend, this look was created somewhere from the depth of my little soul where I still am that regular Spanish girl from Queens but with a twist! I love these loose-fitting sweat pants with … Continue reading →

Sonia Kashuk Organized Travel Case

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Hey everyone! As my sister said in her previous post its been a while! Summer time is all about having fun and enjoying the awesome weather. I myself have been doing just that in addition to embarking on two mini … Continue reading →

Day to Night Looks

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Im sad to say these are the last Vegas trip looks I have. I had so much fun and took a lot of time to put together each individual outfit for each day. I didnt want to over pack (even though I was still 5 pounds over the limit of 40) so I took what I had and improvised by switching up key items and thus creating entirely new looks by just switching one or two pieces. During one of the last days, I wore this casual white and black celine inspired t-shirt purchased on etsy.com. Everyone from fashion bloggers to rihanna is rocking it and I love how you can dress it up or down. I paired it with high waist vintage calvin klein shorts that my sister found at Buffalo Exchange last year on my home visit to NY and these target faux leather ankle boots that resemble jefrrey campbell/Dr.martens ones for less than half the price! Red lips and my Boy London snap back to top me off and I was good to go!

Faux leather with Elastic Insert
Mossimo Kolee Boot- Target
(Assorted Colors)Gold "Boy" Logo Snap Back-Boy London           Gold “Boy” Logo Snap Back-Boy London

Snap Back- Boy London, Asos
Golden Cross Earring- Forever 21

Later on that night I attended a Pin Up show that the hotel I stayed at features. I simply changed my top, removed the hat and slicked my hair back into a ponytail. I have featured this black crop top with faux leather sleeves before on my blog (worn on new years), it was purchased at love culture. The switch up gave me a little extra “edge” for the night. I enjoyed the show thoroughly as it featured so many beautiful ladies in my favorite retro attire! It was everything I expected a Vegas show to be and so much more.

Until next time!

-Ari

Target Faux Leather Boots

Celine T-Shirt

Boy London Snapback

Boy London

Dr. Martens Version

Jeffrey Campbell Boots