Brandy Saldana – Page 21 – Will Bake for Shoes

Outfit
...
- Work

Tropical Winter

Posted on January 21, 2015by Brandy Saldana

Trench Coat elevenses by Anthropology | Black Lindsey Tunic Blouse DANIEL RAINN via LE TOTE | Floral Midi Skirt The Factory | Green Flower Statement Necklace Poshmark | Rose Gold Watch Marc by Marc Jacobs (here) | Red Suede Ulltra Pumps Steve Madden | Black Satchel Bag JUSTFAB | Brown Sunglasses Diane von Furstenberg (here) | Le Rouge Carmin Escarpin 305 Givenchy (here) |It’s been more than a week since my last post, and I will say although I have plenty of outfit posts to chose from, I have just not had the chance to go through and upload them. I don’t every feel like I don’t have enough content to post, but at the end of the day I just like to dress up and share what I wear if I can. I feel like I have also been really busy as I attempt to accomplish some of my short-term resolutions, like letting go of the old. My apartment is looking better thanks to the focus I’ve been putting into it and I expect to add a ton of items to my Poshmark closet, pretty soon too.
This outfit shoot is from early Fall, but it makes a great transitional look for Spring. Winters in California are not too bad, and although I like to wear winter coats and boots, I can’t get enough of my skirts. This particular skirt is one-of-a-kind and a sample from The Factory by the Evans Group in SF. I came as a two-piece outfit with a bandeau style top in the same fabric. I suspect it would make a great outfit for a day on a cruise ship too, and if all goes well with my money saving goals, I might be on a cruise this summer.
For a more appropriate look for the office, I paired my brightly patterned skirt with a black top c/o LE TOTE. I have been loving all the pieces they’ve sent me to try on and it has been a little dangerous since it makes it too easy to buy clothes, but also a great way to shake up your wardrobe. The simplicity of the top allowed for me to layer my green flower statement necklace I scored on +Poshmark a few months ago. I love how it tied in with green from my skirt.
Hope you are having a great week (it’s Wednesday, Whoot Whoo!) I can’t wait to share my review of another fun product in my next post. If you want a hint, you can take a peak here.
Until next time,

Outfit
...
- Work

Cupcake Liner Skirt

Posted on January 13, 2015by Brandy Saldana

Black Princess Coat Steve Madden | Black Mitchell Blouse Glamorous via LE TOTE | Black-and-Tan Cupcake Liner Skirt ModCloth | Black Suede Secret Wedge Boots Steve Madden (here) | Black Cedar Street Elissa Bag Kate Spade (here) | Scarf Marc Jacobs x Neiman Marcus x Target (similar here) | Gold Wrap Leather Tassel E. Kammeyer Accessories (here) | Braided Pave Bangle in Black House of Harlow 1960 via Rocksbox | Gold Nadia Arrowhead Bracelet Adia K via LE TOTEMy first outfit post of the new year! I’ve been preoccupied with reviews but I finally have had a chance to go through some outfit photos I took a couple of weeks ago. I am wearing a new skirt I found on Modcloth and while I love the skirt I still have mixed feelings about the site. I ordered 3 necklaces and returned them all because two of them were damaged during transit (and the other just didn’t work with my style.) So far I am really happy with this skirt: It is super cute with the pleats and really does resemble a cupcake liner. I figured this would really suit me because it is pretty neutral and because of how fun the shape is.
I bought another skirt from Modcloth which I still need to take a photo wearing, but after only two wears I noticed a small hole. I wonder if it is just bad luck for me because after reading other reviews it feels like everyone else has had a pleasant experience and are satisfied with it. I usually don’t go through this much stress shopping online, but all your purchases can’t always go smoothly. Luckily they seem to have a pretty good exchange policy even after 30 days, so if I can’t fix it maybe I’ll get another one.
At least my LE TOTE subscription has been going smoothly. How cute is this black blouse? It would look great with skinny jeans, but I just had to pair it with this skirt. I am also really stoked to be wearing my suede wedges I scored at DSW last November. I always visit their boot section which is always slightly dangerous for this shoe lover. I have worn them plenty of times before, but never got around to taking an outfit photo with them. This year I am hoping to wear all of my clothes at least once. I really stuck to a dark color palette, but don’t worry, I’ll be incorporating some color soon.
Hope your week is off to a great start!
Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER |

Beauty
...
- Makeup

The Gift of Beautiful Brows – Billion Dollar Brows Best Sellers Kit Review

Posted on January 10, 2015by Brandy Saldana

Holiday shopping being over with, it is time to take advantage of items on sale that didn’t quite make it under your tree this year. One of my favorite things to buy once sales are over are makeup kits exclusively for the holidays. They are typically a great stocking stuffer, but they are also a great for you to try out a new brand of makeup for a great value.

Case-in-point, I had a chance to try the Best Sellers Kit by Billion Dollar Brows. Billion Dollar Brows is a company I have heard of before but never ventured into trying out their products. I knew of their Brow Boost, which helps grow out thin eyebrows, but I have always had thick/full eyebrows, so I never needed to use that. Now that I have bangs I never really pay attention to how they look except for the occasional reshaping. I was pleasantly surprised by the Best Sellers Kit because it came with items I could actually use for my thick brows.

The Best Sellers Kit promises to “work with all hair colors and skin tones,” but I would also add it works regardless of how thick (or thin) your eyebrows are. This kit comes with 5 pieces at a $73 value for only $34.99 and include: The Universal Brow Pencil, Brow Duo Pencil, Smudge Brush, Brow Gel and a Sharpener.

Here is a breakdown of the pieces and what their functions are as described by the Billion Dollar Brows’ website:

Billion Dollar Brows Universal Brow Pencil – a unique product that will set you free from the headache of finding cosmetics that match your hair color. Universal Brow Pencil is a mechanical, self-sharpening pencil which goes on smooth and natural for all hair colors and skin tones.

Billion Dollar Brows Brow Gel Clear – an effective formula that will lock in your look, giving your eyebrows a long-lasting, radiant glow while keeping them perfectly in place all day. It’s the perfect finishing touch for giving your brows a polished, perfectly manicured look. Plus, it is a guarantee the Brow Gel never flakes.

Billion Dollar Brows Brow Duo Highlighter – an amazing and unique two in one highlighter and concealer. With this innovative pencil you can get picture perfect brows. Brow Duo Highlighter allows you to highlight your brow bone to add gorgeous definition and warmth. Works with any skin tone. Plus, for those on-the-go touch ups, a handy universal concealer to the opposite end of the pencil.

Billion Dollar Brows Smudge Brush – an essential item for applying Brow Highlighter. This flat, synthetic brush is the ideal mate for applying creamy cosmetics like our Brow Duo Pencil. Get your smudge on!

Billion Dollar Brows Pencil Sharpener – perfect for your Duo Highlighter.

Overall, the kit was a great value with some very useful products. My favorite was the Brow Gel because I know one of my bigger issues is having slightly messy eyebrows, but the gel keeps everything in its place. It was also light and did not feel super sticky. The Universal Brow Pencil was also very easy to use. The Brow Duo Pencil (concealer/highlighter) I have not had a chance to use yet since my eyebrows are in need of some tweezing before I decide to highlight their shape. The holidays can get busy, so I am hoping to find some time to shape them before New Years Eve.
You can find the kit at Billion Dollar Brows website http://billiondollarbrows.com and you can enjoy Free Shipping since your order will be more than $30. Take a look at their other great products as well.

Food

Project Juice Cleanse Review

Posted on January 6, 2015by Brandy Saldana

The New Year is upon us and one of top resolutions on people’s lists is to be healthier. That means a lot of people at the gym this month, but also a time where people really think about the food that they eat. I know I was starting to feel a little blah from all the Holiday food and felt like I needed to reset my body. I tried out a Juice Cleanse for a day c/o Project Juice and thought now would be a good time to share my experience of that day. It just might be what you need to kick start your healthy lifestyle for the year.

My one day cleanse (Beginner Can You Kick It?) included:
1 EZ-Green with Lemon & Ginger1 Swizz Beetz1 The Master1 EZ-Green1 D-Tox1 Almond Mylk

9:02 am – Drink my first juice (EZ-Green) while Armando tortures me with a hearty breakfast of sausage, eggs, beans and rice. Juice tasted most like celery – but was not too jealous of Armando’s breakfast.
9:29 am – Finished EZ-Green juice. As I drank it I got used to the flavor. Believing that it was good for me helped me power through it too.
11:05 am – Started to crave come food. Decided it was time for my next juice – Swizz Beats. This juice was a lot tastier than the first juice and it might be because it tasted sweeter. (Note: this cleanse had a lot of sugar.)
12:05 pm – Finished my juice and focused on giving myself a mani to keep my hands busy from running to the pantry.
1:13 pm – Wanted to open the pantry for a snack but resisted the temptation. Decided it might be a good idea to try some of the Detox tea. It was super sweet which made me feel better about doing the cleanse. (Note: This tea is recommended by Project Juice to drink throughout the cleanse.)
2:44 pm – Tasted The Master after returning home from picking up my dry-cleaning across the street. The Master is alkaline water, lemon, lime, ginger, agave and cayenne. The cayenne definitely has a kick, but I was not a fan.
3:36 pm – Still working my way through The Master Juice. Not easy drinking this one.
3:54 pm – Halfway through The Master juice. Sorting through photos on the desktop for my next post, so I guess this is also distracting.
4:52 pm – Finally finished The Master juice. Cannot believe it took me this long to finish it, but I have been pretty productive with my photo sorting and prepping blog posts. Will probably need to start my next Juice soon.
5:20 pm – Feeling hungry, must…. grab…. next juice! Opened my fridge and my sense of smell picked up the other tantalizing/tempting options in the fridge. Quickly grabbed the EZ-Green juice I needed to drink next and went back to the computer to focus on a blog post.
5:47 pm – Halfway through this bottle and off to run some quick errands.
6:24 pm Arrived at Cinnaholics to pick up 2 cinnamon rolls for Armando before his Groupon expired. This part of my day was pure torture, but I had my EZ- Green juice to drink on my way back as I held on to the boxes of Cinnamon roll goodness.
8:00 pm Finished the rest of the D-Tox juice. So far this was my favorite of all the juices and I would definitely buy this one again. It was sweet and I could not believe it was actually good for me despite the amount of sugar it has.
8:18 pm – Started the Almond Mylk and it is a lot more appetizing than the green juices. I am proud of myself for making it a whole day without breaking down and rushing to the kitchen to stuff my face with junk food. I think of this as I hear Armando eating cereal.
8:25 pm – Completed a blog post and wonder what I will do next when I finish my Almond Mylk.
9:50 pm – Finished last bits of Almond Mylk and prepared for bed. Stomach still feels slightly empty, but won’t be grabbing anything solid to eat until tomorrow morning.

I was very proud of myself for completing the cleanse but more so for my will power. I will note that there are no proven facts that suggest a cleanse is good for you, but nothing says it is terrible for you either. I think one day was a good way to reset my body and a good way to test out my will power. It might build some better habits, like reaching for fruit instead of a pastry in your break room at work and hopefully healthier habits follow that. I appreciated that Project Juice had a resource page on their site for a newbie like me to go while I tried out my first cleanse. Much like running a marathon, their is some prep involved to ease into a cleanse so you don’t fail, but one day isn’t so bad (although I might not do it again since I didn’t like The Master.)

Project Juice is a San Francisco based company that cold-presses their juices and nut mylks and uses fresh and locally-sourced ingredients. You can find their juices in SF or shop their juices online here.
Have you tried a juice cleanse before? Let me know how your experience was and if you would do it again.

Holiday
...
- Outfit

Holiday Cheer

Posted on December 31, 2014by Brandy Saldana

White Princess Coat Steve Madden (available in black here) | Black Silk Blouse Diane von Furstenberg | Red Midi Skirt Express | Cheers Necklace and Gift Bow Earrings Kate Spade | Buckle Down Bracelet in Gold Urban Gem via Rocksbox | Gold Leather Triple Wrap Tassel Bracelet E. Kammayer Accessories (here) | Black Patent Ulltra Pumps Steve Madden | Lipstick: Le Rouge GRENAT INITIE 307 Givenchy (here) |
Happy New Year!
Today I thought I’d share my outfit from Christmas Day instead of doing a recap of my favorite outfits of the year. This outfit is formal enough for a Christmas Eve dinner, but also could work for a New Year’s Eve party. I really love the red midi skirt. It is from Express, and while it isn’t available online, I found it in stores. I had a little bit of a shopping spree at Express and Kate Spade this last month and while I bought items for other people, I grabbed quite a few things for myself. The adorable earrings and necklace are some of the other goodies I snagged for myself.
Although I like making resolutions on my birthday more so than for the New Year, I have come to terms that it might not be a bad idea to reinforce the one’s I made:
1) Be better with my body – I have taken different classes, most related to dance, so I am at least making that effort. I still have not found a workout routine to stick with, but there is at least some progress in this department.
2) Know when to let go – A lot has been entering my apartment, but luckily I am also making progress in getting rid of things. I am happy to say my apartment is organized, but there are still a lot of things waiting to go, either to be sold on Poshmark or donated/recycled.
3. Make others smile – I feel I made a lot of people happy this month by doing something very simple. I made cupcakes for a 30th birthday party of a good friend and for the ladies at Poshmark, I helped locate a venue for our office Holiday Party, I sent out Chritmas Cards and gave people close to me gifts. Although I know I don’t need to give everyone a gift, I felt really happy showing people I was thinking of them. I am grateful for the people in my life and during this time of the year I especially want to show it.
I am doing pretty well with most of the goals I made for myself, but the damage I did holiday shopping will need to be addressed with the resolution of paying off the credit card I used and really sticking to a tight budget with very little room to shop. Although it is something I like to do, I really need to focus on my health and spend less time shopping from home. I might need to give myself an extra challenge with my current wardrobe and make an attempt to wear everything at least once (excluding prom dresses.) It might be the necessary push I need to also let go of more items and potentially make some extra cash off of items I am still holding on to.
Thanks for sticking around with me until the end of 2014. Looking forward to sharing more outfits, recipes and reviews on the blog and to accomplish these goals I’ve set for myself for 2015. What are your goals for the new year? Let me know!
Until next year,

Everyday
...
- Outfit
  - Weekend

All About Them Boots

Posted on December 24, 2014by Brandy Saldana

Tan Leather Jacket American Rag, Teal Ruffle Sweater Chloe, Black Pants, Beanie and Chain Bracelet Forever 21 | Spike Bracelet Forever 21 (similar here) | Grey Studded Leather Tassel Bracelet E. Kammeyer Accessories (here) | Silver Watch Marc by Marc Jacobs | Holt Tan Spike Booties Circus by Sam Edelman (here)Merry Christmas Eve!
I have finally beginning to enjoy the cold weather with these fun booties I found at DSW in San Francisco. I bought them at a discount and with my $10 DSW Reward Certificate, so these were practically free. When it isn’t raining, I am wearing these boots. So far I have only worn them with pants, but I am betting they will look just as great with a dress. They have been the perfect bootie for me thanks to their neutral color and fun spikes, and I have worn them recently during my shopping trips when it isn’t raining.
I am also excited to debut one of my new favorite pieces of jewelry with this outfit: the grey studded leather tassel bracelet. I bought this beauty during PoshFest from Emily Kammeyer, also known as accessoriesgal on Poshmark. She makes handmade jewelry and accessories and sells them on her website that you can shop here for more tassel wrap bracelets in a variety of colors and styles.
I am excited to be home for the holidays and to make and enjoy some tasty treats. I’ve completed my Christmas shopping and gift wrapping early this year, so no need for last-minute shopping on my part today (although I might peek on some sales online.) How will you be spending your Christmas Eve?